Ransome by David W. Adams

Author:David W. Adams [Adams, David W,]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781916582569
Publisher: David Adams

THIRTEEN

The sickbay was a mess. Literally and figuratively. Kelly and Teale arrived to find one of the doors hanging off its hinges and the other in a constant state of opening and closing. Sliding between the malfunctioning door, they quickly established they should’ve stayed outside. Every single bio-bed had been destroyed. Either broken in half or launched across the room. Beneath the wreckage were several severed limbs, varying in size and type, but Kelly counted at least two dozen. Directly above the pile was an enormous hole in the ceiling, three light panels ripped free to create the gap.

“We’re being hunted,” she said out loud to Teale, who shrugged her injured arm free of her sling. “What are you doing?”

Teale swung her shoulder around a few times to achieve some mobility.

“Figured I’d probably need two hands for whatever shit we’re about to get into. Besides, no offence Sir, but if you go to shoot me again, this is my punching arm.”

Kelly smiled briefly, before moving toward the pile of human remains. Blood stained the outline of the hole, and Kelly could see in the beam of her rifle torch that the hole went right through to the deck above. It looked as if something had simply torn its way through the metal.

A beep emanated from Kelly’s wrist communicator.

“Go ahead.”

“Commander, we’ve just reached engineering. You’re gonna wanna see this, Sir.”

Deciding there was nothing they could do here, Kelly and Teale made their way back out into the hallway, but a loud clang from behind them in sickbay stopped them in their tracks. Kelly gestured for Teale to wait in the corridor, and she stepped back inside. Another clang, from somewhere inside the chief medical officer’s room. Kelly could make out a gargling noise, and she knew somebody was in there. She took one step further, and under her foot, a shattered beaker crunched loudly. She stopped dead.

“Shit.”

The glass in the office erupted outwards as a mangled torso was thrown from the room, landing in a heap, the brittle and damaged bones audibly cracking on impact. But it was the beast that followed the body through the now broken window that made Kelly’s blood run cold. The creature stood at least eight feet tall, perhaps more, and its torso appeared to be armoured. Whether it was artificial or part of an exoskeleton, she couldn’t tell. It’s head was similar to a humanoid design, but had an elongated look, sweeping back tightly from the face. It’s hands were claws with six inch talons on each of the four fingers, and the feet were the same, but four times the size. The claws on the feet were actually tearing into the floor as the creature turned to look at Kelly.

It's face was a contorted construction. No lips to speak of, but long yellowed razor sharp teeth spanned the gap in two rows, drool cascading from the mouth onto the floor. And the eyes. They were a piercing red, almost glowing like fire. Kelly was

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