SFFS: Snippet #7 From Inoculation (a DIRTY DOZEN story)

Welcome back, everyone, to another week of Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday. As mentioned in prior weeks, my new Aston short story collection Dirty Dozen is available over at Amazon, I figured I'd continue on with my snippets from the last several weeks.

First, the blurb:

Join space pirate Aston West in the second collection of short stories from his universe, featuring classic space opera tales by T. M. Hunter. Building on Aston's first collection (Dead or Alive), these stories feature even more wild adventures, unforgettable characters, and exciting plot twists to satisfy your space opera appetite.

So, here's the next snippet, from my short story "Inoculation":

I began to worry that life support may be the next to go, the way things were going. I turned and opened the closet just aft of the cockpit divider, seeing my protection hanging at the back.

“Shall we resume our original course to reach a proper maintenance facility?”

“No, I expect to figure out what’s going on with these system outages.” I pulled out the pressure suit.

As soon as I said the words, the entire ship grew silent. Not just a regular run-of-the-mill silence, but one that told me the re-circulation fans had shut down. No air meant the end of my life was fast approaching.

“Jeanie, what’s wrong with the air?”

“I do not detect any issues with the environmental systems. Perhaps I should purge the system?”

My eyes shot open wide, and I rushed to pull on the pressure suit. Purging would get rid of the clean, breathable air almost immediately, not the long, drawn-out process that came from having no re-circulation system.

“No, do not purge the system. That’s not the issue.”

Hope you enjoyed it! If so, pick up a copy from the link above. And not to worry, edits are still going on with my next Aston novel, All Good Things. Twenty-six chapters are now edited, with only six to go, and then it will be heading off to beta readers to see what they think.