Space is Vast

Chapter 7 - Chasing TheSheperd

Vida struggled and strapped herself in the copilots seat. She looked back at Scipio and Adam. Scipio managed to strap himself in, but Adam was still lying on the floor. Scipio looked at Vida and shrugged. Vida turned her attention back to the window in time to see a 4 million ton building fly by the window. TheSheperd was flying through the city of Grandite, swerving around lampposts and colored banners, narrowly missing most certain death. 

TheShepard was in full throttle. And behind it sped twenty police cruisers. The gray buildings flashed past as the speed increased. Jones turned the ship hard right and sped down another street. Vida felt the tug of g-forces straining against her seatbelt. And she nearly cried as she saw they were speeding along the side of a very large, and not so flat building. The side of the building was dotted with satellite dishes, and open windows. Yet, Jones managed to avoid every one, although the same couldn’t be said for the cruisers behind them. Vida watched the rear view as a burning pile of molten metal went streaming strait for the ground. Jones then rocked the ship into a strait climb. 

Vida watched in horrified fascination as hundreds of levels flashed past in seconds, and before she knew it, there was nothing but blue sky. TheShepard had flown out over the hundreds of buildings, but the climb had taken its toll. The engines cut, and the ship stalled in mid air. Vida felt herself float for a few seconds. Then came the gut wrenching force as gravity remembered it place. She felt her head being pressed into the back of the seat and could only watch in horror as a single gray building came speeding towards them. Jones adjusted the ship to aim for a single tiny patch of blue. Vida looked at Jones, and saw his knuckles had turned white from thee pressure, but still he held the ship strait. As they neared Vida saw what Jones had aimed at, a single pane of glass lay in the middle of the top of the building. Vida could see a few people staring at the ship as it came plummeting towards them. Vida turned her head and tried to scream at Jones, but her words were caught in the back of her throat, so instead, she screamed in her mind. 

The crash of glass was deafening. Vida also hoped it was blinding, but was horrified to find that she could still see. She felt each crunch as they tore through hundreds of glass panels, all set perfectly in line. Vida turned to Jones to see a face just as amazed as she was. 

“I really hadn’t expected this to happen.” He flinched as another loud clash signified another window. “I had actually expected the engines to come back on before we hit the building.” He smiled sheepishly. Jones was furiously pushing the “On” button. Vida glanced out the window and caught the number 4284. She looked back at Jones, and pushed the button a few times as well, then back at the numbers, 3129. She turned back to Jones, 

“We’re falling really fast. I mean really fast.”

“I know!” he yelled at her. Jones pushed the button again and Vida felt as the engines roared to life. Jones thrust the throttle into full reverse and Vida felt the horrible pressure as the ship tried to reverse, and travel forward at the same time. Vida watched the numbers again, 548………..390…………261………….152……. Vida felt the ship pull to a halt. And breathed a sigh of relief. The Ship had stopped at floor 97, with the nose touching the 96th glass pane. 

Jones took a breath, relieved not to be dead. He looked over to Vida, and saw her staring transfixed out the window. One of the people was waving at her, and Jones couldn’t help laugh at the comical sight. Jones slowly leveled out TheShepard and pointed it towards the glass window headed outside. Adam sat cross-legged, in the back, he had apparently not moved at all, and he seemed to be having a lengthy discussion with a banana, a mongoose, and light bulb. Vida turned to Scipio.

“Set a course for the docking ring, we need to get out of here fast.” Scipio punched in some numbers, and a purple waypoint appeared on screen. Jones pushed the throttle forward and TheShepard burst through the glass, sending colorful shards in every direction. Before the police could turn their vehicles, TheShepard had a good space between them, and was already cresting the atmosphere. TheShepard shot through layers of clouds, and gas, and burst forth, finally through the docking gate and out into open space. The three-crew members cheered, ecstatic to be free from gravity, and long drops. Scipio had already put in the new coordinates that Rodriguez had given them, and Jones flew them off in search of the mystery ship. 

As TheShepard arrived at the coordinates, the crew was surprised to find no one waiting for them. 

“Where are they? Should they be here?” Scipio said as he searched the map.

Vida re-read the note. “It doesn’t give a time, so I suppose we wait.”

Jones stared out the window. He was good at staring, it required little work, it was his kind of job. It was while he was staring that he noticed a piece of space flash. He turned to Vida; obviously she had seen it too.

“Did that piece of space just disappear and reappear?” she asked.

Jones looked even harder, “Hmmm… I don’t know, but it certainly loo-… Holy Jesus!!”

Out of nothing had appeared a Mammoth, a rare species of ship, held only by the filthy rich. Jones stared; he was flabbergasted, never had he laid eyes on such a magnificent, beautiful ship. It was sleek, and completely black. There was no way to tell which was the front, and which was the back. 

“Damn thing was cloaked!” Proclaimed Scipio

“Yeah, a little too late Scip, thanks for trying.” Replied Jones

Jones watched as something moved on the ships surface. Something was coming out, he realized. And he could do nothing but watch. A large round black base appeared, and out of the center a long cylindrical pipe emerged. It turned so that the pipe was pointed towards TheShepard, and then Jones realized what it was.