I heard a lot of grumbling when I decided to pass that system by, too, and try something else. We were nearing the point of no return, and everyone was edgy. There was a big argument, but I won out and we went on.
The third system we tried was almost irresistible. The planet was the right size and had large oceans. There was an atmosphere, although I couldn’t tell whether there was any oxygen; we’d have to risk that. My only worry was that it was too close to its sun, a blue-white giant. I was worried about too much radiation. I told the others so. I told them I’d seen people dying of radiation poisoning, and that it wasn’t a pleasant sight. A lot of them didn’t believe me, or else didn’t care; they were willing to take the risk just to be free of that damned ship. The confinement and the
