Mutationem

by Phoenix Jericho

  “There you go, Commander,” said Sophi with pride.

  “Move back. I’m going to engage the telescope,” said Connie. “Engaging now.”

  The unit began to move, and Connie focused it at a distant star.

  “Running tests now. Stand by,” said Connie.

  Sophi was getting very cold. She had been outside for over an hour and a half, and even though the suit was heated, it still was no match for the deep freeze of space. It was like standing by a bonfire in winter on Earth; one side of you was baking, and the other side was freezing. Sophi was also becoming mentally exhausted from hanging on to a ship going the speed of light.

  “How much longer, Connie?” she asked.

  “One more calculation,” said Connie. “So far, so good.”

  Another ten minutes went by.

  “Commander, are you about done?” said Sophi through numb lips.

  “Get your butts back in here,” said Connie. “Great job, everyone. The ship has one of its eyes back.”

  A wave of cheers spread across all seven sections as everyone on board celebrated.

  “You go first, Sophi. I’m not as cold,” said Charlie.

  Without a word, Sophi pulled herself back along the hull. It was hard to squeeze and release the fist magnets and roll them along the ship’s skin, but with her KGB-ingrained discipline, she forced her body to obey her mind. It was slow going, but she finally got into the tunnel and closed the airlock.

  Sophi was so tired that she had forgotten her crewmate was left outside. Command decided to let Sophi continue through the other airlocks so she could get warmed up as soon as possible.

  “I don’t like leaving one of my women outside the ship. Get her in here now,” barked Captain Kriss.

  “We are going to get her in ASAP,” said Connie. “Merc is getting suited up right now. She will go and open the outer lock.”

  As the seconds ticked by, the captain grew more impatient.

  “How much longer?”

  “Merc is opening the third lock now. One more to go,” replied Connie calmly.

  “Opening outer lock now,” said Merc. “Come on in, honey. Spuds has a well-deserved mocha waiting for you.”

  In animated slow motion, Charlie reached in and pulled herself through the opening to the tunnel. Once inside, she released her grip on the other fist magnet.

  “Cargo is on board,” said Merc.

  “I see that,” said Captain Kriss as she looked at the monitor. “Now get that door shut and secure my ship.”

  “Yes, sir,” snapped Merc.

  Moving around the tired astronaut, Merc engaged the locking mechanism, and the heavy door sealed shut. Giving a thumbs-up to the overhead camera, Merc moved towards the next airlock door. Charlie already had passed through and was waiting for her.

  “Commander, go back! The outer hull airlock is not sealed properly,” said Connie. “The red pulsating strobe is still on. Do you read me?”

  “Yes, sir, but I have completely activated the locking mechanism,” said Merc.

  “The strobe is a failsafe. Go back now and reactivate it,” said Connie.

  Merc went back and tried to open the mechanism, but it was jammed.

  “Come help me,” she beckoned to her crewmate. Charlie came back into the tunnel and helped the struggling commander. With their combined force, they got the locking mechanism to open.

  “Now examine the lock’s gasket,” said Connie, “and make sure nothing is binding the door.”

  Carefully Merc and her crewmate checked the door’s seal and facing.

  “Everything’s clear!” said Merc.

  Just then, something snagged Charlie’s gloved hand.

  “I think I’ve got something,” she said nervously.

  Running her other hand over the glove, Charlie felt a sharp pain and yelled out. That was the last sound that came out of her mouth.

  As her suit deflated, the pressure of space caused the woman’s blood to boil. Her face looked like it was a balloon about to pop, and then it did, a crimson explosion of blood that covered the inside of the helmet’s bubble, running down its polished surface in rivulets of extinguished life.

  Chapter Sixty-Four

  Captain Kriss’s freshly shaved head was completely white. Her recently detatched hair hung in the air around her. The crew woman with the clippers used a handheld wand to vacuum up the floating hair.

