Beware of Help Signals

Prompt One
Word Count = 4,990

Beware of Help Signals

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The Cargo

     What looked like a giant metal frog with a white flame shooting out its back orbited a small orange and blue planet. From that planet, a smaller metal frog floated up toward the larger one. When it got under the giant frog a part of underpart of it slid open. Once it opened the Smaller frog floated up through it.

     The smaller frog hovered in the air above the opening until it slid closed. Then it landed onto the floor of a large room half filled with about twenty large wood looking boxes. A couple of minutes later an adult sized light blue frog exited the smaller frog after a door sized portion of it disappeared. The clothing they wore depended on their individual tastes.

     As Breane headed for a large back end of that smaller frog she tapped a button on her shoulder. “Breane to Command Central. The last of our cargo is onboard. We should be ready to leave in about an hour.”

     In Command Central Kendan punched buttons on the control panel in front of him. After a few seconds, Kendan swiveled toward Loura who sat in a chair right behind him. “I have completed our destination, but there is a problem with it. It’s in the part of our Sector we have never been in.”

     “I know where are destination takes us,” said Loura. “That’s where our cargo is headed.”

=====-=====-=====-=====-=====-=====

     “It’s been almost three weeks since we started our journey to Veggian. That’s what they call their planet. So far we haven’t encountered any problems in this part of our Sector.” Loura sat in her chair in an empty Command Central. She is staring at the ever changing space on the large main monitor in front of her. “We figure it will take us about four more months to reach our destination.”

     Loura tapped a button on the arm of her chair before, “Usually we don’t take on unknown cargo like what we got, but we need the units. The last couple of years has been pretty bad. There are so many cargo transports in this sector it’s hard for us to get fuel gems for our spaceship and food in our bellies. When this cargo assignment came up and no one else would take it because of the fear of the unknown or because the cargo is unknown we took it. It’s either that or run out of fuel gems and starve to death.”

     Just then an alarm started blaring. It echoed throughout Command Central. A reddish green light started flickering. “What happened?”

     “It’s the cargo.” Waltim could hardly be heard.

     “What happened to the cargo? Was there an explosion of some kind. If so I didn’t hear it or feel it up here.”

     Several attempts to respond had been tried but only ended up being garbled. “Turn off the alarm.” A few seconds later the alarm and the flickering stopped.

     For a minute nothing happened. “No explosion. It’s worse than that.”

=====-=====-=====-=====-=====-=====

     A few minutes later Loura came running into the observation room overlooking the cargo bay. “What’s going on with the cargo? How can it be worse than an explosion?”

     “About an hour ago a bright yellow light started shining out of the large boxes. A few minutes later I started hearing wild dangerous animal sounds. I think we are transporting deadly animals,” said Waltim.

     “What makes you think they are a threat to us?” Loura asked. “That is why you sounded an alarm, isn’t it?”

     “Look at them. Listen to them,” said Waltim. “What does that sound like to you?”

     Loura turned and looked down into the cargo bay below. What she saw were about a hundred large boxes shaking. Around half shook violently. A few pulsated out then back to normal box shapes. The smaller boxes behind them remained solid with the floor.

     “They must have been in some kind of sleep mode up until now,” said Loura. “I don’t think we are in any danger. At least not yet. Watch them closely. If they become violent or break out let me know.”

=====-=====-=====-=====-=====-=====

     “I don’t think these animals aren’t dangerous to us,” said Loura as she continued observing the animals. “Over the last month after the first few days of restlessness, the animals calmed down. They still make animal sounds every so often. Other than that they are quite. Maybe they sleep a lot.”

     “I’m just like everyone else onboard. I take my turn watching these animals. With only six of us and thirty hours in a day, we all have to take turns watching the cargo.” Loura got up stretched then started walking around that room. She never took her eyes off the cargo. “We do this with all of our cargo, but this time it’s more important that we do.”

     “We still don’t know what they eat or how they dispose of the waste, but we think it has something to do with those smaller boxes. Maybe they are the kind of animals who don’t need a lot of food or can go a long time between eating.”

