Thursday, August 28, 6:30 AM Tokyo time. Wednesday, August 27, 2:30 PM Canterlot time.
The next morning Sunset and Twilight awoke with the alarm. They got dressed and ready for the day, but with nothing planned, they decided to spend the day at the Martian bunker, checking on the progress the drone made mapping the life blooms along the ancient riverbed.
Skipping breakfast, they teleported directly to the bunker from their apartment, using the tagged magically resonant markers they had placed earlier. They grabbed a quick breakfast and coffee at the bunker, then sat down to review the drone data.
From the data it was clear that the life blooms were growing, increasing in size and spreading out along the riverbed. Delighted, Twilight sent out the new data to Dr. Long at NASA. It didn’t take long for her to get a reply back. Twilight read the text.
“Hey Sunny, want to visit NASA?” she asked. “Dr. Long just invited us to visit the NASA offices.”
“Sure, sounds like fun. We can always finish this up when we get back,” agreed Sunset. She finished off her coffee, taking her and Twilight’s cups to the sink, where she rinsed them out then placed them into the dishwasher and started it. Together, they entered the TACIT transceiver, teleported directly to Twilight's lab.
Twilight texted Dr. Long that they were available and ready to be picked up at her home address. Twenty minutes later, a limo pulled up to the Sparkle residence to pick the girls up. Twilight left them a note for her parents, both still at work, letting them know they had stopped by and what was happening.
It was a short drive later to the Canterlot NASA offices, where they were greeted by Dr. Long. “Hi girls! Come see what we’ve started!” She waved them over.
She led them into a warehouse, where they found Dr. Moonshot working with the TACIT bases.
“Hi, Dr. Moonshot! How’s it going?” Sunset greeted, shaking his extended hand with an excited smile.
“Hi girls! It’s going great! We’ve already started setting up the bases on both the moon and on Titan!” he informed them. “Would you like a tour?”
“Heck yes!” exclaimed both Sunset and Twilight.
“You guys certainly work fast!” noted Twilight.
“Probably not as fast as you.” laughed Dr. Moonshot. “But we do what we can. We’ll visit Tranquility Base first,” he said, heading over to the lunar TACIT base. They followed him, getting into the line for a turn in the transceiver base. When their turn came, the four of them placed on their goggles and teleported to the Lunar Tranquility Base.
The first thing the girls noticed was that the TACIT receiver was already underground.
“You’ve already moved the receiver underground? Smart!” noticed Twilight.
“Absolutely!” agreed Dr. Moonshot. “Safer for everyone involved! And no bulky suits required. That was one of our first goals, same as you and for the same reasons I would expect. We’re in a large cavern about 10 meters under the lunar surface.”
Looking around, they saw the cavern filled with crates and supplies. To their right, a hallway opened up with a few rooms visible through the opening. Teams of technicians were moving about, assembling equipment and building out the rest of the base.
Dr. Moonshot led them through the hallway and into a breakroom.
A harried technician who rushed into the room with a clipboard in her hand. “Dr. Moonshot, Dr. Long! We need you for a moment! Can you please inspect and sign off on these?” she asked.
“Sure thing. One second,” replied Dr. Long.
Turning to the girls, she added. “Do you mind hanging here for a few minutes? This won’t take long. I promise!”
“No problem!” said Twilight. Sunset smiled and nodded.
“Thanks!” Dr. Long smiled. She headed out and down the hall after Dr. Moonshot and the technician.
When Dr. Long left, they nabbed two coffees and muffins from the breakfast counter then took a seat at one of the tables to wait.
As they sat, a technician sat down beside them, also sipping her beverage. She was a beautiful young Chinese woman, her hair done up in pearl pins, and wearing a clearly brand new, crisp, bright NASA uniform. They both recognize her immediately.
“Chang’e! Oh my gosh! What are you doing here?” laughed Sunset. “Does NASA even know who you are?”
“Why, whatever do you mean? My name is Dr. Heng’e,” smirked the mischievous goddess, sipping her tea. They both laughed with her.
“Well it’s a privilege to meet you, Dr. Heng’e,” smirked Sunset, giving Chang’e a side hug. Moving to her other side, Twilight joined the hug as well.
“So, what are you really doing here?” laughed Twilight as she sipped her coffee and enjoyed her muffin. “Decided to visit your new neighbors?”
“Absolutely! What kind of goddess would I be if I didn’t welcome new visitors to my realm personally!” Chang’e grinned. “And thank you again for bringing men back to my world! I’ve so missed their delightful chaos and industry.”
“Anything for a friend!” grinned Sunset.
