They got out of the Humvee off to one side of the launch pad. There they stood for a moment, looking up at the rocket towering over them. The three of them got into the elevator. The air had been perfectly calm at ground level, but twenty meters up, there was a light breeze. A thin walkway extended from the elevator door to the orbiter.
“How do you feel?” Satsuki asked.
“Right as rain.”
“I’m fine.”
“Okay then. Good luck.”
“Thanks.”
“Here goes!”
Together, Yukari and Akane crossed the boarding bridge. They opened the orbiter hatch and sat down inside, bodies facing upward toward the sky, Yukari on the left and Akane on the right. The seats had been molded to each of their bodies, making for perfect fits.
They attached cables to the connectors on their space suits and fastened eight-point harnesses to their shoulders, chests, waists, and knees. Now the only things they could move were their heads and arms.
Yukari scanned the control panel, reviewed all of the key switches, then flipped the master power switch.
Air conditioning on. Cabin lights on.
When the hatch closed, cutting off their view of the outside, it was like they had taken their first step into space. The two girls’ eyes met.
“This is it.”
“Yep.”
Her voice was quiet, but Yukari could tell that Akane was ready to go. The other girl took a deep breath, set her jaw, and turned her gaze to the instrument panel.
“Whew, it’s the same,” she whispered. Then more loudly, “It’s all the same as in the procedure simulation.”
“Yep. The acceleration feels just like the centrifuge, the view’s the same, and all the communications are the same. If you want to know what’s different—”
“I’ll find out when we start moving?”
“That’s right. Gives you something to look forward to.”
Yukari flipped on the communicator switch. “Solomon Mission Control? This is Mangosteen. You read me?”
“Hoi, Yukari! Loud and clear!” Matsuri’s voice came over their speakers. Contact with base was, as a rule, handled by the backup astronaut. Since they went through the same training they knew best how the other astronauts thought, which made communication easier.
As flamboyant as she could sometimes be, Matsuri did her job well, and Yukari had great faith in her. She had to be exceptionally intelligent as well, considering that she went from living among her tribe to manning a solo space flight in the space of three months.
The event clock showed T minus one hour fifty-four minutes.
Ballpoint pen in hand, Yukari began to read off her pre-launch checklist.
“One, pyrotechnics safety switch.”
Akane checked and responded, “Locked.”
“Two, attitude control handle.”
“Locked.”
“Three, abort handle.”
“Locked.”
And so on down the list. It was rumored that the entire purpose of the checklist was to keep the astronauts from getting bored, but Yukari always made sure to follow it to the letter.
It was always better to check for yourself instead of trusting someone else. Though the number of things one could check inside the cockpit was limited, if you did all you could, then you could at least sign off on that portion of the checklist. After that, you waited for fate to decide—at least that was how Yukari liked to think about it. It helped control the fear.
Even though this was Yukari’s fifth launch, she still felt that familiar fear gnawing at her stomach. Just three meters beneath them were explosives equal in power to a tactical nuke, enough to accelerate them up to Mach 26 in the space of several minutes. Two girls who couldn’t even legally drive scooters would be accelerating faster than a military fighter pilot. Of course it was frightening.
Yukari occasionally looked up to check on how Akane was doing. The other girl was marking off each item as she read aloud carefully.
Thatta girl.
Of course, in a sense, Akane had it easy. Every SSA rocket previous to Yukari’s first flight had exploded moments after launch.
✦ ✦ ✦
T minus thirty-five minutes. A large clanging sound rang from outside the orbiter. Akane sat up straight in her seat, pricking up her ears. “What was that?”
“The movable tower just disengaged. It means we’re on schedule.”
“Oh, right. It caught me off-guard.”
“That’s one thing the simulator lacks: the sounds.” Yukari began to explain all the noises Akane would hear while on the ship. “The high-pitched buzzing sound is the electrical inverter. The light sloshing sound is the liquid oxygen tank. The low temperature system makes a dong sound every once in a while, but that’s normal too. And the sound from the ventilation is just a fan.”
Akane nodded, taking it all in.
“Just before we take off they’ll repressurize the liquid oxygen tank. The noise is a little shocking. Sounds like things ripping apart, so get ready for it.”
“You’re very observant, aren’t you, Yukari,” Akane said, looking up at the other girl with respect in her eyes.
“That has nothing to do with it. You’ll hear everything yourself whether you want to or not.”
✦ ✦ ✦
T minus fifteen minutes.
The countdown was proceeding apace. Pretty soon that ripping sound Yukari had warned Akane about filled the cabin.
“LOX tank, pressure normal.”
“All systems are looking good, Yukari. How are you doing, Akane?”
“I’m doing great, Matsuri. A little excited, maybe.”
“That’s the way to be! Keep a bright heart, and the evil spirits won’t want to have anything to do with you.”
“I’ll remember that, thanks.”
✦ ✦ ✦
T minus five minutes. In five minutes, they’d be shooting into space. Nearly every device in the cockpit was active and whirring now, the various sounds blending into one steady hum. The two girls lowered the airtight visors on their helmets and talked over their intercoms. The time for chitchat was over.
“Flight control data, check.”
“Control data, check.”
“Clock operation, check.”
“Clock is functional.”
“APU standby switch, on.”
“APU standby switch, on.”