New beginings 7

<Shane>

Falling through a sudden hole isn't exactly a good description, it was more like being pulled down, and it sucked.

“Ahhh, Damnit!” I try and get my wings open just as I realize I was falling, but they caught at the sides, and the vacuum from the hole was pulling me down, and so I was the first down the completely random hole. The attempt to open my wings was a good one, as it still managed to slow me down... until Tyler slammed into my back.

“Oof!” I hear his wings try and mimic my trick but they were too large for the area and it only allowed whoever else who fell into the hole to hit him in the back.

Suddenly we weren't in the hole anymore, I just had time to register that fact before we all hit the ground... the breath get's knocked out of me, and the world grays a bit. Ty struggles to get up... I take a deep breath when he finally does, both Alex and Jamie land on either side of me, only mildly affected by the fall, probably cushioned by Ty's back, good thing they didn't get impaled on the spikes.

Alex gets off the ground “Shane, you alright?” I wanted to make a blunt remark right then, but I was still getting my breath back. When I finaly get enough wind back in to speak I gasp out “Two ton... dragon... landing on me... not alright.” I roll onto my hands and keep in that position while I take some more air in.

“Shane-” Ty started to apologize for it... he had a habit for doing that when he causes any kind of harm to his friends, even if it was an accident... this was no exception. I cut him off with “Not your fault Ty, just... where are we?”

Jamie had been looking around “Apparently where we needed to go.” I look up and see turbines along with the complete spaceship engine room décor.. aka lots of metal accompanied by electrical humming noise.

-We're lucky, landed at the place we needed to go, and none of our bones got broken, lucky Ty managed to get his full wingspan out just as we came out of the hole.- And of course Zael butts in. -Thank you captain obvious!- I think back to him -You didn't seem to get it.- He just doesn't shut up -You are so freaking annoying Zael, have I ever told you that?- To that he suddenly get's silent... oh well.

I stand up, the sword that was strapped to my back making an odd movement, I pull it out and see that only a third of the blade was there... yep, just what I thought, still making weak blades. I drop the blade in silence and take the rest off, the broken sheath slipping out a piece of the blade as I did so... I look back to where I had fallen, there was a nice blunt curb where the sword must have hit.

-Again, lucky, you could have snapped your spine right there.- And he was back again! I think -Shut up unless you've got critical info for me.- I enforce the edict with a tight mental vice for a second, he was quiet then.

Jamie's phone rings and she answers it “We're fine Blake. Hold on”
She takes the phone away from her ear and put's it on speakerphone... and so does Blake because the first thing I hear is my Dad yelling “Shane are you alright?” Over the speakerphone.

“Yes I'm fine Dad, winded, but okay.” I hear his slow breath of relief.

Blake gets back on “Okay, back to the situation at hand subspace has you... right where we needed to go.”

“That's old news, but do you think you all can make your way down here?”

“No, besides we need to get to plan B, and to do that we need to go through life support.”

Tyler joins in then “That doesn't sound so bad.” And I get the feeling that he was wrong... proved a few seconds later by Blake mentioning...

“Dare I say it's a fully working ecosystem?” Ty's face goes blank for a second, then resumes his slight smile that he normally had “still not too bad, just have to watch out for predators.”

Alex moves into the conversation “Ty, if it were that easy he wouldn't have said it like he did. Anyway, what controls do I need to look for Blake?”

“You need to find the one for magnetic propulsion, that's what is most likely causing the radiation, and we're reaching the forest now.”

Jamie speaks then “Be careful Blake.” And she ends the call.

“Do you have any idea what to do from here?” I ask to Alex.

“Should be a control panel of some kind, find it and i'll be able to manipulate this ship like an orchestra.” He goes off in search of said panel. I take the time to analyze where we where some more, the room was pretty good size, turbines making neat rows, the only breakup in the floor plan was at the left where a large corridor went to parts unknown, and the area on my right had a door on it, unknown writing halfway up on it and no apparent door handle.

“Shouldn't there be someone around here? Keeping an eye on things?” Tyler asks, craning his neck up to peer over the turbines.

Jamie is the one to answer “Maybe it is an automated robotic maintenance?” I think on that and decide to counter that response with “If it is, then why isn't there anything around? I would keep the robots close if something were to suddenly malfunction.” I feel a slight numbness in my right arm, just before a small spark of electricity arcs to the metal floor... nobody noticed but me... and Zael.

-Watch it bud, still need to reign that curiosity and excitement in, 'less you want to fry someone.”

Tyler looks around “Have a point there, besides wouldn't an actual maintenance guy do a better job?”

“And another point is made.” Jamie says, she might have said something else hadn't I interrupted with “Alex! Found it yet?” I hear him sound an annoyed no over the noise of the room, before he appears on the near end on the right :There's not even directions to a control panel.” He says with the same annoyed tone he used before... he doesn't like it when something isn't expected.

“There's still that door over there, might be behind it.” I suggest.

“That's a idea.” He says, with renewed faith.... then came the joykill.

Jamie points out “Hold on, the door reads authorized access only.” That stops Alex in his place, his tail making an odd twitch.

“Really now? Where's the keypad for the door? Then i'll see about that 'authorized access' BS.” Yep, he has now progressed from annoyed to ticked off... and Ty just decided to say something about that.

“You realize there isn't any keypad right?” Okay, so he wasn't pointing out Alex's mood, but he just hit a nerve I think... Alex's used to having everything on his design.

