The Venturer Program: Tour of the planets

[Angelo Kerman]

I'm guessing ANSI/Stanley knows how to play chess and Global Thermal Nuclear War.

[RogueMason]

CHAPTER 44: TWENTY MINUTES OF TERROR

Bob: “We've just hit the top layer of atmosphere, commencing aerobrake.â€Â

Buzz: “Hold on everybody, we're coming in pretty quick here.â€Â

Lengas: “Hull integrity is falling slightly but the rate of decrease is increasing.â€Â

Bob: “External temperature exceeding 3000K.â€Â

Lengas: “Damn it, how much further do we have to periapsis?!â€Â

Bill: “57 seconds... hang on, we're dipping too low! If we maintain this trajectory, we'll de-orbit!â€Â

Buzz: “Crap, we'll have to fire the engine.â€Â

Lengas: “NO, DON'T!â€Â

Buzz: “Oh frak, the two minute thing!â€Â

Lengas: “Exactly! We won't have anywhere near enough time to circularise the orbit with the engine in the condition it is if we fire it up now!â€Â

Bill: “But if we don't burn now, we'll crash into Laythe!â€Â

Lengas: “Son of a –“

Bob: “We're screwed!â€Â

Bill: “Damn it! Buzz, fire up the engine!â€Â

Lengas: “No!â€Â

Bill: “We'll make orbit on RCS if we have to! Buzz, now!â€Â

Buzz: “I'm already on it!â€Â

Bob: “External temperature peaking at 5022K, and the comms are getting fried again!â€Â

Lengas: “Hull integrity at 61%!â€Â

Bill: “Frak!â€Â

Several alarms start wailing.

Buzz: “This isn't good!â€Â

Bob: “You think?!â€Â

Lengas: “Bill, how much longer do we need to burn until we're safely out of the atmosphere?â€Â

Bill: “Looks like 1 minute and 17 seconds, tops.â€Â

Lengas: “That's cutting it bloody close seeing as we've had it the engine on for 30 seconds already!â€Â

Bill: “Oh Kod.â€Â

Lengas: “Wait, I've got an idea!â€Â

Lengas unfastens himself from his seat and jumps up to the nearest handhold, getting pulled towards the back of the ship by the acceleration.

Lengas: “Whoa, frak!â€Â

Bill: “What the Kerbin are you doing, you idiot?!â€Â

Lengas: “I'm suiting up!â€Â

Bill: “You're what?!â€Â

Lengas: “You heard me! As soon as this burn is done, I'm going out back to fix this engine, even if it's only a temporary fix!â€Â

Bill: “Lengas, there's plasma being expelled at 1,000,000 Kelvin from that exhaust! Even given a few minutes to cool off, you'll still be working in temperatures like that found within the Sun!â€Â

Lengas: “Don't think I don't know that , Bill! I'm the engineer after all!â€Â

Lengas starts clambering down the handholds on the ceiling of the ship while more alarms fire up and sparks explode from a few cables.

Lengas: “Geez, the ship's falling apart! How much longer?!â€Â

Buzz: “10 seconds and we're out of the atmosphere!â€Â

Bob: “We're clear!â€Â

Bill: “Lengas, we have 16 minutes to apoapsis!â€Â

Lengas: “Got it!â€Â

Lengas finally reaches the docking section, the artificial gravity from the burn now gone. He starts equipping his suit.

Lengas: “Bob, I could really use your help if we've only got a quarter of an hour!â€Â

Bob: “You want me to get inside the nozzle of a potentially volatile fusion engine?!â€Â

Lengas: “There's no 'potentially' about it, that thing is a ticking time bomb if we don't do something about it!â€Â

Bob: “Craaaap, I'm coming!â€Â

Lengas: “Thanks, and don't forget your tools!â€Â

Bob: “Right!â€Â

Bill: “I'm extending the solar panels, watch out.â€Â

Lengas: “We're not outside yet, so don't worry. How long was that burn?â€Â

Buzz: “1 minute and 14 seconds.â€Â

Lengas: “So that's 120 seconds minus 74... we've got about 46 seconds left of burn time before the core really destabilises. Technically, we could make orbit on that, but there's no frakking way I'm letting you use the engine after this aerobrake!â€Â

Bob: “Where's my suit?â€Â

Lengas: “Here, I pulled it out already. Meet me out there, ok?â€Â

Bob: “Ok.â€Â

Lengas flies through the topside airlock while Bob suits up.

