Chapter 24
Chapter Twenty-Four
RUBY
I don’t get there quick enough and the doors close right in front of me. No matter what I do, they won’t open. I’ve put my hand on the shiny thing on the opposite wall, jumped up and down in case there’s a sensor and was just about to start pounding on it, when suddenly it opens. One of the brothers I’ve only caught a glimpse of storms past me.
Stepping out of the way quickly, I jump inside the door before it can close back again. Slavic is standing in the middle of the room issuing orders that I have no understanding of. The ship shakes for a second and the lights dim, and before I know it another one of them is rushing past me heading out the door.
Slavic must have realized I was in the room now because he turns toward me, then motions to the seat behind him in the middle of the room. I quickly plant my butt in it, as I’m sure one of these giants is going to accidentally run over me as they head toward various parts of the ship. Helpless , I sit here watching, as they all talk back and forth. My eyes jump over to the one whose fingers are rapidly flying over the panels and instruments. Slavic’s voice echoes throughout the room as he asks questions.
“ Bikar , what’s going on?”
“ The hyperdrive Falon just installed is not getting enough fuel. There has to be a vacuum leak somewhere due to the fuel hatch being open. Every time I try to engage, it shuts itself off. Falon is on his way toward the engine compartment now.”
“ Have the swarm ships spotted us yet?”
“ No , the asteroid belt has us hidden at the moment. But if they get a lock on us, we will not escape them without that hyperdrive. Their ships are too big, and the Void doesn’t have enough space for them to operate that feature safely within its borders. Whereas we can duck in behind places, they cannot.”
Well , at least I’ve learned another name to go with a face, but the word swarm ship catches my attention. “ Slavic , are we being pursued by the bugs?”
“ Not necessarily, they are just in radar range and the Zenith alerted us once detected, giving us plenty of time to get away from them. You have nothing to worry about little mate.”
The door opens again, “ The hyperdrive is starving for fuel. The batteries can provide long-term power; however, it requires both fuels for startup. Each time Bikar tries to activate it; the fuel line collapses.”
“ Frack ! Falon , do you have any suggestions?”
“ One of us is going to have to go out and seal that hatch.”
I watch Slavic run a hand along his bald head for a second before he turns back to Bikar . “ Find a place to set us down, I’ll go suit up.”
“ Slavic , it would make more sense for me to go. I am the engineer on this ship and if something else needs to be fixed while I am out there, I would have a better grasp as to how to do it.”
“ No , Falon I need your eyes up here. I will wear a viewer so if you see something while I am out there, you can advise me on how to proceed further.”
“ Frack Slavic , you have a mate now. She is your first priority, let one of us go instead.”
“ She is the reason I am going, little brother. I will do anything in my power to make sure she is never in danger again. If something should happen to me, I know the five of you would protect her with your lives. Now , quit stalling and let’s get this done quickly.”
The ship shimmies and I grab onto the arms of the chair while Slavic and Falon simply stand there like nothing is going on. This must be comparable to getting your sea legs, now we’ll just call it space legs. I can’t help but shake my head as ignorant thoughts flow through my mind. A mind that is doing its best not to flip out. Slavic turns to walk out of the room and just as I start to get up, Bikar’s words stop him.
“ We have a problem, Slavic .”
“ What the frack now?”
“ The asteroid’s surface is uneven and after I placed and anchored us down, I noticed the open hatch of the fuel cells is extremely close to the asteroid’s surface. I am not sure you can fit under the ship to do repairs.”
“ Can you readjust the ship?”
“ Not without the unattached material giving our location away.”
“ Murgul is the only one slightly slimmer and you know there is no getting him in a suit.” Slavic puts his head down and closes his eyes, and I have no idea why, but I blurt out, “ I’ll do it.”
“ No .” His response is instantaneous.
“ Why ? I fit the size requirement and I’m pretty handy to have around when it comes to tools. Just show me what I need to do and help me do it.”
“ No , we will fight them if need be.”
“ Slavic , you’re just being dumb right now. Can you give me a good reason as to why I can’t be the one to do this?”
“ I said no.”
“ Ok buddy, you’re going to learn real fast that shit like that doesn’t work with me, so we’re going to nip that in the butt right now.” Looking past his glowering frame to the other two in the room I ask, “ Do you guys have any other options or objections?”
