 #1 (permalink) Thu Dec 30, 2010 0:21 am Marooned |
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I’d failed on so many levels. It wasn’t my intention for it to pan out like this. My girlfriend had dumped me, although I had no idea where I’d gone wrong. Perhaps it had something to do with my reluctance to talk and my general inability to express myself with words. I could only guess at this point. The quiet days at the office were now a distant reminiscence lurking somewhere in the back of my head. I truly miss those – they were filled with the pleasant monotony only a secure life can provide. The dreadful letter popped in my mailbox on Friday. And it was the 13th… Who would’ve guessed? I could only read the first few lines where they thanked me for my diligent work during the past seven years which was followed by their stating politely that I was being relieved effective 30 days later. The reasons elude me since I lost focus when I read that. Something intangible yet very real crawled up my chest to stay there for good. It was hatred. The smug bastards had fired me! I was now jobless, wifeless and penniless as I had the bad habit of squandering every last dime of my paycheck to indulge in various relishes with my ex. I was smitten by life the hard way. Money was scarce and I needed it fast. At least I had some shelter… Or so I thought.
Thus went my quick inner retrospection of how I’d gotten here as I lay under the lonely palm-tree, gasping for air. Our unit had obviously suffered an ambuscade by the Ugaki, during which I must have passed out. I woke up with a bombarding headache and dizziness. The sunlight was incinerating my skin and two tiny globules of perspiration tumbled down my dusty cheeks, forming a furrow for others to come. I tried rotating my head around to see if there were any other survivors, which produced a few small cracks indicating I’d been in the same position for quite a while now. Ten, maybe fifteen yards away, lay lifelessly a body. I couldn’t recognize the man’s face at first, but it had to be someone from the team. I vaguely descried a gut-like matter sticking out of his abdomen. Moments later a shivering tingle flashed down my spine accompanied by a stifling disgust rising up my throat and the fried eggs I’d had for breakfast splashed before me. I swiped my sleeve across my mouth and rose up to my feet shakingly. A painful grimace crossed my face when the most excruciating pain pierced my shoulder. It was half a metal flange from our unit’s vehicle. It had sunk its metal jaws deep into my flesh and I had to endure ineffable pangs while pulling it out. Then, I started plodding sluggishly towards the dead man, looking around for any signs of life. Our transporter had evaporated, as it often happens when something is struck by the technologically advanced weaponry of the Ugaki. Only few metal parts were scattered on the ground, denoting something had exploded there. “Such a waste,” I shrieked in despair, “you good for nothings!”
It was the lieutenant, John, whom we’d often mock about the latrine we had outside the head-quarters. “Is John in the john,” someone would josh ironically. “Pity,” I thought while robbing him of his belongings. The latter included a long-range rifle and a flashlight, which I carefully tucked away in my pocket. So there were now two options available to me, neither of which I fancied. I could either wait for help where we were first attacked and rot in boredom with a high chance of getting disintegrated by some bypassing Ugaki, or I could keep my pace in hope of finding some other unit or at least some form of shelter to spend the night in, but still with the same chance of bad things happening. After some consideration, the second choice was picked.
I’d been walking for a mere hour, but it seemed like an eternity. I was slowly but surely losing blood, and the implacable swelter was beginning to get the best of me. My feet were heavy and the arid soil beneath them felt as though it had melted my soles. Large fissures reminded of the absence of rain in this forsaken place. I cursed my kismet once more and tried not to think about water. More than four clicks away from the assault, or so I estimated, and still nothing in sight. At this time I acknowledged to myself that things weren’t going as planned and that the end was drawing near. This thought wasn’t very pleasing, to say the least, and my dismayed spirit turned into a crestfallen one.
Another hour had passed and walking had turned into a wobbling state with a doubly reduced speed. I was trying my hardest to continue moving, but every cell of my being was screaming for water. Five steps farther, my calves and thighs subdued to the fatigue. I fell to my knees, trying my very best to maintain balance with the rest of my body. I couldn’t. Enfeebled, I collapsed to the side. My vitality was leaving me. My eyes became blurred and I could only hear the silence. So this is what it’s like to die. “Not so bad, pal,” sounded a gentle notion in my mind. “You get to see the Elysian Fields where everything is peaceful and calm, no wars and the like. Your mom will be waiting for you there. She’ll be so happy that you are with her, and you will be happy, too.”
And then my train of thought came to a halt. “What is that?!” Something wasn’t right. There was a black shadow I could discern. “Could it be? No way!” It was a transporter! “Oh, my God,” I rejoiced. Adrenaline quickly revived my lost sense of life and I summoned every last droplet of stamina I had left to creep to that vehicle. Even my sight improved slightly.
Now being two yards away from the transporter, I noticed its door was open and two men were facing each other with their heads drooping, both showing no signs of life. I didn’t care at all about that as my only goal was to get a hold of what was inside – water. All units were instructed to carry plenty supplies of the life-rejuvenating liquid as well as first aid kits.
I quaffed unquenchably for one minute and then bandaged my wound. If I hadn’t taken care of that, I would’ve clearly swooned and died. With my immediate worries taken care of, I could now focus on the more pressing matter of getting help. I turned on the transmitter, which unfortunately had been damaged and only messages could be sent, and adjusted it to the proper channel and frequency. My voice rang clearly with my eyes fixed on Earth II as if that would help anyhow:
“This is an emergency call to Houston on Earth II from Melvin Clark, drafted as volunteer on September 3rd, 2603, personal number 55603, squad number 055013. My location is on Luna, the Plathon region, around twenty kilometers south-east off the Akaline plateau. We were ambushed by Ugaki scouts and I am the only one left. I am transmitting this message from a friendly unit’s transporter in which only two men were left dead. The others were not here when I found the vehicle. According to the men’s ID, their names are Frank and Jay Olsen. Please send a ship to the location ASAP. I repeat, ASAP since my situation is critical and I’m wounded. Over.”
As I finished recording my message, I lit a cigarette I found in one of the men’s pockets and laid my legs on the dashboard, sighing deeply. I gazed pensively at my home planet for a few moments thinking about how unwise it was on our part to engage in this foolish war. Seconds later, a shrilling blast tore the silence and Earth II went to pieces… |
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 SkiIucK
I'm here quite often ;-)
Joined: 09 Oct 2006
Posts: 850
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