Glitch Mitchell and the Unseen Planet

by Philip Harris

  He popped open the panel, his heart thundering as he yanked out another cube. His hands shook as he flicked open the catches. This time, he didn’t bother with a prayer; he just pulled the lid off and threw it away.

  Again, two of the slots in the foam were empty. For a moment, Glitch thought the same two circuit boards were missing. Then he realized the box was the opposite way round. The matching board was still there. He slipped the board out of the box, just managing to contain his desperation enough to take care not to damage it.

  As Glitch moved back to the control panel, he checked the circuit board. It looked intact, and the connector on the back matched. Spreading apart the damaged wiring, he pushed the board into position. The connector snapped easily into place.

  “How long do we have left?” he asked.

  There was a pause, then Kalith replied. “Nine Earth minutes.”

  Glitch let out a slow breath, trying to calm his nerves. The ends of the wires were labeled with a complex series of symbols, and there were matching marks on the circuit board, but they were small and hard to read.

  He started with the undamaged wires first, double and triple checking the symbols on each one before carefully snapping them into place on the circuit board. The connectors were keyed, so he couldn’t get them the wrong way around, but still, Glitch wasn’t completely convinced he was getting them all right. Twice he had to switch the position of almost identically marked cables when he realized he’d gotten them wrong.

  When he was as confident as he could be that he’d reattached the intact cables correctly, he switched his attention to the ones that had been torn apart. At least there were only four of them.

  The first two were easy enough to fix. One was blue, the other an orange-red, and Glitch simply stripped the ends of each wire and twisted them together. The last two weren’t quite so simple. The colors were very similar, and the wires were badly damaged. Even once Glitch had managed to twist them together, he couldn’t be sure they’d hold.

  Glitch pushed the last of the cables into the connector on the board and stepped back. “Okay, I think that’s it. Kalith, are the controls back?”

  It felt like an age before Kalith replied. “No.”

  Glitch pressed the heels of his hands against his forehead, frustration welling inside him. The shuttle began to shake.

  “It’s okay,” said Anderson. “Check the connections.”

  Glitch nodded and peered into the open panel. The symbols on the board swam, blurring together into a meaningless sea of chicken scratch. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to block out the rattling of the shuttle. A hand touched his shoulder. It was Anderson.

  Glitch checked the board again, working steadily across the connections, checking each one. He was almost on the last connection when he spotted the problem. Or a problem, anyway. Two of the damaged wires were touching, the exposed twists touching each other. Cursing, he pulled them apart. If he’d shorted out the circuit, they were screwed.

  “Controls are working,” said Kalith.

  Glitch grinned. “Then get us out of here.”

  The shuttle bucked hard, skewing to the right and sending Glitch staggering across the cabin.

  Kalith adjusted the controls. “Reduced power. Limited options. Entering Earth atmosphere.”

  Now Glitch really could feel the heat in the cabin. He pressed his hand against the shuttle wall. It was warm, and the look on Anderson’s face told him that this time, he wasn’t imagining it.

  “Now would be a really good time to start shielding us,” he said.

  Kalith didn’t respond. She just kept moving her hands over the shuttle’s controls.

  There was a loud crack from the back of the shuttle, and it rocked forward. Glitch heard Anderson cry out.

  “Doctor, get the captain into the back and sit down. This could get bumpy.”

  Anderson started to protest, but the doctor cut her off. “There’s nothing you can do, Scarlett.”

  Glitch joined Kalith at the front of the shuttle. “Let me guess, it’s not working.”

  “It is working. Requires constant adjustment.”

  “So… you can’t leave the controls to shield us?”

  “You are correct.”

  Glitch looked at the controls. They meant nothing to him—just seven metal disks laid out in a seemingly random pattern. “Can I operate these?”

  “Unknown.”

  “But I could try? If you showed me what to do?”

  “Yes. But results uncertain.”

  “I’ve played a lot of video games.”

  “Do not underst—”

  “Never mind. What do I need to do?”

