Crash Landing

by Max Chase

  Eeeraaa-craaack! The block of ice snapped and started tipping backwards. He used his spiked toes to launch himself over the ice.

  Craaasssh! The block smashed under him as he landed, spraying water and ice over him like an exploding galactic snow cone. A wave of freezing slush slapped his suit.

  ‘Peri?’ Selene called over the radio. ‘Are you OK?’

  Peri glanced up. An icy fog from cold Swizaser-blasting filled the top of the cave. He couldn’t see his friends – or Otto.

  ‘I’m OK,’ he radioed back. ‘Keep firing!’

  He wasn’t going to get a clearer shot at the glowing heart than this. He was standing on it. He pulled the Swizaser from his belt and fired the brilliant blue beam at the slush under his feet. Instantly, it turned into ice. Glimmering crystals spread out from where he had aimed. He stepped back as the ice tried to freeze around him.

  The icy heart of the moon-planet was expanding beneath his boots. Cloudy vapour swirled around Peri as the ice pushed him up. He was doing it. He was saving the planet! He glanced at the ceiling to see how much more ice was needed to fill the heart. But instead of seeing the moon-bats or their queen, he saw ice crowding in over him.

  What’s happening? he wondered, as a shiver of panic ran through his body. His crew had been firing at the bats to keep them calm, but it must have chilled the air at the top of the cave. Ice had formed on the path around the cavern. It was stretching out to create a dome over the icy-heart. If he wasn’t careful, he was going to be entombed in the ice!

  ‘Selene,’ Peri said over the radio. ‘Stop firing!’

  ‘What?’ Selene asked. ‘Why?’

  ‘Because you’re going to trap me if you don’t,’ Peri said.

  He blasted the ground beneath him again. The icy-heart growled and moaned but it was healing and growing larger. He could feel it lifting him towards the middle of the cave.

  Creeaaack! The noise ricocheted around him. Peri looked up. The partially formed dome of ice was breaking. A huge block sheared off right above him. He leapt aside as it shattered against the heart.

  Peri gasped as splinters of ice pelted his helmet. If he’d been underneath the block, it would have split him in two.

  Creeaaack!

  More lumps of ice were breaking away from the walls. As they crashed down, Peri slid and dived out of their way, narrowly avoiding being pounded into space-mash. He dodged the deadly ice missiles and continued to blast the floor. No matter the danger, he couldn’t leave unless the planet’s heart was healed.

  But it was difficult to dodge and fire at the same time. The ground was still rising. It absorbed the shattered ice into its cloudy white bulk. He was almost there. The heart appeared to be expanding on its own. It must be cold enough to generate its own ice. It kept pushing him up higher and higher. It was now level with the path around the cave, but it was still going.

  Peri half ran and half slid across the surface towards Diesel and Otto. The ice was beginning to rise around them.

  ‘Nice going!’ Selene gave him a high five. ‘I think we should help the icy-heart reach the ceiling so it can stay cold and not melt again.’

  ‘Everyone, fire!’ Peri commanded.

  Selene and Diesel raised their Swizasers. Even Otto helped. Four beams of fierce cold chilled the heart, making it glow brighter and brighter. Cold radiated off it in pulses like heat from the sun. The mass of ice pressed forward, threatening to crush Peri and his crew into the wall.

  ‘Quick, back into the tunnel!’ Peri yelled.

  As the crew raced into the tunnel, ice blocked the entrance to the cavern behind them.

  ‘We’ve done it!’ Peri cheered.

  Peri and his crew switched off their Swizasers. The heart lost its cloudy appearance and took on a pure crystal-blue shine. Inside the ice, they could see moon-bats making new tunnels with their spiked wings.

  ‘Wow,’ Peri exclaimed, ‘look at them go. The moon-bats must live and hibernate inside the ice. Their wings are for flying but they can also tunnel through ice.’ Despite the cold pouring off the ice, a beam of warmth hit their bodies.

  ‘Ch’açh,’ Diesel exclaimed. ‘Do you feel that?’

  ‘Shh, listen,’ Peri ordered. It was hard to hear, but somehow through all the ice and rock, there was a message being sent to them. As he focused on the warmth soothing his body, Peri finally understood what it was. It was a message from the bats and their queen – two words repeated over and over: ‘Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.’

  Peri slumped to the floor alongside the others.

