Lantor was enjoying how the crew turned to him in their captain’s absence. He wasn’t interested in finding Nanot, but he feigned worry. “You don’t think he’s gone over to the Stelairian ship, do you? We wouldn’t get a reading on him in there if it were shielded.”
“Why would he do that?” Mayla asked.
“You have to admit that he’s been acting strangely on this trip. I’ve had the suspicion that he has been working against the Yalsan government for some time now, and it does seem odd that the Stelairians are here and have killed the remaining Earthlings.” Lantor watched Mayla carefully to see if she was buying the story he was telling. “Captain Niella has made no secret of his dislike for Kevin, and he was also against awakening the rest of the Earthlings.”
Mayla looked up at Lantor. “I’ve noticed his strange behavior as well, but how do we know that he has joined with the Stelairians?”
“We’ll scan the Stelairian ship. If there are no life readings at all coming from it, we’ll assume it’s because they are trying to hide the fact that they have Captain Niella on board.”
“And if there are no readings?”
Lantor smiled reassuringly at Mayla. “Then we return to Yalsa and report Captain Niella’s defection.” He patted her on the shoulder. “I know you respect your captain, but in the face of his betrayal, we should do what we can to salvage this mission. We must take the only remaining Earthling safely back to Yalsa.” Mayla thought about it for a moment, and then nodded in agreement and followed Lantor to the bridge.
Lantor hid his grin as he took position in the captain’s chair. “Scan the Stelairian ship for life readings,” he ordered.
“Yes, sir,” Mayla replied, with a respectful tone. She turned and looked at him knowingly as she reported her findings. “No readings at all, sir.”
“Very good. Contact the Stelairian.” Mayla tapped the comm pad and waited for a reply. Moments later Megg’s face appeared on the viewscreen.
“Yes?” she inquired.
“We are ready to be escorted out of the solar system, ma’am,” Lantor said.
CHAPTER 21
Karina’s head hurt. She moaned and opened her eyes, blinking in the bright light. The sun shone straight into the underground room through a large hole in the ceiling. It lit up the scratches on the polycarbonate lid of the cryogenic pod, reflecting into Karina’s eyes. Turning her head slowly to the right, she saw that the latch on the lid had been released. Hot air blew in through the resulting crack, warming Karina.
Her arms felt leaden as she raised them to push against the lid. The lid opened about a foot before suddenly stopping. Karina looked down and saw a pile of concrete rubble surrounding the pod. It prevented the lid from opening any farther. She looked back up at the damaged ceiling. There must have been a cave-in.
Karina squeezed herself into the narrow opening between the lid and the pod, scraping her arm against the edges. The scratches began to bleed, but Karina ignored them. She desperately wanted to get out of the pod. Karina stretched her arm around to the back of the pod, gripping the outside edge for leverage. She sucked in her breath and wiggled out.
She stood on the rubble and looked around the room. The empty eye sockets of skulls stared back at her from the other pods; the skeletal remains of the rotting corpses she remembered. A necklace hung on the lid of the pod she had just exited. She picked it up and rubbed the dust off the pendant. So that’s why they hadn’t been rescued.
Karina stepped carefully across the chunks of concrete to Agnar’s pod. His open eyes glared at her, his face frozen in anger. She examined his pod. It was intact and functioning. She took the other necklace off his pod’s lid and went over to the control console. She wiped off a thick layer of dust and grime. The instructions etched in the top left corner were still legible. She followed them, beginning the defrost sequence on Agnar’s pod.
Karina leaned tiredly on the console, watching as the lid on Agnar’s pod popped up and slowly opened. She waited for the color to return to his face. Agnar sucked in a lungful of air and his empty eyes filled with awareness. He blinked several times, staring at Karina in confusion, as if she had suddenly materialized out of nowhere.
“Where’s Kevin?” he growled, finding his voice.
“Long gone, I suppose,” Karina replied with a shrug. She held up the two necklaces that hid life readings. “I found these on our pods.”
Agnar stared at the necklaces swinging from Karina’s hand. “We weren’t rescued?”
Karina shook her head and pointed up. “No. The ceiling caved in directly over my cryogenic pod. It damaged the latch enough to pop the lid and disrupt my cryonic stasis.”
Agnar stepped out of the pod and looked around the room at the skeletons in the other pods. “It looks like we’ve been here longer than it takes flesh to turn to dust.”
Karina nodded silently at him, her lips a thin line. She felt as if she were outside of time. It had taken her months to adjust to Agnar’s time, and now she would have to adjust to a new time. She held her back her frustration and tried to smile reassuringly at Agnar.
