by Project Kyle
The two found an elevator, and Nerd wasted no time running inside and waiting for Sophia to catch up. As soon as Sophia entered the elevator, Nerd pressed one of the buttons, which had a symbol on it Sophia didn’t recognize. The doors closed, and the elevator made its way upward. Sophia smiled upon hearing Nerd’s heavy breathing. Although he was faster, his lack of training was catching up to him, and he was already winded. Sophia, on the other hand, could run at her more consistent pace all day without tiring out. This increased her confidence even further; she was ready for anything. Whatever challenge came their way, she would overcome it.
The elevator doors opened, and the two made their way out. Bodies lay across the floor. It was evident a fight had taken place, and it had taken a heavy toll on the crew members. Nerd ran to one of them and scanned the body. Sophia looked around and noticed they were on the ship’s bridge. She saw a tablet on the captain’s chair, similar to the one that Nerd had on his ship. She picked it up and noticed that it contained the captain’s logs, which included one the captain had posted today. Opening it up, she was stunned to see the word “Gotcha!” written on the tablet. Nerd, on the other hand, had just finished scanning the body. The crew member was at full health. No signs of a fight, no signs of trauma, not even a common cold could be found in this crew member.
“Sophia!” Nerd shouted. “We’ve been had!”
Nerd leaped up and turned to face Sophia. He gasped upon seeing a man holding a laser gun, pointing it right at her, in the process of pulling the trigger.
Immediately, Nerd went into analysis mode. Time seemed to slow to a crawl as his brain calculated all the possibilities. Sophia was precisely six feet from him. The man holding the gun was precisely 15.8 feet from him. He first calculated the time it would take for him to run over and neutralize the man before he could pull the trigger. He calculated the quickest path to get to him, but it would take too much time. Nerd could easily save himself, but the man would shoot Sophia by the time he got to his target, which would be a real problem considering he was aiming at her head. He analyzed the room from his memory and from what he saw with his eyes at the moment. There was nothing strong enough he could pick up to use to deflect the blast. He considered the option of grabbing Sophia and dragging her down to the ground before she was shot. But alas, by the time gravity kicked in, she would already be dead.
There was no possible way that both of them were going to survive. That gave Nerd only one option if he wanted to save Sophia. Nerd calculated how long it would take for him to run in front of Sophia to shield her from the blast. There was just enough time for him to do this, but he would have to jump in front of her to get that extra boost to make it.
With all other options off the table, Nerd now had to decide whether he or Sophia would go on living. He needed no time to calculate and process that decision, as it was the easiest decision he could make in this scenario. He ran towards Sophia and began to jump in front of her. The man pulled the trigger, and a blue beam of energy flowed from his gun. He had set the laser to stun.
Crud! David could’ve let Sophia take the blast. He could’ve easily picked up Sophia upon her being hit and run out of the room, into the elevator, and back onto their ship before the man caught up. However, Nerd was now airborne, and there was no way to stop his momentum. So, he stuck with the plan. His body absorbed the blast, and he fell to the ground. With his consciousness slowly fading away, he watched as the man took a second shot at Sophia. She also fell to the ground, making any plan of escape impossible.
Three of the men who had pretended to be hurt stood up and walked towards Nerd. Nerd was so groggy that he couldn’t make out the men’s faces. They appeared as shadows…staring through his weary soul.
Nerd took one final breath as his consciousness faded away. A bright light filled the darkest parts of his mind, and swiftly, the light faded as everything went black.
Chapter 8 Menace
Earth date: February 9th, 2010
Time: 120
Location: The freighter Wrath
Nerd felt reality return to him. He was unsure how long he had been out, but the fact that he was blindsided told him that he and his friend were in danger. He couldn’t do anything about it until his senses fully returned. Still, with what little sight he had, he was able to make out the shadows of seven men standing about 20 feet from him.
His sight returned a little more, and Nerd noticed there were iron bars separating him from them, which gave Nerd the impression that he was in a jail cell. He groaned and closed his eyes, hoping that the groggy feeling would soon wear off.
