Starclimber by Kenneth Oppel Page B

fellows who got chopped. Then hit the showers. Maybe I should’ve felt proud of myself, but some of the tests were so strange, it was hard to know how well I was making out. So far I’d managed to hold on, but it was early days yet, and now we had Room F to reckon with.
    I took a deep breath, stepped inside, and stopped short.
    Room F was a lecture hall, with a chalkboard at the front and rows of little desks with astralnaut trainees squeezed inside. It seemed as if all the groups were being brought together for this session. Some of the other fellows looked as confused as I felt. We were used to diabolical machines and endurance tests. Standing down at the front were Captain Walken and a small, dejected-looking man with spectacles, leaning on a cane.
    “It’s just like school,” said Tobias with terror in his voice. “I think I’d rather do another land dive.”
    We found two desks at the back, each of which held a notebook and two sharpened pencils.
    “Let’s begin, please,” said Captain Walken. “Ah, welcome, ladies.”
    I turned around in surprise to see Kate and Miss Simpkins entering the classroom.
    “Gentlemen,” said Captain Walken, “allow me to introduce Miss Kate de Vries and Miss Marjorie Simpkins. Miss de Vries is an expert on high-altitude zoology, and I’m very pleased to tell you she’ll be joining our expedition.”
    So Kate’s plan had worked! Her parents had given their consent. I can’t say I was surprised. Kate was almost supernaturally skilled at getting what she wanted.
    “Good morning, everyone,” said Kate, sitting at the desk beside mine without giving me a glance. “Mr. Lunardi has very kindly allowed me to sit in on some of your sessions.”
    The other fellows didn’t seem to mind at all. They were smiling and sitting up straighter at their desks. But I was surprised by my own contrary mix of feelings. I was always hungry to see more of Kate, but I didn’t want her here . This was my testing grounds, and I didn’t want her to see me if I looked foolish or too young, or if I failed. It was bad enough that she got to be part of the expedition without lifting a finger to prove herself. Why did she have to come and gawk at us like a tourist?
    “Now, to business,” said Captain Walken. “Without the know-how of this gentleman beside me, we wouldn’t be going to outer space. This is Dr. Sergei Turgenev, and he’ll be the chief science officer aboard ship. Our expedition will take us into a new world, and Dr. Turgenev has a great deal to share with you.”
    After all my months at the Academy, I felt quite at home behind my desk. But I could see that some of the other fellows were ill at ease.
    Dr. Turgenev limped forward, leaning on his cane. He wasn’t old—no more than forty—but he gave the impression of being crumpled. His long face was made even longer by his goatee. He sighed deeply. His spectacles were flecked with dandruff.
    “I am very excited to be among you,” he said in mournful, heavily accented English. “So I am here to tell you about outer space.”
    He turned his back on us and went to the chalkboard. Splinters of chalk exploded from his hand as long strings of numbers and symbols scrolled across the board.
    I glanced over at Kate and saw her eagerly copying everything down in her notebook. The other candidates stared at the board in horror. I knew how they felt. I’d never seen some of the symbols that appeared there like malevolent hieroglyphs.
    “Now, someone complete equation for me, if you please,” said Dr. Turgenev, turning to face the class. “I am sorry this is insultingly simple. I promise we get more challenging. Anyone?”
    I glanced over at Kate, but even she wasn’t going to take a whack at it.
    “No one,” said Dr. Turgenev. “I am very disappointed.” He stared at us dolefully. Then something strange happened to his face. At first I thought he was having some kind of seizure, but then I realized he was trying to smile. “I am