Phoenix In Chaos (Exodus)

by Robert Stadnik

  Alex’sis worked quickly and aimed the plasma turret at the satellite. She fired and, after several blasts, hit it.

  “Object destroyed.”

  Some of the consoles returned to normal, but others remained offline. “Looks like some of the computer’s functions have been restored,” said Julie, looking over the ship’s status. “Command deck to engineering.” There was no response.

  “Internal communications are offline,” said Bret.

  “Do we know what that satellite was trying to do?” asked Kevin.

  “It might have been trying to probe our computer systems,” Bret speculated.

  “Shoot,” said Alex’sis. “There’s a malfunction in the defense systems on deck two.”

  “Meaning?” asked Julie.

  “Meaning, if I can’t get the systems offline, they might go off.”

  “Is anyone on that deck?”

  “Picking up two pips,” replied Alex’sis. “Pip IDs show its Captain Roberts and Doctor Myers.”

  The lights flickered back on deck two. Doctor Myers turned on his side and looked around. The ship’s sudden movement had thrown him and Roberts off their feet, the hard floor knocking the wind out of both of them.

  “Ow,” muttered John as he started to stir.

  “Captain, are you injured?”

  “Think I smacked my head pretty hard on the floor.”

  Myers examined John as the young captain sat up, ignoring his own pain. “You have a pretty good bump. Don’t move too much. It could be a concussion.”

  “I’ll take your advice if I start babbling like an idiot.” John got to his feet and looked around, realizing they were still on deck two. He was dizzy and it took him a moment to remain steady on his feet. Listening to the doctor was probably a good idea, but John didn’t want to remain here. “Let’s get off this deck.” He didn’t know what had happened, but the last place he wanted to be was on a deck brimming with security defensives.

  They headed to the lift, but it wouldn’t open. John checked the door console but found it was drained of power. As he fiddled with it, Myers grabbed a medical scanner that was stored on the deck and used it to check the captain’s injury.

  “Just some bruising, no subdural damage,” said Myers.

  “Roberts to command deck.” No response.

  “Communications must be out,” said Myers.

  “Computer, status of the ship?” asked Roberts.

  “Cinderella has departed engine core,” replied the computer.

  “Well, I’ll take that to mean the computer has lost its marbles,” said John. He hurried to the other side of the deck to check the other lift. It was also inoperable.

  “Captain,” said Myers. “Life support is offline. I’m picking up increased CO2 emissions.”

  “Great, so we’ll either suffocate or get killed by one of the security defenses,” said John. “Which would you prefer?”

  “You think the deck’s security has been compromised?”

  “I don’t know, but if the computer is malfunctioning, it’s possible.”

  On the command deck, Alex’sis was quickly ascertaining the status of deck two’s security systems and she wasn’t pleased with what she was finding.

  “Commander, the safeties were tripped when a power surge went through the deck. All the systems are hot and can go off at any moment.”

  “We got to get them out of there,” said Julie. “Can we use the access tunnel?”

  “Systems will trigger if anyone steps inside,” replied Alex’sis. “We have to disable them first.”

  “Drix to command deck,” said Drix over the command deck speakers.

  “Drix,” said Julie. “We can hear you.”

  “We have been able to restore communications with the command deck and engineering,” said Drix. “Ecerson is directing maintenance technicians throughout the ship for assessment and repairs.”

  “Drix, the captain and Doctor Myers are trapped on deck two and the security systems are active,” said Julie. “Can you deactivate them on your end?”

  “I will attempt to do so,” said Drix. “I am showing life support on deck two is offline.”

  “Damn, he’s right,” muttered Alex’sis. “They don’t have much time.”

  “We need to get them out of there but can’t as long as those systems are primed,” said Julie.

  “With the safeties off, the only way to shut them down is with command authorization,” said Alex’sis. “But the computer is still malfunctioning.”

  “Computer,” said Julie. “Disable all security systems on deck two. Voice authorization Commander Olson.”

