Chapter 18
“What the fuck, Will?” Rayne shouted as I fired one short shot at the ceiling. “Why would you--”
She was interrupted by the body of a Brainworm dropping down from the ceiling and landing with a squelch at my feet. The gooey corpse leaked dark blood onto the floor, and I used my foot to kick it to one side to be dealt with later. Rayne gawked at me for a moment, and then she looked up at the ceiling to try and work out how I had noticed the Brainworm was there without even looking. I holstered my gun, turned to her, and smiled.
“How did you even know that was there?” she asked.
“The nanobots heightened my senses,” I replied. “Why did you freak out like that?”
“I don’t know…” she sighed as she came out from behind the stasis tube. “You just had nanobots put into your body, and we don’t know who made it or if they’ve been, I don’t know, altered, or something. I mean, what if they were evil nanobots?”
“Evil nanobots?” I chuckled.
“It’s possible,” she said as she crossed her arms. “The solution could have been some experiment that the doctors were working on to make some alien murder soldiers or… to brainwash people? We had no one to tell us what you were putting into your body. Francine thinks it was the right solution, but even AI can be wrong sometimes. You basically did the equivalent of drinking out of a puddle. You know it probably has water in it, but who knows what else. You don’t know if there are scary parasites in it, but you drank it anyway. So excuse me if I freaked out a bit when you pulled out your gun as soon as the nanobots went in.”
“You were worried about me,” I said with a grin.
“Really?” she huffed. “That’s what you took away from what I just said.”
“You were worried about me,” I repeated.
“Yes, fine, I was,” she grumbled as she put her hands on her hips. “There’s no need for you to cry about it, Will.”
“I think it’s sweet,” I said as I started to walk toward her with my arms out wide.
“Don’t you dare,” she replied.
“Come on,” I urged. “Bring it in.”
“That’s not going to work on me,” she said, though I saw her serious facade start to crack into a smile. “I’m pissed at you.”
“Yeah, you look it,” I said as I watched her lips curl into a grin.
“Don’t do it,” she said.
“I’m doing it,” I replied.
“Will…” she said as she started to laugh.
I wrapped my arms around her and held on tight. Initially, she refused to hug me back and just stood there with her arms by her side, laughing. But eventually, she reluctantly threw her arms around me, and we held each other. After another few seconds went by, her reluctance turned to warmth, and we hugged each other for some time in comfortable silence, aside from the low hum of the stasis tubes.
With my newfound, intensified senses, I felt almost consumed by sensory overload as I held her. The smell of her hair filled my nose, the glittering blonde of her hair seemed brighter, her skin felt softer, and the heat from her body seemed to radiate all around the room. It consumed me, along with the internal feelings I had for her.
I had never felt like this about anyone, and I was just relieved that we had this time together, this moment. I committed it to memory for my future self to look back on. The calm I felt when she was near me wasn’t something I would be able to find anywhere else, and with all the craziness that both of our lives had become, a moment of calm was precious.
“I love that you were worried about me,” I said quietly in her ear.
“I don’t love that you made me worry,” she quipped, and we both laughed. “But I’m glad you’re alright.”
“I’m glad we’re both alright,” I replied. “What happened back there was intense, and it was a close call for both of us.”
“But we’re okay,” she said. “And that’s all that matters.”
“Yeah,” I replied. “We make a pretty good team.”
“Pretty good?” she snorted. “We’re an amazing team.”
“Very true,” I chuckled.
“Although, can we just remind ourselves that you had to spoon a guy’s eyeball out of his face?” she said as she pulled away from the hug.
“I’d prefer it if that never comes up in conversation ever again,” I sighed. “That was probably one of the worst and most disgusting things I’ve ever had to do. Ever.”
“Understood,” she said. “Let’s draw a line over that topic then.”
“I would appreciate that, thanks,” I replied.
We stared at each other for a moment, but neither of us were really seeing anything that was in front of us. I watched the events of the last couple of hours in the space station flash back in front of my eyes. I saw the dead alien lying face down in the tomato sauce, and the others lying in their own vomit. I saw the medical bay, I relived hearing the first body sit up in the bed, I rewatched its head turning to us with its cold, dead eyes looking right at me.
Worst of all, I witnessed the worm bursting out of the severed neck of one of the doctors all over again. If someone had told me that I would have seen all of that stuff a few months ago, before Francine came into my life, I would have told them to shove it. But here I was, and I had managed to survive it.
However, I realized that I wasn’t actually surprised that I had survived. I was relieved and grateful, of course, but I discovered that I wasn’t at all surprised. Ever since I had met Francine, I had a purpose. I needed to save my homeworld and all of the innocent people on it, as well as Francine’s creators, or what was left of them, anyway.
And something deep down in my gut had told me back in the space station that I was going to get to do that, that I was going to get the chance to save myself and the Lilacrons, and we’d made it out alive. By the skin of our teeth, sure, but we had made it.
