Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

Three rows of guns were fired in succession, and the deafening sound of gunfire quickly disappeared in the smoke, echoing in this beautiful place with clear mountains and clear waters.

Several rows of people in black clothes stood solemnly, and many people in the front row were sobbing, looking at the three newly erected tombstones with sad faces. The photos posted on them were of the three Lomus.

three crew members.

Around them, there are more monuments. Each one is young, each one is smiling, and each one was an astronaut during his lifetime.

The date of death ranges from manned spaceflight in the last century to planetary exploration at the beginning of the century, including Dr. Jiang Qi of Jeep Ta-3.

Row after row, piece by piece, they silently tell how much sacrifice and effort there are behind mankind’s glorious aerospace achievements.

Omi Nanase, Director of the Office of Outer Space Affairs, read a eulogy on behalf of TPC for the three astronauts who unfortunately died in space:

"...Since this century, mankind has created many miracles, built a lunar base, built a Delta space station, built the Mars city of Canyon Mariner, established an interstellar base in the asteroid belt, on Ganymede, and on Venus,

Space stations have been built on Jupiter and Saturn.

Success has become a matter of course, and miracles have become commonplace, but in fact, it has only been fifty-six years since humans first entered space on April 12, 1961.

We still know very little about the universe, and human aerospace activities are still in their infancy. Many astronauts, including me, are the pioneer generation in exploring space, and they are surrounded by dangers to explore the unknown.

Every astronaut who steps into space is the most fearless brave. They know that space exploration carries huge risks, but they still accept the mission and embark on the road to explore the future for mankind.

To the families of the three heroes, we are deeply saddened by this tragedy, and we are thinking of you very much as we grieve the passing of these heroes.

You are the heroes behind the scenes, and you have half as many medals as you.

The people you love are very brave. They have unparalleled courage and fearless spirit. They are worthy of mankind and worthy of the name of heroes. They died for the ideals of mankind and for the future of mankind. They died in the discovery of

's journey'.

Today we gather together to mourn them. Tomorrow, the new spacecraft will carry their last wishes and head farther. The cause of space exploration will not be stopped because of this tragedy. The setback will make us cherish greater expectations.

We have the courage to move forward, we are still full of hope, and we are indomitable.

Ten years ago, after Jeepta 3 reached the orbit of Jupiter for the first time, it was attacked by an unknown luminous object, and three astronauts were unfortunately killed; today, Lomus 3 reached the third region of the Kuiper Belt for the first time.

Three more astronauts have met misfortunes; ten years later, humans will reach farther places.

Along the way, many of us will fall. This has been true in the past, today, and in the future. Tragedy is an unavoidable part of the process of exploration and knowledge-seeking. It is always accompanied by human adventures in exploring frontiers.

We have to sacrifice, but sacrifice will not make us stop in fear, it will only make us move forward with more and greater courage.

..."

Makoto Nanase, who was the first person in charge of the Delta Space Station, humanity's first permanent space station, spoke passionately about the sacrifices and achievements made by mankind in aerospace activities. His condolences were filled with sadness, but

There is no shortage of encouragement either.

At the end, Makoto Nanase, who has long since resigned as the director of the Delta Space Station and currently continues to shine as the director of the Outer Space Affairs Office in the second line, also ended his condolences with the last concluding sentence.

Although there were not many people present, it was broadcast globally.

Everyone lined up and came forward in an orderly manner to lay flowers on the tombs of the three astronauts.

Yes, it is the Cenotaph.

The big explosion of the asteroid destroyed everything.

Only some items left by the three astronauts on the earth could be put into the tomb.

After people laid flowers, they left by car one after another. Even the family members cried in grief and left three times after being comforted by their relatives.

The entire memorial service lasted three hours.

After the excitement comes desolation.

The wind coming from afar blows the bright flowers placed on the ground, bringing fragrance to the nose. But how long can the flowers without roots last?

Xincheng stood motionless, the crowd had dispersed, and he was the only one who was still there, watching from a distance.

According to regulations, he should not appear, let alone contact his family members privately without permission and unaccompanied.

Outrageous regulations are always caused by even more outrageous things happening.

After all, when people are sad or angry, they always want to find a place to vent. But when they don’t know who to turn to, can’t find it, and don’t dare to find the perpetrator, they will unconsciously vent their anger.

If it weren't for you...it wouldn't be...

Reason and reason don't make sense at this time.

That's why this regulation was introduced.

But Xincheng still came, but he didn't embarrass the people sent by the TPC Safety Committee to 'protect' him, he just watched from a distance, feeling silently sad.

