Lamont had half a mind to get up and follow him, but Rosemary’s head fell to the side resting on his shoulder. Quiet snores began to emerge from the gap between her front teeth. “Blimey, she was tired,” he whispered.
The asteroid pod rumbled to life as Ed worked through the pre-flight routine, his fingers flying between buttons and switches on the complex control panel. Lamont watched from behind the Chief Technician, a cloud of cigarette smoke drifting from his mouth as he stifled a yawn. Rosemary clipped her harness next to him, leaning her head against the padded seat.
“I'm knackered,” she muttered. “Wake me when we get there.”
Clifford shifted in his seat behind her and then stood again abruptly, hunching in the confined space of the cockpit. “I need to use the facilities,” he announced. “Go ahead and take off.” He slipped into the rear of the pod, the airtight door of the cockpit sliding closed behind him.
Lamont had half a mind to get up and follow him, but Rosemary’s head fell to the side resting on his shoulder. Quiet snores began to emerge from the gap between her front teeth. “Blimey, she was tired,” he whispered.
“I’ve been up for eighteen hours too,” Ed grumbled, reaching over his head to flip a row of toggle switches. “I guarantee that as soon as we land, I’ll have a half-dozen people who all need me to follow them to different places.”
“It’s nice to be needed,” Lamont said, looking down at the cherubic face of the sleeping medic.
Ed grunted and pulled back on a lever. The sound of hissing air and closing latches surrounded them as the cabin pressurized. He pressed a button next to the microphone on his control panel and said: “Hope you’re sitting down, Ashton. I’m taking off.” Almost at that exact instant, he wrenched another lever forward and the asteroid pod lifted, fast enough to make Lamont's stomach drop.
Within seconds, the curved opalescent surface of the landing bay was rushing toward them. Lamont experienced a brief moment of anxiety until, as always, the side of the tower opened to allow them egress. Suddenly, they were surrounded by the glittering blackness of open space.
“Was that necessary?” Lamont hissed.
“I said we were running late, didn’t I?” Ed sniffed.
They sat in uncomfortable silence for several minutes. Lamont tried to catch a glimpse of the tower receding behind them through the bulbous viewports of the pod, but could only just see the edge of the dark moon from which it emerged like a fantastically mammoth needle. He was lost in reverie when Rosemary’s head jerked up from his shoulder with a start. “Where’s Cliff?” She mumbled, one hand groping at the empty seat beside her.
“He has been back there for a while,” Lamont observed.
Ed sighed and pushed the button next to the microphone again. “Ashton, do you need some kind of help?” He asked.
There was silence.
“Does the radio work inside the pod?” Rosemary asked, rubbing her eyes.
“I think so,” Ed said. “I’m not sure.”
Rosemary, fully awake now, unfastened her harness. “How could you have taken off while he was still back there? What if he hit his head or something?”
“It was a very smooth takeoff,” Ed said defensively. “I’m a very good pilot.” But the door to the rear had already closed behind Rosemary.
Lamont cursed quietly as he jammed his cigarette butt into the ashtray between the pilot seats. A moment later, the door behind him slid open again, and Rosemary’s head appeared, her round cheeks flushed.
“Is he hurt?” Lamont asked.
“He ain’t hurt,” Rosemary exclaimed. “He’s gone!”