Deadication

Launch Day: That Morning

A rap on the front door provoked Theo. He hated interruptions almost as much as he did mornings. At his temples came an explosive pain. The product of sunlight feeling like it was searing his eyes. Retreating he waited until he was curled deeper into the safety of his bed sheets before calling out. "Who is it? can't a man try to get some sl---?" Theo's voice trailed off as he quickly began to drift back into his previously lethargic state.

BANG,BANG,BANG

This time Theo shot right to his feet. Sticking a half smoked cigarette to his lips from the nightstand, he stomped towards the door. Patting himself down for a lighter first, he stopped and looked through the peephole before asking. "What in the green hell do you want at this ungodly hour?" The glimpse of a slender man in a tan suit bounced back at him. "It's Reggie sir and its O six hundred, we need to hurry!" Theo pondered aloud. "Reggie? Reggie? do I know a Reggie?"

"Yes sir, Reggie the intern from NASA, sir. Your broth--uhhh. I mean, Colonel Banks from Mission Control told me to get my car and come pick you up."

The door swung open while Reggie was still talking. Theo stepped into the threshold empty fisted but with a harsh tone that made Reggie flinch "Colonel Banks, huh? He sent you over?" Reggie pulled something from his pocket and raised his hand. A bit startled by this, Theo took a misstep backward until he grabbed hold of the doorway.

A spark became flame at the end of the lighter Reggie now held. "I'm here to help sir." stated the young man said in a firm voice." Theo eyeballed the kid, and then leaned in with his head so he could light his cigarette. A long drag followed and the soothing rush of nicotine soon helped put Theo's nerves to rest. "Get in here kid, before anyone important sees you." Theo ordered before he beckoned him in with a subtle hand gesture.

Theo's house smelled like cigar smoke and bratwurst. Reggie kicked over a few liquor bottles as he came inside. They skidded across the floor and disappeared into the clutter. A card table in the dining room was covered in fast food wrappers and empty beer cans. Ashtrays sat overfilled in several places. The grey carpet was stained and worn black in spots from neglect. Dog hair had accumulated on any fabric surface imaginable. "I guess bachelor life just takes it toll on some people", Reggie thought. He had heard somewhere that Theo had a divorce last year but wasn't about to very well ask the poor guy.

Theo had gone into the kitchen. Where he snatched a bottle of pills from a cabinet and then popped two in the hatch. They were chased down with a gulp of warm beer from a bottle left out on the counter. "Argh...my heads just killing me" Theo groaned as he rubbed his temples, hoping to get some relief. When he was through, he slid his hands across his eyes and eventually down until he ran out of real estate.

Theo strolled to the bathroom before he spoke. "Kid!, I'm going to get ready, there's an envelope on the card table, grab it." He closed the door behind him but not before he flipped the switch. The half bath was small and he could almost reach out and touch the four walls. Looking in the mirror he saw blood trailing from his nostrils and down to his stubbled chin. He pinched his nose with one hand and tossed his head back. Blindly he pawed frantically for the tissue until he caught hold of some. Making a wad he used it to some put pressure on there and began to soaked up the mess.

Meanwhile, Reggie walked to the table and after pushing some stuff around found a manila envelope. It was packed tight like a turkey on thanksgiving. Though not with stuffing but money, lots of money. Ben Franklin's face flashed over and over as he flipped through the fat stack of bills. "There must be close to ten thousand here" Reggie thought in disbelief. It was definitely more cash than the twenty year old had seen in person before.

The bathroom door opened, and Reggie jerked awkwardly from his bewildered state. Theo walked out drying his hair with a towel he carelessly dropped on the floor. "Its for your car, and your help." He said before walking to a closet where he retrieved a suede coat and red tie. Slipping the tie on; he fished it through a few loops and turns before it cinched up nicely at his throat. Going back to the mirror, he made a couple of adjustments until it was just right. Satisfied with its placement, he fixated his attention back on Reggie who still stood dumbfounded.

"Look kid, its no big deal you just take the money and in a couple days go pick my car up from the shop." The concerned look on Reggie's face told Theo the kid wasn't onboard yet. "But your Broth---I mean the Colonel, didn't sss---say anything about..." Theo cut him off right there. "The Colonel told you to help me out right?" Reggie answered sheepishly "....Yes" Smiling victoriously, Theo went in for the kill. "Well...Reggie, buddy...who knows better how to help me, well than me?" Confusion blanketed the young mans face as he wrestled with his thoughts. "I guess that's right, but all this money sir?" asked Reggie. "Is yours, if you stay here while I'm away, pickup my car in a few days like I said, and hell, what? maybe you could even clean up a bit if you get bored? That's some seriously easy money for a kid your age."

