Beyond the Stars (2 page)

Jack joined in, “Sure, honey.” Argh! I couldn’t believe them!

We checked in with a Space resort physician for a last-minute physical and got the green light to proceed. Surely, I could be infected with something that required me to go straight home to bed. No, I needed to stop whining to myself and hold it together before I had a full-blown panic attack. I planned to pretend I was only boarding an airplane in order to trick myself. “It’s going to be a short ride,”

I told myself. “I will be with my whole family.” I needed to be brave for them. That’s it—I had an epiphany. Everything was entirely my fault. My parenting had led me here. I was getting just what I asked for: strong, fearless children. I knew I shouldn’t have let them think I was so brave over the years. I wished I would have verbalized my fears more to them. It was too late now. They were invincible, and here I was, about to be blasted off the planet!

The first part of our journey was to fly to the ocean launch pad. I was happy to see the lights of the runway come into view outside my window. Our plane landed smoothly on a navy aircraft carrier. We exited the plane and boarded a helicopter in order to transfer us over to the lift platform. There was no land in sight, only dark blue water in every direction. The ocean seawater filled the humid air with the smell of fish. It was still early. I looked at my watch and groaned when I saw it was only a few minutes after six in the morning. The orange morning sun was lighting up the horizon as it rose with the breaking of dawn.

Within minutes, our helicopter had reached the Space elevator platform. The entire platform was mobile and could be relocated if needed. This was a built-in feature designed to help avoid any accidental collisions with Space debris or storms that might threaten the structure’s integrity. We exited the chopper as the loud, rotating blades still churned directly over our heads.
There’s no turning back now
, I thought as I stepped out onto the lift deck. A gust of strong wind blew across the platform and wildly flung my hair out in all directions. I looked up at the cabled elevator track disappearing straight into the clouds. Its height was mind-boggling. My hands became cold and clammy. I wasn’t sure if it was my anticipation of the ride or seasickness, but I wanted to throw up. I took a deep breath to maintain my composure and leaned into the strong wind. We naturally walked in pairs across the platform to the bottom of the elevator lift pad. I reluctantly grabbed hold of the metal railing and followed Leah and the others in order to climb up the open, latticed stairs to the elevator door and enter the craft.

Once inside, we walked along a stairlike ledge above the chairs before lying on our backs in our assigned seats. Before any launch, the carriage was rotated to always face in the direction in which it would travel. This was important to help its travelers avoid motion sickness. We all diligently strapped ourselves in like we were taught.

I checked my buckles as well as Leah’s for security …
twice
. The seats were arranged like an airplane but had very little space in between the rows. The horizontal position made me feel like I was sitting on a ride at Disneyland.

The flight commander came on the speaker overhead and announced, “Welcome aboard, passengers and crew. We will be departing here momentarily to the Space Island Resort. The countdown will proceed once we are given the go,” he announced pleasantly.

Sure, it’s just like a plane ride
. I didn’t know why I was so nervous. We remained horizontal in our seats, ready to go, for another fifty minutes while the flight commander periodically informed us of some last-minute checks performed by the ground engineers.
Couldn’t these details have been attended to before we boarded? Ahh
, what was I thinking? I thought about making a run for it as the grueling minutes painfully ticked by.
Hell, I don’t even like roller coasters. What in the world was I thinking when I signed up to do this?
I struggled to ignore my escape plan and be a good passenger. I wouldn’t allow myself to think of something going wrong. I had to have undying trust in the technology. Just then, I heard a loud, humming noise and felt our seats and floor vigorously vibrate as the electromagnets were rotated into place for contact. It tickled my entire body. I opened my mouth to keep my teeth from chattering together from the strong vibration. I looked over at Leah with terror. She managed to smile back at me with an exhilarated look in her eyes. She reached over to hold my hand, which I quickly snatched and squeezed tightly so that she couldn’t let go. What was I doing?
I shouldn’t be here. This sucks! Help!
I wanted to go home. I wished Jack was there. He always made everything seem easy. I could hear him telling me, “It’s not a big deal. Everything is going to be fine. I promise. You can do this.” Oh, wait a minute … that was Leah’s voice.

The countdown began: “Ten, nine, eight … Blast off,” broadcasted the ground control commander overhead.

It seemed like old habits died hard. The entire carriage unexpectedly jolted our bodies when the electromagnets were fully activated for launch. Suddenly, I felt a surge of strong downward pressure pushing me through the back of my chair. I could not lift my head from my headrest, nor did I want to. Our gaining momentum was undeniable. I slowly breathed in and out. Within a minute, the lift carriage seemed to reach its top velocity. Almost instantly, my body adjusted to the pressure as if I was riding in a fast car. I let out a sigh of relief after the pressing force slightly eased its grip against my body. I closed my eyes tightly and prayed silently that the ride would continue safely. I felt a little better, so I turned to my left and looked at Leah. She appeared relaxed. I quickly looked to my right to study the faces of the other passengers around us. Everyone was surprising calm and extremely quiet. No one seemed brave enough to talk. It was several minutes before the flight commander informed us that we would soon be weightless once we cleared Earth’s gravitational pull. Just like that, the pulling sensation was released as promised. I knew that the harness seatbelt was all that kept me in my chair. It was the most bizarre sensation I had ever felt. It felt suddenly peaceful. I pictured us traveling away from Earth. We must have looked so small. Bad image! I felt queasy. I would rather have my feet planted safely on the ground.
Just get to the shuttle terminal
, I thought.
Then, maybe I can relax a little
. We would be arriving at the Space resort in about three hours.
I’ll make it, right?
I had to. After all, there was nowhere to go but up.

