The corridors echoed as you walked down them. A metallic but subtle clang with each step of your combat boots. You are very familiar with this part of the ship. It's become your second home since you left Earth. It is this part of the ship that made everything tick. From Power Management to Engine Control, this area of the ship is designed to keep it functional for years on end. It is also where Cryo Pod Systems Management takes place. The cryo pods that are now housing hundreds of sleeping humans waiting for their next opportunity to wake. Normally, the colonists of the ship are only ever woken when a planet that is possibly suitable for human life is found. However, in each system that was jumped to, the planets that were possibly suitable had a kink or two which would prevent colonization efforts. It was then that the opening of the cryo pods became increasingly less common. Eventually, it was decided amongst the higher-ups of all ships in the fleet that the colonists were to remain asleep in their pods until a planet that was confirmed to be able to host human life with no risk factors was found. Only crewmen essential to keep the ships running and in working order were woken from their pods when a new system was jumped into.

This is another one of those times that you were awoken from your pod. You are an essential crewman, tasked with keeping the ship operational, and you made sure no equipment or hardware failures took place.

You are approaching Main Engineering shortly after waking from your pod to be positive that things were running smoothly in that sector. Ever since the previous incident on another ship, you've been significantly more cautious of how things were run on the one you are assigned to. You also figured that it is a good opportunity to get up to speed on how your crew is handling things. Since that incident, you and your crew have been a bit jumpy lately. About every error that came up on one of the ships consoles every once in awhile sent all of you into a small panic. You wanted to be sure that your crew is handling things well.

You reach Main Engineering, now arms length away from the latched door that leads inside. At the top of the door is a red, lit screen that read 'Main Engineering: Authorized Personnel Only.' You take your right hand and raise it to the handprint panel to the right of the door, placing it gently on the white hand-shaped part of the screen. After a brief moment, the panel lights up completely white, and two subtle beeps of confirmation is heard. You hear from the top of the door a subtle female robotic voice saying "Welcome Head Engineer: Crewman #52". Fifty two was your ship crewman designation number. Everyone on every ship had a designation number and position name.

Taking your hand away from the handprint panel, the door unlatches and opens before you. It makes a slight noise similar to an air pump and quickly opens. You go inside and see a large room with a number of blue consoles, each keeping track of a different section of the ship. You continue to walk forward and see three crewmen each working a different console. One of them turns to you.

"Well, well... Look who finally decided to wake up!" One of them says sarcastically before approaching you with a slight smile.

"Jordan. Hopefully none of you broke or overloaded anything while I was sleeping." You reply with a smile yourself.

Jordan, the crew member that was walking towards you, now stops in front of you. You stop as well. "We're handling it! We've gotten maybe only... three errors today. That's a new record!" He states with a pleased expression. "That's how you know today's going to be a good day."

You chuckle a bit, shaking your head slightly and then look back at him. "I know you and everyone else here has things well in hand. We've known each other for awhile. I trust you to know what you're doing." You reassure him.

He nods at you with content. Suddenly, another crew member a short distance from behind Jordan looks your direction and waves. "Good to have you awake, boss. Hope you had a comfortable rest in the pod."

"As good as a rest as you can get in those things..." Another voice was heard that came from another one of the crewmen, directly behind the one that was just addressing you. "Why in the world didn't they make them just slightly more comfortable?" He asked in an annoyed tone.

"Peter... I've already explained this to you. If they add any other components inside the pod to make them more 'comfortable' it'll compromise the freezing process." The crewman explained. "Plus, humans weren't exactly made to be frozen in place for extended periods of time."

Peter threw his hands up in surrender. "I know! But would it really do any harm to throw a pillow or two in there?"

The crewman behind Peter puts his hands on his hips and shakes his head.

You turn your attention to the crewman who was just explaining that to Peter. You walk over to him passing Jordan, and Jordan follows. You stop just a short distance of him. "Darius. How's the diagnostics looking today?" You ask.

Darius looks at you, then turns his attention back to the console, moving certain elements on the panel with his hand, analyzing error logs and reports. "Not bad today, boss. Everything's green across the board. Nothing damaged on the jump. The other four divisions report the same thing. The New Dawn's flyin' smoothly." He then turns his attention to you again, with an inquisitive look on his face. "Hey, boss... Do you have problems with the pods?" He asks.

You think for a moment, scratching your right cheek to process how to answer. "Well, waking up from one of those things isn't exactly easy. I think the pods could've gone through one more iteration before being installed on all of the ships." As you explain your position, you also remember that you've been having chaotic dreams while sleeping in cryo recently. You haven't been able to make sense of them yet. It was always difficult to remember the details when you woke up. You consider telling your crewmates about it, but decide against it. You don't want to worry them.

"I guess that's a fair answer." Darius crosses his arms facing towards you. "The Mark III model was the final phase of cryo pod designed by Slater Systems before being installed on the ships." He uncrosses his arms, bringing them back down to his side. "But I guess you and Peter have a point. Those pods could've gone through a bit more testing to make the freezing process more bearable." Darius turns back towards the console again, returning to checking diagnostic logs and reports.

You notice Peter now turning around to look at you. Now turning your attention to him, it became clear that he was about to ask you something. He leans himself on the console he was operating on, with both hands on the edge of it.

"So, we've made another stop in another system. I wonder how this one will disappoint us." Peter sighs in discontent. "What is this? The fifty sixth jump so far? How many light years are we away from Earth exactly?" He lifts his right hand as he says this and drops it back to the console.

Scratching the back of your head and looking around the room, you begin to think. "Honestly, I don't even remember. I'd have to ask the Admiral again." You turn your attention back to Peter.

Jordan, still standing next to you, speaks up. "Hey, don't get so down. Space is a big place. There's got to be at least one planet out here that we can call a home." Jordan had a tone of optimism in his voice. A voice that was encouraging even to the most pessimistic. But he was right. Space is practically infinite, so there had to be at least one planet worth colonizing... right?

