Chapters The Einstein-Rosen Incident
Anyone who looked at the darkly lit cabin of the ship could tell that most of the crew was sleep deprived and were not fit for guiding the ship to its destination as it glided silent with the rumble of its engines lost in the vacuum of space. The members of the cargo ship’s flight personnel had not slept for countless hours, losing track of time being strapped into their chairs in favor of efficiency in the flight. It was not without a cost as many of the members had their backs bent looking at the displays before them, the light giving their faces a sickly color. Because the ship itself was relatively small compared to other long distance space-faring vessels, it meant that the crew was small as well with only seventeen members available in the cabin at the time, whereas larger ships may have thirty or more. The rest of the crew designated to fly was sleeping, resting after their hours of navigating the stars.
//Radio Transmission Begin//
[Date: 6.7.2064] [Time Elapsed: 75 Days]
SUNRAY MINOR: Area Flight Command [Amadeus Class Light Cruiser]
STINGRAY 4-2: Dropship Flight 25-2 [Taiidan Dropship]
[14:52] Sunray Minor : Understand. Airborne. One, four, five, two (1452) Zulu. Do you have an ETA? Over.
[14.52] STINGRAY 4-2 : Estimated 2 hours 40 minutes, enroute. I’ll show a log time in a couple of minutes.
[14:52] SUNRAY MINOR : Roger, Stingray 4-2. Command Post listening. Out.
[14.54] STINGRAY 4-2 : Pickup 1430 Zulu, conditions please.
[14:54] SUNRAY MINOR : Standby Stingray, I have weather officer I can give it to you know, if you are ready to copy. Over.
[14.54] STINGRAY 4-2 : Okay, go ahead.
[14:55] SUNRAY MINOR : 1430 Zulu weather, 90700 broken, temperature – negative four-five-four, ramp temperature – negative three-seven-eight, altimeter setting two-niner, decemil eight-seven. I just talked with the Ramp and they indicate radiation is darkening rather rapidly there, suggesting reroute around the area.
[14.55] STINGRAY 4-2 : Roger. Copy, thank you, out.
[14:55] SUNRAY MINOR : Weather out. Good Luck.
//Radio Transmission End//
Hearing this news, the head radio operator felt his heart drop at the news. An area with the newly discovered dark type radiation could only mean dangerous conditions to the ship, as it meant that it was one of the many short distance wormholes that riddled the area like cheese. He stared at the monitor tight lipped, unsure of what to tell the commander. The ship was expected to deliver the cargo the destination, and they couldn't afford to steer around the phenomenon without dropping the expected schedule, as guiding the ship around the anomaly would cost days. They were assigned to transport several squads of Shock Troopers to the main ship acting like a central command before the planned exploration was to begin.
The galaxy itself was discovered only years earlier, but unlike others being discovered now that space travel has been perfected, the galaxy was discovered to have several planets what could support life scattered along the inner ring. It was unknown whether or not life actually existed among them, but even if there wasn’t the planets could be used for a momentous step in human development: Planetary Colonization. This would be the next leap of Mankind, first begun by the Space Race that had started more than a hundred years ago.
The radio officer snapped back to attention as he realized he had let his mind wander, which was common to happen in the recycled air that the crew was inhaling. He rubbed his eyes, preparing himself to be the bearer of bad news. The cabin area was divided into two rooms, with the pilot and co-pilot sitting in the forward facing room, along with the commander and head navigator residing in the seats located slightly elevated and behind the pilots.
Snippets of a quiet conversation that the Navigator and the Commander were sharing floated to him, almost muffled by low hum the electronics produced. The hum paired with the silence seemed crushing, and the radio operator wanted to clap, whistle, or do anything that would shatter the disturbingly placid atmosphere in the room. As he unstrapped himself and floated up, he felt light-headed as he usually did in the lack of gravity, and he started making his way towards the commander by using the handholds placed strategically thought the compartment. As he did so he passed his crewmates all looking at their own monitors with the same blank expression that he had himself a few minutes earlier. The man missed a handhold, because the dim red strip lighting embedded to the floor of the cabin offered little illumination and because of his own drowsiness. When he finally made it the other room he placed his hand on the doorframe to steady himself and waited, as the conversation was still in progress and the commander showed no eagerness to face the radio operator. The man sighed, and closed his eyes hoping to rest them.
When the Commander finished his story he turned to the man he recognized as the Head Radio Officer standing before him who seemed barely awake, unless he could sleep without drifting away. He cleared his throat, and the man snapped to attention clumsily. The radio officer then began to panic, as he had accidentally pushed himself off the rubber seal that separated the two main rooms in case of a breach occurs to either room. Trying to stop himself from drifting into the pilots the man grabbed anything he could, his arms catching dashboard of switches. The Navigator of the ship watched him, amused at the man while the Commander tried to help him situate himself.
When all was sorted and the man was brought to a stable position, he began to recite the message the ship had received. As he did so, the both the Commander and the Navigator watched intently. They both listened without comment and the Navigator periodically checked his screen for the danger the Radio Officer was informing them of.
