Junker's Remorse

[Shush Muppet]

GRANDE NEGRA, TEXAS SYSTEM
LIBERTY SPACE, 09.24.823 A.S.

Cory's head slammed into the control surface of the Bulldog, despite the safety retrains. His vision blurred as the small snubcraft careened out of control. The collision alarm screamed in his ears as the two massive ion engines whined in protest; trying in vain to correct the sudden course-change. Moments ago the auto-pilot had been safely locked onto the ScrapFinch as his limbs slowly became numb and sluggish.

Then a large hull-plate had drifted into the path of his fighter at the exact same moment the Nav Comp experienced one of its many hiccups.

Blood trickled into his right eye as the Junker fought to raise his head. His entire body felt as if it weighted eight-times standard gravity. Falling heavily back into the pilot seat, he was just in time to witness the Nav Comp overload and shut down. That meant his ship was burning through a field of sharp metal and rocks at 350 units-per-second with no guidance. There was only one option.

Gritting his teeth, Walsh forced his arms to respond. The emergency engine shutoff was tantalizingly close on the right armrest, yet it could have been half a lightyear away. He screamed in frustration, his hand inching closer as his physical energy drained. Just a bit more...

There!

His hand dropped onto the button, and the Bulldog ceased its suicidal charge into certain destruction. And yet, the ship was still under the effects of inertia. A small impact on the right sent the snubcraft into a gentle spin, obscuring any chance of seeing an impending crash.

Too tired to care, Cory slumped. His mind began to leak into unconsciousness. Somewhere, a harsh babble arose until it became shouting. The voice was screaming, RUN RUN RUN RUUUUUUUUNNN!!! A horrible scarred face appeared in the blackness of his mind; a face warped in a wicked grin. Walsh gasped as the churning apparition took on his face, its cruel mouth opening into a scream lined with jagged teeth. And behind those teeth writhed a long purple tongue the size of a cobra.

RUUUUUUNNNNN!!!

"SNELL!!!" Cory jerked awake, his body spasming painfully. A glance revealed that the Bulldog had finally come to rest, sandwiched in the crevice of an old jumpgate hull panel. Red emergency lighting cast an eerie pall over the cockpit. Then there was a chilling, creaking groan from the bowels of the ship.

The hull was beginning to buckle.

Summoning up the last of his willpower, he began recording a final message in the vain hope that his fate would not go unknown.

Then the hull gave way with a loud shriek of tearing metal and the Junker known as Cory Walsh remembered nothing more.

---

Characters:

Cory Walsh - Unknown
Ari Kova (Yaroslava Ivanov) - Active
Declan "Owen" Quinn - Active
Agent 1854 - M.I.A.

"Junker's Remorse" Feedback Thread