Space-Port, Nevada, USA
March 3, 2033 / 7:12 p.m. local time
Alina
Excitedly I looked around. I had persuaded Daddy to come with him to say goodbye to Toxic. What I hadn't told him was that I was going to sneak aboard the shuttle and travel to Eden with Toxic. I had managed to outsmart Dad. I had pretended that I had to go to the restroom and then instead of going there, I snuck through a side door back to the dock, where I was hiding behind some boxes. Now I was waiting for the opportunity to move from my hiding place to the shuttle's open door. I had to be smart because I knew there were some cameras here. When two soldiers with a trolley full of crates walked past my hiding place, I escaped from the shadows and ran next to the trolley, so that the camera was unable to pick me up because I was covered by the crates. I was hoping that the soldiers would not see me. Shortly before I reached the open shuttle door I threw a stone in the direction where I had been hiding before. Both soldiers pulled out their weapons. I heard the click of the safety.
"Hello? Is anyone there? Come out!" one of them shouted.
I peeked behind the boxes around the corner and saw that they both had their backs to me. I hurried up the corridor. Luckily it was covered with a rubber mat that silenced my steps. When I arrived at the shuttle, I climbed inside, feverishly looking for a good hiding place. I found a door hiding a row of control boxes. There was just enough room to sit between the boxes and the door. This was my spot.
I closed the door behind me and sat down on the floor in the dark. I waited excitedly. Some of the LEDs on the switchboxes gave off just enough light for me, after getting used to the darkness, I was able to see my hand before my eyes. It seemed to take an eternity to hear voices. When I heard Toxic's dark voice, my heart jumped. I had no idea how long the flight to Eden would take, I just knew that some alien technique would allow space to fold in such a way that the distance was drastically shortened. This made it possible to cover long distances in a short amount of time. I listened to the crew's conversations. Toxic hardly spoke. He seemed to be in a pretty bad mood. Was he sad because he thought he was leaving me on Earth? Would he be happy if he realized that I had come with him? I hoped so. I made a pretty crazy move, I knew that. Dad would find my letter at home and know that nothing had happened to me. I was hoping he wouldn't follow me too quickly and would give me some time to get to know Toxic better.
The shuttle's engines were started and I wrapped my arms around my knees. I couldn't tell if we were already moving. But then I felt it. A dull feeling in my stomach informed me that we had taken off and were moving upwards with considerable speed. The ship was vibrating slightly and the pressure was changing. I swallowed. Minutes passed, then it suddenly became hell. Everything was vibrating and jerking so hard that I was thrown back and forth in my narrow hiding spot. Only the fact that I had little room between the door and the switch boxes saved me from serious injury.
That must be the atmosphere we're breaching, I thought with a nervous tingling in my stomach.
When the shuttle stabilized itself again, I breathed a sigh of relief. I felt a sore spot on the back of my head and realized it was wet. Apparently, I had suffered a laceration, but it didn't seem to bleed too much, which reassured me.
A while later the vibrations started again. Was this the Spacefold or was it already the atmosphere of Eden? Most likely the first. I clamped my head and protected it with my arms as I tried to intercept the vibrations that started throwing me back and forth again. This time it seemed to take even longer. Then suddenly everything started spinning and I was thrown back and forth even harder. I screamed.
Toxic
Something was wrong. I knew it the moment the two shuttle pilots started to look anxiously at their displays and wildly push buttons and pull levers.
"What's happening?" I screamed over the noise made by the vibrating shuttle.
"We're getting off course", one of the men shouted. "I have no idea where we're going to end up."
An alarm sounded and the pilots cursed quietly. Suddenly I saw a planet in front of us on the monitor, and we started approaching it at a startling pace. The shuttle began to spin.
"We’re crashing!" screamed the second pilot. "Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!"
Then I heard something that made my blood run cold. A scream! I had heard this voice before. It was Alina! She had to be on board and we were going to crash.
"No!" I shouted and fiddled with the belt that restrained me to the seat. I had to find her.
Alina, was my last thought before all hell broke loose around me and everything went dark.
When I regained consciousness, everything was dark except for the flashing lights emitted by the destroyed devices and a few flashing light-emitting diodes. My leg hurt like hell and I noticed part of the shuttle stuck in my thigh.
"Fuck!" I said with my teeth clenched.
