“It’s fine. I can handle myself.” Raze didn’t look away from the screen.
“I’d never forgive myself if something happened and I wasn’t around to back you up. So fuck you, Raze. I’m coming whether you like it or not,” Ava said.
“It’s settled then. Raze, Ava, Vynce, you take the right junction. Al and I will take the left. We’ll meet back here, right in front of this command console once Raze has kicked the engines back into gear. If any of you run into trouble, you make sure you report it,” Draco said. “Don’t be heroes, because heroes die.”
“Yes sir,” they replied in unison.
Their anonymous friend from the loudspeaker joined them again, ‘Very good plan. Perfect, actually. Raze Krosis, you are good. The capacitors you need are in repair bay three. Follow the corridor to the left, past the power junction. Once you’ve got the engines running again, I’ll have further instructions for you.’
Draco prickled at the usage of Raze’s full name. Whoever was on the other end of the microphone knew way too much about Draco and his crew.
“By further instructions, you mean you’ll give us a clear path back to our ship,” Draco said.
‘Not quite. There are still people in danger on this vessel, and they need you if they are to survive.’
Draco sighed. Whoever this guy was, he was not going to let them out of this situation without using them for his own agenda.
“Move out, let’s get the tub out into safe space.”
Chapter Thirteen
The door to the left of the command console opened out into the huge engine bay. There were lights along the grid metal boardwalk all the way to repair bay three, where the capacitors waited. The only thing that stood between them and a deadly plunge into the engine bay cavity below them was a waist high guard rail.
They moved out.
“We have to move as a unit to get the capacitors, Draco said. “Then we’ll split up into two teams to put them in place. Al and I will take the closest capacitor, then head back to the command console to be ready to start the engines. Vynce, Ava and Raze will install the other capacitor on the far side of the engine bay. Once the capacitors are in place, Vynce and Raze will all go to the power junction. Al and I will be at the command console and make sure all the systems come back up when the power is turned on. Any questions?”
“Yeah, once we put the capacitor in, I’m not hanging around in the dark by myself. I’ll go with Raze and Vynce to switch the power back on,” Ava said.
“All right.”
They followed the illuminated path. The engine drive cores were beneath them, shrouded in darkness.
Their shoulder flashlights barely penetrated the oppressive darkness in the enormous engine bay. The natural human fear of the dark played on their minds as they moved. Their footsteps on the metal boardwalk echoed out into the engine bay. If there was something there waiting in the darkness, it would be able to hear them coming.
They reached the walkway that led to Draco and Al’s target. They moved past at speed but would be back once they had the capacitor. Repair bay three was only a little further.
The shutter door to the repair bay opened as they approached. Whoever was pulling the strings could see them, and he could manipulate doors, lights, and power to make sure that they stuck to his plan.
Draco felt his anger simmering. He could normally keep a lid on it, but that prick on the other end of the microphone was really pushing his buttons.
It was one thing to take an order from a superior officer in the interests of the greater good.
It was another thing entirely to be blackmailed and manipulated to be a pawn in a plan that you weren’t privy to. But they had no other choice, so Draco and the rest of the crew walked into the repair bay and began searching for the capacitors.
‘The capacitors are in the small storeroom at the back of the repair bay. You will need two people to carry them as they are quite heavy,’ the voice over the loudspeaker said.
The light above the storeroom door flickered on and the door slid open.
“Captain, I’ll retrieve our capacitor,” Aloysius said and followed Raze and Ava into the storeroom.
With the strength of three men, Aloysius easily picked up and carried the capacitor by himself. It was not a single capacitor in the traditional sense. It was made up of a number of smaller capacitors which regulated power output. Without these cluster capacitors, the engines would simply overheat and explode. The cluster capacitors were the size of a small dog, but extremely dense.
Raze and Vynce struggled to carry their capacitor between them. Vynce almost tripped and lost his grip as he walked backwards.
“God damn it!”
Ava rolled her eyes and took over from Vynce. She and Raze carried the capacitor between them.
“You’re on guard duty, you weakling. If we die, it’s your fault,” Ava said.
Vynce blushed in embarrassment.
“Al, I’ll cover you while you put the capacitor in place. Vynce, Raze, Ava, you three have some distance to cover, so get to it,” Draco said.
Without another word, the other three moved out towards the other junction on the far side of the engine bay as their anonymous director lit up their path through the darkness. In between the repair bay and the other power junction was a raised platform. On top of the platform was an illuminated box. The manual override switch.
Draco and Aloysius moved out. Draco kept his pistol held at the ready as they moved back towards the first power junction. He missed his assault rifle like a missing limb.
Draco could hear scratching and scuttling coming from somewhere nearby. There was something in the engine bay with them.
“Eyes up,” Draco said. “We’re not alone in here.”
Draco watched the flashlight beams of the other half of his crew across the chasm angle up and down as they scanned for threats.
They reached the path to the power junction and turned. The power junction was encased in a heavy metallic shell, and it split apart as they approached.
“Do you know where that goes?” Draco asked.
