Chapter 18: The End of the Beginning

“I can’t believe we’re actually here,” Marketa says, her voice a squeal of excitement. Her finger traced across the glass. “Look, Veronika, a shooting star!”

“Asteroid,” Veronika corrects, but her smile is wide, eyes glued to the view.

Behind them, Pavlina stood close to Anya trying to stitch up the wound on her leg. Their expressions reflect each other’s; wonder mingled with caution.

“We are far enough to avoid detection for now,” Avila murmured. “We should be safe.”

Anya heard the tone of Avila’s voice and knew something was up. Marketa giggled as she and Veronika took in the sights, oblivious to Anya’s anxious frown.

Aeden’s fingers moved hesitantly over the array of buttons and levers, his brow knit tightly as he focused on the task at hand. The dim glow of the cockpit’s control panel illuminated his concentrated expression. Avila had raced him through a whirlwind tutorial on piloting the Eclipse back when they first climbed aboard, but every maneuver felt like a test he wasn’t quite ready for. His movements were slow and deliberate, a mix of his uncertainty and determination. Avila sat next to him in her co-pilot’s seat, her eyes never straying far from Aeden’s actions. She frequently leaned in, offering guidance and gentle corrections. Being patient in this manner was not her strong suit, but she did the best she could.

“Everyone okay?” Aeden asked as he turned his head to see what everyone was up to.

“Better than okay,” Marketa said, throwing an arm around Veronika. “This is some pretty cool stuff!”

The Eclipse surged forward as it left Earth behind, and with it, the smoking ruins of the battle.

Veronika knew what Aeden was thinking about, “What if they follow?” Her words were soft and hesitant as she gazed towards Avila looking for an answer.

Avila hesitated, caught between reassurance and truth. “We’ll be ready” she lied. In her mind, she knew a space battle at this point would be a death sentence. She was the only one on board who knew what to do and it takes more than one person to effectively engage in combat on a spaceship this size.

“We’re not safe yet,” Anya said, cutting through the moment. Her arms were crossed, as she stared out the window almost expecting to see their pursuers at any second.

“Why so serious?” Marketa teases, tugging at Anya’s sleeve. “Enjoy it. We’re in space!”

“Yes,” Anya says, “They’ve found us no matter where we’ve been. One would have to assume it won’t take long to find us again. It’s not like there are a bunch of spaceships flying around out here to blend in with.”

Despite Anya’s ominous mood, Veronika couldn’t help but giggle. Even Anya couldn’t hide the flicker of satisfaction as they watch Earth recede into nothing. “I guess they’ll have to look a lot harder for us out here,” Anya said.

Marketa nudged Veronika. “Imagine the view from Alnilam!”

“If we get there,” Veronika shot back, though the wonder hadn’t left her eyes. “Are you scared?”

Marketa paused, pretending to think. “Nah,” she said with a dramatic wave of her hand.

“Big Bro will protect us,” Veronika said with a teasing voice as she looked at Aeden.

It had been a long since Aeden had heard her call him that. Their eyes met and something unsaid passed between them. “Don’t worry. We’ll be fine,” he assured them trying to convince himself as much as them. “We have Avila and Anya to keep us safe. If I were Saug, I wouldn’t want to have those two coming after me.”

The girls drifted closer, crowding around the command console, their eyes flicking between Aeden and the controls. The ship’s low hum matched the intensity of their silent questions.

“Where are we headed?” Pavlina asked Avila with a more serious tone.

Avila looked up from her console, the asteroid belt. We’ll hide in there to replace a few parts and get more familiar with the ship.”

“How soon until we get there?” Pavlina asks, the faintest tremor in her voice.

“A few more hours,” Avila replied. “Once we power down the main engines, we should be undetectable from any normal search.” Aeden glanced at her, appreciating her forced calmness.

Aeden pulled Pavlina aside, a quiet word before returning to the controls. “What’s up with Marketa and Veronika? They’re acting different.”

Pavlina shrugged her shoulders, “They were treated pretty rough when they were captured. It might take a while for them to get back to normal.

Pavlina gazed up into Aedens eyes for a moment and gave him a gentle kiss. “Whatever happens, we stick together, right?”

