Dead on Mars

Tang Yue and Mai Dong waited the entire night until the sun rose and lit the skies. Yet, there was still no news from Tomcat.

Only then did Tang Yue determine that something had really happened to Tomcat.

“But what problem could happen to Tomcat? It was an experienced resident of Kunlun Station. It had with it the Mars Wanderer with enough solar panels. It didn’t need oxygen, water, or food. What kind of trouble could it encounter in this uninhabited Mars? There wouldn’t be any bandits at all.

The anxiety in Tang Yue grew.

“It doesn’t work, Tang Yue. There’s no response from the channel.” Mai Dong tried calling out for the Mars Wanderer again. “I still can’t contact Mr. Cat.”

“What problem can it have encountered?” Tang Yue held the pen in his hand as he mechanically tapped the table with its tip. He began theorizing all possible difficulties that Tomcat could encounter. He then overturned each and every one of them. “Even if it encounters an unresolvable problem, can’t it send a message… Could it have gotten into an accident?”

Could it be that Mt. Akina’s pram racing god would one day get into an accident?

Tang Yue found it hard to imagine the Mars Wanderer flipping over. At speed that was akin to a turtle’s crawl, with such huge tires, low center of mass, and low power output, it was impossible for it to do any exciting stunts. At full speed, it was only slightly faster than a bicycle. Its control was as simple as a bumper car at an amusement park. Even if Schumacher were to sit behind the wheel, all he could do was stare in silence at the aged machine’s accelerator.

Unless one deliberately drove into a ditch, it was almost impossible for the Wanderer to get into an accident.

“That’s unless it had an accident that damaged the communications antenna; otherwise, it’s impossible for it to not contact us after so long.” Tang Yue turned to look outside. At this moment, Tomcat was still about 90 kilometers away. This distance was nothing on Earth, but on Mars, it was like a chasm. Tang Yue had thought of seeking out Tomcat by himself, but his life support system didn’t permit him from doing so.

Donning the Radiant Armor, Tang Yue could only be outdoors for eight hours. Any longer, and the power and oxygen would be drained.

Eight hours was clearly insufficient for him to traverse 90 kilometers on foot. Tang Yue would die midway if he were to rashly head out.

Losing comms with each other meant a wide range of possibilities. A minor possibility would be a malfunction with the Wanderer’s communications antenna, while Tomcat and the Wanderer remained safe and sound, and they were still heading for Kunlun Station at full speed. The worst possibility could be an accident involving both cat and vehicle. Tomcat might have driven the Wanderer down a cliff, crashing and dying as a result.

There was just endless static in the frequency channel. Tang Yue twisted the knobs, repeatedly searching across all frequencies, but there was nothing. The silence that faced them was extremely unsettling. To not be able to send a brief cry for help either meant that Tomcat wasn’t available or it wasn’t alive.

“This darn cat, what’s wrong with you… Just send a comma or something! Come on, send me a comma…”

Tang Yue paced about Kunlun Station as he cracked his knuckles repeatedly while looking out the window.

“Tang Yue… Perhaps it’s only a malfunction with the communications system on Mr. Cat’s side. Perhaps it’s still on its way back? You don’t have to be too anxious…” Mai Dong consoled him. “Just wait a little longer.”

Just waiting was indeed unsettling, but Tang Yue just couldn’t do a thing. He could only stay on Kunlun Station and walk in circles in a small space spanning tens of square meters.

The OGS cabinet was spewing cold air, and with the night passing, Kunlun Station’s internal temperatures had dropped to –20°C. The temperatures could rise after the sun rose, but it would only fluctuate below zero.

Tang Yue had already put on all the clothes he could wear. All he could do was wrap himself in a blanket and lean beside the RTG to pass his days.

“Calm down… Calm down!” Tang Yue sat back down as he took a deep breath. “Mai Dong, calm down now. Mai Dong, calm down. Being anxious won’t solve any problems.”

“I’m very calm. The one that needs to be calm is you, Tang Yue.” The girl blinked.

“Alright, alright… let me calm down now.” Tang Yue pressed down on his forehead, forcing himself to calm down. “Let’s analyze what Tomcat might be facing. Let’s see if we can help it.”

Mai Dong nodded.

“It lost contact with us. There is one thing that goes beyond doubt—its communications system has malfunctioned,” Tang Yue said. Of course, it was possible that Tomcat had decided to play a prank, and had deliberately chosen not to contact the space station, but that was almost impossible. Tang Yue didn’t even consider it.

“What could have resulted in Mr. Cat’s communications system malfunctioning?” Mai Dong asked.

“The Mars Wanderer’s communications system is Kunlun Station’s backup. It’s extremely reliable and the entire system is very robust. Its shelf life is as long as Kunlun Station, but the communications system has never malfunctioned before,” Tang Yue answered. “I even gave the Wanderer an inspection the day before Tomcat set off. Back then, the system was fully operational… So, it’s very unlikely that it suddenly malfunctioned.”

“Then could it be due to external factors?”

Tang Yue nodded. “It’s very likely to be a result of external factors, such as a mechanical collision, high temperatures, strong radiation, intentional sabotage…”

Tang Yue and Mai Dong had a premonition that the malfunction in the communication systems was a result of external factors. The system was installed inside the Mars Wanderer, and if it could be destroyed in a collision, wouldn’t that mean the Wanderer itself and the driver, Tomcat, were in greater danger?

“On the Martian surface, apart from the possibilities of high-temperature radiation or intentional sabotage, the only possibility is an accident,” Tang Yue said. “If it really did have an accident, there would be no way for it to lift the Mars Wanderer back onto its feet. Therefore, the most suitable solution would be to abandon the Mars Wanderer and walk alone back to Kunlun Station… But Tomcat needs to charge as well; therefore, it would need to carry enough solar panels… Damn it!”

Mai Dong held her breath.

If Tang Yue’s deductions were right, it was likely that Tomcat was dragging a solar panel as it walked across the desert alone.

“But that’s only a possibility, a possibility!” Tang Yue shook his head and eliminated the theory. “If the severity of the accident is worse than we can imagine, it’s possible that Tomcat might have been destroyed together with the Wanderer. It might have escaped, but is severely injured and can no longer move. It might have died on the spot… F*ck.”

The second assumption was so terrifying that Mai Dong didn’t even dare think about it. What did it mean to be severely injured that it could no longer move? Were its legs smashed, making it lie there helplessly to await its death?

“Mai Dong… Mai Dong!”

“Ah?” Mai Dong snapped out of her daze.

“We can’t just keep waiting. We need to understand Tomcat’s current situation!” Tang Yue said, “You have to help me! Do you hear me? Only you can help me!”

“How?”

“First, we have to find Tomcat!” Tang Yue replied. “The space station has a camera. You can scan from above…”

“But the high-precision telescope and camera used for scanning are in the Dawn module. They’ve been destroyed.”

“There are other cameras in the other modules!”

“Yes… But they aren’t used to monitor the surface. The resolution isn’t high enough,” Mai Dong said. “Besides, they can’t be configured to scan, nor can they automatically do any identification.”

“It doesn’t matter if it’s not automatic. We’ll do it manually.” Tang Yue pointed at Mai Dong and then pointed at himself. “It doesn’t matter if it cannot be automatically identified. We can use our eyes!”

“By hook or by crook, we have to find that cat!”