Free Day of the Dragonstar by Thomas F. Monteleone, David Bischoff

Valdone weren’t able to determine how to operate the entrance electronically, the Scanner did allow them access to the mechanical system of the lock. By cutting through the hull with torches at the control-point, they were able to open and close the outer hatch manually. The entire procedure took five hours. Best to work slowly and cautiously, Coopersmith reasoned. Each step in the operation was being fed back to Phineas Kemp at Copernicus.
    At last, the large hatch slid open to the right, revealing a flat, featureless platform. Coopersmith entered a chamber which was roughly fifteen cubic meters. The metallic walls had a slightly burnt-blue cast, and were buttressed by support girders. At the opposite end of the chamber, Coopersmith could see the outline of another hatch. Presumably, the other end of the airlock. At a height of approximately five meters, next to the hatch, was a set of three levers, inset in a meter square shadowbox. Coopersmith assumed these to be the controls which operated the interlocking set of hatches.
    Floating up to inspect the controls, he wondered why they were so inaccessible. The logical explanation was obvious. The aliens who built this ship were at least several times larger in scale than humans. The thought was an unsettling one. Coopersmith did not dwell on it. He concentrated instead on the immediate task.
    “Copernicus, this is lander one,” he said in his British accent. “Coopersmith here. We have successfully entered what appears to be a standard airlock chamber. We’re going to try some experimenting. Stand by, please.”
    “Affirmative, lander one. Proceed with caution.” Colonel Kemp had taken over the communications. The man was probably tense as a coiled spring by now. His voice sounded small and very far away.
    Coopersmith indicated to Valdone that he was about to touch the controls. “Valdone. Get back out on the hull by the lander. Tell Bracken to be prepared to lift off if we have any trouble.”
    Valdone signaled agreement and floated slowly from the airlock, positioning himself on the hull near lander one. The far-away sun glinted off his faceplate as he stared in at Coopersmith.
    Exhaling slowIy, Ian Coopersmith studied the three levers, each as large as a cricket bat. They were color-coded. Red. Yellow. Green. God, thought Coopersmith, But there was no way that the alien color system meant the same as the human code. He followed that assumption and tripped the red lever.
    Nothing happened.
    Coopersmith reached for the next lever. “Negative on the first control, Copernicus. Trying number two, here . . .”
    Slowly, soundlessly, the outer hatch slid shut.
    “That’s got it, Captain,” said Valdone, floating by the outer hatch, watching it seal Ian off from the outside.
    “All right,” said Ian. “Let’s try it backwards, and make sure I’m not sealed in here permanently.
    He pushed the lever back to its original position and the hatch began opening again. “Bull’s eye!” said Valdone. “Looks like we’re in business.”
    “Okay,” said Coopersmith. “I’m closing it down. Valdone, come inside. Let’s see if we can get the other hatch to work.”
    He rethrew the yellow clever and again closed the outer hatch. Trying the green control resulted in no change, but only momentarily. Slowly, the sound of gases rushing into the chamber became audible.
    “Copernicus, this is Coopersmith. I’m getting what appears to be pressurization of the first chamber. Stand by.”
    Less than a minute passed before an electronic chime sounded in the chamber. Coopersmith presumed it to be a signal indicating the proper pressure.
    “Captain, we’ve got an atmosphere in here. Want to run an analysis?” Valdone drifted down to the deck, where they had secured their instrument packs.
    “Right, Tom. I’ll notify Copernicus.” He switched over to the patch-in with the lunar base once again. “Colonel, we’ve got an atmosphere in the lock. Valdone’s running a check