Kray

by Brooklyn Jones

  “Can't sleep again, Sophia?” he asked.

  She nodded and took a seat at one of control panels next to McCready. “This damn ship is making me crazy. How much longer to Space Station 7756?”

  “Computer, travel time to Space Station 7756?” McCready asked.

  A female robotic voice announced, “Current travel time is calculated at six days, thirteen hours, forty-five minutes.”

  Sophia sighed. “I don't know if I can make it much longer. I feel like I'm suffocating.”

  “If you want I can have the doctor give you something to sleep the rest of the way.”

  She shuddered. “Six days of nightmares that I can't wake from sounds like a brilliant idea.”

  McCready chuckled. “Suit yourself.”

  Sophia and McCready had been talking with one another every night since the shuttle left Earth. She saw the way he looked at her but she wasn't the least bit interested. Especially not after a recent breakup.

  She needed to start new and not be attached to anybody.

  McCready looked at his control panel that suddenly turned to red. “That can't be right.”

  “What is it?” Sophia asked, leaning over to see.

  “The control panel is telling me there's an error in the engine room.” McCready pushed some buttons but the red light remained.

  “Aren't these shuttles supposed to be error-proof?”

  McCready ignored the question. “Computer, verify error in engine room.”

  “Quantum Core Two not responding. Can not diagnose.”

  McCready frowned. “Computer, reroute functions to Core One and Three.”

  “Unable to fulfill request.”

  “Computer, elaborate.”

  The female voice casually said the same thing over and over again like she was taking a restaurant order. “Unable to fulfill request.”

  “That's can't be good,” McCready said. “Better wake the Captain.”

  He pushed some buttons on his console and a little blue hologram of the Captain showed up. “This better be good, McCready.”

  “Sorry to wake you, Sir, but the computer is telling me that Quantum Core Two is not responding.”

  “That's impossible. Did you try rerouting functions?” the Captain asked.

  “The computer was unable to do it,” McCready replied.

  “I better get down there,” the Captain said. The hologram disappeared.

  Sophia stood up. “I better go and leave you to it.”

  McCready was too busy to respond.

  Before Sophia had a chance to leave, the computer announced, “Power failure imminent.”

  A second passed and all the lights in the control room shut off.

  Crippling fear choked Sophia. Was her nightmare going to come true?

  “What's happening?” she asked.

  “Don't worry, back-up power should come on in a minute.”

  Dim lights turned on and the whole room was bathed in red light. Sophia tried to leave but the automatic doors wouldn't slide open.

  “I'm having a little trouble leaving, McCready.”

  McCready looked back at her with a face full of fright. “We have a bigger problem than that.”

  The female voice came on again. “Critical failure imminent.”

  “If what the console says is true. You need to sit down and buckle up.” His voice left no room for argument.

  Sophia hesitated for a moment, her palms sweaty. She sat down next to McCready and put the black heavy straps over her chest.

  McCready punched some buttons on the console. “Computer, disengage control room. Authority code: Alpha Gamma Seven Six Eight Three.”

  Sophia turned to McCready. “What are you doing?”

  McCready smirked. “Saving our lives.”

  The Breach was built to break apart into two separate pieces in case of an emergency. It'd never been done before.

  The nose of The Breach broke apart and shot forward leaving the rest of the large shuttle behind.

  Sophia felt the sudden force as she was pushed against her seat.

  “Computer, put The Breach on the viewscreen,” McCready said.

  The window of space suddenly changed to a view of the space shuttle. But now it was missing its nose.

  Sophia wanted to leave and go straight back home. Maybe space wasn't the right decision.

  “Are you going to tell me what the fuck is going on around here?” she asked.

  McCready didn't have time to respond. The Breach exploded into a fiery ball.

  Sophia watched silently, her jaw dropped.

  McCready tried to find something to say.

  Hundreds of people had just been killed in their sleep. All of them looking to start a new life on the space station.

  The escape pod flew further and further away from the wreckage until it was just a speck of dust.

  McCready turned his attention back to the computer console. “We need to make sure we're drifting in the right direction. Hopefully a long range scanner or another ship will pick us up.”

  “And what if they don't?”

  “Then we die,” he replied.

  Sophia gulped and clenched her hands. She already knew the chances of surviving out here were infinitesimally small. “Ever hear of stranded ship being rescued?”

  McCready shook his head but kept his attention on the computer console. “Which is why we need to save ourselves.”

  Sophia leaned in. “How?”

  “Computer, put up a map of our location.”

  The viewscreen changed to show a flat map of the star system. A green blip pinged the ship's location.

