by Bryan Nyaude
“Who is Sidney?” Someone spoke to me, and I quickly glanced back to see who the voice belonged to.
Whoa! What was she doing here? Please anyone, but her. My heart raced quickly as I felt a surge of adrenaline feel my body up. This day just kept getting worse and with each passing hour. It had been at least five years since we spoke, I think.
“Janet!” I spoke in shock; my heart was starting to race in heavy loud beats. “What are you doing here?”
“Is that a trick question?” she responded to me while sitting up on her bed. “You know that the top experts in the science field were all chosen to go on this mission, and I happen to be one of them, although I can’t say the same about you.”
“I see,” I chuckled and looked away, trying to suppress my emotions.
I guess some people never changed, even if five years or more passed. Janet and I had been classmates during our graduate studies way, before the terror beasts had arrived. She was always one score ahead of me on all of our tests and I truly never knew how. We had a history between us; although, I prefer not to go deeply into it. She definitely still looked as good as she did back when we were classmates: that’s for sure.
“So who is Sidney?” she asked again, folding her arms and looking at me with such piercing hazel eyes. “You were crying his or her name in your sleep.”
“Breathe!” I told myself, lying motionlessly in my bed, in a dazed manner. “You have no time to mess around with her, remember what happened last time.”
“Come on, Den,” Janet spoke again with such a soft voice that for a minute, I almost thought of trusting her again. “You can’t keep holding what happened in the past against me. Let’s start afresh, okay?”
Strange! That almost sounded like the same thing that happened last time—and it was almost the same exact words she said at that time too. I got fooled twice in the past and I certainly wasn’t going to let it happen the third time. Definitely not!
“I don’t want to sound nosy or something, but do you guys know each other or something?” one of my colleagues, a few beds away from me, asked, looking at us curiously.
Oh no! We were the center of attention again, for the second time in a row, which made me even more furious. This brought back some bad memories I had tried so hard to repress.
“A long time ago,” I replied back to him, and slip further into my blankets, to shield myself from all of that unwanted attention.
I didn’t hate her, but whenever Janet was around, trouble was sure to be ten steps behind her, almost glued to her. The com link voice box suddenly came online in a static frequency, as the whole room fell silent. We all eagerly awaited to hear the ship status report and any new update on the mission objectives.
“All able bodied scientists report to the center deck,” the voice behind it commanded. “The main mission will begin in 10 minutes. Pack your equipment, suit up and report to Gate 7. ”
Yes! This was what I needed to get away from Janet and all of my other troubles. I wanted my mind occupied on something else important rather than being stuck in this awkward situation.
“Wait, sir, your arm,” a voice went off on my com link. “Your regeneration will stop progressing, if you leave this room.”
I ignored the voice and got out of my bed, heading towards the exit. There was something on this planet I was determined to find out with my own eyes.
“I’ll see you later,” Janet spoke to me, but I acted like I didn’t hear her.
She sounded almost sincere, like she actually meant what she was saying although there was no way to be sure. As I entered the hallway, I felt a numbing pain in my arm, like I had been stung by something. It was so nerve wrecking, I felt almost tempted to go back to bed. Sweat poured down my forehead like a small stream of water.
“Focus on the mission,” I said to myself in a whisper, feeling the fatigue bear down on me. “Lives are at stack on earth.”
My reason for being here was this mission, and I was definitely not going to let a minor injury stop me from doing my job. I began to walk slowly, trying to pry my mind from the unbearable ache. Within a few minutes, I somehow managed to reach the armory room. Strangely, I was the only person inside which was rather bizarre. The planet’s gravity was fifteen times greater than that of the earth and the atmosphere was intolerable to sustain human life. Fortunately for us, we had invented war armor suits that could withstand the gravity and sustain our need to breathe oxygen, centuries ago. These armors had taken war to a whole new level and almost brought humanity to the brink of extinction. Their weapons' systems, combined with their ability to allow flight, made them lethal and dangerous. However, against the terror beasts, they only delayed the inevitable.
“Hmm! Okay!”
I walked around the room, glancing at the remaining armors, hoping one would peak my particular taste. I was looking for something different, rare, and with glamour. To my left, I noticed one in a metal glass frame, completely separate from the other armors—it screamed unique and rare. The armor was an old model neon gravity shooter, created in the year 2285, about 610 years ago. Its creator, Dr. Hysein, was a brilliant man of a rare kind. His inventions marked the start of the space battle era. To think that one of his inventions was actually here was something interesting. Equipped with a titanium alloy plating helmet, gravity repelling aluminum wings, chest and shoulder sensory reactors, and optic sensory machine guns; it was the ideal combat armor. Without thinking of how outdated it was, I took it and put it on, while updating the main link monitors to our modern time. The light screen came on as I quickly installed my AI system into the main system of the armor. There were no problems in body movements; in fact, my reflexes seemed more enhanced and quicker due to it.
“Attention to all scientist personnel,” the com link came back on; the voice belonged to the captain. “We are leaving in t-minus one minute! Report to the small ship docks on Gate 7 and prepare for departure.”
