Chapter 9 Chapter nine

Rock, who was locked in the confinement room, asked to see the Sheriff, Lieutenant Washburn, and the caretaker Creek agreed and took him to the Sheriff's Office.Oddly enough, when Rock sees Washburn, he thinks of his mother.Although the female sheriff was fat and dark, her brown eyes, alert eyes, and broad, tolerant face all resembled his mother.It's just that the voice is not quite the same, the female sheriff's is much deeper, but the calmness and comprehension in her tone are still the same as his mother's.Luo Ke thought that in front of his mother back then, he only asked for forgiveness and complained, and he always got his wish.He is ready to repeat the old tricks, but he doesn't know if he will be tolerated.

"Is Mr. Rock still a suspect?" Washburn asked Crick next to him. "Yes. There is evidence that he is a criminal suspect. A cashmere sweater was in his briefcase, and the same cashmere fibers were found on the bomb. Moreover, from the activation time shown by the bomb timer, Luo Ke was on the spaceship before that." "What bomb? That has nothing to do with me!" Rock argued fiercely. Washburn looked at Rock silently, only to see that he was clean-shaven, his hair was combed, and he was wearing a set of yellow overalls.These are the results of caretaker care.However, Rock himself felt that the clothes and trousers became an unmistakable mark, making people think that he was a criminal.From the sheriff's probing and scrutinizing eyes, Rock didn't see the long-awaited tolerance and knew that something was wrong.

"Please imagine how shocked I was by this incident." Rock said with a raised voice, "I was doing the final inspection before the launch, and I was about to disembark after finishing the work. I was suddenly detained without knowing it..." "Just imagine our shock, too," Washburn interrupted. "If no one had called ahead, we would have been screwed. Fortunately, we found and defused the bomb in time. After the time bomb timer started, no one disembarked," she said in a low voice, "that is to say, the criminal is still on board." "The 'wetbacks' (American colloquial, referring to Mexicans or laborers who smuggled across the Rio Grande illegally into the United States. - Translator's Note)..." Rock argued.

"Carlos?" interrupted Washburn again. "That's a great talent. He fixed our computer problems and is now on the expedition team. Mr. Glengersh said he was on board." , is our good fortune. "As for you, Mr. Rock..." Washburn stared at him hard and shook his head. "Give me a chance." Rock begged with a pitiful look.This scene reminded him of how he begged his mother before: "As for the cashmere fiber on the bomb, please ask your staff if they put the bomb with my briefcase. In short, you have no reason to detain it. Me, I didn't bring the bomb on board.

"I'm unlucky!" Rock looked at the face of the female sheriff and smiled mischievously. "To be honest, I was shocked by this. I don't know what to say. I just want to work hard, like others, and do a good job." I will show my innocence by paying off my merits. Am I not as good as that Mexican kid, so I don’t deserve such an opportunity?” "Okay, then do as you said." Washburn turned around and told Creek, "Give him a set of work clothes, and then take him to Jesus." "Yes, Jesus Rivera, the ship's chef. He needs a kitchen helper," the sheriff added.

"Thank you! Thank you!" Rock said the words of gratitude over and over again, trying to look happy, "Thank you so much!" It was not easy to get those words of gratitude out of his mouth.Back then, when he was working in the prison kitchen, let alone the conditions: sweltering heat, hot oil stars, being bossed around, fussing, sweating, exhausting labor without anyone asking, the hard work of pigs, the labor of niggers In a word, it is not a job done by humans.That kind of drudgery, when he has to, he can handle it perfunctorily for a week or two; after a long time, how can he bear it?He thought that a white man like himself was born to be a supervisor and supervisor, and he was only qualified for high-level work such as base inspections.

"Give him a chance at redemption," Washburn said to Crick, "but tell Jesus in the kitchen to keep this guy under surveillance." No matter how harsh the environment of this planet is, the human people who are far away from the home of the earth have finally found a place to stay in space.Now, the spacecraft flew around it like a spiral, constantly approaching it.Facing this new home for mankind, Rima wants to name it "Land of Hope".In this regard, Glenn Gersh smiled bitterly, disapproving.He deeply felt that the prospects were bleak and bleak, and he was very pessimistic.

