"Mayday Mayday!" screamed Mac, the computer AI, as I tried steering us to better terrain than crashing against a mountain.
"Mayday!"
"I hear you Mac, but could you for once be a little helpful?" I asked, gritting my teeth and yanking upwards on the steering mechanism to avoid the mountain. Mac tucked tail and hid under some seats. I glared at him.
"Thanks a bunch!" I maneuvered the craft to a valley I saw and sat her down. Smoke crawled towards the starboard where we were from the back. Mac glanced up and flew into a panic, hands gripping his square head's antenna.
"Mayday!"
I sighed and stood, stretching the kinks from my back, and glaring at the little droid. "Is that all you can do?"
Mac stopped flying in circles and glanced at me with big eyes. "Mac can help?"
"You are the compu...! Never mind! Mac close the other rooms and contain the fire to sector 12," I said typing in the commands.
Mac glowed faintly. "Closing all sectors except sector 12," he said. "Activating sprinklers on the fire."
From somewhere the smoke sizzled out and I breathed easy.
Mac glanced at me. "Brent happy?"
"What on God's green Earth would make me happy in this situation, Mac?" I muttered, kicking down the shuttle entrance and stepping outside. An owl hooted, though it seemed to be early evening still. My boots touched the violet soil underneath me getting stuck in my boots. I approached a violet shrub and watched, as it slowly blossomed in the dying light. More of these bushes lined the forest floor.
Mac flew down and bumped into me. "Mayday!"
I growled. "What now?"
And then I heard a snarl rip from behind a bush and watched as two red eyes materialized along with a jaw of very sharp teeth.
The thing was tall and walked on two legs. It had a snout and two triangular ears. It was humanoid and bulky. It lumbered over to me and swung its gigantic fists. I dodged and ducked, as he tried to take my head again. I gazed at Mac and the ship. I couldn't let it come closer. I dashed with the thing right on my tail.
Right? Left? No straight! I stumbled up the rocky face of the mountain outcrop, the thing right behind me. It lunged at me and grabbed my cadet suit. It tore its nails into my back. I screamed and kicked the thing off. I scrounged in the near dark for anything to beat this colossal giant with.
I spotted a fallen log and crawled to it, launching myself over it. The beast followed. It bent in half and we came tumbling down into the lake. The thing couldn't swim. It made ghastly noises as it drowned, while I paddled to shore breathing heavily, and wincing at my torn back. I crawled onto the bank and collapsed.
"Mac had it right," I muttered closing my eyes.
It howled sinking and drowning.
