Chapter 5 – Turmoil

Gena and Jack trucked through the mud together side by side. Gena saw one of the strange trees and said, "Look at this thing, Jack. Isn't this interesting?" Jack did not stop walking to examine at the tree. He was in 100% search mode. He kept the clearing on his left as he traveled around in the circle. Gena stopped looking at the black tree and ran to catch up with him. Then she said, "Slow down! We aren't supposed to leave each other's side." With one quick motion Gena grabbed Jack's hand.

Jack finally stopped walking. He looked back at Gena's hand holding his. He tried to pull away from her, but she had a strong grip on his hand. Jack finally said, "What is wrong with you? We are out here looking for Paula and you want to hold hands?" With one last pull, Jack freed his hand from her grip.

Gena remarked, "You don't have to be all uptight about it. Friends can hold hands."

Jack returned to the trail he had mapped out in his head. He thought about what had just happened in his head for a second then he said, "What would Steve say if he caught us holding hands? Are you and Steve going through some hard times or something?"

"Steve wouldn't care."

"Oh really, let's find out." Jack pressed the button on his radio and said, "Steve, your girlfriend is putting the moves on me. Please advise, over."

There was a lot of radio static. It seemed that the trees were interfering with the signal. After a bit of silence, the captain responded, "Shut up, Myer. Keep your eyes on the search pattern and off Gena's ass."

Jack exhaled sharply. For the first time he wasn't making a joke. He shook it off and continued to walk. He checked his O2 tank. It was still at 75% full. He had a lot of time left. Jack turned to Gena and said, "Check your O2. Make sure you aren't hallucinating like Paula was." Gena checked at her tank. She held it up so Jack could see it. It read 77%. She was not out of air. Jack replied, "Good, let's just keep moving. We have the smallest circle so we should get done the quickest."

Jack and Gena walked for a bit. Only a few minutes then Gena said, "You know, we very rarely get time alone together. I just thought we should make it fun. I have always had a little crush on you, Jack. I am sure you…" She didn't get to finish her sentence.

Jack turned back to her and yelled at her, "What the hell is wrong with you, Gena?! You have been dating Steve for as long as I have known you. Hell, you two were literally screwing less than few hours ago! Now, you are hitting on me in the middle of the forest? Where is your brain at? We are supposed to be looking for Paula."

Gena shook her head and said, "Sorry, I am not sure what I was thinking about." Jack watched as her face changed from happy to confusion, then to sadness. She seemed to be genuinely confused about her own actions.

"Come to think about it, I have been losing concentration a lot today, too. Something strange is happening." Jack turned back to the trail. They were almost done with their circle. When they got back to the research building, he would ask the others if they felt the same.

Lt. Wright walked in the back with Steve several feet in front of him. Steve was walking at a brisk pace. Eventually he turned back to shout, "Come on, man. We have the largest circle. We need to walk faster than everyone else or they will leave us behind."

Lt. Wright replied, "They know our path will take the longest. We don't need to skimp on the search just because you want to get there faster."

Steve ignored his words and returned to walking the circle. Lt. Wright increased his walking pace to keep up with him, but Steve was already way ahead of him. As he walked, he saw Steve bend over and look at something in the mud. After a few seconds he got up and walked away. Lt. Wright stopped at about the same area and said, "What did you find?"

Steve turned back to him and said, "Nothing, I was just looking at the ground."

"Were you really?" Lt. Wright said as he checked the area. Steve's footprints were the only thing he could see. He checked under the nearby bushes and everything. Then he stood up and glanced at Steve again, "What did you find here? You going to tell me, or I will find it myself?"

Steve started walking back toward him. Then he said, "There is nothing here. Why are you acting like I stole something?"

"Ah ha, so that's it. You found a shoe. Was it Paula's shoe?"

"No. There was no shoe."

"Maybe it was a footprint? You covered it up so you could get home to you girlfriend faster?"

"No!"

"So, what was it?! Why did you stop? What did you see?!"

Steve shouted back, "Nothing! There was nothing! I thought I saw a strange rock but there wasn't anything! Stop questioning me like I did something wrong."

"Now you've changed your story. There was nothing, there was something. There was a shoe. Now there is a rock. Tell me the truth." Lt. Wright said as he was getting frustrated. Then he pulled his pistol from the holster and said, "You're going to tell me, or I will end this search right here and now."

