Now that she had clothes and was sitting quietly, the Fielden settled down to talk amongst themselves in Fielden instead of Space Standard, probably to gossip about her.
Left alone, she pulled her pack into her lap, thankful the Hissa hadn’t grabbed that. Opening it up, she did a quick inventory check. The data pad with her meager collection of credits sat right at the top. She breathed a little sigh of relief and dug down further.
She searched until she found the image display at the bottom, mixed in with the food bars. It was full of pictures of Melee and the cubs. Having the pictures of them made her feel less alone.
The shuttle shifted to un-dock and launch. She didn’t think the Hissa would be able to stop the launch, but she had still been a little anxious.
The shuttle finished shifting, paused, then launched. Nova leaned back and looked up at the ceiling, thinking. This shuttle was a free service the Delight offered, but after this trip she’d need to pay for everything. She’d probably need to live on Fielden for a while. It wouldn’t be easy to find a job; Fielden wasn’t a hub of manufacturing or agriculture.
The temperature on Fielden could be mild so she would sleep outside unless one of their notorious wind storms developed. That would help her save money to travel to a place with more opportunities.
Or maybe she’d try and get a job in one of the research labs the Fielden were famous for. Was she capable of working with the designers of revolutionary nanotech? Sure she was. Who knew what her future held? She was smart, fast, and determined. Maybe she’d even find a way to buy the Delight someday! Then she’d fire the captain and make Riff perform a wild act!
She let her imagination go wild until a strange sound in the floor made her sit up and look down. She watched as a panel in the floor popped open.
To her absolute shock and horror, a furious Hissa climbed through the tight spot, stood up, and loomed over her.
This was bad!
Chapter 4
Miran
Miran roared with frustration when the hatch closed before he could even get his fingers into an edge. He knew there was no way for him to reach the bay’s control room in time to stop the launch. He slammed a hand down on his data bracelet.
“I found her in the shuttle bay. She’s inside and the doors are shut, can you stop the shuttle?” He listened to Nerin curse for several precious seconds.
“I need more time! The system is automated and to stop the processes means I need to break down several dozen standard safety protocols.”
“Get on another shuttle,” Lazil yelled. “Follow her down and grab her on the planet’s surface.”
Feeling like an idiot for not thinking of that, Miran looked around to find all the shuttles were also locked and ready to launch. It would take a long time for them to travel to the surface, unload, and return.
“They’re all ready to depart,” Miran replied grimly.
“Maintenance hatch!” Lazil said. “Look toward the back, past the rear door. Find the bottom seam. There’ll be a spot that gives a little. Press on it and the hatch will open. Get in and shut it before the launch.”
Miran rushed to the spot. “What happens if I don't get it sealed in time?”
“You and everyone aboard that shuttle dies,” Lazil stated with dead calm. “I suggest you hurry.”
Miran grunted, not bothering with communicating any longer. He got the hatch open, but getting inside was the difficult part. The compartment was not meant to accommodate anyone as big as a Hissa warrior in full gear. He didn’t have time to strip anything off so there was no choice but to force his body into the tight space.
Once he was finally inside, he wiggled and banged every part of his body. He had to bend almost double to reach the hatch and pull it back closed. The hatch thumped back into place.
“I'm in, and I'll lose communication with you soon. Get to our ship and wait for my next communication. If you don't hear from me within a few hours, fly down to the planet's surface.”
“Acknowledged,” both men chorused back at him as the shuttle’s launch pressed Miran painfully against several hard edges.
He had to wait until the initial launch pressure eased before he could wiggle himself deeper into the bowels of the shuttle. He knew there’d be a place to access the inside of the shuttle, he only had to find it.
It was almost completely dark, but he felt along edges and seams until he found the one he knew was meant to open. He pushed hard, and the panel popped open, allowing him to stand up. He was tall enough that all of his upper body was inside the cabin with only his legs still in the crawl space.
There was movement and startled voices all around him, but he ignored them. His entire focus was on the human female sitting almost right in front of him.
Eyes wide with surprise, she froze. Somehow, she was clothed in Fielden garb again.
Her surprise gave way to fear, and she pulled her hand out of the bag on her lap and clutched it against her chest. She pulled both legs up and tucked her feet on the chair, as if trying to make herself small.
