Hey guys! Sorry for a rather late chapter, I'm slowing down with these a little now, although on the bright side this one was a little longer than normal.
Massive thanks to Varjotin for your review of the previous chapter.
I hope you all enjoy!
Chapter 13
"Should it be making that noise?" Hana asked as the ship lurched violently and a harsh buzzing radiated from the main control panel. Cooler threw a glare her way but didn't say anything as he tried and failed to level out the trajectory of the ship. They'd taken off without any real issue, but within an hour or so after take off the ship had started to judder as various warning lights slowly activated one by one along the main control panel.
Hana felt a surge of panic radiate briefly from Cooler as a large red warning light suddenly flickered to life in front of them. About to question him, she was suddenly cut off when the ship bucked with more force than it had before and she was almost thrown forward out of her chair, caught only by Coolers arm that had shot out, with impeccable timing to keep her in her seat.
"Put your belt on" he instructed abruptly as he reached to do up his own. Not needing to be told twice, Hana reached down to her waist and immediately clipped herself in, shifting her hands to grip the arms of her chair so tight that her knuckles began to turn white.
As the main lighting of the ship shut off, allowing the dim red emergency lighting to take it's place as the vessel shook once again, more violently than it had before. Hana was thrown hard to the side, barely held in place by her seatbelt as she heard one of the engines sputter and finally die as the whirring noise they'd been making was replaced by silence.
Cooler muttered something under his breath as he threw a quick glance at Hana and then turned to flip a switch to his left on and then off, electing to response. Repeating the action once, then twice, he was met with the same response of nothingness.
"We've just lost an engine, if I can't get it back up and running we're going to be pulled in by the gravity and crash land" he nodded towards the blue, grey and white mass looming up below them, as Hana leaned forward out of her seat as far as her belt would allow to stare down at the planets surface.
"We're what!?" she yelled over the noise of the only remaining engine as panic quickly set in. Cooler either didn't hear her or had chose not to respond as he flipped various switches, seemingly making no difference to the ship which has started to drift sideways, moving steadily closer to the planet below them.
The ship shook again as a buzzing sound reverberated through the air and then everything suddenly went silent. Even the emergency lighting which had previously cast them both in a dim red glow suddenly shut off, throwing them both into darkness. Hana stiffened in her seat as the deafening silence was interrupted only by Cooler who continued to try desperately to restart the ship.
Hana swallowed hard as her grip tightened on the arms of her seat and panic began to set in and she glanced over towards where she knew Cooler was. He seemed a little calmer than she felt, but she could still feel the concern radiating from him in waves as he continued to try, and fail to do something to restart at least one of the engines.
A panicked squeak escaped Hana as the ship suddenly tilted to the side, the movement more pronounced than before, leaning and starting a free-fall as the planet below them rushed upwards. Removing her hands from the arms of her chair Hana flung her arms up in front of her in a bid to protect herself as they broke through the dense scattering of clouds and into the thick canopy of trees below.
Glass exploded from the front window as they ripped through the trees and the ship tumbled down a steep slope, flipping over on itself before eventually skidding to a stop in a cloud of dust and rumble. Moments passed as the ship creaked, rocks and debris from the mountainside still tumbling past the unmoving ship.
Hana groaned and screwed her eyes shut as she pressed a hand to her face. She was upside-down, held only in place by her seat belt, she opened her ruby eyes and looked sideways towards Cooler, who looked to be in far worse shape than she was.
A sizeable gash across his temple was bleeding steadily, dripping slowly towards the ceiling, or was it the floor now? A large shard of glass had embedded itself in his shoulder, just below his collarbone, and he appeared to be unconscious. Reviewing her own injuries, Hana was relieved to find that she was mostly unscathed, save for a few cuts scattered on her arms and face from the glass.
Reaching to undo her seat belt, Hana cursed loudly when she fell towards the ceiling, crashing down like a bag of rocks. Kicking some rubble away from herself Hana pulled herself up to her feet and floated upwards. Cooler remained unmoving and upside down as she reached forward, pressing a shoulder into the good side of his chest to support him and unclipped the seatbelt holding him in place.
Taking his weight as he fell Hana guided the two of them down and set Cooler haphazardly on the ground amongst the rubble. A freezing cold draft was blowing through the broken window, carrying small flecks of snow in with it. She'd need to do something to stop the cold from getting in, especially considering the condition Cooler was in.
Leaving Cooler where he was, Hana made her way through the up side down corridor to her room, hitting the button the small control panel above her to open the door. It started to move before catching on the contorted wall and refusing to move any more than a couple of inches. Reaching up, Hana managed to get her fingers through the small gap and tried to pull the door down and open, but it refused to move. Kicking it in frustration Hana turned on her heel and tried Coolers door instead, which sluggishly opened half way before grinding to a stop.
Jumping deftly over the gap in the top of the door Hana made her way into Coolers room, it was a mess of upturned furniture with various items strewn all over the place. As would be expected for a room that had quite literally been turned up side down. Darting forwards Hana grabbed the mattress and the scrunched up duvet and dragged them behind her, having to work to fit the mattress through the still only half open door.
