Kali fired again and missed again. The pinecones seemed to have figured out how to avoid her aim. She followed Carb’s example and waited. The nearest pinecone was high above her, floating near the ceiling. As she watched, the creature quickly rotated to point its single claw directly at the autodoc bubble.
“Come on, fucker,” she whispered as it approached. Her HUD lit red with target warnings. Three more of the things were coming at her. One at a time, she thought. One at a time. It seemed to know what she was trying to do and floated backward towards the wall while descending. If she followed it, she’d find herself cornered by the other creatures. Bastard, she thought. She turned the weapon back around, switched to explosive rounds, and fired at the ceiling above the pinecone.
The round hit the Atmo-steel deck and detonated. The shockwave knocked the creature toward her. Kali flipped the rifle and swung. The butt cracked the creature’s shell and flung it to the floor. Its claw slashed at empty air before she raised a mag-boot and crushed it. Her HUD flashed with more urgency. Several of the things were no longer coming--they were on her.
One smacked her helmet with a dry crack followed by the shriek of metal. She ducked and then sprang into the air by reversing polarity on the boots. The top of her helmet struck the creature’s bottom and sent it flying to the ceiling. She heard a flechette rifle fire a half-second later. Following the targets on her HUD, she flipped in the air and swung her rifle in a wide arc. The butt found another target and knocked it away.
The two remaining creatures near her gave up on her as a target and flew directly at the autodoc. Nearly three meters above them, she watched as their claws found the bubble and went to work. Fragments of the transparent aluminum shielding spread about the air like pollen. “No!” Kali yelled.
Dickerson and Carb rushed the creatures with their rifle butts thrust outward. Before they reached the bubble, one of the creatures turned and flew toward the gap between the two marines. Just before it passed between them, it changed direction and flew toward Carb, its menacing claw aimed at her visor.
Carb screamed something and popped the rifle’s butt just in front of her helmet. It struck the creature, knocking it upward to the ceiling. She knelt and fired on it. Kali hit her jets to help Dickerson with the single creature still on the bubble. She swung her arm to knock it to the wall just as the bubble shattered.
Shards of the glass-like aluminum composite spread upward, immediately ramming into Kali’s suit. The force of the autodoc’s internal atmosphere releasing at once pushed her back to the ceiling. Dickerson, caught in mid-step, leaned backward from the decompression.
The creature floated up a half meter before plunging itself downward toward the autodoc and Elliott. Elliott’s eyes opened just as the creature floated a few centimeters above his face. His scream filled her helmet. She hit her jets and reached for the creature. It somehow sensed her and moved aside leaving her to hit the autodoc’s metal surface with a crunch.
She watched as the creature returned to Elliott’s face. Still screaming, he tried to raise his arms and push it away. The strange animal rotated, brandished its steely claw, and sank it deep into one of his arms. Blood exploded from the wound, rising in crimson blobs. Shrieking in pain through a wide-open mouth, Elliott writhed and wriggled inside the metal-lipped device.
Kali reached down and grabbed the creature, her useless rifle mag-locking to her side. Through the sensor augmentation in her gloves, she felt the nubs on its body and the strange way its exo-skeleton, if that’s what it was, resembled metal. Once in her hands, the creature stopped trying to move, its claw retracting back into its body.
Elliott screamed again, although whether in pain or shock, she wasn’t sure. The creature’s claw once again appeared and caressed the air just above Elliott’s open mouth. “Dickerson. Get him out of there and into the suit!”
The autodoc’s lights flashed red, but not just because of the pressure loss; Elliott’s heart rate was treading into arrhythmia. Kali hit her jets again and floated higher above the marine, the creature still in her hands.
Dickerson pulled the security straps from Elliott’s body. Kali initiated a block connection with Elliott and told him to calm the hell down. He didn’t respond with thoughts, but the tension in his body lessened. “Carb? How many more?”
“One more,” Carb said. “I have it trapped in the corner.”