"Now, Steck and his accomplices are ignoring the "Operation Sowing Membership Convention" and are manipulating the command of the spacecraft." He said, his tone was full of anger and helplessness, "And what about our situation? There is no way out except to land nearby. After my interview, they reluctantly agreed to land. As for the name of the planet, Hinch called it 'Hell's Ice Cave'". When Lima heard this, she shivered unconsciously. "We have to be hopeful. We have nothing but hope," she said. "Whether it's hope or despair, we can only accept it now, because the spacecraft has already begun to land." Glengersh turned around and said to Cruz: "The radar avoids the ice cap, and we must try to land on the sun-facing side of the planet. In this way , can stay away from the place where the mysterious signal was sent—if that counts as a signal. There is no need to reveal our location to the local residents."

As he spoke, he raised his head and glanced at the monitor screen.The target planet is still just a tiny blob, about the size of its parent star, the dwarf star. "Local residents? So, I have already assumed that there is life there?" Glengersh muttered to himself. Obviously, the silent planet had aroused some bold guesses in him, "It's just a guess, but in the In my mind, it seems to have taken root, entangled and lingering." Now, Rima has also been transferred to the exploration team.The orbit of the spacecraft flying around the planet gradually becomes smaller and closer to the target.Rima carefully searched the ice through a telescope, and she wanted to find a suitable place to live.At the same time, she hopes to find clues about the presence of soil, minerals and drinking water.

"Is that ice water, not nitrogen or methane condensate?" Cruz was full of doubts, asking himself over and over again in a low voice, "If it is water, has it been polluted by harmful substances? Has soil and useful substances been formed here in history? What about minerals?" "The answer is yes. I can guarantee it." Anderson was very sure.Before switching to quantum engineering, he devoted himself to the study of geology, so he was so sure when he spoke: "From what I have learned, I think that the planet's condition before its parent star degenerated into a dwarf star. Roughly similar to our Earth, it has all the conditions for life to exist."

