Venus Rising

Chapter 1: Morning Star

Beep. Beep. Beep.

The sound is slow, steady, not too loud, but there. And because it's there, it hurts. It hurts my head as I'm partially pulled from my groggy sleep. I can't open my eyes or focus on the noise. I'm in the in between.

The beeping gets faster. I want to groan, to squeeze my already shut eyes tighter, but I can't. I can't move. I'm forced to lay here and listen to that insistent beeping.

Then, a voice speaks.

"Situation report. Starship Abel19, 7th of July, 2092. Mission: Investigate loss of contact with Venus1 Colony. Location: Venus Orbit, 41 million kilometers out of earth. Catastrophic system failure. Repeat: Catastrophic system failure."

It's then I hear the alarms, muffled, unlike the beeping. They sound more urgent.

"Emergency crew revival in progress."

Something cracks open, and I'm finally able to open my eyes as air floods my lungs. My eyes burn, and my chest heaves.

Light, sound, air. Everywhere, all around. Too much. Too much!

Too much!

There's too much to take in at once. I can't... I can't remember...

Who am I? What's going on?

Red lights flash, covering everything in the room in crimson as alarms continue to blare. It burns, it hurts. I can't think. I gasp, but I can't seem to get enough air. Someone suddenly grabs my arm, squeezing stiff muscle to the point that I'm hissing in pain.

"Specialist Five, on your feet! Get out of the cryo-tube!" A woman yells, and when I don't get out as quick as she'd like, she pulls me out herself. My legs threaten to buckle, but the woman holding onto me keeps me up. "Remember who you are, Five! Emergency revival does a number on the brain."

"Captain Meyers, I cannot correct our course," A voice states over the speaker. It's the same voice I heard earlier. "The ship is on target to crash through the Venusian atmosphere."

The dark skinned woman, Captain Meyers, who I am vaguely beginning to remember, rolls her eyes. "Thanks, Computer. We all know that." She looks back at me, her features hard. "Five, our mission's not exactly going well. You're the last one up. Crew's prepping for evac. Ship's going down. We don't have long. Grab a jumpsuit, Five, then follow me down the corridor. Move!"

My legs are still trembling, but I quickly grab a jumpsuit and put it on. With each movement I try to piece together what's going on, although my brain feels like a dense fog has been cast over it. I recognize Captain Meyers, now that I'm no longer stunned from the sudden awakening, but this mission, the rest of the crew... I can't remember them. I can barely even remember what I'm doing here.

Okay, basics. Name: Callista Glover. Birthdate: November 24, 2064. Nationality: American. Sibling's name: Katelyn Glover. Best friend's name: Caleb Shelly. Favorite color: Red-

"Come on, Five!" Captain Meyers shouts, and once I put on my helmet, I'm barreling after her, trying to shake out the exhaustion and fatigue that clings to me. That and the fact that Captain Meyers is 6'1" makes it nearly impossible to keep up with her, but I manage.

The alarm continues to blare, and the red emergency lights continue to flash. It makes focusing even harder, but I'm able to see the steel and metal panels that conceal countless wires that operate the ship. I made myself familiar with those wires, just in case I needed to do any repairs. I'm not the engineer on this crew, but I've always been one to seek more knowledge. Yes, I'm remembering that now.