Peter sighs again. "I know that. It's just... Humans need to be on some kind of world. We aren't meant to travel enormous distances on a flying hunk of metal. If this keeps up, we're gonna get stir crazy, and I might end up as one of the first ones who loses it."

Darius turns his head a bit towards the conversation you and Jordan are having with Peter. "Humans aren't meant to do a lot of things, yet we do it anyway." He says with a small laugh.

"Because we're stubborn." Peter says exasperated, turning his head to the side, shaking it.

A question forms in your head. Curiosity itching the back of your skull. "Do you miss it?"

Peter turns to look at you. "Hm?"

"Earth. Do you miss it?"

"I think everyone here misses Earth to a certain extent, boss." Darius interjects.

Peter sighs, and takes a moment to himself, looking down at the floor. "I do." He brings his head back up to look at you. "Now... Earth wasn't particularly the most glamorous place in the universe, but it was home. Being away from it for so long tends to make you feel homesick."

Jordan crosses his arms, and lets out a sigh. "Well, this system that we stopped in could be our final stop. Ya never know."

Peter looks at him, and nods slightly. "I really hope you're right, Jordan." He turns around back to the console and begins working on it again.

"I really hope you're right."

He was quite perplexed as to what he was looking at. Using his thumb and index finger he rubbed his chin, right elbow resting on his left hand. He stared out of the ships bridge side window, eyes examining the blue and green wonder in front of him. This world, this planet... It looked promising. Key word being 'looked.' He knew that there were Earth-like planets out there in the galaxy, but the Earth-like planets he knew of were still hundreds of light years away. This one is relatively close to Sol. He brings his hands down, now placing them behind his back.

There was one question that ended up coming to him.

"Lieutenant, why did we jump into the orbit of the planet instead of the star?" He asks, still looking at the lush world before him.

The crewman he addressed examines the two consoles in front of him. "Not sure, Admiral. Getting astrometrics data now." He touches several areas on the console, moving panels on the screen from side-to-side. Soon after, he stops.

"That... can't be right..." He says with uncertainty. The crewman's brow furrows, and places his hands on the sides of the console.

The Admiral looks at the crewman with confusion. "What is it, Lieutenant?"

"Um... One moment, sir. Let me run the scans again." The crewman says, now gathering data from the console a tad more quickly than before.

The Admiral fully turns to the crewman now, patiently waiting on an explaination.

After a few brief moments, the crewman stops again, eyeing the console in disbelief. "Huh..."

The Admiral is now looking impatient. "Well, don't keep me in suspense. Spit it out."

The crewman takes his left hand and rubs the back of his neck with it. "Sorry, sir... So... From what the data is telling me..." He stops briefly, then examines the consoles again. "This system we're in... It looks like the reason we jumped into orbit of the planet and not the star is because... Our navigational systems detected the planet as the center of the system. The star, planet, and moon here.... They're motionless. They're not even orbiting each other. The planet is on a perfect ninety degree axis, and it's not even rotating. Data is showing the same thing for the star and moon. The sensor array isn't picking up any additional celestial bodies in this system."

The Admiral brings his arms forward and crosses them, with a look of disbelief on his face. "How is that possible?"

"I don't know, sir. I'm at a complete loss." The crewman stops and now looks at the Admiral. "Sir, I'd also like to mention that ever since we entered the system, our navigational data has been going ballistic. Our metrics and frequency analyzers went wild when the ship auto-performed scans of the star, planet, and moon. The star and moon gave off wild readings, but the planet in particular..." He sighs a bit, catching his breath. "The planet is giving off the most activity."

"Are we absolutely sure that our sensors are working properly?" The Admiral states with a tad of intensity in his voice.

The crewman nods his head. "Yes, sir. If there was any issues with our sensors, engineering would've diagnosed and fixed the problem."

The Admiral turns his head to the strange planet once more with a look of suspicion.

"Sir... I think we have an anomaly on our hands." The crewman states, now putting his hands back on the edges of the console, leaning over it. "What are your orders, sir?"

The Admiral turns his body facing towards the planet. He gives it a long and attentive gaze. He places his right elbow back into a resting position on his left hand, his right index finger and thumb rubbing each other in a circular motion with his hand slightly away from the left side of his face. He inhales deeply, and after a brief moment, exhales.

"Admiral Henderson?" The crewman gives Admiral Henderson a look of concern, with a raised brow.

Admiral Henderson turns his head marginally towards his Lieutenant, eyes fixated on a random part of the bridge.

After a few moments, Admiral Henderson puts his arms and hands behind his back and walks towards the center of the bridge. "I want boots on the ground planetside. The opportunity to finally put a home on a potential suitable world is too great to pass up, anomaly or no. But I want to find out what's causing the commotion to our ships before we do so." He said with a tone of determination and purpose in his voice.

The crewman nods in acknowledgement. "Yes, sir. Should I prepare the survey teams?"

Admiral Henderson walks towards a console at the front end of the ship. "No." He reaches the console and looks at it. "I want a group of talented individuals on this. If we're going to get to the bottom of what's happening down there, we need to send our best."

Admiral Henderson brings his right hand towards the console and places his index finger on a white button and pushes it, holding it down.

A small light to the left of the button begins flashing white and red.

You're working on a console in Main Engineering, eyes glued to the screen. Jordan is across from you, doing his own work, and Peter and Darius who are a short distance behind you work on their own as well. You're examining cryo pod diagnostic reports to ensure that the pods are functioning normally, and that life support is continuing to operate without issues.

While you all were working and focused, four beeps in quick succession sounded, which startled you somewhat. All of you now look towards the intercom towards the door to Main Engineering.

