Present Time:
Haylon gas was still venting into deck five. If the spigot didn’t get shut off within the next minute, everything up until that moment would have been for nothing. Colonel Jameson of the Galactic Ship Camulus was the only hope for the other ninety-nine crew members that had been transported down to an uninhabited planet when it became clear that the Entity was a bigger threat than they realized.
Twelve Hours Earlier:
The voyage had started out as a diplomatic mission to the Geridonian home world. The conflict between Geradon and Imalpeth had flared up again. The Colonel and his crew had been sent by the Universal Council to try to negotiate between the two warring planets before things got out of control. Negotiations had been going well until the son of the High Viceroy of Geradon had been found dead. All heck broke loose at that point. The Colonel was accused of being an infiltrator from Imalpeth. The Camulus barely made it out of Geradon airspace in one piece. The long range broadcast system had been completely vaporized by energy blasts from the planet’s defense system before the Camulus could get out of range.
That would not have been a problem, except that an uninvited guest had joined the crew. Over the next two hours small things went amiss, but not enough to really alarm anyone. The lights flickered for a bit. The Chief Maintenance Technician figured it was probably minor damage caused when they took fire back at Geradon. A half hour later, several deck doors sealed shut, refusing to open. The Chief Technology Expert had to bypass some systems to get the rouge doors open. It was really more of an annoyance than anything. What began to arouse suspicion was the sudden opening of the hangar bay doors on deck one. Those doors could only be opened by three people: the Colonel, the Chief Technology Expert, and the Squadron Major. Each of these three people had a special code to open the hangar doors on decks one and two. Upon inspection of the ship’s operating system log, none of the codes had been used.
At this point, Colonel Jameson ordered the Chief Technology Expert, Dr. Whittiker, to run a full diagnostic of the ship system. It took an hour, but he found it. An unidentified and very complex strand of code was found in the compressed operating files network. On orders, Dr. Whittiker set about to eradicate this strand of code. The thing was, this was no ordinary strand of code, and it would not be evicted so easily.
Over the next Two hours, personnel lost access to many of the ship systems. At one point, the ship started venting atmosphere on decks three and four. Dr. Whittiker was barely able to bypass enough systems and security measures to close off the leaks, but not soon enough. While most of the crew on those two decks had been able to evacuate to other decks, fifteen crew members lost their lives. The crew of one hundred fifty was now down to one hundred thirty-five.
Colonel Jameson stood grimly on the bridge of the ship and addressed the remaining crew over the ship’s internal communications system.
“Fellow crew members, it is my sad duty to inform you that we have lost fifteen of our comrades in the current crisis that has beset us. While we regret their loss, we must also not lose hope that we will overcome our current plight. Keep strong. We will survive.”
The lights flickered again. A blaring alarm began screaming through every deck of the Camulus.
“Sir! We’ve just lost life support!” the Tech Sargent reported.
“Can you bring it back online?” Colonel Jameson asked, the hint of fear in his usually steady voice causing the others on the bridge to pause.
“No sir. I’m completely locked out of the system. Sir, if we don’t get life support back up soon-”
“I know,” the Colonel cut him off.
Present Time:
Even the emergency lights seemed dull through the thick haze of Haylon gas that drifted like a ghost through the halls of deck five. The Colonel, holding his breath as long as he could, made his way to the auxiliary control center. The door had jammed at halfway, forcing him to squeeze through, inadvertently making him release some of the oxygen he had been trying to retain. The Entity was in every system, save for the non-networked backup generator that was only good for a very short trip with the base engines. It stalked the Colonel wherever he went.
…
Jameson glanced at the wall computer console. Hmph! I bet you’d love for me to give up, you miserable creature , the Colonel thought to himself as he attempted to access the ship’s controls and override the control for the gas system. It was no use. This Entity had taken over the whole core system and could wreak havoc as it pleased. There was only one option. There was a manual release valve just down the hall. If he could get the gas to redirect out of the ship, then he would buy himself a bit more time.