Slavic practically roars when Bikar opens his mouth. “ Either of you say a word and I will personally throw you out the airlock.”
“ Ughh , men! What the hell is the deal? Look , I don’t wanna damage your ego volunteering or to die out there. So , pull your big boy pants up and let’s fix this thing. Is there a reason we can’t go together? I mean, I’ve never walked in space, but I’ve seen it on TV and it looked pretty terrifying. I’m totally ok with some backup or even an extra rope in case I start floating off into the wild blue yonder.”
For a minute, I think he’s just going to argue with me some more. I don’t know who’s more shocked, me or the other two in the room. He turns toward Falon , “ Will she be strong enough to use the sealant needed to secure the hatch?”
“ Absolutely , the seal is only temporary, and the hull repair can be applied anywhere in all atmospheres. If she can push the nozzle down while keeping the hatch in place, I see no reasons why she cannot.”
“ Bikar , will our suits reduce down enough to seal her in properly?”
“ We will simply have to see Slavic , but they are self-adjusting.”
Slavic turns all that aggression and worry toward me as I sit here in this enormous chair, swinging my legs back and forth like I don’t have a care in the world. “ You will do everything I say, without question.”
“ That’s kinda self-explanatory, grumpy ass.”
Before I can move, he’s leaning over me, pinning me to the seat. His massive frame pushes me back as his lips crash down on mine. Large hands surround my face as he holds me still, his kiss stealing all reason or thought from my mind. Gasping for breath, his tongue invades my mouth, and I practically melt on the spot as our tongues twirl together.
A snort from behind us has Slavic releasing me, and I can’t help but smile as he moves away. Never taking his eyes off me, he holds his hand out to help me up. Putting my much smaller one in his enormous one, he pulls me up effortlessly, then motions toward the door. My first step is a little unsteady and when I look up, he has a smirk on his face because he knows he’s the cause.
Somewhat in a daze, I find myself standing outside what looks like a closet with Slavic pulling things out like a madman. After a few minutes, he turns, holding a huge amount of stuff in his arms. “ Come , I need to make sure these will adjust enough to protect you properly.”
Once again, I’m led inside a room that looks like it’s straight off a Sci -fi movie, big ass door and everything. “ Strip .”
“ What ?”
“ You cannot have anything on between your skin and the suit. It confuses the sensors on the inside.”
“ Well , this is an original one liner for sure. You’re very creative when it comes to ways of getting me naked, I see.”
“ Little female.”
“ Yeah , yeah, … I know the routine: you don’t have to be so grumpy. Could you turn around or something. I mean, I know you’ve seen everything, but that wasn’t my choice the first time.”
“ Nope , you are mine to look at, and I will.”
I don’t know if I should be angry or turned on, so instead I decide to fight fire with fire. Turning around, I look back over my shoulder and with a small smile, I leisurely slide the gown I have on down my shoulders. His eyes devouring every inch of my skin as it’s revealed to him, I watch as he clenches his hands, fighting the urge to grab me when I stop the material right above my butt cheeks. When I finally let the material fall to the floor, it’s like I can feel his eyes burning my flesh. He starts to reach out only to hesitate as I turn fully toward him.
“ You are perfect.”
“ Not really, but we can pretend.”
“ Hey , are you both almost ready in there? That Velgriddix ship is getting too close for comfort out here.”
“ I am just sizing her up now.”
“ I bet you are, brother”, is Bikar’s response and there is no missing his humor.
Slavic walks up to me with a huge pair of pants, opening them for me to step into. His eyes drifting over me and the desire in them has me squirming. My own need suddenly slicks my thighs, as he pulls the pants up slowly, forcing me to grab hold of his large shoulders as he runs his nose up my inner thigh.
“ Gods that smell! I can’t wait to lay you down and feast upon your nectar.”
I can’t take my eyes off him as he fastens the pants, then hits a series of buttons on their side. “ Wow , would you look at that, they’re magic pants.” Turning slightly, I watch them shrink as they snug up against my skin. I can’t help but tease Slavic as I stand here half naked, ready to jump out into space to fix a hatch like I know what I’m doing. “ Do these make my butt look good? I think this material is revolutionary, and convenient. Can we get these in other colors?”
