Project Columbus: Omnibus

by J. C. Rainier

  Nova took a step back and her jaw dropped. “Ma’am? Shouldn’t we go to a pod we know landed fine?”

  Haruka shook her head emphatically. “It’s not just forty miles. Look at that lake and tell me how long it will be to get around it. See the mountain behind it. Look in your pack and tell me how much food you have. If we’re lucky we’ll make it before we run out of food.” She jerked her thumb over her shoulder. “Those people might well die without us, but I can guarantee we’ll get there before we run out of supplies.”

  “I’m with Kimura on this one, Weyler,” Mancini said as he fixed his canteen to his belt. “No use arguing about it with her either, she’s the commanding officer now.”

  Mancini’s words sunk in deep. In the skiff, Haruka had told him that she was the commanding officer partly as a tactic to get him to listen. She realized now that she had been made First Officer by Emberley, and that both he and Fox were dead.

  I am now in command of the crew of Raphael.

  Haruka straightened up, gripped her rifle, and walked toward the wilderness. Mancini fell in at her side, and she heard Nova scurry to catch up.

  Let’s see just what is left of my command.

  Columbus: Ashes

  Project Columbus, Book 2

  By J.C. Rainier

  Original Publication: 12 March 2013

  Capt Haruka Kimura

  USAF

  30 March 2058, over an hour after the crash

  Archipelago, Approx. 15 deg N, 112 deg E

  1 mile west of ex-Raphael engineering skiff crash site

  Haruka scanned the floor of the jungle. Tangles of undergrowth dotted the ground beneath many of the larger trees, while patches of brown dirt and rotting leaves carpeted the rest of the ground. The ground sloped gently downward from right to left, and then rose again as she turned. The orb of Alpha Centauri B burned through the thick jungle canopy high above, its heat merciless as it hung high in the sky. Haruka wiped a bead of sweat from her brow with the sleeve of her flight suit, which had nearly dried out from the skiff’s water landing.

  Lucky we weren’t pulverized, burned up, or drowned, she thought with a shudder. I wonder how many of the passengers survived.

  “What’s the bearing of pod eight, Marco?”

  “Looks like it’s west by north,” he replied.

  Haruka retrieved a compass from her breast pocket and glanced at it. She turned a few degrees to her right and looked up the slope, about halfway up, at a stand of trees. “Nova,” she pointed at the spot. “Check what’s up there. See if it’s passable.”

  “Yes ma’am.” Nova Weyler bounded her way up the knoll, and then slowed near the target as she navigated through the last few feet of thick brush. She took an awkward step and disappeared from view.

  Haruka started to run toward her. “Nova?”

  Nova popped out of the brush with a large twig twisted in her blonde hair. “I’m okay,” she called back. “Just a bad step.”

  Haruka came to a stop, panting. She returned the compass to her pocket and leaned her rifle against a tree, then pulled the canteen from her belt. Haruka unscrewed the cap and took a short drink of the tepid water before returning the canteen. Her head throbbed and her vision seemed to tilt and blur for a moment. She rubbed her temples and shook away the vision, then threw her arm up to protect her eyes from the sun.

  The days move faster here than on Earth, she thought. I don’t think the sun had peaked by the time we crashed, but we’re well past that now. She rubbed at her wrist, wishing that she owned a watch. Even though she was sure the times would not match on Demeter, she could at least have a relative sense of time.

  Mancini sidled up to her. “We’re not going to make it to the pod before sundown, you know that, right?”

  “Yeah. I didn’t think we would.” She pointed to a tangled green plant on the ground nearby, a blue hue staining the veins in its leaves, its long thorns curved into a wicked crescent. “We need less of this crap to deal with. Remember when we tried to get away from the lake?”

  Mancini shuddered and lifted the torn leg of his flight suit to reveal three long, red scratches on his calf. “I’m not going to forget any time soon. I’m just glad that it cleared up after we got away from the shore. I’d hate to think of where we’d be otherwise.”

  “Captain,” she heard Nova call. Haruka looked over and saw her jogging back.

  “Well?”

  Nova pointed a finger in the air and doubled over, winded.

