Chapter 33 - Victory Awaits

"I may say that this is the greatest factor: the way in which the expedition is equipped, the way in which every difficulty is foreseen, and precautions taken for meeting or avoiding it. Victory awaits him who has everything in order, luck, people call it. Defeat is certain for him who has neglected to take the necessary precautions in time, this is called bad luck."

—Roald Amundsen

The mess hall lights were dim when Luca pushed through the door. Emily sat alone at the table, both hands wrapped around a mug of coffee, her hair going in about six different directions.

She looked up, and the smile she gave him did something stupid to his chest. Last night, falling asleep against his shoulder, had absolutely not helped with that. He needed to get a grip.

"Morning, Luca." She sounded half-asleep still. She leaned forward on her elbows, chin propped on one hand, green eyes locked on him like he'd done something interesting just by walking in. "You're up early."

"Good morning, Em, so are you." He crossed to the galley area, pulled open the freezer, and fished out a box of Eggo waffles. Priorities. "Sleep okay?"

Emily sipped from her mug, watching him over the rim with an expression that was far too pleased with itself. "Better than I have in weeks, actually."

Coffee and toasting waffles. For about three seconds Luca forgot they were four light-years from the nearest Dunkin'.

"Coffee?" Emily offered, already rising from her seat.

"Please."

She moved to the percolator, and Luca absolutely did not watch the way she stretched to reach a mug from the rack above, pajama top riding up just enough to make his brain short-circuit. He looked at the ceiling. The ceiling had never been more interesting.

As they waited for the waffles to toast, he stepped closer and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "You missed one," he said, and immediately wanted to throw himself out the airlock.

The toaster popped. Emily's smile said she didn't mind bad movie lines.

"So," she said, pouring the dark liquid into his mug, "seven days to New Dawn."

Luca ran his hand through his hair. They had seven days to check every system on this ship and somehow not screw up the first human landing on an alien planet. His stomach did a thing that had nothing to do with waffles. "Let's not talk about work yet," he said. "Just... breakfast first."

"Careful," she said, steadying the mug as coffee sloshed near the rim. Their hands touched on the handoff.

"Thanks," he managed.

They settled at the table, Luca scooting his chair closer as he reached for the syrup. He could feel Emily's judgment as he drowned his waffles.

"Someone likes it sweet," she observed, propping her chin on her hand again.

"Guilty as charged." He took a bite, aware of her eyes tracking the movement.

"Danny thinks we might even be able to breathe the air," Emily said. "If his atmospheric analysis is right."

Breathable air on an alien planet. No helmets, no filters, stepping out and inhaling. The thought hit Luca somewhere between thrilling and terrifying. "That’s a big if. We’re still too far for good readings." He took a bite. Tasted like his mom’s kitchen on a Saturday morning, and he shoved that thought down before it went anywhere. "But imagine just... walking out. No helmet, no filters, just air."

Emily looked past him, and he could practically see the gears turning. "I’ve been thinking about that moment a lot. First humans to walk on an alien world. Well, an alien world outside the Solar System." She turned to face him, her knee bumping against his under the table. Neither of them moved away. "Who gets to go first? Have you decided?"

Luca chewed and took his time. "Haven’t thought about it," he lied. It had been turning in his head for days. Captain goes first, right? That’s how it worked. Except every single person on this ship had done as much as he had to get here, and some of them had probably done more. Emily definitely had.

"Liar," she said, but her tone was fond. She reached for the syrup and took it from his loose grip.

"Maybe we should step out together," he said, and his pulse picked up in a way that had nothing to do with planetfall.

She held his look. She leaned forward, close enough that breakfast stopped mattering. "I’d like that. A lot."

They were way too close. Luca’s brain had vacated the premises.

The mess hall door banged open.

"Morning, people!" Ryan's voice hit like a flashbang. He swept in, already in his bodysuit, looking disgustingly energetic and completely oblivious to what he'd just walked into. "Who's ready to discover a brand new world?"

Emily leaned back in her chair. Luca seriously considered the aerodynamics of a fork thrown at Ryan's too-cheerful face.

"Inside voice, Ryan," Emily said, but there was no real annoyance in her tone. "Some of us are still waking up."

"Coffee's the answer," Ryan replied, making a beeline for the pot. "Sweet, sweet caffeine. The lifeblood of space exploration."

