Number One Fan

Chapter 18: Blackout

He was free! Happy manned the helm...or rather...the autopilot manned the helm. 

 Unfortunately, escape pods were only a basic refuge in emergencies. They were not designed to brave the wrath of anomalies or chart star clusters. They were designed to get a person from space to planet-side as efficiently and quickly as possible. But today, this pod was an exploration vessel, and exploration vessels suffered from massive shockwaves of turbulence, especially when their wayward pilots sought to take them places they were not designed to go—like wormholes. Happy had never had his own ship before; he was a pretty awful pilot, but fortunately, the AI could determine the safest course and help him out.

"Warning, flight path compromised, course correction required." The AI warned as Happy flew past debris. The AI wanted to take Happy away from danger, but danger was the fastest way to escape the Kori. "Exterior obstacles detected." Something hit him.

Happy yelped as the ship started to spin like there was no tomorrow. Fortunately, seatbelts prevented him from flying around the cabin like a ragdoll in a washing machine, but the same couldn't be said for his luggage. He should've strapped it down—as long as he didn't get smacked in the face...all was well. Happy attempted to stabilize himself, and eventually, the pod stopped spinning. 

Happy took a pretty powerful hit from the electrical discharges of the wormhole. Because he couldn't see where he was going, it was like flying through space in a high-speed submarine. Happy braced himself on the edge of the console as the pod continued to push. Its alarms chirped and screamed with rage as he lost every basic system and was plunged into darkness. Only the yellowish-orange glow of his console lit the space now...it reminded him of the very last camping trip he and his father took into the woods back on their island—before they started living in space...then Happy remembered—he hated camping, there was never enough light, but the bugs seemed to be in abundance. The console seemed to be casting the same glow as that campfire. Even now, he was thinking about his father and missed him.

"Recommend mission abort." The computer warned as the pod continued to be struck by electrical discharges and turbulence—all without being able to see outside to observe what was going on. "Main power offline." The ship was plunged into darkness. This wormhole was almost certainly a metaphor for Happy's mind—chaotic, disorienting, and filled with unknowns. 

But then...Chaos soon subsided and made way for serenity and quiet.

 The power systems were restored, the instruments were quietly chirping, and he didn't seem to be in danger. He must've made it through the wormhole. If he didn't find the Patrol...he at least made history as the first Omeocoon to ever travel through a wormhole in a spacecraft the size of a shoebox and survive.

"Warning—starboard thruster-A, failure." The computer alerted Happy.

Happy looked at the console and saw that he'd taken some damage. It looked like his thruster module was broken. This was not particularly the news he was looking for right now, but at least he was alive—for now.

"Conjunction imminent." The computer followed up.

Being unable to see outside was less than ideal, but what Happy could hear was loud, heavy objects striking his hull...astroids? Debris from a ship? Well...he knew one thing—he made it out of the wormhole.

"Safety system initiated, autopilot engaged. Prepare for landing."

"Landing?! Where?! No, stop!" Happy argued as he tried to punch in as many command overrides as possible, but the computer locked him out. Happy refused to give up, "I said...no!" He unclicked his harness and tried to stand up, but as he slid off his chair and pushed off the ground with his feet, he shrieked as he was propelled upward; micro-gravity was not his friend. He was not prepared for any of this; Happy's path to the roof was fast; he hit his head on the ceiling—and was out cold instantly.