He had barely finished before being interrupted by seemingly random actions preformed by the pilots in front of them whom had been ignored by the Commander. Instantaneously a person could detect that there was a problem as the movements of the pilots were hurried and panicked as they reached for switches above them. As one of them glanced back a look of terror could be seen as he realized that the control panel before the Navigator was not set correctly, and was disturbed by the Head Radio Operator’s loss of control.
“Oh no, that can’t be good,” said the pilot. Even with his voice barely heard because of the helmet he was wearing they could hear the panic that was slipping in. “It seems like the radar has been switched into short distance readings.”
“What does that mean?” the Radio Officer stammered, fearing the worst as the Commander sat beside him without an input to the problem, which worried him.
It was the Navigator’s turn to reply, “It means that we have approached a large amount of space debris at little warning at high speeds. Quite a bit of space debris, practically unavoidable, and we are already in a less dense part of the cloud. You better send a message for help.”
“I agree and suggest you ask for an engineer ship.” The helmet of the pilot turned back to the HUD. “We may have a bit of trouble.”
The now devastated man now guided himself back to his chair, ready to make right what he had done without hesitation. He prepared the system, linking a channel to the Flight Command to ask for any help.
{{COMMUNICATIONS: CONNECTED}}
//Radio Transmission Begin//
[Date: 6.7.2064] [Time Elapsed: 75 Days]
SUNRAY MINOR: Area Flight Command [Amadeus Class Light Cruiser]
STINGRAY 4-2: Dropship Flight 25-2 [Taiidan Dropship]
[15:11] STINGRAY 4-2 : This is Stingray 4-2, asking for assistance. Requesting units to assist in guidance from a hazardous situation.
[15:11] SUNRAY MINOR : We read, Stingray 4-2. We will be sending in Engineering TC-141’s then?
[15:11] STINGRAY 4-2 : They will be greatly appreciated. What will the ETA be?
[15:11] SUNRAY MINOR : One moment, we are reading your location now.
[15:11] STINGRAY 4-2 : Understood.
[15:12] SUNRAY MINOR : There seems to be a problem with the positioning systems. We need a manual read.
[15:12] STINGRAY 4-2 : One, seven, nine, two (1792) Zulu zone. Coordinates are 38.51155, -82.705388, 38.505447, -82.694102
[15:12] SUNRAY MINOR : What are you doing there? We sent an all-call warning all ships to avoid that area. We’ve found that it is an unmarked wormhole. You’re only 21 klicks away.
[15:13] STINGRAY 4-2 : {unintelligible speech in distance}
[15:13] SUNRAY MINOR : 20 klicks. Are you still there?
[15:13] STINGRAY 4-2 : {unintelligible yelling in distance; some scuffling}
[15:13] SUNRAY MINOR : 19 klicks. Respond immediately.
//Radio Transmission End//
{{COMMUNICATIONS: CONNECTED LOST}}
“We have to get out of here!” The man screamed as he rushed to the pilots, leaving his headset to float in the place. His voice was almost drowned out by the earsplitting sirens that had begun to blast in the ship.
“What do you think we’ve been trying to do? We’re being sucked in, there’s too much weight!” the copilot yelled back without taking his eyes off the swirling cloud in the distance which menacingly threatened to swallow them whole.
“Drop some cargo!” the Radio Operator instinctively suggested, before remembering the cargo was human. By now everyone was in a mad frenzy trying to do anything to save the ship, and this may be a viable option to some.
“We can’t do anything but that now,” said the Commander quietly as he watched the proceedings from his seat, “nothing else we can do.”
“Sir, what are you implying, we can’t do-,” began the pilot, before he was interrupted by the Commander shoving his hand on button releasing twenty-four soldiers into deep space in cryogenic sleep pods.
A single monotone voice spoke out the words, “Releasing cargo.”
The Commander stared at the back of the pilot’s seat with an unfocused glare, not speaking a word. Everyone stood silent as the pilot started guiding the ship away from the threat, the copilot shutting off the alarms. A large, flat grey container began to loom under the ship, making its way towards the wormhole.
[Three Days Later]
The Kaidan Class Heavy Cruiser was drifting in high orbit off one of the many solar systems’ gas giants. The ship itself was indescribably large, and frigates were comparable to bees flying around the hive. The ship was the ship that would spearhead human exploration of the last frontier, and the thousands of humans working within it were propelling it forward.
The Radio Officer was lying on his bed in the crew quarters of the massive command ship after the incident. The bed itself was part of a bunk bed so he had little room to relax, but he did his best to make it home, taping pictures of his children on the underside of the bunk above him. He wondered what the parents of the soldiers in the cargo bay would think when they received the formal letters. Had he seriously let two dozen men and women die so easily without ceremony? The publicized news broadcast of the event didn't make it any better, crediting the Commander for the decision he made to save the ship but criticizing the navy for not addressing the danger of wormholes prior to the accident. He sighed, closing his eyes as to block out all the problems in life without avail. The man fell into a deep slumber having troubled dreams about the soldiers who were also sleeping, and may never wake.
In the next morning, the man still rose and prepared to face the day before him. He was almost unfazed by the memories that troubled him the night before, now that he had duties to attend to.