  No one spoke; the only noise came from the humming of the oscillating metal clipper teeth as they severed the hair off of each crew woman’s head. Then the suction noise of the wand followed. It eventually had all the crew’s hair filtered out of the air and trapped in its fabric.

  The crew was dressed in black flowing gowns, and as they walked to the garden, they looked like a slow-moving order of monks. Captain Kriss led the procession; Smitty brought up the rear. Once in the garden, the women formed a circle around a hole that had been dug into the soil matrix. Beside the hole was a table, and on the table was a round cake. The cake had jet-black icing, with blue butterflies, birds, and bees around the sides. On the top was a gold-colored bird. Not just any bird, but a phoenix that shone brilliantly and sparkled from the glow of the garden’s grow lights.

  All eyes were focused on the captain as she began to speak.

  “Death makes no sense to me. It is a mystery, a place that haunts us all. On Earth, everything lived, then died. Even though we escaped Earth at the speed of light, we still can’t escape death. Death should have no place in our lives. Why can’t we beat something as simple as death?

  “Today you are dressed in black to symbolize the death of our crewmate, Charlie. This circle of our flesh represents no end and no beginning, but rather the body of our existence. Each of us is a vital part of this body. When one of us falls, a piece of the body dies, and with it, we feel the pain of death.

  “Yesterday, we lost a part of our body. She died so that our remaining body could live. So we are dressed in black, and the cake is iced in black to mourn her loss. The cake is circular and symbolizes the same ring of life, starting out as life and ending in death. We are all one. No person is more important than the other. We are all equally important. The color blue signifies blue skies and life-giving air, something we hope to find on Alpha-64. But it also signifies hope. Our body has lost a part, but that part gave itself for our hope, and the symbol of that part lost is the phoenix. The phoenix is a beautiful bird that represents not only elegance and beauty, but rebirth and resurrection.

  “Charlie was a beautiful girl who gave up her life, and her death has resurrected our chances of finding our new home. Her body died yesterday, but her spirit is reborn in each of us today.

  “Each of you, come up one at a time, take a slice of this cake, and reform the circle.”

  When there was one piece remaining, Captain Kriss picked it up and held the cake over her head.

  “This is a piece of our body lost, and now it will be reborn in each of us.”

  Everyone put the cake in their mouths. Kriss broke from the ring of women and placed the golden phoenix into the hole in the soil matrix. She held up the fabric bag containing everyone’s shaved-off hair and sprinkled it over the phoenix, covering the contents with the artificial soil.

  “We are one,” she said quietly, and those words revolved around the circle as each woman repeated them.

  “Our crewmate will receive a proper burial once we make it to Alpha-64, but until then, her body will remain entombed in her space suit between airlocks three and four.”

  With sadness and disbelief etched on their faces, everyone left the garden except Connie and Kriss. Walking up to the captain, Connie cleared her throat.

  “Sir, I have something to tell you about our male cadaver.”

  The captain listened intently. When Connie was done revealing what she knew about Felix
, Captain Kriss said, “What a remarkable story. I’m saddened to know that Felix was wrongly accused, but am glad that a hero, rather than a criminal, will be the father of the future human race. Thank you, Commander, for digging up this information.”

  “Actually, sir, I only get part of the credit. Pickle found the tattoo,” said Connie.

  “Very well. You both did great work,” said Kriss. “Now go back up to Command and get my ship back on course to Alpha-64.”

  *

  Smitty was halfway to the Hole when a breathless voice spoke.

  “Please stop.”

  Turning around, Smitty saw Jade approaching. “What is it?” the first mate snapped.

  Looking nervously around to make sure no one could hear her, Jade asked, “Are you going to the Hole?”

  “What business is it of yours?”

  “Well,” stammered the girl, “are you going there to shave Leea’s head?”

  “Yes, Captain’s orders.”

  “Sir, can I shave her head?” asked Jade as she stared at the floor.

  “Why do you want to shave her head? Look at me when I address you.”

  Looking up, the woman stared into Smitty’s eyes. “It’s because I love her, sir.”