Drs. Moonshot and Long returned, heading over to their table. Dr. Heng’e saw them coming.
“That’s my cue,” noted Chang’e. “Take care girls, I will be seeing you!” She gave them a last quick hug before heading out the other door.
“Who was that?” asked Dr. Long as they joined the girls at the table. “I don’t recognize her but I’ve been running into her all morning. Do you girls know her?”
“Ah, yes. She’s an old family friend. I admit I was surprised to see her here,” smiled Sunset.
Twilight almost choked on her coffee.
Dr. Long looked concerned, “Are you alright, Ms. Sparkle?” she asked.
Still choking but laughing, Twilight nodded, wiping the coffee off of herself and the table.
“Okay, that was… interesting. Moving on… Let’s check out the rest of the base, shall we?” smiled Dr. Long.
As they were heading back into the hallway, Dr. Moonshot got a text. Reading it, he quickly excused himself.
“Sorry,” Dr. Moonshot said with an embarrassed smile. “I need to step away again. They’re setting up the main telescope and need me to coordinate the team calibrating it. I’ll join you again when I can.” He excused himself, heading down the hallway and around the corner.
“That sounds interesting!” grinned Twilight. “Can we see that?”
Dr. Long smiled. “Sure we can! But let’s give them some time to set up and get everything cleared away first. We still have plenty to see in the meantime.”
Dr. Long then led them in the other direction, towards a larger room filled with rows of racks mounted equipment.
“This is our hydroponics farm!” she informed them, pointing around to the rows of racks that filled the room. “No fish though. But that was a brilliant addition, I must admit. I wouldn't be surprised to see that added soon.”
Dr. Long led them down several of the rows, where open vats of hydroponic fluid, seedlings suspended, floating gently in the mix, were being flooded with artificial sunlight, bathing the plants in warmth.
“Currently, the entire base is powered through the TACIT terminal by a large inductive circuit,” noted Dr. Long. “We have banks of batteries on-site for backup, enough to keep the lights on and air fresh for several days. We’re also installing an experimental fusion reactor, which when operational, should completely supply the base's needs.”
“So, how soon until the base is self-sufficient?” asked Twilight.
“We don’t expect to be fully self-sufficient for some time,” acknowledged Dr. Long. “But the base will be able to make a go on its own when needed for up to a month at a time, once all the systems are online and operational. Full self-sufficiency is the goal we expect to meet within the next year or sooner, depending on the resources we find in our mining operations.”
“That makes sense,” nodded Twilight.
Returning to the hallway, they left the hydroponic farm. Dr. Long led them further down the hall and into another even larger room. There teams of technicians were assembling large autonomous units that largely looked like oversized space suites with powered appendages and tracts for legs.
“These units are used by our mining operations. They’re capable of both autonomous and manned operations, and are used to excavate the minerals and resources we need to both survive and expand the base. Several of these are already in use right now to create the base as it currently is,” explained Dr. Long.
“Can we see them in action?” asked Twilight eagerly, moving around one, measuring and testing its range of motion excitedly.
“Sure thing!” agreed Dr. Long. “We’ll need to suit up though, these are operating outside of the sealed base.” She led them to the back of the room then stopped, turning back to the girls.
“On second thought, We should just take one of the larger units out. You don’t mind being a little cramped, do you girls? It occurred to me, the tunnels are unfinished, and the lunar dust will be brutal on the bearings in your chair. Sorry about that. But on the bright side, it does give us an excuse to play with one of the units.”
“Heck yes!” cheered Sunset, happily agreeing. “I’d love to drive around in one of these!”
Twilight nodded happily as well.
“Okay! That’s settled then, let’s take the big unit. It’s over here.” Dr. Long led them to the end of the row, where an oversized cyborg suit sat. It was easily four times the size of the others, with a cockpit and controls visible through the front window.
“Oh sweet Celestia, yes! That’s the ticket!” gloated Sunset, wheeling up to it. “How do we get in?”
“The hatch is in the back. One moment.” Dr. Long reached around and keyed her code into the keypad at the back of the unit. The rear of the unit lifted away, exposing a drop-down ladder leading to three bucket seats in front of the cockpit window. Below the window were three screens with joysticks on either side and a keyboard below. Two gauntlets were suspended next to the display in the middle seat.
“That is so sweet! Dash is going to lose it! She’ll so want a chance to see this!” laughed Sunset. “I may need a little help getting in there, though.”
“No worries, Sunny, we got you!” smiled Twilight. Together, she and Dr. Long lifted Sunset from her chair, then up into the middle seat. Twilight climbed up to her left and Dr. Long took the right seat.
