I quickly turned around and gave Mimas a hug. “Be careful,” she whispered before letting me go. I bent down and climbed inside the sandwich cart. It was icy cold and a little bit damp. I readjusted myself several times until I found a semicomfortable position. Little jolts of pain shot through my ankle each time I tried to get comfortable. After a few tries, I found a comfy position. I lay down on my back with my face toward the ceiling, with my knees resting on my chin. I kept my shoes pressed against what would be the back of the cart.
“Okay, I’m ready,” I said. With that, Prometheus closed the door to the sandwich cart. I lay there alone in the cool darkness as he pushed the cart out of the front door and into the lobby out of the security room floor. Little did Prometheus know, but I was just as nervous as he was. I needed to calm down and take my own advice; you never know unless you try. So here went nothing.
Chapter 14
Keeping both my hands and feet steady inside of the cart was incredibly difficult because of the wet walls. I hoped I wouldn’t have to stay in this position for too long because my ankle was killing me. The only thing that was helping to subdue the pain were the cold walls of the cart. I kept my ankle pressed against the cart and I kind of used it as a cold compress. It helped a little bit, but not much; it kind of kept the pain at bay, but it would unfortunately return at full force each time the cart shook from side to side. Prometheus was also having a hard time keeping the cart even; occasionally, he would stop and then he would start pushing the cart again. I was sure that was because the cart was made for hauling sandwiches and not a human being.
I wondered if we were close to the elevator yet. I could hear people chatting and moving about, so it was obvious that we were out in the lobby. I just hoped we could get on an elevator soon before we ran into someone who might want a…. “Hey, wait up, sandwich guy,” someone called out. Oh geez, it looked like I had spoken too soon. The cart came to a very abrupt stop. My ankle slammed against the front of it. I almost let out a little yelp, but I managed to stop myself by biting down on my lower lip.
“What can I do for you?” Prometheus asked calmly. How could he be so calm right now? My throat started to tighten up out of sheer nervousness. I was totally one hundred percent dependent upon Prometheus right then. There was nothing I could do except hope that he could think fast on the spur of the moment and come up with a proper solution to this problem.
“I’m starving. Please tell me you have a bologna sandwich or something that I can nibble on in that cart of yours.”
“Sorry, Jeb just got my last sandwich.” Prometheus started pushing the cart again. Good. The sooner we could get away from this guy the better.
The young man called out, “If I give you some space credits, do you think you could run back downstairs and bring me a few sandwiches?”
“Oh yeah, sure thing,” Prometheus said cheerfully. Once again, the cart was moving forward, this time at a much faster pace than before. I guessed that Prometheus had taken the money and now he was trying to get us onto the elevator before someone saw him and asked for something to eat again. After Prometheus made a dash down one of the three hallways, that was when I heard it— the sweet melodious sound of the elevator door opening up. The nervousness I felt finally subsided after Prometheus shoved the cart over the elevator’s threshold and the door closed behind us. Prometheus slid the door to the cart open just a little bit. “Are you okay in there?” Prometheus asked.
“Yeah. I’m okay.” There was a little bit of truth in what I said. I was okay and I was happy that we’d made it off of the security room floor undetected, but my ankle was starting to feel numb again.
“Hang in there, okay? We should reach the escape pods in no time at all.” I hoped so because I didn’t know how much longer I could take being cramped up like this.
Just like on the security room floor, Prometheus had to dodge a few people who desperately wanted something to eat. But he managed to get by them without having to open up the cart. We made a few twists and turns and we traveled down multiple hallways until we finally came to a stop and Prometheus opened up the door to the cart. He gave me his hand and he helped me crawl out of the cold, wet cart. I immediately started stretching and massaging the cramps that were in my legs. I kept my still incredibly numb ankle above the floor. I didn’t want to put any pressure on it.
“Hey, are you okay?” Prometheus asked while looking down at my foot.
“Yeah, it’s no big deal. It’s just a little cramped up from being in that cart.”
Prometheus shrugged his shoulders. “Okay. Well, follow me. The escape pods are right through this door.” I glanced over my shoulder before I walked through. I had no idea where we were. It was so quiet that the sound of the Prometheus opening up the door echoed down the long hallway that was in front of me.
“Where are we?” I asked after I walked into the room. It was incredibly hard for me to see once I walked in; the only source of light in the room was coming from the inside of the escape pods.
“We’re in the back of the ship.”
“The back of the ship? Why is this area called the back of the ship?”
“It’s where all of the magic happens. Laundry is done down here, dishes are washed down here; a whole host of behind-the-scenes stuff happens down here. So seeing someone in this area pushing a cart is not out of the ordinary. I knew that no one would question me once I reached this area,” Prometheus said confidently. “But enough chitchat; let’s get you in one of these escape pods so you can get to the princess.”
