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  Felix wasted time gaping. What the hell was wrong with that man? Felix had done nothing but try to help in the emergency, and that man up and strands them here.

  They could die because of that. They could die. Shit. He was wasting time.

  The Lisnoir pulled his arm, snapping him out of his reverie, and hauled him down the passageway. The air was getting thin and difficult to breathe, and the exertion wasn't making things any easier, either. Felix's lungs cried for air, and his vision swam.

  The airtight hatch between the launched pod and the next closest was not properly closed. Had it been, there would have been no way Felix and the Lisnoir could have opened it with what was quickly approaching vacuum on their side. At least, not without a whatsit. The thing, part of the salvage worker sample set? It was so difficult to think.

  Felix stumbled onward, his thoughts cloudy and slow. His whole mind was on getting to the pod, and air. Sweet, sweet, breathable air.

  The gentle green glow of the evac pod's tale-tells greeted them as they rounded a corner in the passageway. Felix and the Lisnoir half-collapsed inside, shutting the door behind them. Felix gulped deeply as the emergency air flowed into the pod.

  Once he had caught his breath, he sat up, alternating between massaging his still pounding temples and his knee. They could breathe now, they didn't need to launch. At least, not without thinking.

  The pod's air supply, while extensive, was finite. Even if the crew patched up the holes quickly, The Raven was now perilously short on air. Even with two less on board, it was sure to be tight. Or, at least two; one of the passengers had never shown up in the dining room. And, that was if the crew could patch it. Why hadn't he seen them running toward the breach? Where had they been?

  Focus. The pod had air and rations. He was willing to concede that despite his valiant efforts, he was not going to make it to Ublao in a timely manner. Even in the best-case scenario, it would be days before they could get moving again. Felix was afraid they were not in that best-case scenario. Failing arrival at Ublao, the next objective was survival and recovery.

  There, they had choices. They could stay put; if the ship could continue, then they could ride it out. It may take a while, but it would at least see them to some station or other. Or, if another ship came, they would be easy to find. The Principality offered a sizable bounty for rescuing stranded spacers.

  On the other hand, that was if another ship came by. They were in Karlyke; it may be some time before someone else came through. It was not on the standard routes and not all those moving through the system were the most law-abiding citizens. Whoever came may not be interested in the official attention that accompanied the rescue reward.

  He could launch the pod. He had looked up some information on the planet below, but the terminal was sparse on the matter. No one stopped here long, and from what he could tell, there had never been any detailed surveys taken of the planets in-system. However, he had seen pictures of the planet below while he was browsing the terminal. It had liquid oceans. That could mean it might be survivable. That seemed desperate. 'Liquid' did not necessarily mean water.

  It didn’t have to be either of the two options. He could always wait here for rescue and launch when supplies ran short. That struck a fair compromise. But it would also leave him with no supplies on an alien planet, should he need to launch later.

  Felix mulled over his options. He decided that launching was the best choice; either he'd die right away in some poisonous atmosphere, or enjoy, and he used that term loosely, the best chance of long-term survival.

  Despite having arrived at a conclusion, Felix wasn't willing to unilaterally hit that button. He wasn't alone, and he had to try to talk it over with the Lisnoir, no matter what language barriers existed.

  Felix pointed to the button to initiate a jettison and looked at the Lisnoir pantomiming curiosity and indecision the best he could. He hoped it translated across cultural lines.

  The Lisnoir followed Felix's gesture to the button and closed his eyes. The being sat, eyes closed and unmoving, for a long while.

  Felix clambered into one of the crash seats. He was exhausted from the trip there, and he'd been knocked around enough for one day. Should they both agree on launching, he would be ready for this one.

  The Lisnoir opened his eyes, reached over and hovered a clawed finger over the button. He looked to Felix, who nodded assent. The alien depressed the button.

  The pod kicked loose, and Felix was glad he had already strapped in. They drifted.