Jack and Gena were the first team to make it back to the Research station. As they walked up to the steps, Gena pressed the button on her headset and said, "Team one, returned to research station." No one responded. It would seem the radios had a limited range. Either that or no one saw fit to respond.

Jack and Gena waited for the airlocks to cycle then took their masks off once they got inside. Jack kicked off his muddy shoes. Gena did not. She left a mud trail across the floor as she sat down at the table. Jack walked over and sat down on the opposite side of the table. Jack clasped his hands together and covered his mouth. Then he said, "What is the name of this planet? Do you remember?"

Gena thought about it for a second then said, "I have no idea. That is so strange. I have touched down on a lot of planets. I don't remember half of them. But I don't think I have ever forgotten something so quickly. Did this planet even have a name?"

Jack thought about it then he said, "That's right! It's not on our star charts. It's a rogue planet. Good job. I completely forgot." Jack fiddled with his hands for a bit then he asked, "How could I forget such a thing? Are we losing our minds?"

Gena shook her head. "It's the atmosphere. We must be breathing too much CO2. That would explain why Paula is missing. Anyone who spends too much time outdoors breaths too much and starts to hallucinate."

Jack got up and surveyed the area from the windows. He could see Lana and the captain were on their way back. Then he turned back to Gena and said, "I think we should see what the captain says. See if he is having memory problems. If he thinks it is going to become a problem."

The captain and Lana entered the Research station through the airlock. Captain Garcia took off his mask and asked, "Well, what did you find?"

Gena replied, "Trees, rocks, bushes, and not much else."

Jack replied, "Less than what we hoped for. Captain I think there is something wrong with this place. Have you noticed any memory problems sense we have been here?"

The captain sat down and rubbed his leg. It was clearly sore from all the walking. Before the captain could say anything, he stood up. He was looking out over the clearing. Then the captain said a single word, "Shit."

Jack, Gena, and Lana stood up and followed his gaze outside. Steve was running from the tree line toward the Research station. He was also alone. He was clearly distressed. The captain grabbed his masked and pressed the radio button, "Newton, this is the captain. What is going on?"

Steve did not respond. He continued to run until he got to the airlock. Gena got up and waited for the secondary door to open before catching Steve in her arms. Steve cried and held Gena for a few seconds. Then the captain said, "Come on man, pull yourself together, did you find Paula?"

Steve shook his head and said, "No, it's Lt. Wright." Steve was still trying to catch his breath. He took a moment then said, "Lt. Wright pulled a gun on me. He was going to kill me. I don't know what was wrong with him. He kept throwing wild accusation at me. He was acting so strange. I ran away from him. I ran deep into the woods. He chased me. He fell and twisted his ankle or something. I kept running. I ran all the way back here."

Captain Garcia was shocked, "He pulled a gun on you?"

Jack chimed in, "Yes, that is what I was talking about. Captain, people are acting weird. We are all acting weird! This place is tainting our minds or something."

Steve agreed, "Yes, we need to go. We need to get off this planet, right now! Forget the ships. Forget the salvage completely."

Captain Garcia turned back to the window and stared in the direction Steve came from. He was waiting for Lt. Wright to come walking out of the tree line. Any moment now. Seconds quickly flew by with no sign of him. The captain looked at Steve. He was a wreck. He had mud on his clothes and boots. He had clearly been through a traumatic event. Steve put one hand on the captain's shoulder and said, "We need to get out of here. The Lieutenant has lost his mind. He is out there now waving his gun around. He is dangerous."

The captain pulled away from Steve's hand. "You can't be serious. You want us to leave two people behind? I think you are losing your mind now." Captain Garcia went back to the airlock and put his mask back on. Then he checked his pistol. It was fully charged. The captain turned back to the rest of the crew and said, "If the Lieutenant won't listen to reason, then maybe he will listen to me. I will try to talk him down if I can. Until I get back, no one leaves the build. Is that clear?"

With that said, the captain pressed the button to cycle the airlock. Everyone watched as he walked toward the forest. Lana became nervous. What if the captain doesn't come back? Lana's thoughts ran wild. Only for a moment. They all watched as the captain slowly walked to the tree line. Once the captain entered the forest, everyone stepped away from the window.

Out of nowhere, Steve pulled a pistol for the back of his pants. Jack turned around to find himself looking down the barrel of a gun. Steve was still breathing hard as he said, "We are leaving now."

