Deeper Into the Void (23 page)

Chapter 28

T
he haloed ring of fire above silently morphs into a crescent, the eclipse begins to pass on into day. Faint rays of light penetrate the dust-covered glass dome.

The rig rolls on down the long winding path that descends the last hill onto the plain below. The humming of the electric motor in the rig wanes, the headlight darkens and the lights on the control panel all fail in unison; the battery power in the rig is consumed.

The rig continues to roll, without steering or stopping power, the rig rolls off of the path and strikes a group of larger rocks. After rolling over some large black rocks the rig binds up on them and stops suddenly.

Long reluctantly emerges out of the rig. With a subtle shake of his head back and forth, he grabs his bags and jumps down. As he walks around to the rear of the vehicle, he notices a single oxygen cylinder gleaming in the sun. Heavy laden with his own bags, Long reaches for it and tucks it under his arm. Holding it in his right hand, the oxygen cylinder gleams in the returning light of day, the full canister is heavy.

Mendez looks on as she shoulders her own bags; the decision weighing in his mind has become evident to her. Cardiff grabs her gear and looks on at Long as well.

The rough terrain proves to be a difficult path to walk upon. All three stumble around rocks, ranging in size from fist-sized rocks to rocks larger than they are. After quite some time toting gear through this treacherous path, Mendez collapses into the soft sand underfoot. Cardiff doesn’t notice her fallen comrade as Mendez was walking behind Cardiff.

Long turns to check on her, and notices that she is down in the dust. She braces herself with a single outstretched arm on a rock. He jumps to her assistance; his quick movement draws Cardiff’s attention.

Long looks down into his bags, the sun’s light bounces around in the bags as the rough precious stones bathe in the afternoon light. Long reaches for his shoulder and grabs his closely-guarded treasure. Sand and dust is driven outward under the force of the falling bags after he slides them off of the edge of his shoulder.

Long draws in a deep breath, contemplating the wisdom in what he is about to do. He reaches down to Mendez and grabs all of her gear and places it all on his shoulder in place of his own gear. His other hand reaches down for her arm, and he pulls her up out of the sand.

Each step that he takes away from his bags seems to lighten his burden. He looks over to his right, and notices Cardiff breathing heavily in her suit. Apparently, her oxygen is spent. Out of his bag comes the final full cylinder of oxygen, and he walks behind her and unhooks her spent tank. With another quick twist, the rush of air is indicative of the successful swap.

Cardiff, still breathing heavily to recover, simply says a quick “thanks”. He looks down at his own pressure read and he breathes a deep sigh of relief after noticing that he still has plenty of air to get there.

The team continues to walk, slower now, but still walks. A piercing sensation of vertigo and overall sickness penetrates every last fiber in Long’s body. “Whoa.” is all he can muster as he bends over, planting his hands on his knees to prop himself up. While bending over, he notices Mendez is a few paces behind, also in the same position. She is struggling to breathe as her air is now spent.

Long walks back to her as Cardiff stands looking on. In the background the ship is visible, although it is slightly obscured by the rising waves of heat in the thin Martian air. Long walks up behind her and places his hand on her shoulder, “I’m sorry”.

Long reaches behind him, and quickly disconnects his oxygen canister. Mendez stands in agony, breathing in the bitter taste of suffocation. Another twist and her empty canister falls to the Martian dust at her feet. She stands, her eyes grow heavy and she feels the end is nigh. A rush of cool fresh air into her helmet surprises her. She turns to find Long kneeling on the plain. He had placed her bags back on her shoulder while she was not paying attention.

A hasty, yet hesitant Mendez steps away from Long as he lay prostrate upon the cold sand, Mendez looks back at him and her eyes begin to tear up in the sight that she begins to witness. Long begins to struggle for air. His arms and legs flail against the sand as he battles for each breath of life. She remembers words spoken the other day, “I never want to experience that, ever again.” The sun shining down upon him casts a blinding light through his helmet.

Tears form and slowly dribble down his cheek as the hand of death reaches out to him. As his eyes begin to close in defeat, he can see a single, blurred figure standing over him, casting one last shadow across his eyes, before they shut tightly.

A motionless Long lay alone on the plain, a simple smile crosses his fading expression, imprinted on his face forever in this barren, rock-filled wasteland. His expression will be a reminder of the satisfaction that he had felt in sacrificing all for another. Long had always suspected that he would die alone, but he never could have guessed that his death would provide life to another.

Chapter 29

C
rimson is painted upon crushed foliage behind the laboratory building. Ghent, struggles through the low-lying brush as he works to get to the first-aid kit in the laboratory. After a difficult time of crawling on his elbows and dragging his legs through dense grasses, Ghent finally reaches the front corner of the laboratory building.

A lone bee in flight nearby draws his fading focus. Its wings in motion seem to slow to a pace that he can see them individually flapping against the light force of gravity. The world around him, and time itself, seem to both slow to a near-paused state. The sun light shimmers off of the wing in motion.

Just as time had slowed, it began to regain its full force. The bee wings begin to beat faster and faster until they return to the indistinguishable state that they had begun in. The bee continues its flight overhead, until it suddenly falls in the cessation of its movement.