  “Unable to comply,” said the computer. “Hangar controls restricted to medical. Would you like a piece of pig?”

  “What?” said Julie.

  “Computer must be scrambled,” said Kevin.

  “I may have an idea how to work around the computer,” said Drix.

  With no way out at the moment, John slumped on the floor. “This is not how I would imagine my life would end.”

  “It’s premature to say that,” said Myers. “I take it you’ve thought about how you should die?”

  “Yeah, battling the Screen or some other alien race. Dying from one’s own security system is a bit pathetic.”

  “I’m sure the crew’s aware of our predicament and are working to free us,” said Myers, trying to offer some comforting words to the young captain.

  “I know they are.” John had no doubt the crew was working to free them. Hopefully, the captain and doctor would be rescued before any of the deck’s security systems activated.

  “Since we have some time to kill, there’s something I always wanted to ask you,” said John.

  “What’s that?”

  “What made you decide to join the EXODUS Project?”

  “Admiral Johnson approached me about the project,” replied Myers. “I believed in his vision and agreed to help him.”

  “Yeah, but you’re up there in years,” said John.

  Myers folded his arms. “Is that your polite way of saying I’m old?”

  “You know what I mean, doc. I read your bio file. You had a thriving medical practice on Earth, and another one on Luna with a lucrative contract with TERRA. Why give all that up?”

  “Even at my age, the desire to make a difference never goes away,” said Myers.

  “Don’t doctors believe they make a difference everyday by helping the sick?” asked John.

  “They do, and I felt that way. But things changed after my wife died.” There was sadness in his voice John picked up on. John knew from Myers biographical file that he was a widower, and he had a grown daughter back on Earth.

  “Did she have something you couldn’t cure?” asked John.

  “It was nothing like that,” said Myers. “She died in a shuttle accident.”

  “I’m sorry,” said John.

  Myers smiled, grateful for the captain’s condolence. “It was the reason why I relocated to Luna. I couldn’t stay in the same house after she died.”

  “What was her name?” asked John, even though he already knew it from the doctor’s file.

  “Genevie. She was a wonderful woman, very headstrong. You two would have gotten along.”

  “What about your daughter? How’d she handle things?”

  “Marissa was already grown when her mother died,” said Myers. “She put on a brave front, but she was angry when she found out I sold the house. It got worse when she learned I was moving to Luna. Her mother was a holocaust descendant, so Marissa herself couldn’t leave Earth.”

  “Sorry to hear that,” said John. “But why not stay on Earth?”

  “TERRA had approached me to start a practice on Luna. Marissa and I always had a difficult relationship. We never spent much time together on Earth. She was busy with her own life, and I didn’t think it would bother her if I left. I guess losing her mother made her reevaluate her relationship with me.”

  “My parents died
when I was little,” said John. “I never knew if I was supposed to grieve for them.”

  “You had a sister, correct?” asked Myers, switching the subject.

  The young captain nodded. “I guess I took after Nicole. I never saw her cry over them, so I figure I didn’t need to either. She took such good care of me. I guess I felt I would have insulted her if I mourned over mom and dad.”

  “She must have been proud when you were accepted into the Academy,” said Myers.

  “I wish I knew,” said John. “She left home years before I entered the Academy. I don’t know where she went or why she left me.”

  “I’m sorry, captain.” Myers could see the sad look in John’s face.

  “It’s ok. I just wish I could have seen her before we left, but I’d like to think she had good reason for leaving me.” It was the only regret John had taking this mission. He wished he could have put a little more effort into finding his sister before the ship’s launch.

  A noise could be heard from the lift doors and John quickly scrambled to his feet.

  “If we’re about to get vaporized, it was nice knowing you,” said John.

  “It wasn’t an honor?” asked Myers.

  “I’m not one for TERRA’s bullshit rhetoric.”

