become hard labor.
Sheila sank down on the deck and pressed her hands to her temples. Paul slid down onto the deck where he had been working, too weak to move to Sheila's side.
Victor lifted his gun to threaten them again, but his arm drooped back down. The effort seemed to have drained him even more and he leaned heavily against the railing.
Aster hesitated, waiting for him to fall. A surge of adrenaline filled her with renewed energy. Betty stood in readiness as well.
Victor must have sensed the sudden tension around him and recovered slightly. "Okay, you two take a few minutes break and then start separating all the bags from the wood. That shouldn't be too strenuous for you."
Aster noted that they were close to completion when the first hints of dawn appeared. But by this time, even the younger members of the group were barely moving. She hadn't noticed anything unusual about the ship until Victor called it to Johnny's attention.
"Captain, I think the engine has stalled. I can't hear the generator, either. Go up to the bridge and get her started again. No funny business or you know what will happen to your wife."
The captain grunted with disgust as he hauled in his last package and dragged himself up to the bridge. A few minutes later he reappeared, breathing hard.
"There's no... power. Everything's... dead. I tried... to warn you..."
"What the fuck do you mean, no power? This craft is in excellent condition and has all sorts of backup systems."
Aster groaned. She was not worried about the power, only that the problem had jolted Victor into wakefulness again.
Johnny drew in a shallow breath. "If you don't believe me, go check yourself!"
Victor put José in charge and hurried to the engine room. When he finally returned, his confusion was evident. "There didn't seem to be anything wrong in the engine room, so I went back up to the bridge. I don't understand it. The compass is spinning around, crazy-like, first in one direction then the other. NAVSTAR shows no reading at all, as if this ship isn't even here. It must be some kind of magnetic field. It'll pass. Just finish up and be ready to take off as soon as we get power back."
By now the sun should have risen. The sky should have had at least a tinge of pink and baby-blue but a dark cloud blocked it out. It was getting lighter, but not from the sky. Gradually, Aster realized the rapidly brightening light was coming from around and beneath them, up through the seaweed. It was eerie and fascinating at the same time.
To her further bewilderment, a bluish-green fog began rolling in on them. Suddenly an odd tingling sensation raced through her body, as if she had been plugged into an electrical socket. She spun around and discovered the entire ship was now enveloped by the peculiar haze.
Johnny's temper finally erupted. "Victor, you stupid son-of-a-bitch! Now you and your precious cargo can go to hell together!"
With a savage growl, the captain lunged at Victor, but he had given him too much warning. Victor fired into the other man's chest before he could close the distance between them. Blood gushed from the captain's heart. Red matter exploded out of his back where the bullet exited. Aster was so close her face stung where Johnny's blood pelted her. The captain remained upright for several seconds beating then collapsed on the deck.
Captain Johnny's murder pushed the others into action. Nick and Paul jumped José, knocking his gun into the water. Aster and Betty flew at Victor before he could fire again. The attack succeeded in momentarily stunning him but he maintained a grip on his weapon. The women struggled futilely against his greater strength. Just as he managed to turn the gun toward Aster's head, a deafening roar of rushing water distracted him.
The next instant a powerful gust of wind knocked Aster off her feet and blew her across the deck. Struggling against the force of the wind, she crawled back to Betty, huddled beneath the side rail.
Anything
Sheila sank down on the deck and pressed her hands to her temples. Paul slid down onto the deck where he had been working, too weak to move to Sheila's side.
Victor lifted his gun to threaten them again, but his arm drooped back down. The effort seemed to have drained him even more and he leaned heavily against the railing.
Aster hesitated, waiting for him to fall. A surge of adrenaline filled her with renewed energy. Betty stood in readiness as well.
Victor must have sensed the sudden tension around him and recovered slightly. "Okay, you two take a few minutes break and then start separating all the bags from the wood. That shouldn't be too strenuous for you."
Aster noted that they were close to completion when the first hints of dawn appeared. But by this time, even the younger members of the group were barely moving. She hadn't noticed anything unusual about the ship until Victor called it to Johnny's attention.
"Captain, I think the engine has stalled. I can't hear the generator, either. Go up to the bridge and get her started again. No funny business or you know what will happen to your wife."
The captain grunted with disgust as he hauled in his last package and dragged himself up to the bridge. A few minutes later he reappeared, breathing hard.
"There's no... power. Everything's... dead. I tried... to warn you..."
"What the fuck do you mean, no power? This craft is in excellent condition and has all sorts of backup systems."
Aster groaned. She was not worried about the power, only that the problem had jolted Victor into wakefulness again.
Johnny drew in a shallow breath. "If you don't believe me, go check yourself!"
Victor put José in charge and hurried to the engine room. When he finally returned, his confusion was evident. "There didn't seem to be anything wrong in the engine room, so I went back up to the bridge. I don't understand it. The compass is spinning around, crazy-like, first in one direction then the other. NAVSTAR shows no reading at all, as if this ship isn't even here. It must be some kind of magnetic field. It'll pass. Just finish up and be ready to take off as soon as we get power back."
By now the sun should have risen. The sky should have had at least a tinge of pink and baby-blue but a dark cloud blocked it out. It was getting lighter, but not from the sky. Gradually, Aster realized the rapidly brightening light was coming from around and beneath them, up through the seaweed. It was eerie and fascinating at the same time.
To her further bewilderment, a bluish-green fog began rolling in on them. Suddenly an odd tingling sensation raced through her body, as if she had been plugged into an electrical socket. She spun around and discovered the entire ship was now enveloped by the peculiar haze.
Johnny's temper finally erupted. "Victor, you stupid son-of-a-bitch! Now you and your precious cargo can go to hell together!"
With a savage growl, the captain lunged at Victor, but he had given him too much warning. Victor fired into the other man's chest before he could close the distance between them. Blood gushed from the captain's heart. Red matter exploded out of his back where the bullet exited. Aster was so close her face stung where Johnny's blood pelted her. The captain remained upright for several seconds beating then collapsed on the deck.
Captain Johnny's murder pushed the others into action. Nick and Paul jumped José, knocking his gun into the water. Aster and Betty flew at Victor before he could fire again. The attack succeeded in momentarily stunning him but he maintained a grip on his weapon. The women struggled futilely against his greater strength. Just as he managed to turn the gun toward Aster's head, a deafening roar of rushing water distracted him.
The next instant a powerful gust of wind knocked Aster off her feet and blew her across the deck. Struggling against the force of the wind, she crawled back to Betty, huddled beneath the side rail.
Anything
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