Chapters War does not determine who is right - only who is left.
-Bertrand Russell
“Ponies?!?” Stammered Alex, “you’re kidding right? Is this payback for what I did to your chair?”
“So YOU’RE the one who did that?! You’re cleaning the bathrooms and barracks when we get back.” Spat Johnson.
“Do you see anything else? Any people? Aliens?” Eagerly Questioned Alex.
“No, we’re not kidding, there is actual ponies down there. We don’t understand this world yet, so we have to sit tight and observe. I don’t feel like starting a war with an unknown race because they saw a handshake as a threat.” Ordered Roberts, while also handing the rangefinder to Alex.
“But, colorful ponies! Why can’t we go down there and hug their cute li-“
“I said NO! We don’t know what they actually are and if they’re sentient. We must stay here out of sight and observe.” Interjected Roberts. The team sat there, and after a while, updated with Eagle’s Nest.
“Alpha 1! This is Viking 1! Do you have an update? Over!” Yelled Viking 1.
“Viking 1, Alpha 1, we made it to the village and have been observing what seems like the native, and possibly sentient life. Over.” Responded Roberts.
“Sentient life? Seriously? We’re the first group to ever actually find sentient alien life? What do they look like? What do th- Ow! Okay! Okay! Sorry for the muttering, sir, I’ll relay any information to Eagle’s Nest. Over.” Stammered Viking 1.
“Well, we’re not sure about all the details. I’ll share when we get back, tell Eagle’s Nest we’ve found the town and observing what seems like sentient life, and are going to start heading back soon. Over and Out.”
“Guess not. Well, let’s stay here for about another hour and we’ll trek back.” Reiterated Roberts. *BEEP BEEP BEEP* “What was that?” Asked Roberts.
“The atmospheric tester is done. Let me see, ah! It says that the atmosphere is very similar to Earth’s atmosphere! At least when it was healthier. Should be safe to take off out helmets; if you would be fine with that captain?” Responded Johnson.
“Go ahead, we don’t really need them right now anyways.” Answered Roberts. As the three stood up, and started to take off their helmets, Alex stumbled when she got her helmet off, and her helmet fell to the ground with her leaping to the ground to grab her helmet.
“Shit! Come back here!” Yelled Alex.
“Goddammit Alex! Be quiet! We don’t want any attention!” Interjected Roberts.
“I think we got plenty of that.” Stated Johnson while holding his Rangefinder to his eyes.
“Damnit Alex, I just got my helmet off. Okay, let me see my rangefinder Alex, and both of you get down, at least make it difficult to stand out.” Ordered Roberts. Roberts lifted the rangefinder, which was much easier to use now that his helmet was off. He crouched down and looked around the town until he saw it, a lavender pony, or unicorn I guess, (but also had wings too?) looking straight at their group. The unicorn started to slowly walk towards them, a curious look on its face. “Shit! Helmets on, we gotta move now! We’ve been spotted, let’s go!” Ordered loudly Roberts. The three quickly twisted on their helmets and started jogging, with Roberts constantly looking behind him to see if anything was following them. When he didn’t see anything he was relived. Then, a purple flash, and another flash to the rear left, he started to panic and wanted to increase the pace. He did NOT want to find out what this creature could do to them. “Let’s go! Faster! Viking 1! This is Alpha 1! We are in route and have a contact tailing us, possibly hostile! You better be ready when we get there! Over!” Demanded Roberts.
“We hear you Alpha 1! We will be ready! Engines already warming up! Over!” Responded Viking 1. The quick short breaths of the team could be heard through the radio. The adrenaline and fear driving the team faster and faster away from the rustling, flashes and what sounded like yelling, but in a higher pitched sound.
“Viking 1! We’re approaching the ship! Drop the ramp!” Screamed Roberts through the radio. As the team rounded a corner and pushed through some bushes, an open area with a cloud of dust appeared in front of them with a shuttle in the middle of it all. A ramp could be seen and Alex seemed to have that last bit of energy to make it inside first. Johnson got in next with Roberts last. Roberts stopped at the end of the ramp and pulled his Mosquito off his back, firing a total of ten shots into the air to scare whatever was following them away long enough to get inside safely. Running inside, Roberts yelled into his radio, “O’Hasen! Close the ramp! Now!” With a red flashing light and an almost completely unnoticeable wail from the speakers, the ramp started to close. The ramp was open just enough for the team of three to see a bright flash of purple just outside the ramp. “O’Hasen! Get us the hell out of here now!” Ordered Roberts.