Agnar grimaced back, understanding how she felt by the expression on her face. “I’m sorry, Karina,” he said. “I wish things had turned out differently.” He stooped and picked up Nanot’s weapon, brushing the dirt off it. “I wish I had thought to bring a weapon.”
Karina looked down at Nanot’s skeleton. His skull had no face. She swallowed at the memory of his brutal murder and quickly looked back up at Agnar. “I thought Yalsan weapons only worked for their owner.”
Agnar checked the weapon. It seemed to be intact. He raised it and shot the back wall. Chunks of concrete flew out at the impact. “Yalsan weapons only work for Yalsans,” he told Karina. “Our DNA signature is the unlocking mechanism.”
Karina’s stomach rumbled, distracting her. She sighed. “We need food, and soon,” she said. She yawned and stretched. “You would think I wouldn’t be this tired after sleeping for so long.”
Agnar beckoned toward the door with his head. “Let’s get back to the ship. There’s plenty of food stored in the refectory. And a place for a nap, if you need it,” he added, chuckling.
Karina nodded and followed him up the spiraling hallway. Halfway up, debris blocked their path. “We aren’t getting through here,” she said.
“No, we’re not,” Agnar agreed. He turned and Karina followed him back to the cryonic room. He led her to the back of the room and helped her climb up the crumbling ladder that had originally led to a ceiling hatch. He started up behind her, wincing as he raised his injured arm, the movement making the wound in his shoulder bleed. He ignored it and kept going. Both the ceiling and the hatch were gone as a result of the cave-in, and Karina carefully crawled out over the lip of the hole onto the ground. Agnar emerged right behind her. They stood and stared in awe at the world around them.
Where the ruins of the city had once stood there was now a thriving forest. Giant oaks mixed freely with pines. A cacophony of twitters and chirps filled the air as birds vocalized their territory. Small mammals rushed through the brush, hiding from the two humans that had suddenly appeared from the ground. The metal building had fallen completely, and metal slabs lay on the ground, creating a clearing by preventing plants from growing in the ground beneath them.
Karina turned to Agnar and gasped as she noticed his blue blood oozing out from the bullet wound. It had entered his shoulder at a point just above his armpit. She gasped and placed her hand against it. “We need to stop the bleeding, Agnar.”
“Eh, it’s all right. I felt it go through. And I can still use my arm, so nothing critical was hit.”
Karina gently raised Agnar’s arm and examined him. Blood trickled down his side from the exit hole in his armpit. “You’re right, it isn’t bad. But we should still stop the bleeding.”
“Okay,” Agnar conceded. He handed Karina the weapon, pulled off his shirt, and placed it under his arm, covering both wounds. He held his arm tightly against his side to apply pressure.
Karina had never seen Agnar without a shirt. She glanced away, inhaling through her nose and breathing out through her mouth, trying to maintain a concerned expression, but it was difficult. My god, the man was beautiful! His muscles rippled across his chest and belly with every movement he made. Karina cleared her throat to find her voice and said, “Okay. Let’s go.” She handed the weapon back to Agnar and looked around to get her bearings. Agnar held his injured arm against his side and his weapon at ready in his good arm.
Karina stared at the thick forest surrounding them. “Um, Agnar . . .” she began worriedly.
“Don’t worry; the ship is made of quarinium. It would take more than mere entropy to destroy it.” He scanned the sky, noting the position of the sun. “This way,” he said, nodding toward the east. After a short walk another clearing appeared among the trees. Karina pointed at it excitedly. “There!” she exclaimed, and raced toward it.
“Karina, wait!” Agnar shouted. He winced as Karina slammed up against the masked ship and dropped to the ground. He ran over and knelt next to her. “Are you okay?”
Karina raised her hand to her forehead. “Ow.”
Agnar chuckled. “I tried to warn you. The clearing only looks clear because the foliage was only able to grow around the ship.” He pulled a circular gadget out of his pocket and opened it. It reminded Karina of a make-up compact. Agnar pressed the glowing pad inside and the ship suddenly appeared, filling the clearing.
“Oh. There it is,” Karina said sarcastically. Agnar laughed and helped her up. He led her around the ship to the airlock where he opened a small panel and pressed his palm to the plate. The airlock opened and the boarding plank slid down.
“After you,” Agnar said, gallantly gesturing to the ship’s entrance.
“Didn’t we leave the airlock open?” Karina asked as she ascended the plank.
“Yes, but the ship will automatically close up after a few hours if there’s no activity on it.” Agnar grinned with pride and affectionately patted the gleaming hull. “She’s a rare bird, this one.”
“Harrumph,” Karina mumbled, rolling her eyes. Apparently the love of vehicles by males transcended species.
