Callisto 2.0, Susan English [i love reading .TXT] 📗

unusual, though once you get used to it, it can be very pleasant.”

“I read some studies about women who attend female-only colleges,” I said. “They tend to perform better, statistically speaking.”

Naomi tapped her chin with her index finger. “Part of that is residual patriarchy, I imagine.

Tough to overcome ten thousand years of male domination. Though perhaps we’re simply wired differently than men, and the Foundation wants to exploit that difference.”

“Seems like it’s working,” I said. “But, what about …?” I lifted my eyebrow. “You 33

know?”

“Oh, you mean relationships? There are plenty of men on the Moon, for those of us who are interested, though none are permitted to enter Arcadia, possibly because of what you just told me.” She shrugged. “At any rate, there’s a very strict no-visitor policy, so no one outside of the organization is allowed in.”

“That’s good to know.”

“I’m seeing someone who works in Sector Two, in the university sector, Evan. He’s a bioengineer.”

“Wow, that’s great.” I took a sip of water.

“We don’t see each other often, because of our work, but we do holochat every chance we get.” She toyed with her food, pushing it around with her fork, then glanced up at me. “Oftentimes I wish I was gay.”

“Really? But why?”

“I don’t know, I always feel more comfortable around women. Evan can be such a guy. We simply don’t have the kind of connection I share with my female friends.

Doesn’t matter though, I was born hetero. Nothing I can do about it.”

“Women can be complicated, too,” I said, biting my lower lip. My track record wasn’t exactly a shining example of the superiority of female-female relationships.

“You’re right.” Naomi rolled her eyes. “I’m being ridiculous. Evan’s wonderful, there’s no doubt. It’s probably just me.”

I studied her face. Was she unfulfilled in her relationship? Hopefully not—she deserved to be with someone who made her happy. I took another bite of my pancakes.

“The food here is stellar,” I said, changing the subject.

“Yeah. Everyone here is a master at her craft.”

“So I’m noticing.” I shoveled a forkful of eggs into my mouth.

At that very moment Diana walked up. She was wearing a jumpsuit like the ones we had on, but on her, it seemed elegant and sophisticated.

“How are you ladies doing this morning?” she asked.

Why did she have to come right then? I lamented, cheeks bulging. My face flushed.

Luckily, Naomi was there to do the talking.

“Hi, Diana! Calli and I are having a lovely chat.”

By then I had managed to swallow my food. “Hi,” I said. Really? Hi? Was that the best I could do?

“I hope you slept well, Calli.”

“Oh, most definitely,” I answered, perhaps a bit overenthusiastically. “I slept like a rock.”

She gave me an indulgent smile. “These have been some very busy days, and today is no different. I’ve arranged for a special shuttle to Shambhala this morning.” She turned to Naomi. “Want to come with us? Or would you prefer to wait for the regular Friday shuttle at three this afternoon?”

“Ready whenever you are, Diana,” said Naomi.

34

“Excellent. We leave in …” she glanced at her wrist computer, “one hour. I’ll see you both at the metro stop.” With another of her radiant smiles, she was gone.

I felt giddy, watching as Diana left the dining room. So much was happening; my life was turning upside down. But I was happy, and very, very excited.

Naomi pushed her plate away. “That was delicious.” She glanced over at my plate, which was empty. “Let’s head out!” We dropped our dishes into the automated sterilizing unit, and Naomi walked me to my room. “I’ll return in another half hour to take you to the metro.”

“Okay, thanks,” I said as she started down the hallway. I opened my door, then stopped. “Naomi, wait.” She turned to look at me. “Thanks,” I repeated, my voice quavering, “thanks for everything.”

“Aw,” she said, coming back and hugging me tightly. “I know we only met yesterday, but let’s forget about formalities. We’re friends.”

◆◆◆

An hour later, Diana, Naomi, and I were at the shuttle launching bay in Sector One.

We donned our spacesuits and climbed into the shuttle.

“Sook, meet Calli,” Naomi said to the shuttle pilot.

Sook came out of the cockpit and grasped my hand with both of hers, the sensation surprisingly warm considering our gloves. “Nice to meet you, Calli.”

After stowing my backpack, I sat down in an empty seat next to a window and buckled my seat belt, then rested my helmet on my lap. Naomi took a seat across the aisle, and Diana sat down next to me. When she smiled at me, a bolt of electricity raced through my gut. I smiled weakly in return. My hands trembling, I put on my helmet, just to give myself something to do.

