THOR: Sci-Fi Romance (Far Hope Series Book 1)

by E. A. James

  “Fine,” she said, stepping towards him and holding out her hand. “Allies?”

  He pushed himself up to his feet and slipped his hand into her, his grip firm and strong, “Allies.”

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  The engineering bay was cold—a bad sign. The small room was usually hot from the heat given off from the ships complex warp generator.

  Still, they went to work. The were not engineers, so for all they knew, they were making things worse instead of better.

  “It looks like a lot more than navigation is damaged,” Thor observed as they futilely worked to try and understand the complicated diagnostics presented on the control panel.

  “What’s going to happen?” Kira asked, sitting back on her heels and turning to look up at Thor, kneeling down to her left. “What will happen when we don’t reach the rendezvous with Nico Rax?”

  “Well, as you so acutely observed earlier, he’ll come looking for us. I have an unlucky feeling that he won’t be alone.”

  His words were haunting.

  Thor continued to pour over the diagnostics and as he reached out to continue work on the control panel, Kira saw the edge of a tattoo peek out just below his shirt collar. The thin red ink seemed to be part of an unintelligible circular design but Kira couldn’t make out more than that.

  “I’m guessing your luck isn’t inversely related to mine,” she said, shaking off her curiosity about the ink on his upper chest and refocusing her attention on the conversation.

  "Sorry, Captain," he muttered, "I'm afraid that you're as caught up in all of this as I am now. I imagine that a galactic ‘dead-or-alive' bounty will be placed on all four of us—the two of us and our previously alive hosts."

  “What?” Kira asked, pushing herself up quickly and stepping back from him. “What did I do? Why would they put out a bounty on me?”

  “You are transporting valuable cargo,” Thor said, flashing a cocky smile at her over his shoulder.

  “Oh, is there something else on this ship I didn’t know about?” she snapped back quickly, looking over her shoulder mockingly.

  When she turned back around to look down at him, she was surprised to find that he, too, had stood to his feet and was now towering over her.

  “Unfortunately for you, it’s just the two of us.”

  “Joy,” she said, taking another step back.

  “I’m confident that Grimm will do anything to keep me from walking free. He’s desperate to keep his activities a secret and he will do anything to keep from being exposed. He’ll have our images broadcast through the galactic bounty network, and before long, we’ll be the next big news.”

  “I have always wanted to be famous,” Kira replied, trying to remain calm and nonchalant.

  “Well, I’m glad I could elevate your social status.” He looked back down at the control panel. “We’re not going to be able to fix this stranded out here. The Zel’Dar attack must have damaged systems outside the ship.”

  “We have to do something to get out of here. My ship was destroyed unceremoniously on arrival, so I’m out of options.”

  Thor thought for a moment. “Your ship?” he said softly. “There might be another vessel on board.” Thor seemed to be lost in thought and he quickly started to leave the engineering bay. Kira followed after him.

  As they marched quickly down the main corridor of the freighter, whatever fear or panic had previously started to form in her stomach was quickly replaced with the rush of adrenaline and her mind shifted to the familiar analytical state that always kicked in when she found herself face-to-face with danger.

  “They may have destroyed your ship, but I bet they kept the one I was brought here on,” Thor explained as they went. “It’s small, but it’ll do.”

  “We’ll have to do something about this ship,” Kira said. “If they find the ship destroyed, maybe they’ll just think that we were all killed in an attack—no need for a bounty when everyone is already dead.”

  Thor slowed slightly but didn't stop. "That’s possible," he said, continuing down the corridor. "Those soldiers were carrying a surprising amount of explosives with them. I'll rig the ship with explosive, you go down to the cargo hold, find our ride out of here, and start familiarizing yourself with it. We may not have a lot of time before they realize we’re no longer on course."

  “Got it,” Kira replied, quickly moving down the corridor in the direction of the ship’s cargo holds.

  “Wait!” Thor said. “Take this - just don’t shoot me with it later.” He handed Kira her Phantom.

  “No promises,” Kira quipped, appreciating the gesture of trust nonetheless. Thor forced a concerned grin in her direction before hurrying off to collect the explosive ordinance and rig the ship.

  Kira reached the end of the corridor and found the service ladder that would take her down to the cargo holds. As she approached the ladder and peered down she could see that power had been compromised on the cargo hold deck, it was emergency lighting only.

  Kira cursed under her breath. She un-holstered her Phantom and turned on the tactical light located beneath the barrel. It wasn’t much, but she needed all of it to navigate through the darkness. Slowly, she descended down the ladder onto the deck below.

  As she reached the platform she was startled by the darkness. The Zel’Dar attack had clearly damaged this section of the ship, and she wondered if their way out of here had been damaged, or worse, destroyed.

