Tom pushed off the deck. Blue ion flames erupted from the thrusters on his power armor, providing a brief acceleration roughly equivalent to standard Earth gravity.
Tom had seen spacewalks on video feeds countless times. He wasn't afraid; instead, he eagerly shifted his weight to maintain his balance. Ten seconds later, the thrusters automatically cut off.
He was now coasting at a steady 100 meters per second, rapidly drifting away from Deep Space. His entire body felt light and completely unanchored, the true sensation of zero gravity. The sheer speed, combined with the rapidly shrinking reference points around him, gave him an incredible rush of adrenaline.
"Come on! I'm outside! Hurry up!" Tom yelled excitedly over his comms, spinning around to watch his classmates.
