Signals in the Void 9

("Signals in the Void" is my attempt at an in character fan fiction revolving around my adventures in exploration.)

While everyone appeared a little uneasy after the departure of their employer, the gang boss Frank kept people occupied working instead of dwelling on all the things that could go wrong.  He even hinted at a bonus for our work that the capsuleer Draiv Solregard would throw in if things continued to go well.  This was apparently enough to keep the majority of the crew working to make sure we had sufficient goods to ensure that bonus.  For Jimmy it was normally enough to be able to look around and see that the mercenaries were keeping a watchful eye.    Some of the crew whispered that the real reason the mercenaries were hired was to keep an eye on us and make sure we kept working.  While it could be plausible that sure is a lot of ISK to spend on taskmasters especially when those taskmasters are Dust mercenaries. 

The next few days passed without much issue, one of the crew members working further down in the station complained of noises coming from inside the walls and areas which had been picked clean as if we had already swept through the area.  It was really strange working on an old station like this, who knows what was here, or why it suddenly fell into disuse.  Maybe there was a war or something that drove off the inhabitants.  Whatever it was there were signs of some sort of fighting the further into the station we went.

The salvage and science crews didn't realize how much trouble they were in until one of the crew members went missing.  No one noticed at first, and strangely enough the one who brought it to everyone's attention was the mercenary in charge of that small team.  While the Dust mercenaries seemed to have no regard for their own lives, the amount of effort they put into making sure we kept ours was astounding, even after days of watching us strip parts from the station.  That could just be their paycheck talking.

A few of the mercenaries were assigned to go track him down, it wasn't till later they returned without the missing worker and started discussing something with their commander that everyone started to get nervous.  It didn't help that the commander Blake ordered everyone to pack up for the day and make their way back to home base.  During the commotion and confusion that followed as everyone started asking questions and putting away tools, Jimmy started hearing a scratching noise coming from one of the walls. 

It was a strange sound akin to metal sliding against itself, after a few moments the sound seemed to multiply to other walls, it sounded like the whole station was falling apart around them.  Hearing the noise, Blake called for everyone to fall back.  One of the crew members in the far corner started making his way towards everyone when the ceiling fell on top of him.  Hearing his blood curdled scream quickly silenced all anyone could do was stare dumbfounded at where the pile of metal had fallen on top of the man.   

Then the pile of metal stood up.