by Jenn Nixon
Aliri and Hill arrived as the Tolox came into range of the vessel. The crew worked quickly gathering data and preparing the ship for whatever was to come next. Tiva sensed the anticipation from the others, but kept her concentration on her task.
“We are in communications range, sir,” Emerala said. “And I have a visual of the ship on our extended sensors.”
The captain nodded. “Put it on the main displayer and contact them using the standard greeting.”
The screen flickered and a ship appeared. The design was similar to the scout, only it was larger and seemed more powerful. Some of the same weapons decorated the hull, which would be helpful, as they had fought a similar ship previously. Several long minutes passed. Sweeps of the ship and area continued to beep and whirl as the computer logged them. Gigs reappeared and moved toward the captain.
“Did you inform the crew to arm themselves?” he said.
“No, I didn’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because I didn’t feel like it.”
The entire room went silent and all heads turned to the hologram. Tiva and Emerala exchanged a confused look as Gigs started laughing.
“I don’t find this funny, Gigabyte, do as I ordered.”
“Nah, I really don’t feel like it.”
Aliri gasped and pounded on her console. “I’m locked out.”
“So am I,” B’abot said.
“Gigs what are you doing?” Hill said with shock on his face.
“What I was told,” she said.
“Captain, Gigs’ program has been corrupted, she has a virus,” Emerala said. “I’m trying to pinpoint…Damn it! She locked me out.”
Maar slammed on his chair console and rose from his seat. “Take her offline!”
Everyone worked furiously. Tiva glanced around to see everyone having the same bad luck getting information. Suddenly, the ship dropped speed and came to a halt.
“Sir, I’ve lost flight controls. We’ve stopped.” Raife kicked the underside of his console.
“That’s not going to help,” Gigs said. “I control the Tolox now.”
“Why?” Hill said.
“I dunno, feels right.”
“What do you plan on doing now that you have control?”
All the panels lit up. Reports from every sector on the ship poured in. Tiva’s team contacted her via the wrist-com, and she quietly informed them of the situation, ordering them to head to the command center. She turned her attention to the AI when the entire ship jolted fiercely.
Tiva crashed into her console then fell back. Gasping for breath, she cradled her arm and moved toward Emerala to help her up.
“Thanks,” she said weakly.
“Weapons n’ shields are down!” B’abot said.
“Tactical alert!” Hill said as he pulled himself up from the floor and grabbed his wrist-com. “All crew, tactical alert, arm yourselves.”
Several aliens appeared in the command center. They weren’t exactly like the others from the scout ship, but they looked similar. Tiva was ready for them this time. She leaped over her station and attached her Timbur before she landed. Aliri, Emerala, and Raife fired on the intruders. Tiva slashed the nearest one across the chest and kicked him off to the side as she spun around, pulled her gun, and fired on another.
An alien popped behind her and prodded her with an electrical spike; she cried out in pain and dropped to her knees.
“Tiva!” Aliri said and shot the attacker before he struck again. He slumped over and twitched uncontrollably. Tiva nodded her thanks, forced herself up, and continued to fight through the crowd of aliens that constantly filled the area. Bolts of laser fire illuminated the room, blistering the stagnant air. Striking down alien after alien, Tiva noticed the fallen ones begin to disappear.
Gigs stood in the midst of the chaos watching with a smile on her face. B’abot, Hill, and Maar continued fighting. Tiva ran toward Aliri seeing her on the floor.
“Are you injured?”
“Yes, but I’ll be fine. We have to get her offline,” she said.
“Not gonna happen,” Gigs said, floating next to them.
“Gigs, your friends are dying and getting hurt, you are allowing these aliens to take control of your ship. Do you not realize what is happening?” Tiva grunted and spit the metallic blood from her lip.
“I’m only doing what my program is telling me to do.”
“Think!” Tiva said. “We are your crew, help us.”
“I can’t, sorry.” She smirked and vanished.
We have to do something, Tiva. Aliri’s voice entered her mind.
She has control over everything, what can we do? Tiva said and ducked as another alien swung a spike at her head. She pushed Aliri back, and jumped up into the air to kick him in the shoulder. He fell back revealing another one behind him. Tiva spun mid air and clipped the side of his head with her other foot. When he hit the ground, she stabbed the first in the gut with her Timbur and shot the second in the chest.
We have to disconnect her matrix from the rest of the ship without her knowing. Get her attention, keep her busy, and I will head down to the main computer core.
Tiva paused and exchanged looks with Emerala and Hill, both obviously knew she and Aliri were communicating, and Hill approved with a slight bob of his head.
Tell me how I can help. Emerala’s muted voice filled her mind.
Surprised, Tiva furrowed her brow and glanced over at her as Aliri exited the command center. Emerala shrugged slightly and motioned to the console.
We must keep Gigs occupied.
The majority of the aliens were unconscious or dead, taking in the sight, she pushed aside the encroaching feelings that stung in the back of her mind. Hill stood near the captain, taking down the last of the intruders. Raife and B’abot were already at their stations attempting to gain some sort of control. Tiva moved toward the operations console and opened the access hatch. Emerala pulled out components and wiring, she hoped it was enough to get the AI’s attention.
