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  J.V. Nolan

  Copyright

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any similarity to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Copyright © 2020 J.V. Nolan – All rights Reserved All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the copyright owner. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication / use of the trademarks is not authorized, associated with or sponsored by the trademark owners.

  The Xyania Project – Book 1 of 3

  By J.V. Nolan

  Contents

  Chapter 1. The End of the Beginning

  Chapter 2. Fight to the End

  Chapter 3. Our New Home

  Chapter 4. Mining Operations

  Chapter 5. Life in Deep Dark Space

  Chapter 6. We’re Being Watched

  Chapter 1. The End of the Beginning

  The flashing light and annoying buzzing noise filled the room, growing brighter and louder until it finally broke the veil of the subconscious. With the sluggish speed that deep sleep brings upon waking, his eyes slowly opened and blinked, trying to clear the cobwebs. Buzzing meant an alarm, and flashing lights meant an alert in the system.

  With a hand that still felt more disembodied than anything, he reached over and flipped the switch to shut off the alarm and open the hatch to his sleeping chamber. Slowly sitting up, his feet hit the floor and he made his way across the small room towards the flashing red light on a large computer screen set into the wall.

  “Ok... ok... I got it… I’m looking” he muttered as he hit the button on the screen and turned off the flashing and squinted at the screen as he leaned in closer to it.

  Silence once again filled the room as he studied the screen for a few moments and then he sighed and rubbed his eyes and muttered to himself absentmindedly.

  “Wow… it’s been three years already? They weren’t kidding about those new pods making the time fly by…felt like I just closed my eyes a few days ago…”

  Pulling up a chair, he sat down and scanned the lines of text on the screen and pulled a small journal pad out of his pocket. Reading the most recent notes in the journal his eyes focused on his own handwriting as his mind drifted back and replayed the memories recorded on those small pages.

  Kenneth A. Journal Entry January 19, 2083

  Who would have thought things would continue like this. It was 2040 when NASA collapsed and was absorbed by private companies like Pex Aerospace. Years ago, everyone laughed at the idea of the founders of the private space industry and said the likes of Elon Musk would never get anywhere. And now look at how far the space industry has come!

  I've been with Pex for going on 10 years almost, and now I finally get the break I have been waiting for my entire career. Two men approached me today saying they were financiers of Pex and had a special mission they wanted my thoughts on. We met and discussed the project, which I was sworn to secrecy regarding even before we talked about anything.

  So, all I can say is that this is some really serious shit! I mean like something you would hear on that old school conspiracy theory show Ancient Aliens or something. It’s totally insane, but man if their plan works, it has the potential to change life for every living being on this planet! Will see what happens…I have another meeting with them and some other members of their team next week.

  A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth as he chuckled slightly and flipped a few pages, thinking about how much his life had changed after that second meeting.

  Kenneth A. Journal Entry Dec 25, 2088

  So, yet another Christmas and I am isolated away from family and most of my friends. I know they say that my crew has to become like family before we head out on our mission, but it still sucks. I hardly talk to my family back home anymore and when I do there is not much I say about where I am, what I am doing, or what our mission is.

  So, the four other crew members are really the only family or friends I have now. It isn’t so bad really. Malcolm is stubborn but always has my back when I need him. Kayden is definitely the brains of the group and can fix just about any problem we have. Catherine is a bit of an odd one but she is committed to the mission and she has proven herself adept at navigation and planning. And then there is Felicity, the quiet one of our group, but she is by far the most well trained and scientifically-minded of us all.

  So, yeah, we started off as a bit of a rag-tag group but over these five years, I think we have melded well together. I guess time will tell how strong the bonds are when our mission officially starts.

  A soft whistle escaped his lips as he shook his head slightly.

  “You had no idea what exactly that training was going to entail did you?” he asked himself with a chuckle as he turned a few more pages in the journal and started to read again.

  Kenneth A. Journal Entry June 10, 2090

  Today was the big day the five of us have been waiting for. We got a visit from the big boss man himself. We've only seen him face to face about three other times in these last 5 years so this was a really big deal! He told us we had completed our training and that everything was coming together for our missions to officially get underway. In a few months, we will be given the full details of our assignment and complete the final phase of our training with Pex Aerospace.

  He told us that since the privatization of the space industry, that Pex has been the leader in the best-trained aerospace experts, pilots, and astronauts and he said that many are calling our group the best that has ever come from the program! High praise indeed, and it kinda makes me nervous about what they are expecting.

  They still have not given us many details about our mission and all I can say is we are going to travel to some of the far reaches of our solar system. So, you know some high-tech crap is going to be going down for this mission. Hopefully, we will know more soon!

