“Then we have to hurry,” Aehako says. He looks to Haeden, and the man nods. Before Harlow can protest, she’s slung over his shoulder like a pack, and then both aliens are off, running through the snow at a speed faster than our human legs can move.
As more alien chatter feeds down, I can only hope we get there before they realize the translator is nowhere near the old cargo hold and come looking for me.
I want this thing out of my head now.
? ? ?
Even though the sa-khui — our blue alien friends – call it the Elders’ Cave, it’s actually a spaceship. Some three-hundred-and-change years ago they crash-landed here much like we did, and over time lost the use of their technology. The ship is still there, and the computer works. And if they have the advanced technology to have a working spaceship once upon a time, I’m hoping that they also have some sort of working medical equipment that can get this thing out of me.
At this point? I’m willing to chop off my own ear to get rid of it. The implant feels like an anchor, weighing me down with worry.
I’m relieved when the snowy expanse of the ship appears in the horizon. It’s enormous, like a gigantic, overly flat hill. Off to one side I see the ‘cave’ opening. It represents safety, even as I hear another sequence of alien chirps come through the translator.
“Hurry, please!” I squeeze Aehako’s neck as something bright zips past in the skies overhead. It’s not headed in this direction…yet. Doesn’t mean it won’t, though.
Aehako picks up the pace, and with me clinging to his back, he heads for the entrance to the ship in a full-on sprint. Haeden follows close behind.
As we approach, I see the rounded door entrance. It’s iced over and dark, but the interior is deep. The snow around the door itself is high, masking any steps. We race inside, and I see that off to the sides there are doors tightly hugging the rounded walls.
“Can we shut the doors?” I ask frantically. The chirping is filling my ear to the point that it’s making my anxiety go wild.
“Mja se fah-ree,” calls out a computerized voice. Door sequence initiated, the translator tells me.
“What’s it saying?” Harlow asks, sliding off of Haeden’s back.
Aehako releases me gently, pulling out one of his bone knives from his belt and eyeing the skies. “It says it is quenching doors. I do not know what this means.”
“Sequencing,” I correct. “That means it’s about to shut them.” I pull Aehako back a step or two, watching. I’m a little unnerved that the computer’s listening to us. We’ll have to be careful what we say.
There’s a heavy groan of metal, and then the snapping of ice. Harlow shields her face and Aehako protectively steps in front of me as ice flies everywhere, and then the doors to the hatch roll shut. The sunlight disappears, and we’re in utter darkness.
Somewhere in the dark of the interior, a red light blinks.
“Hello?” I call out. “Can you turn on the lights?”
A big hand clasps my shoulder, nearly making me crawl out of my skin. “Stay close, Kira. We do not know if it’s safe—“
“North American English, Planet Earth. Is this the default language you wish to use?”
“Um, yes please.”
“Accepted.”
I glance around. Maybe the computer is like an overgrown version of Siri from my iPhone. “Computer, turn on the interior lights, please.”
Something sizzles and I jump closer to Aehako. A flutter, and then a dim light comes on overhead.
“There is a malfunction in regards to the lighting in the main bay. Please contact a service technician.”
“Computer, please turn off malfunctioning lighting and turn on all other lighting,” I correct. I don’t want anything catching on fire. I rub my arms, mindful of the chill in here. Temperature control might be a bit too much to hope for. “Are we safe with the doors shut?”
“The doors can be opened upon request. Do you wish to initiate a lock-down sequence?”
Oh, I absolutely did. “Yes, please.”
“Would you prefer biometric pass-keys or verbal authorization?”
Aehako looks at me in confusion in the dim lighting. “I do not understand any of this.”
Harlow leans in. “We want verbal authorization. A password.”
She’s right. I nod. “Something that’ll be easy to remember. Any ideas?”
Her smile is thin. “Earth?”
I glance over at Haeden and Aehako. They look uneasy, both of them gripping weapons. “I’m not sure that if things get ugly, they’ll remember where we came from. Maybe we’ll just go with Georgie? Since she’s Vektal’s mate and all.”
Harlow shrugs. “Works for me.”
“Computer,” I call out. “Please lock down all doors to the exterior. No one can enter or exit without the password of ‘Georgie’.”
“Password Georgie accepted.”
I move to Aehako and squeeze his hand. “If you guys need to leave for whatever reason, just say her name.”
He nods, still looking around with something akin to awe. Underneath the ice that coats the interior of the ship, there are lights and panels and instruments. This must seem very foreign to him.
Heck, it’s foreign to me but I’m starting to get used to weird things at this point.
Harlow takes a few steps forward and shrugs off her thick, furry overcoat. “You think it’s okay for us to explore?”
I gesture at the air. “Ask the computer?”
“Right.” She gives me a sheepish look. “Computer, are there any other living things inside the ship other than us?”
“Performing bio scan. Please wait.” A low hum fills the room and a red beam flashes from one side of the cavelike hold to the next, scanning us. “Four life forms detected, two modified sakh and two modified human.”
Modified human? I touch my chest, where my khui is wrapped around my heart. “You mean us, correct?”
“That is correct.”
“Cool,” Harlow says. “I want to go have a look around, if that’s okay with you guys.”
I shrug. I certainly can’t stop her. She’s her own person, and this isn’t my ship. I have my own agenda here, and if Harlow doesn’t want to talk about hers, that doesn’t bother me. It must be personal.
Aehako’s big hands tug on my icy cloak, helping me take it off. “Is it safe to build a fire?” He asks.
“I don’t know if we should. There might not be a vent for the smoke, and we might set off smoke detectors in the interior. I don’t know how the ship will respond to that.”
“Smoke…detectors?” Haeden asks, a frown on his face.
“Long story,” I say. Another chirping sequence of flight commands comes through my translator, reminding me why I’m here. I clutch it and approach one of the frozen panels. “Computer, do you have a medical bay somewhere on this ship?”
“Medical bay is located on floor two, section D.”
I look over at Aehako. “That’s where I’m going.”
He steps forward. “Not alone.”
For some reason, I appreciate that. I smile at him, feeling shy. “All right.”
Haeden moves toward the snowy portal that we entered through, now shut. Muddy, slushy footprints mar the flooring. “I’ll stay here and guard the door.”
I want to tell him that we’re probably safe, but…I don’t know that we are. For all I know, the computer can think we’re safe and the aliens can show up with some new technology that will bust the doors open. So I nod and start forward. There’s a dark hall off to one side, and Harlow disappears down it, her hand tracing along the wall as she explores. She’s fearless. I envy that.
“Computer,” I say. “Can you show me the quickest way to get to the medical bay?”
The track lighting on the edge of the floor flickers off to one side. There’s a door there, and after a quick command to open it, it rolls back and exposes a different, dimly-lit hall than the one Harlow went down. Exposed wires hang from a missing tile in the ceiling, and it leads on into darkness.
This feels…creepy.
I touch the translator in my ear. It doesn’t matter if it’s creepy or not, I need to take action.
Aehako’s hand touches the small of my back, and that small gesture bolsters my courage.
I plunge into the ship.
PART FOUR
KIRA