Chapter 7 Chapter Six

The landing ship that sent the return team members to Earth was 46 meters long and shaped like a paper airplane with retractable wings.Once the landing craft enters the earth's atmosphere, its wings can be extended to accommodate the needs of entering different flight areas.After the hull slows down, the wings can extend longer and change shape.The fuel used by the rocket engine of the landing ship is ethanol and hydrogen peroxide-after entering the atmosphere, the required oxygen is easily replenished, so the hydrogen peroxide on board is only enough for basic operations in space.This is very important to the Haikeli people. The fuel used for the landing ship greatly consumes the non-renewable raw materials on the spacecraft. The burned ethanol and hydrogen peroxide can never return to the circulation system of the spacecraft, and can only be replenished from the outside.Most of the weight of the landing boat comes from the fuel section, because it needs to be used twice for two round trips.The structure of the hull itself is relatively light, thanks to the outstanding technology of the Haikeli people.Even so, the total weight of the landing craft was nearly 200 tons when it was launched.Landing on the earth is just a piece of cake, because the gravity on the earth's surface is only 1.0, and twice that gravity is fine for the landing ship.There are eight squatting seats in the cabin, one of which has been removed and replaced with a seat that suits Lasander's body structure different from that of the Hekleys—this seat is different from the others, with a larger volume, originally It was prepared for the "elders", but this time there were no "elders".Because it was too big, Sandy couldn't reach the control instruments of the spacecraft when he sat on it.It didn't matter, no one in the squad wanted him to drive anyway.

Sandy's team was on edge as they were sent to clean up the landing craft for the flight.They had never seen the interior of a landing ship before, and there was not much they could see through the portholes, it was all very small.The placement of the ship was uncomfortable for both Hykleans and Earthlings, and when the landing craft was not in use—indeed, it was mostly idle—it was housed in a recess in the hull of the starship. place.It was a bad place to be, because, like much of the ship's hull, little had been done to cool it after the ship's orbit around the sun.The closer the team got to it, the hotter it got, and they murmured unhappily. "How could they let us work in a place like this?" Bolton complained.

"Shut up!" said Polly roughly, pausing for a moment, thinking about what else to say to ridicule him, and then adding: "You should be glad you don't have to go outside the spaceship." They are really thankful for that.Through the narrow observation window, they could catch a glimpse of the awkward-looking landing craft outside.Surrounding it were eight or nine heavy-duty Heckley men born to work on the exterior of spaceships.The spacesuits they wear are shaped like balls, with a protrusion at one end through which the head can protrude, and mechanically manipulated "arms" protrude from the whole body.The movement of the ships in flight had been somewhat controlled to allow them to at least operate in the shadows, but that only partially solved the problem.The hull of the gigantic Heckley ship itself absorbed a lot of heat, and radiated it in a way that was invisible to the naked eye.With the continuous faint beams of infrared rays, the Hykleites working outside must have been dizzy from the heat in their spacesuits.Their work was tiring and dangerous, and even a Hekri born to do it couldn't stand the suffocating heat.But work still needs to be done. They are currently installing a hard mesh shell on the outside of the landing ship, and then wrapping it with a layer of metal foil, so that when they enter the space junk layer above the earth, they can resist even the slightest impact from those tiny meteorites. hit.

The inside of the landing craft was worse than the outside.Polly nervously checked the pressure gauge, made sure the boat was airtight, and slammed the door open.A wave of heat rushed out, carrying the smell of ethanol and rotten things. "Oh, nasty!" moaned Helen. "Do we have to work here?" Of course it is.Polly ordered Bolton to go in first and turn on the ventilator.When Bolton gasped and announced that it was time to start working, Polly kicked Demi in again.The rest followed. Even with the ventilator turned on, it still stinks.There is a strong stale musty smell from years of disuse.Naturally, the landing craft were not available on Alpha Centauri or during the last visit to the solar system.When I was in Alpha Centauri, it was because there was no such need. When I visited the solar system last time, it was because the elders didn't like the situation at that time and decided to give the earth a little time to settle down.

The people who used to take this landing ship did not pay attention to hygiene.There was a layer of grime on all three seats.In the closet were huddled rotten things that might have been food. "Dirty ghosts!" Sandy was breathless, "I really want to teach them a lesson!" "Don't count on it!" Bolton advised him. "They turned into ragout a hundred years ago. We haven't landed on a planet in ages. Say, Polly, how long? Six star years?" "Do it when you have time," she ordered, "Come on, start cleaning." "Okay, but wait a minute," Demi suggested, "What about the ethanol smell?"