Lana backed away from Steve. He was supposed to be the chief engineer of the POLO, someone you could trust. Now he was holding Jack at gunpoint. Jack was surprisingly cool. However, he was not happy. He didn't say a word. Gena couldn't believe her eyes. She reached out to Steve and said, "Sweety, what has gotten into you? Put the gun down."

Steve moved toward Gena but only to take the pistol off her belt. Now, Steve had both pistols. He kept one pointed at Jack's face. With the other pistol, Steve shot a hole in the wall. The energy blast was bright and loud inside the building. Bits of shattered Plexiglas hit Lana. Carbon dioxide started to flood into the room. Lana grabbed her mask and Jack's mask. As Lana put her mask on, her eyes darted back to the tree line. The captain was already over 100 meters away. Odds are he didn't hear the shot. Lana handed Jack his mask. Jack put it on slowly as Steve said, "We are not staying here another night. Let's take a walk. Now."

Together everyone stepped into the airlock. Jack, Lana, Gena, and Steve at the back. Lana was trying to realize how this turned from a rescue operation into a hostage situation. As the doors were cycling open and closed Lana said, "Can we talk about this?"

Steve violently poked Lana in the back of the head with his pistol and said, "Shut up! Next person that talks is getting shot. I don't care if you morons throw away your lives. I am not throwing mine or Gena's away." Once the door was open Steve shouted, "Walk to the shuttle. Fast." Steve pointed the way as everyone walked. Jack had didn't get the chance to put his boots back on. So, now he was walking in the grass without them. Around one of the dead ships, they approached shuttle 202. This was Paula's shuttle.

Lana understood, shuttle 204 was closer, but it was still connected to the research station. Steve knew this was the fastest way off the planet. However, the airlocks on the shuttles only held two at a time. How would he get himself and three hostages through at the same time?

Steve pointed the gun at Lana and said, "Ladies first. You and Gena get in the airlock." Gena and Lana climbed in the airlock as instructed.

Gena pushed the button for the doors to cycle. Once the outer door was closed, Lana said, "Gena, we can't leave yet. You have to do something. Anything."

"Like what? He has that crazy look in his eye. I don't know how to defuse this."

The inner door opened, and Lana stepped into the shuttle. Then she said, "You are his girlfriend! He is not going to shoot you. Say something, anything to stop him. Pretend like this is what you want then grab him and kiss him or something."

Gena shook her head and said, "Even if that does work, what would we do then?"

The inner door closed. Lana quickly searched the shuttle for any kind of weapon. There simply wasn't anything helpful. There was a small roll of cable that had been left out. She picked it up and took it over to the pilot seat. Still searching, Lana searched the control panel and said, "Gena, can you disable the ship?"

Gena dropped down under the panel and started to disconnect the large cannon plug. As she did there was a tapping sound on the airlock door. Steve was in the airlock and watching them through the little window. Gena turned back toward the airlock and said, "Oh, shit."

The inner door opened, and Steve said, "I don't think so. You two sit over there." Steve pointed to the passenger seats. Lana and Gena got up and sat in the seats as instructed. Steve pushed Jack toward the piolet seat and said, "Jack you know where to sit." Steve turned to Gena and said, "You know, I am really disappointed at how you ladies are acting. I could have left you here with the captain. But I am saving your lives right now. Right Gena?"

Gena started to stand up as she said, "Please don't…"

Steve cut her off and said, "Sit down and put your seatbelt on. We can discuss this back on the POLO." He still had his gun pointed at Jack. Gena didn't have the nerve to question him. They still had time. Gena just sat down and buckled her seat belt. Lana did the same. But she faked the last part. The belt was just sitting on her lap. Lana held the roll of cable down to her side where Steve could not see. On the wall nearby there was a container of fruit snacks held in place with netting. Lana grabbed the package and opened them. This got Steve's attention. He laughed at her, feeling overconfident in his actions. He knew he had two of the three guns on the planet. There was nothing she could do to challenge him. Then he asked, "Do I make you nervous or are you just hungry?"

Lana ate a few and said, "Girl's gotta eat too."

Steve turned his gaze back to Jack and stated again, "I told you to sit down. We are taking off."

Jack did not budge as he said, "Not with the captain."

Steve put the pistol right up to his face and said, "I think we are. You get in that seat and fire up the engines or I am going to redecorate this shuttle in red."

