The trek took us over an hour before we were able to identify the cause of the smoke. It was indeed the crashed spacecraft that we had witnessed plummeting from the sky. In its post-collision state among the vegetation, it wasn't all that easy to make out details. One thing for sure, though, it was at least five times the size of the ship that we arrived in.
Though the main hull remained reasonably intact, there were several smaller sections that had separated on impact. Those were scattered through trees causing a couple fires. The plant life had ignited but was burning at an incredibly slow rate. With little to no breeze, the flames were not spreading quickly either.
Another fire could be spotted through a gap in the side of the spacecraft. Since the ship was made of metal, the fuel for the flames was contained to a small area. I was hopeful that we would be able to inspect most of the vessel with caution. Survivors were unlikely. Supplies and weapons were my primary goal. And, of course, any information that we could gain from the ship would be more than welcome.
Shira's leg was hurting her enough to slow her to a crawl. I offered to carry her, but Nancy suggested that we take a short break instead. The journey, including the hill climb, was draining our energy. We each pulled out our water bottles and Lin began separating some food for us. It was getting close to lunch time. Without knowing what lies ahead, this was as good a time as any for at least a snack.
Slices of the alien potatoes had been prepared so we could bite right into them. I was expecting the taste to be bland and begging for salt, despite what the girls had told me about the vegetable. Instead it had a robust flavor similar to peanut butter with a hint of coconut. It was a welcome addition to our limited diet. We were surely missing the prepared food that our captors had provided in our previous location aboard the ship. Back at the beginning, the meals were custom prepared to our individual tastes, and the highlight of the day.
Something resembling a snake with eight short legs crawled toward us in a slithering fashion. It had shiny purple skin with green specks in patches. When I jumped to my feet, the creature rolled up into a ball. Among the mash of tail and stubby little paws was a tiny head with four blinking eyes. Taking a cautious step forward sent panic into those eyes. Two of the legs pushed the ground to send the ball rolling backwards. Once it was clear of our area it returned to its previous state to crawl in another direction. It was entertaining to see, but we were not here to watch animal planet.
An ugly bird swooped down toward the critter but failed to snag it as it crawled under a rock. It flapped its pink scaly wings to return to the sky. The narrow body also had the head of a snake, but the other end had two long legs with claws. It put me in mind of a flying turtle, instead of a shell it had wings. Two more just like it circled the area from above the treetops.
The scene made me concerned that we were spending too much time in one spot, allowing a predator to develop a plan of attack. We needed to get moving. And get all of us focused back on the environment around us.
"Okay, break is over, ladies," I said. Shira was still limping as we gathered up our supplies. I got close enough to talk to her without the others overhearing. "I can carry you for a while if you want."
Shira just shook her head. I thought maybe I had offended her until she placed her hand lightly on my arm and thanked me for the offer.
A thicker vegetation dominated the ground the higher we rose on the hillside. It crunched beneath our feet like dry leaves. I inspected the path ahead of us closely for anything too rough for our bare feet. The couple weeks of walking around with no shoes had leathered up our soles to withstand more than when we first awoke.
I picked up my pace during the final stretch, eager to inspect the spacecraft. It was of a similar design as the shuttle that we boarded, so I assumed it to be made by the same species. It likely was sent from the same starship that we escaped. There was no reason to believe otherwise.
More critters scurried away as I approached a breach in the hull. Peering inside I saw a small room that was designed as a crew cabin. There was a bed and a shower visible from the opening, illuminated from the ceiling just like our barracks on the fake island. Some power must still be engaged. I wondered if it was possibly fuel for the scattered small fires. Then again, alien technology might not use flammable fuel sources. I had no idea, so I needed to be on the lookout for practically anything that could be a hazard.
With the genuine urging of my friends to be cautious, I stepped into the room, ducking below the collapsed bulkhead. The bed was very narrow and unoccupied. I considered there to be a better chance of facing an animal that had crawled in than a survivor from the crash.
"So, should we just stay out here then?" Nancy asked with a playful tone. However, it was a very good question. I was holding the only gun in our possession. If they faced a serious threat outside, I might not be able to reach them quick enough. The corals and spears would be their immediate protection. I was not confident in that scenario.
"Let me clear the next room, then you can come in here," I told her. Keep them just a few steps away sounded like the best plan. I had followed that protocol many times before. Rescue the hostages, guide them to safety, keep them out of the line of fire.
"What does it mean to clear a room?" I heard Nancy ask the others. I smiled to myself as Lin explained it. My wife's level of comfort within her field of knowledge was actually very attractive. She never pretended like she knew something that she didn't.