“ Arms up.”
We go through the same process, and I swear before he pulls the shirt over my head, he licks my nipple. Standing with my arms out, he goes through the process again, tightening the shirt all around me. He almost tips me over when he lifts my foot up for the boots and I can’t help but laugh at his horrified expression right as he catches me from landing hard on my bottom. “ Turn those gun’s down, big guy!”
“ Frack , this is never going to work. The moment I open that door your insubstantial weight is going to float away like a feather in the wind.”
Sobering up fast, I realize he’s truly scared for me. “ Slavic , honey, I trust you. I know you’re not going to allow anything to happen to me out there.”
He lowers his head, “ I cannot bear the thought of something taking you away from me, Starshine . When this is over, we will discuss my dislike of you putting yourself in danger for others.”
“ Yeah , you’re growing on me, too.” Before he can say anything else, the door slides open as Falon walks toward us with a canister and a few tools in his hand. “ Slavic , this is the lightest container we have, but you will need to carry it until both of you are free of the airlock. Why are you not dressed yet?”
“ I was double checking her seams.”
I never imagined what a smile would look like with an accessory like tusks, but it completely transforms Falon’s face, making him look a lot younger. “ Once we clear this sector, you can inspect them further, if need be, but right now we are outnumbered. Get your head out of your crotch and get in the game.”
While Slavic is getting dressed, Falon goes over how to operate the canister in zero atmosphere, making me miss the strip show that I’d been looking forward to. Things happen quickly after that, and when Slavic slides that helmet over my head, shit gets real, fast. Falon makes his way out of the room, and I hear a loud hiss when he seals one of the doors behind him.
“ Ruby , can you hear me?”
“ Which one is this?”
“ This is Bikar . I will be walking you through each part. If at any point something I say confuses you, make sure to stop me before going further. We only have one shot at getting this right. Slavic can hear both of us, but his mic isn’t working correctly, so I will be the voice between you two. Right now, all you need to do is focus on staying attached to Slavic , and we will worry about the rest. I am initiating the outer seal to release, and it will be really loud in there.”
“ Ok , let’s do this.” I try to turn so that I can see Slavic , but once this helmet sealed the whole outfit became cumbersome. A loud bang, then a hissing noise echoes all around me. I close my eyes for a second, praying we make it out of this in one piece. Something nudging me forward has me stepping up a level as the huge ass door swings open. For a second, I just stand here looking at the scene in front of me, amazed and overwhelmed by how small I feel in the midst of all this.
I see Slavic jump forward and just as I start to panic, he throws some sort of magnet rope out that instantly attaches him to the hull of the ship. Floating toward me, he hooks a smaller one onto my side, connecting it to himself. He motions for me to come to him and with a leap of faith, I leave the security of the ship and head out into space with my grumpy ass Orc . I bet no one ever read this event in their fortune cookie.
Slavic’s helmet bumps up against mine and just seeing his face helps me focus on what we need to do. He points back toward the ship, then somehow maneuvers both of us to where he wants us to be. I was a lot braver on the ship than I am right now. Especially when I see the piece of metal hanging loose under the belly of this big ol’ ship. It reminds me of those homes you see, and your first thoughts are, ‘wow that’s got to be huge on the inside’, only to find out the rooms are so small you can’t even get a couch in any of them. Because this bastard is massive, looming over my tiny ass out here swirling around on a floating rock, headed nowhere.
“ Ruby , your heart rate is elevating, are you in distress?”
“ Fuck yes, I’m stressed. I am two seconds from flipping the hell out, but don’t worry, I’ll super glue that massive piece of metal together one way or another. Just hope your stuff doesn’t stick to your fingers like the glue back home does, or I’m truly screwed, and not in the way I was looking forward to.”
Slavic comes back in view, going as far as he can under the ship. Awkwardly , he hands me the canister, making sure I have it aimed the correct way then backs away. I see him letting out some of the rope so that I can go on without him.
“ Time to earn your keep, girl”, I whisper to myself.
“ Ruby , can you see the fuel hatch?”
“ Yes , if that’s the big piece of metal hanging down.”
“ Once you are there, I need you to check a few things before you try to push the hatch up.”
