I can feel my heart rate start to pick up. I don't think I'll ever get over my nerves before an atmospheric burn. So many things have to go right for the Recluse not to burn to a crisp in the atmosphere. And I know every system involved. And none of them belong on a spaceship operating in the year of our Saints GE 1022.
I pull my hair into a tight pony tail and wrap it back tightly with a hair elastic so I can strap the G-collar around my neck. I feel the two needles prick into my neck and the dull pressure of the drug that'll let me tolerate 50 Gs of pressure being injected into my arteries.
Kole orders Jamir to take the Recluse into low orbit. I watch my console closely as the engines power up. The ship begins to vibrate under the stress of acceleration. My body presses into my chair. I turn my eyes to check on Rhea. I can feel the pressure pushing my eye balls into my skull. She's got a smile back on her face. Or it could just be the G force distorting her face. Knowing her, she's smiling. She really thinks this might be the one. Just like the last, and the one before that.
“Entering low orbit and preparing for atmospheric entry,” Jamir announces.
I grip my armrests tightly and prepare for a brutal burn. The ship begins to pick up speed as it pitches down into the atmosphere. The metal around us groans loudly under the stress. My teeth feel like they are going to rattle out of my gums. I close my eyes and try to breathe deeply.
The shriek of an alarm suddenly cuts through the noise of reentry. I snap my eyes open and try to turn my neck to Rhea's console.
“Comms, what the hell is that alarm about?” Kole has to shout to be heard over the cacophony.
“Sir,” she hesitates before finishing, “It's a weapons lock. From the surface.”
“That's impossible. Kartak is a dead planet. Turn the damn alarm off and recheck your systems.”
“Yes, sir.” She cut the alarm. “Sir, I've confirmed a weapo- We have an incoming projectile! Thirty seconds until impact!” She sounds terrified. So am I.
“It must be an automated defense system,” Graidi yells over the alarm. As if his analysis means shit right now.
“Jamir! Evasive maneuvers!” Kole screams.
I can't believe what's happening. This can't be how it all ends. “Rhea! Put on your damn helmet!” It takes every ounce of strength I have to lift my arms over my head to grab my helmet. I slam it down over my head and struggle to snap the fasteners into place.
My vision starts to go black as the Recluse pitches up and rolls wildly.
“Five seconds to impact!” The alarm picks up its tempo. I'm hearing Rhea's voice through the comms built into my helmet. I'm relieved she manages to put on her helmet.
Five seconds later the projectile rips through the main engines. The engines explode, hurtling the ship into an uncontrolled spin.
I black out.
I wake up to a blaring alarm. I blink as my eyes adjust to the flashing red lights. It takes me a second to remember what just happened.
I try to lurch out of my seat but my straps hold me in place. “Rhea! Are you okay?!” I scream into my helmet. The bridge has been completely destroyed. A bulkhead has collapsed between me and Rhea's consoles. I'm lucky it didn't land on me. I would have been crushed under its weight. I hope it didn't crush her.
The ship has stopped accelerating, so I push myself into the air. The Captain's chair is empty and Kole is nowhere to be seen. Graidi is pinned into his seat by a piece of debris through the chest. His lifeless face leaves no doubt that he is dead. Jamir is collapsed near his son, the deck around him stained with his blood. Jawn is still in his seat, his helmet cracked open, his face is blue. Asphyxiation is a terrible way to die.
My head begins to clear. I remember what the flashing red lights mean now. We have a hull breach. The atmosphere must be completely vented. That must be why there's no blood, smoke or dust in the air.
I pull myself around the collapsed bulkhead and see Rhea's still strapped into her seat. Her helmet is cracked but still intact. My relief doesn't last long. There's a broken pipe embedded in her thigh. I look below her chair. The pipe's gone through the seat, locking her in place.
“Rhea! Wake up!”
I pull myself down to her and shake her by the shoulders.
“Wake up damn it!” I wish I knew how to turn off the damn alarms. “Shit! We need to get to the escape pods!”