  Kalith placed her fingertips against three of the silver disks, and the image of Earth was replaced by a green vertical bar surrounded by a scrolling display of symbols similar to those on the circuit board. The green bar grew longer and turned an angry shade of red. Kalith shifted the position of her hand. It shrank and turned green again.

  She pulled her hand away from the controls. “Place hand here.”

  It was awkward, but Glitch managed to contort his fingers so that he was touching the same disks Kalith had been. Sweat dripped from the end of his nose, and he was suddenly glad the screen no longer showed the approaching planet. “Now what?”

  “Maintain green bar.”

  As Kalith spoke, the bar shrunk slightly and flickered red.

  Glitch pressed against the metal disks, but they didn’t move, and the bar stayed resolutely red. “But how?”

  Kalith paused. “Cannot explain. Envisage correct result.”

  Glitch groaned inside. He’d never been much for hippy-dippy visualization techniques—he was too easily distracted. He tried pressing the disks again, this time picturing the bar turning green. The bar shrank again and stayed red.

  “Too low. Raise shuttle front.”

  Glitch took a deep breath and focused his eyes on a scratch at the bottom of the display screen. He pictured the shuttle hurtling toward Earth, the hull glowing, a cone of orange flowing off the shuttle’s blocky nose as it broke into the atmosphere. Around him, the shuttle rattled and shook. He added that to his mental image, letting his imaginary shuttle buck and rock. Then he imagined the shuttle’s nose tipping back slightly.

  “Good,” said Kalith, snapping Glitch’s focus back to the display.

  The red bar grew again, turned green, then overshot and changed to red.

  “Maintain green.”

  Glitch nodded. He wiped away a trickle of sweat that was heading toward his eye. The heat was growing stronger by the second, and he was starting to feel lightheaded.

  He let the picture of the shuttle reform in his mind. He tipped the nose forward again. Glitch found it hard to picture the shuttle and watch the bar, like patting your head and rubbing your stomach at the same time. He shifted his focus back to the screen. The bar wavered slightly then shrank and went green.

  “Continue,” said Kalith. She moved behind Glitch, out of sight.

  A wall of blue energy wrapped across the display screen. It rippled and shifted for a moment, then was gone.

  He couldn’t be sure whether it was his imagination or not, but Glitch thought the temperature in the cabin dropped noticeably. The bar on the display snapped to its full length and turned red. A high-pitched pinging filled the air. Glitch pressed his fingers against the control panel and tried to picture the shuttle leaning forward. What he wouldn’t do for a straightforward Xbox controller right now.

  But it was getting easier to visualize the shuttle, and he didn’t need as much detail. As Glitch pictured the shuttle tipping forward, the red bar shrank again, and to his relief, the pinging stopped.

  Glitch began to be able to anticipate the bar’s movements, raising and lowering the shuttle’s nose before the bar turned red rather than after. Glitch let himself smile. The hours he’d spent lost in online games might finally pay off after all.

  Then a tortured metallic shriek came from
somewhere near the back of the shuttle, and the display screen flickered and died. Glitch felt a flash of panic. The shuttle jumped upward as though it was a car hitting a bump in the road. A big bump. A warning buzzer burst into life, the sound harsh and grating against Glitch’s nerves.

  The shuttle gave an enthusiastic lurch, and Glitch was thrown across the cabin. He slammed into the wall and fell to the floor, the impact knocking the wind out of him.

  With an almost deafening whine, the shuttle’s engines kicked into overdrive and the shuttle began to decelerate. The nose of the shuttle dropped. Glitch grabbed at a metal post jutting from the wall, just managing to stop himself from sliding across the cabin and into the control desk. The sound of the engines died away, then the shuttle hit something. The impact nearly tore Glitch’s arms from his sockets.

  There was a heavy thump, and the shuttle tipped onto its side. Glitch lost his grip and fell. His ankle twisted as he landed, and a spear of pain shot up his leg. Glitch screamed and collapsed, clutching his ankle.

