Rise of the Carnelians (Europa)

by Jason Gehlert

  “Where’s the rest of the team?”

  “Seth and Angela were attacked on the ice.” Adrian pulled off his helmet, revealing a plethora of deep claw marks that stretched from his chin, all the way up his right cheek, and ended just below his right eye.

  “Fuck me, what happened to you?” Ulysses led Adrian over to the bench. “Here, sit down.” Ulysses noticed Adrian’s taut grasp on the harpoon gun. “See something out there?”

  “Those things were everywhere,” Adrian answered back.

  Ulysses examined the battered billionaire. Adrian’s hands were sliced all over, his neck had strands of skin dangling. “We need to get to you to the infirmary.”

  “I’ll be fine.”

  “I insist.”

  “I’ll be fine.” Adrian’s demeanor shifted to impatience. “Where’s the rest of the team? Kaspar? Gillian?”

  “We split up into teams. We’ve found a survivor from the Amity.”.

  “Really?” Adrian felt something moving in his body.

  Ulysses caught sight of some sort of wave-like motion in Adrian’s face. It resembled a worm slithering its way underneath Adrian’s bloodied skin. Ulysses started to question whether or not Adrian was truly himself.

  Adrian lowered his head into his hands, resting the harpoon gun off to the side. “I have the most aggravating headache.” He clamped his shredded fingers over his head in an attempted comfort technique. “It’s awfully light in here. I’ve been so used to the dark for the last few hours. Can we turn down the lights?”

  “Yeah, it’ll take time to re-adjust. By the way, Kray’s alive as well.” Ulysses started to move in closer toward the harpoon gun.

  “That’s good news. I was actually worried about the sap. What’s our plan? Do we even have one formulated?”

  “I don’t know yet. I presume Kaspar will want me to fix the ship.”

  “I think that’s an excellent idea.” Adrian started to raise his head from his hands. Acting on pure instinct, Ulysses almost successfully snatched up the harpoon gun, but Adrian reacted just in time, grabbing Ulysses by the hand.

  “Hey, that’s my gun.” Adrian’s eyes pulsated with a yellowish haze.

  “Something’s wrong with you. You are sick.” Ulysses fiercely struggled, trying to break free from the vise-like grasp. “You need immediate medical attention.”

  “Oddly enough, I’ve never felt better.” Adrian curled his hand inward and dragged his jagged nails down Ulysses’s wrist, drawing a stream of blood.

  “Let go of me,” Ulysses ordered, raising Hooper’s gun and pointing it at Adrian’s face.

  Adrian grabbed the gun from Ulysses and pushed it into his own mouth. “Go ahead, pull the trigger, old man. Are you feeling lucky tonight?”

  Ulysses pulled back on the trigger without hesitation.

  Click.

  Nothing.

  Jammed.

  Again.

  Nothing.

  Click.

  Nothing.

  “I guess your luck just ran out.” Adrian brought his knee up into Ulysses’s groin and brought the engineer down to the floor with a groan of pain. Adrian loosened his grip on Ulysses’s wrist and sent a hard punch into his face. “Now...” Adrian used his newfound mental abilities. He grabbed Ulysses by the collar and raised him high above the ground. Ulysses could only hang there, his feet dangling. Adrian had him dead to rights.

  “Fuck off,” Ulysses said defiantly.

  Adrian sent a powerful shock wave through Ulysses’s body, catapulting the engineer across the chamber, slamming him into the far wall. Adrian’s hands were open, his fingers fully extended, and he gleefully watched the old man slide down the wall.

  “I’m done with playing these games with you.” Adrian picked up the harpoon gun, raising it, ready to fire. “I need you to help me.”

  “Over my dead body,” Ulysses barked back. He was still dazed a bit from the harsh landing.

  “That I can arrange.” Adrian pulled back on the harpoon and fired off a devastating shot into Ulysses’s shoulder.

  Ulysses sat there wincing in agonizing pain, as blood started to crawl down his left shoulder. “Go to hell, Adrian.”

  “I think I might have found it. Ironically, it’s located on a frozen moon.” Adrian briskly walked over and grabbed the end of the harpoon. “I, have decided, however, to try my hand at real estate, and I need a ship for that. So, your wish will have to be granted at another time.” Adrian pushed the jagged weapon deeper into Ulysses’s injured shoulder, while he stared into the engineer’s weakening eyes. “I have the perfect job for you.”

