Maya's Journey

Nobody can hear a scream in the vacuum of space, or so they say. But Maya wasn’t sure about that, as currently she was floating in space with a broken radio, and yet, she was sure she was hearing some eerie noises.

How had she gotten in this predicament? She had simply gone out to repair a small hole in the Space Lab. The last screw on the patch was tightened, and she was about to head back to the hatch when she heard Joe scream her name and told her to unlatch the safety line and push off as fast as she could. When she tried to question him, he yelled, no time, just do it!! She did.

The next thing she was aware of was drifting aimlessly in space. Her head hurt, and she felt confused. She looked around and could not find the space lab anywhere. How could that be? Then a piece of debris narrowly missed her, and she realized it was from the Lab. They must have been hit by something. She tried to reach someone through the suit radio, and realized it no longer worked. She glanced down at her arm computer and realized she had about 7 hours left until she ran out of air. Damn, she thought, this is not good, as she felt herself starting to panic. She took a couple of deep breaths to calm herself, then thought about what would happen next. She rotated herself by slowly moving her arms so that she could gaze at her home world as she thought about her impending death. The view was spectacular, with the moon visible above the earth. She thought about her family at home, and how they would deal with the news of her death. Suddenly, she heard what sounded like static. She checked her radio again, but it was still out. She shook her head, thinking she was suddenly having an attack of tinnitus, although it did seem a strange time to be getting it. The static changed to a whistling sound, then a steady clicking sound. Very odd. Then a strange sensation began, as if her bones were vibrating. What the heck, she thought. Is this the prelude to a near death experience? It sure feels like it’s happening a little early! Her skull began vibrating, and she passed out.

My head hurts so much, she thought. I feel like I drank a bottle of mezcal last night. She slowly opened her eyes, then squinted because the light was so bright. The environment was quite warm, and as she began to look around, she realized she was lying on a soft surface, with her undersuit still on (and quite stinky after her time in the space suit). She slowly sat up, every muscle sore as though she’d just run a marathon. What in the world? How did I get here? What is happening? She rose, still a bit wobbly, and began moving toward what resembled a desk. As she approached it, she was suddenly stopped as she bounced off a soft, invisible barrier. She backed up and tentatively touched it. Yep, soft yet firm. She slowly explored it and found that it surrounded the mat she had been on, approximately five meters in diameter. It extended down to the floor and upwards as far as she could reach. She looked around for a stick or something to reach higher but found nothing. She retuned to the mat and tried to remember how she’d gotten here, but everything was a blank.

A noise startled her, and she looked up. Floating on the other side of the barrier was a creature, which appeared to be very like an animal from her home planet. It had six long appendages, and a large head with two very large eyes, which were at the moment curiously focused on her. She quickly stepped back, and two smaller appendages with three smaller digits at the end appeared and made a gesture which seemed similar to the palm out gesture she would use to calm someone and show she wasn’t dangerous. She slowly nodded and sat down. What was going on? The creature then gestured to her again and pointed to a projection. It looked pleased when she looked to where he pointed. It swam over to the projector (swam! Was it in water?) and pushed a button with one of its small appendages. The images were odd, sort of like an X-ray, but she could make out the figures. She saw herself working on the Space Lab, pushing herself away then an explosion. She then saw herself looking around, then she suddenly disappeared! The creature then pointed to her. Had it saved her? But how? It stared at her and she could hear its unfamiliar voice inside her head. The creatures must be telepathic.

The next images showed an unfamiliar spaceship located on the dark side of the moon, then other creatures, some human, some totally unknown, in enclosures. A dark thought slowly surfaced, and she suddenly realized…

She was in a zoo.