A Call for Help

     “It’s been almost three weeks since our cargo woke up and we haven’t had any problems since then,” said Waltim as he sat down at a small table with some food and started eating it. “This has been the easiest cargo run we have ever had. Too bad they can’t all be like this one.”

     Breane, Loura, and Forni had already started eating. “Don’t say things like that,” said Breane. “You know what happens when someone says something like that. Something always happens. Usually for the bad.”

     Just then an alarm started bellowing. A reddish green light began flickering throughout the eating area. Startled Forni knocked some of her food onto the floor. All four got up and ran toward the only entrance into that room. As Loura ran she tapped a button on her shoulder. “What happened. Did the animals do something.”

     “It’s not the animals.” Norrus' voice could be heard by all four as they exited the eating area. “How strange. The animals don’t even seem to be reacting to the alarm or the flashing lights.”

     As Loura and the others ran down a corridor Kendan's voice could be heard. They don’t react as they near a closed door that slid open, to reveal a transport tube, when they got close to it. “I'm the one who sent out the alarm. We might have a problem ahead of us.”

=====-=====-=====-=====-=====-=====

     “What did you mean by that?” Loura asked as she entered Command Central. “How do you know we are going to have a problem up ahead?”

     “We got a Help Signal. It's very faint, but it’s definitely a there.”

     “Is that why you sounded the alarm?” Loura took her chair. “We get these signals all the time. What makes this one different than the others?”

     “According to SpaceLaw, we have to respond to any help signal if we can. Whether we can help them or not I don’t think we should do it.”

     “I know what the law is. Why do you suggest we don’t try to help them?”

     “It’s coming from one of those planets up ahead. I already did a long-range scan trying to locate the signal. All the planets ahead are heavily populated. This signal could be a death trap.”

=====-=====-=====-=====-=====-=====

     Loura sat in a small room staring at five large monitors in front of her. They formed a semi-circle around her and each one had a different crew member on it. Kendan still sat in Command Central. Waltim scanned the animals one at a time while they talked to Loura. Breane sat behind the controls of the small metal frog. Norrus stared at his engine area. Forni sat in the eating area eating.

     “I have been thinking about this for the last couple of days, and I don’t know if we should try to help them or not. What do you think we should do?”

     No one responded for several minutes. Not one questions or comments, but a lot of mumbling. Kendan finally broke the silence. “I don’t know what to do either but whatever it is we need to do it soon. We can’t just sit here in space forever. There’s still a cargo we need to deliver.”

     “I’m not sure what we should do either,” said Breane. “One hand says we should do it. The other says we shouldn’t risk it. I have checked out the cargo shuttle. So if you decide we should respond I am ready.”

     “It doesn’t really matter what we think,” said Norrus. “The final decision is up to you. You're the one in command of this cargo transport.”

=====-=====-=====-=====-=====-=====

     In Command Central Loura stood behind Kendan. “Put up a SpaceMap on the main monitor.”

     A few seconds later an image of the space in front of them appeared on the main monitor. Loura and Kendan looked up at the monitor and saw twelve small multi-colored circles surrounding a slightly larger yellowish orange circle.

     “Do you know which planet is the one who sent the help signal?” Loura asked. “None of those planets are signaling you have.”

     “We still aren’t close enough yet to know that.” Kendan looked up at Loura. “I have been continuously scanning them ever since we started moving toward them and we are almost going to be among them before we get the signal.”

     Loura sat down in her chair and looked back up at the monitor. “Keep scanning. Let me know as soon as we know which planet it is. Also, let me know if any of those planets are showing signs this is a trap.”

     “I thought you made your decision to help them if we could.” Kendan returned to his control panel and started tapping buttons.

     “That was my decision, but we can still divert around them if we have to. It’s never too late to do that. It just means we won’t get to our destination for another month or two.”

