Chapter 6
Haley
I uselessly swipe at my eyes in an attempt to clear my vision. Small black spots swim in front of me and a harsh ringing in my ears drowns out everything else. I swallow with a gulp as the sudden urge to vomit rises in my throat and I fight to keep from losing the meager contents of my stomach. Taking deep breaths through my nose, the nausea slowly recedes until all that’s left is a bitter taste in my mouth.
Quickly taking stock of my injuries, I realize that I’m lucky. Other than my body aching all over from being thrown about like a bull rider, the bleeding gash on my head, and a swollen ankle, I seem to be relatively unscathed.
I can’t believe it, I’m actually alive. I feel like pinching myself.
As the ringing in my ears slowly recedes, the clamor and groans of the others becomes audible. Someone is crying out in pain in great gulping sobs and another is pleading for help. I try to rise, but a wave of dizziness sends me crashing back to the floor and I fight against the darkness calling my name. It would be so easy to allow it to consume me, to just give in and sink down into the unconsciousness that awaits. The sweet oblivion of being able to escape from everything, even if for a little while.
I take a few deep breaths and then brace myself to try again. On my hands and knees, I slowly crawl out of the bathroom and into utter chaos.
The ship sits at a slight angle with one end buried in the ground. A hole of jagged metal in the ceiling spills a stream of sunlight into the room bathing the center of the cargo bay in a golden glow. Jagged bits of metal and vegetation are tossed everywhere on the floor.
My heart jumps into my throat when I notice that my cell door stands ajar with a narrow opening that looks just big enough for me to squeeze through. I immediately crawl to it and use the bars to slowly pull myself up. My head spins for a couple of minutes until everything settles.
Turning sideways and easing my way through the opening, I gaze down the line of other cells. Emily lies still on the floor of her cell, her skin drained of all color. For a split second, I freeze, terrified that she’s dead, but then I notice the slow rise and fall of her chest.
She’s alive. I gasp in relief and quickly make my way to her and pull on the door. Nothing happens.
My heart sinks. Damn. I had hoped the crash had damaged her door, too, and I’d be able to easily open it, but no such luck. But that doesn’t mean none of the other cells aren’t damaged. Maybe I can get them open.
Even though she’s unconscious, I call out to Emily and tell her that I’ll be back before I stumble down the line of cells and check on each one’s occupants. It’s slow going, and I realize my body took more of a beating in the crash than I realized. My muscles are sore as if I’ve been run over by a car and my right ankle aches with every step I take. My teeth are clenched tightly to keep from groaning out loud with the pain and a light sweat blankets me.
Everyone is in varying states of injury from minor to more serious, but even worse, none of the other doors open.
Mara and Jayden are dazed with eyes as wide as saucers, but they seem to be fine other than bruises and sore muscles. Maddie has a gash on her head that pours blood and her sister is trying to staunch the bleeding with a piece of torn material, all while murmuring calming words to Maddie who is pale and on the verge of hyperventilating. Blood stains Maddie’s bright hair and covers her shirt.
Aria’s arm hangs at an unnatural angle, and large tears roll down her cheeks from the pain of a dislocated shoulder. Other than some bruises, Crystal seems to be fine, and I’m shocked to see her at the bars that divide their cells calling out soft words of comfort to Aria.
Isabella’s cell is a tumultuous mess, and she’s stuck inside the damaged bathroom. It looks like part of the back wall of her cell was torn away during the crash, and the metal cot became detached, and it now blocks the entrance to the bathroom where Isabella took refuge. I call out to her and she answers back in a weak voice that she’s okay other than what she thinks is a sprained ankle. I reach the end and see that both Rose and Zoe seem to be relatively unscathed other than minor cuts and bruises.
Since I can’t get inside the cells – yet – I need to help in whatever way I can right now.
The doorway to the cargo bay is wide open and through the sunlight spilling inside and the glow of the red emergency lights, I can see that when we were detached from the spaceship, the medic bay came with us.
I rush as quickly as I can next door and search through the cabinets and drawers for anything useful. Expecting them to be stocked full of medical supplies, I’m shocked to find out that there’s not much in them. I grab a stack of white cloths that feel almost like spandex – maybe they’re bandages – and return to the cells and pass a few through the bars to Mara. She quickly presses them against the bleeding wound on Maddie’s head.
“You’re okay. You’re okay. The ship crashed, but you’re safe. We’re all safe.” Mara voice is a soothing whisper as she reassures her sister.