Knowing full well that he had to be discreet in order to make his plan work, the Colonel silently left the computer console. He did not appear to be in any hurry. His heart raced with anxiety as he neared the half open door, sure that the Entity would know what he was up to, and find a way to seal the door with the Colonel trapped inside. Nothing happened. Jameson was able to exit the room without interference from the Entity. Maybe it thought he had given up. Using that hope to bolster his resolve, the Colonel rounded the corner at the end of the hall and walked to the manual release valve. Gingerly, he reached out to touch the red wheel. Nothing unusual happened. The Colonel was able to release the toxic Haylon gas out into space. The toxicity readouts on the nearby computer console showed the air was already returning to the safe zone.
He leaned against the wall for several minutes, stunned that his plan had worked. Yet, at the back of his mind he knew it was all too easy. The Entity should have tried to stop him the minute it saw where he was going. Absently, the Colonel touched the computer access console on the wall. It opened the command access log. That was odd. Ever since the Entity had taken over the ship systems, no one had been able to access this key piece of the ship computer. Curiously, Jameson tried to access the ship security system. Without a single hitch, the Colonel was able to see the live footage from the security cameras all over the ship. Movement on the camera in the deck two hangar bay caught his attention.
Several of the small maintenance bots were congregating in the hangar bay. One in the center of the group appeared to be taking another bot apart. The Colonel watched curiously as the central bot disassembled the surrounding bots and began to reassemble them into a new unit.
“What on earth is going on here?” Jameson said out loud.
The video footage on the computer console suddenly zoomed in on another console located in the hangar bay. The now eerily familiar text flashed onto the screen.
…
Eight Hours Earlier:
It had been two hours since the Entity, as Dr. Whittiker was now calling it, had shut down life support across the ship. While it did not yet have complete control of the ship systems, it was able to access much of the ship computer. The crew were trying to hang on, sharing the limited portable oxygen packs on board. Dr. Whittiker worked feverishly through the slowly rising carbon dioxide levels. It took nearly two full hours, but he managed to create a workaround code that allowed life support to be reactivated, while trapping the Entity. However, it was only a temporary fix.
The life support system came back on with a whoosh of breathable air through the vents. There was no celebration. Thirty five more people had died in those two hours. The crew now numbered one hundred. Dr. Whittiker had no idea how to stop the Entity. He hastily made his way to the bridge.
“Colonel, this thing is going to kill us all if we don’t get out of here,” Dr. Whittiker said as he approached Colonel Jameson on the bridge.
“I’ve gone over the code, and this thing is not just some random virus. It is a living organism made up of energy. It is intelligent, and there is no way we can combat with this thing. Believe me. I have wracked my brains for every possible solution. It is too fast and smart. We need to evacuate.”
The Colonel sighed. Dr. Whittiker was the top technology expert in fifty different galaxies. If Whittiker had no solution, then there was nothing for it. With a heavy sigh, Jameson ordered the Sargent to open a channel on ship-wide communications.
“Attention all personnel, this is Colonel Jameson. As there seems to be no way to combat this entity that has taken over the ship, we are left with no choice but to evacuate. Gather only supplies that you can carry, and report to the hangar bays. We will be relocating to an uninhabited planet that is accessible by fighter plane about two hours back along our current course.”
Within half an hour, the remaining one hundred personnel were all gathered in the hangar bays on decks one and two. Each of the fifty fighter ships could hold two people. Crew members paired off, one pilot and one non-pilot. It was a good thing half of the remaining crew had gone through mandatory pilot training.
“Colonel, I need to speak with you,” Dr. Whitiker said urgently as Jameson was directing the evacuation in the deck two hangar.
“What is it Doctor? We don’t really have time for this.”
“This is highly important. I may have found a weakness in the Entity. It is energy-based. But even energy can overload if it gets saturated. I think a radiation pulse could very well get rid of this thing since it seems to need the ship’s computer system, or at the very least, the wiring to move around. If we fry the system, then that should get rid of the Entity,” the Doctor rambled quickly.
“Doc, if we use a radiation pulse to fry the computer, we’ll still be in trouble. The ship will be nothing but a metal casket floating in space. I’m sorry. We have to leave it. Now go board one of the fighters.”
