Fire and Ice

The entire ship shuddered causing Toshiko to grasp wildly onto the edge of the computer console, “what the fuck was that!” she screamed as the noise from the engines rose to a pinnacle.

Carter ran from his position and checks a series of dials, “the pressure’s building in the servos” he called over the crescendo. “Shall I cut the power?” the words were almost lost over the rising noise.

“No” shouted Toshiko desperately, “the readings are well within perimeters” she tapped a glass dial as she continued to feed power into the unit. Beads of sweat touched her brow and the lights dimmed and were replaced by a red tint spreading throughout the room.

“Any more and we could risk diverse unit differential in the reactor core”

“We have to take that risk!” yelled Toshiko over the noise, “we may only get one shot at this” she wiped away at the torrent of sweat coursing over her forehead and turned another valve. She could feel her thin uniform stick to her body as sweat ebbed from her arms and back. She looked at Carter and could see a stain of sweat forming over the back of his uniform and beneath his armpits and could imagine her own shirt affected in the same way. A low hum cut through the engines as the power surge in the generators cut through the heavy atmosphere.

“Perimeters rising!” called Carter, “Engines at 50% capacity with expectancy rising to 75% in two minutes”

“Excellent!” shouted Toshiko, her words were barley audible over the excessive scream of the engines.

“Danger levels are almost at critical!” continued Carter, “we will hit critical mass long before engines hit full power!” the panic in his voice was as evident as the sweat on his brow.

“Hold your position!” ordered Toshiko, “it’s going to be close. What’s diversity readings?”

“sixteen to seven!” shouted Carter, “it’s not going to hold, we have to switch off...now!”

“Hold your nerve Cadet!” shouted Toshiko. She struggled to move over the console as the sweat glued her uniform to her body. She could feel her skin against the coarse material and her nipples pressed against the front of her tight tunic as a single bead of sweat dropped onto the panel, staining the keys and rising in a slender plume of steam. She watched for a moment and marvelled at the event, she had not realised it was that hot.

“We can’t take any more!” screamed Crater.

“Keep calm!” yelled Toshiko crossing to another panel and she tugged at the damp material of her uniform, pulling at the zip at the front of the tunic and pulling the metal fastener down, revealing her olive sweat stained skin. Sweat beads formed instantly between her breasts and she wiped them away with the back of her hand, dragging a thin gorge of grease over her skin. “Check status of exterior!” she ordered.

Carter dived toward a monitor and read the figures sprawling over the screen, “forty percentage coverage, thirty-five percentage coverage, thirty percentage coverage...foliage is falling!”

“Its working!” called Toshiko triumphantly.

“Internal sensors offline!” shouted Carter checking another dial, “temperature rising, engine capacity almost at critical, reactors stable, but perimeters falling, expect critical mass in eight minutes!”

“Check the engine core!” Toshiko ordered.

“Servitors burnt out, drive shaft inoperable, turbines online and thrust capacitors at full power”

“What about internal obstruction?”

“No readings from internal sensors” confirmed Carter over the noise, “status unconfirmed”

“Then check!” snapped Toshiko angrily as she checked over the instruments, “we almost have expectant power levels to obtain maximum thrust, but only if the drive units are clear!” her words were lost as the noise continued to grow. “You check the unit, I’ll operate the drive!” she moved across the room away from the console and gripped Carter by the shoulders, pulling him from the computer banks. She pointed toward the closed turbine shaft, then at herself and the handle. He nodded and reluctantly moved away from the control bank and averted his gaze from her glazed skin and sweat encrusted breasts and lunged for the cylinder of the engine’s main drive unit. The ship lurched violently throwing both engineers off their feet and sent them sprawling onto the floor. Toshiko looked up from her prone position and nodded toward her comrade, giving him the thumbs up sign. He nodded and pulled himself to his feet and grasped the wheel which was holding the end of the capsule in place. His fingers slipped as the sweat from his palms mixed with the grease on the metal wheel and he gritted his teeth and he pulled at the object in his hands. “Drive systems online...almost at full capacity!” screamed Toshiko over the growing noise.

“I can’t hear you!” yelled Carter over the engines. His muscles strained against the wheel as the ship lurched violently again. He could see Toshiko move toward the main console again and imagined she was checking the instrument panel.

“Activity from outside!” she called, “massive seismic activity! We have to do this now!” she called, “Prepare for thrust!” Carter pulled at the hatch and peered into the depths of the turbine shaft...what was that she had had...he briefly wondered as his hand reached for the torch on his belt. Toshiko whirled around and stared at the form of Carter peering into the engine, “Carter!” she called desperately, “I said prepare for thrust, I need status on the turbines...are they free...we need to go now!” The light from the torch cut through the darkness of the cylinder shaft and Carter squinted through the shadows, “Carter! Status, Now!”

