Forever Series 4: The Forever Quest

by Craig Robertson

  In part, what happened was my fault. I let my guard down too much. For months, I’d used my probes to check the ship’s systems and computer records. Since I’d discovered nothing after the failing seals, I checked less frequently. If I had been more observant, I’d have noticed Fontelpo’s sabotage beforehand.

  I was midway through an otherwise boring watch in engineering. Gatly and the two techs were off duty. Russ was on duty with me but was unaccounted for, as usual. I began a routine check of the main system. Part of that checklist was to pull the panel off the main electrical generator and inspect the couplings. I needed a visual on a set of wires just out of reach. I figured it must have been BB who did the last inspection because whoever had done it pushed the bundle back too far to inspect visually. Instead of reaching back with my hand, I sent one probe fiber to retrieve the wires. When there was a tool available, why not use it, right?

  As the command prerogative affixed itself to the plastic sheath, there was a sudden, explosive electrical discharge. Contact with the wires set off the grounding of a huge charge, many times the voltage needed to kill a man. Thanks to Deavoriathian magical technology, the filament didn’t conduct the charge back to me. If it had, even being an android may not have saved me. I did receive a flash burn to the face, but only a minor one.

  The explosion was impressive. Immediately after the discharge, the ship went black. Every light, computer, and communication hub was down. There were backups for critical systems, but most failed due to the size of the surge. Desolation was dead in space.

  I switched instantly to my low-light mode. My eyes emitted a tiny amount of light, and my sensors amplified the heck out of the return signal. I could see almost as well in pitch blackness as I could in full sunlight. I did a quick check on myself and confirmed I was undamaged. Then I attached to the electrical unit to ascertain the damage. The unit was fried, completely fused. There was no specific backup module, but I could patch a temporary fix with materials on hand. I would have hacked into the damage report computer, but it was down, backup power overloaded. I scanned the ship as best I could with my probes. That’s how I found the crisis on the bridge.

  Artificial gravity went out with the electricity. The ship stopped accelerating when the engines quit. So, anything not secured floated away. That would not have been a problem in and of itself. Unfortunately, one of the forward lateral thrusters froze open when the power blew. The ship began spinning like a pinwheel firework nailed to a fence. At first, the rotation was slow, but it built up rapidly. Within a few minutes, we were spinning like a top. Even I had trouble staying on my feet. Everyone else on board was pinned against a bulkhead. So, everyone on Desolation was blind and immobile but me. I had to save the day.

  On the bridge, the situation was critical. Several loose metal objects struck a section of the hull so hard there was a tiny breach. The air was quickly venting out. Whoever was up there had little time left. The doors were closed, the opening mechanism was down, and the pressure was dropping dangerously. I manually opened the door to engineering and sprinted toward the bridge. Most hatches in the halls were open, so I made good time. Sure enough, when I got to the bridge, the door was shut. I pried it open. The second I did, the atmosphere around me whooshed onto the bridge.

  I steadied myself until the air had nearly equilibrated and staggered onto the bridge. Only two crewmen were present. The navigator was dead. The decompression pulled him to cover the breach in the hull. Since his body wasn’t nearly tough enough to seal the leak, the vacuum of space had basically sucked a huge hole where his chest had been. It was one of the most gruesome things I’d ever seen. The second body was pinned against the far bulkhead. It was Kayla, and she wasn’t moving. If she was conscious, she’d be struggling like a rabid badger.

  I grabbed hold of a railing with my right hand and used my probes to seize a flat piece of metal. I set that over the hissing breach. It crushed more of the navigator’s chest in, but it had to be done. The flow of air decreased significantly but did not stop. I released my right hand and used my laser to heat up the metal near the hole. Almost immediately, the metal bulged into the breach and sealed it.