The Einstein-Rosen Incident
A bolt of light was soaring through the air, closing in on the Canterlot street. Bathed in a green light, Spike was in the path of object as it neared him. The corner of his mouth twitched up as he tensed himself for what was coming.
At the last moment, he ducked away to avoid the changeling as it blasted a smoldering crater into the dirt. Spike reacted instinctively, sending a fist down upon the Changeling’s head with a crunch. Stunned, the changeling jumped back, and they both prepared themselves for a fight.
The Changeling opted to take the first strike, swinging a leg at Spike’s chest. Spike easily caught the blow with his claws, but the Changeling was ready for him, swinging his leg up into Spike’s chin with an elaborate flip. Spike stumbled back a few steps, eyes watering from the sudden sting of pain and the Changeling began to capitalize on the moment, throwing a series of punches at Spike. Spike wasn't about to let himself defeated so easily, blocking the attempts with his arms and ducking back as the Changeling’s hoof swung up to his head.
As he ducked back, he caught a glimpse of his friends being herded past into the castle. Spike knew he was too far to reach them, as the Changelings between them would make sure of it.
The Changeling he was fighting began to use its wings, flying to face-level and attempting to send more kicks into Spike’s face, and Spike was having a hard time blocking the blows. As the Changeling flew above him and suddenly dropped down feet first, Spike sidestepped and scissored the Changeling’s throat with his elbow. He flipped them both onto the ground and began to try to subdue it with a choke hold. He wasn't sure if he needed to, but if he had to, he would hold them off. If that meant saving his very best friends, he would try his best.
As he lay there, the Changeling was attempting to break free by bringing its elbow down into Spike’s side. As ineffective as this was, Spike felt himself losing his grip.
“Spike!” Twilight’s voice drifted over to him.
“Huh? Twilight?” Now Spike was panicking. The Changeling had called for backup, and he could see more flying at him. "Twilight, I'll fight them off! Run!"
“Spike,” Twilight’s voice said again, “wake up or we’ll miss it!”
______________________________________________
“Spike, wake up! It's time!” called Twilight Sparkle, hoping to dig her assistant out of bed. Finding herself unsuccessful she began making her way upstairs, leaving the equipment she had prepared for the meteor shower that night. Rolling her eyes, she began to levitate the still sleeping form of Spike from his bed did the same for her equipment once she went downstairs.
“Twilight, you need to run,” mumbled the purple dragon, unaware that he was dreaming. "We need to get out of here... Huh? Where am I?" Twilight dropped him to the floor. "Aww, Twilight, couldn't you have let me sleep a bit longer? I was having a weird dream! It must’ve meant something."
Twilight was aghast with the proposal. "Spike, you know what this is right? This isn't any ordinary meteor shower, Star Swirl the Bearded himself predicted this! This must have the utmost importance, and I'm not missing it, even if the dream was interesting."
"What makes this night so special, anyway?" Spike asked defeatedly as he started gathering scrolls from the table. "Do you even know?"
"Ah— no. But I have trust that Star Swirl the Bearded must have a reason. Even if nothing happens, all our friends will be there!" Slightly happier at the thought of a picnic in the night on Sweet Apple Acres, Twilight began to make her way through the door. "Spike, have you checked everything off?"
"Yes, and isn't this more stuff than usual?" Spike was completely obstructed from Twilight's view because of the equipment he was carrying. As he said this, the pile swayed dangerously back and forth.
"Of course, Spike!" Ignoring the clatter of the equipment falling as Spike unsuccessfully tried to pick up a quill. "I have to make sure I capture everything!" saying this, she began to make her way to Sweet Apple Acres.
______________________________________________
"Automated message: Approaching planetary atmosphere"
The mechanical words were lost to the seemingly empty room. Random items were floating throughout it, casting dark shadows as the strip lighting illuminated it. Lining the walls were cryogenic sleep pods , the insides of which were masked by the frost that had formed on the shielded windows. Inside were men and women, still in their suits of armor even though they would experience the effects of cryo burn on their skin. They were trained to fight at a moment's notice wherever they may be dropped, and they would act no different for the planet the were tumbling towards.
The cargo container had been treated with heat shielding, but wasn't designed to enter atmosphere alone. The sleep chambers themselves, however, were designed to be drop pods, sending troops from orbit onto a planet. Weapons and supplies one would need were placed into cavities in the frame.
"Automated message: Approaching danger zone, sealing chambers."
As this was announced, segments of the room were split off as large blast doors slid into place. Shaped protective shields were also lowered over the front of the cryo-pods with hisses of pneumatic systems.
"Automated message: Please do not panic, adopt the safety position and please read the safety guide section two dash six. Please take procedure. Sending distress and coordinates to nearest shuttle: Fade of Dawn; Unsuccessful..."
______________________________________________
“And I was approaching the cloud when I decided to angle my wings a little bit, ” Rainbow Dash paused for dramatic effect, “and boom, I did a barrel roll right into a pond.”
