Launch Day

Shit! How could NASA not have expected this to happen!? Damn Civilians on a mission, thinks Spay to himself at the sound of O'Neil's gasp.

"Doctor. Status! How badly did launch hit Weintraub? This is no Disney ride."

Oh Christ.

The Doctor did not feel peachy herself but she unbelted and started to float, a condition she had been trained in but was by no means used to with the rush job she had had. Awkwardly approaching Weintraub, one arm gripping his arm rest while the other reached for his arm, she took his vitals.

"His pulse is slow and erratic. It's not good. I need to administer epinephrin."

Dr. Turner does a quick inspection and realizes Weintraub will not make it. His eyes are bloodshot with burst retinal vessels leaving him blind, and he had a stroke during the ascent. His pulese fades away to nothing under Turner's fingertips.

O'Neil leans forward as much as possible in his harness. "What's going on?"

Checking her kit, Deirdre realizes her adrenaline ampoule's have all been crushed and broken.

"Great! I guess the powers that be forgot to protect certain medical supplies from the rigors of a launch. I'm afraid he's gone."

Of course the doctor isn't at all surprised based on the man's physical and her observations of his state of mind. Was it her fault? No. She did what she was told, and she refused to carry the burden of his death.

Spay keeps it together and professional, though he doesn't feel good about the circumstance at hand. He inwardly laments how this tragedy places a dark mark on this mission from the get go. Nonetheless...

"There's nothing we can do then. Let's seal him up and secure him. Rendevous in 48 hours."

Spay radios CAPCOM to inform them about the situation.

Dierdre's gut reaction is to throw him out at the earliest opportunity. Say something failed, a space walk, or he lost his mind and managed to exit the craft. None of it made any sense. It was her addled mind running multiple panicked scenarios until she screamed STOP! in her head. Who was losing it now?

Heaving a deep slow breath, and using the techniques she had taught others, she managed to calm herself before she looked like a fool. The crew needed her to be calm as they too were feeling fear and anxiety at the very least.

Hearing of the death of Weintraub, Dirk calm, collected demeanor breaks away and he gets openly angry.

"God Damn it! They killed him. The Brass knows you can't make an Astronaut in a day, but they said 'Fuck it', and they killed him. This is on them."

He doesn't talk to anyone in particular. He keeps his eyes forward, still working on guiding the spacecraft safely.

Relieved that Weintraub's death wasn't being blamed on her, she made no outward reaction to the men's comments, as some semblance of calm returned to her. She noted that McMillan could be a problem later if he let his anger fester.

Belton simply closed his eyes. He knew it wasn't his fault, but he still felt terrible about Weintraub. He had expected the whole mission to be rough for the young man, but... not this rough. Not like this.

When the Lieutenant Commander was able to unbuckle and move around, his first order of business was to float over to the body. Opening the visor, he reached up and delicately closed Weintraub's eyes. "Fair winds and following seas, Weintraub." His voice is quiet, surprisingly small. Belton closes the visor again, and makes sure the young man's corpse is properly secured in its chair.

Turning to the doctor, he rests a hand on her shoulder for a moment. "You did what you could. This isn't your fault. I know it doesn't help much, especially right now... just know that no one blames you, so try not to blame yourself."

"Thanks Belton." Steeling herself for the unpleasantness to come, she added, "We better secure the body ... Weintraub ... somewhere secure but not here."

She almost said where we can be reminded of the stupidity of the powers' that be.

Weintraub's body is moved to the cargo hold where it is secured until you return to Earth. O'Neil says a small eulogy over the body and he is clearly distressed. 46 hours until rendezvous and the only item on the checklist left is the MMU inspection by Belton and Hamlet. How do you pass the time?

Belton will start by getting to work on the MMU inspection.

A small, unknown device has been added to each MMU. It is spliced in on the side of the Primary Life Support System (PLSS), the backpack that provides gases that an astronaut needs to live. Taking off the cover and frame, you see the new device has wires going from the suit’s internal antenna to a small digital receiver, along with some sort of effector output that disappears into the bowels of the oxygen regulation system. Without wrecking the PLSS, there is no way to know more.

"Shit... I bet Weintraub would know what this mess of wires was before I was finished explaining what I found." Belton sighs and closes his eyes for a minute. The kid knew he couldn't hack it, but he had tried anyway. It just sucked. With that, Belton opens his eyes and heads off to find Cpt. Hamlet, see what he thinks.

Maybe O'Niel can ID the new parts of the MMU?

As he floats along, a thought crosses his mind: Shit. What if this mission is so black, none of us are supposed to make it back? He shakes his head to chase the thought away, but he briefly sees Weintraub's eyes right before he had closed them, and the hint of paranoia holds fast.

"Hey Captain, come check the MMUs with me would you? Found a piece I can't ID."