Adria Laycraft [Laycraft - Jumpship Hope

Jumpship Hope

ADRIA LAYCRAFT

Jumpship Hope

Copyright 2019 Adria Laycraft

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage & retrieval system, without written permission from the copyright holder, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review.

The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations and events portrayed in this story are either the product of the authors imagination or are used fictitiously.

Any resemblance to persons living or dead would be really cool, but is purely coincidental.

Published by Tyche Books Ltd.

Calgary, Alberta, Canada

www.TycheBooks.com

Cover Art by Niken Anindita

Cover Layout by Indigo Chick Designs

Interior Layout by Ryah Deines

Editorial by M.L.D. Curelas

First Tyche Books Ltd Edition 2019

Print ISBN: 978-1-989407-03-5

Ebook ISBN: 978-1-989407-04-2

Author photograph: Erin Laycraft

This book was funded in part by a grant from the Alberta Media Fund.

This book is dedicated to Erin:

No matter what...

JANLIN WOULD GO dirtside, SpaceOp restrictions be damned.

Her fingers flew over the keyboard as she did her best to convince the orbitals security system to let her book out a Shunter without authorization. She wished she could ask Gordon for help. Or her dad. But Gordon would tell her to wait for SpaceOp to save the day, and her dad was missing.

Her stomach ached.

The fungal spore from the now-abandoned Luna base had ripped through their crops, starving out plants just as they would starve if they couldnt fix it. Such a nasty way to die.

So she made up her mind to steal a ship, get Ursula some uncontaminated green life, and get out, storms be damned. As a pilot, this was her only way to help, and she was one of the few who could actually pull it off. So what if she wasnt willing to wait for the proper channels of authority to approve her flight? They would dither until it was too late.

First, she needed a Shunter, and that wasnt going well.

Janlins comm buzzed. She touched her earlobe. Go ahead.

Ursula wants to show us something. You got a minute?

Janlin stared at her botched attempts to hack the orbitals systems and sighed. Yeah, sure.

She stepped out of her quarters to find Gordon waiting for her. At nearly six and a half feet, he dwarfed Janlins lanky five foot four and caused all kinds of hassles for SpaceOps cockpit designs.

Whats this about? Janlin asked as they fell into step together. His long face was more drawn than ever, and kinda grey. Just another thing to drive her.

Gordon shrugged. Not sure. Ursula probably wants to experiment on us again. He stared straight ahead as they walked the corridors, face tight, broad shoulders hunched. Blimey hell, but Im sick of being hungry.

Janlin wanted to tell him, wanted to ask him for help with her plan. But he knew the restrictions were in place for damned good reasons, and he tended to respect that. We need a new damned planet, she muttered. Gordon gave a humourless laugh and agreed.

They strode along the corridor linking the thousands of pods that made up the orbital station. Any word from Mars? Janlin asked. That was the other place her dad couldve gone, maybe to plead their case, maybe to negotiate more settlers, maybe to beg some fresh plant material to work with.

After their response when the Luna base went under, they can blow it out their arse.

Janlin had to agree with her Brit friend.

Do you think my dads gone there? she said, unable to keep her voice steady.

Maybe, Gordon allowed, but he did not back it up with any further hope.

They entered the growhouse, where thirty pods were joined into one large area filled with rows of hydroponics. A lone soul moved among the plants, her lean figure clearly female but her face obscured by an old rebreather mask. When she noticed their approach, she tugged the mask off over what was left of her blonde hair.

What have you got, Ursula? Janlin wrinkled her nose at the smell of rotting foliage and stagnant fungus underlying the green life.

Ursula blinked, her eyes ringed with dark circles of exhaustion. All I can figure to do is preserve as much of the crop into food as I can. Hopefully it will be enough to sustain us until we receive help. But once its gone, its gone. None of the new seedlings survived. She lifted her chin, but fear shone bright in her eyes. For all her calm logic and belief in science, Ursulas despair ran deeper than Janlin had realized... which left Janlin feeling a deep-set terror.

Gordon laid an encouraging hand on Ursulas shoulder, and she slipped closer to lean into him.

What have you cooked up, luv? Gordon asked.

Its in my lab, she said, straightening and waving them to follow.

Ursula led them across the corridor to another pod, the door opening to a room stuffed with machines and equipment. A smell like sun-baked hay overpowered the place.

This is mat-grass, Ursula said, presenting them with a small plate of flat, green squares. They each popped one in their mouths. Blue eyes wide, Ursula gave Janlin a look of appeal. It utilizes every part of the plant to create nutrition, albeit lacking in taste. I dont know what else to do.

Gordon winced, chewed, and swallowed. Janlin quickly swallowed her own square, wishing she had a drink at hand. Have you started new seedlings?

Sure, Ursula said, but Janlin caught the shadow that crossed the scientists face. We have a dozen different trays in containment that Im testing different solutions on.

How long can we last on these wafers?

Ursulas look begged Janlin not to ask.

We need to know, Janlin said, squeezing Ursulas arm in useless comfort. How long?

The mat-grass wafers will last eight weeks. The seedling trays wont be ready for three, four weeks, and of course that only gives us baby plants, not full-grown crops. Ursula looked away, giving a little shake of her head. If all the seedlings are clear of contamination, I could make more of this mat-grass out of some and let the rest mature... but we still have at least a hundred days until harvest. She gave them a look of desperation. Thats about fourteen weeks. Were short by six weeks, and thats only if these crops make it.

Weve sent for help, Urse, Gordon said, giving Janlin a murderous look over his wifes head. SpaceOp will have to send those new bio-engineered plants theyve been using on Mars.

If Mars doesnt respond, then its official. SpaceOp has abandoned us, Janlin said with quiet vehemence. Its like they have no clue what were really up against. Why else just shut us out?

Those blokes havent gone hungry, not like we have, said Gordon. And theyre scared... for good reason. He took another tiny square of green and turned it over and over in his big fingers, but he didnt make any move to eat it.

Kulturkampf, Ursula said in a mild voice as she poked a tray of the dried plant material.

Janlin tipped her head at the German. Culture-who?