by Jessica Cole
As soon as he stepped into the shadow of the exit, Jana burst through the plants and headed in the opposite direction. Aeronth hesitated. He was antsy. Jana could tell he wanted to find out what was going on, but they didn’t have the luxury of time. She caught his attention and shook her head. “I’m sorry. We can’t.”
“I know.”
Jana swallowed and it felt like there was a bullet lodged in her throat. “Aeronth, I don’t feel so well.” She was sweating, but the room wasn’t feeling so warm anymore. He reached for her, but she pulled back. “I’m fine for now. Please, let’s just go. Don’t worry about me. I’m not some fragile little doll to take care of.”
He recoiled and rubbed his fingers on the palm of his hand. He pushed past her, leading the way through more cement hallways that looked exactly the same as the others. Aside from the greenhouse, none of it looked particularly special. She wasn’t sure of the size of their force, but at least half a dozen had ambushed them in the jungle. It was suspicious that they’d only come across one person aside from their torturer. What was this? Some sort of research facility? Why did they have guns? They didn’t seem friendly to military personnel. Some kind of private company? There were so many questions.
They reached another fork. Aeronth threw up a hand and shrugged. “Which way? This place is a damn maze.”
Jana shrugged. His guess is as good as mine at this point. “When in doubt, go left.” They went left and came to an unlocked door. It opened silently, well-oiled and used often. The round handle of the door was plain, but the polished finish was rubbed off along the edge. The dull gray door had a patch around the handle covered in a dirty residue, the kind that built up over time from not washing it. Something crunched under her heels. Jana lifted her boot and saw little glass shards, and realized this part of the hallway was relatively dark.
The bulb outside this door was broken, so no bright light streamed into the dark room. Even with the limited visibility, they were able to take stock of their surroundings. Through the door was a small landing and a short set of stairs that ran along the wall. Jana approached the metal railing and squinted. It looks like a city skyline, all buildings of different heights. It was a room full of boxes; wooden crates mingled with steel ones stacked in piles that reached nearly all the way to the elevated ceiling.
“There has to be a way out somewhere near here.”
“How do you figure that?” Aeronth was scanning the room.
Jana looked at him matter-of-factly, arms spread. “Who would drag thousands of crates into the middle of a compound like this?” The hint of a smile crossed Aeronth’s mouth. There were no overhead lights on, which was comforting. The chance of anyone lurking about in the dark were slim to none. And with such limited visibility from both the sheer volume of boxes and the darkness combined, any security cameras that might be in place wouldn’t have a visual on them.
“What was that?” They stopped. Jana heard it too. Voices. Far away, but close enough to resonate to them through the warehouse.
“We can’t finish loading the rest of the shipment until we hear from Matthews. What the hell is taking him so long?” The voice crackled over the walkie-talkie.
“Hell if I know. Keep your mask on, will you? I think they spilled some last time.”
“Yeah yeah. Well when you hear from him, gimme a call. I gotta take a leak.”
Jana frowned. “I don’t think anyone’s in here. I think they just left the walkie-talkie in here somewhere.”
“I was thinking the same thing. Let’s test this escape route theory of yours.”
Jana and Aeronth didn’t stick around to find the walkie-talkie. It could be anywhere, and pinpointing the location would take forever. They navigated their way through the maze of boxes. As they progressed, Jana started to feel cold and itchy. Not again. Please, not again. Gordon had said it was only a temporary fix, and that the underlying problem was still there. I need more time! Jana felt the faint sensation of wind against her skin and headed towards it. They found the door, quite large and open, sending light streaming into the warehouse. It was hidden behind a particularly massive mountain of crates.
Aeronth led the way out. He poked his head out and did a quick sweep of their surroundings. He nodded to her and motioned for her to follow. The sun felt nice on her skin. Out of the corner of her eye, Jana noticed a squat little cargo ship docked outside, loaded up with the crates. Aeronth saw it, too. “We should see what it is.”