So here we were, the Lilacrons that I was responsible for were safe, and we were headed for the Frumentum Colony where we could meet the other survivors, and maybe there we could come up with a way to defeat the Karaak before they reached Earth. It was a long shot, and I knew that we had a lot of battles ahead of us that would be even tougher than this one had been, but for now, I had hope, I had Francine, who always had my back, and I had Rayne at my side, and that was all I needed.
“Well,” Rayne said as she resurfaced from her own internal monologue. “I’m starving.”
“Me, too,” I said as I suddenly realized how empty my stomach felt.
“Turns out running for your life works up an appetite,” she said.
“Well, let’s see what I can whip up for us,” I replied.
I walked over to the hatch in the corner of the room that took me up to the living compartment above. I put one hand on the ladder and was about to climb up it, but then I had another idea that I wanted to test out.
“Go on, then,” Rayne said beside me. “Are you waiting for an invitation?”
I looked up through the open hatch at the roof of the ship above. It wasn’t the biggest opening, but it was big enough for what I wanted to try.
“Will?” Rayne said.
Without saying a word, I bent both of my knees, swung my arms to give me some more momentum, and jumped as hard as I could. I gasped as I flew up through the hatch and found myself suspended for a fleeting second in the living compartment. I had jumped straight up, so I quickly opened my legs as I started to fall back down. My feet landed on either side of the hatch with a loud thud, and I wobbled for a moment until I got my balance. Then, I looked down past my feet to Rayne in the storage compartment below.
“Holy shit,” I said.
“That was…” she gawked. “Awesome!”
“So awesome!” I laughed.
Rayne quickly climbed up the ladder and stepped into the living compartment. She looked me up and down like she had just traded up for a new car, and then she grinned at me.
I grinned back and bent both of my legs to see how they felt after the jump. They tingled wonderfully and made me want to do it again, like they were desperate to be pushed to their limits.
“Did you know if you could do that?” Rayne asked.
“No, I just…” I said. “I felt like I could, so I tried it.”
“Awesome,” she giggled.
“Hey, Francine, did you see that?” I asked. “How cool was that?”
“Yes, Will, very cool,” the AI said with a tone of voice that reminded me of a patient parent. “I am glad you are enjoying your new toy, as you put it.”
“Don’t be a negative Nancy,” I said.
“A what?” Rayne asked.
“Don’t worry,” I chuckled. “I’ll explain later.”
“You keep saying that,” Rayne noted. “But I haven’t gotten a lot of explanations yet.”
“Francine, admit that was awesome,” I said as I ignored Rayne’s pout. “I just jumped up here from the storage compartment, and it was so easy that I wanna know how high I can actually get.”
“Alright, fine,” Francine chortled through Bob as the robot pottered into the room. “It was awesome. I am glad I pressured you to collect the Nano-Developer.”
“Yeah, yeah, you were right,” I sighed. “We already know you’re always right. You don’t have to rub it in.”
“Yes, I do,” Francine said. “I cannot have you forgetting that fact, can I?”
“Right,” I replied. “Okay, well, awesomeness trials are on pause for now while we get some food. How does pasta sound, Rayne?”
“I don’t know what that is, but it sounds great,” she replied.
“Pasta it is,” I said as I put a pot of water on to boil and started collecting the pasta and sauce from the various cupboards I had in the room.
“You know, back on Wildern, I never had much of an appetite,” Rayne said as she came to stand beside me. “I think it was because I told myself I couldn’t have one because it wasn’t of any use. We just ate whenever there was food. I picked at any scraps I could find while I was scavenging, and occasionally there would be a village barbeque if someone killed a big animal. But since I’ve been out here with you, I can eat if I want to eat. It’s amazing. I feel so energetic and strong, and I don’t see stars when I stand up too fast anymore. I guess, back on Wildern, I never knew what I was missing when it came to hunger, but now I do, and I’m never going back to that. I’m going to keep eating your delicious food as long as you let me.”
“I’d hold off calling it delicious until after you’ve tried my pasta,” I said. “You might have to eat your words instead of your food.”
“Anything is better than a hundred-year-old can of food,” she replied. “Trust me.”
“True,” I said. “With your standards, I’m cooking you a five-star meal right now.”
“Five stars?” she asked.
“We have a lot to talk about,” I said.
“Earth sounds very weird to me,” she laughed. “But I hope I get to see it one day.”
“You will,” I replied. “But I think a lot of people are gonna wanna talk to me when I get back.”
“Really?” she asked.
“Let’s just say that a random guy setting off in a spaceship that’s more advanced than anything ever built by humans and disappearing for a few months will have attracted quite a lot of attention,” I said.
“I can see how that would draw attention, when you put it that way,” she replied as she reached over and dipped her finger into the open pot of tomato sauce.
