Part 13

     Blanchard only took a moment to crack into the engines access port. Kevin was asked politely if a tad forcefully - from a subordinate to boot, though he still barely remembered her - to watch her back while she figured out why the engines weren't working. "I don't want one of those toothy fuckers biting me in the ass, you know? And this might take a minute," she had said before climbing most of the way into the access port, "especially since I really don't know what I'm doing."

    "Then why are you back here?" Kevin asked as he kept watch.

    "Easy answer. You see an abundance of other volunteers on this ship?"

    Kevin had noticed a distinct lack of other survivors. As far as he knew, he, the captain, and the corporal were the only survivors on the 'tin can' as Blanchard had called it. He kept his head on a swivel and his eyes open. Kevin was sure that the only way to get back home would be for her to get the engines back up and running, so he was going to make damn sure she had that opportunity.

    "There's spores in here" Blanchard called out, muffled from below. "Not the kinds that spit out the quick little bastards, but they're definitely gumming up the works." She cussed a few times and flung some chunks of mushroom out behind her. "This would be way easier with a flame thrower!"

    "Wouldn't that just mess up the engine?"

    "Probably parts of it... Fine, I'll keep at it like this."

    Kevin watched as one of the beasts wandered past the door to the engineering bay, as though bored. He sighted down his pistol - the shotgun wouldn't be as effective at this range - and put his finger inside the trigger guard. He started to squeeze, then stopped, thinking "why doesn't it attack?"

    And then it did. The mouthy monster turned and ran toward him. Simultaneously another monster ran in from the opposite side of the doors, as he heard a vent above him come crashing down and one of the smaller things leapt at him. He tilted and shot a few rounds at the runt, the more wily of the threats. He missed twice, then landed two shots, putting it down as it arced toward him. It thudded to the floor as the other two flanked him and lunged.

    One clamped onto his already hurt shoulder. The pain was excruciating, and as his muscles tightened in spasming pain, he reflexively pulled the trigger, firing one round into the brainpan of the monster that had attempted to clamp on his knees. In what amounted to some sort of luck, it's body went slack immediately and it let go of Kevin. He stepped backward a few feet and slammed the other beast into an engineering console, again and again and again in an attempt to break its grip. It mainly only succeeded in pushing the teeth further into the flesh of his shoulder.

    His mind swam with pain as he slammed the creature again, and he saw another two creatures skulking into the room. Rather one skulked as the other ran, full bore at the corporal. He yelled out again and slammed back another time, apparently into a corner or protrusion, as the beast on his back went limp and broke free, leaving a tooth embedded in his shoulder. The skulker bolted at him, on an intercept course just as he started running toward the beast headed at Blanchard's exposed legs. 

    He retrieved his fireaxe and swung at the beast, yelling out in warning "Blanchard on your six!" He struck it in the jaw, slamming it to the floor as the further beast leapt at it's prone target.