Solarian Down
Chapter 2

Sometime later she heard a low humming in the distance and checked her scanner. There was a large rectangular shaped vehicle heading toward her wreck. It looked to be about the size of a personal craft. She glanced around the corner to have a look and saw a small hover sled approaching. It was a very simple design but looked to have room for six people. Just a flat platform with one foot high walls on each side and anti-gravity plates along the bottom. It floated about three feet off the ground. The driver was wrapped in white furs from head to toe but he had to stand to drive the sled.

The driver brought the vehicle to a halt and jumped down. He grabbed a large metal case about the size of a man and turned to walk toward the ship. He stopped when he saw her in black armor pointing a large rifle at him.

“L L L L L L Lenaga?!”

“Benjamin.”

“P P P P Prob proba pro, SHIT! It’s not smart to kill y your only help.” He whined.

Her scanner showed her any movement out to 500 meters and right now there was nothing.

“Are you alone, Benjamin?”

“Y Y Y Yeah.”

She nodded before lowering her weapon. Benjamin walked with her into the wreckage.

“We need to cut this beam away so we can get to Cailhem.” She said.

Benjamin put his hand on her arm to stop her. “L L Let’s s s s see what the d d doc s s s says f f f f f first.”

She took a breath and nodded.

He set the case down, removed his gloves and began to power it on. A small console popped open on the upper right corner. Benjamin entered commands and several appendages came out to begin Cailhem’s examination. Lenaga began to pull the blankets away to make sure they didn’t interfere.

“W W What h h h happ happened?” He asked as he pulled back his hood and removed the thick furry flap that covered his face. Benjamin had a thick mane of brown hair with a shaggy unkempt beard to match.

She shrugged at his question. “We were attacked by pirates.”

He nodded. “D D Did a a a anyone e e else m m m make it?”

Lenaga squinted in thought. She wasn’t sure why he asked that but thought it best to say, “I am not sure.”

He looked around at what was left of her craft. “This i i is a r r really b b b big es es escape p pod.”

“Ah...This is more of a shuttle.” He nodded just as she heard a “Ding” from the Doc, like her laundry was done. “What does it say?”

“H H H His s s s s spine i i i MOTHERFUCKER! Spines broke! Wants to put in braces before removing obstacle!”

Lenaga was starting to like this odd human. “Go ahead.”

Benjamin nodded and punched in the next command. Laser saws began to remove the portions of the chair that were covering Cailhem’s back.

“Th Th This w w will t t take a b bit. D D D Did y y y you w w want t to load these c c crates on th the s s s sled?”

“Yes.” She stated as she slung her rifle.

They moved the equipment to the sled and covered it with a tarp before tying it down. She noticed a lever action plasma rifle in the corner of the sled. “So, Benjamin was not unarmed.” She thought.

“D Doc’s got b back b boards w w when it’s t t t time t t to m m move them.”

They watched as the Doc inserted metal strips to stabilize the spine. When it dinged again Lenaga took a cutting torch and removed the beam with Benjamin’s help. The Doc removed the exterior brace then began aligning and fusing his spine together. It inserted a semi-permanent set of titanium braces and sewed him up. It recommended anesthesia, feeding tubes and catheters. To facilitate the healing of the patient.

They covered him in thermal blankets and strapped him to a backboard before moving to Daroon. Thankfully his prognosis came much faster. Concussion, swelling of the brain and his right eye was destroyed. They removed his helmet before the Doc cleaned his wound. Administered medication to lessen the swelling. Filled his eye socket with medical gel. And covered it in a bandage. Then it recommended anesthesia, feeding tubes and catheters. To facilitate the healing of the patient.

The Doc’s recommendation did strike her as odd. The same for both wounds? But it was a human device so maybe their doctors prefered to keep the patient comatose for as long as possible. Luthiel doctors were constantly complaining about patients hurting themselves. So maybe that much was the same for both races.

They pulled Daroon out of his chair and strapped him to a backboard with thermal blankets as well. Then they moved the two of them and the Doc out to the sled. Once on the sled Benjamin covered them in a tarp and tied them down. Lenaga sat in the right side front corner of the sled where she could see Benjamin and keep an eye on her friends.

She kept her rifle ready.

“Y Y You set?”