“Oi,” I said as I moved her hand away. “Mind your manners.”
“Manners?” she scoffed as she put her sauce-covered finger in her mouth. “Manners don’t exist where I come from. And that tomato sauce is amazing.”
“Wait until it’s warm,” I replied.
“Alright, I will,” she sighed, but then she lunged forward and dipped her finger in the sauce again for a second try.
“Hey!” I laughed. “Now you’re double-dipping, too? You’re a culinary nightmare!”
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I’m hungry.”
“Well, stop eating the sauce, or it’ll be gone before the pasta’s ready,” I said.
“Fine, fine,” she said.
“Back away from the pot, Rayne,” I said.
“I am,” she said with a cheeky grin as she put her hands up in false surrender. “I’ll go get our beers from the cockpit.”
“Good idea,” I replied.
She returned a moment later with both bottles in her hands and put mine down on the counter beside me. I stirred the pasta while it boiled and once it was cooked, I drained it, added the sauce, and served it all up in two bowls. The smell of the rich sauce filled the room, and both of us sat down on the bed with our food and wolfed it down.
We cleared our bowls in a matter of minutes and washed the pasta down with what was left of our beer. Thanks to the bubbles, a huge burp escaped my mouth before I was able to stop it. I glanced over at Rayne to see what she’d do, but she just laughed and belched ten times louder.
“Damn,” I said. “You weren’t lying about the manners thing.”
“No, I was not,” she chuckled as she took another swig of her beer.
While she did, a huge yawn overwhelmed my face and lasted for a good couple of seconds. My eyes watered as my jaw stretched wide open.
“You’ve set me off now,” Rayne sighed as she yawned as well.
“I could do with a nap,” I said. “My adrenaline’s crashed, and I’m pooped. Are you alright to stay in charge of the ship, Francine?”
“Of course,” Francine-Bob replied. “But, before you rest, may I have your gun?”
“Sure,” I said as I passed the gun to the robot. “Why?”
“I would like to make some upgrades to it,” she replied.
“Go for it,” I said.
“You still have a few hours until we are able to jump again,” Francine-Bob added. “I know you need sleep, but I would like to get to the Frumentum Colony as quickly as possible.”
“As do I,” I replied. “Wake us up when the folding engine is charged.”
“Sweet dreams,” she said, and then the robot trotted out of the room into the cockpit.
Rayne and I put our bowls on the counter for our future selves to deal with, and then we both laid down on the bed. Rayne rested her head on my shoulder, and I put my arm around her, and the food coma took us almost instantly. I dreamed of worms, eyeballs, and crawling through the vents, and I jolted awake when I felt something jabbing me in the side.
My eyes snapped open, and I saw Bob beside the bed. He had used one of his arms to nudge me awake and stood innocently beside the bed as he waited for me to wake up.
Thanks to me jumping awake, Rayne started to get up, too. She was groggy and puffy, and rubbed her eyes while she tried to wake up.
“The folding engine is almost recharged,” Francine-Bob said.
“Yeah, I figured,” I sighed as I closed my eyes again and returned to the warm, simple darkness. “Five more minutes.”
“Will,” Francine-Bob said.
“I’m tired,” I groaned.
“So am I,” Rayne sighed as she rolled over.
“I have finished upgrading your gun,” the AI said.
I opened my eyes again and smiled.
“I’m not tired anymore,” I said as I leapt out of bed. “Let me see!”
Bob led the way into the cockpit, and Rayne trudged after us. Her hair was a mess, and I was sure that mine was no better. But my curiosity about the gun far outweighed my tiredness, or my desire to groom myself. Besides, Rayne had seen me dirty, sweaty, and at my worst, so I didn’t really have much to prove.
I sat down in my pilot’s chair, and Rayne sat down beside me. Francine’s ‘workshop’ beneath the control panel opened, and Rayne and I both looked eagerly at the compartment.
“Okay, Frankie,” I said. “What have you got for me?”
I leaned over to the control panel, reached inside, and took my gun out of the compartment. Only, it wasn’t my handgun anymore. It looked more like a bullpup rifle.
In other words, it looked awesome.
The dark gray metal was smooth and matte, it was lightweight and perfectly balanced, and it looked like it could do some serious damage. It still had the dial on top of it for each of the modes, but other than that, it was like a totally new weapon.
“Francine,” I said as I admired it in my hands. “This is great. Thank you so much.”
“It will allow you to both shoot individual shots and repeated, rapid-fire shots,” Francine-Bob said. “I provided you with a handgun initially because you would not have been able to use a weapon like this with enough accuracy. But, now that you have had the second round of nanobots, you have the reaction time and ability to use it effectively and to its full potential.”
“Damn right, I do,” I said. “I can’t wait to use this thing.”
