WARNING - EXTREME ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS
STATION BREACH AT LEVEL 5
My eyes shot open as the high pitched alert blared throughout the station. I groaned in frustration at the ear piercing noise and pinched the bridge of my nose. Running a hand through my hair I jumped out of bed and briskly walked out of my quarters. I scowled at the lights as they flashed on and off.
The system had been on the fritz for the past couple of days. I shook my head and walked to the end of the hallway to one of the ladders. I climbed up to Level 1 and opened the hatch that led to the control room.
As I entered I could see Katya looming over one of the terminals. Her brow was furrowed as she stared at the brightly lit screen.
“Kat! Kat, what happened?” I cried out. She looked at me from the corner of her eye and pointed at her ear shaking her head. She lifted her finger and gestured four, zero, four. Error.
Quickly she turned back to the terminal in front of her and she typed furiously. On the opposite end of the room the other doorway opened. Li Wei had joined us, his fatigue mirroring my own. His mouth moved, but the sound was drowned out. Sighing inaudibly, I sat down, plugged my ears, and waited for her to resolve the situation.
After what felt like hours the alarm was replaced by silence. As the ringing subsided I unplugged my ears. I looked first to Li Wei and then to Katya who was still glaring at the console, her hands rubbing the nape of her neck.
“Whoever programmed these things will have hell to pay when we’re back Earthside,” Katya said with clenched teeth. Li Wei nodded in agreement as he rubbed his temples.
Rummaging through a drawer I pulled out a small bottle of analgesics. I handed one pill to each of them before taking one myself.
“Where are the others?” I asked. Both Rajesh and Makena were absent.
“Who knows...” Katya said in a dismissive tone before swallowing the pill. Li Wei just shrugged and yawned. He raised his hand in farewell and walked off to start his day.
“Li Wei, do me a favor and tell them to call if you see them yeah?” Without turning back he gave me a thumbs up, so I turned my attention back to Katya as she spoke up.
“John. Let’s get the weekly report done. I need to get back to my research and this was a bad start to the day,” she said dryly. Nodding absently, I went over to my console to compile last cycle’s data.
“Okay let’s see here,” I said after several minutes of typing, “Atmospheric analysis is ongoing,” I began and started listing off the data.
“We can let that run for another couple of days. Li Wei is doing his routine inspections; structural integrity of the station, life support systems, etc.” Katya said. She took some time going through our priorities and current status before telling me to continue.
“Raj has to harvest the latest round of crops from the hydroponics lab,” I continued after she was done, “And Mak is… well listen to this,” I said and played Makena’s latest report:
Primary Specimen Progress Report (Venus Atmosphere Exposure #3):
- Viral structures embedded in the brain tissue after VAE-2
- Rapid mutations observed after extended atmospheric exposure during VAE-3
- Latest brain scans show viral accumulation in the occipital lobe and prefrontal cortex
- Interconnected protein lattice has formed between the regions
- Phenotypic Changes: Irises now alternate between two colors and patterns
- Behavioral Changes: Increase in observation of surroundings and attempts to exit the lab
Next step: Re-examine tissue samples to determine the cause of the accelerated mutation
“Hmm… interesting results,” Katya mused.
“Am I the only one who dislikes that thing?” I said, voicing my concern.
“It’s a cat. Deal with it. Don’t forget to send the report to HQ.”
“Yes ma’am,” I said sarcastically as I typed away. Katya rolled her eyes, “Go check on the others. We haven’t heard back yet.”
“Aye aye,” I said, saluting casually, and walked over to the ladder.
After briefly checking the crew quarters for Makena and Rajesh, I went down to Level 3 to check their laboratory. I climbed down and entered the decontamination airlock. The experiments those two were running required the labs to be separate from the rest of the station. It made going in and out time consuming.
“Mak? Raj? You around?” I called out as I entered. My questions went unanswered. Entering the lab proper I noticed the cat from the corner of my eye. Motionless it stared at me from one of the lab benches. The white gold color of its fur made it look like a marble statue. I hated that cat and I thought it could tell.
“Hey D, where is your keeper?” I said hesitantly, taking a few steps away from the creature. Makena kept calling it extremely intelligent so I half expected it to answer back in some way. I shook my head and turned away. I wanted nothing to do with it.
