Last Flight For Craggy (32 page)

'And you'll do
that how?' said Forbes.

Dillow shook
his head. 'I've got no idea. I'm going to spend some time floating
about in there, see if I can figure it out.'

Forbes said, 'I
think it's a crying shame we have to destroy such an amazing thing.
Just imagine the places we could go to if we could figure it
out.'

'I agree,' said
Dillow, 'but I am not letting those little shits loose on Mars if I
can help it. Tomorrow, I'm making the destruction of that pathway a
priority.'

Dillow was
rested and determined. He considered putting on a regulation white
suit, wondering if his own black one was the way to go in the
pathway blackness. Black was his colour, but a person could have
too much of a good thing. Besides, he did have his helmet light,
didn't he? Ah! No. Light couldn't escape that blackness. Oh,
well.

The eerily
silent mine was still well lit up, and his lone buggy drive to the
small tunnel compounded his feeling of self imposed isolation. He
parked up and wasted no time in wriggling his way along the alien
made tunnel. Ahead of him, just a suited arms length away, the
mysterious blackness that twisted and distorted spacial reality.
And he was entering it alone.

Giving the
safety line attached to his belt a tug, he entered the unknown,
trusting his life to fate.

The inky
blackness would have been absolute had it not been for the dozen or
so softly glowing ends of different tunnels. Pathways. He liked
that. One would take him to inner peak of Olympus Mons itself.
Another, unsure which one, would have him walking on Phobos faster
than he could drive the buggy back to Base Three. And the
others?

He recalled
Forbes' words about it being a crying shame they couldn't make use
of the mind blowing technology. He agreed with the Mars Commander.
But the alternative to leaving the pathways open was too terrifying
to contemplate. But how to destroy it? If something could be
created, it could be destroyed, right?

Dillow closed
his eyes, flipped his sun visor down, and his black uniform was
lost in the blackness that straddled the universe.

As Dillow
became one with the blackness, Stella was attempting to do the same
with the alien computers. Over and over she went through the cones
recordings. Somewhere in those, she felt, were more answers,
perhaps missed on previous viewings. Twice she watched in awe of
the lush jungles the little people had created on other worlds. To
do that on Mars would be so cool. But she was looking for something
else. Korlyn had made it quite clear. As long as those tunnels,
that pathway, remained open, they would be in constant danger.
Stella was looking for any clue that would help Dillow destroy the
pathway.

'Buckle up,
people. I repeat, buckle up. This is Captain Rocky Ramshorn,
speaking. Estimated time of arrival Mars outer orbit, one hour,
seventeen minutes. We will take one full orbit before we enter Mars
atmosphere. You may hear a slight roaring sound, which is normal.
There will be slight vibrations. This will last no more than eleven
minutes, fifteen seconds. One single orbit will see us over the
landing strip. There will be a fresh crew to unload the cargo,
supervised by Captain Jay Moore. Your job is done. Well done,
people. Now buckle up.'

Dillow
deliberately sat with the others, demonstrating her complete faith
in Rocky Ramshorn. Amethyst sat at her husband's side at the
controls, taking it all in for the time she may have to fly the Big
Bird. Cragg sat between Dillow and Roswell, laughing and joking,
taking his role of ship's clown seriously by putting everyone be at
ease. Inwardly, Dillow smiled, knowing exactly what Craggy was up
to. His very presence was a calming influence. In every way, the
man was a legend. In no time at all, the time for entry into Mars'
thin atmosphere was upon them.

'Captain Rocky
Ramshorn here. We will be commencing re-entry into Mars' atmosphere
in two minutes. Stay buckled up.'

The Big Bird
was guided through the re-entry by the computers, Rocky ready to
take over for the actual landing. The marsillium coating shook off
the fierce friction heat like a dog shaking off water.

The soft
roaring sound stopped and Rocky took over. One slow orbit, Rocky
calmness personified using the slightest of hand and finger
movements, taking the biggest ship in mankind's history to the
landing strip, being guided home by his every command.

