7 Nov 2008

Tom Swift Jr #34, Chapter 8: Mission to Mars

Posted by joncooper

The next few days were filled with a flurry of activity. Tom Swift rapidly completed the final adjustments to the kronolator and gave Arv Hanson the blueprints, who promised Tom a production version of the unit by the end of the week. With that in the pipeline Tom began laying the groundwork for his first test flight.

Tom and Bud spent several hours mapping out the details in Tom’s private office. “As soon as the kronolator is built we’re going to fly it down to Fearing Island and install it on the Challenger,” Tom said. Fearing Island was located just off the East Coast and been given to Swift Enterprises by the United States government. Over the years it had served as the Swifts’ primary launching facility, as well as the construction yard for Tom’s fleet of spaceships.

“Are you going to use the Sky Queen to get it there?” Bud asked, referring to Tom’s giant nuclear-powered aircraft.

Tom nodded. “The production kronolator that Arv is building is going to be quite a bit larger than the model I’ve got in my lab. The Sky Queen is one of the only planes we’ve got that can carry that large a payload.”

“So what are your plans for testing your new invention?”

“I think we should test it in stages, Bud. We’ll start by flying it from Fearing to the Outpost in Space, using the Challenger‘s new fusion reactor as its energy source. Once we’ve verified that piece of the ship we’ll use the kronolator to fly to the Moon, and from there on to Mars.”

Bud nodded. “Say, skipper, have you ever thought of renaming your Outpost in Space to something a little more gripping? Why not call it the sky wheel?”

Tom blanched. “The sky wheel, Bud? Are you kidding? First off, it’s not in the sky, it’s in space. Second, it’s not a wheel. It doesn’t even remotely look like a wheel! It’s an outpost, and it’s in space. Who would even think of calling it a ‘sky wheel’?”

His friend shrugged. “Probably some editor somewhere. You’re right, Tom – don’t worry about it. You’re fine.”

Tom turned his attention back to the plans laid out on his desk. “I know for sure that Chow wants to come along on our test run, and I think Dad would like to be there too so he can monitor the performance of his fusion reactor. We’ll bring along a small crew as well. If all goes as planned it’ll just be a short day trip. We should be back by nightfall!”

“I can hardly wait!” Bud said excitedly. “Are you going to tell your space friends that we’re coming?”

Tom shook his head. “I’ll leave that as a surprise. Once we’re in orbit around Mars I’ll give them a call and let them know that we’re ready to leave on the expedition. I’m sure they’ll notice our presence in orbit!”

Bud smiled. “It’ll probably come as quite a shock! I knew you could do it, Tom. But, say, do you really think that your space friends are still out there?”

Tom shrugged. “I don’t know what to think, Bud. I’m trying to not dwell on it until I can get out to the extrasolar planet and see for myself. Dad’s right – the stakes are too high for me to just guess and hope for the best.”

“You know, Tom, we’ve got to quit calling it the ‘extrasolar planet’. There has to be some better name we can use.”

“If you even mention calling it the ‘City in the Stars’ I’ll throw something at you,” Tom warned. “I’m open to hearing honest naming suggestions, but you’ve been ridiculous lately! I don’t know what’s gotten into you. Incidentally, you never did tell me what inventions of mine you thought lacked aesthetic appeal.”

Bud looked embarrassed. “Well, Tom, I hate to mention it, but did you notice that Uncle Ned had your atomicar completely remodeled before it was commercially released? I think one car magazine called your original design the ‘Edsel of the Skies’.”

“Now that’s not my fault, Bud! The original concept was based on a sketch by Orton Throme, remember? I had nothing to do with it!”

“The design for the polar-ray dynasphere was one-hundred-percent yours, though, buddy,” Bud retorted. “Orton didn’t get anywhere near that baby.”

“That was a highly functional design! It fulfilled its purpose admirably. I never intended it for commercial distribution!”

Tom and Bud looked at each other, and then both burst out laughing. “Point taken,” Tom said.

“Agreed,” Bud replied. “But what are we going to call this new planet?”

“Hmmm. Well, people did used to live there, Bud. I’m sure it must already have a name.”

“That’s no fun,” Bud replied. “How about ‘Bartonia’ in honor of your grandfather?”

“We already named a piece of space real-estate after Barton Swift,” Tom said. “How quickly some of us forget!”

“Oops, you’re right,” Bud said. “Ok. What about Thanatos? In Greek mythology he was – ”

Tom interrupted him. “I’m all read up on my mythology, Bud. Thanatos it is! And if anyone doesn’t like it I’ll be sure to give them your number.”

Arv Hanson was better than his word and had Tom’s kronolator ready for shipping by mid-week. Elated, Tom had it loaded on board the Sky Queen and was soon flying it to Fearing Island. Bud came with him on the trip and acted as his co-pilot.

