Yesterday’s piece is here.
Copyright J.B. Norman
“Well,” Kathryn says, climbing into the pilot’s seat. “I guess we’re off to deliver an ice machine… to a planet that’s… already made of ice.”
“Moon,” Dunstella interjects.
Kathryn rolls her eyes. “Moon.”
She begins keying in coordinates and booting up the ship’s onboard systems.
“First stop, though,” she says. “Is the Ring.”
She looks over her shoulder.
“Wembley, send the information on that part we’re looking for to my personal comm. I’m sure we can find what we’re looking for at one the scrap-mongers on the station.”
Originally built to serve the needs of the miners working the planet’s moons, the Ring is… well, exactly what it sounds like: an orbital ring around the equator of the gas dwarf planet Pythia. The station has become one of the Pythia Sector’s major commercial hubs and has become known for its numerous second-hand tech markets and scrap sellers.
Most of them are even legal…
Kathryn grabs the yoke and eases the ship into its ascent. With her free hand, she opens the ship’s comms.
“p’Taa City Control, this is the Dolphin, requesting a vector for atmospheric exit,” she says.
“Your hail is important to us,” an automated message answers, “and your request will be answered in the order received. You are currently [twelfth] in our queue and an operator will be assigned as soon as one is available. Please stand by.”
Light, wordless music beings streaming out of the comms, as the Dolphin is left awkwardly hovering a few hundred feet above the landing pad.
Kathryn groans. Dunstella starts shimmying her shoulders in time with the music in the co-pilot’s chair. Kathryn groans again.
“Your hail is important to us,” the automated message repeats as it cycles back “and your request will be answered in the order received. You are currently [fifth] in our queue and an operator will be assigned as soon as one is available. Please stand by.”
“So,” Kathryn asks nobody in particular, “anybody know any good jokes?”
“And then the Technocrat says ‘That’s no external hard drive, that’s my wife!’” Dunstella concludes after a rambling set-up and promptly bursting into hysterical laughter at her own joke.
Before Kathryn can respond, the comms line opens up: “Dolphin, this is p’Taa City Control. Sorry about the delay.”
Kathryn says a silent prayer of thanks and leans into the comms mic. “We need a vector for our atmospheric exit.”
“Transmitting now,” the controller says.
“Got it,” Kathryn says, seeing her panel light up. “Thanks.”
“Thank you for visiting p’Taa Minor. We look forward to your next visit,” the controller says.
“Yeah,” Kathryn mutters, not sharing the sentiment.
Kathryn slowly pulls up the yoke and the Dolphin begins to climb. p’Taa City begins to shrink below them. The cityscape gives way to clouds and open sky, then the sky gives way to space.
After breaking through the atmosphere, Kathryn activates the Dolphin’s signals, making known her intent to merge into the long line of space traffic heading for the p’Taa System’s gateway to the Starway – the subspace network of travel routes that connect the inhabited parts of the galaxy.
It’s amazing, she thinks to herself, that a ship capable of going faster than the speed of light spends so much of her time inching along stuck in traffic.
Dolphin is basically a reference to the fact that the Porthaven flag (a dolphin) is basically the Realmgard logo.
A space station called “the Ring” has been an idea I’ve had for a while — and, in fact, I honestly shocked I haven’t been able to find any evidence of anyone else already having a space called the Ring, because orbital ring stations aren’t themselves aren’t exactly uncommon…
At present, the Starway is basically just a regular long-distance highway, except in Space. It’s maybe a bit like the Webway from Warhammer 40k, but my major inspiration for a fairly literal highway in Space was actually the end credits sequence from Dirty Pair, which depicts the two title heroines pretty much literally driving across Space:
On the one hand, every Sci Fi universe needs to explain Faster-than-Light Travel somehow, because Space is big. And on the other hand, I really liked how mundane and normal “literal Space highway” feels.
Also, spaceships having turn signals is just absolutely hysterical to me…
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