Our Roots, our Destiny (Chapter 2)

Roots' Command Pod, with an unweildy piece of ancient equipment strapped to the front, came up to the much more sleek and modern, but fully compatible equipment, including some helpful blinking lights. The RCS jets weren't balanced in this configuration, but Kerigh was more than up to the challenge.

"Destiny, Kerigh. I have soft connection." Kerigh heard the muffled whir of some motors and the CLUNK of some latches. "Confirmed hard-dock."
("Magnetic docking, how about that? We should have come up with that,") Gilbe said.
("Stay in the ship until I give the O-K,") Kerigh said. Gilbe started to object, ("That's an order,") Kerigh said, sternly.
"Destiny, Kerigh. Confirm air pressure."

"Internal pressure is One Zero One kilopascals," the voice on the radio said.

("Reduce air pressure in the node when I'm inside,") Kerigh said to Gilbe, climbing through the tunnel at the front of the command pod and into the node. Kerigh heard the air hiss as the pressure reduced slightly. After a few moments, Gilbe confirmed pressure was equalized.

"I'm opening the docking port hatch," Kerigh said, and she pulled herself into the airlock. She closed the docking port behind her and checked the air pressure and composition. It was safe, but she wasn't about to remove her helmet.

"This is Captain Kerigh, formally requesting permission to board the M.S.C. Destiny Awaits."

["Uh, yeah, sure."] "Yes." A few voices said back, and they opened the internal airlock door. Two Kerbals floated in front of her, each one considerably stockier in the legs and arms than she expected. The two men smiled.

"Welcome aboard, Kerigh, we're glad to--"

"That's CAPTAIN Kerigh to you," she said--and she'd have interrupted earlier if she had sooner remembered the Kerblish for (Captain). "Are you the Captain of this ship?"

"No, but," Hudble said.

"Take me to your Captain," Kerigh said.

Hudble and Genefrod exchanged an awkward glance.

"But we don't have a Captain," Genefrod said.

"Who's in charge," Kerigh barked.

"There's ten of us. How can you justify a... [heirarchy] of ten?" Hudble said. That rather got on Kerigh's nerves; she had nine subordinates and had worked hard to reach that position of authority.

"[We prepared] dinner [so you'll like us]," Genefrod said.
"As a show of good faith," Hudble clarified.
"[Yes,] a show of good faith," Genefrod said.
You look erm... [famished]," Hudble said, "[that is,] hungry."

Kerigh couldn't help but admit, she could eat. She gave the OK to Gilbe, and after a few minutes she'd made it onboard the station.

("I insist you let me take my helmet off first,") Gilbe said.

("Yes, a prudent measure,") Kerigh said.

("And might I be permitted the first bite?") Gilbe said.

Kerigh sighed. ("Yes.")

"Follow us," Hudble said, and they climbed down the long pressurized spine of Destiny Awaits, until they reached a junction.

"What is this?" Kerigh said, noticing that the junction was spinning.

"The elevator to the crew habitat," Genefrod said.

Relunctantly, Kerigh and Gilbe entered the elevator with Genefrod and Hudble, and they rode down. Kerigh felt weight on her boots for the first time in nearly a year. The gravity seemed to keep getting higher and higher. Kerigh refused to show any sign of weakness, but feared that this was their trap--they would spin her to death. 'what kind of whirligig machine are they operating,' she thought.

Gilbe had felt gravity more recently and wasn't quite as shocked by it at first. But then it seemed to get higher and higher.

"Out of curiosity," Gilbe said, "what (gravity) is your ship?"

"Gravity? The habitat is kept at 1.3 times Kerbin gravity. Groden's quarters are on the exercise deck at 5 Gee, since he's from--"

("FIVE GEE?") Gilbe shouted.

Kerigh did the mental math. At the lowest, these people were living at 1.4 times the gravity of Echo. And they exercised at 5.3 Echo gees. No wonder they were so bulky.

The elevator doors opened, and Kerigh and Gilbe were shocked by what they saw. The interior was a cobblestone pathway with a garden growing up the wall and up to the ceiling. All manner of fruits and vegetables. Gilbe startled at the sight of a bee.

"It's a robotic bee, we use it for [pollination]," Hudble said. But he was fairly sure Gilbe misunderstood from her snickering.

Gilbe noticed Kerigh's distress and started to help her.

["Hudble, I think our guests are struggling with the gravity."] Genefrod said.

"[What? Oh my.] Gilbe, Captain Kerigh, you should take off your space suits. We'll carry them for you."

Kerigh still felt on edge. She settled on taking off her helmet. Gilbe did so first.

("It smells sweet! Like fresh fruit!") Gilbe said.

"We grow most of our food in the algae tanks," Hudble said, "but most of the rest of the ship is filled with plants. And we carry stores of seasoning."

"Groden's cooking is some of the best. But I like cooking sometimes," Genefrod said.