The target is getting closer and closer, and the ice cap is gradually unfolding in front of the eyes, stretching as far as the eye can see.It turned out that it was a frozen continent.At its edge is a vast ocean, completely frozen over.The entire ocean is as flat as a mirror, without any ups and downs.Occasionally, a series of rocky hills can be seen, which is formed by part of the archipelago jutting out of the sea.There are majestic and majestic mountains standing on the edge of the continent. Huge glaciers meander down from the mountains and plunge directly into the ocean. The spacecraft continued to fly.On the sunny side of the planet, a long and narrow peninsula was found, and it was being observed by radar and telescope.The peninsula pierces the frozen ocean like a dagger. The kilometers-long ice sheet covers the mountains in the center of the peninsula. covered with ice.Glenn Gersh handed over the work of the command module to the co-pilot Steinberg, and came to Anderson's exploration team to study the newly discovered situation with everyone. "We found some open land on the east coast of the peninsula, which is the best choice for us to land." Anderson pointed to the monitor screen, and said, "There, the possibility of finding soil, glacial water sources, and valuable mineral deposits is higher. In addition, we can also Extract useful minerals by separating ice from the ocean. "Okay. If Hinch and Steck don't pick a fight, we'll land there." Glengersh agreed.After the landing plan was drawn up, he went back to the command module. The spaceship orbits the planet in smaller and smaller orbits.The goal is in sight.Now, the search team is divided into two groups, Carlos and Anderson, and Rima and Mark Sang, taking turns to monitor.The mysterious continental ice sheet that once sent a "signal" has become a key monitoring object.Every time the spaceship passed over it, they had to watch carefully.I saw mountain peaks piercing the ice cap and standing upright.Glaciers from ancient times criss-cross and stretch in between.Where it enters the sea, the glaciers break off, forming huge ice cliffs and fissures.When the spacecraft flew around the planet for the last time, Carlos, who was guarding the telescope, suddenly noticed something, gasped and screamed in horror. "Castle! Fortress of Giants!" Carlos shouted. Anderson immediately called Glen Gersh in the command module above to report to him. "We are flying over the place where the mysterious light is sent, and the distance is very close. Without the help of radar, we can roughly see the situation on the ground with the naked eye. We found an unknown object, which looks like a castle. Inside the castle is a series of giant mountains. Objects have strange shapes, including rectangles, circles, and stars. No matter what the shape is, the lines are regular and clear, and they are definitely not formed naturally. The unidentified object is so huge that it is unbelievable! There are still people around the giant High walls, very high, must have been 2 kilometers or 3 kilometers high." He stopped, looked at the monitor screen, and continued to report. "Now, we are located directly above the unknown building complex, at a height of about 300 kilometers. It seems that the entire building complex was built in a pit. It turns out that the high wall around it is actually an ice cliff, extending to a distance of more than ten kilometers in all directions. Outside. This complex reminds me that the local residents may have some kind of technology to withstand the severe cold.” "Is there any activity on the ground? Is there any sign that the other party has spotted us?" Glenn Gersh asked worriedly. "There is no clear sign. Thank God, the other party did not shoot the mysterious light at us again." The spaceship slid silently along the sky above the peninsula.Cruz turned on the radar again and reported the current altitude of the spacecraft to the command module.Carlos stood by the telescope and continued to monitor the beaches and ocean ice along the way. "Signal light! Signal light! Signal light with complete spectrum!" Carlos suddenly exclaimed in Spanish. On the ice far away from the end of the peninsula, in the darkness, a colored light suddenly lit up.It starts out as a red dot, then turns yellow, green, and blue in turn before disappearing.Cruz and Anderson rushed over upon hearing the sound.The colored lights come on again, then go off, then come on again. "See? Are you sure?" It was Glengersh's voice.He was in the command module, and learned about the situation found below through the walkie-talkie. "Absolutely." Carlos and others answered in unison. "Turn off the radar," Glengersh ordered. "It's closed. I doubt..." Anderson wanted to say something, but hesitated again, "Can we consider giving up landing here? We still have some fuel, so we can continue flying, cross this place, go to the middle of the ocean, and find an island to land on. If we are lucky, we may reach the coast on the other side of the continent...Anyway, we don’t know how big this continent is. Now that the spacecraft is flying very fast, we only have two or three minutes to make a decision on whether to change the original plan.” Glengersh frowned, not knowing what to do for a while.But he immediately calmed down and made decisive arrangements. "I will immediately get in touch with the heads of the other groups and ask for their opinions. You should immediately inform the captain himself." He said eagerly. Anderson immediately called the captain's cabin.The walkie-talkie rang for a long time, but there was no answer.After a long time, Xin Qi's impatient roar came. "The captain is sick. Let's be quiet for a while, don't make any noise!" "Please report to the captain that a mysterious light has been discovered again. It is located on the ocean ice hundreds of kilometers in front of the spacecraft. Glenn Gersh considers whether to give up landing here?" "Damn it, Captain Stirk doesn't care!" Hinch yelled loudly, and then murmured to