Chapter Seventeen: Jennifer Richardson

I found myself stuck with the arduous task of connecting plastic pipes to create a connection to the ocean for easy access to fresh water. It took several minutes of hard shoving to connect each ten foot segment of pipe to the next. Each pipe was six inches in diameter, and had a slightly wider section on the end where another pipe could slip inside, but not easily. It took me four hours of constant work to connect two hundred feet of pipe. I stopped only because I had run out of pipe segments, though I was grateful for the chance to rest my aching muscles. I shuffled my way back through the long crater left by the ship's crash and made my way to the lab, only to find Victor with two new pipes. I checked the time displayed on the monitor; midday. The time here was measured like it was on Earth, but rather than two twelve hour cycles, the cycles were ten hours each. Which meant being midday, it was ten, which was the equivalent of noon on Earth. I grabbed a plate of cooked basilisk and choked it down. It was tough, flavorless and old, but it was food, which my stomach ached for. I chased it down with a couple sips of bottled water. The water was warm from being in the sun, but still felt refreshing to my dry throat. I closed the lid on the bottle, setting it back on the shelf where it had been sitting previously. I decided to take a short break until a few more pipe segments were printed. I curiously turned my observant gaze skyward, wondering about the weather here. I found a clear, open sky that was a pretty, almost teal color, but still vaguely resembling the color of Earth's skies. I gazed at the beautiful, natural world around me, the thriving forests and the clear skies, the shimmering blue ocean, and the crisp, white sand on the tinted beach, it was only tainted by the knowledge of what was out there, the monsters this world held and the danger said creatures presented. I sighed heavily, my mood taking a sudden turn for the worse as it followed my train of thought to a place far from positive. I grabbed the duo of pipes, as well as a third, fresh off the printer, and made my way back to the end of the line. I braced my feet as I shoved the thinner end of the new pipe into the open area of the old one. It took more energy than I had, and the pipe won in the end, falling from my hands as I dropped to my knees from the exertion. I let loose a scream of rage and forced myself to my feet. I pushed harder than I had before, my arms and legs protesting to no avail. After several minutes of pushing and twisting, the pipe was finally connected. I looked at the two remaining ones and groaned, this job was harder than I thought. But had I ever given up before? No. I never had, and I wasn't going to start now. I carefully removed the syringe from my pocket. Nobody else knew I had taken it, and in the mess of lost supplies, nobody would notice a single syringe missing. The label on the side read Adrenaline, but I knew what it was before I had even taken it out of the container on the ship. I popped the cap off the end of the needle and stabbed my arm with the full needle, pressing down the flange until it was empty. It took only a couple of minutes for the effect to hit. With my new found strength, I grabbed and attached the next couple lengths of pipe, the adrenaline suppressing the pain of my aching muscles. I turned and sprinted to camp, grabbing the next pipe and raced back to the end, growling in frustration as I forced it in. By the time I was done with the next pipe printed, night had fallen and the shot had worn off. Exhaustion from the past several hours hit me at once. I collapsed into the shelter and fell asleep within minutes.

…

I was woken to an odd tickling sensation coming from my left arm. I rolled over to find a small beetle crawling along the side of my forearm, coming up from my wrist towards my shoulder. I swatted the alien insect away, but immediately felt it crawl back up onto my pant leg. I sat up to better remove it, finding not one, but dozens. I raised my gaze to find thousands, filling the entire camp and crawling over the skeletal remains of the other crew members. I watched in horror as the first beetle tore away a piece of flesh from my leg. I felt a scream escape my lips as I smashed my fist down on the foul creature. I was so shocked I couldn't feel them on me anymore. Even as they tore my body apart piece by piece.

…

I thrashed as the swarm of beetles constricted around me, squeezing and shaking me as they consumed me. I gave up fighting and cried as they ate me alive. But after what felt like hours, I found I was still alive. I opened my eyes and scanned the area around me to find the rest of the crew of the Discovery huddled around me, all looking concerned at my state. I looked down at my body, finding no marks from the voracious beetle swarm. It had only been a nightmare. I desperately tried, yet horribly failed to choke back my sobs. Taylor stepped forward and crouched down next to me.

"Jennifer, what's wrong?"

I held my breath as I met his eyes with mine. I broke down again as I did, my response coming out as a choked cry,

"It was horrible."

Taylor sighed and stood up, turning to Lorries,

"Shell shock is the old term for it, but I think the stress of the past few days has delayed in appearance, but I'd like to note similar conditions with Doctor Miles, in her refusal to leave camp, Andrew's and his obsession with work, and myself with odd feelings recently. I think we just need time to acclimate to the stress of being here, Sir."

Lorries held his breath, answering a second later in a flat tone.

"I've noted your observations Private. I still think the best course of action is exposure. For the moment, just administer sleep aids to Richardson for the time being and get to sleep."

Everyone else dispersed, leaving me alone in the shelter. I took a shaky breath and laid back down, curling into a fetal position and telling myself the skittering noises I heard around me were only figments of my imagination.