Hello! I''m the author of this novel. Before I start with the story, I''d like to point out this is a republished story taken from my Wattpad account. Thank you for reading!
LUCAS''S P.O.V.
I''m suddenly awoken by my alarm, jolting me from my sleep. Clumsily, I reach over to stop the alarm. I almost turn it off, but before my hand can find the alarm clock, I start to fall out of bed.
Crash
Ouch! I lay on the floor for a few moments while I gathered my bearings. Now incredibly annoyed, I lift myself up and turn on the light. Finally, I stopped the buzzing alarm.
I make my bed one last time, making sure it''s free of imperfections. Satisfied with my bed, I grab my phone and head downstairs.
Looking over at the wall clock by the bottom of the stairs, I noticed the time.
It''s 5:05.
It quickly dawns upon me that I won''t have much time to get ready before I''m driven to the Carlin Launch Complex, where I will be piloting a new spacecraft, the EX-5. It will be flown to a nearby planet to conduct a manned biological research mission.
My good friend Michael Carlin will also be among the EX-5''s crew, as one of the mission specialists. Interestingly, his father is the founder of the Carlin space agency.
Oh shoot! Michael! I gotta call him.
Bzzzzt... Bzzzzt... Bzzz-
"Hello?" Somebody answers
"Hey! It''s lucas," Then I recognize the voice, its my friend Kyle Raymond "wait is that you, Kyle?" "Y-yes," Kyle stutters, "Do you want me to get Michael?" "Why do you have his phone?" I ask, waiting for a response. "I''m at his house," Kyle sheepishly admits, "I uh stayed the night."
Dumbfounded from the answer, I silently hung up the phone. As much as Michael and Kyle like each other, it really isn''t the best time to have a sleepover. This is an incredibly important event for the 3 of us, including Kyle, because he is a part of Mission Control.
Annoyance aside, I grab my freshly cleaned jumpsuit and head to the bathroom. Upon entering, I undressed myself and opened the shower door. Making sure I don''t fall, as I did a couple of minutes ago, I shut the door and turned on the shower.
I''m immediately hit with a high-pressure stream of water. The water stings as it hits my fur and visor, but I quickly get used to the feeling. I grab the soap container and start to message soap through my fur. It''s unscented soap, mainly because the agency doesn''t want you to use any scented form of soap.
Now that I''ve been fully covered in soap, I begin to wash it off. It takes a minute, but eventually, I''m spotless.
I enjoy the warm water beating against my fur for a couple of moments before shutting off the water.
I step out of the shower and use a machine to dry off. I stand under a special vent, and after pressing a button, I''m quickly blown by hot air, drying out my soggy fur.
Once I''m fully dry, I put on my undergarments and slip my legs through my jumpsuit, and begin to button it up. It''s annoying to put on, but at least it''s comfy. The jumpsuit itself is light grey, with my last name, Burke, plastered across the back.
Putting on my boots, I stand up and take a good look into the mirror. My somewhat fluffy blue fur fills the mirror, with my visor and expression looking back at me.
I double-checked the bags I had packed the previous day. Everything was there, extra clothes, some pictures, my toothbrush, and some other small items. Looking back at the clock, it''s only been 35 minutes.
Grabbing my bags, I open my front door and head outside. Immediately, I''m greeted with the morning air, crisp and cool. With a brief look around, I see the agency pickup vehicle waiting quietly.
I wasn''t expecting it to show up yet, but I won''t complain about it being early. Quickly, I walk up to the car, and I''m greeted by the driver, a smaller protogen dressed in a work uniform. He opens the door, and I get into the car while he deals with my baggage.
The rear door slams shut, and the driver walks around to the car. Soon, he enters the driver''s seat and starts the quick journey to the launch complex.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.
Meanwhile, I''ve been completely silent, so the driver decides to start a conversation.
"So uh... Mr Burke, Are you excited about what''s to come?" The driver asks, glancing at me for a brief moment.
I respond to his question with a short answer, "Well, I''ve been training for the last 2 years, it doesn''t feel much different than anything else..."
Seemingly satisfied with the answer, the driver continued with what he was doing beforehand.
About 5 more minutes or so pass before we arrive at the Main Launch Complex, a large spanning area that''s dotted with hangers, runways, and other various buildings. Before long, the vehicle is in front of a large building, with the word Carlin across the front of the building.
I open the door and step out of the vehicle, and I''m immediately escorted into the building by a team of security staff. Upon entering the large doors of the building, I''m warmly greeted by workers. After a couple of greetings, I make my way to the cafeteria.
After walking down a hall that felt like it would never end, a set of doors led into a not very big cafeteria. I grab myself some food, and then I notice Michael and Kyle chatting at one of the tables.
I walk up to the table they are sitting at and join them.
Michael looks over and sees me, "Hey Lucas, good to see you!" He says with a happy smile.
"Well, it''s good to see you guys too," I say, "But I tried to call you an hour ago, but your sidekick here picked up the phone instead..."
Michael, who is sitting next to Kyle, slowly turns his head and looks down at him.
"What did you do..." He asks, with an unamused expression.
Kyle looks up to Michael, "I answered your phone. You were sleeping!"
"Why do I ever let you come to my house?" Michael says in a rather grumpy tone.
Kyle mumbles something along the lines of "Because you like me" in a barely registerable group of words.
"Oh shut up..." Michael fights back, now cracking an obvious smile.
The 3 of us make jokes, make verbal jabs at each other, and eat breakfast.
We truly had the perfect friend group. We are all different, and that''s what makes us a formidable trio.
