People talked, and Clive did his best to keep up with the conversation.

  “So me, Petra, and Aymeric will try to get into the lab,” Erika continued. Her plan was to get equipment she needed from the lab, and use that to tackle the Aranea in the reactor room. The Aranea that murdered the Captain.

  “While that happens, um, Theo?” Erika was asking for permission to direct the ship’s crew.

  Theo nodded. Erika’s shoulders relaxed.

  “Could you find a way to get around the Captain’s Override?” She asked.

  “I don’t know. I’ll look.” Theo glanced to Clive.

  Would the Captain want that?

  Theo nudged Clive.

  “Can you help me?” Theo asked.

  Clive nodded.

  “Not to be morbid or anything,” Mi-Cha said, “but Ryder left a body, didn’t he? Shouldn’t we do somethin’ about that?”

  Erika winced.

  “I, um…” She tapped her fingers against her thighs.

  “Oh, not it.” Mi-Cha stepped back. “Definitely not fuckin’ it.”

  “But you’re right; we can’t leave Ryder,” Aymeric said. “Erika, what if a few of us dealt with the body? I should be strong enough to carry him.”

  “I’ll help.” It was the first thing Clive said in the past hour. His voice came out rusty.

  “I’ll be there, too,” Theo said.

  Clive thought Mi-Cha might volunteer now that the rest of the ship crew was going.

  “Y’all are insane,” she muttered.

  “Oh, and keep an eye out for Naoki,” Erika said.

  “Do you really think he’s still alive?” Aymeric asked.

  “I think we should find him, no matter what,” Erika stated.

  Aymeric nodded.

  Theo led Clive and Aymeric to the reactor room. The Ark groaned, though Clive was familiar with the sound; it wasn’t an alien.

  When the group reached the reactor room, Clive peered inside through the glass. Orange webs spread across the room. Captain Ryder was facedown in a pool of blood, a few feet from the reactor.

  You needed a body as proof that the Captain was dead. Here is the body.

  Clive made a choking noise. He quickly regained his composure.

  “You okay?” Aymeric asked.

  Clive nodded.

  “Maybe you should head to your cabin for a while and–”

  Clive pushed into the reactor room. The alien larvae hissed in response.

  “Hold on!” Aymeric followed in. “These things are clearly territorial; we gotta be careful and keep an eye open.”

  Clive approached Ryder’s body with sure steps. Aymeric and Theo had no choice but to follow.

  As Clive got closer, the smell grew worse. The back of Ryder’s pants were stained brown. When someone died, they voided their bowels.

  “God.” Aymeric pulled his shirt over his nose.

  Clive knelt beside the Captain and touched his shoulder. When he didn’t respond, Clive gave him a shake. The Captain moved bonelessly.

  Clive rolled the Captain onto his back.

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  The smell worsened.

  Bile rose in Clive’s throat, and he had to shut his eyes to stop himself from puking. Aymeric gagged under his shirt. Theo didn’t react.

  The Captain’s eyes stared at some point beyond the walls. His throat was open to the world. Congealed blood ran from his neck to the collar of the Captain’s shirt. Blood filled his slack mouth and ran down his chin.

  The man who took a chance on Clive was gone. His easy grin and relaxed attitude were gone. All that was left was a broken, pitiable corpse. Clive knew that all of his good memories about the Captain would forever be soured by the body in front of him.

  “Okay, we’re supposed to deal with him. How?” Aymeric asked beneath his shirt.

  “He said he preferred cremation,” Clive said, “ but there’s no furnace aboard the ship.”

  The only two cryo pods on the ship held the Lamia parts, and keeping the Captain’s body in the open wasn’t an option. He would…decompose.

  Aymeric’s eyes flitted between Theo and Clive, waiting for them to come up with an answer they didn’t have.

  “You know, there is a way to deal with Ryder.” Aymeric shifted on his feet. “The airlocks open into space, and–”

  “No,” Clive snapped.

  “It’s a shitty option, but I don’t think we can do anything else.”

  Clive glared at Aymeric.

  “Clive?” Theo tested.

  The man tore his focus away from Aymeric to look at Theo.

  “We cannot cremate Ryder,” Theo spoke with a level voice. “We cannot keep him out in the open, either. We need to put him in the airlock.”

  “But…” Clive swallowed. “He’s our captain. We have to show him respect.”

  “Plenty of ship captains have been sent into the void; Ryder is not the first. He won’t be the last,” Theo said. “Those crews made the passing a good one. We can do that.”

