Personally, I’m a beer man. Today, the commander hands me a dark Merlot and I won’t refuse it. The wine aged well over the years it took to ship here; it does surprisingly well to calm these nerves.

“Take small sips,” he cautions. “The EM field lightens your uniform and most objects on the station, but food and drink are still subject to the full 2.5 g’s. Wouldn’t want you to get hurt.”

“Yes sir.” When will we get down to business? Relaxing in the lounge with a glass of red wine isn’t exactly what I expected to be doing here. Commander Bryce smiles broadly.

“Stanton, I owe you an apology.”

“Beg your pardon?”

“Most guys lose more than bladder control on their first trip down. They told me you were good. We’ll see how you do on assignment, but so far, well, I’m impressed.”

“Thank you, sir. Alaska’s hardly Jupiter, but I think I’m up for the challenge.”

“We’ll see. You’ll get your orders tomorrow morning. Meantime, we’ll be seeing a lot of each other… Let’s try to start things off on the right foot.”