Read Online The Jovian Run: Sol Space Book One by James Wilks - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: James Wilks
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anything.” She set about lacing up her boot.
“As you wish. Tell me, do you sleep with it on?” He leaned back on his table again.
“No,” she admitted.
“It’s okay,” he assured her, “it’s only recommended, not required. The idea is that constant feedback will trick the brain into forgetting that the limb is artificial.”
Dinah looked at him and said, “That is not something I want to happen, sir.”
Later that afternoon, Charis sat down at the multi-function table across from her eight-year-old daughter, Gwen. They were in their room, one of the larger cabins on the ship usually reserved for passengers. It was about as wide as it was tall, three meters in each direction, though it was more than twice that deep. Its depth ran perpendicular to the long axis of the ship, allowing for the maximum use of space. Whether the vessel was in atmosphere or in space under thrust, whether the current floor was a floor or a wall, the room retained the same dimensions. As with the majority of the other rooms on the ship, its furniture was clamped to the floor but could be easily moved to correspond to up during atmospheric transition. There was an access door to a restroom on the back wall, and Gwen’s room lay beyond that. Her small bedroom had the benefit of a window.
“Mom, what happened before?” Gwen asked. She was short for her age, and her chin-length brown hair was held back from her face in two pigtails on either side of her head. Her eyes carried some of her father’s sharpness, and were a deep, inquisitive chocolate color, though they sometimes showed a hint of hazel. Her nose and chin were angled and her cheeks rounded, still carrying some baby fat, though she was fairly thin overall. Despite her father’s Korean heritage, her skin was very fair, nearly translucent, and delicate blue veins showed lightly at her temples. She wore simple drab olive cargo pants, but her tee shirt was bright pink and slightly worn, a much loved recent purchase from a second hand clothing shop in Portland, their last port of call. At the moment, her hands rested on top of one another on the cool metal of the table, and her face hovered a few inches above them as she leaned forward, all of her concentration on her mother.
“You mean before when the ship was moving around?” Charis asked, leaning back in her chair and sipping a carbonated beverage.
“Yeah. After we stopped being heavy,” the girl responded, nodding.
“You were such a good girl through that,” Charis said and smiled. “I was very proud of you. Your dad said you were very good. I know that was a long time to sit still and be heavy.”
Gwen perked up, grinning, reveling in the compliment. “I tried really hard to be good. Dad and I told stories together. We told one about a girl who had a monster for a pet, and that monster was hungry and wanted to eat, but the girl didn’t have any food, so the monster ran away and the girl had to chase him in her spaceship, and…”
As the girl paused to take a breath and continue, her mother seized her opportunity and interjected. “You two tell some great stories! But I want to answer your question from before, about what happened with the moving ship.”
Gwen paused a second, her mind refocusing, then said, “Oh, yeah. You may continue.”
Charis couldn’t help but laugh. “Well thank you, my lady,” she said in her best gracious courtier voice. After taking a moment to collect her thoughts, she began. “Well, you know how I told you we’re flying from Earth to Mars?” The girl nodded emphatically. “Well, we saw something valuable on our way, so the captain decided to stop so we could pick it up.”
“Captain Clea?” Gwen’s face glowed with the light of idolization.
The woman leaned forward and smiled, shaking her head a little bit. “Yes, Captain Clea, the one who reads to you. You know we only have one captain on this ship, silly.” She reached across the
“As you wish. Tell me, do you sleep with it on?” He leaned back on his table again.
“No,” she admitted.
“It’s okay,” he assured her, “it’s only recommended, not required. The idea is that constant feedback will trick the brain into forgetting that the limb is artificial.”
Dinah looked at him and said, “That is not something I want to happen, sir.”
Later that afternoon, Charis sat down at the multi-function table across from her eight-year-old daughter, Gwen. They were in their room, one of the larger cabins on the ship usually reserved for passengers. It was about as wide as it was tall, three meters in each direction, though it was more than twice that deep. Its depth ran perpendicular to the long axis of the ship, allowing for the maximum use of space. Whether the vessel was in atmosphere or in space under thrust, whether the current floor was a floor or a wall, the room retained the same dimensions. As with the majority of the other rooms on the ship, its furniture was clamped to the floor but could be easily moved to correspond to up during atmospheric transition. There was an access door to a restroom on the back wall, and Gwen’s room lay beyond that. Her small bedroom had the benefit of a window.
“Mom, what happened before?” Gwen asked. She was short for her age, and her chin-length brown hair was held back from her face in two pigtails on either side of her head. Her eyes carried some of her father’s sharpness, and were a deep, inquisitive chocolate color, though they sometimes showed a hint of hazel. Her nose and chin were angled and her cheeks rounded, still carrying some baby fat, though she was fairly thin overall. Despite her father’s Korean heritage, her skin was very fair, nearly translucent, and delicate blue veins showed lightly at her temples. She wore simple drab olive cargo pants, but her tee shirt was bright pink and slightly worn, a much loved recent purchase from a second hand clothing shop in Portland, their last port of call. At the moment, her hands rested on top of one another on the cool metal of the table, and her face hovered a few inches above them as she leaned forward, all of her concentration on her mother.
“You mean before when the ship was moving around?” Charis asked, leaning back in her chair and sipping a carbonated beverage.
“Yeah. After we stopped being heavy,” the girl responded, nodding.
“You were such a good girl through that,” Charis said and smiled. “I was very proud of you. Your dad said you were very good. I know that was a long time to sit still and be heavy.”
Gwen perked up, grinning, reveling in the compliment. “I tried really hard to be good. Dad and I told stories together. We told one about a girl who had a monster for a pet, and that monster was hungry and wanted to eat, but the girl didn’t have any food, so the monster ran away and the girl had to chase him in her spaceship, and…”
As the girl paused to take a breath and continue, her mother seized her opportunity and interjected. “You two tell some great stories! But I want to answer your question from before, about what happened with the moving ship.”
Gwen paused a second, her mind refocusing, then said, “Oh, yeah. You may continue.”
Charis couldn’t help but laugh. “Well thank you, my lady,” she said in her best gracious courtier voice. After taking a moment to collect her thoughts, she began. “Well, you know how I told you we’re flying from Earth to Mars?” The girl nodded emphatically. “Well, we saw something valuable on our way, so the captain decided to stop so we could pick it up.”
“Captain Clea?” Gwen’s face glowed with the light of idolization.
The woman leaned forward and smiled, shaking her head a little bit. “Yes, Captain Clea, the one who reads to you. You know we only have one captain on this ship, silly.” She reached across the
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