Follow Your Dreams (Part Two)

Submitted into Contest #58 in response to: Write a story where the power goes out on a spaceship or submarine.... view prompt

204 comments

Science Fiction Drama

Alissa Robertson was in her space-shuttle, nervously piloting her ship to the moon. Her hands were sweaty, and she was wondering if she could make the three day trip. She would have co-pilots, of course, managing from the ground when taking her naps, but she was always wondering what would happen if she would suddenly fall asleep or faint.


Alissa communicated with the people, occasionally just asking if she was on the right track. Her ship was meticulously planned to meet the moon at just the right time.


She concentrated on remembering her training. It was hard, because there were so many switches and levers she could press. One wrong move, and her oxygen levels would drop or the emergency abort system would be activated. 


Alissa knew the dangers of flying. She also knew it was a low chance of her making it back. But she took the chance. It was the opportunity of a lifetime. It was her dream.


So far, it was smooth sailing. No bumps or obstacles yet. But, she knew no space ship had ever gone to the moon and back without problems. Something wrong was sure to happen.


Alissa also knew that her parents and other friends were watching her on television. In tiny corners of her spaceship, there were cameras. The television channels were occasionally switching angles, seeing all what Alissa was doing.


She knew they were watching her, but she ignored it. She stopped her brain from thinking about all the pressure that was on her.


“Hey guys. Everything okay?” Alissa asked into her microphone headset.


“Everything’s fine, Alissa!” The person on the other end answered. “I think every⎯”


Static. 


The lights suddenly went out. There was no noise.


“Hello?” Alissa asked. “Is anybody there?”


Static. No answer.


Alissa stopped her brain from having a panic attack. Keep calm. She thought. You got this.


Her spaceship was still running, because it was run on gas. Her power, however, was blocked or disconnected. 


Deep breaths. Deep breaths. You got this.


She could still pilot the ship on her own; she wouldn’t be able to communicate with the people on earth. She would have to do it all by herself with absolutely no help from earth.


I can do this.


She also knew that it would be hard to pilot in the dark. She had all the levers memorized, but it was still complicated.


You trained for this.


First, Alissa made sure the power was really and truly cut. She made sure it wasn’t a problem that she had made for herself. 


Nothing. It was all an antenna issue, or some weird connection.


She made sure nothing else was wrong with the ship; checking the fuel levels, and looking at the engine. There weren’t any problems.


Now, she checked her course. She was right on track, heading straight for the moon. No obstacles were blocking her way.


Now, she needed to adjust the liquid hydrogen levels, as the atmosphere was getting thinner and thinner. She pushed the right levers, and made sure it was at the correct level.


Okay. That’s done.


The rest of the trip should be smooth, unless something else comes up. Hopefully nothing else happens.


Alissa had a habit of talking to herself, so she started to do it now.


“Let’s see, the liquid hydrogen levels are set. Nothing else is in the way now, I think.”


Suddenly, she heard something else in her headset.


“Alissa!” The person on the other side exclaimed. “We are trying to get you connected to us again! Somethings wrong with the ship! Abort now! I repeat, abo⎯”


Static.


Alissa gasped. What was wrong with the ship? All of her levels were normal, at least, from what she could tell. She checked and rechecked. Nothing was amiss.


What should I do? Abort?


No. She had worked too hard on this mission to abort. She couldn’t just leave. Walk off. Do nothing about it.


She checked all the levels on her screen. Everything looked normal.


What should I do?


Her hand floated near the abort button, but she quickly snatched it back.


No. NO. You got this.


“I got this.” She said, talking to herself. “Just remember your training.”


She took a deep breath, then focused on getting to the moon. She adjusted the ship, because it was veering off course. 


She looked at the levels on her screen again.


Wait. Wait.


Her oxygen level needle was stuck in the same position as it was a few minutes earlier when she checked it. It should have risen or fallen.


She checked her heart pulse. It was beating slightly faster than normal.


Alissa realized her head kind-of hurt. 


Uh oh. People can die from lack of oxygen. Alissa thought. 


But wait. If I could find out the problem, maybe it will adjust back to normal.


Alissa decided on that thought. She would try to fix it.


First, she tried to remember when her head started hurting. How much time until she passed out? She couldn’t recollect when.


Then, she tried to adjust the oxygen level. No luck. The needle stayed exactly where it was.


She sighed. She would have to leave her seat, and go back to where the oxygen tank was. It was not that far, but she would have to be careful not to disconnect any major wires. Also, she had to do it in the dark.


She got up, took off her headset, and slowly walked toward toward the door. She opened the door that said:


DANGER! DO NOT OPEN UNLESS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY.


Well, I guess it’s absolutely necessary.


She opened the door and saw all the wires and stuff that she had to get through. Her eyes had adjusted to the faint light around the tanks.


You can do this.


She got to the tank and carefully fiddled around with it. She made sure all the wires were connected. They were.


She looked around the tank and checked to see if anything was blocking the tank. Nothing. There was absolutely nothing wrong!


Alissa cursed under her breath. What was she missing?


