"Gordon R. Dickson - The Far Call 2" - читать интересную книгу автора (Dickson Gordon R)

mock-ups of the individual spaces, Tad could not help feeling a new sensation of being constricted and
enclosed. This was the life zone—these four and a half decks—of Phoenix One. Outside of that zone,
and its duplicate on Phoenix Two, there was no place where life was possible without a spacesuit
between here and the Earth they had just left. Beyond the biolab and the unpressurized section
surrounding it there was only the hundred-and-sixty-foot section of the single nuclear shuttle, their main
engine, that would not be fired until they had reached Mars and it was time for them to drop into a close
orbit around the red planet. Forward of the nuclear shuttle, the life zone plus the unpressurized
compartment beyond A Deck holding the unmanned probes and the MEM, the Mars Excursion Module,
made up the remaining hundred and ten feet of the spacecraft. In less than fifty-six feet of that hundred
and ten, he, Anoshi and Bap would spend most of their next three years living and working.
It was cramped, it was not beautiful—but it was their ship, it was his ship. And he would bring it
through. Buoyant, Tad turned and made his way back up the access tube to A Deck where Bap and
Anoshi were already waiting for him. The A-Deck chronometer showed 1400 hours exactly.
"Visual check of Phoenix One shows everything A-O.K.," Tad informed Cape Kennedy. It still
seemed a little odd to him to be reporting to Kennedy at this point instead of to Mission Control at
Houston NASA. Tad's experience in space dated back before 1977 when the last and most serious
economy cut had reduced the NASA installation at Houston to a shadowy establishment. In theory
NASA headquarters was still there. In reality, only a few administrators and a planning division still
occupied the few buildings NASA made use of at the once-busy installation. Mission Control for the
Mars flight would be at Kennedy throughout the trip.
"Roger. We copy. Visual check Phoenix One, all O.K."
"So," said Tad, "unless you can think of a good reason for us not to, we'll start getting out of our suits
now."
"Hold that desuiting for a moment, will you, Phoenix One?" said Mission Control. The helmet
phones fell silent.
"Now," said Anoshi, "they'll send us back to run a white glove around the compartments for dust,
before desuiting."
"Not dust," said Bap. "Gremlins. There is nothing worse than gremlins in your control systems. An
EGW—an Extended Gremlin Watch—must be kept in operation at all times—"
"O.K., there, Phoenix One," said Mission Control, coming suddenly to life again, "you may proceed
with the desuiting."
"Good enough," said Tad. "Copy. We'll begin desuiting."
It was not quite as much of a problem getting out of the spacesuits as it was getting into them; but it
was still an awkward and lengthy process that only in theory could be easily performed by the spacesuit
wearer, alone. In practice, a good deal of helpful hauling and tugging by extra pairs of hands was
welcome. Tad, as spacecraft commander, had the privilege of being the first to be helped out of his suit;
after which he helped to free first Anoshi, then Bap.
The emptied spacesuits went into a storage compartment, leaving the men in the undersuits that were
designed to match with the many connections and entry points of the spacesuits.
"Go ahead," Tad told the other two. "I'll be ready to man the first shift." Standing orders called for
one of the three-man crew to be dressed ready to don his spacesuit at all times. The other two were free
to shift to CWG's, Constant Wear Garments. Bap and Anoshi disappeared down the access tube; and
Tad seated himself in his acceleration couch, now in control position, to inform Mission Control that they
were now ready to begin docking maneuvers with Phoenix Two.
"Roger. We copy that," said Mission Control. Have you got position figures of your own yet?"
"In process," said Tad. He was squinting through the sextant lens of his console at a composite view
of the Sun, the North Star and Earth, seen simultaneously through three different sensor eyes on the
outside of the ship. His right hand twisted knobs until the three lines intersected at centerpoint on the lens.
Then he punched for the onboard computer, lifted his eye from the lens and looked at the computer
screen.