1

            Haylie suited up as Robot-2 loaded the Nova-1 ship with nearly every essential item a person might need.  “And per Captain Schayer’s request, I will be joining you on this trip,” said Robot-2.

            “Well, Captain Schayer is a dipwad,” retorted Haylie.

            “I know but he still outranks you.”

            Haylie, three other technicians and Robot-2 were assigned to board the Nova-1 and head to the planet Scotia to verify it is an unlivable planet.  Scotia was a small planet on the far outskirts of the Hawkins Universe that was supposedly completely covered in snow.  They were going to prove if that was true.

            Cardy poked his head outside of Fielding’s quarters.  He ducked back in with Fielding who was quickly buttoning her uniform.  “I’m gonna go since there’s no one out there.  How ‘bout tonight we go to the theatre and see a movie?”

            “I can’t.  I have a Captain’s meeting and I already told you that we need to keep all of this under wraps.  Neither one of us can get caught in this.  We would both be sent into the stasis hold,” Fielding explained as she pulled her hair back into a ponytail.

            “I thought the point of me joining NASA was to be closer to you.  Hell, you’re the one who suggested it.”

            “Well I honestly didn’t think you’d join!  Something like this isn’t your forte,” Fielding admitted as she slipped her shoes on.

            “So what are you saying?” Cardy asked.

            “I don’t know.  Maybe we could take things easy and slow.  All this sneaking around isn’t getting easier and if we get caught then we’re both thrown in the brig and our positions stripped from us,” Fielding said.  “Let’s…stop for awhile.  A week or two and see how things are after that.”

            “Are you breaking up with me?”

            “I’m not so much breaking up with you as I am letting you go,” and with that, Fielding quickly pushed Cardy out the door.

            Cardy stood in the corridor with his mouth agape.  “Hey!”

            Rizzo eyed Sanchez and Hanson from across the lunch deck.  His glare penetrated the air and seemed to want to slice into Hanson.  Every so often Sanchez would burst out laughing and place her hand on Hanson’s arm.  Hanson would feign a laugh and use that as an opportunity to scoot closer.  Cardy suddenly appeared, sat his tray down on the table and proceeded to sit himself down directly in Rizzo’s view.  “Scoot over!  Scoot over!” Rizzo shouted.

            Cardy ducked his head and dived into the next chair.  “What the hell!  You scared the bejeezus out of me,” Cardy panted.

            “I’m looking at Sanchez,” Rizzo answered.

            Cardy looked behind him at Sanchez also.  “What the hell is Hanson doing sitting next to her?  It’s like Selma Hayek sitting next to a ferret.”

            “Thank you!  I was trying to tell Corporal DuBecky that but he just rolled his eyes,” Rizzo said.

            “Why are you watching them?” asked Cardy.

            “Because I want her.  And not in that raunchy, doing the bang-bang way either but in the relationship way.”

            “You do know the penalty for dating aboard the ship, right?”

            “Says the person who’s dating a captain,” Rizzo smiled.

            “Actually, Ana broke up with me.”

            “What?  Why?”

            “Well, the correct term she used was ‘letting me go,’” Cardy said, using finger quotes.

            “I’m sorry, man.  Anything I can do?”

            “Nah.  I’m gonna give her space and see how things go.  In the meantime I can help you try and get Sanchez if it’s really that important to you,” Cardy offered.

            “Thanks, Cardy.  But I have no idea how to impress or even to get her to notice me.”

            “Learn to be a chef,” Cardy said.

            “A chef?” Rizzo questioned.

            “Yeah.  It seems I always ran into guys who could cook and they always had their choice of women.  And if it doesn’t work, at least you learned something that can help when the Giant reaches Earth.”

            “A chef, huh?  And the Giant has a course like that?”

            “Yeah, I was just reading about it.”

            “Sweet.  Hanson,” Rizzo began glaring again, “you’re ass is grass!”