Unknown planet

     The metal frog spaceship entered the orbit of a dark almost completely black planet. Loura and Kendan could see the planet below them on the main monitor. “Our you sure this is the planet? It looks like a death planet,” said Loura.

     “Positive. This is the planet. There is a problem, though. I’m still getting it faintly, but I’m not sure where it is.”

     “Where is it? It’s got to be down there somewhere. We wouldn’t have been placed in orbit here if it wasn’t right below us.”

     A close-up of the planet appeared on the main monitor. It showed that part of the planet as mostly wooded. Loura and Kendan also saw there was a small clearing on the other side of the wooded area and two large rock structures. They also saw a storm just beyond the clearing.

     “Did you scan the wooded area? It could be in those tall rock structures. Maybe that storm is interfering with you locating it.”

     “I scanned the wooded area and the rock structures. It could be the storm, but I don’t think so. According to the scans, it’s in the clearing. If it is I can’t see it.”

     Loura didn’t respond for several minutes. “There doesn’t seem to be any living structures. Where is the population? Didn’t you tell me all these planets were heavily populated?”

     “That’s another problem I had with my scan I don’t understand. There was a very large population. I even scanned underground too, and they are there either. Unless they are deep underground.”

     “Maybe that’s why they need help. Why would they go deeper underground, though?”

     “There could be another reason we can’t find them. It could be because there isn’t any anymore. They could have died somehow or were killed.”

=====-=====-=====-=====-=====-=====

     “Breane to Command Central. We are ready to head for the planet below. Will contact you when we find the help signal.”

     The cargo shuttle lifted up and hovered just above the floor. Once the sliding floor opened the shuttle lowered itself out of the spaceship. After it got cleared of the spaceship it headed for the planet.

     “Kendan to Command Central. Can you still hear us.”

     “We hear you clearly,” said Loura. “Turn on your exterior view. I want to see what’s going on.”

     A few seconds later the image of the shuttle disappeared to be replaced by the planet and the shuttle heading for it. Loura watched as the shuttle entered the planet’s atmosphere and headed for the planet surface.

     Then suddenly the image went black. “What happened,” Loura shouted.

     The shuttle mostly stayed shakily straight, but every few seconds it tipped to one side or another, and twice it spun upside down. Long sparks started shooting out of it all over. Small thin flames escaped from all around it.

     Inside the shuttle Breane and Kendan gripped the oblong rectangle red metal bars so tight their blue and red hands faded fast. They pulled back and pushed forward their control bars. Breane and Kendan were also being tossed aside.

     Breane and Kendan kept their eyes on the shuttle viewport. The shuttle headed for one of the rock structures. Both Breane and Kendan did a sharp side turn forcing the shuttle to go in between the rock structures. As it passed between them four thin round glowing gold rods appeared. Three started slicing through the shuttle.

     The shuttle quickly backed up. Only a few feet got sliced through. About a minute later the shuttle went around the rock structures. Just as it passed the structure the shuttle headed for the clearing. Suddenly it veered off toward the storm. It speeded up as it got closer to it.

     Loura sat behind the control frantically tapping at the controls. Every few seconds she looked up at the main monitor. After several minutes the image from the planet re-appeared. Loura got the image back just after the shuttle got sliced up. She saw as the shuttle went into the storm. Just after the shuttle entered the storm it blew itself outward into tiny petite pieces.

=====-=====-=====-=====-=====-=====

     Loura stared at what happened with a shocked look. She tapped a button on the control panel and replayed the death of Breane and Kendan. “Not only were they two of the best pilots I have ever had the privilege to know, they have been my friends for almost thirty years.”

     Waltim, Forni, and Norrus stood behind Loura with shocked looks. Forni also looked at the two smaller monitors on either side of the main one. That’s where the animals were being shown at different angles every few seconds.

     “They were our friends too,” said Norrus. “We are going to miss them just as much as you are.”

     “I know you were their friends too, but you didn’t know them as long as I did. We started this transport business together. You have only known them a few years.”

