James opened his eyes and stared at the underside of a bunk-bed for a while before understanding what he looked at.

Oh, right. He'd managed to survive the centipede's attack and then narrowly avoided those horrid dogs. Then they'd hugged. What happened next? He wasn't sure.

Looking around, James spotted Rebecca carefully placing things in the red cabinet by the door. Still closed, thank the Lords of the Seven.

The computer bleeped, and James turned to look at Bill's back, his fingers dancing over the keys. Maybe he wrote a log? Or maybe he was ordering something? Or scanning for loot? They had one more day here, didn't they?

His throat dry, James coughed and sat up. Both Bill and Rebecca twisted around to look at him. Rebecca's face brightened with a smile. Bill merely gave him a slight nod.

'You're awake!' Rebecca announced. 'You gave us quite a scare, fainting like that. I will not tolerate such behaviour in the future.' She waved a finger in the air in his general direction.

Confused, James stuttered.

Rebecca laughed. 'I'm only kidding. Are you alright? Do you need anything?'

'Some water would be nice,' James croaked. 'My throat hurts and I feel like I could drink an entire ocean.'

'Coming right up.'

A few moments later, James was back up and had been updated about their situation. Apparently, he'd been out for a about an hour, and something huge had showed up on the ship's scanner right before they returned, but neither of them had seen anything but the dogs.

'I'm sure it was underground,' James said. 'The ground shook like crazy, I almost fell.'

'I felt it too,' Bill agreed. 'I thought you were a goner, for sure.'

'Thanks,' he huffed. 'What were you putting in the cabinet earlier?'

'Just some stuff we ordered with the rocket,' Rebecca answered. 'When the dogs had gone, we called down some provisions, first aid, another shovel, and some reserve flashlights.'

'Good idea. Didn't the rocket draw the dogs back though?'

He wasn't sure he'd have wanted to go out and get anything from the supply-rocket in this hazardous place. It was one thing by the Company building, but here... anything could happen.

'They came sniffing around a while later, but by then we were back safely in the shuttle,' Bill said matter of fact.

'You're crazy,' he laughed.

'You gotta be to survive here,' Bill said.

Both James and Rebecca nodded, sombering down a little. James shuffled his feet, avoiding to look by the cabinet. At their dead friend. He'd been crazy alright. Sadly, it had cost him his life.

'Well, let's not take unnecessary risks, though.'

Bill and Rebecca nodded.

'So, one final round before leaving?' Bill said.

'You sure that's a good idea?' James asked. His body protested, his head hurt. Would they make it? 'There might be more creatures as well.'

'It's not, but we still need a little more for the quota. I can't take any chances.'

'Let's scan first, see what we can before we go?' Rebecca suggested. 'I'll come too.'

'There you go.' Bill nodded.

'We'll need to hurry though,' James added. 'Look at the time.'

'Yeah.' Bill nodded. 'We'll do the bare minimum, then get the hell out of dodge.'

'Sounds good to me,' Rebecca said with a painfully faked smile.

James wondered how well she'd hold up considering her earlier state of mind. But if they stayed together, it should be fine. 'Let's go.'

'Last hurdle,' Rebecca said, probably trying to cheer them up. Or herself.

James nodded. 'Then another three days after that. And another, and another...'

Her face soured. 'Yes, but... let's focus on one thing at a time. Yeah? No need to be negative like that.'

'I'm realistic, not negative.'

'I... yeah, but...'

'No, you're right. Sorry. I shouldn't be like that. Let's take one thing at a time. It's probably better for our sanity,' he muttered. He felt defeated. Dak was dead, they had to go in there again, then back to the Company, then out again. For a year. No breaks other than the one day at the Company building. A year. He almost laughed. It was insane. They'd all die way before that. Unless... unless they were the absolute best team in the history of teams. And luckiest.

'What are you thinking?' Rebecca asked, tilting her head. Her dark eyes tired and sunken.

'Oh nothing.' He snorted. 'Just thinking about how we need to be the best team of them all.'

Bill turned around and gave him a an odd look. Then he put his helmet back on walked to the door.

'Yeah, let's be the best team!' Rebecca raised a hand into the air.

It took James a second before he realized she wanted a high five. He hit it, and couldn't help but smile. At least they had each others' backs. They were actually not a bad team, he thought. But they were only three now. How would that effect them in the long run?