  Kaspar and Shaw kept patrolling the corridor. The chamber door slowly opened, and Ulysses entered.

  “Ulysses,” Kaspar called out from the other end of the hallway. “Adrian?”

  “Yeah, he’s alive.” Ulysses called back. His hand was firmly pressed over his left shoulder. Ulysses’s brooding demeanor was apparent to Kaspar.

  “Where are you going?” Kaspar asked his engineer. “Are you okay?” Kaspar felt something was wrong, but couldn’t detect what it was.

  Shaw had noticed a smearing of red across Ulysses’s suit, but not the suit’s normal red and orange coloring. The specks of blood spread over the whitish area, near the neck.

  “Adrian suggested that I start working on the Abagail,” Ulysses countered, making his way towards the hangar bay. His slow shuffle across the hallway concerned the commander.

  “Not a bad idea,” Kaspar said, motioning over to Shaw. “Yeah, go ahead, I’ll catch up with you later.”

  “He’s acting a bit weird,” Shaw said.

  “He’s usually on the odd side,” Kaspar replied. “Keep an eye on him anyway.”

  Adrian made his grand entrance into the hallway, closing the chamber doors behind him.

  “Adrian,” Kaspar called. “The others?”

  “No.” Adrian shook his head. “Anyplace where I can shower?”

  “Shower?” Kaspar asked with a surprised grin.

  “I’ve been a bit of a scuffle with some small friends out in the caves.” Adrian’s wounds became more noticeable as he shortened the distance between Kaspar and himself. “I feel dirty, dirty like a whore on 42nd street.”

  “Is that analogy really necessary?” Shaw asked. “Its kinda crude.”

  “And our guest?” Adrian nodded to Shaw.

  “He’s with me. Holy shit, look at you.” Kaspar let off a hard whistle while he inspected the decimated host.

  “I don’t like this,” Shaw whispered into Kaspar’s ear.

  “I’m right here,” Adrian replied sharply. “If you have something to say, say it.”

  Shaw bristled. “I said I don’t like this. Meaning, you Captain Wiseass.”

  “Now, was that so hard?” Adrian mocked. “Please, don’t treat me like the pink elephant sitting in the center of the room.”

  “Were you in a fight with these Carnelians?” Shaw asked him pointedly. “Is that pink enough for you?”

  “Is that what you call them? I’ve grown to call them Bob, or Frank, or shit, what about Sanchez?”

  “They have a unique way of making their presence felt.” Shaw looked over Adrian’s wounds. “They left you with some nice mementos.”

  “I would have preferred a drink and dinner first. But, they skipped the foreplay.”

  “And they left you alive?” Shaw watched him narrowly.

  “I’m not going to argue. I fought back. And harder by the looks of it. I’m still standing.” Adrian’s face kept contorting, adjusting to the enemy within.

  “Kaspar was just telling me of your disease. It affects your leg, I believe?” Shaw took notice of Adrian’s unhindered walk.

  Adrian became confrontational. “He was? What of it?”

  “Well, your not limping anymore. Nor do you have your arm brace,” Kaspar said.

  “Whatever. I’m back and I’m determined to get the fuck off this place as quickly as possible.”

  “Well,
these Carnelian’s have infiltrated the station,” Shaw replied. “As long as you’re back, you might as well help out.”

  “Yeah, I’ll help you out.” Adrian shot off a wink in Shaw’s direction. “I’m curious, how did you survive?”

  “I managed to hide inside the medical beds.”

  “So, I fight them off and win. And, you, like some sort of grade-school pussy, hide in the closet?” Adrian was having way too much fun with his new persona. He reveled at watching Shaw bristle under the surface.

  “I’m in my right mind to send a bullet into that inflated head of yours,” Shaw countered, forcibly pressing the nozzle of his gun into Adrian’s sweat slicked forehead.

  “Make it count, you’re only going to get one shot.” Adrian stared down the hunter.

  Shaw clicked on the safety and returned the gun to his side. “I’m watching you. You so much as sneeze, and I’m going to be there to wipe your nose.”