  The shuttle tipped sideways, righting itself and rolling Glitch back onto the floor. He lay there, eyes closed, as the shuttle rocked back and forth, settling after the impact. He felt a jab of pain in his stomach and coughed.

  “Are you okay, Glitch?” It was Anderson.

  Groaning, Glitch raised an arm and gave a halfhearted thumbs-up. He was still alive. That was good enough.

  There was a loud hissing and a sharp crack. A tear appeared near the control panels. Steam billowed into the cabin. Sparks cracked and popped. Another crack opened, this time in the ceiling that was now the wall, a few feet away from Glitch’s head. More steam burst into the shuttle, quickly followed by a steady stream of water.

  Anderson called from the back of the shuttle, “We need to get out of here.”

  Glitch forced himself to his feet and checked his injuries. His arms, legs, and back hurt, and he was pretty sure if he thought about it too long, so would his head. But by some miracle, nothing seemed broken. He clambered through the cabin doorway and joined Anderson and Zheng in the back of the shuttle. Water was streaming in through more cracks in the hull.

  Glitch scooped up a handful of the water and splashed it onto his lips. “Saltwater. As long as we didn’t bounce too far off course during reentry, we’re in the Pacific Ocean.”

  Doctor Zheng raised her eyebrows but said nothing.

  “That’ll be a good thing,” said Anderson, “assuming we don’t drown.”

  The three of them moved to the shuttle’s door, and Glitch pressed his hand against the controls. There was a soft buzzing sound, but the door stayed closed. He slammed his hand against the button four or five times, shouting in frustration.

  “We need to find another way,” said Anderson.

  “A better way,” said Glitch. He could almost feel the anger emanating from Zheng.

  The shuttle swayed as they moved around, searching for a way out, pressing their hands against panels, twisting and pulling anything that looked as though it might be a door handle. A couple of times, something clunked against the side of the shuttle. Glitch pictured sharks bumping into it as they investigated the strange new arrival to their waters.

  The water rose faster and faster as the weight of the shuttle dragged it beneath the sea. Moving around was getting harder. The cold seeped through their clothes and into their bodies as they fought through the water. Soon they were all shivering, teeth chattering. Anderson had grown pale, and her head kept tipping forward as though she was going to pass out. With a burst of sparks, the lights inside the shuttle went out, plunging them into blackness. The water had reached their waists.

  Glitch heard the others splashing around, their movements becoming more and more desperate as the water rose. He reached for his flashlight, but it was gone, lost somewhere along the way. Sweeping his arms around to keep his balance, Glitch tried to picture the shuttle, to orient himself and find the most logical place for an emergency exit, but he’d lost all sense of direction. Something brushed against his leg, and he pulled back. He lost his footing, falling backward into the icy waters. He flailed around underwater for a moment then managed to find some traction and push himself upright. He coughed, spitting saltwater and wiping it from his eyes. The shuttle groaned and tipped to one side.

  “Move to the high end,” called Anderson, spluttering as water lapped into her mouth.

  Glitch shuffled forward, his feet catching on the uneven surface. His foot caught on something, the webbing maybe, and he felt a momentary surge of panic until he twisted his foot free. The pain in his stomach was growing, and he pressed his hands against it in a fruitless effort to deaden the sensation.

  Distracted and unable to see, Glitch walked straight into someone. They seemed too short to be Anderson. Doctor Zheng, he thought. Picturing the annoyed look on her face, he mumbled an apology.

  “It’s okay,” said Anderson.

  Pain sliced through Glitch’s stomach as though someone had rammed a rusty screwdriver into his gut. He let out a cry. Water filled his mouth, leaving him spluttering for air. His foot slipped on the slick metal, and he fell backward, beneath the water. He panicked, swallowing more water as he flailed around. He kicked, and the pain intensified, every movement agony. The world around him dimmed.

