Untitled Story 1 :: Chapter 1 :: Part 2

After my brother was nearly killed from the accident, I took him to the navy hospital, only because I knew it was the only place that could fix him up. It was the only decision that I could make. I knew that he would be drafted. I managed to get in as well, because of my ability with machines. Starships are different from cars, as would be expected, but not different enough to keep my skill from helping. The training is strenuous, but no more so than to be expected from a military program. There are slightly different tools and we need to learn to work in zero-g, but beyond that it's not much that needs to be but relearned. I'm not getting much communication from my brother anymore, except to say that he's alive still, really, and that training is going well enough. Our work started on the ground, mostly fixing the small fighters that were landed from the near-world skirmishes. My brother contacted a captain somehow, and got us both on his ship, so we could continue to look after each other I guess. I'm still not seeing my brother much, but at least I know he's not dead still. We've been doing drills excessively, and know exactly what we're supposed to do with most any attack situation. As mechanics we get suits with extra arms that are controlled by brain implants, so I suppose I have been upgraded as well as my brother.

     The attack came at about 0300, and crippled us badly, despite our preparation. After I saw the situation I got my suit space ready, just in case. It was Ravagers, the evil buggers. They care nothing for spoils, only mindless destruction and death. Once I saw it was them, I stayed by the engines to keep my heat signature from reading well on their scanners. All I heard were the screams, even from the men, they sounded nothing so much as little girls. I could see one of the other mechanics being torn apart and eaten alive, the Ravager was a particularly nasty one who cauterized the wounds to keep the victim alive longer. The screams were enough to drive most anyone mad by themselves, and the visuals only added to that. Insanity was imminent in my mind.

     I felt the ship undock and leave. I stayed where I was for a time, then got up and explored the damage of the ship. I had no life signs but one, then that faltered and died. That was when I realized there were two in the same place, the one running, the other no more. I followed the sign to a main access corridor, then realized to wonder why I was following. Soon after I decided to follow again. The worst it could do by itself would be chase, and that only if it found me. The arti-grav was gone and I had the advantage of the extra arms to pull myself along. It seemed to be a man, carrying my brother. I hid in a side corridor to see where he was going. I followed him to the airlock and saw a shuttle. Waiting with it was a woman with a nasty scar over one eye, which was a cybernetic replacement and looked less than legal. She was carrying a gauss rifle and had a hacking device strapped across her back, which is probably how they got in, not that they couldn't have come in through one of the large holes in the hull. I stayed in hiding until they left, then explored more of the ship. There were no survivors but me. The loneliness and fear of another attack were enough to drive me nearly mad with paranoia. I knew that they could come back at any minute and kill me. I hid constantly. Then one day the small ship came back. The one with the man who took my brother. I decided I would kill him. He killed my brother, and my brother would be avenged, he had to be.