  “Take your time.”

  The younger woman’s finger pointed to the low spot of the knoll and swept to the left. “Whole valley beyond is full of that stuff. We need to go up a little higher and around. Shouldn’t be more than a few hundred feet to the next ridge.”

  “Alright,” Haruka said as she grabbed the rifle. “Move out. Marco, take point.”

  Mancini picked a course upward that snaked around the mess of ground cover and around the side of the hill. Haruka and Nova followed close behind. When they crested the hill, Haruka saw a depression between ridges that was teeming with green brush and brown snags. A few trees poked out from the strangling shrubbery but a gaping hole in the leaf canopy overhead let a beam of sunlight shine down onto the jungle floor. As they passed through it, Haruka’s skin warmed, until she felt that she might catch on fire. Only a gentle breeze gave any respite from the oppressive heat.

  They climbed along the ridge of the short hill, then took their bearings and followed just below the ridge line on the other side. Their path took them to a gap between two more hills. Haruka sent Mancini ahead to scout while she and Nova rested.

  Nova avoided eye contact with Haruka as she sat with her back to a tree; they drank from their respective canteens in silence. Haruka noticed that her water was getting warmer; the heat of the day had penetrated the container. She breathed deep and listened to the sounds around her. A bird called from somewhere far away. Though its song was sweet and chipper, it grated on Haruka’s nerves and made her headache flare up anew. Nova’s boot dragged across the dirt as she pushed it back and forth almost mindlessly. Haruka strained and thought she could hear running water. After a minute, Mancini returned.

  “Highway’s pretty much clear,” he said. “Only a few patches of brush, and it looks like we can easily maneuver through them. Looks like a pretty long flat stretch, too.”

  “Great,” Haruka smiled. “Let’s go. Nova, your turn up front.”

  The three survivors moved along the floor between two short rises. Haruka estimated they were no more than 60 feet at their highest. True to Mancini’s report, only occasional patches of vegetation were present in the lower elevation, and there were few disruptions to their forward progress. At the end of the valley, a steep hill rose up, taller than its flanking counterparts. The sound of rushing water was clear now.

  Always good to find fresh water, she thought.

  “My turn to scout,” Haruka said. “You two rest a moment.”

  Haruka slung her rifle over her shoulder and sprinted at the hill. She built up speed before she attacked the slope almost head first. At first it was steeper than she thought, and her fingers clawed into the rich brown soil, grabbing at roots to help pull her body higher. The angle flattened, and she pushed her way to the top of the hill. She glanced back at Nova and Mancini, who sat at the base, sitting separately and looking away from each other like upset children. Haruka shook her head.

  Maybe someday these two will play nice without me around.

  She turned around and scanned the valley below. It was wider and deeper than those they had been trudging through, and a wide creek roared through rapids below her. Haruka walked down the slope toward the stream. She came upon a thicket of native plants barring her way. Haruka circled in both directions for a minute but was unable to find a way around. She continued around the hill until she reached one of the flanking hills. The creek bent away from view as it rushed to meet whatever lay at its end, far away. A break in the vegetation near th
e bend caught her eye.

  We can probably get through there.

  The weight of the pack and rifle made Haruka’s shoulder ache, so she sloughed the M4 off and carried it up the smaller ridge, back to her companions. She crested the hill and started down the other side. Nova and Mancini appeared to be standing and holding a conversation with each other. Haruka smiled for a fleeting second.

  Wait, they’re not talking. Or facing each other.

  Haruka caught a bright glint as Nova drove her bayonet into Mancini’s lower back. Haruka tried to scream but nothing came out. Instead she burst into a full run. Nova drew the blade from Mancini and plunged it again into his back. He could not scream; Nova’s hand was cupped over his mouth.

  “NO!” Haruka’s voice pierced the air.

  Nova wheeled around to face her as Mancini fell forward into the dirt. The blade glinted red in the sunlight as Nova cast it aside, her face completely devoid of expression. Haruka skidded to a stop. A slight twitch crossed the corner of Nova’s mouth, and she turned and ran for the trees.