Kali turned her head. Sure enough, Carb had her rifle pointed butt out toward a pinecone floating in the corner of the room. She floated a meter from it, matching its altitude. The creature seemed to know it was trapped and had ceased moving.
That’s too much intelligence for my liking, Kali thought. She’d rather the creatures just keep attacking. At least then they knew they were dealing with a predator incapable of strategy. What’s more, now they had to worry about the fucking things following them around the ship.
Dickerson pulled Elliott from the autodoc. Without his mag-boots, Elliott floated helplessly while Dickerson reached down to grab the EVA suit. They had to get Elliott into it ASAP. She didn’t know how Dickerson had patched the medical bay hatch, but he hadn’t sounded confident it would hold for long.
For a maddening twenty seconds, she clutched the terrifying creature between her hands and watched Dickerson stuff Elliott into the suit. When he finally placed the helmet over his head, the suit puffed out slightly as it filled with atmosphere. A second or two later, she received a block connection.
Corporal? What the fuck is going on? Why--?
Elliott, she said through her block, calm down. You’re safe.
He pointed at the thing in her hands. What the fuck was that thing doing? My goddamned arm is bleeding!
Calm down, marine. Right now.
The block connection went silent. She could feel his mind trying to push away panic and pain. Sorry, Corporal, he finally thought to her.
How do you feel?
Elliott’s thoughts still had an edge of panic to them, but he was getting it under control. Like a goddamned spear went through my arm. Also, it’s hard to breathe.
Slow down your breathing. The nannies are doing their best to repair your lungs, but it will take a while. You were exposed to vacuum for a second or two when your suit punctured.
Punctured? He looked at his left arm. Right. I lost my fucking hand.
She winced. But this suit seems okay. Even if it’s 50 plus years old.
Great, he said, I’ll try and remember that when I’m bumping around this hulk.
You do that. Does the suit have a radio?
Aye, he said. But no one’s answering me.
“Dickerson,” she said over comms, “I’ve got him on block. Find his frequency.”
“Aye, Corporal,” Dickerson said.
I need to check on something, Elliott. Stay calm. We have you covered. I’ll be back in a second.
Kali broke the connection. “Carb? You still have that thing cornered?”
“Aye, Corporal. Not moving. Is Elliott--?”
“Elliott’s fine, Carb. Just worry about the creature.”
“Aye,” she said, a note of exasperation in her voice.
“Found it,” Dickerson said. “Damn, but this is old. Sending you and Carb the codes.”
Her block lit up with a message. She authorized the frequency and added it to the squad channel. “Elliott, you hear me?”
Rapid chuffs of air filled her ears. “Aye, Corporal. Good to hear you.”
“I’m sure,” she said. “Carb and Dickerson are on this same channel.”
“How you feeling?” Dickerson asked.
Elliott raised his right arm and pointed at him. “Like you and I went three rounds,” he said.
Dickerson grunted. “Then you must not remember the fourth round.”
Elliott tried to laugh but it ended in a coughing fit instead. “I--”
Kali’s HUD lit up with a warning and then she was flying backward toward the trauma bay door. She flailed in the air, the pinecone
dropping from her hands. She reached for it, but it sped past her and through the entrance to the medical bay. Dickerson’s patch had finally failed.
*****
“No!” Dickerson yelled as the patch gave way. He watched helplessly as Kalimura scrabbled for purchase on the wall with her gloves. As soon as he realized she wasn’t going to be able to find a handhold, he released his mag-boots and jetted after her. The corporal bounced off the doorway, went rag doll, and flew out through the trauma center opening.
He increased his jets, just managing to keep from flying into the doorway himself, and reached for her. Kalimura was flipped over, the explosive decompression pulling her headfirst toward the medical bay hatch. Cursing, he reached out a hand and managed to grab one of her boots before she hit. He sent block commands to the suit to fight against the surge and pulled against the pressure loss. Kalimura stayed with him, his glove holding her foot in a death grip.