I reach into her breast pocket and pull out her emergency patch kit. “Thank Peter you have these. Can you please wake up? This would be so much easier with you awake.” I want so badly to think she's still alive. I move my feet back down to the steel grate deck and reactivate my magnet boots. They lock me in place, which gives me the leverage I need to pull the pipe out of her thigh. I wrap the cord from the repair kit around her thigh above the wound, grip the pipe with both hands and slowly pull it out of her thigh.
I've never been so happy to hear someone scream. “You're alive! Thank Peter you are alive!” I press the emergency patches against the breaches in her suit and watch them fuse into the material, keeping her precious air reserves from escaping.
I unbuckle her straps as she mumbles incoherently. I deactivate the magnets on our boots, push myself into the air towards the exist and pull her behind me by her straps.
“Rhea! Talk to me. Can you talk?”
“What happened?” Her voice sounds weak, but at least she can talk.
“We got shot.”
“Oh, yeah. Are we dead?”
“Not if I can help it.” The path to the starboard escape pods is blocked so I pulled us towards the port side. “Just keep your body loose and I'll get us to the escape pods. You're going to be okay.”
“Is anyone else alive?” It's just like her to think of others before herself.
“Everyone else is dead. Except Kole. I didn't see him on the bridge.”
I pull us around the corner. “Fuck! Kole took a god damn life pod. By Peter, I'm gonna kill him when I get my hands on him.”
Rhea laughs grimly. “Whatever happened to the Captain going down with the ship?”
“Shit. You must be delirious. The Captain never goes down with the ship if they can help it.”
“It was a joke.” She coughs. The ship shudders violently in disapproval. Another alarm starts blaring. Another projectile.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck.”
I reactivate my boots and drop to the deck in front of the second escape pod. I grab the lever on the door and pull on it with all my weight. It takes three tries but I manage to work the door open and toss Rhea into the escape pod.
“Strap yourself in girl and hit the red button. You've got twenty seconds at best.” I slam the door closed and lock the lever.
“Wait! Don't leave me by myself!”
“I won't!” I get to the last escape pod. Its door opens on the first try. Finally, a bit of luck. “I'll find you on the surface. I promise.”
The alarm picks up its tempo. “You've got five seconds before this ship blows up! Rhea, eject now!” I don't have time to strap myself. I slam my fist down on the big red button.
The force of the ejection slams my head against the door and it all goes black again.
4
LEO
I tear off a piece of snake jerky with my teeth. It's tough, but the taste isn't half bad. This batch was worth the barter I offered in trade for it.
The afternoon sun beats down on my head and the rock around me. That blasted skinner kept me from getting to shelter on time. I'll end up using three days' worth of water because of him. If I hadn't already killed him for it, I'd kill him again. I hammer the last pin into the rock wall and secure the heavy leather tent.
I sit back against the cool rock and try to clear my mind. The face of that slave; the skinner I killed; my brother cursing my name; the last woman I touched. They all crowd my mind, denying me peace.
My meditation is interrupted by a wave of sound tearing through the sky. I leap to my feet, sword in hand, but there is no one to fight. I narrow my eyes and scan
the horizon. My ears lift high, trying to locate the source of the sound. There's no one out there for miles. No signs of boomers rippling through the sand.
Another wave of sound tears through the sky, followed by a third. I search the horizon for the cause. A ball of fire in the sky, obscured by the Sun. I pull out a pair of binoculars and train them on the object burning through the sky. There's three of them. 'Three chariots of fire traveling across the sky.' That's what the Blind Witch told me on my eighteenth birthday.
I can feel my heart beating hard in my chest. The same feeling I get when I know I'm fighting for my life. It's impossible. I'm no superstitious fool.
The closest one will land three hours travel from here. I've seen meteors before. This isn't a meteor. Meteors travel faster. They break apart and crash in many pieces. These ones have kept intact. Something like this will draw scavengers from all across the wastes. I have to get to it first and see it for myself.
“Three chariots of fire crossing the sky; Herald the coming of your Fated Mate; The catalyst to the rebirth of Kartak.” That was the full prophecy. The Blind Witch refused to explain the prophecy. I didn't believe it then. I don't believe it now. That's what I keep telling myself.