Jack's confidence was starting to slip. He turned his face away from the pistol and replied, "First of all, that is an energy weapon. Each shot can burn a hole in thirty millimeters of carbonite steel. Therefore, it will be do the same to me if you shoot. There wouldn't be any blood to paint anything. Other than that, we both know you're not going to shoot me. Until Paula is found I am the only pilot on the entire planet. You might have the knowledge to fix this shuttle, but you can't fly it. Not safely. So, you can do us a favor and put the gun down. Okay?"

Steve grinned and said, "Aren't you the smart one." Steve didn't put the gun down. He pointed it away for a second then smashed the hilt into the side of Jack's head. Both Gena and Lana gasped as Jack clutched his head and fell to the ground. Steve quickly walked back to the airlock and peeked outside. He was getting nervous. Steve took the charges out of one pistol and dropped it on the ground. Lana thought about grabbing it but without charges the pistol was useless. Steve put the extra ammo in his pocket and returned to Jack. With one hand he ripped Jack's mask off and picked him up but the throat. Steve put the gun in Jack's face and shouted, "We don't have all day. You're going to fly, or you're going to die. Got it?"

Jack had a small trickle of blood coming for the left side of his face. Somehow Jack maintained himself. He shook his head at Steve and said, "Not going to happen. I am not leaving them behind. I guess you're going to have to shoot me."

Steve squeezed Jack's throat and pointed the pistol at Lana. Then he said, "You will fly, or I will shoot the pretty lady. Do you want that on your conscience?" Lana's heart skipped a beat. She was in trouble now. Her life was now on the line. Steve had brought her along as a bargaining chip. Lana nervously glanced over to Gena for support. Gena was in tears. Her whole life was turning upside down. She wanted to leave the planet as much as he did, but now her boyfriend was threatening to kill people.

"Fine. Fine! Stop. I'll fucking fly the shuttle." Jack finally caved as he held the wound on his head. Steve smiled knowing that he had won. Jack turned to climb in the pilot seat, buckled himself in, and said, "All this time we were worried about finding monsters on this planet. I never would have thought to check the back seat." He fired the engines and started doing his system checks. Steve stood over him watching his every move.

Out in the forest Captain Garcia was retracing Steve's footsteps. It wasn't horribly difficult. Steve's shoes left a very distinct impression in the mud. The rain was beginning again. Captain Garcia soon found a clearing where Steve's footprint disappeared into a sea of footprints. This must have been the spot Steve was talking about. Captain Garcia drew his weapon and scanned the area. No sign of Lt. Wright. He called out, "Lieutenant?" Once again, the forest fell back into silence.

Captain Garcia walked over to the area where the altercation took place. Something was dragged through the mud over to the bushes. The captain used one hand to move the leaves out of the way. To his horror he saw the truth of the situation. Lt. Wright's body was hidden in the bushes with a hole burned in his chest. He had been killed with his own weapon. A flush of panic ran over Captain Garcia as he realized what just happened. Everyone back at the research station was in danger.

Almost perfectly on cue, a loud sound could be heard from the research station. The captain recognized the sound very well. It was the shuttle engines being fired up. He turned and ran back toward the building as fast as he could. This was a matter of survival.

Jack was having some problems completing his tasks. Steve put the pistol to the back of his head and said, "Stop stalling! Take off."

"That is not helping." Jack said moving he head to the side. "The generator isn't responding. If it doesn't activate, we won't be going anywhere. You're an engineer so you understand how important it is. Without the generator we won't make it into orbit."

Steve started flipping switches on the control panel. He knew they only had a few minutes to get off the ground. Lana noticed that he wasn't holding the gun to Jack's head anymore. In fact, he wasn't paying attention to anyone. He turned his back on the girls thinking that they were belted in and out of the way. This was her chance. She wasn't going to let the shuttle take off without the others. With explosive force, Lana leapt from her seat. She wrapped the cable around Steve's neck and pulled him away from the pilot seat. Steve dropped the pistol and grabbed the cable attempting to save his neck. Lana let go of the cable and reached around his neck with her whole arm. She had him in a sleeper hold. She had him. Or so she thought.

