Gabatrix: The Pirates of Palora

Chapter 12: A Day in the Life of the Asteroid Field Part 2

Over nine hours would pass. The field of floating rocks almost seemed endless, blanketed by the infinite sea of darkness and spotted starlight. The Oracip asteroid field portion was lifeless but unending. In the far distance was the Lifen, traveling along a parallel course and staying completely out of the field. Near the edge of the belt was a tiny flying black rectangle. It was almost entirely flat but carried two little wings on the sides. Occasionally, the small thruster packs would activate so the odd craft would avoid any sizeable rocks that came its way.

Inside this stealth shuttle was Mizu. He was lying down and strapped in as he kept a firm grip on his controls. The compartment inside could easily inspire a person to claustrophobia. The shuttle was designed for stealth first and foremost, with little care for comfort. Any profile given off would only increase the likelihood of detection.

For Mizu, it was raw tedium combined with the fact that his sensor display board would have to continually advise him of an incoming asteroid. Some areas were fine, as the rocks would harmlessly bounce off the hull. However, not every rock completely cooperated with the orbital pattern of the debris field. Some were sent off course or were the size of tables. Occasionally, the field would get horrifically dense that it could shower Mizu's ship with multiple tiny pebbles. Despite moving slowly, it was obviously dangerous. Thankfully, on this portion of the trip, the shuttle was moving with the field and not against it.

The internal compartment had multiple displays showing the status of the ship and surrounding areas. In front of the shuttle was an enormous rock, the hearty remains of planet Oracip. However, at the current course and speed, it would still take another hour to reach it.

"Ugh....," Mizu grunted as he reached over and tapped a button on his display. The sensor screen changed. Thankfully, most of the craft was automated and taking care of the task for him. However, it was evident that he had to take some care not to venture too deep as the shower of rocks would likely increase. At the same time, if he ventured too far from the field, the sensor data would start to decline, and he would get a complaint call from Lifen.

"Even with eight hours, it still feels like twelve," Mizu complained.

There were a few small "dink" sounds as a couple of tiny rocks bounced off the hull. By this time, it had become background noise. But, it was the one thing that kept Mizu from falling asleep, as the sounds were random and never followed any particular pattern.

"Lifen to Stealth-Bro," Patterson's voice called out on the internal comms.

Mizu reached over and tapped the open comms button. "Stealth-Bro here," he replied.

"Have you been relieved of your recon watch?"

"Negative, sir," Mizu grunted. "I haven't seen Dean anywhere. Did he already launch?"

"Affirmative. Ten minutes ago."

"Great....I guess we can't track him. Did you try to hail him?"

"We are, but he hasn't responded."

"Damn," Mizu said. He pulled on his flight control as he gently flew over a house-sized rock. "Any signs of trouble?"

"We aren't tracking any distress beacons or signs of an explosion in your area."

"Ah....I'll try to....AHHH!"

Mizu pulled on his flight control to the left as he looked over and saw a giant black wall to his side. It completely covered his ability to see the asteroids.