Death is Quiet in the Dark...

Posted on Tue Apr 3rd, 2018 @ 11:10am by

Mission: Mission 6 - Azzia
Location: Jefferies Tube B-3, port side, saucer section
Timeline: MD 04 0214 hours
792 words - 1.6 OF Standard Post Measure

Caloda hated the graveyard shift. He always felt that he missed out on the life and excitement that took place on the Mary Rose. And worse, he knew, or at least had a very good hunch, that his roommate used his stuff while he was at work. And his work always kept him in the tubes.

As a plumber's mate, on a starship that was well over a hundred years old, the various water, waste and steam pipes were constantly breaking down. However, as only about a third of the ship was being used, he, thankfully, could get the repairs done relatively quickly. As he continued to climb the ladder to get up to deck five, he wished he had been lucky enough to go down on shore leave first. Azzia sounded like a wonderful place!

Climbing up into Tube Junction Alpha 5, which was located in the port forward quarter of the saucer section of the ship, Caloda paused to catch his breath. He then double checked the workorder he had been given. Apparently, Waste Transfer Pipe 5-Beta-4-15, was backed up. He groaned and swore to himself. This was the third time this month that that particular pipe had had issues. He was going to find out who was disposing of things in the toilets that they shouldn't be, and he was going to give them a piece of his mind. His chest swelled with anger and indignation.

Then, as always, he sagged in his uniform. Who was he kidding? He wouldn't do anything. He wouldn't stand up to anyone. While he would talk a big game when he was alone, at his heart, he was a total coward. That was probably why his roommate had bullied him into switching shifts with him and forcing him to take the graveyard shift.

Hiking up his workbelt, he shuffled off towards his destination. About ten minutes later, he was knee deep in untreated sewage. Apparently, not only did the pipe in question become blocked, the constant pressure that it had been under repeatedly had finally cracked it, causing raw biological waste to start to pour out. The leak had been untreated for so long, a small lake had formed in the section where the damage was located. Had he not arrived, the growing pool would have risen high enough to breach the raised bulkhead ledges that bordered each compartment.

He quickly got to work repairing the damage, thankful that he could safely breath the noxious stench-filled air, due to his gills. Of course, he would have to take a few showers and just dispose of his clothes after this job was over.

About an hour later, the damage had been repaired, for now at least, and the pool of waste had been cleaned up. After he put his tools away, he sat down to take a quick break. Leaning his green scaled head against the cool bulkhead, he closed his eyes for a few minutes.

A few minutes later, he was awakened by a new smell. Opening his eyes, he stood up, curious about the new smell. He had smelled it before, just never on the ship. It wasn't a bad smell, instead, it was a very pleasant aroma. Determining the direction that the aroma came from,he began moving towards it, leaving his tools behind.

Moving through three seperate sections, he suddenly started to identify the smell. It was a sweet mixture of almonds and...something else...?

Stepping into the fourth compartment, Caloda came face to face with a free-floating, whispy, white cloud. He had never seen anything like it before in his life. It wasn't just a puff of steam, but clearly a living organism. It moved back and forth and seemed to pulse gently from within.

Caloda smiled slightly, inhaling the sweet aroma deeply as he stood there. He suddenly felt a strong urge to move closer to the Cloud. However, before he could of move muscle, the Cloud suddenly moved towards and engulfed him.

An instant later, he started gagging, grabbing his throat as his eyes widened in terror. Slowly, he collapsed to his knees, gasping for breath. He continued to collapse to the deck, his skin color starting to fade from a dark emerald green to a dull pale green. His body started to convulse from its lack of oxygen. His struggle continued for several more seconds until, finally, he stopped moving altogether.

After a few more minutes, the Cloud, now the size of a large beachball, slowly moved away from the lifeless corpse that used to be Plumber's Mate Caloda, native of Aquarilous VIII, and vanished through another bulkhead.

:::OFF:::

Plumber's Mate Caloda
Plumbing Technition
SS Mary Rose
NPC Robertson

Cloud Creature
(Written by Robertson)