  Haruka dropped to a knee, flipped the safety off of her rifle, and squeezed a short burst from it. A deafening peal made her ears ring as the slugs spilled forth. Clumps of dirt shot like tiny geysers where they hit the earth. Nova screamed and tumbled forward, clutching her leg. Haruka rose up and bolted toward her prone opponent. Nova looked up at her charging commander and clawed at her belt, searching for her pistol. Haruka screamed and brought the butt of her gun up high, then swung it down on Nova’s skull just as she freed the Beretta from its holster. Nova crumpled in a heap to the ground.

  Haruka stood over the body of the young airman. Anger boiled within her as she let out a primal scream. She dropped to her knees and raised the butt of the rifle again. Deep within, she had the urge to slam it down into Nova’s head over and over, but she resisted. Instead, she picked up the pistol and blood-slicked bayonet and moved to Mancini’s fallen body.

  He coughed and writhed as Haruka knelt before him. She cast aside the weapons and rolled him on his side. Blood poured from the deep punctures in his back and stained his teeth and lips red as he coughed.

  “Oh, God. Marco? Marco, stay with me,” she pled.

  His eyes rolled and met hers. He reached feebly with his blood soaked hand and brushed her cheek. “Haurka,” he coughed in a whisper.

  Haruka unzipped his pack and pulled out the first aid kit. Her fingers trembled as she tried to open it. The pouch opened and the contents scattered to the ground. She rummaged through them in desperation, trying to find something to staunch his bleeding.

  Shit, there’s nothing here that will work. Her eyes darted around the horizon. Why couldn’t there have been a full med kit in the skiff?

  Mancini’s hand fumbled to the back of her neck. She looked at him again; her eyes watered and vision blurred. “Marco, hang on.” She reached down to roll him, but he stopped her.

  “No,” he croaked. Mancini pressed a small device, barely larger than a cell phone, in to her hand and curled her fingers over it. “Leave me. Go… help…” a spasm wracked his body as he writhed in pain. “Help the others. In the pod.”

  Haruka opened her fist and saw the radio tracker. A dot on the screen marked the position of the pod. She placed it in her breast pocket with the compass. Her voice wavered as she looked into his bloodshot eyes. “You’re coming with me. C’mon, you can make it. Please… Marco…”

  “No.” His voice was just a hoarse whisper now. “Leave me. Go be… be a hero to someone you can save.”

  Her lips quivered as she looked at her dying friend through her tears. “Heroes get themselves killed. Didn’t anyone ever tell you that?”

  Mancini’s lips drew wide in a bloody grin. “Nope. Heroes live…. for… ever…”

  Mancini drew no breath. His body pulsed for a moment, and he slipped from the mortal world. Haruka drew her fingers down his eyes and closed their lids. She fell back on her heels and dropped her head.

  No…

  She bit her lip and forced her sorrow down. Her fingers traced down to Mancini’s neck, where a glimmer caught her eye. Haruka parted the collar of his flight suit and revealed a set of dog tags around his neck. With one hand she cradled his head, and with the other slipped the chain from his neck. She watched the tags dangle in the breeze as they hung from her finger tips. Haruka balled up the tags and chain and slipped them into her pocket as she rose.

  A cough came from her left. She looked over to see Nova struggle in vain to get her feet. Haruka’s anger rose again, and she charged at the traitor, kicking her square in the chest. Nova flipped onto her pack and squirmed as breath eluded her.

  “What the fuck is wrong with you, Weyler?”

  The airman struggled to one knee and managed a crooked smile. Haruka moved behind her and planted her boot on Nova’s shoulder, forcing it into the debris covered dirt. She yanked the zipper of Nova’s pack open and retrieved the rope from within, then grabbed one of her hands and yanked it roughly behind her back. Nova growled at her captor as her hands were secured.

  “Stay there,” Haruka commanded and sealed the the pack’s zipper. She hurried to Mancini’s body and relieved him of his belt and pack. She cinched the belt around her waist and checked the knife and pistol that it contained, then picked up Nova’s discarded pistol. After she verified that the safety was secured, she tucked it into the belt and grabbed the pack and carbine.