“Woohoo! Does that mean I get to drive?” asked Sunset, reaching for the gauntlets with eager, wiggling fingers.
“Maybe later,” smirked Dr. Long, gently smacking her hands away from the gauntlets. “You need training first, and be cleared for this unit, but I don’t see any reason we couldn’t make that happen eventually.”
She keyed her code into the console in front of her, the display springing to life. The hatch behind them shut, the pressure seal locking into place. Checking the power levels and O2 reserves, she turned to the girls. “Okay. Our little titan is ready to rock! Who wants to do a little lunar exploring?”
Sunset looked out the window, and saw Dr. Heng’e waving at them from the other side of the hanger. Then she shook a finger at them, laughing while Sunset waved back. The Dr. walked back out of the room, still laughing.
“I swear, that young woman looks so familiar,” mused Dr. Long. “It’s like I know her, but I just can’t place her. What was her name again?”
“That’s Dr. Heng’e,” smiled Sunset. “She’s an old family friend.”
Twilight was looking away, trying very hard not to burst out laughing.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if you had heard of her,” agreed Sunset. “She’s fairly famous in some circles.”
Starting to shake silently, Twilight covered her mouth with both hands. Dr. Long looked at her, smiling but perplexed.
“What’s her specialty? Maybe I’d recall her if I knew that,” asked Dr. Long.
“Celestial mechanics.” Sunset deadpanned. “With an emphasis on Lunar orbits.”
“How odd. That’s a rather specific specialty,” mused Dr. Long.
“It is, isn’t it,” agreed Sunset.
Twilight was shaking in her seat, barely repressing her mirth.
Still thinking, Dr. Long reached over to take the joystick, then stopped. She bowed her head, then started chuckling.
“No. It can’t be,” she laughed. “Dr. Heng’e, you said?”
“The one and only,” agreed Sunset with a smirk. “That’s actually her original family name.”
“Son of a ... “ Dr. Long exclaimed breathlessly. She laughed out loud, throwing her hands up and turning to Sunset. “You don’t mean who I think you mean, do you?”
“I don’t know. Who do you think I mean?” smiled Sunset.
Dr. Long burst out in laughter. “Oh my stars! I grew up on her stories. She was my favorite heroine! I can’t believe it.” She howled out in laughter. “Oh my stars! Sweet harmony! I’m on the moon with Chang’e!”
Twilight burst out in laughter. “Oh thank the Maker! I thought I was going to pass out from having to hold that in!” she laughed.
Just then, there was a tapping on the glass in front of them. They looked up, there was Chang’e, smiling, looking at Dr. Long. Chang’e gave a little wave.
Dr. Long’s hands flew up to her face. “Oh sweet harmony! It’s her! It’s really her!” She bowed down, hands folded over her head. “Thank you thank you thank you! I can’t believe this! Thank you!” she called out. She looked back up.
Chang’e gently placed her hand on the window and smiled at her. Nodding, she grinned. She then turned to Sunset. She playfully scowled at her while wagging her finger, then stepped away from the unit, smiling and waving as she left the room.
“I think I’m in trouble,” laughed Sunset. “I don’t think Chang’e wanted me to out her.”
“Too bad! We’ll keep her secret though,” agreed Dr. Long with a huge smile. “Let’s go explore!”
Dr. Long took the controls, smiling ear to ear. She drove the unit over to the large airlock at the end of the room, entering it. Typing a few commands on her keyboard, the large interior lock door shut behind them. They could hear compressors cycling the air in the room out, eventually dimming to unhearable as the air thinned. A few moments later Dr. Long's display went green, and the lock door at the back of the lock opened. She rolled forward and out of the lock, the lock’s door shutting behind them. Typing another command, the forward flood lights lit up, bathing the tunnel in light.
“Okay! Now we’re cooking. Let’s see how the rest of the excavations are doing, then head up to the surface,” announced Dr. Long, rolling forward about 100 meters to a branch in the tunnel. Taking the left branch, she rolled forward at a steady pace following the slow turn of the tunnel as she went.
“This is going to be the outer ring of the base when it’s completed,” she informed them. “This tunnel will encompass the entire base. A rail system will be installed to allow transfer of personnel and materials quickly around the entire base.”
“I can’t believe how much you’ve already excavated!” noted Twilight. “You must have some exceptional equipment.”
“We do! We are using the latest Boring Company large tunnel bore. It was one of the first pieces of equipment we brought over and it’s been going non-stop since it got here,” Dr. Long informed them. “We should be coming up on it shortly.”
