sight—a grown man somehow turned into a driven animal.
Then Ricky stopped. His body was blackened by dirt and dust. His attention turned to Kate. Her fear was growing and she now expected him to turn on her. The wait wasn’t long. Ricky lifted a boulder the size of a football above his head and came at her. Kate moved back as far as she could until she was pressed against the wall of the tomb. She could see he was about to bring the heavy rock down on her and she reached to her belt for her grappling pistol. It was loaded and primed. One shot would imbed its hook deep in him. “Don’t make me use it. Stay away from me.”
Ricky kept moving closer to her.
“Stay away, I’m warning you.”
But he wasn’t listening. The boulder was about to come down on Kate. She had no choice. She fired. The hook blasted into his forehead and came out the back of his skull. At point-blank range the force had been tremendous. The rock fell behind him. Blood gushed from the wound washing the grime from his body. But inexplicably, Ricky remained standing. He seemed only stunned. “Where’s Dean?” he repeated.
Then he dropped to one knee. His power was being drained. With all of his fading strength he pulled at the hook. His arm muscles flexed and the hook came out the way it had entered, except it took a solid chunk of his skull with it. The flow of blood increased from the cavity and Ricky dropped into the pool of muck surrounding him.
Kate couldn’t move. She watched as all the life went out of Ricky. And she was still standing in a state of shock when Gary and Mark stormed in with lasers raised. They stopped short at Ricky’s fallen body. Mark side-stepped it and held Kate tightly. “You okay?” he asked through his communicator.
Kate shook her head slowly. “No. I’m not okay.” She couldn’t take her eyes off Ricky and she was shaking badly. “What got into him? I had no other choice.”
“We know,” Gary tried to comfort her. “He went berserk, there’s no other explanation for it.”
There was a question she had to ask. “How was he able to exist without his suit?”
“We just don’t know,” Mark admitted. He glanced at Gary and then averted his eyes from Kate’s.
She could tell there was more. “What else?”
Gary stepped over to her and took her gloved hand in his. “Gail is dead.”
“Dead?” She couldn’t believe it. “But how?”
Gary’s eyes shifted to the heap on the ground. That was all the explanation necessary.
Ricky and Gail’s bodies were returned to the complex. Holly officiated at a ceremony for which she had no taste. It was held in the laboratory. Both bodies were enveloped in plastic death-bags brought along for emergencies, but starched white sheets with Nova’s insignia spared the crew the ordeal of having to see their friends as they were. Holly kept her composure and said the appropriate words. When the short service was finished the bodies were to be returned to the freezer where they would rest until they could be shipped to the space station.
After the others had gone, Karl turned to Holly. “I’d like permission to perform an autopsy on Ricky.”
“What do you expect to find?”
“I think we’d all like to know what made him act that way. I also would like to find out what caused the deterioration of his skin and his hair.”
Holly considered the request. “If you think it might do some good, go ahead.”
Karl removed the ceremonial covering, carefully folding it. He laid out his equipment on a table next to the slab on which Ricky’s body lay, and scrubbed up at the sink. He pulled on his paper-thin gloves and began to unzip the death-bag.
“Help me with this will you, please?” he asked Sandy.
She couldn’t look and averted her eyes as they lifted the body out of the sack. Sure, she had dissected cadavers in medical school but none of them were anything like this.
“Hard for you?” Karl managed a weak smile.
“I can’t handle seeing a
Then Ricky stopped. His body was blackened by dirt and dust. His attention turned to Kate. Her fear was growing and she now expected him to turn on her. The wait wasn’t long. Ricky lifted a boulder the size of a football above his head and came at her. Kate moved back as far as she could until she was pressed against the wall of the tomb. She could see he was about to bring the heavy rock down on her and she reached to her belt for her grappling pistol. It was loaded and primed. One shot would imbed its hook deep in him. “Don’t make me use it. Stay away from me.”
Ricky kept moving closer to her.
“Stay away, I’m warning you.”
But he wasn’t listening. The boulder was about to come down on Kate. She had no choice. She fired. The hook blasted into his forehead and came out the back of his skull. At point-blank range the force had been tremendous. The rock fell behind him. Blood gushed from the wound washing the grime from his body. But inexplicably, Ricky remained standing. He seemed only stunned. “Where’s Dean?” he repeated.
Then he dropped to one knee. His power was being drained. With all of his fading strength he pulled at the hook. His arm muscles flexed and the hook came out the way it had entered, except it took a solid chunk of his skull with it. The flow of blood increased from the cavity and Ricky dropped into the pool of muck surrounding him.
Kate couldn’t move. She watched as all the life went out of Ricky. And she was still standing in a state of shock when Gary and Mark stormed in with lasers raised. They stopped short at Ricky’s fallen body. Mark side-stepped it and held Kate tightly. “You okay?” he asked through his communicator.
Kate shook her head slowly. “No. I’m not okay.” She couldn’t take her eyes off Ricky and she was shaking badly. “What got into him? I had no other choice.”
“We know,” Gary tried to comfort her. “He went berserk, there’s no other explanation for it.”
There was a question she had to ask. “How was he able to exist without his suit?”
“We just don’t know,” Mark admitted. He glanced at Gary and then averted his eyes from Kate’s.
She could tell there was more. “What else?”
Gary stepped over to her and took her gloved hand in his. “Gail is dead.”
“Dead?” She couldn’t believe it. “But how?”
Gary’s eyes shifted to the heap on the ground. That was all the explanation necessary.
Ricky and Gail’s bodies were returned to the complex. Holly officiated at a ceremony for which she had no taste. It was held in the laboratory. Both bodies were enveloped in plastic death-bags brought along for emergencies, but starched white sheets with Nova’s insignia spared the crew the ordeal of having to see their friends as they were. Holly kept her composure and said the appropriate words. When the short service was finished the bodies were to be returned to the freezer where they would rest until they could be shipped to the space station.
After the others had gone, Karl turned to Holly. “I’d like permission to perform an autopsy on Ricky.”
“What do you expect to find?”
“I think we’d all like to know what made him act that way. I also would like to find out what caused the deterioration of his skin and his hair.”
Holly considered the request. “If you think it might do some good, go ahead.”
Karl removed the ceremonial covering, carefully folding it. He laid out his equipment on a table next to the slab on which Ricky’s body lay, and scrubbed up at the sink. He pulled on his paper-thin gloves and began to unzip the death-bag.
“Help me with this will you, please?” he asked Sandy.
She couldn’t look and averted her eyes as they lifted the body out of the sack. Sure, she had dissected cadavers in medical school but none of them were anything like this.
“Hard for you?” Karl managed a weak smile.
“I can’t handle seeing a
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