“Yes, I surprised too the U.S. did not keep going to moon. That’s one reason we stopped. We were sure U.S. would keep going and always overshadow us. If we knew America was going to stop, I’m sure we would have went to moon. I bet Russia would have base on moon today.”
Peter thought about that concept, Russia having a moon base. He didn’t care who was exploring the universe, as long as the country went in peace and for all mankind, which is how his dad went. Russia having a base on the moon today would have been a good thing for the whole world.
Viktor pulled out a picture of Maria from his pocket which made Peter think of Anya. “Maria was a special lady,” he said.
Viktor just looked at Peter and smiled.
“Maybe you should get some Velcro put on the back so you can have it hanging in here for the flight.”
“Thanks. Good idea. I do.” Still looking at the picture, Viktor said, “Anya is a lot like her mother. Whenever I see Anya, it like I see Maria thirty years ago. I know it hard what you did, to end with Anya.”
“Probably the hardest thing I ever had to do. Too bad I met her so late in life. I think we would have been a happy couple. You and Maria did a good job raising such a beautiful and wonderful daughter.”
“Your parents did good too,” Viktor said.
Peter smiled.
Victor reached a gloved hand to touch Peter’s sleeve. “I give my blessing. I be proud you be with Anya.”
Peter swelled with pride as he patted Anya’s father on his leg. He sat back and thought of how life could have been different if they had met earlier in life.
Suddenly the silence in his helmet was broken by an announcement over the radio. “Sorry, gentleman, but it’s going to take a while to fix this problem. Instead of you two sitting up there for hours waiting, lets plan on finishing the test tomorrow,” Bud said.
“Are we still scheduled to launch on Thursday?” Peter asked.
“Yes, as long as the test goes okay tomorrow we should be able to stay on schedule,” answered Bud. “We’ll have the techs up there in a few minutes to get you two out.”
“Roger,” answered Peter, squirming in his wet diaper.
SIE ADJUSTED THE ANGLE of his pen next to the printout of his calculations, aligned with the edge of the conference table at Jiuquan Launch Center. Sitting at the head of the table was Kuang. Sie sat to Kuang’s right and on Kuang’s left sat Tang and Nei, the experienced taikonauts selected for the mission of beating the Americans to the moon.
Kuang started the meeting by asking Sie, “Why are we not fueling Shenzhou 10? I just learned from our intelligence that America has a rocket fueled up and ready to launch at Kennedy. Since the UN sanctions state America cannot send any rockets into space, why don’t we fuel our rocket? Why do you suspect they are doing this?”
Sie laced his fingers together under the table, his shoulders straight. “Sir, we feel that rocket is a decoy of some sort. It is not a NASA rocket capable of reaching the moon, but instead a private commercial rocket. America must have learned from their spy satellites that we have a moon rocket sitting on the launch pad, and probably assume it is there to intercept any rocket they send to the moon. We suspect they are trying to bait us to begin fueling our rocket with the idea we will later defuel it once we figure they are not launching. They probably know it takes three to four days to refuel a Long March rocket after its been defueled, versus less than two days if it wasn’t. We believe once they see us defuel, they will immediately bring out a rocket capable of flying to the moon and quickly fuel and launch. Their lead would be too great to overcome, we would be unable to catch them. We are not going to fall for their little trick. I have ordered our team to stand down.”
Kuang studied Sie for a moment. “Our intelligence says America is years away from having a moon rocket.”
“We know they have been trying to develop a rocket that competes with the Long March. I feel they are farther along than the world suspects.”
“Are you sure the rocket on the launch pad can’t reach the moon?”
“Yes sir. It’s a Newton 9 rocket built by a company called SpaceQuest, which is a commercial company not affiliated with the U.S. government. I personally have seen a mock-up of this rocket at an air show and talked to company officials. Its purpose is to fly equipment and men into low orbit. They have yet to fly a successful mission. Our intelligence assures me there is no way that rocket has enough power to get to the moon.”
“Are you sure they won’t launch it, even though it’s fueled?”
“I see no reason to launch that rocket and go against the UN sanctions. We can only conclude they are trying to trick us into fueling our rocket. We are not going to buy into their deception.”
“I hope you’re right. I will contact Beijing and inform them the U.S. has a fueled rocket ready to launch. I’m sure Beijing will complain to the UN.” Kuang raised his bushy eyebrows. “Are Tang and Nei ready to fly at a moment’s notice?”
Tang looked eager to answer, but speaking was disrespectful unless called upon, so he sat quietly as Sie answered, “Sir, both men have been training and are ready to go.”
“Have they learned how to change the factory installed codes in the required amount of time?”
“Yes, sir. I have them capable of doing it in thirty minutes—fifteen minutes less than the forty-five minutes available to them.”
“Do you think the Americans will be able to do it in that time frame?”
“Sir, the Americans need to do it in less than twenty minutes.”
“Why?” Kuang asked, sitting back in his chair.
“Sir, because we have the passwords, we can easily access the laser and disarm it, probably in less than five minutes. Then have the remaining orbit on the back side to reprogram it with new access codes, locking the Americans out. The Americans have to access the laser’s programming system through the backdoor using a complicated series of inputs before they can put in a new password and disarm the laser. This will certainly take longer than twenty minutes. Once the laser detects their spacecraft, it is designed to power up, lock on, and fire within twenty minutes. They will surely be destroyed.”
“Why send a rocket if they cannot change the codes in time?”
Sie was silent for awhile; due to his earlier miscalculation he had to tread carefully around Kuang. “Sir, it is unlikely the Americans could do it, but not impossible. We don’t want to leave it to chance. We have too much to lose.”
Kuang shook his head at Sie’s answer. Turning to the taikonauts he said, “If you two are required to carry out this mission, you must know it is of national importance that you are successful. Success is vital to the future of China.”
Commander Tang gave a respectful bow. “Sir, we understand the importance of this mission and promise to serve you and our country with honor. We will not let you down.”
Out of all the taikonauts, Tang was the most competent and dedicated to his country. Tang would do the job if given the opportunity.
24
GOODBYE
Both Peter and Viktor were strapped in the Galileo ready to complete the plugs-out test they were unable to do the day before. Fortunately, the computer wizards fixed the problem. Peter hoped all systems would check out during this final test so they could launch Thursday as planned. After two hours of lying on their back, everything seemed to be going fine. They were reaching the end of the test, the nine-minute mark of the countdown. This would be the final hold point, expected to be a ten-minute hold on launch day, allowing Bud to complete status checks with his control room personnel before proceeding with the countdown.