'Bill?' James waited until he got the man's attention. 'What happens when you lose a team member?'

Bill and pondered the question, or how to answer it, for a moment, tapping a finger on his visor.

'Well, when we get back to the company, we should get a new recruit. We need to help them understand the ropes here as fast as possible. They're gonna be a liability in the beginning.'

'Like we all were, eh?'

'Exactly.' A slight smile creased Bill's mouth for a second. 'But you're doing all right.'

'Wow, thanks.'

Rebecca hid a laugh behind a hand, and James smirked.

'Let's do our best, and get back to the Company whole, yeah?' He grabbed the reserve helmet and tested it on. It was a little tight, but felt alright.

The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

'Yes, let's.' Rebecca agreed and followed suit.

'Ready?' Bill asked, standing by the door.

James gave a thumbs up, and Bill opened the doors.

'I wish they'd let us bring a scanner.'

'You have one,' Rebecca said, raising an eyebrow.

'No, to scan for the monsters and loot, like on the ship. We just have this little shit!' He pointed at the small scanner on his belt. 'It's not exactly useful other than for determining the worth of things and finding out information about the monsters. But I'd like a better scanner, or a map!'

'Maps would be great,' Bill agreed. 'But let's move it, yeah?'

They nodded and sped up their walk. James right shin still pained him, but it wasn't disabling him, so he didn't complain. At least he had a head still. And a face. He shuddered at the memory of those mandibles snapping in the air right by his face in the dark.

They hurried back into the facility, and quickly passed the looted tunnels, finding new, unexplored routes. They stayed together as much as possible, but split up from time to time to ensure they were as efficient as possible. Rebecca went with Bill and the shovels, while James had the shotgun at the ready. But they only met a few loot bugs and avoided a spider.

Finally, they were ready to leave and met back up at an intersection.

'You guys ready to go?' James asked as they walked towards him, hands and pockets full.

'Yeah, we found a room full of stuff,' Rebecca announced, a bit out of breath.

'Anything happened?' James looked behind them, instantly suspicious.

'Something was stomping around, we didn't wanna stay and find out,' Bill explained.

Stomping? Maybe the same thing he'd heard behind them earlier, James thought. He was happy if they could avoid encounters. But he was ready if they got close. He hoped.

'Let's go.'

James led the way towards the entrance as fast as possible. It was a long way to go. But they still had almost an hour. He hoped they'd get out without any problems.

But no sooner had he had the thought than he heard the stomps echo down the corridor behind them.

'Shit.'

They all looked back.

'We should haul some ass,' Bill commented. Then he set off at a run, passing James in a few seconds.

'Wait, we... never mind. Come on, Rebecca.'

She nodded, her face pale but composed. They chased after Bill at a steady jog, not wanting to tire themselves needlessly. But James had a sense of urgency and had to remind himself to not just blindly flee and pay attention to the way. But if Bill ran off like that, it usually meant they should too.

The thumping behind them suddenly reappeared at another intersection from the left. Louder.

James glanced in its direction, and saw something move in the dark further away.

'Go!' he barked, and set off at full speed.

Rebecca's footsteps increased as well, and she soon passed him by. She was a swift runner when scared. Each step hurt more than the previous as James injuries were jolted by the impacts on the concrete. His right leg soon felt on fire. Breathing hard, he glanced back, wondering if he could slow down.

Something lunged around a corner behind him, pink and low to the ground, slithering like a lizard, but far too big, with long front legs and a weird face.

James didn't pause to look any closer. Adrenaline jolted through him and he pushed forward faster, gasping for breath. The entrance wasn't very far off.

The loud thumps of the creature closed in on him, way too fast. This thing was oiled lightning! Panic built up in his chest until he thought his chest would explode. The he spotted Bill and Rebecca up ahead. Bill stood on a rail, brandishing his shovel, and Rebecca held the door open.

Were they planning to attack the thing? Were they mad? He should shoot it, if anything. It was surely too big for a mere shovel? But it was too late for that.

James didn't slow down. He simply had to trust them.

'Go, go, go!' Bill shouted, and readied the shovel.

James somehow managed to speed up, the stomping mere inches behind him. He could basically feel the creature breathing down his neck. Gasping he bolted for the open door, where Rebecca beckoned for him with frantic hand movements.

A bonk and loud grunt behind him told him Bill had hit the monster. James halted and dropped the loot on the ground right outside the door, spun around, and pulled the shotgun out in one smooth motion. He cocked it and aimed down the corridor.