2

            The Nova-1 glided through space toward the planet Scotia.  Haylie and the other technicians began bundling up in heavy parkas and snow boots.  “We’re definitely getting closer,” Haylie said as she zipped up her parka.

            “Uh-oh,” bleeped Robot-2.

            “What?” Haylie dashed over to Robot, who was manning the controls.

            “It appears that we miscalculated this journey somewhat.”

            “What do you mean ‘miscalculated?’” Haylie began to slightly panic.

            “Scotia has an asteroid ring surrounding it and for four months out of the year, the ring is directly on the path we’re taking now!” Robot-2 explained.

            “Is there any way we can maneuver around the belt?”

            “The belt is miles wide with thousands of asteroids.  I can certainly try but we’d probably have better luck turning around and…” suddenly, a large asteroid smashed into the Nova-1, interrupting Robot-2.  Alarms and sirens went off as the ship plummeted down toward Scotia and was soon lost in it’s a snowy, icy tundra.

            Captains Schayer and Xin Huang along with Major Etheridge and Gonzalez stood around a console and watched the Nova-1 blip off the radar screen.  “We’ve lost ship contact!” Huang announced.

            “We still have active life badges so the crew is still alive,” Gonzalez stated.  “But it seems Robot’s comm-link is also down so we have no way to communicate with them.”

            Schayer stood up to the console and ran his finger down the radar screen.  “What are we going to do?”

            “We should send a search party,” Huang said.

            “Scotia is a tundra,” Gonzalez reminded.  “Freezing winds, snow.  We have no idea where they landed and even then, visibility is zero.  Sending a search team, more than likely, would become a death march.”

            “Then it’s settled,” Etheridge began.  “We talk to Bonaparte.  The Colonel will know what to do.”

            Rizzo sat in classroom 43A and looked at the front of the class at the holo-teacher.  “Welcome to Culinary Arts,” began the teacher, “where you will learn the finer points of creating a delighting meal.”

            The holo-teacher image was the same for all classes and his awkward face and British accent didn’t to the class any good to save to person from boredom.  Rizzo, however, wrote down nearly everything the teacher said.  As the first lesson, which was mainly an introduction to the class, ended, the teacher thanked the present class and hoped to see them all in two days for lesson two.

            Rizzo packed up his stuff, got up from his desk and exited the room.  A couple steps from the door he ran into Sanchez.  “Hello, Mari—Captain Sanchez.  How are you doing today?”

            “Please, call me Maria.  I’m good.  Just heading to my class on topiary,” Sanchez said.

            “Whoa, seriously?  Topiary?” Rizzo questioned.

            “No, it’s really auto mechanics.”

            “You like that kind of stuff?” Rizzo asked.

            “Yeah, I love getting my hands dirty and taking things apart,” Sanchez shifted her feet as Rizzo suddenly grew nervous.  “I have to get to class.  I’ll see you in the corridors or cafeteria, Leroy.”

            Rizzo stood stupidly and stiffly waved as Sanchez walked past him and down the hall.  Rizzo exhaled loudly and slapped his forehead with his palm.  “Stupid!” he shouted.  Rizzo then stamped down the hall in the opposite direction.

            Rizzo went back into his quarters, threw down his notebook and flopped down on his bed.  Cardy was sitting at the desk, writing.  “What rhymes with ‘jurisdiction’?” he asked.

            “Why?  What are you writing?”

            “A poem for Captain Fielding.  I’m trying to win her back.  Ah, forget it, I need to rewrite it anyway,” Cardy crumpled up the paper and threw it in the trash bin.  “How was your cooking class?”

            “Boring but I’m hoping in the end it’s worth it,” Rizzo sighed heavily and got back up.  “I ran into Sanchez outside my class and was a typical stupid male.”

            “What’d you say?”

            “I asked her where she was heading and she said her auto mechanics class, then we said good-bye and parted ways.”

            “And what’s wrong with that?  That conversation seems fine to me,” Cardy got up and went to the refrigerator and pulled out a block of cheddar cheese, grabbed a knife and a box of crackers.

