Hamartia

Hamartia - Part 8

Ty reached down and grabbed her hand to help her up the last few rocks. They were both breathing heavy, winded from the vertical ascent to the upper levels of the waterfall. Taking cover from the storm gave them time to sleep through the night and they'd spent most of the next day hiking uphill. Trails alternated between steep and impassable to slightly less steep and barely passable, but they'd finally found a route twisting over and around tree roots and smaller boulders that they and the M.U.L.E. could climb.

Mikaela wiped her brow. The heat had grown even more intense after the storm and her clothes were once again soaked, but this time from pure sweat.

"Wow, this place just keeps getting more and more beautiful," she said as she looked at the water pouring over the plateau.

It created a deep steady thrum churning over the edge, forming a massive cloud of water vapor that thickened the air. She walked toward the cliff's face in awe of the violent fall the water endured before continuing on it's route. It cut across the terrain, branching and forking into a large basin ribboned with water and light that blurred into the horizon.

Downstream stood a herd of reptiles at the water's edge, their snouts tipped into the water as they drank. The creatures were longer than the command pod, nose to tail, with thick legs the size of stone pillars, a smooth arched back, a long tail that came to a point, and tiny oval heads at the end of necks half the length of their tails. Mixed in with the larger specimens were much smaller juveniles. Some of these cautiously played in the water.

"Ty!" she called over her shoulder. He came to stand near her, placing a hand at the small of her back, as she pointed to the creatures.

"Those look like herbivores," he said.

"How can you tell?"

He smiled, tugging at her hip to bring her closer before he kissed her temple. "Lack of sharp teeth and claws." He looked around them. "Our crash may have scared off the local fauna. That's probably why we haven't seen much until now, but it's been long enough ... we need to be more careful."

Mikaela nodded. "They'll also be coming to this water source."

"The sooner we get out of here the better," he said, stepping away as he pulled the homemade comp from his rucksack. She stepped closer to look over his shoulder as he typed.

"Is it connecting?" she asked.

The question became redundant as the screen flashed 'Hamartia Remote Uplink - CONNECTED' in large red letters. Ty immediately began plugging long strings of elaborate code into the Hamartia's system.

"Here we go. Let's see how hard it is to sabotage our own ship."

Ty was broody and quiet while he worked, a deep line cutting between his brows, his bottom lip clamped between teeth. Mikaela busied herself by collecting water and running it through their filtration systems. Her empty stomach wouldn't quiet, but there was nothing to eat. She'd pulled the geo laser from the M.U.L.E. storage and planned to stand guard, but that quickly grew boring so she began etching their story into a massive boulder.

The laser cut deep into the rock even at the lowest setting. She wrote "3A-RTH" and their full names "Mikaela Sindaya Everett and Ty Aldrin Adamson." Then she sketched the red globular angiosperm they'd tasted, complete with Ty's tiny monster jutting from its center. Beside that, she drew a simple picture of Ty, his mouth and eyes wide with fear, as a caricature of herself looked on with a smirk. She dressed the figures in the local flora, foliis covering the important parts.

She'd never been an artist, but she loved the idea of creating something from nothing, of translating history into pictures that could endure the test of time. Stepping back to judge her creation, she decided she better stick to piloting.

"Mikaela!" Ty yelled.

She powered down the geo laser and jogged back to his position. He sat hunched over the portable computer, a deep frown embedded on his face.

"What is it?" she asked.

He inhaled through his nose and shook his head. He looked up at her and licked his lips before speaking, exhaling roughly. "I can separate the secondary command pod from the ice train ... but the Hamartia is lower than it was when we crashed. It's in a degrading orbit."

Mikaela's knees collapsed beneath her. "If those freighters breach the atmosphere, we'll be sending a knife straight into this planet's heart. We'll kill it, Ty."

He scooted closer to her, laying a hand on her back. His palm made a soothing circuit up and down her spine. "There's nothing we can do, love." His hand pulled away from her, leaving a cold spot despite the sweltering midday heat. He tapped away at the computer screen and then nodded slowly. "Maybe," he said. Her heart lifted for just a moment, full of hope, before plummeting again at his next words. "No, I can't stop the crash even if I don't separate the command pod. But I think I can alter it's course. I can make the crash site a water landing."

"How?" she asked.

He puffed his cheeks with air then exhaled all at once. "Make it come down faster. Blow the Hab pod," he answered.

The Hab pod sat behind the secondary command pod, just in front of the ice freighters. It contained the food prep galley, the sleeping bunks, and the hygiene facilities, i.e., the showers and toilets. The secondary command pod would have med kits and some food and water, but not much else.

"That will destroy most of our provisions for the trip home, Ty."

He looked at her with raised brows. "We'll have to survive on next to nothing, but it might just save this planet." He waited for her command, his fingers poised and ready to code.

"Do it," she ordered.