Nodding in agreement the young man said, "Okay, I'll do it." The wide grin showed Theo's approval. "Great! you won't regret it. Now I need to hit the road kid. I'm taking your car, we will swap back when I return." The keys jingled as Theo took them from Reggie before the kid could object. He then grabbed his brief case and almost leapt out the front door. The humid Houston air smacked him like a tidal wave. There was not a cloud in the sky though. "You couldn't have asked for better weather on launch day." Theo thought. Getting inside the champagne coupe, he set his suitcase on the passenger seat as he got in. He pushed the ignition and cranked the A/C to max before heading out of the driveway.

Launch Day: Mission Briefing

"Most of us know that Russia has never had much love for the U.S. Further more, most of us know that they would like nothing more than our Mars colony to fail. We have pushed them back ten years behind us, since the Oil War. We chased them out of the middle east, off our backs in Alaska, and all the way back to a smoldering Moscow. Today though we will show them just how powerful we have become. This mission isn't just a simple supply run, like some of you may think. Our mission today folks, is to show the world that the United States isn't just the most powerful nation in the world, but in the entire galaxy and we will succeed! Now lets show everyone just how NASA gets the job done, because frankly I'm sick of these civilian space corporations running their mouths about us and there's nothing I would like more than to shut them up once and for all. Now split off into your mission details and your commanders will brief you individually, dismissed."

The crowd of astronauts and engineers dispersed accordingly after Colonel Banks finished his speech.

In his orange flight-suit, an astronaut approached the Colonel. "Are the cargo hold preparations complete, Lieutenant?"

"Affirmative, Colonel. All cargo present and accounted for." The Colonel nodded in approval. Raising his military grade smart-watch to his lips, the colonel announced, "Launch team, run your pre-flight tests and the tank inspections." An overhead speaker blared their acknowledgement. "Roger that Colonel, all pre-flight protocols are underway."

His attention reverted to the astronaut in front of him. With a deep look of contemplation coming upon him, he looked into the man's face. Then the colonel grabbed the guy's shoulder, in a stern gesture to make sure he had his full attention. "I want you to see something. Come here."

Walking several strides toward the window, before saying. "Blinds, open." Colonel Banks waited, standing with his arms at his hips. While those metallic shutters folded one on top of another. Until the perfect view of the launch site came into picture.

"There she is! The Mars Supply Shuttle or "Miss Houston" as it was affectionately called. Easily the most sophisticated piece of modern engineering out there. Isn't she beautiful, they spared no expense on her?" the Colonel asked rhetorically, with a bit too much of that used car salesman enthusiasm.

In a calm tone, the astronaut asked. "Permission to speak freely, sir?"

Colonel Banks, glanced sideways and jutted his bottom lip. "yes, of course, Theo"

"I won't let you down Darren, it means everything to me. You giving me this shot. I can't thank you, en--"

He was interrupted with a dismissive wave. "Don't mention it, little brother. Now it's time you met with the rest of the flight team. Go ahead and go get ready for embarkment"

"Yes, sir!" Theo gave a quick salute and left as ordered. Colonel Banks turned back to watched the ship preparations from his office window.

Launch Day: Take Off

"You heard Mission Control people, comm. checks for everyone!" Shouted the Flight Commander over the intercom system.

"This is Flight Commander Nicole Edwards, over?" This is Mission control, we read you loud and clear, Flight Commander."

"Roger, command. This is Specialist Thomas Foley, do you read, over? Affirmative Specialist Foley. This is Mission control. We are receiving you."

"Specialist Theodore Banks, requesting comm. check, do you read command, over? That's a ten four Mr. Banks, your coming through loud and clear."

"Mission control, this is flight commander. I'm running the last set of pre-flight diagnostics, now." Nicole set the main computer to run its analyses and then spoke to the team.

"Alright crew, were going to sit here for another hour and let the system run through its final tests. Anything unusual comes up, let someone know about it."

Almost in unison, the crew answered "Yes, Ma'am."

Nicole lets the crew know over the intercom, "Systems diagnostics all clear guys, I'm going to prep for launch."

