: to function imperfectly or badly
: fail to operate normally
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/malfunction
The white foam ball oozed out from between my fingers as my grip tightened, the little blue cup distorting. I was still in no rush to be anywhere, but the longer I stayed the more rations and basic supplies I would consume. There was a DSSA carrier about sixty jumps away and it would be on my way to Colonia so I could replenish there.
Settling back into the crash couch I instructed the Hiraeth to play some Bryn. Sosban Fach, she must have sensed I was getting agitated with the current scanning objectives. By the climax of the song, I was throwing the foam ball into the air and catching it, throwing it, clapping and catching it and generally in a better frame of mind.
We would go back into orbit, dash halfway round the globe and set down on the opposite side. If I struck out there, I decided that I would cut my losses and ATHAIP PK-B B47-14 AB 2 would forever be the one that got away, my nemesis.
Now sitting in a sweeping valley with high crimson peaks sitting on the horizon, the twin stars above flooding the flat lowland with rusty light, the atmosphere was thick. Even with the stars overhead it gave the appearance of what would be perceived as dusk on most planets. I deployed the SRV and rattled off towards the mountains.
Not finding a single patch of bacterium or fungoidia, I deployed the camera drone to see if I could make anything out from the air. Still no dice, the only saving grace I could garner from this caper was the valley floor being rather flat and would make a nice playground for the SRV… I threw the SRV into full throttle and began to kick up the red dust in my wake.
The dust settled, staring back me through the canopy was the camera drone. I guessed with all the dust it was unable to dock with the SRV. It was just idling there about a meter off the ground like a mechanical bird of prey, waiting for something to move before it swooped in for the kill.
I’d have to stow it away manually, I jumped out and moved to towards the drone to power it down. The drone dodged back, I stumbled forward. An artificial camera shutter sound spooled from the drone as it continued to duck and dodge away from me.
This was new, I had no Idea what was going on with the thing, maybe too much dust had gotten into its workings. So, I simply gave it the thumbs up. I am by far a technical wizard when it comes to these things.
Unsure if the drone’s programming was considering what “it” was witnessing or if it was rebooting itself, I pounced on it. Drone in hand I ventured back the SRV. I was going to call it a day on this ammonian hades. Hopefully once I am back in the Bubble, I could enquire with one or two engineers and upgrade my equipment and return. Maybe I would bring a party with me, to divide and conquer sort of speak.
Having changed into my flight suit it was time to continue with my journey home. I settled in the crash couch and plotted a route to the DSSA Buurian Anchorage in system Dryau Ausms KG-Y e3390. I would restock and attend to some basic maintenance there before travelling on to Colonia. We were soon back in orbit, I queued up the jump sequence and engaged the frameshift drive.
The Javi Times 