by Gini Koch
We had ten rooms to do. I was able to avoid looking for the first two. But when we verified the third porthole, I had an excellent view of what Roy had likely thought was the big asteroid. One of our ship’s external lights was shining on it – it was easy to see why Roy had made the mistake – the large piece of wreckage was more rounded than angular, with pockets and depressions all over it.
“What part of the ship do you think it…was?” I asked Bullfrog.
“No idea.”
“I have run scans,” Doven said over the com. “I believe that is a Pillar Birthing Sac.”
“I still sense no minds,” Ciarissa said quickly.
“We have to go and see if there are any survivors.”
“DeeDee, Bullfrog, finish verifying the ship’s integrity.” Roy’s voice was calm.
“We will. But we are going to look for survivors immediately after.”
No one argued with me. Bullfrog and I worked our way through the rest of Quarters quickly.
“All portholes secure,” Bullfrog said as he, Ciarissa, and I headed to the galley. The others were already there, Roy and Doven arriving when we did.
“I want to search. Now.”
“How are we going to search for survivors?” Kyle asked. “We barely made it out as it was.”
“I don’t care.”
Roy put his arm around me. “I know. But if Ciarissa can’t feel minds, then there are no survivors.”
“If they’re in suspended animation, they may not register.”
“DeeDee is correct,” Ciarissa admitted. “I would sense brainwaves, but if they aren’t in a dream state, perhaps not.”
“Before we do anything, we need to face one important fact,” Willy said. He was one of those men who just got a little leaner and more lived-in looking the older he got. He was worried – I could tell because when he was worried he sucked his cheeks in and his face looked even older and more sunken. “There’s only one thing that could and would destroy a Pillar Colony, and it’s a Diamante Cruiser or Fleet. Meaning our enemies are close by.”
“No,” Ciarissa said. “I sense no minds other than ours. Believe me, I have searched for Diamante minds. There are none in the vicinity.”
“Based on the wreckage and how close together the debris is, I believe the attack happened a galactic hour ago, no more than three,” Doven said.
“So there’s a chance there could be survivors.”
“We can’t destroy ourselves trying to determine that,” Roy said gently. “I can’t risk this ship and every life on it for what could be nothing.”
“But –”
“Our lives for a bug’s life isn’t a good trade,” Willy said. Most Old Earthers had issues with the Pillar, much more than they did with the Arachnidans. Willy said it was because Old Earthers had fear and respect for spiders and none at all for pill bugs, even giant ones.
“Willy’s right,” Roy said, a little more firmly. “We have a duty to more than ourselves, DeeDee.”
“Is now really the time for the Martian Alliance Speech, bro?” Kyle asked. But quietly.
“The Pillar were part of the original Alliance,” Tresia pointed out.
“I don’t care,” Roy said, turning stubborn. “The likelihood of survivors is slim to none and everyone on this ship has too much value to risk.”
“Every life has value,” I protested, as I tried to keep myself from getting angry, even though Roy and Willy both looked like they were going to start crossing their arms over their chests and begin lectures on which races were more superior than others. “And the Pillar are more than just bugs, Willy, and you know it. You, too, Roy. We can’t leave without at least checking for proof of life. We just can’t –”
“I may have a way,” Dr. Wufren interrupted my protest and whatever counters both Roy and Willy’s open mouths were about to utter. “The wreckage is moving, after all. Roy, my boy, if you can match course with it, I could perhaps give it a shove, so as to move it away from the rest of the debris more quickly.”
Roy and Doven exchanged a look. “It’s workable,” Doven said. “But the push would need to be strong in order to allow us to search within a reasonable timeframe to have a hope of rescuing survivors.”
“But will it exhaust you?” Roy asked Dr. Wufren. “You’ve already expended more tele-talent than we’d expected to have to.”
Who gave me a very understanding smile. “Some things are worth the risk.”
Willy heaved a resigned sigh as Roy looked at me. “Fine. Fren, if you’re up for it, let’s do it.”