He looked back briefly toward her, then back into the engine, “I don’t know!” he yelled back, “I could swear there’s something moving in there” he shouted back staring through the beam of light.

“What!” yelled Toshiko staring at him, her finger poised over the control panel, “I can’t hear you...repeat!” Her words were lost on him as he continued to peer through the engine shaft, “Carter, repeat” she moved toward the Cadet and fell to the floor as the ship lurched again under the movement of the outside activity, “Carter!” she shouted as she looked up.

Carter heard his name over the roar of the engine power surge and glanced at her, the beam of light still focused on the heart of the engine. “I said...” he shouted peering back into the shaft, “there’s something...” his words died in his throat as a long thin vine pierced the darkness of the shaft and exploded into the ship aiming the tip of its tendril into the mouth of the engineer and exploding in a symphony of blood, bone and flesh from the back of his neck. His body hung limply in the air for a moment, his eyes bulging from the skewer as his limbs twitched in unison from the shock of death.

Toshiko screamed...

The ship lurched violently causing Sorenson to drop the scalpel to the metal grating of the floor. “What the hell was that?” he complained as he bent to retrieve the object. The grasped the small knife in the palm of his hand and stood over the body peering inside the corpse. He shook his head and glanced at the open text book which lay open at the page of a diagram of the human body. “I can’t make head or tails of these pictures he complained as his fingers smeared blood over the paper as he traced the contours of the picture. He looked back inside the body and sighed, “heart...lungs...don’t know what the fuck that is...” he murmured as he spoke. “Brody!” he called behind him, “come here at moment, what do you think?” he bent over the body and examined the inside of the cadaver then peered again and the picture. “I haven’t got a clue” he admitted. “Brody!” he realised she hadn’t answered him and turned to face the Trooper.

She was still standing at the back of the ship, her back to the bars of the cage, with the gun pointing toward him. He could see the look of fear in her eyes and the tremble in her movements, but frowned as her mouth was moving, but no words were coming out. “Brody...” he said gently, “are you alright?” the ship lurched again and Sorenson looked toward the ceiling frowning as the lights flicked wildly, then back at Trooper Brody. “Come on” he urged, “there’s nothing to be worried about...he’s well and truly dead” he smiled and took a step toward her.

“Stay” she said softly, her voice was weak and tinged with a crack in her tone. Sorenson could see her teeth were tinged with blood and a small ravine flowed from the corner of her mouth and over the round in her chin.

“Brody” he said softly taking another step forward, his hand stretched out to her, “are you hurt?” he asked. He followed her gaze as a single tear forced its way from her eye and a guttural sob from her throat as she lowered her vision to her stomach. Sorenson froze as he looked at the horror before him as Brody stood stock still, her body dangling a foot off the ground and pierced through her stomach flexing its fingers was a hand...

Toshiko stumbled out of the engine room with the sound of the rising power surge throbbing in her ears. She lay on the floor and stared through the archway at the body of her colleague pinned through the mouth by the vine and left dangling mid-air as the creeper swayed from side to side as though searching for something...someone. She dragged her body, hardly breathing along the grating further away from the room. “He...he...” she stammered into the communicator on her wrist, “Claus...” she whispered as tears streaked her dirty face, “Claus are you there?” she sobbed, “I need to hear your voice” she pulled herself close to the metal wall of the corridor and pulled her knees up tight to her chest and sank her head into them and sobbed.

Sorenson could hear the sobs echo over the intercom as he slowly backed away from the cage. His eyes were locked on the talons as they dripped with the blood of Trooper Brody while her body hung from the cage. The body armour was torn and the material of her uniform writhed in her blood. He could hear a low growl from behind her and watched in horror as the hand moved back through the body, crunching and slurping to the sound of her flesh and sinews the creature shifted its body and flexed its neck, its tongue running over elongated teeth as it smile through the bars of the cage. “Doctor...” Sorenson mumbled under his breath as he backed away slowly, hoping against hope that the creature had not seen him. Part of his mind screamed at him to run, but there was still that tiny part that was tainted by pure curiosity that, surely this man should be dead and yet here he was standing before him, dripping with blood and not all of it is, watching him as he moved slowly backward. He tried to find comfort in the fact that the creature was locked in the cage, but as its large thick hands wrapped its fingers around the bars and bent the metal easily, Sorenson realised he was staring his own death directly in the face.

“Toshiko!” he screamed as fear overtook his mind and panic set deep into his soul, “Run!” he turned and ran as the ship lurched violently sending him scrawling against the wall. He hazarded a quick glance toward the cage and sighed with relief as the creature was caught in the bars, also being caught with the sudden movement of the ship. Its limbs flailed about wildly as it thrashed caught between the thick metal bars of the cage. Sorenson scrambled to his feet and forced his body out of the holding bay and into the corridor, he paused for breath and slammed his fist against the door controls, locking the creature inside.