The Doctor grumbled as he boarded a fighter. Colonel Jameson made sure the rest of the crew had evacuated before making his way to board the last fighter. Captain Xi’laang was ready to fire up the fighter engines when the force field holding in the atmosphere and gravity started to fray.
“Colonel! Hurry up! We’ve lost control of the ship again!”
“Captain, I can’t make it to the fighter in time. You get yourself out of here! That’s an order! I’ll stay behind and see if I can do something about this mess!” the Colonel barked over his headset as he ran back to the inner ship access door. He barely made it through the pressure door and sealed it behind him before the force field completely collapsed.
With everyone finally transported down to the nearest uninhabited planet, the Colonel was now alone with this energy-based life form that seemed bent on the destruction of the ship. Without even realizing it, Jameson was voicing his despair out loud.
“I wish I knew what this thing wanted.”
…
Startled, the Colonel did a double take as the words flashed up on a hallway computer terminal. It seemed the entity was capable of communication after all.
“Why? Why do you want this ship?” the Colonel asked out loud.
…
Metal? Resource? That was not exactly the explanation the Colonel was looking for.
“I don’t understand. You need metal? Why? According to Dr. Whittiker, you are an energy-based life form. Why would you need metal?”
…
This made more sense. A life form based on energy could not move about of its own accord. Organic life forms had an organic vessel, a body, to inhabit. This energy-based life form needed a vessel consisting of metal to help it move about. Considering how complex it was, an organic vessel would be overloaded in no time and destroyed due to the extreme trauma to the neural network. A vessel of metal, however, would not have this problem.
“I understand what you are saying, but my crew is waiting on another planet, and they need this ship in order to get back home where they belong, where they exist. We could find another vessel for you,” the Colonel pleaded.
…
The ghostly white letters were ominous in the orange haze of emergency lighting strips along the halls. It was all too clear. This entity didn’t care about the fate of the crew. It just wanted the ship.
Present Time:
Whatever the Entity was doing, it was not good. It dawned on the Colonel that maybe it was trying to create some sort of smaller vessel to contain it. But why?
Of course, it’s sadistic like that. It wants to hunt me down because I keep managing to thwart it. Now it’s personal, the Colonel thought grimly.
The Colonel’s mind drifted back to what Dr. Whittiker had said right before he had evacuated. If he was correct, and there was no reason to assume he was not, the Entity could be destroyed with a massive dose of radiation. It would fry the coding. The catch was that he would need to get the Entity cornered into one spot. It seemed to be able to move through metal, so cornering it in a floating metal space boat was going to be very tricky. The other problem was that the ship had no major radiation source. Sure, the Colonel could lure the Entity down to the engine room and try to trap it there, but even if he could overload the engine, it would not be near enough. Besides, if he got himself killed, he would not be able to get back to the crew that was anxiously waiting for him on another planet.
Then a thought hit him. It was a major risk, but at this point it was the only option. He only had thirty minutes left to put his plan into action. What he needed was for the Entity to be near an external access hatch at just the right time. How could he get this thing to go where he wanted it?
The answer came right at his head. Had it not been for the sound of metal whistling through the air, the Colonel never would have dropped in time to avoid the sharp blade that sliced through the air where his head had been seconds before. Jameson whirled around and stared in absolute horror at the metal monstrosity before him. Now he knew what the Entity had been doing with the maintenance bots. The smaller robots had been disassembled into a sort of android body. Some bits had even been melted down to create armor plates that spanned the chest of this giant metal monster. A retractable blade took the place of the right hand, while the left resembled a cone drill. The worst part was the head. For lack of a better description, the head was a metal half skull with long, jagged spikes where the jaw should have been. Inside that horrible head were glowing orange lights, its eyes.
The android creature opened its maw wide and a low, synthesizer voice emanated from within.
“YOU ARE NOT NECESSARY. YOU WILL DIE.”
“Yeah, I kinda got that,” the Colonel said and made a dash for the open door. The Entity Android whirled around and headed after the Colonel.