            Rizzo silently recounted the events of the conversation and looked back at Cardy.  “Well, in my mind it was a horrible conversation.”

            “You know, I am a firm believer of fate.  Everything that happens, happens for a reason and if it’s meant to be, it’ll happen,” Cardy said.  “You just have to give it time.”

3

            “They’re never going to send a search party are they?” asked one of the technicians whose name was Doug.

            “We have to keep our spirits up if we are going to stay alive and be here when they find us,” said another, James.

            “How can we keep our spirits up if we have no food?  It’s snowing so hard outside that they could be twenty feet away and not see us!” shouted the third, named Jon.

            “Everybody calm down!  Arguing with each other is not going to help.  We’ve been stranded for almost a week which automatically warrants a search party,” Haylie interjected, then turned to Robot-2.  “Robot, how much food is currently available?” she asked.

            “A large can of Pedigree dog food and seven packs of ramen noodles,” Robot answered.

            “Well, then we know what we’re eating last,” Haylie said.  “I fucking hate ramen noodles.”

            Ten technicians along with Schayer, Gonzalez and Bonaparte stood outside the Nova-2.  “We have four people and one robot missing on the planet Scotia,” began Bonaparte.  “This mission is completely search and rescue.  We have the Nova-1’s trajectory mapped until their disappearance and that’s all we have.  Let it be known that this may be a suicide mission.  Technician Gonzalez will lead the group and he’ll be reporting to Captain Schayer.  Bring them back alive, men.”

            Bonaparte briefly saluted the group and walked away.  The technicians and Gonzalez climbed onto the platform which raised them into the Nova-2.  Everyone was silent as the techs sat own and Gonzalez started up the ship.

            “She’s with me,” stated Hanson.  “She is willing to defy procedure and risk her career to be with me so there is no way in hell that she is going to leave me for you.”

            Rizzo tried ignoring Hanson as he stirred the chicken broth.  “Look, Hanson, I don’t know how you found out I was taking this course or how you figured out this is all for Sanchez but this is a testing site and no one but myself is supposed to be in here.”

            “I’m just telling you that you are wasting your time.  Also, I am your superior and must address me as such,” Hanson said in his smarmy attitude.

            “No.”

            “No?  You can’t just do that!  I am your superior and…”

            “If you are such a superior then why aren’t you doing something superior instead of harassing a lowly old corporal?”

            “I—well, it’s…” Hanson sputtered and then briskly walked out of the testing area.

            “What a douche,” Rizzo exclaimed.

            Fielding had her arm crossed and her hand massaging her eyes.  “Now, let me get this straight:  we are millions of miles from Earth on an mining and terraforming ship, light years from known civilized life.  How the hell did you find a suit of armor?”

            Cardy stood in Fielding’s quarters in a suit of armor holding a bouquet of roses.  “I have my way, milady,” Cardy shouted from inside the helmet.  “And now, if it pleases milady, I shall remove my head piece because it’s a little hard to breathe in here.”

            Fielding helped Cardy remove the helmet and placed it on the floor.  She took the flowers and laid them on the table.   “This is all really sweet but while we’re on the ship, we can’t have any romantic encounters.  For my sake and yours.  But I promise that we can have lunch or dinner together, see a movie or just hang out but nothing romantic—kisses, hugs, nothing.  Okay?” Fielding ordered.

            Cardy nodded.  “Okay.  But seven months without feeling your soft lips.  I don’t think I’ll survive.”

            “You’re gonna have try,” Fielding sighed.  “Now let me help you out of that armor.”

4

            Technician Jon held a spoonful of the dog food in his hand while the others watched with disgusted looks on their faces.  “You’re going to eat the dog food?” asked Doug.

            “Yeah,” Jon began, “I’m gonna eat the dog food.  We have only one pack of ramen noodles left so I’m gonna eat the dog food and it’s going to taste delicious.”

            “I’m sure it will,” said James.

            “I’m sure the dog food tastes lovely,” Haylie said.

