Ten Little Aliens by Stephen Cole

Author:Stephen Cole [Cole, Stephen]
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
Tags: Fiction, General, Science Fiction, Adventure, Comics & Graphic Novels
ISBN: 9780563538530
Google: p8YCAAAACAAJ
Amazon: 0563538538
Publisher: Random House UK
Published: 2002-05-31T07:00:00+00:00

Polly felt all eyes on her. ‘Oh God,’ she said. ‘I think she’s going to die.’

Frog picked her moment well. When she stamped down hard on Joiks’s foot she caught him completely by surprise.

His shriek of pain died when she jabbed an elbow back into his stomach, turned, and punched him so hard he almost flew backwards, crashing into one of the consoles. He lay still at its base, his eyes closed. Roba lunged for her but Frog ducked past him, sprinting for the doorway.

She never made it. Tovel raised his gun and fired. With a high-pitched electronic squawk, Frog went down hard on the floor.

‘You killed her!’ Polly yelled. Haunt started and stirred, her bloodshot eyes flickered open for a second. Then she sank back.

‘I only stunned her,’ Tovel retorted. ‘Now if everyone will just calm down so we can think... Roba, bring Frog over here.

Creben, see to Joiks.’

Polly watched a murderous expression flit across Creben’s face at the instruction before he turned to obey.

Roba scooped up Frog from the floor, but he held her away from his body, like he didn’t want to catch whatever it was she had. Tovel pulled out one of the magic sweets from his pocket and threw it down beside Polly. She jumped as it instantly snapped into another full size mattress.

Roba dumped Frog down on it. ‘Getting like a regular sick bay in here,’ he grumbled.

Tovel eyed the unconscious Joiks as Creben dragged him past by his feet. ‘More like a crèche,’ he muttered.

‘Doctor,’ Polly gasped. ‘Come quickly.’

Ben came too. He wrinkled his nose. ‘Cor, dear, what’s all that!’

A brown milky fluid was oozing from the lump in Haunt’s side.

‘Is...’Polly tried not to be squeamish. ‘Is that the tumour?’

‘Yes,’ breathed the Doctor, as he arrived beside them and looked down at Haunt. ‘The malignancy has been broken down, rejected through the pores in the skin...’ He gave a dry chuckle. ‘It’s quite ironic of course, but this process may well have saved her life in the long term.’

‘How long is long,’ Ben reflected moodily.

‘That countdown I saw,’ Polly recalled. ‘It ticked down to us taking off... I wonder if it’s ticking down now to wherever we’re due to arrive?’

Tovel had rejoined them. ‘That blue light, yes... That and machinery of some kind, you said.’

The Doctor considered. ‘It sounds like some kind of engine room, wouldn’t you say?’

Tovel nodded and looked at Polly. ‘And you saw someone there?’

‘I think so,’ she said self-consciously, hoping people weren’t about to depend on the information.

‘We need to check it out,’ Tovel decided. ‘Short of searching this entire asteroid for some sign of Shel, it’s about the only positive thing we can do.’

Creben rejoined them, having laid Joiks down beside Shade. ‘I agree. Having an achievable goal is better than just searching aimlessly.’

Roba didn’t look convinced. ‘And what if we run into more of them stone things out there .’

The Doctor looked thoughtful. ‘We must attempt to communicate with them.’

‘You ain’t seen them, Doctor,’ Ben said quietly. ‘Don’t reckon talking’s on their mind.

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