Fiction Fragment Friday
I woke up and had a story idea in my head. It wasn’t a fully developed story, but had all the characters and their motivations. I immediately sent the details to myself as a message and let the story develop in my subconscious. When it came time to write I had everything worked out except for the fine details of how and where events were going to happen. I had multiple ideas and like always just needed to see what came out when I sat down to type.
Jeremy awoke to an assault on his senses. The smoke in the air smelled of scorched electronics, harsh gasses, charred leather, and the flesh of his crewmates. His eyes struggled to make out the scene with the only visibility being provided by flames and a flashing red warning light. The sound of explosions in the distance fought to drown out the crackle of flames and the muffled cough of another survivor. He found it so hard to think that he couldn’t remember which planet they had just crashed on. If they wanted to survive, he and any other survivor would have to get out of the burning wreckage.
Following the sound of coughing Jeremy found ensign Natalia May struggling to free her right leg from a metal support beam. Even bloody and in pain she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Not that he had ever had the courage to tell her that. Jeremy had known her for years and she had been one of his closest friends over that time. Without giving it further thought he rushed to get to her. “Nat are you ok?”
She managed to respond through the coughing. “Jeremy is that you? Over here I’m stuck” She waved her arms above her head and immediately regretted it. The pain shooting through her chest and gasps trying to breathe told her that she had multiple ribs that were at very least cracked. With her arms no longer holding back the metal on her legs the full weight came to rest sending sparks of pain though her ankle. Jeremy could barely be made out in the red flashing light, but he seemed to have faired far better than she had. He had some bloody scratches but seemed to be moving without a limp.
Jeremy knelt by Natalia’s side and examined the debris holding her down. It didn’t look to be particularly heavy, but the way she was pinned she couldn’t get leverage over it. He didn’t know about her broken ribs, but they were also keeping her from getting free. “Ok, I’m going to pull this beam back. I need you to pull your leg out as fast as you can before I lose it. Ready?”
She nodded and Jeremy pulled on the beam straining his muscles to lift it off her. Initially it didn’t budge, but then the pressure slowly released on her ankle. Natalia pulled her leg out and the beam collapse moments after she was free. Jeremy was struggling to breath in the thick smoke after exerting himself. His throat burned with his couching while her ribs stabbed with pain at hers.
With Natalia leaning on Jeremy the two made their way towards the nearest airlock. They didn’t think it would be working but didn’t know how else to get out. As it turned out there was a large hole ripped into the hull opening to the planet outside. The ship had crashed in a jungle and the planet looked to be hospitable. “There might be more survivors. We can’t just leave them in there to die.”
“Nat you can’t help anyone right now. You can barely walk. We need to get you somewhere safe and then I’ll go back in.” Jeremy also knew that they would need supplies. He could try to scavenge anything useful while searching for other survivors.
“Damn it,” she said putting all her frustration into the words. “Be careful though. If you let yourself hurt, I’m going to kill you.”
“Noted.” He helped her to the ground leaning against a large tree. “Just stay here, I’ll be back as soon as I can. With one last look he turned and ran back into the smoke and flames. He felt bad for his dead and missing crewmates, but part of him was looking forward to Natalia having to rely on him for a while. In his head he started to create a list of supplies and prioritize them. Food and water were on the top of the list.
With the explosions there was not much left of the galley. They door to the pantry had been ripped from its hinges and caved inwards. Jeremy couldn’t open the door, but he was able to climb over it. Inside the pantry nothing was still stacked neatly on the shelves. Without a bag he decided to grab a box and start filling it. He was so focused he almost didn’t hear the groans of pain from the deep freezer. If the door had not been cracked open, he would not have heard.
“Hey, is someone alive in there?” Jeremy yelled straining his eyes. There were no red lights in the freezer, so it was extremely dark.
A pained voice answered him, “I’m in here.” Even through the pain Jeremy recognized the voice and his heart sank. It was Natalia’s boyfriend Brad. His fantasies of her relying on him and coming to love him while they struggle to survive alone started to fade. Now he just saw himself as a third wheel while Brad lived out his dream. Why did Brad have to be one of the survivors? He sighed in disappointment as he propped open the freezer door.
“Hey Brad. You ok in there?” It was too dark for him to tell if Brad had been injured.
“Jeremy is that you? Have you seen Natalia?” Even in pain with a ship exploding around him Brad’s first though was of his girlfriend. Jeremey worked in the same section as her, so they were probably together when the crash happened.
“Yeah, she’s safe. I got her out first.” With the light coming through the door, he was finally able to put together what had happened. When the ship crashed Brad had been thrown through the air and landed on a hook. His skin was pale, and blood was pouring out in massive quantities. It looked bad, but if they could get a first aid kit he should survive. Jeremy winced at the sight. “That looks bad man. Can you move?”
“I think so.” Brad struggled to his feet with the hook still sticking into his side. Jeremy couldn’t help but admire his strength pushing through the pain. He couldn’t help but think that Natalia was right to pick Brad and overlook him. That thought wasn’t fair, and he knew it. Jeremy had never told her how he felt so why should he expect her to know.
“Hold on let me get the door.” Jeremy rushed forward clearing the path and pushing the freezer door open. They were both sweating from the heat being put off by the fire that had spread into the pantry. His eyes locked on a first aid kit hanging by the entrance of the pantry. If Brad could just make it a few more feet they could patch him up and he would be reunited with Natalia.
Without consciously thinking Brad slammed the door to the freezer shut and locked it. Brad started pounding on the door and he could barely make out his screams from inside. “Jeremey what are you doing? Let me out of here.” The exertion was causing the blood loss increase with every pound.
“What am I doing? What am I doing?” Jeremy held his head in his hands. “No, I can’t do this. I’m not a killer.” He moved over to the door and yelled in. “Ok Brad, I’m going to let you out. I need you to promise me this will be just between us though. Natalia doesn’t need to know right? Right? Brad?” There was no response from inside the freezer and the pounding had stopped. Jeremy opened the freezer door and an unconscious Brad slumped to the floor. There was blood everywhere and the weight of his body pushed the hook further into his body. His eyes were open, but there was no life left in them.
Jeremy started to hyperventilate until another explosion shook the wreckage and brought him back to his senses. He grabbed his box of supplies and the first aid kit from the wall on the way out of the pantry. Natalia was waiting for him outside the ship and as far as he knew they were now the only survivors of the crash. He just had to force a neutral face and make sure she didn’t notice anything was off. If he wanted a future with her, he couldn’t let the guilt show when he looked at her.
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