Chapter Three

The sounds of objects scraping and clattering to the floor filled the storage room as Carver searched among the shelves. Because of the ship's current low-powered state, the lights above provided a dim red glow, and only a slight draft emerged from the ventilation system.

Better than those damned necromorph freaks crawling around in them...

Despite this thought, the Sergeant was still weary every time that he passed by a vent, or any openings in general. Being in the tight corridors of ships for days, weeks at a time, had finally gotten to him. Though he would never admit that. He had been at constant survival mode for longer than he could recall now. And when nearing the corner of those hallways or passing by the threshold to another room, it could never be predicted whatever is waiting on the other side.

He thought back to a moment when he had almost lost Isaac. They were passing through a long and tedious hallway back in one of the other God-Forsaken ships. At this time they were slightly calm with a comfortable silence hanging between them, but remained at guard for any sudden happenings. Isaac followed behind Carver as they made their way in search of extra supplies and weapon upgrades. The soldier was ready to lower his shotgun and relax his arms when a crash suddenly came from behind. He whirled around in time for his flashlight to shine upon a gasping Isaac. A common necromorph had broken through an air vent right as the engineer had passed by, and seized the man with one claw of an arm as the rest of its body remained inside of the vent. Isaac was yanked backward into the wall and choked as his breath got caught in his lungs, and rifle clambered to the floor. He reached his hands up to his throat and desperately attempted to break free. Carver calculated his chances quickly and threw the shotgun to the ground, pulling out a large stiletto knife instead. Better to do this than possibly blowing both of their brains out.

He let out a yell and dashed towards the struggling pair, but before he got within reach a large figure fell onto him from above. The Sergeant hadn't realized what had happened until he looked up to see the mutilated face of another fucking necromorph. It had him pinned and then a scorpion-like tail stabbed into the floor next to the man's head. It screeched and gnashed huge fangs onto his helmet, and in return Carver used a free leg to knee the creature in what remained of its abdomen, and freed his arm. As if his adrenaline had total control, his hand latched around the sharp tail blade and ripped it from the floor, and he stabbed it into the creature's head.

He shoved the thing off of him and found his knife before jumping to his feet. He turned to see Isaac and the other necromorph still wrestling against each other, and the man was giving weak head-butts in attempt to free himself. With no more time to spare Carver practically jumped upon the two and in a single motion, thrashed the blade between the monster's eyes.

Isaac fell but was caught by solid arms before he hit the ground. The soldier ripped off the other man's helmet to allow him a moment to regain his breath, and proceeded to holster their dropped weapons. He swiftly lifted Isaac from the side to support his weakened state, and they wordlessly trampled to safety, away from the recovering creatures.

Now thinking back, this was only one of the handful of close calls the pair had shared throughout their journeys. So no, in their minds nothing could be trusted. Not only people but environments as well.

Carver returned to reality and for a moment forgot what he was doing, and then sighed when he remembered about his fruitless search among the ship's storage rooms. Indeed he did find some useful things such as another water tank and some freeze-dried meals. But he was hoping for something more... Maybe another weapon or some old audio recording. Anything to tinker with and take away his mind, to distract.

It had been over an hour since he had last spoken with Isaac in the washroom, but Carver felt as if they were going to be in this floating vessel for much longer than intended. Yes, he did have some hope of returning home, some. He tried not to think about the previous sight of those moons nearing upon their beloved planet. Searching for supplies did prove to be useful so far but the Sergeant wanted anything to keep his heart from aching with worry.

He felt a sudden wave of exhaustion take over him and his breaths became heavy in the still air.

Damn, I gotta sit down...

He decided to take a break from what he was doing and leave into the main cockpit. Since he hadn't yet bothered to remove any of his armor besides the helmet, the metal boots lightly clanked against the floor as he wandered into the spacious room. The once-comforting weight and protection of metal plates hugging his body became more of a burden to him now, a weight to drag along with his fatigue. He looked to see the backside of Isaac lounged in one of the co-pilot seats. He was leaning far back and didn't acknowledge (or didn't notice) Carver's presence.

When the Soldier neared the other man, he realized that Clarke had fallen asleep behind the wheel. The Engineer's expression surprisingly appeared... Soft. His mouth hang lightly agape and head leaned slightly to the side. No stirring, no furrowed brow and sleep-talking. Nothing. Just his smooth breaths matching in with the ship's low hum, accompanied by small flickers of dashboard mechanisms and starlight emitting a blue glow onto his face. The man was wearing what seemed to be found clothing, a gray sweater and olive green cargo pants, only to be completed with black crew socks. His face had been cleanly shaven and his growing bangs rested over his forehead.

Carver was a bit taken aback from this sight, it was alien for him to see the Ishimura survivor at such a low level of stress. Except for whenever they exchanged smiling glances as they entered the Milky Way Galaxy and were nearing their homeland. Those golden moments right before everything else had happened.

The Sergeant let out a quiet sigh. He was going to inform Isaac of the possible useful things he had gathered from the rooms of the ship, but decided against it and allowed the other man to rest. Sure as hell he wanted to reach Earth again as soon as possible. He wondered if they had been nearing the planet this whole time, or drifting further away from it. But his apprehension calmed as he was reminded that indeed for the sake of both of them, sleep and sanity were more important at this point than solving curiosity.