  ‘Rest for a bit,’ Selene said. ‘But then we’ve got to find our way out.’

  ‘Hopefully the Phoenix will be repaired,’ replied Peri. ‘Maybe it can help seal the holes in the planet’s surface to stop the ice melting again, but I don’t know how we even go about finding –’

  Before Peri could finish his sentence, a rumbling filled the tunnel. The ice was still expanding and grinding its way down the tunnel towards them. As they scrambled to their feet and backed away from the danger, Peri noticed the water on the floor was freezing.

  ‘We’re going to be cr-cr-crushed to death!’ Otto screamed. He fired his Swizaser, before remembering it had been modified to make things colder. ‘Stupid thing!’ he cried, throwing it at the wall.

  ‘I don’t understand,’ Diesel muttered. ‘I thought we saved the planet.’

  ‘Why didn’t I think of it before?’ Selene said. ‘It’s not a single column of ice, but the whole core of the planet! The tunnels are like veins. They connect the ice to the rest of the moon-planet. The ice is like blood. Now that the heart is back to normal . . .’

  Peri finished her sentence. ‘The ice will flow through all of these tunnels. We’ll be frozen inside this planet unless we get out now!’

  Chapter 9

  The crew half ran, half slid through the tunnels. Peri’s heart thumped as though trying to break from his chest and get away faster than he could. Every muscle in his legs ached from keeping him upright as he sprinted over the slippery ground. His space boots pounded against the floor, cracking ice as they did so. A wave of jagged ice crystals surged behind them. A nightmare of snow and ice and rock threatened to crush him and freeze him into a space-lolly. It growled and moaned like a snow monster from Pluto, ripping at the walls and ceiling.

  Selene was a few strides ahead, leaving Peri and Diesel to drag Otto. The Meigwor’s limbs had shrunk in the cold, stiffening and becoming slow to react. If the bounty hunter hadn’t been pulled along, he would have been a goner.

  ‘Come on, Otto,’ Peri screamed. ‘We’re nearly there . . .’

  Peri pushed forward, jerking the bounty hunter to move faster. The cascading ice was catching up with them. Sharp white claws sliced at their legs as they sprinted, threatening to grab and crush them. Peri wasn’t sure they’d make it. The sound of cracking, roaring and grinding ice vibrated through the tunnels as the whole planet started to refreeze. Even the tunnel ahead was narrowing as ice formed on the walls and ceiling.

  ‘Let’s leave him,’ Diesel shouted, blue sweat flicking against the inside of his helmet.

  ‘We don’t leave anyone behind,’ Peri replied. ‘Keep hauling.’

  It was no good. The ice ripped Otto from their hands, then swept Diesel into its churning mass. Peri heard Diesel scream ‘Ahra’ck’pha!’ before the ice smashed against his body. It knocked Peri flying. Coldness surged around him. A storm of ice rolled him over headfirst and blocks of ice smashed his body one way, then another.

  ‘Watch out, Selene,’ Peri shouted.

  But all he heard in response was a yelp of surprise. The mammoth tidal wave of ice must have swept Selene off her feet too.

  Peri’s Expedition Wear hissed and whirred, fighting against the ice to inflate. It softened the unseen blows as he was bashed and tossed about. The ice spun Peri over. His helmet smacked against the tunnel ceiling. He panicked, thinking that it had damaged his circuits. But a dim light flashed a warning i
nside the helmet. His night-vision visor had taken a hit.

  ‘I can’t see!’ he shouted.

  ‘My helmet’s malfunctioning too,’ Selene said.

  ‘And mine,’ Diesel grumbled.

  The ice pushed Peri on in total darkness. He could feel himself accelerating through the tunnels at incredible speed. It was like being in some alien rocket launcher, propelled along through a firing-tube before exploding into space. He felt as though he was moving faster than the Phoenix ever flew. Beyond Superluminal. If it wasn’t for the inhuman sound of the ice as it gnawed into the stone and destroyed everything in its path, it might have been fun.

  But it wasn’t. Because Peri didn’t know how long he would survive. The fast-flowing ice was crushing him against the hard black rock above, pushing his Expedition Wear to the limit. How much longer could it protect him? The only thing left to do was hope for a miracle.

  Suddenly, the pressure against the suit vanished. He still couldn’t see, but he could feel that the ice was lifting him upwards now instead. He had to be in one of the shafts which led to the surface.

