Chapter 3- The Accident in Space
Victor's space station was incredible! Lisa had seen reports about it while her uncle watched the news. It was like a big filling station in the sky!
Uncle Reed and Lisa stopped to look out a viewport at the Earth, while Uncle Ben, Johnny and Victor walked along. Lisa heard Uncle Ben mutter something to Johnny about how Johnny was teasing him. "Long way from the projection booth at the Hayman Planetarium, isn't it?" Sue asked smiling. Uncle Reed had taken Lisa to the Hayman Planetarium a couple of times since Lisa had come to live with him so she knew what Sue was talking about.
"Yes. Yes it is," Uncle Reed said. Sue turned to face them, looking down at Lisa.
"Lisa, you will be bunking with me. I'll show you where to stow your stuff," Sue changing the subject.
"Thank you, but I'd rather sleep by myself if you don't mind," Lisa said, following Sue down the corridor. She looked back at her uncle. He was looking outside again, apparently not realizing that she had problems with sharing a room.
"Why?" Sue wanted to know.
"Look, don't tell Uncle Reed. When my father used to drink he'd hit me with a belt. It left bruises and scars that never healed on me. Uncle Reed knows that my father hit me. He doesn't know that I still have the injuries. I couldn't bring myself to tell him. He's mad enough at my dad without my telling him that. That's why I didn't want to share a room. If you see them you might tell him," Lisa said, putting her bag down on the camp cot that had been provided for her.
"All right. If you don't want me to tell your uncle I won't. But I think you should. Your father's been dead for two years. How long will you let him torture you this way? Reed loves you. He'd understand about this," Sue said, a compassionate look on her face.
"Thank you. I knew I liked you," Lisa said, changing the subject.
"You're welcome. Would you like to come to the bridge with me so you can see what we're doing?" Sue asked as Lisa followed her out the door.
"I'd like to, but Uncle Reed said I had to entertain myself," Lisa protested.
"I'll tell your uncle and Victor that I said you could watch what we do," Sue said as the door to the bridge opened and Uncle Reed, Victor, and Ben watched as they entered.
"So, what's this place for, Sue?" Lisa asked her brown eyes on a piece of machinery that was like one of the ones in her uncle's lab.
"We can monitor the cloud's approach and observe the tests from her," Sue said, as they walked around the bridge.
"Is it safe?" Uncle Ben asked, adjusting the collar of his jacket.
"The shields on the space station should protect us," Uncle Reed said, wrapping his arm around Lisa's shoulders and looking around.
"Should?" Uncle Ben asked skeptically.
"What's the matter, Ben? Getting paranoid in your old age?" Victor asked in a teasing tone.
"Let's start loading those samples. Lisa, I think it's time you left," Reed reminded her gently, saving Uncle Ben from answering Victor.
"Okay, Uncle Reed. Oh, Uncle Ben, if the shields don't protect us I'll tell you," Lisa said, swallowing back laughter.
"Uh-huh. Not funny! You're worse than Johnny!" Uncle Ben shot back.
Lisa started to laugh as she walked away. She loved teasing Uncle Ben sometimes. The faces he made were so funny! She walked back to her room, ready to get lost in the history project that was due when she got back to school.
&
30 minutes later a loud siren and airlock sounded in Lisa's ear. She put her book down and ran towards the lab her uncle used. Sue had pointed it out as they had gone to the bridge and Lisa was glad she remembered where it was. Uncle Reed was watching out a viewport and looked in her direction. "I thought you were reading," Uncle Reed said, hugging her tightly.
"I was until I heard the airlock. So, what's all this, Uncle Reed?" Lisa asked, looking at the plants on a table.
"Just another science project. If you're gonna stay in here with me you might as well sit," Uncle Reed said, picking up his clipboard and writing as he looked at a purplish plant.
"Uncle Reed, do you like Sue?" Lisa asked. Usually Lisa could talk to Uncle Reed while he worked. He was good at answering questions while he was busy working.
"What do you mean?" Uncle Reed asked, his pen scratching away on the paperwork.
"She was looking at you. I think she thinks you're hot!" Lisa said, causing Uncle Reed to look up.
"I don't think she was thinking that. And keep your little nose out of it, Lisa Richards," Uncle Reed said, tweaking her nose gently.
A beep from a console went off, causing Uncle Reed to look at it. His face turned to that of alarm. "That can't be right," Reed said, looking at the screen.
"Uncle Reed, what's wrong?" Lisa asked.
"Event threshold in t-minus 9 minutes 47 seconds," a computer said, answering Lisa's question.
"That's impossible. It should be 7 hours," Reed said typing, a look of fear on his face.
"Uncle Reed, you're scaring me," Lisa said, her voice trembling.
Uncle Reed looked at her, a grim look on his face as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders as they ran to the observation deck. The way it looked Victor had been proposing to Sue, but it was not easy to tell as Uncle Reed and Lisa ran in.
"The cloud's accelerating! We have minutes until it hits. Not hours. Victor, that cloud is deadly. We need to abort," Uncle Reed ordered sharply. Lisa had rarely heard him talk like this. What was coming had to be dangerous if her uncle was freaking out.
"Get a grip, Reed. We didn't come all this way to lose our nerve at the first glitch. Just close the shields," Victor said the voice of calm.
"Ben is still out there," Uncle Reed said his voice still urgent.
"What?" Lisa asked.
"So reel him in. We came here to do a job. So let's do it," Victor said. Victor was calm. Too calm. Lisa looked at her uncle to see his response. Apparently he had none. He took Lisa's hand and pulled her down the corridor.
"Ben, you need to get inside now!" Uncle Reed ordered sharply as they ran down the corridor.
"What's wrong?" Johnny asked.
"I ain't done arranging your flowers yet, Egghead," Ben's voice came calmly over the communicator.
"Ben, turn around," Uncle Reed ordered as they reached Johnny in the airlock. It was then that Lisa saw the cloud Uncle Reed was worried about.
"Uncle Reed, is that it?" Lisa asked. The cloud was like orange fire mixed with rocks and gravel.
"Guys, I'm not gonna make it," Ben said, apparently noticing the cloud before Uncle Reed could answer Lisa's question.
"Then you gotta jump. It's the only way," Johnny said. Reed and Lisa looked at him and then Ben.
"Come on, Uncle Ben! Hurry!" Lisa screamed, watching the fire get closer.
"All right, Lisa, Johnny. Get out of the way," Reed said, pushing both aside.
Ben had made it through just as the cloud hit him in the back and went through the station. Ben collapsed just short of getting in outside the hatch door.
Lisa's last conscious moment was watching the cloud as it hit Reed and Johnny and came right towards her. She felt her body slam into the wall behind her and her world went dark.
A/N: As all of you can see she was in the accident in space, but I'm trying to figure out her power. So if any of you can think of a better one than freezing things I'd be glad to know. I'm open to suggestion.