S69Q_1

by Aline Riva

  As she turned away from the dead creature she looked to Jinx, who was still far from waking after the complicated procedure he had barely survived to remove the alien parasite that had been feeding in his head. Time was running out.

  "Please Rik," she whispered, "Please wake up – we need you, I need you – these monsters have to be stopped and we can't do this without you..."

  Then she looked back at the dissected thing in the preservative, its worm-like structure split wide, as she thought of Jinx and how it had taken his sanity and could still claim his life, then she went back to his bedside and sat down, silently willing him to recover, to open his eyes, to remember her in some way despite all he had been through, but most of all, to be able to take on the biggest battle he would ever face:

  The parasites had to be stopped before they took over one planet at a time, turning their hosts into sex crazed, cannibalistic killers – until their work was done and humanity had been entirely wiped out.

  So much was at stake. Jinx had to wake up, because if ever there was a time to redeem himself, this was it – the hourglass was nearly out of sand, time was almost gone...

  Jinx was dreaming again. Cora was standing beside him and he was on his back in his flight suit, in his quarters on board the Pharaoh before the crash. As he thought back he was sure he had not taken her back to his living area – they had not got closer until later, much later... But she was here now and he was glad to see her.

  "How much can you remember?" she asked.

  He gave a sigh as she sat down on the edge of his bed and fragments of memories swirled about too fast to catch.

  "I used to know a guy called Mack. He flew a Pharaoh. I think there was a crash... somewhere... something to do with parasites, an alien breed of parasite... I think everyone died?"

  "You'll remember when you wake... the antidote Sin injected you with in error has left a trace in your bloodstream that affected the memory wipe you asked for. You'll remember a bit more than you wanted to but it's mostly okay. And you're okay. You should wake up now. I'm not really here, you're dreaming.”

  He blinked.

  “But I was enjoying this dream!”

  “Wake up,” Cora said sharply, and slapped his face.

  As he felt the stinging blow, Jinx gave a gasp and opened his eyes.

  “Cora...” he whispered, suddenly feeling far weaker than he had whilst drifting in the darkness.

  “Rik?”

  He closed his eyes again, still feeling the last trace of the heavy sleep that had covered him for so long.

  “I heard you...” he murmured.

  “I can't believe you're awake!” she said tearfully, relief and joy in her emotional voice as she tenderly ran her hand over his hair, “Look at me, Rik. Just open your eyes again, look at me...I've missed you so much!”

  Jinx opened his eyes again and looked up. The room came into focus and he recognised it, recalling he had come here for surgery to remove a parasite that Neve needed to study, because they had to understand the thing to know how to kill it. He remembered so much yet so little, feeling sure the gaps in his memory were vast, yet he still understood enough to know that he had asked for the memory wipe...

  Sin's expression was one of relief as he met her gaze, but he looked at her with confusion in his eyes and as he spoke, his words left her feeling bewildered:

  “You're not Cora,” said Jinx.

  Chapter 4

  In all the time she had waited for him to wake, Sin had dared to dream of the moment he had opened his eyes and said her name. Said her actual name, not the name of his ex...

  “It's me, it's Sin, your wife?” she reminded him, showing him the gold band on her finger that matched his own.

  Then a flicker of recognition had come to his eyes and he had smiled.

  “Of course you are,” he said wearily, “I remember now...”

  That was all Jinx had said as he rested, still sleepy from the heavy cocktail of meds. Neve had come in and checked him over, asked him a few questions that confirmed the implant was working and he had kept the memories he had chosen to keep – but then he mentioned Mack and a crash and a parasite, she had glanced at Sin, recalling how she had once mentioned she had given him the antidote by mistake, and a short time before they had arrived here, too.

  “It might not be as selective as he wanted,” she said quietly as she turned away from the bed, “But he remembers nothing of the crash, the planet or what happened after. As long as it stays that way he should be fine.”

  Then Sin had sat beside him, waiting for him to wake again. Jinx had turned a corner now, he was out of the coma and thanks to the meds that had kept him strong while he recovered, would soon be back on his feet. She didn't yet want to tell him just how short time was becoming – the research crew had by now already left earth and were on their way to the planet where dangers lurked that could destroy mankind – but Jinx was almost ready now, as soon as he could get up and walk, they were heading across the galaxy to send a warning to the ship, ensuring it never reached S69Q-1.

  Jinx had slept for a couple of hours before waking again, this time his sleep had been dreamless and although memories of a woman named Cora burned brightly, he recalled Sin, remembered putting a ring on her finger and making her his wife. He loved her... His first thought on waking again was Sin and he opened his eyes and saw her at his bedside and smiled.

  “Thanks for waiting for me.”

  “I wouldn't have been anywhere else,” she reminded him.

  He managed to sit up, resting back heavily against pillows as strength began to flow back into his body. Neve had been right about rapid healing, now he was awake, although his eyes still looked and felt a little drowsy, he was recovering fast.

  “What do you remember?” Sin asked.

  “There was a crash...a vessel crashed on S69Q-1. I believe the model of the ship was a Pharaoh, I think I used to know a guy who flew one of those...Mack. Very old vessels...I'm glad I can still remember my love of vintage space ships!”

