Astronomicon 1: Inception Point (Finished)

45 - Over the Top

The front tyres skipped over the peak, dropping the tubular chassis onto the rock. The rear tyres still had a little grip but the flatbed buggy provided most of the impetus to grate the chassis over the rock at the top until the rear wheels swung up off the ground and the front ones dropped onto the downward slope and began to pull.

Providing that push had stolen most of the flatbed's momentum and it took a few moments of grinding on the metal underside of the two-seater buggy before it picked up speed. Finally, the rear tyres bounced over the top, removing the source of friction.

Chris continued to hold down the accelerator as he struggled to keep the buggy aligned with the steep, downward slope. The buggy rapidly gained speed, dragging the slack ropes behind it. As the rope got less steep, the wheels became more effective and Chris felt like he finally had some control. He gently eased off the accelerator, to maintain a constant speed down the slope.

He had enough control now to turn the buggy slightly away from the parked four-seater, ensuring they would not collide. He was still easing down the power when the ropes snapped taut, throwing him forwards in his seat and wheezing him against the repaired seatbelt.

The jerk of the rope flicked the buggy's back wheels into the air before smacking them back into the ground again. Chris tried to look around, but the buggy bounced and wallowed again, forcing him to concentrate on holding on and keeping it pointed straight down the slope. With the ropes still holding it back, the buggy fought to make progress but its spinning wheels did occasionally find grip on the rocky surface and the combined efforts of both buggies gradually pulled the flatbed buggy up onto the peak and bounced the front wheels over.

Chris did not know that the rest of the team had begun manually pushing the flatbed buggy to help get its centre of gravity over the edge. The metal tubes that made up its chassis made some highly unpleasant creaks and grinding sounds before the buggy, cargo and all, tilted forwards and picked up speed.

The weight of both buggies rolling down the slope popped the back wheels easily over the peak, ending the resistance and letting both speed up freely. Chris was already hard on the brakes when the flatbed buggy, sliding on the steeper part of the slope, shunted into the back of him, causing his buggy to slide out of control, pushing a wave of loose rocks ahead of it.

There was nothing he could do to stop the two-seater buggy smashing into the front wing of the parked four-seater, spinning it sideways, before all buggies came to a halt in a cloud of grey dust, each still in contact with the next.

"It worked!" Fletcher shouted happily.

Chris unclipped his seatbelt and climbed down to the ground. They may have successfully got all three buggies over the ridge, but he was keen to see if any of them had damage that would affect their onward journey.

"Fletcher, what do you think of this?"

Chris pointed at the front wing of the four-seater buggy. Fletcher jogged across to him and studied how the curved plastic wing had bent downwards until it was pressing against the front tyre. The bodywork of the buggies was formed almost entirely from bolt-on plastic modules that were light, easy to replace and highly resilient to damage. The other reason that form of construction was how easy they would be to manufacture in the new colony, when required.

"The frame underneath is bent. We just need to bend it up awee, Commander."

Before Chris could say anything, Fletcher slid both his gloved hands under the bent wing and heaved it gently upwards. Initially, it barely moved, but then the fold in the supporting frame gave up and bent back in the opposite direction, leaving the wing a little distorted and noticeably higher than its unbent counterpart.