“Mom, you’re doing great,” said Leah. “I’m proud of you!”

“It’s not as bad as I thought,” I grumbled.

“Are you done being afraid now?” she asked curiously with a half-smile.

“Yes,” I lied. But how could I deny it? The worst part was over. “You know I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for you and your brother,” I ranted.

“I know, Mom, but I always thought Dad had a point when he said it was just a matter of time before you gave in and we got you into Space.”

I sighed. “Maybe, but I don’t know how I let you freaks talk me into these things,” I said sarcastically. She laughed at my childish response.

How did I really get here?
I thought. Memories flashed back as I remembered when I first started working for the Space Island Group over twenty years ago. It was how I became personally involved with the Space industry. Commercialization of Space was still in its infancy. It was a logical career choice. The growth in Space development was a booming market. Its expansion would be beneficial to our global economy and was expected to provide numerous jobs for the future.

CHAPTER 2

MY CALLING

My first day working for the Space Island Group, otherwise known as SIG, was anything but dull. I was not sure how I landed such a dream job. The Space Island Group was a leading private company specializing in the commercialization of Space. They worked to incorporate technologies from NASA and other leading aerospace companies for the development of Space solar power and orbiting Space stations. The stations were to be used for research, manufacturing, and satellite repair centers, as well as Outer Space getaways.

Today would be my first time seeing the company’s headquarters and meeting my new boss. Initial interviews for the position were conducted by the company’s owners at my university’s annual recruitment banquet. I was competing with numerous other applicants for their newly added positions. SIG said they would only provide a limited number of second interviews. Although I was unsure of the reason, I got the impression that they wanted to maintain the utmost security and only offered access to its facilities to those already on staff. While I was awaiting another interview, they called me out of the blue to tell me that I was hired. They told me that my recommendations spoke for themselves. The next orientation for new hires was scheduled to begin in two weeks. My new boss telephoned me and asked if it was possible for me to start with the group. I didn’t dare say no. Besides, now that I graduated, what else did I have to do?

I had no time to drive, so I arranged for a moving company to bring my car along with the rest of my things at the end of my first week. But it didn’t go as intended. My plan to catch the early flight into Los Angeles International Airport, get a rental car, and stop at my new apartment before my first day became a jumbled mess when my flight was inconveniently delayed by almost three hours. I called Dr. Tess Dixon, my new boss, to tell her that I was going to be unavoidably late. She was very understanding and told me to come in whenever I could get there. Upon arrival at the airport, I went to get a rental car only to discover that the flight delays had also caused a major backup in that department. There was an endless line of weary travelers standing impatiently, going nowhere. I didn’t have time to waste, so without hesitation, I got in the first empty cab.

“My plane was delayed. I’m late for my first day at my new job,” I told the cab driver, handing him a card with the street address.

He tapped on his GPS. “No worries, ma’am. I get you there,” he replied in broken English.

Ma’am! What an insult! I was only twenty-three! How
old
did he think I was? He put his foot on the gas and took off like a bat out of hell. I held on tightly. “Hey, it’s okay. My boss said I could get there whenever I could,” I explained.

“No problem, ma’am,” he said politely. He appeared to have no idea what I was saying.

“Really, you can slow down. The building will still be there,” I complained some more.

“Yes, I get you to building.” He looked back at me in the rear-view mirror and smiled as he swarmed in and out of traffic on the interstate. Clearly this was no time to work through the language barrier, so I decided it was better to remain quiet and endure the ride. At this speed, it would all be over with soon, anyway.

I took a deep breath and looked out the car window as the reckless taxi driver approached the Space Island Launch Complex. My neck jerked back when the car came to a screeching halt. I think I arrived from the airport in record time. Where did they teach these cab drivers to drive so fast? Now I was really feeling nervous. I’m not sure if it was due to all of the close calls on the highway or that I actually lived through the terrifying ride and had to deal with my reality. My anxiety soared when I realized how large the complex was. It was comprised of multiple buildings spread out across its industrial drive.

“That be eighty dollar, ma’am,” yelled the cab driver, trying to gain my attention.

“Okay, keep the change,” I replied and handed him one hundred dollars, despite the whiplash. The cabbie smiled back with a proud look on his face as he accepted the bill, probably because we’d arrived so quickly. I couldn’t help thinking that he should have been the one paying me for having to endure his driving instead of the other way around. I grabbed my bags and got out of the car. “Here goes nothing,” I said out loud. I walked down the sidewalk and into the building for the first time.