After a few moments, Maddie’s breathing slows down and her eyes lose the confused, fearful look from before. Mara removes the cloth, which has swiftly become saturated with blood, and checks her sister’s head. Amazingly, the bleeding has completely stopped.
I pass the rest of the cloths out to the others and then look around for anything else that might help.
Bits and pieces of debris are scattered all about the floor. Tubes, wires, and pieces of metal that have been torn off from the walls of the vessel. Among the debris is a thin, metal stick. It’s one of the cattle prod things.
I grab it and rush over to Emily’s cell. She still hasn’t stirred, and I’m really worried about her.
Maybe I can use the cattle prod to pry open her cell door. I grunt and wedge the narrow tip of the metal stick into the edge of the cell door. My muscles begin to tremble in exhaustion as I put all my strength against the door. Nothing happens. I try again, and again. And still nothing. A ball of frustration wells up in my throat, and I want to scream in anger.
This is all so unfair. First, we were stolen from our planet, then threatened with being sold into slavery. We crash landed on wherever-the-hell-this-is, and now, I can’t get the damn fucking doors open.
I gaze around the room, looking for anything that might work. If only a crowbar or a set of keys would magically appear. Then, my eyes land on him.
In the far corner, is a gray heap of flesh beneath one of the crumpled metal walls. It’s one of the Zyfeliks, the sub-captain, Zariz.
As I cautiously approach the still form of the alien, an idea begins to form in my mind. Old me would have been horrified by what I’m considering, but new, post-abduction me is only slightly squeamish. I remember how the aliens used biometric data to unlock the cell doors when they took us for the medical scans a couple of days before. It seems as if the power is, at least partially, still working if the emergency lights are any indication. What if the biometric locks still work and I can unlock the doors using the sub-captain?
It’s worth a shot, but first I have to figure out a way to remove the crumpled metal from atop the gray alien.
I study the tangle of metal with the gray alien’s lower body sticking out from it, and try to think of the best way to shift it. Over in the corner laying at the base of one of the crumpled walls is a pipe about the length of my leg. Maybe I can use it as a lever.
It’s not a great plan, but it’s the only thing I can come up with for now. In the background, I can hear the other girls getting antsy and calling out to me, but the pounding pain in my head will only allow me to concentrate on one thing at a time. I don’t have the stamina to tackle this and reassure them, and time is of the essence, ticking away silently along with each beat of my heart.
Easing over to the pipe, I pick it up and drag it over to the dead gray alien. Hefting the pipe up, I place it under the edge of the crumpled metal and push down as hard as I can. But nothing happens.
I try again, grunting with the effort and the metal obscuring the alien begins to rise by mere inches. Sweat beads up on my forehead. So close, just a little more. Gathering every ounce of strength and determination inside me, I cry out as I push down on the pipe. This has to work.
My eyes sting as sweat trickles into them and my muscles shake with the strain, but inch by precious inch, I manage to slowly lift the metal heaped on top of the still form until it’s high enough that I can quickly shove it aside to uncover him. My knees threaten to buckle under the strain I’ve just put my body through, but there’s more work still to do.
The Zyfelik lies deathly still. His large, bulbous head is at an unnatural angle, the cold black eyes that have haunted my nightmares are closed, and the slit of his mouth is slack revealing a trickling stream of green fluid that I suspect is blood. Small sharp teeth glint between his lips, sending a shiver down my spine. I know he’s dead, but after my time on board the ship, being this close to one of the aliens who abducted us is not easy.
Dead or alive, I don’t want to be anywhere near any of them, but I muster up my courage and take a deep breath to steady myself. I lean over the dead alien and swiftly undo the restraints that hold his body in place, and then reach down to grab his spindly arms. My plan is to drag him over to the cells and somehow let the biometric lock scan his eye.
The alien who I thought was dead suddenly blinks open his large eyes and I jump back with a yelp. He bares his teeth with a snarl and leans towards me as if he’s going to bite me. For a split second, I’m frozen stiff with fear, then I act quickly and reach for the pipe I only moments ago discarded.
Raising it as high as I can, I bring it down with a resounding crack on top of the alien. I hit him again and again until my arms begin to tire. Until I’m shaking all over and my lungs burn from the exertion. Finally, I stop and look down at the bloody gray alien in front of me – his torso looks like hamburger meat. If that didn’t kill him, nothing will. Over the pounding of my heart, I make out the sound of cheers behind me.
“Woohoo!”
“Holy shit! You’re a total fucking badass!”
Shit, I just killed a person.
