Jove helped his mother to her feet. An air of awkward tension hung over the entire family as they dug the snowmobiles and gear sleds out, and he was aware that the wrestling probably hadn't seemed entirely playful from Aster and Eve's perspective.
They mounted their snowmobiles and continued on, engines roaring to life in the stillness of the Antarctic landscape. Jove took up his position behind Andromeda, the ice drone leading the way. He felt a bit frustrated in the most basic, masculine sense, but knew he'd done it to himself by getting so worked up.
The question of how he'd let his mother, of all people, stir such a response from within him wasn't one he was quite ready to face. She wasn't Aster, or even Eve. The boundary was firmer with her, serious, almost scary. He felt ashamed at how badly a part of him wanted to test it.
After another solid hour of riding, Andromeda slowed down ahead of them, signaling their arrival. Jove pulled up alongside the drone, his eyes widening as he took in the sight of their apparent destination.
The ice lake stretched out before them, a vast expanse of frozen beauty. The surface was a crystalline kaleidoscope of winter blue and wind-polished white, the colors shifting and shimmering beneath the pale Antarctic sun. Jagged peaks of snow drifts encrusted the outer banks, sculpted by the wind into strange, alien shapes.
Jove climbed off his snowmobile, his boots crunching on the snow as he approached the edge of the lake. He heard the others do the same, their awed gasps echoing in the stillness.
"It's incredible," breathed Aster, her voice hushed with reverence.
Kira nodded, her eyes scanning the horizon. "I've never seen ice so perfect before."
"I wish we had skates," said Eve. "Though something tells me we'll be able to slide around fine with or without them."
Jove wasn't sure he'd ever encountered a sight so breathtaking, so utterly foreign. It was as if they'd stepped onto another planet, one where the rules of the world they knew no longer applied.
"Andromeda, will we be safe here from the ice drones that passed us earlier?" asked Kira.
"I can predict their route with near certainty, and they won't be back this way for at least a week," said Andromeda. "It is possible that other threats may exist, however."
"I doubt Victor and his goons would have much reason to come out this way," said Eve.
"I suppose that means we'll have it all to ourselves," said Aster.
"Let's get holes drilled first," said Kira. "Then we'll set up the tents over each one."
"I'm on it," said Jove.
He walked out onto the ice with Andromeda and suffered a major defeat almost immediately, slipping on the ice and falling flat on his back. Eve cackled with laughter at his expense, whereas Aster and his mother hurried over, making worried noises.
"Jovian!" said Kira. "Are you okay?"
"That was a hell of a fall, darling," said Aster.
"I'm fine," he muttered, pride more bruised than his body. "I landed flat, so the force of it wasn't too bad."
"You didn't crack your skull, did you?" Aster walked out on the ice on her knees and pulled his head into her lap.
He almost wanted to say yes if only to secure her thighs as a pillow for a while longer. "I'm fine. Really."
Aster brushed some snowflakes out of his hair. "Maybe I should take a look at you after to make sure?"
"Maybe we should focus on the task at hand," said Kira, with a touch of annoyance.
He rose to a sitting position. Drilling the holes was more of a task of overseeing Andromeda rather than contributing to the work. The ice drone took on an odd, forward leaning posture and simply extended the drill arm downward. There was a hiss similar to a dentist's drill as it connected with the ice, sinking lower and lower until it was all but at its limit.
"I should enlarge the hole to ensure that the fish will pull out of it easily," suggested the AI.
"Are you sure they'll be that sizable?" asked Kira.
"Not entirely, but it won't take long."
The ice drone made a second hole after the first. Jove whistled as he examined her handiwork. Both holes were about a foot across in diameter and ran completely through the ice, which was probably twenty inches thick, if not more. He crouched and peered in, unable to see any fish swimming around, though it was what amounted to a static and limited peephole.
They set each of the two tents up over the holes, which Andromeda had intentionally drilled about fifty feet apart to make the fishing slightly less competitive. The tents had thick, insulated canvas, lined with the same material space blankets were made from for further heat retention on the inside.
"Find some ice chunks or rocks to weigh them down at the corners," called out Jove. "The wind will blow them away if given the slightest chance."
"I don't feel any wind," said Eve.
He tensed his jaw, but contained his reaction. "Right now, maybe. If it picks up, you will be horrified by how easily it tosses tents around."
"It's a good point," said his mother. "We can break chunks of ice off the lake's edge if needed."
They made sure the tents were weighed down and set themselves to the task of unpacking the rest of the gear. Kira had brought along insulated floor tiles, which reminded Jove a little of the soft floors used at some daycares that fit together like a jigsaw puzzle.
They fit neatly within both tents and added a rather cozy feel to the setup, though he suspected they'd have to be careful about water splashes if and when they did start catching fish. The last step was setting up the cots, which were elevated from the ground for extra warmth, and then turning on each of the heaters.
"How much propane do we have, exactly?" asked Jove.
"Enough for us to stay warm during the day," said his mother. "We'll turn them down at night, if not completely off. Remember, we're here to catch as many fish as possible, not to have fun. Now where did Eve go?"
Jove spotted his sister around the other side of the lake, having snuck off with her skis at some point. He found it more amusing than annoying, which given their current friction, only stoked the fires of his resentment.
"You'll have to take the lead when it comes to the actual fishing, Jovian," said his mother, frowning a little. "I honestly have no idea what I'm doing."
"I'll walk you through it."
"Think we'll have much luck here?" asked Aster.
In all truth, he really didn't. Admitting that, however, seemed like it would only dampen the mood. "You never know. If we had to, we could always try again on a different lake."
"This lake is connected by underground streams to a vast subterranean aquifer," said Andromeda. "If the fishing is poor here, it's unlikely that it will be much better at other water resources nearby."
"Well, then we'd better cross our fingers," muttered Jove.