            “Delicious…” Jon said to himself as he placed the spoon in his mouth.  He closed his lips and slid the spoon out.  His eyes teared up as he chewed a couple time then swallowed.  He exhaled slowly and laid the spoon down.  “Now I know why dogs lick their testicles.”

            “Fire’s getting low,” James said.

            “We have nothing left to burn,” Haylie replied.

            “Well let’s find something…” James got up and began looking around the battered Nova-1.  “A stray piece of wood, a book, anything.”

            “We have already looked,” Robot stood in front of James.  “There is nothing left.”

            “You don’t know what it’s like, Robot.  You can’t feel the cold or the hunger.  By the time anyone finds us, we could all be skeletons while you are still running,” James said.

            “I think we’d be frozen so we wouldn’t be skeletons,” Doug corrected.

            “You’re not helping, Doug.”

            “I may not know what it feels like but I know what it’s doing to you.  I apologize that I am unable to do more but that is the way life is.  I’m sorry,” Robot said and put his hand on James’ shoulder.

            “Yaah!  You are freaking cold, Robot!” James shouted, shrinking away from Robot’s ice cold arms.

            Rizzo plowed his way through the doors and into the command control unit where Bonaparte, Hanson, Sanchez and Schayer were standing around the console.  “Just what the hell is going on around here?” Rizzo shouted.

            “Corporal Rizzo,” Hanson said in his ‘huffy voice’.  “This is a restricted area.  No one under captain is allowed in here.”

            “Restrict this,” Rizzo motioned.  “It’s not your sister lost on an uninhabited snow planet!”

            “Let him stay, Hanson,” Bonaparte ordered.  “I do apologize Corporal for not telling you but we like to keep these things on the QT.  We don’t want to worry any more people than we have to.  You understand?”

            “Of course but you should tell the onboard family member,” Rizzo stated.

            “We did not know that you and Technician Rizzo were brother and sister.  Again, I apologize,” Bonaparte bowed a little after speaking.

            “What’s being done about this?” Rizzo asked.

            “We have sent a search party,” Schayer began explaining.  “They are flying slowly fifty feet above the planet’s surface.  We were able to navigate through the asteroid belt that brought down the Nova-1 and the rescue team has radar and sonar so that should be able to locate the lost ship.”

            “What if it doesn’t?” Rizzo asked.

            “Then we will have to declare all four onboard legally dead and advance without them,” Bonaparte revealed.

            The Nova-2 slowly crossed the tundra plain of Scotia.  The radar and sonar beeped and blipped but didn’t recover anything until two hours of searching along the 90th parallel.  “There they are!” shouted one of the techs.  The Nova-2 landed right next to the snow-covered Nova-1, the team suited up and exited the ship.

            They entered the Nova-1 with two boxes of food and drink.  The Nova-1 team cheered.  “We didn’t think you’d ever find us.”

            “It was difficult but it was easier than I thought it would be,” Gonzalez said.

            All exited the Nova-1 and boarded the Nova-2.

Epilogue

            Aboard the Napoleon Giant, people congratulated the rescue party and Rizzo hugged Haylie.  “I though I would never see you again.”

            “You really think I’d leave you to become Mom and Dad’s favorite child?” Haylie laughed.

            Haylie and Rizzo parted and Sanchez walked up to him.  “Leroy?  I saw how you acted when you learned that Haylie was lost.  Very emotional.”

            “What can I say?  I love my sister,” he shrugged.

            “I also know you took that cooking class for me,” she smiled.

            “How did you…?”

            “From Eric.  Who I left by the way.”

            “Why?”

            “I didn’t like the way he would laugh at your attempts to impress me,” Sanchez shifted on her feet and looked at Rizzo.  “Do you want to have dinner sometime?” she asked.

            “Yeah, sure.  That’d be nice.”

            “All right.  We’ll talk later and get things planned,” Sanchez waved to Rizzo and walked away.

            Rizzo smiled big.