Steve reared up and grabbed Lana's arm. He tried to pull her arm away from his neck, but she wasn't letting go. Steve struggled to free himself for a few seconds the stood up. Lana wrapped her legs around him. She refused to let go. Steve backed up at full speed slamming Lana into the wall. Lana was crushed between a 90-kilogram man and a system panel. It hurt but Lana did not let go. Steve stepped forward and used his momentum to smash Lana against the wall again. That one hurt much more. Lana could no longer hang on with her legs. Within a few seconds, Steve was free from her arms too.

Both Lana and Steve fell to the floor. They were out of breath. Steve managed to get to his feet first. He walked toward the gun. Jack fired the throttle and pulled back on the control stick causing the shuttle nose to quickly point toward the sky. The entire shuttle was turned at a 45-degree angle. Everything not bolted down in the cabin started to slide toward the back. The gun fell into the open airlock door. Steve tried to stop himself, but he slid in after it. Lana saw an opportunity had presented itself. Steve was in the airlock. She let go and slid down the floor into the airlock with him. Steve fumbled for the gun. Lana kicked him as she reached up and pressed the button to cycle the airlock doors. The inner door closed as the room began changing pressure.

Steve was beyond pissed off at this moment. He picked up the gun and pointed it at Lana's head. Before he pulled the trigger he said, "We could have been friends."

Steve pulled the trigger, but nothing happened. Steve pulled the trigger again and again. Still nothing happened. He turned the weapon sideways as he quickly realized his mistake. This was the weapon he had taken the charges out of. He glanced around the airlock for the other one, but it was too late. The outer airlock door opened as Steve fell out onto the ground. Lana held onto the side of the wall and pressed the cycle button again. The outer door closed finally putting a barrier between them.

Outside on the ground Steve stood up and pulled the charges out of his pocket. He loaded the gun and started firing into the airlock door. The hot energy weapon only took two shots to burn a hole through the door. Lana stepped out of the way and covered her head as hot metal shards blanketed the room. Steve turned his weapon on the ship engines. He fired a single shot into the right thruster. A massive fireball shot out of the side.

Without the right thruster the shuttle was nearly uncontrollable. Jack struggled to keep them in the air. He was losing. Jack powered down the left thruster as the shuttle slammed in one of the nearby ships. Lana was tossed about in the airlock. She was the only person not buckled in. The shuttle crashed back on the ground only a few meters away from where it had taken off, but now it was tilted, leaning to the right. For a moment, everything was silent. The inner airlock door opened as Jack removed his seat belt and said, "So much for a happy landing."

Jack turned to check on Gena. She was still in her seat. She was still in shock of the whole situation, but she was clearly unhurt. Jack stood up and walked back to see if Lana was okay. His concerns were averted when more shots rang out. Lana and Jack hit the floor. Steve clearly wasn't done yet. He fired several more shots into the back of the shuttle. Lana crawled over to Jack's position as molten metal and energy bolt flew overhead.

Steve had to stop and reload his weapon. In the brief moment of calm, Lana searched for the other pistol. The lights were off, and she couldn't see it at all. Where did it go? Lana pleaded to Jack, "What do we do now?"

Jack looked around at the state of the shuttle. It was a wreck. He had nothing to say.

Lana grabbed his arm and said, "Come on, Jack. We need options. What can we do here?"

Another energy blast pierced the airlock door causing Jack to cover his face. Then he said, "Well, we wait for him to shoot and hole in the CX5 cartridge, then we die in a blazing inferno."

Lana's eyes widened then she asked, "Umm, do we have any other options?"

Steve started firing into the back of the shuttle again, both Lana and Jack covered their heads. Jack shouted, "Surrender is always an option!"

As abruptly as the firing started, it ended. Lana and Jack stayed down expecting more shots to come their way. Instead, there were shots being fired in a different direction. Lana got up and peeked through the burning holes in the outer airlock door. Steve was firing at the captain.

Captain Garcia was taking cover behind another ship. He shouted, "Stop it now, Newton! I found the Lieutenant's body. There is no reason to make things worse for yourself."

Steve hid behind the red ship that was nearby. He shouted back, "It's too late for that. It's can't get any worse now, can it? We can't leave. Captain won't let us even if we wanted to. Now the shuttle is broken. Who is going to fix it? You?" Steve started firing at the captain again.

Jack crawled over to the airlock door next to Lana. They both watched as Steve and the captain shot at each other. It was total madness. The two men exchanged shots for a while until Captain Garcia popped out from behind the building and fired three shots into the nose of the red ship. Steve waited behind cover then fired a few shots back. Lana was concerned that Steve was going to win this standoff. She could not help but wonder how was the captain such a bad shot? Could he win?

