Trial 017 - 2019 Wattys Sci-Fi Winner

Chapter 15

I left my vehicle behind in the trees, hidden from the crash site. There were two skyhoppers parked on the ground amid the wreckage of the site and ground crews were picking apart the place to salvage supplies and materials. Krakoshans in hazard suits walked laboriously around the place, hefting large buckets and pieces of equipment that I didn't know about. Somehow, nobody looked happy to be there, cleaning up the downed skyhopper.

Of course, I wasn't actually here to scrounge around the crash site. I was here for leads. I didn't know the area and I had no idea where to start looking for my friends, Peter, or anyone. My only option was to get as close to the Krakoshans as I could and dig around for clues. Unfortunately, the only place around that I knew had Krakoshans was the crash site.

Even staring at it now, I felt my instincts screaming at me to run away, to put distance between myself and the Krakoshans before they could pod me too, but I mercilessly stomped down on that inner voice. I had no other choice. If I was going to stand a chance, I needed to do this.

Seeing the ship for the first time since I'd crashed it made me realize how much of a mess this was. Both wings were completely gone, lying on the path of debris behind the ship where they'd been torn off. The rear boosters looked burned and partially crumpled, and the nose of the skyhopper had dented inwards all the way to the cockpit. There weren't any fires anymore, but I could see the sides of the ship were burned and shredded, most of the hatches and flaps ripped off or bent at odd angles.

The ship had carved a path of debris for over three hundred meters, which meant that the jungle came to an abrupt end at the edge of the crash site. Decimated trees and shredded leaves littered the ground everywhere, making every step taken by the Krakoshans on the site an audible crunch. There were a handful of guards on duty, all carrying plasma rifles and looking very bored.

At the foot of the ramp near one of the skyhoppers, a trio of laborers loaded salvaged material on board, pushing them up the ramp as a burly Krakoshan oversaw the work. The burly one was almost two heads taller and three times as wide, and when he barked, the other Krakoshans around him shrank back, like they were afraid of him.

As the last pod went up the ramp, I snuck away from the site, running back to my vehicle. I needed a distraction and I didn't really expect I'd be able to keep this bike anyway.

"This will never work," I growled to myself, but I kicked the bike forward.

The vehicle started to move, the engine rumbling as it chugged along slowly. I quickly dove off and hit the ground running, dashing away into the jungle nearby to put some distance between myself and the bike. In moments, it would roll into view of the guards, and I would only have a short window of opportunity. I jogged through the dense jungle, hoping the foliage was enough to prevent anyone from seeing me circling around the tree line toward one of the intact skyhoppers, one of the ones they'd used to land troops here. Just a little bit more, and then I'd be-

"Urvosh!" someone shouted.

Uh oh.

I sidled closer to the tree line, creeping carefully to the edge until I caught a glimpse of a guard running past, cradling his rifle as he went on his way to check on the disturbance. For all they knew, one of their charging superbikes had just rolled back into camp without a rider. Now was my chance. They hadn't spotted me yet.

Steeling myself, I risked another peek, eyeing the lowered ramp of the skyhopper. Maybe ten meters or so. The guards were distracted. Now or never.

I ran.

My feet crunched through the debris on the jungle floor, each step cursing my stupidity, but I didn't stop or slow down until I reached the ramp, thumping up the steps hoping that nobody cared enough to turn around and see the little skinny kid running into one of their ships. My heartbeat pounded in my ears, the feeling that I was just a step away from being caught hounding my thoughts. Then I was inside, staring at the loading bay of the small skyhopper.