The end of this corridor connected with the landing of the stairwell. He reached forward to start pulling himself down.
Cinnamon!
A wave of fear hit him in the face. His heart raced and his palms became slick. Something moved in his peripheral vision. He looked down.
Yes. There it was. The alien was climbing the stairs. The grotesque head emerged, followed by four arms.
Braxton fired his pistol at the alien - for no reason other than to quickly move backward. He reached the doorway and pulled himself back into the mess hall. Maybe he could hide among the bodies. Did all humans look alike to these aliens?
Too late.
The alien was coming through the doorway, buckling the metal as it squeezed through.
This was it. There was one useless spacey left in his gun. If only he’d been able to get to the armoury. Now he’d be just another body, floating about in his suit.
Wait.
There was a dead soldier in a space-suit in the aft starboard corner of the room. He held a machine gun. If he was in a suit, then he was fighting after the hull had breached. That meant …
“Got ya!” Braxton pointed his pistol in the opposite direction to the suited corpse and fired. The recoil pushed him right to the body. Braxton yanked the machine gun out of the soldier’s hands.
Cinnamon overpowered his senses. Fear flooded his veins. Not this time. Braxton ignored the invasive emotions, and took aim at the alien. A metre away.
“Read my mind, you grephead.”
Bullets sprayed from the barrel directly at the alien’s helmet. Real bullets. Cracks appeared on the visor. The alien moved four hands upward to protect its face but it was too late.
As the visor shattered, Braxton continued to fire. Bullets hit the alien’s eye. Blood spurted out and wafted through the air like dye in water. He kept firing until the magazine was exhausted. Braxton’s heart stilled. The invading emotions dissipated like mist, along with the scent of cinnamon.
The alien was still.
Braxton pushed off the top of a table and sailed towards the room’s single exit.
#
Les stepped out of the elevator into the forward docking cavity and tugged at his EVA suit. This brought him back to his academy days. So strange to be wearing it for anything other than a safety drill. Stranger still to be wearing an EVA suit while walking the decks of his own ship.
The bay doors stood open, and stars shone through the big hole that had been cut in preparation for the cannon.
He’d have to chat with Maya about his run-in with Haylee. There were no protocols for working with passengers, but right now he needed to concentrate on ensuring the weapon was installed safely.
Chief engineer Sarah McLaughlan stood near the bay doors.
“Sarah,” he called.
She turned.
“You’ve done an amazing job in here.”
“Well, this is the perfect place for the weapon.” Sarah’s voice was tinny in his helmet speakers. “The cavity was already air tight to allow smaller ships in and out.”
“How much longer?”
“We’re almost ready. As soon as the cannon gets here we can install it.”
He looked up at the bay doors. “You’re not going to leave them open, are you? Surely you need to—”
“Ideally, I’d build an insert to fit between the doors, with a hole just big enough for the barrel of the weapon, but we don’t have time for that, or the materials. When we’re in flight, we’ll have to retract the cannon and close the doors.”
Les frowned. That wasn’t ideal. “And how have you solved the coolant issue?”
“We’re going to branch off the main coolant line running above this deck.”
“Won’t that put undue pressure on the system? All major components are supposed to have their own—”
“Captain, we’re doing the best we can. This isn’t going to be pretty and it certainly won’t meet specs, but it should be enough to let us defend ourselves.”
“I get it. You’re under impossible pressure, but I want everything done by the book. The aliens won’t have to kill us if our own shoddy work does the job for them.”
Sarah’s face clouded over behind her visor. “There is no book. We’re so far out of the realms of what is normal and acceptable for this ship that it’s pointless even thinking about the rules.”
Les raised his hand, his finger pointing. He opened his mouth to speak. The communicator beeped in his helmet. A message notification appeared. He let his hand drop. “Hold on Sarah.” He stepped away and swiped the notification. “Miller here.”
“Captain.” It was Maya. “An alien ship has altered course. We have it on long-range sensors.”
“Keep an eye on it, Maya.”
“That’s the thing. The new trajectory puts it on a direct course with us.”
Les stood rooted to the ground. He couldn’t move. He couldn’t speak.
They were coming.
“Captain?” Maya said through his helmet.
He had to act. He had to do something. He had to …
Come on, Les. Snap out of it.
“I’m here Maya. I’m … I’m on my way to the bridge.”
He turned to Sarah. “Make every effort. That alien ship is headed our way. What you said about the rule book—you were right. Ignore what I said. You know what you’re doing. I trust you.”
She nodded.
Les turned and headed for the airlock. A light flashed on, indicating it was pressurised. He tore off his helmet, and went to work on the suit. The seconds ticked by as he worked through the chore. Eventually he was back in his dress whites. He opened the door on the other side and ran for the elevator.
Chapter Nineteen
The tension on the bridge was thick. Stifling, like Les was back in his space-suit. Wide eyes all looked to him.
“What’s the alien ship’s ETA?”
“It’s about an hour away at current warp Captain.”
An hour. Not good.
“We’re not going to be ready in an hour.”
Maya’s eyebrows arched and her lips dropped into a frown. “I know.”
Les stepped over to the communications panel. “Get me Braxton.”
