Free Teardrops In The Night Sky (Steven Gordon series) by J W Murison Page B

watching crowd that easily reached his ears.
    ‘Be careful Steven,’ his father warned.
    Steven keyed his radio, ‘it's ok dad, it feels right.’
    Suddenly the ship began to turn broadside and on the opposite side from the other ship a door slid open and a ramp came gently to rest at his feet.
    ‘Don’t go inside Steven.  Stay where you are,’ his father shouted in his ear.  Steven simply smiled, turned and waved, then preceded up the ramp.
    His father’s scream was suddenly cut off as the ramp slid home.  Steven turned and realised that the door had closed behind him, but the smile never left his face. 
    When he turned back he suddenly became disorientated.  He had no idea of which way was forward or back.  Confused he turned around and around.  Then the lights dimmed and a single light began to run along the wall in one direction.  The smile relit on Steven’s face and he followed it.
    He could make out nothing; the walls were as blank as a plain sheet of paper.  He came to a dead end, but remembering the Colonels words he walked straight towards it and suddenly found himself on the bridge. 
    The same blank sheen met him here.  He took a stroll round the room, running his hands over what seemed to be consoles of some sort.  He looked up at the curved roof and spoke.
    ‘Hello.’  He keyed his microphone, ‘dad , can you hear me?’
    There was no response.  The sweet smell of meadow flowers seemed to permeate the room and Steven began to feel sleepy.
    He suddenly noticed a chair sat a little higher than the rest in the middle of the room.  His forehead wrinkled, he hadn’t noticed it before.  Going over he ran a hand over it.
    ‘This must be the captain’s chair.’  There was no response, but he didn’t mind.  He stumbled a little and felt very clumsy.  The equipment they had made him carry began to feel very heavy. 
    ‘It’s too much,’ he announced to the ship and began to remove his gear.  The Colonel had given him an MP5 and a quick demonstration on how to use it.  He had smiled at the Colonel, but didn’t really care.  That was laid aside first, then the helmet with the camera.  Last went the flak jacket with all its bits and bobs.
    ‘Do you mind if I sit in the Captains chair for a moment?  I feel really tired.’
    There seemed to be no objection and by now his limbs had begun to feel like lead weights.  He had to force himself to stop from slumping down on to the chair.  Eyes became heavy and head began to nod.
    ‘Have I taken all my medicine today,’ he asked himself, ‘maybe it’s all the excitement.  He didn’t realise his speech had became slurred.  The seat felt oh so comfortable.  Without him realising it the seat began to tilt back until it was almost perpendicular to the floor.
    A strange numbness began to creep up his legs.  His fingers began to tingle.  A silver tube snaked out of the seat and travelled up his leg.  It paused, the silver head weaving as though it was trying to locate something.  Then it stuck, piercing his clothing and flesh, its blunt snout piercing the femoral artery.  Steven’s eyes fluttered open for a second, but only a second.  In his last seconds of consciousness, he was sure he heard a gentle feminine voice.
    ‘Sleep my little one and I will take away your pain.’

Chapter 15
     
    I van Malcovich had been with the institute for ten years and was shocked to see one of his mentors dumped in the middle of the floor with blood pumping out of a hole in her shoulder.
    ‘Get a medical kit Ivan,’ shouted one of the men as he ripped open Mary’s blouse.
    Ivan ran over to a pile of gear and grabbed a medical pack.  He handed it to the man, ‘here it is Dick.’
    ‘Thanks, we’ve got to stop the bleeding.’
    Ivan looked away nauseated by the sight of blood, ‘oh my God.’
    ‘It’s not as bad as it looks.  Sales went mad and shot Mary, but she should be all right and we’ll soon have her in hospital,’ Dick