They could see a dim light coming from around the curve of the tunnel ahead. Within a few moments they felt a slight vibration through their seat, which increased as the light grew brighter. A crew was working ahead. As they came up behind them they saw several of the smaller units like theirs were clearing rubble, loading it up into bins that were taken down a side tunnel as they filled. A unit would return with an empty bin, placing it at the back of the queue. The large boring company drill moved noticeably ahead of them, processing rock and advancing the tunnel.
“Wow!” said Sunset. “Now that’s impressive!”
“Right?!” agreed Dr. Long excitedly. “We’re already almost a third of the way done with the outer tunnel. After that will be the spoke hub tunnels then the inner ring. At the rate this unit works, we should be completed by the end of the week.”
“And what then?” asked Sunset.
“Then, the boring equipment makes the trip to Mars to begin excavation on the Martian base. We’re going to be neighbors!” smiled Dr. Long.
Sunset laughed out loud. “That thing will certainly wake up Mark Watney!” she joked.
Dr. Long laughed. “Yeah, I bet it would!”
Twilight looked confused. “That’s the second time you’ve made that reference. I still don’t get it,” she said.
Sunset pulled her into a side hug. “Sorry, Sparky! I was supposed to show you the story, my bad. It’s a really cool story about a man stranded on Mars, how he overcame everything, and got back to Earth. It’s one of the reasons Mars has been so hot on everyone’s list of places to go to. And it’s part of the reason we put our bunker there. I’ll get you a copy of the book when we get back. I promise, you’ll love it!”
“Ah, that makes sense then,” nodded Twilight. “Thanks, Sunny!”
“No problem Sparky!” smiled Sunset.
“Okay, let’s go see the processing site where they mine the debris we’re excavating for water, oxygen, and any useful minerals,” said Dr. Long, spinning the unit on its tracks then turning down the side tunnel the carts were taking. Rolling down the tunnel they noticed occasional areas where the tunnel would widen into a room then taper back down to its normal width and continue.
“What are the wider parts for?” Twilight inquired of Dr. Long. “I notice they are about 500 meters apart. What’s the significance of that?”
“Those will be depots. This will be one of the spoke tunnels eventually,” answered Dr. Long.
They came upon another of the depots. This one had two side tunnels that both sloped upwards. Dr. Long turned the unit towards the rightmost tunnel and headed up. As they were entering, they saw another of the smaller units emerge from the left-hand tunnel with an empty bin in tow. It turned down the tunnel they had just cleared, clearly returning for more debris.
They emerged from the tunnel onto the moon’s surface. There was a line of units and bins, with the lead bin being dumped into a large hopper. From the hopper, the rock and debris were sifted onto a belt that led to a large cage of automation that apparently processed the rock. There was a belt out the side sloping up to the top of a large mound where crushed rock and powder were dropped onto the growing pile. Further along, there were other belts leading to smaller piles as well as two tanks on carts at the end of the line.
“What are the tanks for?” asked Sunset.
“That’s the water and oxygen,” answered Dr. Long.
The processing was moving along smoothly, with a new unit and bin showing up about the time the bin at the front of the line had been completely emptied. They watched for a few minutes, marveling at the efficiency.
“Ready to head back?” asked Dr. Long. “They should be about done with the Telescope calibrations if you still want to check that out.”
“Yes, please!” smiled Twilight. Sunset nodded and smiled.
“Okay then, let’s do it,” replied Dr. Long.
Dr. Long wheeled the unit over to the return tunnel, then raced along it to the depot, turning back down the tunnel. A short distance later they were back to the boring equipment, which had made noticeable advances since they left. They turned back down the hall racing back to the airlock and base.
“This little beast really can haul!” grinned Sunset as they raced down the tunnel. “I want! Any chance I can get one of these toys?”
“I’ll see what we can do,” smiled Dr. Long. “I don’t know about one of the big boys like this one, but there may be a spare smaller unit once we set up the Martian base. Maybe we could lend you one of those for a while?”
Sunset pumped her fist in victory.
Twilight laughed and shook her head. “You’re such a bad girl!” she laughed.
“Sez you!” Sunset shot back with a laugh. “I’ll have you know there’s nothing bad about me! Just ask my BFF!”
“Dork!” grinned Twilight.
“Takes one to know one!” grinned Sunset back.
Dr. Long laughed and shook her head as they neared the airlock. Slowing down, she keyed in the commands to open the airlock, stopping before the opening door. Once it completely opened, she rolled into the lock and completed the cycle. The door closed behind them, and they heard the air being returned to the lock. When Dr. Long’s display cleared to green, the door before them opened and they rolled into the room housing the units. Driving back to the spot they had left earlier, she parked it, shut down the unit, then released the seals on the back hatch. It opened slowly upwards, then Dr. Long and Twilight climbed out. Twilight pulled Sunset’s chair over and they lowered her out of the unit and into her chair.
