Collin spun around, taking it all in. If he was out of his element on the bridge, he was even more so here. Orman began speaking again:
“The primary power plant for this vessel is, of course, here.” He gestured with a small clawed finger to a barrel-shaped section at the farthest back area of Engineering. “Like all antimatter drives, it’s always in a ready state. As you can see,” he stood up tall and pointed to a series of waving and fluctuating optical meters high above, “our output power levels for the anti-matter reactor are well within optimal range.”
For the first time Bubba said something. “Sounds like a transmission problem to me.”
Both Orman and Collin turned around to face him.
“Well, it’s a drivetrain problem … If it’s not the engine, which clearly it’s not, it’s got to be another aspect of the drivetrain. You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure that out.”
Collin was ready to signal Bubba to put a sock in it, but saw Orman actually taking an interest in what the big guy was saying.
“Show me how the anti-matter reactor connects to …” Bubba hesitated, “to the rest of the propulsion system.”
Orman stared at Bubba for several beats and then walked to the other end of Engineering. Bubba followed him and looked at the complex assortment of rounded-looking canisters, tubes, lines of varying sizes, and more small display screens—which were showing fluctuating readouts of something incomprehensible to Collin.
“Can you walk me through what each of these readouts is telling us?” Bubba asked.
“I could try,” Orman said. “Let’s start with this one.”
Collin felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned to see DiMaggio standing there. He didn’t look happy.
“You’re back. Everyone come back with you?” Collin asked.
“There was some trouble. You better come see.”
Chapter 13
Collin and DiMaggio exited the ship and found their fellow Middleton High School teammates already assembled before them. They looked tired and, worse, dejected. All eyes fell on Collin as he moved into the center of the group. Then Collin spotted Humphrey and Darren. Both looked as if they’d been dragged behind a wagon.
“What happened to—”
“Shut up! Just shut the hell up, Sticks!” Humphrey said between clenched teeth. His face was so badly scratched that he was barely recognizable. Smeared blood was caked around his eyebrows and ears. His lower lip was swollen and cracked.
“We don’t take orders from you or that freaky-looking alien either, for that matter. What were you thinking, sending them back for us like we’re little children?” Darren added.
Cine was standing at the back of the group, looking no worse for wear.
Darren continued, “You do realize we’ve spent hours carting those stinking, disgusting, dead bodies out of the railcars … right? We’re supposed to just drop what we’re doing and come running when you call?”
“What happened between you and … you and Cine?” Collin asked.
“Let’s just say he got a little too close to our food supplies.”
“You attacked him?”
“Hey, we don’t know who this freak is! All we know is he’s an alien and trying to take what wasn’t his.”
“Well, at least you made it here. This ship is the safest place for us. There’s breathable air, in case the aperture opens up, and we might be able to get it flying again,” Collin explained.
“That?” Humphrey spat. “That’s a ship? Because I was under the impression it was a big turd … a gargantuan big piece of shi—”
Collin cut him off. “Do you have any better ideas, Humph? You want to go back to the railcars, be my guest.” Collin turned to the rest of the group and spoke louder now, “Any of you want to return to the railcars or the jetliner, be my guest. Maybe you’re thinking if you just wait long enough you’ll be rescued … somehow … by someone. Good luck with that. But if you’re going to go, go now.”
Collin continued to stare at the grimy group of teenagers. His frustration quickly turned to regret. These were kids, like him, and they’d pretty much lost everything important to them. And they were all scared and confused and probably at an emotional breaking point. Collin saw Lydia standing next to Tink at the outer fringe of the group. Both looked small and terrified. It occurred to him that what they had all gone through, clearing out the railcars, must have been one of the worst experiences imaginable. They didn’t need a lecture right now … they needed a shot in the arm. They needed hope.
“This ship, this big turd-looking ship, looks almost as bad on the inside,” Collin said. “With that said, there’s individual cabins for each of you.”
The expressions on the teens’ faces lightened some. Collin even saw a few smiles. “You’ve met Cine. Um … we should be nice to him and his two friends. They found this ship first and we’ll need their help if we’re going to survive.” Collin realized this was the longest speech he’d ever given in his life and suddenly felt embarrassed.
Bubba came out of the ship and walked over to Collin. “We want to try it again.”
“You figure something out? Got it working?”
“I don’t know shit about spaceships, man. But I do know simple mechanics. I think these guys have been trying to use a kind of burst mode … maybe something that’s used in open space. But takeoffs and landings in an atmosphere would probably be different. I don’t think it’s an engineering problem, after all. I don’t think they were accessing the right controls from the bridge.” Bubba shrugged his shoulders.
Collin looked at Bubba’s large black face. His mind flashed again to the bus ride and the obnoxious bully who’d taken delight in punching his arm. Then, there was the frightened boy-man who’d actually peed his pants in terror at being abducted. Talk about stepping up, Collin thought. Bubba’s transformation was certainly a welcome and unexpected surprise.
“You going to just stare at me, or what?”
“I’ll join you in the bridge in a minute. I need to get everyone who wants to come on board.” Bubba rushed back toward the ship. Cine followed him inside. DiMaggio said under his breath, “There’s something else.”
