Dendrite
"Initiate Hypersleep!" You almost don't recognize your voice as you blurt out the command. The stress of shouting out last minute orders to your crew seems to have had quite the softening effect on your vocal chords. A soft gray user interface appears on the holographic screen from within your lifepod. A computer voice is heard coming from speakers directly to your side. "Genologin Password Please." You notice that your chest seems to be sore while pull in a deep breath as you state your credentials. "41123 Auryn Alpha" The soft gray pixels dance in front of your eyes as 4 options appear. As you look from one choice to the next, the first grey box grows larger as the Visiotronic Integrator recognizes that your pupils have focused on the first line. "Setting Course Destination, please state location" Where the heck should I go? We came through Hypergate 402, but it appears that whatever it was that attacked the ship seems to have followed our same path, albeit cloaked. Orion Station? does that even still exist? Parkour Nebula? Krasks might not be too welcoming of any human visitors there... The Core System. I should be able to make it there and send out some sub space signals during hypersleep alerting Trissk Command of my whereabouts. "Core System, Centauril, Moon Zydril" As the next grey item gets larger the computer's voice patiently mirrors the choice selected. "Please state velodrive Engine and Rotational level." It might take a bit longer but I think I should play it safe and make it appear that I might be floating wreckage. My sub space signals should allow me to get picked up within a few months so I want to make sure I don't get picked up by someone other than Trissk Command. A minimum rotational level might actually help maintain my bio equilibrionic state. "Impulse level 2, Rotational Level 1.3" The second gray box shrinks as the third one grows larger. "Please set duration for Hypersleep" Hypersleep. I have only done this once before, it was so unsettling. Liquid will fill this capsule and then fill my lungs. Its feels like I am drowning, but only for a second as the lungs adapt to the oxygenated liquid. As the pressure increases and I will have to control my heart rate as the normal life support system starts to shut itself off. Who knows how long it will take for someone to find me? Hmm might as well set it for longer so scanners don't pick up my bio signals in the next few months. "4.5 Mesa, 3 Luno" The third grey box disappears into the void as the 4th and final option grows to fill the visual space. "Parameters Set, Hypersleep Initiating. Please monitor and maintain current bio stats" I look to the opposite corner and access the ESMS. I once picked up a family of 4 while monitoring the Emergency Subspace Messaging System, their Tricol-Class frigate had its engines fail and they were sitting golsnaps for a week before I found them. Hopefully, Trissk Commmand will find me in enough time. As the liquid starts to fill my cramped space, I encode and send off a quick message to subspace. Constant Wind down. Unknown attackers. Lifepods deployed. Auryn Alpha, 4.5 Mesa, 3 Luno Who knows who will pick that up. Come to think of it, its very close to the type of message that brought the Contant Wind to this area in the first place. Ensign Calbri had picked up an alert and we had followed it here. The trace esignatures matched perfectly with the galaxy-class liner profile so there seemed to be nothing to worry about. "Hypersleep and primary biofunctions commencing shut down in five-" Ensign Calbri, he was a promising officer, he had just transferred to my ship recently. "Four" My ship. No longer. I wonder if it was the Vask that attacked. We had heard inklings from Central Trissk regarding this new enemy, but little to no information had yet been provided. "Three" Families. This though brought my heart rate up as my eyes and brown grew heavy. Each officer on the ship had their families brought along and this was our maiden voyage. "Two" Calendra. Suddenly, her face flashed into my minds eye. I could smell her hair, see her smile, hear her laugh. She was gone. "One" As the liquid reaches my eyes, I know that I need to calmly take a deep breath and allow the liquid to enter my lungs. My training has allowed me to be prepared for this, but with Calendra in my thoughts, I find it difficult to maintain the control of my feelings and body. "Hypersleep commenced" I open my eyes to see the words on the screen. They start to fade as everything goes black.
By Romeo C.