“Well, if we stay here too much longer, you may have to,” Francine said.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“The Karaak are not stupid,” Francine said. “Their technology is unknown to us, but it is advanced and exceptional. I would not be surprised if they turned up in this star system soon. They will have learned that the Lilacrons were aboard our ship and not the other AI’s, and they will be coming after us. So I suggest that we jump to the Frumentum Colony.”
“Say no more,” I said. “Let’s do it.”
“I kind of wish I hadn’t eaten now,” Rayne sighed as she strapped herself into her seat.
“Don’t get puke on the control panel,” I replied as I did my own seatbelt.
“I make no promises,” she said.
Once both of us were secured in our seats and Bob had gone back to his usual spot in the living area, the folding engine was totally recharged and we were ready to jump to the colony. I got the ship ready to jump, and I heard the familiar whirring sound as the engine prepared to launch.
“Ready?” I asked.
“No,” Rayne groaned as she grabbed her chair as hard as she could. “But a jump is much better than seeing the Karaak again, so go for it.”
“Alright,” I said. “Here we go.”
I punched the joysticks forward as the folding engine leapt to life. I took in all of the colors, lights, and shapes as though I was seeing it all for the first time. Everything seemed more vibrant, brighter, and clearer, and even though I was thrown back in my seat, I hardly noticed the force pushing against me.
I watched space and time fold in front of us as we shot through space, and I wondered how many millions of lifeforms we were passing that just looked like a blur or a spec from where we sat in the tunnel around us. It was incredible that this was even possible, and I felt a sigh of relief escape me, along with the rest of the air from my lungs thanks to the force of the jump, because I knew that, at least for now, we had once again evaded the Karaak, and there was some hope that some answers laid inside the Frumentum Colony, our next stop.
Finally, we were spat out the other side, and Rayne and I were flung forward in our seats. The ship came to a halt fairly abruptly, as usual, and we found ourselves looking out at a small dwarf planet in the distance that had a cluster of buildings on one side of it.
“We made it,” I said happily. “That’s the Frumentum Colony.”
I turned to look at Rayne, and I could see how pale her lips were. Her hands still gripped the seat, and she was taking shallow, short breaths. Her eyes were clamped shut, and I could tell that she was trying her absolute hardest not to throw up all over the cockpit.
“It’ll get easier,” I said. “I promise.”
“No,” she said amidst gasps of air. “You said that the last time, and the time before that.”
“It gets better every time you do it,” I said.
“Unless you’ve just eaten a mountain of pasta beforehand,” she chuckled. “Then it gets much, much worse.”
“It’ll wear off,” I said.
“I hope so,” she sighed. “Anyway, I’m being dramatic. We’re here. That’s all that matters.”
“Let’s get closer and see what this colony’s like,” I said as I took hold of the joysticks again and started to drive the ship forward. “Are you excited, Francine?”
“Very much so,” the AI replied. “I just hope that the Karaak did not beat us here like they did on Lilacron.”
“Don’t think like that,” I said softly. “Stay positive until the universe gives you a reason not to. Literally.”
“You are right,” she replied. “The colony’s location is not well known, and those who do know the location are either dead or sworn to secrecy. It is likely that it is still intact.”
“That’s the spirit,” I said. “We’re gonna get our passengers to the colony, where we’ll be welcomed with open arms, and we’re gonna find a way to get rid of the Karaak once and for all.”
“And we will all live happily ever after?” Francine said. “You sound like you are reading a fairytale book, Will.”
“I know, but I believe it,” I said. “I have to believe it. We came all this way, we saved your creators on The Crossed Swords, and we escaped Brainworms and almost got blown up in the process. We are getting to that colony, we are getting inside, and we are gonna help these people however we can. And they’re gonna help us. That’s the end of it.”
“I will take your word for it until you are proven wrong,” Francine replied.
“How long until we get there?” Rayne asked.
“Are you asking if you have time to throw up in the toilet?” I asked.
“Possibly,” she replied. “So what if I am?”
“You have time,” I said. “We’ll get there in about ten minutes.”
“Great,” she sighed. “I just hope the pasta tastes as good coming back up as it did going in. It’s going to look like someone was murdered in there.”
“Thank you for that thought, Rayne,” I said. “And the imagery that followed.”
“You’re so welcome,” she chuckled as she got out of her chair and ran off toward the living compartment.
“She’ll get used to it, right?” I asked.
The sound of heaving echoed out of the living compartment.
“I am unsure about that,” Francine replied.
“Poor Rayne,” I chuckled.
“She will be fine,” the AI said. “You both will.”
Suddenly, I brought the ship to a halt as fast as I could. Five warships had materialized out of nowhere in front of me, and when I looked at the scanner, I could see that there were more around us, trapping us inside their tight circle. I hadn’t even seen them coming.
“I’m not sure we will be,” I said.