“That was fun!” smiled Sunset. “I so can’t wait to get one of those for our bunker on Mars!”
Dr. Long motioned them to follow, leading them out of the room and back into the hallway. “This way!” she called out. “The observatory is down here.” She headed down the hall with Twilight and Sunset trailing.
Coming to an intersection with a tunnel spiraling upwards off to the left, she headed up. After a few cycles they came out into a room on the Moon’s surface that looked out over a closed dome, complete with a very large celestial telescope with all its related equipment. The mirror at the base was easily several meters across.
“Wow! That’s a monster!” smiled Twilight looking at the mirror and assembly.
“When it’s finished, it should be at least as big as Keck,” nodded Dr. Long. “But with significantly better atmospherics!”
Twilight nodded. “I should say so!” she laughed.
In the dome they saw several technicians working around the mirror and mounting frame. One of them was dialing in calibrations to a motorized unit at the base of the mirror. When he finished he nodded and waved to the other technicians then headed towards the room they were in. There was an airlock off to the side that he entered, and moments later he emerged into the room. When he took off the helmet they could see it was Dr. Moonshot.
“Ah, you made it. Just in time too!” he smiled. “We’re about to take some test shots then get it started on its first rotation. You can watch us put this beauty to work.”
He finished removing the rest of the suit, hanging it on a rack located next to the airlock, then wandered over to them and took a seat at one of the stations while they gathered around.
“Just a few more minutes,” he promised. The other technicians finished their tasks and cycled through the airlock one at a time. Taking off their suites they headed out to their next assignment.
“Good luck, Dr. Moonshot!” the last technician called out as she wandered out and back down the hall.
“Thanks, Rose!” Dr. Moonshot called after her, waving as she left. He keyed in his code and the displays in the front of the room flared to life displaying the feed from the telescope itself. The telescope started moving, spinning slowly up and over while the dome overhead opened giving completely full access to the star-filled skies.
“Our first calibration shot is Alpha Centauri.” He typed a command and the large scope locked onto the bright star. The image grew and cleared, showing an absolutely stunning shot of the star filling the screen. “Nice! I can almost count its sunspots with this beauty!'' grinned Dr. Moonshot. He took several shots then moved on.
“Next, the horsehead nebula,” he noted. The telescope once again moved then locked into place. On the screen was the famous horsehead nebula in stunning focus. He took several stills of that as well.
“Dr. Moonshot? Can I get copies of those?” asked Twilight.
“Certainly! Why do you ask? Are you an astronomer as well?” asked Dr. Moonshot, preparing the telescope for the automated run it was slated to complete as its first assignment.
“Not exactly,” smiled Twilight. “I’m an amateur who loves star gazing. The pictures are primarily for my dad. He’s a professor of astronomy at Canterlot University, and I just know he would be absolutely beside himself to be here right now.”
“Well let him know he’s always welcome to stop by!” nodded Dr. Moonshot. “Okay, tonight’s run is ready to kick off. I’m going to hang here and watch it for a bit, just to be certain there are no issues. But everything is looking good.”
Dr. Long turned to the girls. “Let’s head back to the offices, so you can take a look at Titan base before you have to leave.”
Sunset nodded. “True that. We have a busy day starting in a few hours. It would be nice to get some sleep.”
They waved goodbye to Dr. Moonshot as they left the control room.
As they were leaving, Dr. Long leaned over and whispered into Dr. Moonshot’s ear. His eyes sprang wide. “You don’t say!” he stage-whispered to Dr. Long. She nodded. “Hmm!” he smiled. “That’s great!” Still smiling, he went back to work.
As they were heading down the hall. Sunset grinned at Dr. Long. “You told him, didn’t you?” she asked.
Dr. Long smiled and nodded. “He needed to know, and he’s good at keeping secrets. Her secret is safe with us,” she said.
Sunset laughed, then sighed. “Chang’e is so going to kill me.”
They turned into the control room where the TACIT receiver was housed, still in heavy use. A new shipment appeared every 30 seconds, with technicians waiting to pull the arriving equipment from the booth before the next one appeared. They were all wearing goggles. The girls had prudently put pairs on as well when they entered the room.
