Metafire

The final clean up, including repositioning and checking the visual integrity of exterior pods was completed within another hour. During this time the Ukrainians unpacked and rearranged the supply pod and established power to their tug. This would be the sole source of motive power for the colony's excursion to the planets. There were six rockets and twenty five small thrusters in various configurations. With the Russian tug and Bluebird looking on, Michael Yatchiv performed a series of test maneuvers that were designed to test the performance of every rocket on the tug. He announced there were no failures.

Andrei then went to his screen and sent a verbal message back to the Russian tug pilot and to New Vladisvostok that they were leaving the Russian colony to return to New Boston for final supplies. Permission was granted, and he drew a line on his computer monitor between his current position and the position, in New Boston, that they originally departed from. He then plotted an acceleration and decceleration curve with a maximum of 40 kilometers per hour relative speed in another graphics window, and clicked the window widget to start the navigation sequence. The tug had no joystick. It just had Microsoft Windows.

Platon and Marie Burak began on taking inventory of foodstuffs in the supply capsule. The supply capsule had an interior space of three by seven meters, about eleven by twenty five feet. A passageway from one end to the other slipped along one side about three meters, then crossed to the other side and slipped along that side about two meters, then slipped back and out. It added to the sense of space to have a convoluted hallway. The foodstuffs were arranged in a room meant for food preparation. Platon and Marie had personally overseen the arrangements at the Russian launch facility. There was enough freeze dried food and potable water for a year, even with fifteen people. This assumed that less than 1% of the water would be lost in recycling per day.