"Head Engineer of division four. Please report to the bridge ASAP. I repeat, Head Engineer of division four. Please report to the bridge ASAP." The intercom loudly declares.

Jordan turns to look at you. "Looks like that's you, man."

Peter looks towards you as well. "That was the Admiral."

Darius turns his attention to you, but his hands remain on the console in front of him. "Admiral Henderson's come to rely on you a lot, boss. Ever since the Santa Maria incident, you've become his go-to miracle worker."

That's right. The Santa Maria incident. You remember that moment of travel with the fleet clearly.

One of the Corsair ships, named the C.S.S. Santa Maria, sufferred a severe equipment and hardware breakdown after a jump into an unexplored system. The crewmen of the ship were reporting cryo pod and life support failures across the entire sector. Many engineers of several divisions were transported to the Santa Maria to assist in diagnosing and repairing the failing systems. You were one of those engineers. After a couple hours of diagnostics testing, the others simply couldn't figure out why this was happening. The situation was becoming dire, and solutions were needed quickly. Life support was beginning to suffer a meltdown, which is a particularly deadly situation since a large majority of life support is connected to the cryo pods. Opening the pods was not an option, since immediately opening them before depressurization and defrosting would kill the occupants.

You scrambled between Cryo Pod Systems Management and Life Support Systems. On one of the walls of Life Support Systems, you notice a hatch that was emitting a very small amount of sparks. You rushed over to it, and ripped the hatch open with your bare hands. You discern that this hatch is connected to the cooling systems on the ship which allow multiple systems on it to run at peak efficiency, and without breaking down due to heat built up from their processors. Inside the hatch you immediately notice that four wires that run along the edges of it were burned and severed, the sparks emitting much more intensely. Taking a fusion torch from your utility belt, which is designed to repair wiring or faulty equipment, you meticulously run the torch along the wires re-fusing them together. After doing so, the imminent meltdown alerts went quiet, and other engineers and crewmen were reporting systems returning to normal across the entire ship.

Ever since that event, you've become the go-to engineer for ship-wide problems on the New Dawn.

"I was just doing my job." You say as you wave your hand dismissively.

Darius chuckles at your modesty. "You did a little more than just your job, boss. You saved over 900 lives that day. If you didn't figure out what everyone else couldn't that ship would've been just one massive derelict graveyard. Sometimes a little bit goes a long way."

"Hey, you shouldn't keep the Admiral waiting. If he wants to speak to you, it's probably important." Jordan interjects. "Don't worry. We got things handled down here."

You nod, but before turning you give a smirk. "Try not to blow things up here while I'm gone."

Jordan gives a slight grin. "No promises."

You laugh a bit under your breath, now turning and walking towards the door that leads outside from Main Engineering. It opens, and you walk through the door down the metallic corridor of the ship. The fastest way to the bridge was the on-ship tram system located in the midsection of the ship. The tram took anyone from the forward all the way to the aft section.

Main Engineering is located on the lower aft section, near Engine Control Systems. After turning down a few corridors, and taking a few elevators up to the midsection, you reach the tram staging area. Using a console located next to the waiting section of the staging area, you call the tram to your location.

After waiting a couple minutes, you see the tram coming down the railway, slowly making a stop towards your position. The tram now stops in front of you, and opens its side doors with the same air pump noise the other doors on the ship made.

You step inside, now in the tram, and touch a console near the door that commands the tram to take you to the forward section of the ship. The doors close and you take a seat on one of the open chairs.

The tram speeds up, taking very little time to get up to full speed. The tram speeds down the railway, with lights passing you every so often.

After waiting five minutes, the tram begins to slow, and you can see the staging area leading to the forward section of the ship. The tram comes to a complete stop now, and you get up from your seat. The doors open, and you step out of the tram onto the staging area. The doors to the tram close as you exit.

You take an elevator that's close to the staging area. Once you do, you take a corridor that leads directly to the bridge.

But all of the sudden, you stop and turn to your right. You look out one of the windows of the corridor.

You finally get to see the details of the system you're in. But there was one thing that was off here. You noticed that the ship is parked next a planet and not a star like how you're used to seeing. The planet looked beautiful. You couldn't take your attention away from it. It is like a lot like Earth, but with a brighter contrast and the continents configured differently. Could this be a potential new home? Our final stop? After getting enough of a view from the window, you turn back down the corridor towards the bridge.

You reach the door that leads to the bridge and it opens. You walk through and see Admiral Henderson standing in the center. Around him were a multitude of crewmen each working a seperate console.

Admiral Henderson turns to you now, waiting for your approach.

You approach him, and stop a short distance in front. "Admiral Henderson, sir." You say as you stand at attention and salute him with respect.

Admiral Henderson nods. "At ease, son."

You relax the stance of attention you were in, easing your muscles and lower your hand back to your side. "What can I help you with, sir?" You ask eagerly.

"There's a mission involving this system that I would like you and your division of engineers to be a part of. You probably noticed on your way here that we're orbiting this planet." He lifts his hand, aiming it towards the planet that is visible from a window of the bridge. "This planet, and the star and moon here, are giving off the most bizarre readings and data that I have ever seen in any system that we've been to."

"Are we planning to begin colonization efforts, sir?" You ask.

Admiral Henderson shakes his head. "Not yet. We need to find out the source of all of the extreme activity on this planet before we can even consider doing so. For this mission, survey teams will not be deployed to explore the surface. I need more detailed information than any survey team could provide. I would like you and your division to establish a forward base on the surface. Once you have done so, one of our science divisions will be conducting studies there."

"Will a security team be sent with us, sir?" You ask with a tone of concern in your voice.

"Yes. I will be sending Sergeant Henderson along with a small contingent of security forces to accompany you for this mission." He clears his throat. "Do you have any other questions?"

"No, sir." You say with a shake of your head.