Not a person, an alien. A human trafficking alien who stole me and my friends and was going to sell us. He deserved it. Even still, my stomach churns with the urge to vomit and the sour taste of bile burns my throat. I wipe the back of my hand across my mouth and take a shuddering breath.
I reach out and grab the now definitely dead alien by his legs, his damp, rubbery skin making my lip curl in disgust. Pulling him out of the seat, I drag his body over to Emily’s cell, grunting as I do. He’s not as heavy as I thought he would be, but I’m weak from days without proper nutrition and it’s slow going as I move across the slanting, debris-strewn floor.
I reach Emily’s cell and hold the alien’s head in front of the biometric scanner. Wrapping one arm around the slight body I use my free hand to lift his eyelid and expose one of his eyes. The small metal box emits a tiny red light before I hear the click of the cell door.
I drop the alien to the floor in a crumpled heap and test out the door. When it easily swings open, I release the breath I’d been holding in a big sigh. It worked.
Over the next several minutes, I drag the alien’s body down the line of cells to unlock the other doors and release my friends. As soon as I get Crystal’s door open, she shuffles out and immediately heads to Aria’s cell. Moments later, I hear some murmured words followed by a loud cry of pain.
They both emerge from the cell with Aria cradling her arm against her torso, and I look at Crystal in shock and stutter, “Did you just. . .?”
She responds with a shrug and a cryptic answer. “Something I picked up from another life.”
Crystal heads to where Isabella is still stuck in her bathroom, and she gestures for Jayden to follow her to help. I move back to Emily and hunker down beside her, along with Rose and Mara. I have no clue what to do to help her.
The only first aid I know is from tv, and I doubt that will do any of us any good. If only we could just call up 911 for help, but we’re on own here. I really hope Crystal knows more first aid than just how to pop a dislocated shoulder back in.
In the distance, I can hear grunts as they work to free Isabella from her bathroom prison. The screech of metal sounds loud in the quiet of the crashed ship as they finally free her.
Emily still hasn’t regained consciousness, and when I check her pulse, it feels weak. Her skin has an almost gray tint to it, now, and I keep expecting her to take her last breath. But her chest continues to rise and fall. True, it’s almost imperceptible, but at least she’s still breathing.
Together, Mara and I gently check Emily over and that’s when we realize the black shirt she’s wearing is saturated with blood. I glance up at the cut on her head, but it’s already stopped bleeding so that can’t be the source of all the blood. Then, I notice a small tear in the fabric of her shirt right where her shoulder meets her neck. I rip the fabric to make the hole bigger so that we can see the wound and my breath catches in my throat.
A deep puncture wound is slowly seeping out dark blood.
We look at each other helplessly. Fuck. I breathe out a sharp breath, then I remember the bandages and scramble for them.
“We need to put pressure on it to stop the bleeding,” Rose says, panic making her voice high and thready. I stuff a handful of the bandages in her hands, and she leans over Emily to press them against the deep wound. Mara and I watch silently as the white bandages turn red.
Crystal has settled down beside us, a worried crease between her brows. I look at her and ask, “Please tell me you’re a doctor or something?”
She holds her hands up, shaking her head. “You’ve already seen the extent of my medical knowledge.” Everyone but Jayden and Zoe have joined us in the cell, and I look around at them, hoping that someone, anyone will know what to do. But my heart sinks as they each shake their heads.
Rose looks up from her place, still holding pressure on the wound. “Why don’t we try the med scanner they put us in?” She nods towards the other room.
That’s right. The med scanner might be able to help Emily. I don’t know if it can heal her, but it can’t hurt to try. It’s not like we have any other options at this point.
“I’ll check and make sure it still works.” Isabella picks her way to the medic bay and quickly returns with assurances that the scanner seems to be undamaged and operational.
We debate moving Emily – what if we do more damage jostling her around, but we quickly decide it’s more important to get her to the scanner. Crystal scrounges up a metal door that was previously attached to a small utility closet - the door detached during the crash and was flung across the room.
We use the door as a stretcher of sorts and carefully ease Emily onto it with Rose keeping pressure on the wound. The bleeding has finally slowed to a trickle, but Emily’s skin is so gray, she looks near death. Mara, Rose, Crystal, and I slowly shuffle with her towards the medic bay and the scanner that I hope will be able to heal her. Reaching the scanner, there’s a moment of confusion as we try to figure out how to open it. Isabella joins us and closely studies the screen next to it.