Hours before, a cloud had burst violently from the surface of the sun. Highly charged particles were flung deep into space at an incomprehensible rate. That toxic cloud of radiation now rains down upon the surface of Mars. All around him, the sound of wings flapping in the air fades into the sound of a single remaining heartbeat.

Ghent pulls himself out of the soft sand that vies to claim him. Upon a single knee, he presses upon the door to the laboratory, the door concedes as his bloody hand slides on its smooth white surface. Ghent looks over to the door as he stumbles through the opening. The markings, now evident upon the door, appear to him to be chillingly familiar.

The object of his lone quest, a single kit mounted upon the wall next to his lab coat. He reaches from the floor up to his coat; with a firm, yet damp grasp, he manages to pull himself up high enough to tip the kit off of its hook on the wall. Shortly after the kit collides with the floor, spilling its contents about, Ghent comes to rest upon the floor next to it. His hand shakes as he stretches it toward a single tube of specialized foam. With it in unsteady hand, he presses the nozzle on the top and it discharges its contents into his chest and stomach, into his wounds. The foam begins to “sizzle” and the pain becomes difficult for Ghent to bear consciously.

After the pain begins to wane, he resumes his concerted effort to grab the next item on his list. A single syringe is produced from the opened case on the floor. He focuses on his inner thigh and inserts the syringe as best as he can into his femoral artery. He manages to pull himself up to the seated position against the wall. His breathing becomes erratic and shallow. His pupils begin to dilate; the sight of his blood trail into the lab begins to fade into the dark backdrop in the void within. The feeling of pain and panic dissipate into this void, leaving only the inner monologue sounding within his mind. From outside his mind he can feel his helmet being locked onto his suit. His equilibrium seems to change in the darkness of his perception. He can feel something dragging him though the dirt.

Chapter 30

W
andering through the desolate land has dealt Mendez and Cardiff seemingly insurmountable difficulty. Every step is a marathon, every breath feels like the last one. They fight back the ferocious growing desire within to lie down. Time has been working against them as they finally reach the airlock of the freighter that has been waiting for them. Cardiff presses her finger against the control. The two women stumble into the airlock, and the outer door slowly shuts firmly behind them.

As the inner door opens up, the women seem to thrust themselves out of the airlock into the cargo hold. Both reach for their helmets and twist them off. These helmets are thrown to the side in contempt and in relief. Bitter cold bites at their throats and ears quickly.

Mendez stumbles over to the sink in the cargo area. Bruised hands grasp onto the edge of the sink, her head plunges into the sink as she vomits. Cardiff is stumbling through the door into the cabin. Training and focus are utilized to the fullest extent that she can muster. She manages to complete the pre-flight check of systems and instruments.

Mendez stumbles into the cabin, and joins Cardiff. After taking a moment to rest, she straps herself firmly into the copilot’s seat. Mendez looks over at Cardiff as she completes her checks. Cardiff happens to have an appreciable amount of blood flowing from her nostrils.

Doctor Mendez realizes what they have been poisoned with, solar radiation. Mendez estimates the extent of the irradiative damage through the symptoms. The triumph that she had felt moments ago, when her hand had first touched the airlock, now fades into despair.

Cardiff is focused on piloting the enormous ship, and she is unaware of her copilot’s facial expression. It is apparent what focus now occupies her mind. The ship lifts off of the sand-bound deck, and sand begins to be thrust upward into the air from underneath the ship as it ascends higher.

Mendez’s jaw slowly drops open as the radio announces the static-filled message that she has been anticipating, “wait for me!”. Cardiff holds firmly onto the controls, and the ship turns back toward the direction that it had come in from those days ago. Quivering, she presses the accelerator and the ship begins to accelerate toward the horizon.

Mount Olympus stands out against the bleak, golden background. After several minutes, the ship approaches the mount as it prepares to ascend higher, and to break the bonds of Mars’ weak gravity. Cardiff quickly releases the controls. She grasps her stomach, but quickly moves her hands back to the control board as if to prop herself up. Slowly her red eyes close, and her head lays limp on her neck. Cardiff blacks out, her head falls upon the control panel, the controls are pressed down firmly. The ship is thrust down, off of course and it veers toward the enormity, Olympus.

A single, uninterrupted scream escapes Mendez’s lips as the ship rushes toward the colossal mount. Moments later, crates in the cargo hold launch toward the front of the ship. The cabin seems to shatter with the windshield. Personnel transports erupt as they collide with the bulkhead. Deep within the engine compartment, the containment field for the anti-matter dissipates. The antimatter fuel collides with the side of the container. Within nanoseconds, a blinding flash erupts as matter is annihilated.

The remaining wreckage is obliterated in the ensuing blast. A shockwave ripples the very face of Mars as it rushes outward. A bright cloud of pure energy spreads over the face of the mountain and rises a hundred kilometers into space. The orbiting satellite is obliterated in the explosion. There is no wreckage, but there is a second caldera on the face of Olympus Mons, which still glows molten hot in places.