Five mares and a dragon laughed at Rainbow Dash’s attempt to further improve her stunts, and one pony was spending her time wordlessly staring through a telescope, scanning the skies. She had been scouring the sky for any anomaly, occasionally writing down a note or two and her previous plans to enjoy time with her friends had not been satisfied.
“Y’all right, sugarcube?” Applejack asked as she began to trot over to where Twilight was sitting. “What’s the problem?”
“The problem is that is no problem, Applejack,” Twilight pulled out a hefty stack of papers, all with detailed thoughts written upon them. “According to my calculations, the mysterious object he’s talking about is supposed to come in a few minutes! I must have gotten something—”
“I’m sure it’ll come, you’re hardly ever wrong,” Applejack consoled, “and if you are, it isn’t too bad usually.”
“I was just hoping this would help explain some of the more complex notes Star Swirl had, they discussed some things I didn't understand and—”
“Uh, Twilight, you may want to look at that,” Rainbow Dash had stopped telling her story and was tapping Twilight’s shoulder. “It looks important.”
“This may be more important than anything in Canterlot , Rainbow! This may be a breakthrough in science and—”
“Just look !”
The sound of panic caught Twilight’s attention now. Glancing up, she sees that everypony is watching a single speck in the sky, falling at the wrong angle for a meteor. A long trail of vapor would be seen left in the sky like an incision performed by a surgeon.
______________________________________________
“Automated message: We have entered atmosphere. Current altitude: one thousand three hundred kilometers. Current speed: eleven thousand two hundred meters per second.”
The air within the cargo hold seemed to be heating up, as it began to hit the atmosphere and decelerate. The weapons cache had broken free, and an anti vehicle missile launcher tumbled through the air. Small leaks occurred throughout the structure, and streams of vapor could be seen spewing into the air.
The stress on the cargo container was too much, as the leading side of the capsule buckled inward, and the rest of the structure ripped apart in a large explosion. Twenty-four cylindrical pods were among the debris, and began to scatter apart in the air.
______________________________________________
No sound was heard on the ground as the object suddenly split into what seemed like a hundred stars. Flecks of light trailed behind, as larger sections maintained their momentum and burned ahead. They burned bright in the night sky, easily spotted by anyone who happened to look up.
“Wow,” said Fluttershy, “that’s not like any meteor I’ve seen before.”
Twilight looked over at her friend and saw the worry on her face illuminated by the glow of the meteor. “Me either, Fluttershy,” whispered Twilight, “I hope this is what Star Swirl was talking about...”
As Twilight watched, the debris seem to become more scattered until they seemed invisible. Several large parts remained intact, though, and as she swiveled to get a better view they began to drastically slow. They look like they’re not burning up... Thinking this, she lowered the magnification, only to be shocked that they were within seconds of impact over what seemed like Everfree Forest. No, not good!
They watched as plumes of dirt were blasted into the air in the Everfree Forest with dull thumps, and flocks of birds begun to rise into the air, disturbed by the impacts.
“What was that thing, Twilight?” asked Applejack.
“I’m not sure, but I’m going to find out,” Twilight said determined, “Hey, girls? I think I have to run some tests back at the library. Sorry!” She lifted the sleeping form of Spike onto her back and began to make her way back.”
“Don’t worry, Twilight! All the cookies are gone, anyway!” Pinkie Pie called back to her.
______________________________________________
That night Twilight spent hours scouring her books, searching for any past documentations of similar events with no avail. Tales of magical objects falling from the sky only led to an ending of evil aliens attacking Equestria or magical ponies in a children’s book. More credible looking reports only deemed themselves to be a hoax of some sort. She turned to the explanation that it was a magical anomaly, caused by some outer force. No, the sensors didn’t pick up any readings...
Twilight put her books away and hoped that the phenomenon had some scientific explanation, and that it had been explained by Star Swirl the Bearded only to be overlooked somehow by her careful eyes. Yes, that must be it. Nothing to worry about.
The Einstein-Rosen Incident
Andrew woke up. Rather, he was shocked awake by the loud klaxon, slightly muffled by the pod door. He opened his eyes to have them blinded in a yellow burst of light, and he blinked in an attempt to clear his watering eyes. He felt himself choking on fluids in his throat, unable to breathe. He struggled to push the door open, feeling his muscles refuse to cooperate.
“Cryo-pods opening.”
He fell to his knees on the ground, vomiting the thick goo from his airway and heard his squad mates do the same around him. For some reason, he was always in the worst condition after a session of cryo-sleep.
“Andrew, you okay?” Andrew found himself feeling like he was drowning, unable to respond to the worried question of a friend. Skylar always noticed, she was always put in the pod next to his. “Are you alright?”
People were starting to get up and suit up, trying to get out of the area before an enemy could pinpoint their location and attack while they were vulnerable. All Andrew could do was rest his head on the cool floor and try to breathe. Everyone was putting on their armor with energy, except him.
“Andrew, let’s go!” Another squad mate this time, helping him get up. By now some people were already fully suited, weapon in their hands. Slowly Andrew began to rise, and forced himself to grab pieces of armor and put them on with a click. Slowly but surely.
“Beta Kill Squad, ten minutes to rendezvous point!” Commands were being issued this helmet, and they hadn’t even been awake for five minutes? That’s not good , Andrew thought.
