The Shadow of the Moon-Lydia's Tale

Chapter Three

Lydia's body, caught in a violent bout of coughing, was forced back into consciousness.

Momentarily she was disorientated by coming to within her suit. The pain racing through her head made her cry out in pain. Instinctively she curled up, raised her hands to her head and rolled on to her side, banging up against something heavy and immobile. 

She opened her eyes. A spacesuit boot was crushed up against her visor. 

A wave of nausea swept over her. Her chest burned as she doubled up in another spasm of pain. A clot of fluid boiled up in her lungs leaving a thin spray of blood flecked up against the inside of her visor. She tried to ignore it, struggling to sit up to see where she was.  

The suited body next to her was Milo's. She knew that as only he had his own expensive tailor made suit. The rest of them, even Nape, Milo's number two, had a rental. 

Her eyes scanned Milo's legs, ran across his chest and came to rest on the helmet lying discarded on the ground next to him. Her heart jumped a beat. 

'Professor?' She could feel her voice wavering. 

Slowly she stood up so as not to be overcome by the head spinning nausea. When she'd steadied herself she looked around. Milo lay under the stark brightness of the arc lights, arms crossed over his chest. For a moment she registered this oddity.  

She felt she was in a daze, a dream. The insulation of her suit deadened the senses. It seemed remote, almost like watching a holofilm. Just the low click- clack of the breathing value on her back pack. An eerie, deathly silence.  

She bent forward.  

Milo's eyes were closed, his lips drawn into a thin blue line; in that moment it seemed to her that that he was asleep such was the calmness of his appearance. 

Carefully, almost as not to disturb him she dropped to her knees.  

'Milo,' she whispered as if she was afraid to wake him. 'Milo can you hear me?'    

'Milo can you hear me?' Lydia grabbed the metal neck of his suit and shook him. His head rolled back limply banging into her leg. 'Nape, Saffi. Help! For god's sake. Help me!' 

Her speakers buzzed with lazy static.  

Milo's helmet was beyond his body just out of reach. She lunged forward clumsily catching its edge with her hand, sending it spinning away into the shadows. 

She dragged herself up against the weight of the suit and staggered off into the shadows where she'd sent Milo's helmet. 'Saffi please help me. Can anyone hear me?' 

Walking forward she followed her light until it picked out the helmet where it had come to rest against the stone chamber wall. As she reached  down to retrieve it her knees buckled into the soft sand toppling her forward into the wall.  

With the helmet gripped firmly in one hand she tried to stand up. Beneath her the shifting sand refused to offer a foothold in its soft surface. She struggled with the weight of her pack whilst fighting back the rising dizziness and nausea. After a few moments she stopped, too exhausted, too weak to move. Lying there looking up at the featureless cold stone ceiling her sight came and went as she desperately tried to remain conscious. Every now and the bright arc lights thrust themselves into view though her hazy vision, Milo's white suited body lying inert beneath them. Then the scene would melt away again. Her head jolted with irratic shocks of pain, her arms shook uncontrollably. She took a few deep breaths,tried to fight the closing darkness, closed her eyes and her head dropped forward.  

'Lydia we're coming,' Saffi's voice echoed around her helmet. 'Hold on.' 

Lydia cried out in relief. Opening her eyes revealed the splattered blood had smeared on the inside of her helmet. She realised she must have passed out. Her face was caked in her own blood. She turned her head to see two figures stumble towards her, their hand held lights bouncing off the low ceiling and drably painted walls.

'Holy....!' It was Nape. 'What the hell happened?'  

Nape knelt down by Milo. 

'I don't know Nape. It was an accident.' Lydia fought to hold back the tears. 'I've got his helmet.'  

Nape slowly stood up. 'It's too late Lydia. Milo's dead.' 

A chasm of silence opened up between them. Lydia waited, too worn out to say anything.

'What happened Lydia? Why have you got Milo's helmet?' Napes raised voice had an accusatory tone that frightened Lydia. 

'It was an accident Nape. I knocked it over here so I came to get it.' 

'What the hell are you talking about?' Nape almost shouted. 'Look at him. He died because he had no helmet- why have you got it over there?' 

'Nape please,' Saffi spoke softly to Nape. She reached out and touched his arm. 'Lydia what happened?' 

'I don't know Saffi. I woke up and he was just lying there. Honestly Saffi.' She desperately wanted Saffi to believe her. 

'I'm sorry Lydia. I don't understand. Why is his helmet off?' 

It was pointless, Nape didn't believe her. Even Saffi didn't. She could tell by the tone of her voice. And Lydia had lost Milo, her only real friend. Milo was the only reason she'd come to this miserable place in the first place. Slowly the tears welled in her eyes and trickled down her face leaving long white streaks behind them and the bitter taste of salt in her mouth. 

She lay back into the sand, beaten. What was the point of fighting anymore? 

Under her the ground around her seemed to shift and move. Looking down she saw her legs sinking into a slowly forming vortex of sand. 

'Saffi?' Lydia held her hand out. 

'Don't touch her. The sand's shifting. You could get dragged down too,' Nape cried dragging Saffi back out of reach. 

'Nape!' Saffi's voice rose in urgency. 'We need to get some help.' 

'Saffi what's happening?' Lydia could feel the rising panic in her voice. Frantically she began to thrash about in the sand to release herself. 

'Stay still,' yelled Nape, 'the sand, it's opening up under you. It's probably another chamber, deeper down. ' 

They watched as the vortex danced across the ground in ever increasing circles, the surface slowly cracking away, dipping into a shallow funnel with Lydia at its centre.  

Lydia could feel the grip of the sand working its way up her body. Legs then thighs quickly succumbed to its grasp. She willed herself to stay calm. 

'Don't worry Lydia we're coming to get you. Nape help her.' 

Nape kicked over one of the arc lamps. The light flashed, flickered and went out. He stepped out onto the frame and edged out toward Lydia. It sank away under his feet. He hurriedly stepped back off it onto the firmer ground 

Lydia was now waist deep, the sand was moving rapidly up her chest. Her heart was racing uncontrollably. As she sank deeper the increasing tightness round her chest restricted her breathing. She held out her hand imploringly and gasped, 'Saffi please.' 

The sand was sucking her down. She knew even if they got to her they could not pull her free. Thousands of tiny grains piled up over her base of her visor. She watched wide eyed as it crept up the screen, slowly cutting out the light until it left her in darkness with just the ragged sounds of her own breath ringing in her ears. 

She screamed. 

With the scream still bouncing round their helmets Saffi and Nape watched helplessly as Lydia disappeared from view. Her hand was the last thing of her left visible, desperately clutching the sand before slipping away under the surface.  

Saffi, too horrified to watch any longer, turned away and buried her head in her hands.