Admiral Henderson nods. "Alright then. Report to the armory of the ship to arm and ready yourself if you face any dangers down there. I'm also clearing the rest of your crew to be lightly armed as well. After you and your crew are finished, report to the hanger bay. Sergeant Henderson will be there to meet you and your crew. A shuttle is prepared to take you all down to the surface." Admiral Henderson turns around and faces back towards the front of the bridge.

"Yes, sir." You eagerly say with a salute and stand to attention. After a moment, you release the salute and turn around to exit the bridge. But before you actually walked out Admiral Henderson turns his head to you a bit.

"Oh, and son?"

You turn yourself and face him. "Sir?"

"Make sure my daughter doesn't do anything rash, understood?"

You nod your head in acknowledgement. "You can count on me, sir."

Admiral Henderson nods himself and turns around again.

You make your way out of the bridge and down the corridor once more.

You took the same tram that brought you to the bridge. It is now taking you towards the aft portion of the ship. Not as far as Main Engineering, but a decent distance from it. After departing from the tram, you take an elevator to the lower portion of the ship. After the descent from the elevator, you make your way down several corridors and reach the armory. Stepping inside, you find that Peter, Darius, and Jordan are prepping themselves with equipment in the armory.

They turn their attention to you as you walk in. You stop just a few feet from them and raise an eyebrow.

It seemed like they knew what you were about to ask, but before you could say anything, Jordan speaks up.

“We were briefed about the mission from Sergeant Henderson. She came to Main Engineering and gave us the run-down on what we’re doing.”

You give him a quick nod, and Jordan and the others return to preparing their equipment.

You walk over to a rack of equipment and weapons, and examine the ones you can take. You grab a pistol-looking weapon from one of the racks and examine it.

It's a Prolonged Engagement iteration fifty heavy pistol, or PEH-50 pistol. Designed by Arc Arms, this pistol, along with other projectile weapons, are designed with gauss technology. This technology allows projectiles to be propelled at speeds twice the velocity and four times the range compared to the much older weapons from hundreds of years ago. It also does this without increasing muzzle flash, noise, and recoil. Prolonged Engagement weapons utilize ionic bullets and ammunition. These round, pellet-sized bullets are meant to be used in conjuction with P.E. weapons. They are loaded into small cartridges which are lighter, easier to carry, and able to hold much more ammunition compared to ancient firearm magazines.

Holding the pistol in your hand, you turn it over studying its details. It’s a dark silver color, and has blue streams of light flowing from the barrel directly to the hammer. Its design is very similar to the ancient, but still well-known Desert Eagle pistol. This pistol has very high stopping power and more uncontrollable recoil, but its accuracy is second-to-none. As you hold it, it feels relatively light. It doesn't feel anymore than two pounds.

After finishing your examination of the weapon, you take a weapon holster from one of the racks and fasten it tightly to your waist. You take six cartridges of ionic ammunition, each one containing fifty bullets and load a cartridge into the bottom of your weapon. You put the rest of the cartridges into the small pouches next to the holster. After doing so, you place your weapon in the holster and look towards the left of the rack. You step over to the left, and examine the equipment there.

You grab one of the black glove sleeves from another rack and begin putting it on your left hand. After sliding it through your arm, you tug on it a few times. It's fingerless, and feels very comfortable on your forearm. After a quick jerk motion, an eight inch blade shot out of the top of the glove where your forearm is, the back of it stopping at the top of your wrist. You start rotating your arm and wrist, inspecting the blade that came out of the small slot on it.

The edges of the silver-tinted blade glowed an intense cyan color, with black circuits running down the center. This is a Thermo Fusion Wrist Blade MK IV. Powered by fusion technology, the T.F.W.B. is mainly a personal defense weapon, but does have utility applications. The internal circuitry of the blade heats up the edges to scorching temperatures allowing the user to cut through most objects unfortunate enough to get in the way with relative ease.

After studying it, you use the same jerk motion that brought the blade out and it instantly sheathes back in.

You walk over to the right and approach another rack with other equipment and clothing items. You grab a dark blue protective jacket, flipping it over your back and slip your arms through the sleeves. You adjust the front of it once it’s on you, but you leave it unzipped. Once you finish, you grab an oval-shaped object from the top of the rack above where the jackets are.

You hold it in your hand and begin inspecting it. This is a rebreather designed by Slater Systems. The oval-shaped glass encasing is designed to fit perfectly to a human face, with straps made of a strong webbing material for adjustments. Once breathed into, the internal systems of the rebreather convert carbon dioxide to oxygen and nitrogen allowing for infinite breathable air.

You finish studying it and along the racks you grab a number of engineering-specific items. A fusion torch, a handheld jackhammer, a few wrenches, and a couple of automatic screwdrivers.

For your final piece of equipment, you grab a hexagon-shaped metal pack with strapping on the edges of it located underneath where you initially grabbed your pistol. Holding it up in both hands, you tilt it from left to right, the straps dangling from the metal pack. It’s quite heavy. At least twenty five pounds. It has the initials ‘B.C.’ plastered on the back of it. You recognize the initials and remember that the acronym belongs to Beacon Construction. Beacon Construction is a wildly popular construction contract company back on Earth largely famous for their self-construction technology. The pack you hold in your hands is a beacon device. This beacon device is designed to self-build a small outpost building on a relatively flat surface with minimal effort. Controlled by a console located in the center of the pack, the schematics and blueprints of the desired building are uploaded to it. Once deployed, the console will begin replicating the contents of the data that was uploaded to it in exact detail, similar to a 3-dimensional printer.

After your examination of the device, you sling it around to your back, running your arms through the large spaces between the straps with them hanging over both your shoulders, now carrying the device like a backpack. When you finish adjusting the straps to fit your shoulders, you turn to your crew mates who appear ready to go.

You give a quick nod to them. “Everyone ready?”

“As ready as we can get.” Peter says as he nods back.

