Page 45 of Bound to the Alien King
After a few seconds of trying, Miekil shook his head.“These doors aren’t connected to the ship’s main power.They have their own breaker so as to not drain the auxiliary in an emergency.Like now.”
“Yes.I’m aware.Thanks,” I said briskly.“And yet it’s still not opening.”
“Maybe there’s something blocking it from the inside?”Miekil suggested.
Pete pounded on the door with his fist and then waited a beat.“Shouldn’t there be someone inside, you know, flying this ship?”
“There’s only one way to find out,” I said.“On three, we all push to the right.Ready?One, two,three.”
We shoved until a crack appeared at the side of the door, then we curled our fingers around the edge and pushed some more.Even with our combined brawn, it was slow going.
Without power, the ship’s darkened consoles appeared to eerily float above the floor, giving the technologically advanced bridge a derelict, almost haunted appearance.
As Miekil and I continued to force the door open one slow centimeter at a time, Pete squeezed through.Inside a shelf just to the left of the door, he immediately found a flashlight.
“Score!”He turned it on and shined it around the large space, pausing on the other side of the room I couldn’t yet see.“Oh.That might explain why he didn’t hear our knocking.”
“What?”I forced my head through to peer closer.
To the side of the door lay the pilot with an ugly gash on his temple.Given the splotch of blood on the blue steel console’s edge, he’d hit his head there, likely when the ship had shaken violently.
Finally, we had the door open enough that we could slide the rest of our bodies inside.
“Do you think he tripped when whatever hit us hit us?”Pete asked.
Miekil picked up a bottle of scotch and shook what little was left inside.“This probably helped him trip.”
“Come on.”I gestured for him to help me.“We need to get him to the medical bay.”
“Wait, what about the ship?”Pete asked.“Don’t we kind of need a pilot, or at least someone who cares about where we’re going and how we’re getting there?”
Miekil moved toward the console and started smashing buttons but not at random.He knew what he was doing.“He’s right.Communication’s down.Nothing’s responding.This ship might be in real trouble, and we might not even know it.If we had trouble getting this door open, this ship’s captain might not be able to get his open either.He might be trapped.”
“Good thing you have another captain here, then,” a familiar voice said from behind us.
We turned, and there she was, standing before us like an apparition.My beautiful star, looking prepared for battle in her military garb, while she lovingly held very hungry caterpillar number one in her right hand and a flashlight in the other.
I grinned like a lovesick fool.“Nera.Are you all right?”
“Fine.”A small smile tilted her lips as she brushed by me, the touch of her skin kindling fiery warmth over my scales.“Other than no lights, my ship is fine, but cruise ships like this aren’t built for an attack.”
“Attack?”I growled, but of course I already knew who.
A nod as she sank into the pilot’s vacated seat and set her caterpillar down on the console.“A power surge that hit us both.They want us to turn back from Klio-3.I don’t think they like us very much.”
I flexed my hands into fists and glared out the viewscreen.“The feeling’s mutual.”
Pete ticked his gaze between us, his face paling.“Okay, but attack or not, every ship has emergency procedures and autopilot and all that other stuff I know jack about, right?”
“Yes,” Nera answered, “unless all of it was taken out in the attack.”
“On a ship that’s not built for an attack.”Pete swallowed thickly.
“You catch on quick.”Miekil clapped Pete hard on the back with a humorless laugh.“So basically we’re on a flying death machine.Does that about cover it?”
Nera shrugged off a military backpack and unzipped it.“Well, I think I brought enough juice with me to at least power up communications and talk to my ship.After that, I’m not sure.”
“Baby steps, then.Baby steps on this flying death machine.”Pete blew out a shaky breath.“Yes, I think I will have that breakdown now, thanks.”
