Part 6
Prince crouched low, curled around his younger brothers and sister. To him, he could tell which was which especially since their genders became more apparent. He could mostly tell by smell, the same way he could tell his younger brothers were developing into hunters but his little sister was developing fast into a warrior.
He made sure to purr them to sleep when the occupants of the ship were up and about. They searched for them but they had yet to find them. So long as they did not move, their motion sensors would not pick them up. If they had any other way to track, they'd find them soon. For now, Prince stayed in the little hole Henrietta had made for him.
Winston had packed everything of his daughter's, except the photo Prince kept hidden in the darkness. He had no comfort of her pillows or blankets she had made his nest out of. Prince wanted to wail, to cry out every last drop of sorrow he held in his heart. Instead, he tucked his head down low, under his arm, and stayed quiet. No need to attract any attention.
Within two days' time, his siblings had grown tremendously. So much that they no longer could use the hidey hole at the same time. Prince stayed mostly in the lower decks, only coming up to Henrietta's room to rest and to the cafeteria to eat. His young hunter brother stayed by the control rooms. The other hunter, distinguished by the strange white streak on his spine, stayed near the engines. Their sister stayed by the living quarters.
Each of them was spread out almost at an equal distance, not too far away from Henrietta's room or from another sibling encase of danger. Prince made sure to teach them how most human conveniences worked so they could move much stealthier.
The search for them had ended, but if anyone were to suspect they could still be alive, it would begin all over again. Together, they had blown an engine, making it look like they had run there to hide. Many believed they died in the fire or got shot into space.
Currently, the ship still orbited, not yet able to head back on their journey. From what his siblings gathered, supplies were delayed and the engine set them back at least another week's time. Scientists wanted more specimen but Prince managed to keep them busy with several "accidents" on the lower deck labs. His brother by the engines had caused some of his own incidents, delaying their repairs even further.
As of now, Prince sat watching the scientists scurry to clean up the messes made. He swished his tail about idly pondering many things. One that weighed heavily was Henrietta and her well-being. While the Queen was a general concern, Prince had already blown it off as his emotions being out of control.
Brother? This was the female warrior.
You have three brothers you know. The male from the engines.
I meant our eldest! Clearly, she had become irritated by the comment from the hiss he felt flow through his mind, she returned to address him. When do we leave?
Call me Prince, little sister. Soon enough, we will be leaving. Just a moment longer.
Why do you get a name? Lastly, his brother at the control room joined in.
Henrietta had given it to me.
Do we get names too? His sister chimed in, a wave of anxious excitement came from her.
Just another topic that haunted him. If Henrietta were here, what would she have named them? He couldn't even fathom a guess.
Yes, soon.
No one spoke. Prince left the lower decks, the night cycle beginning to cover his shadowy form. The lights dimmed, people scattering for their rooms.
Henrietta's room remained empty still. Cold and sterile. No color remained, just cold, unyielding steel. His heart wept again.
His brother from the control room, the one without the streak, came from the vent above. He stopped to stare at Prince for a moment before quietly sitting in front of him.
Don't cry, brother. I think it's time you go to the control room. They are distracted by the supplies and the issues with the crane.
Prince nodded and left. His brother took his place in the lower decks.
Chatter was everywhere as people ran around. Many blamed the xenos, suspicion falling on their possible deaths. Already they got another team together to search. New equipment would be used including the motion detector.
If they were to succeed, they would need to act immediately. If they didn't, they'd die.
Prince dropped down low, careful about the androids on the computers. They took no notice of him. Yet.
The consoles lit up and using what Henrietta had taught him, he navigated their systems. They always kept archives of everything or so he had been told. Files of every member aboard the ship could be found.
Henrietta's profile featured everything about her. Hair color, race, birthday, birthplace, and current residence. Originally it would have been on the ship but according to the recent update on the profiles, she had been transferred to a nearby planet. With some more research, the coordinates of the planet popped up.
We can make it! We are still near her location! We need to head to the pods.
On my way!
Meet you guys there!
Guys? The worried tone of his brother caught him off guard.
What's wrong?
I'm stuck…
Stuck? His brother's laughter filtered through their link. Currently, he had left the lower decks to where the shuttles sat.
We might not make it. Too many people… His sister also sounded worried. Currently, she sat by her brother, both spectating the surplus of people.
One thing at a time. Nobody move. Where in the lower decks are you?
Right by the scientists… I'm stuck in the vents. I think they were trying to change the flow… I think they know too.
Prince crawled through the vents, heading as fast as he could. Silence reigned the COMM-link.
Prince?
Almost there!
They're coming into the vents…
Should we come? His brother and sister called out and he felt them shift to sprint to their location.
Stay put! If we can't make it go and find Henrietta. He sent a mental picture of her and the location they needed.
But-
No buts! If two of us can make it then it's a good day! We'll catch up if we can't make it. I swear it. We all will leave one way or another.
Prince reached the area his stuck brother was in. Sadly, workers already were scurrying up to the vents.
Taking a deep breath, Prince crept forward.
Prepare yourself. Hell is about to break loose.
Before anyone could ask what, the unfamiliar saying was, he struck the first worker he came across.
The man let out a bloody scream, soon to be cut off by Prince's teeth cutting into his spinal cord. Everyone else became alerted as Prince jumped from his spot into the middle of the room.
Screeching, he grabbed several of them. Tossing them around, he sent several more to the floor like dominoes. Already they called for backup but his tail made quick work of their throats.
Back into the vents, he shoved his brother through.
Run!
Footsteps sounded below them. Their militia had arrived.
.
.
.
11/8/17: I am not sure what is going on, but my chapter numbers in Docs matches with the chapter numbers here (excluding the Requests note) but this chapter is missing from the site. Very weird. Not sure what happened. So sorry. I'm currently rereading, cringing at all my errors, so there just might be another proofreading going through and I am working on the extras. One particular idea, from one very amazing author, is going to take a few chapters to really work through the idea of the farm and life on the planet. Please be patient and I hope to have this all done by the end of November.