Dylan stood next to Beka, who sat in the pilot's chair on the Maru. Rommie stood at another console behind him, running some last-minute tactics programs. "Dylan," Rommie spoke up. Dylan turned to her. "The ship they're being held on is on the planet Norne. Our ETA is ten minutes."
"Make it five, Beka," Dylan said.
"Aye, Captain," Beka replied with a half smile. "So, Dylan, why do you think they took them?"
Dylan thought for a moment. "I have a feeling it has something to do with Felix." They were silent for the next four minutes. When they approached the planet, Dylan spoke in a professional tone. "Planet Norne, this is Captain Dylan Hunt on the Eureka Maru, requesting permission to land."
"Permission granted, Captain. Welcome to Norne. We hope you trip is enjoyable," a rather cheerful woman replied. Her image disappeared as quickly as it had appeared.
"Yeah, right," Beka said quietly.
* * *
"This way!" Felix called to Harper. They followed a series of corridors, trying to find their way out of wherever it was they were. Felix almost ran through the corridors, not paying much attention to doors or hollows. Harper, on the other hand, slowed down at every door, checking to make sure there was no other corridor they could go to. He found it odd that there weren't many guards around. When he came to a closed door, he heard voices come from behind it.
"Wait!" he said softly to Felix. She stopped and spun on her heals.
"What is it?" she asked quietly. She listened closely and heard the voices. "That sounds like…"
"…Tyr…" Harper finished for her. Felix kicked in the door and shot at the two guards that stood inside the room around a bleeding Tyr. Tyr looked up at her with swollen eyes and smiled a little.
"So the other little one proves tougher than she looks?" he said with difficulty.
"Shut up and let me help you, you stubborn Nietzschean," Felix laughed. Harper slipped one of Tyr's arms over his shoulders and Felix took the other arm over hers. They slowly made their way out of the room and continued through the corridors. They could tell Tyr had been tortured more than they had because of all the cuts, bruises, and electrical burns on his skin. "I'm so sorry, Tyr," Felix whispered as they walked along. He didn't respond but kept walking; keeping an eye on every corner they came to.
"Stop right there," a deep, familiar voice shouted after them. They all turned to see the Colonel standing a little ways down the corridor, gun in hand with four guards at his sides. "Don't even think you can escape from us little ones. Not with an injured Nietzschean bigger than the two of you together to slow you down."
"What is it that you want from these… 'little ones' exactly?" Tyr spoke up.
"This is none of your business, Nietzschean," a guard shouted. The Colonel hushed him with a cold stare.
"We want to get as much information from the clone as we can and then terminate it," the Colonel finally answered. "This information could be very valuable to us. Just imagine it. We could clone any government officials that are assassinated without the public even knowing they had died in the first place."
"Why would you want to lie to your people like that?" Harper asked.
"It keeps the people feeling safe," Felix answered for the Colonel. Her voice was angry and unsteady. "You would rather make every murdered official go through that than let your people know the truth? It's no wonder you're here guarding a prison rather than commanding an army."
"I've commanded plenty of armies in my day," the Colonel quickly retaliated. "I don't need an arrogant little clone to tell me that I'm inferior. I am the highest-ranking official in this prison; I am superior. You, little girl, are the inferior one; and you will be dead soon." He raised his gun to shoot Felix, but he was stopped when he was shot himself. The other four guards around him were shot and fell to the floor. Felix, Harper, and Tyr looked behind where the Colonel stood and saw Dylan, Rommie, and Beka all standing there with their weapons raised.
"Thought you might need a little help," Dylan shouted to them. He turned to the Colonel and spoke very authoritatively. "By the way: cloning's illegal." He watched as the Colonel fell to the floor and took in his last breath.
"We have to leave now," Rommie said, hearing more guards coming towards them. "This way." Everybody followed her through the maze of corridors until they reach a doorway that led out into the open air. Harper, Felix, and Tyr shielded their eyes when the sun reached them. They finally reach the Maru and quickly boarded, watching a few guards stomp on the ground angrily as the door closed.
"Well, that was a fun little outing, now wasn't it?" Harper said sarcastically as he plopped himself down on the floor.
* * *
Felix sat on a window seat on the observation deck. She read a flexie book intently, not noticing when Dylan walked into the room. He didn't want to disturb her, so he went about looking out into space, twiddling his thumbs behind his back. Finally he cleared his throat to get her attention. She jumped and took a deep breath and almost threw the flexie book across the room. She let out the breath and placed a hand on her forehead.
"You scared me," she said in between breaths.
"Getting a little jumpy, Captain Clark?" Dylan asked with a smile.
"Felix," she said through clenched teeth. "How many times do I have to tell you, Captain?" She brushed her hair out of her face and sighed. "And I'm not jumpy, I was just reading one of those horror novels that Harper gave me. They're very interesting, you know."
"Not those again," Dylan said with a sigh. She raised an eyebrow in question. "Long story," he said, waving the subject away.
"So what's going to happen to me now?" Felix asked, getting serious again. "Somebody's eventually going to find out what I am and turn me over to the Commonwealth."
"And we'll deny everything," Dylan said. "We never reported your death to the Commonwealth. As far as they know, you've been alive and kicking this whole time." He sat down next to her and took a deep breath. "So I guess that means you're staying with us. You still want to be the computer technician of the greatest ship in all the universes, don't you?"
"Do I?" Felix said with a laugh. "Thanks, Dylan. I really appreciate this. You and everybody else have helped me start my life over again. You don't know how much that means to me."
Dylan shook his head modestly and stood up. "Just… Just don't turn into a female version of Harper. I'm begging you. He's already rubbing off on you…" Felix laughed as he walked through the doors and turned the corner. She sat back and sighed deeply, staring out the window at the passing stars.
