by Cross, Amy
“Hey!” I yell, stepping over to one of the creatures as it sniffs a pod. “That's not for you!”
Fortunately, the creature immediately retreats. They all seem fairly timid now, although I know I can't rely on that forever. I've already got some ideas about how to create a better defensive structure to defend the pods, but for now I think I can keep everything safe. The creatures and I seem to be coming to some kind of an arrangement, and hopefully I won't have to get too forceful.
“Did they move themselves?” Elizabeth asks, and I turn to see that she's climbing out from the ship.
“Beats me what they're up to,” I say with a shrug. “I figure the best thing is just to leave them alone and let them get on with things. Someone back at Project Atherius must have programmed them, so I don't exactly think it's our place to interfere. We'd probably just end up causing trouble.”
“I found dinner,” she says, limping toward me with her back to the sunset. “I'm not convinced that it'll be the tastiest thing ever, but at least it'll keep us alive.”
“Thanks,” I reply, taking the pack she holds out to me. “So you found a load of stuff in the ship?”
“You'd be surprised,” she says as she sits on a rock nearby and opens another pack. “There were some videos, but I...”
I wait for her to continue.
“I deleted Carver's voice-over,” she explains finally. “Is that bad of me?”
“Not at all,” I reply.
“I think he saw himself as some kind of messiah,” she continues. “He wanted to form a new version of human civilization in his own image. If he'd had his way, this planet would have ended up filled with lots of little Maxwell Carvers running around. To be honest, I don't think I can think of anything worse.”
“He's gone now,” I point out.
“Sure.” She pauses. “Along with everyone else. I guess I just heard his voice on the video, and I wanted to never hear it again. I didn't want anyone to hear it again.”
“That's not a terrible way to finish up our first twenty-four hours on this planet. Do you realize what we've done in just one day? We've become the first people to walk on an alien world, we've become the first people to encounter actual alien creatures, and now we're sitting here guarding some pods that are somehow going to give rise to a whole new race of humans.” I pause for a moment, as the enormity of the situation starts to sink in. “And now we've shut Maxwell Carver up forever.”
“Do you think this is all there is on this planet?” she asks. “For all we know, there might be intelligent life somewhere. They might have seen the ship land, they might be on their way here to check us out right now. It's hard to believe that the whole planet is just what we see right now.”
“I think they'd have made it to us already if they were coming,” I tell her, before looking over at the creatures again. “Maybe these things are the smartest life that exists on the planet. In which case, you've kinda got to feel sorry for the planet.”
One of the creatures is edging closer to me, and after a moment I reach out and touch the side of his face. Its skin feels harsh and scaly, but in some strange way the creature actually seems to enjoy being touched. The things don't even have names, I guess they've never needed to be called anything, and for a moment I can only stare into a pair of white, sticky-looking eyes that in turn are staring straight back at me. The creature opens its mouth slightly, revealing rows of tiny, sharp teeth that glisten in the evening light, but I don't feel remotely threatened. If this thing wanted to hurt me, it would have tried by now.
“I found a desalination kit in the ship,” Elizabeth says as she stands. “I might try running some seawater through it, to make sure it works.”
As she heads over to grab the equipment, I can't help watching her. This time one year ago, I didn't know who Elizabeth Marter was, yet since then I've been thrown together with her not just one but twice. I'm still not the kind of guy who believes in things like destiny or fate, but at the same time I definitely don't mind the fact that the two of us are stuck here on this strange world.
“Tommy's got a crush on a girl!” a familiar voice says, and I turn to see Joe sitting on a nearby rock, grinning at me like a complete idiot.
“I do not,” I murmur under my breath, worried that Elizabeth will notice and think that I'm talking to myself.
“Hey,” he continues, “there's no shame in that. You and her are kinda like the new Adam and Eve on this planet, aren't you? I can't believe you, my dumb little brother, ended up being the last man alive. I mean, no offense, but our world didn't exactly send its best off into the stars, did it?”
“Do you think you'd do much better?” I ask.
“Probably not, but at least I'd have some fun along the way. I wouldn't be sitting there the way you are, with a face like a thunderstorm.”
“Thomas is just reflecting upon the fact that I was right all along,” another voice says, and I look over my shoulder as Doctor Carter comes wandering over. “I knew the human race wasn't going to be able to come back from that virus. There might have been a way, but people are just too stupid to figure things out.”
She puts a hand on my shoulder.
“You survived, though,” she adds. “Not bad, kid. Not bad at all.”
“You might almost say that we're proud of you,” Martha says, and I'm shocked to see her sitting next to Joe. “Almost.”
“You always were the emotional one,” Joe mutters, rolling his eyes.
“There's no shame in surviving,” yet another voice tells me, and I turn the other way. “None at all.”
“Melissa,” I whisper, as I see her standing nearby with Katie.
“We all kinda found our way along,” she continues, “but at the end of the day, there was only ever going to be room for two people in that ship.” She stares at me for a moment, with a faint smile. “If the human race could only send two samples of itself into the stars, Thomas, I figure you're a pretty good candidate.”