Lengas: “Damn, scorch marks everywhere. We'll have to patch the hull up again.â€Â

Bob: “Oh great...â€Â

Bill: “14 minutes, guys.â€Â

Lengas: “I know, I've got it on my suit's clock.â€Â

Bob: “I wonder when Stanley's coming back online...â€Â

Lengas: “I don't know, but I could really use his help. Bill, could you divert some power to the magnetic confinement shields in the core?â€Â

Bill: “I'm on it... there, done. I hope.â€Â

Lengas: “Looks good, thanks.â€Â

SUIT COMP: [sUIT OXYGEN AT 99%]

Bob: “I'm coming out now. Damn, you were right about the scorch marks...â€Â

Lengas: “No gawking, just get over here, now! Infrared's saying the nozzle temperature is at 100,000K, but the main cooling system should be turning on any second now.â€Â

Bill: “I've just turned it on myself.â€Â

Lengas: “Excellent. Yeah, I can see it, it's already dropping nicely.â€Â

Bob: “Right, I'm here. I'll stick some extra radiators to the outside of the nozzle, if you want.â€Â

Lengas: “Good idea. Ok, I'm going in.â€Â

Bob: “At least give it a minute to cool a bit more.â€Â

Lengas: “No time. My suit should be able to take it for a few minutes, anyway.â€Â

Bob: “Ok...â€Â

Lengas: “First thing's first, we need to take this back plate off. I'll get the screws, you be ready to strap the plate to one of the compression rings back there so it doesn't float away on us.â€Â

Bob: “Got it.â€Â

Lengas: “Here goes nothing...â€Â

Bob: “Why exactly are you taking this plate off?â€Â

Lengas: “I need to get inside and replace some of the coils that have been damaged.â€Â

Bob: “You're actually going right up to a bloody fusion core?!â€Â

Lengas: “It's not like the outer casing of the core's going to be too hot, otherwise the fusion reaction would just break down as too much heat escapes. I'll be fine, seriously. Ok, here comes the plate.â€Â

Bob: “I've got it.â€Â

Lengas: “11 minutes to get this sorted. Bob, grab some coils and replace them as you see fit. Each coil should take about a minute to sort out. There's one cable, and two sets of nuts and bolts for each coil.â€Â

Bob: “Yeah, I see. I'm still not comfortable going inside this thing.â€Â

Lengas: “Chill out a bit, would you?â€Â

Bob: “I'm trying to!â€Â

Lengas: “Good.â€Â

Bill: “H----t goin----here, Lenga----â€Â

Lengas: “I didn't catch that, Bill.â€Â

Bill: “Say ag-----ngas? I didn------ad.â€Â

Lengas: “The core must be disrupting comms. Never mind, let's get this over with. We don't need to replace every single coil right now, just the most damaged ones. There should be ten coils on your side, total, but not all of them will need sorting out, so we've got time, I hope.â€Â

Bob: “I don't know, a good portion of my coils look toast.â€Â

Lengas: “Like I said, not all need replacing right now, just get some of them done and we'll be good.â€Â

Bob: “Ok then, here goes...â€Â

8 minutes later...

Bob: “We've got 2 minutes until we hit the apoapsis, Lengas, we need to go!â€Â

Lengas: “Hang on, I've almost get this one... done! Right, lets move, and don't leave any tools!â€Â

Bob: “Lengas, the back plate for the nozzle!â€Â

Lengas: “Frak! Quick, pass it over and started screwing it back in place!â€Â

Bob: “Here, here!â€Â

Bill: “Guys, wha-'s -oing on out t-ere?? You're ru---ng out of time!â€Â

Lengas: “I know that Bill!â€Â

Bob: “Damn it, I just buckled a screw!â€Â

Lengas: “Don't worry, as long as the plate holds in place for the orbit insertion burn, we can replace them later! I'm done, now let's move!â€Â

Bob: “Aye!â€Â

They both fly back to the airlocks quickly, throwing the toolboxes through as they practically dive inside, not bothering to seal the hatches behind them.

