Into the Unknown (Scott Standalones Book 2) by Jasper T. Scott

Author:Jasper T. Scott [Scott, Jasper T.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Anthem Press
Published: 2019-07-24T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 31

“Shit. They’re not here,” Buck said.

Liam stood at the picture windows beside Buck’s control station, peering down on a dark, misty clearing. “Are you sure? How can you tell? I can’t see anything down there.” The lifeboat’s floodlights reflected back off the mist and dazzled his eyes as Buck slowly flew over the clearing.

“I can’t reach them on the comms.” Buck tapped the comm piece in his ear. “They can only transmit around ten or twelve klicks. Less with all of the interference from the moisture in the air.”

“Klicks?” Liam asked.

“Kilometers.”

“Well, where would they go?”

“That’s a good question....” Buck spent a moment swiping at an interface that only he could see. Then a holographic map sprang from his control console. The terrain was shaded bright blue but stripped bare of the enshrouding mist and ground cover. Black trees soared around the clearing with a myriad of red blips milling around and in-between.

“Is there any way to tell if one of those life signs is human?” Liam asked.

“At this range?” Buck shook his head. “We’d have to be right on top of them to distinguish detailed shapes. Best we can do is rule out the ones that are either too big or too small.” Buck scanned the map, scrolling around by swiping the air above it.

“What are you looking for?”

Another clearing and lifeboat swept into view. Buck stopped scrolling and centered on it. “That’s where I’d go if it were me. Assuming they know it’s there. They can use that boat’s comms to make contact with us.”

Liam frowned. “Another lifeboat? It looks like it’s in bad shape...” And that was an understatement. The top of the ship had been peeled open like a piece of fruit, metal panels curling up to reveal the living room furniture. “Is that imagery accurate?”

“Very. I performed a deep scan of the surface on the way down, so everything you see is based on actual data.”

“You think your wife would head there, even though the lifeboat is damaged?”

Buck shrugged. “Again, I would. I’m getting a ping from its comms system, so we know that it’s still working. Besides, some shelter is better than no shelter at all.”

“So what do we do?”

“Head there and wait for them,” Buck replied. “And see if we can make contact along the way.”

“How far is it?” Liam asked.

“Four klicks and change. They’ll be on foot, but they have a good head start, so they might already be close to it.” Buck dropped a green diamond on the map beside the damaged lifeboat and then made a pinching gesture, shrinking the map to a miniature version. Grabbing the flight yoke in both hands, he pulled up from the clearing and rocketed over the treetops. Liam struggled to remain standing as the deck tipped up under his feet. Fortunately the inertial dampeners took care of the sudden acceleration.

Buck banked sharply until the green diamond of his waypoint swept into view—along with a monstrous yellow, white, and brown planet cresting over the horizon. The forest canopy gleamed like a sea of gold in its glow.

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