Vignette:Visitors on Selene

he sound of his breathing is deafeningly loud inside the EVA suit.

''“Shi-woo! Do you see that?”'' Peng stretches his arm out, pointing at two specks of light not so far away. They look like they’re floating over in their direction.

“People?” It’s hard to make them out; the glare of the sun is blinding, even though he’s looking through the UV filter. “The closest base here is…”

''“The Goets? What are they doing here? They’re miles away from their base.”''

“What the hell is going on?”

Shi-woo pats around his chest for binoculars that don’t exist. The view is clearer now, even without them; there are two rovers speeding towards his position, kicking up fine grey dust that floats away in the non-existent air behind them. If he could hear it, he’d be hearing the sound of two trophy trucks- no, adult rams, charging toward him like a running of the bulls ceremony. The thought of bracing himself comes to mind, but they’re still quite a distance away.

It takes some effort to finagle his hand towards the button for his microphone. “This is Shi-woo to Base, we’ve got visitors on the way.”

''“Visitors? Who? How?”'' Hoang’s strained voice manages to make it through to his headphones.

''“Goetic. On two rovers. I think we’re going to need an interpreter.”''

“You don’t speak Goetic?”

''“I know, like, three swear words. Peng knows Akitei." He scratches his helmet instead of his head as he thinks of other options. "Abraham can, though.”''

“Just because he’s Alvak doesn’t mean he knows Goetic.”

''“He’s half-Goetic, you moron. Get him over here.”''

''“Alright, alright. I’ll get him to reroute. He should be there in a few minutes.”''

“They’re getting closer, so tell him to hurry up.” There’s a nudge from Peng that grabs his attention. “Gotta go.”

“Copy.”

The rovers are starting to slow down as they approach the team. On one rover, there’s an astronaut laying down on the back with duct tape haphazardly wrapped around their leg. On the other, there are heaps of loose equipment erratically piled across the surface of the cargo bed. It’s clear now that they drove here in a rush after their poor cosmonaut punctured their suit. The driver of the rover in front waves his hand around as frantically as he can in his bulky spacesuit; Peng waves both of his in response. Soon enough, they come to a complete stop in front of the two.

A distraught voice starts crackling through his headphones. “Wo ist deine Basis?” His arm points to his wounded comrade in the back.

“What is he saying?” He isn’t expecting a decent answer from Peng.

''“I speak Akitei, not Goetic! I doubt they can even speak Guoyu!”''

“Where the hell is Abraham?” His clenched teeth are starting to hurt.

Just behind them, another rover makes an appearance. It’s beelining towards them, also kicking up copious amounts of powdery dust. Emblazoned on the hood is the KTEC flag.

“Oh, thank fuck he’s here.”