James Scotson - Planets Falling

Gorian resumed her assault on the shuttle’s locks. She tunneled through two security layers and had but one to go. If she could access the HM interface in the shuttle, she would not only be able to open the door, she might be able to persuade the HM to prevent the shuttle from flying and obeying commands from Melat.

Iggy’s unblinking eyes kept watch on the shuttle, while Verat monitored the action on the planet. Drone one was monitoring Fromer. Two was now over the Raven. Three was headed toward Minns, Grey, and Fen. Four was on the other side of the planet and out of communications reach. The planet’s electrical activity was worsening. Their only way to call for help from the Institute was by getting into orbit and sending a message via the recon satellites. Melat controlled all means of their salvation.

Verat was busy watching Grey and company and had not eyed Fromer for a while. He switched the comm to Fromer’s drone. “Oh hell and holy mars,” he muttered. There was no sign of Fromer. The drone was programmed to follow Fromer’s movements. Even if Fromer was torn into pieces like Rhodes, the drone would diligently remain above his remains, like a loyal puppy. Verat widened the drone’s search pattern. It only registered the undulating surface of a shallow lake. He switched from sonar to visual on the drone and was surprised to see a hazy image of the lake, sunshine, and moss-covered boulders. He rubbed his eyes. He saw hundreds of faces in the ripples of the pond. They looked right at him. He sipped his tea — the faces vanished. “Please God, get me off this planet.”

With Fromer missing, Verat decided to program drone one to systematically search the area for any sign of the hybrid. It would notify him whether Fromer was found, dead or alive. He flipped over to drone two. It was still too foggy over the Raven, so he used sonar. Banna and Tyrrel had arrived at the Raven and flanked the vessel’s aft hatch. If the door opened, they’d have a direct shot at Melat and the shuttle. Mel had no chance.

Drone three followed Grey’s network of beacons and arrived over his three crewmates. Two figures — Minns and Grey — were encircled by a solid, swirling mass. It looked like they were perched in the eye of a small hurricane — those storms that occurred on some ocean planets including old earth. Fen was about fifty feet behind them. Two large solid masses stalked him. He was mostly still. But each time he shifted his position, the masses shifted similarly. Beyond the three of them, the area looked clear. Verat typed a note to Grey.

Gorian comm: VERAT TO GREY. DRONE IS OVER YOU. ENTITIES ARE SURROUNDING, ABOUT FOUR FEET THICK WALL. BEYOND THAT, ALL CLEAR. OVER.

Grey comm: WE ARE FINE. STATUS OF MELAT AND OTHERS? OVER.

Verat quickly typed in a synopsis of their status, refraining from his usual rude commentary. Showing even more restraint, he purposely neglected to tell Grey about Fromer’s disappearance.

Gorian generated one more algorithm and felt a pleasant twinge of satisfaction. Before her on the screen was the command menu for the shuttle. If Mel was paying attention, then Gorian had time for one command before Mel interfered. If Mel was still communing with the Raven, then Gorian had more opportunity to gain an upper hand. Gorian entered her security access key and ordered the stern hatch to open. The magnetic lock disengaged and the hatch lowered silently. The gangplank hit the soft ground with a muffled thud. Gorian motioned to Iggy. They raised their rifles on opposite sides of the dimly lit opening. Verat appeared behind them, crouched down, and swiftly entered the shuttle.

As Gorian prepared to follow Verat into the vessel, the gangplank retracted and she fell back. The hatch hissed and slammed shut. Iggy lunged at the door but it was already shut. Verat was trapped in the shuttle with Melat. Gorian ran back to her data interface. But it was completely frozen and smoking. The shuttle’s HM sent a power surge through it as a defensive action. She was not going to have a second chance.

Verat stumbled into the cargo bay and sought shelter behind a bench. Mel appeared from the adjacent chamber and punched the emergency lock panel — a large red button reserved for accidental hatch breaches. When Verat saw her do this, he knew he was on his own. Even Fromer would be unable to respond quickly enough to get through the closure.

Melat exclaimed, “HM. Purge any external access.” At that, the shuttle fried any external connections. Verat realized that Gorian had no chance of bypassing the system now. Melat turned toward the helm, causing the engines to charge up. Within a few minutes, they’d be airborne. He sighed. His bladder was full. Should have refrained from drinking that last cup, he mused.

He stood up and advanced toward Melat, her back turned to him. He lifted his rifle and aimed. A few days ago he was planning a trip to the beach and now he was prepared to empty the contents of his friend’s skull onto the control panel. Well, the term friend may have been a bit exaggerated. But, still, he had no fortitude for violence. How did he get to this point in his life?

Melat cocked her head, causing Verat to hesitate. Verat felt a tingling in his feet and arms. He dropped his rifle and fell in a heap on the floor. Melat turned and smiled. “Why hello Verat. Glad you could join me. I have no tea to offer you.” He could only stare at her, frozen on the floor, muscles twitching. I just walked into a security field , he thought. Dammit.

The shuttle rose gently. Gorian and Iggy watched it hover over them and advance slowly toward the Raven. Iggy lifted his rifle and Gorian shook her head. “No use Iggy. We need one of the ion charge launchers that Grey and Fromer have. Rifles will be useless. The best we can do is run to the Raven. Hopefully, we can provide back up for Banna and Tyrrel.

“What about the drones?” Iggy asked.

“Grey, Minns, and Fen will have to hold tight. I hope Fromer shows up.” Gorian sipped some water, then zipped around a pile of rocks and vanished in the gorge. Iggy was right behind her.

Banna peered at the sky. Confounded fog. He could see nothing. He shouted, “Tyrrel, what’s your status?”

“Same as before Banna, nothing to report.”

Banna thought about his life before this assignment. Wife, two kids, even a dog. He was born on mars to an unremarkable life, coming from a long line of maintenance staff. They knew every inch of the colonies. The old domes, Fuerst gardens, the amazing mountains, and most importantly, the hidden service tunnels. He was the first of his family in generations to leave the nest — became a soldier, dragging his family to a new planet. Then the pirates came and made him pay for his adventurous spirit. Now, here he was. Family dead, horrid planet, and a crazy woman on her way to send them to hell.

Tyrrel was trying to relax when she saw Banna walking into the fog. She hissed, “Banna, where are you going?”

Banna saw something. It looked an awful bit like his five-year old daughter at the time the attack came. Could it be true, what they were saying about the planet? That the dead were coming back? Maybe this would be his opportunity to tell his girl and the rest of his family how sorry he was. He should’ve been there with them rather than deployed in space. If only he was there, it would have been different.

The girl was smiling, beckoning him to follow. She was wearing her favorite shoes — blue with sparkles and tiny bows. He had to give it a try. Even if it was a hallucination, the mere vision was enthralling. He followed her into the fog. Somewhere in the distance he heard a soft voice. Was someone calling him? His family perhaps?

Tyrrel was concerned now. Banna had evaporated in the fog. The air was vibrating, although she could see nothing. She readied her rifle — the vibration was the tell-tale protestations of molecules in the air — a sure sign of a shuttle descent. Where was Banna? Redundancy was as important to a soldier as it was to engineers like Gorian. With no back up, she was hanging in the wind. She yelled for Banna once more, and the hull of the shuttle appeared in response.