EvO (Darverius, House of DaR #16)

Chapter 4

Chapter Four

EVO

“ ViN , I need you to report to my room immediately. We have an issue, one of the pods is failing and I’m going to have to acquire your assistance with getting to the female inside.”

“ EvO , we knew this could happen.”

A growl leaves my throat as I go through the drawers, looking for my full body compression suit. “ I am not losing her. You either help me, or I will do this alone.”

“ I’ll be right there.”

“ Captain , I can’t allow you to exit the ship. It goes directly against all my directives.”

“ Figure it out, Destroyer , because I will not sit in here and watch her die when I have the means to save her.”

I hear ViN’s large steps approaching right before my door opens. “ What you are attempting, EvO , is suicide. You knew their odds when we came out here, you cannot save them all.”

Ignoring him, my eyes remain glued to the blinking lights, beckoning me forward.

“ Frack , EvO , look at me damnit! The gasses out there will instantly start attacking your suit. You are not only putting yourself in danger, but the female doesn’t stand a chance once her body is exposed to the toxic gasses in this Nebula .”

When he grabs my shoulder, I shrug him off aggressively. “ Don’t push me right now, ViN . I know better than anyone what I’m facing. But … I have no choice. So instead of fighting me, help me find a way to get it done.”

“ Frack , I should have known you would never stand aside. Not a soul will consider you a failure, EvO , if you lose a couple of these humans. ”

I grab him by the straps across his massive chest. “ I don’t give a frack what others think of me, but what if that was Ember out there, brother? What if you had turned away?”

ViN’s whole body starts to heat up, and I can tell I have touched a nerve. The lights starting to flash faster on the pod catches both of our attention and I instantly feel like I am running against time I don’t have.

“ Destroyer , I need my suit now. Where is the closest exit from here?”

“ Captain , we must take precautions before you exit. I will not break any of my seals no matter your commands, until a secured exit and entry port can be confirmed. Even if you do manage to retrieve the female. I will be forced to quarantine you both. You will not be available personally to your crew or anyone else until you are cleared.”

“ Get Lex on the comm.”

I watch as LeX turns towards the comm. “ Brother , you seem flushed, what is bothering you this rising?”

“ Do you have an emergency area in your med lab that can be completely sealed shut?”

“ Yes , that is standard on all ships in case of a contagious disease.”

“ How do you administer treatment to someone who is sealed inside of that room?”

“ If a contamination suit is not strong enough or if the inhabitant is sealed for the safety of the crew, my only option is to use the AI medical unit.”

“ I don’t have time to explain all the details, but I am going out to retrieve one of the pod’s occupants. Do you know of anything I can use to protect her body from further harm once I open it to the extremes of the Nebula ?”

“ EvO !”

“ I am not arguing or discussing this any further. We are not helpless out here, LeX . There must be an emergency procedure in place in case someone accidentally gets subjected to a haul break.”

“ Her body is far too fragile. She won’t make it a tick if exposed to the gasses in the Nebula . Brother , the toughest of us can only tolerate moments directly in contact with the freezing temperatures of space. The human body is too frail, she will be gone before you can even get her into an atmospheric suit.”

I can feel my anger and my helplessness building inside of me. As I hit the viewer, my knuckles split open. My mind flips through every scenario I can think of, all of them ending with her death.

“ Destroyer , is there a way to disconnect the cryo chamber removing it from the outer part of the pod?”

“ It would depend on the damage. My scans are showing a malfunction with one of the outer doors. However , I may be able to redirect one of the Maintenance bots to start disassembling its outer shell. This could cut down on the amount of time you would have to be exposed to the elements. I am having your atmospheric suit double checked for any seam leaks or punctures as we speak.”

ViN is pacing the floor, running his hand through his long hair. “ EvO , you would have to get her out of that tube and into the ship within just a few ticks.”

“ I know that already, ViN . Tell me something useful.”

He stops looking up at the Holo screen. “ LeX , do you have any suggestions?”

“ While you two have been arguing. I’ve been doing some research, if I can gather all the ingredients. I might just have the answer, but this could … no will be fatal if done incorrectly.”

When he suddenly gets quiet, I find myself throwing my hands up in the air. “ Frack don’t leave me hanging here, LeX . What is it?”

“ Bear with me a moment, EvO . I am trying to get this formula correct so that the Destroyer can get it processed immediately. This has never been done in the vastness of space, so it’s all in theory. I hate that there is no way for me to test it.”

“ Brother , would you quit your rambling?” ViN and I both are staring at the Holo screen, watching as LeX runs around the room. My eyes keep flickering back to the lights on the pod.

“ LeX , we don’t have all rising, brother.”

“ I need to locate a spray container that will not lose pressure once it is subjected to the loss of the false gravity inside the ship. Ahhh , here … I can use this. Now , EvO , this must be applied perfectly and you are not in optimal conditions out there.”

“ What are you talking about? I can’t see what’s in your hand.”

“ I will tell you while ViN helps get you suited up.”

He no more says that, than a wall compartment opens with my suit hanging inside. ViN takes out the gloves and boots, checking their closures as I slide on the pants.

“ Get to talking LeX .” ViN yells.

“ Alright , there are certain things you need to know up front. First of all, this solution, if not applied correctly. It could and will destroy you, the female, and possibly the ship if it touches the main haul.”

When he sees me start to say something, he holds up his hand, stopping me.