Approximately twelve gray, egg-shaped escape pods were lined up against the right side of the room. “If you’re going to get in one of these pods, it should be the one with the latest maintenance date on it.” Prometheus grabbed hold of the thick handle that was located on the front of the escape pod and pulled it open. A dirty, thick dust cloud filled with cobwebs emerged from the inside of the escape pod. A piece of the dusty cobweb landed on my shoulder and I immediately brushed it off of me. Prometheus climbed into the escape pod and I watched as he climbed to the front where the steering wheel was located. I peeked my head in. I didn’t like what I was seeing. This pod looked like it could barely hold six people. On top of that, the control panel was covered in dust, so God only knew if all of the buttons on the panel actually functioned correctly. I kept looking for a portscreen, but I didn’t see one. If there was no portscreen, then how was I supposed to chart my location so I could find the nearest planet or the nearest ship? I didn’t see a phone either. If there was an emergency, how could I get in contact with another ship to let them know that I was out there floating in space and needed to be picked up? I hoped the other escape pods were in better condition than this one.
Prometheus glanced up at the thin piece of paper posted above the steering wheel. “Yikes! You don’t want this one. It hasn’t been serviced in over three years!”
I drew in a quick breath. “Three years! That doesn’t make any sense! In fact, the condition of this escape pod doesn’t make any sense! Don’t they care about the guests or the workers here? Wouldn’t it be in their best interest to provide the most up-to-date escape pods?”
To my surprise, Prometheus threw his head back and laughed, and it was a hearty one at that. “Oh, they care, alright. They care about the customers here on the ship. The escape pods for the customers are serviced every month and some of them have these built-in mini fridges so you can have something to munch on while you wait to be rescued. These escape pods are for us, the workers.” Prometheus jumped out of the escape pod. “Didn’t you hear me earlier? This is the back of the ship. There are no customers here and the chances of one being back here are slim to none.” He slammed the door on the escape pod shut. “These old fossils are just good enough to get you off of the ship and that’s it. They don’t care about us. They don’t even care if we get off of this ship alive or not in the middle of an emergency. What matters are the customers and their safety.”
For a min
ute, neither one of us said anything. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have raised my voice at you like that, Cosmo.” He paused. “It’s just that I hate it here so much. I really wish things could change for the better around here for the workers ’cause we’re not treated fairly.” Prometheus turned his back toward me. “Come on; let’s check out the next escape pod. Maybe we will have better luck with this one.”
The following eight escape pods were in the same condition as the first one we checked. The only difference between them were the dates for when they were last serviced and none of them were up to date at all. Prometheus swung the door open to escape pod number nine; instead of automatically being covered in a thick cloud of dust after opening up the door, to our surprise, we found a young man in a greasy waiter’s uniform curled up in a fetal position fast asleep inside of the escape pod.
The young man let out a small yawn. “Come on, man, just close the door.”
Without giving it a second thought, Prometheus closed the door to the escape pod. He chuckled. “Yeah, I forgot to mention that we refer to the escape pods as sleep pods. Man, I’ve camped out in one of these pods many times in between doing a double shift.”
“Do you think that guy will say anything?” I asked.
“I doubt it,” he said. We started to check escape pod number ten; it wasn’t as dusty as the previous ones and, thankfully, it had a portscreen with a keyboard and a phone. I checked the service date; it said that the last time it was serviced was around two months ago! This was probably as good as it was going to get.
“This is the escape pod that I want to use.” I jumped into the chair in front of the steering wheel and started to study the controls that were near the portscreen.
“Are you sure you want to use this one?” Prometheus asked.
I shook my head yes as I turned the portscreen on. A few squiggly green lines danced across the screen before the phrase “Your Escape Pod and You” appeared. I got up from the chair and I extended my hand toward Prometheus. “Everything seems to be in working order. Thanks so much for your help, Prometheus!”
Prometheus grabbed hold of my hand. “Good luck, Cosmo!”
I watched Prometheus as he climbed out of the escape pod and closed the door behind him. I immediately turned my attention back toward the portscreen. I turned the volume up on the speakers and started the instructional video for the escape pod. After the incredibly long title sequence ended, the video began. In the video, a family of four made preparations to get off of the ship together. A very chipper-sounding narrator gave instructions on what to do and how to operate the escape pod while equally chipper-sounding music played in the background. By the end of the video, the mother had found the space suits and helmets that were stored underneath the chairs. Once everyone was dressed and ready to go, the father, with his pipe hanging out of his mouth and his helmet on, took out the key that was kept in the glove compartment and drove the escape pod out into space. Well, that was pretty self-explanatory. This shouldn’t be too hard. I mean, if I could drive a flying saucer, then I could definitely operate this thing. I opened up the compartment that was underneath the seat beside me and I fished out one of the space suits. I was a little scared at first when I saw that the tag on the suit said “adult, one size fits all,” but thankfully, it fit me nicely. The suit was a bright shade of red with white boots and matching gloves.