“That was quite a move, mate!” one of the shadow men said. “But pathetically predictable! I knew you’d try to save the Sheila rather than escaping with your own life, and in the end, your compassion was your downfall.”
Nerd’s vision began to fully clear up, and the image of the man who was talking slowly began to take form. He was a gruff, gritty-looking man, with long black hair and a ninja sweatband wrapped around his forehead. He had a black, painted-on mask that went across both his eyes, making him look fierce and a bit on the creepy side. He had a laser gun in his hand, which Nerd was easily able to identify as the same gun that was used to neutralize him and Sophia. The man was wearing a gray military vest that had a ridiculous amount of ammo attached to it. He had a pistol on his belt and a hunting knife sheathed on his left thigh. Nerd had never seen this man in person, but he had read up on him many times before.
“Drake Robinson,” he said in a groggy voice. “The most feared bounty hunter in the galaxy. I actually respected what others said about your combat ability and wit, even though you only use them for whoever has the deepest pockets. Pity you had to resort to such a weak method of capturing me. I must admit that I am quite disappointed.”
“Oh! It’s not you we were after. We just want the Sheila! A former…friend of hers wants her back. A very powerful friend.”
Nerd’s groggy eyes busted open. He stood up and charged at Drake. Drake backed up and just barely missed having his throat grabbed by Nerd’s hand. The other six men were about to open the cell door to beat him up for attacking their boss, but Drake ordered them to stand down.
“If you open the cell door now,” Drake warned, “he will have a chance to escape. Trust me, he’s good at breaking out of things. Besides, the bloke’s little outburst is understandable, considering what we’re about to do.”
Nerd was panting in rage. He knew his friend’s life was in grave danger, and that struck a deep chord with him. Still, Drake’s tone had expressed a mild vibe of remorse. So, Nerd held back his anger as best he could and attempted to reason with him.
“Drake,” he said. “Please don’t do this! I know Dr. Crimson hired you to bring her back, but you know what he will do to her if she returns. That man has no compassion for others, and if he gets his hands on her, he will dissect her alive! Drake, if there is any humanity left within you…please let her go. There is no honor in any of this.”
Drake hesitated for a second; he was obviously uncomfortable with what he was about to do, but not enough to stop him from going through with it.
“Mate…” he said. “I’m sorry…but I made a deal with Mr. Crimson, and I never go back on a deal. Loyalty is profitable; that is one principle that I will never break.”
Nerd stepped away from the jail bars. He ran his hands frantically through his hair as his eyes began to twitch. Drake could see Nerd’s frustration. So, the bounty hunter decided to change the subject, making a desperate attempt to earn Nerd’s respect.
“I want to introduce you to my band of misfits,” he started. “This is my lieutenant, sniper, and personal hitman, Manic Blackheart.”
Nerd looked over at the man that Drake was signaling to. He was very tall and, like Drake, had long black hair. He had a leather vest with no shirt underneath. The vest was open, revealing his chiseled abs and broad, toned chest. Manic was wearing a bandanna over his mouth that had a skeleton jaw on i
t, giving him the appearance of being quite vicious. He was wearing dark shades, even though the room was already very dark, and also wore a large leather top hat, which also had a skull and crossbones on the front of it. His top hat was a little quirky, but Nerd could see the eyes of a cold, calculated killer hiding behind his tinted shades. This one posed a serious threat. Nerd would have to be on the lookout for that one if he succeeded in escaping his prison.
Drake continued by introducing the man on his left.
“My assault-class soldier!” He announced. “His name is unpronounceable to the human vocabulary, so we like to call him Jungle Boy. He is a Zentar warrior who went rogue. He is lightning fast and definitely someone I am grateful to have on my side.”
