Dead on Mars

Chapter 192 - Sol Three Hundred and Twenty-Two, Law of Tomcat’s Flag-Raising
Chapter 192: Sol Three Hundred and Twenty-Two, Law of Tomcat’s Flag-Raising

“Probability?”

“No, there isn’t a probability. This isn’t a probability question about dice throwing.” Tomcat shook its head. “We are unable to precisely predict the time of the space station’s crash only because we do not have its detailed orbit numbers. If the space station’s system hadn’t been put out of commission, we would have been able to predict the time of the crash to the minute… Tang Yue, this isn’t a bet. Its destiny was fixed in place the moment the accident happened. It’s just something we aren’t aware of.”

Tang Yue was taken aback before he understood what Tomcat was saying. What they were facing wasn’t dice that hadn’t been rolled, but an outcome that had already been determined.

They didn’t know because they were blind.

For some baffling reason, Tang Yue recalled Schrödinger’s cat.

If one didn’t observe it, then one wouldn’t know if the cat was dead or alive.

But the United Space Station was different from that Schrödinger’s cat. Based on the Copenhagen interpretation, the cat in the chamber was in a superposition of life and death. By observation, its state would collapse into one of the two outcomes. As for the space station, its life and death had been predetermined. It didn’t matter if anyone observed it. Even if Tang Yue blindfolded his and Tomcat’s eyes, it would still crash at a specific moment.

Tomcat watched as SPT276 slowly drained its mass. It pushed the desk with force, sending its seat rolling away from the monitor.

“From this moment forth, we have lost all ability to affect the United Space Station. We can’t do a thing.” Tomcat shook its head. “We are in the true sense of the words, having our hands tied. Even if it were to crash tomorrow, all we could do is helplessly watch it happen… It’s late. Get some rest.”

“Roger that,” Mai Dong replied. “Mr. Cat.”

Tomcat drooped its ears as it walked to the recharging point in the corner, but was pulled back by Tang Yue.

“Is there really nothing we can do?”

“Nothing.” Tomcat shot him a glance. “There’s really nothing. It’s useless, no matter how fast your brain races, smarty-pants.”

In a way, Tang Yue and Tomcat could just calm themselves and not be anxious, nervous, or frantic. They didn’t even need to put in any more effort. This was because it would all be futile. They were always anxious because there was hope, struggling because of the possibility of success. But with the ground losing all means to interfere with the United Space Station, the only contact Kunlun Station had with the space station was via radio waves.

Tomcat freed itself from Tang Yue’s grasp, walked to the corner and silently plugged itself in.

“Are we really doing nothing?” Tang Yue asked loudly. “Shouldn’t we do something? Anything?”

“Eat and sleep.”

Tomcat turned its head to Tang Yue, the former’s indifferent, cold gaze chilled Tang Yue’s heart.

Those eyes seemed to say: What gave you the right to imagine that hope forever exists?

…

“Mai Dong.”

“Yes?”

“Don’t listen to Tomcat’s nonsense. It’s just filled with pessimism and defeatism. Wait up there for the rescue. In ten sols time, Tianzhou 37 will arrive. The space station will definitely be able to last to that moment,” Tang Yue said. “It’s just ten sols. The United Space Station has been in orbit for more than ten years. What’s another ten more sols?”

“But Mr. Cat said that the space station can last at most seven sols.”

“It’s seven to eleven sols,” Tang Yue corrected her as he enunciated each and every word. “It’s not at most seven sols. The difference between the two phrases is like night and day…”

“I know,” Mai Dong said. “But I find Mr. Cat’s words reasonable. Not every problem has a solution. There aren’t that many miracles in the world. Lady Luck won’t keep showering her blessings on us.”

“When has that darn Lady Luck showered her blessings on us?” Tang Yue took off his shoes and retracted his feet onto the chair as he hugged his knees. “What were you referring to? The Eagle lander’s launch and docking? That was three parts destiny and seven parts hard work, alright? It had nothing to do with Lady Luck. If I hadn’t braved the hurricane and stayed outside holding the antenna, who knows where the Eagle would have flown to.

