The Descent

Chapter 39 - Evacuation

The young boy pushed himself up and tucked his knees up under his chin as he wrapped his arms around his legs. He sat there for a moment rocking back and forth as his mind wandered to the memories of his family. No family was perfect, but as he sat there, he could for the life of him not remember on an instance when he hadn't loved the family he had been born into. The encouraging embrace of his mother when he felt down or the thoughtful, yet somewhat longwinded explanations his father would give to the simplest of questions. His brother and sister, they had been his best friends, even though they mostly got on his nerves. They've always had each other's back. It had only been hours since he had seen them last and now, he would never see them again.

Denton wiped his eyes and nose with his sleeve. His eyes wandered to the closed access door in front of him, his hand reaching out to touch it. It was cold to the touch, and he immediately withdrew his hand. He knew enough about space to know there was no life on the other side anymore, only the cold silence of near absolute zero and the emptiness of space. Somewhere on the other side, his family had been waiting for him. He suppressed the urge to continue sobbing and instead took a deep, quivering breath and got up to his feet. 

Around him, a crowd of red and teary eyes stared off into the distance. Some sat on the floor; others leaned up against the walls. A couple held each other tightly while weeping silently on each other's shoulders. They were all vacationers, regular people like himself. They had come here to have a good time. Just like him, they had rushed towards the hab modules when the alarm sounded and just like him, they had been cut off from their loved ones.

Denton's eye caught a swirling gray shadow by one of the lights above him. His heart skipped a beat. Smoke, it was smoke. His eyes darted around the immediate area in an attempt to identify the source. It just seemed to be seeping through the ceiling tiles, slowly descending over the oblivious collection of passengers. As if on cue, some of those around him began to cough. At first, it was just one or two. Then others joined in. Some doubled over on the floor, others collapsed on their hands and knees, retching from the acrid smoke.

Denton dropped down into a kneeling position. He had to stay low and get out of there. His fingers reached out one final time to touch the access door and whispered a silent goodbye. A lonely tear escaped his eyes and made its way down his cheek before he turned and pushed his way through the crowd, away from the door.

As he squeezed between bodies convulsing from the increasingly thick smoke, he found it difficult to stay low. The smoke was starting to irritate his nostrils. It wouldn't be long before he joined the others in a coughing fit if he didn't make it out of there soon.

He wracked his mind for the emergency protocols they had all been briefed on when they arrived. They had practiced several emergency drills covering likely emergency scenarios, including what to do, where to go and when to go where. All the hab modules of the station had their own evacuation pods, he remembered, but if anyone was unable to return to their assigned hab module from the central hub, the lower decks of the central hub also contained backup evacuation pods. That's where he needed to go. First, out of the tunnel and back to the central hub. Then, find the stairs to the lower decks. Hopefully, there would still be room for him.

Backtracking his steps turned out to be a greater challenge than he anticipated. As he exited the tunnel and entered common areas with the shops and restaurants, he saw a scenario not unlike what he had experienced by the access door to the hab module. Many were crying on the floor, holding each other. Others sat on chairs and benches, looking around as if confused. Some, just as Denton, had remembered the emergency protocols and were heading for the lower decks. 

He pushed past the empty restaurants and felt a sinking feeling inside as he saw the crowded stairs leading to the lower decks. How would they all fit? Would there be enough evacuation pods? He hesitated, unsure of what to do. Should he fight his way through or find another set of stairs? It was likely they would all be as busy as this one.