As the shuttle took off into space, my hands clamped tightly on the armrests, lips compressed. Escaping from the lunar surface wasn’t nearly as bad as leaving Earth, but still, it wasn’t my favorite sensation. Once the acceleration phase was complete, I relaxed and looked through the tiny window at the space station. Shambhala consisted of six separate units, each more or less the shape of a flattened ovoid. “From this angle, it almost looks like a pod of whales,” I said.

Diana’s voice filled my helmet. “Our engineers are genuine artists.”

A shiver ran down my spine. Diana’s voice felt so intimate, even though Naomi could hear us, too, and probably the shuttle pilot.

Turning my attention back to the station, I saw that each unit was connected to a central spherical hub via long tubes. One end of each unit was slightly elongated, and the opposite end had a large exhaust tube, flanked by two smaller exhaust structures.

There were small, finlike components on each side, and a formation which looked like a dorsal fin running the length of each unit, which explained my first impression.

“Each module is a separate spacecraft, with its own propulsion and life-support 35

systems,” said Diana, “plus dorms, a kitchen, even an area set aside for cultivation. Our engineers are big believers in redundancy.”

I couldn’t take my eyes off Shambhala. “Incredible,” I whispered.

Diana’s spacesuit rustled as she shifted in her seat. “Even though the modules are technically self-contained, we have dedicated each one to a specific function or set of functions. The redundant areas of each module aren’t in use at the moment but are there if we ever need them. Let’s see, there’s a module for living quarters, the labs, the garden, one which includes the dining room, kitchen, and observation deck, another one for the shuttle bay and storage, and one for engineering and station operations. Did I leave anything out, Naomi?”

“Nope, that’s all.”

As we approached, the station seemed to grow larger and larger, though it was difficult to judge its size since there was nothing around for comparison. When we got close enough to see the windows of the closest module, I comprehended its true extent.

“Oh wow, it’s huge!”

“It’s the largest orbiting structure in existence at the moment,” said Diana.

“Impressive. So, what are the orbital parameters of the station?” I glanced over at Diana, then my eyes were pulled back to the view.

“You’re asking because of the irregularities in the Moon’s density, which makes it complicated to maintain a stable orbit,” said Diana.

“Mascons.” I nodded, though no one could see.

“What are they?” asked Naomi.

“It’s short for mass concentrations,” I said. “The Moon’s mass is notoriously non uniform.”

“Since power isn’t an issue, we decided on a lunar-stationary orbit,” said Diana.

“Makes it easier to travel back and forth from the Moon to the station,” I guessed.

“Precisely! We could have chosen a frozen orbit and conserved some energy, but what a headache it would have been, trying to schedule transport to and from the lunar surface, and still keep a Cuban-standard timetable.”

Shaking my head, I whistled softly. “I sure wouldn’t want to do that calculation, and I’m a theoretical physicist!”

After the shuttle docked, Diana stood and went to the cockpit door. “Sook, need any help unloading this week’s supplies? I know it’s quite a lot this time.”

“No, thanks, Diana.” Sook’s voice filled my helmet. “Quinn and Mei Xing should be here any minute, and anyway, I need to finish the shuttle’s log first.”

“We’ll leave you to it, then,” said Diana. “Thanks.”

Sook waved at us, then turned back to the instrument panel.

We grabbed our bags and entered the airlock together. When the outer door leading to the shuttle slid shut, we took off our helmets, then helped each other out of our spacesuits.

“Back in micro-g!” said Naomi, grinning.

36

We stowed our suits in lockers on one side of the room, then Diana touched the security pad to open the airlock door to the station. The door opened with a whoosh and we floated inside.

“Catch you two later,” said Naomi. “I’m eager to get to my lab.” Without a backward glance, she made her way down the corridor.

“She doesn’t like to be away from her lab for more than a couple of days,” said Diana as she watched Naomi disappear around a bend. Then she turned to me. “Ready for the tour?”

“Definitely.”

I started to put on my backpack, but Diana told me to leave it in the cubby next to the airlock door, then put her suitcase next to mine. Following her through the hallway and into the main corridor, I used the handrails to keep myself oriented and to propel myself along. The corridor was padded on all sides, and covered with a soft, light red fabric. No danger of injury if a person forgot how to move in micro-g—a nice touch.

Diana’s hair was floating around her head, and she deftly wrapped it into a bun, securing it with a hair tie.

Stopping at the entrance to the station hub, Diana put a hand on a bright red cabinet attached to the wall. “These are emergency space suits and oxygen tanks. You’ll find them at the entrances to all the corridors, in the labs, and common