Far and beyond

More beneath the eyes

Monsa had gotten off the hypertrain about half an hour after she had hugged her husband. She and the 11 other team members were in Nebograd. The furthest city in the colony. They had stopped in the local high school to gather themselves before heading out into the uninhabited zone. Along with themselves they had three vehicles. Two of them were standard field vehicles, similar to that which Mike was driving earlier in the morning. The third one though, was something that not many "common" people had seen. It was an Outworlder. It was a massive vehicle, able of carrying up to 8 people plus a driver. It had an elliptical shape which made it look like it was a space ship. The way it was powered also made it more similar to a space ship. The front and back segments of the ellipse had a small fusion reactor each. These reactors weren't the same ones that powered space ships to travel across the stars, but they were still giving it more power than any petrol or electric engine ever could. And, another thing that made it an integral part of the mission is it's ability to use the reactors to charge the electric batteries of the other two vehicles when they were resting. The middle part of the vehicle was different both in construction and porpoise. The chasey and both front and back ends were made of titanium-carbon alloys, while the middle section was made of what was mostly silicates. It was, essentially, just a big glass case. However, even though it seemed fragile, it was anything but. The glass that made up the middle part was also, ironically, the same kind they use on space ships. It was resistant to most types of bullets and it could be burdened with a weight of around 5 tons without cracking. And that was not even the most unique thing about it. The two engines were usually used to power twelve tires and carry heavy loads. But they also had an unique ability to make the vehicle hover. The Outworlder itself was fit with two turbines on each end, four in total. These could be use when it needed to traverse extreme terrain. It was not to be used indefinitely, but it usefulness was undeniable. In perfect conditions, the vehicle could hover for around an hour and could go as high as 40 meters. However, perfect conditions meant no load added to it and on it's reactors going from working temperature to critically overheating. And since it was no point in taking the Outworlder on any mission if it would not carry any load, oh, and not to mention you would like to avoid any critical overheating of your engines when you would most likely be miles away from any settlement, those number were never achieved in the field. More realistic was to expect it to have the capacity to get several meters off the ground and to hover for about 20-30 minutes before you would have to put it down and let it cool. But even that was much better than any other vehicle could offer. And it was critical to have a vehicle that can do that on a mission as unpredictable as this. 

As the team was revising the maps and the supplies and the timeline before they set out for the last time Monsa was still thinking about Steph. She was worried where he was and if he was safe. She knew that he was tough but she always worried. Even if she didn't show it. But he would stay safe, he always does. He always comes back to her. And she will make sure she will get back to him. The team was a mix of biologists, botanists, archeologists and an agricultural expert even. And of course, they were followed by four members of the CSF, short for colonial security forces. Monsa didn't think much of them. She saw them as grown men playing soldiers. They were mercenaries. They were ex military of course, but most, almost all, had never been in actual combat. There were no wars to fight anymore, there was no combat. All the places humans went, they never encountered any enemies that could be beaten with bullets. Sure there was the occasional predator or big animal, but they had plenty of visual and audial deterrents to frighten them off. And if that wasn't enough, their vehicles were more armored than most military vehicles were back in the day. Not to mention that they have exo-suits every time they are exploring a new world. They were basically immune to all forms of attack. Well, except for diseases. That was the one enemy humans could never completely shield themselves from. No matter how thick the armor or how impenetrable the shields are, tiny microbes will always find a way to infest you. So far, only a handful of people were killed by what could be, in military terms, considered attacks. Almost all of the human deaths came from viruses and bacteria. Even alien pollen was a greater danger than gun-solvable encounters. That's why Monsa believed that she was the one protecting them and not the other way around. And yet still, somehow, for some weird reason, she felt safer with them around. When the mission finally commenced, Monsa found herself in the passenger seat of the vehicle that was the last in the line. It was being driven by a woman, still young, but you can tell that she has been through a lot. She had broad shoulders and deep eye sockets. Her jaw was wide and gave off a tone of seriousness. Her hair was fair and short and her eyebrows were barely noticeable. Everything about her was rugged and firm. She was a solider, she was not a shining beacon for femininity or sensitivity. And still, her eyes. The lightest shade of blue filled up her iris. Looking at her eyes made you feel like you are looking at the clearest of winter skies. It was almost as they had their own depth. Depth that you could see existed but you were not able to touch it or to measure its extent in any ways. Only she would know how far and wide it spread. And it made you want to look in them forever.

- I'm Sofia. - the blue eyed woman said. - As you might have guessed, I am part of the security detail of the mission. 

- I'm Monsa. I know. - it was only now that Monsa realized that the four uniformed members of the team never spoke to them. Or to her at least. - How long have you been here?

- Oh, not long really. I came with the last quadrium tanker, when it came to refill. So... only about four and a half months I think? Yeah, that sounds about right. - Sofia spoke with an Germanic accent. Monsa assumed she is from one of the German nations but she wasn't sure.

- Well, you're quite new here. What brings you here? Do you come from another colony or? - Monsa was initially just trying to be polite but the unexpected enthusiasm and smile with which her companion conversed with her made her drawn to the conversation.

- Um, no. I come from Earth. I was born in Berlin. The center of Berlin. My parents were both engineers. They were working on renewable energy technology. But, they never made any money from it, so I had to go to the military to pay for my school. I was planning to become an engineer, just like them, but after I saw the opportunities and money the military offered, and compared that to my parents barely having enough for us to get by, well, the choice was made for me. - Sofia spoke like she had rehearsed her speech. Maybe she didn't have someone to talk to that much. It was widely known that the CSF are not very balanced when it comes to men to women ratio. At least, that is what came across Monsa's mind. 

- Well, I know that the money is better, but an engineer is also a good option. You can still be making decent money and you would be doing what you love. - Monsa felt that her story reminded her very much to that of Steph. How easy it was for her to imagine him in her place if he hadn't decided to come with her.

- Well, yes, but I have to think of other people too. You see, I have a son. He is about 12 now. His father doesn't want anything to do with him, he is also military by the way, so I have to support him. He is still in Berlin with my parents, but I want him to have a better life than what I had. I want him to go to a better school, to have better options. I don't want him to...to end up like me. - Sofia stuttered at the end. Almost as if she didn't expect herself to open up that much. Her blue eyes seemed to almost change color as droplets gathered on their surface - I'm sorry, that is more than you wanted to know. I don't know why I said all this. 

- No, no, please. It's okay. To be honest, it's nice to have a real conversation with someone. It has been a long time since that happened to me. I mean, I live with my husband and he is my best friend, but sometimes... sometimes I miss having honest, open conversations with other people. We don't really have much time for that with our jobs and all... It's nice to feel like someone's friend is what I'm trying to say. - Monsa found herself not knowing how to react. She never saw these gun wielding barbarians, as she used to call them, as real people. She always thought of them as machine people, no emotions, no heart, just pure order following trigger mechanisms. And she felt even worse about it when she remembered her husband used to be one of them. Would she have judged him in the same way she judged Sofia just some hours earlier if life forced him to make some different choices along the way? 

- Thank you. But, if you tell anyone of the crew about what happened I will personally shoot you. - Sofia now had a smile that shined with innocence. She looked at Monsa like old friends look at each other when they see each other every day. It was so easy, so effortless, so open, like they have shared countless memories with one another and this is just one of those. Insignificant in the grand scheme of things but still special in it's own way.

- I promise, this is our secret. And since the trip only started and we have at least four to five hours to go, I have a feeling it won't be the only one.