Chapter 49: Volume II: Chapter 16: Landing

“You learned how to land… right?” Will asked as they eyed the barren moon below.

“Sure,” Chleo said from her spot under the control panel as she reconnected the navigation systems.  “It can’t be much different than launching.”

“You’ve got to be kidding,” Mic muttered as he spun around the room.

“Chleo, maybe we should let Mic drive,” Will said, doubt making his spine tingle.  She sat up, wiping her dust and grime covered hands on a nearby rag. 

“So he can turn us around?  I don’t think so.”  Her brow rose in stubborn dismissal.  “Having trouble over there?” she asked.  Mic grumbled as he pulled out of a terminal port.  “I only reconnected the nav cortex to the control panel.  Stop sniffing around and help me land.”

“No,” Mic said abandoning his search and floating closer.  “We’re turning around and going home.  Dad’s worried sick, and we’ll need more than two kids and a pilot to find Mom on Umbra.”

Chleo’s head whipped toward Mic.  Will’s mouth fell open.  “Dad?” she asked.  “Mom?”

Will swore he saw the bird smirk.  Lacking a face, he wasn’t sure how Mic managed it.  “Turn around and I’ll tell you all about it… Sis,” he added for good measure.  Chleo stared, resolve faltering, curiosity screaming. 

“He’s right,” Will added, laying a hand on her shoulder.  “We’re walking in blind.  This isn’t like you.  We need the help and some time to plan.”  She met his gaze, searching.  He watched the battlements crumble.

“Fine—”  The ship jolted off course, their slow orbit careening toward the moon’s surface.

“What did you do?” Mic accused.

“Nothing,” Chleo insisted, rushing to the control panel to run a few commands.  The displays flashed red as alarms echoed through the ship.

“Move over,” Mic ordered.  Chleo fell away without a fight, the ground rushing closer every second.  The bird shoved a cable into the control panel’s port.  The ship jerked, then slowed, the internal gravitation evening to block the g-forces.  

“We’re caught on a line,” he said, data running over the displays too fast for Will to read.  “They’re going to reel us in.” 

“Is there anything you can do?” Will asked, fear rushing to join the buzz taking residence up his spine.

Mic stayed silent a tick too long.  “No,” he said, “I can’t reach anything outside the ship.  The blocker’s jamming me.”

They stood as the moon’s chill worked its way into the ship.  “Who are they?” Chleo asked.

“No idea,” Mic answered.

“What do we do?”

The bird did an interpretation of a shrug. “We wait.” 

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The ship touched down.  Will’s nerves tapped out a staccato on his temple, his heartbeat setting the rhythm.  They took what time they had to stash everything of value into Mic’s bird.  Unable to leave without shorting out under the blocker, he assured them he knew enough hiding places on the ship to stay hidden when boarded.  Will handed the book over without hesitation, tucking his hornet into an easily overlooked pocket. Chleo gave him her belt, unwilling to lose a second one after her ordeal on Luna.  She copied Will and tucked her and her mother’s watches into a small internal pocket sewed into her jacket.

They stood in the cargo bay hidden behind a load of spare parts.  The ramp groaned, then lowered, cranked centimeter by centimeter by an unseen force.  Will wiped a sweaty hand on his jacket.  They had a plan.  It would be fine.

The ramp clanked to the ground out of sight, the sound echoing through the bay.  Footsteps and light danced in the air, blue holding constant as yellow flickered around the sound.  Will felt a spark of sympathy for the faltering glow before he remembered they were probably there to steal the ship. 

Suddenly, the steps turned frantic, scratching and pounding against the metal.  Chains rattled and a spurt of Neonian sang over the commotion.  Will peeked around a box of hull panels to check the exit. 

Blocked.

Yellow spurted from a neon as she lunged toward him, a chain harness keeping her in place as her face screwed into a snarl.  Limp hair thrashed against her companion, blue arms bulging as they kept her from breaking loose.  Will scrambled back.

He leaned against the box, happy to have something between him and the crazed woman on the other side. “I think they saw me,” he said.

Chleo glanced at him surprised.  “Are you sure?”  A few snarls echoed closer.

“I’m sure,” Will said keeping an eye on the opening to his left.  “Chleo, please tell me you have one of those brilliant plans of yours.”

Instead of an answer he felt a tug on his sleeve.  The squeaks and clicks from the feral woman’s steps pounded closer.  He spun finding Chleo half way up a pile of boxes full of engine parts.  Scrambling to join her, he thanked the Pride’s obstacle course for giving him the practice.  They scurried to the top seconds before yellow sputtered around the corner, blue not far behind.

The woman growled, pounding a fist into a box.  The wood snapped, Will’s nerves following.  He caught a quick snippet of Neonian, picking out the word for, “Where.”  His hand clenched at Chleo’s.  She squeezed back, and for a second, things were better.  He could believe the neons would forget about them, ransack the ship like expected, and he and Chleo would use the distraction to escape.

The boxes groaned under an extra weight.  The belief died.  The sound of sniffing reached their ears like a dog on a scent.  They scrambled back as a frantic clambering grew closer.  Flipping over the other side, Will caught sight of the woman’s head popping up to meet them.  Her teeth gleamed.  He fell more than climbed down, twisting at the bottom to sprint for the ramp, feeling Chleo at his side.   

He made it two strides before noticing the greeting party.  They stood at the bottom of the ramp ten strong, at least two others leashed and rabid.  Green and red snapped at their harnesses, a contingent of yellow at their backs.  Will slid to a stop next to Chleo.  In a synchronization born from escaping Putter and his band of terrors on Luna, they spun ready to sprint for the med bay and the only other exit.

A hand clamped down on Will’s shoulder, jerking him to a stop.  Blue filled his peripheral.  A yellow blur flickered as it rushed Chleo, throwing her to the ground.  Will’s reaction was quick and swift, his elbow landing lower than it would on his regular sparing partners but just as effective.  The hand tightened, a soft groan hitting the back of his neck.  

The yellow woman pinned Chleo before she could regain her feet.  Feral eyes stared down at her, hesitating, hungry.  Will tried to twist away.  He had to do something.  He had to help.  The woman lunged, teeth clamping down on Chleo’s arm.

“No!” Will yelled, his voice mixing with Chleo’s scream.  She bucked.  He stomped on his captor’s foot, ramming his head back to meet the man’s nose.  Blue flashed brighter on his shoulder.  He tried to dodge… too slow.

The fist connected.  His world faded around the image of the yellow woman spitting a chunk of Chleo’s arm back out onto the cargo bay floor.

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