Chariot 3: Conception

“How?” The Head of the platoon could not quite understand how they would possibly go anywhere on that ‘pile of scrap metal’ as he referred to Chariot 3 in his insulting thoughts.

At the pace Cai Yiu`s silhouette disappeared within the crack, Captain Shon Shoffer reached the Inter Deck of his ship. A group of scientists, still scared with the shooting that had just taken place in the outer side, did not dare to do anything other than stare at the four entities that now shared the same dark and enclosed space with them.

Shoffer could not avoid noticing the trembling light not far on his right, one of the frightened engineers whose shaky hand was still holding his flashlight. Without saying a word, the Captain stepped ahead towards the doors that had been locked since their departure.

The light slowly followed him as the man`s curiosity – like his fear – could not be contained.

Cai Yiu was the last one to reach the deck. Like the others, it took him a few seconds until he could reestablish his balance over the leaning deck.

The door suddenly opened.

The flashlight died.

Darkness.

“Welcome.” Sissy`s voice sounded warm inside their heads.

Flumen and the others never thought they would feel so happy to hear her voice again.

The two men who were holding the oversized saw finally dropped it on floor.

Cai Yiu turned his face on their direction, giving them a reprehending look, whether they could seem him or not.

Shoffer and his crew walked into the next room while the men that remained behind could not see a thing, no matter how much they forced their eye pupils to see in the pitch-dark room.

The door closed behind Cai Yiu immediately after he crossed its frame. Until that point, none of them were quite certain of what awaited in the other side. The excitement was overwhelming.

Inside, a dimmed light gave them a vague idea of what stood ahead.

As their eyes adjusted to the darkness, Shoffer and the others saw the black cocoon shaped capsule on their wait.

They were all speechless with what their ship`s entity had built, under the utmost secrecy.

Sissy`s conception of her own little vessel. “Almost like a mother conceives a son.” Shoffer silently thought.

“Time to board.” She sounded divine.

Her voice was suddenly followed by a decompressing noise, created by the four hatches that opened like a flap.

Shoffer took the lead, followed by V-Nus who set on the seat on his right.

Without ceremonies, Cai Yiu and Flumen joined their seats at the back.

Followed by an static noise, the crew felt the back of their uniforms being pulled against their seats which subsequently inclined, bringing them to a reclined position at the same pace the hatch flaps came down, hermetically sealing the cockpit.

More than ready to depart, V-Nus looked around in search of the commands. “Nothing.”

“Not this time, V-Nus.” The voice tried to calm the Martian down, while telling him that he was not the assigned pilot of that flight.

Shoffer and V-Nus looked at each other, and due to the dimmed interior, only saw a vague shade of each other`s face.

“Prepare for takeoff.” Her voice was followed by a loud magnetic bang that resembled the sound of an ignition.

Although V-Nus knew the engine of the capsule was on, none of them would hear any noise other than an almost imperceptible vibration that flowed through their bodies. For a second, Flumen wondered whether it was the capsule or the tension of his body which he tried to control.

The upper side of Chariot 3 dissolved, giving them a clear path to escape. The light of the hangar flowed into Chariot 3, briefly blinding the crew.

Shoffer and the others blocked the brightness of the spotlights with the palm of their hands, until they finally saw the ceiling of the structure once their eyes adjusted to the light.

“Sissy, it does not sound like a bright idea.” The Captain rephrased himself noting that the ceiling of the hangar separated their craft from the skies.

“Do not worry Shon. I have run my calculations…” Her voice sounded sweeter than ever, almost maternal, as if she was talking to a child.

“…Launch!” She continued with no hesitation. It was time to go home.

“Sissy….nooooo!” They screamed.

The just born cocoon took off. The crew closed their eyes just before the impact against the roof of the hangar which was punctured like a paper sheet.

V-Nus was the only one whose eyes were kept opened during the entire time. After a few seconds, his hand reached the shoulder of his Captain, alerting him that everything was fine.