I took a few deep breaths and grabbed the metal part. With a jerk I pulled it out and released a throaty cry of pain. I barely felt blood. I had been lucky that my artery had apparently been spared. My eyes went to the pilots. One was missing a good piece of his head and shoulder. He was obviously dead. The other was sitting motionless in his seat. At first sight I didn't notice any serious injuries. With clenched teeth, I freed myself from my belt and staggered towards the man. The shuttle was at an angle, and I had to work my way up diagonally to get to him.
"Hey!" I said when I arrived at his side. I carefully shook his shoulder. "Hey!"
He was moaning, so he was alive. I pulled myself up on a pole and finally stood in front of him. A curse came over my lips. A gear lever was protruding from his chest and it wasn’t looking good. I was sure he wouldn't survive if I tried to pull it out of his chest. Perhaps an immediate surgery could save him, and that was not possible here. I didn't even know if and where there were any bandages.
"Sorry", I said and sighed.
The answer was another moan. There was only one more thing I could do for the man. I grabbed his head in my hands and broke his neck with a quick twist.
Dejected, I stood there for a while thinking about what had happened and what I had to do now. Then suddenly I remembered the scream I had heard just before the crash.
"Alina!" I gasped. She must be somewhere in here. Was it possible that she had survived? "A-li-naaa!" I shouted and panically began searching the shuttle for her while calling her name.
When I finally found her, I was relieved and horrified at the same time. She was lying lifeless in a small room that contained the switch boxes. Her face and hair were covered with blood and her body was covered with cuts. Shards from the switch boxes were stuck in her skin. At first glance I couldn't see any major injuries. However, she could have broken her neck. I had to examine her carefully. I got on my knees in front of her and grabbed her gently by her shoulders.
"Alina!" I shouted and shook her gently. I was trying to find her pulse and was happy when I did. She was alive, but she was unconscious. I had to get her out of here and take care of her somehow. But the problem was that I had no idea where we were. I knew that not all planets had the necessary conditions. There was a great chance that we would not be able to breathe outside of the wreck. I was sure that the shuttle had the technology to analyze the outside space according to the living conditions, but I had no idea where or how I could find this information. "I'll be right back, Alina", I said with regret and fought my way back to the cockpit through the chaos.
It did not look like the devices were working properly at all. Sparks were flashing between the partially destroyed fittings, and many displays seemed to have failed completely. I had to test it and leave the shuttle. Inside, we would die anyway. I questioned whether the living conditions in the shuttle could be maintained for an extended period of time. The door through which we had entered the shuttle was sloping above me. I tried to open it for a few sweaty minutes, but without success. It was clear that I would not succeed.
The mechanism was blocked by something. There had to be another way. I looked around the shuttle until I found a big axe and an even bigger hammer. With these two tools I made my way back to the door. I had no idea how long I had been working the damn door with the axe and the hammer, but I finally managed to create a hole that would allow me to climb out. I was exhausted, but relieved when I stood outside the wreck and realized that the air felt pleasant to breathe. A slightly bitter aroma was in the air, which seemed to come from the fern-like plants. It was humid and warm, but bearable. I had to get Alina out of the shuttle and see if I could do anything to help her. In my search for tools I had stumbled across many useful things like a first aid kit, a backpack, water bottles, knives and some other small things I wanted to take with me. But first I wanted to fix up Alina.
Alina
A deep feeling on my face awakened me from unconsciousness. I blinked and saw a blurry figure crouching above me.
"Alina?" a familiar sounding voice reached my ear. "Alina. It's me! Toxic. Don't move! You’re injured!"
Injured? What had happened? I felt a terrible pain in the back of my head and temple. There was also a slightly less severe burning pain in almost every part of my body and I felt as if I had been run over by a train. But why? Where was I and what was Toxic doing here? Where was Dad?
"We're the only survivors, Alina", said Toxic as he wiped my face with a wet cloth. "Both pilots are dead. I heard your screams just before the impact. I was so scared that you might have been dead too."
Pilots? Impact?
Suddenly I remembered. I had snuck aboard the shuttle that was supposed to take Toxic to Eden, and then suddenly everything had gone haywire. I had been thrown back and forth, then everything turned black around me. We crashed. But where. On Eden?
"Are ... are we ... on Eden", I uttered weakly.
