Not Alone

That was when he caught sight of a young woman making her way into the launch pads hall. Her clothes were tattered and she had quite a few cuts and bruises across her body and face; it was obvious she was in distress, searching frantically for a way out. And then suddenly, they both realised that the last remaining escape pod was being pulled away through the hole in the wall of metal.

Anon knew that unless he managed to get out of his pod, there would be no way for her to escape. Gritting his teeth, he gathered up every last ounce of strength from within him and pushed against the self-closing lid with every fiber of his being. The metal creaked and groaned in protest as he fought against it, but thankfully he managed to keep it open - just long enough for her to make her way towards him.

He was struggling with an impossible choice, if he got out of the pod, the lid would swing shut immediately afterwards, leaving him and her stranded. The only way to keep it open was for him to remain within. He felt a crippling sense of horror; on the one hand, if he allowed the lid to close then he could save himself but the girl would be doomed. On the other hand, if he kept it open then neither of them would survive. It seemed like a cruel twist of fate and he knew that either way he couldn't save them both.

Reaching the pod, Anon could see pure terror in her eyes. She didn't want to die here. He held up the tight opening and with a supreme effort, she managed to crawl into the pod with him. Even though Anon was sure that this wasn't an option - he knew these pods were designed for single occupancy only.

The life support systems and interior space of the escape pod had been precisely configured and were incredibly cramped, but he wasn't prepared to leave her out there in the inferno. She held tightly to him as he reluctantly released his grip on the lid, allowing it to close with a hiss.

But the lid was being stopped from closing because of the girl's body; the two of them were too big for it to close. Anon frantically tugged at the door, trying to get them inside. The girl noticed what was happening, and held on to Anon as tightly as she could in a desperate effort to make herself smaller and reduce her size.

With a final, determined tug Anon managed to get the lid of the escape pod shut. They had somehow managed to squeeze themselves inside. The engine of the launch pad suddenly roared to life, and in what felt like an instant they were shot off into space. Anon watched in horror as their spaceship exploded around them, fragments flying rapidly past them as they sped further and further away from danger.