Dead on Mars

Mai Dong could understand Tang Yue. She had already forgotten the feeling of being able to eat and drink as she did on Earth. On the United Space Station, her daily intake had to be restricted. Recently, Mai Dong’s dreams would mostly be about eating—fried chicken, ham, shrimp, and fish—but all the food that entered her mouth tasted like wax, dull and tasteless.

When she woke up in horror, she would realize that she had forgotten what food tasted like.

As for Tang Yue, he was living amidst feces every day in Kunlun Station, so he naturally viewed the pittance inside the containers as valuable. He also missed the inexhaustible feces found on Earth.

He wanted to swim in a pool of feces!

He wanted to jump in to swim in it!

After Tang Yue had finished heating the fertilizer, he poured it all into a water trough. Back then, he and Tomcat had prepared enough soil to fill two water troughs. These would be the hotbeds for the tomato seeds.

“So I just plant the seeds next?” Tang Yue turned his head to seek Mai Dong’s advice.

“Yeah.” The girl nodded. “Go ahead and plant them.”

Tang Yue took a deep breath as he prayed. Carefully, he used a pair of tweezers to plant the ten tomato seeds into the soil, his actions as gentle as a parent carrying his child.

“What do we do next?”

“Next…” Mai Dong paused. “All that’s left is to wait. And also pray!”

…

In order to ensure that the tomatoes would grow normally, Tang Yue had to ensure that the plants remained in an environment of 25°C. He had planned on using Kunlun Station’s temperature control system, but with Tomcat not returning, there was no way to fix the temperature control processor. Therefore, Tang Yue could only manually use inelegant methods to keep these precious saplings warm.

Tang Yue cleared out a spot in the Hab, brought over the manual antenna he had used three months ago and erected it there. When the parabolic dish antenna remained in an unfolded state, the antenna resembled an erect metal pole. It was best used as a support beam.

Next was the RTG. With the temperature control system defunct, the RTG was the last thing keeping Tang Yue alive. He propped it up and placed it beside the antenna.

“Tang Yue, you are going to place the RTG in Kunlun Station?” Mai Dong was a little worried. “If… if I remember correctly, this thing produces radiation, right?”

Tang Yue nodded and patted the circular beam, which was about half a meter tall. “That’s right. Its energy comes from Plutonium-238. It emits very strong radiation.”

“Doesn’t that matter?”

Tang Yue smiled. “Don’t worry. It radiates alpha particles. They won’t be able to penetrate the protective layer. On Earth, people place it into the heart to work as a pacemaker.”

Tang Yue placed the tomato trough close to the RTG, and then covered it with a plastic sheet, creating a tent that blanketed both. Then, he used all kinds of items to press down on the sides of the plastic sheet… This greenhouse appeared very crude, but it was the best Tang Yue could manage.

“Can this guarantee the temperature?” Mai Dong asked.

“Not yet.” Tang Yue clapped his hands and turned to don the Radiant Armor. “There’s still plenty of work needed.”

“Such as?”

“Light.”

Tang Yue carried his toolbox and opened the hatch to the airlock. He then headed out of Kunlun Station to open the garage door.

There was a series of high-pressure sodium lamps on the ceiling of the garage. As they consumed a lot of power, they were usually shut down. However, these kinds of high-intensity light bulbs were perfect for providing the light needed by plants for photosynthesis. After Tang Yue shut down the power switch to the entire garage, he stuffed his entire set of tools into the bag by his chest. Then, he slowly climbed up the maintenance ladder by the wall. At that height, he could reach for a light bulb simply by extending his hand.

“Tang Yue, are you in the garage?” Mai Dong’s voice sounded through the earpiece.

“Yes.” Tang Yue lifted his head and slowly drew in a breath. He worked hard to reach out and gently grab the light bulb. “I’m dismantling the light bulbs in the garage.”

The high-pressure sodium light bulbs were tube-shaped. The outer layer was made of hard silica glass, but it was brittle. Therefore, Tang Yue was very careful. With a thick glove, it was often easy for him to exert excessive strength accidentally.