The door opened again, slower this time. Danny looked like he'd lost a fight with his pillow, red hair going every direction and glasses barely hanging on.

"Is he talking already?" Danny mumbled, heading for the coffee station where Ryan was filling a mug nearly to overflowing. "Why is he talking?"

"Because he's Satan," Luca offered helpfully.

Ryan and Danny settled at the table with their coffee and started arguing about what they'd find on New Dawn. Luca let them go. He had bigger problems.

Emily's shoulder pressed against his as she reached for her coffee, and she didn't pull away. Under the table, Luca let his leg slide deliberately against hers. She looked at him, and the corner of her mouth twitched up. He stuffed a waffle in his mouth and pretended that was helping.

---

The command bridge hit him with recycled air and the collective coffee breath of six people. Luca stood behind Zoe at the navigation station, the whole crew packed around her console where she'd pulled up a map of the Proxima Centauri system. Danny's telescope data had filled in the planets and moons in sharp detail, and Luca had to admit it looked impressive as hell.

Emily settled in next to him, close enough that her arm brushed his every time she leaned forward to examine the trajectory lines on Zoe's screen. His pulse picked up. Totally professional.

"Alright, guys," Luca said. "Let's finalize our approach to New Dawn. We'll be deploying probes and satellites for Proxima d and c along the way."

Zoe tapped her navigation screen, tracing their curved trajectory through the stellar display. "Seven days total to New Dawn, factoring in deceleration burns and orbital insertion."

Ryan peered at the screen, mug in hand. "Cutting it close with that radiation belt, aren't we?"

"We'll be skimming the outer edge, well within safety parameters," Zoe replied confidently. "The stellar flares are predictable enough that we can time our approach during a quiet period."

Danny shifted, clutching his tablet like a security blanket. "Actually, we don't know as much about Red Dwarf volatility as we thought. The theoretical models from Earth might not account for Proxima's specific behavior patterns."

Ryan rolled his eyes. "Danny, the flare cycles are completely predictable. You're overthinking this."

Two minutes in and they were already at it. Luca bit back a sigh. Every goddamn meeting.

"The radiation spikes could still damage the probe electronics," Danny persisted. "Or interfere with our own systems during deployment."

"We can adjust the probe trajectories," Zoe interrupted. "Use Proxima c and d as radiation shields during deployment. The planetary magnetic fields would provide additional protection."

Luca looked between Danny and Zoe. Both of them thought they were right. Both of them probably were. "Deploy with planetary shielding and stick to the timeline. We'll adjust as we go. We didn't fly four light-years to argue about flare charts."

That sounded captainly. He was getting better at that.

Emily leaned in to study the trajectory data, her shoulder pressing into his arm. "The timing works if we concentrate the launches in the optimal window."

Luca poked her ribs when she crowded too close to the screen. "Hey Em, don't hog the view."

She smirked and stepped back just enough to technically give him space.

"All probes are operational and prepped for deployment," Chris confirmed from his station.

"What about deployment timing?" Luca asked. "Can we get all the probes launched within the optimal windows?"

"Should be fine," Ryan replied. "The ejection systems are ready to go."

He was captaining a meeting. Four light-years from Earth, orbiting an alien star, and Luca was running a meeting about deployment windows. Nobody had warned him about this part. The recruitment brochure had failed to mention the spreadsheets.

"Good," Emily said, reaching around Luca to tap a section of Zoe's display. "Then we can concentrate the launches in the first window."

"That would work," Zoe said, recalculating on her panel, "but if we want to stagger the launches, it would mean adjusting our approach angle to New Dawn." She modified the display, showing a slightly altered trajectory. "Nothing major, just a few degrees difference in our final orbital insertion."

Ryan leaned against the bulkhead. "Not to be the buzzkill, but if any of these little guys miss their orbit, it's going to be a pain to retrieve them."

"They won't," Zoe said flatly.

"Let's talk about the satellites," Emily interjected, shooting a pointed look at Ryan. "I'm implementing a triple-check protocol for the energy cells before launch. Two different crew members will inspect each satellite before deployment."

Ryan winced. "Never gonna live that down, am I?"

No. No he was not.