     “Maybe we haven’t known them as long as you, but we are still going to grief for them. Especially considering how they died,” said Forni. “They died for nothing. There isn’t anyone down there to help.”

     Loura looked at Forni then at Waltim and Norrus. “I should never have sent them down there before we knew everything there was about this planet. It’s my fault they are dead.”

     “No, it isn’t. You didn’t know there wasn’t anyone down there to help,” said Waltim.

     “I don’t know why it said it was heavily populated too. Maybe it’s because it’s so close to several of the other planets around it. Whatever the reason I shouldn’t have sent them down there. That help signal could have been sounding for centuries. Which would explain why the other planets around here didn’t respond to it.”

     “Speaking of the help signal, what are we going to do about it? Are we going to continue looking for it or should we just leave?”

     Loura looked at Norrus. “I don’t see any reason why we should remain here, do you? As soon as we deal with Breane and Kendan we are going to leave here. We still have a cargo transport to complete.”

=====-=====-=====-=====-=====-=====

     “There is nothing left for us to dispose of. The storm did it for us. All we can do is grief for them, and we have done that for a week. It’s time for us to leave,” said Loura.

     Norrus sat in one of the smaller chairs on either side of the big one Loura sat in. “We will always grief for them, and we will never forget them, but we need to move on with our lives.”

     Forni sat in one of the two small chairs right behind the big one. “I agree. Let’s get out of here. The sooner we do the better. I never liked this planet even before it killed Breane and Kendan. It makes my skin dry up every time I look at it.”

     Waltim sat next to Forni. He stared at the empty chair in front of them. “I know this sounds morbid, but what are we going to do about a pilot.”

     “I’m going to be the pilot from now on.” Loura got up and took the single chair in front of the others. “They were a thousand times better than me, but I can still fly anything there is too. Now get to your departments. We are going to be leaving in about an hour.”

     “Stop! Don’t go.” A female voice echoed throughout Command Central.

     “We need you help. If you don’t help us we will all die.” A male voice echoed even louder.

     “There is a population here after all,” said Loura. “The big question is, where are they?”

     Loura started punching buttons. “I’m going to find them even if I have to go to the core of this planet. Maybe Breane and Kendan didn’t die for nothing after all”

Finding Answers

     “Before we can help them we have to find them.” Loura slammed her black hands onto the control panel. “Where are they?”

     Waltim stood beside Loura. “We have scanned the core three times, and we haven’t been able to find any signs of them or the help signal.”

     “We know they are there somewhere because they contacted us.” Norrus stood next to Loura on the other side of her.

     “What are we going to do if we can’t find them?” Forni asked from one of the smaller monitors. Behind her the animals could be seen too as Loura, Waltim and Norrus glanced her way.

     “There’s nothing we can do.” Loura returned to the control panel. “I’m going to try one more worldwide scan. If we can’t find them then we will leave.”

     “That should get their attention. We haven’t heard from them since they pleaded us for help. You would think they would be helping us to find them. Why aren’t they?”

     “Waltim is right. We know they are monitoring us somehow,” said Forni. “Why haven’t they tried to contact us again.”

     “I think we should just try to leave,” said Norrus. “Maybe that will get their attention.”

     “It doesn’t really matter,” said Loura. “If we can’t find them we have no choice but to leave.”

     Just then two aliens appeared floating behind Loura, Waltim, and Norrus. They swiveled and turned toward them. Loura, Waltim, and Norrus looked up at a couple adult sized aliens. The aliens floating had normal bodies but instead of hair they had skin sliding down the sides of their heads, arms, and legs.

     The floating aliens said exactly what they did before. “It could be there isn’t anyone for us to find.”

=====-=====-=====-=====-=====-=====

     “Something is wrong here,” said Loura. “I understand us not finding anyone down there if there aren’t any to find, but I didn’t find the help signal either. The final scan we are going to do just came back and it’s the same as the others. There’s nothing there to find.”

     Loura tapped a button. A loud buzzing started with a beeping sound every few seconds. “According to this, the help signal is down there somewhere. So where is it.”