“Not arguing with that, taking off!” Responded O’Hasen. The Shuttle violently started shaking, almost knocking the three off their feet, as the ship lifted above the treetops and rocketed toward space. The three sat down and strapped in. Seconds turned into minutes, while minutes turned into what seemed like hours.
“What the hell was that?” Asked Alex, breaking the silence.
“I have no idea. Whatever it was, it could, what seemed like, teleportation. No matter which way we went, no matter how fast we were, it was always there. I don’t have a good feeling about this.” Replied Johnson. The team was still lulling over all of what they saw on that short recon. The Timberwolves, the town, and the ponies. It was almost overwhelming, what were they going to do?
“Hopefully when we get back, the lab coats can break the information down and find out what the hell is wrong with this planet.” Stated Roberts.
Later, Onboard the “Eagle’s Nest”
“This information is invaluable! The amount of progress that could come from studying these creatures! So much can be solved back on Earth and around the colonies! Just imagine the possible uses of personal teleportation! We could improve current jump drives ten-fold! You! Over there! Go get me all of the data acquired during the mission! Gehen sie jetzt schnell!” Yelled Dr. Vahlen.
“Doctor, we must be careful about some of this, we don’t know what we’re dealing with here, and they seem less advanced through technology and more naturally genetically advanced. We can’t just go and cut them up hoping they don’t notice. This is the first possibly sentient race other than us for lord’s sake!” Replied Captain Roberts.
“Exactly! That’s why I want you to get another team on the ground and set up a base. I want on the next ride down! I must see this immediately!” Chimed Dr. Vahlen.
“Another trip? So soon? Can I at least get some information of what we’re dealing with?! I don’t know what we’re going to do if they decide we’re not wanted on their planet and they attack. They can even fly! Completely naturally!” Argued Roberts.
“And that’s why I leave the strategy up to you and I do all the research! I have faith Captain! Well, let’s go!”
Author's Note
Sorry about the shorter chapter... Hope everyone enjoys! Again, Comments are encouraged!
If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it enough.
Johnson walked down a long corridor with a straight face of deep thought. He was rethinking about what happened on the new planet codenamed “Eximius”. The new hostile creatures they found, the planet’s green landscape, the villages inhabited by something else other than humans. He was in such deep thought, that he didn’t even notice the person walking toward him.
“Johnson! A word?” Asked Roberts. Johnson suddenly jerked back into the world and looked up at Captain Roberts.
“Uh… Yes, Captain. What is it?” Replied Johnson.
“I’m going to lead another expedition down to the planet. This time, we’re going to have an actual FOB to work with. I wanted to see if you would volunteer, there was only one other excluding me that actually saw what was down there.” Explained Roberts. The moment was frozen in time, both completely silent. One was hoping for the correct answer while the other remembering the events that occurred on the planet.
“Sure Captain, I’ll go. How long till I need to be ready? I wanted to get some things done here before we go.” Asked Johnson.
“We will be leaving around 2:00 a.m., we will meet in the hangar bay. Go ahead and do anything you need, done. We might be down there awhile.” Reassured Roberts.
“Thank you, sir. Anything else?” Asked Johnson.
“From you? No. From Dr. Vahlen? Much. I’ll see you in a few hours. Enjoy the rest of the afternoon.” Replied Roberts.
Johnson slightly smiled, and walked away; accidentally bumping into someone, issuing a quiet apology, then continuing down the hallway once more, deep in thought.
On the command deck, Captain Roberts was slumped in his chair, unsure on how to move ahead on the next operation. His head hurt from all the possibilities, both bad and good. With all that had been discovered and had also occurred, Roberts had asked for more people. The request had gotten through, but there wouldn’t be any help for at least a couple months. Up on a screen to the Captain’s right was a rough sketch of what Roberts wanted for an FOB in the forest near the spotted village. To the left, there was a list.
