Blazegate

Chapter 1

Do you know that feeling?

That certain feeling, that when you first wake up, you already know this day is as screwed as a Tier 1 Starship is when a meteor is coming straight at it.

I sit up, banging my head on the glass above me. I forgot I sleep in an oxygen tube. While rubbing my head, I press the button, opening the tube. I groan, cracking my bones, and throwing my legs out from the cotton padding, supposedly to be called a 'mattress' I stand up, and walk through the automatic doors, and into the tiny kitchen. I pull one of five tubs off of the shelf, and root through it. I find a foil pouch, filled with a single white pill. I pull a plate and knife out of the fourth tub, and set it down. I rip open the pouch, and drop the pill onto the plate. I reach over to my left, and grab a bottle of water, and open it, letting one drop spill onto the pill. The pill breaks into three pieces. All of them start to expand, and turn into something different; A sunny-side-up egg, a piece of toast, and a sausage. They all suspiciously smell like nothing, and look like sponge.

I grab my fork, and stab into the egg, picking the whole thing up, and stuffing it into my mouth, my cheeks puffing up like a chipmunk's. I quickly chew and swallow, gagging from the bitterness of the aftertaste. I quickly finish my breakfast, and I walk to the bathroom. I see a little bit of stubble appearing on my chin. "None of that," I say quietly to myself. I shave it off. I walk back out of the bathroom, and into the commons room, finding the tube with my name on it. It held my suit, the suit that is heat resistant to up to 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit, and can withstand the cold as low as -5,000 degrees. It can also handle being without oxygen for up to three hours. I put it on, and lift the glass face plate, and walk over to the large metal doors. I punch in the passcode, and walk through, entering the main deck.

I yawn, stretching my arms, and brush the tuft of bright cyan hair out of my face. "Morning crew." I laugh. "Just kiddin' dummies. We don't have morning!" I take my seat in the middle of the control center, as do the rest of my crew members, surrounding the outside. "Where're we heading today?" I ask, grabbing ahold of the wheel.

"If my calculations are correct, we should be heading to a hollowed-out planet, and harvesting the rest of the uranium and iron." My crew mate, Neil, tells me.

I groan. "Ugh. Last time I handled uranium, I got sick."

"Sir, that's because you used your bare hands. We have radioactive magnets." Neil sighs.

"Uh-huh. Sure." I brush off. "What are the coordinates?"

"It actually should be around two hours the way we're heading now." He says, checking his hologram of the GPS. I smack my hand down on the overdrive button, and spin around.

"Looks like I can go back to bed." I stand up.

"Actually, sir— Lady Moore has requested to speak with you." Neil reminds me. I groan, and flop back into my chair.

"I hate her. She never actually discusses the ship's needs! She just tries to find ways to kiss me! God, it's so disgusting!" I whine.

"I'm sorry, sir, but, she is the boss' daughter. That makes her have control over all of us."

"Bullshit. I drive the ship— and I make sure none of us die. I don't have to see her if I don't want to." I say sternly.

"Rule of seniority," Neil tells me. "She's, like, 15. I'm in my TWENTIES," I exclaim.

"Officer Brandon, please report to the core offices," I hear the girl say. Her shrill voices makes my ears bleed. "Ugh. I'll see you later, Neil."

I approach the elevator that runs through the whole ship and reach the core office. I open the door, and the sight before me is unbelievable.