Eventually there was a lull in the deliveries and Dr. Long led the girls into the stall. They waited a few moments until a magenta glow flashed, and they were back at the base in the NASA offices. They cleared out of the booth quickly as a new shipment of equipment was wheeled into place. A magenta flash later, it was delivered to the moon’s tranquility base.
“Shall we head to Titan, then?” invited Dr. Long with a grin. “Any helpful extra staff we should expect to meet there?”
Sunset laughed. “No, not that we know of. No promises, though!” She wheeled over to the line for the Titan TACIT base which also had a queue of materials lined up for delivery.
“Noted!” laughed Dr. Long. “I guess I’ll just have to keep my eyes peeled.” She and Twilight joined Sunset in the line.
When their turn came up Sunset wheeled into the base, Twilight beside her, and Dr. Long in the front. They were still wearing their goggles. A few seconds later there was the familiar magenta flash, and they were on the Titan base. They once again cleared the busy booth quickly.
“Good job, Sunny! You wore your goggles! You can be taught!” teased Twilight.
Sunset smacked Twilight on the back of her leg. “Shuddup you,” she laughed as she took off her goggles, pitching them into a nearby collection bin.
They moved past stacks of equipment and busy teams of technicians. Overhead a large dome stretched out, providing protection from the toxic atmosphere. Above that a shimmering shield sparkled, blocking out the life threatening radiation that plagued the space around the Giant above them. Purple clouds moved along briskly in a magenta sky, with Saturn hanging large overhead. Sunset stopped, taking in the view.
“I don’t think that will ever get old,” Sunset said in awe. “That’s just breathtaking.” Twilight nodded happily, awed as well.
Dr. Long nodded. “I couldn’t agree more. It’s one of the reasons I love my job!”
After a few moments she gently moved them forward. “As stunning as this is, we should continue. Also, know that you’re always welcome to visit.”
Continuing on she entered a hallway that was part of a covered tunnel between their dome and another about 50 meters away.
“Let’s take a look at the residential dome first,” Dr. Long proposed.
As the girls followed, Dr. Long continued. “This dome is mostly living space for the base staff. The dorms, cafeteria, break room, and gym are here as well as showers and a small spa and pool for relaxation. We were inspired by your design, and by the fact that with the TACIT system, we no longer have the many material restrictions we thought we would be facing, including water management. So it made sense to adjust our thinking.”
Twilight and Sunset nodded. Dr. Long led them into a large common room filled with tables of staff, seated, talking, eating, and enjoying each other’s company.
“This is our cafeteria,” Dr. Long informed them. “The buffet line is through the side doors there.” She pointed to the other side of the room where a swinging double door was getting a fair amount of traffic. “Let’s take a seat for a moment and enjoy a coffee or tea before seeing the rest of the base.”
They took a seat at an open table, pushing aside one of the chairs to allow Sunset a place to sit at the table.
Dr. Long waved over a passing intern and whispered into her ear. Smiling, the young girl nodded and passed through the double doors, returning a moment later with a tray of three coffees, cream, sugar, and muffins, which she set on the table for them. “Thanks, Babs! You’re a lifesaver,” smiled Dr. Long.
“No problem, Dr. Long. Happy to help!” chirped the young girl with a smile as she turned to leave.
“One sec!” called out Sunset. The girl turned back, still smiling. “Hi! I’m Sunset Shimmer and this is my friend, Twilight Sparkle. We’re pleased to meet you. Who might you be?” she asked, her hand extended in greeting.
The girl took her hand, giving a shake. “Hi! Sorry about that, I didn't mean to seem rude! I’m one of the interns here. My name’s Barbara Seed. But my friends call me Babs! I’m Dr. Long’s assistant.”
“Babs Seed?” asked Sunset, thinking. “You wouldn’t happen to be related to an Apple Bloom Apple, would you?”
The girl nodded, smiling. “Yes! She’s my cousin. Do you know her?”
“Wow! Small world!” laughed Sunset. “Sure do! Her sister, Applejack, is one of our best friends!”
Twilight smiled, also shaking the girl's hand.
“Sunset Shimmer?” the girl mused. “Yes, I do remember you. You're one of the Rainbooms, right? Apply Bloom’s mentioned you.”
“That’s us!” agreed Sunset. “It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Babs!”
“Thanks!” smiled the girl. Turning to Dr. Long, she smiled. “I have to get back to work now, but let me know if there’s anything else I can do to help!” She waved, heading back into the hallway.
“Good kid,” smiled Dr. Long. “And how many kids get to say they interned for NASA on another planet?” She laughed, taking a bite out of one of the muffins.
“Right?” agreed Sunset. Twilight nodded, stirring cream and sugar into her coffee.