Wait! That was fast, it hadn’t even been more than 6 minutes yet. Something was definitely out of place, or something had gone wrong. I quickly glanced through my lab utility case before heading out swiftly.
“Den, my scanners show that this model is not suited for this kind of mission,” my AI system spoke to me while linking the sensory scanner to my com link. “This machine is too outdated and not suited for this kind of recon and search mission.”
“I know,” I responded quickly without making a clear reason; however, there was something about this armor that just felt right.
Quickly, I made a hasty dash, headed to Gate 7 to meet with the others. Once I got there, I was greeted with so many puzzling glances I truly didn’t like. Their glances bothered me a lot, but I didn’t say anything to them. I walked through the gate, making my way down to hover vehicles. The platform was crowded with people, in armored suits, hurrying to their respective vehicles. I could clearly see our new environment through my visor com screen. The planet was completely blue, showing no signs of life within the vicinity. It was so quiet and the wind in the atmosphere moved rapidly in all directions.
“Have you gone crazy, Rookie?” the captain yelled at me. He walked up towards me, in his bulky dark armor, and shook his head in disapproval. “Why would you pick our ship’s mascot armor for this kind of mission? Ah well, it’s too late to go change, so board the ship now and prepare to move out.”
I could tell by their stares that people were talking about me, but I didn’t care since what I had in my possession was something unique and valuable. It was not every day you got to try out something this old and rare. As soon as the captain was gone, I went towards my assigned ship and boarded it quickly. My crewmates and I were all seating laterally from each other, silently going through our equipment. We all knew how important this mission was, so we couldn’t leave anything to chance.
“Everyone, link your com links to mine as I will begin to debrief you all on the true objective of this mission.” The captain spoke to all of us from another
mini patrol hover ship.
I obeyed his orders and linked my com with his, without uncertainty.
“Okay, ladies and gentlemen,” the captain began, “as you all know, we received Intel that this planet is the source of the terror beast invasion on our planet, so you will be sure to see them on this planet. Our main objective will be to locate the heat source our space satellite system picked up a week ago and investigate what caused it. Each team has been assigned with 12 highly trained escort soldiers, equipped with advanced duo propulsion system laser rail guns. You all know your jobs so get to work quickly, once we stop at the recon site. Good luck and make your planet proud. Over and out!”
I was completely taken back by surprise. The planetary government was sparing no expense at stopping the terror beast invasion. Duo system propulsions were pretty sophisticated technology, even for this era. Their 20 hour oxygen tanks were far much more superior to my 15 hour one and the gravity repellant propulsion system was way more advanced and twice as durable. All this meant was whatever we had come out here for was somehow going to change the tide in our war against the beasts. They knew our weakness so now it was time we learned theirs. I looked eagerly outside through the ship’s fiber glass, hoping to not see any signs of terror beast activity. The environment looked exactly alike, making it impossible to see the creatures clearly, since they blended so well with everything on the planet.
“Sir, we have six inbound bogeys coming up real fast from all direction,” one of the ship’s pilots spoke loudly.
“What! So soon, already?” the captain replied him in a harsh manner. “All gunmen, get ready to intercept them, shoot down anything that moves.”
Darn! Why were things getting more complicated each time? How could they have spotted us so easily from all directions? I had so many questions and no theories to explain these sudden turn of events. Perhaps this planet yielded something of great interest to these mindless creatures; something valuable enough to make them attack us first. But what could it be? As I looked through the window of the hover ship, I noticed something running really fast behind us. It looked exactly like a terror beast; however, it was much bigger and its big blue eyes were far more menacing. To be able to withstand this planet’s gravity, and still keep up with a speeding hover ship, was certainly a great fit in itself. There was a loud bang which shook the entire ship and almost threw us off course. I firmly held tightly onto my seat straps, as I tried to control my heart rate.
“Hey, do you mind moving for a little bit?” a young soldier, close to my age, spoke to me as he loaded three titanium piercing bullets into a x-one sniper rifle. He staggered towards me and demanded I move out of my seat, next to the window. He was rather rude although I was intrigued by the weapon he was holding. The metallic long barrel and 12 cylinder exchange system gave it an edge in long range distance fighting. Completely remodeled with a super recoiler, it could shoot bullets at an average of 30 microseconds per recoil.
Another fine piece of artillery!
It was an older model weapon created by the brilliant inventor, Drus Vegai, of the Ras kingdom. Wanted for his crimes for selling weapons to everyone, even terrorists, he just disappeared from the face of the earth and was never heard from again. So to see one of his weapons, which were banned from almost every continent because of their destructive power, meant that this situation was dire and extreme measures had to be taken no matter what the consequences were. I don’t know why, but as a kid I wanted to be like him. I wanted to be as brilliant and famous as he was. Although, in a good and honorable way. However, that changed when I grew up. Time made me realize how hopeless and impossible such a dream was.
“Did you hear me or should I repeat myself?” he spoke again, looking at me impatiently.
“Oh sorry, sure take it.”