  One problem solved, but the ship was spinning so fast that I could hardly move. I lurched over to the navigator’s station and ripped the lower housing off. It slammed against the nearest wall. I knew exactly where the lateral thruster control was. I sent a few probe filaments to it. I also attached filaments to the power supply port in the panel. I gave the unit just enough electricity to fire it up and close the thruster.

  The ship still spun viciously, but it would slow eventually. If nothing else, I could fire counterthrusts later on. I wanted to maintain my anonymity just then, so I let Desolation rotate. I stepped over to Kayla. My command prerogatives confirmed she was alive. Probably hit her head on the way to being pinned. Her vital signs were stable, so I left her where she was for the moment. I’d saved the ship, now I needed to concoct a credible cover story for the impossible feats I’d just accomplished. I could have closed the thruster from engineering but not sealed the breach.

  I would have to be sure I was the one to remove my metal patch so no one noticed it was deformed. That wasn’t a typical part of my duties, but I could probably manage to be present. How did I close the thruster valve? Crap, that was a tough one. There were several battery packs on the bridge that were used to power the backups. How could I have jerry-rigged them to turn off the thruster in the dark with the ship spinning? There were flashlights in engineering. I could have used one to see, been strong enough to get to the bridge. Yes. I think my explanation might just work.

  I ran to the navigator’s station and pulled out a set of wires. I crudely attached them to the thruster unit and clamped the other ends to a battery pack. I didn’t know if my patch would have actually worked, but it was believable, because the thruster did stop. I went back to my station and crammed a flashlight under my belt. Returning to the bridge, I set up a similar looking wire configuration on the counterthruster and attached it to the battery. I then used my probes to fire the thruster for thirty seconds. The ship still spun, by only with a couple of g-forces. Anyone conscious and stuck to a wall would be joining me soon.

  Kayla slid down the bulkhead as the ship slowed. I picked her up and started walking toward sickbay. Luckily I’d tucked the flashlight under one arm. I literally ran into Karnean as he ran sideways toward the bridge.

  The first words out of his mouth were revealing. Instead of asking about his sister, he said, “Report.”

  I filled him in quickly.

  “I’ll secure the bridge as best I can. After you drop her off, return immediately.”

  “Sir.”

  Another lucky break was that the ship surgeon was okay. I left Kayla with him, promising to restore the power as quickly as possible. I was back on the bridge in a couple minutes. Several crewmen had joined Karnean. The hull patch still held. I came alongside the captain. “How’s it look?” I asked.

  “You tell me. Did you wire that panel?” He pointed to my exposed wires.

  “Yeah, I didn’t know if it would work, but I was able to get enough power to stop the rotation.”

  “Good work. What’s the story there?” he gestured to the dead navigator with a metal plate pinning him to the wall.

  “I don’t actually know. He was like that when I got here. The hull breach must have pulled him and that metal panel over. Some luck.”

  “We’ll see. I’m not much of a believer in luck.” He finally got a worried look on his face. “How’s my sister?”

  “She’s alive. Doc took a quick look at her and said he thought she’d be fine.”

  “We’ll see about that too. What happened to her?”

  I described how I’d found her. He nodded as he listened intently.

  “Seems I owe you a great debt, Jon.” He held out his hand and we shook.

  “No prob. Glad I could help.”

  “You get back to engineering and see a
bout getting us some electricity. I’ll let you know if you’re needed here.”

  “I assume that panel is sealing the hull breach. I’d like to be here when you repair the hole.”

  He furrowed his brow. “Why?”

  Good question. “There could be some wires or pipes running in the wall there. I’d like to look at the damage, if there is any.” There was nothing running in any external wall, but I hoped he didn’t know that.

  He nodded. “Fine. I’ll have them call when they’re ready to weld the hole shut.”

  It took me twelve hours to restore some of the power. It took me another thirty-six hours to get critical systems like navigation and communications operational. The engines would take several days of troubleshooting to get them running. For the first time on my stay on Desolation, the crew worked hard and well. I think a near-death situation made team players out of all of them.