Jungle Boy looked like a child compared to Manic. Manic stood somewhere between 6’8” and 6’10”. Jungle Boy stood no taller than 5’2”, which was normal for a Zentar warrior. Still, that did not change the fact his appearance was just as intimidating as the former menace thug’s. His face was completely covered with a helmet that had a large, monster-looking jaw carved on the front of it. It was showing its razor-sharp teeth like a dog ready to attack. The top part of the helmet, located where the eyes were supposed to be, had multiple lenses on it. There were at least five, and it was uncertain what they were used for, given the fact that a Zentar only had two eyes. The rest of his body was covered in green armor. It looked tough on the outside, but there was a reason his full body needed to be covered. Nerd knew what this reason was, and although Jungle Boy would be a difficult opponent, he concerned Nerd the least out of the seven men.
Drake then turned to the fourth man in the room.
“This is my demolitions expert, Smiley. Though he is a shoot-now-ask-questions-later type, he’s saved my life more than once and is definitely a valuable member of this here team.”
The man that Drake was referring to was quite disturbing. He was wearing white face paint and had green hair and red paint on his nose. He had a giant smiling mouth painted on his face, with razor-sharp teeth painted inside of it. He was obviously trying to make himself look like a creepy clown and pulled it off perfectly. His armor was a color mix of yellow and red, with a flamethrower mounted on his right hand and a rocket launcher mounted on his left. He also had a rifle strapped to his back. His armor was covered in spikes and was very Gothic-looking, with the exception of the unappealing color pattern. The image gave Nerd an unpleasant flashback to an adversary he had met long ago…but now was not the time to get caught up in that. He refocused and continue to analyze.
He had read up on Smiley before. He was psychotic, unpredictable, and had a killer instinct that motivated him in a way that was inhuman. Smiley presented a challenge for him, as Nerd would not be able to predict any of his moves, which made him the greatest threat of all.
Drake continued to the fifth man.
“This is my tank, Star-Creeper. He used to be a solo, and quite successful, bounty hunter, but he joined up with me when his personal job was no longer paying like it used to. He can take a hit from a laser cannon with ease and has been an excellent frontline unit when taking on multiple targets.”
This man was still a little scary, but not as scary as the others prior to him. He wore a steel mask and had a soldier’s helmet with a spike on top. The mask was connected to the helmet and obviously provided a level of protection. The rest of his body armor was blue, and he was clearly a force to be reckoned with. He was huge, standing around 6’10”, and was made up of at least 320 pounds of pure, rugged muscle. He carried a large laser cannon around like it was a rifle, and his size made most of the other men look small, but Nerd had been watching him very carefully. He was slow-witted and carried himself in a lazy way. It was obvious that he relied on his strength for everything, making him a much easier target than he appeared at first glance.
Drake continued to his sixth crew member. “This is my special operations force, Unit 1587. Even I’m not sure what he—or she—is, as it has never told us. But it does its job, collects its money, and never asks any questions…just the way I like it!”
This man, or woman, was the most bizarre of the group. It had what looked like a welder’s mask, with a smile spray-painted on the front. Its armor was dark gray and orange. It had a tank filled with some type of fluid mounted on the back, which Nerd suspected to be harmful. There was a hose that went from the tank to a gun that it had in its holster, meaning that it most likely used the fluid to thrust out at its opponents. Other than that, there was very little to go off of with this one. But Nerd would continue to analyze it, hoping to find a weakness down the road.
Drake now signaled to his final team member.
“And finally, my medic, Jake Roberts. He’s pretty good at both technology and human physiology…kind of like someone else I know. He reminds me that the team I command is still a team of people, not objects. He has saved more lives in Menace than I have been able to take. Without him, most of us blokes would be dead!”
This man was the least scary of the seven. He had a robotic mask on his face, dark skin, and spiky yellow hair that went in all directions. He seemed to be smart but didn’t look like much of a threat in hand-to-hand combat. This made him a great guy to have around, but not the most dangerous opponent to be facing.
Nerd took the information he had learned and began processing all of it. This was going to be difficult, but he knew he could find a way to overthrow this little gang and get his friend home safe. Nerd smiled at Drake, and Drake began to sweat.
