What Lurks Between - A SciFi/Horror Novella - Part Twelve

Sorry, it’s been a few days since I last posted this story. No excuse, but it’s been busy around here. Life, the Holidays, and Everything, you know? :)

Let’s get back to it.

Last we left off, the bunny monster was commanding Barry to go hunting again. To take his mind off it, he let his thoughts wander back to the dream he’d had about his last day on Ketcham Station.

Artwork copyright Revensis and Mikhail Matsonashvili, licensed through Dreamstine

What Lurks Between - Part Twelve

I was aboard Ketcham Station again. It was vivid, every detail as plain and real as if I were actually there.

I was taking a coffee break, sitting at a table in the corner of the station’s small cafeteria, and nursing a steaming cup of what almost passed for a decent brew. In that respect, it was a far sight better than the coffee in most workplaces I had been in since leaving the Navy. Just three scoops of sugar and a couple dollops of cream was all it took to make the coffee drinkable. That was one thing about the Navy; those salty guys really do know how to brew a mug. I tried to remind myself of all the bad things, the reasons why I had gotten out. But right then, sipping on that barely tolerable mug of Joe, it was hard to remember.

I was not alone in the cafeteria, though I sat alone at my table. A pair of men in researchers’ white lab coats stood on the other side of the room, in front of the stainless steel of the service station, and gave their orders. They would likely sit together and leave me alone. One other table was occupied, by a woman in workman’s coveralls, but she had her back to me and was watching the latest ball game streaming on the live feed from planetside.

So while I was not alone, I had my privacy, which is the way I wanted it. Get in, do my thing, and get out. That is how I preferred to do business, and this day was no different.

I turned my gaze away from the other in the room and stared down at my coffee, my thoughts drifting forward to rest of the morning’s tasks. There was a faulty solenoid in the actuator on an emergency bulkhead seal door on deck three, a set of malfunctioning lights in the female berthing area on 01 level - that would be no fun; the hoops I would have to jump through just to get in there, let alone while I was in there working, saw to that - and a new fan to install in fan room six. It was a lot to do in one morning. But then again, the station was getting up there in years, and even without the recent malfunctions there was plenty to do to keep up the aging infrastructure.

“…very promising results.”

Nearby voices drew my eyes from my mug. The two research men were settling down into plain white plastic chairs at the table next to me. They each held a bagel on a small plate in one hand and a cup in the other. Their security badges were only slightly less striped than Dr. Liu’s had been. That meant they were high in the chain, though I did not recognize them. Which was hardly surprising since I had just reported aboard.

The research man who spoke wore a large grin on his face. His companion was less cheerful.

“How can you say that?”

“It almost worked, and the data we got will help us refine the settings. Next time…”

The glum researcher waved off his colleague’s comments. “Data, shmata. Did you see what happened to that rabbit? The portal…”

He stopped talking, seeming to notice me for the first time. His mouth shut with an audible clack of teeth striking teeth and he scowled.

“This does not concern you,” he said, looking right at me. His tone became cold, biting. As the man spoke, his cheerful companion followed his gaze with a stare of his own. His lips, turned upward a moment ago, compressed into a scowl.

I recognized what that meant. Part of me wanted to protest that I was here first and they were intruding on my private time. But I knew that would do no good and likely land me in trouble besides, so I stood up. “Sorry, gents. I was just leaving.”

I slipped around their table, trying not to feel my head being ripped apart beneath the weight and economy of their combined stares. The coffee sucked anyway. I walked over to the trash can near the doorway and tossed it, plastic mug and all. Then I took a minute to sling my tool bag over my shoulder. Before I left, I heard the researchers begin speaking again, more quietly this time but still loud enough to easily carry to where I was standing.

“…Just a few setting changes and the quantum tunneler will be operational. And when that happens, who cares what happened to a couple of stupid rabbits…”

That was the cheerful one again. His voice cut off abruptly as the door slid shut before me. I was happy to hear it go; I had work to do.

*****

Previous Posts:

1. Part One
2. Part Two
3. Part Three
4. Part Four
5. Part Five
6. Part Six
7. Part Seven
8. Part Eight
9. Part Nine
10. Part Ten
11. Part Eleven

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