“Everything is in order, Lieutenant Taylor. The first shuttle will have the military personnel with all the necessary supplies. Included on the shuttle will be the energy weapons, adaptive rifles, and the large sniper rifles. The second shuttle will have all the engineers needed, and the third shuttle and final shuttle for today will have the rest of the construction supplies. Shuttles will continue to land till everything needed is unloaded. The majority of scientists will be down when the FOB is complete. Electrical systems will be set up by noon tomorrow. Oh! And Dr. Vahlen will be going down with the first wave of shuttles, as requested.” Stated the soldier while looking down at his tablet.
“Thank you, I need to go speak to the Captain right now. Make sure the shuttles are ready.” Ordered Taylor. The two turned around and walked away from each other in opposite directions, one towards the large shuttles, which were similar in class to the chinooks in the late 20th century and early 21st century, while the other went toward the bridge.
While Taylor was leaving, another conversation could be heard between the solider and a engineer, "What do you mean the shuttle isn't flight ready? We haven't done anything since we left earth! Okay... Can it be operational by the next mission? Good, as long as the shuttle can get down and back up, I don't care about the small things. We probably won't need any of those anyways..."
After about a minute of walking, Taylor heard voices. He rounded the corner and found what he was looking for, Captain Roberts. Roberts was talking to Sergeant Johnson, but Taylor couldn’t understand what they were saying. The two said a final word and Johnson turned around, obviously not paying attention, and walking straight into Taylor.
“Sorry about that. I guess I wasn’t paying attention…” Quickly stumbled Johnson.
“It’s fine. Are you okay Johnson? You seem unfocused today, which is very unlike you.” Questioned Taylor.
“I’m okay, just, thinking. Sorry again.” Replied Johnson. Johnson kept walking down the hallway, and Taylor watched for a couple seconds before turning around and walking towards Captain Roberts.
“Captain! I wanted to let you know that the shuttles are ready. The only thing left is that actual list of people coming down. You, Dr. Vahlen and the others will be on the first shuttle. Right after that, the second shuttle will land and construction will commence, have you sent any ideas to the engineers?” Roberts looked at Taylor with a straight face as it slowly morphed as Roberts realized what he forgot.
“Shit, no, I haven’t got a chance to send any in. Thanks for reminding me. Is there anything else you wish to talk about?” Asked Roberts.
“No, that’s all sir. Just an update. Have a good night.” Replied Taylor.
“Well, I’ll see you on the shuttle in a few hours then, probably best if you go get some sleep. There might be trouble on the surface.” Commented Roberts while slowly turning around to head back to the bridge. Taylor simply nodded and headed to the barracks. Roberts, on the other hand, was headed to the bridge to grab his sketches and ideas of the FOB to give to the engineers.
A Few Hours Later
(1:49 a.m.)
“Let’s go ladies! Come on! We’re on a tight schedule!” Yelled Sgt. Johnson as he stood on the edge of the ramp of the shuttle. Men were in the progress of loading numerous supplies onboard the ship while also lugging their own gear. “That the last of it?” Asked Johnson to a nearby soldier. After he nodded yes, Johnson yelled once again, “Come on ladies! Let’s roll! Pilot! Get going!” Johnson sat down in the last seat nearest to the ramp, while also checking his helmet. Even though the surface atmosphere was breathable, the helmets still provided information and protection.
“You sound better.” Stated Taylor, who was sitting down on the opposite side of the shuttle.
“Yeah, some sleep can help a lot, and yelling at the men never gets old.” Quietly laughed Johnson. The two just sat there, nothing to say, every once and a while looking up and at the eager men next to them that desperately want to get on the surface. There was a total of 11 people in the cargo bay, not including the two pilots. There was Captain Roberts, Sgt. Johnson, Lt. Taylor, Cpl. Alex, and some other personnel. Once the shuttle left the hangar, some looked out the windows to see what could only be called, absolutely beautiful. The large exploration ship shining against the black sky with the sun barely visible off in the distance. The ship once again started shaking, every second seemed to only anger the craft; fire around the windows and walls, until it calmed down, and the green planet was all that could be seen. The ground quickly grew larger, the large forest just in view. A tall mountain could be seen in the distance, gently shining from the planet’s moon. The Gs’ from the quick speed burn was felt through everyone onboard, Carl even threw up his breakfast. If you looked hard enough, far enough, you could see another shuttle entering the atmosphere, fire on its wings and hull. After a few long, painful minutes, the shuttle touched down in the same field from the original Expedition. The field was open, mostly clear of dense brush, and near both a natural water supply and the town spotted earlier.
