EVE Fiction

A short story I wrote because I was bored at 4am. Cut it down slightly for the forums, hope you enjoy. Be gentle, it's my first time posting fiction.



Esther...

Esther...
The whisper.

Esther...
She wriggled

Esther... You have to get up Esther...
No

It couldn't possibly be time. Class wasn't on until mid-day anyway.

You have to get up.

No, Shepard Yantoy was a meanie, she'd aced all of her exams and yet he still made her do extra work. Jannete was failing in theology AND understanding, but she never got extra work. Stupid Jannete.

Esther..

She liked that word. Her name. It tasted nice, like a smooth cream with little snaps of sucrose crystal sprinkled in with it.

Esssther...

It didn't taste the same though. There was too much 'sssss', not enough 'ehs'. She didn't like the way the voice said it.

Estherrrr

Hmm, feels darker, tangier than before. What is that taste?
She shook, a little like a tickle. There was a gentle drumming in her head.

Estherrrrrr...
Panic. That's what it tasted like. Panic and shaking. Yes, shaking.
Esther... You have to get up!

Like landing in water, consciousness hit her. The ice flowed across her and she gasped violently, streams of light flooded her eyes and she scrambled upwards.

Her hand grasped him, his panicked face, and she sat upright pushing him away. The sound came first, the ringing peircing wail of klaxons and shrieking alarms, There were people screaming too.

"Esther"
She looked around, Virgil was crouched beside her, his hand still clutching her shoulder. There was smoke billowing from vents around them, and fire licked through a shattered blast door ahead of her.

"Esther, we have to go!" Virgil urged her and tugged her roughly up. Her shoulder was hurt badly, and he'd lifted her by it. The pain when she straightened up was agony, and as she lifted her head she felt warmth trickle down the back of her neck.

"W-Where's..." she stammered before her eyes flared and she almost collapsed. Her head was injured too. Pretty badly, something inside her seemed to say.
"What?" cried Virgil as he scanned the room for exits.

"Where's the Capsuleer?" She asked. She didn't know why she asked it.
"He's gone, his own escape pod." He replied, and turned to her. "What does it matter?"

"It doesn't" It didn't. She'd only ever seen Him once. A tall pallid man in embroidered silk robes.

"Over here!" Virgil shouted at her and dragged her injured shoulder again. She went stumbling over shrapnel. Beams and cables littered to floor; larger cables were igniting whatever they touched, small snakes of flame followed them as they drifted back and forth.

Together they picked their way over to a small doorway, Virgil clearing the way as Esther struggled to keep her balance.

"In here -" he shoved her in, by her shoulder.

The power was out but dim luminescent tiles arrayed in arrows pointed towards their escape.
"Keep moving" he urged and they passed doorway after doorway of chaos. Bodies, both dead and dying. A hand clawed at her as she passed one. A thin hand, wiry and dirty grasped momentarily at her sleeve. She saw him for an instant then.

As she looked up the arm to the sunken eyes of the burned man beside her; It was Him. The Capsuleer. His silks were burning and his face pleaded with her to help Him, but when he opened his mouth only pain came out. It was only for an instant. The burned navigation officer collapsed and fell from her. Then Virgil was pulling her away.

They climbed a small flight of stairs up another deck. She knew where she was. Capacitor storage bank 5. Though it was missing the usual thrum of barely contained energy, it smelt the same. The smell of electricity and ionised plasma. She stopped to enjoy the taste.
The Vulgaya was an Abaddon class battleship. Amarr designed, Amarr built, Amarr crewed. Gone were the days of slave crews and vitoc. Whilst the Royal Amarrian Navy still used slaves, the Capsuleer had them freed. He paid for a new crew, god only knew there were enough Amarrian ship staff that could never rise high enough for the Royal fleet. She, Esther... Esssther. Esthherr, was an engineering officer, third class. Yes. Specialist in power routing. Assistant Power management technician. 6 years of technical classes at the Royal Khanid School of Applied Engineering. 3 Years at the Theology Council Graduated Citizen School. 10 years of basic mandatory education at the Carthum-sponsored Preparation School in Tunsten, Grel District, Penirgman. She felt warm as she remembered it.

"Come on, we have to go!"

Virgil was a nice lad. He was a good twenty years younger than her. A round faced boy, a little soft. Still flying his Academy sponsorship. Her head was spinning again.
The Capsuleer. She had to find Him.

"You go, I need a minute..." She wobbled. Her grabbed her shoulder again. She winced and threw him off, surprised by her own strength.

"Get away!" She shouted at him. Her arm throbbed. His desperate eyes met hers...
"Don't you understand?" He tried to explain "If we stay here we're going to die" He glanced at the flames creeping up the stairs behind them.
"No. I have to find Him" He had to understand.
"Find Who?!?"

"Him. The capsuleeeeer" She stressed His name. He had to understand. Salt seemed to fill her mouth.

"What?!" Virgil cried "Why do you need to find him? He's gone... long gone! If his pod didn't escape then he's back at his cloning station, sipping Redfruit wine and laughing. He doesn't give a **** about us!"

"Yes he DOES" She shouted back. Poor Virgil. He didn't know the Capsuleer like she did. He'd never seen Him. His deep blue eyes, His floating robes. He'd looked at her, just once, just for a second. Her knees went weak for Him. His thin fingers seemed to peel back the air as He walked. Graceful, Immortal. He smelled like sulphur and tasted like victory.