Jordan and Darius nod at you as well, indicating they are prepared.

You notice that Darius and Peter are both armed with Prolonged Engagement iteration seven combat pistols, or PEC-7 pistols. They’re lightweight, mainly close-quarters weapons that have a lower stopping power than the one you’re using, but with a higher rate of fire and better recoil control. Designed by the same manufacturer, Arc Arms, they are dependable, reliable, and defensible.

You then look towards Jordan and notice he’s armed with a Prolonged Engagement iteration twelve auto-pistol, or PEA-12 pistol. It is an automatic pistol that has the lowest stopping power of all your weapons but with the greatest rate of fire. It is practically designed to fill any target at close range full of holes.

They are all wearing the same jacket you are, but they have theirs zipped. They are carrying their own rebreathers, them dangling by their straps from the sides of their weapon holsters.

"Hey, boss. You finished staring at us so we can go?" Darius chimes in sarcastically, snapping you out of your thought process.

You shake your head a bit, grounding yourself back in reality. "Oh, right. Yeah. Let's head out." You say with a quick nod.

You turn to exit the armory, carrying your rebreather in your left hand and your crew mates follow.

After a bit of walking and taking a couple elevators with your crew mates, you all reach the hanger bay in the lower aft portion of the ship. You find yourselves walking down an elongated, large corridor which leads to the launch area of the hangar. You all reach the launch bay, and while walking, you examine your surroundings.

The hangar bay is a large, rectangular-shaped area with with three identifiable landing zones and three large blast doors. There are two Tartarus-class defense craft stationed at the first two of the landing zones. Directly across from the blast doors is an enclosed area with two horizontal windows. You can vaguely make out a couple figures working on a few consoles inside. At the end of the hangar area is a Mule-class shuttle craft. This craft is designed to hold twelve occupants in its passenger bay.

Walking towards the shuttle, you see four people standing a few feet from it. Three of them are standing in a line, with the fourth standing in front of them, their back towards you. Getting closer, you notice that the fourth person is female, with the other three being male.

You and your crew mates reach her, and she turns around to look at you all, hands behind her back, eyeing all of you up and down. After this, she gives a small nod and a smile.

"Sergeant Maria Henderson. Leader of the Security Division on the New Dawn... But I'm sure you already knew that." She proclaims with a tone of purpose.

Sergeant Henderson looks at you now, seeming to analyze your appearance. She clears her throat. "So, you're the Head Engineer of the fourth, right? I've seen you a couple of times but I believe this is the first time we've actually spoken. Good to finally put a voice to the savior of the Santa Maria."

Savior of the Santa Maria? That’s the first time you’ve been called that. A heroic name, if not a little cheesy.

You nod at her. "Pleasure to make your acquaintance, ma'am."

"Likewise." Sergeant Henderson walks to the middle of where you, your crewmen, and the security forces are standing, her body perpendicular to you and your crew.

“Alright. Listen up everyone!” She spoke with an increased volume that echoed through the hanger bay. “So here’s the plan...” She turns her attention towards you and your crewmen. “The engineers of division four here are going to establish a small outpost on the surface of the planet. I need you and your team to work quickly since we are going in dark with little intel. Once the outpost is constructed, my security team will establish a perimeter around it until research supplies from the New Dawn arrive.”

She turns her attention towards her security team. “I need you three to provide cover for the fourth while they set up. Any contacts or potential targets that you see will not be engaged unless I give the order to do so. If there is anything on that planet, I’d rather not piss it off. Once the outpost is established, one of you will be providing cover for the doctor while she conducts an analysis of the surface of the planet.” She notices something is off, and her eyes begin to dart around the hangar. “Speaking of which... Where is the doctor?” She turns her head from left to right, searching the area.

You and your crew start looking around the area as well as the security team.

“Doctor Brookes?” Sergeant Henderson says with some worry in her voice.

After a second or two, you hear a voice from the other side of the shuttle. “Y-yes. Right here. Apologies.” A woman emerges with a long white lab coat from behind the side of the shuttle. She walks towards both teams, holding a small tablet close to her chest. She stops a short distance from Sergeant Henderson, standing directly across from her. “I was going over my research notes before we departed for the surface.” She explains in a careful tone of voice.

You, your crew, Sergeant Henderson, and the security team look towards the doctor.

“That’s fine doctor.” Sergeant Henderson aims her right hand bringing it left to right towards both teams. “Care to introduce yourself to our unit here?” She brings her hand back down and puts it behind her back with the other.

“Absolutely.” The doctor clears her throat, and brings her attention towards the two teams. “My name is Doctor Tina Brookes. I am a researcher with the first Science and Research Division here on the New Dawn. I am a specialist in the study of both surface geology and atmospheric sciences. I will be in charge of conducting the first phase of analysis once we’re established on the surface. I’m looking forward to working with all of you.” She says with a slight smile.

“The pleasure is ours, Doctor.” Sergeant Henderson says courteously with a nod.

Seemingly out of nowhere, the four engines of the shuttle activate, blue-white flames spewing out of them with a loud roar. Everyone quickly turned their attention towards the shuttle, a bit startled by the noise. After a brief moment, the engines settle, with the flames much less intense than they were a moment ago. The rear end of it lowers, and a ramp is made with the rear hatch that led inside. A man steps out and stands on the ramp. He’s wearing large headphones with a microphone attached to the left speaker that is near his mouth along with a pair of sunglasses that conceal his eyes. He looks towards Sergeant Henderson.

“Pre-flight checks are finished, ma’am. We can depart on your orders.” He proclaims with a deep, grizzled voice.

Sergeant Henderson nods at the pilot and looks towards everyone gathered in front of her. “Alright, people! Mount up! We depart in five!” She commands with resolve.

The pilot turns back and enters the shuttle again, now taking the left pilots seat in the cockpit.