“Fingers crossed this will work.” She taps an icon that looks like a horizontal bar. The scanner beeps and begins to whir as the door slowly rises open. A table just big enough to hold a person takes up the center of the device, and we gently easy Emily down on it and take a step back.
Emily’s still figure disappears from view as the door closes around her and the same disembodied robotic voice that I remember from my own time in the scanner calls out, “Medic scan commencing.”
Tense seconds tick by as we wait for the device to finish its job. The small room feels like it’s closing in on me, and the low hum of the scanner only makes it worse. When it does, I don’t know whether to smile or cry. “Scan complete. Subject exhibits a severe shoulder laceration with associated hemorrhagic hypovolemia. Approximately 10% total blood volume loss. Additionally, subject presents with a mild traumatic brain injury. Initiating appropriate emergency treatment protocol.”
A loud whining sound fills the room, and we wait in nervous anticipation. I look around at the others. Rose is pale, her eyes wide with fear. Crystal is biting her lip, a look of worry mixed with determination on her face. Even Aria is quiet, her cheerful demeanor cowed by the strain. No one speaks, but I know we’re all thinking the same thing. What if the medic scanner doesn’t heal Emily, and instead hurts her even more? Fuck, what if she dies?
I’ve only known the others for a short time, but the thought of losing any of them leaves a hollow ache in my chest. We’ve come this far together, and we’re going to make it. We have to.
Minutes slowly tick by as we huddle together, anxiously watching the scanner to see what will happen. Suddenly, a loud beep breaks the tension and the robotic voice announces, “Emergency procedure to halt blood loss completed.”
The door to the medic scanner slowly opens to reveal Emily lying still on the table inside. Her skin isn’t quite as deathly pale and the worrisome gray tint has faded. Her chest rises and falls slowly in a steady rhythm, accompanied by a light rumbling sound that I quickly realize is a snore. I can feel the worry and fear that had fallen over our group dissipate as it becomes clear that Emily is just sleeping.
Aria, standing nearby and cradling her arm, asks, “So, what do we do now?” She turns to me, and with dawning horror, I realize they’re all looking at me expectantly. Shit. Like I know what to do or something. Like I’m their leader or something.
Insecurity settles in my stomach like a lead weight. I don’t know how to be a leader. I’m just a chubby administrative employee for a charity, not a leader. But these women, my friends, are all looking at me so hopefully and I don’t want to disappoint them.
I clear my throat and try to make my voice sound confident, but on the inside, I’m a mess of self-doubt. “Food, water, and shelter are most important right now.” I nod to the room we’re in. “We have shelter, even if it’s not in the best shape. That leaves food and water. I think we should search the ship to see if we can find anything useful.” I gesture at the cabinets along one wall of the medic bay and to the open door that leads back into the cargo bay.
I’m honestly just making things up as I go and saying whatever makes the most sense to me, but it must be a decent plan because no one disagrees with it.
Crystal smirks and claps her hands. “You heard the lady. Let’s get moving.”
Rose agrees to stay behind and keep an eye on Emily with Zoe staying with her while the rest of us get busy foraging through the two rooms in search of anything we can find that might help us.
When I enter the cargo bay, I reluctantly glance over to where the bloody body of the Sub-Captain should be, only to see a large puddle of congealing gray goop. Well, that’s one less problem to worry about, I guess. I didn’t really relish the thought of sharing quarters with the dead body of someone I killed, even if they did abduct me.
We spend the next hour searching the ship high and low.
When the search is finished, we meet back in the medic bay with our finds. We pile our meager rations in the center of the medic bay and my stomach clenches with how small the pile is. It is a depressing reminder that the odds are stacked against us.
We found a container of the thin porridge, the fishy protein bars, a lot more of the spandex bandages, a large cannister of clear gel, a metal box of tiny black discs that I think may be the translators that were inserted inside us, and that’s it. Not a very impressive haul.
I pick up the large cannister of clear gel and open it. It has a harsh medicinal smell that makes my eyes water.
When the others hesitate, I decide to go first and apply a small amount on the wound on my forehead. There is an immediate warming sensation as soon as it touches my skin followed by a tingling that spreads through my head. The sharp headache and dizziness I had been fighting against fades away to a dull throb and I look down at the gel in shock. The others quickly follow suit and dab the gel on their wounds.
After applying some of the gel to Aria’s arm, Mara and Crystal use bandages to fashion a sling to hold her arm steady. She’s been a real trooper, not complaining at all, even though I know she’s in pain.