himself, "We're dead, dead!" "It's not time for despair," Anderson said coldly. "The situation here is harsh, but it's not a dead end. If we're lucky, we still have a chance..." "Fucking chance!" Hinch thought he was doomed, so he didn't listen to other people's advice, "When the 'Ice Demon' came after him, wouldn't a bunch of cowards have to flee to the big ice? Hundreds of millions of years later, they will all become fucking mummies, a pile of bones..." "Landing as planned!" Glenn Gersh announced his decision half a minute later, and further explained, "In the current situation, this is the only option. On the one hand, the situation on the island or coast ahead, we Without a detailed investigation, the situation is unknown; on the other hand, we have limited fuel, so we cannot rashly fly to an uncertain target." Finally, the spacecraft landed slowly on a headland of the peninsula.Glenn Gersh turned off the power switch, and the rocket thrusters slowly died.After the spacecraft came to a complete stop, he summoned the leaders of each group to the command cabin to discuss the next action plan.A huge holographic monitor screen shows the scene outside the ship.In the darkness, there are coastal cliffs on one side and oceanic ice fields on the other.The cliff rises upright, directly on top of the ice sheet, and then extends north and west.To the east and south, there is an ice field of eternal frost, reflecting faint starlight, boundless.The pitch-black sky loomed heavily like an iron curtain.The world was dead silent. "Everything is unknown." Glenn Gersh stared at the dark horizon in the east, feeling a little dazed, "Even if this planet was treated with artificial cryogenics at the beginning, the newcomers only need to heat and thaw it to revive it. It's hard to do anything because we don't understand planetary cryonics (the author uses the term "cryonics" here. Cryonics is a science that studies the cryopreservation of dead bodies to bring them back to life when there is a cure for them in the future. ——Translator's Note). However, in such a place, I cannot imagine any life form that can continue to exist. As for the mysterious light, I tend to think that it is not some artificial 'signal', but some kind of natural Phenomenon, will not pose a threat to us." "Maybe that's the case. I'm out of ideas," Cruz muttered. "But in fact, the bright light was triggered by our radar scan, and it should be regarded as a kind of 'response' to us." Anderson stood up and retorted.He looked at the dark and flat ice surface, blinked, and clearly expressed his objection: "Therefore, I am more inclined to think that this 'response' proves that there are spiritual animals here, and the other party has already discovered us. We cannot let our guard down until we have cleared up the other party's situation." "Of course, this situation is also possible." Glenn Gersh said, "If there really are spiritual animals, we naturally cannot act rashly, but wait for the other party's reaction and wait and see what happens. Any form of active approach may lead to hostile actions .” "I agree." Lima agrees with everyone's analysis, but she is more concerned about the current survival issue.She turned around and looked at the rock extending west, and said urgently: "I think this place is okay, let's live here. The first task now is how to survive. I think we should start the field survey immediately, Fully investigate the available resources, select a location, and immediately start building a settlement. You can live in a house on the surface, or you can dig a cave.” Among the people attending the meeting was Jem Zheng, an expert in nuclear fusion and planetary engineering.Glengersh wanted to hear his opinion. "This meeting, let's call it the Front Enemy Meeting, and a clear plan must be drawn up." Glenn Gersh looked at Zheng and said with a heavy tone, "We are currently in a dangerous situation, and Captain Steck is in poor health and cannot perform his duties. What's the next step? There are several options. I call everyone to discuss and hope to reach a consensus." "I have studied the life environment construction course. In my opinion, the place where we landed is a good place, and it is very hopeful to build a life environment." Zheng looked at the ancient beach between the peninsula and the ocean, and said confidently. "Very promising? How to build it?" Cruz stared at Zheng and asked. "Of course, considering local uncertainties, everything has to be done secretly. First, the energy issue. There is sufficient water here to obtain the hydrogen needed for nuclear fusion reactions. Second, the planting issue. Sand and gravel, adding proper organic matter, can get soil for planting. Finally, the problem of housing. The beach here is geologically stable, suitable for digging caves and tunnels, and building underground facilities.” "The beach's geology is frozen and hardened, as hard as bedrock, and it may not be easy to dig." Rima frowned, expressing her worries.Saddle clam Ao mixed eight hundred Chinese science fiction Bogus board Ai Baibai Postscript Carlos stood aside, listening to everyone's speech, but his mind was elsewhere.Rima is close at hand, her golden hair, slim and graceful figure, passionate tone, and the faint scent of her make Carlos flustered and out of his mind.He tried his best not to look at her. The fragrance is the taste of the famous brand perfume "Sea Rose".On weekdays, Lima was reluctant to spend money on that kind of luxury, and was willing to let go of the money only once on the eve of leaving the earth forever.At that time, except for a little money she left for the car fare and pockets, she spent all she had, bought a few game disks for Kip, bought a beautiful leotard for Dai, and spent the rest of the money. On that little bottle of perfume. "We have to drill a few holes in various places, obtain rock samples, measure the geological structure, and then determine the address of the residence." Lima said to Zheng. Everyone was arguing about the construction