13 November 2011

(in light of the previous post... This is very rough and instantaneous. Don't judge.)

Nothing could prepare him for zero gravity. Sure, he’d heard everyone talk about it. How it was cool, how it was hard to get used to. The disorientation. The nausea. How at least half of them had thrown up the first time. And often the second time as well. Masks were provided, because no one wanted to be in zero gravity with free vomit.

He watched the video attentively, understanding that it wasn’t like watching the flight attendants on an airplane explaining seat belts. If that had to be explained, people would be better off on the ground. But this video gave pointers. Like if/when nausea hits, close your eyes. Orient down to your seat, the one your body is tightly strapped into. That’s where gravity will return. Hold onto the armrests, floating arms can cause more disorientation.

And then they helped him strap in. The zero-grav jet was much like an airliner in interior appearances. But the seat belts were elaborate. They didn’t just cross over your lap like usual. Thick, padded straps hugged everyone’s chests and even came across thighs.

Then the tremendous pressure of acceleration. He figured that they should warn people of increased gravity just as much as decreased. Then, suddenly it seemed all force was turned off. There was no sense of movement at all, yet his stomach kept its course. It did a little flip, making him feel much the same as he had during his first kiss. Tingly and sick, and amazing and free.

After the first flip, his stomach seemed to settle in and he opened his eyes to observe. He could tell who was used to these trips and who wasn’t by whether they had their eyes open or not. Some people even looked a little bored while others clung to their seats.

He still very much felt his own center of gravity and had no problem feeling that his butt and feet were down. He directed his gaze out the nearest portal, and that’s when some disorientation crept in. Because he had assumed the planet was behind him, not to his left. And the motionless feeling was instantly proved to be false because of the rate the planet was shrinking.

“Why are we traveling sideways?” He thought, trying to calm his brief panic; trying to reorient. He had to close his eyes for a bit. When he looked again, the planet had shrunk more.

“Prepare for deceleration” The captain’s voice said over the intercom.

And the forces hit him hard again. Down was once again , firmly in the seat.

He'd arrived at the moon.

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