  Clive took a deep breath. Even if Clive disagreed, Theo and Aymeric would be able to carry Ryder to the airlock on their own. The idea made Clive’s stomach churn, but he had to be a part of it.

  Something hissed above.

  “Shit, it’s the adult. We gotta hurry,” Aymeric said.

  Clive nodded.

  ? ? ?

  Theo and Aymeric took the front half while Clive carried Ryder’s legs. The muscle that Theo held was limp, and felt like it would slough off Ryder’s skeleton. The Captain stayed in one piece as he was carried out of the reactor room.

  The elevator was still out of commission, so Theo had to direct Clive and Aymeric in hauling Ryder’s body up the ladder. It was a slow, tedious, and sickening process, but they managed to pull the Captain into the galley.

  Mi-Cha was still in the galley, and toying with the console. She stared at the funeral procession as it passed, then she left the console to follow.

  The men gently set the Captain into the airlock. Clive knelt in the airlock for a moment, hand still on Ryder’s knee. After a second, he rose to his feet and stepped away. Theo shut the door.

  “That fuckin’ stinks,” Mi-Cha muttered.

  “Yeah,” Aymeric whispered.

  Clive shot them a look, and the pair went respectfully quiet. He took a step toward the vent button, but wouldn’t press it. Theo waited for Mi-Cha or Aymeric to step to Clive’s side and give him some reassurance. When neither budged, Theo moved to Clive’s side. He didn’t know if he was supposed to put a hand on Clive’s shoulder, and he didn’t want Clive to be uncomfortable, so Theo kept his hands at his sides.

  “Would anyone like to say something about the Captain?” Theo asked.

  You’re taking charge. It wasn’t a role Theo enjoyed, but if no one else could step up, he would have to.

  Theo looked to Clive, expecting him to say something about Ryder. Clive stared at the floor.

  “Well, Ryder let me on,” Mi-Cha said. “I got a reputation for being a, uh, bold pilot, so nobody else would hire me. I liked having someone in my corner.”

  Clive’s lips quivered.

  Aymeric shifted on his feet.

  “Fox Ryder was not a perfect man,” Theo began, “but he did what he could. He will be missed.”

  Theo was certain he’d heard those words before somewhere, but he couldn’t remember where. The line probably came from a movie.

  Theo waited a few more seconds for either Clive or Aymeric to speak up. When neither did, he moved his hand to the vent button. He paused. If asked, Theo would say he was giving Clive and Aymeric a final chance to speak. Truthfully, Theo didn’t want to press the button.

  But he did.

  The airlock doors opened.

  Captain Fox Ryder drifted into the inky black.

  Clive sniffled. A tear rolled down his cheek, but he didn’t wipe it. It was probably best that, after handling a body, he didn’t touch his face.

  Theo shut the airlock door, then checked the logs to make sure the opening was recorded. The computer logged the venting. It had also logged another opening about an hour beforehand.

  Ice sluiced through Theo’s veins, because he knew exactly what that second log meant. The computer couldn’t tell Theo who was responsible for that previous opening, though Theo knew the spy had done it.

  “I know what happened to Naoki.” Theo gestured to the screen. Aymeric and Mi-Cha drew closer. Clive stayed where he was.

  “Oh, fuck,” Aymeric muttered. “I mean, I guess we don’t have to deal with another body. But, shit.”

  “Fucking shit,” Mi-Cha hissed. “How the hell did someone do this without anyone noticing?”

  Mi-Cha spent a lot of her time on the bridge; the spy would have had to sneak by her to dispose of Naoki.

  Or Mi-Cha herself is the saboteur. Theo pushed the thought out of mind. Erika was right when she said everyone’s suspicions of each other led to Ryder’s death. Theo refused to add to that madness.

  “I gotta let Erika and Petra know about Naoki.” Aymeric hurried off.

  “I gotta…hell if I know what I gotta do.” Mi-Cha followed.

  Theo and Clive were left alone. Clive stared out the airlock.

  “Are you going to be okay?” Theo asked.

  Clive didn’t respond.

  “You should rest for a while,” Theo said.

  “I can still help.” Clive’s voice came out raspy.

  “You’re distracted. Rest for a while, then come back when you’re ready,” Theo said.

  Clive opened his mouth, likely to protest, but no sound came out. He turned and shuffled away.

  Theo stared out the airlock window. He hoped this was the last death aboard the Hell’s Ark, and he knew that hope was in vain.