We also discovered a sink in the medic bay that emits a thin, minuscule trickle of water, which is fortunate since most of the sinks in the bathrooms in our cells have stopped working. Isabella thinks the water probably comes from a holding tank somewhere on the ship. We don’t how much water is in the tank, but for now, I’m grateful for it.
But it won’t last forever, and we’ll have to find more water sooner rather later. Having a reliable source of water is the biggest problem we need to address.
That means we’re going to have to venture outside to the planet we’ve crashed onto, and that is something I’m not looking forward to. No one could ever accuse me of being adventurous. No thank you, I like my air conditioned and my bathrooms inside. Unfortunately, I have a feeling I’m not going to find any air conditioners or normal bathrooms anytime soon.
“Well, it could be worse.” Aria states, her voice still bright despite the circumstances.
Crystal arches a well-manicured brow at her in disbelief. “How exactly?”
“We could have found nothing and crashed on a planet without oxygen.” Aria shrugs, then hisses in pain at the movement.
It’s only once Aria mentions it that I realize the air pouring in through the many cracks in the ship’s walls is fresh with a heady aroma that smells like room spray from a high-priced boutique. I take a deep breath, filling my lungs, and it almost feels as if I can breathe easier here than on Earth.
At least, we don’t have to worry about suffocating to death. I turn my attention back to the minuscule amount of supplies we have to survive on and try to quickly calculate how long the food will last before we’re forced to venture out to find more.
A loud, distant noise that sounds almost like a roar brings my thoughts to a grinding halt.
“Crap on a cracker, what was that?” Jayden whispers, her brown eyes rounded in shock.
“The part where it gets worse,” Crystal answers, her voice flat with resignation.
Someone shushes her as we all listen, tension crackling through us as we wait for more roars. But nothing happens and everything is so quiet and still we could hear a mouse fart. You know, if there are any mice on this planet.
“Maybe it was the wind or something.” Rose shoots a look at me before nodding towards Zoe who is clinging to her arm with her eyes wide with fright.
“Yeah, it was totally the wind. Nothing to worry about.” I say, a false thread of cheer in my voice.
We all exchange looks, and a couple of the other girls speak up, agreeing with me, and both Zoe and Jayden visibly relax. My heart aches for them. I’m an adult, and I’ve had a hard enough time dealing with everything that’s happened. We all feel protective towards the two youngest members of our group. They’ve become like our little sisters.
And who knows, maybe the wind on this planet sounds like it could be at home in Jurassic Park. Maybe that’s just how it sounds. And maybe I’ll wake up in my bed and this will all have been a dream. A very weird, realistic dream. Yeah, I’m not going to hold my breath on that.
“So, what are we going to do, now?” Maddie changes the subject and speaks up from where she’s sitting on the floor leaning against the base of the scanner.
“We’re going to have to venture outside eventually. This stuff will only last us so long.” Rose points to the bundle of supplies. “Maybe a couple of us can go take a look around and see if they can find food or water.”
“Or a friendly alien to help us.” Jayden adds hopefully.
“Maybe.” I agree, even though I’d rather not have to deal with anymore aliens. “Did anyone else hear the robot voice right before we crashed?” A few of the others nod. “It called this planet XB13, and said that it’s habitable.”
Maddie lets out a sigh of relief. “So, there should be water and plants and animals we can eat. We just have to go out and find them.”
“What I don’t understand is why did the gray guys dump us?” Isabella asks, a puzzled look on her face. “I thought we were worth a lot of money. Why would they just ditch us if we’re that valuable?”
“Maybe we’re not as valuable as we thought.” Crystal chimes in with a shrug.
Discussion breaks out around me and I try to ignore it. The one thing no one has mentioned is trying to get back home to Earth, and I think we all know that it’s an impossibility at this point. Wherever we are, we’re stuck here.
Mara, standing beside me, speaks up, “I think I know why.” Her words are drowned out by the noise of the others, so I let out a shrill whistle and everyone quiets down, and I gesture for Mara to continue.
“Zaez said that humans are valuable, but that we’re illegal. He said the Alliance Force was chasing the spaceship. That sounds like law enforcement, right?” She looks around at us before continuing, “Something was shooting at the ship before they dumped us. Maybe the Zyfeliks didn’t want to be caught with us in their possession.”
Maddie furrows her brow. “So, we’re the drugs and they basically flushed us down the toilet before the cops could bust them.”
Mara makes a face at Maddie’s analogy but nods. “Exactly.” Her next words send my pulse racing. “And if the Zyfeliks managed to escape the Alliance Force, they could come back looking for us.”