Wait. Wait.


She looked at the front of the tank. The tank had a needle that showed how much oxygen was in the tank. Alissa gasped.


The tank was empty.

September 11, 2020 23:46

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204 comments

. .
14:15 Dec 09, 2020

YOU HAVEN'T POSTED IN SO LONG PLS DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO I HAVE NOTHING ELSE TO READDDDDDDDDDDDD WHI IS IT ONLY ME THAT WRITES AS MUCH AS I DOOOOOOOOOO PLEASE POSTTTTTTTT

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Avery G.
19:11 Dec 09, 2020

SORRY!!! I HAVE NO TIME TO DO IT ANYMORE!!!! I might, though, maybe during Christmas break!!! SORRRY!!!

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. .
19:12 Dec 09, 2020

URGHHHH

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15:59 Dec 07, 2020

This was great!! I love the suspense and the determination of the character!!!

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Avery G.
19:44 Dec 07, 2020

Thank you so much!!!

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. .
19:49 Dec 07, 2020

You deserve it!!

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The Cold Ice
02:45 Dec 03, 2020

Hi

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Avery G.
15:21 Dec 03, 2020

Hi!

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The Cold Ice
15:46 Dec 03, 2020

Wyd

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The Cold Ice
06:13 Nov 24, 2020

Hi

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Avery G.
20:56 Nov 25, 2020

Hello!!!

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The Cold Ice
04:49 Nov 23, 2020

Hi

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Megan Sutherland
19:28 Nov 19, 2020

Avery, we haven't talked in a while! How have you been? Any chance of new stories coming out soon? ;) wink wink Your Reedsy Friend, Megan S. (or Meg)

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The Cold Ice
04:14 Nov 17, 2020

Hey

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The Cold Ice
06:41 Nov 11, 2020

Hi

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B. W.
06:45 Nov 10, 2020

heyyyyy

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B. W.
01:34 Nov 08, 2020

hey, could ya possibly check out "Otherworldy repairs" and leave some feedback?

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B. W.
10:27 Nov 07, 2020

hey, i think i could use some help with something

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The Cold Ice
04:40 Nov 07, 2020

Hi

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Avery G.
16:03 Nov 07, 2020

Hey!

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The Cold Ice
04:12 Nov 08, 2020

Heyo

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The Cold Ice
10:28 Nov 06, 2020

Hi

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The Cold Ice
06:08 Nov 06, 2020

Hi

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Avery G.
14:39 Nov 06, 2020

Hey!

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The Cold Ice
03:27 Nov 07, 2020

Hey

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00:45 Nov 05, 2020

This is a fantastic story. I enjoyed it very much. I do not understand the top ten leaderboard system. You are not on the leaderboard yet you have much better stories than, say, 2nd place. Aerin Rebecca has somehow secured 2nd place with her basic stories that try too hard; you should be higher up the leaderboard with outstanding stories like these. Good job.

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01:05 Nov 05, 2020

You're just jealous and vindictive. Petty. You should be ashamed of yourself.

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01:44 Nov 05, 2020

YAYYYYY! Okay, okay, ahem, ahem, I should explain myself. This is probably going to spoil it for everyone else I messaged but...whatever. Anyways, HENLO! This is one of the many alter-accounts of Aerin herself! Lol. I was just really bored and stressed from the elections so I decided to prank a bunch of my friends and see just how awesome they were (i basically complimented them and insulted myself, as you can see, just to see how they responded. Like I expected from such kind people, they all defended me! Grinning so much!). So yeah...thi...

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Avery G.
14:42 Nov 05, 2020

Thank you so much, Catarina. ;) I expect you have much better stories than me. ;) Aerin does actually have really good stories, and she wrote a book. I can't even finish mine!

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B. W.
07:30 Nov 03, 2020

I made a new story ^^ could you maybe check out "Saving a friend" and leave some feedback?

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Avery G.
14:39 Nov 03, 2020

Sure! Also, I love your new bio.

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B. W.
17:38 Nov 03, 2020

thanks ^^ ya like it? and remember to leave feedback

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B. W.
00:39 Nov 02, 2020

heyyy

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B. W.
21:30 Oct 29, 2020

Avery, i just finished one of my novels :D

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Avery G.
14:52 Oct 31, 2020

YOU DID? CONGRATS!!!!!!!!!!! WHICH ONE DID YOU FINISH???

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B. W.
16:50 Oct 31, 2020

well- it was one kinda based off one of my favorite horror games/game in general

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Avery G.
20:41 Oct 31, 2020

Ooh, that's really cool! Are you going to publish it?

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B. W.
20:53 Oct 31, 2020

i dunno if i should or not

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B. W.
22:59 Oct 26, 2020

Heya Avery :) i made a new story, could you maybe check out "He isn't real...or is he?" and leave some feedback? ^^

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Avery G.
18:56 Oct 28, 2020

Hey B!!! Sure!

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B. W.
18:59 Oct 28, 2020

thanks ^^

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B. W.
02:36 Oct 25, 2020

how would ya describe me?

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