  “What else do you remember?”

  He paused for thought, blinked away sleep then ran his fingers through his hair as he began to feel more alert.

  “I know I requested a memory wipe. I think it might be something to do with a woman I dreamed about – Cora. I loved her and I'm guessing she must have died. Bereavement is the main reason people ask for these amnesia drugs, isn't it?”

  “Do you know why you were in a coma for three months?”

  “I had surgery... something to do with a parasite. I don't know how it got inside my head but I'm guessing it was trying to eat me from the inside so Neve had to get it out fast. A research team is going to S69Q-1 with a view to sizing it up as a colony world. We have to stop them. Neve has already said she's done the work on the creature. She won't tell me more till I'm out of this bed. I'd love to know how a parasite got inside me in the first place!”

  “We don't know for sure, maybe someone brought a sample on board your cruiser, you might have picked up a passenger, given someone a ride and they mentioned that planet to you – but you said there's a definite link between the planet and the parasite.”

  “ And Neve is claiming the reward when the time comes, I recall that,” he added, “And I'm starving, Sin! Can you go and ask Neve if I can have something to eat? Since she took the line out of my arm all I can think about is food!”

  Sin thought back to the cannibal Jinx, the man he had been back at Shyra K1 whilst still under the influence of the parasite.

  “What do you want to eat?” she said in a hushed voice.

  “I just want a good old fashioned breakfast! Eggs and bacon, a fry up! I really think that will set me right. And tea, I'm so thirsty!”

  She smiled as she kissed his cheek.

  “What was that for?” he asked.

  “Just because I love you,” Sin replied, then she went off to find Neve and for the first time in a long while she was smiling again, it was still sinking in that
Rik Jinx the flier was back – a man she had barely known while the creature took over his mind, but he was back now, and so far, she liked what she saw and so did her heart as a warm glow radiated from within and she felt sure she had been right when seeing the man through the madness – she knew for sure she had fallen in love with the real Rik Jinx.

  Jinx recovered quickly – Sin knew it was down to the huge cocktail of medication Neve had put into his body over the past three months, but it still seemed miraculous. Within two days he was out of bed, ready to take a crash course on everything Neve had learned about the parasite. But first, as Sin went back to the ship to fetch him a change of clothes, Jinx relaxed in a hot bath, laying back and closing his eyes as he felt the warmth of the water soothe away the last of his aches and pains. He had felt weak at first, but that had rapidly faded out – then he had needed to eat and drink for most of the first day and finally he had started to feel recovered. Now the last flickers of aches in his muscles were leaving him and for the first time since he woke, Jinx was able to relax.

  As he rested in the water, with his eyes closed and thinking of nothing but how good it felt to be able to feel good again, he was slightly drifting. Not falling asleep, just deeply relaxing.

  Then it happened.

  He was on a flight deck on a ship that looked like an old Pharaoh Two. The ship was drifting, the roof was torn open and the air was blasting through. The descent was rough, he was in the co pilot's seat and as he turned his head he saw Mack beside him, passed out. Jinx was seeing this view through a space helmet and the visor was shattered, the window of the vessel was cracked but still whole, part of the control system was hanging down from the torn roof, he guessed it must have smashed his visor.

  Jinx took off the helmet and cast it aside. He tried to think back, but the memories were faded out and he could not put this scene to an event that had happened in his life... for a moment, the scene was gone.

  He blinked and he was back there again.

  The red alert was screaming, he reached over and placed his hand over the scanner and turned a dial and flipped a switch as he yelled a command over the sound of the rushing air escaping through the crashing ship:

  “ID Ritchie Gregory Mason Jinx, Co Pilot...system over ride, Code zero zero zero, four one nine, treble zero – Code Red! Transfer flight controls!”

  The controls in front of him lit up as Mack's dimmed and he reached for those controls as he watched the descent towards ground continue, they were still high up, high enough....

  As he pulled the ship out of the nose dive and sharply veered left to avoid a dark shadow trailing flame, he laughed as the skies turned purple.

  “We are going home!” he yelled, looking back at the terrified passengers, “No one is dying on this flight!”

  He felt superhuman as he guided the damaged ship far from the city and out across an expanse of green, then as he took in the final descent, the ground came rushing closer, Jinx was slammed back against his seat by the force of it and he turned his head to see Cora hanging on to her seat, a look of terror on her face.

  “We'll make it!” he yelled, then they hit ground and the world turned black...

  Jinx gasped and coughed up bath water as he sat up, clinging to the sides of the bath, coughing and gasping for air.

  “Rik, are you okay?”

  Sin had left his clothing on the bed and hurried into the bathroom with a look of concern on her face.

  Jinx could breathe now, he was trembling a little as he pushed his wet hair out of his eyes and blinked away water.

  “It's those drugs Neve gave me while I was in the coma... she said I might feel sleepy, have freaky dreams... she's right about that!”

  Sin grabbed a towel and handed it to him and he paused to bury his face in it for a moment, soaking up the water, taking in a slow breath and breathing it out against the fabric as he willed his heart to stop racing in terror. Then he raised his head and looked at Sin.