They had made it.

Shoffer opened his eyes and looked to the left over his shoulder, observing the last traces of stratosphere that slid over the cockpit.

Flumen looked to the side of his transparent window and observed the last images of the bright lights that illuminated many cities underneath. As they rapidly gained distance, he saw the blue planet on its entirety, getting even more magnificent at the pace it got smaller.

As they entered the space, the four travelers watched the constellations of stars become closer along their way. Their bodies relaxed and they felt the pleasant feeling of being back on their chairs, back on track.

“Take us back home Sissy.” Captain Shoffer ordered with a satisfied tone on his commanding voice.

“Shon, I am unable to do so.” Sissy replied.

“What? Why?” Shon was confused. A concerning tone embed the air of the claustrophobic capsule.

Shoffer then finally noticed something strange, and so did the others. The voice did no longer sound inside their minds but behind their ears.

“Because…” Sissy paused “…I am a ship no longer.”

Rather confused, they looked back, feeling the unveiled presence behind them.

They heard the noise of the concealed seat that rose from its horizontal position, slowly reviewing the vague contour of a person and its long hair that cascaded on the sides of an incredibly delicate face about to become visible.

Shoffer`s gaping expression had no words to describe what he was about to see. Among the silence, his increasing heartbeat could be heard by the others at the same speed his hands started to sweat.

Starting from the front, a dimmed light slowly illuminated the capsule until its purple color reached the back of the cocoon shaped craft, finally giving the sensual silhouette a face.

“Sissy…” More than ever, Shoffer strove to say her name, wondering if that perhaps was dream from which he would wake up at any time to find out he was still locked in his cell.

Her blue eye found his and she gave him a short smile, gently throwing her blonde fringe that covered her other eye to the back. “Shon…” she said.

The platonic relationship had finally been brought to an end.

Sissy had accomplished the miracle of life. She had transferred her consciousness into a genetically perfect body.

Her dream of turning herself, the ship`s entity, a live machine, into a flawless being using no more than a DNA sample from the drop of her Captain`s blood, had come true.

At that moment, Shon touched his chin, connecting the dots that the others could not yet understand. Shoffer recalled the moment his face hit the deck of Chariot 3 after he fell off the ship, and the single drop of blood that dripped from his chin, still with the fresh mark.

“Interesting.” Said Flumen as he contemplated her features while wondering whether she had designed her body to look the way she would have been or the way she wanted it to be. But that, he probably would never find out.

Flumen`s hand then carefully touched her long straight hair. “Hair. A rare feature that will certainly bring jealousy among the women in Nibiru.”

Cai Yiu`s hand swiftly slapped Flumen`s hand off her.

“Don`t worry Captain. I will take us home.” A pleasant perky voice broke the awkward moment that Flumen created.

“And who are you?” Shoffer`s curious tone enquired.

“I am Sonicoon but you can call me Son.” The vivid voice replied.

Captain Shon Shoffer swallowed his dry saliva down his throat as he noticed that there were probably more things done with his DNA than he was mentally prepared to learn of.

“This will be a really long trip.” V-Nus added while analyzing the features of the capsule.

“Correct. But I will make it as pleasant as it can possibly be. Prepare to hibernate.” Sonicoon tried to be compassionate.

“Hibernate?” Shoffer asked.

“Do you mean, this is as fast as this capsule goes?” V-Nus enquired with a true lack of excitement in his voice as he referred to the capsule`s current speed.

The crew was immediately pulled back on their seats which subsequently inclined even further, reaching an almost completely horizontal position. As they stared at the deckhead, they observed the purple light slowly dimming down at the same pace their bodies started to relax and their eyes to close until the interior of the capsule became dark again. Their ears felt plugged and all they heard was an insignificantly low sound, more like a gas filling their chamber. They all felt a slight dizziness just before becoming unconscious for the next hundreds of years to come.