"Mission control, this is flight commander, all systems are a go, do I have permission for launch?"

"This is Colonel Banks and you are cleared for launch, commander."

"Roger that Mission Control, initiating launch sequence, now." Nicole presses a button behind a large flip plate.

A metallic voice emanates from the intercom. T-minus thirty minutes to launch sequence engage.

" Flight team this is flight commander, make sure you're buckled in, and you run through the emergency protocols one last time. "

The robotic countdown announced itself every few minutes, but within seconds of when it ended. "Specialist Foley fire the engines." Shouted the commander. A vibration proceeded the tinny hum of the starter engine ignition. Blue flames shot out of the exhaust end of the smaller rockets that would give the ship its initial lift. The vessel began to shake as the vibrations intensified. Flames grew as the launch engines built up combustion. "Give me some lift specialist!" cried the commander.

Miss Houston took off from the launch pad at a slow gain. An azure streak trailing behind with its nose pointed to the heavens. "Foley! Watch the altimeter, when we reach three thousand feet, punch the main drive."

"Roger that, commander."

Foley eyed the altimeter, and then held his finger at the ready. With his hand hovered by the switch he waited, nervously. Sweat poured across his brow. His visor fogged up a bit as his breathing got heavy. If he tripped it too soon he could damage or injured anyone on the ground below with the engine blast. On the flipside, if he fired it too late he would have to burn more fuel to slow there approach to the supply barge and that could cause them to run low on fuel for the return trip.

Twenty one hundred feet, twenty two. He waited.

"Get ready, Foley..." announced the commander.

Twenty eight, twenty nine....

Three Thousand, Foley flipped the switch.

The sound of air being sucked away and then utter silence happen for a half second. Before, a titanic shockwave erupted from the main engine. Propelling the craft at a blinding velocity, the shuttle raced upward. the Details on the ground below blinked into undefined masses in an instant. Stars came quickly into view as the air thinned and the stratosphere erupted into brief flames around the spaceship. The crew always drifted into a brief sleep from the lack of oxygen to their brains from the g-forces. As a safety procedure, the auto pilot will continue the flight, until the crew regains consciousness within the hour.

The Mission: On Route

Foley woke first. He fell from his seat as he released the harness. There would often be a bout of vertigo at first. This lead to sometimes turning your stomach inside out but would usually pass quickly. Getting to his feet he checked on the rest of the crew. Commander Edwards jerked awake as Foley approached. She rubbed her eyes briefly and looked around the bridge. "Computer! What's Miss Houston's current position and eta?"

<<The ships relative position is nine point eighty eight million miles from Earth. At this speed we will reach the mars supply barge in approximately sevens hours.>>

"Foley, go ready us up some food in the mess while I try and wake Banks." ordered the flight commander. Thomas timidly answered, "Right away, Ma'am"

Nichole unhooked her buckle and staggered to Bank's chair. He was still out cold with an intermittent nasal whistle. "Banks, hey Banks!" She shook him by the shoulder. There wasn't as much as a groan on even a lifted eyelid. She persisted for another minute before she realized he must be a heavy sleeper. This was his first space jump too, so maybe the pre-flight training simulation didn't do a good enough job detecting his reaction to the g-forces he was projected to come under.

She left him to sleep and met Foley in the mess hall. Who had two steamy bowls of cinnamon apple oatmeal, ready for their cosmic appetites. It wasn't all that filling but it was soothing and hot inside their bellies. Astronauts usually ate light due to changes in gravity and pressure anyhow. They finished the meal without much more than some small talk and returned to the bridge in short order.

Spending several hours doing routine maintenance checks, system diagnostics and a few rounds of chess didn't do much to keep them mentally stimulated but it helped pass the time. There was a system check that revealed a bad engine trigger relay. That wasn't generally a critical repair, but Foley felt it was better to address now before it caused more strain on more crucial elements of the sub-light drive.

Donning his space-walk suit took several minutes, but gathering everything took almost twice as long as it was cumbersome and seldom used. He looked bulky and awkward in the suit and carrying these peculiar shaped instruments made him feel a bit silly. Like a kid pretending to be a mechanic with his Dad's tools out in the garage. That however didn't imply he wasn't versed in engine mechanics. Considered an expert he knew these system extremely well. It was just very rare for him to be able to put it to practical use.

