Read Solar Express for Free Online Page B

bleed-off generator, and Tavoian checked to make certain that the generator was fully online.
    Even knowing that the AI was doing the same thing, Tavoian continued to monitor the screens displayed before him, showing in real-time every body of any size that might conceivably pose a problem for the ship. Despite all the near-Earth sweeping operations, there was still too much space junk left over anywhere within the orbit of Luna around Earth and even farther out, and that didn’t include chunks of rock too small to be called asteroids that appeared occasionally from nowhere. While they might not be asteroids, except to astronomers, they were pretty much disaster to the burner on a fast Earth-Luna run that happened to meet one, small as the odds were. There had only been one collision with a true rock in the past decade … but there had been almost a score of dings, dents, and survivable perforations from space junk, and the resulting damages and near deaths had resulted in lawsuits, international disputes, and a tacit agreement to deal with anyone or anything who added to the problem.
    While he’d “seen” small asteroids before on lunar runs, neither he nor the AI detected anything that wasn’t supposed to be near them … although they passed less than ten kays from a small piece of something metallic less than ten minutes after leaving ONeill Station.
    Tavoian thought about reading Alayna’s message again, then shook his head. With his luck, something would happen. He kept watching the screens and checking the drive indicators.
    After eighty minutes of acceleration, he made the required announcement. “Approaching turnover. Please take your couches and strap in.” His passengers were in their couches well before the AI cut the drive, and initiated turnover, using the thrusters to rotate the burner end to end, so the drive nozzles were facing their destination.
    Some of the Sinese burners used dual drives, but SpacePlus, the manufacturer of FusEx three and all Noram fusionjets, had opted for the simpler single drive configuration—a far more cost-effective design that eliminated the additional drive system, as well as swiveled couches or the need for passenger restraint during decel. The single drive system did necessitate an extremely precise rotation not required of a dual drive system. All in all, the three-hour trip was essentially eighty-five minutes of one-gee acceleration, ten minutes of changeover in weightlessness, and eighty-five minutes of deceleration.
    Ninety-one minutes later, FusEx three floated nearly motionless off the upper docking ring of the Lunar Lower Orbit Station. The lower docking ring, beneath the station, was for lunar landing shuttles.
    Tavoian link-pulsed the station. “LunaCon, FusEx three, standing by for docking.”
    â€œFusEx three, maintain position this time.”
    â€œMaintaining position.” Now what? “Anything incoming?” he asked the AI.
    THERE IS A LANDER DOCKING ON THE LOWER RING.
    â€œThat shouldn’t affect us.”
    â€œFusEx three, this is LunaCon. Interrogative deliverables.”
    â€œLunaCon, passengers and clearances, cargo manifest to you.”
    â€œThank you, three.”
    Did they know you’re carrying an inspection team? Tavoian frowned. How could they not?
    One minute passed, then two. After another five minutes, the comm buzzed. “FusEx three, cleared for approach and docking.”
    â€œLunaCon, three, commencing approach this time.”
    Once the AI confirmed the grapples were secure and that the station umbilical was connected, Tavoian switched to station power.
    â€œFusEx three, lock secure. You’re cleared for disembarkation and off-loading.”
    â€œStet, LunaCon.”
    After a last check of the station power, Tavoian shut down the ship’s aux power before continuing shutdown procedures … for everything but habitability. Then he turned off the