For the first time since we arrived with this floating station, I was alone with Makena’s experiment, that strange cat, so I kept my distance and approached the hydroponics lab. My back tensed and I stepped up to the closed door.
“Guys?” I shouted while knocking on the metal frame, “You in there?”
As I lay my hand on the door handle I felt movement behind me. I looked back and my eyebrows shot up.
“Holy shit!” I yelped jumping back and slammed into the closed door, “Damn it,” I said and glared at the creature.
The cat had somehow followed me to the door, sat right behind me, within arm’s reach, and stared up at me with no sound at all. But as I looked at it closely I had to admit that its eyes, a brilliant amber gold, were fascinating.
I was transfixed for a moment and my mouth hung agape as bright spots spread across the iris of both eyes. The colors swirled and I was reminded of spiral galaxies turning in space, billions of years passing with little change. Its eyes turned into glowing violet orbs. Sharp and piercing, I couldn’t look away.
Before I could even question what was happening a voice derailed my train of thought and I broke eye contact.
“Dionaea is just curious.”
Makena must have entered the room while I was distracted. She was in her chair using one of the microscopes. I was surprised that I didn’t hear her come in, but I took it in stride. The cat, its eyes back to their original color, walked over to her and sat by her feet. I shuddered and turned my attention to Makena.
“I’ve said this before, but your name choice was and is disconcerting. A carnivorous plant? Really?” I shook my head and continued, “Anyway, what happened this morning? We didn’t hear from you.”
Makena’s expression remained blank as she responded, “Dionaea muscipula. She claims her name is very appropriate,” she responded, while the creature kept its eyes fixed on me, “We’re trapped here with her after all.”
Strangely monotone, her response left me bemused, “Uh… I hope I don’t need to be concerned about you having conversations with a cat. Or thinking of the crew as flies. So about this morning?” I said awkwardly and looked away.
“Rajesh was to inform Katya of our status. He went to his desk some time ago. I am in the middle of an experiment. If you would be so kind, please check on him.”
I wondered what was more strange, Makena or the feline creature in her care. I spared a glance for the cat, which continued to stare, unblinking, towards me. My skin prickled and I quickly walked away to find Rajesh.
I opened the door to his lab and walked in. Rows and rows of planters filled the room. An empty one half filled with water was the only thing out of place.
“Raj? Buddy?” I walked toward his office hoping for a response. None came. “This better not be a joke,” I whispered under my breath. Going around the corner I tried opening the door, but it didn’t budge. I rubbed my temples trying to calm down.
Out of frustration I kicked at the door and to my surprise it slid open slightly revealing an empty office in disarray. Pushing the door the rest of the way open I realized that the missing plant from the lab had been shoved behind the door. With a raised eyebrow I walked over to the desk. The terminal was cracked; flickering on and off. There was no sign of Rajesh.
As I was scratching my head Katya’s voice echoed from the comms, “John. Any luck with Makena and Rajesh?” She sounded preoccupied.
“Mak is working on her project, but Raj is nowhere to be found. He’s not responding to comms and the terminal in his office is wrecked. I don’t know what’s happening, but prepare a transmission to HQ. We need to report this.”
“What? How could we lose a person? The station isn’t that large. Whatever. I’m on it. I’ll let you know if he appears on my end. You keep looking,” she responded, frustration evident in her voice.
Before I had the chance to return to my search, a voice spoke up on the comms again, this time Li Wei’s, “Katya, John, we have a problem. The storm damaged our long range comms. The shielding has cracked. I need to take an acid walk to repair the panel. Need an extra pair of hands.”
I sighed audibly and answered, “Understood. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
With the search for Rajesh on the backburner, I left his office and went through the lab. Makena was still where I had left her, hunched over one of the lab benches. I took a moment to glance at the cat, but it wasn’t there. I turned back to my crewmate.
“Mak, let me know when you see Raj.”
“Rest assured. I will do just that,” Makena responded without looking back.
Without another word I frowned and walked back to the airlock. Distracted by all the problems that had been piling up it took me a moment to notice that the cat had joined me in the decontamination chamber. My hair stood on end and I took a step away from it.
Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.
