Read Online The Black Planet by J. W. Murison - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: J. W. Murison
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tight oxygen free environment.’
‘You mean a vacuum,’ Komoru suggested.
‘Not quite my heart.’ Ico interrupted. ‘It ultimately depends on the cargo. A freighter can produce any environment the cargo requires. It may just cost you a little more. Once the crew died the ship probably pumped out all the air in the crews quarters to preserve the bodies then powered down. They aren’t meant for atmospheric entry or take off. They are simply cargo haulers. Every planet has a spaceport off world and goods are shipped on world by local haulers.’
‘Will it take off from the planet then, it has no atmosphere Ico but it does have gravity?’
‘I don’t know my heart. The ship itself should be able to, it depends on the container and the weight within.’
‘I see, the ship is little more than a cradle with an engine and quarters for the crew.’
‘Yes my heart the ship can take on one single massive container or dozens of smaller ones. This one is a single unit, normally used to haul foodstuffs.’
Komoru placed a small black box against the access panel and a few seconds later the airlock opened. She repeated the process inside and they all walked in. ‘Let’s go forward to the bridge,’ she suggested and her soldiers streaked off in front of her.
‘Captain I have a body.’ One of her men reported. They came across it a few seconds later. It was of a species they had not seen yet. The ugly desiccated corpse sat with its head back howling in agony as it died. Komoru shuddered and dropped a black box beside it. The nanobots went to work immediately. The soldiers reached the bridge and gained access. It was full of corpses of many different species. Komoru arrived and tried to take to all in.
‘What was happening here?’ A large bale of what looked like hay lay spilled about along with some strangely shaped bottles.
Lewis took a look around, ‘I think they had a party miss Komoru.’
She saw it then, ‘I think you are right Lewis.’
She went over to the opened bale and picked up a label. Ico read it through her eyes, ‘that is a very rare and expensive type of grass my heart. Those bottles also contain alcohol made from various grasses. I believe Lewis is right.’
She was both fascinated and repulsed. ‘Leave the nanobots to do their job and let’s explore the rest of the ship.’
Both Andy Myers and Matt McGuire made a bolt for the engine room; Ico had finally got over his revulsion of Andy and now allowed him free passage through his interior. They checked the fuel levels and the state of the engine. ‘The engines powered down as expected captain and vented the atmosphere to preserve the cargo and the crew.’ Matt told Komoru when she arrived.
Komoru’s attention was captured by something else. Three aliens sat round a large bale. Holes had been torn in the bale; on top sat some kind of game board and empty bottles. One still sat with his chin in his hand. It reminded Komoru of an old masterpiece she couldn’t remember the name of.
While the two engineers got the engine ready for start-up Komoru found herself facing a delegation of scientists. She was furious when they requested permission to dissect some of the bodies. She refused their request and made them lift the black cubes on to Ico. They were buried half a mile away and the spot recorded in case they ever crossed the barrier.
It took a couple of hours for the engineers to restart the ship and to flood the cavernous cargo bay with enough oxygen so they could breath. Matt reported to Komoru who was now on the bridge. ‘I have completed a diagnostic Captain and the ship is ready to fly. Hull integrity is good but she is too heavy to take off. We need to lose about a hundred tons of cargo if we are to achieve orbit. I am supplying power to the bridge now.’
‘Thank you Matt,’ she turned to the consoles as they came to life. ‘Let’s find out how
‘You mean a vacuum,’ Komoru suggested.
‘Not quite my heart.’ Ico interrupted. ‘It ultimately depends on the cargo. A freighter can produce any environment the cargo requires. It may just cost you a little more. Once the crew died the ship probably pumped out all the air in the crews quarters to preserve the bodies then powered down. They aren’t meant for atmospheric entry or take off. They are simply cargo haulers. Every planet has a spaceport off world and goods are shipped on world by local haulers.’
‘Will it take off from the planet then, it has no atmosphere Ico but it does have gravity?’
‘I don’t know my heart. The ship itself should be able to, it depends on the container and the weight within.’
‘I see, the ship is little more than a cradle with an engine and quarters for the crew.’
‘Yes my heart the ship can take on one single massive container or dozens of smaller ones. This one is a single unit, normally used to haul foodstuffs.’
Komoru placed a small black box against the access panel and a few seconds later the airlock opened. She repeated the process inside and they all walked in. ‘Let’s go forward to the bridge,’ she suggested and her soldiers streaked off in front of her.
‘Captain I have a body.’ One of her men reported. They came across it a few seconds later. It was of a species they had not seen yet. The ugly desiccated corpse sat with its head back howling in agony as it died. Komoru shuddered and dropped a black box beside it. The nanobots went to work immediately. The soldiers reached the bridge and gained access. It was full of corpses of many different species. Komoru arrived and tried to take to all in.
‘What was happening here?’ A large bale of what looked like hay lay spilled about along with some strangely shaped bottles.
Lewis took a look around, ‘I think they had a party miss Komoru.’
She saw it then, ‘I think you are right Lewis.’
She went over to the opened bale and picked up a label. Ico read it through her eyes, ‘that is a very rare and expensive type of grass my heart. Those bottles also contain alcohol made from various grasses. I believe Lewis is right.’
She was both fascinated and repulsed. ‘Leave the nanobots to do their job and let’s explore the rest of the ship.’
Both Andy Myers and Matt McGuire made a bolt for the engine room; Ico had finally got over his revulsion of Andy and now allowed him free passage through his interior. They checked the fuel levels and the state of the engine. ‘The engines powered down as expected captain and vented the atmosphere to preserve the cargo and the crew.’ Matt told Komoru when she arrived.
Komoru’s attention was captured by something else. Three aliens sat round a large bale. Holes had been torn in the bale; on top sat some kind of game board and empty bottles. One still sat with his chin in his hand. It reminded Komoru of an old masterpiece she couldn’t remember the name of.
While the two engineers got the engine ready for start-up Komoru found herself facing a delegation of scientists. She was furious when they requested permission to dissect some of the bodies. She refused their request and made them lift the black cubes on to Ico. They were buried half a mile away and the spot recorded in case they ever crossed the barrier.
It took a couple of hours for the engineers to restart the ship and to flood the cavernous cargo bay with enough oxygen so they could breath. Matt reported to Komoru who was now on the bridge. ‘I have completed a diagnostic Captain and the ship is ready to fly. Hull integrity is good but she is too heavy to take off. We need to lose about a hundred tons of cargo if we are to achieve orbit. I am supplying power to the bridge now.’
‘Thank you Matt,’ she turned to the consoles as they came to life. ‘Let’s find out how
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