Weekend Special Short Tales California 2.3 Chapter 8

 

8.

The re-entry to the moon’s atmosphere was rough and tougher was the heat exchanger plates took some beatings but we made it through. Hirohito took a breather when we cleared the atmosphere. All four of us in the Bridge were not the best of conditions I had expected but we improvised with the belts to secure each other.

“Tiffany, run a diagnostics on the hull and …” Hirohito called out and then Benz pulled himself up.

“I am going to check on the Engines.” Benz did not wait for the approval and took off. Hagar had remained silent since the killing of the alien. I offered him my seat and took off to meet Benz. I was not     n on him being alone at the rear. I saw Benz at his station and was tapping the console vids. He had on his googles. When he looked up at me, he reminded me of the amphibian creature I had met at the Tavern at Felix Five.

“It’s not good. The coolant system needs the overhaul, the circuit boards on the warp core….” I stopped Benz on his rantings. “We will do it once we complete the shipment. I know she is a relic but you kept her working. We will be fine.”

“Tiffany,” When Benz called me by my name, it meant he was to tell me his real reasons. “I have to share this with you. I have bad feelings on this moon. It was when I fought in Space Marines then, I knew it was the day I will get wounded or die there. I went in with my platoon, and we were ambushed. I had to cover the retreat when we were down to half the numbers. I took up position but the unforeseen came. The rifle jammed and I had to clear it. It was then the enemy tossed the grenade at my position. I grabbed it to toss it back. I did but the grenade exploded mid-air and took my arm. I could have died but my mates returned to pull me out. I lost my arm and they gave me a pension.”

“What will I get now?” Benz looked at me.

“I will get you out to retirement with a hefty bonus.” I replied.

“You lied badly. I can see you have no clue. If I do die, you will take my bonus and buy yourself a new warp core, huh?” Benz smiled. “Now get away. I got my ship to repair.”

I loved Benz and his works but on that moment, I felt like he did. What was I to do if I die? I have no other living siblings or any fucking friends who will cry at my funeral. I may not even get a ‘send to’ tag on the pod like the ones we left in orbit. They will probably recycle my corpses into growth compound and my savings probably send to the charity funds.

“Fuck!” I felt then very lonely.

Loneliness came too short. I saw the second alien at the far end of the Engine Section.

“Benz, I saw it.” I motioned to Benz. He looked to where I was pointing at. The alien was cramped in between the cablings and the main thrusters control box. It was huddling there with the tentacles on the cabling.

“Du Hurensohn!” (That’s German for you son of a bitch) Benz muttered. “We cannot shoot it. If it splatter it body fluid, it will destroy the thrusters. That is no good news.”

I can relate to that with Benz. The loss of the main thrusters means stranded on the moon. And it was not even the time of the year to die early.

“We need to lure it out.” I told Benz but how do you do that? I called out on the communicator to Hirohito. “We got number two in the Engines Section but it’s at the Main Thruster area.”

“Don’t attack it. If it moves, follow it.” Hirohito gave the command.’

“Why don’t we just blow it and the darn ship off?” Benz was into his mood. So was Hirohito who was trying to get into the game as the Captain.

“Benz, I am still the Captain of the ship. Do as I say. Let me land the ship first. Don’t lose sight of it.” Hirohito replied. I could have sworn back at him that I agree with Benz but my concern was how to keep the alien there. It was unlike it will go on a date with me. I then got an idea but the Captain had called in.

“Strap in. We are descending fast.” Hirohito called out. I felt the ship gravity was pulling at our bodies. I had to act before we land. Or lose the alien.

“Tiffany, get Huginn to retrieve me a pod from the nearest pod. I need the corpses here.”

“What are you doing, Navigator?” That was Benz back to his usual self. “Why would you bring the corpses here?”

“The bugger is hungry. It will need to feed or find a host. I will give it a host.” I spoke of my crazy idea. “I know it’s crazy but have you any other better ideas?”

“What do you want to do? Arrange an interaction with it?” Benz was still disbelieving. “Let me find something to lure it out.”

Benz may have the point then. I was actually trying to use the corpses to act as a shield or bait but the Engineer notion made more sense. I had to watch that the bugger won’t move. It was not easy when the ship was rolling around as if we were in an ion storm. Huginn came on time with dead corpses on the back. I had the droid prep the dead from upright. Poor dead was a Marine male with the rank of Lieutenant.

“Huginn, prep it up and stay behind it.” Huginn had the body frame up and facing the alien. It was not a hard task with the droid tentacles limbs wrapped around the body, and then I forced the head back to open the mouth. It may look stupid but I had wider imagination.

“Huginn, approached the alien slowly.” The droid had used two sets of tentacles to wrap the body upright and when it moved, it was the bottom two tentacles like a pair of legs. From my angle of the view it looked like a huge spider humping an organic being from the rear.

Huginn moved forward towards the alien and just when I thought stupidity may just rule the system, the alien was seen moving from the thruster towards the Lieutenant. It screeched out and then charged out. The alien clamped its form on the face like what happened with Hagen.

Huginn had stumbled backwards but held firm on the dead Lieutenant.

“Huginn moved to the airlock.” I gave the command. The airlock was near the main thrusters. It was then I saw the alien moved. It must have liked the serving I was offering it. I had grabbed the console with a grip.

“You are mad.” Benz looked at me. “I am ready.”

“Huginn, hold the alien with your tentacle.” Higgin heard my command and moved the left upper limb onto the alien which was then struggling to get free. I had to move fast.

“Benz, can you open the rear airlock? We are going to send the Lieutenant off on his final trip.” I called out. I looked towards Huginn. “Bring him to the airlock.”

The droid moved to the airlock. It’s lowered bottom tentacles as a grapple to get a firm grip. The airlock slide opened and the air in the chamber was sucked out.

“Release the Lieutenant.” I gave the command. The droid did as instructed. Once the Lieutenant was freed of its holding, the body of the Lieutenant was ejected. I punched the ignition key and the main thrusters which exhaust lit up the body. I cut off the ignition off but not before the ship had lurched on sudden thrust.

“Seal back the airlock.” I called to Benz just as my grip was weakening and then the ship slipped back into its normal atmosphere. I then turned to Huginn.

“Replace Hagen into the pod. He can get a proper send-off then.”

“What the fuck?” It was Hirohito who called out on the communications. The ship had lurched on the sudden ignition. Benz replied on my behalf.

“We checked the thrusters. It’s working now.”

“Fuck that. I am landing the ship. And don’t do anything else.” Hirohito snapped out.