Well, I wanted a way to get it where I wanted it. Now I’ve got it. I just hope I can keep it distracted by chasing after me long enough for this plan to work, Jameson thought as he ran down the hall of deck five, the Entity Android not far behind him.
Four Hours Earlier:
Just before the Entity completely took over the ship controls once again, the Colonel had been able to access the ship’s navigation charts. He was hoping to plot a new course to Calmarin, a technologically advanced planet that could very well help him and his crew. Jameson typed furiously, hoping his activity would go unnoticed. Just as he was about to lock in the final coordinates, the screen blurred. White, unfeeling letters appeared once more on the black screen.
…
Before the Colonel could finish plotting the course, the Entity entered in a new set of coordinates and then locked out navigation controls. However, the plotted course remained on display on the computer console. With this new course, in five hours the ship would cross paths with a small star that was going through a period of turbulence at its core. The extreme heat would kill any living thing on the ship, even if the radiation was blocked by the shield system.
The message was clear. The Entity wanted the Colonel to see how far it was willing to go to take the ship, even at the risk of damaging its only vessel. Jameson wasn’t about to give up. Not that easily. As much of a long shot as it seemed, there was a chance he could regain control of the ship if he could sever the connection between the ship and the engine. It was risky. Without the engine, not only would the ship be stuck where it was, but life support and heating would also be out.
The Colonel could use an emergency maintenance suit used for making outside repairs to stay alive for about two hours. It had internal insulation coils that would keep him relatively warm and the oxygen tank would keep oxygen flowing, but he would be cutting it close.
Knowing it was better to try than to give up, the Colonel made his way through the halls of deck four, down through a service hatch, and into deck three. The maintenance suits were in a storage hold. He had never really liked the bright yellow suits, but for once Jameson didn’t complain. Besides, maybe if he managed to pull this off and rescue his crew, he could requisition a change to the maintenance uniform colors. The Universal Council would owe him that much.
After worming into the offensive suit, the Colonel began to make his way back up to deck five where the engine room was located. The halls were lit only by the dull orange glow of the emergency lights. They had not been able to restore full lighting ever since the life support had been cut off. The metallic click of his boots on the metal floor echoed hollowly down the halls, a reminder of how alone he was. The Colonel had been alone on ships before, inspecting them before they could be put into commission, but this was different. The silence was like a grave.
This disturbing thought distracted the Colonel when he should have been paying attention. But the Entity was not so easily distracted. It watched his progress down the halls and up through two hatches. Just as the Colonel clambered up through the hatch in the floor of deck five, the Entity accessed the door controls and shut all the doors between the engine room and the Colonel. Jameson saw the door just down the hall from his location starting to close and raced forward. It slammed closed, the airtight seal hissing just before he reached the door.
The Entity had once again thrown a monkey wrench into the plan to stop it. Frustrated, the Colonel banged his fist against the metal door, willing it to bend under his assault. After a minute, he gave up. This approach was useless, and he knew it. Jameson slid down the wall, took off his helmet, and stared back toward the hatch.
I wish I knew what to do now. How do I get past this?, Jameson thought miserably.
The answer was staring him in the face just down the hall. There was a blowtorch for emergency welding in the tool closet. Realizing this, Jameson slowly got up, taking his time to walk over to the closet, not wanting to look like he had any ideas. He removed the blowtorch and protective visor from the closet and walked back to the sealed door. It would take some time to cut through the half a dozen doors between him and the engine room, but it could be done. Leaving his maintenance suit helmet where he has set it, Jameson grimly flipped the protective visor down over his face and started to cut through the first door.
Progress was slow, the heat form the torch not helping the Colonel’s mood any. All the while, the Entity watched him through the security cameras, waiting. Three hours and fifteen minutes later, the Colonel had made it through five doors and had almost cut completely through the hatch to the engine room when the emergency alarms began to blare again. Haylon gas began spilling out into deck five.
…
The taunting white letters flashed across every wall console on the deck. Haylon gas was extremely toxic. The Colonel needed to get the gas out of the deck before it killed him.