He wouldn’t hear any of it. “Too dangerous. How many times are you going to try and get killed in one day?”
“But—“
“No. Let’s go.” They crept across the quiet compound, white cement covered with creeping vines like an old ruin. But the structure beneath seemed quite intact from what she’d seen. She suspected there was an underground structure, as well. They hadn’t seen any living quarters or anything resembling a research facility.
They made it out without incident. As soon as they hit the tree line, the pair picked up speed. She followed Aeronth, who seemed to have some idea which direction to go.
“Aeronth,” Jana said after a while. “I don’t feel so good. Can we stop?” I’m going to throw up all over the place.
“Jana? You okay?”
“I—I don’t know.” The bile rose in her throat.
“You don’t look too well. Sit down.” He helped her to sit, but she swayed dangerously.
“I k—killed him.”
“You did what you had to in order to keep both of us alive.” She caught him peeking around in case they were being flanked, and she felt like an idiot for holding them up. I’m so weak.
“Is it getting lighter, or darker?” Jana asked dreamily. Aeronth raised an eyebrow, concerned.
“Are you alright?”
“I’m fine,” she said, staring off into nothingness. Aeronth waved a hand in front of her face, but she didn’t move.
“Wow. We need to get you back to the others, fast.” He looked around for something to help, but found nothing. “Can you walk?”
“Of course I can,” she insisted adamantly. Jana stumbled and nearly fell. Aeronth’s reactions were fast, though, and he caught her around the shoulders.
“Yeah, sure.” He lifted her off her feet, cradling her in his arms like a little rag doll. “I’ve got you. It’s okay.”
“How are they going to get to us?”
“They don’t need to land. They can send down the lift.” The lift was a small, elevator looking thing that worked independently of the ship. The ship dropped a small magnetic pad to the ground and sent down the container. Once the person was inside, the ship could remote control the pad and with little thrusters they could be brought back onto the ship. It was good for supply runs for small ships, or transferring passengers from a transport without having to dock the entire ship.
Aeronth began quickly navigating through the jungle, careful not to jostle her around too much. Jana’s brain was completely scrambled; all she could manage was inane babble. Aeronth attempted to quiet her, speaking softly to the deranged girl.
“Come on, don’t give up on me now.”
“Aeronth?”
“Yeah?”
Jana whimpered. “Am I going to die?” It was getting colder, but Aeronth’s body felt like a warm blanket. His scent comforted her.
“You’d better not.”
“Did you mean it?”
“Mean what?”
“What you said about leaving together.”
“We’ll talk about that later.”
“Okay...” she trailed, whimpering in the dark. “I don’t want to die.”
“No one wants to die.”
“Why don’t you like me?” she pouted.
“I don’t like anyone.”
“You should like me. I’m r-really nice,” she said.
“Do you like me?” he asked in return.
Jana simply shook her head and clamped her mouth shut. “No,” she said, “I’m not tell
ing you anything.” She sighed then, leaning her head into his chest. It was getting hard to focus her eyes again. Her whole left hand was purple and swollen, the fingers mangled. It was getting dark again, which made the going twice as difficult and half as quick. Aeronth stumbled on an odd root, or a rock imbedded in the ground. Still, he carried Jana as if she were the most delicate thing in the world. There was a good chance he’d taken a good look around and realized that on this planet, she probably was.
She didn’t know when she fell asleep, but when Jana woke a while later, a pained cry emanated from her cotton-dry throat. Aeronth gave her a few sips of water. She coughed, shivering. He put a hand to her forehead and withdrew it almost immediately. Aeronth looked around like he didn’t know where to go.
“Aeronth?”
“What is it?”
“I’m sorry,” Jana sniffled miserably, holding back a wave of tears.
He looked so sad. “For what?”
“I lost your knife.” She fell back asleep before he could respond.
After she woke up again, for reasons unknown even to her, she spoke not a word and stirred not a centimeter, preferring to drink in the moments she had with him. Every once in a while, Aeronth would start talking to himself.