“Chow and the rest of the group will join us in a few days,” Tom explained, as he flew the giant triple-decker aircraft out over the Atlantic. “It’ll take some time to install the kronolator.”

“I’m right with you, skipper. You know, it’s amazing how far we’ve come! It seems like only yesterday we were strapping into our seats on the Star Spear, about to head into space for the first time.”

Tom nodded, remembering their first orbital journey. “It sure does! And here we are, about to become the first humans to ever leave the solar system. How long ago was that trip, anyway?”

Bud shrugged. “Beats me! I never was very good with calendars.”

An hour later, Tom landed his plane on Fearing Island. With the help of the base staff he quickly unloaded his invention and moved it into the Challenger. A large hangar had been cleared out in the center of the giant spacecraft, and it was there that Tom was going to install his device.

Bud was shocked at the size of the kronolator. “You weren’t kidding about this thing, were you, boss?” The giant machine was fully three times as large as its predecessor, and at thirty feet high it towered over the two young men. On the outside the device was coated with a smooth, polished layer of bronze, dotted occasionally with access panels, extremal connectors, and a variety of switches. Bud could see the access points where the giant power cables would be connected.

Tom eyed the device thoughtfully. “It takes up a lot of space, but we’ve done about all the miniaturization we can. Fortunately we built a lot of cargo capacity into the ship so we’re not hurting for room.”

“Are you going to outfit all of your ships with one of these gadgets?”

Tom shrugged. “I might. Honestly, I haven’t really thought about it. So far it hasn’t even been field tested! It’s a bit premature to think about mass-producing it.”

“Just out of curiosity, how much does one of these things cost?”

Tom looked at his best friend and laughed. “Bud, if you have to ask, you can’t afford it. Just be glad Uncle Ned had a good year! Now are you ready to help me get this thing working?”

Bud smiled. “That’s my favorite part! You give the orders and I’ll make it happen. Where do we start?”

With Bud’s help, the two of them were able to get the kronolator installed in record time. By the following week Tom was able to call his father and tell him that everything was ready for the big test. The next morning he and Chow Winkler flew to Fearing Island in a private jet. Tom and Bud met them at the airfield.

“Well brand my stars, pardner, but I’m rarin’ to go!” Chow exclaimed, as soon as he got off the plane.

Tom grinned. “You and me both, Chow! Is anyone else coming?”

Tom Sr. shook his head. “The rest of the family will be here when we leave for Thanatos, of course, but since this is just a trial run they decided to stay home. Your mother and sister did wish you the best of luck, though.”

“So you really are coming with us to Thanatos, Dad?” Tom Jr. asked.

“That seemed to be a wise course of action,” Tom Sr. replied. “You are about to take an untried piece of technology further than any man has ever been from our home world. In the event that something goes wrong you may need all the help you can get. Besides,” he said, his eyes twinkling, “I think it would be fun! I haven’t gone on a trip like this in years.”

“You’re more than welcome, Dad.” Tom was glad that his father would be joining them. Not only did he value his expertise, but they enjoyed spending time together – something that was becoming increasingly difficult to do as Tom got older.

The four of them got into a small electric runabout, and Bud drove them over to the landing pad where the Challenger was waiting for liftoff. The giant spaceship towered far overhead and glittered with a golden sheen in the morning sun. Tom had designed it to take full advantage of his repelatron lifting technology. The box-like main section of the craft was centered in the middle of three metal rails, each positioned along a different axis and connected in such a way as to allow the main section to rotate freely in the center. Repelatron dishes were mounted on the rails at strategic points and could move along them in order to provide a repulsive force in any direction.

“I still say it looks like a giant orange gyroscope,” Bud said.

Tom nodded. “Isn’t it great? I love gyroscopes! Where would we be without them?”

Chow shot Tom a peculiar look, but said nothing.

“What size crew are you bringing, Son?” his father asked.

“I think we could run the ship ourselves, but I’m bringing along a full crew, just in case. We’re scheduled to lift off in about thirty minutes.”

After reaching the spaceship they parked the runabout and walked toward the ship. Once they were standing underneath it Tom removed a control device from his pocket and pressed a button. An elevator immediately descended from the flight deck to the bottom of the vessel, where the group entered it and rode it into the ship’s interior. The four men then made their way to the control room, where the crew was busy making last-minute system checks.

“Why don’t you have a captain’s chair up here, Tom?” Bud asked.

Tom scratched his head. “I never really thought about it, Bud. What would I do with one?”

“You could sit in it and give orders! How can you possibly say ‘Ahead, warp factor one’ if you don’t have the proper chair?”

Tom sat down in a nearby chair and shook his head. “First, Bud, going only one times the speed of light would be far too slow. We don’t have three centuries to get to Thanatos! Second, the gravity on this ship is kept at 1 G at all times. You don’t need to strap in, and you don’t need to sit in any particular place. Any chair will do. You could even stand if you wanted!”

Bud shook his head. “I still say you need your own chair.”