Present Time:
Why? Why did I have to have the bright idea to cut through the doors?, Colonel Jameson lamented as he raced toward the end of deck five. The Entity Android may have been a bit slower, but it was still coming. At this point it would have been helpful to have a little bit of a roadblock between the metal monster and the Colonel, but no such luck was to be had.
The nearest door that would open to the outside of the ship was down on deck three. There was an exterior maintenance access hatch halfway down the hall on deck three, and it was the Colonel’s only chance. In another twenty five minutes, the ship would be passing very close to the small sun, and the Colonel needed the Entity Android to be inside the maintenance hatch so he could open the outer door and the mechanical nightmare would be sucked out into space. It would be in a decaying orbit, the radiation from the sun overloading the code that was the Entity and obliterating its android vessel as well.
The Colonel made it to the level hatch that led down into deck four, and started to climb down. A few steps from the bottom of the ladder, he looked up to see the horrible face of the Entity Android staring down at him. Jameson doubted it would bother wasting time with climbing. It could jump that distance and not worry about broken bones. The Colonel jumped the last few rungs and put on a burst of speed to try to get ahead of the Entity Android. Since the Entity was now inside this metal vessel, the ship’s controls were now all free. Jameson just needed to get the shield set on a timer to avoid arousing the Entity’s suspicions, and then lure it into the maintenance hatch where he would trap it.
It took another ten minutes to run down the length of deck four, climb down the level hatch, and get to a computer station on deck three. There were only fifteen minutes left before the ship was in range. Everything had to be timed precisely. The Colonel entered his override code to set the shield on the timer. Ten minutes were all he could afford. He doubted he could avoid being killed by the Entity Android any longer than that.
As if to emphasize this point, the sound of metal steadily clunking on metal announced that the Entity Android was on deck three and getting closer. The Colonel quickly punched in the final instructions to the ship’s computer and took off for the middle of the deck. The Colonel had synchronized the timer on his watch to the ship. He had ten minutes. Would he be able to pull this off the save the ship, and by default his crew?
Oh lord, please don’t let me fail, Colonel Jameson prayed mentally as he ducked down behind the giant computer console in the middle of the room, just as the Entity Android appeared in the doorway. It stopped, turning its head slightly to look into the room. The burning orange eyes were seeking out its target. The computer console was big enough to block a person from view. Jameson silently slid to the very edge of the console and peeked out. The Entity was gone. Jameson glanced down at his watch. Eight minutes were left. He had to get that android into the maintenance hatch before he ran out of time.
The Colonel was just about to inch up from his hiding place, when he caught sight of the reflector up in the corner of the ceiling behind him. Mentally kicking himself for not thinking about those reflectors in the rooms, he dashed out from behind the console just as the sharp blade on the Entity Android’s right arm came slicing through the air and embedded itself in the console. Sparks flew as wires were severed. Not bothering to look back, the Colonel tore out of the room and made a beeline for the exterior maintenance hatch.
The hatch was just in sight. Jameson opened the interior door and looked around for something to use as a weapon. His blaster was still on the bridge. The only thing in sight was a spare length of piping that had been left out during maintenance. It would have to suffice.
Jameson picked up the pipe and turned. The spiral drill came ripping through the space between the Colonel and the Entity Android. He barely got the pipe up in time to deflect what would have been a fatal blow. As it was, the pipe was dented a fair amount. It wouldn’t hold up much longer. The Entity Android swung its blade hand up to attempt another cut. Jameson deflect ted the blow, the pipe buckling more under the force of the impact. This was no good. There were five minute left on the timer.
“GIVE UP. THE SHIP IS OURS. YOU WILL DIE.”
“You keep saying that, but I keep finding way around you. I think you’re bluffing,” the Colonel parried, trying to annoy the android so it would attack without thinking.
YOU WILL NOT WIN. GIVE UP.