The ramp started to lower to the ground, while Johnson was already out of his seat with his NOLAT DMR in his hands and his helmet on his head. “Let’s go! Move! Move! Get off your ass and get out! I want four of you watching perimeter while the rest unload until the engineers get here!” Screamed Johnson while shoving soldiers out the shuttle. Taylor, Johnson, and four others spread out to secure the surrounding area. Roberts stood back to make sure everyone was good and working. Roberts ran into the ship to help a soldier, who was also about to drop a very, very, heavy box on their foot. After a lot of short choppy steps out of the shuttle, the pair set down the crate, with the solider running back inside looking for another. Roberts just stood there, watching the second shuttle prepare for landing, then slowly descend to the solid ground. Roberts calmly walked over to the shuttle ramp to talk to the head engineer to get the construction underway, to meet Dr. Vahlen at the edge of the ramp waiting for him.
“Ah! Captain Roberts! This planet is truly beautiful, is it not? I appreciate it that you allowed me to come down in the first wave of shuttles, instead of with the rest of the scientists.” Chimed Dr. Vahlen.
“Well, you did say you wanted to be down as soon as possible.” Replied Roberts while handing a folder to Dr. Vahlen, “please give this to the head engineer, and go ahead and give some input into the labs.” Roberts took one last look at the folder, then smiled slightly, then turned right around. Roberts started to walk back to Lt. Taylor. Taylor was speaking to another soldier when Roberts walked up to the two.
“Yes, sir! I’ll get started on it right away sir!” Responded the soldier to Taylor, before spinning around and jogging off toward the small group of other soldiers.
Author's Note
Sorry about the long wait! I had a bit of writers block and had finals... But now it's summer for me so off to more writing!
The only time you have too much fuel is when you're on fire.
Far from the current progress being done on the unfamiliar planet, the command deck on the ‘Eagle’s Nest’ was bursting with activity. Officers running around, yelling orders at others, looking at their screens while wearing earpieces.
“Hercules One, you are clear to land at site bravo. Over.” Chimed an officer into his mic.
“Sir! Hercules Three is off course! They missed the reentry point!” Yelled another officer across the deck.
“I got it!” Replied a third officer, “Hercules Three, report in! Your transponder is showing us you missed the reentry point. Over.”
“This is Hercules Three. We hear you, and yes we did under calculate the burn. But, we are getting back on course now, and just entered the lower atmosphere. Over.”
“Okay Hercules Three, just keep your eyes open and don’t do it again. You gave us a scare there. Over.” Responded the officer.
“Roger that, we’ll remember to calculate the extra cargo next time. Also, my copilot and I are seeing some weird clouds over here. Please advise. Over.” Questioned Hercules Three.
“Clouds? Well, sensors are still not fully functioning. We can’t see anything live. I’m sure it’s fine. Over.” Responded the officer.
“Okay. I’m just saying, these things don’t look natural. It almost looks like, a fucking…? Oh shit! Hard left! NOW!” Screamed Hercules Three though the radio.
“Hercules Three, what’s going on down there?! Come in! Over!” Franticly questioning the officer. After a few moments that felt like years for the officer, the radio responded.
“This is Hercules Three! We just got hit by something in the clouds! I have no idea what it was but I think something got jammed in the intake! Engine three is on fire! Rudders and Ailerons on the right rear wing are not responding! I’m having trouble keeping the ship stable! Erickson! Extinguishers! We got to get this thing under control!”
“Hercules Three! Come in! Do you have control of the ship yet?! Hercules Three?!” Rapidly questioned the officer.
“This is Hercules Three. It seems like we have the ship under control now. The rear right ailerons still are not fully responding, but the fire is mostly gone and we’re nearing the large mountain close to the landing site.” The large shuttle of Hercules Three trudged along the blue sky with a thick black smoke trail behind them, slightly tipped to the right side. “Looks like we’re in the clear. We will keep you updated Eagle’s Nest.” Confirmed Hercules Three. “What the-? Erickson what is that? Shit! Cut the fuel flow! NOW! Befo-!” The radio cuts out after the sound of an explosion. “Eagle’s Nest! Engine three just blew out a piece of the rear ailerons!”
“Roger that Hercules Three! Activate your transponder and keep trying to regain control. We will contact nearby support in the meantime.” Calmly ordered the officer.