“D. you’re not getting out. Go back to Mak,” I said with as much of a commanding voice as I could muster. As I re-opened the door to the labs I waved my hands towards it, “Go on then,” but the cat just stared at me. Its eyes flickered back to violet. For a moment I could have sworn its expression twisted into a wide smile, razor sharp teeth peeking through its blood red gums. I blinked in confusion and by the time I looked back it was already out of the airlock walking away.
I shivered, but my attention shifted back to the task at hand in short order. Thankfully, after decontamination, the walk to the engineering room was quiet. Li Wei looked up from the monitor he was working on as I entered. He greeted me silently with a raised hand and proceeded to point to the reinforced bay window.
The thick yellow atmosphere of Venus covered most of the view. I realized he was pointing to the communication array inside the station’s outer enclosure. A panel on the bottom of the antenna had cracks forming all across its surface.
“Sulfuric acid is bypassing the corrosion shielding. I assume debris from the storm must have caused the damage. The entire panel needs to be replaced,” Li Wei said as he was preparing his suit and the tools he would need, “I need you to maneuver the arm from here. Let’s get me into this suit.”
The protective suit for the atmosphere of Venus was so cumbersome that it was impossible to wear without someone assisting. The suit was sprayed down with insulation, a film of neutralizing material, but due to the necessity for flexibility it only lasted about fifteen minutes of exposure before the acid seeped through. I made sure to double check all the restraints and seals.
“Looks good. Ready?” I said, giving him a smile.
He gave me the okay sign. I nodded and helped him waddle over to the airlock. The doors shut and I walked over to the terminal. I prepared the robotic arm as I waited for him to go through the proper procedures.
As the other side of the airlock opened he walked out and turned to look at me through the window. I gave him a thumbs up and a half hearted smile.
Li Wei, tethered to the railings, headed straight for the antenna and started working on it.
“Huh, interesting,” Li Wei said over the comms.
“What is?” I responded.
“The initial damage is radiating out from four lines near the bottom of the structure. No idea what kind of debris would cause this.”
“Maybe it was the cat,” I said half jokingly, “I wouldn’t put it past that weird thing. Remember what happened a couple of days ago?”
“When we found it just sitting outside unaffected by the atmosphere? Yes, that was peculiar, but Makena claimed it was a planned experiment. I think your apprehension is clouding your judgment John. I’m getting back to work now.”
“Roger that…” I said with a sigh.
When the broken panel was uncoupled I used the arm to move it to storage. Sweat beaded on my forehead as I carefully maneuvered the panel below to Level 5 for safe storage. We were approaching our time limit so I worked as fast as I could, occasionally wiping sweat off my brow.
In the meantime Li Wei sprayed the open area down with temporary insulation foam to avoid further corrosion until the new shielding was in place. I searched the database for the replacement panel. My stomach dropped as I read the string of text that appeared on the screen.
Retrieving “Shield Panel” from Storage Crate “A24”...
Error: Unable to retrieve item
“Li Wei, do you copy?” I frowned, walked up to the window, and waved to my colleague.
His response was broken up by static, “Yes…ready…hold up?”
“Abort mission. Return to the station. I repeat, abort mission.”
I looked out to the platform and watched as Li Wei waved both arms in my direction. I gestured to him to come inside. When he didn’t respond I moved the robot arm to get his attention.
With a deep sigh I put a hand to my chest as he finally started walking back to the airlock. I took the opportunity to call Katya.
“Kat, do you copy?”
“Yes.”
“Li Wei is out on an acid walk, but the replacement panels are missing from storage. For the foreseeable future our long range comms are down. Stay on high alert. We can’t contact HQ. Check to see if our storage system is malfunctioning. They can’t have just disappeared.”
“One problem after another. Okay I’m on it. You two figure something out.”
“We’ll try,” I said as I watched Li Wei approach. When he reached the airlock I let out a deep breath and opened the outer door for him. He disappeared from view. Looking out to the swirling yellow gas of Venus, two small glowing orbs appeared right by the window. Before I had the chance to react, lightning struck and forced me to blink.
For a brief moment my vision swam and I rubbed my eyes. The orbs were no longer there. I turned to the inner doors of the airlock. I heard a scraping noise from inside, followed by a loud thump. I frowned, but waited patiently until the cleaning process was completed. As I opened the inner door I saw Li Wei face down on the floor, not moving.