“Claus...what is it, what’s wrong” the voice of Toshiko came through the small hand device and he felt instantly better at the sound.

He collapsed against the outer wall and caught his breath, breathing heavily into the communicator, “get to the control deck” he spoke quickly, “I’ll meet you there” he closed his eyes and placed his hands on his knees as he drank in vast amounts of air into his lungs. He could hear the noise of furniture inside the holding area as the fury of the creature rose. He heard the sudden breach of metal as sharp talons ripped through the door and drove vast grooves down. He staggered down the corridor as the hot breath of the creature seared his arm and the rank odour stung his senses. “Shit” he gasped and clambered to his feet and stumbling along the corridor with the noise of tearing metal echoing in his ears. “Toshiko!” he shouted desperately, “Toshiko, where are you!” he called desperately into the air.

The voice crackled into life, “heading up to level three” she said.

“Are you near a terminal!” he roared frantically as the pounding in his head grew and the sound of claws against metal intensified.

“I can see one ahead” came the voice.

“Good!” he roared, “activate all bulkhead doors along the holding and storage bays”

“Which ones”

“All of them!” he roared as he ran. His lungs were exploding against his rib-cage as the sound behind him was closing the gap. The ship lurched again, sending him against the wall of the ship, but the bruising from the ship’s movement was the last of his worries. He couldn’t allow himself a moment of relief as the whirr of motors pushed the bulkhead doors slowly closed, if only he could get to the last door. He could see the heavy door slide across the archway and he knew from experience behind him the doors along the corridor following the same pattern. He forced his legs harder as all around him the sound of the engines grew stronger and louder while the noise of the creature behind nearer. He could almost taste the blood in his mouth as claws reached for him...

Toshiko pressed on through the ship, she had no idea whether Sorenson had survived or what the urgency of his request was, but she knew it wasn’t good. Her legs pounded against the cold steel of the walkways as the ship lurched violently again. She paused and stared from one of the view-ports overlooking the jungle. She could see vines and creepers, branches and bramble claw and lash around the hull of the vessel. She placed her hand against the side of the hull and felt the tremble of the craft as the metal bowed under the pressure of the jungle vice-like grip. The window exploded inward, showering her with a storm of glass and piercing her skin, cutting her olive flesh with their tiny blades. She screamed and pushed further into the ship as vines thrust through the broken pane and reached for her, thrashing about wildly as she ran. The exterior metal buckled as dents formed the outer shell from the pressure of weighing material pushing down.

Her hands gripped at a steel ladder and she pulled her body upward as fragments of metal tore from their panels and fell into the bowels of the craft. Her feet echoed as her boots scraped one rung after another, as she pushed her muscles further than she had ever pushed them. The door of the main control room slid open and she collapsed inside, panting heavily from the sudden exertion. She lay on the cold hard floor and stared at the metal ceiling. She could make out the massive indentations in the roof from the jungle vegetation and cried. Tears came as a relief as her breathing became steady.

“Toshiko” whispered a quiet voice from the door as the panel over the archway slid open. She moved her head and looked at the cut and bruised figure in the doorway. Sorenson smiled at her and fell to the floor, exhausted. He crawled across the floor and lay next to her body and laughed as his fingers curled into hers. She looked at him through tear stained eyes and joined his laughter.

“Will we die?” she spoke softly as she pulled herself into a sitting position.

“Yes” nodded Sorenson, “but we’ll die together” she smiled at him.

“Hell of a time to say I love you” she remarked taking his other hand in her own.

“I can’t think of any better time” he smiled and leant forward, placing his cracked lips against hers. Their lips locked in a passionate kiss, saliva, mingling as their bodies touched. Sorenson reluctantly pulled away and smiled at her, standing he sat in the command chair and pulled open a small panel in the arm of the chair. “I have loved you from the first moment I saw you, from the first moment you said hello to me” he said as his fingers jabbed at several buttons on the chair, “You’re so beautiful to me and mean so much, there is nothing I wouldn’t do for you” he said softly.

“Would you die for me” she said as she crossed to the chair and took her place on the seat next to his.

“I would give you my last breath” he smiled as he replaced the glass across the panel.

“I know” she said, a sad smile crossing her lips.

“You make me happy when I’m sad, you make you calm when I’m angry, you make we laugh when all I want to do is cry, all I have to do is look at you and everything is alright...” he looked into her eyes and smiled as a tear formed, “Always...” his finger stabbed at a button at the front of the chair.

Toshiko smiled at him and squeezed his hand as the explosion ripped through the heart of the ship...