Reemer brought his fighter to a stop
on the runway. Behind him, the Omega's launch bay hatch closed and
environmental controls restored air pressure throughout the landing
bay. He opened the cockpit to his fighter and looked over his shoulder
at his fallen friend.
Reemer reached over the seat and picked up the
backpack in Comet's lap. He slung the pack over his shoulder and
climbed down a metal ladder to the launch deck. He placed the pack on
the ground and opened it. He took the small transport case from the
pack and slowly walked away. A very unhealthy looking deck officer
approached the Deputy-Captain.
"Welcome back Sir. We'll take care of your ship."
Reemer painfully looked back at his plane and then
into his hands. The small case containing the one vial of antidote from
the Galman flagship was a constant reminder of the mission that took
his friend's life. Tears began to swell in his eyes but he held them
back.
"Forget the plane, Sergeant. Make sure the man
inside it is taken care of properly. If I hear he has been disrespected
in any way, I'll make sure you never work in the Earth Defense
Organization again."
Reemer never made eye contact with the other man as
he made his way to the elevator.
After a shower and a small bite to eat, Reemer
dejectedly wandered down the hall toward the elevator that would take
him to the bridge. He had broken policy and should have reported
directly to the Captain upon his arrival. But because of the death of
Comet and the minuscule amount of antidote, he did not believe the
Captain would make a big deal of it.
Reemer entered the elevator and was transported to
the bridge. When the doors opened, the smell of burning rubber and the
stench of death was overwhelming. He had to use all of his strength to
keep himself from losing his lunch. He immediately noticed that Captain
Taylor and Jordy were the only two men on the bridge. Jordy was still
at the helm and Captain Taylor was in his command chair. Reemer
approached the Captain and heard Jordy coughing in the background.
"Reemer, I am truly sorry about Comet. He was a good
officer."
"Thank you Captain." Reemer answered solemnly.
"We kept your mission a secret," said Taylor. "We
didn't want to give the crew false hope."
Reemer handed over the container containing the
vaccine. Taylor opened the container and looked at the vial. He noticed
the Galman symbol on the outside of the vial. It was unmistakable. It
was the number three. There were only three shots of antidote; three
shots of the life saving medicine.
An alarm went off at the radar station. Reemer
walked over to where Pudi Abdul Fazi used to sit. Readouts appeared on
the small computer screen followed by star maps and ship icons. The
icons appeared to be getting closer to the Omega's position and they
were coming from two different directions.
"Captain I have good news and bad news," Reemer
reported. "The good news is that I am tracking a small Earth fleet. It
appears to have originated from our Pluto base and is on an intercept
course with the Omega. The bad news is that I am also tracking a Galman
fleet on an intercept course with the Omega. Both fleet's ETA is
approximately one day."
Taylor had many questions that were still unanswered
and the latest news did not help the situation. Were the two fleets
heading toward each other or were they heading toward the Omega? Had
war between the two worlds been declared? Either way, the situation on
the Omega was grim at best.
Nearly eighty percent of the crew were dead and
reports indicated that the other twenty percent would be dead over the
next forty-eight hours. The ship's warp engines had been knocked out
making space travel very limited and the long range communications
equipment had been destroyed. Many of the Omega's attack planes had
been eliminated and the main guns had taken heavy damage. Even the
ship's Takion Wave Cannons were useless.
"Jordy, set the automatic pilot for an intercept
course with the Galman fleet," Taylor ordered. "I want full available
engine power. Once that is complete, I would like to see the both of
you over here right away."
Jordy worked at the controls and the Omega changed
its course heading. After that was done Jordy and Reemer approached the
Captain.
"Gentlemen, our primary goal is to be able to
contact the Earth fleet as soon as possible but with our communications
equipment down, that leaves us few options. The Earth needs to know
what has happened to us and that the Galmans are on their way to Earth.
