by Kenneth Andrews

Created on: December 31, 2009   Last Updated: July 26, 2011

The Hero Function

Captain Sharp Johnson stirred as a shower of sparks spattered against the floor an inch to the left of his nose. With a tired groan, he grabbed the base of his chair and hauled himself upright to survey the wreckage.

His ship was falling apart before his eyes. All over the bridge, instrument panels were popping open with dry cracks. The security station was the worst, a steady beat of sharp snaps as the delicate memory crystals were exposed to the atmospheric currents in the room and vaporised.

The few areas not taken up by instruments and displays were covered in rubble. The upper hull had buckled under the first impact and most of the deck immediately above the bridge had just collapsed.

Thank God he’d seen the Signs, Sharp reflected, and evacuated the crew minutes before the Raath fleet had emerged. Now, just as the mad prophetess had said, he alone would be the final victim of the Raath menace. Unless, and he smiled at the thought, he could find a way of destroying seven Raath cruisers even as his own ship hurtled through Sybellious VIII’s upper atmosphere.

Atmosphere? What if...

‘Oh, I wouldn’t bother.’

Sharp jumped four feet in the air at the sound of the voice (internal grav failing as well, then) and whirled to face the unexpected noise. Sitting on the wrecked security station was... well, a bloke in a cloak. Something about the guy was just blurry, and Sharp wasn’t even sure what colour the cloak was. He was glad his latest mission had involved so many hallucinations, or he might have panicked.

As it was, Sharp asked drily. ‘And who the hell are you supposed to be? Death or something?’

The figure coughed, and the sparks froze. ‘Nah, just think of me as a... well-wisher. I’ve got your best interests at heart, Sharp, and I don’t think this is a battle you want to win.’

Sharp glanced at the weapons array, with its single gorgeous ‘ready’ light. ‘What do you mean?’

‘Well,’ the bloke stretched, ‘Supposing there was a way for you to get off this ship and destroy that fleet before it reaches the Tiethoon system where we both know it’ll be wiped out anyway – what happens next?’

Sharp scratched his temple. ‘The crew are all safe, so I guess we’d wait for a new ship and –‘

He was interrupted by the bloke’s laughter. ‘Yeah, 18 months on you’ll be back on a brand new ship

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