“Yes, ma’am!” The three security members shout in unison and salute.

You and your crew begin making your way to the shuttle, with Doctor Brookes close behind. The security team who was closest to the shuttle grab their weapons and equipment and begin entering the hatch up the metal ramp. They sit on the three innermost seats in the shuttle, now harnessing themselves with the safety straps behind the seats.

You and your crew climb up the ramp and begin taking seats on the outer section of the shuttles seating. You and Jordan sit across from each other right next to the shuttles hatch. Peter and Darius sit across from each other on the seats next to you and Jordan. Doctor Brookes sits on the seat right next to Peter. You all take the safety harnesses behind the seats and strap yourselves to the chairs with them.

Sergeant Henderson walks into the shuttle last and stops directly in front of you. You curiously look up at her. She digs into one of her tactical pouches and pulls out an earpiece.

"Here. My da-" She stops herself, then clears her throat, holding the earpiece in front of you. "Admiral Henderson... wanted you and Doctor Brookes to have one. Apparently he would like to keep in contact with the division leaders for this mission."

You carefully take the earpiece from Sergeant Henderson, and snugly wrap it around your right ear. You look back up at her when your finished.

"That earpiece is connected to a radio frequency the New Dawn uses. Pushing the middle button on it will connect you directly to the bridge where the Admiral is stationed. It's extremely long-distance, so don't worry about walking too far." She explains.

"Thank you." You say nodding at her.

Sergeant Henderson walks over to Doctor Brookes and hands her one as well. She begins putting it on and wraps it around her own right ear.

After handing the earpieces out, Sergeant Henderson makes her way through the center of the shuttle and enters the cockpit, taking the right pilots seat, her and the pilot strapping the safety harnesses on themselves. The pilot pushes a few buttons on the control panels in the cockpit and the rear hatch of the shuttle begins slowly closing.

You inhale and exhale deeply through your nose, butterflies beginning to form in your stomach, your chest mixed with emotions of nervousness and excitement.

The rear hatch of the shuttle closes, sealing itself shut.

"Command, we're entering atmosphere now. Are we on the right vector?" The pilot asks.

"Affirmative Zeta 3. Maintain your current approach." The command center back on the ship advises to Zeta 3 through his headset.

The shuttle slightly rocks everyone on it from side to side and up and down. The entire crew are holding on to their harnesses with both hands for stability. You can see the cockpit from where you're sitting. There are streams of air flying around the shuttle windows at high speed.

After about three minutes of this, the streams of air around the front of the shuttle stop, and the shaking steadily slows.

"Command, we've broken through the atmosphere. Beginning our descent to the surface." You hear Zeta 3 say.

You feel a sudden change of weight in your body once the shuttle broke atmosphere. You couldn't confirm this feeling since the shuttle is still flying through the planets skies, but you figured it could be explained once you're on the ground.

The shuttle feels to be flying a lot more stable now. In your eagerness, you couldn't help but to unbuckle your harness and get up out of the seat. You start making your way towards the cockpit area of the shuttle keeping your hands on the sides of its interior walls to give yourself some stability. Everyone in the passenger area is looking at you as you do this. After a short walk through the center, you reach the frame that leads into the cockpit. You hold on to the top of the frame with your right hand, now staring outside the shuttle window, observing the green landscapes of the planet before you.

You then notice something completely out of the ordinary. "Wait... What's all that over there?" You ask as you point towards the left window of the shuttle.

Sergeant Henderson and Zeta 3 look at you for a moment, then towards the direction you’re pointing. Sergeant Henderson leans in a bit and squints to try and see better. She then sits back in her chair with her eyes open again. She puts her index finger to the middle of her earpiece and holds down the button. "Admiral, we're confirming visual on possible structures on the surface."

"Acknowledged. Land a decent distance away from them and make contact with the ground. Get that outpost set up ASAP." You hear Admiral Henderson command through your earpiece.

"Copy that, Admiral. Henderson out." Sergeant Henderson brings her hand back down to the secondary pilot control on the shuttle. She turns her head to the pilot. "Zeta 3, change course to land two clicks away from the structures." She says pointing in the opposite direction of where you saw the structures.

"Yes, ma'am. Changing course." You hear Zeta 3 confirm as he now changes the direction of the shuttle joystick more to the right. The shuttle slightly tilts to the right, and you can see the shuttle changing direction, the structures moving to the left out of view.

After some time, Zeta 3 starts pressing multiple buttons and flips a few switches on the control panels in front of him. "Alright everyone... This is our stop. Initiating landing procedure." He proclaims to everyone onboard.

The shuttle steadily halts in the air and begins descending vertically towards the ground. The shuttle lands on a flat area on the surface.

You hear the engine of the shuttle begin to wane and it steadily becomes completely quiet after a few seconds.

Sergeant Henderson unlatches her harnesses and gets up out of the seat, now facing you. "Ready to get to work?" She asks with a courteous smile.

You nod your head and make your way to the back of the shuttle.

Sergeant Henderson stops in the center of the frame between the cockpit and the passenger area. She looks at everyone from side to side. "Alright everybody. This is it. Let's get ready to work. Equip your rebreathers. The first thing we're going to do once we're on the ground is to give Doctor Brookes a moment to analyze the air composition of this planet to see if it's breathable or not."

You reach the seat where you were a few moments ago and grab the rebreather that you left there to the right of it. You put the rebreather over your face, and begin adjusting one of the straps to the back of your head and another to the back of your neck. After a couple of tests to insure it's working, the rebreather is now firmly planted to your face. You hear your own breathing become more audible while wearing it.

Everyone else begins doing the same thing, equipping and adjusting their own rebreathers.

"Doctor. There's a spare rebreather up above where you're sitting." Sergeant Hendersen informs Doctor Brookes.

