Chapter 23

82 Geminorum System
GNS Challenger Seven
02/24/42 NR 2550 Hours

Luisa opened her eyes, and tried to focus. Everything was black outside her faceplate, and she fought down her atavistic panic. She could hear herself panting, and she schooled herself to slow down before she ran out of air. A faint light drew her attention, and she turned toward it. Something prevented her from moving, and she brought her right hand up to her chest. Her seat harness was still attached, and she found the emergency release and pushed it firmly.

She drifted free of the seat, and immediately bumped against something solid. Planting her good hand, she turned her entire body toward the light source. She was on the flag bridge deck, or at least what was left of it. A few emergency lights glowed from the remains of the bulkheads, while debris drifted everywhere around her. She fumbled for the light mounted on her chest pack, and turned it on. The light cast stark shadows, and a quick check of her environmental display confirmed the compartment was open to space.

Pulling herself upright, Luisa looked around for Aaron, cursing her immobilized shoulder. The command chair had been ripped from the deck, and she tracked her light around the compartment. Her light settled on a motionless form drifting in the center of the compartment, and she pushed off toward it. Reaching it, she turned the person over. The tactical officer had probably never even known what hit him; his helmet had shattered, and the entire front of his body was a mass of torn and burnt flesh. Luisa pushed away with a cry, sending both of them in opposite directions.

An emergency locker door appeared in her light beam, and Luisa made her way toward it and opened it. She extracted an aid kit, and a collapsible pole that would allow her to more easily and safely maneuver in the microgravity of the wrecked ship. She could push off, use the grabbers at each end to pull herself along, and rotate the pole to spin her body in the opposite direction.

She moved around the airless compartment, checking each person in turn. Of the dozen people on the flag bridge besides herself and Aaron, Luisa found four survivors, three ratings and the assistant tactical officer. They were all wounded, and Luisa applied the emergency aid packs from the aid kit to each of them. Each of the aid packs contained nanites – tiny machines that, when injected, helped stop bleeding and reduce the effects of shock. The packs also injected medications, and incorporated blood pressure and other medical sensors.

Luisa gathered the survivors and lashed them in a group using their emergency straps so they would not float away. When the last of them was secure, she swept her light around the compartment again, her heart sinking as she saw no sign of Aaron. A movement caught her eye, and she focused her light on it. A pile of debris began to drift apart, revealing another suited figure. Luisa pushed off with the stick, floating across the compartment. She braked against the opposite bulkhead, and turned the light on the person again.

Aaron looked back at her from behind a badly cracked faceplate. The front of his shipsuit was scorched, but she didn’t see any tears in it. She leaned close to him and carefully pressed her faceplate against his. “Are you okay?”

“I used up all my sealant on this helmet, but I think I’m okay. You?”

“My damn arm is still useless. I’m okay otherwise.” She sighed. “You scared me to death.”

“I’ll try to not do that in the future. How is everyone else?”