Chapter Text
This segment of the mission is supposed to be one of the more exciting parts! They've just docked on Space X's Starship with the Orion capsule and now they are actually getting to move around inside of it and check everything out.
Christina was up late last night because she was so excited. But now…she's not sure what's going on, but something's not right.
She blinks, looking down at the tablet in her hand. The words and numbers on the screen don't make any sense to her. "Jessica?" She calls, looking around.
That's when it hits her. She's not on the International Space Station. She has no idea where she is…or what day it is. The only thing she knows is that she's in space. That doesn't make her feel any better.
"Um…" she tries searching her memory for any clues that might help orient her, but there's only bits and pieces. Memories that aren't complete flash in and out of the peripherals of her consciousness.
Is she alone? Surely not, but then where is everyone? "Jessica!" She calls again, louder this time. Maybe this is the International Space Station…maybe it just looks different than she remembers.
"Christina? What's going on?" She doesn't even recognize the man who floats over to her. "What…" she lets go of the tablet, letting it float away. "Are you okay?" He touches her shoulder and she flinches in response.
"No…" she grabs a handle on the wall and pulls herself away from him. "Okay…can you tell me your name?" He backs up a little, giving her space.
"Christina Koch." She knows that. "Do you know who I am?" He asks, furrowing his brow. "Um…" his face is very familiar. He's an astronaut, clearly. She should know his name, but there's nothing there.
"Oh, okay…" she can see panic in his eyes, but he doesn't show it otherwise. "Something wrong?" Another man asks, entering the area. She recognizes him. He's part of her astronaut class.
"Do you know his name?" Person 1 asks, pointing at Person 2. "Yes…maybe…" she closes her eyes, trying to go over all the names in her class until one clicks. "Victor Glover." She says suddenly, her eyes snapping open.
"There you go, okay. When did this start?" She stares at him. When did what start? "Sorry?" She's less afraid now, but she's still extremely confused.
"Okay, not great…can you tell me what year it is?" She cannot…but she can take a guess. "2019."
"Shit." Victor swears, biting his lip. "I second that…" the first person laughs awkwardly. God, he's so familiar! Why doesn't she know his name?
"Who is the president?" Victor asks, there's desperation in his voice as if he needs her to get this right. "Well, she's gonna get that one right if she thinks it's 2019."
"He got re-elected?" Christina asks, her heart dropping. "No! He did not. The president is Kamala Harris." The first person shakes his head. "Why would you confuse her more?"
"Let her believe that." Person 1 hisses at Victor, before turning back to her. "Do you know where you are?"
"The International Space Station?" Person 1 buries his head in his hands and then a third person floats over. "Do you know who that is?" She looks over; Person 3 is far less familiar than Person 1.
"No?" She sighs, feeling extremely frustrated with herself. "What? Christina-" Victor cuts Person 3 off by raising a hand.
"Go contact Houston…right now." Person 1 tells Person 3. "What do I say?" He asks, looking extremely out of his depth. "That she doesn't know who we are or where she is and we need to know why." Person 1 says. Victor looks like he wants to object, but he stays silent.
"Okay…Christina…don't panic, you're going to be okay." She's not panicking, but now she feels like she should be. Person 1 doesn't try to touch her again, but Victor moves closer.
"What is your name?" Christina asks Person 1, her voice completely flat. "Reid, Reid Wiseman and that's Jeremy Hansen. We're on the Artemis III mission, in the Space X Starship." Person 1 Reid tells her. She knows what those words mean, yet they don't bring back any clear memories of what brought her here.
"How did you sleep last night?" Victor asks, seemingly trying to think of plausible explanations for her disorientation. She has no idea.
"Why would she know that and not our names?" Thank you, Reese, no…Reid!
"Maybe she can feel it? Are you tired, Christina?" Reid glares at Victor as he speaks.
"Um…" she's not really sure. "Maybe she hit her head? Hand me your phone," Reid says to Victor. She doesn't like that they're talking about her and not to her.
Reid shines a bright light in her eyes and she shuts them instinctively. "Christina…" Reid scolds and she reluctantly opens her eyes. "They're both normal."
When he pulls the light away, she realizes that her vision isn't as clear as it was a minute ago. She should probably tell them that— they're clearly trying to help her– but she doesn't quite trust them.
She also feels incredibly weak. If there were gravity in the ship, she's not sure she'd still be standing. How long is this mission? How long has she been up here? They never told her what year it is…
She feels a sudden rush of panic wash over her. What if they're lying? What if it's like 2056 and they're space pirates who've kidnapped her?
"Tina, hey—" Reid says, noticing her panic. "No…" she scrambles farther away from him, as far as the room will allow. "You're okay-" she cuts him off with a scream.
"Alright," he backs up, his hands flying up in surrender. Victor copies the motion. "Jessica!" She cries desperately. She has to be here somewhere. "Luca?!" But they're not here. She's not on the ISS. It's some strange year in the future, she has no recollection of what led her to this point, and she can't pinpoint why.
"I want to go home…" Victor and Reid exchange glances at that. "Okay, Christina…we can do that." Reid says, floating away and whispering something to Victor before he leaves.
"Hey, Tina, what can I do for you?" Victor asks once they're relatively alone. "I don't…" she trails off, catching her tears before they can float away from her.
"Why don't you go take a nap, okay? You might feel better when you wake up." He suggests gently. She nods, biting her lip. "Where can I sleep?" She asks, her voice small.
"Come on, I'll show you…"
"She was fine, I don't understand…" Reid says, crossing his arms as he speaks to Jeremy and Victor. "The only causes I can think of are…pretty morbid," Victor mutters.
"Houston gave us the go ahead to plan an earlier return." Jeremy reminds them. "Would that make it worse for her? What if it's just psychological? We can handle that." Reid says, his voice strained.
"And what if it's a brain tumor? Or an aneurysm? Or something no human's ever heard of. We're in space. This is relatively uncharted territory." Victor reminds sternly.
"Why don't we see how she is when she wakes up? She's sleeping peacefully now. She doesn't have any other symptoms, it's just the confusion…" Jeremy suggests hopefully.
"Try amnesia." Victor scoffs. "Maybe it's Alzheimers." Jeremy suggests sarcastically, "At least then, there's a chance she'll become lucid again."
"What is so special about 2019?" Reid wonders aloud. "Why remember that?"
"Because she was on the ISS. Her body knows she's in space, she can feel that. The only logical assumption, if she doesn't remember our mission, is that she's on the ISS. She asked for two of her crew mates, so it's safe to assume she has some clear memories of that time." Victor explains with a frown that's been there since it took Christina almost a full minute to remember his name.
"God, I'd give anything to think it was 2019…" Jeremy remarks and Reid elbows him.
"Let's just hope she's doing better when she wakes up…"