“Not yet, but I’m sure I’ll be able to figure it out,” Aloysius said.
Aloysius studied the hub for a moment and found the blown capacitor. He twisted it, pulled it out, tossed it aside, and put the working capacitor into place. The moment that the capacitor was in place, the metallic shell closed. Aloysius pulled his hands back only seconds before the shell snapped closed.
With the capacitor placed, they returned to the command console as Raze, Ava and Vynce made their way through the darkness.
Chapter Fourteen
Raze and ava reached the other power junction shortly after Draco and Aloysius placed the first capacitor. As they approached, the hub opened. Ava watched Raze’s back as he pulled the blown capacitor out. Ava helped him lift the replacement capacitor into place and secure it. The shell slid closed again.
‘Both capacitors have been replaced. Return to the manual override junction and we will be ready to blast out of orbit,’ the voice over the loudspeaker said.
The sound of something scurrying around down in the darkness grew louder. Something was climbing up the struts that held the metallic boardwalk over the engines.
“Uhh, guys, we should probably get out of here,” Vynce said.
With both capacitors restored, Raze knew there was only one thing left to do.
“Ava, Vynce, you both need to head back to the main engine control console. I can trip the switch by myself,” Raze said.
“What if one of those things jumps out of the darkness and attacks you?” Vynce asked.
“Then I’ll kill it and get the job done.”
Vynce started to argue, but Ava cut him off.
“If Raze wants to be a hero, let him. He’s more than capable.”
“You’re really going to let him go by himself?”
“Yes, he’s a big boy and he can make his own fucking decisions. I’m not going to play mot
her if he wants to go off by himself.”
“Please Vynce, I can handle this by myself. It’s just flipping a switch,” Raze added.
“Fine,” Vynce relented.
As Ava and Vynce started back towards the main kiosk, Raze turned back towards the manual override junction. He ran down the metal boardwalk that looked down over the engine cavity. The power junction was raised higher than the boardwalk, and a bright yellow light illuminated the switch he needed to flick.
From behind him, Raze head movement. He spun to see a group of small creatures climb from underneath the boardwalk. For a moment, Raze’s mind couldn’t comprehend what he saw.
A human head, with another formless alien head sticking out of an overextended mouth. An upside-down foot, where each toe grew on its own tentacle-like stalk, writhing in the darkness. The creatures bounded towards Raze on stubby legs. The head-in-a-head exploded as a well-placed volley of bullets blew it apart. The foot creature was too close, so Raze sunk a boot into it and kicked it all the walkway.
Raze felt his stomach drop when two more scuttled towards him. These two were both human arms, but with extra digits sprouting from the skin. A cluster of eyes stared out from the palms of the hands as they reached for Raze’s legs. He shot one and stomped on the other. The force of his grav boot snapped the bones like twigs. It writhed on the ground, screeching in pain. Raze kicked it over the side of the walkway and it fell into the darkness too.
If one of these smaller creatures took him by surprise, he would be in trouble. If he kept his wits about him, he would be fine. He sent a command to his suit to boost external stimuli detectors by sacrificing power to a couple of non-essential systems. His display inside the helmet immediately lit up to show that there were more of them hiding in the darkness all around the engine bay.
They weren’t just coming for him. They were coming for everyone.
As Ava ran back towards the control room, a group of creatures fell from above, knocking Vynce off his feet. Ava raised her rifle and dispatched the creatures with short controlled bursts of fire, but not before two on Vynce’s back had begun to spew a sticky fluid onto the prone soldier. Ava fired two volleys of bullets, and the creatures exploded into a pulpy mass of blood and gore. Vynce tried to lift himself to his feet, but the sticky substance they spewed onto his back limited his movement.
“What the fuck were they doing on my back? I can’t move,” he said.
Ava took Vynce by the shoulder and lifted him to his feet. She turned Vynce around to inspect his back. The liquid had already hardened into a solid resin, which locked his shoulders in place. He couldn’t lift his arm above his chest or reach backwards. Ava tore the resin from his back and threw it to the side.
“That must be how they caught most of the crew. They send these little things out to disable you. They were trying to stick your pasty ass to the boardwalk,” Ava said.
“That’s doesn’t make any sense. Why would they stick you somewhere?”
“Well that just means that something else would have to come around where these little things have been to collect you,” Ava said.
“I don’t want to meet whatever does the collecting.”
“I think we already have. You remember that huge thing that tried to chase us down the vent? I think it followed those little cockroaches to find us. Maybe that’s how they work. These little things find and subdue the prey, then the big motherfuckers come along and take you.”
“I think we should go make sure Raze is all right. If he gets ambushed by these things, he’s as good as dead.”
“Yeah, you might have been right on this one,” Ava admitted reluctantly.
Ava and Vynce turned around and ran back towards the main power junction. They ran along the boardwalk as fast as they could.
Raze reached the ladder to the power junction without incident. He had begun to climb the ladder when something slammed into his back hard enough to make him lose his grip. Luckily his grav boots kept him stable.
