A Dead Ship in the Deep Black by Rene Astle

Author:Rene Astle [Rene Astle]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Armchair Alien
Published: 2021-08-02T00:00:00+00:00

Inside the Box

28: Rebeka

Rebeka glanced sharply at Tink. A dampening field wasn't meant to keep things out. She looked back at the face framed by the small window and swallowed, wishing she had some coffee. Or something stronger.

Alek craned his neck, his eyes narrowing as he peered at the square of plex. "Huh, I wonder what else is in the box with him then, to warrant such a dampening field. That's not cheap tech."

Rebeka rolled her shoulders to mask the shiver that passed through her, while Tink took a step back from the crate and clutched her arms around herself, rubbing them with her hands.

"I should get back to work on the power system repairs." Tink inched further away. "Life Support needs more juice if we want to shift to Comfort again." She started to turn towards the stairs, but Rebeka grabbed her arm.

"No, I need you to keep examining the box."

Tink opened her mouth as if to protest. Instead, she huffed and went back to inspecting the crate.

"What about the boy?" Kandi asked, tugging at the end of her pink ponytail.

"What about him?"

"Should I examine the boy? He's a living being after all."

Rebeka's lips pursed as she fought the frown that pulled at them. "No, we'd have to unseal the stasis unit to examine him. I'm not prepared to do that."

Alek stopped examining the face in the window, and his head popped up. "Do we even know he's alive?"

"The box thinks he's alive." Ish stabbed a finger at the lights on the lid of the unit.

Severn grabbed his hand and pulled it away. "Don't touch that, you might —"

"What, wake up a child?" Ish jerked his hand free and jabbed the lights again. They flickered in response. Severn's hand reached towards Ish's again as a frown settled on his face.

"Enough," Rebeka said, using her best captain's voice, which was very similar to her upset parent voice, though she hadn't used the latter in years.

Ish and Severn stopped bickering, turning their scowls on her instead. She needed to get them out of their current snafu before tempers tore the crew apart.

"Squabbling won't help." Rebeka turned back to Kandi and added, "Check what you can without cracking it open."

Kandi pressed her lips into a thin line but joined Tink in leaning over the crate without saying anything.

"What will help is getting rid of that box." Severn nodded at the crate.

Rebeka couldn't argue, but she preferred not to be a dictatorial leader — she tried to consult her team before she gave them orders. "We need to decide what to do." She kept her voice even and strong. "Options?"

"Hand him over to the rebels," Alek said. Again, Rebeka found she didn't entirely disagree with the sentiment, even if the idea came from the rash pilot. If the rebels had attacked the Leviathan, they had more firepower — and more chutzpah — than she thought. Certainly more than the Lyra and her crew.

"No." Ish's hazel eyes flashed to Alek as his cheeks reddened. His jaw clenched before he spoke again.

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