Part 6: The Chain of Command
Read the passage carefully before answering the questions. Click any word to collect it. Click an underlined word to reveal its definition below.
Tim jolted awake. It was still dark, the night cycle was still on. But Richard had already had his shift. What was going on? Where was Richard.
Tim barked out an expletive and leaped to his feet, the boots scraping on the shiny metal floor, like a deer on a frozen lake. He knew being paired with Richard was going to cause him trouble. All those questions at the briefing. All those little hints in their conversation. His radical ideas.
Where was he? Checking behind each of the stasis bags, Tim found exactly what he'd expected to. Nothing. Carefully giving Bridgemount a wide berth, he came back to the camping chairs.
Obviously he had gone upstairs. 'Naut Tim knew this, but didn't want to admit to himself that he knew it. When he'd been listening at that briefing, he never thought he'd have to act on Protocol Six. The first five were far more relevant to the daily operations of the ship. Protocol Six felt like an insurance policy, a worst-case hypothetical, something the lawyers made them write. And yet —
Under no circumstances should astronauts leave the living quarters, with the following exceptions: 1) Direct threat to human life
Unclear, not enough certainty to trigger the exception.
2) To restore the chain of command
Wearily, Tim's conscious mind made the conclusion his unconscious one had made a minute earlier. Clearly, Richard's violation of Protocol Six had created a circumstance in which he, 'Naut Timothy Anderson, was required to break the Protocol also.
Resentfully, Tim strode over to the shiny stairs and clomped an angry boot on the bottom step. Up he went, chuntering to himself about the chain of command. Richard was in deep trouble indeed.
Vocabulary
Click an underlined word in the passage above to reveal its definition here.
Section 1: What Happened?
Answer using evidence from the passage. Use full sentences where possible.
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1What wakes Tim up, and what does he immediately notice?(1 mark)
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2aWhat does Tim do as soon as he leaps to his feet?(1 mark)
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2bWhere does Tim search for Richard?(1 mark)
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3Why does Tim not want to admit to himself that Richard has gone upstairs?(2 marks)
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4aWhy can't Tim use Exception 1 to justify following Richard?(1 mark)
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4bWhich exception does Tim decide applies, and why?(1 mark)
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5How does Tim feel about having to go upstairs? Use evidence from across the passage.(3 marks)
Section 2: Perspectives & Feelings
Think carefully about what the characters might be thinking and feeling. Use the text to support your ideas.
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6How does Tim feel about being paired with Richard? Use evidence from the passage.(2 marks)
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7Why does Protocol Six feel like "an insurance policy, a worst-case hypothetical" to Tim?(2 marks)
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8How does the writer show Tim's reluctance to follow Richard upstairs?(3 marks)
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9What does this passage tell us about the difference between Tim and Richard's characters?(4 marks)
Section 3: Writer's Corner
Think about the choices the writer has made and what effect they have on the reader.
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10"like a deer on a frozen lake" — why is this simile effective?(2 marks)
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11How does the writer use Tim's thoughts about Protocol Six to build tension in this passage?(4 marks)
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12"Richard was in deep trouble indeed." What effect does this ending have on the reader?(2 marks)
Section 4: Writing Task
Creative Writing Task — 20 minutes
Write a diary entry from Tim's perspective after going upstairs — what did he find, and how does he feel about Richard now?
You might think about:
- What does Tim discover when he reaches the top of the stairs?
- How does he feel about Richard — has his opinion changed, or got worse?
- What tone would Tim use in his diary? Think about how he speaks in the passage.
The best diary entries will capture Tim's voice — grumpy, rule-following, but perhaps secretly a little curious too.