“Not that there weren't other candidates,” Amanda Quinn says, standing behind Joe and Martha.
“Most of them would have been worse, though,” Riley adds, and I turn to see that he's right behind me.
“You've got a long job ahead of you,” Katrina tells me. “Stick at it, Thomas, and you'll be just fine.”
“None of you are really here,” I whisper, turning and looking at them all.
“No kidding,” Doctor Carter says with a grin. “But you never know when you might still find yourself talking to some of us, just as a way of keeping your head straight. There are gonna be some lonely days ahead of you, and your brain might throw up some surprises as it tries to keep you sane. You'll probably still end up going completely crazy, but at least this way there's a chance that you'll hold it together for long enough to make sure the human race survives. You've only got one job, Thomas. Try to do it, yeah?”
“And don't get distracted by flirting too much,” Joe says.
I turn and scowl at him.
“Man, you've got it bad,” he adds.
“You really have,” Martha says with a grin.
“As if!” I reply, before looking back at the ship, just in case Elizabeth is on her way back.
“There's no shame in it,” Joe continues. “I mean, it took you long enough. At least this way you'll have something to keep you occupied when you're not chasing away weird half-dragon, half-dog things. And let's be honest, you need me here to wind you up. You couldn't get by without me!”
“That's so not true,” I reply, turning to him. “I'm fine as I am! I don't need any of you coming back into my head and bugging me!”
“You can't survive without us,” Joe replies.
“Watch me!”
And with that, they're gone. I open my mouth to call them back, but then I realize that I've basically spent the past five minutes talking to myself. I'm a little worried that I might end up going out of my mind, so I decide to find a job, and I quickly set about gathering some branches so I
can make a fire for tonight. Assuming that this stuff actually behaves like 'old' wood, of course. As I start working, the voices stay away, and this time I know deep down that they won't be coming back.
I've got to look to the future now.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Elizabeth
“For use only in open spaces,” I mutter as I read the label on the side of the desalination device. “Do not cover. Clean regularly. Turn filter every thirty days.”
I take the filter from the shelf and, as I turn and head back through toward the main part of the ship, I figure that this kit shouldn't be too difficult to use. With any luck, Thomas and I will have some clean, safe water to drink before morning.
“Do you really think you've got a hope in hell of pulling this off?” a voice asks.
Startled, I turn and look over my shoulder. There's no-one there, but I swear for a moment I heard Bob talking to me. I wait, terrified that he might be about to appear yet again, and then I turn to continue my journey to the front of the ship. Still, the sound of Bob's voice has really set me on edge, so much so that by the time I reach the main room I feel as if I need to stop for a moment and get my head together.
“Do you know how to use that?”
I turn and see Henry sitting on one of the beds. I freeze, knowing full well that he's not really here, that he's just some weird hallucination thrown up by my brain. I blink a couple of times, convinced that he'll go away, but then I feel bad for how I'm reacting.
“I got you through those tunnels, didn't I?” he continues with a faint smile. “Well, at least I helped you not go nuts while you were trapped in the dark.”
“You're not real,” I reply, as a shudder passes through my body.
“Do you want a prize for realizing that?” he asks. “You'll be lucky if you don't go crazy while you're stuck on this rock. I mean, I get that you'll be busy, but what about those little moments when you have a chance to think about everything that's gone? Do you think you're gonna manage to get through all of that, Elizabeth, or are you worried deep down that you're gonna crack? You've got the future of the human race resting on your shoulders, and this time a year ago you used to freak out if you couldn't find your phone. How do you think you're gonna cope?”
“Just fine,” I tell him, before looking over my shoulder as I realize I can hear a shuffling sound coming from somewhere else in the ship.
“What do you think that is?” Henry asks. “You know what you're scared of. Say it.”
“I'm not -”
“Say his name.”
“I don't know who you're talking about.”
“Really? You don't remember the name of the guy who killed me?”
I flinch as he says those words, and after a moment I spot movement around the corner. There's definitely someone there, and I know Thomas is still outside.
“What if he's real?” Henry asks. “I know it sounds ridiculous, but then this whole situation is ridiculous. So hear me out here... What if somehow Bob survived everything and managed to follow you here? And what if he crept onto the ship, and what if there was a back-up survival station, and he managed to go into stasis for the whole of the journey? And what if he's waking up now, and he's coming for you?”
“That's absurd,” I reply through gritted teeth, although I can't help watching the opening in case Bob actually appears.
“Is it really?” Henry asks, as I hear more creaking sounds coming from deep within the ship. “Or is it just one more twist in a story that's already had so many? Is it so unlikely, when you think of everything else that has happened to you? And if you really don't believe that it's possible, then why not go and take a look? Why are you just standing there, frozen by the sheer terror of something that you don't even think can be happening?”
I want to tell him to go to hell, but somewhere deep down I know that he's right. I should go through and prove to myself that Bob's not really here, that I left him behind five hundred years and several million miles ago, and finally I force myself to take a limping step forward. Just one.