Captain Garcia shouted, "You can stop anytime you want. I am not going to let you kill the rest of the crew. Put the gun down, this is your last warning."

Steve fired a few more shots and said, "Fuck you captain. If you had listened to me, we wouldn't be in this mess. I told you stopping here was a bad idea. You didn't listen. I told you we should have left yesterday, and YOU didn't listen! You! Don't! Listen! If you don't listen to me, then I don't listen to you!" Steve fired his last shot in the captain's direction, then he ducked back behind the red ship to reload.

The captain waited patiently and said, "We all make our own beds, Steve." Captain Garcia leaned around the corner and fired his last shot. The energy blast cut right through the nose of the ship and struck Steve in the head. Steve's body fell down to the ground. The fight was over.

Jack turned away, but it was too late. The image of Steve dying was burned in his brain forever. Lana tried to console him by putting a hand on Jack's shoulder. She said, "It's okay. It's okay. It's over now."

Lana watched as Captain Garcia approached the red ship with his weapon at the ready. There was no need. Steve's head was completely gone. There was no coming back from that. Lana suddenly realized what had transpired. The captain had not missed. He was shooting the nose of the ship on purpose. He was tunneling through it. Unbeknownst to Steve, the ship he was using as cover was only one shot away from failing. Very clever.

The captain shook his head and picked up Steve's energy pistol. Then he started walking toward the shuttle. Jack turned to Lana and said, "Go get Gena. I will use the manual override for the doors."

Lana got up and returned to the passenger seats. Gena was still strapped into her seat belt wearing her O2 mask. Lana waved her hand in front of her face. She didn't even blink. Her mind was fractured. Lana unlatched Gena's seat belt and stood her up. Together they walked to the airlock door. Captain Garcia was outside waiting as Jack turned the emergency wheel. The outer door was slowly cranking open with a ratcheting sound. Once the door was open wide enough that a single person could get through, Lana stepped outside. The captain was there trying to hide the heartbroken look on his face. He nodded and asked, "Are you okay?"

In all the commotion, Lana was in fear for her life. She didn't stop to realize the captain's struggle. He didn't just shoot a random crazed man. He found the Lieutenant's dead body then was forced to shoot an old friend. Lana teared up a bit and hugged the captain. Captain Garcia did not resist. She whispered, "Thank you."

Captain Garcia did not respond. Jack was trying to help Gena through the door. Captain Garcia positioned himself so Gena could not see Steve's dead body. Once Gena was outside, he could see the extend of her mental separation. The loss of the loved one can have terrible effects on the mind. Gena didn't react to anything. Her body was moving but her brain was long gone. She was an empty shell of her former self.

Once Jack was outside, Jack and the captain led Gena back to the research building. Lana glanced at the dead body of Steve. For a second, she thought she should cover him with something. A blanket or something. But there was nothing nearby that she could use. Lana opened the door to the Maxwell ship and pulled a sheet from one of the spare beds. She returned and threw the sheet over Steve's body. This was the best she could do for now.

Jack, Gena, and the captain made it to the airlock. Luckily, it was still functioning even with a hole in the building. Lana caught up with them as they entered the airlock together. Once Gena was sitting down, Captain Garcia walked over and examined the hole in the plexiglass. Then he said, "So much for having a safe place to sleep. I doubt anyone here has the skills to patch this up?" The captain turned away from the hole and looked over Jack's head wound. Then he asked, "How is that?"

Jack winced as the captain touch his head. Then he said, "Feels like a normal day at work. Plus or minus some head trauma."

The captain pointed to the back and said, "There is a med kit and some tools in the back room." The captain glanced at Gena and said, "Lana, you stay here and watch after her. Jack and I have some work to do."

"Work?" Lana questioned him, "All due respect here captain, but everyone has been through a lot today. Maybe we should take a moment to get our bearings."

Captain Garcia walked to the back room and opened the door. He grabbed the med kit off the wall and handed it to Jack. Then he returned to the common room and said, "Stay here and get your bearings if you like. Jack and I have two crewmembers…" Captain Garcia stopped for a second then corrected himself, "…have two friends that need to our attention. I am not going to leave them here to rot away. We will give them the respect they deserve. After that, we can pile into the other shuttle and leave this god forsaken planet."