Lengas: “Buzz, now!â€Â

Buzz: “Got it, hang on!â€Â

Bob: “Whoa, I'm slipping out!â€Â

Lengas: “Hang on, I'm coming over!â€Â

Bob: “Ah!â€Â

Lengas: “Gotcha!â€Â

Bob: “Holy frakking crap!â€Â

Lengas: “Kick your hatch shut!â€Â

Bob: “I can't reach it!â€Â

Lengas: “Ok, we'll just have to stay here, then. Don't let go!â€Â

Bob: “You think I'd be so crazy as to do that?!â€Â

Lengas: “I'd hope not!â€Â

Bill: “Orbit insertion complete... damn it, the engine actually held up.â€Â

Buzz: “Phew...â€Â

Bill: “Hey, good work you two. Come back inside and have a break.â€Â

Lengas: “You don't need to tell me twice. Let's seal these airlocks up, shall we?â€Â

Bob: “Yeah, yeah, sure... geez...â€Â

[The Error]

Too close. But hey, at least the landers didn't come loose, or the engine explode, or the structure buckle, or, hell, the primary fuel tank decide it wants to be free.

Yes, that last one happened to me once. Eight of twelve crew survived, thank you escape pods.

[RogueMason]

Too close. But hey, at least the landers didn't come loose, or the engine explode, or the structure buckle, or, hell, the primary fuel tank decide it wants to be free.

Yes, that last one happened to me once. Eight of twelve crew survived, thank you escape pods.

Ooh, nasty. If Enterprise had ever exploded, I could have saved ten crew of the twelve; three in each Lander, and four in the command section. I know the pain of the main fuel tank deciding it must go (it's people need it), but mostly from rockets during launch. Nowadays, my rockets behave and there have been zero fatalities on ascent for a long time

[wasmic]

That last chapter was excellent. Very, very tense. Oh, and how did that ship get approved by Kongress if there's not enough escape pod space for the whole crew? You're a terrible person

[RogueMason]

That last chapter was excellent. Very, very tense. Oh, and how did that ship get approved by Kongress if there's not enough escape pod space for the whole crew? You're a terrible person

Yes,

. And apparently very confident in the ship and its ability to not falter

I'm just going to fire my PR guys for not keeping that tidbit of information a little more secret...

[RogueMason]

CHAPTER 45: DOWN BUT NOT OUT

Several hours later...

-----

Lengas: “I'm really surprised that we haven't blown up yet; most of the coils had some damage to them, but obviously there were others that had burned out completely thanks to the power diversion to the shields.â€Â

Bob: “It's hardly a comforting thought when the chief engineer is surprised that we haven't exploded...â€Â

Lengas: “I'm not here to instill comfort. I just tell it how it is, Bob.â€Â

Bob: “Yeah, well it would be better if you at least tried to reassure folks that they'll live to return home.â€Â

Lengas: “I don't scaremonger, though. I can usually fix the problems and I make sure that everyone knows it.â€Â

Bill: “Not to worry, Lengas, we know you're good at this sort of stuff, and Bob's becoming pretty adept, too. Keep at it and – hang on, Jeb's just got here. He may want to know what happened.â€Â

Jeb: “You're damn right I want to know what happened to the ship. It looks like it's falling apart at the seams.â€Â

Lengas: “It pretty much is, Jeb. Bob and I are out back fixing the fusion core and then we'll be working on the thermal damage from the Laythe aerobrake.â€Â

Bob: “Several subsystems were also damaged. I've asked Franklin to take a look at some of them for us while we're out here.â€Â

Jeb: “So the aerobrake was bad, huh?â€Â

Buzz: “We'd have de-orbited had we not fired the engine to boost us back out. It wasn't good.â€Â

Jeb: “So what's wrong with the engine?â€Â

Lengas: “Fusion core instability. When we hit Laythe's radiation belts, we needed to divert power to shields, but we were also burning to avoid a collision course and get us back on track. The power draw from the engine lead to the magnetic confinement systems burning out. I estimated about two minutes more burn time before we all got vaporised in a ball of plasma, so as you can imagine, I've been working on this thing non-stop since we made orbit.â€Â

Jeb: “Damn, so we've nearly died twice within the last few hours? Kod...â€Â

Bill: “Three times if you include the initial Laythe collision course.â€Â

Jeb: “Mother of Kerbin. I go and get some rest and the lot of you wreck the ship and nearly kill us all while I'm unconscious. Sounds about right... oh well, I don't blame you. You did well, so thanks for not blowing us up.â€Â

