The Fall of Endurance by R L Blalock

Author:R L Blalock [Blalock, R L]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: R. L. Blalock
Published: 2019-09-29T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 5

Light cut through the cavernous bay as I slid open one of the large doors. The power was still out in this section of the ship, and it wasn’t a priority for them to get it back on. I clicked on a bright flashlight I had brought with me and walked through the center of the room.

Hulking shadows rose up on either side of me. Vehicles lined the walls, from heavily armored all-terrain vehicles to construction equipment. We had been tasked with pulling out the machinery and bringing it to the mechanics for inspection.

It had taken the better part of the morning for me to convince Lieutenant Commander Parsons to let us help and that Kuna wasn’t a danger. In the end, he had put us on a task far away from the other colonists. But this was our chance to prove to them that Kuna could be useful.

The hooks on the harness squealed as they dragged across the bare metal floor as Kuna entered. The mechanics had made a makeshift harness for Kuna out of tie-down straps. The harness was a mess of knots and hooks, but it would do the job.

I don’t like this place, Kuna grumbled. It’s…not normal. How could your people live like this?

We didn’t have a choice. We could either die on Earth or flee into space.

Kuna shifted from foot to foot. And now that you are here you will no longer live in the metal cave?

No. Now, we have a planet. We can enjoy the sunlight and the fresh air. We can be free. I smiled and patted his leg.

The wound from last night was all but gone. I had gone to the medics first thing that morning. It had been easy enough to convince them I needed a bottle of ReGen for the holes that dotted my skin. The spray closed up wounds in the blink of an eye.

“The faster we work, the faster we can leave it behind.”

Easy for you to say. You won’t be doing the actual work, Kuna quipped.

I stepped up to the first vehicle, a light vehicle that would have carried an excursion team to check out the landscape of the planet on the first expedition if everything had gone according to plan.

I pulled on the handle, and the door swung open. After a quick check with my flashlight, I keyed the startup sequence in the small scout craft. I quickly crawled down and under the vehicle, attaching the towlines to the hook underneath the vehicle’s front bumper.

A door banged open, and raucous voices suddenly echoed through the cavernous hangar. I scrambled out from underneath the vehicle, my flashlight sweeping across the darkness. The beam settled on five men entering from another part of the ship.

“Shit! I didn’t realize anyone was in here,” one of the men exclaimed as he shielded his eyes from the bright light.

“What are you doing poking around here?” another asked.

“Hauling equipment for the mechanics,” I replied curtly. “What are you looking for?” I didn’t lower the flashlight beam.

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