Mark waved to the small tv that was built into the dash of the shuttle. In the two seats up front, the pilots flipped switches and monitored the wall of computer controls. The veteran NASA pilot informed the military pilot of the controls as the countdown started. Mark held the straps that kept him tight to his seat. He could only focus on breathing. He tried hard not to cry. With his helmet on it would be impossible to wipe his tears away. So, he turned his eyes to the narrow window above the controls. The sky was clear and beautiful. The shuttle began to vibrate as the countdown got down to single digits. The NASA astronaut seated beside him told him with a light chuckle. "I hope you didn't eat anything before this." A military woman behind Mark asked with worry. "What will it be like?" The NASA astronauts all laughed before the pilot answered over the sound of the engine. "Ever been shot from a slingshot? It's a lot like that." Mark swallowed as the others uttered out in unison. "What?!" Mark rolled his eyes; they should know this from the training they went through.

The countdown went down to one and the shuttle lurched forward so hard that Mark felt like his ribs were going to cave in. Taking small calm breaths like he was trained to do; he was both terrified and excited as the shuttle rose into the sky. The military personnel around him began to scream, while the NASA personnel cheered and put their hands in the air just to freak out the others. The NASA pilot soon calmed himself to inform Ground Control that all systems were green. Mark's hand drifted to the chest of his suit. He could feel Sean's necklace more than ever as the metal was forced firmly to his skin. His hand felt like lead against his chest, but his mind was only on Sean. Closing his eyes, he recalled the taste of his lips and laying in bed with him. His smiling face. Suddenly the shuttle stopped going forward and weightlessly started to drift back. The NASA pilot flipped a switch, telling Ground Control seriously. "Detaching the busters and turning to thrusters. Now!" The NASA pilot pressed a button and the shuttle shot forward again but the shuttle didn't shake nearly as much now.

Over the coms, Ground Control told them calmly. "You're looking good, Ceres. Go ahead to full thrusters." The NASA pilot nodded, answering confidently. "Copy that. Going to full thrusters." The NASA pilot grabbed a leaver and slowly pushed it forward, causing the shuttle to vibrate a bit more as it forced its way from the gravitational pull of earth. Mark knew the second they left the pull, because his stomach lurched into a weightless feeling. The NASA pilot pulled the lever down slowly, telling Ground Control happily. "Control, we are now in orbit. Turning stabilizers on. Are we on course, Control?" Ground Control answered in a proud voice. "You are on course, Ceres. Engage autopilot and enjoy your trip." The NASA pilot grinned, flipping more switches on the controls as he told them excitedly. "Copy that, Control. We'll keep coms open." Mark took a deep breath with relief, watching the pilots go over their checklists for air supply and autopiloted features. The NASA pilot then began unstrapping himself as he told everyone. "Alright. All systems are green. You can relax now. Who's hungry?"

The Military pilot took off his helmet, then snatched a bag from the side of his seat to throw up. The NASA personnel laughed, removing their suits as the floated in the air around their seats. Mark carefully unbuckled himself, letting himself float up before removing his suit. He wasn't nearly as air sick as he thought he'd be. He just felt a little light-headed from the change in atmosphere. Setting his suit down in a locker by his chair, he took a minute to just process that he was really in space. A NASA astronaut tapped his arm, pointing to the window as he said blissfully. "Have a look at that view." Mark moved closer to the window and his jaw dropped. Earth was massive compared to their shuttle and from space it looked so mysterious and beautiful. Space was as dark as a permanent midnight, but the Earth seemed to glow with a ghostly blue light. Earth had never looked more beautiful to him. The Astronaut beside him, leaned on the wall as he stared out with him, saying so serenely. "Seems so unreal, doesn't it? No matter how many times I see her, I never get tired of looking at her from this angle."

Mark grinned, honestly replying. "Ya. There's nothing I like more than space... and seeing it now. It's beyond anything I ever could have dreamed. Pictures just don't capture the sheer beauty of it." The Astronaut tapped his arm, extending a hand as he introduced himself. "I'm Miles Sukinov. Science Officer." Mark took his hand to shake it, replying nicely. "I'm Mark Fischbach. Engineer." Miles grinned, chuckling out in an Americanized Russian accent. "Nice to meet ya. Now you can say you had your first space handshake. Come. Join me for a drink?" Mark winced, mumbling out. "I can't drink actually... Medical thing." Miles shrugged, chuckling out. "So I'll drink, and you talk." Mark chuckled in return, following him through the hatch to the next room in the shuttle. Inside, everyone was gathering up around the NASA pilot. While off to the side, a NASA woman passed out their lunch ration in a small packet and a plastic canteen bag for them. The NASA pilot waited for them all to get their ration, before announcing to them. "I just wanna say a few things while I have everyone here. I'm hoping we will be able to work well together and make this a successful rescue. We are a week from intercepting Space Station 01. I don't know what we will find, but we should be on our guard."