“What’s that?”
“You said to lie if I have to. I told Darren that you were waiting for him to come take charge. That he was the one everyone wanted to follow. So … he’s here to take command. Sorry, I didn’t know what else to do … you know, to get everyone back here.”
Collin smiled and said, “That was actually a good idea. No worries.” He approached Darren and Humphrey, who were now talking to several other teammates. Undoubtedly, he was conjuring up some kind of plan or scheme.
“Darren, I’d like to bring you up to speed on what’s happening here with the ship. Get your thoughts on how to proceed.”
Darren kept talking for several more moments before looking over to Collin. “Looks like you’ve got everything already in hand. You don’t need my help.”
Collin looked at his smug face and then at the faces of Clifford Bosh, Owen Platt and Garry Hurst. All were loyal compatriots of Darren and Humphrey. Collin realized he’d need to take a different tack.
“We won’t make it without your help. All your help. It’s not a fluke the Lone Stars are undefeated for two years. You’re a good quarterback, Darren … but that’s not why we’ve won so many games.”
“Oh yeah? Why else?” he asked, looking ready to throw a punch.
“You inspire. When you’re not being an ass hole, you’re a great leader.”
“Yeah, well, I already know that,” he said with a smirk. The other boys chuckled.
“Here’s the thing, though. You’re not going to lead us, moving forward. I am. I’m smarter than you are and I’m the best chance we have to get off this collector ship and to eventually make our way back home.”
Humphrey huffed and shook his head. “Ego a bit much, dude?”
“It’s not ego … it’s just the way it is. So what I’m o
ffering, what I’m hoping you’ll agree to, Darren, is for you to continue to lead … but with me. We lead together.”
“With you being the boss man?”
“Yeah, I guess.”
All the teens, including Humphrey and DiMaggio, looked to Darren for his response. “I’ll think about it.”
Collin nodded but didn’t say anything more. He and DiMaggio exchanged glances and the two headed for the ship. Collin abruptly stopped and turned toward the crowd. “Anyone coming with us, now’s the time to decide. We’re going to try to lift off in a few minutes.” Collin and DiMaggio entered the battered spaceship and headed for the bridge.
Bubba was seated next to Orman at the center console. Collin sat down on Orman’s right. “So, where are we at?”
Bubba said, “Seems none of us have piloted a spacecraft before.” Collin looked at Orman.
“I’m a musician. All three of us are musicians from the planet Dacci. When we were sucked up into this collector ship, our vessel was transporting us, and others, to perform on a planet near our own.”
That explains a lot, Collin thought. Sure, they knew more than he and Bubba about advanced technologies, but not enough to pilot this ship.
Collin got up and went to the forward observation window. He looked down and to the right. He saw the last of the group moving toward the hatch.
“Give it a second for the hatch to close. Okay … let’s see if you can get us off the ground, Bubba.”
“Me?”
“What’s the worst that can happen? Give it a try,” DiMaggio said, standing behind him.
Bubba looked over to Orman and together they moved their hands over two different sections of the panel. Apparently, the pilot interface was just a matter of hovering one’s fingers over certain areas and moving them either up or down.
Immediately, Collin felt the vibration of the drive coming alive, toward the stern of the ship. “That’s a positive sign, right?” he asked.
Bubba shrugged.
“We got this far before,” Orman said.
They manipulated the panel controls with fingertips and the ship rocked and shook and then, slowly, lifted into the air.
Collin watched Orman. He was ever so slightly nodding his head. “Drives are sustaining.”
Getting to his feet, Collin felt exhilarated to the point he hauled off and slugged Bubba in the upper arm. “You are the man, Bubba!”
The big defensive tackle looked ready to jam Collin into the closest bulkhead. Then he grinned, “I am … aren’t I?”
“What are those?” DiMaggio asked, pointing to a large display beneath the forward observation window. “They’re moving toward us, aren’t they?”
Orman’s oblong-shaped eyes went wide. “Yes. They’re spider droids, deployed by the sim rover. I think we’re in trouble.”
Chapter 14
Collin’s attention was split between Bubba’s not so smooth attempt to keep the ship up in the air and the three approaching droids.
“Where did they come from?” Collin asked.
“They were there the whole time. When they stop moving about they blend in with everything else. We’ve seen them before … especially when we attempted to take off,” Orman said.
The three mechanical spider-like droids made their way over the acres and acres of collected metal with almost graceful agility. Collin walked over to the forward observation window to get a better look. They were enormous—easily two hundred feet tall—with six spike-like thin legs that constantly moved. One of the spider droids halted and used two of its legs in unison, like claws, to move an old tugboat out of its way. Collin let out a breath; not only were those things agile, they were incredibly strong.
The ship dipped and Collin felt his stomach rise into his throat.
“Sorry, my bad,” Bubba said. “I don’t have the best dexterity.”
“Let me try.” Collin sat down next to Bubba and watched him work the controls for a while. He glanced over to Orman. “Isn’t there some kind of computer assist or AI that does this sort of thing?”
