17 - Arthur Rigs

Arthur opened his eye, he wasn't fighting on Yolloop anymore, he felt strange, lighter.

He looked around his new surroundings, he was on a open plan station, the kind that created an air bubble and were exposed to the elements, hard to make, hard to maintain.
It was a simple station, one of the very early ones, a simple concrete waiting platform, connected to a shop, with the otherside being a dock, he was the only one there.

Arthur scrambled around his pockets for a way to call for help, he realised that he wasn't wearing his uniform anymore, he was wearing white trousers, and a white shirt.
He darted his eyes across the station again.
"Hello?" He called out.
...
"Hello?"
...
Arthur sat down onto one of the benches.
He had realised that his stomach was filling him with pain.
"Hello." said a figure, on the other end of the bench, dressed in a fine black cloak, that shrouded his features. "Where am i?" asked Arthur, bluntly.
The figure turned towards him, their face was a blank, a black void.
"You're telling me you don't know?"

Arthur's eyes darted around the station in a panic.
"Where the hell am i, what's going on!"

The figure laid a hand on Arthur's back, it didn't feel cold, or warm, just present.
"I don't think it's that bad." said the figure.

The figure looked away, and mumbled something, as if talking to someone else.
"It's all okay Arthur, it's all worked out, they're running away now, we won buddy, stay with me."

The figure shook it's head, like it was trying to shake something off.
"There might've been a mistake." said the figure.

"A mistake?" asked Arthur.

"I normally only get people, who are ready, so to speak."

Arthur felt the pain in his stomach get worse, he winced his eyes in pain.

He was lying on his back, heard a rocket fly overhead, and saw his friend, Neil. "Neil?" "Yeah buddy?" replied Neil, his face was red with tears, and what looked like blood.
"I don't think i've got a home here anymore." Arthur said slowly, he hadn't really thought about those words, they seemed like the right thing to say.
"Don't say that man, cmon, you're gonna be ok".
Neil turned off to his side "GET ME A FUCKING MEDIC"
Arthur closed his eyes again.

"Hello again." said the cloaked figure.
"What's happening?" asked Arthur.
The cloaked figure sighed.
the sound of a distant rocket engine permeated the station.
"What's that?" asked Arthur.
"It's alright, everyone comes to accept it in their own way." said the figure.
"Accept what?" asked Arthur.
"Accept your-"
Arthur jolted forward, a medic had stuck a plastic cylinder into his stomach. He heard Neil shouting, but he couldn't make out words.
"Look, it's all i can do, i'm not a magician." said the medic, rushing off.
Arthur felt the pain in his stomach subside, he was still lying on his back, up at Neil. "Cheers, Neil." said Arthur.
He strained his head forward to look at his stomach.
his vision went black.

"You know, most people only meet me once." said the figure. Arthur found himself back, looked across the station, and saw the ship, it was long, split into sections, like a kind of free form train, it blended in with space, being completely jet black.
"Neil?" asked Arthur to the figure.
the figure stood silent.
"Are you Neil, what's happening?" asked Arthur, a tinge of desperation in his voice.
"I've gone by many names." replied the figure.
"'Neil', is not one of them, but if it helps you, i don't mind what you call me."

Arthur looked into the blank void that was the figures face.
"You-you didn't answer my second question."
The figure stood silent for a few seconds.

Arthur's eyes readjusted.
Blood.
A flowing puddle of his own blood stained the dusty, bombed ground around him, he looked closer and saw piles of bandages, turned into soggy red rags.
Neil was leaning into his pack grabbing all the rest of his alloted bandages.
"Neil." Arthur tried to ell, but it came out as a whisper.
Neil rushed over "Yeah?" he said through tears.
"It's ok."

Arthur closed his eyes.

The figure put his hand on Arthurs shoulder.
Arthur opened them again.
"Oh."
"Oh dear."

"It's ok, i told you, it's not that bad."

The ship slowly came into the station.
The figure helped Arthur onto his feet, and they began to walk towards the docked ship.
"What happens after i get on?"
The figure looked down.
"I get asked that a lot, truth be told, i don't know."

"Oh."

Arthur looked down again at his stomach, his white shirt was totally clean.
"Can you walk me aboard?"
"Of course."

The door of the ship slid open, revealing an inky darkness, and nothing more.
they walked together towards it, and Arthur hesitated.
"Is there anything afterwards?" he asked
"That's not for me to know." replied the figure.
Arthur looked back at the station.
"Can i stay here?"
"The people who can are generally stuck here, Arthur, there's nothing for you here." Arthur looked back at the ink.
"So there's something for me there?" he said, pointing.
"That's not for me to know."

Arthur looked at the figure again.
"Thanks."
Arthur breathed in, braced himself, and barged into the ship. Neil looked over Arthur, still crying, heembraced his still warm body, shells flying overhead.
At the sound of a shell nearby, Neil screamed, straggling forward like some kind of alien animal, limbs flailing, grenades being chucked
He was screaming constantly, the first bolt didn't register in his brain, the second one knocked him down, and with the third, Neil was gone.

"Hello." said a figure, sitting on a bench, dressed in their fine black cloak.

17 - Arthur Rigs