What Lurks Between - A SciFi Horror Novella - Part Three

When last we left our hero Barry, he got back from his new gig on Ketcham Station and got totally freaked out when his lunch box started jumping around. And then out hopped...a bunny rabbit?

What's going on?

Let's find out. Part Three!

Artwork copyright Revensis and Mikhail Matsonashvili, licensed through Dreamstine

What Lurks Between - Part Three

What the hell was a bunny doing in my lunchbox? It was silly. Ludicrous.

But hang it all, it was darn cute.

A little white bunny, right out of an Easter Egg commercial. It hopped over toward me, its ears flopping in time with its hops in the most adorable manner. I’m no pansy, but I couldn’t help it. Nothing that cute could be bad. So I dropped the Slugger and squatted down.

It hopped over to me and I scooped it up in my arms. Its hair was smooth, soft, just the way you envision a bunny’s should be. Its ears were perky, but flexible, and it had little white whiskers growing from its snout. Its eyes were pinkish-red; that made sense. The all-white coat meant it was probably an albino, the eyes just confirmed it.

The bunny snuggled in against my body and I pet it. It shivered, almost the way a cat will shiver when it purrs, and I could not help smiling. Questions of how it got into my lunchbox faded beneath the pleasure of cuddling it next to me. I sat down on the couch and activated the display. The bunny slid off my lap onto the cushion next to me, still vibrating soothingly.

The news was on. God, I hate the news. I glanced over at the timepiece on the wall. The game should be starting soon. Better to watch that than…

“Tragedy on Ketcham station,” said the anchor, a severe-faced man in his early middle years who dressed like an undertaker, and I sat bolt upright, a chill going down my spine.

I could not have heard that right. I gestured for the display volume to increase, certain I was mistaken.

But I was not.

An image appeared on the display, clearly shot through a high-power lens, showing Ketcham Station’s distinctive egg shape tumbling erratically through space. Gasses were streaming from several holes in the hull and the exterior navigation lights flickered on and off at random intervals, as though the circuitry or power supply had been compromised.

The anchor continued, his deep monotone speaking over the video. “Middle Earth Orbit Traffic Control lost contact with the station late last night after receiving a number of disturbing transmissions, followed by a distress call. While they struggled to regain contact, a nearby tug was vectored in and shot the video you are now watching. So far Traffic Control has been unable to link another craft with the station, and there is no word on the status of the two hundred and fifty scientists and support personnel who worked onboard. Family and friends of Ketcham Station employees can direct inquiries to…”

I slumped back against the couch, stunned, and let the rest of the anchor’s words slide past without taking note of them. What the hell happened up there? I could not remember anything going seriously wrong. But then, I could not remember much of anything at all. I racked my brain, trying to think. There was the shuttle up, the young woman who greeted me at the airlock, and then…nothing. It was all a blur. Then something else sprang to mind, something that made the earlier chill in my spine turn into an icy feeling of dread.

How the hell did I get back home?

The bunny, still sitting next to me, squirmed. The little vibration it was making changed, becoming less soothing and more jarring, almost like when a musician hits the wrong note in a harmony part. I looked down at it, and dread turned into sheer terror.

*****

Previous Posts:

1. Part One
2. Part Two

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