“Copy! Thomas, get us there,” a girl shouted.
“Distance is quarter mile, double time!”
Andrew started running, pulling the charging handle of his rifle back at the same time. He raised his weapon and moved carefully. Past the gunmetal blast doors was a world where he would introduced to harsh combat. As he walked past the concrete to grass wet with dew, he was only met by his squad moving away. Already members of the squad of eight were at the tree line, fifty feet away. All he did now was focus on running, and when he reached there he could hear his own struggled breaths in the helmet.
“Let’s move,” commanded the soldier, and the squad sank into the shadows of night.
______________________________________________
The explosion nearly deafened him, only five meters away. Sharp rustles of leaves and grass told him that shots were directed in their direction, and he directed his fire into the general direction. He was hoping he wasn’t shooting at a squadmate, as they had been split up in the confusion.
“Move up, we need to take this hill!”
“Contact left, I need assistance!”
Andrew found he had a clear shot at the target, a silhouette in the darkness. He directed the reticle of the EOTech and fired. The figure fell back, a burst of red sprouting from their chest. The squad was pushing hard, intent on reaching that point as fast as they could. Shots flew out from everywhere, but they ran and tried not to trip. Andrew was blinded by an eruption of dirt ahead as an explosion went off. He tried not to think about what would have happened had he been a faster runner, and jumped over the crater.
The three of them took cover in a trench and prepared themselves to make the rest of the way. The enemy must’ve thought they were gone, because no grenade landed in their laps. They took some time to catch their breaths, and to strategize the next step of the fight.
“RV in thirty seconds! Ready?” Skylar asked, probably with a grin. “First time we’ve not lost anyone!”
Well, we’re still not done here. Better not celebrate just yet. “Ready.”
They scrambled out, ducking their heads. Nobody seemed to notice them in the confusion of the battle, and the made it to the end of the tree line without contact. The team of three couldn’t see much, only the glow of the bunker. The glow meant safety and a successful mission. He could sprint that distance, easily.
“Let’s move, Beta Squad. It’s safe,” said a voice over the channel. Andrew wasn't sure who said that, but he was pretty sure that it wasn't safe. Who would leave the bunker completely unprotected?
Something’s wrong.
“Run on my mark.” Andrew was nervous now.
This isn't right.
“Mark!”
Blasting out of the bushes, Andrew was running now. From his peripheral vision he could see several other members of the squad, sprinting at full speed. They were all out and running when someone realized what was wrong, but everyone was already charging full speed towards the danger.
Guns began to deliver automatic fire into the line with brilliant flashes of light, blinding Andrew. He saw several silhouetted forms fall around him, slumping to the ground. He felt something strike his chest, and he felt himself trip over a body. He found himself stumbling, and he dropped his rifle, his armor feeling like it was ten times heavier. Collapsing face first onto the ground, he realized he had been shot. Shouts were cut off as his communications system was shut off, leaving him with only muffled sounds of light machine gun fire. He closed his eyes, waiting for it to be over.
“Exercise complete. Beta Kill Squad casualty count: Eight.”
Andrew laughed, turning himself over. He got up and went over to pick up his paintball marker, brushing off some grass.
“Ah, shut up, Andrew.” Skylar appeared over him and helped him up “I was wrong, you were right. I can’t be right all the time.” She took off her helmet, revealing a pleasant grin.
“Good work, Cadets! You managed to get yourselves killed in within ten seconds of each other,” the instructor announced “I hope you weren't expecting a transport back. Start running.”
______________________________________________
Andrew thought he felt sore the first day, but it never gets better. Running three miles in a suit of armor was tiring, even if he had been doing it quite often. Taking a shower and lying down felt heavenly, and he recounted the day's events.
That night he was smiling, he didn't know why, but he was unusually happy. He had friends to help cover his back, and he felt like nothing could go wrong in life. The World was at peace for one of the first time, due to the promising thought of faster than light travel tantalizingly close. What could go wrong? He thought as he closed his eyes.
“Automated message: Impact in two minutes thirty seconds.”
Wait, what? Andrew tried to rise from his bed, but none of his muscles were responding. Andrew began to panic, struggling to fight the invisible bonds. He felt as if he was buried alive, he couldn't feel his limbs. He could feel his bed violently shaking, as if the world around him was experiencing an earthquake.
“Automated message: Recalculating. Impact in one minute. Deploying high speed chute.”
What’s going on? Andrew opened his eyes in time to see a dark, cloudy sky and a dark forest rushing up to meet him. Several other pods could be seen glowing hot in the distance, leaving almost unnoticeable trails in the air.
“Automated message: Impact in thirty seconds.”
I’m dropping, aren't I? No, this can’t be right! There’s no war! He shut his eyes, not believing it.
“Automated message: Ten seconds. Brace for impact.”
I don’t want to do this.
WHUMP
The impact shook Andrew to the bone, the momentum causing him to black out for a second. He could hear muffled thumping as other pods landed somewhere around him. His armor helped cradle his head, and kept him from taking too much shock on this joints.
