She was walking again. Walking in the same place. Yet, this time, it was different. This time, she wasn't knee high in junk metal. This time, she was walking, barefoot, amongst debris, both human and machine alike. As if just noticing this, Scout gasped and brought her foot up off what looked to be a human skull, and fell backward. At this point, everything seemed to be going in slow motion. The still air around her whispered taunting words as she landed on her backside.
Sitting up and rubbing the small of her back, Scout noticed she was naked. She gasped in surprised and reached up quickly to cover her lissome frame. Her eyes darted back and forth, before she was certain there was no others behind her. Feeling slightly more at ease, she stood, and for the first time, she looked full on ahead of her.
What she saw took her breath away more than seeing a skull ever could.
There, in the vast lifeless plain in front of her, Scout gazed upon something she didn't quite comprehend. In the distance stood countless numbers of grey pillars, all adorned with thousands upon thousands of red, glowing pods. Curiousity got the better of her for the first time in too long, and she ventured forward.
Reaching one of the closer pillars, the young woman climbed the ladder-like rungs until she reached the closest caccoon-like pod. Then, sitting against the step jutting out of the pillar, she looked down through the translucent red skin.
Another gasp escaped her lips as she peered in onto the small child the pod contained. iNo.../i Scout reached out and laid her hand against the warm womb-like caccoon. She felt a tear fall down her cheek as she watched the still girl inside, and the wires that came from her head, torso, and back.
Suddenly, instinct kicked in, and she knew she needed to get the girl out of there, as if she had some connection with her. She began beating on the outside, trying to find a hole of some sort. Becoming frustrated and frantic, Scout yelled for help. What met her instead, were horrifying red eyes. So many eyes...
After that, everything felt as if it was in slow motion. Her body was being carried through the air, and suddenly, a long drop into a similar pod. Thrashing and calling out for help the entire time, Scout fought to escape her sealed gelatinous cell.
And finally, she woke up.
Scout jolted from her pillow, panting as a thin layer of perspiration glistened in the moonlight that spilled in from the window. Gasping for breath for a few moments, Scout reached out and grabbed the bedknob closest to her, using it to get up.
Walking into her bathroom, she splashed her face with cold water from the tap that she had turned on. iThis is nuts, /i she thought, hands flat against the surface of the counter on either side of the sink. Drying her face with the towel next to the sink, Scout took a long look at her tired visage in the has to stop./i
- - - - -
"Captain -- sentinels, trailing us," called the operator from his seat in from of the glowing green monitors.
"E.T.A.?"
"2 minutes, give or take."
"Shit." Grabbing the mic, she yelled into it, "ANYONE WHO CAN HEAR MY VOICE NEEDS TO TAKE A TURRET." The female jogged past the operator and plopped into the pilot's seat, turning to face the controls.
"Evasion, Cy?" The man called again, as three groggy looking crew members headed to the available guns.
"Not on your life, Ray." With a slight smile, she turned back to the console, gripping the flightcontrols coming up from the floor. "Okay, Hold onto something. If we're going to face them, we'll face them head on." With that, Cy brought the ship around in a backflip, before flipping them back upside.
"Lord almightly, Cap'n. Tryin' to kill us?" The Aussie behind the screen shouted. once finding his bearings was possible.
She grinned to herself and started on toward where the machines were advancing.
"Here they come," said the man at the second turret, hands slightly sweaty on the handles controlling the gun. He had only been there a few months, as was visible from his lack of hair and hesitant disposition.
"Settle down, Sparky," replied Jasper, the wise ass that stood in the station next to him, eyes glued on the holographic projections in front of her, seeing the slight glint of red light. "Don't piss your pants again."
Ignoring the ever sarcastic, ever boistrous co-pilot, Sparky continued to stay as alert as a man with 3 hours of sleep could.
The engineer, who manned the last turrest squinted at his screen. "I swear I just saw one. I don't see -- AH GOD," he yelled, as one of the metal beasts, from seemingly nowhere, thrusted a steely tenticle through the metal outer wall near the turret he was in. Nearly falling back, he took hold again and aimed at the machine, trying to gain access to the inside, and with a few shots that nearly took off some of the ship's panelling, the machine fell from the side of the vessel.
"That was entirely too close..." he said, trailing off.
"One down, nine to go, Sparky," Jasper replied, shooting one that was coming for her gun. "Make that two. Hah. Little bastard."
"Another one coming up to your right, Jas," Ray called.
"Got 'em. Woo hoo! You owe me a drink it I get more than five, Cap'n." Jasper grinned to herself and mercilessly shot down more than her share of the over-sized piles of hardware, stopping only once to reload.
"Holy shit, Jasper," Sparky commented, once the fight was over. "Remind me never to get you angry."
Grinning in triumph, the weapon maintenance guru cracked her knuckles. "Looks like you owe me that drink, Cy."