“The goal for Titan base is a bit different than Tranquility or Mars,” explained Dr. Long. “We’re considering Titan to be a forward base in our long-term exploration. Eventually we want to set up a way station in orbit we can use to explore further out into the Solar System, the Belt, and eventually beyond. Titan is well placed as a stepping stone to get us there.”
“That makes sense,” agreed Twilight. “So the base is a staging area for forward operations.”
“Yes. Exactly,” nodded Dr. Long. “It will take a while to build that forward, especially as the bulk of our efforts in the near future will be focused on Mars and our Moon. You’ve really cracked the nut of the inner system open with your TACIT transporters.”
Sunset pulled Twilight in for a hug as she blushed. “Well done, Sparky,” she encouraged.
Her arm still around her BFF, Sunset nibbled her muffin. “So what scientific research are you running on Titan?” she asked.
“We are sending out probes looking for any signs of life. Because of the unique circumstances here, we are looking beyond just carbon-based life for anything resembling organic type processes,” replied Dr. Long. “We don’t currently have any probes out, as we’re still staging everything up and building out the base infrastructure. But we expect to have the first probes in action by the end of the month.”
“I’ll definitely be checking in then!” smiled Twilight. “I can’t wait to see what you find and how it compares to the life signs we are finding on Mars.”
“I’m very fascinated by the Martian life signs you have found, too,” agreed Dr. Long. “One of the first things we plan on doing when we implement the Martian base is working with you to extend and refine the scans you’re running. We’re hoping to actually find that life is more prevalent than we even hoped.” Dr. Long smiled.
“So ready for a quick walk-around of the rest of the base?” She asked.
Sunset finished off her muffin and coffee before agreeing. “Sounds good to me!”. Twilight nodded, finishing her coffee and muffin as well.
Clearing their tray they resumed their tour of the Titan base. Unfortunately at the moment there really wasn't much to see aside from teams all over putting together equipment, and the breath-taking view overhead. Racks and pallets filled rooms and hallways, and of course, everywhere there were lots of very busy and excited people, all buzzing with the thrill of actually being on a mission to another planet.
Finished with the tour the girls and their guide returned to the TACIT receiver, waiting for their turn to return to the NASA offices, goggles in place once again at NASA (and Twilight’s) insistence. Their turn arrived and they made the transfer. Taking the girls aside, Dr. Long thanked them for everything, and for taking the time out of their day to see the work they were doing.
“It was totally our pleasure, Dr. Long! Thank you so much for inviting us!” said Sunset.
“Absolutely, and I can’t wait to see you on Mars!” agreed Twilight. “About that… We’re still working on the TACIT switching, but we’re not even close to having it working. How soon do you plan to begin work on the Martian base?”
“As soon as the initial work is done on Tranquility Base,” answered Dr. Long. “We just need to finish the Lunar excavations with the Boring equipment then move it over to Mars to begin there.”
“Then we can be neighbors!” Twilight laughed.
Dr. Long grinned. “Do you girls need a ride back to your lab? I can call the limo for you.”
“Nah, we’re good, we can teleport from here using the markers. Thank you though!” grinned Sunset. “And thanks again for the tours! Best of luck with your work!”
With a quick hug for each of them, Dr. Long excused herself and returned to her work. Joining hands, the girls used the marker to return to the TACIT base in Twilight’s lab.
“Wow! That was a heck of a day! And Saturn overhead! That was so intense!” Twilight smiled.
“Sure was, Sparky! Not a day I’ll be forgetting soon. And get that! An Apple on Titan! They really are everywhere, right?!” laughed Sunset.
Twilight laughed and punched her arm. “Be nice, Sunny!” she grinned.
“Speaking of nice, I wonder how nice Chang’e is going to feel towards me. I really let the cat out of the bag there. I just hope she’s not mad,” smiled Sunset. “I get the feeling the entire base is going to know her little secret in very short order.”
In the crew dorms of the Lunar base, a sign was hung by the door to one of the private rooms, reading ‘Dr. Hang’e’. In very short order a small table was found under it, on which the staff started leaving candy, treats, bottled beverages, and handwritten notes of gratitude.
In the room, a smiling Dr. Hang’e read the notes privately, happy tears of joy in her eyes.
Finding Mr. and Mrs. Sparkle home and preparing for dinner, Twilight and Sunset joined them. They regaled them with tales of the two bases. Twilight gave her father the pictures of the Horsehead Nebula taken with the new telescope, and relayed Dr. Moonshot’s open invitation for him to drop by.