  The two ate, drank, slept. Felix was sure there were ways of telling how much time had passed, but he didn't know how. It had been long enough for his knee to turn several brilliant shades of purple and heal.

  Eventually, there was a tug that could generously be called gravity. The pod had found its way to the planet's gravity well. They were no longer drifting; they were falling.

  ***

  Elsewhere, a grinning, blue face filled the screen. Two large yellow eyes bulged and stared unblinkingly at an unseen audience. Two more eyes were on the sides of its head. They roved independent of the rest. "And that, dearest viewer, is the effective end of the Trevor's Crew/Steppe Folk war," it said in a dual-pitched voice. It bounced with barely contained excitement.

  "With the loss of Saxon and, more importantly, the scroll, that's the last we'll see of the Steppe Folk for a while. Coming up next, we'll watch the highlights of the war with commentary from Jastin, a retired military strategist of no small renown. Also with us is Aerav, one of the finest producers of Survival World our generation has seen.

  “Before that, we’ve just got word in from the producers. As you all know, post-war leads to a slow season during the rebuilding. That's why QBK is pleased to break this news- for the first time in four seasons, we've got fresh blood coming.

  “Who are they? Where are they from? Where will they land? More information as it comes in. Until then, enjoy the highlights, and settle in with a cool, refreshing Aetheraide.

  “Aetheraide: when life brings you down, Aetheraide will lighten the load."

  CHAPTER TWO

  Gradually the tug turned more substantial. As the pressure mounted, Felix and his fellow passenger strapped back into their safety rigging.

  It started to get warm asthe pod whistled through the atmosphere. There was no view out of the port window. The port shielding had automatically closed to spare passengers the blinding light of atmospheric entry.

  Felix ran through a mental list of what he thought he would need to do once they landed. He was at a loss. Shelter, food, water, he supposed. Outside, in his opinion, was solely the place you had to go between buildings, and only poorly planned ones at that. He didn't even take his daily jog outside if he could help it.

  Felix was soon pressed into the back of his seat. The blue and gray shipsuit he was wearing onboard was drenched in sweat as the oppressive heat grew. It wasn’t made to withstand such conditions any more than he was.

  He glanced over at the Lisnoir. Felix didn't know how well he handled g-forces or heat, but it didn't look like his fellow passenger minded the descent as much as Felix.

  There was a sharp bang. Felix assumed, or at least fervently hoped, it was the cover of the landing chutes jettisoning. The rushing, whip-like sound was followed by a sharp crack, and the hard jerk which confirmed it.

  The sudden deceleration caused Felix to lift into the straps of his seat for a long moment before he slammed back down. Thankfully, whoever designed this pod had not stinted on the safety gear. There was no damage sans a momentary disorientation.

  Even the heat abated somewhat, or at least ceased to get worse. The difference between "ridiculously hot" and "slightly less than ridiculously hot" was beyond Felix's ability to discern.

  The port shielding slid back and revealed the view-port. They were still going at a breakneck speed, but Felix saw brief, tantalizing glimpses as the pod fell towards the ground. A pale blue sky, almost a pastel. Water around an island, l
arge red-green trees. A mountain dominating the middle, a lake at its crest. A waterfall running down to the jungle below.

  It looked, well, nice. While he would much rather be back on the ship and nearly to his next stop, maybe this wouldn't be so bad, after all. Set up on the beach. Catch some of whatever passes as the local fish. Work on a tan and relax until rescue came.

  While he knew that they were going faster than it seemed, he basked in the apparent lazy float to the ground. For the first time since they were struck, however long ago that was now, Felix thought things might be okay.

  It wasn't until ground grew much closer that Felix realized they were still going quite fast. He held tight and sighed; he was getting real tired of getting knocked around. He closed his eyes and waited.

  There was a jolt and a deafening screech as the metal of the pod rent around some obstruction. The Lisnoir's entire section of harnesses lurched to the side as a rock pierced the hull underneath. The seat tumbled away from its mounting and Felix’s unfortunate shipmate took a nasty crack to his head. Sparks flew from now exposed wiring and acrid smoke snaked its way to the ceiling.