Not this.
A solid beep went off, and the pod door was blasted off by some strategically placed shaped charges. He grabbed his rifle from the slot beside him and began to sweep the area. Seeing it was safe, he took of his helmet and began to vomit on the ground.
At least I'm not being shot at.
“Beta Squad, we have all twenty-four boots on the ground! Linking communications with other squads. Over.”
“This is Squad Alpha. Setting up a rendezvous now. Coordinates set on HUDs, ready!”
Putting on his helmet, a light green target icon was displayed against the darkness along with a distance marker. About a kilometer; let’s do this. Andrew thought as he grabbed another ALICE pack and secured it to his back as he began his trek into the darkness. He was holding onto the dim hope that this was some crazy training exercise, but he knew it wasn’t likely. With my luck, every animal here will want to kill us.
"This is Alpha Squad Leader. We've been been dropped on an unidentified planet. Awaiting Central Command. Best of luck.”
______________________________________________
“Where are we?” Andrew heard Skylar ask impatiently.
The squads were established in a small sheltered clearing in the middle of the seemingly endless forest. Andrew himself had been assigned to guard the camp, and he was walking around the edge of the clearing, looking into the dark night. Skylar was sitting in a group along with the squad leaders and other soldiers around a portable light, helmets off.
“We don’t know yet, because Central Command hasn’t contacted us,” said the leader of Beta Squad.
“Has this ever happened before?”
“Not that I’m aware of.”
“Damn.”
Andrew walked away from the group to peer into the forest. So far no one had encountered a hostile threat, or anything that may prove to be a problem. It was as if they were on an unpopulated area of Earth. Maybe we are on Earth. Well, if that was true, they would be found soon enough. A platoon of soldiers usually don’t go missing without someone noticing.
He glanced around. Everyone seemed to be in a good mood, despite no one having an idea of what to do. What was the objective? It’s not like there’s anything to fight, it’s all just birds and squirr— Wait, add fireflies to that list.
He stared at them, peacefully blinking in the darkness. It seemed like the longer they’ve been here, the more like Earth this place became to them. The place had a stunning amount of similarities to their home planet; it was only defined by subtle differences like the lack of human civilization
Wait a second. Fireflies usually move around, rather than remain in a certain place don’t they? They seemed like lights in the distance...
“Hey! Hey, I think I’ve foun— gah!”
They lights suddenly grew larger and pounded on him, knocking him back.
“Contact, west side!”
The animal was latched onto his left arm, relentlessly shaking and trying to pull him into the bushes. Several others ran from the bushes father to his left at the others, only to be dispatched by rifle rounds. The gunshots sounded unnaturally loud in the previously serene environment.
The animal was foaming at the mouth, trying to maul Andrew anyway he could. Andrew grabbed the knife on his chest plate and plunged it into the scruff of the violently attacking form, only to find it not as effective as he had hoped. He tried again, ramming it surprisingly easily into the skull of the animal. This time it dropped, and seemed to shrink down into a shape smaller than what it had been. The others were taken care of, and Andrew was the only one that had trouble disabling the attackers.
Getting up, Andrew brushed off his armor and readjusted the sling on his rifle to a comfortable position. The animal, despite it’s vicious attacks had only scuffed the dark metal of his armor.
“What were those?” Thomas asked, wide-eyed.
The Squad Leader of Charlie bent down to examine the curious remains. “I don’t know.”
“They seemed canine in nature, but had reflective eyes like a feline,” Andrew offered.
“So we’re likely not Earth?”
“Probably not,” Andrew said with some regret.
The man brushed his hand on his helmet, and Andrew heard him speak through his communications system. “All units are recommended to proceed with any further actions with caution; hostiles have been spotted and engaged. Don’t go out alone.” He turned back to Andrew and put a hand on his shoulder. “You’ve had a rough day; go get some rest.”
“Thank you.”
______________________________________________
As Andrew forced himself to relax, he couldn’t help but think about everything that happened. It wasn’t everyday you’re literally dropped onto an unknown planet with no outside communication. He tried not to think about what would happen if they weren’t rescued by humanity. Not exactly reassuring, the thought of the same people day after day. Well, maybe we’ll die before we get to that.
Andrew closed his eyes, and slept.
The Einstein-Rosen Incident
[Earth]
The day was more than uncomfortable, with no clouds to offer any resistance and the sun shining as hot as anyone remembered. The dry runway was shimmering from the heat of the day, yet hundreds of soldiers and civilians alike were standing on it.
The procession watched as Taiidan Dropship lowered its front loading ramp with a slow mechanical whine, revealing a dark cave to those outside. A column of six soldiers broke off from the rest, solitarily marching into the gloom. Everyone watched as the group reappeared, carrying a casket draped in the American flag.
They began the walk to a waiting hearse, trailing families. The fact that there were several cars lined up struck a cold spike into everyone’s hearts, as if to remind what happened. The crisp commands and stiff marching were the only things that broke the silence that had draped itself over the runway, as the soldiers in ceremonial wear honored the fallen.