The officer nodded.
“Braxton.” The Australian’s voice echoed through the still bridge.
“How’s your mission progressing?”
“We ran into opposition. One of the aliens was on board. I’ve just killed it.”
“Well done. I’m keen to find out all you’ve learned. How’s Haylee going with the extraction?”
“I don’t know. I left Jaylen and his security guy with the engineers. I went off on my own to face the alien. I’m on my way back now.”
“Be aware we have an alien ship on its way. It’ll be here in an hour.”
“That doesn’t give us much time to finish up. It’ll be tight, Captain. I’ll do all I can to hurry up the work.”
“I fear that won’t be enough. Once we get the cannon here, we still have to install it.”
The line was silent. Les’s mouth dried. A cough echoed through the bridge.
“Captain,” Braxton said. “There may be an option for slowing them down. This ship should have a fighter or two. The RASN use the same model as the Americans, so I should be able to fly it. If I can get to the fighter bay, and if there is an intact fighter, I can intercept the alien ship and buy you some time.”
“Good plan,” Les said. “Make it happen.”
#
Haylee secured the final bolt into place and gave the cannon two little taps. “All right. We’re done here. The cannon’s chamber is sealed and secured. You can tow it to its new home.”
“Standing by,” Sue said in Haylee’s helmet.
“You guys wanna help me here?” Haylee wrapped her feet around a support strut and pushed. Maaka and the two engineers from the ship did the same. The cannon, free from its housing, moved into open space, like a giant floating
cigar. When it was clear, the shuttle’s tractor beam snagged it.
“Got it,” Sue said. “I’ll be back for you and the reactor when I’m done dropping this off to the Jewel.”
Haylee turned towards the reactor chamber. There was still plenty to do. She tapped the wristband built into her suit. “Braxton, you there?”
“I read you.”
“You still on your way up?”
“Negative. I’m heading towards the fighter bay. We’re gonna have company.”
“What?”
“Alien warship will be here in an hour. I’m gonna keep ’em busy for a bit.”
“Hell, that puts the pressure on. The boys have almost got the reactor disconnected but we haven’t had time to cut a hole in the hull to get it out. It’s too wide for the cannon port.”
“No worries. The fighter will be equipped with a high-power laser. I’ll fly around and cut the hole for you.”
Haylee took a short sharp breath. “You’re gonna shoot at the hull, right where we are?”
“Pretty much.”
“Guess we’ll have to get out of the way. But it should work. Man, I hope nothing else goes wrong.”
#
Braxton heaved on the fighter bay door while anchoring his foot on the starboard bulkhead. It wasn’t much bigger than an average door, but it was thick and made from solid metal. And it was stiff. Getting these things open without power under normal circumstances required effort. In zero-g, it was downright awkward, despite their weightlessness. It inched open. That should be enough. Braxton sucked in his gut and pulled himself through. He looked about his surroundings.
“Whoa.” The bay had been hit pretty bad. This class of ship usually had two operational fighters. One was trashed, with shrapnel jutting out in random directions. It was grotesque. The other sat at the far side of the bay, and looked all right.
But getting to the fighter would be a challenge. It wasn’t the metre-square hole in the hull that had killed any crewmen in this room. Nor was it the crates and assorted objects floating about like discarded rubbish in a lake.
No, the trouble was the live wires hanging all over the place. There were no sparks on them—that would require oxygen—but there was a good chance they were energised and he didn’t want to find out the hard way. The mass of wires were probably the reason why the door hadn’t opened.
Okay. Nothing to panic about. All you gotta do is get through without touching the wires. No worries.
Braxton pushed off, tentative, careful. This would have been a lot easier if he still had his thruster pack. That would have made course corrections simple.
He drifted towards one of the wires. He grabbed hold of a crate and pushed gently off it. That was enough to correct his course. He sailed past the wire, close but safe, and straight into the path of another. This time there was nothing to push off. Braxton let go of the machine gun he’d been holding since his encounter with the alien. He gave the gun a slight push and it sailed through space and hit the wire, pushing it out of his way. So far, so good.
He continued, narrowly avoiding wires by pushing off objects. Eventually he was past the wires. Not far to the fighter now. He let his momentum carry him the rest of the way until his gloved hands met the hull, caressed it. This was no time to be sentimental—there was too much at stake, but he couldn’t help it. He’d never thought he’d get to fly a fighter again. Despite himself, Braxton smiled.
Chapter Twenty
Haylee and her team stood well back as the red line of molten metal slowly curved around in a large circle until it met itself.
“Okay, that should be cut,” Braxton’s laid-back voice said in her helmet.
“Confirmed,” Haylee said.
“Laser powered down.”
Haylee stepped forward and gave the centre of the cut out circle a shove with her foot. It floated out into space, leaving a sizable hole in the hull. Through the hole, a lone fighter hovered. Braxton grinned from the cockpit and saluted.
“Thanks. Appreciate the help,” Haylee said.
“No worries,” Braxton said. “I better be on the move. I have a hot date with some ugly mongrels.”
“If anyone can hold them off, it’s you.” The plane backed up slightly, then tilted and flew up and over them. “Good luck,” Haylee whispered.