  “See that planet to the right of us.”

  Sophia nodded and focused on the green looking sphere. “Looks promising.”

  “Very. It's uncharted but sensors tell me that the atmosphere is breathable.”

  “Well what are we waiting for? Set a course,” Sophia said.

  “There's just one problem. The sensors could be wrong and we land there and suffocate instantly.”

  McCready knew there were actually a million different problems that could go wrong. The main one being the ship might implode on reentry. But Sophia didn't need to know that.

  “What's our other choice? We stay here, drifting in space until our life support fails and we suffocate in this tin can.”

  McCready was glad she saw it that way. “Laying in a course. The computer will auto pilot the rest for us.”

  “Even the landing?”

  McCready nodded. “Especially the landing.” He knew these escape pods were not made to land on the surface of a planet. But that was another thing Sophia didn't need to know.

  The two deserted passengers sat in the cramped space trying to find anything to talk about that wasn't about their predicament.

  But small talk only goes so far.

  Sophia's thoughts turned to what would happen after they landed on the planet. How would they survive? Would they ever be saved?

  But those thoughts only scared her more.

  The female computer voice came on. “Approaching planet.”

  McCready glanced over at Sophia. “Here we go.”

  What was left of the The Breach proceeded on its final trajectory towards the alien planet. Sophia and McCready could only watch as the computer took over navigation.

  As The Breach entered the planet's atmosphere, it looked like a fireball streaking through the sky. The heat shield was taking a beating. The vibrations inside the shuttle were almost too much to handle for the passengers.

  But The Breach didn't disintegrate on reentry.

  The viewscreen lit up with greens and blues. The lush forests and oceans of the planet filled the window.

  “Oh my god. It looks beautiful.” Sophia said.

  McCready couldn't pull himself away from the console. “We aren't out of the woods yet. The computer was damaged on reentry. There's no more auto pilot.”

  “Can you land this thing?”

  “In
a normal situation, yes. But the thrusters have also been damaged,” McCready said.

  Sophia gripped her seatbelt. “So what does that mean?”

  McCready cracked his knuckles. “Means I'm going to have pull a miracle out of my ass.” A rectangular steering wheel popped out from under the computer console. His hands wrapped around both sides and the shuttle mirrored his movements.

  The Breach soared through a blue sky and white puffy clouds, barely intact and falling helplessly towards the surface. Green forests flew by below.

  McCready pointed to the ocean on the viewscreen. “There's no open place to land. I'm going to try and shoot for the water.”

  Sophia sank further into her seat. The thought of drowning somehow seemed worse than suffocation.

  The steering wheel rumbled in McCready's hands. “I'm losing altitude.” He pulled on the wheel as hard as he could. The Breach brushed against the top of rainforest-like trees. “We're not going to make it to the ocean. Brace for impact.”

  Sophia made sure her seatbelt was securely fastened and closed her eyes tight. She couldn't watch anymore. She didn't want to see how it all ended.

  The shuttle bounced around as it broke through the green canopy of the forest. Chunks of the ship broke apart as it connected with the strong trees resulting in multiple explosions.

  Sophia's head slammed into the back of the seat and she blacked out.

  Chapter Two

  Tyrex Luk'ta stood proudly before The Council of Elders, his hands clasped behind his back. He'd been thinking about this day his entire life.

  And now it had finally come.

  But why was their a lump in his throat? Why was he so nervous?

  Light from a hole in the ceiling illuminated Tyrex's blue skin. The council was shrouded in shadows to protect their identities. They sat on stone thrones ten feet into the air, overlooking Tyrex who stood at six feet, five inches. This was made to make the Council seem wiser and more powerful.

  “Your Joining Day is fast approaching, Tyrex Luk'ta,” the oldest council member announced.

  That's why Tyrex was so nervous. The Joining was shrouded in mystery. A male Jeorn grew up knowing nothing about it. It was so secretive that to reveal the knowledge meant instant death.

  Tyrex's friends had already gone through the Trials but never once gave hint of what to expect.

  Tyrex unclasped his hands and raised them in honor of the council. “My lords, I am thankful for the opportunity to appear before you. I have dreamed about this day for many years.”

  “Then would you say you are prepared for The Joining?” The shrouded figure on the right asked.

  Tyrex had no clue how to answer that. How could someone be prepared for something they had no idea about it. The Council almost made it seem like he should know exactly what to expect.

  Tyrex nodded with confidence. “I've trained long and hard and I'm ready for whatever awaits.”

  “The Trials aren't just for the strong of body,” a frail voice said. “You must also be strong of mind.”

