Beyond the Stars

Nobody can a hear a scream in the vacuum of space, or so they say. That’s what they told us at the Space Force Academy at least. So, tell me why every time I go to bed, or when I spacewalk, I hear a scream, echoing throughout the reaches of space, haunting my very dreams. This last spacewalk it returned, like it had so many times before and I was shaken to my core. It was so clear, so close, my bones vibrated as it hit me. It had never done that before, and I feared our ship was in danger. If this scream could cause me to have a physical reaction, then what could it do to our ship?

I had tried to talk to my fellow astronauts about it, but they all laughed and told me I must have cabin fever, everyone knows you can’t hear a scream in space. I reported home to my commanders about it and they told me to pull myself together unless I wanted to be labeled as unfit for duty due to a psychotic break. I know I’m not crazy, and I most certainly have not had a psychotic break. I’ve tried to push it out of my mind, to ignore it, but I can’t. Now our ship was likely in danger, and no one would take me seriously.

I don’t know how long I’ve been hearing it anymore, days, weeks, months? How long have we been on this ship? All the days have blurred together past the point of recognition for me. I feel like I am on autopilot, moving through all my tasks like a zombie, working from muscle memory. I barely acknowledge my fellow astronauts anymore; I know they are all laughing at me behind my back. Making jokes about how my sanity is the one that got away. I hear whispers at night from their bunks. They say I must have lost it, and that I should have been put out of my misery before. Before when? I am still coherent and functioning doing my tasks, despite the scream keeping me awake at night.

There it is again, its louder this time. It’s not even bedtime, I am on the bridge running diagnostics. I try to get the attention of one of my crewmates, but they just ignore me. Have I really complained about the scream that much? I didn’t think I had. My crewmates continue on, business as usual. None of them seem to hear it, not a single one. Maybe I have gone crazy, but I passed all my mental fortitude tests. There was nothing to even suggest I would have a mental break.

Huffing, I spin around in my chair annoyed. I don’t understand why no one will take me seriously. I am not the one who cried wolf, my commanders have always complimented me on my honest, truthful, and logical nature. There was no reason for anyone to suspect I am lying or trying to cause a scene. Yet, they all have elected to ignore me. When I turned back around to try again, they took one look at me and bolted out of the room. Damned fools, the consequences of their ignorance would be the destruction of this ship.

It's gotten closer. This time I noticed the ship shook as the scream began. If it got any closer how violent would the shaking be? Surely someone noticed this time. I try to get our science officer’s attention, she ignores me, staring down at her keyboard as she writes up another report. Unbelievable. I slammed my hand down on her desk, she jumped. Finally, perhaps now she won’t ignore me. I crossed my arms as I looked at her, waiting for a response. She stays silent, her eyes growing wide. Was she angry? Annoyed? I don’t know. Once again though, my fellow crewmate takes one look at me and runs out of the room. This is ridiculous. I am tired of this game, it stopped being funny a long time ago.

I decided to spacewalk to clear my head, to check and make sure the scientific instruments attached to the hull of the ship were still intact and calm down. I needed a softer demeanor before I tried again. I didn’t want to yell at my fellow crewmates, but they were leaving me with no choice. I wasn’t going to be able to take the disrespect much longer. Once I was suited up, I opened the inner airlock door and stepped inside closing the door behind me. I hooked my suit up to one of the oxygen hoses, my lifeline, and did a quick check to make sure I had everything tightly secured and fastened appropriately. It all checked out and I felt confident I would be safe out there, and I opened the door to space and walked out.

I hear the scream again. My heart is beating faster as it gets closer and louder. I close my eyes waiting for it to end, just like it always has before. Maybe we still had time before it became a danger to our ship.

Moments pass and still I hear the scream. It doesn’t stop, it’s getting closer than it has before. I need to get back inside. At the speed this scream is coming closer at, it could hit our ship any minute, and it was going to hit hard. My crewmates couldn’t ignore it this time. I turned to head back to the ship, but when I did, I froze. Where was my lifeline? The oxygen hose that kept me alive and attached to the ship was gone. I know I attached it. I had triple checked the line and it was secure. Frantically I looked around, trying to see if it had come loose and was close enough, I could grab it. I saw nothing.

The scream was close now, right behind me. This is it. I’m going to die, and the ship would be destroyed all because my crewmates ignored me. All those lives lost because of their ignorance. I turned away from the ship to face the scream head on, determined to find an answer even if it meant I died. Nobody can hear a scream in the vacuum of space, so why could I?