“ Second , you absolutely cannot let this come in contact with your suit or we will have to break it off you. I don’t need to tell you how painful that would be. I’ve been studying the inside of the pods. There should be a lever that will open the interior cryo tube, but before you hit this control make sure you know which one does what. Because there are two separate operations. One method will drain the fluids away from her body, leaving her vulnerable to the conditions of the Nebula , and she will die right before your eyes. The other will open the lid, but she will remain immersed inside the fluid that has kept her safe all this time. This is where things get tricky really fast. We are going to use the fluids surrounding her body to freeze her temporarily. The downside is, she can only survive frozen in this state for around three ticks.”

“ What ? I thought the whole purpose of this was for her not to be injured?”

“ EvO , the fluids will freeze around her, encasing her in the only protective material we can provide. In theory, if you can get her to me quick enough. I should be able to submerse her entire body into the liquid mineral tank. Worse case, before I can get her stabilized the fluids melt and withdraw on their own, falling to the floor. Hopefully , we will be able to unfreeze her slowly enough that she should only have minor injuries. I plan on keeping her fully sedated until she is healed.

“ Now to the bad part. If you open her pod and it drains away on its own, nothing you do will save her life. This must work perfectly, and still, your chances are not favorable. If something hits you or this spray clogs due to the extreme cold. Well , we won’t get into the details of that because if that happens it won’t matter, we will have lost both of you.

“ Brother , you need to understand. She is not going to be the only one that we will lose before we are able to get back out of this Nebula and you can’t save them all. The Lord of Light has led you to them, you have fulfilled your duties. Your ship needs you. Can you not allow another to do this?”

“ The Destroyer has you, ViN , and Rafe . You all will do fine without me. I don’t understand it, but there is absolutely no way I can let her die out there. If the Lord of Light says it’s my time, at least we would go together.”

ViN looks up at me rapidly from where he was kneeling, helping me put the stabilizing boots on. Their soles are so large and heavy they are hard to maneuver in alone.

“ That’s pretty deep brother considering you have never seen, or even smelled this female before.”

Shrugging my shoulders. “ I can’t explain it.” I hadn’t even noticed LeX was no longer on the Holo pad, as my mind was already trying to wrap itself around the mission ahead. Until my door slides open and LeX walks in with a small container in his hand.

“ Hurry , this container is already starting to deteriorate. If it fails while on board it will kill us all before we can seal off the breach in the haul.”

“ LeX , the fact that you know how to make something this deadly is something we need to discuss when I get back. I didn’t know that when you were studying medicine, they were teaching you to be an evil scientist.”

“ I was required to learn the consequences of bad decisions … like this one and what happens to the body when it is subjected to such chemicals. Lucky for you I have a photogenic memory and rarely forget anything.”

Movement outside the viewer has all of us turning simultaneously only to find a single Maintenance bot dismantling the outer shell of the pod.

“ Destroyer , I need an exit and re-entering point.”

“ I am working on them now. Both will be a close fit, but they are the only locations I can seal temporarily. The porthole in the next chamber is the closest I have to the pod. I have removed all the objects in that room and the moment you step inside, it will be sealed shut. Not to be reopened until we exit the Nebula and I can purge the gasses out.”

“ Where is my re-entry point?”

“ Unfortunately , you will have to travel to the med lab two levels below, and then work your way down toward the chamber prepared for you. If my calculations are correct, you’ll have a ten-tick margin for error, before your suit starts to deteriorate. Once that starts you will only have a few moments before you are past the point of even comprehending what you are doing.”

ViN grabs hold of my arm. “ Let me go with you. We would have a better chance of success together.”

“ Are you willing to be quarantined from Ember for the rest of this voyage, brother? How about if this all goes wrong? How would this affect her since you two are soul-bound? No frackin’ way, you want to help me? Get my ass back on this ship one way or another.”

I can see ViN is not happy with my answer. His runes are pulsing, and I can see the fire running along the veins on one side of his body.

“ Destroyer , I need more info on how to transport a frozen body two levels down without losing her or myself in the process.”

“ The medical lab has an external door that was sealed completely when we were making preparations to enter into the Nebula . The Maintenance bots have just cleared its seal and I am currently securing its interior. Thankfully , the Banhans realized that the med bays could possibly be the first place that a major contagion could break out and had each room built separately. The entrance is rather large, so you should be able to bring the female in safely. Once I reseal the doors, Master LeX will be able to take over and administer the instructions needed for her care.”

ViN taps me on the chest. “ You’re all set for your suicide mission.”

“ Thanks for the vote of confidence.”

“ I believe in you, but I also know the dangers you will be out there free floating in. Don’t make me have to deliver your body to Father and explain to him why we allowed you outside this ship. Depending on how angry he is, Lex and I both may be joining you in the great unknown.”

LeX and ViN both follow me to the next room. When the door slides open, I hesitate to step through for a moment. Awkwardly I turn grabbing them both at the same time pulling them to me in a huge hug. Taking the canister from LeX , I turn away, closing the door before either can say anything. Instinctively , I know both of them have already raced to my viewer, anxiously awaiting my next step. Pulling my helmet over my head, I instantly hear the Destroyer’s voice as I walk towards the porthole.

“ Captain , can you read me clearly?”

“ Yes .”

“ I am initiating the porthole to open now. Do not start through it until you see the ring around it turn green. We can’t take the chance of your suit getting caught on anything.”

The moment it turns green the room depressurizes. I start to free-float forward. Only to realize, I’m not stressed at all even though the odds are against me, simply determined. I don’t know anything about the female inside that pod, but either way, I refuse to lose her.