  The emergency lighting was poor, spaced about twenty feet apart and some were either not working or flickering ominously. Where the lights were not working, Kira was forced to walk in near complete darkness with only the tactical light on her Phantom guiding her way. She could barely see more than four or five feet in front of her at any given moment.

  The ship groaned from time to time, as the metalwork twisted and bent from the damage sustained in the attack. Kira clutched her Phantom tightly, walking with the weapon raised in front of her. Sweat dripped from her head and her heart pounded in her chest.

  After Kira had come about ninety feet down the corridor she came to the first bay door that read “Cargo Hold #1”. She pressed the door release button. Nothing happened. “Shit,” Kira muttered.

  She walked another two steps and approached the large door. She noticed the door was not fully closed and one of the panels was damaged and bent. From that bend, she could see into the cargo hold. Kira poked her Phantom into the opening to get a better look.

  The light illuminated a small part of the cargo hold and she could make out the outlines of a small shuttle craft about fifty feet away from her. “That must be the ship,” Kira thought.

  Kira looked at the control panel by the door for an intercom control to tell Thor she had found the ship, but there was none. “Must be inside the hold,” Kira pondered.

  She took a step back, and suddenly, a scurrying noise from down the dark corridor grabbed her attention. She pivoted, bringing the Phantom up to face the direction of the noise. Her breath caught in her throat as she strained to see through the darkness.

  Kira’s eyes remained fixed in the direction of the noise. The silence was deafening. Her arms ached from the strain of holding her Phantom at the ready.

  After a solid minute of staring into the darkness, Kira knew she had to make a decision. She lowered her Phantom and braced herself against the cargo bay door. She pushed lightly against the door to see if it would budge. Slowly, the door began to grind against its metal tracks – the noise reverberated through the corridor – Kira grimaced at the sound and stopped pushing.

  A low guttural growl echoed back from down the corridor and the scurrying sound resumed. Kira pivoted back again, bringing her Phantom up in the direction of the noise. There, about one hundred feet down the corridor Kira could make out a large shape running towards her position. The creature was moving fast and the emergency lighting revealed it momentarily before it disappeared back into the shadows as it made its way towards Kira.

  Kira clen
ched her jaw and fired a quick shot from her Phantom. The red beam of energy burst forward, illuminating the corridor as it flew towards the creature.

  The beam flew past the creature and carried on down the corridor, but as the beam missed, Kira could make out distinct features for the first time – it was a Zel’Dar. The sight of the dark blue and brown exoskeleton sent adrenaline shooting through Kira.

  She fired three quick bursts and the creature deftly dodged the first but was struck on its right side with the second and third. It shrieked loudly and dove off into a service corridor about fifty feet from Kira’s position.

  The scurrying sound had subsided but Kira was certain she did not kill it. “Fuck,” she exclaimed, her breathing rapid and tense.

  After another moment, she decided she had to get into the cargo bay immediately. She lowered her weapon and braced herself against the door again, pushing with all her might. The door began to shriek, the sound of metal on metal ringing loudly down the corridor.

  The guttural growl came again, but this time, there was more than one.

  She continued pushing the door open inch by inch as the scurrying sound resumed, the Zel’Dar closing in on her position rapidly.

  With a final grunt Kira managed to create an opening large enough, she pushed through, her body squeezed tightly by the metal door. As soon as she cleared the door she dove, landing on her back with her Phantom aimed at the opening in the door.

  As she landed, at least one Zel’Dar launched itself at the opening in the door, getting wedged between the door itself and the metal frame. Its large mandibles thrashing as it struggled to free itself.

  Kira fired three quick bursts with her Phantom, hitting the Zel’Dar with each. The third found its home and a jet of blue liquid erupted from the carapace of the creature. Its body went limp, wedged between the door and its frame.

  Kira let out a small cry of relief. She quickly stood, still hearing the sounds of the Zel’Dar in the corridor behind her. She didn’t know how many were out there. Looking around the cargo hold Kira found the intercom panel and approached it, hoping it still worked.

  She pressed the button for the ship-wide emergency broadcast, “Thor! Zel’Dar – cargo hold deck, they breached in the attack!” Kira nearly yelled into the intercom.

  A moment passed that felt like a lifetime.

  “Understood, get the shuttle operational, I’m on my way!” came Thor’s reply. Kira could sense the urgency in his voice.

  Kira turned and ran for the shuttle. It was a small craft with a rear loading ramp. Kira found the control panel for the ramp and hit the release – the door slowly descended and Kira cried out in celebration “Yes! At least something still works around here!”

  She entered the shuttle and slid into the pilot’s seat. Kira quickly scanned the panel and began entering in commands, the ship’s engines hummed to life and the running lights illuminated the cargo hold. The shuttle lifted off the ground slightly, ready for flight.