“Where the hell am I?” he grit his teeth in frustration. “This is so goddamn stupid. Where the hell are they?” His voice echoed through the forest. In the distance, a light flashed. Aeronth cradled Jana’s head and quickly dropped down into a kneeling position. He set her on the ground against a fallen log. She opened her eyes as he pressed a finger to her mouth, motioning to be quiet. He pulled out his gun.
“Stay here. Keep quiet, and don’t move,” he ordered in a whisper.
Before she could say anything, he had stalked off into the darkness.
Five minutes passed without sound, but to Jana it felt like an eternity. A branch snapped. Paralyzed with fear, she froze. Aeronth had taken her gun earlier, and she was defenseless.
"Jana!"
She had been holding her breath without realizing it. Releasing it slowly, Jana looked at Gordon, Lexi, and David. Aeronth came from behind them.
"You guys scared the hell out of me," she reprimanded.
"Are you kidding me?! We’ve been out here looking for you all day!" Lexi cried.
"Shut it Lexi!" said Gordon as he reached down and felt Jana’s forehead. "Not again," he groaned.
"Luckily, we got the ship on the radio. They’re picking us up at daybreak."
"Where?"
David held the locator. "Where ever we are. They picked up the signal. I told them about your situation."
"How long until dawn?" asked Gordon.
Jana was shaking violently, bile rising in her throat as she rolled to her side and vomited on the ground next to her. She spat, feeling like she was going to be sick again. Blinded by a flashlight, she winced at the sudden, bright light.
"Oh my god, is that—?" Jana wiped her mouth and looked. Thick red blood glistened in the sickly white light.
"Let’s just hope they get here on time."
20. Regroup
They found a clearing. Lexi, bless her, had thought to bring the rudimentary camping gear from their original camp after the wreck. They had a few blankets and sleeping bags, a few collapsible bowls and cups, and some utensils. Nothing fancy, but it would work for one night. Jana was reluctant to allow them to make a fire for fear of being spotted by the soldiers from the compound again, but they were miles away from there. They were almost certainly hunting for them, but without knowing which direction Aeronth took her, it could take them quite a while. The jungle was too dense for vehicles, and they’d encountered no makeshift roads through it. Aerial searches would be futile, too, with the canopy. Any pursuit would have to be on foot, and that took time and resources.
“We’re prepared this time. They won’t be sneaking up on anyone,” Lexi insisted. David had a bulky field tablet out, encased in the same black steel they used for Mech frames. They used Lexi’s weapons case as a table, the tablet on it like a beacon. When he first turned it on, the scanner went crazy and beeped so frantically that it screeched. David mashed a few buttons on the touch screen and turned it off for a moment, fiddling with the settings.
“Sorry! Sorry. I wasn’t thinking. I’m going to switch the settings. These things weren’t designed to be used in places with abundant life forms. The scans are mostly for derelict ships to find survivors, so the parameters have to be heavily modified.” He stuck his tongue out the side of his mouth while he worked. After a minute or two, he was satisfied. “There.” He initiated the scan again, and the rest of the team braced themselves for the shrieking. The sensor was calm. It beeped softly every few seconds, constantly scanning the surrounding area. They had a fifty meter buffer zone in every direction. Jana was satisfied, and allowed Lexi to start a small fire.
“So,” Lexi sighed after a while, watching Gordon carefully pull a clear, thin glove over Jana’s hand while Jana looked away, not wanting to look at the sickening sight of her hand. “What the fuck happened?” Their medic took a small syringe out of his kit. There was a blue gel inside, that he slowly pushing into the lining of the glove. It filled, reacted with the thin layer of material inside, and expanded like a balloon. She’d never had need for a field cast before. You’ve never been in the field before.
