S.O.S.

SOS

Bzzt… bzzt… zzz…

“Please… please… someone pick up… anyone,” I whisper to myself in prayer. The small video communicator that I miraculously found had nothing but static on the screen. I’ve been staring at it for what seemed to be eternity, hope beyond hope, until tears started to come to my eyes. Then suddenly, the static stopped, and “Connection Found… Please Wait…” displayed on the screen! Quickly, I wiped my eyes clean, and took some time to listen at the door of the storage closet, my hiding place. I didn’t hear anything, so I turned back to the screen.

“You are now connected to the USF Outer Planetary Station SF316…” Yes! My S.O.S. reached a military outpost! Now I can get out of this nightmare!

But then my spirits fell as I read on. “This is an automated supply and refueling station… If you require a delivery, please press 1...” No… no, no! This won’t help me at all! There aren’t even any humans on those things!

“If you need to be towed, please press 2…” No… please… I don’t want to die here…

“If you require ship repairs, please press 3…” They’re going to find me… it won’t take much longer now…

“For other services, please press 4…” Other services?... I can hope… I press 4 on the video touch screen…

“For this station’s resupply schedule, please press 1…” That isn’t of any help.

“To leave a message for the resupply crew, please press 2…” That… that might work! Maybe I can get a message out to someone… but first, I press 1 to see when my message would be heard…

“USF Outer Planetary Station SF316 is scheduled for resupply on the first of every Earth month with 100 tons of…” Shit! Today’s the tenth! I don’t have more than a day at best… God… I’m going to die. God, I’m too young to die. I close my eyes, and memories from the past just start flooding in: getting my first hoverbike… graduating from the Martian Space Acadamy… my engagement to Julie. By God, I’ll never see Julie again. If only I could…

Beep. Beep. Beep.

The signal for an important message coming through on the ship’s intercom.

“Attention all crew members!” It was the head medical officer, Dr. Stoneheim. “All crew members report to the medical offices for the scheduled vaccinations.” Shit! It’s starting! The plan I couldn’t stop.

“Also, Junior Medical Assistant Jack Bradshaw is still missing and hasn’t reported for the medical staff vaccinations. If anyone sees him… please make sure he reports to the medical offices…” They know. They know that I know. That’s why I can’t leave. That’s why I can’t let them find me…That’s why I need to get help…

I look back to the video communicator. Maybe I can’t survive, but I can warn the rest of the Solar System. Stoneheim is mad. I couldn’t stop him, but maybe someone else can…

“Hello. My name is Jack Bradshaw, Junior Medical Assistant on the MSA Outer System Research Facility,” I began my message. “This is a warning to anyone who finds this message, to the entire System…”

Everything started when a meteoroid struck one of our research vessels. It pierced the hull, but the emergency systems saved the ship from collapsing. But, the impact left the crew unconscious, so the autopilot brought them back to the research facility. I was part of the medical team - led by Dr. Stoneheim - that brought them out of the ship. Their injuries were minor: no one was hit by the meteoroid directly, they were merely knocked unconscious by the momentary loss of air pressure before the emergency systems kicked in.

But there were traces of a strange substance that led to the meteoroid. It was red in color, and had a sticky, yet crumbly texture, like some kind of dried adhesive.

And just then, I hear voices and footsteps from outside the storage room door, from out in the hallway. I hurry to the back of the room, past shelves of various items and equipment and around stacked boxes and metal containers.

“…wasn’t so bad,” says a female voice as the door opens.

“I still can’t stand needles,” responds a male.

Peeking over from behind a pile of boxes, I could see by their touchpads that they were here to take inventory… I couldn’t stay here, so I started to work my way around the room, keeping a couple aisles of shelves between me and them.

“You know, there’s the option of being vaccinated anally,” jokes the female.

“Eugh,” the man shivers. “Well… I’m guessing that’s the option you took?” He jokes back, laughing.

She doesn’t say anything in return, and I can’t see her response, but it doesn’t matter. They won’t be joking for long. The entire medical staff has already been… changed…

I make my way to the door, and slip out into the hallway. I don’t know if those two saw me as I left, so I quickly started walking. To where, I’m not sure, but luckily, the “vaccinations” have only just started, so the halls are quite empty. Not able to think of anywhere else to go, I head towards my room. Hopefully they’ve given up on finding me there by now…

And… I was able to make it to my room unhindered. There wasn’t even anyone watching my door, and no one was inside. I sit on my bed and take out the communicator to continue my message…

Following the red substance, we found the meteoroid. It was very unusual: it was honeycombed on the inside, and the red goo slowly leaked from it like some kind of wax…

A research team was called in to collect to rock while we picked up the unconscious crew onto stretchers and over into the medical wards. Though they had no severe injuries, they remained comatose, and in a few days, they passed on. Soon, the researchers in charge of the meteoroid fell ill. Despite our best efforts, the researchers also passed.