Lengas: “No problem. For the record, I want a pay rise after today.â€Â

Jeb: “I'm sure that can be arranged. Stanley, could you give me a rundown of –“

Buzz: “I wouldn't bother, Jeb, he's been stuck rebooting for a few hours now.â€Â

Jeb: “What? Why?â€Â

Buzz: “He decided that some of his systems drew too much power and that he could bolster both the shields and engines by shutting some of them down temporarily. Unfortunately, it sort of knocked him offline, too.â€Â

Bill: “It also killed some of his micromanagement processes and I've been trying to juggle some of the systems with Buzz and Cal.â€Â

Jeb: “Where's Cal?â€Â

Buzz: “In back, getting some rest.â€Â

Jeb: “Ah. Well, we're around Laythe now, so I suppose I'd best start getting ready for my little trip.â€Â

Bill: “Probably a good idea.â€Â

Jeb: “Just inform me of any problems, ok? And tell me if Stanley comes back online.â€Â

Bill: “Will do.â€Â

Several more hours later...

Jeb: “Ok, I'm clear. Bill, you're in charge while I'm gone. Bob's second in command, Lengas third, and Buzz will pilot, alright?â€Â

Bill: “Copy that, Jeb. I know this is what you've been looking forward to, so have fun, and good luck. Just don't forget the science.â€Â

Jeb: “Roger, must not forget the science. I'll write that down and stick it to the cockpit somewhere. Anyway, I'd best be off. Don't destroy the ship while I'm gone, please?â€Â

Bill: “We'll try. Bill out.â€Â

Jeb: “And now I'm getting the funny feeling that I'm going to be stranded around Laythe for years to come. Great. Well, let's get to that jet.â€Â

Some time later...

Jeb: “There it is. Doesn't look to be in bad shape. Hmm. Ok, got my stuff, got the science equipment... yep, that's everything.â€Â

Jeb: “Wow, it's dark out here... oh my Kod.â€Â

Jeb: “...I don't know what to say, that's just... wow.â€Â

SUIT COMP: [RADIATION ALERT; PLEASE SEEK SHELTER]

Jeb: “Oh yeah, thanks for reminding me.â€Â

Jeb: “Hmm, looks like on of the intakes are damaged slightly... eh, probably nothing too drastic. The underside wing... oh crap, that's hit too. Uh... ok, the tanks are heatproofed, so I should be ok for re-entry. Let's do this.â€Â

[The Error]

Wow. Leave for five minutes and we almost get blown up.

[RocketPilot573]

The wing is hit? At least FAR isn't installed... right?

[Engineer of Stuff]

How is Mattas doing?

[RogueMason]

How is Mattas doing?

Matton had returned home by this point, safe and sound

[RogueMason]

CHAPTER 46: LAYTHE

Sparrowhawk COMP: [sYSTEMS ENABLED]

Jeb: “Undock, undock... ah, gotcha.â€Â

Jeb: “My Kod, that view never ceases to amaze me...â€Â

Jeb: *whistles*

Sparrowhawk COMP: [OPTIMAL TRAJECTORY ACHIEVED]

Jeb: “Ah, good. I do hope it's not too chilly down there.â€Â

Meanwhile...

Cal: “Ok, the lander should be heading back now, provided the signal got through all this radiation intact.â€Â

Bill: “Good, good.â€Â

Bob: “It was just a simple signal, so I doubt it'll degrade too badly.â€Â

Cal: “Yeah, perhaps. We'll find out in a little over an hour.â€Â

A few minutes later...