Agnar followed, closing the airlock behind them. The ship’s walls slowly illuminated and air began to circulate as its systems recognized the presence of people. By the time Agnar and Karina had reached the refectory, the ship was fully lit and the air fresh. Karina didn’t wait for Agnar, but dove straight into a pile of food cartons. She tore open the packages and wolfed down the food, not caring what she ate.
Agnar chuckled and checked his wounds. The bleeding had stopped, so he dropped his shirt and weapon on a table and set about preparing a meal. Soon the scent of roasted meat filled the room. Karina stopped eating and looked over at him. He held out an unidentifiable animal leg, juices dripping from its meat. “Would you like something a little more nourishing?” he asked, holding out the leg gingerly as if he were offering it to a starving animal.
Karina reached her hand out and Agnar placed the leg into it. She gripped the end tightly and tore the meat off with her teeth. Agnar shook his head and took his tray of food to a table. He felt hungry, but he wasn’t as ravenous as Karina appeared to be. He wondered if it was because she had been cryogenically frozen several times before. Perhaps the cryonic effect on her systems was cumulative. Or maybe it was her Earthling physiology. She may look Yalsan on the outside, but she was probably different on the inside. After all, she did have that strange red blood.
Karina came over and sat down across from him. She set the large bone down on the table and smiled wryly. The bone had been picked clean.
“Feeling better?” he asked her.
“Yes,” she said, blushing slightly. “I don’t know what came over me. I couldn’t get the food into my body fast enough.”
“It’s okay,” Agnar told her around a mouthful of meat. He chewed several more times and swallowed, deliberately forcing himself to eat slowly. He felt a hunger greater than his normal appetite, but he wasn’t going to let it control him. He took his time finishing his meal, while Karina helped herself to morsels from his tray. She deliberately kept her eyes on his face, ignoring the fact that he was half-naked in front of her.
“How long do you think we were in stasis?” she asked him.
“I don’t know, but you saw the skeletons. How long does it take for Earthling flesh to fully decompose?”
“It depends on what they were exposed to. The weather and animals would play a part in their decomposition.”
“Hmmm. No matter. There’s a chronometer on this ship.”
Karina snorted. “Then why are you asking about it?”
Agnar bit off the last bit of meat from the leg he was eating and grinned. “Just a little light dinner conversation.” He set the leg bone down and wiped his hands on his bloody shirt. “Let’s go see what time it is,” he said, standing and walking out into the corridor.
“Shouldn’t we take care of your injury first?” Karina asked.
Agnar looked down at his shoulder. “Yes, we probably should.” He led Karina to the med bay where he showed her how to use a sonic cleaner. “Point it at the wound and press the lightpad on the side. It will clean the wound in preparation for healing.”
Karina pointed the sonic cleaner at Agnar’s shoulder and turned it on. The gun-shaped tool vibrated in her hand as its stream of negative ions bathed the wound, cleansing it. When the wound was completely sterilized, Agnar handed her another tool.
“Hold the tip of the time accelerator against the wound. Try to aim it down the path of the bullet. Be careful to keep the beam on the damaged flesh only,” he warned her, holding up his arm for treatment.
Karina looked at the odd gadget. It was the size and shape of a pen. “Time accelerator? How will that help you?”
“It accelerates time along the path of its beam. It will speed up time around the wound, allowing it to heal naturally at its own pace, but it will seem to us that it heals instantaneously.”
“Cool!” Karina exclaimed, impressed by the technology. She did as Agnar instructed, watching as his flesh knitted itself back together under the beam. Within minutes it was as if he had never been shot.
“Now all I need is a shirt,” Agnar said, grinning slyly at Karina. Her surreptitious glances hadn’t escaped him.
Karina blushed. “Well, go get one, then. I’ll meet you on the bridge.” She turned and left, feeling her face flame. She entered the bridge and sat in the captain’s chair. The bridge was quiet, and Karina began to feel sleepy.
When Agnar arrived on the bridge, he sat at the helm and started the engines. The ship hummed to life, and Karina sat up, curious to find out how long they had been in stasis. Agnar turned on the viewscreens, and then checked the chronometer.
“Huh,” he said, confused. “How long did you say it took before an Earthling fully decomposed?’
“I didn’t say,” Karina replied, “but in the shelter of the underground room, without insects and animals to accelerate decomposition, I would guess decades at the very least.”
“Huh,” Agnar repeated, scrolling through the ship’s recent data. The ship collected data constantly, saving it until it was deleted.
“It can’t be that bad,” Karina said, suddenly worried.
“Oh, it’s not bad,” Agnar said, “just strange.”
“Why?” Karina asked nervously. “How long were we frozen?”