  ‘We’re rising!’ Selene shouted. ‘I think I can see something.’

  Peri peered upwards. His night-vision visor still wasn’t working, but Selene was right. He could see the edges of a hole at the top of the shaft. He shook his head, not quite believing what he saw. Perhaps it was just wishful thinking.

  Then he saw Diesel roll past. He wasn’t in full colour, but it was definitely his grey silhouette. Natural daylight was filtering through the network of tunnels above them. They were being lifted to the surface of the moon-planet.

  The ice pushed up and up, and the light grew stronger. Peri recognised the shaft they’d fallen through into the labyrinth of tunnels. ‘We’re going to be OK,’ he said.

  The planet seemed to know it, too. A surge of energy burst behind him, hurtling him up towards daylight. Like a sonic boom, Peri was thrown high, away from the hole into the air. Chunks of ice were flung around him like a blizzard.

  Peri hit the sandy ground with a huge thud! It took him a moment to get his breath back and look around for his companions. Diesel had landed headfirst in a bank of the soft, powdery sand. Selene was trying to pull him out.

  ‘We made it!’ Peri whooped, jumping into the air.

  He ran over to Selene and grabbed hold of Diesel’s belt. As they pulled, Diesel kicked against them, trying to wriggle free.

  ‘Hold still,’ Peri yelled. ‘We’re trying to help you.’

  ‘Help?’ Diesel shouted. ‘You’re going to pull my head off.’

  Selene grinned at Peri. They gave one more mighty tug. Diesel popped from the sand like a meteor blasted from a galactic pressure pipe.

  ‘S’fâh,’ Diesel snorted as he tumbled over. ‘And I thought the ice was bad enough.’

  ‘I was scared too,’ Selene said. ‘I really thought we weren’t going to make it.’

  ‘I didn’t say I was scared,’ Diesel snapped. ‘I mean, that was the coolest ride in the universe! We should try to do it again.’

  Peri rolled his eyes. Diesel never changed, but he was very glad they had made it out alive. He could see the Phoenix up ahead. There wasn’t a single dent in the egg-shaped shell. The sleek white surface glistened in the sunlight as if the ship had never flown a single cosmic-centimetre. He didn’t need a bionic link to the ship to know their vessel was fully repaired and ready to get back to their mission.

  ‘Come on,’ Selene said, shaking sand out of her podpack. ‘We should get aboard and see how Prince Onix is doing.’

  Peri couldn’t wait to get back on the Phoenix, but he could feel something nagging in his belly like a Venusian stomach-eating-scorpion. ‘Something’s not right.’

  ‘What do you mean?’ Diesel asked. ‘Did you forget to say goodbye to your batty friends?’

  Peri stared blankly at his crew as he tried to make sense of the feeling. He had forgotten something.

  Then he realised who was missing. ‘Where’s Otto?’

  Chapter 10

  ‘Down here, E-e-earthling!’ Otto stuttered. He was trapped from the waist down in ice. His frosted arms strained as he tried to lift himself out, but they were weak with cold. The Meigwor was shivering uncontrollably. ‘G-g-get me o-o-out of here, n-n-now!’

  Peri tried not to giggle, but Diesel was howling with laughter. Blue tears ran down his cheeks.

  ‘Well, this is lucky,’ Selene said with a smile on her face. ‘We can just leave him here – thanks to this rocket-tastic planet.’

  ‘You can’t leave me here!’ Otto shouted. ‘Typical of an inferior species to –’

  Diesel shook his head. ‘You deserve it. It’s probably Ving Tenal.’

  Peri had never heard that expression before. ‘What?’ he asked.

  Diesel sighed. ‘Don’t they teach newbies anything? Planets aren’t just lumps of earth and water orbiting suns. They have Ving Tenal. It’s hard to understand, if you’re not an expert in Martian, like me. This planet looked after the three people who tried to protect it, but not the one person who didn’t want to help. The planet must have heard everything he said about eating the moon-bats and decided to get its revenge. The planet has Ving Tenal.’

  ‘Nonsense!’ Otto shouted, wriggling furiously. ‘Planets are not alive. Stupid, superstitious, nonsense! Now stop talking and g-g-get me out of here, space-monkeys!’

  Peri and Selene each grabbed one of Otto’s long arms. ‘Careful!’ Otto growled.