I put my binoculars away. Time to find out if I'm right.
5
ASTRID
The crash is brutal. The only thing that saves me is the suspension foam. It didn't save me from my vicious headache though. No amount of foam can save my brain from bouncing around my skull. I wait impatiently for the foam to dissolve so I can get to the comms panel. Rhea had deployed the relay satellites before the atmospheric entry sequence, so I should be able to reach her. I hope she is okay.
I slowly descend to the deck as the foam dissolves. It takes five minutes before I can pry my limbs out of the foam. The minutes pass like hours. Once loose, I make my way towards the comms panel and tilt my head so I can read the display. The escape pod landed on its side. I grasp onto the railings and press the button to activate the landing legs.
I hear the machinery working as the legs extend and level the ship. My body reminds me how badly injured I am as I strain to keep myself steady while the escape pod rights itself.
I sigh in relief as another monitor confirms the atmosphere is breathable. At least I won't have to worry about my oxygen supply. That monitor doesn't just spell relief though. The temperature is registering at 48 Celsius, with the sun just past its zenith. Those temperatures are going to put a strain on the coolants in my suit. I curse to myself, realizing I haven't recharged my coolants. The wind is blowing at a steady 45 klicks per hour. I'm going to need to wear my goggles just to keep the sand and dust out of my eyes.
I activate the comms systems. “This is Astrid. Aboard Pod-6. Do you receive? Anyone out there? Rhea? Are you there?” There is no immediate reply.
It's okay. She probably hasn't activated the comms systems yet. I'm worried though. She's the comms officer. It'd be the first thing she'd do.
I check to make sure the distress beacon is working. Thankfully it is. The red light is flashing steadily. The signal should be strong enough to get through whatever interference there is in the atmosphere. The relay satellites will bounce the signal to the beacon we left at the edge of the system, at our jump-in point. Then it's just a matter of time before the signal travels far enough to get to Kole’s House network. Hopefully Kole's paid his fees and a rescue ship will come along to save us. All we have to do is live long enough for that.
I try the comms system again. “This is Astrid. Aboard Pod-6. Do you receive?” Nothing. “Fuck.” She should have activated the comms systems by now. Kole's not responding either. It's not like him. He'd be all over the comms system trying to see if anyone else made it. He'd want us to make our way to him so he has someone to boss around. We're not worth risking his life to save, but he'd be happy to have us around.
I spend my time waiting to try the comms again by doing inventory on the supplies in the escape pod. I count one old style pistol with an extra clip of ammo. A total of 34 shots. That'll be handy in case we encounter any hostile wildlife. I strap the holster to my thigh. I wince as I'm reminded of the beam that went through Rhea's thigh. “Stay strong girl. I'm gonna come and get you.”
The rest of the inventory is very depressing. The water stores are half empty, and what is available isn't entirely portable. I only have two bottles. I have no idea how long what will last me on this planet. It's pretty obvious that I'm going to have to rely on my stores since there are no open bodies of water on Kartak. It all dried up over a millennium ago.
I give the comms systems another go. “This is Astrid. Aboard Pod-6. Do you receive?” More silence in response. Rhea's comms systems must be broken. If my escape pod made it down, there's no reason hers wouldn't. I try to stay positive. She definitely made it to the planet.
I go back to inventorying the supplies. The food stores are much less sparse than the water. There’s a box of 144 ration cubes. That's enough to last one person 48 days. At least I know I won't starve to death.
My stomach grumbles at the thought of food. I press a hand against my curvy belly pressing up against my survival suit. Might as well eat if I'm going to head out into the desert. I take my helmet off and put it down on the lone seat. I tear the foil off one of the ration cubes and toss it into my mouth. It's incredibly tough and tastes like old rubber. I nearly gag trying to eat the whole thing. I should have known everything on board this pod would match the quality of what we had on the Recluse.
“Well, that's it. Nothing else to inventory. Now, I'm just dithering.”