Emerala practically destroyed her console. Gigs reappeared. Her coloring was off, and she flickered erratically as she moved.
“What are you doing?” the hologram said.
“Trying to get operations back online,” Emerala said.
“It won’t do ya any good. I’m in control.”
“Gigabyte, I am ordering you to relinquish control of this ship back to my crew!” Captain Maar demanded.
“Sorry, no can do. And you can stop messing with my insides, it’s not going to work.” Her projection fluctuated again and she stomped toward the console. “Don’t make me hit you with a power surge, you might not survive.”
“Gigs, you will be taken off line one way or another, you’re infected, you aren’t yourself,” Hill said.
“Captain, the ship is firing at us again,” B’abot said.
The crew braced themselves as the ship rocked, Gigs laughed and when everything went silent, Tiva turned to see the hologram’s eyes widen in horror.
“What is it?”
“I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to…No, tell Ri to stop…” Her form fizzled and dissipated into nothingness.
Chapter Twenty Nine
Aliri’s voice echoed through the captain’s wrist-com. “I’ve deactivated her from the computer core, the virus is still permeating through the computer systems we don’t have much time to flush it.”
Tiva ran to her post, Emerala put her console back together as the others attempted to get back in working order. The ship shuddered again. The aliens were not giving up, they seemed to have the advantage in every area, but like her crewmates, Tiva wasn’t about to admit defeat.
Ranndom and Hemko reported in. They were making their way toward the command center doing a level-by-level search with a few volunteers, checking for any intruders. The few remaining began to stir again. Tiva rotated the shielding around the command center and accessed some of her controls. She unlocked the weapons cabinet under her console and
pulled out a pair of fully charged guns.
“Captain,” she said. When he turned, she tossed him one and motioned to the alien. He caught the weapon and fired, stunning him back to unconsciousness. After replacing her own depleted gun with a fresh one, she attempted to bring the security scans online and blinked as they came to life on her console. “Sir, I have partial access to sensors. I will run an internal sweep now.”
“Good, good,” Hill said a weight lifting off his shoulders as he slouched back in his chair. “Is anyone injured?”
Several of the crew had injuries, but no one spoke up. The situation was dire, and everyone remained at stations. Tiva ignored the throbbing pain at the base of her neck and continued to work on her console. The sweeps were running slowly, but it was a good sign that they were working at all.
Hill leaned close to the captain, whispering something.
“I have flight controls back!” Raife said, excited.
“Take us out of here,” Maar said.
The Tolox began to move, sluggishly at first, but slowly gained momentum. On the displayer, the salvage ship turned, its large cannon pointing at them head on. B’abot cursed under his breath as his hands sped up and down the length of his console. Shields and weapons were still down. Emerala continued repairs, and Tiva watched helplessly as the cannon glowed.
“They are charging weapons, captain.” B’abot hit his console. “And I don’t have shields.”
“Nassut, initiate warp.”
“I can’t, sir. It’s still rebooting.”
Maar and Hill exchanged looks. Aliri rushed into the room, covered in cuts and bruises. She staggered to her station without saying a word.
“Are you okay?” Emerala asked.
“I’ve been better. The virus should be flushed now, some systems might have to be reset, but engineering has everyone working.”
“Good, good.” Hill rubbed his cheek. “But we’ve got bigger problems now. What is the status of the dampening field?”
“I can access it. Maybe fifty percent effective, why?” Aliri moved to her console.
“We don’t have shields yet, and the alien ship is preparing to fire.” Maar turned.
“Oh.” She frowned. Glancing between the captain and Hill, her eyes went wide. “Behind you!”
One of the aliens was awake and on his feet.
Tiva noticed it at the same time and before Maar or Hill turned, she was on top of her station and soaring through the air over their heads. Tiva landed next to B’abot directly in front of the intruder. She blocked the first attack and kicked him in the stomach sending him flying back. Pulling the gun from her side, she squeezed the trigger, sending a shot across the command center, hitting him squarely in the chest. Without warning, a loud rumble reverberated inside her head. The tactical console exploded and everything around her went black.
*
Tiva jolted awake ready to fight again. Lifting her hand up, she noticed she was not wearing her uniform. She was no longer at her post. When the room came into focus, she sighed and tried to sit up.
“No, no you don’t!” an unfamiliar voice said. “You have about another week of recovery time, Ms. Boon. Doctor’s orders.”
“What happened?” she said.
“There was an explosion, you are lucky to be alive.” The Joran doctor crossed the infirmary and handed her a glass. He was more ashen then the other Joran’s she had met and had a comforting expression on his young features. “Drink up, it’s a protein shake. You haven’t had anything to eat in a few days, you’ve been unconscious.”
“Was anyone else hurt?”
“We suffered a few casualties and many injuries,” he said as he ran a hand through his long black hair. “Mr. Hill asked me to notify him when you awoke. I’m sure he will bring you up to date.”