“Transponder active! I don’t think I’m going to be able to pull the shuttle out of this!” Shouted Hercules Three.
“Roger tha-“
“SHIT! We’re starting to go into a nosedive! COME ON YOU FAT BITCH! PULL UP!! We’re going down! I repeat, we’re going down! Brace! SHI-!” The radio cut out with a few seconds of static, before completely cutting out. Majority of the officers at that point had stopped what they we’re doing and we’re frozen by what they had just heard. A minute passed, then one spoke out against the silence…
“Get the Captain, NOW.”
“We’re going down! I repeat, we’re going down! Brace! SHIT!” The large cargo ship slammed into the ground with a large ‘BOOM!’ as the whole ship rolled slightly onto it’s right side and carved into the ground with a trail of debris and fire left in its wake. The large metal scrap slowed to a halt and groaned from the intense beating. Much of the contents in the cargo bay was thrown about in the trench created from the large vessel, while the two pilots sat in their seats, motionless. A tall cloud of smoke was forming from the vessel, as a small fire in the rear started to grow and eat the remainder of the rear of the ship. All was silent around the large vessel, the only sound that could be heard was the crackling of the flames and the groaning of the beaten ship. One of the pilots then started to stir, and slowly opened his eyes.
“Ah man… My head… Shit, Erick? Hey? You alright? Damn, fucking crash broke my visor. Got to get this stupid thing off.” With a click and a twist, the helmet was lifted off the pilot’s head and fell to the ground. The helmet rolled over to show a name tag marked ‘King’ on the top left of the helmet, while the awake pilot unbuckled and moved to get out of his seat toward the other pilot. King unbuckled Erick and took off his helmet. He reached down to the other pilot’s neck to check for a pulse… Still strong. He lifted him up and out of the seat.
“Whaa… What happened? King? What hap- Ow! Fuck! My leg!” Yelled Erick while looking down at his left leg to see a piece of metal jammed in the front left side of his suit. The metal shard was crooked and bent, with some red barely seen in the light shining through the front windshield.
“Shit. Okay, I know it hurts, but we have to get out of this ship. Can you still walk with my help?” Calmly asked King. Erick looked up at King and slowly shook his head before wrapping his arm around King’s shoulder, with King doing the same to Erickson. The two stumbled and slowly trudged through what was left of the crooked, torn, and burning ship. King stopped a little distance from the cockpit and reached out with his free arm to turn a few switches, that then opened a small hatch, and grabbed a small bag which he then threw over his back.
“Hey, King? Shit… Can you make sure you got the med-kit? My leg fucking hurts.” Panicky asked Erick.
“Yeah, it’s in here.” Answered King while using his free hand to point to his bag. The two started to walk through the ship again, obviously looking for a non-burning, functioning, door. Finally, the two reached the far left side of the ship, where an auxiliary door could be seen. King moved the locking mechanism to the unlock position, and gave the door a heavy shove to pop the door open, to then find that the door was still a couple feet above the ground.
Erick stopped, and stared downward judging the distance, then looking at his injured leg, “I don’t think I can make that…”
“We have to. Come on, I’ll jump down first, then you can get down. It’s okay, you’ll be fine.” Reassured King. King jumped down with a solid ‘thud’ then turned around and reached upward, “okay, just slowly try to drop down. I’ll help you.” Assured King.
Erick slowly moved downward with King’s help and stood back up. Erick grimaced in pain as he started to move again and had to lean more to his left for King to support him.
The two walked away from the ship until they were a good 100-150 meters away from the ship. The two sat down to rest and try to get ahold of what they could do. King reached to his right side to pull out his sidearm and then to his left to search for his short range radio. While Erick sat there, looking at the burning heap that was their ride down to the planet. After a few failed attempts to contact anyone nearby, King loaded his first of two total magazines into the gun and cocked it. King stood up and looked around, trying to maybe spot anyone or anything else. He had heard that there was buildings, or structures of some kind spotted, but wasn’t very sure since most rumors end up being stretched or total bogus. They were close to the landing site, just to the southeast of their position, at least it was when they checked the map right before going down. “Maybe we could just walk?” Thought King, “even with Erick’s injured leg, it shouldn’t be that hard.” Then one other thing took priority in king’s mind, “what the hell was that noise?”
