by Aline Riva
“So you can warn the others? No, you won't get the chance. I told you about the sabotage because you're not going anywhere. I'm going to rip your flight suit in half, rape you and leave you for dead, Sin. Then we're going to crash anyway and the engine will probably go up taking you with it, so no one will ever know what happened to you!”
She pulled up every last reserve of strength as she kicked out, running on adrenaline as he dodged her kick and tightened his grip on her arms. The steam was thickening and the heat was rising and as she screamed he laughed.
“No one can hear you...It's just you and me...”
Then the alarm switched to over ride and screamed red alert and for a brief moment he was taken by surprise.
“Bloody system!” he cursed, and she kicked out again as he heard the exterior door sliding back.
“Help me!” Sin screamed and he clamped a hand over her mouth, punched her hard in the side and then hit her again, before hurling her against the opposite wall, where she bounced off and fell to the floor, eyes closed with blood running from her nose.
“Drake!” he heard Harvey shout, “What's going on? Red alert just went off – I checked the controls... it said power overload, I can't kill speed and I can't cool the system!”
His voice was echoing closer.
Drake looked back at the unconscious woman, regretting a chance lost, then dashed around a sharp turn and down the walkway, where he met with Harvey who looked pale and frightened.
“There's nothing we can do,” he said, “Turbo power's blown – we have to get everyone in their seats, we have fifteen minutes before we either explode or the engine dies and we're pulled into the gravity of the nearest planet... we have to get out of here!”
As they ran for the door and left the engine room, Drake sealed and locked it behind him.
“I'll warn the others!” Harvey said.
“See you on the flight deck,” Drake replied, “I'll have to scan for the nearest place to land...”
Then both men ran off in opposite directions, as the door stayed sealed and the count down continued and Sin lay knocked out cold as the heat rose and the alert continued to scream.
The thought of visitors – meaning the unsuspecting crew of the ship that was planned to soon make an emergency landing – had done much to lift all sorrow from the mind of Rik Jinx as he got dressed in his room after a much needed shower to wash away the stink of dirt and decaying corpse. His filthy clothing had been left on the floor, picked up by Jody who had taken them away before the stink filled the mansion house, then she had opened the windows to let in fresh air and now Mack waited for him, sat patiently on a chair by a mirrored dresser as Jinx started to get dressed, his hair still damp from the shower as a trail of water ran down the middle of his back and he slipped naked into a pair of tight black jeans.
“I do feel better now,” he said, glancing to Mack then tugging up his zip, “I think I just needed to hold her one more time...no...I mustn't think about Cora. It's the little reminders of her, it sets me off...But not today, I have to think about the future...Today could be a new start, there might be a woman on that ship who is just right for me!”
He buckled his belt, then put on his heavy boots.
“...I keep thinking about the last time I was on Fespara 46, there was this alien guy, he had a woman – one of his own – on a chain. I thought she might be for sale. I said, Can I buy her off you? I can pay in gold. He shook his head. Then I said, How much to touch her, can I see her naked and run my hands over her? Can I fuck her? I pay you treble price for sex with her. And the stupid alien fuckwit told me We do not mix with humankind in intimacy. It is prohibited. Can you imagine how I felt?”
He reached into the wardrobe and pulled out a dark grey shirt and threw it on, then turned to face Mack as he looked in the mirror, ran his fingers through his hair, straightened his collar, left his shirt open and then checked his hair again.
“Just imagine it,” Jinx complained, “I was standing there, hard on about to split my jeans and this beautiful thing on a chain is in front of me and I'm being told no to every offer I make! There's only one choice left for me, I'll have to pick a human woman and have Jody modify her. Actually, I like the idea of that... I know she's got those heated cutters back at the med bay on the ship that cut through flesh and seal off wounds at the same time – good for instant transformation...Those women on Fespara 46 have forked tongues...” his eyes widened as a sudden thought hit him, “I'd love to do that... snip ,snip and give a human a forked tongue...Do you think Jody might step aside and let me operate on her?”
“I don't know, she might worry that you could kill this woman of your choice, think about it, Rik – Jody is qualified, she knows what to do.”
“But the thought gives me a raging hard on! Do you think she might at least let me watch? I need to see that – especially the piercings. I've got a very special self sealing piece of alien metal to fit in a small but intimate place to cause constant arousal and I want to watch it go in!”
“I'm sure you won't miss out on the best parts,” Mack replied, amusement dancing in his eyes as he felt a sense of relief to see his closest friend was no longer the broken man who had dug up his dead girlfriend then sobbed all the way back to the house. Jinx was revived now, it was the thought of fresh kill – of fresh meat, and fresh chances...
Jinx looked back to the mirror, pushing back his open shirt as he paused to admire the scars he had carved into his body after the crash of the Pharaoh, matching Mack's own battle scars in every single detail.
“I think I still have what it takes to impress a lady...” he thoughtfully fingered the leather necklace that hung at his throat and held a row of human teeth, “She might not like our ways here at first – but Jody can always give her a shot of something from medical...something strong enough to fog up her mind.... Not that she will really need a mind any more, not once she's got me, what else could a woman need or wish for?”
