I woke with the unpleasant feeling that something wasn't quite right. I sat in the chair alone. Eyuran was standing near the door, trying unsuccessfully to unlock it from the control panel.
"It is probably blocked from the Main Terminal," I mumbled, still being half asleep.
Wait, what?! My mind suddenly cleared. I jumped out of the chair with my eyes fully open. I had just realized I couldn't connect through siSystem to anyone on Quennah except Eyuran, who turned around shaking his head when I accessed his Node.
There was another faint signature not very far from here. It belonged to Uncle Orewen and was passively broadcasting a life-threateningly compromised status. I made an attempt to connect, but noticed that Eyuran's Node was already running a full diagnostic scan of his father's condition. That's why Uncle's Node had gone into passive mode.
"What happened?" I asked.
"I heard strange sounds right before you woke up, the same time Dad's call for help went out. His life functions are failing rapidly." Eyuran's voice was shaking. He abandoned the idea of simply unlocking the door and went straight for the last resort.
Every room on this ship has an emergency toolkit. Many things can happen when and if you are on your own, and it is not ideal to be 'unarmed' in that situation. That's what Mom says. I totally agree. I have to add, however, that no door can stop a rescuer with tools, at least not for long.
When we finally slid the heavy door open and carefully looked outside, my heart contracted. In the furthest part of the corridor we saw Orewen lying on the floor, face down in a pool of blood. He wasn't moving.
Before I let out all the air in my lungs in a scream that could've shaken the whole Universe, Eyuran swiftly sealed my mouth with his palm. "Shh!" His gaze scanned the room and suddenly stopped on something. He let me go and went to grab the blanket. "I'm going to bring him here."
"What about the blood trail?"
Eyuran halted for a second and looked at me very seriously.
"I'll think of something," he said, and hurried to his father.
Dear Ancestor, please, please protect Uncle Orewen.
The uncomfortable feeling of something going totally wrong hatched into a cold and slimy monster, eating away at my innards.
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FALAHA'S JOURNEY: A Spacegirl's Account in Three Movements
Science FictionFALAHA'S JOURNEY SERIES Vol. 1 The complete serial novel in a single volume (Books 1-3). DEATH. RESURRECTION. ASCENSION. A young girl with ambition. A desperate man on a mission. An ancient enemy set to wipe out their entire race. When a seemingly s...