  Remember how I mentioned that I knew Fontelpo had sabotaged the unit and that he was too stupid for his own good? It ended up being easy to figure out he was the culprit. A few days into the repair work, we got the computers up and running. That allowed the head of security to view the surveillance camera recordings. Guess who forgot there were hidden cameras in engineering? Yeah, a fellow named Fontelpo.

  I was present when he got the bad news. Karnean showed him the holo with Kayla at his side, her with a bandage around her head and her arm in a sling. That was the last time I ever saw Fontelpo. You know, after centuries of life and seeing its dirty underbelly more often than I ever wanted to, there weren’t too many things that bothered me. Seeing Karnean drag Fontelpo out the door and down the passageway, well even that gave me the willies. I wouldn’t have wanted to be him. I watched them disappear, wondering just how cruel Karnean could be.

  TEN

  The ship was busy with repairs for several weeks. As chief engineer, I played a central role. I was important again. Everyone’s lives depended on me. If the ship never flew again, we’d drift until we all starved. I’d never realized how much I missed that feeling of mattering. Losing Sapale left a huge hole in my life. My rather dubious quest was so unfocused that I lacked a real sense of purpose. Being the go-to guy again was nicer than I’d have guessed.

  Another nice thing was Kayla’s attitude toward me changed. Once she realized I’d not only saved the ship but her also, she dropped her cement facade. At meals, she chatted with me about trivial matters. If we passed in the corridors, she always said hello, or would at least smile at me. Of course, no yin comes without a yang. The friendlier she got, the more sullen and suspicious Karnean got. Immediately after the sabotage, he treated me like a friend. His mood was positive, and his words to me were supportive, even kind. But when he sensed a possible relationship budding between his sister and me, that all evaporated. That was okay by me. I didn’t want to date him, only her. My rank was high enough that he couldn’t interfere with any relationship that might develop, at least not openly.

  Six weeks. That’s how long it took before we could safely fire the main engines again. I used so much duct tape and chewing gum to hold things together that I should have been awarded a Nobel Prize in ass-saving. But Desolation flew again. I had to pirate parts from many nonessential systems. So, the holo-entertainment system wasn’t working, the air didn’t smell as nice as it had before, and fresh water had to be rationed. But, at least initially, everyone on board was upbeat. By the way, no one ever asked what had happened to Fontelpo, and Karnean never volunteered that information.

  Pallolo was about three and a half years away at that point. I knew I’d be busy the entire time keeping Desolation in one piece. My biggest fear was that we’d start running out of replacement parts. There was no Napa Spaceship Parts store between us and our next stop. The only alternative for repair would have been to turn tail and return to Balmorulam. I knew Karnean was aware of that option. The fact he never brought it up was reason enough for me to never mention it. He was a driven man, and raising a topic he didn’t want to discuss would be unhealthy for us all.

  Months rolled by, and the ship settled back into a stable routine. The lack of entertainment became an issue. A few crew members brought handhelds with them. Those had some entertainment content on them, but not much. There were fights when they didn’t share, so that resource was stretched thin. In the sailing ships of yore, there were no video games, holos, or books to read for the mostly illiterate crews. I didn’t know how they occupied their leisure time, but they survived, probably by gambling, fighting, and telling tall tales. Oh, and drinking. We had grog rations. One system Karnean was quite specific about was the still. It would be operational. Period. Fortunately, that wasn’t hard to do.

  My days were divided up into halves. Twelve hours on duty and twelve hours off. Off duty was time to sleep, eat, and kill time. I didn’t sleep, but as before on my adventures, I had to put on a show that I did. I figured five or six hours was enough for that charade. I spent that time checking in with Al, studying the cultures I was surrounded by, and watching 1950s television sitcoms. Yeah, in black and white. I Love Lucy, Leave It to Beaver, and an insane British show called The Goon Show were tops in my book. Dennis the Menace, whose young life closely paralleled mine, was my all-time favorite. But with all my spare time, I watched them all. Al had been loaded with them for my original Ark 1 voyage and never deleted them. Lucky me. I wasn’t a nostalgia freak in general, so I had no idea such a treasure trove of laughs and giggles still existed. Good stuff.

