The Girl They Sold to the Moon Read Online Free Page B

controlled in conjunction with the dome superstructure. Our patented anti-gravity wave force field will keep your feet firmly planted on Luna firma. What’s more, we offer are residents the finest in…
    Tilly shoved the packet back into its pouch. She wasn’t in the mood for propaganda. Right now, she was concerned about a flight that would break the outer reaches of the atmosphere. She hadn’t even taken an Earth flight that spanned over 100 miles, let alone one that would take her clean off the planet and into the bowels of space.
    A cabin speaker crackled, then a meca voice filled the passenger cabin. “Hands on your arm supports, heads back, spread the legs.”
    Tilly assumed the position. A switch snapped from underneath her seat. Air bladders crawled out of their niches and enveloped the girls around the torsos and thighs, snuggling them tight into their couches. The crushing force of the bladders nearly took Tilly’s breath way, but her arms were free and she had remembered to relieve herself on the bus, a pre-flight stipulation.
    The cabin lights dimmed. The profile of the shuttle shifted, turning up to vertical axis. Once in the upright position, the cabin lights extinguished. Something cracked like thunder outside, a shudder rose up through the floorboards, followed by a shimmy. A powerful G-force shoved Tilly into her couch, waggling her head. She clenched her teeth then heard a ghastly roar. Her head pinned, she could only move her eyes. She looked out the window and saw the tarmac lights disappearing from view, until they were mere specks, and then gone completely. Misty patches of light, that were cities below, sank from her view as though swallowed by a drain. Her face muscles shook with spasms. When she tried to talk, the noise came out a gargle. She heard a snap, followed by the deflation of her seat bladder. Her world faded to black.
    Tilly awoke groggily and tried to focus her eyes. Something acidic stung her nasal cavities. Her air bladder pressure had been relieved to the point where she was loose in her seat. When she noticed Dorothy sitting next to her and an aide bending over the seat back holding a broken capsule, she knew where she was.
    â€œOkay,” said the aide, “you look fine now. Sorry about the smelling salts. You had a seat bladder malfunction. You passed out when the blood rushed from your head.” The aide walked up the aisle.
    â€œI’m so sorry,” said Dorothy. “I thought you just fell asleep, so I left you alone. When I couldn’t wake you up, I called for help.”
    â€œAaaag, they’re trying to kill me before I get there. Where are we, space-wise?”
    â€œLook out your window.”
    Tilly could see the silvery-gray horizon of the moon. The shuttle was descending toward one of the darker areas, a mare sea. Rolling hills, craters, with spiked rays, covered the rest of the landscape below. One tiny structure stood out, something that looked like a spider web with a central hub. The shuttle turned, taking the object from her view.
    â€œWe got here fast,” said Dorothy. “They really kicked her in the guts—full burn all the way. The aide said we were behind schedule.”
    Tilly blew out a hefty sigh, feeling the vertebrae in her neck crack. She felt a tad nauseous. “They’re not wasting any time, are they?” She looked out the porthole window again. What a drab and lifeless place. The surface looked like used cat litter, complete with dark lumps, piss holes and washed out gullies. Tilly knew from science class that the black area marked the terminator, where the earth cast its shadow over the moon’s surface. She couldn’t even imagine landing in that part of the Moon.
    When the shuttle dropped down on the tarmac, a tow vehicle lined it up with a pressure hatch attached to the outside ring structure of the docking area. Herded down the loading ramp, the group received another scan and