     “It doesn’t matter where it is.” Norrus faced his engines but from Loura’s point of view, he responded to Loura from one of the smaller monitors. “We can’t find them.”

     “So we leave,” said Waltim from another smaller monitor who stood in front of the animals now. “There’s no reason for us to be here and we do have a cargo transport to complete.”

     “We’re almost ready to leave,” said Loura as she returned to punching buttons. “We should be ready to get out of here in a few minutes.”

     The frog spaceship turned toward space. Once it faced in the right direction it took off. Then suddenly stopped. “What happened?” Loura asked looking up at themselves on the main monitor.

     “I don’t understand it. According to the engines, we should be speeding away from here.”

     Forni finished swallowing her piece of food. “We all know why we aren’t moving. It’s because of this planet. It doesn’t want us to leave until we help them. Just like Breane and Kendan, we are all going to die here.”

=====-=====-=====-=====-=====-=====

     “Kendan’s right. This was a trap. It’s just not the one we thought it would be,” said Loura. “The big question is, what are we going to do about it? Because we are going to do something. We aren’t going to die like Breane and Kendan.”

     “I think there is only one thing we can do,” said Waltim. “We have to help the aliens.”

     “How are we going to do it when we can’t even find them?” Norrus asked. “We can’t even find the help signal.”

     “That’s how we help them,” said Forni. “We have to find the help signal.”

     Loura started laughing hysterically. “We have done four scans and have found nothing. What else can we do?”

     “There’s only one thing I can think of to do,” said Waltim. “We have to go back down there and look for it.”

     “Are you crazy. We can’t do that. I have already gotten two of us killed. I’m not going to get the rest of us killed.”

     Suddenly, the two floating aliens re-appeared. “You are thinking too big,” the female floater said.

     “You need to think a lot smaller,” the male floater said.

=====-=====-=====-=====-=====-=====

     Swiveling toward the aliens Loura had a look of wonder. “What do you mean by that?”

     The floating aliens didn’t respond. They just disappeared. “Wait! We need your help for us to help you.”

     “I think I know what they meant,” said Forni. “You will too if you just think about it a little.”

     For several minutes no one said anything. “Maybe I do.” Loura returned to tapping buttons.

     The image of the planet re-appeared. For a few seconds, it looked like what they saw before. Then the surface started getting bigger. The image zeroed in on the clearing. Closer and closer it got to the grass until blades of grass filled the main monitor.

     “There it is. No wonder we couldn’t find it. It’s only about three inches tall.”

We are About to Die Too

     “If the help signal is that small then how tall are the floating aliens,” said Norrus. “They didn’t look that small when they appeared in Command Central.”

     “I didn’t see any of the aliens near to the help signal,” said Loura. “Since they are so small they could be in the wooded area. Maybe even living in the trees. They could also be in the rock structures.”

     “That could be true for both the wooded area and the rock structures,” said Waltim. “They are all over this planet.”

     “So are the storms,” said Forni. “They are all almost right in between the two rock structures.”

     “They still could be living underground,” commented Norrus. “That’s if they are still alive. We still haven’t found any signs they are.”

     “Except for the floating aliens who came onboard,” said Forni. “They could have been some kind of projections too.”

     “Wherever they are if they are here we will soon find them,” said Loura. “I started another scan as soon as we found the help signal.”

     A beeping buzzing sound began about an hour later. Loura tapped a green flashing button. It stopped flashing. She looked up at the main monitor. “If looks like everyone’s right. The aliens are still alive and living in the wooded area, the trees, and the rock structures. They appear to be only about six inches tall.”

=====-=====-=====-=====-=====-=====

     “We need to contact them as soon as possible,” said Loura. “Find whoever is in charge may not be easy, but we need to do as quick as we can.”

     “I'm on my way,” said Forni. “I'll be in Communications in a few minutes.”

     About a half hour later Forni contacted Loura. “It wasn’t easy talking to them until I realized they learned about us when they came onboard. So I did the same thing.”

