Penialation: Chapter 4 – The Woman
“…on a rocket ship?”
“Dick!” Jacko shouted. “Captain Rod!” He reached his free arm out and took hold of the captain, shaking his wrist. “Captain!”
Out of a daze, the captain responded, “Yes, Jacko. I’m sorry. I just never would have believed that we would find…” he pointed down to the sleeping beauty, “a woman…on a rocket ship!”
“I know, I know,” Jacko grinned. “Our luck has changed for the better!”
“Has it?” he looked at Jacko disapprovingly. “Has it though? A woman on a rocket ship is completely unheard of; even in our forward thinking democracy. I just can’t wrap my head around it.”
Jacko shrugged. “Well, maybe where she is from, the women fly around in rocket ships while the men stay home and raise babies?”
“Don’t be absurd!” Dick chastised. “Do you really think there is a society anywhere in the universe that would give women that much control? I seriously doubt it.”
“You can doubt what you want, but this is one beautiful alien, where ever she’s from. I think I’d give her a pass.”
“Fine. I’ll put my wild beliefs on the back burner…for now. Maybe if we can get her to wake up we can find out why the heck she’s out here to begin with.”
“I will have to run some tests on her,” Jacko said. “I’m not a doctor, but I programmed Tin with the knowledge of all of Earth’s finest physicians and surgeons. I’m sure he could figure out what’s wrong with this dame.”
“You do realize that by doing that, that would mean we would be bringing a woman aboard our ship…our rocket ship.” Dick raised his eyebrows.
Jacko bit his lip. “Maybe it’s just an old wives tale. Maybe it doesn’t mean nuttin.”
Dick shook his head. “I don’t know, Jacko. Superstitions have to come from somewhere.”
“Dang it!” Jacko slammed his fist on the floor. “It can’t be real… could it?”
“It has been a superstition of sailors as far back as nautical travel. You don’t take women aboard your ship. It’s plain bad luck. Those are the breaks.”
“No! No! No! We can’t leave a dame this good looking on the floor of a dead vessel! No matter what color she is, or where she’s from!”
Dick laughed heartedly. “I know, Jacko. I’m only pulling your leg. You can take her on board.”
Jacko smiled, then frowned. “But, what about the superstition?”
“I’m not superstitious, Jacko. We are on a mission of peace and amnesty. We will get her all fixed up and she could maybe tell us what happened here.”
“You really don’t believe in the curse?”
“Not at all, and you shouldn’t either…”
Dick was interrupted by the sound of hulking footsteps coming from the far end of the corridor. He peered down the darkened way, emergency lights, flickering their dim light above. “Did you hear that, Jacko?”
“I did… and still do. It’s getting louder, Dick.”
The captain leveled his ray gun at the darkness. “Get your ray gun out and ready, Jacko. We’ll come back for the girl.”
Jacko rose from kneeling beside the woman, readied his ray gun and swallowed hard. “Whatever it is, it sounds big.”
“And how! Judging by the number of steps I’m hearing, we are either going to be dealing with a giant with many feet…”
Jacko interrupted, “Or an army of really big aliens.”