When she got back to the front of the ship Hana threw the mattress on a clearer section of floor and dragged Cooler onto it, throwing the blanket over his waist as she checked over his head and the shard of glass that was still deeply buried in his chest. His head didn't look too bad, although it was likely the reason for his unconscious state, the glass she left it as it was for the time being, knowing better than to inter-fear with it too much without a fist aid kit handy and shivered as another gust of wind swept through the room.
Gliding out of the window Hana stood on the underside of the ship and took in her surroundings. A snowy tundra stretched out ahead of her. Stunted trees littered the snow covered landscape as a vast expanse of mountains stretched up behind her. Hana shivered again as she looked skywards to see dark storm clouds on the horizon. They were headed in her direction, she'd need to do something to secure the ship soon.
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Cooler groaned as he slowly came too, a sharp pain reverberating through his chest and head. Shifting a hand he felt a bandage wrapped tightly around the the upper potion of his chest. As he shifted position, he suddenly became aware of the blanket strewn across him and that he was laying on a mattress. Hana was no where to be seen as he pushed himself slowly.
Hana must have been the one to move him, but her absence was concerning. Had she done a runner? She'd gone to an awful lot more effort to make him comfortable than he'd have thought if that was the case.
He didn't have any more time to think on it when he heard a set of feet land on the outside of the ship above him. Shortly after, Hana appeared through the broken front screen of the ship, covered in snow and shivering, her arms full of broken branches which she dumped on the floor. She'd covered the gaping hole at the front of the ship with thick branches, and was clearly gearing up to light a fire.
She glanced at him but didn't say anything as she quickly set to work near the partially covered window, using a small glow of Ki for heat and soon had a small fire going, using the partially blocked window for ventilation. Although with the cold still pouring in, it did very little to heat the room. Brushing snow off of herself Hana sat down, letting out a deflated sigh as Cooler pushed himself into a sitting position.
"I thought you'd run away" he said, trying to make conversation with her, only to see her lip curl up into a snarl.
"How the fuck can I?" she spat, "Zee is only safe while I'm here with you, doing what you say. Assuming he's even still alive and you haven't lied to me about that too"
Cooler grit his teeth as Hana stormed out, disappearing off in the direction of the kitchen. She clearly wasn't going to let this go. Sure, he probably should have been fourth coming with the information sooner, but what difference did it really make? As long as Zee was safe, did it really matter where he was?
He was pulled from his thoughts when a pack was thrown down on the mattress next to him and Hana moved back into view. "I need to check your shoulder. I kind of rushed it earlier and it needs a clean" she mumbled as she manoeuvred herself in front of him and pulled the pack open.
She didn't say a word as she, a little too aggressively, pulled the bandage from his chest and quickly pressed a damp cloth to the wound.
"Hana... I was wrong to not tell you that Zee had moved, but as long as he's okay, why does it really matter where he is?"
"It matters, Cooler, because you fucking lied to me. What else were you not going to tell me? If he moves again? If he gets hurt? If he gets killed!?" She pulled the cloth that she'd been holding to his chest away and balled up her hands in front of her in frustration.
"I know that you and your family think you can do whatever the fuck you want to whoever the fuck you want but people are not things you can just treat like trash!"
"What the hell is your problem Hana!?" Cooler snapped, finally losing his cool with her. The look of surprised that passed over her face was not lost on him as he continued on.
"Have I ever mistreated you? Have I ever done anything wrong to you at all? No! Now I know I should have told you about Zee, but I thought it was for the best at the time and I've tried to apologise to you for it. I don't know what more I can do Hana, and if he's okay then why does a co-worker even matter to you that much? Are you two a couple of something?"
Hana scoffed and pushed the cloth in her hand back into his chest. "No, we're not a fucking couple." she glanced down as she bit her lower lip, as her face softened "he's the closet thing to family I've got, and I can never repay him for everything he's done for me. I have to keep him safe."
Cooler felt his own expression soften as Hana dropped down into a sitting position on the floor in front of him, her eyes cast off to the side.
"I'd always just assumed you two were just co-workers," he said softly as she continued to avoid eye contact with him, shaking her head softly.
"No, I first met Zee when I was a kid," Cooler took over applying pressure to his cut as Hana moved herself backwards, sitting down across from him closer to the fire as she began to speak...
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Flashback...
The streets were dark and quiet as the small silver haired girl, covered in scrapes, bruises, blood and dust, ran as fast as her small legs would carry her. Stealing a glance over her shoulder, she knew that she hadn't escaped her attacker, and could hear him yelling somewhere in the distance behind her.
Rounding a corner she ducked down on the wet ground and hid behind a small cluster of bins and rubbish, holding the sides of her head tightly with her hands with her eyes screwed shut, trying desperately to force the noise away.
Her ears were still ringing from the explosion, and she felt disoriented, but that wasn't what was bothering her. She could feel her Ki, fanned out around her, hanging in the air, and alerting her to any signature it touched. Now was different. She couldn't just feel that her assailant was within that space, she could feel the hatred, the rage radiating off of him. A rage very much directed at her.