  “Boy, oh boy, Kenneth. Look at where you are now buddy” he said as he glanced around and then flipped the journal to the last entry and stared at the date for a moment.

  Kenneth A. Journal Entry Sept 30, 2090

  Ok wow so, yeah, not even sure what to say. We just got out of our debriefing meeting. We haven’t been able to leave the Pex Center since June and have had no contact with anyone on the outside for almost 6 months. Now we know why. We leave in 3 weeks for our mission! Here is what I know about it.

  Our mission is sending us out to the farthest edge of our solar system to establish a mining colony somewhere in the area of Pluto and its moons. No one will say exactly what we are mining other than that it is something called Moscovium, but they have given us a description of what we are searching for once we arrive.

  I have been chosen to oversee the mission and my first officer is Malcolm. Kayden will be in charge of maintenance and construction. Catherine naturally is our chief navigator and Felicity is coming as our lead scientist and researcher for the mission. Emotions are running high naturally and we are all a bundle of excited nerves.

  This may be the last entry I make till we get to our destination, so- catch ya on the far side of the solar system when I wake up out of hyper-sleep onboard the Xyania! You all
take care and be good and I promise I will give an update when we get to our new home.

  “What a journey it has been huh” he muttered to himself as he looked at the next blank page in the journal and picked up the pen that was lying beside it. "Mom and Dad would be shocked to see where you are now if they were still alive to see this..." Kenneth leaned over and began writing in the journal once again.

  Kenneth A. Journal Entry Nov 01, 2093

  We’ve reached our destination! According to the tracking and navigation system, we are just coming up on Pluto and its moons. Hyper sleep worked like a charm, feels like I just went to sleep a day or two ago. Hard to believe I basically slept away three years of my life, but here we are!

  According to our briefing, I was to awaken first a week or so before we get to our destination Pluto to ensure everything was on track. The crew will awaken in the next 5-7 days and we will begin our final approach to scan and map out the moons for the best place to land and start searching for a mining location. All seems to be going well and according to plan…

  Kenneth’s words trailed off as the pen slid across the page as the air suddenly filled with alarms, multiple alarms, all different tones and pitches and frequencies. Multiple lights started flashing as warning alert after warning alert began to pop up on the screens lining the wall in front of him.

  “What the…”

  As the alarms blared and the alerts flashed, one warning popped up on the screen that made Kenneth’s heart skip a beat.

  FUEL RESERVES LOW

  Kenneth stared at the screen as the realization hit. Evidently, that trip through the asteroid belt wasn't as clean as they had projected and some of the micro meteors had damaged the fuel line. Turns out they had been leaking fuel and now according to the gauges they were at risk of running out of fuel before making it to Pluto. With alarms sounding and lights going off, Kenneth reached over and slapped the emergency alert button on the console, activating the hyper-sleep system to begin wakeup protocols.

  Chapter 2. Fight to the End

  In what seemed like only a few minute's time, Kenneth was surrounded by the groggy and confused members of his team. He quickly got them up to speed about where they were, what the alarms were going off for, and what they needed to do. All eyes turned to Catherine to see where the navigator wanted to head.

  “We are supposed to land on the moon Charon,” she said as she picked up the flight logbook from the control station. “Pluto has 5 moons and Charon is the one closest to Pluto and is also the one believed to have the greatest quantity of Moscovium… but we don’t have enough fuel. Something seems to have happened during the trip and we have been losing small amounts of fuel for a good bit of the trip. We are going to have to try to make it to another one of the moons before we run out of fuel!”

  “We have to make it Nix” Felicity said. “It’s the moon with the middlemost orbit around the planet.”

  “I don’t know if we are going to make it much farther,” Kayden said as he leaned closer to the main scan sensor map display. “We’re coming up on the outermost moon, Hydra. Can’t we just land there?”

  “Not really, Catherine replied. “The others are too small for us to land on safely, and Hydra is too far out to easily get to the planet to finish our mission.”

  “Nix is really the only option we have if we have any hope of a safe landing and chance of completing the mission that we have been given,” Malcolm said with a commanding voice.

  “But what about the fuel….” Kayden started hesitantly.

  “Doesn’t matter’ Kenneth said as he stood up, silencing everyone. “We don’t have the time to stand around here and argue. We have a mission to do and we have to do whatever it takes to get there. Everyone gets to your stations and let’s get to Nix in one piece!”

  Everyone nodded and sprang into action. Felicity sat at her station and looked at the readouts on the screen and opened the new information tabs that were popping up at her station. Catherine leapt into the navigator’s chair and grabbed the controls and started pushing buttons and entering codes and coordinates. Kayden stood beside Catherine and studied the readouts as well, monitoring the fuel levels, power outputs, and data to watch for any changes or new warning indicators. Malcolm and Kenneth took their seats at their joint station, Malcolm studying their approach out the bay window and Kenneth shouting out important data and updates to the rest of the crew.