Author's Note
Well, This is the next chapter. Yes, there isn't a lot of content in it. Which is solely because I kinda lost interest in the story, and before you go jumping to conclusions, I first off don't like leaving unfinished business, especially this open. But I have kinda gotten into a stump and don't really know where to go... I wanted a story with humans traveling and finding Equestria with all the nonsense and craziness behind it. For now, I'm going to post this mostly finished chapter, and probably put the story as canceled. I'm not really that great of an author in the first place, and I'm just blabbering on now. In the future, I might go back and edit the chapters and restart the story, or just contiune, but this is probably it...
Thank you all who read this unfinshed, rough and failed story! And have a good evening, night, or morning to all that are reading this!
Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.
- Albert Einstein
ENCRYPTION DELTA: ********
ENCRYPTION KEY ACCEPTED
USERNAME: **********
PASSWORD: **********
ACCEPTED
Welcome Capt. Roberts!
Captain’s log: Day 12, Month 3, Year 2285
I have been convinced to start having these ‘logs’, for the ‘recording of major viewpoints’ and the ‘complete understanding’ for the lab coats back home. Dr. Vahlen has been very persuasive, after all, she is the head scientist and the major reason for this expedition; I really hope this doesn’t turn into a wild goose chase. It has been four months since my crew and I left the Sol system, I can’t say it has been easy on them, or me for that matter, but we still have a mission. Since the committee organized this mission it has been a giant cluster-fuck. First, the new ship had to be downgraded to older life support and habitation, which couldn’t support as much crew originally wanted for the mission, then they pull the majority of heavy weapons from the ship! I get it, ‘no pirate is going to attack a worthless exploration vessel’, but that doesn’t make me feel better! Anyways, the original crew count of a couple hundred got reduced to a measly 65. At least this ship has plenty of space to move around and it flies well.
Captain’s Log: Day 21, Month 3, Year 2285
Well, I just got reports back from the crew; it looks like most of the ship is still working. That’s a good sign. It doesn’t matter if we have improved and advanced jump engines, if anything, they seem more prone to fry themselves and get us stuck out somewhere in the middle of space for a day. The stock of everything is at acceptable levels as well, should get us to the Eximius System safely. Thank the lord that the committee didn’t take away the hydroponics and recycling systems, make things a lot easier. Hopefully, we won’t need the armor and ballistic rifles.
Captain’s Log: Day 1, Month 4, Year 2285
Another log. Damn, these are already getting annoying. And no, this isn’t an April fool’s joke, I am not into the shit. Well, we are approaching the Eximius System. Hopefully, there wasn’t something wrong with the Telescopes and we find nothing there. I guess I really haven’t explained the whole ‘Eximius Mission’ thing, have I? Well, the Eximius Mission was first started a few years ago when a team of ‘special’ scientists studying and searching for new systems for humankind to colonize. Yes, I know there is a colony on Mars, the Moon, and the new planet in the Avlar System, but you know the situation on Earth. Anyways, the scientists found an unusual system. One that had a celestial body at the center of the system that wasn’t a star. Odd, right? Well, at first it was thought to have a black hole at the center, and that was it. Until Dr. Vahlen got a hold of the evidence and took another look. When she observed and proved that there was, in fact, a planetoid in the center and not a black hole, the whole science community went berserk. Eventually, the New Space Science and Exploration Committee or N.S.S.E.C .for short was contacted and a mission was set up. So there you have it.
Captain’s Log: Day 25, Month 7, Year 2285
Finally! After almost 8 months we’re here. The Dr. again convinced me to type up one of these logs, it has been awhile since the last one. I must say, this system is defiantly prettier than others, maybe it’ll become a vacation system one day. Well, I know I have been in this goddamn tin can for far too long. I honestly cannot wait to get on the ground to check this out, and I bet the crew can’t either.
LOGOUT REQUEST PROCESSING…
LOGOUT SUCCESSFUL
Have a good evening Capt. Roberts!
Capt. Roberts got up and out of his chair to look over at his crew on the command deck. They were said to be the best crew to volunteer, and so far they were doing well. Hopefully, they can hold down the fort while he goes down to the surface with his crew. If this system is what they say it actually is, then I want to be the first to see.
Somewhere Else…
“Damn, what does a guy gotta do to get some lovin’ over here? Huh?” Someone said in a deep voice.