In response, the rock was put in sealed containment. Study was continued on the rock regardless, you could even say it was hastened, with the use of special containment suits to find if it was the source of the illness, and, if it was, how the illness was caused.

In short time, there was no doubt that it was the source of the illness. Many more crew members fell ill and perished. Whole sections of the facility were quarantined. Only a few members of the medical staff - Dr. Stoneheim foremost among them – were allowed to study the meteoroid.

Miraculously, it seemed Dr. Stoneheim was able to create a working vaccine. His small team of medical researchers and himself did not fall ill. He is now a hero. He singlehandedly stopped what could have been a massive epidemic. Or so it seemed…

Knock, knock came the sound at my door. I froze.

“Hey! Is someone in there?” I breathed a sigh of relief. That voice was Ben’s. I’ve known him since we were kids, and one could say I followed him out to this research facility. Or maybe he followed me, you can’t really tell. I opened the door.

“Hey! I thought I heard you talking in there. Where have you been, man? Your coworkers have been looking for you. You need to get vaccinated. I just got done.” Jesus… this “vaccine” works fast… Ben’s face was pale. I could see the outlines of his veins underneath. God… I don’t want to lose my best friend…

“I… don’t think I should,” I weakly reply.

“Why the hell not? A doctor shouldn’t be afraid of needles… hell, you look pale. If you took the vaccine you should just say so, they told me that that would be a side-effect. The place is starting to look like it’s filled with ghosts.” He grins.

“No… I haven’t taken it…” I can’t think of any way to save Ben. Shit, I can’t even save myself…

“Shit, is something wrong dude?... Ah hell, you’re sick aren’t you?! That’s why you’ve been hiding, isn’t it? Shit man, you should have gone to see Dr. Stoneheim…”

“No!” I shout, pushing Ben out of my room. I close the door and lock it.

“Dude! What the fuck?!”

“I’m fine, Ben,” I shout through the door. “I’ve just… got to use the bathroom, okay?”

“Bullshit. You’re sick, Jack. I’m gonna go get Dr. Stoneheim.” And I hear him run off.

I don’t have much time. I have to finish my message. I have to warn everyone…

Once the vaccine was found, the quarantine level was lowered: you could go to any part of the facility, but you just couldn’t leave until you were vaccinated. That’s why I couldn’t leave. That’s why I still can’t leave. But there’s no way in hell I’m getting “vaccinated”.

I was the last person to go check out my office in the medical ward; I’d been spending my day reassuring my family, and Julie, that everything was all right; that the illness was done spreading and that they didn’t need to worry about me… It was late, afterhours, so I was the only one there. Or so I thought. I noticed that the door to Dr. Stoneheim’s office was open, and the light on his desk was on. Curious, I walked in.

I didn’t see anyone around, so I made my way to Stoneheim’s desk. Under the desk-light, I saw papers on the meteoroid, and the illness that came from it. It seems that the “rock” was actually a hive for some kind of neural parasite… and the red goo actually preserved them in the vacuum of space. Next to the files were several vials of a yellow serum. It was the real vaccine. I decided to pocket one, since I was going to be taking it anyway. I knew Stoneheim personally; he’d understand that I’d rather protect myself sooner rather than later.

It was then that I heard a muffled grunt from the adjacent clinical room. Wondering who else could be around so late, I walked over and opened the door. The room was dark… only a small LED hanging from the ceiling provided illumination… There, I saw Dr. Stoneheim hunched over someone who was lying on a surgical bed. Then… I noticed those strange sounds… it was similar to the sound of knuckles cracking… then the sound of something tearing and ripping. Then the man on the bed twitched… but I couldn’t see what was happening. Dr. Stoneheim was standing in the way. But then he turned, and…

“Jack! Come out here!” Ben was back. “I’ve got some of your coworkers here; they’re here to take you to see Dr. Stoneheim. They’ve explained to me that the illness makes people delirious… so they’re here to help make sure you don’t hurt yourself…”

No… It’s too soon; I didn’t get to finish…

“Okay, Jack. I’m opening the door. The captain loaned me the master key.”

This was it. I’m done for… the most I can do is leave the communicator on and hope it catches everything…

The door opened just as I pocketed the device. Two medical staff members walked into the room. I barely recognized them. They’re faces were sickeningly pale, and their eyes were glazed over. They stared at me without looking at me. It’s like they were zombies.

I didn’t resist any more. My coworkers grabbed me by the arms and led me to the medical ward. Though Ben gave me a look of concern, he stayed behind. I took one last look back at him and he gave me a reassuring smile. I was resigned. I’ve long since accepted I was a dead man.