  “I’d prefer you wipe my ass,” Adrian harped back.

  “Guys, let’s settle down.” Kaspar stepped in between the men. “Shaw, Adrian is always this cocky. He’s just an arrogant asshole.” Kaspar turned to face Adrian. “No offense.”

  “None taken. I see it as a compliment.” Adrian unleashed a wicked curl of his lips.

  “Adrian is an extra pair of hands, and as the commander of this expedition, I say we need him to survive right now. We’ll keep a watchful eye on him.”

  “It’s your funeral, Commander,” Shaw huffed while he walked away.

  “If you step out of line, just once, I’ll personally shoot you myself,” Kaspar warned Adrian.

  “I wouldn’t want it any other way. I see you as my equal, Commander.”

  “Seth came back with those things attached to his fucking face. He was a changed man and Shaw had to blow his head off. Those alien things had started to transform him into something. So, you understand our concern here, Mr. Blakely?”

  “Yeah, I do. You want to spit shake on it?” Adrian waved his hand in front of Kaspar.

  “No. That’s not necessary. I’ll take your word for now.”

  “Whatever you say, Commander.” Adrian squinted his eyes. “Now where’s my Gillian? I want to give her a big, wet kiss hello.”

  Engine Trouble

  Ulysses Tarrant was slowly succumbing to Adrian’s mental brainwash. He shuffled his feet into the hangar bay and located the Abagail’s lowered ramp. “I must fix the engine and hyper drive.” That phrase was repeated over and over again inside his head. Adrian had a stranglehold over the engineer, using his talents to fix the ship for his own selfish reasons.

  Ulysses sauntered around inside the Abagail, taking in the interior damage for the first time since the crash. He had memorized the entire layout of the ship. Ulysses had deduced earlier that the secondary engine room and hyper drive were the main focus of the repair. Without either, the Abagail wouldn’t be going anywhere.

  He methodically made his way to his locker and retrieved his tool box and blue denim overalls. When it came to fixing anything mechanical, Ulysses always dressed for the occasion. He quickly slipped on the coveralls and proceeded to head towards the engine room.

  The ship was swimming in darkness and offered Ulysses a freakish atmosphere to contend with. The main source of lighting had been compromised during the hard crash. Ulysses could only think about the task at hand. He paid no attention to the scurrying visitors that were following him through the ship’s corridors.

  Shaw entered the chamber and scouted the area for any clues of Adrian’s odd behavior. Sprawled out on the floor were Adrian’s belongings. The smashed space helmet, the torn suit, and the recently fired harpoon gun.

  “Something doesn’t feel right,” Shaw mumbled while he inspected the chamber. An expert hunter, Shaw always had a feel for the details.

  His eyes picked up on the scattered blood trail, and the small bloody residue on the far wall. The spear from the harpoon gun lay on the floor with a bloodied tip.

  His thoughts traced back to Ulysses and the reddish streaks across the top of his suit after he stepped out from the chamber minutes before.

  “I don’t like this.” Shaw bent down and picked up the shredded suit. “With the atmospheric temperature there’s no way this guy should be alive with this much damage to his suit.”

  His shoulder was starting to throb. Ulysses was in desperate need of a painkiller, or a good harsh lick from a Vodka bottle.

  His eyes swelled and he had some trouble focusing on the project at hand. In his current condition, he definitely could use another pair of hands.

  Ulysses worked his way into the engine room. It was a sprawling spectacle of machinery at its finest.

  The large turbine engines were located in the center of the room. A steel staircase worked its way around the mammoth engines. The walkways were narrow and only held one person, at best. Ulysses had an idea that the main problem was coming from the large control panel in the far center of the room. He would have to slide under the panel and work that way. The panel had a mesmerizing assortment of colorful wires, and only the skilled engineers could untangle the mess. Ulysses also had a working knowledge of the hyper drive, which used energized crystals as their main power source.

  Ulysses made his way across the staircase and took a moment to stare at the dead engines, letting off a low-key whistle of amazement. “Now, those are more beautiful than breasts on a woman.”