“ Of course, you forgot a few things on the grocery list. Nothing I need to be doing anyway, just hanging out with the stars looking at star fleet command headed straight for us.”
“ Ruby , I need you to slow down. I can’t hear you plainly.”
“ Listen to the words coming out of my mouth. There is a huge-ass-ship headed straight this way that makes ours look like a toy!”
“ Calm down, I see it. Right now, we are cloaked, so you are fine. You need to focus so that we can get you and Slavic back on the ship as quickly as possible. Are you at the fuel hatch yet.”
“ Yes , it took me a second, but I can see up into the ship now.”
“ Do you see any fluid or leaks around the seal?”
“ There seems to be some steam coming out around the edge.”
“ See if you can tighten it any.”
“ On it; lefty loosie, righty tightie, got it!”
Putting the canister between my knees, I reach up with both hands, grabbing the handle sticking out and twist with everything I have, considering I’m weightless. It turns just a little bit, but the stuff stops coming out. “ Yay , I think I did it.”
“ Wonderful , now I might be able to help you. Do you see a blue lever on your right?”
“ Yes .”
“ Before you pull that, you need to make sure you can step back out of the way. If the hatch can close at all, it will start moving upward. Once it stops, you will have to push it the rest of the way.”
“ You realize it’s the size of a 1979 Ford LTD hood, right? Never mind, I got this.” Grabbing the blue lever, I jump back quickly, losing my footing as the hatch comes up a lot quicker than I thought it would. A hard tug on my side shockingly steadies me and I swear I hear Slavic cussing in the background.
The moment the hatch stops moving, I try shoving it with both hands, but it doesn’t budge. “ Ok Houston , we have a problem. Looks like the puny human girl can’t get this eight-hundred-pound hood back in its slot.”
“ Slavic is making his way to you. He cannot get under the ship, but he might be able to reach over and shove it in place.” A few seconds later, a huge arm appears out of the corner of my eye, moving back and forth until the tips of his fingers hit the lip of the hatch. Flattening his hand against it, I see the part move slowly, then just like a piece of a puzzle it pops in.
“ It’s in Bikar , now let’s watch me put all of Falon’s training to work.” Remembering to hold it a certain way, I aim the end of the nozzle toward the crack. It’s a little messy at first, but it doesn’t take me long to get the hang of it. Before I know it, I’m lowering the canister down, admiring my first space maintenance job.
“ Bikar , I’m out of gooey stuff.”
“ Good job Ruby , all sensors have reset, and we should be good to go. You two get back on the ship.”
I would dance a jig if I didn’t have to worry about floating off into space. I turn when I feel a tug on the rope Slavic has on my side. The moment I’m in front of him he grabs hold of me, an odd, scary smirk on his face. I watch as he tugs on the rope that has us secured to the ship and without any warning at all, he takes a big jump, and we fly up into the sky. I scream as he twirls us around playfully.
“ Slavic , quit showing off and get your asses back on the ship”, Bikar yells over the speaker inside my helmet.
Another jerk and we’re back at the door. Slavic sort of pushes me inside while he gathers up the things we had with us. Once he’s in, he detaches the rope and hits a button on the wall. A red light starts flashing as the main door begins closing behind him. He pulls me further away from the entrance, both of us kinda floating there until it closes fully.
Holding me against him, I don’t notice the gravity returning inside the room until the light turns green. He sits me down in front of him and I watch as he unsnaps his helmet then his gloves, before starting on mine. The second my helmet is off, I can’t contain my excitement as I grab his face, kissing him quickly.
“ We did it, and didn’t float off into the great unknown, Wooohooo ! We make a kick ass team you know.”
“ Yes my little Starshine , I believe we do. Now let me get you out of these garments. We will have to go through a decontamination sequence before the ship will allow us back into the main areas.”
“ I think you are just trying to find a way to get me naked.”
“ You have no clue. I will use any excuse I can find now that I have seen what those garments are hiding underneath them.”
When I start unfastening the top, he stops me. “ Let me do this. … Bikar , light up those thrusters and get us out of here.”
“ Any particular direction?”
“ Deapra . And unless this ship is on fire, we are not to be disturbed for the next few risings.”
“ Sure thing, big brother.”