Raze turned his head to see something with far too many appendages climbing up his back. Two long muscular rope-like limbs flashed in front of his eyes before he felt a crushing pressure around his neck.
The thing on his back was choking him, even through the suit! He tried in vain to shake the thing off, but its grip was too strong. He dug his hands into one of the tentacles around his neck and squeezed. It squeezed right back and Raze saw stars. There wasn’t enough pressure to break through the suit or do any damage to his neck, but the thing had cut off his oxygen.
Raze was being smothered in his own suit.
He let go of the thing around his neck and pulled his sunstorm welder out of his thigh pocket. He flicked the switched and the bright beam of the welder shot out. It was still six inches long but Raze quickly adjusted it shorter. He couldn’t see how tightly the thing was wrapped around his neck, but unless he did something in a couple of seconds, he’d black out and it would all be over.
Raze brought the beam of the welder closer to his neck and he heard an inhuman wail of pain right behind his head. He saw one of the appendages drop off the side of the ladder and into the darkness below. He brought the welder closer to his neck again but pulled away as he felt the heat of it coming too close. If he burnt a hole in his armor, then the thing could get at him, and there was no telling what kind of biohazards he might be exposed to. He lifted the welder a little closer to another spot of pressure and the monster let go of his neck.
A beautiful, cool rush of oxygen washed over him, and he breathed in deep ragged breathes. The thing was still on his back, and he needed to get it off before it launched another attack.
There was a gunshot from the right, and the weight of the creature immediately lifted. Ava ran towards him, rifle barrel still red from the heat of the bullet which had just saved his life. Between Raze and Ava, another dozen small creatures climbed from underneath the boardwalk.
“Go, turn the power on!” Ava yelled to Raze.
Raze ascended the ladder quickly as Ava and Vynce made short work of the little creatures. More of them had started to climb from under the boardwalk behind them. Vynce killed the ones behind them. Ava killed the ones that climbed up after Raze with eagle eye accuracy.
Raze lifted himself onto the platform and pulled open the hatch marked emergency manual override. He didn’t dare look over the side of the platform, or back down the ladder. There was a level inside the hatch. Raze wrapped his fingers around the lever and pulled down.
Power re-engaged, and lights came on all around the engine bay. From his perch above it all Raze could appreciate the magnitude of the engines that powered this magnificent ship. Each of the dual engine drives was as big as a football field, and they both came back to life with an almighty roar. As Raze realized just how far up he really was, a wave of nausea came over him. He quickly steadied himself and started climbing back down the ladder
It was only when Raze looked up that he realized the true magnitude of the monumental pile of shit they were in.
There was colony of these bits and pieces monsters living on the roof of the engine bay.
Hundreds of them teemed together, moving as one, down the wall towards the boardwalk. Ava could make out what looked like former passengers in the mess of creatures on the ceiling, stuck there with resin. But it didn’t make sense. Some of the people still looked alive, yet they were missing limbs, organs and heads.
Yet still they moved.
The engines powered up to full capacity, and the sound was almost too much to bear. The air thrummed around them, followed by a downdraft as it was sucked into the huge turbines below.
Raze landed heavily back onto the boardwalk. He didn’t even look down as he jumped from the ladder. He was just eager to get back to almost-solid ground.
They took off back towards the engine control room with a swarm of monsters following right on their heels.
Chapter Fifteen
Back at the engine control console, Draco watch
ed Aloysius bring all the systems back online one by one. He managed the flow of power across the ship to make sure nothing blew. There was no telling what other disasters had happened across the ship before these things overran it.
Everything seemed to be coming back online in fine working order. The only thing that they needed to do now was to wait for the others to get back.
“Al, see if you can get us a map or something before we’re locked out,” Draco said. “Just get whatever you can. That might help.”
“Yes, Captain.”
“We haven’t heard from the Icarus yet either. See if you can see who’s jamming our comms.”
“Yes, Captain.”
Aloysius worked quickly while he had access to the command console. He was determined to find out who had been jamming his access to the system inside Metropolis Seven, and who was jamming their communications to the Icarus.
As Aloysius linked with the system to trace the jamming signal back to its source, he rerouted the power supply lines so that the power could not be cut to the command console.
Without warning, the doors leading to the engine bay slammed shut. The engines were approaching peak power output and were on the cusp of becoming operational again.
“Al, did you do that?” Draco asked.
“No, Captain.”
“Our people are out there! You need to get that door open right now!”
Ava pounded on the door from the other side. “Open the fucking door!”
“We’re in a tight spot out here,” Vynce said.
“We’re trying. I-” Draco said, but he felt the rest of the world slow down around him as energy crackled throughout the control room. “Al, get that door open!” He felt as though his muscles had atrophied mid-stride. All the strength drained from his body as Aloysius worked to get the door open. He was left staring at his crew on the other side of the door through the clear window.
Behind Ava, Raze and Vynce, the marauding mass of flesh thundered towards them in a wave, ebbing and flowing with its own undercurrent. They climbed along the railings, underneath the boardwalk, and along the boardwalk.
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