“While you all prepare and proceed,” Tresia said, “I will suit up.”
Everyone stared at her. “Excuse me?” Roy asked finally.
She sighed. “Someone will need to exit the ship to search for survivors. If there are any, the crew member who can grab and carry the most is me. We all have spacesuits, Roy. Were you thinking I would never use mine?”
“She’s right, no time for arguing, since the longer we delay, the less likely any survivors will still be alive. I’ll help Tresia into her suit.” I pulled away from Roy and hugged Dr. Wufren. “Thank you.”
Roy looked like he wanted to argue, but apparently my expression told him that discretion was absolutely the better part of valor right now. He, Doven, and Dr. Wufren headed to the cockpit, while Tresia and I headed to where our off-ship gear was stowed.
Unlike Polliskins, which were skintight and literally hell to get on, spacesuits were far more roomy. Getting eight limbs into the suit still required assistance, of course, but nothing like a Polliskin would have.
“Rest assured, DeeDee, I will search diligently.”
“I know you will,” I said as I did the double-check on her oxygen tanks. “And I’ll be there to help you.” I stepped into my own suit.
Because I was an extremely strong and talented shifter, I had the advantage of being able to shift my clothing as I shifted my body. This included my space suit. I didn’t shift the suit often – it was too important a piece of equipment to risk over-stressing, but in times of need, I could take the risk. And this was a time of need.
“Are you sure you want to accompany me?” she asked as she double-checked my tanks after I’d shifted into Arachnidan form.
“Yes. Because sixteen hands are better than eight, and because someone needs to have your back.”
Tresia attached my lifeline and I attached hers – threaded twice through a reinforced belt around our middles, clipped in four places on the suit as well. We tested their holds several times. Then we tested the clips at the ends to make sure they were sound, strong, and not going to come undone.
The rest of the coiled, strong yet supple metal lines were heavy, though it was easier to carry them in this form than it would have been in my natural one. We’d taken the longest lines available to us, meaning we had a good hundred yards of line each.
We went to the airlock, advised the cockpit that we were in position, closed the door tightly behind us, and put our helmets on. We verified that our helmets were tight, that our air and suit pressure was correct, and then we waited. There was a porthole on the external door and, after I verified that it had no damage, we both looked out.
“I can just see the Birthing Sac,” Tresia said. “It seems quite…exposed. DeeDee, you must accept that there may indeed be no survivors.”
“I know.”
“Logically, yes. Emotionally, you see the Pillar as being like you, like the Seraphin. And so you are far more emotionally upset than if this were, say, a Polliship. And you want to find survivors. I understand the desire.”
“No. The Pillar are nothing like the Seraphin. As much as I despise the Diamante Families for destroying my people, I can understand why they felt we were a threat. Roy and Kyle? They represent the return to the old ways and destruction of the Diamante Families’ rule. I can look at everyone on this ship and explain why our people were destroyed, curtailed, or controlled. But the Pillar? They are a threat to no one. They’re
a defenseless race that have been persecuted by the Diamante Families for no reason.”
“There is always a reason.”
“Is there? I could even understand it if the Diamante Families wanted their generational ships. But they don’t. They did their best to turn this Colony into dust. And why? Viciousness is the only reason I can come up with. And refuse – I just refuse – to allow them to destroy the Pillar like they destroyed my people.”
“Looks like the doctor’s gotten your target moved away from the majority of the debris and we’ll be in position shortly,” Roy said over the intercom. “DeeDee, I know without asking that you’re in there with Tresia. And I also know without asking that you’re in her form. I’ll save us the energy and not get into the fight we should be having about this. But are you sure it’s wise to go out as an Arachnidan?”
“The body’s the thing, Roy, and a stronger body with many more limbs is the thing for this mission. It’s good to know you were eavesdropping. And don’t worry, we’ll be fine.”