  His mind raced with alternative methods of fixing the control panel, he didn’t even notice his unwelcome guests, nor did his shoulder factor into the equation anymore. He was running on pure adrenaline at the moment. The black toolbox clanged against the railings as Ulysses jogged down the stairs and headed over to the far side of the room.

  Shaw retreated from the chamber and bumped into Kaspar on the way out.

  “What’s up?” Kaspar asked.

  “I don’t like this one bit.” Shaw led the commander into the room.

  “What the hell happened in here?”

  “If I took a guess, your friend, the engineer? He might be in dire straits”

  “How?” Kaspar examined the scattered blood.

  “I think Captain Crazy shot your friend with this harpoon gun. It makes sense. I saw some red blotches on the engineer’s suit, near his left shoulder after we saw him exiting from the chamber earlier.”

  “And you didn’t mention this? Blood on his suit?” Kaspar was impressed and confused at the same time.

  “I am a hunter. I have eagle-eye vision. I just thought he might have nicked himself shaving, or at least, it was part of the uniform.”

  “And what do you want to do about it?” Kaspar asked.

  “Let me go check on your friend. I’ll lend him a hand with the ship.”

  “Okay. What do you want me to do?”

  “Don’t let that son-of-a-bitch out of your sight.” Shaw pointed in the direction of Adrian. “Watch your back, and your girl. Once I get back, we will start laying the foundation to blow this station into a smoldering heap of steel.” Shaw smacked his gun and headed towards the hanger.

  “Hey,” Kaspar shouted out.

  Shaw stopped and turned around. “Yeah?”

  “It’s dark in there. How will you see?”

  “I’ve brought along some night goggles,” Shaw retrieved the item from his pocket. “All experienced hunters use them. And it will only be a matter of time before we lose the rest of our light in here.” Shaw pointed to the space station.

  “Any more of them?”

  “Another pair in the artillery room,” Shaw replied back, sliding the goggles over his face, adjusting it to fit his rather large head. “Stay safe, Commander.”

  Kaspar watched as Shaw disappeared into the hangar bay. “Great,” he muttered. “I get to babysit Adrian.”

  Adrian continued to walk free about the station. “Ulysses, your time is almost up.”

  Adrian let off a deep, hearty laugh when he found Gillian all alone in the obse
rvation room.

  Ulysses bent down and opened up his tool box. “Let’s see, we’ll start with an old-fashioned screwdriver and wire cutters.” He turned around and squinted in the dark. His hands scooped up the small flashlight from his trusty tool box, and shined it directly on the main control box just to his left. He lowered the lever down into the off position, a safeguard against accidental electrocution.

  Ulysses placed the flashlight in his mouth and crawled underneath the mainframe. A series of small feet scurried by, surrounding the unsuspecting engineer.

  His fingers worked quickly, peeling the wires apart and instantly finding the frayed wires.

  “Ulysses!” Shaw called out as he entered the corridor. He passed the open locker where Ulysses had gotten his belongings. “He’s got to be here somewhere?”

  Shaw continued along the hallway and eventually found the sign for the engine room right outside the door. Through his night goggles he could see several packs of the Carnelians roaming around inside the engine room. Shaw saw Ulysses’s dangling feet underneath the mainframe on the far corner of the room.

  “Shit.” Shaw ran into the room and readied his weapon. He feared it was too late to save Ulysses.

  Ulysses felt something enter into his denim overalls by his left ankle. He wildly shook his leg. He then felt something pierce his skin. Their teeth buried deep into his thigh drawing blood. Startled, he let off a deep, miserable scream, and he started to punch the hell out of his leg. Another piercing bite followed suit on his lower right leg.

  Ulysses couldn’t see what was attacking him, but he felt them starting to cover his body. One worked its way into the top of his overalls, and clawed its nails down his chest.

  Using a sudden burst of energy, Ulysses barreled out from underneath the mainframe like a cannonball and stood up, kicking off his hungry attackers. He quickly raised the flashlight and bore it directly into their beady little eyes.

  They backed away, screeching in defense.

  By this time, Shaw reached the stairwell. He saw the flailing light from Ulysses’s position. “Ulysses!”

  “Shaw! Help me!” Ulysses started to come back to his senses.

  “There’s too many of them, I can’t get a clear shot!” Shaw countered. “Can you make your way back to me slowly?”