Chapter 44: Sol Five, I've Been Caught by the Nazis

There were less than thirty seconds before the first-stage rockets were detached.

Thirty seconds later, the Eagle's two Raptor 3C engines would expend all their propellant. Then, it would detach from the payload capsule of the Ascent Vehicle. Following that, the lander would enter a stage of powerless flight. Once it entered this stage, the Eagle would fly according to its inertia. It was like a rock that had been thrown out. The commands sent by the Kunlun Station would be useless.

You might face a free-falling rock and shout, "Fly! Fly!" But that rock would be powerless to do so no matter how hard it tried.

Seconds ticked by on the computer screen's timer.