I pull myself along the tether to the hull. This time, with the antenna and tether to aid me, I manage to grab hold of a nearby robot rail.

“Whew,” I say.

I take a moment to catch my breath. Now to put Rocky’s hearing to the test.

I pull the biggest wrench I have from my tool belt. I rear back and smack the hull. Hard.

I smack it over and over. Clank! Clank! Clank! I hear the sound through my own EVA suit. If he’s alive in there, that’ll get his attention.

I push one end of the wrench against the hull and crouch down to bring my helmet in contact with the other end. I stretch my neck out in the helmet and push my chin against the faceplate.

“Rocky!” I yell as loud as I can. “I don’t know if you can hear me! But I’m here, buddy! I’m on your hull!”

I wait a few seconds. “I have my EVA suit radio on! Same frequency as always! Say something! Let me know you’re okay!”

I turn up my radio volume. All I hear is static.

“Rocky!”

A crackle. My ears perk up.

“Rocky?!”

“Grace, question?”

“Yes!” I’ve never been so happy to hear a few musical notes! “Yeah, buddy! It’s me!”

“You are here, question?!” his voice is so high-pitched I can barely understand him. But I understand Eridian pretty well now.

“Yes! I’m here!”

“You are…” he squeaks. “You…” he squeaks again. “You are here!”

“Yes! Set up the airlock tunnel!”

“Warning! Taumoeba-82.5 is—”

“I know! I know. It can get through xenonite. That’s why I’m here. I knew you’d be in trouble.”

“You save me!”

“Yes. I caught the Taumoeba in time. I still have fuel. Set up the tunnel. I’m taking you to Erid.”

“You save me and you save Erid!” he squeaks.

“Set up the darn tunnel!”

“Get back in you ship! Unless you want to look at tunnel from outside!”

“Oh, right!”

I wait eagerly by the airlock door, trying to watch the action play out through the little window. It’s all happened before—Rocky attaching the airlock-to-airlock tunnel with the hull robot. But this time it was a little more challenging. I had to maneuver the Hail Mary into position because the Blip-A can’t move at all. Still, we got it done.

A final clank, then a hiss. I know that sound!

I float into the airlock and check through the outer window. The tunnel is in place. He kept it all this time. Why not? It’s an artifact from his species’ first contact with alien life. I’d keep it too!

I turn the emergency relief valve. Air from my ship fills my half of the tunnel. Once it equalizes, I throw open the door and fly in.