"I don't think so", Toxic replied.
I looked up to him. He was still blurry, but I could already make out a few features of his face. I could see that he was trying to smile as he wiped a strand of my hair from my face and that his eyes looked worried.
"I think they will come looking for us and find us, Alina. I will do everything I can to keep us alive until they get us out of here. I promise!"
A strange noise made me flinch. Toxic stood up and turned around. I saw him bend down to grab an axe lying on the ground and go into a fighting position. Something seemed to be coming towards us and whatever it was, Toxic thought it was dangerous. He took a few steps away from me and I tried to sit up to see what was going on. In pain, I finally succeeded and it took my breath away. Whatever was approaching us seemed to be straight out of a horror movie. The creature was about seven feet high, thin and stood on three legs. The monster had four arms, with the upper two hands having long claws and the lower hands ending in a pointed sting. Its skin was greyish brown with reptilian scales on the chest and shoulders. The creature's three yellow eyes sat on top of its head like a frog. It did not seem to have a nose, but a large mouth with closely spaced pointed teeth in two rows, like a shark.
"Oh my God!" I said. "Toxic!"
"Stay where you are! I swear, I'll protect you with my last breath if I have to!"
The beast emitted a horrible scream and ran towards us.
Toxic stood still, but I could see the tension in his well-trained body. He was ready to fight to the death! The monster was now only a few feet away from Toxic when Toxic suddenly lifted the axe and threw it right at the monster's head. The sharp blade pierced the creature's face and it cried out in pain and anger. His clawed hands grabbed the axe and attempted to pull it out. Toxic reached for a blade he had by his side and jumped towards the beast. He rammed the knife into the chest of the beast and I was hoping that this creature had a heart in this place, like a human. Who knew how this beast was built? Maybe his damn heart was in his stomach or who knows where. But obviously Toxic struck the right spot, because the monster went down. It lay in the throes of death and emitted terrible sounds. Toxic pulled the axe from the creature's face and struck it again, this time to separate its head from the beast's narrow shoulders. For a while Toxic remained kneeling next to the dead monster, breathing heavily, then he stood up and slowly approached me. He threw the bloody axe to the ground and fell to his knees in front of me.
"I have a few things to do to make it safe for us here. The first thing is make sure we have a usable entrance to the shuttle, dispose of the two dead pilots and clean up inside. This will remain our base. If someone is looking for us, they more likely find the shuttle than us alone. We also need a secure retreat from these beasts, because if there is one, there are more. We have to be prepared for unpleasant visits. I’ll have to go hunting from time to time and I have to know that you are safe here, so I have to somehow turn the shuttle into a safe base. I want you to stay here until I build an entrance and clean up in there. Sit with your back to the wreck and keep an eye on the surroundings. If you see anything coming towards us, no matter how dangerous or harmless it may look, call me immediately! We don't know anything about these creatures here.
Even a small creature could be dangerous. Can you do that? Will you keep your eyes open and call me if anything happens?"
I nodded.
"Good!"
He helped me sit with my back against the shuttle and put the axe and a long knife next to me. Then he took my face into his hands and looked at me insistently.
"We can do it! They will find us and we will survive until then!"
"Yes", I whispered back.
"I'm going to get to work", he said and got up to disappear into the shuttle.
Toxic worked tirelessly. From time to time he stopped by and supplied me with fresh water and a chocolate bar he had found on one of the pilots. Since the sun had wandered and I was no longer sitting in the shade of the wreck, Toxic had built me a sunroof. He did not want to take me to the shady side of the shuttle, because I would have been too far from the exit of the shuttle, and from him. But it was quite bearable under the awning.
"Guess what I found?" Toxic asked cheerfully and dropped to the floor next to me. "Here!"
He was holding up a can of Coke and a bag of Sour Cream & Onion chips. I stared at him dumbfounded. His grin made my heart beat faster. I grinned back.
"Where did you find this?"
"The shuttle carried some crates of food for the colony. All the things you probably can't grow or make yourself there. Anyway, we will not starve. There was also medication."
"That's good, isn't it? I mean, then you don't have to go hunting."
"Having a little meat now and then wouldn't be too bad", Toxic said.
"The groceries in the boxes are not exactly a great variety, I'm afraid. But there were books as well. Do you like reading?"