The Colonel changed tactics and took a testing swing at the android. The pipe bounced harmlessly off the metal armor plates. He would have to dodge around the Entity Android and find some way to back it into the hatch. Jameson feigned another swipe. As the android raised its right arm to deflect the blow, Jameson ducked under the arm and spun so that he was facing the back the android’s head. The android turned and thrust its cone drill forward, trying to jab the Colonel. Jameson deflected the blow, his miserable little pipe almost done for.
“If you want me to give up, you’ll just have to catch me,” Jameson challenged and started backing up, heading back toward the maintenance hatch.
The Entity Android followed, seemingly annoyed now. It continually slashed its blade arm back and forth, the Colonel just barely staying out of its deadly path. The hatch was now three feet behind the Colonel. He just needed to get the android through the inner door and shut it, then open the outer access door. One minute was left on the timer.
Taking a daring risk, Jameson made a full on attack on the android. He swung his pipe back and forth, forcing the android to take a more defensive role. Jameson swung up with the pipe, came back down and feigned left. The minute the left arm came up, the Colonel ducked under the arm just like the last time and now the android’s back was to the open hatch. Increasing his attack with the pipe, Jameson forced the android to keep stepping back to defend itself. The Entity Android’s left foot was just barely over the door line. Jameson dropped the pipe and ran forward, shoving the android with all his might. This took the Entity by surprise, and it stumbled backward. Colonel Jameson backed away quickly and jammed the button to close the inner door.
The Entity Android stood in the c hatch, unsure of what had just happened. The het in the ship had already become unbearable due to the ship’s proximity to the sun. With only ten second left on the timer. Colonel Jameson depressurized the airlock and pushed the button to open the outer access hatch door. The Entity Android was sucked out into open space where it was no longer in contact with the ship. It started to fall immediately, its glaring orange eyes flickering in anger as it was overloaded with radiation and burned up in the fire of the sun as it fell.
The temperature in the ship was at 150 degrees and climbing. The Colonel sank down by the access hatch, not sure if he would make it. It was hard to breathe, sweat was pouring in rivulets out of his every pour, and his head felt like it was ready to burst. Just as the last second ticked off on his timer, the ship shield activated and the temperature began to drop.
Huh, I guess I might make it after all., was the Colonel’s last though before he lost consciousness for half an hour. It was a good thing he had taken the time while setting the shield timer to also program the ship to change course as soon as the shield activated, and head back toward the plant where his crew were waiting with baited breath.
One Week Later:
The Universal Council had been very worried when the Colonel had not reported back after they received word that negotiations had broken down on Geradon. It took three days to get the ship back in working order after the Colonel had managed to get rid of the Entity and pick up his crew. Luckily the people of Calmarin had been gracious enough to help the crew of the Camulus restore order to the ship, even running a full system diagnostic to check for any remnant of the Entity. All tests came back clean. Once the Camulus had returned to Omardyn, the meeting place of the Universal Council, the Colonel gave a full report. He was rewarded with a promotion to General, as well as the Galactic Medal of Bravery for his efforts in the face of great danger.
Even the situation between Geradon and Imalpeth was resolved. One of the Viceroy’s attendants found a letter written by the Viceroy’s son, saying he could not live with the constant unrest between Geradon and Imalpeth, and so would end his suffering. This gave the representatives of both planets pause for thought. In the end they both agreed to put the past behind them and try to work together instead of against each other.
Dr. Whittiker caught up with Colonel Jameson as he was strolling through the Council Gardens on Omardyn.
“You know, for not being a technical genius, I suppose you did ok,” the Dr. said by means of a jibe. The Colonel just rolled his eyes.
“You’re just sore because you weren’t the one to figure out how to stop that thing or be there to execute the idea,” The Colonel shot back. Dr. Whittiker knew he was right and relented.
“Yeah, I suppose you’re right. I guess I can’t have all the glory all the time. But one thing still remains. Do you think that was the only one of those things?”
The question hung heavy in the air like a storm cloud. Even though the sun was shining bright and warm, both Colonel and Doctor still shuddered.
“I don’t really know, Doc, but I sincerely hope that is the last we will ever see of that entity or any other alien entity of that nature.”
That sentence lingered in the breeze as the two men walked on through the gardens.