She turned. The two engineers from the Jewel were already dragging the reactor towards the hole.
Haylee tapped her wristband, opening a new channel. “Sue, you there?”
“On final approach now. The engineering crew are already hard at work mounting the cannon. Shove the reactor out the hole and I’ll grapple it. If you guys can make your way back to the main cavity where we docked before, and use your thrusters to get out into open space, I’ll pick you up and take you home.”
“That sounds real good.”
Together, they pushed the reactor out. The shuttle lowered itself, ready to grab the reactor with the tractor beam.
“We’re done here. Let’s move,” Jaylen said.
Haylee smiled and turned. Maaka led the way, and Haylee followed with the engineers with Jaylen in the rear. They bobbed and floated through the corridors. It was a good thing Maaka knew the way, because Haylee was completely lost. Women were supposed to have a better sense of direction than men. That particular trait must have passed her by.
“Not far now,” Maaka said. “A few more corners and we’ll be in the cavity.”
“You’ll all need to be careful,” Jaylen said. “Touch your thrusters a little. Less is more. You’ll find it doesn’t take much to adjust your course, and there is plenty out there that could skewer a person.”
A hint of cinnamon tickled Haylee’s nose.
That was odd.
Nausea washed over her, and her breath quickened. She knew these feelings. A panic attack. She hadn’t had a panic attack in years. Why now? She grabbed a handhold to push herself onward. Her hands were sweaty in her gloves. She had to get out of here. Something was coming. She was going to die. Her heart raced. She was—
The railing vibrated in her grip. Haylee turned to look over her shoulder. A giant creature pulled itself up through a hole in the wall. It was all muscle, with six limbs and a face covered in blood. A steroid-infused grasshopper from hell. Haylee screamed.
“Braxton said that thing was dead,” Maaka yelled.
An image flashed into Haylee’s mind. The creature was tearing her limb from limb, discarding her body parts and moving on to … Ronald! Her chest ached. She couldn’t breathe. The beast was telepathic. It was reading her thoughts and trying to terrify her with violent images.
It was getting closer. Have … to …
“Run!” she yelled. Haylee would have given anything for artificial gravity at this point. She pulled herself along by the handholds. One after another. Keep moving. She caught a reflection of the alien in the metal of the bulkhead. It was gaining on them.
Jaylen, who was almost alongside her now, turned and fired his pistol. The momentum pushed him forward, ahead of Haylee.
“Bullets are having little effect,” Jaylen said. “It’s got a hard outer shell.
Maaka stopped and turned around. He drew a pistol and yanked a hand hold, propelling himself back towards the creature. These brave men were going to get themselves killed, all for her and the other engineers. Haylee pulled herself forward again but something grabbed her right foot.
The alien had her.
Haylee grasped hold of a new handhold and pulled with all her might. She shook herself loose. She pulled to propel herself forward but as she did, something grasped her other foot.
She turned to face her captor. It stared her down through damaged eyes. She gritted her teeth.
“You think you’re so scary, don’t you. Well you don’t know what you’re in for.” Images of Elsie and Austen flashed before her. So precious. “I’m not just some helpless prey.” She leaned forward and looked into the bloodied right eye. “I’m a mother!”
S
he kicked with her free leg and collided with the alien’s face. It pulled back, its mouth contorting.
Haylee kicked again, and the alien caught her other foot. The alien now had both of Haylee’s feet, and it still had two free arms, both mounted with horrifyingly sharp claws. Haylee met the creature’s gaze. It had taken quite a beating. It wore no space-suit. Perhaps it could survive in a vacuum, at least for a while.
She let go of the handhold she’d clung to and swung her fist towards the creature. She made contact with its face. It winced.
“Shoot for the eye,” Jaylen shouted. The security officers were Haylee’s only hope of escape now. She leaned back, giving them a clear shot of the alien’s face. Maaka approached.
The alien flexed the biceps of its upper arms and plunged one of its claws into Maaka’s throat. His eyes widened. He gurgled over the comm channel.
Haylee winced.
Fire tore through her chest and stomach. The alien’s other claw burrowed into her torso. Pain like she’d never known. A terrible scream sounded. Was it her? More gunfire. Blood obscured her vision. It was everywhere.
It was hers.
#
Les gripped the edge of the front console that held the helm, communications, and sensor stations. His hand slipped off, slippery with sweat.
“Forty-five minutes,” Maya said.
“Come on Braxton.” Les said. “Buy us a little time.”
The fighter had sped off into the distance a few minutes ago. Felt like forever.
“Any word from the team?”
The officer at communications shook her head. There were tears in her eyes.
“Hold it together, everyone. I know none of us were trained for this, but I know you can handle it.”
The communications board beeped. “I have them, Captain.”
“On speakers.”
“Captain!” It was Jaylen. His voice was frantic.
“Report!”
“We’re on our way, just need to get outside the ship to rendezvous with the shuttle. Captain, Maaka is dead, and Haylee is down.”
Les’s heart clenched. Dead. And Haylee? “Down? As in …”
Jewel of The Stars - Season 1 Episode 1 - Earth's Remnant Page 9