it still seemed to be mostly intact.
“Space is a large place, Gunny,” Paul replied, “and the
Commander made one almighty mess out there,” he added sadly. Paul had known and
worked with Jon for several years and counted him as one of his closest
friends. He felt his absence keenly.
“It’s safe?” Gunny inquired. In a suicidal mission, Jon had
flown a nuclear warhead into Harkov’s flagship, the Imperial Star ,
destroying it utterly. Many of the escape pods that had been recovered had
particularly high levels of background radiation.
“For the moment, but we don’t want to linger too long. You
ready?” Paul inquired, motioning towards the weapon at the sergeant’s side.
Some of the occupants of the pods had been extremely hostile upon being
rescued. A mixture of fear, oxygen deprivation and in many cases concussion from
the explosion could make a dangerous combination. Hence they had made it a
standard operating procedure to always have at least one armed member of
security present any time opening one of the pods.
“Sure. Do we know if there is anybody alive in there?” Gunny
asked.
“According to the status readouts, there is probably at
least one person alive on-board, as the pod displays a higher than expected
level of carbon dioxide.”
“Okay, then open the pod bay doors, Paul.” Gunny imitated
with a grin, releasing his pistol and flicking off the safety. Taking a step
forward, toward the darkened pod.
Paul approached the pod and, studying the controls briefly,
activated the emergency release for the doors. Both men tensed as the door slid
partially open before jamming, the malfunction obviously caused by the damage
to the pod after it had ejected from its mothership. With a resigned expression
both officers cautiously approached the pod, with Gunny easing his head slowly
between the gap left by the now partially opened door.
“Looks like the pod is running on emergency power only,”
Gunny grunted. “I can’t see a thing inside, emergency lights only. I’ll go
first,” he stated in a firm tone that brooked no dissent.
Paul just nodded in agreement. After all, Gunny was armed,
and had at least three inches and seventy-five pounds on him. Paul had complete
confidence the sergeant would be able to handle any situation that might
arise. Hence waiting for a count of ten in his head, to give Gunny a head
start, he slipped into the pod behind the sergeant.
With the extremely low light, mostly just shadows cast by
the dim emergency lighting, it took several seconds for Paul’s eyesight to
adjust to the gloom. Eventually he could make out Gunny standing above a body
in a white Imperial Navy uniform, collapsed in a foetal position on the floor
of the pod. Quickly glancing around Paul confirmed there were no other
survivors and was disappointed nobody else had been able to make it off the
ship in time. Turning back to Gunny, Paul was surprised to note the sergeant
still had his weapon drawn and pointed unwaveringly at the body on the floor.
It was obvious the man was unconscious and therefore no threat and, as he was
the only occupant of the ship, there was no obvious need for the weapon any longer.
“What’s going on Gunny?” Paul inquired, moving closer to the
pair. It was only when he reached Gunny’s side that he noticed the tight
expression on the other man’s face, and the firm grip he held the pistol with,
his fingers turning white with the strain. The pistol remained unflinchingly
pointed towards the motionless body.
“Gunny — ” Paul’s voice trailed off when,
in the dim light, he finally could make out the features of the sole occupant
of the pod. His breath caught in his throat. Staring in disbelief at the body.
“No, it’s not possible,” he stated in shock, subconsciously taking a step back.
“We saw him die. We saw his ship explode. It’s not possible. He’s already
dead.”
“He soon will be,” Gunny agreed. His finger tightening
around the trigger of the
“Space is a large place, Gunny,” Paul replied, “and the
Commander made one almighty mess out there,” he added sadly. Paul had known and
worked with Jon for several years and counted him as one of his closest
friends. He felt his absence keenly.
“It’s safe?” Gunny inquired. In a suicidal mission, Jon had
flown a nuclear warhead into Harkov’s flagship, the Imperial Star ,
destroying it utterly. Many of the escape pods that had been recovered had
particularly high levels of background radiation.
“For the moment, but we don’t want to linger too long. You
ready?” Paul inquired, motioning towards the weapon at the sergeant’s side.
Some of the occupants of the pods had been extremely hostile upon being
rescued. A mixture of fear, oxygen deprivation and in many cases concussion from
the explosion could make a dangerous combination. Hence they had made it a
standard operating procedure to always have at least one armed member of
security present any time opening one of the pods.
“Sure. Do we know if there is anybody alive in there?” Gunny
asked.
“According to the status readouts, there is probably at
least one person alive on-board, as the pod displays a higher than expected
level of carbon dioxide.”
“Okay, then open the pod bay doors, Paul.” Gunny imitated
with a grin, releasing his pistol and flicking off the safety. Taking a step
forward, toward the darkened pod.
Paul approached the pod and, studying the controls briefly,
activated the emergency release for the doors. Both men tensed as the door slid
partially open before jamming, the malfunction obviously caused by the damage
to the pod after it had ejected from its mothership. With a resigned expression
both officers cautiously approached the pod, with Gunny easing his head slowly
between the gap left by the now partially opened door.
“Looks like the pod is running on emergency power only,”
Gunny grunted. “I can’t see a thing inside, emergency lights only. I’ll go
first,” he stated in a firm tone that brooked no dissent.
Paul just nodded in agreement. After all, Gunny was armed,
and had at least three inches and seventy-five pounds on him. Paul had complete
confidence the sergeant would be able to handle any situation that might
arise. Hence waiting for a count of ten in his head, to give Gunny a head
start, he slipped into the pod behind the sergeant.
With the extremely low light, mostly just shadows cast by
the dim emergency lighting, it took several seconds for Paul’s eyesight to
adjust to the gloom. Eventually he could make out Gunny standing above a body
in a white Imperial Navy uniform, collapsed in a foetal position on the floor
of the pod. Quickly glancing around Paul confirmed there were no other
survivors and was disappointed nobody else had been able to make it off the
ship in time. Turning back to Gunny, Paul was surprised to note the sergeant
still had his weapon drawn and pointed unwaveringly at the body on the floor.
It was obvious the man was unconscious and therefore no threat and, as he was
the only occupant of the ship, there was no obvious need for the weapon any longer.
“What’s going on Gunny?” Paul inquired, moving closer to the
pair. It was only when he reached Gunny’s side that he noticed the tight
expression on the other man’s face, and the firm grip he held the pistol with,
his fingers turning white with the strain. The pistol remained unflinchingly
pointed towards the motionless body.
“Gunny — ” Paul’s voice trailed off when,
in the dim light, he finally could make out the features of the sole occupant
of the pod. His breath caught in his throat. Staring in disbelief at the body.
“No, it’s not possible,” he stated in shock, subconsciously taking a step back.
“We saw him die. We saw his ship explode. It’s not possible. He’s already
dead.”
“He soon will be,” Gunny agreed. His finger tightening
around the trigger of the
Similar Books
The Channel (The Gifted Book 2)
C. L. McCourt
UpAndComing
Christi Ann
For Lovers Only
Alex Hairston
Broken Heart 04 Wait till Your Vampire Gets Home
Michele Bardsley
Separate Roads
Tracie Peterson, Judith Pella
Eden's Hammer
Lloyd Tackitt
State of Grace
Joy Williams
Witch Hammer
M. J. Trow
The Book of Joe
Jonathan Tropper