Sparrowhawk COMP: [WARNING: UNDERBODY DAMAGE DETECTED. PROBLEMS IN FLIGHT COULD OCCUR]

Jeb: “Not with me at the controls, 'cause I'm... no, just don't, Jeb, just don't...â€Â

Sparrowhawk COMP: [COMMENCING RE-ENTRY]

Jeb: “Now is the time not to explode.â€Â

Jeb: “That's pretty fiery, out there. Reminds me of home... Kod, Kerbin. I miss it sometimes.â€Â

Jeb: “The moment of truth...!â€Â

Jeb: “Oh thank Kod! I'm actually flying at Laythe!â€Â

Jeb: “Woo! Oh man, this is good!â€Â

Sparrowhawk COMP: [PROXIMITY ALERT: INCREASE ALTITUDE OR DECREASE SPEED]

Jeb: “Never! Haha!â€Â

Jeb: “This is just... oh Kod, yes!â€Â

Jeb: “WOOOOOOOO!â€Â

Jeb: “Big lake. I wonder if I can skim it...â€Â

Jeb: “Nosedive! Woo!â€Â

Sparrowhawk COMP: [PULL UP] [PULL UP] [PULL UP]

Jeb: “Woo-- oh crap! UUUPPP!â€Â

Jeb: “Hah, that was close... whew!â€Â

Jeb: “Almost there... almost...â€Â

Sparrowhawk COMP: [sLOW DOWN]

Jeb: “Well, duh!â€Â

Sparrowhawk COMP: [TAXI TO NEAREST HANGAR]

Jeb: “Taxi to nearest hangar... maybe in the future, you optimistic computer, when we live on Laythe. Ok, well, let's do this!â€Â

EVA COMP: [EXTERNAL TEMPERATURE 4 CELSIUS/277K. ATMOSPHERE BREATHABLE]

Jeb: “It's really breathable? Damn.â€Â

Jeb: “...I'M ON LAYTHE, BABY!â€Â

Jeb jumps and pumps his fist in the air a few times before settling down into the crater he made in the thawing permafrost.

Jeb: “Oh my Kod, I'm really here at last! WOOO!â€Â

Back in orbit, one hour later...

Bob: “Ah, brilliant. Cal, the lander made it.â€Â

Cal: “It did? Cool.â€Â

Buzz: “I'll bring it in, shall I?â€Â

Cal: “If you want to.â€Â

Buzz: “Ok then.â€Â

Bob: “Docking successful. Lengas, could you transfer some fuel over to the lander?â€Â

Lengas: “Bob, I'm still outside.â€Â

Bob: “...Right, I'll do it then, shall I?â€Â

Lengas: “That would probably be a good idea.â€Â

Cal: “Well, I guess I won't be needed for a little while now, so I'm going to go back to my nebula stuff.â€Â

Bill: “No problem. Lengas, how's the engine doing now?â€Â

Lengas: “I've replaced all the confinement coils and I'm just sifting through some cables right now.â€Â

Bill: “Do you think we could fire it up in a few hours?â€Â

Lengas: “I think so, but don't try it with me still back here, alright? I'd rather not be incinerated.â€Â

Bill: “I'll keep that in mind. We've just got to get to Vall soon.â€Â

Lengas: “I hear you. Don't worry, the engine will be all good to go within the hour.â€Â

Bill: “Nice work.â€Â

Lengas: “Some of the other damages I'll have to mend on the fly between here and Vall, though. Hull damaged, continuing on the landers... I've got my hands full for the first time in years, and it's good.â€Â

Bill: “Good to know. Just come inside once you're ready.â€Â

Lengas: “Say, is Stanley still down?â€Â

Bob: “Unfortunately, yes. Franklin and I have been poking around to try and find what's wrong. Sorry buddy, he can't help right now.â€Â

Lengas: “Never mind, I've coped perfectly fine without AI in the past, I can still do so now. Just tell me when he's back up, ok?â€Â

Bob: “Sure thing.â€Â

A few hours later...

[The Error]

Laythe, baby!

Dat optimistic computer tho.

[RocketPilot573]

Congrats! The Gran Tour has landed on Laythe! Wait what... Gran?! Fire the guy that writes these flag plaques.

[RogueMason]

Congrats! The Gran Tour has landed on Laythe! Wait what... Gran?! Fire the guy that writes these flag plaques.

I don't know who made these plaques, but I will find them, and I will kill fire them.

[The Error]

I don't know who made these plaques, but I will find them, and I will kill fire them out an airlock.

FTFY

Also spaceplane is very gud.

[halocon720]

Gran Tourismo?

[wasmic]

I don't know who made these plaques, but I will find them, and I will kill fire them.

Why not just kill them to death?

