Nathan Hystad - New Threat

“She’s got a head start on us. A couple of hours. Let’s just hope we’re not too late when we get there. She hasn’t hit the FTL drive yet. Leslie said it wasn’t charging when they landed, since they hadn’t been planning on leaving quickly. That gives us the advantage. Maybe,” I said.

Clare confirmed this. “We can hit the drive in a few minutes. It should be enough to get us there first.”

I looked at the estimated time of arrival to our new destination, a derelict Deltra station from fifty Earth years ago, and it said one hundred and sixty hours. Almost a week of twiddling our thumbs. A week to stew in anger at the betrayal. I sat down in the captain’s chair for the first time, hardly aware that I’d done so. I was exhausted, and my clothing stank.

If she was just going to leave us, why save me at all? She’d risked herself again for me in the swamp. Was it just for show? Did she think the others would turn back if I was killed?

Someone tapped me on the shoulder, and I looked up to see Slate there.

“Let’s get something to eat,” his mouth said, but his eyes said he wanted to talk to me about something. I obliged and followed him down the hall.

“Slate, start the coffee. I’ll be there in two.” I headed for my bunk and grabbed a fresh uniform before hopping into the shower for a quick rinse-off. I rushed, hardly letting myself dry before suiting up and getting back to the kitchen.

“You’d make a good military man. That was as fast as any I’ve seen.” He laughed, and I found myself joining in with him. I found myself really liking the quiet man. I’d expected him to be a lot like Magnus, but instead of the boisterous confidence of my Scandinavian friend, Slate gave off an aura of quiet confidence.

“I brought sandwiches to the bridge. Want one?” he asked, and I picked up a PB and J from the small stack in the middle of the table.

My stomach growled just at the sight of the food, and I ate half quickly, no words needed.

“Dean, I have a feeling when we get there, we’ll be fighting. I don’t know if Mae will be able to contact reinforcements, and at this time, we don’t even know whose side she’s on.”

Don’t trust her.

“The Bhlat,” I said, my gut spitting out the name. “It has to be. There’s no one left. If she’s not with the hybrids, and we ended the Kraski, that leaves the Bhlat. We always said if the Deltra were able to infiltrate the hybrids’ core, the Bhlat could have too.” Kareem had told us more about the alien race, and I almost wished he hadn’t. They moved from system to system, destroying lives, using slaves to mine each planet for minerals so they could expand their reign of terror. So far, they looked to be centuries from coming near Alpha Centauri or our solar system, if ever. Kareem stated that the chances of them even bothering were low, but a race of humans that managed to stave off the fleeing Kraski might entice them to visit.

“I agree. I just want to see where your head’s at. Can you pull a trigger if you see Mae’s face in the crosshairs?” He asked the question so softly I had to lean in to hear him.

Janine’s face. Mae’s face. Could I? I nodded, saying I could and would, but words were one thing. Action was another.

“Good. What do you say we continue our training after some sleep? I’m going to relieve Mary from the bridge, and you two can get some rest.” He didn’t even look tired, and there I was, ready to fall asleep at the table.

“Thanks, Slate.” He left me sitting there alone until a couple minutes later, when an equally tired-looking Mary came to join me.

“Let’s get some sleep, babe,” she said, coming over to me. I pushed my face into her stomach, and she ran her hands through my still-wet hair.

“I love you,” I said, my voice muffled by her uniform.

“I love you too. Just think of the stories we’re going to be able to tell our children,” she said.

It was the first time she’d mentioned kids, and until then, I hadn’t even realized they were a possibility. Maybe there was room for another life on our new world.

Standing up, I kissed her. “Take some pictures. There’s no way they’ll believe half of it.”

Ihit the ground hard, having been at the receiving end of Slate’s demonstration.

“Now you try,” he said, motioning Nick forward. The wiry doctor came at me, feigning a low kick, and struck out with his fist. I spun, mostly avoiding the impact, and followed through, momentum doing most of the work as I flipped Nick onto his back and pushed my knee onto his chest.

“Very good!” Slate yelled, clapping his hands together.

“Yeah, very good,” the doctor said, his words short and terse.

I got up and gave him my hand, which he hesitated to grab.

“Do I really need to learn this? I mean, I’m a healer, not a hunter.” Nick rubbed his chest with his palm.

“We don’t know what we’re up against. Nick, you’ve never told us your story. Why are you here?” Slate asked, surprising the doctor.

“I told you why. They needed a volunteer and I stuck my hand up.”

“We get that, but what drove you to stick your hand up?” I asked, genuinely curious.

We sat on the crates, drinking water, and Slate tossed us a couple of towels. I was covered in sweat and laid the towel over my head while he talked.

“I suppose a lot of my life decisions led me to that point. Where do you want me to start?” he asked.

“We have another four days before we get there. Go as far back as you want,” Slate said, leaning against the wall. “Tell us about your life. You know… before.”

It was hard for some people to go back to that life. To dwell on what was, because so much had changed with the Event. Nick’s eyes had that look to them, and that was probably why he was so tight-lipped about himself.

“I always wanted to help people. Even as a little kid. Where others would shy away from blood, it fascinated me. It was inside us, and if enough leaked out, we died. A weird thing for an eight-year-old to think, and my questions sometimes had my parents worried. They were simple folks from the Midwest. She worked part-time at a bank, and my pa had a small construction company. I remember the day he asked me if I wanted to take over his business. I told him I couldn’t because I was going to be a doctor. He looked crestfallen, but he never told me he was disappointed. They both supported me, and while I worked summers and part-time anything jobs while I went to school, they paid the lion’s share of my tuition.” His gaze had taken on a longing look to the far side of the room as he spoke, and I didn’t have to ask if his parents had survived the Event. They hadn’t.

“That’s great. That isn’t far off my own story,” I said. “Where did you go to school?”

“Medical degree at Stanford. I moved to California after pre-med for a life-changing experience. It sure was. I loved the beaches and people, but eventually got home-sick and went back to Indiana for my residency.” He took a drink of water before continuing. “I ended up joining the military ten years ago.”

“What made you do that?” Slate asked.

“A girl… rather, a woman, but aren’t we all just boys and girls at the end of the day?” he asked, a grim smile on his face.

“I suppose we are. Especially when it comes to following the heart,” I said.

“We went to Iraq. Different stations, and she was killed by a goddamn suicide bomber before I ever told her I loved her.” He stared at the wall, as if looking either of us in the eyes would open the bottled-up floodgates that were inevitably there.

Slate came over and rested his hand on Nick’s shoulder. He didn’t say a word, just let it sit there a moment before heading back to the spot he’d been leaning on.