“Li Wei!?” I ran and knelt down by him turning him over. His suit was intact so I dragged him inside and called the crew.
“Medical assistance needed at engineering. Mak, please come help.”
There was no response even after several attempts so I started taking the suit off Li Wei to treat any injuries as best I could.
I tried to call for help again, “Kat, are you there? This is an emergency.”
“John what happened? Wait, what’s that...” her response began only to be cut off.
“What is happening…” I whispered wide eyed as I started inspecting the rest of Li Wei’s body. I couldn’t find anything wrong with him so I propped him up by the terminal. I tried to wake him up, but I was out of my depth. I headed to Level 3 to find Makena.
As I went through the decontamination process, sweat trickling down my back, I tried to calm myself down.
“Mak? Hello?” I shouted loudly as I entered the lab. Silence stretched around me, only to be broken by a raspy voice that echoed out of the open door to the other lab.
“J… Jo… John,” the gravelly voice said. It vaguely sounded like Raj. Surprised to hear him I went to check the hydroponics room.
The first thing I noticed was the cat. It was looking at me from on top one of the planters. It’s eyes swirled and shifted into violet like they had before. The hair at the back of my neck stood up and I looked away.
The main lights suddenly shut off and the alarm activated once again.
WARNING - EXTREME ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS
STATION BREACH AT LEVEL 5
Eyes bulging, I realized that the room was in complete disarray. Shredded greenery littered the area with small pools of liquid covering the floor. When I turned around the cat was gone. My mind went back to Rajesh and I rushed to his office.
The flashing lights cast long twisted shadows throughout the laboratory. I stopped in my tracks and took a few deep breaths before moving again. The floor around the door was stained red, footprints going in and out. Cautiously I looked around for him, but to no avail.
“I thought I heard him…” I said out loud when Raj was nowhere to be found. I walked back to the other lab. Makena was oddly hunched over one of the microscopes with her back to me. Her body shifted ever so slightly as I approached her with slow calculated steps.
“Mak?”
My mind raced and tears pooled in my eyes as her face came into view. It was the most gruesome sight I had ever seen. Her throat was ripped open as if something had mauled her. Thin cuts riddled her body, the blood congealed on the wounds. A pool of it had formed around her chair and bench. The microscope lens had been thrust into one of her empty eye sockets.
My head spun and I found myself running away. The airlock was out of commission, doors wide open, but my mind raced so I ran straight through. As I reached the ladder I paused to take a breath. I tried to ignore the panic that was setting in. I had to think of an action plan. Level 4 first to check on Li Wei. If he woke up we could both go find Katya and Rajesh together.
By the time I reached the engineering room I was out of breath. Between flashes of the alarms I could see a trail of blood from the airlock leading to Li Wei who was now laying on the floor. Confused, I knelt down to check on him only to recoil. Four short, but deep, cuts were on his legs that weren’t there before. His throat was similarly ripped open like Makena’s. The acid had gotten to his leg and both skin and blood were bubbling around the wound.
The back of his head was smashed, his brain a mess of flesh near his body. The blinking lights made him look like a grotesque jack-o'-lantern. I scrambled back on all fours and huddled away from the corpse. I was reaching my breaking point. I clutched my knees to my chest and screamed.
I only managed to hurt my throat. I wiped the drool and snot off of my face and tried to compose myself. The thought of Katya got me back up. I steeled myself for what I might find below.
When I reached Level 5 I looked around. Finding no one I ran my hand through my hair and stared blankly at the large storage space. Feeling numb I sat down by one of the larger crates to think. Both long range and short range comms were out. We were weeks out from HQ sending supplies, much less a rescue crew.
WARNING - EXTREME ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS
STATION BREACH AT LEVEL 5
The station blared out another alert and I decided to see if there was actually a breach or if the system was malfunctioning again. When I stood, the writing on the side of the crate came to view.
“Storage Crate A24…” The missing panels from earlier. Briefly distracted from the horrible situation I opened the crate to check on it. The stench hit me first. Death and rot. My body convulsed at the sight of the destroyed machinery. It was littered with red handprints and thin slices of flesh. I turned to the side and expelled all the contents of my stomach. My eyes watered, the smell was overwhelming, so I shut the crate and walked away. The bitter taste coated my tongue as I looked around in a daze.