Everyone only watched as this repeated itself twenty-four times, each time with a different casket and a different flag. The flags were folded and presented to the family members, something to remember the service the fallen family member achieved. Nothing compared to what was traded.
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“Spike, I seriously cannot believe this! Is everyone busy today? How are we supposed to collect samples from the impact zone if we’re doing other stuff?” Twilight was being more obsessive than usual about her studies, and Spike raised an eyebrow.
“Why can’t you just check it tomorrow?” asked Spike as he picked a loaf of bread off of the shelf and put it on the table. “It’s not like it’s going to disappear or anyth—”
“That’s the thing, Spike! Magical residue tends to fade in days, even a few hours! It may even—”
“Twilight! What about your picnic today? Are you just going to cancel it for a space rock?” Spike said as he placed some daisies on a slice of bread. “You can’t just do that!”
“You’re... right,”Twilight said as she bent her head. “What was I thinking? I can’t just leave my friends, not when I agreed to make the meal.”
“Exactly,” confirmed Spike, pointing a fork at her. “Now help me make these sandwiches, or you aren’t exactly making the meal.”
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Andrew woke up, not sure where he was. Man, this will be occurring quite often, won’t it? I wasn’t until he peeked outside the tent he was in that he finally remembered that he didn’t know where he was.
He slowly propped himself up with an elbow, and glanced around the tent. It had been secured from one of the drop pods the night before as well as some other supplies, and everyone was thankful for the shelter even if it could barely fit a few men and their gear. He looked at his armor beside him, and examined the mud that had caked onto it. I’ll need to clean it, don’t I.
Stepping out of the tent revealed a torrent of bustling movement; everyone preparing for the new day. Andrew sighed and began to do the same.
After cleaning himself up, he stepped back into the tent and assessed the condition the armor was in. It seemed like everything was functional, other than a thick coat of dried mud around the legs. He grabbed one of the heavy boots and began to brush it off outside. Looking at it, the armor was relatively complicated; it required another person to assist in putting on the armor or removing it, and it required special tools unless you wanted to damage the joints.
Once he had brushed off the caked mud he began to actually see the scuffed grey paint. He systematically cleaned all the pieces of armor, disassembling some of the joints where needed to ensure that the machinery of the powered armor was in good condition. He activated his helmet as he put it on, checking to make sure everything was functioning and nothing was damaged in his fall. The gentle glow of the helmet confirmed that it and the rest of the armor was functioning normally, and Andrew took it off and laid it to the side.
The armor that they wore was one of the most crucial components of a modern shock trooper; keep it in good shape and it’ll do the same for you. It was unbelievably how often this was stressed to them as soldiers. For good reason, as well. Countless stories have been told of the armor preventing a piece of would-be-lethal shrapnel from piecing the person’s torso, or of the armor cushioning the blast of an insurgent's grenade that found its way to the room of a soldier. The technology was incredible as well, able to make use of a vast array of sensors and cameras to keep the soldier at peak performance. Well, not that the sensors would help a dead soldier.
Something that was also very curious about the suit of armor was a program installed called Vindico . Vindico essentially allowed the armor to be automated by the squad leader to bring the soldier to safety if the soldier was wounded. Or in a darker sense, if the soldier was dead and completely unable to be revived by any sort of medical treatment, the commander of the squad could use the armor to fight using it’s own artificial intelligence, effectively keeping a man in the fight. Thinking about it, Andrew wasn’t sure if the program had been decommissioned or not due to it’s inhumane treatment to the body. There was also an incident where the program misread a soldier’s life signals and became rampant aboard the Aurora Dawn , the soldier hadn’t harmed anyone due to the IR sender everyone wore, but the incident had spooked the military enough to reconsider.
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A young boy, no older than twelve knelt before a dark granite wall and placed a flower. His mother watched as he stood up and stared at the spot his father’s name was. He lightly touched the first letter of the name and slowly brushed it to the last. His name was among hundreds, the wall stretched to either sides. It had been dedicated to all the men and women whom had had their lives taken away in the harsh environment of space. Dedicated to those who had began to blaze our way to mankind's next step, the step that would help secure our place in the universe.
As time would pass, humanity would no longer question it’s own fragility in the universe. It would rise to the occasion, becoming more than a simple blip in the timeline. Oh, we would ensure we would not go quietly into the night to be discovered as some long lost civilization, a precursor that could not escape their own bodily limitations. We would be remembered, they told themselves.
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After field stripping his rifle and making a thorough investigation, Andrew made his way outside once again. Teams were busy preparing for the long haul, savaging drop pods and bring them back to the camp for supplies. Other than the drop pods, there was no sign that they had dropped from the sky, as everything else had been burned away in the atmosphere. Andrew suddenly realized how thankful he was that the planet even had an atmosphere, and a breathable one at that. Man, temperature is perfect as well. Maybe—
“Andrew!” His thoughts were interrupted by Charlie Squad Commander beckoning him over. “Are you free right now? We need a group to retrieve a drop pod, yours actually.”
“Of course, Sir. Where to?”
“Follow Thomas,” said the Commander as he absentmindedly pointed towards an assembled group as he began to reference his papers again. Drop protocol in unknown territory and environment, if eyesight serves correctly.