“Leave that for a few minutes until it hardens. Keep it elevated.” He put the supplies away and shot her with another dose of the medicine he’d concocted earlier. “I don’t know how long this is going to be effective for. Tell me if there are any changes.” Aeronth sat next to her, but kept a bit of distance between them. Even with the fever and pain, each time she caught his gaze, she was embarrassed. I kissed him. What the hell was I even thinking? She didn’t know where to begin explaining what happened.
“After you left, we were ambushed. It was my fault. I should have been more careful, more observant.” Aeronth’s hands were balled into fists on his knees. He blames himself for this. “I don’t know what happened before they pulled me into the room, but we were tied up and they tried to get information out of her. He hurt her pretty bad. Jana managed to get free when the guy turned around, and we escaped.” He left out the part about the roulette, and the pool, and the crates. Why didn’t he tell them? Why is he hiding all this from them?
Aeronth reached over and took Jana’s good hand in his. She was as confused by it as the rest of the team, who were absolutely bewildered. His touch wasn’t tender or affectionate, and she got the feeling it was more of a sign to her that she should just go along with what he said. Whatever. But if he doesn’t think he owes me an explanation, he has another thing coming. She sat in silent defiance but kept her mouth shut. David and Gordon shrugged it off, but Lexi was horrible at feigning disinterest and looked suspicious of them.
"It’s too bad you guys couldn’t get a good look at the place, what they were doing there?
That’s just really...bizarre.”
"They had to have found him there by now. Matthews was gone for a while, they’re definitely looking for us by now," Aeronth replied.
David held up a hand. "How do you know his name?"
"I think that was his name,” Aeronth shrugged. “We overheard some chatter about how late someone named Matthews was. Made it seem like he was pretty important." He released her hand and stretched wide.
Gordon took Jana’s temperature again. "She’s still getting worse. I’ve never seen anything like it. This poison is so complex…"
"She’s not a goddamn science experiment, Gordon," snapped Lexi. "Sorry," she grumbled when he saw the abashed look on the medic’s face.
The others asked endless questions of her, but she followed Aeronth’s lead and left out details of the things he omitted from his story. He didn’t leave her side the whole time, which made Jana furious. Does he think I need babysitting? I’m not an idiot.
“I have to pee.” Jana said loudly, and used Aeronth’s shoulder to ste
ady herself when she stood. Really she just wanted a few minutes to herself away from him. She took one of the small blankets with her, wrapped around her shoulders. It smelled musty but it was better than nothing. She glanced back and saw Aeronth shift in his seat. “You going to follow me to the bathroom, too?” Jana snapped. He stopped moving and everyone was looking at her in confusion.
“Someone needs to go with you. You’re sick, and you can’t just go wandering off.” Aeronth grumbled.
“I’ll go with her,” Lexi offered, eyes shifting between Jana and Aeronth. She stood and stretched. “I need to take a walk, anyway.”
Jana stomped off towards the tree line with Lexi scurrying towards her retreating back. It was difficult to hold onto the blanket with only one useful hand; the other made her feel like a cartoon character, but at least it didn’t hurt anymore.
“Jana, wait.” Lexi breathed. She stopped in her tracks, but couldn’t muster the composure to face her team member. The tall, slender woman caught up to Jana and put a hand on her shoulder.
“Don’t touch me. I don’t want to be touched. I don’t want to be poked and prodded at anymore. I want to be left alone.”
“What is going on with you?”
“I was abducted,” she spit, “and tortured. And...” she shook her head. “I killed someone, and everyone is just...sort of fine with that.”
Lexi planted herself in Jana’s way and stuck her face centimeters away. “You listen to ME.” Her face was hard, twisted in anger. “You went through something. It sucks. It happened. But we’re your friends, you can’t go through this alone. We’re here. Talk to us. Pushing people away is the best way to ruin yourself. Accept help, that’s what we’re here for.” She reached out a hand and Jana recoiled. Lexi ignored it and wrapped her arms around Jana’s shoulders, pulling her in gently. “It’s going to be okay.”