The Cadet from Saturn’s Rings

The thing about space is that you are always in the belly of it. Making a wrong turn can lead you to the bowels. It’s worse than taking the wrong exit off the 99 in downtown Seattle. Earth is set to be demolished today. I am from earth originally but now I live as a student on Saturn’s Rings. I’m studying to be a space pilot, exploring new lands, reaching out to other galaxies, expanding the collective knowledge of the universe. But today I wanted to take a break from exploring and return home. For the last time.  

“I think we were supposed to turn back there, it doesn’t look like there is another warp zone for lightyears.” 

            Fellow Cadet, Fields, a wealthy twenty-something from Saturn’s Rings, is the last person I wanted to do this with. 

“Who designs these roads, huh? Why wouldn’t there be another warp just here, did they not have enough space taxes to finish connecting every end of the galaxies twice over?” 

“It’s not about the money.” 

“You’re right, its about control. They want to always keep tabs on us forever, there will be no escaping them in a few generations trust me.” 

“Could you help me turn around?” 

“Just set the coordinates, put it on autopilot, cruise control. You know?” 

“Those are not the same thing, did you even get a license to drive a motor vehicle before flying ships?” 

“You don’t need a license when all the cars drive themselves. That’s a beauty of it. Living on Saturn’s Rings, it’s a dream. A utopia. You should step out of the school grounds more often, I’d be happy to show you around.” 

            I began to slow down. I liked to look out at the spacescape. Sometimes it was hard to tell how fast I was going, I sped up. It’s important to follow the rules of the space road, light speed lanes, warp lanes, you could get into an accident before you even know it. 

            “Let’s light speed to the next warp.”

            “We aren’t cleared for that, Fields.”

            “Come on, I know you can do it. We’ve done it.” 

            “Yeah but we don’t know if this road will stay clear for those space miles.” 

            “Then lets go off road.” 

            I wasn’t about to go off road. 

            “We won’t make it. If we don’t.” 

            The huge clouds above the ocean like whipped cream in the mixing bowl, strawberry shortcake, the Fourth of July. The day the last elephant died. I wanted to see it, to see the earth be no longer earth if I didn’t what kind of an earthling was I? 

            Fields stood up and walked about the bridge. He opened the large map behind us. I turned around, I could see him through the translucent screen, his eyes looked like green planets side by side. 

            “From what I can tell, there is a desire path right to the MilkGal, we just have to go off road here, hook around the Sleigh, go into a warp and we will be a couple space miles from the earth. The soon to be not earth. The space in space where earth used to be.”  

            “The Sleigh, no way, that’s underground.” I whispered. 

            “Come on. It’s fine, I’m from Saturn’s Rings you know.” 

            “Yeah I know, and that means you have a big target on your back, easy to rob, easy to trick, easy.” 

            “It will be fine. We are just passing through. We can even cloak the ship.” 

“I’m traveling thorough space with a literal idiot.” 

“I am not a character from a book but thank you.” 

The only way we would make it. 

“I’m leaving it up to you, you’re the one who wanted to see the demolition after all. I’m just coming with you because you have to have two people to a ship. You should really be thanking me.” 

“Sure, thanks to your expert driving we are steadily approaching— God only knows where.” 

“You still believe in God?” 

“If I didn’t, who could I curse for getting partnered with you?” 

“My mom,” he said. 

I took a breath, and although I know our O2 is finite I took a deep breath. 

“No it’s true, my mom was the one who made me enroll in this program. If I had it my way I would be exploring the Rings I grew up on and trying to find a way into the planet.” 

“That’s impossible.” 

“That’s what they said about living on the Rings, about this, about life outside of our galaxy, outside of earth. They had no idea the Rings were habitable until we settled there.” 

“But we have examined the planet Saturn, it is not livable. No more livable than the moons of Jupiter.” 

He laughed, “there is this webcomic about the Moons of Jupiter, it’s just the god Jupiter’s butt in every panel.” 

Another deep breath. We have been partners in our Space Program for one semester. I don’t know how he will help me discover new lands if he cannot even discover his way out of a paper bag. I said. 

Cadet Yone, teacher said, I don’t assign pairs without considering the needs of both students.

A software does it, I know you didn’t agonize over the results.