"Oh! Right! Thank you." She says as she begins unstrapping her harness. Once she unstraps them, she takes the rebreather that was dangling above, slightly behind her and starts putting it on herself.

After everyone has their rebreathers equipped, those who haven't unstrapped themselves from their seats now do so. Your crew, Doctor Brookes, and the security team all get up from their seats, grabbing their equipment or stretching.

Sergeant Henderson looks behind her towards Zeta 3. "Alright... Zeta 3. Open her up." She commands, her voice being filtered through the built-in audio resonator in the rebreather.

"Yes, ma'am. Opening the hatch." The pilot says with his own rebreather equipped.

You stand directly in the center of the shuttle, close to the hatch with your equipment prepared. Jordan is to your left, somewhat behind you, and Darius is to your right directly parallel to Jordan. Everyone else is directly behind you facing towards the hatch.

"You ready for this, man?" Jordan asks with a bit of tension in his voice.

"As ready as I can get." You respond. You can practically feel the suspense in the air as you wait on the hatch to open.

The hatch unseals and begins slowly opening.

The light from the star fills the shuttle steadily with its beams starting from your head, proceeding downward.

You bring your left hand up to shield your squinting eyes from the bright intensity of the light. After your eyes finish adjusting, you bring your hand back down. You inhale and exhale deeply, ready to step into the green unknown.

The hatch of the shuttle is completely down now.

You slowly take one step at a time down the lowered hatch of the shuttle, looking around your environment. It was oddly peaceful. Grasslands littered the landscape, with trees highly similar, but remarkably more lush than Earth's, moderately dotting the valley. You could've sworn what you heard was akin to birds in the distance, chirping in their natural environment. However, you didn't see any.

The temperature felt moderate. Not too hot, or cold. That perfect balance in the middle like what occurs during the fall season on Earth.

You start confirming that feeling in your body that you got when the shuttle came through the atmosphere. You felt... lighter. It was easier to move around, and your equipment easier to carry than when you were on the New Dawn.

You stop at the edge of the hatch and look towards the ground, the grass on it almost calling to you. The group is close behind, looking around them with curiosity and wonder.

You take your left foot and warily place it on the ground before you, the grass crunching lightly under your weight. Lifting your foot up felt effortless. It was jarring. After getting a feel of what the ground feels like with your boot, you take your right foot and bring it on the ground across from your other. You cautiously take a few steps forward, grass bending under your heaviness. You look up and look back around for a moment, once again taking the unfamiliar environment in.

You look back down and tilt your right foot to the side and look under it. You've left a footprint in the ground in the shape of your boots.

Putting your foot back down on the surface, you turn around to look back at your group who still seem distracted by their surroundings.

"Well, at least the grass doesn't kill you here." You humorously say.

Everyone turns their attention towards you and begin stepping off of the hatch and onto the surface. They all spread out, walking carefully in different directions taking in unfamiliar sights.

Everyone stops now, but continue to look around.

"I'm not the only one feeling... erm... lighter right now, right? That isn't just me?" Peter precariously asks.

Darius, not even looking towards Peter, answers. "No. Not just you. I feel it too."

"I believe everyone can feel it here. Which is shocking since the planet is not rotating. So it must be that gravity here is simply less intense than Earth's." Doctor Brookes explains.

"Doctor Brookes. Can we get an update on the air composition here?" Sergeant Henderson requests with her attention towards the Doctor.

"Yes... Just give me a moment..." Doctor Brookes utters looking intensely at the tablet-shaped device she brought with her.

"Fifty-six percent oxygen... Fourty-one percent nitrogen... Three percent water vapor... Wait.... What?" She looks at her tablet with a dumbfounded look on her face.

Everyone turns their attention to her.

"What is it, Doctor? What's wrong?" Jordon asks with distress.

Doctor Brookes shakes her head in disbelief, eyes still fixated on the screen of her tablet. "The air composition here... Disregarding the increased oxygen and lessened nitrogen here, there isn't a single trace of carbon dioxide or other minor gass in the air." She looks up at Jordan. "I'm surprised that this planet isn't frozen over without the existence of these minor gasses."

"It's got to have something to do with the star." You chime in.

"Or the thick atmosphere." One of the security guards add.

"Or maybe both." Peter says.

"We're not going to find out by playing guessing games. Doctor Brookes... Is the air breathable or not?" Sergeant Henderson asks with a sense of urgency.

Doctor Brookes looks at her now and nods. "Yes... It should be. Although it might take some getting used to."

"Alright then... Now that we know... Who's goin' first?" Darius cautiously asks, his eyes darting around at the group.

Everyone knew what Darius meant by that question. They all looked at each other, waiting for a volunteer to do the honors.

You break the silence after a couple minutes have gone by.

"I'll do it." You hesitantly offer, reaching for the straps on your rebreather.

Everyone turns to you, eyeing you with some intensity, the suspense overflowing like a dam ready to burst as you unlatch the straps from your rebreather.

When you finish, you grab the glass encasing of the rebreather with your right hand and begin to slowly and meticulously pull it off your face. It is now completely off of you, and you bring it down to your side.

You take one deep breath.

All of the sudden, an unfamiliar energy like you've never felt hit your lungs, then your veins. You feel a certain strength in your body that you've never felt before. Your chest being filled to the brim with an unexplainable calmness.

You exhale.

You felt yourself able to think more clearly. Rubbing the back of your neck, a sensation of peace has claimed you. You felt a bit... happier. Like many burdens had lifted themselves off of your shoulders. It was incredible.

"Hey, you alright?" Jordan worringly asks, since the rest of the group had been staring at you for some time now with concern.

You look towards him. "Yeah, yeah. I feel great actually. The air seems safe to breath." You say with a smile.

After a moment, everyone begins taking off their own rebreathers. When they finish, they all take in their own breath of the alien air that surrounds them.

“God damn... That feels good!” Darius exclaims with a grin on his face.

