8

It seemed impossible that this space between the walls was part of the domed casing that protected the city within. The perimeter must have stretched for hundreds of kilometres. And how many cities of this size were there? Just how many people had lived here before the monsters had ruined everything?

Dotty's eye followed Miso's finger as it pointed to their destination: In front of them, almost a hundred metres away, rose a vertical metal wall. As Dotty traced the massive structure with her eyes she realised it was the chassis of a spaceship trapped within this space. It was at ninety degrees to the floor, turned so that it faced directly at them. The sharp nose had crashed through the wall, leaving a colossal opening. Luckily, it seemed to hang there, suspended by all the cables and girders.

"Woah…" said Dotty. "Your mother is in there?"

"Yup. Let's go!" Miso smiled her huge smile.

Dotty took a breath and followed after.

That snaking path of planks took them to the bottom of the stairs that led to the ship's former bridge. They were halfway up the stairs when they heard voices from inside.

"No! And there's nothing more to say about it."

When she heard that, Miso's eyebrows rose. She turned to Dotty and whispered: "That's Mum!"

"Mercedes, at least hear me out," a surly male voice replied to her. "Do you want to live like this forever? How long can we keep this up?"

"Follow me," said Miso, and she jumped into a nearby airlock.

As Dotty landed behind her, she bent double and her hands shot reflexively to protect her stomach. 

The bridge was upside down. Really the airlock had given them access through one of the walls of the ship, but it now served as a floor. The ship was dim inside and disorder reigned. The control consoles over their heads had been scavenged, their electronic innards hanging loose, or ripped out at the roots. The air was thick with that rancid odor that covered all of Eidolon and, touching the wall, Dotty found it was covered in a film of slime. A long time had passed since this ship forgot how to fly.

Still barefoot, Dotty followed Miso between the various nails and pieces of glass that littered the floor. They followed an amber light down the hall, peeking through a crack in the panelling. They heard the voices again, but this time closer.

"I'm not putting my daughter in danger even if your plan was foolproof! Which, by the way, it most definitely isn't."

A warm light poured through the double doors in front of them.

"Nothing is foolproof, but we have an opportunity here. It's all in my plans!" They heard a blow, as if someone had struck a table. "And she doesn't need you to protect her like that. She's stronger than the two of us combined."

As Dotty and Miso entered the room, the argument abruptly stopped. An awkward silence followed.

"Miso, why did you bring our guest here? In her state, she should be resting."

Dotty studied her surroundings. What would have been a meeting room when the ship was functional had now become some kind of improvised laboratory. There were machines with blinking monitors that showed arcane graphics, strange-coloured samples in mason jars, and numerous folders and loose papers scattered across the floor. A large metal table occupied the centre of the room. Lying on the table, lit by a fluorescent bulb overhead, were Dotty's exosuit and rifle.

"But Mum, you said you wanted to speak to her…" She looked down at her feet.

Miso's mother had a dark complexion with black hair and a wide grey streak in her fringe. She wore tattered overalls covered in additional pockets and her sleeves were rolled up to her elbows. There was an identification badge sewn on the chest that said "Mercedes Dupont, Engineer."

The woman came over to Dotty and offered her hand.

"I'm Mercedes. I was hoping to pay you a visit before this guy dropped by. How are you feeling?"

The man behind her cleared his throat.

"I'm Dorothy, but everyone calls me Dotty."

"Nice to meet you, Dotty," replied the engineer. Then she shot a look at the only man in the room. "I guess we may as well make introductions. Dotty, this is Commander Narrow. He leads one of the few tribes we keep in contact with."

"You the girl with the exosuit?" He held out a massive hand that was rough as bark.

Dotty gave it her best grip.

He must have been almost sixty. Half of his face and his entire right arm were covered in deep grooves, perhaps scarred by some kind of acid. He was tall and had a ruddy complexion. His square-jawed face was dominated by a pair of huge grey eyebrows that overshadowed an inquisitive gaze.

"Where did you find the suit and the weapon?"

Mercedes crossed her arms and gave him a disapproving look.

"You don't need to answer him." Mercedes waved to Dotty. "The commander might be a grumpy ogre, but he's harmless."

"I don't mind," Dotty replied. She felt as if the lights were spinning over her head. "I didn't find them. It was T1N." A burning wave of pain rippled through her stomach and dropped her to her knees.

"Are you OK?" Mercedes helped her into a nearby chair. "Sit here. Don't push yourself."

The Commander followed them over to the chair.

"There was a secret room," said Dotty, pausing to gulp down more air. "It was...sector R12, inside the guard outpost."

"How? How did you get inside?" the Commander demanded.

"Narrow! Leave her be! Can't you see she's struggling? She needs rest." Mercedes gently pushed the commander a few paces back.

"But…" Narrow continued. "The stashes in the guard stations were completely inaccessible. We tried everything with those doors."

"T1N opened it." Dotty spoke through gritted teeth. Her throat was dry and an intense heat rose from her feet. "T1N… T1N can open any door."

"Who is this Tin and where is he now?" The Commander was shouting.

Dotty started to sweat profusely and, raising her hands to wipe her face, she saw her fingers were stained with blood.

"Her stomach wound is bleeding again," cried Mercedes. "Miso! Get me bandages, now! You shouldn't have left your bed. You've lost a lot of blood and with that poison in your system…"

Mercedes leaned the chair back until Dotty was almost horizontal. Miso searched through the cupboards and pulled out a small metal first aid kit. Narrow watched the scene leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.

"That looks bad," he said.

Mercedes tried to kill him with a look. "Shut up and make yourself useful for once! Run to Elder Angur and tell him to brew up some root tea."