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curved her lips at the corner, but didn’t quite reach her eyes. Now was the moment of truth, would everyone still agree to the mission or would they decide they didn’t want to take the chance.
    “Because my father and I suspected that it might be a gateway. New data continues to support that possibility. If it is, there is a chance we might activate it,” she whispered.
    “Are you saying like a Stargate of some kind?” Ash asked.
    Julia looked back up at the blurred circular object. “Yes,” she replied.
    “Well, shit,” Ash muttered, stepping over to stand near Josh. “I always knew following you was going to get me into a world of trouble. I just never expected it to be out of the solar system.”
    Josh grimaced. “Isn’t that the truth,” he muttered under his breath, staring at the image again.
    Julia turned at the small group. “So, do I tell the President that it is a go?” She asked in a slightly tense tone.
    “Go for me,” Josh replied, turning to look at her.
    “It’s a go for me,” Ash said with a nod.
    Julia turned to look at Sergi. He was frowning up at the screen before he turned and gave her a crooked grin. She returned his smile.
    “Someone has to figure out how to make it work,” Sergi replied with a shrug. “I can fix just about anything. I will go.”
    “Mei?” Julia asked in a soft tone. “Out of all of us, you have the most to lose. You have your family.”
    Mei glanced at the others before rising and taking a step closer to the screen. She was silent for several long seconds before she turned with a serene smile on her face. Her eyes glowed with determination.
    “My family will understand,” Mei said. “My father has always been proud of my achievements. He would never have backed this project if he did not believe in it. It is an honor to go.”
    “Thank you,” Julia breathed in relief.
     
     
     

Chapter 4
     
    Eighteen months later:
    Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan
     
    “The first umbilical tower has separated,” Launch Control stated.
    “Copy thirty-eight,” a woman’s voice echoed in the background. “Auto-sequence has been initiated.”
    “Roger, twenty seconds and counting,” Launch Control responded. “The final umbilical tower has now separated. Engines have fired with maximum thrust and we have liftoff from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 1:42 a.m. on their way to Gliese 581.”
    “Good first stage performance,” Josh said sixty seconds later into the microphone attached to his helmet.
    “Roll pitch is nominal,” Ash stated. “All systems normal.”
    Josh breathed in and out, in calm even breaths, as the Soyuz rocket went through the different stages necessary before breaking through Earth’s orbit. He followed Ash’s self-assured movements over the controls as he monitored their flight path and the systems.
    “Welcome to the twilight zone, boys and girls,” Ash said as they exited the outer atmosphere.
    Josh kept his eyes focused on the paper in front of him. This was their second trip into space. The first had been a year ago. That was when he caught his initial glance at Gliese 581.
    It had been one of the most magnificent pieces of technology that he had ever seen. He remembered Sergi and Mei teasing him and Ash. It was at that moment when he knew he had made the right decision.
    “So, you think we were going to travel through space in a tin can?” Sergi had asked him with a grin. “If it helps, my friend, I felt the same way when I first saw the Gliese. She is a magnificent ship, is she not?”
    “She had better be! She has some of the most advance technology known to man aboard her,” Mei replied.
    Sergi rolled his eyes. “Mei’s father’s company supplied a great deal of the technology being used,” he murmured, before wincing. “She didn’t want anyone to know that, though.”
    “There is no keeping it a secret with you telling everyone. My father has always had a fascination with space,” Mei growled in