"What? It'll go away by itself, won't it?" "I don't mean the smell, I mean why is there the smell? How did the ethanol fuel get into the cabin? Is there a leak?" "Well," she said grimly, "that's one of the things we're going to check. Maybe it's just a leak, but we're going to have to pull the seals out and check." Pulling out the sealing ring is the most tiring job, and it took them 1/12th of a day. Thankfully, there is no problem.The smell was just the slow seepage of long, long-ago fuel smells over centuries.The fuel tank is tightly sealed.When this was done, everyone cheered up.

Although the work they do is dull, it is for themselves.They are about to go!The next step is to clean up the garbage left by the long-dead former crew members. Although this is dirty, it is much easier. Thinking that these rotten old clothes and food residues will be replaced by their own things, even the high temperature in the cabin It also became bearable. "Let's play a 'ask me and answer' game," Tanya suggested, cheering up.Sandy was just about to open his mouth to say something when Polly stepped forward. "No," she said, "that's a childish game. We ought to pay more attention to our tasks than to children's stuff. Consider Sandy's made-up story."

"Oh, nasty!" Sandy objected.Others jumped at the idea, though. "Tell us your name." Helen asked. Sandy shrugged and searched in an empty cabinet.Without looking back, he replied, "My name is John William Washington." "Then why do they call you 'Sandy'?" Obie called from behind the huge driver's seat. "It's just a nickname, short for Lasander." Polly interjected immediately, "May I see your ID card?" This question has never been asked before.Sandy hesitated, still holding the search stick in his hand.He doesn't have any files or anything like that. "I don't know how to answer," he confessed.

Demi helped him think of an answer. "Sandy, you can say you were robbed," he said. "What does it mean to be 'robbed'?" "It was robbed, like in the Robin Hood story." "Oh, yes," Sandy realized. "I was robbed, they took my wallet and suitcase..." Polly interrupted him sharply, "Not a suitcase! You don't carry a suitcase, you know?" "All right, backpack. They took my backpack and all my papers." "Ouch!" Obie opened a cabinet, quickly shrank back, and cried, "It's disgusting!" "Nicky or not," said Polly sullenly, "you've got to clean it up too. Now, John William Washington, tell me where you come from?"

"It's easy. I'm from Miami Beach, Florida, which is a state in the US. I'm a college student and now, uh, want a 'ride'." "What are your parents' names?" "My parents?" Sandy paused for a moment to think. "Ah, my parents' names were Peter and Alice. Peter was a boy and Alice was a girl, but both died. They died in a car accident, and then ...and then...well, I was so sad that I took a break from school, and, besides, I always wanted to go to Alaska." Polly sneered, "To say you're useless is to say you're useless. You can't behave so badly on Earth, to think you can't remember your parents' names!"