“Oh shut up Patrick.” Someone said in a much higher voice.
“Come on Alex, I know you’ve haven’t gotten much since we left Earth. Hell, I don’t think you have gotten any at all!”
Random Chuckles break out in the group.
“I told you to shut, the hell, up PATR-“
“ATTENTION ON DECK!” Screamed an officer at the end of the group.
Suddenly everyone became quiet and stood straight. The men and women were completely silent, some even trying their hardest not to laugh.
“At ease. As many of you know, we have arrived in the Eximius System. And you all must know that you’re all not going down, yet. There has been interference recently affecting our scanning equipment, or it’s just this shitty, last gen, crap that we got; and we’re needing a small recon team to relay information back up.” Exclaimed Captain Roberts.
“Permission to speak freely sir?” Spoke up Johnson, one of the Sergeants.
“Granted.” Answered Captain Roberts
“Sir, do we have any information on the composition of the atmosphere on the ground? And what about the ships? What I’m trying to say is, what is the plan, sir?” Asked Johnson.
“We are going to send a Skeleton crew, including me, down to the surface. There we will take samples of both the air and the surface for further study. Once a large enough site is found, the larger cargo ships will be sent down to create a ground camp for further study of the planet.” Answered Roberts. The rest of the crew stood still and didn’t say a word. “I’ll assume this is all acceptable?” Asked Roberts. The crew just stood silent, with some shaking their heads slowly. “Okay then, Cpl. Alex and Sgt. Johnson, go get the armored suits, I will meet you in the armory later. O’Hansen! You’ll be flying us down to the surface today. I hope it’ll be a softer landing than that one day at training. The rest of you are dismissed!” Roberts explained, then turned around heading for the labs to speak with Dr. Vahlen. There were some important matters on the equipment that were going to be taken to the ground.
1 Hour Later
There was multiple people in the hangar bay, a majority of them wearing matte black space suits. Near a large shuttle was a squad of 5 suits. Two suits were lighter looking amour-wise, with only a small sidearm on their right hip. Three of the suits looked heavier and had Mosquito SMGs on their backs, which shoot 45. Cal rounds.
“Comm. Link check. Everyone report.” Chimed in Roberts’ Voice through the comms.
“Check.” Quietly acknowledged Alex.
“Green to go!” Confirmed Johnson
“Pilot and copilot ready to fly this bird!” Called out O’Hansen.
“Let’s get going then! Shall we?” Requested Roberts’.
1 Hour Later…
First, a bump on the shoulder, then a gentle shake, then a… ‘BANG!’ “GODDAMMIT!” Screamed Roberts’. “The hell was that for?!”
“Sorry Sir, but we're about to enter the atmosphere.” Responded Johnson.
Roberts tried to get up and attempt a stretch, but then suddenly remembered that he was still strapped in. Turning his head just slightly, he could see the darker, yet still, lush, green land and forests. The view was absolutely beautiful and reminded him of the older pictures of the earth when humans first left their world. Then the ship started to quake and roar while giving off a red tint around the windows. After what seemed like hours of violent shaking, the ship calmed and the red tint disappeared. Once again Roberts looked out the window and saw the horizon getting brighter, and the lush green all around, although a bit bigger. But, there was a peculiar area that looked something of a castle… But that couldn’t be, could it? Did some other group already beat them here? No, that is unlikely as well. Maybe it’s just the star rising over the horizon reflecting off some of that mountain.
“Captain! You might wanna come look at this!” Yelled O’Hansen. With the flight pattern and the shuttle now more stable, Roberts could unstrap and carefully move up from the cargo bay into the cockpit with the two pilots.
“What is it O’Hansen?” Questioned Roberts.
“What the hell does that look like?” Responded O’Hansen while pointing to the 2 o’clock of the shuttle. Slowly the captain moved forward and let his eyes focus. Then, a small image of what appeared to be a town came into focus, and a giant… crystal? If this was what he thought it was, then they have to take precautions.
“See that thick forest over there? I want you to find a good spot near or in there, so we can stay out of sight. Then, we will get our recon going.” Ordered Roberts, “oh! Radio up to Eagle’s Nest to let them know we’re about to land and that we’ve found what seems like a town or a city of sorts. We will be updating them shortly. Also, your codename when we get on the ground is going Viking 1.”