Alex's tail twitches again “Of course there is!”

Time to move in on this conversation “What makes you think that?” I say, making a show of taking out the Kross blade, notably unharmed, and flipping the blade around in my hand, never having my eyes look at it... dangerous, but I do it all the time.

He scoffs “Because i'd design it that way.” hahaha... did he actually say that? I look around, expecting Ty to say exactly what I'm about to say, but he was threading through the rows, apparently bored... so I turn back and say with a smirk...

“But you didn't design this did you? It was designed by aliens with more tech than you.” It takes a second for the words to sink in, but when it does he deflates, much of his annoyance... if you could call it that, was gone, he knew he'd made a stupid mistake and got humiliated. Ty walks up...

“Hey Alex, finally realize what you said?” he says cheerfully... so he wanted me to do it... clever. I put up the knife just as Alex replies.

“Yeah... I got worked up over it rather quick didn't I? If only I had a console to-”

Jamie sees something and says “Why is that thing on Tyler's arm blinking?” We look at him, the DDA (Draconic Data Assistant) had a red light blinking on the side. Ty opens it up and messes with the keys and the screen.

He looks up confusedly “Something's trying to access the computer.”

-Let it through.- I almost barely heard it

-Say what?- I respond to him, but then he's quiet again... damnit, looks like he's pissed. I was about to ask him again when Jamie gives what must have been the answer, though she didn't hear our silent words.

“Let it through, the ship when you think of it had responded to our needs, we needed to get here and it made a hole for us.” True about the hole... but it was still kind of odd, then again I'm still not used to the strange things that been going on.

Alex mulls it over “Tyler let me see the DDA.” Tyler unstraps it from his wrist, it resembled a wedge, with a curved bottom to fit an quadruped arm, this one had a custom finish on it like the one back home... fire with smoke heading onto the inside, like it was sucking it in. Alex takes the thing, it looking like a large laptop to him, and starts pecking away at the keyboard after sitting cross-legged against the nearest turbine..

He mutters something about Hal 3000 then saying “Alright, letting the ship in now.” And he stares at the screen. Suddenly he double checks it, disbelief in his eyes and his voice “I can't believe it.”

“What?” Ty asks, trying to get a view of the screen.

“You were right Jamie, it just gave me a control panel right here!” I get a good look when he flips the screen out of it's frame outwards so we can see, I saw options... lots of em, like apps on a phone, with English names for each one.

Alex gets that grin on his face that defined him as a happy camper as he flips the screen back and asks “Alrighty then, lets find those gravity propulsion controls.” He cracks his knuckles like a pianist and starts looking for the option for it...

A few minutes later...

“I can't find it.” He says bluntly. Confusion showing in full light, plus he had that annoyed tone in his voice again.

“What?” Tyler asks, suddenly distracted from his exploration of the room.

“I said i can't find it! I have searched through this this menu twice, it's got everything from room temp to... life support, but no gravity propulsion system. I sigh and let out a curse, the numbness building in my chest... there might be something about that, I close my eyes and focus around the numbness and force it to move to my right arm... and it did, like having a body part fall asleep and wake up suddenly, it made my arm feel like it was crawling inside out with ants, I will it to go away, like I do when I'm keeping an emotion at bay. The willing surprisingly works, it faded outward, like it was being taken back into the rest of my body. I open my eyes and see everybody staring at me “What?”


Jamie says “You did not know that your arm was bursting with electricity?” Okay, I didn't control it as well as I thought did I?

-Nope, but congratulations, you're becoming a lightning bender.- I felt like telling him to shut up, but I just didn't respond to that.

And instead say “Um, I think I did, just not on the outside.” and shrug... was that focusing ring even working? I decided not to ask that.

Alex gives a blank stare for a second or two before saying “Ooookay, current distractions aside I can find out what needs to be done, just give me a couple minutes to figure it out... and... a blueprint of the ship might be nice.”

A holographic screen appears on the nearby wall, with a full blueprint of the ship... well this intelligent ship just made a new friend in Alex, as he says “I'm starting to like this ship!” As he heads over to the hologram with the DDA. Ty had carved [TY Wuz here] Onto a turbine's casing... I shake my head as he lays down and starts daydreaming near that large corridor. Jamie looks at the blueprints alongside Alex, it doesn't take him long to figure it out.

“Got it!” He says, he might have just tried to snap his fingers but as claws can't exactly do that it just made a clicking sound. “At first I thought the thrusters weren't causing the radiation, but I was wrong, there is magnetic propulsion, but here's the thing, it's what keeps the ship in orbit, kind of like a rail system. Take it down and-”

I finish for him “Ship crashes into planet, got it, anything we can do about that?”

He lets off one of his annoying “I'm a genius.” Smirks before saying “Sure, there's a backup propulsion system we can use that'll keep us well in orbit.” He taps his laptop, probably going through to start the backup thrusters “Aaaand right, it looks like the ship was keeping the option because we could have killed ourselves. We've got options for magnetic propulsion systems now, let's see what we can do.” He starts making a dragging motion with his claw across the screen, and we start to hear turbines cycle down, the electrical hum dying... then Jamie's phone rang.

She answers “Hey Blake, good news, we have...” She listens for several seconds, then her eyes widening with each second... then she Yells out “Alex turn them back on now!” The seriousness and urgency made him obey almost instantly, the electrical humming coming back in full-force.

“What is it?” I ask

“Ask him yourself.” She says as she puts it on speakerphone once again.