Station 27 (A Starweaver's Tapestry Novella) - ONC '24

Chapter 3: Connecting Dots

Javina ran over to help Yeno tug at the seat but quickly realized he was right. The restraining bolt that shot across the hull had come from Takeo's harness and caused it to slide off of its hinge and clamp down. The sudden shift in heavy metal seemed to have caught the scientist off-guard and knocked him against the head. The surface of the hull started to compress around them with a squeal.

"I hate to say this, Yeno, but we need to leave him," Javina concluded. "If we stay in here any longer, we're done for."

"I can't leave him, Javina. He's my brother!" Yeno argued. "What would I tell my family? That I left him to die?"

Yeno tugged at the seat again and managed to shift the harness. Takeo's body slid down a couple of inches. The tips of his hair started to frost and his skin adopted a darkening bluish hue.

"He's going to freeze, Yeno," Javina stated. "Even if we get him out, he may not be in the best condition."

"Please, just pull!" Yeno pleaded. "Two tugs and I'll concede if we can't get him, but at least I'll know we tried. Please."

Javina ran through the options in her mind, but it was a moot point. She couldn't just leave someone behind. It was purely against her nature, so much so that the others constantly gave her hell for it. She placed her hands next to Yeno's and they yanked the bar of the harness back. Takeo slid another few inches, held by the top of his chest. One more pull was all they could afford.

"I'm going to turn his head with one hand while I pull with the other," Yeno told her. "Otherwise, it will just get crushed in the bar. I need you to yank it back as hard as you can, Javina."

"Understood," She replied. The wall above her dented inward and the cold crept through her suit. She could barely imagine the temperature inside the hull and what it was doing to Takeo's body. Yeno counted them down.

Javina planted her feet firmly against the wall and grunted as she pulled on the bar with everything she had. It barely gave, but Yeno managed to turn Takeo's head and push him through. He fell out of the seat and the two released their grip. Javina turned her back to the door and grabbed Takeo's feet as Yeno lifted his shoulders. They scurried to the bridge door as fast as their feet and Takeo's dead weight would allow them. The Durrigan squealed louder before the hull finally ruptured. It crumpled from the back first like a tin can smashed under a hard boot and the compressions rippled forward. Yeno tossed Takeo at Javina and kicked them into the bridge. His hand barely managed to hit the emergency lockdown button beside the door as the insides of the hull twisted upon itself.

"Yeno!" Javina shouted. She reached out as the blue shield dropped in front of the doorway and the hull jettisoned. All she could do was watch in horror as it shot out into the winter wasteland. She punched the ground in frustration.

"Javina, are you hurt?" Jat asked as he scrambled over to her.

"Yeno is gone," She mumbled in disbelief. "He died on my watch."

Qerod, geared up in his VACAS, walked up behind Jat. "That's not on you, Halls. There was no way any of us could have prepared for that type of landing."

"What the hell happened, anyway?" She yelled at Driscoll. He checked the terminals then unbuckled his seatbelt. "Answer me, Driscoll. Why did we crash?"

"Debris smashed through the left wing," Driscoll answered plainly. He opened the briefcase containing his VACAS and got suited up. "Nothing I could do. Just be thankful you're alive."

"I may be, but I just watched one of our charges get turned into paste. Are you going to explain that to the Forces or should I?" Javina fumed.

Driscoll kicked the briefcase and charged toward Javina. "If you have something you want to say about my flying, go right ahead. But you try being in my position next time, forced to land a ship in the middle of nowhere during an asteroid collision, and see how many people you save!"