My eyes got big.
"Books? Yes, I love books."
"I'll bring you out a selection, then you'll have something to keep yourself busy."
"But then I can't watch out if another creature like the one from before comes along", I said.
"I'm almost done inside. You can make yourself comfortable in there soon, while I work on a solution for our door. Drink your coke and enjoy your chips. I'll let you know when I have everything ready."
Toxic stood up again and gave me a smile. I smiled back. It was terrible that we had crashed on a strange planet and that there were monsters, who weren't friendly to us, but I also knew that I was damn lucky. I had survived! I was not alone and we had food, medicine and even books. I just couldn't give up hope that they would find us. Daddy would never give up on me, I was sure of that. Maybe the shuttle had something like a tracking device or similar. I opened the can of coke and put it on my lips. It was lukewarm, but it was the best drink I had enjoyed in a long time. It was a piece of home! A piece of normality!
Toxic
I had found a manual for the shuttle and there was indeed an emergency transmitter on the ship. It took me a while to find the little box the transmitter was in. The manual described how to activate the transmitter and I followed the instructions. The result was a continuous green flashing small indicator light, signaling that the transmitter was working and sending an emergency message at regular intervals. I had no idea about the range, but if they were looking for us, this transmitter would definitely increase our chances of being found. I never told Alina about the transmitter because I didn't want to give her any false hopes.
With one last look at the interior of the shuttle I found the result of my efforts satisfactory and made my way outside to inform Alina. I had cleared the cabin of wreckage and scrap and cleaned everything as best I could. In a wall compartment I had found an inflatable life raft and activated the mechanism that filled it with air. This would function as our bed. I had found four blankets, also hidden in a wall compartment, but I doubted that we would need them in this climate. Nevertheless, if the need arose, we were prepared.
Alina was sitting where I left her with her knees on. She had her arms wrapped around her legs and her chin was resting on her knees. When she heard me, she turned around and smiled. I liked her smile. It did strange things to me. My stomach was tingling like there were worms inside and my heart was beating faster than normal.
"I'm done!" I said and was a bit irritated when I noticed that I was nervous about what she would say about my work. "Can you get up? Wait! I'll help you!"
I helped her get up and hand in hand we entered the shuttle through the exit I had created by removing the remains of the broken door. I had welded a new door made of wreckage fragments. I had found the welding machine in another wall compartment and since I had once observed such work in my old cell, I was able to figure out how it worked. In the beginning, everything didn't work out as I wanted, but finally I had managed to do a halfway decent job and the new door was able to be locked from the inside with a bolt. It would keep intruders at bay long enough for me to get ready for a fight or for Alina to stay safely in the wreck alone for a while. I doubted that these creatures, like the one I had killed, were particularly intelligent. They struck me as quite primitive monsters. Which of course didn't mean that there wasn't any other intelligent life here on this planet.
"Wow!" Alina exclaimed as we entered the wreck. "Where did you find it?"
"In one of the wall compartments. Do you like it?"
"This is great! I mean, this is really ... Wow! You did a really good job while I was just sitting around being lazy."
"You are hurt, Alina. I would never allow you to work while you're sick or hurt."
It filled me with pride that Alina was obviously satisfied with my work. I was happy about her enthusiasm.
"Make yourself comfortable, I'll bring you some books."
With a smile, I watched Alina sit on the island and jump up and down like a child. She was radiant and her eyes were sparkling. A warm feeling filled me and I had to swallow. Why did I feel so strange around her? All I could do was stare at her and realize how much I liked what I saw. Her blonde curls were tousled, but it made her look even more beautiful in my eyes. A rosy tinge covered her cheeks and her blue eyes were shining like two gems. My gaze fell on her mouth. She bit her lower lip as if she was nervous as she looked at me with big eyes.
"Toxic?" she said a little hesitant. "Have ... have you... ever had a ... a girlfriend?"
"I had no friends at all", I said. "I was kept isolated most of the time anyway. Why do you ask? We are friends, aren't we?"
She sighed and looked disappointed, although I didn't know why. Did I say anything wrong?
"Yes, we ... we are ... friends", she finally replied and looked away.
I looked at her confused and unhappy. I knew that I had hurt her somehow, and I didn't even know why. How could I make it up to her if I did not know what I had done wrong?