  ‘Stop being a space-baby,’ Selene muttered. ‘On the count of three. One, two, three!’

  Peri tugged with all his strength. It was hard work. The Meigwor really was stuck. Peri’s muscles strained as the ice gripped Otto, but he could feel him slowly coming free. With a cry of triumph and relief, Otto exploded from the ground.

  Peri and Selene were thrown back as Otto was flung over their heads. The Meigwor-shaped ice hole sealed itself with a craaccc-tuuutp!

  ‘Freezing, horrible planet!’ Otto grumbled as he picked himself up and stormed towards the ship. ‘Just you wait! When I’m w-w-warm again I’ll show you space-monkeys a th-th-thing or t-t-two . . .’

  But the Phoenix refused to let Otto back in the gleaming ship, until the crew had caught up.

  Peri hesitated before pressing his hand against the sleek surface, remembering how it had electrocuted Diesel when he tried to get back in. But the Phoenix was ready to go now. A ghostly green light traced his palm and a rectangular door appeared. It swung open, sending a ramp gliding down into the sand. ‘Welcome back,’ the vessel said as they climbed into the ship.

  ‘Thank you,’ Peri replied.

  The ramp retracted and the door closed. Whiiirrr. Air blasted from every direction, dislodging sand from the Expedition Wear. Peri led the group along the moving walkway to the Bridge.

  It’s good to be back on board, thought Peri. As the door to the Bridge opened, Peri wondered if the moon-bats would be OK now. ‘Selene, can we do something to seal the holes on the planet’s surface?’ Peri asked.

  ‘No problem.’ Selene grabbed the control panel. Her fingers flew over the rows of buttons and dials. ‘I’m scanning the surface . . .’ A small monitor popped up with an image of the moon-planet. It pinpointed the holes in the surface. ‘Now I’m analysing the geological composition of the planet . . .’

  ‘What?’ Diesel asked.

  ‘She’s studying the rocks,’ Peri explained.

  ‘So I can create a compound that will seal the holes and fit in with the planet’s natural materials,’ Selene continued. ‘The Phoenix will eject something like a planet-sized plaster that will eventually merge with the surrounding material. And I’ve just about . . .’ She flicked a few switches and the ship shuddered. ‘That’s it. All done.’ She activated the 360-monitor. ‘There. All better.’

  The crew stood amazed at the Phoenix’s handiwork. A spongy blob splatted on the edge of each hole and then stretched to cover the space completely.

  �
�Let’s make sure the bats are OK,’ Peri said, taking the control panel from Selene. Peri punched a few buttons and the small monitor changed, showing a series of red blobs moving in criss-crossing directions throughout the planet. ‘You can see on this infrared image, the moon-bats are rebuilding a network of bat-sized tunnels in the ice.’

  Selene gave Peri a high five. ‘Orbitastic!’

  ‘I think you both are a little batty,’ Diesel muttered.

  The Phoenix announced, ‘Xion specimen Prince Onix has been rejuvenated. He is currently being revived.’

  ‘Let’s get to the Med Centre,’ Peri exclaimed. ‘We need to convince Onix that Selene meant no harm.’

  Peri sprinted to the nearest portal. He thought of the Med Centre and when the portal hissed open, there was Prince Onix climbing out of a stasis-pod, looking dazed. The others crowded in behind Peri.

  ‘How are you feeling?’ Peri asked.

  The prince reacted with horror. ‘Stay away from me!’ he shouted, jumping behind the stasis-pod. ‘Don’t come any closer! Or, I’ll . . . I’ll . . .’

  ‘Calm down, wastoid,’ Diesel said. ‘It’s only us.’

  ‘All of you, stay back,’ the prince shouted, looking wildly around. ‘What have you done to me?’

  ‘What do you mean?’ Selene asked. ‘It’s us, Onix.’

  ‘Onix? Who’s he?’ the prince muttered. ‘I don’t know any of you. Where am I?’

  Great, Peri thought, he’s got amnesia! He doesn’t know who he is!

  ‘What did you put in that Sleepez, Selene?’ whispered Peri, moving slowly towards the prince.

  But Onix was like a frightened animal. He backed up against the wall, looking for a way to escape. ‘Stay away!’ he screamed, trying to pull something off a silver control panel. ‘I’ll hurt anyone who comes near me. I don’t care who you are, or who I am, just stay where you –’