After dinner, they returned to their apartment, in time to start their next day thanks to the time zone differences. As they were returning in a few hours for the sleepover in the Bunker, they decided to get some rest before heading back, so they opaqued the windows and took a few hours nap.
Dr. Moonshot sat across from Dr. Long at his desk, reviewing the project priorities and timelines for the three new bases that had been placed under their jurisdictions.
“Wow, are we ever going to be busy for the next few months,” laughed Dr. Moonshot, signing off the latest requisitions for equipment on the new Martian base.
“Jeff, don’t even pretend you aren't having the time of your life,” grinned Dr. Long, reviewing the requisitions for the Lunar Tranquility base. “I’ve been your partner long enough to know you're a kid in the candy shop here,” she laughed, signing off on her equipment requisitions.
“You are so not wrong, Eve,” grinned Dr. Moonshot. “If you had told me two weeks ago you and I would be responsible for three new active bases on two moons and a planet, I would have sent you to the medic on call for a quick check.” He looked over at the two 36-volt silver-zinc potassium hydroxide non-rechargeable batteries sitting in the corner of his office, a gift of apology from the girls for the prank that started all this and kicked off the latest push of humanity into the solar system. He smiled. “Remind me to thank those girls.”
“Every time we see them,” agreed Dr. Long with a smile. She looked over to Dr. Moonshot. “Almost done here, Jeff. Have any plans for dinner?”
“What do you have in mind, Eve?” he asked without looking up, signing off the last of his requisitions and filing them in his out basket.
“I heard it’s lasagna night at TitanFall. And I can’t think of anything more romantic than lasagna while looking up at Saturn overhead. Feel up to a little bit of a well deserved break?” Dr. Long suggested.
“Eve, you’ve talked me into it!” smiled Dr. Long, tossing the last of the signed requisitions into the outgoing stack, then standing and taking her hand. “Let’s have a little down time and just enjoy being a couple, instead of this,” he waved his other hand around the office.
“Thought you would never ask!” agreed Dr. Long, tossing her signed requisitions into the stack as well and standing. “Lead on, my dear!”
Locking his arm in hers, he grinned and led them out the door. “It’s a date!” They left for the TitanFall TACIT transceiver and their well earned dinner.
Worry less; Pray more - The Celestial Teachings
To say it had been a day filled with misfortune would be an understatement, even for Toma, who never seemed to be far from misfortune when it struck.
He woke to a world turned topsey-turvey. His mom was now Index. His dad was… well his dad was still his dad, near as he could tell, but without his memories, that was still mostly a guess. His little cousin, who everyone calle his sister, looks just like Misaka. And the two mages from Necessarius who came with him were not completely affected. Oddly enough, Kaori looked like Stiyl to everyone else, though Toma could see her quite plainly as Kaori. She initially was coming after him thinking he was the cause of the worldwide shuffle of souls, but with a little forewarning from Motoharu, his neighbor in the dorm apartments - who actually it was revealed was also a mage for Necessarius - helps him convince them he is not in fact the mage behind this strange occurrence, which they explained to him is called Angel Fall.
Misfortune continued for Toma, as Kaori asked him to watch the baths so she could clean up without the weirdness of being joined by other men, which failed spectacularly when his family found him guarding the door, and insisted he get his stinky hide in there with his - they thought male - friend and clean up. As he was thrown into the bathing room, Koari was just exiting the bath, in her full glory.
Toma was in no measure amused or aroused by this, as he rightly feared her, knowing her temper and how easily she was able to destroy him in their earlier encounters. While she did punish him for his indiscretions, she did not destroy him, but he remained nervous the entire rest of the day.
Add to this that escaped ritualistic serial killer, Hino Jinsaku, was rumored to be in the area, causing more alarm for Toma and his family. And, misfortune finding a way to touch Toma again, he was attacked that evening by this very same killer, but was saved from a rather gruesome death by an nun, Misha Kreutzev, of the Russian Orthodox Church's Annihilatus, a mage like the ones from Necessarius, though her specialty is dispatching beings from the afterlife.
If that were not enough, his father was feeling rather amourous - it was a vacation, after all - and was constantly suggesting trysts to his wife, trying to achieve some marital intimacy. His wife was clearly interested - except Toma could clearly see his mother was Index, a young teenage girl, a nun no less, who probably had not even kissed a man, let alone done any of the things his father was intimating.
Thoroughly appalled at what was clearly going to happen, Toma decided the better part of valor was to act like a child again and insist on sleeping between them. As his father kept waking to see if he was asleep yet so he could resume his clearly welcome amorous advances, Toma did not in fact sleep at all that night.
“Such misfortune,” he groaned as he lay there awake.