  The pod hung at a drunken angle for a long moment before the rock snapped. The capsule fell to the ground and landed on its side. It rolled halfway around and stilled. Almost directly beneath him, his companion's seat slumped diagonally along the 'floor'. The hole from the landing was near the ground. Shards of rock lay scattered along the deck and a few rays of light shone in.

  Felix could see a small pool of blood below his companion's head. It was probably okay though; head wounds bleed a lot. At least for humans. Was that true for Lisnoir as well? He didn't know. Either way he needed the med kit. There was one strapped to what was once the wall of the pod.

  Felix now hung from the safety straps on the “ceiling”. Before trying to untangle himself, he patted himself for injury. He had had better days but he felt more or less functional.

  He carefully unbuckled himself and got to the floor with something resembling grace. He soon located the medkit secured to the wall where it should be. It wasn‘t even too far up; Felix could get it with minimal climbing.

  The exhilaration of the crash and being on a wild, alien planet was getting to Felix. He was breathing hard. He’d had to jump around, but he was in decent shape. Why waste money on porters if you didn't have to, after all? He never took this long to recover. Not to mention his head hurt. And the pod was spinning.

  Maybe it was the smoke building up. Or, perhaps, the chair hadn't cushioned his head as well as he had thought. Or- Felix had a terrible thought. He pulled the atmospheric sensor out of his kit. The red alarm light strobbed a steady rhythm. Low oxygen.

  Felix headed back to his seat, or at least the space under it. If he just sat and thought, he could figure out what to do. Before he got there, he stumbled and fell. Felix lay there, panting. He'd rest a moment and catch his breath.

  He took full, deep breaths, but it didn't help. He couldn't breathe. His vision darkened and blackness danced at the edges. His head throbbed. They’d tried, in the end. If this was it, at least he knew he had strove against it. He slumped forward.

  * * *

  It was the scratching at the metal hull that woke Felix. He listened as he lay on the floor where he had fallen. His breathing was normal again, and while his head still hurt, it hurt less. He had been certain he wouldn’t wake up again, so he would take what he could get.

  Something was different, and not just the noise. There was a pause in the scratching, and a faint, wet sounding snuffle. It was coming from outside, near the ruptured point. That's what was different. The light was gone.

  The once empty hole now held scaled feet tipped in long, curved claws. An elongated, slender snout poked into the hole. A thick tongue slithered out between sharp teeth. The snuffling resumed for a moment and the head withdrew.

  Somehow, Felix didn't think whatever that was, was friendly.

  Felix scurried quietly but quickly across the wreckage that covered what was now the floor. He headed towards the unconscious Lisnoir, who was still lying in a puddle of his own blood. It didn't look like it had grown much. Or at least, he thought it hadn’t. His memory was a bit fuzzy. Either way, the blood was tacky and drying. He must have been right that the cut was superficial.

  He grabbed the alien’s shoulder. "Wake up," Felix hissed, “We need to go.”

  The Lisnoir didn't move. Felix looked around, trying to eye which supplies would be most necessary, and something to carry them in. Medkit, rations, tools. There had to be a bag somewhere.

  A slow crunch from near his companion caused Felix to pause his search and look back at the creature. It worked its claws into the damaged sections of the hull to pry them back. It experimentally stuck in a paw and took a swipe at the fallen Lisnoir.

  Felix ran at it and shouted, waving his arms in the air. The creature pulled back, but did not run. It studied Felix through the hole for a moment. It let out another snuffle and worried at the opening once more.

  Felix stooped to unstrap the Lisnoir from his seat. They could run, maybe. They could come back and salvage later, but Felix was under no illusion that he could take that thing in a confined space alone, especially without a weapon.

  He fumbled with the straps, distracted as he was. The lizard was staring dead at him while it worked at the hole. He needed more time.