  Suddenly, the doors cracked open and several pairs of hands appeared and pried them open. There, Julie and Kevin stood in the lift.

  “Took you long enough,” said a relieved John.

  “Get in here now,” ordered Julie. “Alex’sis and Drix are playing games with the computer but the deck’s systems are about to go off.”

  That’s all John needed to hear. He jumped into the lift, with Myers right behind him. As the lift headed up to the command deck, they heard the security systems discharged.

  “Commander,” said John. “First thing tomorrow I want engineering to remove all security systems from deck two.”

  “Understood, sir,” said Julie.

  A few hours later, Professor Donavin and Jeremy met with their mysterious leader in a maintenance shaft on deck sixty-four to discuss recent events.

  “The captain has ordered the removal of the security systems on deck two,” said Donavin, who learned of the order from Ecerson.

  “I was hopeful that either the security systems or lack of oxygen would have been the end of the captain,” said the mysterious host.

  “They may redo the life support system on that deck,” said Jeremy. “It wasn’t difficult to disable at all.” Once Jeremy learned that the captain was trapped, he took the initiative and disabled deck two’s life support. He was surprised how easy it was to shut it off.

  “Although no one suspects our hand in the sabotage of life support, we cannot conduct a similar action in the future,” said the host. “We will continue to wait until the next opportunity arises to dispose of the captain.”

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  It had been three weeks since the satellite had been destroyed and PHOENIX was still in orbit around the fifth planet. The crew conducted extensive checks of all systems for any fallout from the satellite’s probing of the ship. But they also had something to occupy their time. It turned out the planet itself supported life. It was a predominantly tropical environment, overrun with plant life. Although they detected no sentient life on the planet, the probes did find some small animal creatures.

  After extensive observations that concluded the creatures were not dangerous, the science departments made numerous requests to conduct surveys on the planet’s surface, but John refused. After the debacle on the Aldarian homeworld, he had no interest in getting stuck in one place as the scientists conducted endless surveys and research projects. He authorized one shuttle to go down for a single day survey. The scientists protested, but John made it clear in no uncertain terms that PHOENIX would leave at the end of the day, with or without the science team. The scientists reluctantly agreed to his terms.

  The sun had popped over the horizon as the shuttle landed on the surface. The back door opened and fifteen scientists emerged, each carrying as much equipment as they could hold.

  “There’s a clearing about a kilometer and a half this way,” said Michael Wilkin, head of the biology department. “We’ll set up shop there and disperse into teams.”

  “There’s no way we’ll be able to collect sufficient data in one day,” said botanist Doctor Geal.

  “I’m not happy either,” said Michael. “But the captain made his orders clear. If we focus on our assignments we can get a lot done.”

  The group, along with the shuttle pilot, proceeded through the brush. About halfway to the clearing, geologist Jeffrey McCail realized he was missing his mineral scanner.

  “Shoot! Hey, Michael. I’ve got to go back to the shuttle,” said Jeffrey. “I forgot something.”

  “Marcus, go with him,” said Michael.

  “Forget it. I’m not loosing valuable time because of him,” replied Marcus.

  “There’s nothing but those furry little rodents around here,” said Jeffrey. “I’ll be fine.”

  “Alright, meet us at the clearing then,” said Michael. The group continued on as Jeffrey turned back.

  The geologist ran back to the shuttle. He was frustrated for forgetting such an important item. Before long he was back at the shuttle and opened the door. As he did, he heard a noise, like something rustling in the nearby bushes. He looked to the shuttle’s side and thought he saw a figure disappear among the brush.

  “Hello?” It couldn’t be the pilot. She was with the science team. But Jeffrey assumed it was a member of the expedition. Curious, he went over to the brush to see what was there.

  A couple hours later, a second shuttle was descending down to the planet, although it’s descent was hardly smooth. John was piloting the shuttle, having decided to spend the time working on his flight skills. He was certain to have an easier time flying a shuttle versus an Interceptor. One of the shuttle pilots, Evan Stanford, agreed to go along and teach the captain shuttle basics. The pilot was beginning to have second thoughts as the shuttle seemed to sway and bounce.