The NASA pilot then pointed to himself as he added coolly. "I'm Captain Orochi. If you have any questions, simply ask." Miles smirked wickedly, squeezing something from the packet in his hand before teasing out. "Is it true that in space... no one can hear you scream?" Captain Orochi rolled his eyes, then growled out to Miles. "Don't start that shit again, Sukinov. You know the answer to that." Captain Orochi turned away, causing Miles to lean in and tell Mark softly. "The answer is yes. Sound can't resonate off anything in space. So, you can't even hear your fingers snap close to your ears out there." Mark blinked, then shivered at the thought. To be unable to hear things in space was terrifying. After being dismissed, Mark ventured away to check the engine room out of habit. He just needed something to do. He wanted to call Sean and tell him all about this, but until they got settled that wouldn't be possible. Since day and night looked the same in space, his watch was set to alert him to nighttime and daytime hours.

Making his way to the bedroom portion of the ship, he slowed to a stop in the hatch. Miles was the only one in here so far. Strapped down to his bed, Miles was watching a small vinyl space Mickey Mouse float over him. Miles touched the little Mickey astronaut with a sad look. Leaning on the rounded hatch doorway, Mark asked him softly. "Hey, are you ok?" Miles sniffled, grabbing the Mickey to hide under his blanket as he answered. "Ya... First day is always hard." Mark slowly floated in to go to the bunk above Miles, asking curiously. "You have family back home?" Miles pulled the Mickey out to look at, smiling as he said. "Ya. A little girl. Took her to Disney World before this... She's five." Mark's hand went to the necklace that was tucked beneath his uniform. Climbing into the bed to strap himself down, he asked him sweetly. "What's her name?" Miles chuckled, answering a little embarrassed. "Minnie. She's my little mouse." Mark smirked, curiously asking. "Did you name her after Minnie Mouse?" Miles laughed heartily, before saying guiltily. "What's wrong with that? There are worse things I could have named her." Mark nodded, admitting. "True. I'm just surprised."

Miles's voice took on a warm distant tone as he told him openly. "My wife died in childbirth. We never talked about names. So, as I held my baby in that hospital... I remember looking up and seeing a Disney cartoon and thinking... I hope I can raise her to be as adventurous and sweet as Minnie. The name just stuck with me after that. She's with my parents right now. I've gone to space a lot... but this was the first time she understood enough to worry about me leaving. Nothing worse than seeing her cry..." Mark pulled the necklace out to watch it float around his neck, mumbling out. "Ya... I know the feeling." They stopped talking as the other crew members filed in, forcing them to just get some rest. After three days, Mark was awakened to the sound of his watch. Getting up for breakfast like he had the last few days, he settled into his normal routine of going into his standard checklists to kill time. Taking a clear bag from a drawer, he put it into the slit of the coffee machine to be filled up. Once the machine beeped, he removed it to put the straw to his mouth and drank his cold coffee. It tasted great, but he missed the hot stuff. While he drank, he overheard the Captain telling Ground Control seriously. "I understand. I'll keep trying. I'll inform the others too. Over and out." The Captain turned quickly, freezing when he saw Mark watching him from the other room.

Mark was about to move away, when the Captain gestured for him to come closer. Floating over, he listened to the Captain tell him nicely. "Good news. Control is going to get ahold of our families. We'll be able to tell them how things are going." Mark removed the straw from his mouth, saying excitedly. "Really? That's great!" The Captain grinned, then his smile faded. Narrowing his eyes, Mark asked him nervously. "Everything ok?" The Captain sighed heavily, mumbling out. "I've been trying to contact the Station... Still no response. Control says that the Station is still operational... Yet, no one is answering the coms. I just don't get it..." Mark shrugged, saying softly. "Interference? Something might be jamming the signal." The Captain shook his head, tapping his fingers on the ceiling as he replied uneasily. "If that was true than Control shouldn't be getting data from the station..." Mark sipped his coffee through the straw, thinking hard before saying around the straw. "Can Control confirm the life support system? Maybe a leak took the air out?"

The Captain shook his head, saying casually. "No. If there was a leak, the Station would have told Control once it got a signal back. Everything is working. It's confusing." Mark leaned back against the door, mumbling out. "Blown off the Station during repairs?" The Captain started to float by him, patting his shoulder as he told him. "We'll find out soon enough." Mark took his paste breakfast back to a secluded spot to think, laying across the air to read through Station mechanics. It was a boring read, but he really wanted to figure out how the Station crew had just... vanished. The only thing he could think about was that it must be an error. As the hours past, crew was called in to use one of the Ceres laptops to connect with family. He was sure that Sean wouldn't answer until later in the day. Sean was rarely a morning person unless he was there to wake him up. By the time that dinner was rolling around, Miles peeked into the hatch and called out to him sweetly. "Hey, Mark? Control is hailing you."

