Station Breaker

67 Standby

I glide out of the opening, then use the edge of the hatch to bring myself into an upside down position. That's another thing, while you can bend around your center of gravity in space, trying to do a somersault is a practical impossibility without anything to act against.

I gently push away from the DarkStar and begin to move out from behind its shadow. When I'm a meter away I activate the jets on my pack and a tiny spurt of air sends me towards the K1.

It doesn't look like I'm moving at first — and that's a good thing. If I was at running speed, like 25 MPH, that means I'd hit the K1 at that velocity — which is the same as falling from a two-story building and landing on your face.

The tip of the upper spire on the K1 gradually grows closer while the tether at my waist spools out a thin line fast enough to keep pace without getting tangled.

My target is the cross-shaped module at the end of the spire. This is the section that juts upwards from the station.

Although I tend to think of the K1 as built like a cross, it's actually more like a little toy jack.

As I get closer I can see inside the top module through a skylight. Thankfully, nobody is looking back at me.

A few meters from impact, I reach my hands out to soften my fall. I spot a railing around the window near me and grasp it.

Boom. We have touchdown. I think I hit soft enough to not make a big noise inside.

"I'm on the K1," I report into my comm.

I take the tether from my belt and clip it to the handrail.

When I look up at the DarkStar my heart does a flip flop when it's not there.

Duh.

Stealth ship.

Even the tether is invisible past a few meters.

I pull myself along the rails to a set of handholds that lead down the upper module and to the side of the airlock.

Okay. If everything else plays out this smoothly, I'll have a nuclear device in my hands in the next few minutes and be ready to take this thing home.

"OPS, any word on the insider?"

"Hello, David. This is Markov," he says in case the accent wasn't a tip-off. "There's been a complication. I'm unable to reach my operative. We suspect the commanders of the K1 may have restricted the other crew."

"Hold up. Are you saying there's nobody here to let me in?"

"That is correct. Until further notice we need you to stand by."

"And if you can't get hold of your operative?"

"We're working on a contingency."

"Um, Markov, I'm not sure if you realize there really aren't any contingencies. I need someone on the inside to open this airlock. It's not like I brought C4 and can blow my way in."

"I understand that. Please stand by…"

I can tell he's just as frustrated as I am. After everything we've gone through to get this far, to come this close and fall short…

I stand by and stand by some more. It's not the worst place to wait for the end of the modern world.

Below me the earth moves into its nightside and I see the sparkling lights of southeast Asia. The entire half of the Pacific Rim is a glittering crescent.

"David. We've intercepted some chatter from Roscosmos. We have confirmation that the commanders have locked down the crew."

I turn my attention back to the present. "Meaning what?"

"My operative cannot get to you and we think that Zhirov may be planning something imminently."

"Are they going to blow the whole station or use some kind of satellite ejector?"

"We don't know. Either way, the most prudent course of action is for you to return to the DarkStar and come back to Earth."

Well, damn.