Moon Hoax

30 ON OUR WAY

Bill Edwards lifted the private phone in his office at Camp David, answering a call from Doug. He’d been waiting to hear when the rogue astronaut team would return safely to Earth.

“Sir, I was just informed that it looks like our order to stop the mission has been ignored,” Doug said.

“What? They ignored our order to cease?”

“It appears that way, sir. Our men are in the Soyuz, not Galileo. We just received this update from one of the ISS crew members. They just undocked with the station. Apparently the commander is still trying to stop them.”

“Damn it! I was told these men would follow orders. Don’t they know China has a fueled rocket and are just waiting for them to launch? It’s a doomed mission!”

“Yes, sir, they were told.”

“Call me with any future developments. I have no choice but to get back to the White House and hold an emergency press conference denouncing this before it becomes public. Damn it!” Bill slammed the phone down.

VIKTOR HAD CHECKED over all of their instrumentation, and they were ready for the TLI burn once Boris gave them the go.

Boris needed to wait until their trajectory was lined up perfectly before giving the signal. “Roger. Looks like you have six minutes until TLI,” said Boris.

“Roger. Six minutes until TLI,” answered Peter.

Peter looked out his window for his last close up of Earth, filled with mixed emotions. Dad, I hope I’m doing the right thing.

Viktor said, “Everything be okay. You doing a brave and wonderful thing for country and your dad.”

Peter continued to look out the widow. “I pray we’re successful.”

“We be,” answered Viktor confidently. “So know button to push?”

Viktor hooked the wiring to fire the VASIMR engine to the parachute deployment switch, which was on Peter’s side. Fortunately it was positioned where he could reach it without using the poker. “Yeah, this one.” Peter pointed to the switch protected by a plastic cover. All the instrumentation was labeled in Russian.

“That be it,” said Viktor grinning.

“One minute till TLI,” radioed Boris.

Both astronauts pushed back in their seats, preparing for the high g-force they would soon be experiencing. Peter lifted the protective cover and took one last look at Anya. Wish me luck, baby.

“Twenty-five seconds until ignition. Good luck, gentlemen, and Godspeed,” said Boris.

“Thanks for everything,” radioed Peter.

“10… 9… 8,” said Boris as Peter lifted his arm and brought his glove finger to the switch, “2… 1… fire engine!”

Peter flipped the switch and quickly pulled his arm back, preparing for the explosion that was going to rock the hell out of him.

Nothing! Nothing happened! He couldn’t believe it, the engine didn’t fire! “Oh, shit,” said Peter. If the engine didn’t fire, they weren’t going anywhere and the mission was doomed.

Viktor started to unbuckle his belt straps. “Hold on, it may need little ole Soviet persuasion.”

Viktor leaned over and flipped the switch to the off position before giving the control panel a couple of hard whacks with his gloved hand. He positioned himself back in his seat, buckling up before saying, “Try again.”

Peter shook his head, questioning such an easy solution would solve the problem. He casually flipped the switch, expecting nothing—suddenly he was thrown violently back in his seat by a force he didn’t expect. The engine’s power fiercely shook the capsule as they were hurled into deep space. He couldn’t believe the amount of g-forces they were experiencing and wondered if the Soyuz could handle it. He also wondered if he would be able to flip the switch when Boris gave him the command to shut off the engine. Grunting, Peter said, “We have firing.”

“Roger,” said Boris.

Peter held on for dear life, riding out the rough ride. He had to remind himself he was riding a makeshift spacecraft never tested or studied, and no one knew exactly how it would respond. This TLI burn was much rockier than the proven Saturn V that took men to the moon.

“Coming up on five minutes of the burn. Prepare for cut-off,” said Boris.

“Roger,” grunted Peter.

“Five seconds until shutoff, 2… 1. Mark,” said Boris.

“Roger.” Peter lifted his arm through the g-forces and flipped the switch. The engine immediately stopped and a sudden calmness settled over the capsule. Peter radioed, “Engine shut off complete, how’s our trajectory look?”

The radio was silent for a moment before Boris said, “Looking good from here. How’s your speed?”

“Speed 11,300 meters per second.”

“Good. I’m sure you’ll probably need some course corrections later in the flight, but all looks good from what I can see,” said Boris.

“Roger,” said Peter. Boris had done as much as he could to help them. Peter and Viktor would have to rely on Russia’s mission control for course corrections later in the flight.

Viktor said in English, “Boris, it was privilege work with you. I thank you from bottom of heart.”

“Viktor, it was an honor working with you. My dad always spoke very highly of you. I hope you two are successful.”

“We be successful, thanks to you,” said Viktor.

“Good luck, gentleman. It’s now time for me to get my hand slapped,” said Boris as he ended transmission.

SIE’S HAND TREMBLED as he dialed up Kuang’s phone number. He had lost face. He felt terrible for letting his country down and for misguiding his boss. He had just been informed the American astronauts just launched into deep space in a makeshift rocket put together at the space station, surely destined for the moon. He had already ordered Shenzhou 10 fueled and for Tang and Nei to prepare for launch. Unfortunately they were going to be well over thirty hours behind once they left orbit, due to his ill advised recommendation not to fuel. Sie wasn’t sure if their powerful rocket could make up the deficit. He had to tell his boss the terrible news.

“Hello,” answered Kuang.

“Hello, sir, it’s Sie.”

“Yes?”

“Sir, I have just learned of some terrible news.” Sie paused for a moment trying to get the courage to continue. “The Americans are on their way to the moon.”

“What? How can that be? You said there was no way for them to get to the moon,” Kuang yelled into the phone.

