Don't Tell Them

Chapter 1

Warnings: blood, gore

Words: 2991

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"Kill them all. They cannot be allowed to make it to our base. Those people know too much about us."

The words rang sharply in the astronaut's earpiece.

"You have 7 months to do this, or we'll blow up the ship whether you're in it or not. Shouldn't be too hard. Even still, there is one other imposter assigned to assist you in this task."

"I don't need any help, sir." the astronaut growled, offended by his employer's decision.

"Don't care. You need to work together with the other imposter and kill everyone. We can't let the others get to Mars. From there, it will be all too easy to break into the base. They already know too much about the clan. Just get your job done, and report back to us," the demanding voice declared before glitching and cutting out, ending the communication strand.

'Main Mission: Kill all crewmates and escape back to HQ with the other imposter.' the man thought and then added another piece.

'Side Mission: Discover who the other imposter is.'

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FWOOSH!

The airlock opened, allowing the cramped shuttle air to rush and collide with the spacious, empty atmosphere of the Skeld. "You are an elite team of astronauts specially chosen for this mission on Mars. The trip will take approximately 7 months one-way. Your mission: Find any other signs of the criminally powerful Licronian Clan, and put a stop to their plans," the somber voice from their instructor repeated over and over in Lime's mind. The man huffed irritably as he followed in the footsteps of the preceding crowd of crew members. He didn't want to be here. He was drafted into this, because of a shortage of volunteers. 'Figures,' he thought, 'No one ever wants to volunteer anymore.'

The group made their way through the short hallway from the carrier shuttle into the main cafeteria of the ship. Five big tables stood still, spread around the large room. The crew members filed into the room.

"Attention, crew #2018, this is the voice of Forest, inventor of the Skeld. I am here with Amy and Marcus, my assistants in the matter. We are here to show you the ropes of everything here at the Skeld!" a masculine voice sounded on the intercom speakers in the ship. There was a speaker in the middle of the cafeteria on the ceiling, so the astronauts could only assume that there was one in all the other rooms in the same place.

"First things first, your maps." the voice chimed once again. "Each one of you was given a tablet before your departure. Please take it out. You will need this tablet for almost everything here on the ship, including your next directions." The crew members responded quickly and without complaint, pulling the tablets out of the big zipper pockets on the side of their upper thigh. The tablets were about 18 by 26 cm each and adorned in a case the same shade of color as the astronaut holding it. There was a dark green, purple, pink, white, blue, cyan, and red tablet, along with an orange, and yellow-colored tablet, again, all colored after the astronauts who held them. Lime pulled out his lime-colored tablet. The crew held the large tablets in their gloved hands and awaited their next instructions eagerly and anxiously.

"Alright, your tablets should be out. Upon opening the tablet with a specified 6-digit code given only to your person, you should see four main tabs on the screen. In the upper left of your tablet, there should be a bar that has the word "Tasks" on it. Clicking this bar will showcase a wide array of different tasks in a checklist fashion. Each crewmate is given a set list of tasks, some tasks will have two astronauts at work. These tasks must be completed before the ship reaches its destination," the man on the intercom explained.