As he said that, Jinx turned to Mack and gave him a charming smile. Mack threw his head back and laughed.
“I wasn't being funny...” Jinx said, looking at him in confusion.
“I know that, you arrogant bastard. But it's good to see you back together, Rik. I'd rather have you like this than weeping.”
“Like what?”
“Never mind,” Mack said fondly, “Just don't fall apart again.”
“I'll try not to,” he replied, then as Mack got up from his seat Jinx helped him to stand, but as he quickly steadied himself, his best friend threw his arms around him, giving him a hug so tight he felt his erection pressing solid against him.
“Get off before you start humping me!” Mack laughed, and Jinx let go, but his pupils were heavily dilated as he spoke again.
“There will be a woman on board for me...There has to be! I need this, I need it so bad, Mack!”
“And it's almost hunting time,” Mack reminded him darkly.
The two men smiled, their gaze locked and both sharing the same hunger in their wolfish smiles, like two wild animals about to bound across the wild terrain to move in for the kill... It was almost time, the ship would be landing soon...
On board the Amaryllis, a peaceful journey had descended into chaos as the alarm continued to scream on and off as the lights turned down red and the frightened passengers scrambled into their seats and slammed safety belts into place.
“I'm sorry!” Harvey said as tears filled his eyes and he looked to his closest friend, then to Janey, then the others.
“Just get us to the nearest planet!” Lola Voss shouted over the sound of the alarm, “It's not your fault, Harvey – just be a captain, emergency landing procedure...Get Wolf to help...where the hell is Wolf?”
“Flight deck! I'll get us out of here, I swear I will... no one dies today!”
That promise had been meant for everyone, but Harvey's eyes had been fixed on Janey, her long dark hair half covered her face as she looked to Tyler, who grasped her hand.<
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“You can do this, mate!” he yelled to Harvey.
“Where's Sin?” Janey exclaimed, looking about in panic at the sight of her empty seat, but her question was drowned out by the wail of the alert as the lights stayed blood red. Harvey was already gone, the door closing behind him as he made a dash for the flight deck.
As he sat heavily in the co pilot's seat and slammed the safety belt into place, Harvey had never imagined he would have felt as grateful as he did to see another in his place at the controls. The lights were flashing, warnings were going off fast in every area of the ship, so rapidly he could barely read the signals – but Drake Wolf was pilot now. As Harvey sat there, his face pale as fear reflected in his eyes he felt such deep gratitude towards the trusted older man who had taken his place.
“What do I do?” he said, “Drake, what do I do?”
“You leave it to me,” Drake replied, then he indicated to the only constant on the control panel that did not indicate danger: On the radar, a planet was visible, its stats listed beside it...
“ A small private planet,” Drake informed him, “We can go in right now...I've just locked in an ideal landing site. The place is like earth but more or less uninhabited. Don't worry, I can handle this, I am handling this.”
And he turned his head and smiled. There was something odd about the fact that Drake was smiling at a time like this, that fact revolved around in Harvey's head along with the flashing lights and the warning alert and his fears of crashing on a planet far from home, of dying along with everyone else on board...
But all he could do was stay in a state of semi panic that rendered him useless as he watched Drake pull the ship into rapid descent as failing shields were raised to ninety-one percent, and then the ship was rushing towards the planet, cutting into the atmosphere with a terrifying shake and jolt that sent warning signals crazy as the vessel shook and the shields threatened to buckle. He clutched at the seat and closed his eyes, thinking only that earth was far away and this place was not earth and he did not want to die far from home.
“I'm never flying again!” he yelled in fear.
His eyes were screwed tight shut, his knuckles white as he clutched at the seat and he did not see the cold gleam in Drake's good eye as he kept firm control of the failing ship. As the guidance system died along with the ships communication channel he smiled darkly, guessing this would be a bad landing for some...But that was not his problem, he had been paid to deliver a crew and most of them would make it:
Mr Jinx would be very happy with the delivery – so happy that perhaps he might even let him join his people...
Drake held that thought as the ship broke through cloud and then sailed through blue skies and the ground rushed closer, he pulled the ship into a shaky descent, gliding then lurching as he headed for the open field, the ship skimmed treetops and beyond the closed door the passengers screamed in terror as the sheer force of the drop slammed him back against the seat as Harvey yelled out and carried on clinging to his own seat, his eyes still closed as the blood drained from his face.
Then the ship hit ground with a crack and a thud, skidding across the field a half broken vessel, steam trailing from the rear end as the mangled engine room came apart in sections exactly as he had hoped, leaving the power core to explode far behind them as the ruined vessel came to a stop with a jarring sudden jolt that saw the view of green fields and a large mansion in the distance marred then dissolved by a viewing screen that cracked then shattered but stayed in place, frosting up the glass and sending a spray of blood to run crimson between the cracks, the blood had come from Harvey as his head had slammed against the seat with force, tearing skin and knocking him out as he bled heavily.
The last of the blood ran snaking its way down the shattered viewing screen, then as it dripped it sounded dense, a heavy drop hitting the floor emphasising the silence on board the vessel. Drake's ears were still ringing from the impact of the crash landing. He looked about the control area, then unbuckled his belt, a smirk on his face as he realised he had managed this stunt with no injury. He gave a tug on Harvey's safety belt and it came loose and he caught him as he fell forward, then gave a groan.