  “I had a dream I was flying a Pharaoh Two with Mack...I think it was Mack...I can't remember him...but he was knocked out cold. The roof of the ship was ripped open, there was another ship coming for us it was on fire...I took over the controls and got us out of the nosedive and across the city, tried for an emergency land in a field. But it didn't happen like that. I was dreaming about earth. I'm sure if I crashed it was on another planet, we were already out in space, it just feels right...Like I can sort of imagine one set of events and they seem to be the true ones. I don't know why I dreamed about crashing on earth. And I was pumped up as well...” he laughed as he shook his head, “I was high, Sin! Did I ever dabble with recreational drugs whilst in flight, or on take off? I've got the feeling I might have done years ago, a long time back, when there was a craze for hitting a high as the ship leaves the atmosphere...it's illegal, at least, it's illegal to be drugged and flying on earth. I think Mack would have fired me for it. He wasn't into that kind of stuff. Maybe I was remembering something from years back and it got mixed in. Did I ever crash land or divert from some kind of mid air explosion involving another ship?”

  She shook her head.”I don't know. I don't think so. You never said anything about it to me.”

  “Sin, did I ever crash land with Mack?”

  “There was an emergency landing on another planet, far from earth and a few years back,” she confirmed, “But that's all I know. You and Mack made it, I do know that much. I think everyone did. It couldn't have been as bad as you think. Dreams can be strange things at the best of times, don't give too much thought to it.”

  He breathed a relieved sigh as the dream began to fade out, losing its vivid grip on his mind.

  “I guess it's all the drugs Neve put in me to get me through the coma.”

  “She did say you might have nightmares.”

  “She was right,” he agreed, then he got out of the bath and took the towel from her and started to get dry, the cool air hitting his wet skin was the perfect antidote to wake him up and push away the last recollection of the dream that had made no sense. Then he left the bathroom and went over to the bed, ready to get dressed and finally leave the room where he had spent three months recovering from the surgery.

  “Neve said she's found out a lot about the parasite, I'm looking forward to seeing it. I can't wait to see exactly what that thing looks like now it's out of my head!”

  As he spoke, Jinx was buttoning up his shirt. Sin said nothing in reply as she stood there watching him get dressed. Emotion was building up inside her and she was trying not to show it, because they had yet to find the time to rekindle the flame of passion, let alone talk of love. And he was yet to find out that part of her was damaged beyond repair. She already had a story to cover that – one look at him as he was without the insanity told her that Jinx was the kind of man who would never be able to forgive himself if he found out the truth about something as terrible as the effect of the zestion ring...

  “And as soon as I've been briefed on everything, we can leave,” he told her, “There's enough time... the research team won't be there yet. We can take their course and catch up and hail them.”

  He turned to a mirror and ran a comb through his hair, as Sin's eyes filled with tears she blinked away. Jinx was standing there looking as if this whole terrible ordeal had never happened, he looked tall and sleek in black jeans that hugged slender hips, his black boots were polished to a high shine and his black shirt was open at the throat but now no necklace of human teeth hung there. He saw her watching him and put down the comb and turned from the mirror.

  “Yes, I really am okay,” he promised, “And I'm glad I married you, I have no regrets about that. We have a lot of lost time to make up for once we've warned the research team. Come here, you look like you could use a hug.”

  She walked into his open arms and he held her tightly, giving her a gentle squeeze as he heard her stifle a sob as she pressed her face against his shoulder.

  “It's going to be okay,” he said softly, “T
here's nothing to be afraid of, I'm okay now and I'm going to take good care of you, Sin.”

  Jinx ran his hand over her hair, then he leant closer and their lips touched. As they kissed deeply he ran his hands down her body, resting them on her hips and he stepped back and cast a glance down at the way her body suit clung to her curves.

  “Once we get the ship in flight I can set auto cruise, then we can have some time alone. You look lovely, by the way.”

  As he moved his hand to the zip that cut down the middle of her body suit deep on her low neckline, she placed her hand over his, stopping him as she smiled.

  “That's for later. We need to go and see Neve.”

  “You're right,” he agreed, then he paused to put on a black leather jacket and then they left and headed off to the lab.

  As he stood in the lab and stared at the dissected, worm-like creature, Jinx reached up and ran his fingers though his hair, tracing over the scar, trying to imagine that creature inside his head... He felt his stomach turn over but kept on staring at the alien parasite.

  “I've never seen anything like it before,” Neve told him, “I can't even group it with a known species. But it is repelled by Tryryphol – it's safe for human use and a shot of it would repel the creatures enough to keep them away and resist the urge to try and invade a host. But if a person was already infected it wouldn't make a great deal of difference. So if we need to land on the planet, we can protect ourselves. I don't know how to screen for infection in others because it seems to be a creature that begins as microscopic and grows rapidly once inside the host. It seems to be ground based so sleeping on the ground would be a sure way to get infected. I haven't found anything chemical to kill it, I had to slice it apart with a scalpel. We need to take the ship and get to S69Q-1 before they do. Warn them and then let's get the hell out and leave the rest to earth security forces. That planet can't be cleaned up. It needs to be destroyed.”