“Of course there is. It’s not operational. I think that’s the reason this ship was abandoned. Flying a vessel like this manually is uncommon … would certainly require special training.”
“Wait a minute, I think I’m getting the hang of it,” said Collin. Bubba had tried hovering his fingers splayed apart over the motion controls, but the controls seemed to respond better when his fingers kept in contact with each other. “Look, you control the pitch, yaw and roll aspects by tilting your hand around and side to side, like this … also by tilting your hand either forward or back.”
“And going straight up and down?” DiMaggio asked.
“Bubba had that figured out. You raise and lower your palm. What I’m not yet figuring out is its forward acceleration.”
“Two of the spider things are approaching. I guess you have less than a minute before they’ll reach us,” Bubba said.
“Oh, crap … it’s right here,” Collin said, using his other hand on the motion detector, directly to the left of the other one. The ship lurched forward with such acceleration it threw everyone but Collin to the deck. He’d been somewhat prepared for it. “Sorry—thing’s pretty sensitive.”
Orman reached over and activated something on the console. “G-force dampeners. Something else the AI would have taken care of, if it was operational.”
Collin was smiling now as he confidently took better control of the ship. He brought her even with the top of the closest spider droid. They could now see its oblong central body, where all the legs joined. With amazing speed the spider droid reached up two of its spiky legs and grabbed at the ship. Collin quickly brought his right palm up higher from the motion pad and they all watched as the two spiked legs missed pinning the ship’s bow by mere feet.
“That was close,” Bubba said.
But everyone’s relief was short-lived. All three spider droids were rapidly rising into the air.
“You’ve got to be kidding … those fuckers can fly!” DiMaggio said, exasperated.
Collin moved both hands to accelerate the ship while changing their forward direction.
“They’re anticipating … see … they’re now coming at us from the sides as well as from the front,” Bubba shouted.
“I can see that,” Collin snapped back. He brought the ship lower, did a quick turn to port and flew between the droid’s legs. Reflexively, two spiky legs shot forward, one making contact with the ship’s hull. The sound was nearly deafening. Collin struggled to compensate for the sharp glancing blow to their stern.
“Go back up! Up! Damn it, go higher!” Bubba yelled.
“Everyone just shut up!” Collin snapped back. He brought the ship back up but wasn’t fast enough to avoid the droid approaching them from the ship’s starboard side. With almost simplistic ease, the droid pinned the ship between two outstretched legs. A moment later, a second droid joined in and its two spiked legs held the ship firmly in its grasp.
“Now we’re really screwed,” DiMaggio said.
Collin brought his hands away from the controls and sat back in his seat. “There’s nothing I can do.”
No one said anything as they watched the two droids carry the ship to another area.
“Where are they taking us?” DiMaggio asked.
“There’s a compactor. It’s huge and I suspect it’s where the droids will deposit us,” Orman replied.
Collin bit his lip and tried to think of something, anything, they could try. “I don’t suppose this ship has any kind of weaponry?”
Orman shook his head. “I told you, this is a mining vessel.” But then he sat forward. “Ships like this do have a high-powered laser gun mounted to their underbelly. It’s used to open up fissures within a planet’s crust … part of the excavation process.”
“How do you work it? Where are the controls?” Collin asked, suddenly very interested.
“I don’t know. I don’t see anything on the panel, or on th
e others that—”
“I know where it is!” Collin was up and running from the bridge before anyone could react.
As Collin ran through the narrow corridor, he saw the startled faces of the other teens milling around turn to see what the commotion was about. By the time Collin reached the set of consoles he’d noticed earlier, located mid-ship, he’d dodged three students and knocked over Tink en route. “Sorry, Tink!”
He reached the area Cine had earlier said was used for environmental or geological diagnostics. Collin positioned himself at the console and tried to make heads or tails of the control panel before him. He moved his hands over the various motion pads and, one by one, the different systems came alive. A display activated and Collin saw movement. “What the hell am I looking at?” he asked himself.
“That’s right below the ship.” It was Orman, who’d crept up behind Collin without making a sound. Looking back, Collin saw a group forming behind him. Lydia stepped forward and was at his side.
“What are you doing, Collin?”
“Um … not really sure.” He now saw that Orman was right. What he was looking at were the moving legs of two droids, in unison, stepping through the junk below. They had slowed their pace and it became instantly apparent why. They’d reached the compactor, a square and substantial-looking container. Collin felt Lydia lean into him, felt the soft material of her mini skirt touch the skin on his arm.
“I’m scared, Collin,” she whispered. “Are we going to die?”
“Maybe.” He looked up at her and saw fear in her eyes. “But maybe not.” He tried to give her a reassuring smile but wasn’t sure it worked. He scanned the panel in front of him. “Where the hell is it?”
“There!” came Bubba’s baritone. He pointed to an area on the panel that was closest to Collin’s chest—right in front of him.
Collin moved his palm over the controls and two more sets of controls came to life. Characters were being displayed that Collin couldn’t understand. He turned to see Orman studying them as well. “What does it say?”
Lone Star Renegades Page 7
