After running for about five minutes, Lucy paused and panting heavily gazed back along the corridor. Comforted by the lack of any sounds of the recently freed creature’s pursuit, she approached the open door ahead and gazed into the room highlighted by the blue corridor lights. It was another of the crew’s quarters that seemed to be distributed all over the ship, perhaps to make it more convenient for certain crew members to be closer to whatever duties they had to perform until their ill-fated voyage had taken a turn for the worse. When she was certain it was free of monsters, she stepped inside. She would have preferred to close the door, but that would plunge the room in unwelcoming darkness. Resting her tired body on one of the chairs at the table against the wall, she placed one of the weapons and the spear down while she examined the other futuristic pistol. If she could find out how the weapons worked, they would help protect her against the spaceship’s vicious inhabitants.
Lights came on when she turned a dial. Unsure what would happen when she pulled the trigger, she crossed to the door and aimed the weapon along the corridor. Her finger stretched around the trigger, which was a little awkward as it had been designed for bigger hands than hers, and pulled. A startled yelp sprung from her lips when a small red sphere of bright light shot from the gun and travelled down the corridor until it exploded in a bright flash against the far wall. She turned the dial a couple of clicks and fired again. The yellow ball of intense light grew as it travelled away until it reached a width of about two feet. It too exploded against the far wall. Lucy smiled as her eyes adjusted back to the gloomy interior. Nothing could stand in her way now.
A check of the other weapon revealed it was also operational. The two functioning weapons boosted her confidence, but she still needed a portable light of some type. From her past wanderings through the ship she knew not every corridor or room would be illuminated; light was as essential as a weapon if she was going to survive.
Her gaze around the room rested on the tall cupboards along one side of the room. Though she thought it unlikely, they might contain the alien equivalent to a flashlight; she had nothing to lose. There were no handles but when she pressed one of the doors, it swished open. A light source remained elusive after she had searched the contents, but she did find something that might prove useful―some alien clothing. She held up a type of shirt or jacket. There were no buttons or zips; it was worn by pulling it over your head. She slipped it on and pushed her arms through the sleeves. Though far too large, Lucy thought with a few minor adjustments she could design something that fit better.
She grabbed the spear and after trimming off some sections was about to try it on again, when she spied the toilet and shower compartment. Layers of grime and monster blood covered her like a second skin, and her hair was matted with all manner of foul gunk. The irresistible urge to be clean again drove her decision. She crossed to the shower room and turned the lever she found on the wall. Though only a small amount of cold water dribbled from the large circular showerhead, it was better than nothing.
Lucy poked her head out into the corridor and listened. Only the familiar groans and creaks of the ship disturbed the silence. Though she knew it was risky and reckless―anything could be heading towards her―the seed of cleanliness had been firmly planted and too alluring to resist. She collected a piece of clothing from a cupboard to use as a towel, grabbed one of the alien pistols and went to have a shower.
As Richard fled through the industrial-themed corridor and leaped over the fallen ceiling panels and beams, he kept the flashlight aimed in front to light his way. The lines of cables attached to the walls and those hanging from the ceiling he dodged around reminded him of the tentacles responsible for dragging him into these hell-spawned levels. He shook that particular nightmare away and concentrated on the one he currently experienced. He had lost all sense of direction and had no way of knowing if he was heading for the front or back of the ship or crossing its width. Trusting his luck that had kept him alive thus far, he ignored all side turnings and doors and continued straight ahead.
After rounding a few corners, Richard slowed on sighting a red glow ahead and halted a short distance away. The fearful chill that shivered through his body set his alarm bells tinkling. His eyes scanned the area ahead for movement, but all seemed still. He spun and aimed the flashlight back the way he had come, but it was absent the approaching menace he had imagined creeping up on him.
With his nerves so far on edge they were plummeting down the side of a cliff, Richard approached the eerie red light seeping through a window set in the wall and highlighting the strange objects that littered the floor. They looked like someone’s poor attempt at making pottery vases. Smooth concentric ridges ran down the sides of the foot-tall objects that glistened as if they were wet and drooped to the side to reveal dark empty interiors. He was under no illusion that something hadn’t grown inside and hatched from every single one.
As he drew closer he noticed other far more worrisome objects. He poked one with a foot. It was stiff but semitransparent. It reminded Richard of shredded snakeskin, but the ghostly forms hinted at by the shredded skins were nothing remotely snake-like. As Richard gingerly stepped through the egg graveyard, his eyes constantly searched for the hatchlings, or worse, what they had now matured into. He ducked beneath fallen metal beams propped against the buckled walls. The floor creaked with his steps and though he had the feeling it might collapse at any time, he knew he had to keep moving.
A few moments later, the sounds drifting along the debris-strewn corridor from behind slowed Richard’s search for salvation. It was the unmistakable sound of approaching monsters and their bloodcurdling screeches indicated they were gaining too fast for him to outrun. He searched for a hiding place, but his choices were limited. He dropped to the floor, lay tight against the wall and pulled a buckled ceiling panel over him.
The three alien creatures that chased the slightly larger creature along the corridor weren’t particularly hungry, as they had hunted and eaten many creatures lately that seemed to have suddenly appeared, but their instinct to eat when normally scarce food was available drove their actions.
The cow-sized creature being chased was covered in long brown hair, had six legs, a triangular head, and was an herbivore. It was also terrified. Terror bulged its eyes and sweat matted its long hair. When it had awoken to its strange surroundings, it had found itself surrounded by many species of creatures that looked at each other hungrily and who seemed just as groggy and confused as it was. It had headed for the nearest exit before they had fully recovered and attacked and hadn’t stopped looking for the familiar fields it and its herd had roamed through.
Though it had managed to avoid many creatures, it had failed to avoid the three currently chasing it when it had come across them unexpectedly. It was weak, hungry and knew it couldn’t run for much longer.
Richard trembled with fear as the monsters approached and groaned when something heavy thundered across the edge of the ceiling panel he hid beneath, crushing his chest, but he forced himself to silence and peered out at the slightly smaller beetle-like creatures rushing past. Though they had hinted similarities to the shredded skins he had happened across earlier, these had evolved into much larger ferocious creatures. A row of small jointed black legs either side of its golden articulated body―a body that humped in the middle and was adorned with ivory spikes―scuttled the five-foot-long creature along at a surprisingly fast rate. Though no eyes were visible, the front flat segment of the creature seemed to be its head and was armed with two curved, stag beetle-like horns that stuck out like pincers and were set either side of a wide flat mouth.