And then I hear a faint bumping sound, accompanied this time by a thud. No matter how hard I try to tell myself that this is all in my head, I can't shake the growing feeling that there really is someone else in here with me.
“Go on,” Henry whispers into my ear, “take a look.”
I step over to the doorway and look along the narrow passageway that leads deeper into the ship. All I hear now is silence, but I swear I can almost sense Bob's presence. I know he's not really here, of course. I know that – at worst – this is just another hallucination. At the same time, I feel as if I have to confront the truth if I'm ever going to get past these fears, otherwise I'm going to spend all my time running from shadows.
“Go on,” Henry says, “try to -”
“I heard you the first time!” I snap, before I have a chance to stop myself.
“Well,” he continues, “now who's getting moody?”
I turn to scowl at him, but he's simply grinning at me. A moment later I hear another thud coming from deep within the ship, and I look straight ahead.
“You're not really here,” I say firmly, and then I force myself to squeeze along the passageway. “You're just a figment of my imagination, and I'm not going to let you bug me like this anymore! You died a long time ago, and you turned into a zombie, and then you probably got flattened when Manhattan was destroyed, so I really don't think there's much chance that you ended up -”
Stopping suddenly, just before the doorway that leads into the storeroom, I realize I can hear a faint rubbing sound coming from right around the corner. I tell myself that this can't be real, but the sound just seems to get more and more insistent, until finally I clench my fists as I prepare to face the truth. In my mind's eye, I'm already imagining Bob laughing at me, and I feel the urge to turn and run. Somehow I manage to stay, however, and a moment I step around the corner.
“You're not -”
And that's when I see him.
One of those lizard-dog creatures is trying desperately to climb up to one of the shelves. I watch as he reaches out with his paw and almost grabs one of the food packages, but then he falls and lets out a yelp as he lands hard on the floor.
“Are you kidding me?” I say with a relieved sigh, as the startled creature struggles to get back onto its feet. “How did you even get in here?”
The creature turns to me and lets out a low, mournful moan, and then I step around its bulk and start gently guiding it back through to the passageway.
“You can't be in here!” I say firmly, as the creature scurries away. “Just stay out, okay? I don't know what you guys usually eat, but this stuff's probably give you a bad belly anyway. Do you understand?”
Of course he doesn't, but at least he waddles away and soon disappears from sight, which I guess is better than nothing. Once he's gone, I head back to check the packages, and I'm relieved to find that none of them are damaged. I quickly tidy the room, and then I made sure that there's nothing tempting on the lower shelves. I can't believe I let that creature spook me so easily, but I guess I'm a little tender right now.
“To be fair,” Henry says, standing behind me, “that thing probably has better breath than Bob. And it's not as ugly.”
“Yeah,” I mutter, “but...”
My voice trails off, and then I turn to him.
“What?” he asks, furrowing his brow.
“I can't talk to you anymore,” I tell him, as I slowly get to my feet. “If I talk to you, then I'll end up imagining Bob's around every corner. I know I tried to stop talking to you before, after the subway tunnels, but obviously that didn't quite work. This time I mean it. Either I talk to everyone in my head, or I talk to no-one. If that's the choice, then I know what I have to do.”
“You're gonna go it alone, huh?”
“No,” I reply. “I have Thomas now. And those creatures. And whatever's going to come out of those pods. I won't be alone, even if I want to be
. So this time, I think I have to focus on the job at hand. Deal?”
He stares at me for a moment.
“Deal.”
“And it might not be forever,” I add, stepping past him and heading to the start of the passageway, before turning back to him. “There might be odd -”
He's gone. I look around, feeling slightly panicked, before realizing that this is a good thing.
Heading back out of the ship, I find that the sun is really starting to set now. We're coming to the end of our first day here on this strange, unnamed planet, and as I pick my way back to the shore I see that Thomas is starting to build a small fire. The creatures are wandering away, although I know they'll be back, and the pods are starting to glow quite strongly now. I have no idea what tomorrow will bring but, as I reach Thomas and sit down to feel the warmth of the fire against my hands, I figure that we'll figure out what to do next.
“Are you okay?” Thomas asks.
I nod. “You?”
“Sure,” he replies, as he gets back to work. “Somehow.”
Looking up, I see a pinkish moon hanging in the sky. It's about the same size as the moon back home, although I think it might be slightly larger. It also has darker markings covering its surface. So it's not exactly the same as our old moon, but there are certain similarities.
I guess it's close enough.
Epilogue
Thomas
Day 171,950
The pink moon is just about visible high above, as I sit on the ground and feel the early evening air starting to cool. Today has been long and tiring, and my old bones are really starting to creak, but I got everything done. Even if I had to slow down a little.
I don't think I'm doing too badly for a guy who's in his eighties. Or, if you want to count it the other way, for a guy who's almost six hundred years old.
“There you are!” a voice calls out, and I turn to see Katmi coming up the slope, with his pet liz-dog scurrying along.
Yes, that's what we ended up calling those bizarre creatures. Liz-dogs. I always meant to come up with something catchier, but liz-dog seemed to stick.