Tiva sipped the drink; it was a pleasant smooth taste, surprisingly. “Thank you, Doctor…”
“Hino.” He bowed slightly. “I’ve done extensive scans on you Ms. Boon, you have quite a unique physiology. Half of the bruises you came in here with are healing already, but I’m afraid you’ll have a scar on your stomach. You were struck by a large piece of shrapnel and my dermal healing strips only work on cuts, not gashes. But I did the best I could patching you up again.”
“I understand.”
“Finish as much of the shake as you can, it’ll help you regain your strength.”
“I am fine, Doctor Hino.”
“Hardly, you might have extraordinary healing abilities, but you are not fine. I used a mild painkiller on you, that’s why you think you feel fine. But if you feel worse, you’ll have to inform one of the nurses. You will remain here until I say so. That comes straight from Captain Maar.”
“Very well.”
Hours passed. Tiva occupied her time with various reports the doctor allowed her to read. The protein shake satisfied her hunger, but her mind still felt foggy due to the medication. Unable to do much with the doctors and nurses constantly moving about the room, she closed her eyes to rest, and wondered what had happened in the past few days while she’d been out of commission.
She felt another person near. It wasn’t any of the infirmary staff, she had already memorized them; it was someone else. Hearing whispering in the distance, Tiva opened her senses and reached out. A small smiled formed on her lips, but she kept her eyes closed. A strong, but warm hand touched her arm.
“Ms. Boon?”
“Greetings, sir,” she said before opening her eyes.
Hill laughed.
“The doctor mentioned you would be visiting.”
“Yes, yes…I’m afraid I don’t have much time. We’re only a few hours from Ovvella Base, and I’m needed on another negotiation team.”
“I understand, sir. Thank you for coming,” she said, slowly sitting up. “How are the rest of the crew and my security team? What of Gigs and the salvage ship? Dr. Hino refused to give me any information.”
“Easy, easy…” he said, resting his hand on her shoulder. He kept his hand there lowering his head, sighing. “I’m afraid I have bad news, Ms. Boon.”
“What is it?”
“Jimmi is dead.”
Tiva stared at him in disbelief. She felt her markings darken as she balled her hands up and pounded on the sides of the bed. She cursed in Abennelpian then closed her eyes trying to regain her composure.
“You almost died, too, but you saved the captain and me from the alien, we owe you a great deal, Tiva.”
Hearing him say her name caused her to open her eyes. “What was the cause of the explosion?”
“Internal malfunction during their last assault, no one could have known.”
“Gigs could,” she said dejectedly.
“Possibly, but her program is still offline, we’re not sure we can bring her back.” He removed his hand from her shoulder and rubbed the back of his neck. “Once we arrive at the base they will run a diagnostic to see what the damage is, but for now I want you to rest and regain your strength. The salvagers got away, but we have a better understanding of them and their technology now. We have hundreds of scans and logs to go through. Don’t worry, we’ll find them again.”
“And my security teams?”
“Ranndom and Hemko are fine and covering your duties well. We’re picking up four more recruits at the base.”
“I am sorry, sir. It was not my intention to have others do my work. I will be happy to do what I can from here.”
“You’ve gone above and beyond. You need a break; we are going to need your strength after this negotiation is over.”
“Very well, sir.”
He smiled and patted her shoulder. “Now that you are awake, I’m sure the others will come see you. The captain sends his thanks and get well wishes also.”
“I appreciate that.” She nodded.
“All right, Ms. Boon, time for a check up.” Dr. Hino entered the room with a portable scanner in his hand. “You’ll have to excuse us, Mr. Hill.”
&nbs
p; “Uh, right…no problem,” he stammered then smiled at her. “Take care, Ms. Boon.”
“Thank you, sir.”
The Tolox docked at Ovvella Base during the night. When Tiva woke the next morning, Aliri and Emerala were there to visit. They enjoyed a short conversation about general topics, keeping away from the obvious pain of losing a crew member.
Toward the end of the day, Dr. Hino allowed Tiva to take a short walk around the infirmary. Admittedly, she felt weaker than she realized and allowed her body time to adjust. After another dinner of protein shakes, Tiva asked to clean up.
The steaming hot shower loosened her muscles and helped to ease some of the pain in her shoulder and stomach. Not only did she have a new scar on her stomach, but also a few small nicks and scrapes covered her back. She was lucky, indeed, but felt the loss of B’abot as she gently washed her wounds. He was a good man, honest and hardworking. His attitude toward courting and relationships might not have been appropriate, but she knew the crew would miss him. She would as well, in spite of their past altercations.
When she returned to her bed, a small brightly decorated box was on her pillow. Tiva searched the area for the gift giver, but found no one other than the infirmary staff. Curious, she sat and studied the box. Dr. Hino stood in the doorway and chuckled.
“It’s not going to bite.”
“Doctor, it is a box,” she said.
He chuckled. “I mean, it is not going to harm you. One of your friends left it.”
“Do you know who?”
“The science girl….”
“Yes, Aliri.” She nodded. “Thank you.”
“Certainly.” He grinned. “Tomorrow, you can take a walk on the base if you wish. You are healing well. How do you feel?”
“I still have some pain in my shoulder, but I do not like the medication. It makes me feel strange. I prefer not to take anything.”