"Really?" Sandy was annoyed, "Who are your parents then?" Polly shook her head threateningly. "My genetic information is in the file, you can't be more clear." She said sharply, her legs were gathered together, as if she was about to jump up.Sandy immediately took precautions. A scream from Demi saved him. "Bugs! This cabinet is full of bugs! How did they get in?" Polly turned and stared at him. "What does it matter how they got in?" she cried. "We're going to kill them anyway. Demi, get a hawk hive right away." "Why do you order me?" Demi roared, squatting down with his strong legs, trying to rush over. Marsala's voice stopped them. "What's the matter?" She shouted, "You will be required to perform the emergency tasks assigned by the elders as soon as you are about to die. Why are you still like a newly hatched baby? All right? , tell me what four (things) happened?" After telling her what happened, Marsala shook her jaw. "Yeah, I need an eagle bee's nest here to clean up the bugs, Demi, you go get it. What are these four?" She pointed to a pile Smelly garbage. "It's going to be fed to Tichthick," Polilla said with a straight face. "It's all rotten." "Four (is) rotten! Do you want to poison Tichcik? Ze (this) is going to be sent to the dirt box to be disinfected. You send it, Hippolyta." "Why don't you let Sandy go?" "No," Marsala said, "I'm (yes) telling you to go. Lasan (Sang) De has other tasks now. Hurry up." She glanced around the interior of the landing ship, "the cabinets are all empty Yes, very good, you can each share one." "Is there only one?" cried Aubier. "We're going to Earth." "There is only one cabinet," Marsala said firmly, "The rest of the cabinets should be filled with necessities and (food) food. After all, you have to bring enough things for three weeks." "Why only three weeks?" Helen asked, licking her tongue nervously. "These four (are) the orders of the elders, Helena. Now Lasan (Sand) come with me. Time to four four (try on) your new clothes." Return in three weeks?Why did they return in such a short time?Sandy reluctantly followed Marsala, thinking maybe a few would be back in three weeks, but not all of them... Marsala left him in the squad cabin while she went to fetch his clothes for Earth.Sandy began to undress under her instructions, and put all the clothes she usually wore into the closet... Taking it off and taking it off, he trembled. The feeling of leaving the ship, which had never really terrified him, came suddenly. He looked around tremblingly.He's about to leave the ship.This has never happened before.No one ever left the ship, yes, even if they died and were torn to pieces and swallowed by Tichthik, but no one he knew had ever left the ship.Outside the spacecraft is the vast and boundless space. Marsala returned, carrying two baskets full of laundry in her stubby arms.Sandy sat morosely on the floor by the closet, eyes closed, face drooping. "Hello, Rasan (Sand)!" she called hastily, "what's the matter with you? Are you sick?" "I'm getting out of here," he told her bitterly. "Oh, of course, you have been (trained) since you were a child, and you (are) preparing for it." "But I'm afraid, Marsala. I don't want to leave you." She hesitated, then gently grasped his arm with a rough, hard hand.He felt her "secondary finger" dig into his flesh, but he didn't feel pain, but comfort. "You will have a brand new (monk) life." She said, "Now, come four (try) on clothes. I want to see how beautiful my Lasan (sand) is on earth! " He obeyed her.Marsala insisted that he start with his close-fitting clothing, a thin white jumpsuit she called "underwear"; then "socks," long black tubes that were closed at one end. In addition, there are light pink shirts, dark blue trousers, red coats, brown jackets, and black shoes. "Pretty," she told him. "It's too hot," Sandy complained. "Lasan Sand, it's cold where you're going," she said seriously, "so you have to take these clothes and try them four times." Another thicker pair of trousers was pulled out from the second basket, and the bottom of the trousers was narrowed.There were also heavy overshoes, soft dance shoes, and a jacket with a hood.The hood alone weighs more than all the other clothes combined.When Lysander put them all on, he began to sweat. "You look handsome," said Marsala sadly. "It looks like a boiled tuber to me," he exclaimed. "Okay, you can take it off." Marsala neatly folded the clothes that Sandy took off. "Do you know that the monk's hydrogen peroxide factory has started operation again?" "Really?" Lysander wondered.The landing ship's engine is the only one of Hackley's many installations that needs to be fueled with hydrogen peroxide and ethanol, so the plant often sits idle for decades, sometimes 100 or more.The long voyage between the stars does not need chemical engine fuel.He felt better after taking off his clothes.He forced a smile, but it stopped halfway, something in Marsala's tone puzzled him. "Aren't you happy for me?" he asked, "I thought you'd be proud of me going to Earth!" "No chance, Lasan (Sand)," she said sadly in a biting voice, "I'll never see you again. Tomorrow I'm going to have a Mori (physical) examination and wipe (examination). You I (know) I won’t pass.” On this day, the interstellar spacecraft flying around the earth finally arrived at an optimal position, the landing ship was ready to go, and Marsala really came true.She wasn't there, she wasn't anywhere.Marsala failed the final medical examination. There was no ceremony in their departure, not even a send-off, except for Ching Tecchi Lo, who looked around nervously in the microgravity of the landing craft.For the first time in decades, the ship's main engines were running. "There's a cloud in your landing zone," he announced to his team as they prepared to board, "that's fine, so you won't be spotted when you land." "What's a 'cloud', Ching Tai Qi Luo?" Aubier asked nervously, and Polly gave him a quick twist. "It's good to have clouds," she said, "don't be so useless like Sandy!" Ching Taich Law looked at Sandy, who was standing alone, holding his hooded jacket and boots, his face wet with tears. "What happened to Lysander?" he asked. "It's because of Marsala, she died," said Polly. "She died and failed the inspection, but what makes him find it funny?" "He didn't think it was funny, Ching Tai Chi Lo," Aubier explained. "He's from Earth, you know. He's crying, as Earthlings do when they're sad." "But what is it that hurts you about a Haiklei whose life is exhausted? Oh, Lasander," said Ching Tai Chi Law wistfully, "I'm starting to wonder if we've trained you well now, but worry about this It's too late. Come in everyone, the landing craft will be launched in 1/12 of the 1/12th."