---

Chris, Joey, and Zoe filed out to prep for their shifts, and the bridge got quiet. Luca, Emily, and Ryan hunched over the central console, staring at inventory manifests instead of stars. In a few days they'd be walking on a planet orbiting Alpha Centauri. Him and his best friends, making history. It still didn't feel real.

Luca swiped through the categories, trying to focus on the mundane details. Medical supplies, scientific equipment, rations. Emily had color-coded everything. It would have been stranger if she hadn't. It all looked in order at first pass.

"Let’s get to work," Emily said, pulling up a separate screen. "We're going to cross-reference what we've cataloged against what we actually need for planetfall." She turned to Ryan. "Can you verify the exploration gear?"

Ryan nodded, pulling that section to his corner of the display. "On it."

"Scientific equipment looks good," Emily noted, already grinning as she checked off the section.

Luca scanned through the environmental gear, trying to ignore how suspiciously close Emily had gotten to check something on his screen.

"Atmosphere testing equipment and soil sampling kits, all accounted for." Luca expanded the scientific inventory, checking off items as he went. "Portable lab stations, core sampler, sample containers, spectrometers, portable analysis units. Everything Danny requested made it aboard," he finished.

"We've plenty of cartridges and consumables in stock for medical supplies," Emily said. "Plus, Joey's planning to bring the med pod down with the dropship. Chris will help him get it loaded and installed on the Peregrine."

"The armor situation is what it is," Ryan said, highlighting their equipment manifest. "We've got our primary armor suits, but no spares." He tapped a line item. "Should have had at least three backup suits per person, but they never made it past the loading dock."

"Right. The sabotage," Luca said. The word still left a bad taste.

"Except your backup and Zoe's," Ryan said. "But I wouldn't call that armor."

Luca rolled his eyes. Yeah, the level 48 scout suits weren't exactly confidence-inspiring. They offered barely any protection, just active camouflage. The theory was you wouldn't get hit if nobody could see you, which sounded great until you remembered the energy drain and the garbage cooldown. Basically, don't get spotted, and if you do, hope they miss.

Ryan opened up another list. "Energy cells are the real problem," he said. "We've got maybe thirty cells total between all of us. Should have been twelve hundred." He shook his head. "That's enough to keep our armor and weapons powered for maybe one or two firefights, if we're lucky."

Thirty out of twelve hundred. Luca let that sink in and tried not to do the math on how screwed they were.

He gestured at another section of the display. "And dropship fuel... four, maybe five planetside trips if we're conservative. Not the dozens we originally mapped out."

Emily leaned forward. "So we prioritize. No wasted fuel." She was already flipping through surface expedition schedules. "What are our absolute must-haves?"

"The primary landing site for sure," Luca said, studying the mission parameters. "We'll use the Peregrine to range out from there. Fuel’s too tight for bouncing between potential biomes. We go in once, we go hard."

Ryan was scrolling through fuel calculations. "If I can squeeze an extra ten percent efficiency out of the dropship systems, maybe we get a sixth trip." He switched to the power management protocols.

"Which is fine," Emily said, tapping the screen. "We can make every expedition count double. Overlapping objectives, multi-site sampling runs." She gestured at the display, and when she turned to look at Luca, her face was flushed. "Hell, this might actually make us more efficient. Forces us to be smart about it."

"Exactly," Luca said. "We've got seven days to optimize everything. We need to get it all in order."

"Better than showing up with a dozen armored suits and getting sloppy," Ryan added with a slight grin, then rolled his eyes at the way Luca and Emily were looking at each other.

"The System's been quiet so far," Luca said, ignoring Ryan's dramatic facial expressions and nodding toward the long-range sensors. "No portal signals, no signs of technology at all. For all we know, New Dawn is just a really interesting rock. Limited supplies or not."

He almost believed that, right up until his brain started listing all the ways things could still go sideways.

Ryan pulled up the surface mission timeline. "Alright then. Let's plan this thing properly. What do we hit first?" He paused. "And try not to make googly eyes at each other while we're doing it. We've got work to do."

Heat flooded Luca's face. He opened his mouth, closed it, and then couldn't get his stupid face under control because yeah, fair. They had been making googly eyes at each other. The fuel shortage and the thirty-cell doomsday clock could wait five more minutes while he figured out how to stop smiling.