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As I made my way to the group of people lounging around, one whom I recognized Thomas met me as he made his way to me.
“G’morning, Andrew. I see you’re with us today. I think you’re the last one we need,” he said as he turned back and started making his way back with me. “We have the pods marked on our display, so we should have no problem finding them.”
Looking at the assembled group, I saw that it was my squad. It was unsurprising, as it would easily take eight people to move one of the large drop pods. That left a surprisingly small number of people left in the clearing, nothing except themselves to protect against anything that the forest may have.
As we made our way into the forest, we noticed that it was like any normal forest that would be on Earth, but a bit darker. It seemed to have a smothering darkness that found a way to make you claustrophobic, with low canopies and close trees. If we didn’t have waypoints set up, we would probably be lost in an instant. And then we would probably die. Well, better not to think about that for now.
Ferns whipped at our armor, marking areas of it with dark green streaks of cytoplasm. The trek itself was almost nothing compared to what they’ve been through, effortless now due to the assistance of powered joints. As everyone made their way through the dense forest, I couldn’t help but admire the serenity of it all; aside from the occasional bird call, everything was in a steady trickle of sound. The occasional stream of water was hypnotic, and the lull of the leaves rustling was almost enough to send a person to sleep. This took a toll, and we found ourselves walking through the forest as if we were enjoying our weekend with a hiking trip. As if we never left Earth.
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The assembled group of mares were in hysterics, laughing at Pinkie Pie’s latest story. Despite Twilight’s earlier concerns, she felt better than ever. She had pretty much forgotten the event that she had witnessed last night, and now she was sitting with her friends enjoying her day.
“—And then she said that the CWC’s Factory doesn’t exist!” Pinkie laughed as she rolled back, “As if! How would rainbows be made?”
Everyone laughed, unsure of what Pinkie was going on about but just happy to see such joy in a face.
“Twilight, I must say, these sandwiches are simply marvelous ,” exclaimed Rarity as she took a polite bite from hers.
“Oh, I agree.” Fluttershy said, allowing Angel to sample a bite. The bunny seemed less appreciative, and turned away, leaving Fluttershy with a worried frown.
Twilight only nodded in return, chewing her own meal thoughtfully. She swallowed, and stood up to face the mares. “Girls, I have a proposal: I suggest we explore the Everfree Forest.”
Just saying this sparked a variety of reactions, from Rainbow Dash’s questioning look, to Fluttershy falling backwards.
Twilight ignored the other ponies, instead choosing to continue on. “I think it would be highly beneficial if we retrieve some samples. After all, there are very few accounted reports of space debris landing in Equestria, and we shouldn't let this opportunity go to waste.” Twilight ended her suggestion with a nervous grin, met with the silence of ponies the mulling it over and what seemed to sound like people using hammers in the town.
“I’m in.” Rainbow was the first one to speak up, naturally.
Next was Pinkie in her usual manner, “Sounds fun! I’ll be Daring Do!”
“Hey! I’m Daring Do!”
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“Contact!”
Shots of semi-automatic fire were put into the beast as fast as the squad could pull the trigger, and yet it was still making it’s way to them. As it got closer Andrew realized it was the size of a rhino, and was moving at speeds at which they couldn’t hope to escape.
He watched as it took an easy leap over a fallen tree and begin it’s assault on the squad.
He watched as several of them switched to automatic fire, and unleash a magazine into the head of the wolf-like beast with no avail. The thing began to randomly select them and fling them away with it’s muzzle. As it grabbed someone and tossed them away as if they were a rag doll, it made its way to another member of the squad and lunged at their waist. The person was unable to move back in time and was locked in the beast’s jaws.
Andrew watched in horror as it pulled away and started to disappear into the forest, outrunning anyone. He could hear the grunts as Thomas struggled to break free, until he moved out of range in an astonishing speed.
We continued to follow its trail crushed ferns and broken branches, unable to do much else. We had no idea where we would find Thomas, or if we would even find him at all.
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“Alright, how about best of three hundred and thirty-one,” asked Rainbow Dash as she continued to play rock-paper-scissors with her hooves somehow.
The mares had been sitting there for half an hour now, upon Rainbow’s insistence that they do so until she won. Unsurprisingly, Pinkie had won every game so far. Twilight was reading some of the scrolls she had brought along, and Fluttershy was mingling with some of the animals that were brave enough to stray from their dens. Everyone else appeared to be trying to take a nap.
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“There’s another one!”
That was the last thing I heard before I was unceremoniously taken by the leg and hung upside down. As much as I could tell I was being dragged by one of the animals that seemed to be abducting us. Not dying was very high on my list, but unloading a rifle magazine did nothing to help me with that.
Other than being hit by the occasional sapling, I was lucky enough to remain uninterrupted as I was mercilessly dragged through the forest by the leg. The occasional jump over a barrier could have me slammed into it, and I almost dropped my rifle. Using a knife to stab it’s underside proved to be useless, it was like the thing was a tree trunk.
I watched as it took a sharp turn and inertia as it flung my body to the side. I could only watch as the rock wall rushed to meet the side of my head.