Space Station Crisis: Star Challengers Book 2 by Kevin J. Anderson, Rebecca Moesta, June Scobee Rodgers Read Free Book Online Page B

modules are interconnected. Some people find it confusing, especially since there is no real sense of up or down.” She pushed off with gentle ease and dove straight “up” through a hatch in what JJ thought of as the command modules ceiling. The modules didn’t have—or need—any specifically defined floor.
    JJ and her friends scrambled to follow, often overcompensating, bouncing off of walls and into one another, but generally moving in the right direction. JJ twirled around in the air, like a dolphin. “And I thought that spinning chair in the Challenger Center was disorienting.”
    She expected a quick response from Tony, but her friend was deep in thought about what he had learned so far.
    Following Ansari’s summons, the rest of the ISSC scientists, specialists, and military personnel would be gathering in the Mess Module for the all-hands meeting.
    After leaving Central, the Stationmaster waited only a second in the node room—the elevator-sized chamber that connected modules together—before passing through a hatch on the right that led into another module. “Each node room has a diagram, so you can tell where you are.”
    “Or we could leave a trail of breadcrumbs floating behind us,” Dyl quipped.
    “Crumbs can be dangerous in microgravity,” Ansari said, “especially if you inhale them. We have good filtration systems, but they can’t handle everything that gets into the air.”
    The Star Challengers crowded after her into the node room and then passed through a long laboratory module that contained sealed glove-boxes, spherical experiment chambers, and numerous canisters and squeeze bottles of labeled chemicals, which were held in place behind webbing on shelves. Computer screens dotted the walls at several testing stations.
    Ansari spoke like a hurried tour guide. “This is the Chemistry and Materials Science lab, or CMS, where our materials specialists grow crystals and microfibers.” She cast a glance over her shoulder as they kept drifting along. “Originally, it was designed only for research and industrial applications, but now we’re also trying to find innovative ways of defending ourselves against the alien threat. That’s our highest priority—for the whole world.”
    “Anything good in the works?” JJ asked. “A prototype of some kind?”
    Ansari reached the far side of the CMS module, grabbed the hatch frame that led into the next node room. “Our problem right now is that we have almost no information about the aliens. We don’t know anything about their physiology, their biochemistry, what sort of air they breathe, what kind of planet they come from. More important for Earth’s defense, we don’t know their science, weapons, ships, basic technology—although we hope to gather some good intel on their base when the Recon-1 probe gets there tomorrow. If only we had some hints … but for now we’re still in the dark.”
    “They call themselves the Kylarn,” King said, then responded to JJ’s surprised look, “It can’t hurt to give them some basic information.”
    “Where did you learn that?” Ansari asked.
    “We … can’t say,” JJ answered.
    Looking flustered, the Stationmaster passed through the connecting chamber and led them upward into another module, guiding them at a rapid clip. They went through a well-lit greenhouse and a moist-smelling Bio-sciences Module, then dropped down through another node room into Hab Module 2, where some of the station crew had their living quarters.
    Song-Ye seemed queasy. “Now I know how Newton feels when he runs around in his hamster tunnels.”
    “The Mess Module’s just up ahead.”
    “You have a whole module that’s just a dining hall?” Tony asked.
    “Not exactly. MESS is an acronym for Multiple Essential Station Services. The Mess Module is a combination of dining hall, recreation room, community area, and meeting room. We usually refer to it as the Mess. The members of the satellite team are eating there now.