She nodded her reply and Benjamin sped them away from the crash site. She noticed he kept looking at her. “Not having anyone to talk to for five years has probably made him more than a little odd.” She thought. She knew the faceplates of Wardens helmets were flat black. So he would have no idea what her expression was or what she looked like.

“This should be a little funny.” She thought. Years ago when she was just a Senior Warden she had overheard Daroon when he thought she was asleep. “She has the body of a cheermaker for a professional hurling team.” | “Unfortunately, she was born with brains and courage.” Cailhem had continued.” | “Yes. Her parents must be so disappointed.” | “Obviously.” She almost laughed at the time and gave away her ruse of being asleep.

Soon she heard a low hum that was getting louder.

“What is that?”

“The The The noise?” She nodded as the noise got louder. “W W W Wind t t t turbines.”

A few moments later he smiled, “H H H Home sweet h home.”

She looked forward as they came around a bend in the snow hills. It was another hill but with a large dark rectangle at its base. “You live there?”

He nodded. “M M My g garage.” Benjamin brought the sled to a stop perpendicular to the opening of the garage. When he jumped down she stood up with her rifle ready. Benjamin looked at her a little surprised. “N N No r r r r reverse. H H HAve t t t t t to p push.”

When she saw him put his hands on the back corner of the sled and begin to push it into alignment with the garage. She slung her rifle behind her and jumped down to help. They maneuvered the sled into the far side of the garage. Then Benjamin cut the power and the sled came to rest on the BONE? floor. The bones were very large.

They ranged from five to ten inches wide and three to eight feet in length. They made for odd footing but worked pretty well. Especially on a world where there were few natural resources. The walls and ceiling were covered in huge white furs which, she suspected, did a good job of keeping in the heat.

“How did you make this garage?” She asked as he pulled the overhead door down and locked it with a series of cross bars,

“I I I Industrial ad ad adhe he hesive and go go gorilla b bear.”

“What is a gorilla bear?” She asked as she helped him untie the tarp covering her friends.

“Uhhhh.” He said as he walked across the garage looking at the floor. He squatted down next to a large strip of flooring about seven feet long and ten inches thick. He touched it before saying, “Thigh bone.”

Her eyebrows rose in realization as he walked back to the sled. They carried Cailhem into a fur hallway that had a small flight of steps on its right side. She wondered where the door at the end of the hallway went but for now followed Benjamin up the stairs. The stairs let out into a large room. They continued on to a series of shelves Benjamin had built in the back of the structure. She assumed it was the back because on the other end looked to be a shuttle of some kind. Its hatch was open and connected it to the room.

“Is that your ship?”

Benjamin looked up to see where she was looking. “Y Yeah. P P Prop pulsions sh shot.” He said as he started removing things from the shelves. “N Now, I I I th th think we sh sh should p p p put your f f friends here an an an and leave the D D D Doc to m m m monitor.”

Lenaga popped open her faceplate. The temperature was pleasant. The area was easily seen if the Doc gave an alert. And it was out of the way so they wouldn’t be stumbling over the device every time they turned around. “I agree but we need to make the pallets more comfortable. I am not sure how long they will be laying here.”

Benjamin nodded and stared at her.

“Ben?.. Please - make - shelf - comfortable.”

“Oh! S S Sorry.” He walked to a shelf holding more of those large white furs. He came back with one that was large enough to fold a few times until it was a matress of about four inches in thickness. He laid this on the shelf before they placed Cailhem onto his bed. They undid the restraints from the back board and slipped it out from under him. Once he was settled they gently removed his damaged armor.

Lenaga looked at her Right. Between the fur wall, the fur bed and his thermal blankets he appeared to be quite toasty.

They stashed Daroon on the top shelf and went through the long slow process of getting him settled. Finally they connected the Robotic Doc with all its tubes before they both let out a sigh of relief.

Lenaga smiled as Benjamin laughed. “J Jinx!” He blurted.

“What is that?”

He shrugged. “A A A An old s s s saying w w w w when two p people s s s say th th the same thing a a a at the same t t time.” He smiled.

“Ah.” She nodded.

“Y Y You hungry?”

Lenaga let out a breath. “...Yeah. What do you have?”

“B B B Beef stew. Beef steak. Sh Sh Shredded b b beef sandw w witches?”

“-You- have bread?” She said more than asked.