[RogueMason]

CHAPTER 47: BETWEEN WORLDS

Captain's log, entry 23: So, I took my helmet off. Not recommended. Good Kod, it was cold, so much so that I could hardly take a breath, I was so shocked. I put the helmet back on immediately. I'm slowly warming back up, now. I've been jogging around in this permafrost sludge for a good few minutes now. I'll be fine.

And then there's the fact that I'm on Laythe itself. Hell yeah!

It's pretty barren, but it's so strikingly beautiful, too. Blue skies, white clouds, shimmering water (I think it's water, anyway), all contrasting with the grey and faded brown of the hills and peaks. The most Kerbin-like place in the entirety of the known system and I'm finding it hard to draw more than a handful of similarities between the two.

Still, though, there's nothing wrong with it. I'm not near any volcanic activity, as far as I'm aware, and the radiation is being held off for the most part by the atmosphere alongside Laythe's fairly decent magnetic field. Were it not so far from the sun and not experiencing massive tidal activity, I suspect that the moon would be so much more habitable to the point that life would have developed here. Life may still be around, but I'm not seeing anything immediately obvious.

Nevertheless, I must push on, I've got a bunch of hills and lakes to do science on. I'll just taxi the plane further down this hill that I'm on now so that I don't have to walk quite so far to this lake.

Even despite the damage, this plane is a stellar bit of engineering. I honestly didn't think it would perform as well as it has done. That said, I feel like I could throw it off balance if I'm not careful in flight, so unfortunately no super-crazy stunts; just crazy stunts.

Not that it matters much; with the fuel left in orbit in that tug, I can make another two landings elsewhere on the moon, which is enough to keep me really happy while Enterprise gallivants around the rest of the moons. I just hope they take their –

Jeb: “Whoa! Calm down, you're not a horse, you silly plane! RCS, RCS... ah, there we go.â€Â

Jeb: “That was a little worrying. Now, my log...â€Â

I just hope they take their time so I can enjoy this solitude.

Jeb: “Hmm, it's still a bit of a hike to that lake... bah, let's just do it, I'm in decent enough shape.â€Â

A few hours later...

Bill: “Look at it. Beautiful, isn't it?â€Â

Ed: “I must say it's a pretty interesting-looking place.â€Â

Bill: “And I'll actually get to land there this time.â€Â

Ed: “This time?â€Â

Bill: “I didn't get any landings with Odysseus, but I didn't really mind.â€Â

Ed: “Really? I'd have been a little miffed after having come all the way from Kerbin just to admire the moons from orbit while everyone else got to walk around down there.â€Â

Bill: “Well, I didn't really see it like that, I was just happy to be a part of the mission.â€Â

Ed: “Fair enough. When do you want me to start getting ready?â€Â

Bill: “We've still got a few hours, but if you want to start loading some of your equipment into lander Beta, then go ahead. Just check with Lengas to see if the lander's good to go.â€Â

Ed: “Aye.â€Â

Bill: “And don't forget, Franklin's coming with us on this one.â€Â

Ed: “Got it.â€Â

A short while later...

Matt: “...Checkmate.â€Â

Cal: “Damn it, you're good at this.â€Â

Matt: “What can I say? This game is one of my favourites.â€Â

Cal: “I could see that from the start.â€Â

Matt: “What gave it away?â€Â

Cal: “The fact that I only managed to take 2 pieces from you before you trapped my king.â€Â

Matt: “Ah, not to worry, Cal. It's a game in which all it's little nuances will come to you eventually.â€Â

Cal: “I should hope so, because I quite enjoyed it. However, I'm not sure I want to be beaten again, so I'm going to get something to eat and I'll be back to my work.â€Â

Matt: “No problem, thanks for the games. Hey, Jim, you want to play? “

Jim: “No.â€Â

Matt: “You sure? It might help cheer you up.â€Â

Jim: “I said no.â€Â

Matt: “Alright, fine, but don't say I didn't try to help.â€Â

Mac climbs into the centrifuge.