  Felix pulled out the travel patch kit he had taken from his sample case. It was one of those fancy new fire-and-forget ones. The hole was still small enough that this should cover it, and he wouldn't have to get too close.

  He stood as near as he dared. Had he had the time to think, he would have been quite impressed with his own courage. The lizard leaned into the hole, taking swipes at Felix. It was mere inches away from contact. Felix took a deep breath and aimed the kit. Thick, liquid metal flowed out and covered the opening.

  The lizard's arm was still inside, covered in the patching material. The lizard let out a startled yowl. Unfortunately for it, the patching material dried within seconds, and it realized far too late. It managed to retract its arm a few inches before being locked in to the brand-new patch. It howled in fury, and Felix could see the foot inside flex and twist in its attempt to get free.

  Felix spared a moment to smile before returning to the Lisnoir. His companion was still out. Somehow he'd have to move both him and any supplies he could carry. At least with the lizard's arm trapped, he bought himself more time. He took the medkit he had dropped earlier over to the alien.

  He was no medic, but he didn't have to be. Felix opened up the kit, took out a small device and laid it on the Lisnoir's head, near the cut. It would automatically read his vitals and diagnose what, if anything, needed to be done.

  While the gadget was working, Felix set about gathering supplies. Finding the supplies wasn't as easy as it could have been. They had not resecured all the supplies they had used while in freefall, and the error in that was now plain. While nothing appeared too damaged, the rough landing had scattered everything. They were lucky they hadn’t gotten hit with flying food packs.

  While searching, he tried to walk on all sorts of machinery that had been mounted to the wall, whilst also staying low enough to keep under the still building smoke. It had built up while he was out that he had to hunch over to stay below the haze.

  The lizard outside was still yowling. It grated into what was left of Felix's nerves. He couldn't find much in the way of tools, but he did find a bag to hold rations. He stuffed whatever looked remotely edible inside, as well as containers full of water. Who knew if the local water was safe to drink?

  The auto-diagnosis chirped, and Felix picked it up. He breathed a small sigh of relief; it was only a minor concussion, and a superficial head wound. It also picked up an abnormality in the lungs, but it couldn't pinpoint the problem specifically.

  Felix figured it was likely whatever had knocked him out earlier, but at least he adapted. He had to hope the Lisnoir would as wel
l. Felix did what he could; he bandaged the Lisnoir's head to prevent infection and injected some smart medites as further precaution.

  As Felix was repacking the medkit, a horrid howling could be heard in the distance. The lizard outside stopped it's thrashing. It howled back.

  Felix had a sinking feeling. He put the medkit in the bag of rations he'd gathered and slung the whole thing over his shoulder.

  Felix looked over his companion lying on the ground. The Lisnoir was big. He had thought that before, but it had taken on a more immediate meaning. His unconscious companion was about a foot and a half taller than Felix, and unless Felix missed his guess, about half again as heavy.

  Carrying him would be tough, but that wasn't enough. Felix needed to take the Lisnoir, haul him not just out of this pod, but to somewhere safe. And he had to do it with more of those things after them.

  Felix was fit, but he was a runner at heart. The heaviest lifting he did normally was moving sample cases to a pallet and back again. He was under no misconception that he was up to this task.

  Felix went up to the hatch and looked out. It was hard to see past the soot, but it looked like there was a jungle a short way up the beach, a straight shot out from the hatch.

  The beach itself was rocky, but otherwise clear of major obstacles. That was a mixed blessing, as that meant there was also nothing between him and the incoming creatures, but Felix would take what he could get.

  If he could get the Lisnoir to the jungle, perhaps Felix could hide his companion. Then maybe he could draw off any pursuit. If. Perhaps. Maybe.

  This was a terrible plan.

  He didn't have a better one, and, as seemed to be the case lately, no time. Needs must, unfortunately. Felix adjusted the straps of the pack so it rested high on his back. He leaned against the hatch and placed a hand on the handle. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Another breath.