When the vacuum finally removed all the air from the medical bay, he cut his suit jets and floated in the z-g. He reached out and pulled Kalimura to him until her visor was just below his. After wrapping an arm around her, he used the suit thrusters to push himself back to the floor. The moment he felt the deck beneath him, he magnetized his boots, the corporal still in his arms.
“Jesus,” Carb said. “Your patch give way?”
He took in a deep breath and exhaled in a long hiss. “You could say that,” he said. “Corporal? You alive in there?”
“Yeah,” she said in a groggy voice. “Thanks.” An awkward moment of silence passed. “You can let go of me now, Lance Corporal.”
“Oh,” Dickerson said, a flush of red coloring his cheeks. “Sorry.”
“Don’t apologize,” she said. “Pretty sure you just saved me from a cracked helmet. But I lost the goddamned pinecone.”
“Same here,” Carb said. “The one I had trapped got dragged out of here. Unless it bounced somewhere into cover.”
“Fat chance,” Kalimura said. “Betting it went down the corridor along with mine.” She pulled her rifle from her side and held it in her hands. “Elliott? You okay to move?”
When he didn’t immediately answer, Dickerson was afraid he’d passed out standing upright. “Not sure how far I can walk,” he said. “But I’ll try.”
“Fuck that,” Carb said. “I’ll ferry you.” She stepped to him and reached for his remaining hand. “We’re in z-g, big guy. You don’t have to do shit.”
Elliott made a sound that started as a chuckle and ended in a guttural cough. “Right,” he said when he was able to breathe. “Just like Gunny taught us.”
“That’s the spirit,” Carb said, a hint of mania in the words. “But the real question,” she said and faced Kalimura, “is where do we go next?”
Kalimura turned and walked to the trauma center door. Dickerson watched as she took stock of their situation. “That door is just gone now,” she said in a monotone. “You never told me what you found in the emergency station.”
Carb didn’t answer. Great, Dickerson thought, guess I have to be the great explainer. “Wasn’t good, Corporal,” he said. “Three emergency suits, a corpse that asphyxiated before they could get into a suit, and two others that died while putting theirs on.”
“The station didn’t have pressure?” Kalimura asked.
“It did,” Carb said, “but too much. If that makes any sense.”
“No, it doesn’t.” Kalimura turned to face the marines. “What do you mean too much pressure?”
Dickerson sighed. “I don’t think there was any oxygen in the station,” he said. “The station’s micro-generator worked. We were able to get a final readout before the shit hit the fan.”
“And?”
“Well,” Dickerson said, “either the AI here went crazy or they suffered a serious malfunction. Either way, the emergency station was flooded with CO2, and not oxygen.”
“Shit,” Kali muttered. “You’re saying the emergency station suffocated them?”
Dickerson nodded. “Exactly what we’re saying, Corporal.”
He half-expected Kalimura to say something about the ship, but she didn’t. “Well, the medical bay is fucked. We have to get out of here before more of those things come back. And without pressure, we’re going to die here anyway. Might as well make our way to the bridge.”
“Dickerson?” Carb said. “You haven’t told her?”
“Told me what?” Kalimura asked.
He hated being the bearer of bad news. Even worse, it was unconfirmed bad news. He explained what he’d found on the medical bay terminal before the shit hit the fan. The bridge, the communications array, everything had suffered extensive damage at or around the same general time.
Kalimura said nothing for a moment. The seconds ticked off while Elliott’s comm sputtered with the sound of his ragged breathing. Dickerson made a block connection to the wounded marine. Hey. What’s your O2 mix at? When Elliott told him, Dickerson felt a little relief. At least this was one thing he could fix. Increase your O2 up a percentage. Should make it easier on your lungs. A moment later, Elliott’s breathing sounded more normal.
“Fuck it,” Kalimura said. “We’re heading to the bridge.”
“Boss?” Carb said. “Forgive me for asking, but why?”
“Because,” Kalimura said, “regardless of the destruction, we might be able to find the data records they sent us to retrieve. Worst case? We get nothing for our trouble. Best case? We get the records and find a way to communicate with Black.”
