Worlds Away

1

Icegirl

My heart is racing. My lungs feel like they might burst. My feet are making too much noise as they hit the earth. I'm not in control. Mind and body on autopilot.

Snap!

A twig breaks a few feet to my right. Faster. I need to move faster, but my body is beginning to feel the results of the physical exertion. I need to keep moving, but my body's about to collapse. I'm starting to think they fell behind until I feel like I'm being watched. I need a surge of adrenaline. I need to escape. I need to stop, need to breathe. Just a little further... I hear a clanging sound, and my vision goes red and is blurring. My body freezes up , and my mind finally registers that I've been hit by something. I black out.

I drift in and out of consciousness for a while, slightly aware of my surroundings. My senses return one at a time. The first thing that comes to me is sound. Indiscernible at first, unfamiliar and garbled. The first thing I'm able to make out is the sound of a train going past. And water. Running water, like a waterfall. Water. God, I'm so thirsty. Voices begin to surface above all the white noise.

"Here... Safe for..."

"Have... Choice... Kill her?"

"Not...Put us... She stays..."

"No."

The first voice seems male, gravelly and thick. The second is soft, female. I struggle to open my eyes, feeling like I'm in danger, and at an extreme disadvantage. Things are blurry at first, and it gives me a headache. I can just make out the outlines of the two who spoke. The one on the left is average height, but extremely thin. Based on the way it moves, it's probably the girl. The figure on the right is taller with broad shoulders and a wide frame.

"Look at her," says the feminine figure," She's just a kid. What threat could she possibly be?"

"You know full well what kind of threat she poses," growls the male.

"You're not killing her, Gene and that's final."

At the mention of being killed I panic. I jump to my feet- or at least I try to. A splitting pain goes up and down my spine. A pitiful groan escapes my lips.

"Great, she's waking up. You need to find something to do with her. Fast," says the male before stomping out.

The girl sighs, places her hands on her hips, and walks out, the door closing behind her. I struggle into a sitting position, taking in my surroundings. I manage to get to my feet, but it makes breathing more difficult. When I walk to the door slides open in front of me. Outside it is a hallway, with two additional doors. One to the left, and one straight ahead of me. The one at the end of the hall in front of me is locked, a heavy looking metal lever locking it. I go to it, curious to find out what's behind it. Bracing myself against the wall, I try as hard as I can to lift it. I almost have it open when a hand pulls me away by the back of my shirt.

"What do you think you're doing?" barks the male- Gene- releasing me, " Are you trying to get us all killed?"

"Gene, what's going on?" asks a girl with blonde, pink, and blue hair," Who's that?"

"She was trying to get us all killed. Again. I'm surprised you don't recognize her, considering you spent more time around her than any of the rest of us," Gene growls.

"Really, the ice girl finally woke up? It's about time. She was using up about half a credit's worth of energy a day. Can't barely afford to keep the poor ship up 'n running, let alone keeping her here," says the girl, barely breathing between sentences.

What do they mean? Trying again to kill them? Ice girl?

"What? What are you talking about?" I ask.