  “Balance out your pitch, no, that way,” instructed Evan.

  John tried to follow his directions, but it seemed the shuttle wasn’t responding to him very well. The captain thought it was odd he kept getting stuck with defective craft to fly.

  “How’s this?” asked John.

  “Good, we’re finally leveled, but you need to stop spinning the shuttle clockwise. Ease up on your thruster control.”

  “You're not going to keep a record of my flying lesson, right?” John knew his flight skills sucked, and the last thing he wanted was for a recording of this lesson getting around the ship.

  “You get us back to PHOENIX in one piece and I’ll erase the log myself,” promised Evan.

  “Har! Har!” said John sarcastically. “I’ll leave getting us back to PHOENIX in your capable hands.” He set the shuttle, a bit hard, on the ground in front of the other shuttle.

  “Not bad, sir.”

  “Why? Because I didn’t crash into the other shuttle?” said John. Evan tried to hold back the laughter, but couldn’t. Soon John was laughing too. “I know I suck, but it’s not funny.” John got out of his seat and exited the shuttle, still laughing.

  Once he calmed down, Evan joined the captain outside and scanned the area. “You want to join the science team? They’re not too far from here.”

  “I’d rather not bother them,” said John. “Besides, science stuff bores me.”

  “Captain,” said Evan. “My scanner shows one of the scientists is half a click in the other direction, by himself.”

  “Damn scientists never want to follow protocol,” said John angrily. “Who is it?”

  “Pip ID is Jeffrey McCail of the geology group. I can go get him.”

  “No, I’ll get him myself,” said John, pulling his scanner out. “I think a surprise visit by the captain should scare him enough. Wait here until we get back.”

  John headed th
rough the brush to find the wayward scientist. What was it going to take to get them to follow protocols?

  A few minutes later, John reached a clearing where he saw a cave. He checked his scanner and, sure enough, Jeffrey’s pip was registered as inside the cave.

  “Of course he has to be in a dark and scary place,” muttered John. His scanner showed no life forms inside, even Jeffrey’s. It was only picking up his pip signal, not his life sign. That was odd. John chalked it up to the mineral deposits of the cave probably interfering with his scanner. Nevertheless, he pulled out his pulse gun and proceeded inside.

  The captain made his way along a single path before emerging in a large enclosure. It was dark, but the area was dimly illuminated by various lights flashing off a bunch of equipment. There were tables, consoles, and monitors scattered everywhere. It was like a huge laboratory hidden away.

  “What the hell?” John looked around as he slowly proceeded further. PHOENIX’s sensors didn’t pick up any evidence of an advanced civilization or technology on this planet. He checked his scanner and found it was not picking up any energy readings from the equipment.

  As John fiddled with the scanner, he tripped on a rock and fell. He quickly scrambled back on his feet and grabbed his gun and flashlight. As he looked up he saw something that would haunt him for the rest of his life.

  On a table was a glass cylinder filled with a clear liquid. Inside was the head of Jeffrey McCail. Not only his head, but his entire spinal column was attached. The look of horror on Jeff’s transfixed face struck fear into John. The captain wasn’t about to waste any time. He raced out of the cave as fast as he could run. It may have been paranoia, but he thought he heard footsteps behind him. He didn’t turn around to see if anyone was behind him. He didn’t want to, afraid of what might be pursuing him. When he saw the shuttle he found Evan leaning against the front of it.

  “Evan! In the shuttle, now!” yelled John.

  “What?” But Evan couldn’t get an answer as John raced past him to the back of the shuttle. John hit the button and opened the rear door as Evan joined him.

  “Captain?”

  “We need to contact the ship and get the hell out of here!” Once the door opened John raced inside, but he ran into something. John looked and all he could see was this square computer module with a large white light looking back.