Good Fighting

So they tell me to check the perimeter, I check the perimeter. Is it my fault I have to hit the refresher right when the aliens attack? So we’re in the year 30-whatever and we’re out on I don’t know how many moons now, humanity across the stars, big deal. When a guy’s gotta go, you still gotta go, right? That doesn’t change.

So I’m finishing up, I step outside, and next thing I know my emergency transpo kicks up and now I’m on my ship, only the thing hasn’t been the same since that run to Qtir last year so my arm’s gone. It’s not like that; I got one of those, whatchacall, by-onic arms. Picked it up on Squidnar colony. Real helpful when you’re out here checking the perimeter and all.

Anyhow, the emergency transpo somehow forgot to grab the metal arm and just grabbed me and I can’t go back and get it because now the atmo’s full of all kinds of alien ships and they’re just shooting off lasers and tearing into the moon like there’s no tomorrow. I didn’t even know there were aliens out here. Maybe we made first contact while I was out on the perimeter check, I don’t know. Someone must’ve said something to tick ‘em off, because let me tell you, they are every which way kinda mad.

My ship’s computer’s freaking out, like it does, and I have about two seconds to decide what to do. There’s a lot of colonists down there. Gonna be a lot less real soon. Only one me up here. And now a bunch of the aliens are flying my way, so I either have to make tracks and burn on out of this system or-

Oh, hell.

“Computer,” I say, “Remote access, bio-arm, ID code Zed Zed Two Niner Four Niner Niner.”

Lights flash on my comms panel. I assume the same thing’s happening on the surface. “Activate program code: WMA dash VL, and launch!”

Seconds pass. The alien ships are closing in on me. Their other ships keep pounding the colony moon. I’m pretty sure I see one of their cannons take out the little ridge where Anderson set up his bar. Damn. No more lunar margaritas.

On my far left viewscreen I see a flicker. Something new’s launched from the planet. The aliens are probably laughing, wondering if this is the best we’ve got. I reach for the button to light it up, but nothing happens.

Then I remember. I don’t have my left arm anymore. My left arm is out there, floating in space, eyed by a pack of curious alien ships wondering how a small by-onic arm is going to help anyone.

I swivel in my pilot’s chair and hit the button with my right arm instead. That one’s normal, tissue and blood and all, just plain old human arm.

The metal one out in space, however, has a miniature prototype nuclear-fused quantum core. Only one in existence, they said. Runs forever, they said. It’ll last longer than you will, they said. So much for that.

What’s important is that when this thing goes boom, it goes boom.

The flash envelops me and the aliens.

The last thing I think is, well, if you gotta go-

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This story was written for

Brian Reindel 👾⚔️

‘s Prompt Quest #1, also linked below:

Prompt Quest #1