Movement broke me from my trance. It was Dionaea. The cat. She walked into view from the far end of the storage area and sat by the box. Behind her trailed small wisps of yellow mist, which made my eyebrows shoot up. Even though it was that creature, I was glad to see anyone, anything, else alive besides me so I hesitantly waved her over. I did not want to go near that crate again.
She just sat there. Staring straight into my eyes. As if she knew what I was going through. Without breaking eye contact she leaned down to lap up some blood that had dripped down from the box.
“Wh-what… are you doing?” I asked her. It, I reminded myself. It licked its paw casually as if amused by my circumstances. I took a step towards it and the smell of rotten eggs filled my nostrils. I coughed loudly. The breach was real this time.
“Come on, stop that,” I growled between coughing fits. Tears streamed down my face. My heartbeat pounded in my chest and I moved to grab the creature so I could seal Level 5 to stop the gas from spreading to the whole station.
With no apparent effort it moved to the side and I caught nothing but air. I kept trying, but it evaded me on every turn. After a few failed attempts I lost sight of Dionaea. Sweat streamed down my face and I was breathing heavily.
My vision was tinged yellow and I itched all over. I had no more time to waste. As I walked out of the storage room I shut and locked the door behind me. I started climbing up to Level 2, but the ladder shook and the grinding of metal echoed out from below.
“J… Jo… John,” a raspy voice spoke out from below, the sound somehow audible over the deafening station alerts. Surprised I turned back and saw two orbs glowing through the gas cloud that had accumulated beneath me.
Feverishly, I redoubled my efforts and climbed up to Level 2, sealing all hatches and doors behind me. As I reached my quarters I stopped short. An oblong shape was under my covers. My breath caught as I feared the worst, but the sheets moved and Katya’s face peeked out from underneath.
“Katya?” I whispered, my voice hoarse. The edges of my mouth curved into a smile as I felt a spark of hope.
Suddenly, the cat appeared on the bed, as if out of nowhere, and placed a paw on Katya’s head. My smile vanished as its claws extended and dug into her skin, drawing blood. I tried to react, but the room spun and my knees buckled. It stopped and turned to me, as if waiting for something to happen. I glared and looked into the cat’s bright eyes. As if a veil lifted from my eyes, the scene before me shifted.
The air blurred and warped as the temperature rose sharply. The sheets on the bed were sopping wet, stained with blood. The mangled remains of my friend lay before me. Between flashes of light I could see Katya’s deformed face. A horrifying visage of pain and terror.
Rajesh stood above my dead crewmate, clothes ripped, blood stained, with a wild look on his face. He held a knife and was in the middle of slicing up Katya’s abdomen. The shock on his face was horrifying. His expression was contorted into an unnatural grimace. Mouth agape, eyes gone, cuts all over his body.
I was frozen in place, waiting for the punchline, for something to happen to make this not real. I laughed nervously and slowly approached him. I gingerly stepped forward.
“Raj? Buddy?” was all I could say. The smell that wafted off him made me gag. I took an immediate step back away and almost lost my balance. He turned to regard me and his voice came out, blood spilling from his mouth as he echoed the sounds I had heard before.
“J… Jo… John,” the knife dropped from his hand and clattered to the floor. The cat was between us. It stared up at Rajesh and then turned its head towards me. As a marionette with its strings cut, he keeled over and slammed onto the floor. His mouth foamed and he stopped moving. Dead.
In a desperate attempt, I tried to muster up the strength to reach Katya. To do something. My arms extended out, but my body failed me. I fell to the ground, consciousness wavering, as the room spun around me. My lungs were on fire and I coughed up blood between gasps for breath.
The hazy yellow mist rapidly flowed into the room. It enveloped me and my skin began to boil. My eyes burned as tears of blood evaporated off of them. My vision faltered. Dense clouds of gas circled around Dionaea. Calmly she stood and walked towards me.
As I lay there dying, surrounded by the atmosphere of Venus, I saw it one last time.
The light that plunged my world to shadow.
The violet glow that pierced my soul.