The Wall

Goodbye Blue Sky

The vessel, at the captain's command, propelled directionless since its detachment from the guards' ship, aimed vaguely away from counter Earth, its speed maintained by the frictionless void, ever increased by marginal energy partitioned towards propulsion. Though, its direction and propulsion were altered and increased as the captain selected a planet on her digital console, along with setting a few other parameters, then hopped down from her chair.

"This way. There's a few things you gotta learn now that you're outside the lab."

Sale spoke as she led Rocket out of the control room, the male raccoon delayed in following as he found himself entranced by the intricate workings of the ship's console, though he soon accompanied behind her, similarly curious about many other things he could not readily satisfy without her assistance.

"You said I was being tracked. Are we being followed?"

"Not yet. It'll be a few hours before they send anymore ships."

"The guards on the ship, they said their communications weren't working. You did that?"

"I... Yes. I used the ship to halt their communications."

"How?"

Sale let out a sigh as she led him through the ship, taking a moment to search for an answer.

"I'm... not certain."

"Was it automatic, then?"

"No, I... I didn't make the program that I used, I just know what it did... generally."

"You never asked how it worked?"

"I did, and he explained it."

"Then how come-"

Her answers began willingly, small hints of pride at her achievement present in her voice, though as Rocket questioned further, her responses grew shorter in length and tone, culminating in a glare over her right shoulder that quieted the male raccoon, temporarily.

"What did you do, then?"

"I sent a signal that the ship was experiencing a minor issue that prevented safe reentry, but it will be repaired in a few hours. Also, that ship they sent to pick you up is sending out a signal identical to your tracker, while this ship is suppressing yours."

The ship was primarily a single elevation, long, flat interconnected hallways containing numerous rooms of storage or more individual purpose, though a hatch shut by similarly sliding metallic plating revealed a lower area of the ship. These long metallic sheets were akin to the various doors throughout the ship, and while a console on a nearby wall accompanied them similarly to the doors, facilitating their opening, closing, and locking, this console seemed inoperable for no particular reason, its screen a deep, reflective black, akin to the living quarters he'd spotted earlier. Sale, with force, a grating sliding, and a resounding thud, pulled both halves of the hatch open, then led Rocket down the hatch, walking backward down the long grey stepladder as she maintained her explanation.

"The High Evolutionary would send another ship up immediately, but you did a number on him. I'm hoping whichever scientist took command will care less about getting you back. It's only a temporary solution, though. In order to disable the tracker fully, we'll have to go to one of their laboratories and get direct access to a computer. That's where we're heading, but in the meantime..."

This lower area was far larger than any other room, being a similar, long rectangular shape, the stepladder occupying one of the shorter edges, while the walls left and right of the entrance were adorned with all manner of weaponry, hung up by metallic hooks welded onto the surface. Lining each wall were long, closed containers, while in the center of the room there occupied a long table, its surface stained with uncountable scratches, burns, and dents.