Tartarus by H.G. Ahedi

Author:H.G. Ahedi [Ahedi, H.G.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: H.G. Ahedi
Published: 2023-12-23T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 32

Vessels

24th Century

Titan, Cargo Bay 6, Deck 3

The deck was deserted. The absence of lights on Titan left Anastasia uneasy. There was pin-drop silence, and she could only hear her heartbeat. The clock struck 1800 hours. With twenty crew members, she tip-toed down the corridor in the dark. As she approached a turn, she halted and stood with her back against the wall. Her crew followed her lead. She peered out and noted the docking door was wide open. She stayed put. After a couple of moments, she noticed shadows. Then, a small light blinked thrice. It was the signal. She turned on her flashlight. The corridor was illuminated with the radiance of multiple beams of light. A wave of contentment swept over her to see Katia and Prometheus crew. Immediately, she thought about Mykel and wished he were there.

“Commander,” said Katia. “I’m glad to see you.

She placed her hand on her shoulder. “How are you holding up?”

Katia smiled. “I am trying my best.”

“That’s what your crew needs. Let’s go.”

They traversed the corridor with alacrity and entered Cargo Bay 9. A crew member shut the door behind them. The emergency lights came to life. Over seventy crew members spread over the large hall. Guards stood near the doors and vents, preventing any surprise attacks. Katia eyed the temporary bridge.

“You have taken precautions,” said Katia.

“We must ensure the crew’s safety. Report.”

“They have taken over Prometheus’s bridge and the armory. We barely escaped.”

Anastasia held her head. “Damn.”

“I’m sorry.”

“You did your best. What can we do?”

“We need weapons.”

Anastasia signaled her crew. Six crew members carried crates filled with weapons and placed them on the floor.

“Thank you.”

“Anything you need.” They walked towards the console where Cyr was working. “Do you know how many aliens are on your ship?”

“Eleven. We have converted the main engineering into a temporary bridge,” said Katia.

“Good work. Have they hacked into Prometheus’s computer?”

“No. But we did detect the interference grid.”

“Cyr, have we figured out how to slow the data stream download?”

“I introduced a virus slowing it down to ten percent. That is all I can do for now.”

Anastasia frowned. “Keep trying.” The scanner beeped. “Yes.”

“Commander, Rhys here.”

“Hello Rhys, any luck with the communication hub?”

“No. The interference grid is affecting all main systems. I can’t bypass it. Sorry Commander.”

“No problem. Return to the bridge.”

“Understood.” She walked to Katia who was standing in front of half a dozen monitors.

“Looks like you have got access to internal cameras,” said Katia.

“Yes, for the last two hours, crews on every deck interconnected a few cameras on each deck. We can’t see everything. But it covers core areas, including the bridge, engineering, armory, Crystal Lab, and the medical bays. The images changed, and a monitor displayed Engineering. The armed undead stood guard near the doors and the engines.

“What are they doing?” Katia asked.

“That’s an excellent question,” said Edward. “They are just standing there.”

“Maybe they’re waiting for instructions,” said Cyr.

“What about the enemy ship's crew?”

“None that we can detect,” Edward replied.

“We cannot fight an enemy we can’t see,” Katia pointed out.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.