"Who cooked the meal we will have?" Gilbe asked.

"We all contributed to it," Hudble said.

The four Kerbals reached the dining room. Four Kerbals were seated and having a chat, one was holding a laptop, and three were busy with dishes.

["Hey everyone, welcome Gilbe and ]Captain[ Kerigh!"]

The crew [greeted] them, less formally than Kerigh would have liked. She felt like she was at a family gathering. She never liked those much. Kerigh and Gilbe were offered seats at the ends of the table.

"Greetings, children of Kahwell A delta," Kerigh said.

"We call our world Mesbin. What do you call yours?" Hudble asked.

"I come from Echo," Kerigh said. "Gilbe is from Charlie's skies, but she is an Echobal in her spirit and loyalty."

"I'm not familiar with the star SLIPPIST-1," Crisby said, "what's it like?"

"Whiter... or that is, redder, than your ship's lighting, that much is for sure," Kerigh said.

["A red dwarf like Gememma,"] Crisby said to herself.

"Where are our manners!" Hudbles said. "Ladies and gentlemen, why don't we introduce ourselves?"

Going clockwise around the table from Linguist and Psychologist Hudble Mighe was Astronomer Crisby Soothe, Archaelogist Genefrod Mesvoc, Archaeologist Desfield Mesoman, Pilot Shelgan Kellner, Doctor Jenicca Kerman, Engineer Tombles Donklan, Astrophysicist Steph Mesman, and Biologist Debelyn Konig. Groden Podban was just bringing his dinner to the table. "I'm a botanist and a biologist," he said.

"This feast SMELLS amazing. Is it all (vegetarian?) Erm, it's all plants?" Gilbe said.

Groden pointed to a green lump in the middle of the table. "That's a [protein-resequenced replica] of a [cow's] uhh... brain. Goes well with [tomato.]" The Kerbals helped themselves to the meal.

"MMM! (It's so good!) It is good!" Gilbe said.

"That's my mother's recipe for [mashed potatoes,] with a bit of a modern flare in the seasoning, an herb we picked up on Lowel." Tombles said.

"Lowel?" Gilbe said.

"One of the habitable planets around Gememma," Tombles said. "The discovery of compatible biochemistry between two living worlds was a pleasant surprise! We bring samples back and cultivate them experimentally."

"There are multiple habitable worlds in your system as well?" Kerigh said. "We have Delta, Echo, Foxtrot, and Golf, but all but Echo are (desolate barren) ice worlds. Echo is the most glorious planet, truly, and though certainly not as diverse as Kerbin was, it has some tasty animals. We have to process the meats to remove the arsenic of course."

"Arsenic!" Jenicca said.

"We have gotten adept at treating the arsenic. It must be removed from all plants we harvest from Echo. It was long thought that it was an (irreducible) part of their (biochemistry), erm, a needed part of their life chemistry. Our diets got a lot more interesting when we found out it was a (vestigial defense mechanism). I guess (def), uh defense against us, hah!" Gilbe said.

"And you come from the skies of Charlie?" Shelgan asked. "What's that like?"

Kerigh scoffed. Gilbe said "Oh you know, drab and authoritarian, we had to stay inside all the time."

Everyone laughed, but Kerigh and Gilbe didn't quite get the joke.

"Perhaps there is something you do not yet understand about where we are from."

"You're from Kahwell A delta," Gilbe said, "a Kerbin-like satellite of a gas giant, yes?"

"That would be Kerbmun, or Kaywell A dee two," Steph said, chuckling.

"We're from Kaywell A d, full-stop. Mesbin," Crisby said.

"So you live like those (heathens) in the skies above Charlie?" Kerigh said.

"Well no, not exactly. Erm, here, let me pull up a picture." Crisby said, and she turned her laptop around.

"That asteroid is Mesbin?" Kerigh said.

"Well if you call something 75 times heavier than Kerbin an 'asteroid,' yes." Steph said.

"It has no atmosphere!" Kerigh said.

"Sure it does! We just keep it underground is all," Desfield said.

"You live like (trogolodytes)?" Kerigh said.

"We live underground. Here's some more pictures," and Crisby showed some pictures. For being underground, those cities sure looked good. White shining skylights shone over lush green landscapes with gray cave walls climbed by vines and ladders. The buildings seemed stacked atop one another, old-style metal habitat on the bottom, cobblestone atop that, and progressively more modern architectures as you were to climb up. Children played in parks, couples walked the streets, and life seemed quite normal. Except everyone was walking on all-fours.

"Hang on, I think I understand now. You have five gees of gravity because Mesbin is oblate." Gilbe said, "but why is it oblate?"

Shelfrod stood up from her seat and began spinning around. Her arms went outwards as she did this, but she quickly became dizzy and stopped. "Centrifugal force! Mesbin rotates once every 28 minutes."

"Like some kind of whirligig world!" Gilbe said, staring directly into the camera.

"Exactly," everyone said.