To start off, there is Kyle. A unique but short, 4 eared gray protogen, with a distinctive crack down his visor, he is the smart one of the group. Interestingly, he was born with the ability to form nanite wings from his back. Then you have me, Lucas, a fluffy blue furred protogen who does his best to keep up good spirits in our friend group. Last but not least, you have Michael Carlin, Kyle''s favorite person. He is a loyal friend and an absolute unit, towering over me and Kyle. He is covered in dark, black fur, which makes it scary if he ever sneaks up on you.
We all finish our breakfast quickly, in time to watch Michael''s slightly older brother, Conrad, walks into the cafeteria. With a serious expression, he approaches our table.
"Michael and Lucas, where the hell have you two been! Both of you were supposed to start preflight inspections 5 minutes ago
Conrad finally notices Kyle, who is trying to save himself from the rant by hiding behind Michael.
"Kyle you are also going to be late to your position in the control room, so stop wasting your fucking time."
I''m shocked by the sudden outburst from Conrad, and Kyle starts to sink into his seat, the unexpected words from Conrad taking a toll on him. Michael notices this and stands up, looming over Conrad. "Do not ever, and I mean this, ever speak to Kyle that way again."
Conrad seems to understand the message, as he looks back at everyone. "You all have 5 minutes to to be doing what you''re supposed to."
As briefly as he entered, Conrad leaves the room.
"You okay?" Both me and Michael asks Kyle.
"Yea I''m fine, he''s just so rude sometimes..."
Kyle and I get up, and join Michael as we walk out of the cafeteria.
"See you in the suit-up room," Kyle yells back as he walks away from us, going to the control room.
"See you!" Michael and I say.
We both start to walk down to the main hanger that contains the EX-5. We walk down a large corridor, with multiple doors that lead to smaller hangers. Some hangers have decommissioned or not in use spacecraft. One of the spacecraft is the Adastra, a testbed that was used to test hyperspace flight and technology. Soon enough we get the end of the hall, and enter an incredibly large hanger that''s buzzing with workers.
As almost as if it''s an incredibly expensive art showcase, the EX-5 sits proudly in the middle of the hanger. It resembles more of a plane, the main difference that there are 2 hyperspace pods integrated into the wing, and a large heat shield covering the bottom of the fuselage and wings.
"There you guys are!" A voice calls out.
A pinkish purple colored protogen comes running up to Michael and I. It''s Avera, the mission commander.
"You both are late for the preflight inspections..." She calls out.
I chirp in, "Avera, we already got yelled at by Conrad, so we don''t need to hear what you might have to say."
"In that case, stop being late. Since you are here now, go help Garrett and Scott with the equipment checks."
"Got it."
Michael and I make are way to the equipment and storage bay underneath the EX-5. I see Garrets unmistakable orange fur. Since he is a Biologist and not an engineer, he holds a checklist, checking off the equipment that Scott lists off. Scott, a red furred incredibly talented engineer stands in the equipment bay on a ladder checking the equipment and sensors.
Michael sees the opportunity to mess with Scott.
"HEY SCOTTY!"
"Wha-"
WACK
"DAMNIT THAT HURT" Scott yells out.
Michael bursts out laughing as Scott climbs down the ladder, with his hand on his head. He notices Michael laughing, "Man you are the worst"
Michael takes a break from the laughter, "so are you, you always laugh at me whenever I hit my head on the entrance hatch."
"Touché"
"We got everything listed off" announced Garrett, handing the checklist to Scott.
Scott now turns to Michael, "Michael, come help me get the equipment bay cover back on."
While Michael helps Scott, Garret and I walk over to a couple of crates. 1 by 1 we move large boxes to help Scott and Michael can load them into the storage bay.
20 minutes later
Garret checks his watch, "Where is Vita?"
"Shouldn''t she get here around now?" I ask.
Vita, a trained physician will be apart of the mission. Incase anything goes awry, she will be there to help. Soon she walks into the hanger.
"Hey, did I miss anything?" She asks.
"Besides Scott hitting his head, not much." Garrett adds in.
"Oh! Is he okay?"
"He''s fine," replies Garrett, "he was startled by Michael."
Michael and Scott finish bolting the equipment bay cover, and help Vita, Garrett and I finish loading the last bits of cargo.
I notice Avera, Conrad, and Kyle walking towards us.
"Good work guys," Avera calls out, "It''s time to suit up."
The six of us make are way towards an adjacent room in the hanger, while Conrad and Kyle wait near the EX-5. We pass an armed guard and enter the room, where workers help us put on pressurerized flight suits. Its similar to putting on a jumpsuit, but a little bit larger and bulkier. A worker helps me slip my legs and arms into the suit. Next, large boots are attached and locked in with a pressure-tight seal. Once that is complete, gloves are attached a bit below the elbow. The worker hands me my helmet and connects the oxygen hoses to the suit as I wait for everyone else to finish suiting up.
Concept art of Lucas in his spacesuit.
After a couple of minutes, we all leave and make are way out of the suit up room and towards the EX-5.
"Michael," Conrad says, "Your friend here (Kyle) wanted to wish you farewell."
Everyone starts to climb into the EX-5 Michael and I give Kyle a hug.
"I''m going to miss you," Michael tells Kyle, "See you in a month, ''Kay?"
"Oh I will, Just don''t get yourself killed by then... And for you Lucas," Kyle says, turning to me, "you gotta stay safe too"
Michael gives Kyle one last hug, Conrad making a funny face at this. With are farewells done, Michael and I climb into the EX-5, Shutting the hatch behind us.
That is the end of Chapter 1: Preflight.
My good friend who helped write the early version of this story recently passed away. This is dedicated in his memory.