  “Get ready, I’m coming down!” Thor’s voice boomed over the intercom. Kira turned and looked over her shoulder, back out to the corridor. Kira saw several green bursts from Thor’s plasma rifle fly down the corridor and heard the pained shrieks from the Zel’Dar.

  The cargo bay door began to slide open wider and the body of the Zel’Dar that was wedged in between slumped to the ground. Thor leaped through the opening and was running for the shuttle, Zel’Dar streaming in behind him.

  “Go!” Thor shouted. Kira didn’t hesitate and started accelerating the vessel towards the cargo hold exit, slow enough that Thor would be able to board on the run.

  Kira marveled as Thor deftly ran and jumped over obstacles with ease and even fired a few shots back in the direction of the Zel’Dar with surprising accuracy.

  As Thor reached the shuttle he athletically jumped onto the ramp and hit the control for the door – it whirred shut with an emphatic clunk.

  “Punch it!” Thor exclaimed as he took the seat next to her.

  "What the hell am I doing out here?" Kira scolded herself. "I'm on the run with a Jaantu 7 fugitive. There might be a bounty on my head. I’m pretty sure I’m out of a job, and I’m damn sure running for my life isn’t what three weeks of leave is supposed to look like!"

  Steadfast on the controls, she propelled the ship forward, praying that the landing bay doors opened before they crashed into them. The large metal gate trembled as it pushed outward, and the vast, endless sky became slowly visible.

  Thor clenched his fists in his lap, almost nervously, but didn’t speak. Kira kept her eyes locked on the fine line of star-filled blackness as she urged the ship to continue forward. Just as they were approaching the door, a ball of orange and yellow began to spill into the room behind them.

  The door, still not fully open, was just ahead of them. Positioning the ship just right, Kira led them into the open, the vessel just barely squeezing through the tight space.

  As she accelerated the ship, the ball of heat behind them continued to surge up at them. It was another few moments before they both relaxed as the explosion calmed and the wreckage of the freighter could be seen floating through space.

  Leaning back in her chair, she turned to face Thor. His eyes were still fixed out the window, and his fists still clenched at his sides.

  “Well, we’re still alive, so there’s that,” she said cheerfully with an awkward laugh of relief.

  “Just barely it would seem.”

  “That just makes for a better bar story,” she said with a shrug.

  “I have a feeling this is a story I won’t be telling for quite some time,” Thor replied, finally turning his attention in her direction. “What do we do now?”

  “Well, we don’t exactly have a lot of options,” Kira replied. “We’re fairly near the Galactic Bazaar – we might be able to better assess our situation there, hopefully with some anonymity.”

  “It’s a great place to go if you want to put yourself in the midst of low-life’s, criminals, bounty hunters and pirates, all eager to claim their reward,” Thor replied quickly.

  “Do you have any better ideas? It’s not like we can return to Earth, and we don’t really have the provisions for long distance travel.”

  “I guess if we’re going to be criminals on the run from the law, what better place to do that than the Bazaar?” Thor said, sitting back in his chair and turning his attention to the horizon again.

  “Speak for yourself,” Kira muttered as she directed the ship towards the Bandurian section of space that contained their intended destination.

  “I’m just someone who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. I’m not a criminal; I’m just working with one.”

  “I already told you, I’m not a criminal,” Thor said pointedly.

  “Right, you were wrongfully accused by one of the most respected military leaders in the Terran Alliance,” Kira responded.

  “He’s not who everyone thinks he is—at least not anymore.”

  “He seemed the same as always the last time I spoke to him.”

  “Really? The man you claim to know would ask you to participate in an off-the-record, unsanctioned mission to transport a classified prisoner to Jaantu 7?”

  “Maybe…” she said, unsure.

  “He’s become obsessed with genetic and cybernetic manipulation. Not only that, he’s become fanatical about his obsession. He has made claims that members of the Arcanum are superior to other Terran's. He’s been isolating himself more and more from the T.A.F. He’s gone mad with his lust for power and supremacy.”

  The famously stoic, unemotional Colonel had been more and more elusive in recent years, Kira conceded. But, she only assumed that was because he had been assigned to work with the Arcanum.

  “He will do anything in his power to continue with his experiments. He won’t let anything pose a threat to his work. As soon as I began to voice my opposition to his careless, dangerous, potentially lethal enterprise, I became a liability.”

>   “So, he sent you to Jaantu 7 just to keep a secret?” Kira asked, still suspicious of Thor’s account.

  “Not only that,” Thor said. “He’s planning something. Something big.”

  “What?” Kira asked, her eyes wide.

  “I don’t know,” Thor admitted.

  Kira scoffed, but Thor continued. “Even though I can’t be specific, I’m certain he’s planning something, though. That’s why having an Arcanum soldier who openly expressed opposition to his experimentation walking around a free man is so worrisome to him. He can’t let anything stop him from bringing his plan to fruition. Especially because I assume he’s close to putting it into action.”