Mac: “What's that about help? I didn't quite catch it.â€Â

Matt: “Oh, I was just seeing if Jim wanted a game of Ckess, but he made it very clear that he didn't want to.â€Â

Mac: “What, he's still grumpy?â€Â

Matt: “Apparently.â€Â

Mac: “Ugh... Jim, you haven't lightened up in days. So you had a fight with Jeb, don't let it distract you too much.â€Â

Jim: “I don't think you're really in any position to be saying that to me, doc, considering your recent... history with the captain.â€Â

Mac: “Believe me, I've been trying to put that behind me so I can fixate on my work.â€Â

Jim: “That doesn't really back up what you just said, you know.â€Â

Mac: “Nevertheless, you need to snap out of it or so help me, I'll put you on the now-dwindling supply of antidepressants, you got it?â€Â

Jim: “I don't need any meds, Mac.â€Â

Mac: “I'll be the judge of that.â€Â

Jim: “I'm not sick! Not in the gut, and definitely not in the head, so just back off and leave me alone!â€Â

Mac: “Ok, calm down, Jim, I'm not trying to anger you.â€Â

Jim: “Well you're doing a pretty good job of it, anyway!â€Â

Matt: “Jim, just take it easy, would –“

Jim swings a punch at Matt.

Matt: “OOF!â€Â

Mac: “Geez, Jim!â€Â

Jim: “Get away from me, damn it!â€Â

Cal sneaks around the centrifuge and grabs Jim before he can hit Mac.

Jim: “Agh, get off me!â€Â

Cal: “Cool it, Jim!â€Â

Jim: “Get off, you idiot!â€Â

Mac manages to inject Jim with a sedative.

Jim: “AH, son of a – what'd you... do that... for...â€Â

Mac catches Jim before he hits the deck, Cal helping to carry the sleeping Kerbal over to a bunk.

Cal: “Kod.â€Â

Mac: “Matt, are you alright?â€Â

Matt: “I think so... damn it, he sucker punched me right in my left earâ€Â

Mac: “Let me take a look. Cal, you can go, if you want, I don't think you need to be around.â€Â

Cal: “Exactly what I was thinking. I'll be... somewhere, if you need me.â€Â

Mac: “Ok. Bill will probably want to know what all the noise was about.â€Â

One hour later...

Bill: “Almost, almost... there, cut the throttle.â€Â

Bill: “Well, that's a good orbit. Thanks, Dean.â€Â

Dean: “No problem. I'm just happy I got to fly the ship for a bit.â€Â

Bill: “Just so you know, Bob's gonna be the one in charge while I'm down there.â€Â

Dean: “That's fine. Anyway, just give me a shout if you need anything.â€Â

Bill: “Will do. Bob, she's all yours.â€Â

Bob: “Yay.â€Â

Bill: “Ed, Franklin, could you head to the lander now, please?â€Â

Ed: “Yes, Bill.â€Â

Franklin: “Of course.â€Â

Bill: “Lengas – “

Lengas: “Beta's all good. My work now is purely on Alpha and Enterprise. Go right ahead.â€Â

Bill: “Good job. I'll be sure to tell you about any problems.â€Â

Lengas: “Not that there should be with the amount of work I've been doing on that thing. Good luck, Bill.â€Â

Bill: “Thanks.â€Â

Bill: “And we're free. Franklin, take it from here, if you would.â€Â

Franklin: “With pleasure. It's been a long time since I've flown anything.â€Â

Bill: “Yes, I know.â€Â

Ed: “And I've not left the ship since returning from Moho. It's good to finally do something different.â€Â

Bill: “Agreed. I'm quite looking forward to this.â€Â

[The Error]

Yey Vall!

Also, tempers be fraying.

[Engineer of Stuff]

It's getting better and better!

Edited September 12, 2014 by Engineer Of Stuff

[RocketPilot573]

Looks like Jeb just added whatever bacteria was in him when he took off his helmet to an otherwise lifeless planet...

Oops?

[Engineer of Stuff]

Looks like Jeb just added whatever bacteria was in him when he took off his helmet to an otherwise lifeless planet...

Oops?

Yes, there are now aliens in Kerbal Space Program. Watch Out!

[RogueMason]

Looks like Jeb just added whatever bacteria was in him when he took off his helmet to an otherwise lifeless planet...

Oops?

Yes, there are now aliens in Kerbal Space Program. Watch Out!

Uh-oh. I'm sure he'll think of something to deal with any renegade microbes.

...

There is a NTR on the Sparrowhawk. Hmm...

[Engineer of Stuff]

Uh-oh. I'm sure he'll think of something to deal with any renegade microbes.

...

There is a NTR on the Sparrowhawk. Hmm...