“Yeah... I could get used to this.” Jordan says enthusiastically with a smile.

“Well... This is new.” Sergeant Henderson utters in a low voice, feeling the same internal sensations everyone else is. She brings her attention back towards the group. “Let’s not get too comfortable everyone. We still have no idea what’s here yet. Let’s get moving people!” She commands, raising her voice again.

Everyone starts walking away from the shuttle now, equipment clacking against one another with each step they took. You take the lead in the front of the group, searching for an area to set up the B.C. device.

After walking for some time, you stop. Everyone else stops behind you. A flat clearing is in front of you with some scattered trees. You look back at Sergeant Henderson.

“This is a good spot to set up, ma’am.” You inform her.

She nods. “Alright. Let’s get that outpost constructed. We’ll cover you.”

You nod back at her and begin removing the B.C. device strapped to your back.

“Malcolm! Terry! Cover our nine and three! If you see anything moving towards our location, notify me immediately!” You hear her order the two of the security detail. “Ramirez! You’re covering the Doctor as she studies the planet further! Keep her protected!” You hear her exclaim to another one of the men.

“Yes, ma’am!” You hear them shout in unison, now separating and rapidly moving towards their positions.

The guard named Ramirez is now close to Doctor Brookes as she begins her study of the surface with her tablet, her crouching down to get a closer look at one of the fauna.

The guards Malcolm and Terry are in their positions, holding their weapons, standing at the ready keeping a lookout for anything unusual.

Jordan, Darius, and Peter kneel themselves down, taking out equipment from their packs and laying them down on the ground.

Sergeant Henderson is standing near them with her own weapon, her back towards your crew.

You start bringing the B.C. device down to the floor, kneeling down yourself. You place the B.C. device flat on the ground with the white letters up. You look to the side at one of the security guards, your left forearm resting on the top of your left thigh. You figured that this a good time to examine what they’re using since you didn’t get an opportunity to do so before this point.

Sergeant Henderson and the guards are using Prolonged Engagement iteration two assault rifles, or PEAR-2 rifles. These rifles strike a good balance between fire rate, recoil, and stopping power and are excellent for usage in any combat scenario. Like your pistol, and the weapons your crew mates are using, they are dark gray in color. They have streams of blue light flowing on both sides of the weapon from the barrel to the hammer.

They’re wearing iteration five security armor. Created by Lawson Industries, it has silver-tinted armor plating of an extremely dense and compact, but surprisingly lightweight metal material that is designed to protect the wearer from high amounts of kinetic energy. Their plating is located on their chest, upper arms, forearms, thighs, and shins. They’re wearing dark blue protective jackets that mostly conceal their chest plating, with the upper arm and forearm plating overlapping the arms of the jacket. They’re also sporting black tactical pants with their thigh and shin plating overlapping it. The guards are wearing iteration five security helmets meant to be worn in conjunction with the security armor. These helmets only cover a large majority of the head leaving the face exposed, but is made of the same metal material that the rest of the plating is made of. Sergeant Henderson is not wearing one of these helmets.

You finish your examination of the guards and Sergeant Henderson and look back towards the B.C. device on the ground in front of you. You lean in a bit, taking your right hand to press the small button on the device but just as you were about to do so...

“Sergeant! Visual on unknown aerial contact approaching from the southwest!” You hear one of the guards shout.

You and everyone else looks towards the direction the guard is looking. He was right. There was something flying towards your location, but you couldn’t make out what it is.

Sergeant Henderson takes a few steps forward towards the inbound contact, eyes fixated on the moving object. “Steady, men! Do not engage! Remember my orders!” She shouts, the object now closer, more details coming into view. There were parts on it that were moving, but it was still too far away to make out details.

You, Peter, Darius, and Jordan all stand, eyes focused on the object barreling towards you all.

It comes closer.

Doctor Brookes looks in the same direction, her hands gripping her tablet more tightly, holding it to her chest.

And closer.

Sergeant Henderson grips her weapon tightly, ready for this situation to turn ugly.

And closer.

Your breathing becomes slightly more labored, your chest filling with anxiety, your heartrate increasing.

And closer.

The flying object comes into full view and flies overhead, everyone turning themselves to keep track of the flying anomaly.

It turns back and does a loop around your location. What you see is like something out of a wild dream.

The object looks like a chariot, seeming to be pulled by four white quadruped beings, moving their legs along in a galloping motion. You see what appears to be wings on the back of them, flapping through the air at a dignified pace. At the base of the chariot, you see another three beings standing in the middle of it. From what it looked like, it seemed like they have their attention on you.

The chariot pulls itself around and steadily lands in a spot a few feet from your group.

It was this moment that you got to look at the chariot and things on it in more detail. The four beings in front appeared to be wearing a gold-tinted plating, with what you presumed to be a helmet with a blue plume running down the middle. These beings have their attention locked on your group, with a surprised look in their eyes.

The chariot itself seemed to be mainly constructed of gold, with elegant curves and design in its structure. The seat of the chariot is dark purple, lined with refined designs etched into its fabric.

The three beings cautiously step off onto the grass below them, one leg at a time, their attention also locked to your group.

You and your group stare at them in complete disbelief, your eyes widened to the strange entities before you.

You bring your right hand exceedingly slow to your right ear, pressing the middle button of your earpiece and hold it.

"Admiral... We've made first contact."

Author's Note

Well, this was certainly a journey to write. It seems like the first chapter which establishes the foundation of the world is definitely the hardest to write. I read what I wrote many, many times over, making sure what I wrote made sense and stayed consistent, and fixed as many grammatical errors as I could. But I am only human, and I am prone to making mistakes. As I said in my prologue, I am very open to criticism and feedback. If you have any, I would definitely like that. Chapter 2 will begin production very soon, so keep my story tracked or favorited. Thank you!