  “I recognize you. You’re the girl who stood up at Leea’s trial.”

  The girl’s expression held such innocence that it was Smitty who finally broke eye contact first.

  “Very well, I’ll allow you to cut her hair. But you must bring me the hair back as proof that you’ve cut it. Tell the two guards at Engineering that I have authorized this.”

  “Oh, thank you, sir,” gushed Jade, and without thinking, she kissed Smitty on the cheek and then fled down the hall.

  *

  Reaching through the bars of the Hole, Jade lovingly shaved Leea’s gorgeous strands of dark hair from her head. Her hair made her look beautiful, and with each pass of the cold metal clippers, Leea’s resolve weakened until finally she began to cry. Like a bird being plucked of its feathers, Leea lost her feeling of freedom. Being thrown into the Hole hadn’t broken her spirit, but losing her hair had.

  Switching the clippers off, Jade finally heard the quiet weeping of the prisoner.

  “Don’t cry,” said Jade. “I think you are just as beautiful without hair.”

  Like a trained actress, Leea turned off the tears. “Thank you, honey,” she whispered. “You stood up for me when no one else did.”

  Reaching through the bars, Leea pulled Jade to her and blew a kiss. “I wish I could touch you now, but I can’t. But soon I will, so be ready.”

  “Leea, please volunteer once we land on Alpha-64. The ship will need someone to make sure it is safe, and if you volunteer, it will be seen with favor by the captain.”

  “Fuck the captain,” hissed Leea.

  Jade burst into tears. “But I can’t lose you,” she sobbed. “I love you.”

  Turning away, Jade ran off, the strands of Leea’s cut hair hanging from her hand.

  Chapter Sixty-Five

  The hot metal flowed in a series of beads as the airlock’s inner-door facing melted and bonded to the door itself. There was no noise from the electron gun, just the bright flashes of its white-blue arc and the glow of the red molten rim left behind. With a steady hand, Merc welded the tunnel exit shut. The vacuum caused there to be almost no debris or splatter, and as an added precaution, Merc was using a hooded gun that would catch any chance metal spray. She was very careful, as melting a hole in her suit was not an option.

  She avoided looking directly at her dead crewmate floating beside her, the peripheral image of frozen Charlie a constant reminder of what could happen if she ruptured her own suit. The rigors of the launch had caused the outer airlock to move slightly, enough to scrape a shard of razor-thin metal off from the door facing, and the continued vibration of the electromagnetic pulse engines had made it as sharp as a needle. That needle-sharp metal was what had punctured Charlie’s suit.

  Merc had wisely examined the door’s bottom surface with a mirror. Observing this peril, she had opted to weld it shut, rather than remove it and risk another incident. She knew this was a risk, as well, because no more spacewalks could be done; they would all be entombed inside the ship. But that was better than a hull breach.

  She carried the electron beam welder through all the airlocks, and unsuited with the aid of two crew women. Then she headed to Command to report to the captain.

  Captain Kriss was standing behind Connie, watching the chief science officer feverishly pecking away at a keyboard.

  “Is the telescope responding to your commands?” asked Kriss.

  “Yes, sir, but I’m now working on doing calculations with the HARPS system,” replied Connie. “HARPS stands for High-Accuracy Radiovelocity Planet Searcher.”

  “Damn it, speak English,” grunted Kriss.

  “This instrument specializes in finding the solar wobbles of stars, and when we can detect a wobble, it helps us find the planet creating the gravitational wobble. In this case, I can no longer see Alpha-64, but I can see its two suns, and I am now trying to calculate their wobbles. Since they are binary, it makes the calculations a little more complicated.”

  “The hull’s outer airlock is welded shut,” Merc announced.

  “Good work,” said Captain Kriss. “Is the drone ready for surveillance once we orbit Alpha-64?”

  “Yes, sir. Sophi has got it working perfectly,” responded Merc.

