Adrift

[Part One: The End]

I tap in two messages, sent in opposite directions. The first reads, “I am coming.” The second: “I am coming back.” I tell De to jump.

The ship engines – a bone-deep subliminal hum that goes unnoticed until absent – fade to idle. Jon asks for orders. He saw the message.

One line of text.

“We still have Mak.”

Seeing bulk of the Drift slowly falling behind us is a relief. The intercom squawks – Deirdre says a text communication just came through.

Bin’s engines spin up; I get heavier – the ship’s gravity kicks up to normal once we’re on live power – and we tumble away from the Drift.

Frozen blood crystals fill the space between our ships, fountaining from the leg caught in/under Burns’ hatch. We need MUCH more distance.

Deirdre sprint-stomps toward the bridge – the force of the decomp will push us away from Burns’ ship, but we need /much/ more distance.

The hatches bracketing the venting airlock drop like stones. Burns leaps backward to safety. Mostly. Blood sprays; wet, then crystalline.

I punch the big red button next to the hatch. The one we’re not supposed to punch. The one that initiates emergency explosive decoupling.