Authors: Ben Hammott
“Do they still fly?” asked Jack, admiring one of the transport ships that towered above him.
“Of course,” Haax replied.
When they neared one of the scout ships, the ship's sensors were alerted to Haax's approach. A door at the back of the craft slid open and a ramp unfolded.
“Cool,” said Theo.
The scratches and dents adorning some areas of the craft's black and silver hull hinted at a history of close encounters with something tougher than its metal hull, much like an old car that had a less than careful owner. Unlike the bulkier cargo transport ships, the scout ship's design was sleek and about the length of a private jet. Three piston-articulated legs supported the craft, one at the front and two either side at the back. The circular body tapered into a long nose that contained the cockpit with a wide view screen. A tapered flange on the back formed the exhaust and two swivel-jets either side of the body allowed it to lift off or land horizontally.
When they'd finished admiring the sleek craft, they followed Haax up the ramp into a small cargo area. When all were aboard, Haax pressed a button. The ramp retracted and the door closed. They followed Haax through a small door on the far side into a short corridor with three doors on either side.
Haax indicated the doors. “Crew quarters for extended travel. Each contains a hyper sleep chamber.”
The ship shook, swaying them from side to side for a few moments before the motion subsided.
“It won't be long now,” stated Jane.
Everyone knew the meaning of her words.
They passed through a lounge and dining area into the cockpit. Screens and controls covered the consoles around the room's edges. Chairs fixed to a rail in front of each console allowed the controller to slide back and forth to reach different controls. A group of four comfortable looking seats set in two rows were in the center of the room facing the command post at the front of the ship, which was where Haax headed.
Haax sat in one of the two pilot seats and flicked a few switches. The cockpit came to life. Lights of different colours adorned the consoles and screens lit up. “Don't touch
anything
!” he warned.
Another tremor shook the ship so violently the spaceship's hull was unable to stand the pressure and in places buckled. Metal support beams fell from the roof to crash to the floor. One struck the second scout ship and slid down its side with a loud screech. Another struck a power terminal. Sparks sprayed out as electrical connections were severed, one of which supplied power to the magnetic catches that held the shuttle craft in place. When another tremor reverberated though the ship, the scout ship slid a few yards across the floor with a piercing screech of metal.
Those who'd not grabbed hold of something tumbled to the floor.
Haax swivelled his seat and smiled at his passengers. “Choose a seat and strap yourselves in. I have a feeling it is going to be a bumpy ride.” He faced forward again.
Jack slipped into the large seat beside Haax, grabbed the two strap-ends hanging from the seat's shoulders and clipped them into slots on the front edge of the seat. They automatically tightened, but designed for a different and larger species, the straps were useless. He glanced at Haax and saw him cross his over. He released the straps, crossed them over and clipped them in place. They tightened snugly across his chest.
Jane, Theo, Richard and Lucy, who had chosen the four central chairs, had just discovered the same problem. A forceful jolt and they would be thrown from the seats
Jack leaned around the side of his seat. “Cross the straps over.”
The others acted on his advice.
Jack glanced out through the large window when the scout ship's powerful lights lit up the darkness, and then at the pilot. “So, Haax, what's the plan?”
Haax grinned. “You'll know when I know, but when the ice breaks away, I don't aim to hang around. If there is a way out of this tomb, I mean to find it.”
*****
Scott peered through the Sno-Cat's screen and saw only white. He drove by feeling alone, heading in as straight a line as the strong gusts that attempted to blow him off course would allow. Some gusts were so strong they slewed the Sno-Cat sideways; others threatened to tip the vehicle on its side. Scott never once thought about turning back. He sensed his friends were in trouble and needed help, and though he had no idea what assistance he could give them, if they'd encountered more of the monsters like the one that invaded the camp, he would do all within his power to aid them.
Sensing he was near the rift, Scott slowed the Sno-Cat. His eyes searched for a gap in the snow and ice beating against the windscreen for any sign of it, but the weather hid everything from view. Worried he would drive over the edge, he halted the vehicle and faced the front into the wind to offer the least resistance. He forced the door open against the wind's energy and used it as a temporary shield against the blizzard when he stepped out. He grabbed the rope from behind the seat and tied it to the rear door handle to use as a safety line. If he'd not reached the point where the others had descended into the rift, or was nowhere near it, the line would lead him safely back to the Sno-Cat to try again. The door slammed shut when he moved away.
Now buffeted by the full force of the wind, Scott leaned into it and grabbed the spike he'd already tethered by a strap to the Sno-Cat and moved a short distance into the wind. He gripped the T-bar and screwed the spike into the ice. When he was satisfied it was secure, he walked off in the direction he thought he would find the rift.
A few steps brought him to the edge of the crevasse, making him realize what a lucky escape he'd had. If he'd not stopped when he did, he and the Sno-Cat would have plummeted into its depths. All but blind in the blizzard, he followed the rift. As he neared the end of the safety line, he arrived at two ropes trailing over the edge. He followed them across the ice until he reached the spikes securing the ropes. After checking they were still secure, he tied his safety line to it and hitched his harness to one of the climbing ropes. He backed toward the rift and climbed over the edge.
He passed the small ice shelf and continued down. The ice shook violently, causing him to lose his footing; he slammed against the ice. The tremors grew in strength, bouncing him against the ice cliff. When they'd passed, he continued his descent.
*****
The strongest tremor yet tilted the ship slightly. It was a sign the ice was breaking away. The small craft slid backwards. Jack noticed the other shuttles were also on the move, colliding and crashing into each other. If Haax didn't do something quick, there was a chance their scout ship would be damaged. If that happened, they wouldn't be going anywhere.
