Sounds of the Celestial Body

In the control room at Kennedy Space Center, national leaders, their teams, and the staff stared tensely at the big screen.

Because of the time it took to transmit and process the signal, the footage sent back from the Savior was delayed.

On the screen, the astronauts were operating machinery to unload the nuclear bomb from the spacecraft.

"Everything is going smoothly so far."

The commander in the control room gave his report.

The presidents, Hodgson among them, breathed a sigh of relief.

As long as everything went smoothly. Their advisers had concluded that they could cling to John XII for protection through the crisis of the G-10 asteroid striking Blue Star, but surely it was better to alter the asteroid's course and let Blue Star enjoy peace once more.

Suddenly, someone cried out in alarm. "Oh no! The machine's sinking!"

Hodgson's heart clenched. "What's going on? Did something happen?"

"For some reason, the surface of the G-10 asteroid suddenly changed from solid to liquid."

An expert offered the explanation.

"A swamp?" Hodgson instinctively thought of a familiar environment on Blue Star.

The expert shook his head without speaking. It didn't look like a swamp. If it were, the people aboard the spacecraft would have detected it long ago and never chosen to land there.

Suddenly, someone in the control room cried out in disbelief. "God, what is that?"

A sharp crack followed, and the entire control room screen dissolved into static.

"What happened? Why is the screen full of static?"

"The signal's gone."

"We've lost contact with the Savior."

Panic swept through the control room.

"Stuart, pull up the recording. I want to know why we lost the signal."

The commander gave the order without missing a beat.

His composure steadied the others in the control room a little.