"It's good to be alive again."
THE END
"Make it five, Beka," Dylan said.
"Aye, Captain," Beka replied with a half smile. "So, Dylan, why do you think they took them?"
Dylan thought for a moment. "I have a feeling it has something to do with Felix." They were silent for the next four minutes. When they approached the planet, Dylan spoke in a professional tone. "Planet Norne, this is Captain Dylan Hunt on the Eureka Maru, requesting permission to land."
"Permission granted, Captain. Welcome to Norne. We hope you trip is enjoyable," a rather cheerful woman replied. Her image disappeared as quickly as it had appeared.
"Yeah, right," Beka said quietly.
* * *
"This way!" Felix called to Harper. They followed a series of corridors, trying to find their way out of wherever it was they were. Felix almost ran through the corridors, not paying much attention to doors or hollows. Harper, on the other hand, slowed down at every door, checking to make sure there was no other corridor they could go to. He found it odd that there weren't many guards around. When he came to a closed door, he heard voices come from behind it.
"Wait!" he said softly to Felix. She stopped and spun on her heals.
"What is it?" she asked quietly. She listened closely and heard the voices. "That sounds like…"
"…Tyr…" Harper finished for her. Felix kicked in the door and shot at the two guards that stood inside the room around a bleeding Tyr. Tyr looked up at her with swollen eyes and smiled a little.
"So the other little one proves tougher than she looks?" he said with difficulty.
"Shut up and let me help you, you stubborn Nietzschean," Felix laughed. Harper slipped one of Tyr's arms over his shoulders and Felix took the other arm over hers. They slowly made their way out of the room and continued through the corridors. They could tell Tyr had been tortured more than they had because of all the cuts, bruises, and electrical burns on his skin. "I'm so sorry, Tyr," Felix whispered as they walked along. He didn't respond but kept walking; keeping an eye on every corner they came to.
"Stop right there," a deep, familiar voice shouted after them. They all turned to see the Colonel standing a little ways down the corridor, gun in hand with four guards at his sides. "Don't even think you can escape from us little ones. Not with an injured Nietzschean bigger than the two of you together to slow you down."
"What is it that you want from these… 'little ones' exactly?" Tyr spoke up.
"This is none of your business, Nietzschean," a guard shouted. The Colonel hushed him with a cold stare.
"We want to get as much information from the clone as we can and then terminate it," the Colonel finally answered. "This information could be very valuable to us. Just imagine it. We could clone any government officials that are assassinated without the public even knowing they had died in the first place."
"Why would you want to lie to your people like that?" Harper asked.
"It keeps the people feeling safe," Felix answered for the Colonel. Her voice was angry and unsteady. "You would rather make every murdered official go through that than let your people know the truth? It's no wonder you're here guarding a prison rather than commanding an army."
"I've commanded plenty of armies in my day," the Colonel quickly retaliated. "I don't need an arrogant little clone to tell me that I'm inferior. I am the highest-ranking official in this prison; I am superior. You, little girl, are the inferior one; and you will be dead soon." He raised his gun to shoot Felix, but he was stopped when he was shot himself. The other four guards around him were shot and fell to the floor. Felix, Harper, and Tyr looked behind where the Colonel stood and saw Dylan, Rommie, and Beka all standing there with their weapons raised.
"Thought you might need a little help," Dylan shouted to them. He turned to the Colonel and spoke very authoritatively. "By the way: cloning's illegal." He watched as the Colonel fell to the floor and took in his last breath.
"We have to leave now," Rommie said, hearing more guards coming towards them. "This way." Everybody followed her through the maze of corridors until they reach a doorway that led out into the open air. Harper, Felix, and Tyr shielded their eyes when the sun reached them. They finally reach the Maru and quickly boarded, watching a few guards stomp on the ground angrily as the door closed.
"Well, that was a fun little outing, now wasn't it?" Harper said sarcastically as he plopped himself down on the floor.
* * *
Felix sat on a window seat on the observation deck. She read a flexie book intently, not noticing when Dylan walked into the room. He didn't want to disturb her, so he went about looking out into space, twiddling his thumbs behind his back. Finally he cleared his throat to get her attention. She jumped and took a deep breath and almost threw the flexie book across the room. She let out the breath and placed a hand on her forehead.
"You scared me," she said in between breaths.
"Getting a little jumpy, Captain Clark?" Dylan asked with a smile.
"Felix," she said through clenched teeth. "How many times do I have to tell you, Captain?" She brushed her hair out of her face and sighed. "And I'm not jumpy, I was just reading one of those horror novels that Harper gave me. They're very interesting, you know."
"Not those again," Dylan said with a sigh. She raised an eyebrow in question. "Long story," he said, waving the subject away.
"So what's going to happen to me now?" Felix asked, getting serious again. "Somebody's eventually going to find out what I am and turn me over to the Commonwealth."
"And we'll deny everything," Dylan said. "We never reported your death to the Commonwealth. As far as they know, you've been alive and kicking this whole time." He sat down next to her and took a deep breath. "So I guess that means you're staying with us. You still want to be the computer technician of the greatest ship in all the universes, don't you?"
"Do I?" Felix said with a laugh. "Thanks, Dylan. I really appreciate this. You and everybody else have helped me start my life over again. You don't know how much that means to me."
Dylan shook his head modestly and stood up. "Just… Just don't turn into a female version of Harper. I'm begging you. He's already rubbing off on you…" Felix laughed as he walked through the doors and turned the corner. She sat back and sighed deeply, staring out the window at the passing stars.
"It's good to be alive again."
THE END