Captain Miller looked out through his shattered space helmet, his head spinning.
Dr. Peters, equally dazed, was held tightly in his arms. The other crew members scrambled to grab him and Dr. Peters, trying to dig them out of the crushed Cryo-pods aboard the Event Horizon. The violent impact had left his mind thoroughly muddled. He could not remember anything that had happened after the collision, and every action he had taken—including protecting Dr. Peters—had been driven by instinct. That lasted until he realized that not only were the crew not wearing helmets, they were trying to remove his as well. A foul stench rushed into his nostrils, and he finally came to his senses. "No!" he shouted. "Don't!"
"It's all right, Miller." First Officer Stark, a young, beautiful blonde girl with a ponytail, spoke up. "The ship's power is back online. We have oxygen. It's fortunate this ship's seal is still intact. I never expected a spacecraft that had spent years in space without maintenance to have avoided getting torn apart by micrometeorites."
"Report." Miller got to his feet as the others helped him remove his spacesuit.
"It's been seven minutes since the impact, Miller." First Officer Stark shook her head. "The Lewis and Clark has suffered a breach, and its remaining oxygen will only last another twenty minutes. The communications systems on both ships are severely damaged. We can't contact the outside world—not even... not even that ship."
"Repair our ship." Captain Miller immediately issued the order. "We can't rely entirely on the Event Horizon. Cooper..."
"I can do it. But you need to see Justin. Something's wrong with him." Terror showed in Lieutenant Cooper's eyes. "I pulled Justin back. D.J., the medic, is examining him now. Dr. Peters is fine. You protected her well. But Justin... I