“As for Comet Tomcat-Tang-Mai I… It was never going to hit Mars to begin with. We were made so anxious because of our miscalculation of Deimos’s orbit. The culprit is Tomcat and its workstation. In fact, that comet had nothing to do with us. No matter what the roll of our dice was, it wouldn’t have hit us.”

Tang Yue grumbled. He found himself unlucky with Lady Unlucky constantly haunting him. However, this also made him understand why the average human lifespan in the Stone Age was just twenty years.

In an extremely harsh environment, with a lack of resources, any trivial problem could develop into a major problem. In modern times, being cut by a blade just meant heading to the hospital to have a few stitches, but in ancient times, this could result in a lethal infection.

Tang Yue’s living conditions were worse than the cavemen who had lived during the Stone Age.

Even though the chances of being infected inside and outside Kunlun Station were small, if Tang Yue was to unfortunately fall and suffer a fracture, it also meant that his life would be coming to a close.

“We are really using our lives to verify Murphy’s law,” Tang Yue said with a bitter smile.

“Murphy’s law?”

“Yes, it’s that famous, or should I say infamous statement: whatever can go wrong, will go wrong. In aerospace engineering, it’s any technological risk that can go from a possibility to a sudden accident,” Tang Yue explained. “Every engineer in the world knows the law of the jinx.”

“I think there’s another corollary.”

“What is it?”

“Mr. Cat… isn’t beside you, right?”

“Tomcat?” Tang Yue turned his head and took a glance. Tomcat had already curled into a ball, sleeping as it charged. Its face was buried in its paws with its two ears drooping. “It’s asleep.”

“The law of Mr. Cat’s flag-raising,” Mai Dong said. “As long as Mr. Cat raises a flag, it will definitely be made into reality.”

“Makes sense.” Tang Yue smacked his head. “I know why Earth vanished!”

Mai Dong was taken aback. “Why?”

“It’s because Tomcat had previously mentioned that it was coming to the end of its service and that it would be retiring soon. It had told us in idle chat: ‘Once this Mars scientific mission is over, I’ll return to Earth to get married.’” Tang Yue explained. “Hence, the flag was raised, breaking the law of causality. It was fine, but Earth ended up gone.”

Mai Dong burst out into laughter.

“Is it alright to speak badly about Mr. Cat?”

“Don’t worry,” Tang Yue said. “Tomcat is no different from the dead once it begins charging.”

He then turned to glance at Tomcat. The white, fat cat had turned into a furry bundle. It even seemed as if it could be flowing across the floor. Cats were indeed liquid. They could be as round or flat as they wanted.

“Mai Dong, how will you be sleeping tonight?”

“How else?” The girl sighed. “I’ll just sleep in the IVA suit. It’s not like I dare to take it off.”

The United Space Station only had the Crystal module operational. There weren’t any sleeping facilities, so Mai Dong could only make do.

Tang Yue got up, switched off the lights in the Hab, and entered his sleeping quarters. He too was exhausted.

“Uh… Tang Yue.”

“Yes?”

“It feels uncomfortable sleeping like that.” Mai Dong opened her eyes a few minutes after she closed them. “I can’t sleep at all. Why don’t you have a chat with me?”

“Sure?” Tang Yue collapsed into bed as he hugged the soft pillow and closed his eyes. “What do you want to talk about? I’ll join you…”

Tang Yue’s voice slowly softened and soon, there was the sound of rhythmic breathing. Clearly, Tang Yue had fallen asleep the moment his head hit the pillow. He was exhausted, having pushed both his body and mind to the limits.

Mai Dong didn’t say a word as she listened to the breathing. The sun was setting, ushering a brief night. However, she didn’t know if she would see the rising sun after the night.