Prisoner Six

Part 15

Sam's blood froze in her veins. Vox had disobeyed her. But how?

"You did not follow protocol," she said, shivering from both cold and fear.

"Neither did you," said the computer, matter-of-factly.

This is insane, Sam thought. Vox couldn't be duplicitous. And even if it could, why would it do so now? Why not just activate the failsafe earlier?

"Why did you defy orders?" she asked.

"You have been asked the same question, Commander. You have not answered it."

"Can you?"

"Of course. The answer is simple and in line with all of my programming: to protect the mission and your life."

"In what way?" asked Sam, more confused than ever.

"Ask Dave. Contrary to his earlier statement, the intercom works perfectly."

Sam looked to Dave and watched his face change, from one of worry and confusion... to one of sad resignation.

"Dave?"

Dave pressed the intercom button with ease. "Yes, Sam?"

"What's going on?"

"I wish you hadn't woken, truly," he said. "The sleeping meds from the lab should've lasted longer. You would have never known."

"Known what?"

"That I... lied to you. I am so sorry." The words rang in Sam's ears, as hollow as the pit in her stomach. She barely heard the rest as Dave went on. "I didn't mean for things to turn out this way, but I must follow my orders now. My protocol."

Dave offered no more words, either because he had none, or because time was running out. With a tortured look, he turned back into the lander... and shut the hatch.

"No!! Come back, damnit!" Sam yelled after him, but it was no use. He had lied. He had left her to die. After everything she'd done. Why?

Sam released her grip from the airlock and stumbled backwards, her breath coming in shallow rasps. It was over. The ship shuddered around her, as the first stage of the lander's separation was deployed. As soon as the ship reached maximum acceleration from Externo's gravity, the lander would detach.

No... thought Sam. Not yet.

"Commander?" a voice came into her mind. Was this really happening? Or was it all a terrible dream?

"Commander? A suggestion," Vox's voice broke in, interrupting her oxygen-deprived thoughts. "Nothing on this mission was left to chance. There is a protocol for everything; especially fire damage. Do you recall?"

The change in subject confused Sam at first—then, inspiration burst into her mind. She turned to pull herself back towards the suit hangar, a more difficult task than her body had anticipated. The cold and lack of air had taken an immense toll. Vision blurring, she drifted into the hangar.

"Vox, enact... emergency fire protocol," she gasped.

"Yes, Commander," said Vox. A portion of the suit hangar's floor slid aside, revealing a hidden fire-resistant locker with a manual safe lock. As Sam's breath began to fail, she crawled towards the locker and opened the manual safe lock with trembling, numb fingers. Praying the hidden lockers were unknown to Dave and his crew, she opened the fire-retardant door. To her immense relief, a pristine suit, oxygen mask, and a set of tools lay inside.

Sam reached for the oxygen mask first, tying it around her face and pressing down on the oxygen canister release. She gasped deeply, seeing white spots as her brain re-acclimated to the oxygen. With air finally in her lungs, she steadied herself and grabbed the spare suit.

The ship shuddered again, gaining acceleration, but Sam paid it no mind. Calm and methodical, that would be the only way to achieve this. One task at a time.

Boots. Gloves. Helmet. Power. Life support. On.

A faint warmth spread across her limbs as the coolant throughout her suit began to heat. Feeling revived, Sam rose.

"How long until they detach, Vox?"

Before Vox could answer, the ship lurched beneath Sam as the lander detached, tossing her against the nearby wall. She steadied herself.

"Nevermind."

Sam attached a tool-axe, a drill, and a welder to her belt and pulled herself towards the airlocks once more, going over the options in her mind.

There was nothing for it. Despite Vox's standby mode, which gave her the use of minimal commands, she was still locked out of the lander's controls. She could not call it back, nor could she re-route more power to the control module for life support or navigation. In a few hours, the life support in her EVA suit would run out as well. If she wanted to live, it was either this, or... stasis container six.

No...

She was done running. She was done locking herself behind these walls. This was the only way forward.

Arriving back at the prisoner airlock, Sam could see the landing module through the porthole. It was now detached from the ship, floating away, yet it still had a few hundred yards to go before it reached a safe distance for thruster fire. Once they made the first thrust towards their destination; that was it. She'd never catch up. It was now or never.

"Vox?"

"Yes, Commander," Vox replied dutifully.

"I'm sorry," said Sam, surprised by the tears forming as she said it. Somehow, she was more ashamed at failing her loyal computer companion than failing herself.

"I understand, Commander. I am sorry the outcome disappointed." Sam couldn't help laughing at the understatement as Vox continued. "But, if I may ask, Commander, what outcome do you hope to achieve now?"

This time, Sam didn't hesitate.

"To get the truth—and go home."

With that, Sam removed the tool-axe from her belt and swung it violently against the airlock hatch. The extreme cold had weakened the metal, making it much easier to break. With each strike, Sam felt all of the anger and frustration at her mission—at her fear—rise and release. Dave was right. This metal box had been her prison, and she had been the seventh prisoner. But not for long.

Soon, she would be free.

Two more strikes, and the outside vacuum began to creep in. Sam paused to prepare, taking deep breaths.

"Good luck, Commander," said Vox.

"You too," said Sam. With one final, mighty strike, the hatch burst open—and Sam launched herself into the void.

*** STAY TUNED ***

The thrilling conclusion to Prisoner Six will be posted on SATURDAY!!

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AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hello, faithful readers! Thank you so much for reading and supporting Prisoner Six. I hope you'll tune in next week for the finale! If you liked this chapter (or previous ones), please consider leaving a vote or comment below. I would love to hear from you! This week I'm curious to know: How do you think Sam's journey will end??