FORESIGHT and SCOPE: BOOK TWO

C H A P T E R F I F T Y-E I G H T

"Of course not, Half-Pint," Fern stepped forward. "I'll be going with him."

"Your attendance is not warranted." Tech insisted. "I will be fine on—"

"Not in this place." Fern stopped and narrowed her eyes at him.

"Very well." he sighed in defeat.

The two of them cautiously headed towards the ship's cockpit. Steam continued to hiss from leaking pipes in Fern's ears and hair. She spotted more and more slash markings shredded into the walls, some deeper than others. "I think I'm beginning to piece it all together now..." she gulped.

"As am I." Tech agreed in a low tone. When they reached the entry point of the bridge, he held up one hand and signaled her to stay behind him. He readied his blaster and torch in a cross-wrist position and swooped around the doorframe with precision. "Clear." he said, and the female clone followed suit.

It was completely deserted. Moonlight poured into the room from the viewport. Once again, no bodies were to be discovered. The console was mostly intact, with the exception of a few computer screens cracked and the panels busted with some minor dents. The chairs were knocked over and scattered. "There, Tech." Fern pointed at the far right wall where a small electrical box protruded from the wall. The two clones approached it and knelt down. "Go on." she breathed, pressing her spine into the back of his shoulder so she faced the only egress. "I'll keep watch."

As if on cue, something clattered outside in the corridor. Instinctively, Tech dropped his datapad and raised his blaster alongside Fern, who smirked nervously. "I literally just said—" Another ominous creak followed, in which Tech lowered his helmet visor. "See anything?" she breathed. With her friend next to her, her nerves subsided; her hands clenching her blaster and torch were steady.

"I do not." Tech said, lifting it in its place with his index finger. He then went back to working on restoring the power. Originally, he had wanted to venture alone—alas, as Fern leaned into his back again, focusing her aim on their only way out, he was placated to have her here. He knew despite his unrequited confession only two rotations ago, he could trust Fern would always have his six. Likewise, the female clone understood Tech, while he would continue to protect her, would never cross any unnecessary boundaries.

"I believe this goes without saying, but I don't like this." she muttered, veering her eyes towards the ceiling, then the bridge, and returning to the doorway. "This place gives me the creeps, which does not happen often for me."

"I concur this vessel emits a foreboding ambience."

"I'm starting to think my theory was right and this is an Imperial transport shuttle of some sort...How else would you explain the lack of indentification other than pirates? But pirates nor bandits could never afford a ship of this caliber. And whatever they were transporting... It got out."

"Tech, Fern," Hunter's voice chimed in on their comms. "did you find anything on the bridge?"

"Not yet." Tech replied, tapping in on his electronic device. "Still rerouting the reserve power. Stand by."

Miraculously, the ship was partially revived. The cracked computer screens flickered on and the overhead lights began to blink. "Nicely done." Fern smiled.

Boom. Boom.

The same clatter from before echoed from outside of the cockpit. Once again, both clones point their weapons in its direction. They met each other's eyes and nodded in unison. Stealthfully, they each marked their place on either side of the entryway. Fern mouthed 'Ready, and go' and they both jumped, only to find nothing in the darkened corridor.

"Are we just hearing things now?" Fern questioned in confusion. "Perhaps there really are ghosts..."

Pow! A wall panel popped off its hinges and clanged onto the floor. Fern's heart nearly stopped at the jump scare. She clutched her chest as she bit back a yelp. "Dank ferrik..." She was nearing her breaking point on the creepiness level of the entire mission. "Really," she questioned aloud to no one in particular. "is there any sort of cargo on this ship that is profitable so we can get out of here?!"

"Danger. Danger. Danger. Danger. Danger." The upper half of a dysfunctional medical droid draped out of the compartment hoarsely auditing the same warning monotonously. Tech immediately approached and questioned what had happened on the ship. Alas, the droid stuttered one last "D-d-danger..." before its beaming blue eyes dimmed and its whole body went limp. A disturbing shudder rippled through the corridor.

"Tech." Fern said, shining her torch up at the damaged ceiling. "Whatever caused all this...I think it's still on board. We need to get to Hunter and the others. We need to get off this ship. Now."

The two of them bolted back the way they came. In their pursuit, the entire vessel's power switched on, flooding the hallways with bright, white light. The other rooms they zoomed by were a collection of labs and offices, confirming this wasn't just a transport shuttle.

"Tech, Fern!" Hunter echoed the female clone into their comms. "Get off the ship. Now."

"This way then." Tech pulled on Fern's arm to change their course. "We will meet them halfway and exit at the same egress point." He tapped the side of his helmet to respond. "We suspect this is some type of research vessel."

"We know!" Wrecker grunted.

"And whatever they were researching, just got loose." Omega added.

"I think it's been loose for a lot longer than you think." Fern said grimly.

"Either way, it's headed towards the both of you." Hunter concluded the update.

"What's that up ahead?" Fern asked as a electric-blue hue sparked from the left side of an intersection. They rounded the corner only to screech to a halt. They came face-to-face with a large reptilian creature unlike neither have ever seen before. In the newly, restored light and the crackling of electricity from the coils, Fern could tell its entire body was heavily plated with armor-like scales. It had an elongated, dome-shaped head with a sharp, toothy grin as it snarled. It also possessed jaws that could bite through metal, powerful claws, and a lengthy, whip-like tail that was covered in enormous spikes. As more electrical sparks dripped from its jowls, she realized it was feasting on the voltaic energy.

"I don't think that thing will fit in Cid's office..." she swallowed, unsheathing her vibro-knife while her blaster was slipped into its holster. She then aimed her hand-secured gauntlet, charged up to release a flamethrower worthwhile. The creature turned and gurgled a growl as it slowly prowled towards them. Its ferocious roar resonated in the close-proximated corridor.

"Fascinating." Tech awed.

"Live now," Fern snatched his arm. "admire later, Tick! Do something!"

Fern caught the sound of Omega's plasma bow and Hunter and Wrecker's blasters, distracting the beast on the other side, which meant she couldn't ignite her flamethrower. Tech darted his eyes to the left, locking on the overheating power generator. Blue sparks crowned over the creature as it prepared to attack. "Take cover!" he shouted, and fired his weapon at it, denotating an explosion. The instant his finger pulled the trigger, he spun around and shielded Fern, protecting her head against his chestplate while he braced her against the farside wall.

Kabloom!

When the monster's shrieks diminished and the smoke cleared, he slowly released Fern from his hold as the female clone recovered with deep breaths, the aftershock rang in her ears. When he lifted his head in their close proximity, his eyes locked onto her, analyzing her physical appearance for any abrasions. Besides being drenched in sweat, she was unharmed, and he sighed with relief.

They joined the others, and she too exhaled when she discovered her squad was unscathed. Then, they all observed the new problem they had created. The discharge had blown out a giant hole in the ship's exterior hull, and the creature was nowhere to be found...

"Oh, great." Fern groaned, raking her fingers through her hair. "What have we done?"