An Unwelcome Memory Part 2
Posted on Thu May 21st, 2020 @ 8:49pm by
Mission:
Cruel Meridian
Location: LT JG Daniel Lawless's Dream state
Timeline: MD 6 - Immediately after 'An Unwelcome Memory Part 1'
844 words - 1.7 OF Standard Post Measure
Previously
'The officers in the bunk room all awoke startled with the jolt from the ship coming to an abrupt stop. Assuming some sort of an emergency they all rushed from their bunks and frantically got dressed before rushing for the door.
That is, except for LT Daniel Lawless, still unwoken and looking far from serene as he remained trapped in his nightmare.'
A few hours had passed since the team left camp. Pressing on through the night, the rain had finally stopped but it had left its mark on the terrain. The ground was saturated and fast becoming frozen as the frigid night went on, making the hike more and more difficult. Added to the fact that the air was so cold that the water in their boots was beginning to freeze as the temperature plummeted further.
Danny was taking point on this hike, with J'tel following close behind then Piers and Zach bringing up the rear of the train.
Reaching out to a nearby tree stump for support, Danny cautiously moved forward up the slope trying to reach overwatch at the summit of the ridge they were ascending.
The earth gave way behind him and a slurry of mud and stone was sent hurtling past the team, narrowly missing their heads as rocks the size of dinner plates built up enough momentum to sever branches.
"Its no use!" Danny shouted back to his comrades. "If we carry on like this we risk detection or our graves!" he said.
They were in a critical situation. Pressing forward was way too dangerous, but turning back wasn't very desirable either.
Every one of them had volunteered for this mission, and they were under no illusions as to what that meant. Get captured... they were on their own, Get injured...they were on their own, Get killed... They never existed. Failure was not an option.
"Cap, Tricorder is showing that the terrain gradually flattens about seventy-five meters ahead!" Piers responded, bracing himself against a nearby branch.
Suddenly there was a loud CRACK and the sound of the earth moving returned. The branch had given way, the sudden shift in weight triggered a mudslide sweeping Piers and Zach away as it charged down the ridge.
Danny tried desperately to call out to his comrades as he watched them fall, but he could produce no sound. Terror took over him, he felt unable to move, unable to breathe as he felt a presence approaching from behind. He mustered every last drop of strength he had to slowly turn his head and look over his shoulder.
"Cap, you okay?" Piers questioned softly as he sat against the tree, rain beating off his face.
Danny's panic began to subside and turn to confusion and a sense of De Ja Vu. He was almost certain he had seen this before but his memory was becoming foggy, unsure what he was seeing he wiped the rain off his face and cleared his eyes.
"Err...Cap?" Piers asked again.
Danny's mind began to clear again and he was once again focused on the mission at hand.
"I'm Fine!" he simply stated. "Let's pack up and move out!"
Danny stood to his feet and noted the squelch of his waterlogged boots and the burn of an insect bite on the back of his neck, which he nursed gently whilst taking in the view of the steep ridge ahead of them. "Hey, Piers", he summoned.
"Cap!" came the response, "Is there any route that avoids having to ascend?" Danny curiously enquired.
"There's a cave about three kicks to the north, initial scans suggest it to be an extinct lava flow", Piers reported as he checked his Tricorder.
"Meaning?"
"Well it might potentially have an exit on the other side of the ridge, but there's no way to know for sure at this distance", Piers replied looking concerned as to the nature of Danny's plan.
"What do you say we find out?" Danny asked. "Aye, sir! but if you don't mind me asking, why the change of heart? You were adamant we needed to climb the ridge earlier sir!" Piers asked inquisitively.
"Nothing, I just had a bad feeling that's all" Danny Replied curiously.
Meanwhile...Back in Reality
LT Lawless remained completely unconscious as he lay motionless on his bed. The room was now empty and he was alone. But this was unlike any normal sleep the Lieutenant had ever experienced before. His sheets were now soaked from sweat though the temperature remained unchanged. Breathing had become more shallow and irregular but his pulse was increasing rapidly.
Nestled at the junction between his neck and shoulder was a blemish growing rapidly in size and filling with puss. As if time was being accelerated it filled to bursting point and then rapidly healed and faded away as if it never existed.
Something was dreadfully wrong here.
TO BE CONTINUED....
LT (JG) Daniel J Lawless
Assistant Chief Security/Tactical Officer