Amethyst was
never as in love with her husband than at that exact moment. And
soon they would be with the twins, a family again. She said
nothing, knowing Rocky was in the zone, as one with the ship, his
ship. He took it down to one tenth power.

'Captain Rocky
Ramshorn requesting permission to land this bird.'

'Permission
granted, Captain. Welcome home, Rocky.'

'Thanks.'

'Did you feel
that, Craggy?' asked Dillow.

'Feel
what?'

'Exactly.'

'We touched
down?'

'Welcome home,
Craggy.'

'Ah,
Morgan.'

'You wanted to
see me, Commander Forbes?'

'Take a
seat.'

Max Morgan
nervously sat. 'Am I in trouble, Sir?'

'Should you
be?'

'I hope
not.'

Forbes said,
'I've a little job for you, Morgan. In itself, not too much of a
job, but its significance could be totally awesome.'

'Okay. What is
it?'

There was a
small metal case on Commander Forbes' desk. He flicked the catches
open and turned it to face Morgan.

'This is a
terraforma. This one device can bring life to Mars.'

Morgan
understood the term terraforma. 'That little thing?'

'Size isn't
everything,' said Forbes. 'Okay. I want you to take your freighter
to the northern ice cap. You hold this in both hands, one here, one
the other end. Then you twist it in a clockwise direction to
activate it. It will glow green if it has worked. You must
carefully set it onto the ice and get the hell out of there.'

'It explodes?'
said Morgan, staring suspiciously at the artefact.

'Not exactly.
But our understanding is it reacts very fast and it doesn't pay to
get in its way.'

'Right. Take
that to the north cap, twist it clockwise, it glows green, I get my
ass back here.'

'Correct.'

'Sir. What if
it doesn't turn green?'

Forbes
shrugged. 'If that happens I guess it must be past its expiry
date.' He closed the lid of the metal case down and secured the
catches. 'Good luck, Captain Morgan.'

'Thank you,
Sir.'

Morgan picked
up the case and headed off towards his freighter.

Commander Fawn
Dillow became mother and loving partner again. At last inside Base
Three, she had hugs and kisses for Shyne and Joel.

'I have missed
you two so much. No more long hauls for me, I promise.'

'Glad to hear
it,' said Joel. 'Fawn...'

'Something
wrong? I can see in your face. What?'

'Commander
Potts wants to see you.'

Dillow groaned.
'Now? You mean tomorrow, right?'

Joel shook his
head. 'Now.'

'Okay. Shyne.
Go with daddy. Mommy has something I have to do.'

'But I want
you, Mommy.'

'I know,
sweetie. I won't be long. I'll come and tell you a story in bed,
okay?'

'Come with
Daddy, sweetie,' said Joel.

Dillow didn't
need this, but she headed for Potts's office. Felix Hellicoyle and
Raz Berry were also there.

'Commander
Dillow. Please take a seat,' said Potts.

'Sir. Couldn't
this wait until the morning?'

Potts shared a
look with the two geologists. 'Fawn. Your father...'

'My Dad? What's
happened to my Dad?'

'To be honest,
we are not sure.'

'Where the hell
is my father?'

'Where is he?'
Potts shrugged. 'The truth is, we are not sure of that, either. An
awful lot's happened while you've been away. It's best if you just
listen and let me tell you everything from the beginning.'

Dillow nodded.
'I'm listening.'

To an astounded
Dillow, Potts told the entire story.

'So Dad went
into that black hole thing and vanished?'

Potts said, 'He
must be somewhere, Fawn, but we're not sure exactly where.'

Berry said, 'We
think he got disorientated in there and went into the wrong
tunnel.'

'Well, what the
hell are we hanging around here for? Let's get going after
him.'

'There's a
dozen tunnels,' said Potts. 'We don't want to risk losing anyone
else. There's something else.'

'Go on.'

'The alien told
us we have to destroy the pathways.'

Dillow got up
and pounded the desk with her fist. 'My father could be anywhere in
the galaxy, maybe the whole damn universe, and you want to shit on
him and hang him out to dry? Over my dead body you will.'

'Commander
Dillow...'