Mark abandoned the manual to let it float away as he rushed through the hatch. Venturing to the bedroom, he closed the hatch and floated over to the mounted laptop on the wall. On the laptop, a woman in a nice dress suit asked him sweetly. "Mark Fischbach?" Mark grabbed the bar by the laptop to steady himself, answering excitedly. "Ya?" The woman nodded, informing him. "We'll patch you through. Keep in mind that NASA is recording this call for the record." Mark gave her a simple nod to acknowledge it. She vanished as the screen turned blue and a ringing sounded. Mark's grip on the bar tightened. It had been three days and he missed his voice. The screen flipped over, and Mark exhaled with a bright grin. Sean was laying back on the couch in Mark's house. He was dressed in a grey shirt and what looked like blue jeans. In the background, Chica was running around with a plushie in her mouth. Sean blushed at the sight of him, his soft voice cooing out. "Mark? How have you been?"

Mark licked his dry lips, playfully saying. "I've been alright. It's pretty boring and cold here. I've been worrying about you." Sean rolled his eyes, coolly telling him. "Don't downplay it for me, Mark. Tell me the truth. Are you having fun?" Mark smirked, honestly replying. "I'm serious. There isn't much for me to do. Everything on the ship works. I can only wait until we reach the Station... Oh, Sean. You should see the view." Sean smiled warmly, asking curiously. "It's that beautiful, huh?" Mark stared into Sean's eyes, answering lovingly. "I wasn't talking about Space." Sean blushed so much that he bit his lip and looked away as he covered his mouth. From the background, Mark heard his mom chuckle out. "Awww, he gets that from me, you know." Mark's smile faded as he stammered out. "W-wait... My mother is there?" Sean looked at him from the corner of his eyes, nodding with the most adorable embarrassed face. Over Sean's shoulder, his mother ducked down to wave and proudly stated out. "Hey, baby! Don't worry, I'm watching over him. Did you know he's never had dumplings? How is that possible?! It's your favorite!"

Mark watched Sean huddle down farther into the couch, telling her hesitantly. "Mark and I... We don't usually have the time to cook. We just-" Mark's mom waved her hand, giggling out innocently. "No! Don't tell me! I'll just fix the problem. I'm making dumplings." His mother rushed away, and Sean moved his hand to block the side of his face as he discreetly whispered to him with a grin. "Mark... She's ruining my diet." Mark laughed as he heard his mother say casually in the background. "Got to put meat on those bones. You're so skinny. I'm not going to let you starve." Sean shook his head with a small smile, whispering through a giggle. "Mark, help." Mark laughed. It made him feel good that Sean looked happy and healthy. Sean propped his head up on his hand, cooing out lovingly. "I miss you." Mark reached out to touch the screen, replying in a deep loving voice. "I miss you too, Sweetheart." Sean touched the screen too, his bright blue eyes misting a bit from longing.

To keep Sean from crying, Mark pointed to the screen and said with a warm smile. "Decided to stay at my house, I see." Sean winced as Chica laid her paws on his chest and dropped a plushie on him. Throwing the plushie down the hall, Sean answered casually. "It was just easier. I was in no mood to fly back home and to take Chica with me would be so expensive... All her stuff is here. So, I just decided to stay. Your mother has been a big help. I just wish that she'd stop trying to fatten me up..." Mark smiled, coolly replaying. "She's making sure you are eating and that gives me piece of mind." Sean rubbed his chest, making Mark's fingertips ache as they recalled touching his body like that. He really wished that NASA weren't watching... Or his mother. Sean shifted on the couch, sweetly telling him. "What's with that look?" Mark looked away for a second to collect himself, playfully admitting discreetly. "Can't you tell?" Mark blinked, his eyes moving to look directly at Sean with a smug suggestion to them. Sean covered his eyes, chuckling out. "God damn it, Mark... Are you trying to embarrass me to death?"

Mark chuckled, lovingly telling him. "No... Just want you to know that I'm thinking about you. Hey. I wanna show you something." Mark unscrewed the mount. Removing the laptop, he carried it to the little window and told Sean sweetly. "Can you see it?" Over the laptop, Sean gasped out. "Wow. Is that really Earth? You weren't kidding... What a view." Mark kept the camera facing the window, telling him sweetly. "Keep watching. It gets better." As the shuttle slowly rotated, the Earth disappeared to show the brightest and clearest full moon. Sean was breathless as he told Mark in a wispy voice. "I envy you, Mark. That is so gorgeous." Mark rested his head on the wall, watching only Sean's reaction to the vastness of the dark starry view. Turning the laptop slowly back to him, he lovingly told him. "It's just a view. I've found that I'm already counting down the days until I can see you again." The laptop began to beep, and Mark reluctantly told Sean. "I love you, Sweetheart. I have to go... but I'll call you tomorrow morning. Will that be alright?" Sean nodded, kissing his fingers and then touching the screen as he replied. "I love you too. I'll be waiting."

Mark kissed his own fingers and had just touched the screen, when the call was cut off. Putting the laptop back onto the mount, he went out to have dinner with the crew. The crew was in much better spirits after the calls from home. They were all sharing stories and bonding. Mark listened to a few, but eventually slipped away to go into the front. Strapping himself down into a pilot seat, he propped his feet up on the dash and stared at the view of the moon as he finished his drink in the plastic bag. Hearing Sean's voice made him feel at peace for the first time in three days. To Be Continued...