Tang Yue removed tube after tube, stuffing them into the pocket on his chest before he slowly climbed down and placed them in his toolbox.

Just the light bulbs alone were insufficient. High-pressure sodium lamps couldn’t be used directly in Kunlun Station. He still needed to set up a lampstand, dismantling the wiring and current stabilizer. This was a massive task, so Tang Yue had brought scissors, hammers, and pliers. All kinds of screwdrivers and wrenches hung over him, upgrading the Radiant Armor to a home depot outfit.

“Will you be okay doing it alone?”

“I’ll have to do it regardless.” Tang Yue panted. He had just removed two tight screws, dropping a section of the electric cable that was fixed to the ceiling.

“All the best, Tang Yue! I’ll support you in spirit!”

“Can’t you give me some tangible help?” Tang Yue rolled his eyes. “Damn it… why is this screwed so tight?”

“The problem is… How can I provide you tangible help? I’m on the space station. It’s not like I can give you a hand.”

“Why don’t you sing a song?” Tang Yue gritted his teeth, removing the stuck screw. Then, he held onto the ladder and gasped for breath. As he perspired profusely, he asked, “Do you know how to sing?”

“Uh…”

There was silence. Clearly, Mai Dong was in thought.

“How about ‘ Your Mother is Shining Along the Horizon ?’”

“What the hell is that?” Tang Yue frowned.

“Don’t you know? It was the most popular song before Earth vanished. It’s from that postmodern-styled music genius’s new album. There’s also ‘Grandpa is Building a Nuke in the Basement ,’ ‘ High School Teacher’s Gatling .’” Mai Dong explained. “All the young people around me loved them.”

“You… You also like such music?” Tang Yue curled the corners of his lips. He couldn’t imagine a scholarly and quiet chick like Mai Dong listening to ” Grandpa is Building a Nuke in the Basement ” from a head-banging non-mainstream singer.

“I don’t like it. I prefer absolute music and piano pieces.” Mai Dong shook her head. “I thought you would like that.”

“I don’t like it either.” Tang Yue hurriedly shook his head. “What I like is the old-school music before the music industry became a mess. I like the old-school songs from Hong Kong, Taiwan, and China. Do you know that choral song, ‘ Tomorrow will be Better ?’”

Mai Dong thought for a moment before she hummed a few notes. “Is it this one?”

“Yes! It’s that one. Lightly knocking and waking up the soundly asleep heart and mind, slowly open up your eyes … That line.” Tang Yue also hummed a few lines. “Can you sing it? I haven’t heard anyone sing in a long while.”

Mai Dong nodded. “Let me find some companion music.”

Slow and soothing music sounded in Tang Yue’s earpiece. It was a very familiar prelude for him. Each note seemed to trample over his heart, making long-lost feelings return to him. Slowly, the girl’s gentle voice sounded.

” Lightly knocking and waking up the soundly asleep heart and mind, slowly open up your eyes. Look at the busy world to see whether or not it is still lonely turning around and around non-stop .” Mai Dong wasn’t very familiar with the song, so all she could do was follow the accompaniment, resulting in her going off-tune in the first line. ” The spring wind doesn’t understand the feelings and emotions, and it blows the heart of the youth .”

Tang Yue leaned on the ladder as he rested. He wasn’t suited for physical activity thanks to the Radiant Armor. He turned his head to look out of the garage at the endless desert.

He still remembered Tomcat heading out in that direction, but up to this day, it was nowhere to be seen.

” The sun called and woke up the morning, the grand earth reborn with splendor .” Mai Dong was still trying hard to follow the accompaniment even if she had gone extremely off tune. Yet, she insisted on finishing the song.

This lady sure is a gentle girl. Tang Yue grinned, but he couldn’t laugh even though he wanted to. All he could do was stuff the wrench into his bag and begin humming.

” Let the warm wind breeze out the sounding to compose the musical chapters of life …”