Red String Theory bonus chapter

Welcome to the Pathway to Mars Showcase

Author’s Note: This excerpt takes place after Rooney’s first showcase for NASA’s Artist-in-Residence program and before the epilogue. There are spoilers ahead, so if you’re not into those, I recommend you read this after you’ve read Red String Theory.

***

Jack

When I step into the Samuel Oschin Planetarium at Griffith Observatory, all I see is red. The color is everywhere. Rooney may have started dabbling in other shades for Nebulous, but she’s back to her original hue for her second showcase, Pathway to Mars.

Under the large dome, two-hundred and ninety seats are quickly filled with attendees. Tickets sold out faster than Rooney’s first showcase.

Along the sides of the planetarium, temporary poles have been placed at varying heights. String is hooked to each one, the material manipulated to take the shape of a suspended winding road. It curves around the chairs and up over our heads, creating an interactive experience.

On closer look, the string has been intricately wrapped and crossed over each other, creating a structure seemingly strong enough to walk on. I spot a mockup of one of the FATE stations placed next to one bend of the snaking installation. Rooney’s shown that what we’re working on is creating a literal pathway to Mars. Spacecrafts will fill up with fuel along the way to continue their journey.

This is the most physical and visual representation of a mission I’ve been working on for years. It stirs up in me emotions I didn’t expect to have. The string tapers off on one end into the wall, as if continuing its pathway into the depths of space. A string optical illusion.

It must’ve taken Rooney and her team hundreds of hours to put this together. At different points around the space are signs, not unlike the ones I used to get her attention on that cold February day in New York City. On them are details about the mission, Mars, and the equipment. Fun facts about the universe punctuate the end of each brief description.

“Does it look like a red-light wavelength or a pathway?” Rooney asks, sneaking up behind me. “Or just a big, red wiggle?”

I smile at the sight of her. “It’s so realistic, I feel like I’m about to land on Mars at any moment.”

She exhales, relieved. “I think I could’ve gotten to Mars faster than the time it took to make this, but I’m happy with how it turned out. Two for two?”

I wrap my arms around Rooney, tugging her closer to me. “You knock everything you do out of the planetarium,” I say, looking up. Projected onto the ceiling of the planetarium are the cosmos. Bright stars pop against the darkness, creating a realistic backdrop to Rooney’s immersive showcase.

The faraway stars on the ceiling twinkle as everyone else around me falls away. For a fleeting second before the lights dim, it’s just me and Rooney in the center of the universe.

Rooney nestles into me. “I couldn’t have done this without you and all your space facts. The mission information was also relevant, I guess,” she says playfully.

I smirk. “We should be taking tips from you, honestly. There’s still time before the launch. Don’t think I won’t spray paint FATE onto the side of the spacecraft.”

“Spray paint in the clean room?” Rooney asks with a huff.

I shake my head. “You’re right, Dusty would never allow it.”

“You helped me wrap the Hollywood Sign,” she says conspiratorially. “I’ll cover for you.”

I chuckle at this as Rooney looks over her shoulder at someone tapping on their watch.

“Time for blastoff,” she whispers.

“Roger that,” I say, pulling her one more inch closer to me. “Now go sparkle.”

Rooney lifts up on her toes to kiss me, and I happily return it. Now, I don’t need to care who’s watching.

I take my own seat as Rooney makes her way over to the event coordinator. The back of the chairs are angled to give us a direct view up at the arced ceiling where there’s more red, more string. It’s incredible.

There’s a short, meditative moment for attendees to sit quietly with the installation, the stars, and our imaginations. I trace my eyes along the pathway, through the looping, crossing string. Next to me, a grandmother drags her finger through the air, explaining to her grandson how the FATE mission will work. His eyes pop at what he’s hearing, and a burst of pride shoots through me. With Rooney’s art, science becomes more accessible, understandable, approachable, no matter what age you are.

The lights fade as the last few people take their seats.

A few beats later, Rooney becomes a voice overhead, like she’s the voice of reason or all of our consciences. I already know she’s going to have fun with this.

“Welcome. This is your inner voice speaking,” Rooney starts. “You are enough. You are doing your best. Now let’s have some fun.”

There are laughs from various sections around the planetarium.

“This was a year of metamorphosis,” Rooney continues. “For me, yes, but also for NASA. The FATE mission is providing the foundational steps of how we’re going to be able to explore space more frequently and consistently. It’s a new way of thinking and seeing the possibilities. With this equipment, the way NASA builds and reuses their spacecrafts changes. We get to push the boundaries of space exploration farther.”

The projection starts moving, like we’re flying through space. Stars whiz past us as we make our way over the “pathway.” Mars hangs in the distance, a small dot of crimson against the black.

“Welcome to Pathway to Mars, a highway to the Red Planet complete with fueling stations,” Rooney continues. “What you see above you—this pathway—is like the flight path of a butterfly. It’s all over the place for a reason. It’s not one straight path because nothing is ever as simple as that. Every bend and height placement are predetermined. The path that looks erratic is actually controlled. And like a butterfly’s erratic path, this zig-zagged pathway is how we’ll one day get to Mars.”

The room lets out a collective ooohhhh at her words.

“We’ll wind our way through the galaxy to explore other planets. FATE will guide us to where we’re destined to be,” she says. I can practically hear her smiling. “To me, this pathway also looks a little like the Red Thread of Fate.”

Because of course she phrases it like this. It wouldn’t be a Rooney—or RSG—installation without a little fate.

As we zoom through the universe, the small red dot grows as we get closer to Mars. The mixed media format of this showcase has captivated everyone here. I can’t wait to hear about people’s reactions once the photos and videos go out to the public.

As Mars comes into full view, taking up the entire width of the dome, there’s a breathless silence. We push through the atmosphere, touching down on the planet we’re so curious to know more about. That’s where the projection fades to a gradient of light blue and red. The rusty atmospheric dust fading into the blue Martian sunset.

“We’re tied to other places within our solar system by an invisible thread or pathway,” Rooney concludes. “This thread may stretch at the farthest points of orbit or tangle when we’re caught off guard by unknowns in the universe. But the thread will never break. We will get where we need to go. It’s only a matter of time.”

Rooney doesn’t make it sound easy. She makes it sound hopeful.

Every day, we get a step closer to understanding more about the universe we exist in. We understand more about ourselves.

Suddenly, the vastness of our world, Mars, and our universe becomes overwhelming. I’m stunned by the thought of Rooney and I never meeting. Never having our night in New York City together.

Rooney’s words of optimism ring in my mind. It really was only a matter of time. And a little luck. And, yes, even a little fate.

My eyes glide over the string-pathway once more and imagine Mars on the other end of it. It’s as though the Red Planet that’s hundreds of millions of miles away was right here all along.

Just like Rooney was.

We only needed a little string.

***

Copyright © 2024 by Lauren Kung Jessen