  Tyrex shifted his weight. The Council had made him stand in the empty chamber for hours until they finally arrived. It might've been the first Trial and he was willing to endure any torture they threw at them.

  Tyrex stood firmly. “I am ready.”

  The oldest Elder leaned forward in his throne. “The first Trial of the Joining is to find your Intended.”

  Tyrex had heard the term before but never knew what it meant. “Intended, my lord?”

  “You will find a mate. Someone who is the mirror image of your soul. There is one Jeorn female who is the Intended of the male. You must find her.”

  Tyrex was deeply confused. He thought back to his parents and didn't remember them ever telling him how they met and fell in love. “My lords, you're telling me is that every Jeorn male is forced into an arranged marriage?”

  He tried his best to be polite as possible but the thought of an arranged marriage was hard to swallow.

  “You offend us greatly, Tyrex Luk'ta,” a shadow said. “Jeorns have become Joined this way for millennia. We do not choose your mate. You do.”

  Tyrex raised his head. “But she must be approved by the council?”

  “Well...yes. The Council has the ultimate decision on who may be Joined.”

  “And what if I don't find a mate?”

  “But you must, Tyrex Luk'ta. If a mate is not found within seven days, a sentence of death is passed.”

  Tyrex gulped and brushed his long black hair out of his face. He didn't remember hearing about anyone dying from their Joining. But maybe the Council was good at covering that up.

  “Then I believe I have no choice then.”

  “Please, Tyrex Luk'ta, this is not a bad thing. To find a mate to Join for life is a wonderful experience.”

  Tyrex knew that this couldn't be just about finding a mate. They made too big of a deal of it. “And what of the other Trials?”

  “That is none of your concern yet, Tyrex Luk'ta. Focus on the Trial set before you. This meeting is adjourned.”

  The Council of Elders disappeared from their thrones and Tyrex was left alone.

  –

  Tyrex wandered his small village of Ja'la. It wasn't as big or advanced as some of the bigger cities on Jeorn but Ja'la was his home.

  He watched as kids ran across the dirt roads playing with a stick and ball, the dust kicking up behind them as they ran off into the distance.

  Ja'la used to be a bustling crossroads town until a decades-long drought decimated the surrounding villages. It was spared due to the dense jungle bordering the east. But the income had dried up and now Ja'la fought for survival.

  Tyrex found himself back at home after a long walk through the village. The clay hut built into the side of a dirt hill provided just enough shelter for him and his parents. It was cramped but Tyrex had lived their all his life.

  Males and females lived with their parents until their Joining Day. It was a long held tradition on Jeorn. Tyrex didn't mind. His parents were a wealth of knowledge and he didn't know how he could get by without them. He couldn't imagine moving away.

  “Mother, Father, I'm home,” Tyrex announced, swiping away the rug used as a door. The whole hut smelled of boiled gnoji, Tyrex's favorite dish.

  Lija rushed in from the kitchen, a wooden spoon still in her hand and a white apron to protect from stains. “How did it go, Tyrex?”

  “So I pretty much have seven days to find a mate or I'm going to be executed.”

  “Oh Tyrex, you're so dramatic. It's not that bad.” Lija walked back into the kitchen and Tyrex followed.

  Tyrex tried to dip his finger into the pot of his mother's special sauce but was instantly slapped. “So I guess that's how you and father got together.”

  Lija nodded, stirring the pot. “But there's more to it than that.”

  Tyrex sat down at the dinner table. “I think I'm ready for the story.”

  “I wish I could, but not until your Joining is finished.”

  “Why does this whole process have to be so secretive?”

  “It's how it's always been done, Son. Now can you get your father and let him know that dinner is ready?”

  Tyrex found Kitor in the backyard working on a transfer seeder. “Father, dinner is ready.”

  Kitor wiped the sweat from his brow. “How did your meeting go, Son?”

  “Not what I expected to be honest.”

  “I was just as surprised as you were,” Kitor replied.

  “How did you find mom?”

  Kitor lowered his head. “I'm sorry, I can't really get into specifics with you yet. At least not until you've gone through all the Trials.”

  “Don't worry about it. I know the drill.”

  The Luk'ta family sat around the dinner table for a nice meal of boiled gnoji.

  Tyrex played around with his food. He had so many questions.

  Lija clapped her hands to break Tyrex's concentration. “You haven't even touched yo
ur gnoji.”

  “I know, Mother. There's just so much on my mind.” Tyrex pulled apart a green leg from the body of the gnoji. “It tastes really good. Thank you.”