From the beginning to the end, no one noticed that there was a sad man standing on the hillside in the northeast corner of this cemetery dedicated to those who dedicated their lives to human spaceflight.

Director Nanase's car stopped by the road, and then Makoto Nanase got out of the car and walked over alone. Looking at the sad face of Shinjo, he sighed silently, stopped a few meters away from Shinjo, and said:

“In 1994, the International Space Development Agency formulated the strategic policy of first Mars and then Jupiter.

, the first step was to build an interstellar base on the moon and a space station on the back of the moon. At that time, in order to seize the best position and the best orbit, various countries launched their own launch vehicles: Saturn for the bald eagle, Soyuz for the polar bear,

The Ariane in Europe, the Shenzhou in East Asia...

Countries dismantled huge space stations into parts, transported them to outer space, and then assembled them into space stations. At that time, every second was really racing, just to be faster than others and occupy the orbit on the back of the moon earlier.

The result of pursuing speed is frequent failures.

The Bald Eagle lost four launch vehicles and more than 20 astronauts; the Polar Bear lost six launch vehicles and more than 40 astronauts.

Europa...

When various countries finally realized that continued competition would only lead to greater losses, nearly two hundred astronauts had already spilled their blood in the sky, including my mentor and two senior brothers.

The first-stage rocket failed to escape and exploded in the thermosphere. Originally, they were supposed to go to Artemis Base, which is now Carlo Base, but...

At that time, the new space station was selecting the person in charge, and I was not the first choice, but that accident made me the only choice."

Shinjo stood there without moving. He didn't know what Director Nanase wanted to explain by saying this.

Nanase Makoto didn't care about Shinjo's lack of response, but said to himself: "Before that, I didn't think about going to that new space station, because it meant staying in the universe for a long time. After all, at that time

, the cost of a round trip between heaven and earth is still extremely high, and countries are in fierce competition. Limited resources and space are used for transportation and construction of space stations and interstellar bases.

But their departure made me have no choice but to get over it, and I must get over it."

Nanase Makoto was sighing as he spoke. Shinjou may not have been able to understand what he said before, but now he deeply understands Nanase Makoto's choice back then.

Friends and mentors have all left, and the only one left must adhere to their last wishes and carry their expectations together to complete the unfinished business.

Just like myself now, I will continue to travel to the universe, and go further, so that I can live up to the sacrifices of the three crew members of Lomus 3, even if I have to pay a huge price for this, I will not hesitate.

Just like Nanase Makoto.

Because he took over the mission of the Delta Space Station, the relationship between Nanase Makoto and his wife broke down, and they inevitably divorced. He is still alone to this day, and his closest daughter has been a stranger for ten or twenty years. Even when he grows up,

Lina, who died, later forgave her father, but it was impossible to find the lost family ties, and it was impossible to get them back because she was absent from her daughter's growth process.

"Soaring into the universe is the dream of many people, but turning that dream into reality requires enduring great pain and even making huge sacrifices. It may be you, or it may be me.

Inevitable!

This is probably..."

The last words became inaudible.

But Xincheng was not in the mood to be curious, and was still immersed in sadness.

Four people go and one person returns.

The deceased has passed away, but the living have to bear heavy burdens and carry sorrow.

Nanase Makoto stood with Shinjo for a long time, until all the people attending the memorial service left, then he turned around and left.

The surroundings became extremely quiet. Only then did Xincheng move his legs and feet, which were a little stiff from standing for a long time, and staggered forward. The distance was not long, but he walked for a long time.

Looking at the three people in the photo, their voices and smiles are still in my mind. Every moment they spent together seemed like yesterday, but the yin and yang have been separated, and heaven and man are separated forever.

I stood for a long time and looked at it for a long time.

It wasn't until the sky got dark that Xincheng leaned down, gently placed a flower in his hand on the tombstone, and whispered: "I will continue to fly, taking your share with me to farther places.

Go to the edge of the solar system, go to the ninth planet, go to Proxima Centauri, go to the three-star system...

As long as I can fly, I will keep flying."

He was mumbling to himself, talking about his dreams, the places he wanted to go, and the wonders of the universe he wanted to see.

Even if most of them are impossible to see in this life, this does not prevent Xincheng from thinking about it.

What technology cannot reach, the mind may be able to reach.

After a long time, Xincheng turned around, raised his head, spread his legs, and strode in the direction he came from. He gradually walked away, leaving behind the three astronauts who were parked in place and more astronauts around them.

The members were far behind.

And they stopped where they were, with smiles on their faces, watching the new city go further and further away until they were no longer visible. Although they were left behind, the smiles on their faces did not weaken at all, but became brighter.
To be continued...