The mission

Part 1

It was the general who realized that the Government was hiding something. Incomplete answers to the questions asked, unreliable information, lack of communication and failure to solve existing problems indicated insufficient concentration of authorities in relation to current problems. So he came to the conclusion that they were dealing with something strange.

It's been going on for a couple of months. He could not get any information, although he was one of the privileged. He had no evidence, but he just felt something was off. He doubted the authorities, his intuition did not give him peace. When he stopped sleeping peacefully it was time to start looking for answers.

Images of a planet remarkably similar to Arma were placed on a table in one of the GSU (Government Space Unit) meeting offices.

The general had an eye on everyone invited, watching their facial expressions. The four stared silently at two almost identical pictures. "Where did you get these pictures from?" Captain Richard Naslov, the commander of their military unit, was the first to break the silence. "From the classified data folder," he replied simply. The general was lucky that Hono kept the data that day, he is a very confused guy. He himself could not believe how such classified information could be entrusted to the greatest fool in Arma. Naslov exhaled, he knew Hono had a shift.

"The question is why?" Said Morgan Reyes, a young, slender, tall girl with long straight brown hair. She is mechanical engineer. "The better question is when are we leaving?" When the general was looking for people for this mission, the flight lieutenant Stelvio was the first one that came to his mind. Her name was another word for rebellion. "Although only pictures are shown, it is clear that the Arma has found a planet worth neglecting other obligations for." She was not the only one who noticed a change in the situation on Arma.

"What do you mean, when are we leaving?" Richard looked seriously at the lieutenant. Stelvio looked at the general, who began to explain. "We need to know what's wrong with this planet and why it's so important to the Government, but not here." He straightened up and began pacing the room. "It is possible to get certain data with telescopes, but not good and precise enough." That way everyone knew where his story was going. "The government stated in its report that the planet, I quote, is 'strange', and this was confirmed by facts such as the location of the planets in the habitable zone, the third in a row from the central star, and most importantly, the planet is blue, which means that it may contain water, but it could also be some other liquid, gas, whatever." He stopped and took another good look at the crew.

"Satellites, telescopes, radio telescopes, microwave telescopes, optical and X-ray telescopes, but also other research equipment that the Government have are zero according to the dwarves of the Degea spacecraft. It is only important that you approach the planet approximately 130 km from its surface." The crew processed the information.

Now, they carefully looked at the pictures on the table. "Thanks to the discovery of hythylodium and Cryosleep, the general's mission is more than feasible." Stelvio broke this tense silence of decision-making. She looked at the general who nodded in approval. The general knew that Lieutenant Stelvio would not miss an opportunity like this for anything. "That planet," he pointed to a picture of a planet unknown to them. ˝... is located in the nearest star to us. Therefore, the trip will take several years. Well, that's where Cryosleep jumps in." He added a small smile at the end of the sentence. "Still, we're talking about several years of travel." Reyes frowned, she didn't like this idea. "The stakes are high, let's face it. After this mission you can retire nicely and will not have to worry about anything. Besides, no one will know where you were." Biologist Tom Grim, who was sitting next to Naslov, immediately made a decision. "If so, then I am in." The general nodded at him in confirmation, and turned his gaze to the rest of the team, waiting for their decisions.

Reyes shook her head, hesitating to approach the mission. She was not interested in money, or travel, or mission. In fact, she saw no purpose at all in staying, and not in the mission either.

"If I understood correctly, the task is to reach the planet," Naslov said. ˝Approach it, lower the dwarves, wait for the scan, gather information and then disappear. General, you will wait for the information for a very long time." Naslov wanted to reason with him.

"No, Captain. Twice less. The information will arrive much faster than you think." It is obvious that the general planned everything. "You're sending it through Degea's communication system, which also serves as a call for help."

"I'm joining the mission." Captain rose from his chair, following the others. "Colleague Reyes, your knowledge would greatly contribute to our mission, you understand the mechanics of machines better than any man." Naslov wanted to speed up Reyes's thinking. "Besides, I know programming is in your little finger." He winked at her now, barely smiling. She looked back at her folded hands. Stelvio noticed Naslov's attempt at persuasion, which she found useless. She stood up without a word looking at Reyes waiting for her decision. "Okay," she looked up at the four of them. Everyone nodded, looked at each other, and finally Stelvio added, "When?"