  As the ship Xyania sped on towards its destination, tremors began to shake the craft, jostling the crew in their seats and they scrambled for something to hold onto. Creaks and groans sounded through the ship as it began to pitch and roll slightly, Catherine struggling with the controls.

  Thankfully, with the new advances in space travel and craft design that had been developed in the last 10 years, a final approach that would have taken weeks or even months now would take a matter of minutes. The big question was would their remaining fuel last and would the ship hold up under the added strain of a rapid approach?

  “Give me a status update people!” Kenneth called out.

  “We just passed Hydra and are approaching Kerberos now” Catherine called out. “Estimated time to Nix is t-minus 10 minutes and counting!”

  “Fuel reserves at critical!” yelled Kayden. “We should make it, but it is going to be close!”

  “First readings coming in from Nix now” Felicity called out. “Will have an update on expected conditions on the moon ready for you shortly!”

  “On track still on our original trajectory for landing,” Malcolm said as he turned in his chair and looked at the navigator. “Will be beginning landing protocols in approximately 6 minutes!”

  “Alright people! Stay alert, and report back with any changes or updates” Kenneth commanded as he turned back to the observation screen and studied their path on the display.

  For a few minutes, voices fell silent and all that was heard was the beeping on control panels and scream of alerts and the groaning of the ship. For a brief moment. Kenneth’s mind went back to one of the early mission briefings the team had with the big boss before they left.

  “I don’t have to tell you guys that this is a high-risk mission, you all are smart enough to realize that. Yet you all still agreed to participate, which is how we know you are the right people for this mission. Now, we have learned a lot about Pluto that we never knew before thanks to the advances Pex Aerospace and other private space exploration teams have made. We know Pluto is colder than anywhere on Earth with -390 degrees Fahrenheit being the average temperature, with lows hitting absolute zero at times. At these frigid temperatures, the only elements that could exist in a free gas form are helium, hydrogen and neon. There naturally is no oxygen on Pluto and as far as we know there is water on the planet but it is permanently frozen and inaccessible.

  Pluto is much like our own moon in many ways. It has a light and dark side which means temperatures can vary drastically from one side of the planet to the other. The warmer temperatures on the light side of the planet cause nitrogen, methane, and other gases to become vaporous. As these vapors travel across the face of the planet and collide with the cold temperatures on the dark side of the planet, thick clouds of fog form and cover that side of the planet. We will be staying on the moons of the planet but we believe environments will be basically the same on the moons as on Pluto itself, especially on Charon as it is known to be tidally locked with the planet.

  Since there is no real atmosphere out there on these moons, there is not much in the way of wind. On the surface of Pluto itself, it is only estimated to be only around 20-30 miles per hour. It is enough to blow the snow and ice around and could cause some issues for anyone on the surface. But on the moon systems, it is far less of an issue than it would be on Mars or any other planets.

  Now, I’m sure the question you all have been dying to ask is what in the world we are sending you out to Pluto for. The answer is, we believe that the moons of Pluto are rich in an element that has been central to our
space exploration- Element 115, also known as Moscovium. This element was discovered in 2003 when it was created by American and Russian scientists working together on a project to create new elements. In the early years of its discovery, it was thought to possibly be the key to a new propulsion system for space exploration. Some even said it was the power source for the UFOs that were being reported in record numbers around that time.

  Turns out they were correct. While it took decades before we could make more than a few atoms of the unstable radioactive element, once we could it was quickly discovered to be a more powerful yet more controllable source of energy than nuclear power. Few people know this, but Pex Aerospace was a leader in the development, creation, and utilization of Moscovium. And so that brings us to where we are today, with you five, and your brand-new ship, Xyania.

  We now can use this element 115 to power our spacecraft, in fact, it is what will be powering your trip to Pluto. But we cannot make enough in the laboratory to keep up with demands. And we believe Moscovium may be abundant in its natural form on the far reaches of our Solar System. So, your mission is to set up a mining colony in the Pluto moon system so we can begin harvesting the Moscovium. Past prospectors have scoured the area years ago, and we know some is out there and it's now your job to find and mine the largest concentrations we can find. This is the mission that you all have been chosen for and it is a mission that will forever change the way we explore our universe and could open the doors to new space exploration, the likes of which we have never seen before!

  “Kenneth! New readings coming in” Felicity called out, breaking through the memories and thrusting the captain back into the situation at hand. “Temperatures from Nix are reading an estimated -300 degrees Fahrenheit”

  “We are about to begin our landing decent, Captain” Catherine called out. “Confirmation to begin landing protocol for decent?”