I buckled myself into the chair and turned the key in the ignition. A calm voice came from out of the speakers near the portscreen and it started to count down from ten. Nine. My warm breath collided with the helmet and a small patch of fog appeared in front of me. Eight. I kept my hands glued to the armrests of my chair. Seven. Should I have told Wendy that I was doing this? Six. No one knew that I was doing this except for a few random strangers. Five. What if this thing breaks down the moment I get out into space? Four. I should stop this launch and get out of here. Three. What I’m doing is completely crazy. Two. My breath became more ragged and the small patch of fog inside of my helmet grew even larger than before. One. But if I didn’t do this, then who would? Another thought had come to my mind, but it was instantly pushed out the moment the escape pod launched itself into the deep black depths of space.
Chapter 15
I swear I thought that my stomach had become entangled with my rib cage because of how hard the escape pod was moving. The thrust was a lot stronger than what I thought it would be. A couple of times, I was truly afraid that this old escape pod was going to leave me stranded in the middle of space. This thing came to a screeching halt three times, only to continue its mission of getting me farther from the ship seconds later. Every time the escape pod stopped, my body was tossed against my seat belt. I nearly slipped out of it a few times. I really wasn’t sure if this nauseating trip into space was going to come to an end until the escape pod started to slow down. A faint hissing noise came from the escape pod’s thrusters and a countdown similar to the one that went off when I left the ship started.
At the end of the countdown, the voice coming from the speakers said that the escape pod was approximately sixteen point nine thirty-four kilometers away from the ship. I immediately unbuckled myself from out of my seat. Once I did that, a high-pitched warning signal came from the speakers, telling me to buckle myself back into my seat. I ignored the warning and continued to float above my seat in a semifetal position. I really needed to take a quick breather so I could allow my insides to fall back into place after being tossed around like a little rag doll.
Once I felt like all of my organs were back in place, I pulled myself back down into my seat. With one hand on the steering wheel, I used the other to punch command codes onto the portscreen. When I brought up the escape pod’s ship scanner, it was only able to pick up one ship and that was the Titan. I turned the escape pod; I had a perfect view of both Princess Rhea’s ship and the Titan. I could still see both ships from this viewpoint. If they were within eyesight, then this scanner should have been able to pick up both of them. I looked over at Princess Rhea’s ship; it was a radiant shade of silver and it was shaped like a long stretched-out bullet. There were no windows on her ship; attached to the end of her ship were three thrusters that looked like a bird’s wing. If I were to compare the size of this ship to the Titan, I would say that it was not as big as the Titan, but it was of course larger than an average flying saucer. This was so amazing; I could actually see the princess’s ship up close! But that was enough fangirling and gushing; I had to get back to the task at hand.
Now that the escape pod was pointed directly toward both ships, I started to scan the area again and, unfortunately, I received the same result as the last one. The princess’s crew must have been cloaking their ship’s signal. I doubted that they wanted everyone out in space to pick up on where they were. They probably only shared their ship’s signal with people who they wanted to share it with. If I couldn’t even pick up the ship’s signal, chances were that I wouldn’t be able to send them a message, to let them know that I wanted to come aboard. This was not going to be as easy as I thought it would be. There was really only one thing I could do. I was going to have to force them to bring me aboard the ship. A small lump jumped up through my throat. God, this was so dangerous. But everything else I’d done up to now had been pretty dangerous, so why should I have stopped here? I grabbed hold of the steering wheel and slowly drove toward the princess’s ship. A tiny droplet of sweat fell off my chin and into the bottom of my helmet. Who knew what sort of security detail the princess had? Oh God, what if they shoot me down for getting too close to the ship!?! No, they wouldn’t do that. Would they? It didn’t make any sense to automatically shoot someone down for getting too close; if anything, it would make more sense for them to send out a signal and try to reason with whoever was getting too close. A small smile spread across my face. Maybe this won’t be so hard after all.
The closer I got to the ship, the more nervous I became, simply because nothing was happening. At this point, I was close
enough where I could see more of the fine details of the ship, like how incredibly glossy the ship’s exterior was and how smooth the ship looked. As far as I could tell, there were no doors or windows on this ship. At least not on the side that I was looking at. Maybe if I circled around the ship, I’d find a window on the other side or near the front of the ship. I traveled to the other side of the ship; same thing—no windows and, once again, nothing happened. Maybe they just didn’t care that I was out there? I started tapping my fingers on the portscreen, hoping that maybe since I was much closer, I could actually pick up on this ship’s signal and I could send them a message. I took my eyes off of the escape pod’s portscreen for half a moment and glanced back at the princess’s ship. Something was coming from underneath the ship’s belly. In a matter of seconds, what looked like a miniature replica of Princess Rhea’s ship appeared before me. The tiny replica was no bigger than the escape pod that I was in, and just like the princess’s ship, this ship also had no windows and a glossy silver shine to it.
I froze for a moment because I wasn’t sure what I should do. I stayed in my seat with my hands tightly grasped around the steering wheel as the miniature silver ship moved around me. It was just coming around to the front of my escape pod when a ringing noise came from the speakers next to my portscreen. The words “incoming call” flashed across the screen. I immediately tapped my fingers on the words “accept call” that were on the portscreen. A deep-sounding voice came from the speakers next to the portscreen. “State your purpose,” the voice commanded.
Cosmic Callisto Caprica & the Missing Rings of Saturn Page 15