Great. I'm already talking to myself. Apparently it doesn't take long after a crash landing to start going crazy. I go back to the escape pod terminal. The atmosphere indicator has turned from green to yellow. The readout indicates that it is detecting unknown particles in the air. Just great. At least it's still indicating that the atmosphere is breathable. Hopefully the mystery particles aren't harmful.
I activate the comms systems one last time. “This is Astrid. Aboard Pod-6. Do you receive?” Again, nothing. “Rhea, this is Astrid. I know you can't let me know you are alive, but I know you are. My escape pod landed intact. I have my distress beacon activated and I can trace the signal back to my pod. I'm going to go out and see what's around me...” I stop as my voice starts to tremble.
I don't know how I've managed to maintain my composure this far. But trying to talk to Rhea is starting to shake my confidence. I can hear the fear start to creep into my voice.
“I'm going to try to find your escape pod. I am not going to let the rescue ship leave without you. You hear me? Just stay put. I'll find you!”
By the end of my message, I don't know if I’m trying to convince her or myself. The odds of me finding her are not good. Even a slight difference in the trajectory of our escape pods when they launched could mean a distance of hundreds of klicks. Finding her on a strange planet, with no vehicle, and no signal from her pod is going to be nearly impossible.
I shake my head, trying to get rid of my doubts. “Rhea's relying on me. I have to do whatever it takes to save her.”
I take a dozen ration cubes and put them in a pocket. I fill the two bottles of water and clip them to my belt. I touch the gun on my right thigh to assure myself that it's still there. Then the other thigh to make sure I remembered the extra clip. I brush off what's left of the quickly evaporating suspension foam off my suit. I should make sure I look at least half presentable when introducing myself to a new planet.
I look at the big red button by the exit hatch for longer than I care to admit. I check the batteries on my personal comms. About enough left for two days' worth if I keep it connected to the escape pod. If Rhea manages to get through to the landing pod, I want to hear her.
I take my goggles out of my front pocket and put them on. I breathe deeply, reach out and press the exit button. The mechanism inside the hatch activate, withdrawing the locking cylinders. The light by the button g
oes green, and I push on the door, but it doesn't release.
I move closer, press my bruised shoulder against the door and push against it with all my strength. It gives suddenly and swings open. I go with it, my boots catching on the ledge of the hatch and I tumble down a steep sand dune.
There's nothing to catch myself on, and it's a long way down. I keep falling until I eventually slide to a stop at the bottom of the dune. I try to scramble to my feet as hot orange sand washes down the dune on top of me. The wind whips my hair into my face and I catch a mouthful of sand when I try to curse.
I stand up and try to spit the sand out of my mouth. My lips and tongue feel incredibly dry. The sun beats down ferociously on my head. I'm off to a great start.
I press a button on the side of my goggles, and they adjust to a darker shade. Now I can see. Looks like my escape pod crashed against the side of a large dune and melted the sand around it into a hard surface. Somehow, the landing legs managed to right it on that spot instead of sending it down the dune where I find myself.
All I can see around me is more reddish orange dunes. I'm going to have to climb one of these to get a lay of the land around me. Maybe if I'm high enough, I'll be able to see the other crash site.
I begin climbing the dune immediately in front of me, heading away from my escape pod. It's slow going. I'm not used to climbing a sand dune. My magnetic boots are definitely not the right shoes to do this in. The sand slips out from under my hands and feet as I scramble up the dune. I'm exhausted by the time I reach its crest. I feel like I'm swimming in my own sweat inside my suit. I've got sand in my ears, nose and mouth. Thankfully my neck is sealed so I don't have any sand in the suit. But it's only a matter of time.
I climb to my feet and take a look around. The wind is just as strong down here, but there's a lot less sand in the air. The sky is a crisp blue with not a single cloud in sight. The hot yellow sun beats down on me like a piston. All I see in the distance is more sand. I look at the comms display on my wrist. There's no other signal up here other than my pod's.
Renegade Leo: A Scifi Alien Shifter Romance (Shifter Kings of Kartak Book 1) Page 2