Making his way to the airlock , he stood in the hall. Where he set his tools out and then placed them in a magna-lock chest. It would be able to grip to the hull when he wasn't in need of a tool so he didn't risk losing one to the lack of gravity. The room ahead was dark and he could see just a bit of light through the heavy door's viewport. Putting his gloved hand to the controls the door slid slowly open until he step inside the lights dimly activated.

A shadow fell over Thomas as he turned to grab his tools and move further into the airlock to prepare for pressure exchange. Someone stood in the darkness by the control panel. The airlock door slammed shut and a red light swirled inside as the emergency evacuation switch was triggered. Terror filled Thomas as he stared in the face of his murderer through the small round window. In seconds the room emptied, casting everything inside helplessly into the void of space.

The Mission: Off Course

Commander Edwards didn't know what had taken place but saw that an alarm started going off in the cargo section. She pressed the intercom, "Foley? what's your status?" Closely repeating herself, "Specialist Foley, Come in?!" Anxiously she pressed a few buttons on the main board, trying to pinpoint the disturbance. Looking for answers here wouldn't tell her anything useful she decided. She released herself from her chair and made her way to the cargo section. With only a high powered flashlight as a weapon she crept into the corridor.

The lights flickered in this area. She wondered for a moment if it was a result of the bad relay effecting more systems. Something told her it wasn't that but she just had a bad feeling. "Thomas!" she whispered loudly and then spoke quietly but kept the questions coming. "What's going on? Are you in there? Are you hurt? Respond so I can find you and try and help." Moving from wall to wall and door way to the next she crossed all the way from engineering to the cargo hold. Dark forms played tricks on her perception as her thoughts played up the circumstances. Every shadow that skirted the corner of her eyes or seemed to blend in and then move suddenly felt alive. She changed her position often to determine any impending threats but the soon every darting shadow began to startle her. She was too tough to show it, but inside it started to take its toll.

"Computer, give me a status on Miss Houston systems." Inquired the commander. <There is a thirteen percent draw of the ships main power source being drawn into the cargo bay, commander. Also it seems to be gradually increasing every ten minutes by a margin of two percent>

A thought occurred to the commander, "How long until that amount of a power draw could shutdown the main engines, computer?" <At the current rate of power loss, the ships propulsion would go offline in approximately thirty minutes.> Knowing she had precious little time, the commander hurried to the cargo hold. Pushing back the fear of what was causing this strange occurrence and the disappearance of Thomas was difficult. She had no choice though it was that or she knew the colony would die without the precious supplies on board.

She entered the cargo hold and brought her flashlight to bear. It was extinguished and she hoped in the darkness whoever was doing this would be surprised by the bright light. Since there were no weapons aboard she thought this the best tactic available. A dull light pulsed ahead. She rounded a desk and a control station. Ducked under a bulkhead and ran across a catwalk until she was standing with a good vantage of the cargo. Inside the main chamber were metallic crates. Copper tone and polish, the hold was full of maybe fifty boxes. They were about three foot by five foot in size.

Though strangest of all was a man standing atop the main collection of them. With live wires coming down like writhing veins in their midst. Pulsating they fed unstable energy into the boxes which caused many of them to began to glow white hot.

"Come down from there and surrender yourself intruder!" cried the commander. Turning to face her, was the face of Theo. A green light highlighted his facial features. Much like that of an eerie under glow or some sinister magical spell brewing in a cauldron. His face wasn't normal. It didn't have the usual carefree demeanor she was used to. That had been replaced by a devilish grin and a set of white eyes. "Where's Foley, Theo? What's going on here? What have you done to the cargo?" The commander's voice was direct and demanding. But it had no influence on Theo's actions.

"He's been revealed, he was a spy and now I will finish what I have begun and rid us of them" Stepping towards the cargo again, the heat started to build and some of the containers began to burn. "Come I will show you, you will see what I see." Shouted Theo as he approached her.

"Stop this Theo! I think your sick, you're making me do this!" shouted the commander. As she pointed the light at him. She set it to the strobe setting and flicked it on. The powerful beam flashed right into his eyes and she hoped it would be enough to stop him. "Theo shrieked and clutched his head." Blood quickly pooled out his ears, nose and tear ducts as she flopped to the floor like a fish out of water. With little time she had to choose, whether to help Theo who began to shudder from a massive seizure. The other option was to repair the damage done to the wiring. She went to work on rewiring the damaged conduits. In order to save the colony and get the power to redirect everything back into the engines.