But according to the latest radar information the Galmans will
intercept us before the Earth fleet. I want you to each take a fighter
and take the antidote back to the Earth fleet. We need to be able to
replicate it in case the Galmans attack our planet. I will remain on
the Omega and with what's left of the crew, I will fight the Galmans.
But first, I am ordering you two to each take a shot of the antidote."
Reemer was outraged. He could not believe what he
had just heard. He had admired his commanding officer for years and now
he was being ordered to leave him behind as a delaying tactic.
"No way Captain!" Reemer said. "If you stay and
fight the Galmans you are signing your own death warrant!"
Jordy agreed. "I am with Reemer on this one Captain.
We won't take this antidote unless you do!"
"You two need to understand something. I do not want
the antidote wasted on me! If war breaks out with the Galman Empire we
need to be prepared. We need to have every defense at our disposal and
that includes getting this antidote back to Earth."
"Why us Captain?" Jordy asked. "Why not two other
crewmen?"
"You are the healthiest people on board," Taylor
answered. "I am not sure if it is just luck or the fact that we were
pretty far from the initial spread of the disease but whichever the
case, you are our only chance."
Captain Taylor got up from his chair, picked up the
vial of antidote and walked over to an emergency medical closet. He
opened it and removed two syringes and then walked back to his two
officers. He placed one syringe on his work station and took the other
and pushed the needle into the top of the vial. The needle passed
through a translucent membrane and into the antidote liquid. With a
draw back of his hand, the antidote filled the syringe. Taylor withdrew
the syringe from the vial and walked over to his first officer.
Reemer rolled up the sleeve of his uniform and made
a fist. He put his arm across the work station and stared directly into
the Captain's eyes. It was a look of anger and sorrow. Taylor picked up
Reemer's arm and inserted the needle into a vein. As Taylor slowly
pushed the syringe and the liquid emptied into the Deputy Captain's
arm, Reemer began to shake violently. Approximately thirty seconds
later he started to settle down.
After waiting a few moments to see if Reemer would
be okay, Taylor followed the same procedure on the Omega's Chief
Navigator. Jordy also shook violently at first but after a moment he
too began to calm down.
"Now I want you two to try and get a decent night's
sleep. I want you take off at oh eight hundred hours tomorrow. Fly fast
and above all else, get the antidote and our message to the Earth fleet
as quickly as possible."
Tears began to swell in the boys' eyes. They had
been given a gift of life but they weren't feeling all that lucky. They
felt like they had let the rest of their crew down.
Reemer saluted his Captain but Taylor grabbed him
and gave him a warm but strong hug in return. The embrace made Reemer
feel worse and he began to cry. The tears ran down his cheeks like warm
summer rain.
The Captain released Reemer and then embraced Jordy.
Jordy also began to cry. After a brief moment the Captain released
Jordy and the older man handed the vial of antidote to him and then
took two steps back.
"Remember, make your families and your planet Earth
proud of you."
Reemer tugged on Jordy's shirt and the two men
walked to the elevator. The bridge's elevator door slid open and they
stepped through the opening.
"Give 'em a good fight Captain." Reemer said as the
doors slammed shut.
As the boys approached their living quarters they
noticed that the hallways were all dark. The lights had been turned off
to reserve energy. Off in the distance they heard coughing and sneezing
and the sounds echoed off the metal walls. They passed a dead crew
member in the hall. The young man, no older than twenty, was face down.
His head rested in a puddle of green phlegm.
Further down the hallway, they came to an
observation deck. The room's lights were out but Jordy saw a mass
sitting in the far corner of the room. The shadows on the walls did not
appear right so Jordy decided to step inside to check it out. He
activated the lights and was startled to find a crewman missing his
entire face. His laser gun was still smoldering in his hand. The
shadows on the walls were the remains of the man's head.
Reemer turned off the lights and both men left the
room. They finally reached their quarters without incident or another
gruesome discovery but they both had a very hard time falling asleep.
If only they had an antidote for the hurt and the guilt that inhabited
their souls.