“Harvey,” he said urgently, giving him a shake, “Wake up, we made it!”
Harvey blinked, then raised a shaking hand and wiped a splash of blood from his eyes.
“What about the others?” he said, still barely able to move.
“I'll go and check on them. We need to get out of here, get up now!” urged Drake.
Harvey reached for Drake's shoulder and leant on it heavily as he rose from his seat, every bone aching from the impact of the crash. His head was throbbing and he felt vaguely sick but as he looked to the closed door his thoughts were now with the others.
“I really hope they made it!” he said desperately, hitting the switch and rolling open the door.
As Harvey stumbled out into the next section of the ship where all was dim and no sound could be heard, Drake reached beneath the seat and took out the gun he had concealed before take off and it felt good and heavy in his hand as he held it close to his side, an evil gleam in his eye as looked to the open doorway.
“They'd better be alive,” he murmured, “I have a promise to keep...Mr Jinx wants them alive, Harvey...”
As the small cruiser had hit ground, the crash had been witnessed from the house.
“Messy,” remarked Mack, standing at the edge of the field and looking to the distance, surveying the wreckage that had torn from the ship on impact. The power core had exploded far off and a trail of smoke still rose, blackening the otherwise flawless sky above.
Jody smiled warmly as she looked to the man she loved.
“I see you've made an effort for the occasion.”
He leant on his cane, glanced down at his dark suit and laughed.
“I do want to make a good impression on them!”
“Just make sure that knife stays out of sight for now.”
“Of course!” Mack exclaimed, sweeping back his open jacket to reveal the sheathed blade, “I'd take a rifle but I need the cane and it is a long way to walk.”
“You can borrow mine, just say the word!” Jinx exclaimed, bounding over like a joyful puppy as he slipped his arms around the pair of them, standing tight between them as he kissed Mack's cheek and then Jody's.
“Oh what a lovely day to go hunting!” he declared, then as Zeke handed him a rifle, he gave him a wink.
“You stay behind and get the kitchen ready.”
Zeke smiled as he shook his head.
“You get all the fun again, Rik!”
“And we all get to share what's on board that ship!” Jinx reminded him, “If there's a pretty cold one on board I'll give you that for free – you always did like stuffing the dinner!”
Zeke laughed at the memory.
“Happy hunting,” he said.
Jody turned to Mack and Jinx.
“I'll be waiting for instruction on your return,” she told them, “And be careful, boys – they might be armed. I can't have anything happening to either of you!”
Mack leant closer and kissed her fondly.
“See you soon,” he promised.
Jinx paused for a moment to take a practise aim down the sights of his rifle, then he took a pretend shot and smiled as he lowered the weapon.
“Shall we go, Mack?”
“I thought you'd never ask!” his best friend replied, then as Zeke and Jody stood watching, the two men began to make their way across the field, where in the distance the small vessel sat wrecked and silent, with no signs of life coming from within...
Inside the wreck of the Amaryllis, Harvey was freeing Janey from her belt as Tyler dragged his own aside and got up. After a moment of unsteadiness, he looked about in the gloom, then stepped over some wreckage and helped Lola from her seat. She thanked him and brushed down her flight suit, then as she took in the sight of the wrecked vessel, she shook her head in disbelief.
“How could this happen? Are we all okay? I said, are we all okay?”
“We all made it,” Tyler confirmed, giving an audible sigh.
“I'll get the door open!”
As Wolf's voice echoed from the corridor beyond, Harvey felt deeply grateful once again to the co pilot who had saved them all.
“It wasn't me who landed this ship, it was Drake,” he said, “We have him to thank for our lives.”
“You want us to thank him?”
As he heard fury in Janey's voice, she glared at him in the gloom of the wrecked compartment, eyes blazing with anger, “You stupid shit, you said you could fly! You got yourself a deathtrap and took us along for the ride! I fucking hate you!”
“I'm sorry!” he said tearfully, but Janey gave no answer as she trembled then leant against the back of a seat to steady herself.
Just then Drake Wolf returned, behind him a stream of daylight beckoned and through the open hatch they saw a glimpse of green field and a dark, heavy treeline beyond it.
“The back of the ship is bucked and inaccessible,” he said, “But I got the hatch open. We just have to sit tight and wait for rescue. When ground control realise we're not on the return flight path, a search crew will come looking.”
“You sent a distress call?” asked Lola.
“The comm system went dead on entry, there was no time,” Drake said apologetically, “We just have to wait. It could take a long time, but they will find us!”
“At the speed we were going?” she demanded, “Don't bullshit me, Drake! If the call wasn't sent they have nothing to lock on to!”
“Where's Sin?” Janey said again, recalling how she had not seen her since before the alert had sounded.
The others looked about the wrecked seating area, then Harvey spoke up.
“Who saw her last?”
“She was in the communal area,” Lola replied, “I said something about the speed the ship was going and maybe you should check on the engine room, especially as it's the ship's first trip...but Sin offered to go and find you...Were you in the engine room?”