Without hesitation, I moved away from the position I had been before, and observed the soldier as he got ready to fire his weapon through the window. He adjusted his gun slowly as he decreased the amount of air he took in. The creature was right in his point blank range, giving him ample of time to shoot as many times as he could. I stood there next to him, observing quietly like a curious child.
“D-5000, can you adjust the gun’s velocity to match the creature’s speed?” he mumbled again, this time not to me.
If it wasn’t me, then who was he speaking to? Maybe it was his onboard AI system.
“Okay, perfect,” he whispered slightly beneath his breath and fired his weapon.
It was so loud; it felt as if my ears had been ripped off from my head. For an entire second, I couldn’t hear anything and I felt disoriented, as if I was losing my center of gravity.
“Don’t worry, the feeling will pass,” the soldier laughed, patting me on the shoulder. “Was this your first time hearing this gun being fired?”
I shook my head while trying to adjust myself again. I felt lost and confused, as if I had lost my grasp on reality. Imagine if I had been much closer to it then this feeling would have been far much worse.
“You idiot!” he screamed at me, from the top of his lungs. “Why didn’t anyone tell me you are wearing an old model suit, not equipped with a durable sound proof helmet? Why of all the suits we brought along did you have to take that one? Were you dropped on your head as a baby?” Perhaps! There was no way to truly answer that without asking my parents.
“Darn! It got back up, at this rate we are history,” the soldier commented, while viewing our surrounding with his sniper rifle’s scope system.
“Everyone, strap in—we are taking evasive maneuvers to outrun the creatures in t-minus 10 seconds.”
“Oh struck!”
That wasn’t enough time at all to get back to my sit and strap in quickly. I hurried back to my sit and argued with him to move out. He refused and actually sat in my seat, strapping on the belts in my chair.
Some nerve! I had never met such an arrogant and selfish person before.
“You know you could have just gone and took my empty seat,” he laughed at me with such an annoying tone.
Oh! Now why hadn’t I thought of that? How could I call myself a scientist and be unable to figure something as easy as that?
“Hold on, everyone, the emergency acceleration system has been activated,” the pilot screamed quickly.
Oh no! I was still not strapped into a chair, when the ship suddenly picked up massive speed. The force of the acceleration jerked me back so hard, I hit the back hull of the hover ship without me even realizing it happened. It felt as if my innards were being turned upside down from all that momentum, and my head felt so heavy. Why didn’t I just become a doctor? Why! Why! When was this nightmare going to end? While pinned up against the wall by the great force of the intense acceleration, I started to feel the armor suit start to fill a bit strange. It was getting tighter, and at the same time, lighter as I could not explain this phenomenon.
“T-minus 30 seconds till normal speed returns,” my com link went off.
No! That was too long; at this rate, my body was going to decorate the entire hull behind me with my organs. I had to do something but what exactly?
“Activate the emergency suit system H3,” I yelled on top of my voice, communicating with my AI system.
“Negative,” it replied back to me instantly. “That program is not available in this combat system.”
Oh no! I had forgotten that this armor suit was a very old model system, not equipped with any of the current systems of the modern time.
“Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!”
Aahh! I was freaking regretting my most recent decision about taking this suit for this mission. The next time something aroused my curiosity, I was going to think twice before making any decisions.
“Show me the suit’s current data log, dating back to its construction,” I asked my AI system again, trying anything just to get myself out of this mess.
“Unable to comply,” it responded to me again. “The armor suit’s microchip containing all its constru
ction and command data appears to be missing. Emergency shut down of this system and rebooting is highly advised.”
What! No way could I do that at this time, because it meant taking it off and switching the suit’s power system off and on directly, on its posterior plating, which I couldn’t do when this ship was moving at this speed. Suppose it was possible, but there was no way I was willing to undress in front of all these people, considering how awkwardly shy I got in public. Suddenly, the ship started to reduce in speed slowly as I felt a huge burden being lifted off my shoulders. Had thirty seconds already passed? Whatever the case was, I’m glad it was over and done with. I felt some motion slowly come back to my body. Still, this combat armor was proving to be more of a nuisance than I bargained for. I could see now why no one had picked it up at all in these last few years.
“Okay, crew, listen up closely,” the com link came on and I could see a visual image of the captain, through the contact lenses inserted in my eyes. “Due to the ship’s tactical maneuver system, we have avoided the worst. All personnel get ready to fight once the creatures move in again. Switch to infrared system and deploy the flash canisters in your suit system, except for you, Rookie. Your stupidity is going to get you killed, so everyone who cares for him should say farewell now because I don’t see him coming back to earth with us. In fact, who wants to place bets on the rookie?”
Really! Now that was harsh. I wasn’t stupid, and I was going to make it through all this. Yeah, well, one could only hope.
“I wager 10 jenks on the rookie,” the soldier, who stole my seat, spoke in such a taunting manner. “I say, he won’t make it till resupplies get here.”
“You’re on,” the lieutenant finally spoke, from somewhere on the neighboring hover ship. “He is not going to last 3 days at all. Just look at the system he is using now; the terror beasts will tear him up without even trying.”
“Then it’s settled, everyone, place your bets. Use your com links to insert your bets and get ready to deploy. We are near our first signal check point.”