Hana flinched as a shadow appeared at the entrance to the small alleyway, trying her best to be as quiet as possible. He knew she was there. He must have seen her. Letting out a squeak of fear as he entered the enclosed space Hana darted further into the darkness until she reached the end of the alley, spilling back out into the street.
As her attacker pursued her at a leisurely pace, panic began to set in even further. He knew she had no where to go. He knew there was no where to hide, and knew he had the luxury of time when it came to hunting her down.
Stealing a glance over her shoulder again, Hana felt her heart skip a beat as she tripped, skidding to a stop in the wet ground, her right arm sore and bloodied from scraping along the ground. She froze as she heard the splash of a puddle behind her, and screamed as a strong hand grasped tightly at her hair, dragging her backwards into the alley she had just left.
Tears pricked at her eyes as she was thrown onto the cold floor, and a kick was swiftly delivered to her abdomen. She didn't have time to even register what had happened to her when she was torn from the ground again and slammed into the damp wall behind her, the cold quickly penetrating through her skin and her head ringing from the impact.
"Oi! Mister!" A voice sounded from the mouth of the alley. Hana turned her head to the side just enough to see a young boy standing there. He was a little older than her, dressed in worn clothing, his dark grey skin damp from the rain. He had four arms, with the lower set on his hips, and the upper set folded tightly across his chest. A determined look sprawled across his face.
"Fuck off brat" the reptilian creature hissed, barely acknowledging the boy as he drew a small blade from his belt and pressed it into Hana's abdomen, just above her hip bone.
"I'll fucking kill you, you little bitch" he hissed as he pressed the blade harder into her skin, drawing a whimper from the small girl.
Hana screamed as the blade was pushed harder and dragged upwards, leaving an open wound in its wake. The reptile creature gave a snarling smile as he applied more pressure, before he suddenly stopped, dropping Hana to the floor and stumbling backwards, gripping the back of his head with his hand and dropping the blade to the floor.
The four armed boy stood behind him, a rusty metal pole in his hands and a fierce look on his face. "Leave her alone!" He bellowed, puffing his chest out in an attempt to make him seem bigger than he was.
The reptile creature stood in a swift motion, drawing his arm back at the same time in a fierce backhand to the boys face, sending him tumbling to the floor.
"I said fuck off brat!" the reptile yelled as he kicked the child, following up with a hard stomp to his back. Apparently satisfied he turned back to Hana, who had barely moved, snatching the dagger back up off the floor and advancing on her. His fresh burns reflecting the dim light as he snarled and grabbed her by her hair.
Just as he drew his arm back ready to plunge the blade into her, he faltered, coughing sharply as a trickle of blood emerged from his mouth. As he turned his head to look at the four armed boy behind him, Hana noticed the blood pooling at his side, dripping it's way down to the floor as the four armed boy clutched a blade of his own firmly in is hand.
As the reptile man fell to his knees, coughing and spluttering, Hana's multi limbed saviour grabbed her by her arm and went to drag her from the alley. Noticing her still bleeding wound slowing her down, he quickly picked her up onto his back and ran. He ran as fast as he could as the pair heard the screams of obscenities fade into the night behind them.
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Hana shivered again and wrapped her arms around herself in a bid to keep the cold at bay, the small fire doing very little to help. Cooler hadn't said anything since she'd shared how she met Zee, but he didn't need to. It was clear that he understood. She jumped slightly as she felt a weight fall onto her shoulders as Cooler draped his blanket over her.
"No, you need it, look at the state of you" she gestured towards his head and chest as she tried to remove the warm covering from herself and hand it back, only to pause when Cooler smirked and raised a hand.
"I don't get affected by the cold. You clearly do," he chuckled as she gave out another involuntary shiver.
Awkwardly wrapping the blanket back around herself, Hana jumped as a strong gust of wind swirled through the room, all but diminishing the small fire she'd managed to build.
"We can't stay in here. The front of the ship is too badly damaged, and that storm is just getting worse. Come on" Cooler rose to his feet, dragging the mattress with him as Hana followed slowly behind, trying her best to keep him from hearing her teeth chatter.
As they stopped in the hallway, Cooler eyed up both sets of doors, turning back to Hana with an apologetic expression.
"We aren't going to be able to get your door open with the frame bent like that," he started carefully, "we'll both have to spend the night in here, as it looks like you got it open"
In normal circumstances Hana would have probably bitten his head off, or slapped him, or both. With the cold seeping into her bones and the will to sleep mounting by the second she nodded mutely as the pair made their way through the gap in the door, and Cooler set the mattress back up in the middle of the floor.
"You better stay the fuck on your side," Hana mumbled as she sat herself down on the mattress, feeling the weight as Cooler lay on the other side.
"As long as you make sure you stay on yours" he retorted as he settled into a more comfortable position.
Hana scoffed, but allowed herself a small smile at the awkwardness of the situation before she started to drift to sleep.