of the living environment, and Carlos really wanted to add a few words to argue for Rima's claim.Because, he knew that there was a kind of laser excavator in the storage cabin——Anderson let him see it.That machine can be used to build the dwelling that Rima talked about, because it is driven by nuclear power, and it is extremely powerful. It can completely dig out the permafrost, turn it into ashes, and turn it into steam.However, Carlos said nothing.What's the use of saying it?Does Rima care about him?People didn't pay attention to him at all.He longed to see this beautiful woman differently, not to see her as a stowaway from the countryside, a penniless Mexican illegal immigrant, or some other terrorist. But how could he do it? "Rima, you've gone too far, you're on your way to the next step," Anderson said with gestures. "The most urgent task is to figure out the unknown objects over there: what are they? Why are they sending out such signals?" "Why don't I want to know?" Lima turned around, frowned, looking at the dark sky in the east and the black sun hanging low in the strange starry sky, "However, since this planet is in millions or even thousands of Tens of thousands of years ago, it lost the light and heat of the sun and was completely frozen. I don’t believe there is any life on it that can survive to this day and pose a threat to us.” "So, what's the explanation for the changing light?" Anderson asked rhetorically. "Its color changes are exactly in line with the spectrum, starting with red and ending with purple. Could that be a natural phenomenon? No, it is the conscious use of some kind of light." What is produced by complex technology is directed at us." "It's possible," Rima said, "but it's also possible that the seven colors of the spectrum are formed naturally, as in the rainbow." "Of course, of course," Anderson shrugged, disapprovingly, "but there is neither sunshine nor raindrops here, so how can there be conditions for light refraction? Therefore, I have to imagine that we have encountered some kind of spiritual life and were attracted by them. Pay attention." "So, that nameless light has become a welcome torch to welcome visitors?" Rima still finds Anderson's analysis difficult to accept. "Maybe it's a trap to lure us?" Anderson added. "In any case," said Rima, "I still insist that the digging of the foundations and the construction of the dwelling should be started immediately. Other work should be put on the back burner." Then, turning to Glen Gersh, she said, "Do you agree? " "There are people who agree to dig the foundation, but the purpose is not to build a residence, but to build a silo. They are Fujiwara and Krasov from the logistics team. They want to leave this planet." "How to leave? With one pair of feet?" Lima couldn't believe that someone held such an opinion, and brows were raised up in anger, "Where else can I go when the fuel tank is empty?" "People who hold that view are either overly optimistic or wild," Glenn Gersh laughed. "They also lobbied Zheng to try to convince him. They claim that we have the ability to dig silos, build quantum launchers, and return to China. Space, continue quantum flight." "Ask Zheng and you will know that we lack basic equipment, and we must not make such a pointless attempt." Lima glanced at the other groups, and added in a low voice: "Only a hot-headed fool would come up with such a thing." Bad idea." "I'd say everyone was a little hotheaded. But a lot of people were taking risks, more out of desperation," Glengersh said. "But you are the supervisor, you can't let them do whatever they want!" Lima was almost begging. "As long as Stryk wakes up, he has to listen to everything." Glenn Gersh said numbly.At the end, he turned to Anderson again, and said seriously: "Before Steck makes a final decision, if you and Cruz are willing to take the risk to explore that unknown light, I agree with you to disembark." "We take the risk!" Anderson replied loudly. "Don't worry, Your Excellency, we will die!" Cruz was very excited when he heard that Glenn Gersh agreed with them to go on an expedition, and he smiled happily. No one had ever seen him so happy. They brought two landing vehicles from Earth, specially designed for expeditions in harsh environments.There is an airbag-like compartment outside the main hatch of the spacecraft. Anderson first inflated it, then entered it, and began to assemble an 8-wheeled landing vehicle.This kind of vehicle is exactly the kind of "lunar lander" that Carlos heard about when he was a child. "Sir, I would like to go with you." Carlos saw Anderson in the mechanical cabin where Anderson was working, and asked him. "I'm sorry, Carlos, I'm afraid not." Anderson shook his head and said, "I admire you very much, your work proves that you are an excellent computer expert, but..." "Please, sir!" Carlos begged, his voice trembling a little, "consider the request of a poor Mexican. People call me 'wetback' and 'stealer' just because I I have not gone through the legal procedures. But I can learn. You see, I am strong and energetic. Dr. Villari proposed to create a living environment here, and I hope I can help." "I'm really sorry, Carlos." Anderson stopped what he was doing, frowned, and looked at him, "No one can say what kind of situation we will encounter when we go. What I need is specialized personnel , a landing vehicle driver, an experienced mechanic, and if possible, someone with polar work experience. You see, you don’t have any of these requirements.” Hearing what Anderson said, Carlos' lips trembled in grief, and he turned and left. "Sir." Soon, Carlos turned around in the mechanical cabin and came back again.Unwilling to give up, he spread his hands and begged again: "I'm here to help you with some work, it's okay. I can move tools, sweep the floor, and do anything." Anderson thought for a while, and finally agreed to recruit Carlos to join the expedition team. "Okay buddy, get to work now. Pick up all that scrap metal and throw it in the trash."