The retractable door from the cabin into the inner room of the ship was already open. I popped my head through for a brief second, then withdrew. I assessed no threats but took the customary two seconds for my brain to process what I had seen before proceeding. A table, two chairs, and two more doorways. Based on the exterior view of the ship, I assumed that the door on the far end led to the cockpit. The other door must lead to a narrow space, since there wasn't much room left on that side. Restroom presumably, or another small cabin.
I stepped into the open space to examine more details. There was a food prep section similar to what we have been used to of late. Cooking box, sink, refrigeration unit, and so forth. The table had sunken compartments, and possibly a drain in the middle. Maybe it doubled as a dog washing station? I didn't know, and it wasn't important.
Through the doorway at the far end I saw a chair and an instrument panel. The cockpit as I surmised. I was anxious to check it out, but first I needed to invite my ladies into the cabin compartment for their own security. I watched them enter through the hull breach and confirmed that they were all okay.
Nancy and Shira began discussing the components of the room like home remodel reality show hosts. It was comical, but I couldn't let it distract me. Lin, with a little more wits about her for this kind of situation, stood at the entrance with a spear in her hands. She was guarding the rear as I continued to explore.
The floor of the crashed ship was at a twenty-degree angle. It was challenging to traverse, but not complicated. I just needed to take my time and watch my footing as I kept the pistol ready. Eventually, I was able to grab hold of the door frame to the cockpit and pull myself inside.
There was no one there either. I had expected a dead pilot as least. But nothing. Did the ship fly here unoccupied for no reason but to draw us? Was the crash-landing part of the enticement?
There were two swivel chairs, both with narrow seats intended for the slender race of aliens that designed it. There was no blood or disarray. At this point, this whole journey had been a waste of time. The purpose of this shuttle coming here was still a mystery. Maybe it was a setup, just like we all thought it could be.
Based on the size and shape of the ship, there might be a lower section. I had assumed it to be for cargo. Regardless, that part of the craft was badly damaged and crushed. Finding clues or lifeforms down there would be like sifting through a collapsed building. It would be tedious, time consuming work. The last room on this floor was the narrow space that I guessed to be the restroom. Maybe th
e pilot was taking a shit when the ship crashed. Nerves, bad tacos, when the bowels need emptied, they don't always wait for an opportune time.
I mentally prepared myself for what I might discover. A shit covered dead alien, like a drugged-up rock star's exit from this realm of existence. I found myself needing to find a body somewhere. That would be the first clue to the puzzle of what happened to this ship.
Popping my head into the narrow space, a body I found. But it was not at all what I was expecting. A sealed sleep chamber occupied most of the tiny room. It was like the hundreds of ones on the starship that held sleeping humans. Only this unit did not hold a human. The creature inside was familiar just the same. It was Delilah.
CHAPTER TEN:
"It's queen bitch," Nancy said as she tapped with her knuckles on the glass partition separating her from the prone alien life form.
"She's not a queen," I reminded her. "And since she helped us escape the starship, I wouldn't consider her a bitch, either."
"Joah, you are being swayed by her slender hips," Lin told me. "She didn't help us escape at all. She manipulated us for the benefit of her stupid show. Following her instructions got Drexel and Trixie killed. It could have been any of us as well."
I could not deny her statement. However, "Did she claim that she would rendezvous with us on the surface?"
"Yes, she did."
"Do you think that she crashed here risking her own life as part of her manipulation?"
"Maybe," Lin replied, unwilling to consider that there might have been some truth to the beautiful alien woman's story.
"She's a few days late," Shira reminded us. "If that was her ship that we saw depart the starship the same day as us, where has she been since then?"
We stood there silently for a while staring at Delilah through the thick glass as she slept. Seeing the woman there among the wreckage made me want to cut her some slack. There was no denying that we went from one prison to another, of sorts. And it was Delilah that led us here. But there had to be some truth to her claim that she was rebelling against her people. Maybe she was unaware of what we were heading into. Or, if she did know, she hid that fact from us for our perceived benefit. We were decidedly better off here, so given a choice, we would have come anyway. She simply deprived us of that choice, perhaps because there was no time.
The silence was finally broken when Nancy mumbled, "Queen bitch."
A noise outside the ship then caught my attention. I told the ladies to stay put while I checked it out, but Lin stepped into the next room with me, her spear in both hands. She could protect Nancy and Shira from there and be available to support me as well, so I did not complain. I just gave her a hand signal to stay there.
Another sound just outside the hull breach that we entered had me brace for trouble. Metal sliding against metal. Then a thump that might have been a piece of the ship falling to the ground. I stepped into the opening with my pistol in hand causing some rodents to run for cover. Were they causing the noise? There was nothing currently in my view that indicated otherwise.
"Lin, come guard the entrance while I circle the crash site."