“Aye,” Dickerson said. “Besides, what the fuck else are we going to do? Head to the cargo bay?”
“Uh, I vote no on that one,” Carb said. “Fine with me, Boss. Just wanted to know.”
“As you should, Carb.” Kalimura pointed to Elliott’s original suit. “Let’s grab the utility belt and any other supplies we can salvage.”
“Aye, Boss,” Carb said.
While Carb collected the remaining contents of Elliott’s shredded and torn combat suit, Kalimura checked her rifle. She ejected the magazine, locked it to her belt, and pulled a fresh one. After slamming it home, she gestured to the others. “I want full mags. I want full-combat prep. Those pinecone creatures may be the least dangerous thing on this ship. So let’s get ready for anything.”
Dickerson followed orders. He peered over Kalimura’s shoulder at the impossibly dark rectangle that used to be the medical bay’s main hatch. Out there in the corridors, at least two of the creatures floated free. He had a feeling they’d find hundreds more before this was over.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Nuclear reactors created radiation. Period. Fusing molecules together to provide energy also created electro-magnetic radiation, or EMR. The massive burst of gamma rays that erupted from Mira’s aft section were at the top-end of known EMR. Dangerous, destructive, and incredibly powerful, the rad levels in the burst would have incinerated a human being. But in space? They merely created a fierce light and a wave of EMR.
Mira’s aft still glowed hot on Oakes’ scopes, but the metal was quickly bleeding off the radiation. In an hour or so, it might be as though the burst had never happened. Maybe when the rad levels decreased, he’d have more luck finding the cause.
Or not. Black had told him to look for less obvious signs of EMR to explain the interference. He tapped his fingers on the console. This was maddening. Every few minutes, he checked the camera feeds for Gunny’s marines and watched as they spread the harness lines out and moored them. Watching the spacers mag-walk across the famous ship’s damaged and distressed hull gave him pause. They were out there making history. And what was he doing? Running out of ideas.
Lieutenant, Black said through the block.
Oakes sighed. “No one else is here, Black. Go ahead and use the speakers.”
The block connection terminated. “As you like, Lieutenant.”
“Thank you,” Oakes said. “Now, what can I do for you?”
When Black spoke, he found her smugnes
s irritating. “Nothing, Lieutenant. However, I can do something for you.”
He leaned back in the chair and crossed his arms. “And what might that be?”
“May I take control of your display?”
“Be my guest,” he said.
The display blinked and then all the sensor readings disappeared. An instant later, new waveforms lit the holo. Mira’s aft appeared on the screen, the waves radiating outward.
“What the hell?” Oakes said.
“I received an update from Mickey, PEO’s AI,” Black said. “The observatory detected low-level X-ray radiation coming from Mira’s vicinity. I took the liberty of recalibrating the sensors and focusing them on the gamma-ray source.”
He pointed at the display. “And that’s where those radiation levels are coming from?”
“Yes,” Black said. “It explains the interference.”
Oakes nodded. Radio and block communications would definitely be affected, at least their range. That tracked. “Okay,” Oakes said. “But what’s causing the X-rays? I mean, they can’t be directly related to the gamma burst.” He paused. Black said nothing. “Can they?”
“Unknown,” Black said. “Whatever caused the gamma burst could be leaking the X-rays as well. But without a proper survey of Mira’s aft, it’s simply not possible to confirm the theory.”
“Great,” Oakes said. “Another idea we can’t test.”
The display blanked again and instead filled with a star field. Clusters of small dots congregated at the upper left corner of the image. Oakes squinted. A larger dot sat below them.
“Um, what is this?” Oakes asked.
“This,” Black said, “is the latest telescopic survey of our area of the Kuiper Belt.”
“Okay,” Oakes said. “And?”
A red circle appeared around the clusters. “I have highlighted the area of interest.”
Derelict: Tomb (Derelict Saga Book 2) Page 19