Tom shrugged. “My favorite seating accommodation consists of a wooden stool at a workbench, but that’s just me. I’ll take that over a captain’s chair any day.”

Tom Sr. smiled. “I’ll second you on that, Son.”

At precisely 0700 hours, crewman James Nathan reported to Tom Jr. “Everything is ready for liftoff, sir. The Outpost in Space has been notified of our intended arrival time.”

Tom nodded graciously. “Then take us up, James. And thanks.”

James returned to his post. Almost imperceptibly, the craft rose off the ground and soared into the sky. In the distance they could hear the faint hum of the repelatrons, but other than that the launch was completely silent.

Tom’s father was standing behind an operator, watching the readouts from the fusion reactor. “Everything looks good so far,” he reported.

Chow settled back in his chair and relaxed. “Now this is what I call a smooth ride,” he said.

Like clockwork, the spacecraft reached the Outpost exactly on time. Tom’s giant silver space station dwarfed the Challenger. It was composed of twelve massive cylindrical sections, each of which were connected at one end to a central circular hub. The sections were a hive of activity, and were covered with antenna and radar dishes. The crew could see several vessels entering and leaving the vicinity. Most of these were cargo vessels, busy ferrying the solar batteries that were manufactured at the station down to Earth.

Bud nudged Tom Sr. “Don’t you think it looks like a sky wheel?” he asked.

“Stow it, Bud,” Tom Jr. warned.

Bud stifled a laugh. “Anything you say, boss.”

Tom looked over the control terminals with satisfaction. “So far everything seems to check out,” he announced.

His father nodded. “I haven’t seen any sign of trouble with the power source.”

“Then let’s attempt the next leg of the journey.” Tom Jr. walked over to a control terminal and sat down. After carefully reading the figures he relayed a series of instructions to the flight commander. Once he was satisfied he turned to his friends to explain what was going on.

“I’ve directed the crew to get us up to 30,000 miles per hour, which will take about another ten minutes. Once we hit that mark I’ll engage the kronolator, which should take us to the Moon in less than a second. After we reach the Moon we’ll orbit it long enough to make sure that nothing went wrong and then we’ll try for Mars.”

“Let’s do it!” Bud said enthusiastically.

As the ship crept toward the mark Tom watched the Challenger like a hawk. He was nervous, but felt confident that the system would work as he intended. “It’s just got to work!” he thought. “So many lives are depending on it. I’ve got to find out what’s really going on while there’s still time to do something about it!”

A moment later James Nathan approached him. “We’re ready, sir,” he said.

Tom nodded. He carefully typed in a series of figures into the terminal and then flipped a switch. As he did so, the control room was suddenly filled with a brilliant white light. A second later the light disappeared. Outside the window Tom saw the lunar surface!

The crew broke into cheers. Tom Sr. clapped his son on the back. “Well done!” he said.

“I think you’ve just broken an all-time speed record!” Bud chimed in.

Chow looked out the window in amazement. “Well if that don’t beat all.”

Tom held up his hand. “I’m going to run a few system checks before I get too excited, guys. But thanks!”

The system tests bore out what Tom had hoped. Everything was operating normally. Tom breathed a huge sigh of relief and sat back down at the console.

“James, take us out of orbit, and chart us on a course to Mars. Bring us up to 150,000 miles per hour, and notify me when we’ve reached that speed.” James nodded, and proceeded to carry out the instructions.

Tom turned around and smiled. “We’ve got about ten minutes before we’re ready. Then – we’ll see!”

Bud smiled. “This is going to be great! After all, what’s the worse thing that could happen?”

Tom stopped and looked thoughtfully into the distance. “Well, if – ”

“Never mind,” Bud said quickly. “Forget I asked.”

Right on schedule, James announced that they had reached their target velocity. Tom began typing into the terminal in front of him.

“How long will we be engaging this time?” Tom Sr. asked.

“About a minute,” his son replied. “We could go faster, but I don’t want to push it on our first trial run.”

Tom Sr. nodded, and gazed calmly out the window. Tom raised his hand over the switch. “Here goes nothing, guys,” he said. He flicked the switch.

Once again, the cabin was filled with a brilliant white light. This time, though, the light slowly faded. Outside the crew could only see blackness. There was not a star in sight.

Chow looked at Tom curiously. “Where did the stars go, boss?”

“It’s an effect of the kronolator,” Tom explained. “You can’t see them when we’re in transit. They’ll be back when it goes off.”

Tom was watching the seconds tick down when suddenly an alarm went off. “We’ve got trouble, skipper!” a crewman yelled. Tom’s eyes glanced over to the man’s station and then widened in alarm. A fire had broken out in the lower decks!

Tom knew in the oxygen-rich environment of the ship the fire would quickly spread out of control. “Quick!” he yelled. “Kill the power to – ” But before he could finish the ship was rocked by an explosion!

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