Survivor Skills

Chapter 1-1

Chapter One

One Earth week later:

The alarms pulled Sergi back to consciousness, and he was suddenly aware of a steady downpour, making the world outside the pod look distorted and dismal. He looked at the digital readings. Oxygen was dangerously low. The system was showing a leak in one of the tanks. He lifted his head, and noticed the small portable tank with a mask attached. He read the oxygen level.

Thirty percent….

He had less than five percent in the capsule and thirty percent on the portable tank. He laid his head back and stared through the glass covering. At least the capsule didn’t completely feel like a casket – if only for the moment.

Above him, Sergi could see the remains of the parachute that would have deployed once the capsule broke through the atmosphere. It was tangled in a large tree.

Four things registered in his brain. First, he hurt like hell, so that confirmed he was alive. Second, he was no longer on the Gliese 581. Third, wherever in the hell he had landed, there had to be some type of atmosphere if there was rain and trees – preferably the kind that wouldn’t melt the flesh off of his bones. The last was the one that concerned him the most. He wondered if any of the others had made it out alive.

Sergi grabbed the mask, held it up to his face, and slammed his palm against the emergency release lever. Nothing happened.

“Open, dammit,” Sergi ordered in Russian, violently working the lever again.

“Warning, current oxygen levels are critical. The system diagnostic has detected a leak in the main oxygen tank. Please replace the tank,” the computer voice stated.

“You think I don’t know that my oxygen is almost depleted? If you would open this casket, I would gladly remove myself,” Sergi growled in profanity-laced Russian.

He clenched his jaw in determination. Grabbing the release handle, he pulled on it again. This time, the very noticeable click of the lock releasing swept through the interior of the pod. With his free hand, he pushed against the hatch until he had enough room to sit up.

He shivered in the icy rain as he cautiously looked around. At least the parachute gave him a small measure of protection from the downpour. Barren trees surrounded him. The area was desolate: there was no life – and no other escape pods to be seen. He slowly pulled the mask away from his face, and gingerly took a deep breath. A slight cough escaped him as the swirling mist swept through his nose and down his throat. The air felt heavy, but he could breathe.

He dropped the mask to the side. His gloved hands gripped the side of the capsule and he rolled over the edge. A silent curse filtered through his brain when his booted feet sank into the dark gray mud.

“This feels like home,” he muttered under his breath, taking in the freezing rain, thick fog, disgusting mud, and dreary landscape.

Unsure of where he was or how he had gotten there, his first focus was on getting out of the bulky spacesuit and into something that he could move in. He bent over, parted the fabric of the headrest, and withdrew the military-grade NRS-2 Scouting knife that he had stored in the foam cushion.

Sergi used the knife to gut the interior of the capsule. He had been very careful to modify the interior after it had been stored aboard the Gliese 581. He pulled out camouflage clothing, weapons, the portable oxygen tank that came standard with each pod, and a survival pack with a limited number of rations, medical supplies, and the essentials for the most dangerous covert operation.

Sliding the blade along the edge of the fabric of the bedding, he retrieved his SR-1 9mm pistol along with several clips. He did the same along the bottom, removing the parts for the VSK-94 Special Purpose Silent Sniper rifle. The rifle was perfect for Urban Warfare if he needed to strike without being seen. While he had never expected to need any of the items he had stored in the capsule, his training and experience had drilled into him the necessity to be prepared for any event – including a trip into space.

Within minutes, he had stripped himself of the bulky spacesuit and dressed to blend in with the environment around him. He quickly packed everything into the camouflaged grey and tan backpack, remembering at the last minute to remove the video camera that was recording his every move, and slid the straps over his shoulders. He tucked the pistol into the waistband of his pants against his lower back, making sure he could easily reach it.

He reached up and closed the lid of the capsule, then turned to face the gloomy forest. He had no map of the area or knowledge of his environment, which meant that, for now, he had to classify everything as hostile.

Sergi held the rifle ready as he left the shelter of the parachute and moved into the freezing downpour. His hat protected his head from the cold rain while the high-tech goggles gave him the ability to search for any heat signatures. He moved like a wraith through the woods, searching for evidence that he wasn’t alone.