Hey everyone. This is a short story I wrote as a piece of fan fiction for Influence, an in-development, realistic, space-based MMO set in an asteroid field around a distant star. I hope you enjoy it!
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Alarms blared through the ship. The harsh clanging tones echoed through the bay. A strong, disconcerting wind blew through the hanger as the air rushed towards a small hole in the hull.
Bad luck. The ship had shielding of course. But a tiny rock must have hit at just the wrong angle and speed to punch through. Phine had actually seen it ping off the far wall, leaving a noticeable dent, but having expended most of its energy on the initial puncture. I guess I should be thankful for that at least she thought.
Phine glanced over at Tyn who was frantically trying to keep various tools from flying through the hole as well. They had been preparing and testing the sampling probe for their next target. Some of the smaller loose parts and wires had already been sucked out of the ship. And Phine could feel herself being pulled in that direction as well.
Through the enhancement implant in her left eye socket, Phine could see the hole slowly growing in size as the outgoing air and detritus bent and deformed the carbon fiber of the ship's hull. The Ampherion was an exploratory vessel, and had no internal spin, and thus, no gravity. Except now, the inexorable pull towards the Dark Mother through the breach had created its own gravity of a sort.
Most spacers paid respects to the Dark Mother. Though some of those who lived deep in the bowels of the Arvad, only venturing onto smaller craft for quick transports between hab stations, didn't really understand. Anyone who had stood with only a suit between them and the void came to a different mindset, or philosophy. Though many turned it into a religion -- making regular offerings through the airlocks to the Mother, praying for safe journeys and if not, then at least a quick death.
But Phine wasn't ready to join the Mother's cold embrace. Not today. She reached for a large toolbox nearby. Naturally, it was magnetized in place. But thankfully, deactivating the magnetic clamps was a quick and simple process. Maneuvering the heavy toolbox itself was a bit trickier, as the void began to pull on it as soon as the clamps were released. But the emergency patch kits were too far away and sometimes, emergencies required improvisation. Phine pushed and lifted the toolbox as it slid with increasing speed across the floor. Without gravity, inertia would play an important role here, and she couldn't shift the box too quickly or she would would miss the breach entirely!
She eyed her target on the wall, trying to gauge the right angle as she pushed off from the floor, launching herself and the toolbox at the damaged section of the hull. With a jarring thud, Phine and the toolbox slammed into the wall, covering the hole as the rush of air ended with a quick shriek. Leaning against the wall, Phine breathed slowly and deeply as pressure and oxygen returned to normal levels. It seems she and the rest of the crew would remain alive. At least a while longer. For a spacer, it wasn't a matter of whether or not the Mother would claim you, but when. For the crew of the Ampherion, that would be another time.
For now, Phine needed to check on the damage to the ship and make plans for repairs. And she also owed an offering to the Dark Mother. Even in a technologically advanced society, one did not deny the Gods their due!