I was taken straight to Stoneheim’s office and into the adjacent room I saw him in earlier. There were more of my coworkers waiting in the room. They stood there like statues. I could hardly bear to look at them… they didn’t seem human. They were too still… I couldn’t even tell if they were breathing. They didn’t even look at me. I don’t think they could do anything but stare anymore…

I sat on the same surgical bed that I saw before, and waited. The room was silent, but for my own breathing. As I sat there, the hairs on the back of my neck prickled. Though the pale sentinels in the room weren’t looking at me, I couldn’t help but feel that they were watching me. I didn’t know what would happen to me. My heart started beating faster. I thought I would be able to stay calm, resigned to my fate, but I can’t stop the panic.

But then I froze when the door opened, and Dr. Stoneheim walked in. Rather than simply being pale, his skin was actually graying. He looked like a corpse. Yet… he was moving with a strange youthful energy. As if he was at the peak of his life despite being over 60 years old. Despite being a walking corpse. His eyes… rather than being glazed… they were dilated and bloodshot. The way they looked at me was worse than the glazed stare of the sentinels.

Then he grinned. Jesus, that grin is wicked. It revealed more of his teeth than it should, his cheeks stretched out more than they should. By God, his cheeks were actually cracked and flaking, revealing a dusty flesh underneath. It’s like the man is rotting. Yet here he is… grinning like the reaper.

“Jack,” he said. “You were supposed to be vaccinated properly.”

My breathing quickened.

“Now look at you. You’re sick.”

There was something about his voice. It was threatening. It was ominous. It was thirsty.

“What am I to do? We don’t have a cure. Only a vaccine.”

“I took the vaccine,” I managed to respond.

“Oh no no. That wasn’t the proper vaccine. But sadly… since you’ve taken that, the proper vaccine won’t work… oh what to do…”

I’m pretty sure I know what he’ll do… I’m a dead man.

“Well… maybe I can still do something… with my special tools…”

I knew it. I’m dead.

“Hold him down.” The four sentinels finally move, and they each grab one of my limbs. Their movements are mechanical. Like robots. They force me down onto the bed. I couldn’t move even if I tried.

“Do you know what’s about to happen?”

I’m going to die. He pushes his palm against my forehead, pushing my head against the hard cushions.

“Oh… you think you know… but you don’t know the half of it…”

The change was instant, but subtle. His grin was back, but he no longer looked like a corpse. He looks like a beast. My breathing quickened. No. No! This isn’t how I wanted to die! I don’t want to die! My heart started racing. Looking at his face, I can swear that he’s going to eat me. By God, he’s not human.

“My, my. I haven’t even done anything yet. Look at how you’re sweating.” He bent down and licked my forehead. Pain shot through my body; it’s like he electrocuted me! When he pulled back, I saw that his tongue was coated red. Jesus! Is that blood!? I struggle against the pale figures that are holding me down. As I thought, despite my adrenaline, despite my panic, I can’t break free.

He grasps both sides of my head and brings his face close to mine. God, I can’t stand to look at him. His eyes. They don’t look human. There’s more red than white, and his pupils are bottomless. It’s like staring into Hell itself. I try to close my eyes, but he keeps them open. I try to shake him off, but his grip is too strong. Then something forces its way into my mouth; I gag. I don’t know what it is; I can’t see anything but his eyes. My body heaves as something forces its way down my throat, down my esophagus. I swear some kind of tendrils and wriggling their way into my lungs and stomach. I try to choke; I try to vomit. I heave, but it’s futile. Even my insides are under his control.

His eyes. They start flowing with that strange, waxy red substance. It drips into my eyes. By God! The pain! My eyes are melting! All I can see is red! I try to scream, but I can’t. My body can only twitch and spasm; but my bonds aren’t going to loosen. I want to will myself to die, or at least to faint. But I can’t. I’m stuck in this nightmare, where my body is no longer my own, and my entire world is agony.

Then something else forces its way up my nose; into my head.  It feels like I’m going to explode. Even though your brain can’t feel: I know. I know that my mind is going to be taken as well.

You’re right. That serum you took was indeed the vaccine for the “illness”. But what you call an illness is the real cure: the cure for humanity. I took that serum as well, but then the Hive took me whole instead. Now I’ve transcended beyond humanity. And even though you took that serum, you can still join me. I’ll turn you into a new Hive.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Hello? Is anyone out there? This is Thomas Linfield of resupply crew 316. Please, someone pick up. I don’t know what’s going on here… This is the USF Outer Planetary Station SF316… It was scheduled for resupply on November 1, 2047… but when the crew got here… we found this… body… It had some red slime leaking from its eyes, mouth, nostrils and ears… Fucking hell, the sight of it made me vomit. But we also found this message recorded here at the station. It’s from the same guy. By the name of Jack Bradshaw. I’m not sure what’s going on…”

“My crewmates have gone insane. They won’t let me leave. All I can do is ask for help.”

“Please. Anyone.”

“…”

“…”

Bzzt… bzzt… zzz…