( Read the previous episodes of Journey to Centauri.) |
Journey to Centauri : Episode 28 "And as you feel them pull away from you...push! So." Sheng-ji tensed his arms and torso in a quick pulse and sent the burly ensign a good two meters. The ensign windmilled for a moment and then caught his feet, grinning in perverse pleasure. The crew gathered around them burst into a smattering of good-natured applause. "How long until you learn how to do that?" asked one earnest young crewmember. "I already know how to do that," said Yang calmly. "No," said the crewmember. "I mean us. How long until we learn to do that?" "You must practice for ten thousand hours, and then practice ten thousand more. And make sure every move is correct. Or, perhaps fight in zero-g." Another ensign, with thick dark brows and an urgent demeanor, waved a touchstylus. "Say, how do you fight in zero-g? Can your techniques be extrapolated to a zero-g environment?" "Zero-g is like fighting on the ground, but you can fall in any direction," Sheng-ji answered lightly, and then picked up a towel and began padding his neck and arms. "Session over. Practice the coiling motion for next time. Ten thousand hours." They laughed politely and started to break up, talking among themselves. Sheng-ji moved away, trying to avoid more of the barrage of questions from curious students. He began coming to Bay Four more often, ever since Santiago had turned against him. The crew in Bay Four seemed a little adrift, and there was an unusually large contingent of curious bright-eyed seekers of...whatever Earth, and the Charter, had failed to offer them. He watched them all with razor sharpness, although most of them... Children, really. No discipline, no tolerance for discomfort. They do not know how to 'eat bitter.' Still... He headed for his makeshift quarters. Still, their almost fawning worship of his teaching did stir a part of his ego he enjoyed. And, more importantly, they gave him an additional power base, a section of crew he could remake in his own image. He opened a floor hatch and descended into the cramped lower sleeping quarters. Most of the crew now slept in their cryocells, remade with foam padding into coffin-like beds. Yang himself had a private quarters with a small desk and room to meditate. His intended quarters were closer to the command, but he had commandeered these new quarters from a Bay Four Resident Officer. Officer Rang was his name, and he had not survived the cryosleep. Unfortunate... Continue to part 2! |