His timing could have been more perfect. As he spoke the building started to shake. The tools on the back wall rattled together. Jack held onto the doorway as the captain grabbed the nearby wall. Lana held onto Gena and the chair she was sitting in. After the rumbling was over, Jack smiled at Lana and said, "Quakeshake. Just like yesterday."

The captain waited a few more seconds until the tremors were gone, then turned around and pulled a rolled-up tarp off the shelf. Lana got up and walked over to the doorway. She looked at the captain. He was dedicated. Lana put one hand on Jack and said, "Take care of your wound. I will handle this." Lana walked over and grabbed a second tarp off the shelf. She walked up to the captain. "Let's go. Daylight is burning."

The captain shot her an eye like she was crazy. He turned to Gena and Jack. They weren't in any condition for moving bodies. Then he said, "I guess you'll do. I wouldn't have expected you to volunteer for such a job." The captain walked out into the common room and said, "We will be back in an hour or so. Then we are leaving. Be ready."

The captain and Lana got into the airlock and cycled back outside. The rain had picked up a bit, but at least the sun was still up. They had a few hours before dark. They started to walk toward the forest. Lana realized this was going to be a first for her. She said, "Bear with me here, I have never handled a dead body before."

"I bet," Thew captain said as he turned around to look at her. Then he said, "You have completed a lot of firsts today. Shit, the other day you were telling Jack about you long list of unreasonable phobias. Now look at you. What has gotten into you?"

Lana did not respond. They continued to walk for a bit. She was thinking about the captain's words. He was right. This was completely out of character for her. Back on Earth she would have frozen up if she had been shot at. Hell, she would have had a panic attack just being asked to move a dead body. What was going on?

As they approached the tree line, the ground shook again. The captain grabbed a nearby tree to brace himself. Lana tried to do the same, but she was not so lucky. She reached for a branch, but it broke off in her hand. She fell to the ground and was helpless as the dirt beneath her rumbled and tossed her around. All she could do was watch. The ground started to heave up and down in the distance. It was like a tidal wave but with dirt. Large cracks in the ground opened and closed in the matter of seconds. Lana held onto the grass and waited for it to be over. A few seconds later the quakes disappeared just as it had done before. The captain let go of the tree and brushed himself off. Then he turned to Lana and said, "This planet has a lot of quakes. Are you okay?"

Lana stood up. The ground was still a bit shaky. Once she caught her balance, Lana asked, "What was that? I have been in earthquakes before, but I have never seen anything like this."

The captain helped Lana back to her feet and replied, "Every planet has seismic activity. These are just… stranger than normal."

"Stranger than normal?" Lana repeated as she dusted herself off. "Everything on this planet is stranger than normal."

Captain Garcia didn't disagree. After a moment they continued walking again. The captain started looking for his own footprints. The forest was so dense. It was the only way to retrace his footsteps and find Lt. Wright's body. Eventually the captain came to a stop near a clearing. Lana had been watching for the captain's footprints too. This is where they ended. The clearing was an opening of overturned dirt and mud. Lana surveyed the clearing with a bit of confusion. The clearing was 9 meters around with strange marking in the soil. Some of the grass had been stomped into the ground. Lana turned to the captain and said, "Interesting clearing. Did you walk through here before?"

The captain did not say anything. He was in shock. He opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out. Finally, the captain said, "This is the spot. Lt. Wright was dead over there by a tree under a few bushes."

Lana was beyond confused, "She stepped around the clearing over to the bush. There was nothing under it. She lifted the branches and said, "Maybe this is the wrong spot? The forest all looks the same. It is easy to get one place mixed up with another."

Captain Garcia shook his head and said, "No, this is the place. It is. It has to be." The captain started to turn around. Like he had lost his bearings. He turned back to the clear and said, "This is the place. Am I losing it? What is happening to me?" The captain bent over and put his hands on his head. For the first time, the captain seemed to have lost his way. He silently wept at the edge of the clearing.

As the captain silently cried, Lana thought maybe he was suffering for CO2 poisoning. She returned to his side and glanced at his O2 tank. The gauge read 55%. What was she to do in this situation? The captain, who always had the right answers was now falling apart right in front of her. He was stressed beyond his limits. She didn't say anything. Lana put one hand on the captain's shoulder. It was all she could do.