Yes, a software paired most of you. It paired you with Cadet Garcia. But I overrode it. It will be you and Cadet Fields for the next five years. Better get used to it. And that’s five SRH.

Five Saturn’s Rings years. Of this. Cadet Garcia was the best student in their class. I could admit I wasn’t the best, not even second best, but I was better than Cadet Fields so much better that most if not all our time is spent with me reteaching him everything. Like how to properly enter a warp zone without losing one hour of trip time. It’s a wonder I ever let him behind the wheel. 

“Oh, Yone. It looks like there is a weigh station we could turn around on in a couple of miles. No off roading it or anything.” 

Every ship had to get weighed if they were on the flyways, weighed, scanned and refueled at the weigh stations. 

I pulled up to it. It looked like hadn’t had any maintenance done since the Earth was livable. It was a long metal hooded metal landing strip with hoses and wrenches sticking up in stations for ships to park between. In the middle was a tunnel that connected the north and south traffic from beneath the flyway. That was where we needed to go to begin flying south. 

In space things can feel deserted in an instant. That’s how this station felt. I couldn’t trust it had kept up its own atmosphere. If I had to get out of the ship it would be in my suit. 

“Open their frequency,” I said. 

Fields did. We sent them from our ship.                                

            “Hello, Mile 7888 on Flyway North Weigh Station, requesting service and turn around. Please.” 

            Nothing. 

            Maybe it was abandoned. I advanced the ship over the metal yardage. 

            “That’s the tunnel to Southbound right?” I asked. I don’t know why I asked Fields anything. 

            “Yeah it looks like it. I can’t believe no one is manning this one. Seems popular.” 

            “In no way is this one popular, no one is out here. We are out here because you missed our warp.” 

            I put our nose to the tunnel and began the flight down. The lights were still working. The tunnel was spacious not cramped. Then the long flight across, beneath the flyway, then the ascent up. 

            “Well, that was easy.” Fields said. 

            I tried to fly us out onto the way but the ship was stuck. I didn’t want to push it too hard. It buckled, tossing us forward and back, it was hard to tell how we were moving but it felt like we were being pulled back down. 

            I didn’t have control of the ship. I let go of the controls and stood up. 

            “What are you doing?” Fields leapt for the wheel. 

            “Something’s anchoring our ship outside.” I said. I walked to our closet, our university space suits were there along with any emergency supplies we might need. 

            Fields was looking at the map. 

            “Stop looking at that map and suit up please. It’s an emergency.” 

            Fields ran over and pulled on his suit. Grabbed a blaster and made way to the door that released from the belly of our ship. 

            “It looks like the anchor is attached to our ship’s tail and there is another beneath the left wing. That flight under the tunnel scanned the ship and apparently we have something they want.” Fields said. 

            Impressed. Not really, he should have seen this was a fake weigh station from the map. No one travels this road frequently enough for one. That makes it dangerous, that’s another way they control where we go. 

            “Yone, go to the controls. I’m going to blast the anchors off and you, pump that gas as soon as you feel the tether gone.” 

            So what, he’s telling me what to do now. Telling me to get ready with the controls which I do. While he opens the belly door shoots off the anchors, which he does,  and I fly us out of trouble southbound, which I do. It must have been a weigh station at some point. 

            How can you be grateful to someone who saved you from something they got you into in the first place? 

            “Woo, we made it out of there. Got turned around. I’m sending an anonymous tip to the patrolmen about this. Granted they probably set it and forget it, you know like crock pot dinners.” 

            “Could you just drive us out to earth now please.” 

            “Yone, freaked out? It’s fine that kind of thing happens in space, hasn’t the university taught you anything?” 

            “Shut it and drive the rest of the way. 

            It was quiet for a while. I also sent the patrolmen an anonymous tip about the incident. 

“Can you believe people thought Mars would be where humanity would settle?” Fields asked. Breaking the silence. 

Mars is all the worst parts of Arizona, I don’t know why anyone would want to come from that planet. I didn’t say that though, didn’t want him asking about Arizona or why I had opinions. I wanted to keep myself apart from him. Five Saturn’s Rings years and then I could be apart from him. Like the rings on his hands. 

“It will be the next to go anyway. The sun is gonna fry it up just like all the others,” I said. 