“Oh, of course I’m not going to worry. Ha ha ha. I just have a quarter of my crew about to risk themselves in the midst of destruction that almost took out my ship. Absolutely nothing to worry about in this scenario. And of course I was listening. It’s my ship, you’re my crew, and I don’t want you doing something reckless out of anger. You’re hiding it well, at least you think you are, but I could feel the righteous rage when I was next to you and I can hear it in your voice. Though racing off recklessly is exactly what you’re doing.”
“We are in position,” Doven said. “Airlock will be opening in ten seconds.”
“You two can still change your minds,” Roy said, as Doven counted down.
Bit back the first several things I wanted to say to this. Willy being unsupportive was one thing. But Roy being hesitant to try to save survivors wasn’t sitting well with me at all. “Thanks for the offer. We’ll scream if we need you.” Tresia and I held on tightly to the bars that were on the sides and top of the doorway.
“Tresia, be safe. DeeDee, I love you.”
“Doors opening,” Doven said calmly. “Fly straight and true.” This was a Quillian blessing, always given when someone was attempting something very dangerous. Nice to get two votes of confidence from the cockpit.
The gravity drive turned off in the airlock, the chamber decompressed, and the door opened. There was the usual pull trying to drag us through the doorway, but we held on as the feeling of weightlessness hit and we began to float. Then Tresia moved slowly through the doorway, still holding onto the bars. She grasped the metal ladder attached to the outside of the Hummingbird, and clambered out. I waited for a few seconds, then followed her out in the same way.
We climbed the ladder until we reached the strong metal ring where we attached our lifelines. Tested each clip’s hold more than once. We were secure.
Dr. Wufren had done a good job – we were much farther from the main wreckage point than we had been, and there was little floating around the remains of the Birthing Sac.
“I will go first,” Tresia said, her voice sounding funny through the helmet’s radio system. “You remain here until I have made contact – if I aim incorrectly or have issues, it will be easier for you to pull me back.”
“Roger that.” We still used Old Earth lingo for certain things. Willy’s influence.
I took hold of Tresia’s lifeline. She aimed herself and shoved off. I let the lifeline play out, ready to stop it and pull her back if necessary. After a few long seconds, she reached the edge of the damaged Birthing Sac and grabbed on. “I am secure. Searching for signs of life now.”
She crawled over what she could of the remains of the ship, humming softly. “I need more line, to continue to search,” she said finally.
“Debris is still coming towards you,” Roy’s voice crackled in our helmets. “Search quickly or come back.”
“I can extend using my line,” I suggested.
“No, that’s too dangerous right now,” Roy said, voice tight. “Both of you get back in here.”
Someone tapped me on the shoulder. I jumped and shrieked. The being who’d tapped me grabbed a limb and pulled me back to the ship. “Sorry, DeeDee,” Dr. Wufren said. “Thought I could do more out here with the two of you.”
“I’m happy I had a tight grasp,” Tresia said. “DeeDee’s scream almost caused me to lose my hold.”
“Why is my ship’s doctor also outside of my ship?” Roy asked. “Actually, answer this first – how did my ship’s doctor get out of my ship?”
“DeeDee and Tresia needed help, bro,” Kyle said. “And we figured you’d yell if I was the one to go out to help them.”
“Fantastic. Did you all decide we’re a democracy all of a sudden?”
I could see part of Dr. Wufren’s face through his helmet, and I was pretty sure his watery blue eyes were twinkling. Apparently Tresia wasn’t the only one who wasn’t seeing enough action. “No, my boy. I just believe that I can assist more effectively from here.” He connected his lifeline to the same metal ring as Tresia’s and mine. “Tresia, my dear, hold on, please. Roy, I’m going to try to bring the wreckage closer to us. If you could oblige…”
“The three of you are insane. I just want to point this out. Fine. I’m going to move forward, Fren, at the slowest propulsion we have, short bursts only. That’s still going to seem fast for the three of you. I want everyone holding on and screaming if you come loose.”
“I’m ready,” Dr. Wufren said. Tresia and I chimed in with our preparedness.
