Alice pondered her options. It didn't seem to her like she had very many. She had no idea how she was going to get off this world. This jungle planet was off the official maps, so it was unlikely that there were any human settlements here and even if there were she'd never find them. Someone might come looking for the Galileo 12, but whether it was a government ship or more bounty hunters, she was going to spend the rest of her life in a 6x8 cell if they found her. And that was not much more attractive to her than being marooned here forever.
The planet's suns were rising and it was getting warmer. Beads of perspiration began to form on her smooth skin. She wondered if it would get too hot for a human to tolerate as she scooted into the shade beside the downed ship. She decided to head into the jungle surrounding the wreck but first she needed water to see her through the day. She found an old soft drink bottle in the wreckage and filled it with water drained from one of the radiators- it would taste oily and disgusting but would keep her going.
Leaving the corpses of the two bounty hunters where they lay, Alice entered the jungle. The shade of the trees kept her somewhat cool, but this damn planet was like a sauna and she was soon dripping with sweat. She also had a notion that there was a lot more oxygen in the air than she was used to because she felt light-headed and euphoric. Absentmindedly she slapped at an insect that had landed on her shoulder and squashed it. While she was wiping it off, an idea of how to get off this planet occured to her. It would be a desperate gamble but she was used to those, and was certain that this plan could work. |