“Roger Captain!” Quickly responded O’Hansen. The shuttle then started its descent towards the forest. After hovering close to the treetops, finally a spot was found; it was a large opening in the trees, but the shuttle could still be somewhat hidden, and it was closer to the town they had seen earlier. As the ship settled and the engines shut down, the crew opened the rear ramp and moved outwards to secure the area. The cargo bay of the ship had some essential supplies for the shorter recon mission; oxygen tanks, M.R.E.s (Meals Ready to Eat), some distilled water, medical supplies, and some other misc. things. Once the area was secured, the cargo ramp was closed and the small squad regrouped. “Okay men, we’re going to slowly move towards where that town was spotted, I need to know what we’re dealing with. Which means, safeties on, but keep those trigger fingers ready; we have the tools, rather them than me. Report everything you see, the radio logs are being recorded. Alex, get out the motion scanner.” Ordered Roberts.
“On it!” Replied Alex.
“Johnson, grab the atmosphere scanner and see if you can get samples. I want to know what happens if we take our helmets off.” Ordered Roberts.
“Getting samples!” Answered Johnson.
“Captain! Just got off with Eagle’s Nest! The connection was clear and they’re expecting and update in an hour! Over!” Pronounced Viking 1 over the radio.
“Roger that Viking 1! That is good to hear that our long range radios still work! We are still en-route to the edge of the town, will update you shortly. Over and out.” Responded Roberts. As a few minutes went by, the forest seemed to become louder, and more, dark . Suddenly, there was movement and what seemed like growls came out of nowhere.
“Captain! I got movement on the scanner! Multiple contacts! Front!” Yelled Alex.
“Eyes open and ahead! This isn’t our world, and we have no idea what thinks were dinner!” Responded Roberts. Hopefully, this wasn’t other humans, we don’t have the resources nor the people to start a conflict. Then, suddenly, a large, wooden looking creature jumped out of the bushes along with two others flanking it. “Hold fire! We don’t know if they’re hostile!” Yelled Roberts.
“What the hell are those things?! They’re like wooden wolves!” Said Alex. Then, one of the wolves started to dash forward, mouth open in a howl.
“Safeties off! Open fire!” Screamed Roberts. .45 cal bullets started flying and penetrating the first wolf. Once the wolf fell, the last two attempted to pounce on Alex; Roberts fired three shots that hit their mark on the wolf’s head and neck, that then fell to the ground defeated, dying. Unfortunately, the other wolf was still mid-pounce on the closer target, Alex, and managed to knock her to the ground before getting mowed down by more bullets. “Alex! Report! Are you injured? Is your suit punctured?” Questioned Roberts.
“*Cough* I’m good! Some scratches on the chest plate and some minor possible leaks, but nothing serious.” Responded Alex.
“Let’s keep moving.” Ordered Johnson.
“Viking 1! This is Alpha 1! We just got attacked by some wooden looking wolf, over!” Said Roberts.
“A what? Repeat your last, over!” Called out Viking 1.
“It was a-“
“Timberwolf sir.” Blurt out Alex.
“It was a Timberwolf Viking 1! A dog like creature made of what looked like wood! Over!” reiterated Roberts.
“Shit, okay Alpha 1. We will update with Eagle’s Nest. Any injuries? Over.” Asked Viking 1.
“Nothing major Viking 1. But we are approaching the town. We will update you shortly, over.” Responded Roberts.
“Roger, we will be waiting. Out” Returned Viking 1. Roberts really wished that he wouldn’t meet any more of those things on the way to the outskirts of the town, and on the way back. After what was about 10 minutes of walking and constantly watching for movement, the small team reached the outskirts of the town. The squad crouched down while Roberts and Johnson pulled out their rangefinders from their packs, and took a quick look. Thankfully, it was easier to see details in what appeared to be morning. There was definitely activity in the town, now to see what inhabited it.
“Johnson, are you seeing what I’m seeing?” Questioned Roberts.
“I think I do sir.” Responded Johnson.
“What? What is it?” Chimed Alex.
“Colorful ponies…”
Author's Note
HAHA! Cliffhanger! Hope you guys enjoyed the first exciting chapter of, The Eximius Mission! Any suggestions will be welcomed! Just don't be a snot! The pattern of updates will depend on the amount of pull for this story and my available time. At moment of writing, it is EOC season and I got a lot of school, so it is TBD.