"Are you sure that it is a good idea to split up?" While I was contemplating my answer, Lin added, "This might not be the only way into the shuttle, Joah. I could get flanked."
"You're still safer inside than outside," I told her. "Let me make sure there is nothing out here ready to ambush us before you come out."
"How will we know if you are okay?"
I briefly considered using bird calls as signals, then laughed at myself. Not only was it silly, those bird sounds that we would make would be alien to this planet. I might as well yell out words.
"I'll yell out good periodically if everything is fine and I'm continuing my search. You reply with good if everything is fine with you. Once it is safe, I'll yell clear. If I need to communicate something else, I'll try to keep it simple, like stay inside or go outside."
"And if things are not fine with us?" she asked.
"Call for help and I'll come running. At that point there would be no need for stealth, so you can shout instructions or information during my return."
It sounded like a good plan to me. However, the crash site was about five times the size of the ship's original intact shape. I would have to step through some of the debris to stay in earshot. I communicated that everything was fine to Lin about every fifteen to thirty seconds. Lin replied each time.
Many of the trees were different on this island than ours. That was probably due to the size of the land mass and the elevation. I did not really have the luxury of examining them in detail. There was also much more wildlife, though most were small and stayed low to the ground. No sizable predators so far. More importantly, I did not come across any other people, human or otherwise.
Among the debris from the crash were some usable objects, like metal poles and u-shaped pieces that were surprisingly lightweight. They could help improve our raft. After I made sure that there were no threats, we could circle back around to claim some of those valuable objects. The trip downhill back to the raft would be easier, so we should each be able to carry something extra.
Of course, the question still remained whether or not we would want to return to our little island. Despite this hunk of land offering more size and variety, it did not have a shelter. We had not yet come across one anyway. The wreckage would provide some security if we wanted to stay but giving up running water and food preparation luxuries just didn't make much sense.
We came here for information. Unless something drastic happened, we would probably return to our little abode with that information to plan our next move. Before we do that, we would need to confirm that Delilah was still alive. Then find a way to wake or transport her. Despite Lin's jealousy over the elegant alien's slim form, I did not want to leave her here unless she was already dead.
"Help!" Lin hollered, and I came running as quick as I could. I was almost all the way back around the crash site at that point, so it only took me a few seconds.
"What's wrong?" I asked as I ducked through the unnatural entrance to the fallen vessel. There did not appear to be any threats present, and Lin was not visibly in a panic.
"Nancy pushed some buttons on the sleep chamber," Lin told me, as if she was tired of correcting our small child and it was daddy’s turn to supply some discipline.
"I was trying to kill the bitch," Nancy voice carried from the small room. I wasn't sure how much of that statement was true. At that point it didn’t matter. I wanted Delilah alive if at all possible. Answers, that’s all I wanted from her.
I hurried into area where Delilah had been resting soundly. We were unsure of whether the woman had survived the crash. Even if her stasis capsule remained intact and provided essential life support, the impact alone could have killed her. There was no blood present, or signs of broken bones. I had to assume that she was still living until I found evidence otherwise.
Nancy managed to press something that released the heavy glass lid. It rose at an angle then slid halfway out of the way. If Delilah were awake, she would be able to climb out. I had expected to see flashing lights and such. They always had displays on these things in the movies. Thinking back to the large room on the ship that held hundreds, maybe thousands of sleeping humans, I could not remember if they had any lights or screens. That probably meant that they did not.
"Is she alive?" Shira asked.
I reached into the shallow padded basin to place my hand on Delilah's flesh for the very first time. I had been in her presence before, and even made contact with her clothing, but never her skin. The smooth ebony surface of her flash looked like a statue, especially as she lay there motionless. I was anticipating a cold stony reception to my fingertips. Instead, her skin was soft and warm. A little firmer than human skin, but otherwise very similar to a live human.
I checked several locations on her arm for a pulse but found none. As a humanoid, their anatomy should be close to ours. I
pressed two fingers against several points on her skinny neck. The flesh there was even harder. Again, no noticeable sign of blood flow.
I slid my hand down the woman's chest. To do so, I had to go over or under the fabric of her silky dress. I chose to go under to give me the best chance of recognizing lung activity.
"If you grab her titty," Nancy mumbled behind me.
"Leave Joah alone," Shira defended me. "He is obviously checking for signs of life. Can you stop with the jokes, please?"
I turned to see Nancy raising both hands to signal surrender as she whispered, "Sorry."
Delilah was extremely small breasted, which was to be expected considering her slight build. However, she did have fleshy mounds like a human, and tiny little nipples pressing against the fabric. The size of my hand made it impossible not to contact both of her tits, but I did my best not to make contact with the points.
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