'No. I won't
let you do it.'

'Fawn. We want
Lance back as much as you do. But this is beyond our control. You
tell me. How can we get him back?'

Dillow had no
ideas. 'My little girl wants me. I'm tired. I'll be back in the
morning. Don't you....Anyone does anything to close that pathway
thing, I swear to God...'

'That will not
happen, Fawn,' said Potts. 'You have my word on that.'

Dillow glared
at him. She was afraid to say more. She turned and stormed out of
the office, to try to smile and tell her little girl a bedtime
story.

Commander of
Space Security Lance Dillow had become disorientated. He had
floated in the blackness, becoming one with it in his all black
suit. He felt strangely at peace, but the logical part of his mind
warned him he had to get out of there. Around him were the softly
glowing ends of the various tunnels, three of which would lead him
to the relative safety of either Mars, Mons or Phobos. The others
could go anywhere, even possibly to the aliens world, where a warm
friendly greeting would not be on offer.

One tunnel
seemed to draw him to it, so he floated towards it. Reaching out,
he felt the reassuringly solid lip of the tunnel and pulled himself
into it. Did this go to Phobos? All he knew was that if he stayed
in the blackness, his consciousness would become one with it and
his resolve to escape it would go. He looked out along the
perfectly smooth tunnel, his helmet light illuminating the way
to...?

He had no
choice. He had to follow it, to go where it took him. He was a big
man, and the tunnel seemed to close in on him, like a tomb. From
his helmet light, the tunnel took on a yellow glow. He went on for
an hour, and thirst was drying his mouth and throat. Still the
tunnel stretched out ahead of him, no obvious end in sight. Another
hour and he had trouble breathing as his throat became painfully
dry and still nowhere near the end of his uncomfortable
journey.

A strange
vision from his childhood came into his mind, something of a long
forgotten memory of sitting with his parents watching movies from a
time long before. It was a song he remembered, and it made him
smile.

'We're off to
see the wizard, the wonderful wizard of Oz.' He struggled with the
rest of the song. 'Follow...follow the yellow brick road.'

Yet another
hour, and even his strong body was giving in. Dehydration was
dragging him down. Only his iron will had gotten him this far. He
looked back the way he had come. Too far, now. He would die in the
tunnel going back that way. He might die in the tunnel anyway, but
that was something beyond his control. He pressed on, every part of
him aching from the effort of moving in the cramped conditions.
After another hour, his head was swimming, and like a man drowning,
he wanted to let go and let the spirits take him to hopefully a
better place.

Perhaps if he
rested. Just for a few minutes. To lay straight in the tunnel and
let his pain racked muscles recover enough to continue. He rolled
over onto his back and stretched his giant body out, feeling his
muscles scream in relief. He closed his eyes and slept.

Joel Leaming
knew it was pointless arguing with his partner. Fawn put a whole
new spin on the word stubborn. The look on her face as she suited
up told him even suggesting she didn't go after her father, but to
stay safely with him and their daughter, would get him nothing but
an angry rebuke. He held Shyne in his arms, and they both watched
her mommy get ready.

'Mommy. Stay
with me, pleeeease.'

'I won't be
long, sweetie. But your grandfather is missing. You want me to try
to find him, don't you?'

'But if Grandy
is missing, you might get missing, too.' Her grandfather had always
been Grandy to Shyne.

Joel gave Fawn
a “the kid could be right,” look. She ignored it and cupped her
daughter's tearful face in her hands and kissed her.

'I'll not go
far. I just want to see where he last was. Then I'll be right back
here with you and Daddy.'

'Promise?'

She paused,
hoping it was something she could keep her word on. 'I promise,
sweetie. I have to go. People are waiting for me.'

She kissed
Joel, her rock, her eyes asking him to trust her. He had always
loved and trusted her. He just nodded, watching her enter the
airlock of Base Three to join Berry in the buggy. The inner door
closed and Joel took Shyne away, knowing his job was to comfort
her, somewhere warm and secure.

* * *

Fawn Dillow
followed Berry along the tunnel to the blackness.