  “Good, I want it deployed as soon as Connie gets us close enough. I want the entire planet mapped before we begin our landing. Also, I want as many biological, geological, and thermal tests done prior to our landing sequence. We have only one chance to do this. Smitty, how is the crew’s fitness? Is everyone ready for the increased gravity?”

  “Everyone is on point, sir, even Libby and Dozer,” replied the first mate.

  “Captain, the HARPS data are completed. The computer has confirmed the presence of Alpha-64,” Connie said excitedly. “I’m now aiming the forward telescope to where the HARPS data indicate it is. I will keep this location in the ship’s main navigational computer. We will not deviate or waste precious fuel.”

  “About damn time,” the captain said crisply.

  “As soon as we get a glimpse of it again, I’ll make an announcement over the com,” said Connie. “Until then, I’m not leaving Command.”

  “The crew’s morale is shot. Good news would be a boost for us all,” said Kriss.

  Saluting, Kriss departed. The stainless steel doors of her quarters had just closed behind her when she heard a soft knock. “Who is it?” she snapped.

  Jade entered the room tentatively and spoke in a quiet voice. “Captain Kriss, will you consider my request?”

  “And what is that?”

  “Will you allow Leea to be the first woman to explore A-64 and make sure it is safe for the rest of the crew?”

  “And why would I do that, young lady?”

  “If you emulsify her once we land on Alpha-64, she will be dead. Maybe if she did risk her life to protect the rest of the crew, you would grant her a pardon and restore her status as a member of the crew,” the woman said hesitantly. “And if she died, her death would be for the colony’s sake and not for her crimes.”

  “Why have you come to ask me this?” asked Kriss.

  “Sir, I love her.”

  “You realize this woman almost killed us all,” said Kriss.

  “Yes, sir, but don’t we all deserve a second chance?”

  “Not on my ship. A second chance could kill us all. I can’t take that risk. You are dismissed. No more questions.”

  With a look of grief, the girl turned and left Kriss alone in her quarters. But the seed had been planted. Using Leea was a logical choice, Kriss acknowledged, but it was her job to protect the colony. This wasn’
t Earth, where the prison system was allowed to fail over and over again. Leea wasn’t rehabilitated; she was just caged in the Hole. She had no remorse, and was a potential threat to everyone.

  Kriss thought about her dad. She instinctively knew what he would have done. Leea would already be dead. But, these were different circumstances; they didn’t have an abundant supply of lives to spare. Maybe she could use Leea.

  Merc could make her an explosive band to wear around her neck. If Leea tried anything, she would be eliminated.

  With a look of satisfaction, Kriss slipped off to sleep.

  Chapter Sixty-Six

  The light speckling noise of rain hit the tent’s fly, gradually increasing in tempo until it was a full-blown downpour. Two bodies were wrapped in one giant sleeping bag, sharing the intimacy of their combined warmth. The red glowing embers of the fire hissed as water droplets turned to steam. The entrance to the tent was open, and the wet ash smell was blown into the tent by the rain’s light wind.

  At first, neither sleeping form moved, but as the rain’s intensity increased, both occupants became conscious of the storm. The unexpected crack of lightning caused them to sit up in fear.

  “That was really close,” said Susanna in a quivering voice.

  “There wasn’t even a second between the lightning and the thunder,” Ben said excitedly. “When you first see lightning, count until you hear the explosion of thunder. Each second represents a mile.”

  “That strike was less than a mile away.”

  A giant gust of wind hit the tent and expanded the fabric sides and roof. They billowed out like a shark’s open mouth. Several tent pegs were ripped out of the ground, and Susanna screamed as a bolt of lightning hit the massive oak tree twenty yards away and split its trunk in two. It was like a large, fiery axe had been swung by a giant, cutting a block of firewood in half. Both segments contained huge limbs and branches, and they made a hissing sound as they whipped through the air on their way to the ground. The ground vibrated as the wood hit the forest floor, and a wave of wet fall leaves and moistened dust flew in all directions.