by Sam Lippert
'That's just great,' he thought to himself. 'The ultimate in irresponsibility is to misplace your own body! Chances are that means you've misplaced your ship and the Princess as well.' It took Nathan a moment to realize how ludicrous that line of thinking was. It was impossible to misplace one's body, so that must mean there was something else afoot.
Let's see, the last thing he remembered was a loud noise after attempting to hail the unknown ships they had encountered. Odds were that he was either unconscious or dead. Since he was pretty sure death was not all that it was cracked up to be, he chose to believe that he was merely unconscious. If that were the case, it meant he could wake up.
He heard what sounded like a moan. This was a good thing, since it meant that at the very least his ears had returned. The second time he heard it, he realized that the moan was his own. Moments later his entire head returned, bringing with it a headache the size of the Crab Nebula.
“Damn,” his mouth said once it was functional. “What the hell was that all about?” He forced his eyes open and immediately forced them closed again. He wasn't ready for the image that had appeared on his retina and traveled his optic nerve to his beleaguered brain.
With his eyes closed, Nathan tried to make sense of what he had seen in the fraction of a second that his eyes were open. He was in the cockpit of the Nola, which was good considering that was the last place he remembered being.
For all of the familiarity the ghost of the image held for him, something just wasn't right about it. It was time to open his eyes again and take another look.
His eyes opened and he immediately knew why the scene didn't seem right. Everything was smashed. What used to be the friendly view-screens and controls that worked as if they were an extension of his body were nothing but a tangled mass of glass, wires, circuit boards and metal. He was on the verge of tears when another thought drop-kicked his brain.
“Remi,” he croaked. Or at least that is what he meant to say. It didn't sound that way to him, but he wasn't sure if it was his voice or his ears that were still misbehaving. Nathan summoned every Joule of energy he had and turned his head to the right to check on her, but there was nothing but an empty seat where the love of his life should have been.
Fear gripped Nathan's heart with a crushing force. With every ounce of strength he could muster, he forced himself up out of the pilot's seat and staggered out of the cockpit.
Throughout the ship destruction like what he saw in the cockpit was the rule rather than the exception. Every piece of electronic equipment had been either stolen or smashed beyond repair.
The Galley had been completely ransacked, and all of the food supplies had been stolen.
Nathan's cabin had been tossed most professionally. His clothing was strewn about and everything of value was gone.
He was barely able to negotiate the ladder below deck, but he managed to make it somehow. He was unable to find Remi or Omany anywhere. He was so distraught he almost didn't notice the cargo was gone as well.
End of The Nathan Daniels Saga: Part 1
The adventures of Nathan, Remi and Omany continue in The Nathan Daniels Saga: Part 2. Follow this link (http://www.amazon.com/Nathan-Daniels-Saga-Part-ebook/dp/B00C1QKS4Y) to get your copy from Amazon.com!
