The Next Continent by Issui Ogawa Page B

with us,” said Jiang. He resumed his leisurely digging. “It’s all we can do just to get supplies up here. We can’t even take back the trash, much less anything of value from the surface. You should see the other side of the base! When a new resupply vehicle is ready to dock at the medical science unit, we use the leftover propellant in the old one to blast it a short distance away. That’s twelve vehicles in four years, scattered all over the place. If you could get them back to Earth, collectors would pay a fortune.”
    â€œI mean, this whole base…” pouted Tae. “It’s falling apart, it smells, it’s in the middle of a garbage dump. Can’t you do something about it?”
    â€œThat’s a little unfair,” Sohya interrupted. “Everyone here is working hard to help humanity push into space. It’s going to be a bit jerry-rigged in the beginning. They’re using their knowledge and ingenuity to deal with the problems in a positive way. Don’t you think that’s impressive?”
    â€œBut Grandfather said that was the wrong way to do it!”
    â€œMr. Toenji?” asked Sohya, baffled. “What did he say?”
    Tae suddenly looked away. “I can’t talk about it yet. I promised. I’m sorry.”
    Something that Sohya had not given much thought to before suddenly loomed as potentially significant. He had always assumed that Tae had been imposed on him so an old man could give his beloved granddaughter the trip of a lifetime. It was the kind of indulgence not uncommon among the wealthy. Still, it was out of proportion for an indulgent whim. It was hard to believe anyone would casually hand over three billion yen to fund a pleasure trip, even someone with personal assets several hundred times that. And it would not be surprising if Tae had been given some sort of goal. But even so, what sort of responsibility could she be expected to fulfill? As Sohya pondered this question, Jiang spoke up.
    â€œYou’re certainly paying enough, Aomine. I’m not sure we’re worth it though.” Jiang was shoveling faster now.
    Sohya was briefly speechless. “Isn’t there something more important for you to be doing here? Geological research? Gathering samples? I’d like to know more about soil testing—”
    â€œCrew II’s data is in the computer, complete with visuals. I’ll give you a copy later.”
    â€œWhat about Crew IV’s research?”
    â€œWe’re not doing any.”
    â€œYou’re not?” Sohya was dumbfounded.
    â€œThat’s right,” Jiang said simply. “With only three crew members, and with these facilities, there’s nothing left to research. We’ve done everything. We tried making concrete out of regolith, but there’s no water ice anywhere around here, so there’s not a lot we can do. Maybe at the south pole…Anyway, whatever it is we might be doing, we haven’t got the people, the equipment, or the funding.”
    â€œThen why are you here?”
    â€œMaybe because they can’t afford to send a bulldozer to bury the modules.”
    Jiang’s cynicism was understandable. Beijing Control rode herd on the crew with a schedule controlled to the minute. Of course, even manual labor was important if it helped protect the base. Still, what was the point of such a minutely choreographed schedule?
    A short distance away, Tae was playing at stepping on her own shadow. One set of shadows danced happily in the silence. Another shortened and lengthened in a monotonous rhythm. Sohya was lost in thought.
    [6]
    THEY WERE UP early the next morning. It was departure day.
    The crew rose even earlier than usual and furiously began making launch preparations. There was nothing to retrieve from Xiwangmu 5, but research materials and several hundred commemorative boxes had to be loaded into the Chang’e spacecraft. The small boxes contained