  Glitch felt arms beneath his shoulders pulling him up. His feet found purchase, and he pushed his head out of the water. Coughing and spluttering, he pressed his head against the metal above him. The water rose steadily over his face, and the pain in his stomach grew worse.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  A Watery Grave

  As the shuttle plummets toward Earth, Glitch manages to repair the controls, and Kalith shows him how to pilot the craft. Glitch guides the shuttle through Earth’s atmosphere while Kalith protects the interior from the worst of the heat. Finally, the shuttle breaks through the atmosphere and crash-lands in the Pacific Ocean. The water rapidly cools the shuttle’s hull, and it cracks, letting in water. As Glitch, Zheng, and Anderson search for a way out, the shuttle sinks.

  Pain sliced through Glitch’s stomach. He felt as though someone had rammed a rusty screwdriver into his gut. He let out a cry. Water filled his mouth, leaving him spluttering for air. His foot slipped on the slick metal, and he fell backward, beneath the water. He panicked, swallowing more water as he flailed around. He kicked, trying to right himself, but the pain intensified. Every movement he made was agony. Dark clouds crept in at the edges of his vision.

  Glitch felt arms beneath his shoulders, and someone pulled him upright. Spitting out the water, he pressed his head against the metal surface of the shuttle. The water steadily rose, and the pain in his stomach grew worse.

  Water rolled over Glitch’s face, flooding his mouth and nose. He shifted position, trying to find one last pocket of air, something to keep him alive for a few seconds longer. Explosions of light burst across his vision, and his head swam. His lungs burned. His face pressed against the metal skin of the shuttle, and it shifted, giving way a little. Hope flared, and he pushed against the ship. The metal resisted then gave way. Light flooded into the shuttle, and Glitch pushed his head out into the fresh air.

  He coughed and spluttered, gulping at the air. Zheng appeared beside him. Together, they pushed back more of the shuttle’s outer shell until they could clamber out. Glitch dragged himself to the edge of the opening, spitting water. He peered into the shuttle, searching for Anderson, but there was no sign of her. He plunged his hands into the water, sweeping them around, desperately trying to find her.

  And then she was there, swimming through the water toward him. She broke the surface and dragged in three long, deep breaths. Glitch and Doctor Zheng helped Anderson drag herself out of the water. The three of them lay on the shuttle, broad grins across their faces. The shuttle rolled slightly, rocked by the waves, but it seemed to have stopped sinking. At least for the time being.

  Glitch looked at Anderson. “You going to be okay?”

  A
nderson nodded and let her eyes drift closed, breathing deeply.

  Glitch looked past her, out across the unbroken expanse of the ocean. Off in the distance, he saw three black shapes just above the horizon. As he watched, they grew larger until he could finally work out what they were: helicopters. Glitch lay back against the warm metal. Above him, the sky was clear and blue, and he felt the sun beating down on him, easing the chill from his bones. He smiled.

  Pain tore through Glitch’s stomach, and he screamed.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  The Awakening

  When Glitch opened his eyes, all he could see was the intense whiteness of the afterlife. It took him a couple of minutes to realize it was just the glare of the fluorescent lighting.

  Slowly, he tilted his head to the right. On a battered metal cabinet was a small vase of red and white flowers. He could just detect their smell above the harsh tang of disinfectant. Beyond the table was a broad window, and beyond that was the green expanse of a lawn. In the distance, he saw a nurse pushing someone along a pathway in a wheelchair.

  “You’re awake.”

  Glitch turned to face Anderson. She was leaning against the wall on the opposite side of the room. Her thigh was heavily bandaged, and she was leaning on a thick black walking stick.

  “Good morning, Captain.”

  “I thought you were going to call me Scarlett.”

  “Okay, ‘good morning, Scarlett’ it is. Nice cane, by the way.”

  Anderson smiled and walked stiffly across the room to Glitch’s bed. “How are you feeling?”

  He hesitated. “Actually, I feel pretty good.”

  “You should, Dwayne,” said another voice. Doctor Zheng stood in the doorway. “The government spent a lot of money getting you sorted out.”

  “Sorted out?”

  Anderson reached up to a shelf beside the bed and retrieved a small glass container. She held it up to the light for Glitch to see the red-tinged liquid inside. Something was swimming in it—a worm-like creature about two centimeters long.