     “How did you do that without actually going down there? You didn’t go down there somehow, did you?”

     “Sort of, I did. I went down there with my mind.”

     Loura smiled. “I look forward to listening to your daily entry. Did you get into contact with them?”

     “I did. You should be getting an image any time now.”

     An image of another two floating aliens appeared on the main monitor. The first two appeared white. These two floated blue. Another couple thought Loura.

     After introductions, the blue aliens started telling Loura what they needed. Which looked like almost very thing you need to live. They showed what Loura didn’t understand. After about an hour it was over. “We would help you if we can, but we can’t.”

     “That isn’t exactly true,” the female alien said. “You might not be able to help us with one most of it, but you can with one thing.”

     “What we need the most you do have,” said the male alien. “We need meat.”

     Loura pitched forward into the control panel hard. It knocked the wind out of her. She used her yellow hands to push herself back up to a sitting position. Loura looked up at the main monitor and saw their spaceship headed for the planet fast. A few seconds later it entered the atmosphere and headed right for one of the rock structures.

=====-=====-=====-=====-=====-=====

     Tapping a button popped up a metal bar just like the ones in the shuttle. Loura quickly turned that bar sharply. Then she looked up at the main monitor which showed her they barely got around the outside of the rock structure. Once cleared she headed for the clearing. As she did she hit another button.

     “I hope there aren’t any floating aliens in the clearing,” remarked Loura. “Then again, I don’t really care if there are. They just tried to kill us.”

     “Hold on everyone,” Loura said a few seconds later. “We are going to crash land in the clearing.”

     “What about the storm?” Norrus asked. “Isn’t that going to kill us like it did Breane and Kendan?”

     “We are a lot bigger than the shuttle,” responded Loura. “Besides, I already put a force shield around us.”

     “That should protect us,” said Forni. “If we don’t die in the crash itself.”

     A few seconds later the spaceship hit the clearing. It skidded to a stop about a half mile away. Tearing up the grass while doing it. Only the legs of the frog spaceship fell off. A red liquid started gushing out of it.

     “Is everyone okay?” Everyone responded positively. “Forni, I want you to contact those aliens admittedly.”

     “I want to talk to them, and I want to talk to them now.” A few minutes later the two blue aliens appeared on the main monitor again. At least they looked like the same two.

     “Why did you just try to kill us? Was it just to get our animals? How many others have you killed?”

=====-=====-=====-=====-=====-=====

     “You want to know why we did this,” the female floater said. “We did it to save our race.”

     “That’s why we brought you here,” said the male. “You are headed for the planet of Veggian, right?”

     “Yes, you’re right.” Loura looked puzzled look. “How did you know that?”

     “This planet is Veggian,” answer the female. “We are the one who requested the cargo transport.”

     “It can’t be,” said Loura. “Our destination is on the other side of this Sector.”

     “Your destination is here,” said the male. “We only said it was there because we knew you would have to come past here in order to get there on time.”

     “You planned all this just to get these animals,” a shocked Loura said. “You planned on killing us all too, didn’t you”

     “Yes, we did. We are getting desperate,” said the female. “If we don’t get these animals we are all going to die.”

     “Do you know how many animals we really need?” The male asked. “Just one would feed our whole planet of several years. Four or five we could breed would feed us forever.”

     Loura didn’t respond for several minutes. “I know you just tried to kill us, but I think we can still work this out for the both of us anyway.”

     “How can we do that?” The female asked. “We will do almost anything to save our race.”

     “While trying to find you we noticed you have several very valuable minerals on this planet,” Loura smiled. ”You give us those and you can have all the animals.”

     “You can have all of it. All we want is the animals,” the male alien said. “We can even help you repair your spaceship too.”

     It took them just over three months to complete the repairs, but they were finally on their way away from Veggian. All four stood in the observation room. Including Forni via a monitor there. She had Command Central duty at the moment. “Let’s flood this room,” said Loura. “I want to be able to walk anywhere on our spaceship again.”