  Mealtime, which I had to fake also, became even more interesting as time passed. Kayla was warming up to me nicely. I came to understand she was tough as nails both inside and out. But there was also a witty, insightful, and, dare I say, tender aspect to her inner-self that she guarded with walls as formidable as a medieval fortress. The more she allowed me into her private world, the more Karnean resented it. Maybe he was just an over-protective big brother. Maybe he was just mentally unstable. He made it a point to be at the officer’s table whenever Kayla and I were there. If possible, he’d wedge in between us physically.

  She and I would usually sit down first, and then he’d appear as if by magic. I assumed he had someone in the mess alert him when either of us showed up. Before we could get a decent conversation going, Karnean would be there with a huge plate of food, which he rarely ate. It was a signal to us that he was planning on being present at the table for a very long time. He would always steer the discussion to matters of ship maintenance, crew activities, or supply levels, anything as boring and as impersonal possible. I was tempted to use my command prerogatives on him to figure out why he was so obsessively protective of her. But in the end, I figured we had a hell of a long flight ahead of us. Trying to noodle it out myself the old fashion way would give me something to do. The best example of his worst intervention came about a year after the sabotage. Kayla and I were good friends at that point, but nothing more. Scout’s honor.

  “You always want to know more about my past,” Kayla said with a demure smile. “How about your story? You told me you lived on Cholarazy, which I’m told is revolting, for a long time. Where were you born and raised?”

  I’d withhold the truth for if we actually became close. “My old man was a drifter. He dragged my poor mother and me all over creation. My old man said I was born on Meiffol, but he lied a lot, and I don’t remember the event specifically.”

  She giggled.

  “We spent time on Dalque before we landed on Cholarazy. The second I could, I split and never looked back.”

  “Do you miss your parents? I’m sorry, are they still alive?”

  “Mom died a couple years after I left. I holo-ed her a couple times. Pops? What can I say? I never tried to contact him, and he never tried to find to me. He could be dead, alive, or midway between the two. I have no clue and no interest.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that,” she responded. “Truly, I’m—”

  “Hey, there you are, sister of mine,” Karnean said as he plopped his he
avy tray right between us and sat. “I’ve been looking for you everywhere. We have a lot to discuss.” He turned to me. “Some of it’s private in nature. Maybe you should leave?”

  “He’s welcome to stay,” she said with emphasis. “There’s nothing you could possibly have to say to me that Jon can’t hear.”

  “Okay,” he looked directly at me, “if you insist.”

  “What’s so pressing?” she asked.

  “Well, it’s those damn supply reports.”

  She raised an eyebrow. “What could possibly be damnable or even interesting in a supply report?”

  “Our lives are at stake here.” He tried to sound huffy. “Those reports are all that stand between us and certain death in cold, dark space.”

  She wagged her head and lowered her arms. “Really? The supply reports. What, are they going to spring to life and repel boarding parties?”

  I snickered. That won me a please-die-now stare from Karnean.

  “Seriously, Kayla, we need to go over them in detail. I have them with me.” He reached toward a pocket in his jumpsuit. “So let’s get started.”

  “I will do no such thing, you imp,” she responded. “I’m enjoying a meal with a good friend. I’m not about to spoil it with a ridiculous supply report. If you’re so worried, you go over it and send me your conclusions via interoffice mail.”

  I tried not to snicker again. Really, I tried as hard as I could.

  “Oh, Ryan,” he said harshly, “I’ve been meaning to speak with you. A new part of your job will be to send me updates on the dust levels inside the consoles on all decks. Your first report is overdue as we speak. I suggest you begin your assignment immediately.” He eyed my half-eaten meal. “I’ll clear your plate for you so you can leave at once.”