Flashback: The Night Before

La Vista was a thriving nightclub. Especially during Tuesday nights happy hour especial. Drinks were half off and so were most of the patrons clothes soon afterwards. Tequila shots didn't take long to show most people's lack of alcohol tolerance.

On that night Theo and a few buddies were partying hard. They thought what better way to celebrate their buddies last night on earth for awhile than to get out of this world drunk. So that's just what they did.

Problem was Theo didn't think it was too bad of an idea to drive home that night. So after he got in his Sedan he made it maybe a few blocks, before he was sitting at a Red Light. He was still drinking straight from the bottle, a flask filled with alcohol to be exact. This was held in his right hand and he held the wheel with his left. His vision blurred from several blurry objects to one fussy dancing object and then just repeated itself. The signal switched to a Green Light finally and he pushed on the gas.

He heard the screech before he felt the impact. Glass flew, metal bent and the smell of gas was everywhere. Little else he could remember from that night. That is until he woke up in a hospital later on. The had bandaged up his injures. He had sustained some major contusions and cuts. Worst of all he had a terrible concussion. They had done a brain scan and found some significant swelling, that with out the proper rest and treatment could be quite dangerous. Unwilling to miss his mission the next day, Theo signed out against medical advice and went home. He had a friend tow his car to the mechanics and took a taxi home. He passed out as soon as he hit the sheets when he got home that night.

Safe Trip: The Colony

Once Nichole got the power back online, it only added an extra hour to the trip to compensate for lost time and fuel. Theo had passed, choked to death during his seizure. She didn't have the medical experience necessary to save him. Though he brought it on himself she felt bad, but her mission was to the colony, even above the crew. Everyone who came aboard knew the risks. Thomas though she still didn't know exactly what had taken place, she just knew he was gone too.

She buckled back in to her command chair and tried to rest a bit before she reached the supply barge. She had only two hours left before final approach. Sleep overtook her mind even as she tried to resist it.

Dreams sometimes are the manifestations of our worst fears. Well at least most of us have heard that is true of dreams before. I would say sometimes we don't know what are fears are until we meet them.

Nichole awoke to the destination alarm, alerting her that the ship's final approach was underway.

<Thirty minutes to supply barge arrival>

Wiping the sleep from her eyes, she yawned. Then stood to stretch her aching legs and back. "At last maybe some good will come from this mission after all", she thought. The ship made its last minute adjustments before final landing approach vector was laid in. Miss Houston touched down on the supply barge that was positioned in Mars's low orbit.

Machines connected to the Houston's computer and began the unloading process as crates of goods were loaded on lifts to lower to the surface. Commander Edwards left the ships hold and walked on to the Mars colony. The magistrate of the planets ruling council approached with her entourage. "Miss Edwards, I see you made it safely, the people of Mars thank you for a job well done. The colony will greatly benefit from all you have done for us. We are in your debt."

"It was my pleasure Magistrate, but it was my duty." the commander offered. "Yes well, a job well done. Please tell your crew to come here, we would like to show them our appreciation as well." Stated the Magistrate. "I'm afraid their g---" Commander Edwards stammered as she turned to point at the ship to tell about how the crew didn't make it. When the haggard form of a man in a space suit stubbled across the landing pad from behind the Houston's wing.

"Foley?!? you made it? I can't believe it, but how....?" Nicole ran to embrace her crew mate. She was ecstatic he was alive, even though she could hardly believe her eyes. It was further more perhaps at tad unprofessional for her to have gave him a hug. Maybe she didn't care, just because she needed some human contact after that difficult task.

But she instantly knew that was a mistake. His grip tightened around her. A green aura pulsated from within his fractured helmet. She knew in those last moments it wasn't Foley she had hugged. It wasn't even a human in fact. It was something entirely different. Spindly sharp appendages shoot from his suit like spider legs and wrapped the commander in a skin like cocoon until her muffled screams ceased to be heard.

The magistrate and company fled down to the lower level of the landing pad where the cargo was being off loaded. There the lids of the crates flung open and a terrible screech burst from within. One by one each crate cracked open. From within came these barbed twiggy legs that carried a toothy maw. They were hungry and in search of fleeing colonists. There was no further contact with Mars colony other than a distress signal sent to Earth. The message received, was just incoherent screams and shouts about the terrible green lights.