An Outpost Near a Lone Satellite

Outpost Near a Lone Satellite

The team had been in operation for more than a year on the day when the trouble began.

That day, heaving a sigh, George pulled himself through the hatch. It was almost like swimming in air instead of water. The centrifuge and microscope workstations slid quickly past before he grabbed a handhold and steadied himself at the observation deck. The coloured spheres floating around George’s red mane were globules of water shot through with dyes used for experiments, the kid’s version of psychedelic lighting effects.

The inside of the space station is painted pastel colors. This choice is the brainchild of psychologists who had never left the ground.

This distant world is observed from a temporary outpost near its lone natural satellite. Nebulae, stars and other deep space components. Image: Copyright © Megan Jorgensen (Elena)

He kept his dark black hair short enough to meet the old military regulations, but combed it forward to conceal his receding hairline. The grey at his temples bothered him, even though many women called it distinguished.

George ran through their daily housekeeping chores – analyzing the amount of water and debris around the station. He thought that the numbers were increasing, but very slowly, possibly, a rare concentration of water molecules in the open space, very rare, indeed.

(Extract from The Rain, the famous SF novel by Elena and George.)