  Nova had climbed to her feet, hands bound behind her back and favoring one leg. Haruka took Mancini’s pack and threw the loops around Nova’s neck; the young blonde choked and stumbled.

  “Oh, shut up and get used to it,” Haruka barked. She leveled the barrel of the rifle at Nova’s back. “Now march.”

  Nova looked back and gave Haruka an evil sneer as she hobbled toward the low rise to the side. Haruka followed several steps behind. Only one thought went through her mind as she drove her prisoner up the hill.

  Why the fuck did she kill Marco?

  Gabrielle Serrano

  Civilian

  30 March 2058, 12:15 (est)

  ex-Raphael sleeper pod eight crash site

  Gabi moaned and sobbed as she picked herself out of the brush. Her arm stung as if a hundred bees had descended upon it and her chest ached with every breath she took. She sat up and looked at the giant metal wall from which she fell, framed by the thick brown trunks of two precariously leaning trees. Thin swirls of smoke wafted over the skin of the pod and into the blue sky above.

  She tried to stand up, but something poked her in the foot, and she yanked it to safety. Gabi pulled her leg high in the air so she could check her foot for damage. Her toes wiggled before her eyes, and she realized that she was missing a shoe. Carefully, she rolled onto her stomach and peered into the thick plant. She spotted something pink, just barely within the reach of her hand. Gabi snatched the errant shoe, rolled over, and put it back on.

  Gabi stood and brushed herself off. As her hand moved over her arm, the stinging pain renewed, and she cried out. She pulled back the torn sleeve of her shirt and revealed a large, rectangular scrape on her arm. Drops of fresh blood seeped from the wound. Gabi whimpered and clutched her arm as she stood and walked to the metal wall.

  Several of the rungs had been torn from the ladder near the ground, so she could not make her way back up. Voices echoed from inside, escaping from the holes in the skin. Gabi listened for the familiar sound of her parents’ voices, but she could not make out any specific one in the group. She skirted left under leaning tree trunks and around the wall, and came to the back side of the pod. The entire rear looked like one massive door; one that Gabi had no hope of opening. Thick logs lay under the pod. She scrambled over these and through the brush between them until she reached the far side of the pod, hoping to find a ladder there as well.

  A wall of heat sent her back as she rounded the corner. Flames as tall as Gabi licked at the base of the pod, blackening the metal side. Crushed tree trunks crackled and hissed
as the fire consumed them. Shivers ran down Gabi’s spine despite the heat of the flames; she held still, breathless and motionless.

  No! Mama, Papa! Get out of there! She tried to form the words, but her lips quivered, and she began to cry. “Mamaaaaaa! Papaaaaaa!”

  Gabi stumbled away from the pod and around to get a better view, and to see if she could find the ladder. She could make out the small dashes of the rungs just next to where the flames licked at the hull. She tried to get to it, but the heat of the fire and the choking smoke drove her back.

  Helpless, Gabi sat on a splintered log and buried her head in her hands. She desperately wanted to get inside and find her mother and father, but there was no way in for her. Tears blurred her vision and she wailed. She looked up and watched the fire burn at the lower rungs of the ladder. Someone emerged from the top of the craft and moved to the edge. She could hear them waving and screaming up above, then watched as the person ran back from the edge and out of sight.

  A loud explosion rang out through the air, and fresh flames burst forth from near the base of the pod, this time at the rear. Her heart plummeted as she lost all hope of being able to reach her parents. Gabi rose to her feet and climbed her way back to the safe side of the craft. Her feet seemed to move on their own; her mind clawed at the skin of the pod as if it could somehow reach through and pull her parents out. But a deeper, overriding feeling gripped her, and her body started to run as she emerged from the felled timber and into the wilderness.

  Get out of here, it seemed to call. Mama and Papa are dead, and the fire will burn you if you stay. Run.

  Gabi plunged through a tangled bluish green bush. Her knee caught on a branch, and the fabric of her jeans tore open. She paid no attention and picked up speed, leaving the burning metallic wreck behind her. The underbrush cleared out, and was replaced with a forest floor littered with leaves and sticks that covered the dark brown soil.