Aeden gave her a quick squeeze of reassurance and turned back to his console.

A warning tone caused everyone to jump. A red light started blinking on both Aeden’s and Avila’s consoles. Aeden’s chest tightened as he fought the panic trying to overwhelm him. Avila’s fingers danced around the console and she was able to silence the audible alarm almost immediately.

“A pod of some kind is out there,” she said with disbelief in her voice.

“Another attacker?” Veronika asked.

“Are they after us?” Marketa asked. Her mood immediately changed from happy to anxious and her eyes darted to the window as if expecting to see explosions.

“Not yet.” Aeden’s voice was calm, but his heart was hammering away in his chest. “It’s not what you think. At least I hope it’s not.”

“What is it, then?” Anya demanded, already limping towards the console.

“I’m not sure,” Avila replied with her eyes still locked on her instruments. It appears to be one of the missing pods from this ship!

Their eyes widened.

“Not possible,” Pavlina whispers, barely audible over the noise.

Avila flicked another switch and the alarms turned off causing the silence to become deafening.

“Why would there be a pod out here?” Marketa asks, her voice shaky with disbelief.

“It seems to be drifting. No power output detected.” Avila looked up at Aeden, do you want to recover it?”

It took Aeden longer than he expected to make a decision. “Yes, if it belongs to this ship, it needs to be here. I can’t imagine what it was doing out here by itself,” he said, his forcefulness sparking confidence in the others.

“What if it’s damaged?” Pavlina asked while looking over Aeden’s shoulders.

“It will be,” Aeden says. “But we’ll figure it out.”

“How long has it been floating?” Marketa asked.

No one answered, but they all wondered. Anya’s eyes remained fixed on the display, her curiosity both a driving force and a source of unease. The mystery fed her curiosity, resulting in a lot of unasked questions. She was in a new environment and unfamiliarity was a weakness that could be easily exploited. It made her feel vulnerable.

Avila talked Aeden through the steps to begin the initial recovery and then took over to handle the final docking maneuver. Since the pod being recovered was without power, it was a little more complicated.

“This is incredible!” Marketa exclaimed, her voice trembling with excitement as she watched the gap between the two spaceships narrow with breathtaking speed.

A resonant thud echoed through the vessel, accompanied by a shiver that raced along the floor as the ship successfully docked. “What now?” Pavlina asked, her voice tinged with a mix of anticipation and nerves.

“We open it,” Avila said, rising swiftly to her feet.

Aeden stood, his eyes fixed intently through the observation window, a sensation both cold and terrible coiling tightly in his chest. It was a feeling that gnawed at him, unrelenting and ominous.

He knew.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Aeden was already in motion. “I’m going in there,” he declared.

“Not alone,” Avila called after him, her voice a mix of urgency and concern, but he had already disappeared from sight.

Aeden approached the docking station and looked out the viewport. The ship looked exactly like the one they escaped Roswell in and was in pristine condition other than some scorch marks along the side which appeared to be battle damage to her untrained eye.

“You shouldn’t be here alone,” Avila appeared at his shoulder with Anya behind her, weapons drawn. “Standard procedure—”

“I don’t care about the standard procedure, open it now,” Aeden demanded with an authority he hadn’t yet used.

Avila hesitated, then holstered her weapon. “Step back.”

She placed her palm against a panel that Aeden hadn’t even noticed. The docking bay responded instantly, a seam appearing along its side. The door slid open with a soft sigh.

Cold air rushed out. The smell of preservatives. Of death.

Aeden brushed past Avila before she could stop him. Inside, the shuttle was sparse and functional. Two pilot seats faced a darkened control panel, and behind them...

Two bodies.

His father’s broad shoulders were unmistakable, even from behind. His mother’s delicate hand still rested on the navigation panel, her fingers curled slightly as if she might at any moment resume plotting a course.

“No.” The word escaped him, barely audible.

Avila moved forward pushing him to the side to check for vital signs with practiced efficiency. Her face revealed nothing. “I can’t tell how long they’ve been dead, but there are no signs of violence. They died in peace, if you want to call it that. Personally, I’d rather die in battle than be trapped in a disabled ship.”