Stranger Things

Letters to the Dead

'God dam it,' Art Howler cursed, 'this door won't budge, has anyone got a jack.' 

Drewer drifted up next to him and pulled at the lever. The door slid slowly open, a cloud of debris slipped out through the gap and span past them, little satellites in the darkness of space. She placed her helmet against Howlers with a clink of glass so he could see the pink lipstick glistening on her lips. 'It's a sliding door Art, like the one on our escape pod.' 

Howler blew out his cheeks in exasperation. 'Yeah well, I'm the Captain and I say it should be a hatch.' 

'Whatever you say Captain' she grinned and floated away into the pod kicking her feet like a mermaid as she went. 'As long as you remember that when we leave otherwise you could get stuck in here forever.' 

'Maike can you hear me? Have you got any update on this pod? Maike?' 

'Probably lost our signal, I wouldn't worry. Let's have a look around, there'll be some clues here somewhere.' Drewer hummed to herself as she fiddled with the panel. 'No power, no atmosphere. If there's anyone in here they're stuffed. Turn your lamps up we're going hunt 'in.' 

'Same design as ours, this pod. Who do you think it is? Mauld's, Kettering's? They never found either of them. They were lost out here past the Brighner Rings.' Howler held his hand up to his lamp and adjusted the beam's focus and then shone it down the corridor in a thin tunnel of light.  

'Probably find it's empty. These pods are just cheap lifeboats after all. One use only.' 

'Maike are you there?' Howler banged his radio kit. 'You try him Drewer, maybe my kit's given up the ghost.' 

'Maike, Maike?' Drewer pulled at the next door.' It's like the Marie Celeste in here, spooky. Why did we come this way? No one uses this route any longer. Too far out, no chance of a rescue if anything goes wrong. Mauld and Kettering weren't the only ones to go missing out here you know.' 

'Old superstitions. Relax it'll be fine. Let's head for the command bridge and check it out. It's just up there.' Howler flashed his torch through the darkness. 

Drewer tugged the command door open, a shower of glistening red globules floated out to spin lazily in front of her helmet. 'Is that blood?' 

'Christ I wonder what happened? Come on there should be a log in here.' Howler moved the beam warily around the room until it highlighted the main screen. A ragged set of red letters were daubed across the glass-  

Nothing we could tell you could make any difference 

Nothing you know could change what is to come 

It's too late to turn back. 

Sorry 

'Alright this is getting really scary, who the hell wrote that?' 

'I think they did.' Howler lit up two inert figures strapped to their seats in front of the panel.  

'Hold the light up, I'll check them. Christ!' Drewer reeled back crashing into Howler. 

'Steady, don't panic. What's up, is it Kettering?' Howler lent over one of the bodies, inside the suit the face was mottled purple, grotesquely puffed up, unrecognisable. In the cold it could have been there years. 

'Hold on,' he brushed off the name tag. 'Here we go it says ......Howler, Art Howler.'  

'The other ones got my name on it. Let's get the hell out of here. Maike for god's sake! Are you there?' 

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A bit of a latter day boogie man sort of a story. TL.