He nodded several times. “No. Cr Cr Crackers.”

She was fighting hard not to laugh. “Sandwitches sound good.”

Benjamin Removed his white fur coat, fur boots and over pants. Lenaga watched as what she saw was a very fit well built man in a brown t-shirt, baggy pants and black boots. She couldn’t help but admire his form as he walked away from her toward the front of the building.

It took her a moment to shake herself and follow. Once inside the shuttle he lowered a thin panel from the wall and pressed in a command.

“What is that?”

He looked over his shoulder as he rummaged through some pans. “A c c camp stove.” He put a pan on the surface and opened a large box where meat was stored. “I had it ad ad added s s s so I w w wouldn’t h h have to eat rations all the t time.”

He was stirring the meat in the pan and adding spices. “That smells fantastic.” He smiled and nodded in thanks. “But if you have been stuck here for five years where did you get the spices?”

He pointed to a few stacks of plastic crates at the back of his shuttle. Lenaga walked over to investigate. It looked like there had been many more stacks before. She read the labels.

“These are Solarian military rations.”

He nodded. “S S S S Surplus.”

She walked back to him. “Alright, but how many spices could there actually be in one of those?”

Benjamin gave a slight shrug. “S S Salt, p p p pepp pp pper, que que que cumin and c c curry.”

She watched him fry up the shreds of meat and enjoyed the smell of it. “Is this from the rations?”

He shook his head. “Go Go Go Gorilla bear.”

“What does it taste like?”

“Beef.” He nodded. He motioned to a shelf. “Drinks?”

She looked to the shelf and saw cups, bowls and plates along with a box of spoons, forks and knives. He had obviously spent time making most of them. As their construction varied from plastic to bone to metal.

Below the shelf hung one of the ration cartons. He had fashioned an access panel on its top and mounted a spout to one of its corners. The box hung at an odd angle so that the spout was the lowest hanging point of the crate. She grabbed two plastic cups and began to fill them from the spout.

“What is this?”

“P P P Punch.” He smiled.

She nodded as she finished filling both cups. She looked to see him place two small vacuum sealed packages onto plates before spooning up the meat. “Where?” She asked.

He looked confused by her question for a moment before motioning to just outside the shuttle. “T T T Table.”

She had missed it on her way in but there sat a table. Constructed from more of the crates and what she would guess was adhesive. It looked like he had used several layers of the plastic to make it. She walked out to it and set their drinks down. When she shook the table she discovered it was very sturdy.

He had also created four bench seats and covered them in that white gorilla fur. She sat their drinks in front of the two benches that were against the walls. Benjamin came out and set a plate next to each cup before sitting down. He then handed her a small clear plastic wrapped baggie with something white in it.

She was about to ask him what it was when he opened his and unfolded what was obviously a thin napkin. Then he bowed his head and began to mumble to himself. She sat down, opened her napkin and waited for him to finish. When he was done he opened what she assumed were his crackers.

“You are devout?”

He motioned at her plate with his head. “Y You’re gonna eat th that and not pray?”

Her eyebrows went up at the logic of that before taking a bite. It was delicious.

“This is superb, Benjamin!” She exclaimed between bites.

He nodded several times. “Yeah, the o o only problem is th th th this is a a all there is.”

“No fish.” She said. He shook his head in response. “No birds?” Another shake. “No vegetables?!”

“We have po po polar bear d d dog.”

“What is that?”

“L L Looks like a polar bear, r r runs like a dog.” She nodded. “G G Guess what it t t tastes like?”

She thought a moment. “...Beef?” He gave a silly smile and nodded. “Well. at least he was a good cook.” She thought.

“C CR Crackers help.”

She nodded and began to open her last plastic package. “Benjamin?” He looked at her. “This says it was packaged in the Solarian year 2146.” He nodded. “Is it still edible?”

He wiped his mouth. “W We’re gonna replace out.” It happened before she realized it. A full blown belly laugh erupted from her. She could hear Benjamin joining in from his side of the table. A few minutes later she was able to wipe away her tears and get control of herself.

“Thank you, Benjamin. I have not laughed like that in ages.”

“L L Least I could do.” He smiled and held up his cup in a toast. “W W Welcome to p p p planet Ice hole.”

She smiled and held up her cup in turn. “Thank you.”