Calmly Haax activated controls. The ship lifted gently off the floor and the legs retracted. The engine was so silent no one had heard it come to life. Though Jack wanted to ask questions about the vessel, this wasn't the time. Instead, he concentrated on the shuttles set into motion by the shifting ice and warned Haax when one of the larger transport ships headed toward them.
Deftly, Haax manoeuvred the ship out of its way to be faced by another coming from the other direction. He danced and weaved around them with barely a finger width of space between them as they constantly changed direction with the erratic movement of the ice.
Haax coaxed the craft over to a large hangar door with four stout pistons holding it firmly closed.
“Is that the exit?” Jack asked.
“If it still opens it will be,” replied the small pilot. “He turned the ship so the front was facing inside the hangar. “I have to prevent any of the loose ships from damaging us or the door until it's time for us to leave.”
They all watched the sliding shuttles crash into each other. When any came too close, Haax gently shunted them aside.
*****
Small pieces of ice dropped past Scott during his climb down the shaking ice cliff. He glanced down and caught a glimpse of the bottom through the snow and ice streaming through the crevasse. He rappelled down until his feet touched the bottom. He detached his harness from the rope and walked over to the large hole in the ice. He dropped to his knees and peered into its depths. Blocks of ice, both large and small, covered the cavern floor. He peered at the flash of red he noticed. It took him a moment to realize it was a Sno-Cat. The ice buckled, almost throwing him into the hole. A loud crack echoed through the crevasse. He climbed to his feet and gazed along the rift. The sound of ice being torn apart grew louder. A crack in the floor of the rift crept speedily toward him. He pulled out his ice axe and leapt at the wall. The axe slammed into the ice. His feet found small ledges of ice to support his weight. The sound of surging water washed over him. He peered into the crack that had opened below him. Freezing sea water rushed to fill the void as the sudden weight of the freed ice sunk into its depths.
Scott reached out and grabbed a protrusion of ice. He freed the axe, reached as high as he could and slammed it into the wall. He pulled himself up. The series of actions was repeated and slowly he moved up the cliff. He glanced longingly at the rope too far away to help him. He glanced down. Sea water leapt from the void. As fast as he dared go, Scott climbed out of its reach. It splashed his boots before running down the side of the ice wall. The wall behind him sunk into the sea. He raised his head. Ice fell. He pressed his body tightly against the cliff to avoid the falling lumps of ice. Some chunks struck the wall around him, but luckily only smaller pieces made contact with him before splashing into the sea. A terrifying squeal cast his gaze skyward. The freed ice behind him leaned at an angle and scraped down the wall, showering Scott with shards of dislodged ice. Helpless to prevent it or escape, horrified, he watched the ice that would crush or knock him into the freezing sea slide ever nearer.
The ice gripped the two climbing ropes and dragged them with it, fraying and snapping the ropes like they were cotton. Scott shut his eyes when the ice wall was about to make contact with his extended arm that gripped the ice axe. The ice brushed the back of his padded jacket and then it was gone. Scott opened his eyes. The ice had righted it itself as it settled into the sea and had missed him. He turned his head. The ice wall bobbed in the sea and slowly drifted away.
If the others were still alive, they were now trapped on the floating ice. There was nothing Scott could do for them now, except try to get back to base and see when the help he had called would arrive― if they came at all. Like Pike, they'd also found it hard to believe a monster existed. Not even the photo Scott had taken of it convinced them it was real and not some sort of hoax. He glanced up at the towering ice wall; he had a lot of difficult climbing to do.
*****
Haax had set the controls to keep the scout ship in a stationary hover between the floor and roof of the hangar when the ice tipped and rolled the ship. All aboard felt the sudden fall and rise when it broke away and slowly settled when the freed ice reached its level of buoyancy.
Jane confirmed what they all had assumed. “The ice is free.”
“I wish we were,” moaned Richard.
Jane looked at Lucy, who had remained strangely silent. “Are you okay?”
Lucy nodded and flashed a smile. “I'm fine. I just want to be off this ship, that's all.”
“As do we all,” said Richard. He glanced at Haax, wondering how the alien planned to get them off.
Haax spun the craft to face the hangar door. He pointed to the red and green buttons on the console between the two pilot chairs. “Jack, press the red button.”
Jack stretched a hand toward the console. “What does it do?”
“Open the hangar door, I hope.”
Jack gazed at the door and pressed the button. Nothing happened. “It's probably frozen in place.”
Haax steered the ship over to the door and turned it to the side. He gently rested one edge of the ship's nose against a raised reinforcing bar on the door and gently applied some power to the engine. “Press it again.”
Jack did as ordered.
The ship slid off with no effect to the door, but did add another scratch to the scout ship. Haax repositioned the ship and tried again. Jack pressed the button. The door shuddered open an inch. Haax applied more power. The door slid open with a screech of protesting metal. The exit was blocked solid with ice.
Jack looked at Haax.
Haax smiled. “Did you notice where I stowed the weapon in the cargo hold?”
Jack nodded.
“Do you think you will be able to fire it?”
Jack released his seat harness. “I'll give it a go.”
“To switch it on, turn the black dial until it clicks. When it powers up, turn the red dial to maximum. I'll turn the ship around and open the rear door. Aim the weapon at the ice and create a rectangle of holes close together and large enough for this ship to fit through. That should weaken the ice enough for me to push the section out.”
Jack smiled at the others when he rushed past. Theo and Richard looked at him enviously.
Haax spun the ship around. A press of a button brought the image seen from the back of the ship onto the view screen. The small pilot lined the view up with the door.