He turned and made his way to the washroom, where (after a number of attempts and curses), he slid off each armored plate and dropped them to the floor. His undershirt and remaining clothes followed suit and landed onto the pile of gear, then he stepped over to turn the shower faucet.

Warm streams of water rained upon the man's head and he remained still as he savored the feeling of the droplets rushing down along his face and body. Due to the shower's small capsule-like shape, a thin fog rose into the air and clouded the glass doors, permitting a complete sense of privacy. Carver let out a low hum and closed his eyes, enjoying this nostalgic and calming sensation. He imagined as if the water falling onto him was the Earth's own rain. He saw himself standing alone in a vast green field, cloudy skies up above beginning their downpour as he did nothing but stand and embrace it.

He delightfully continued picturing similar scenarios before he decided not to waste anymore water and actually washed himself. He hadn't noticed the discolored and bloody water that drained off of him. Hesitating, the Soldier finally returned the faucet to its off position and stepped out.

Damn, no wonder Isaac took so long...

John stood in the washroom and hugged a towel around himself, taking in breaths of the thick warm air. He then shuffled through some lockers and draped on a loose T-shirt, stepped into sweatpants and headed to the main room of the ship.

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The room was cool and quiet as Carver laid under thin bed covers. He was rolled onto his side, facing the wall directly adjacent to the mattress and away from the room. Moments ago he was struggling to keep his eyelids lifted, but now it felt like he'd had a bit too many energy drinks. He remained still and attempted to slow his breathing, being awake itself was becoming... mentally exhausting. And sleep seemed to be the only solution for finding some ease.

His favorite kind of sleep were the dreamless nights. No dreams filled with fear or the faces of loved ones, no waking up throughout the night. Only the gradual feeling of weightlessness as he drifted off, then finally the blissfulness of unconsciousness. Silence, blackness. Nothing.

"Carver?"

The Sergeant nearly jumped out of his skin at a voice coming from the doorway. He hadn't heard Isaac's footsteps.

"Shit Isaac-" He turned over to his opposite side and faced the other man, wearily dragging a hand along his brow.

The Engineer appeared shocked as well, definitely not expecting this reaction from his comrade. He lightly lowered his head and eyes drifted off in regret. "Man-... I'm sorry. I should've knocked, or something. I couldn't tell if it was you laying there."

Back then Carver would have given an eye roll or ask a question along the lines of 'Who else would it be, Dead Boy?', but in these times all he could feel was an instant guilt, and self-scolding for his actions.

"Nah nah, you're all good. Sorry 'bout that. You just startled me is all". He chuckled "Are you alright?"

The blue-eyed man gazed at him. "Yeah, yeah... I must've passed out, I nearly forgot everything when I woke up and all I saw was the universe from our windshield". He had a small smile on his face and appeared comfortable, then proceeded to fully step into the room and face his friend.

"Yeah, you passed out like a motherfucker. Good to see that you shaved off that beard-neck."

"Pfft. It was better than that train wreck that's on your face! Anyways, have you found anything useful? I haven't even checked out the rest of the ship."

"Hmm..." Carver paused. "Unless you consider broken tools and sweat-stained space suits helpful, then not much. Though I did come across some actual safe food to eat, and a larger supply of water back in one of the storage rooms. There weren't many documents or spare parts at all, none of our jackpots."

Isaac nodded.

"Clarke... What are you wanting to do now, with us heading back home and everything? I figure that we're gonna lay low and rest a bit, before getting back onto the road?" In perfect timing, the Sergeant yawned before adding " 'Cause as much as I want us to get our shit together now and haul ass back over there, I ain't gonna last another night without falling over."

The other man did a 'Pssh, yeah' expression in agreement. "Oh, I know. Especially now that there's damn time to sit down and think, I'm really feeling those aches coming back. I was wondering when you would want to catch some shut-eye, but now that I know, I'll leave you to it. Oh and, thanks. For the searching. It really does help knowing that we hopefully have more than enough things to last us."

Instead of exiting the room, Isaac remained in his place and looked hesitant. Carver did catch the flash of desperation in his eyes.

"Hey uh, would it be cool if I staye-"

"Go ahead."

Clarke nodded to and looked to his left, then right, before sitting down onto the bed next to Carver's, only a few feet away. Carver could sense the embarrassment coming off of the other man, but after all that they have been through he did not see anything to be embarrassed about. There was nothing wrong with it.

Isaac slid under the welcoming sheets before pulling the blanket over himself. He let out an exasperated sigh and heard a laugh from the other bed.

"Feels great, doesn't it?"

"Mm-hmm... I've forgotten what a mattress even feels like. This is the good shit for being in a spacecraft. Luxury, even."

"Hmph yeah. Couldn't agree more..."

A short pause ensued between the two, Carver opened his mouth to fill the silence but Isaac beat him to it.

"Will this ever end Carver?"

The other man blinked and rolled over to fully face his partner. "What are you talking about?"