“I am sorry, sir. I failed you. Somehow they put together a rocket at the space station.” Sie rubbed his forehead.

“I knew the Americans were up to something. I knew we should have fueled our rocket. How long until we are able to launch?”

Sie looked at the clock on his wall. “We should be ready to launch in twenty-eight hours.”

“Can we beat them?”

Sie had to give an honest answer. “Sir, knowing their boost and current speed, we have a fifty-fifty chance.”

“I would fire you now if I didn’t need your expertise on the laser. I am greatly disappointed in you.”

Even though Sie spoke on the phone, he still bowed his head. “I am truly sorry, sir.”

Kuang abruptly hung up, saying nothing further. Sie calmly hung up the phone and put his head in his hands.

His career was over.

PRESIDENT BILL EDWARDS tightly squeezed the pen in his right hand as he stood at the podium in the East Room of the White House. The booster had successfully fired and both men were well on their way to the moon. He was furious his orders to stop were ignored, given the mission was doomed to fail. Information could leak out indicting the White House; he had no choice but to distance the government from any association with the operation. He hated having to denounce Peter and Viktor but they put him in a position where he had no alternative. He had to do what was best for the nation.

He looked over the room to observe who was present, not surprised to find the room packed. He elected not to mention the Soyuz was in deep space, but instead give the impression it was still in orbit. He took one last look at his notes before beginning.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, I called this emergency press conference to address a situation currently taking place in space. As everyone in this room knows, America is one of the proud partners of the International Space Station, and along with other nations, supports its operation and maintenance. An unidentified spacecraft has docked at the space station, doing so without official clearance. Two men emerged from the ship and threatened the ISS crew with a bomb. For the well being and safety of the crew, they were instructed to follow the orders of these hijackers. These men apparently went to the station with the objective of stealing one of the Soyuz spacecrafts, which is one of the station’s life boats. They were successful in doing this and are now orbiting the earth. We are unsure what their purpose or motives are. The space station and the crew are currently safe and unharmed.

“We are treating these men as terrorists and are unsure what country they are affiliated with. No public demands have been made and we continue to monitor the situation closely. This is all that is known at this time.

“I want to state that the United States denounces this action. We will work with our partners of the space station to bring this intrusion to an end and apprehend these terrorists.

“I will now take a few questions.”

Many hands quickly rose. Bill pointed to Joe with the Washington Post.

“Sir, a rocket was observed launching from Cape Canaveral on Thursday. Could that be the rocket flown to the space station? If not, why did we launch a rocket against UN sanctions?”

Right away Bill was forced to denounce SpaceQuest’s launch, which he was hoping to avoid. “Joe, that rocket was launched by a commercial company without government approval. We’re currently investigating why that rocket was fired off. At this time we doubt that rocket has anything to do with the situation going on at the Space Station. Next question.” He quickly pointed to the next reporter.

“Sir, has there been any damage to the space station and has the crew been hurt in any way?”

“It’s our understanding that there has been no damage to the station. However, as mentioned, they stole one of the Soyuz spacecrafts. The crew was not harmed and all are safe. Next?” Bill looked to his left and pointed to a lady up front.

“Thank you, sir. Why would they steal a Soyuz? What could they possibly look to gain in doing so?”

“We are trying to determine that at this moment. Next.”

“Do they have the bomb with them, and/or any weapons that could threaten the world while in orbit?”

“The bomb was always in the spacecraft they arrived in. It is still there and has been defused. It is no longer a threat to the station or the crew. Some equipment was transferred from their spacecraft to the Soyuz; however, this equipment was observed as being non-threatening.” Hands were still raised all around. Bill pointed to an unfamiliar face in front of him. “Yes?”

“Sir, you say there have been no demands or threats made by these terrorists while they have been in orbit. Have they been in communication with Mission Control? Is there any chance they hijacked the Soyuz to ultimately use as a threat to crash into the space station if future demands are not met?”

This question was concerning if one did not know the plan, and Bill wanted to put all at ease. “Russia’s mission control is trying to establish communication as we speak. We do not see the Soyuz being used as a weapon. If that was their ultimate goal, they could have used their own spacecraft as a threat. However, if the crew is in any potential danger we will immediately evacuate them from the station. Next?”

“Sir, how can they all be evacuated if they only have one Soyuz left at the station?”

The president was stumped—how was he going to answer that question? Lie. “NASA has assured me they can all be evacuated. Next?”

“Sir, do we have some way of intercepting them?”

“We are looking into that at this moment. Whatever the course of action taken, we want to insure the safety of the world. That is all the questions for now, thank you.” Bill hustled down the steps as questions continued to be yelled out. Ignoring them, he dodged behind the curtain. Harry met him there, clipboard clutched to his chest and headset obscuring one ear. Bill wiped the sweat off his forehead. “I hope that works.”

By Harry’s expression he had something he wanted to say.

“What is it?” asked the president.

“Sir, we just learned from Intelligence that China recently fueled their rocket. It looks like it wasn’t fueled after all.” Harry grimaced.

“What! Why wasn’t I told before I started this press conference?” Irritation rolled through him. Harry flinched at his tone. Crap—I could have been reelected on the patriotism of what Jack’s men are up to. Though this was good news and it meant the men had a chance of beating China, if he’d known his intelligence reports were wrong he would have waited until the men were clearly on their way to the moon before talking to the press. He would not have been so vocal in condemning them, or using the word terrorists.

Bill sighed and shook his head. Even if he just sealed his fate of being re-elected, he knew this was not about him. The mission was about America and all those men and women who worked to get men on the moon. He slapped Harry on the shoulder. “Let’s hope they beat those damn Chinese!”