The monster was the freakiest thing he'd ever seen. And that said a lot by now.

The lizard-like body jerked sideways to avoid the shovel and the long tail whipped around. It propelled itself forward on two long front legs, more like arms. Its pale, pink skin were bruised and bleeding around the shoulders from Bill's hits. The wide-mouthed head, almost a bit human-like, with a toothy mouth and flower-like protrusions around it, snapped after Bill's legs. But the man managed to jump sideways without falling down. The shovel smashed right into the monster's face, making it grunt and step back a moment.

James couldn't shoot, he'd risk hitting Bill.

'Come on!' Rebecca yelled.

Bill jumped down and dashed for the door as the monster shook its head and growled. James jumped back to not be in the way. Rebecca slammed the door in the monster's face as soon as Bill had passed, and James threw his shoulder against the door to keep it closed. The door shook and James almost fell back with the impact. Bill and Rebecca joined him seconds later, keeping the door shut.

The monster roared inside. Then everything went quiet.

After a few seconds, James drew in a deep breath, relaxing a fraction.

'Did it leave?' Rebecca whispered.

'Let's keep it shut a while longer,' Bill grunted, and James nodded breathlessly.

A few minutes passed in silence. Then they stood from the door and picked their scrap back up. As soon they'd gather everything, they set off at a brisk pace towards the shuttle. The sun hung low in the sky, glowing ruddy through the dusty air. Gusts of wind whined around the weathered rocks and rattled the few trees' dry branches. Long shadows stretched across the landscape.

'Thank the seven,' James whispered. They were alive, and he saw nothing dangerous ahead.

'Just keep moving and we should be out of this mess in no time,' Bill said. 'There's plenty of time.'

'That's great!' Rebecca said.

'That was an easy run, all things considered,' James puffed, his lungs and leg still hurting from the earlier exertion. 'But I could have done without that last one. What a freaky thing.'

'Oh, that's right,' Rebecca said, raising a finger. 'I scanned it.'

'What? When?'

'When you were busy running and Bill hit it.'

'Seven seas...' James muttered. 'Bill, why'd you attack it? Wasn't that an unnecessary risk?'

'Maybe. But they're really dangerous. I couldn't trust you'd get out without our help. They're freakishly fast.'

'You've seen them before?' James gaped.

'Well, a few times. Usually it's the last thing someone sees.' He looked desolate for a moment, staring straight ahead. 'This is the first time I've seen one and nobody's been eaten,' he added.

'Holy... ' James breathed. He wondered how much Bill had actually seen. And how he could be so calm after seeing all that. But maybe he wasn't calm, maybe that was just a facade? Maybe he was just used to death? Imagine seeing your friends not just die, but being eaten. He shuddered.

The shuttle stood in the distance, glinting in the setting sun, the sand blowing around it in little clouds. Almost peaceful, James thought. He let his eyes sweep across the land, taking it all in. He hadn't really had the time to properly look before. The calm almost stressed him now. Was something lurking? Would something jump out and attack? Any tremors in the ground? His eyes strayed to something on the plain. A glint of light on something. He squinted. Did it move?

'Hey, you guys see that?' He pointed.

They stopped and looked.

'I see something, yeah,' Bill agreed.

'It's orange?' Rebecca asked, uncertain. 'Like... us?'

'Or like some monster,' James pointed out.

Bill nodded.

'Kinda small?' she asked.

'I can't make it out. Let's go closer, but carefully,' James said. The others agreed.

They'd pass it on the way to the shuttle anyway. But if it was a monster, they'd better be prepared, James thought.

'Can you carry this?' he handed a bag of loot over to Bill who took it without a word. Then he readied the shotgun. Again. If it was a monster, he'd be ready to shoot it this time.

By the time they closed in on the figure, the sun had vanished behind a mountain range, and Rebecca and Bill lit their way with the flashlights. They pointed them towards the stranger, and it became obvious it was another human being. Another Company employee by the looks of it. But with a slightly different shade of orange on the suit, James thought. More yellowish. The person stood still, looking their way in the twilight. Waiting?

'What the hell?' James muttered.

'Now that's something I haven't seen before,' Bill said in a low tone. 'Be careful. Maybe it's a trick.'

James nodded.

He didn't lower the shotgun as they approached the stranger.