Isaac remained on his back and staring at the ceiling above him. "It's like there's never an end, to any of this. I thought that things were fucking done whenever I had my apartment back on Earth. No more of being out here, jumping from ship to goddamn ship and wondering if I'm ever gonna make it out alive and breathing." His words were aggressive but no anger showed in his voice. He appeared calm, if anything. Drained in fact.

He continued. "All of this shit fucking with my head since day one onboard the Ishimura. And now I don't know if we're getting dragged into these things because of my mistakes, or for fate itself. You know I still hear those bastards crawling around in the walls, it's a never-ending 'tick-ticking' echoing all around me. Man, I can't even walk around a doorway or some fuckin' corner without being so... tense."

Isaac was beginning to lose control of his composure.

"And when I look into MIRRORS, no no, it's not me that I see. It's this awful man, this monster." His final word was clipped with emotion as he continued. "And I always ask myself, is it really me who has created what I've become? Or was it somebody else? Because I'd just LOVE to fucking know."

At this point Carver was kneeled beside the other's bed, and not really sure of what to do he placed a hand around Isaac's forearm and gave it a little shake.

"Hey man, look at me." Isaac obliged.

"You gotta keep yourself together. It sounds impossible right now but we've made it this far, you've made it this far. I know that I spout a lot of shit but you gotta hear me out and trust me when I say this, you're smarter and stronger than you'll ever know. We've just escaped from hell and now we don't even know if there's a home to go back to, oh believe me, I'm worried too. I'm shitting my pants over here! But right now you have to focus on the present, where we are and what we're gonna do next. And you know I'm by your side the whole way." He took a breath before continuing. "But, as of now... You need to rest." His other hand reacted before his logic could, and placed itself over his friend's heart, adding a light and comforting pressure. A display of security, in a way. "Because you are working yourself up and it ain't gonna do anything to help. I know that there's a lot going on in that mind of yours, but in times like this you need to take it slow. It'll be alright, just keep breathing for us, alright?"

The Sergeant was once again shocked at the surges of optimism that he hadn't known he could... possess. But he could not be the negative energy anymore, at least not now. His comrade was suffering from old scars and new wounds, and it was the Soldier's decision to raise him up or let them both fall.

Though his heart did clench as he watched Isaac look away and nod, then rapidly blink his eyes attempting to rid of tears. When the hurting man's breath hitched, Carver grasped a hand with his own and gave it a firm grip. He was going to let Clarke break these walls down, he was nearly expecting sobbing to come next. But it didn't. The other man gained control once more and after some sniffling he turned his head back towards the Sergeant, but avoided eye contact.

The brown-eyed man also kept his gaze slightly averted, as if allowing privacy for the other and sparing him of shame. But he couldn't help it and decided to look back up. He lingered in his position for some seconds before letting go of Isaac's hand and slowly standing upwards. He used his free hand to give the man's hair a ruffle and then smoothed it out of his face before moving away.

The room was silent, but surprisingly not so stiff and on-edge anymore. The airflow was still warm throughout the ship, but now Carver could only register it as a warmth of understanding between the two. He relaxed back under his bed covers.

Perhaps not only he was tense, but I was too. And being around each other for this long now, maybe we've been reflecting it off of each other this whole time... he thought to himself.

"Carver?" A small voice arose from the other bed.

"Hmm?"

Silence.

"Thank you."

"No reason to thank me. I'm here if you need anything".

And with that, the two sank under the weights of exhaustion and succumbed to sleep. Carver slowed his breathing and mind once again, before finally getting what he had been longing for.

Silence, blackness.

Nothing.

To Be Continued

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Author's Note:

Hello there, thank y'all for reading my story and getting this far. I am not going to give my whole life story but as a bit of background:

I am NOT a writer in any means. I am expecting there to be some grammatical errors or overall confusion no matter how many times I revise my writing, so I apologize for any of that. I do have an awesome friend who has been keeping up with this story and she has provided ideas and insight, so she is my little partner in crime here.

Honestly I have only expected this story to get like...two views... hah. So I am very happy with the number of readers I've obtained so far, thank you again for taking the time to read my story and if there is any feedback or thoughts you'd like to provide, I am open to many things. I will admit I have deleted paragraphs after typing because I have these ADD moments and I will go way off topic with the plot and forget what I'm even writing about. I know that my writing style is very slow and I like to be detailed, I am trying to keep close to the story and have our lovely Isaac and John remain in-character, but I also want to explore more emotional and complicated paths within the two.

I really don't want to be one of those authors who develops a capable and developed story, then suddenly never posts another chapter. I can't leave y'all hanging. But I do live a military lifestyle and my orders range all week and go into the weekends as well. I will try to make as much free time as possible to sit down and continue this story. I am hoping to get a new chapter in weekly, or bi-weekly, or tri-weekly... or quad-weekly (Okay I'm kidding).

But there you go. Again any feedback would be great, I'd like to know if I'm actually entertaining people or putting you guys to sleep out of boredom.

I honestly do not know where this story is gonna go, I have a few ideas in mind and I will try to expand them and keep 'em interesting.

Thanks again.