Read Transmission Lost for Free Online Page B

breakfast he would have chosen for himself, but it would have to do. Feeling slightly relieved that she hadn't just killed him outright for his escape attempt, he forced himself to eat.
     
    ******
     
    A short while later, Jack was finished with his breakfast, and Aria was still gathering up supplies from his camp and from the Star's Eye . She'd taken apart the tent, bundling it back up and setting it with the rest of what she'd gathered. Jack had watched her warily the entire time, but she didn't take her eyes off him for more than a few minutes at a stretch. If he'd had a desire to make another escape attempt, he doubted he would have gotten very far. And in any case, he wasn't entirely sure that he wanted to escape anymore.
    Jack had been considering Aria's little proposal since the previous evening, and he had to admit that she'd had a point. If his own ship couldn't be used as a means to get off this planet, at least not without considerable repairs, then their best chance would be to find her ship and try to call for help. By Aria's own admission, she had no idea where exactly the crash site of her ship was, other than a vague notion of the direction in which it lay. Therefore, it stood to reason that the distance to cover might be fairly lengthy.
    He looked off in the direction Aria had indicated the previous night. The forest beyond was thick, as far as he could see. The entire time Jack had been here, he'd heard the noises of creatures unknown moving through the trees. On an uninhabited planet, the wildlife was sure to be unlike anything either of them had seen before. There was no telling what kinds of predators might be out there, and it wasn't just predators one had to worry about. Even the prey species might be dangerous in their own ways.
    And, Jack thought, looking down at the crumbled remnants of the massive bug that had so rudely awakened him, if this little fellow is any indication, the fauna here is likely to be large.
    What that boiled down to, Jack was realizing, was that going it alone would be tantamount to suicide. If Aria was reluctant to do the same, considering how much more formidable she seemed to be than he, that just increased his own reluctance. While he certainly wasn't much of a fan of the way Aria was treating him so far, she was a fighter. If it meant survival, Jack supposed he could deal with the attitude.
    Breaking himself out of his quiet consideration, Jack looked to Aria. She seemed to have finished with her gathering of supplies. The Ailian had packed up two large backpacks with various items. In one pack she'd collected medical supplies, ammunition, batteries, and a small portable solar generator. The other pack was stuffed with preserved food, military rations, and toiletries. Strapped onto the top of each pack was a bedroll, and the smaller pack also had the tent attached to it.
    Noticing that he had finished eating, Aria slowly re-approached Jack. He sat up straight, keeping a close eye on her, readying himself in case she had any ideas of starting their fight back up. But she seemed to have calmed herself down, and she just went down to a seated position in front of him. A cool, pleasant breeze blew through the crash site, and Jack smoothed down his blonde hair as the wind mussed it up somewhat. At the same time, Aria raised a hand to her head to smooth down the fur between her ears. She caught herself, lowered her hand, and grinned at him.
    “So,” she said simply.
    Jack raised his eyebrows, waiting for her to say something else. She was just staring at him with those piercing yellow eyes of hers. Impatient, he cleared his throat. “So, what?”
    “So, you think of what I say, yes?” Aria asked him. The tip of her tail twitched. “About finding my ship. You will come with me?”
    Jack rubbed his chin. “Well...ah...that depends.”
    “On?”
    “What are you planning to do with me once we get to where we're going?” Jack pressed her. “You say you want to use the radio