The Hummingbird moved. It felt very different being outside of the ship and the gravity generators, but not as bad as I’d been expecting. I could tell that we were lining up more closely with the wreckage in part because Tresia’s lifeline had more slack in it than before.
She moved over parts of the wreckage she hadn’t been able to reach prior, as Dr. Wufren sagged. “You need to go back in,” I told him.
“Wait!” Tresia called. “I think I’ve found something!”
“Grab whoever or whatever quickly,” Roy said, sounding tenser than he had yet. “Ciarissa’s feeling minds. Minds that don’t like us.”
I didn’t hesitate. I shoved off, aiming for where Tresia was. I’d pushed off much harder than she had, and I reached her quickly. I spun while I floated so that I hit the wreckage feet first. My impact caused the wreckage to float farther from the ship, and I heard Roy muttering through the radio.
We stopped moving, meaning Dr. Wufren had probably done something.
“There,” Tresia pointed towards the middle. The hole was large enough for us to climb into, so we did.
The interior looked like I’d heard honeycombs described – a series of small, interconnected chambers. Unfortunately, most of those chambers were destroyed. But not all.
There was a section of this Birthing Sac that was still intact. A dozen of the sections sat there, seemingly fine. And each one held what looked like a silver ball about the size of a dinner plate in diameter.
“We have a dozen young, and I think they’re all alive,” I said.
“I have no idea how we remove them safely,” Tresia shared. “Do you?”
“No clue at all. Roy, any guesses from anyone else?”
“No, but we have to get out of here.” Roy sighed. “And, I have to say this now – if we take them on board, we can’t go to warp. Meaning that the enemies coming are going to be able to overtake us without issue.”
“They’re protected by something in here – they survived the attack. I think they could handle a short warp jump if we can get them out of the wreckage safely.”
“And if they can’t?” Roy asked. “Then we killed them, as much as the Diamante Families did.”
“I believe I may have the solution thanks to Kyle and Willy,” Dr. Wufren said as he climbed into the area we were, a laser cutter in his hands. “If we can cut around the intact chambers, we’ll have a smaller and much more manageable portion to work with.”
I took the laser cutter from him and started slicing carefully while Willy gave me some tips to avoid cutting through something important, or our suits and tethers, and Roy muttered about a crew who all acted like independent entities instead of functioning like a team.
I chose not to point out that we were actually functioning like a great team, in part because I knew he knew that already, and in other part because I wasn’t out here to banter – I was out here to save the remnants of a sentient race.
“Faster would be better,” Roy shared after I’d been cutting and he’d been muttering for about five minutes.
“Working on it. The extra pressure isn’t helping, in case you weren’t sure.”
“The Diamante ship will be upon us within ten galactic minutes,” Ciarissa said serenely.
“DeeDee, I’m ordering you and the others back to the ship.”
“And I’m insubordinate, because I’m not leaving these Pillar here. Period. You can detach my line from the ship and I’ll stay here. Come back for me when you can. But they either come with us or I stay with them.”
I’d kept on cutting while I said this. I was fairly sure I almost had the section safely removed.
“I feel that DeeDee will need assistance,” Tresia said. “Because once we have cut out these young we will have to also cut our way out of this section. So I am also going to stay out, Roy.”
“I as well, my boy.”
“Have all of you forgotten the motto that’s it’s better to live to fight another day?” Roy sounded upset and resigned, and I could hear fear there, too, though he was hiding it well. “We’re going to give the Diamante Families a great two for one special in a very short while. And, frankly, this isn’t how I envisioned any of us going.”
“They’ve never seen our actual ship, you know,” I reminded him as I concentrated on cutting through what appeared to be both a very strong beam and a delicate area both. The Pillar designed amazing ships – who would want to destroy this? “As far as whoever will know, we’re just a ship trying to salvage at the destruction area.”
No one mentioned that the Diamante Families didn’t like scavengers unless they were Diamante Family scavengers, which was all of us choosing to ignore the scary situation I was keeping us in