“You’re talking about Mercury and Venus? Because the Space Government is what decided to blow up Earth— not the sun. Just because it’s decided by a group of people that have control over the flyways doesn’t mean its any different than the Death Star.” 

“Are you kidding me? Will you give that stuff a rest? Will you live in our world for once in your life and stop trying to be so… disengaged? You think this is funny? These stupid ‘I want to believe’ posters hanging up in here? Those Saturn’s Rings rings you have on your fingers? You say you wear them ironically but people born on Saturn’s Rings really have elitist agendas and attitudes about everything, those rings are a status symbol and you wear them to have access to those privileges. And I may be from the steaming rotted lemon that is the Earth but at least I’m not a space hazard who is destined to drop out of cadet school drift off into what ever meaningless job you are suited for on those God forsaken rings!” 

“Whoa, didn’t mean to touch a sore spot. You ever seen Star Wars? And hey you can wear all my rings if you want, don’t think they will fit you though.” 

He hushed. Drove though space quietly. It was good and it was not good, because I’d hurt his feelings. I don’t like to do that. Fields is an idiot but he’s got a good soul. Yeah I still believe in those too. 

It was good looking out at the stars flying by. Flying by like the tree line on the way to vacation by the beach. The sunlight rippling through the trees like a strobe. But out here in space, sometimes there was a surprise, a section of space dust that reminds you of his eyes, a turquoise planet in the distance with many moons, the power of the asteroids shining deeper onyx. Suddenly, break lights. There was space traffic on the way to the demolition zone. 

“Want me to take over?” I know Fields doesn’t like to drive close to other ships, he’s not good enough to.

“Think I’ll scratch up our ship?”  He asked me, smiling. 

“Of course,” I pushed him out of the drivers seat. 

The sun was bright. I reached for my sunglasses. Fields gave me his. 

“I don’t know where yours are.” 

I wore them. He put his feet up on the dash. I hate that. 

We were guided to a dock in the upper stage. We paid for a cheaper spot. 

“Get out, and help me back in,” I said. Fields likes sliding down the wing of our ship to the dock. The university ships are all shaped quite like birds.

“You’re good, you’re good, you’re good. Down a little, down, watch the left side. Now even her out, I’ll hook her up. It looks like we will have to go in for repairs from those anchors.” 

I opened the belly of the ship, and stepped out. I wanted to get out of that small ship— to breath the fresh oxygen of the artificial atmosphere around the dock and spectator stage. To have a moment for myself before the only home I’d ever known was destroyed. 

“A bar! I bet they have great drinks for the event! Maybe even a t-shirt, do you want one?” Fields shouted. He walked out behind me. 

We approached the bar, there were in fact t shirts with earth on them and patches for space suits in the shape of earth. A traveling bar that goes around to demolitions for the fanfare. When a planet is destroyed many people come to see. How long would we all even remember it had been there? 

“Coffee! Earth’s only treasure! Get your coffee here.” 

“He cannot have caffeine, his heart will explode,” Fields said. 

That’s not true. I just get jittery if I have caffeine, but why does he remember that? I don’t mention it often.  

“We will have two shots of Uranian Liquor please, straight from Uranus and straight up ours.” 

Fields handed me the shot from the bar. Expensive liquor. We walked back to our ship. The hood was still iced over and spacey. Fields laid his coat down for us to sit. He wasn’t all bad. We tapped our glasses. Threw back the shots and waited. 

It didn’t really look blue. Earth was now the color palette of a painted wolf. Fields put his arm around me. He didn’t say anything. At first, that was more of a comfort than his hand on my shoulder. I played with the empty shot glass in my hand. We watched the ships move away from the earth. I wondered what they were taking, any surviving peoples, animals, plants, but they could never take the way it felt combing through tide pools on the beach with the high green wind and father calling out to me to swim deeper to no be afraid. 

“Say something,” I said. 

“You know, I’ve had to go to the bathroom for bout twenty minutes now and I wish they would just get on with it! What are they still ferrying off that lemon? Papers probably, you know how Earthlings cling to their papers.” 

I smiled, “Yeah, we like paper.” 

“You even put it on your walls. What a waste.” 

He rubbed my arm as he held me. That’s what I remember most about the demolition of my home planet. A spent planet was put to rest and my heart was full with the desire to go deeper.