“You’re looking at me like a carnivore ready to devour his prey,” he said to Nerd. “You’re already calculating how you’ll escape, aren’t you?”
Nerd shrugged his shoulders and didn’t reply to Drake’s speech. He wanted to get into Drake’s head a little, hoping that Drake would have a change of heart and let them go. Sadly, this did not happen.
Drake knew it was time to head back to the bridge. He ordered his men to head up and told them he would be close behind. The men left the room. Drake made one final attempt to let David know he had the upper hand.
“I removed every item that could help you escape from your lab coat. So, if you’re thinking of escaping, it’s going to be difficult! The only object I left with you was your Rubik’s cube… You’re going to be here for a long time, so I want you to at least have something to keep your mind entertained.” Drake turned around and began to make his way out of the prison room. “Farewell, Nerd. May your stay with us be…most miserable indeed.”
Drake left the room and closed the door behind him. Nerd looked at the cell ahead of him; inside was Sophia. She had been crying, which was evident from her red, puffy eyes—the same eyes he saw when he saved her life less than a week ago.
“Sophia!” he breathed a sigh of relief. “I’m glad you’re okay.”
“I wish I was dead right now,” Sophia responded. “I overheard your entire conversation. They want to take me back…to him.”
“Sophia, listen to me. I’m going to get you out of this, but I need you to be strong right now. I know you can do it. I know deep down you have a warrior’s spirit. So, please try to keep yourself together, because I have a plan to get us out of here. You know my true identity; this isn’t the first jail cell that I’ve needed to escape from. Drake has no idea what he’s in for.”
Sophia was still in rough shape, but she trusted that Nerd had a plan. Taking a deep breath, she tried her best to calm down. Nerd walked over to the back wall of the cell and sat down. He pulled out his Rubik’s cube and started working on it with his right hand, slowly but efficiently.
“Really, bro?” a voice said from Nerd’s left. “That’s not going to help you escape.”
Nerd was startled. He had been so caught up in trying to think of how to beat the Menace team that he had not noticed there was indeed another man in the cell with him, sitting by one of the cell beds. The man was very tall, had black skin, and was wearing shorts, a white tank top, and a black do-rag on his h
ead. He was wearing large tinted sunglasses, and Nerd was a little concerned as he could not read the man’s eyes. He was slouched over, and his stance gave off the impression that he had an attitude. He was a little shady-looking, but somehow Nerd was not getting a bad vibe from him.
Nerd turned his head so it was facing forward again, still focusing on the task at hand, but he acknowledged the man’s question, saying, “This is critical to my plans. Trust me, I know what I’m doing.”
The man laughed at Nerd’s response. He clearly did not believe him and thought he was crazy with the way he was going about his escape plan.
“You’re obviously delusional, my brother,” the man said. “Still, I like how you nearly broke Drake’s neck. That would’ve been so cool, man! What’s your name?”
“I cannot tell you my real name,” Nerd replied. “Just call me Nerd, supreme human intelligence… Also, I wasn’t going to break Drake’s neck. I was just going to give it a little squeeze.”
“Nerd? Come on, man! You could’ve picked something better than that.”
“It works for me, trust me. What about you? What might your name be?”
“The name’s Smith, Henry Smith! I’m a wanted space thug, one that made a lot of profit from looting spacecrafts. The authorities couldn’t lay a finger on me, so they hired these guys to come hunt me down. Sadly, they succeeded.”
Nerd smiled. He had heard the man’s name before in the galactic news. He was slick, athletic, and witty. He was known for being very charismatic and was likable despite his criminal deeds. However, he was also quite the wreck of a man and did not have his priorities straight. Still, Henry’s background may prove useful in his plan of escaping, giving Nerd more confidence that his plan would work.
He continued slowly moving the slots on his Rubik’s cube. It was starting to come together, but Nerd still wanted a little more time to talk to Henry before he finished it.