Chronicles of The Omniverse Archived Forest of the Fall

Tiko

Draconic Administrator/Mentor
Administrator
Mentor
Nexus GM
as written by barney_fife

Somewhere in the Forest of the Fall
Admiral Joshua Steele


The night had begun to slowly set in around Steele, the sounds of the forest offered a droning cacophony of noise to complement the orange glow of the crashed starship. The burning starship cast a glow on the forest around it, and the skies above it.

Steele had a rough landing though, but fortunately was relatively unhurt. Cutting several lines of paracord from the chute to take with him, he briefly surveyed his surroundings, thinking he was still on Langara.

He made a face, and then he pulled out his cell phone, frowning even more as the words "No signal" read in the upper right hand corner of the screen.

He clicked the phone off and then he pocketed it, looking up, and barely able to see through the canopy. "LDA will probably not be far." He said to himself, pocketing the Paracord, and reaching up to pull the Parachute down from the trees. Once the chute was pulled down, he folded it up as best he could, wrapping the nylon like material into a makeshift rucksack, tying the Paracord into straps, and pulling the Parachute onto his back.

Making another face, he started to take in his surroundings, pondering the position of the ship, with it's shipyard in orbit above Tauron.

"Maybe I'm somewhere in Sagittaron... but it's awful quiet around here." He said, looking around to try and find power lines.

Steele quickly checked his weapon, a Disruptor pistol holstered in a special tactical leg holster, he checked his knife and small axe, in addition to his shield gauntlet, and then Steele set off into the direction of the crash.
 
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as written by Tiko

Fortune would have it that Steele had come down quite a hike from the crash site - though he had yet to realize the fortune in it. When the ship's rapid descent had come to an abrupt end, the damages had shook the surrounding forest with the sound of trees splintering and uprooting as the vessel drove deep furrows through the earth. The wreckage of the ship was scattered for miles around.

Even after a still silence had swept over the forest, the signs of the destruction could be seen far and wide as smoke and steam billowed upwards in thick plumes. Fortunately the trees and shrubs that smoldered posed no real risk of spreading into a full blown forest fire. The damp wood could scarcely hold a flame against the melting snow near the outer fringes of the zone of destruction.

Forest fires where the least of Steele's concerns though as the sounds and the plumes of smoke provided a beacon for all manner of curious beast for miles around, and he wouldn't be the only one making his way towards the wreckage of the ship.

____

Steele's trek through the forest would only reveal more and more unfamiliar terrain, and even in the dead of winter progress would be slow. Situated within the foothills of the Avenpeak mountains, the terrain was both rocky and unlevel. Further adding to its unfavorable nature where the thick woody vines that entangled much of the forest in dense and often impenetrable barriers that where quick to trip one up, or force Steele to find a more favorable route - lest he wanted to hack his way through.

The fauna too was unlike anything the man had likely seen before. Overhead the caw of a bird would split the air as a carrion shrike alighted atop a tree branch to peer down at him almost inquisitively. Though similar in appearance to the birds of Langara, this one appeared to be the victim of some genetic mutation that had left it with four eyes - one on either side of its head, and two situated upon its forehead. Its beak had bony protrusions along the length of it as well which gave it a toothy appearance, and its feet ended in curved talons that gripped the bark of the tree.

It didn't appear threatening though, and it simply cocked its head down at Steele before cawing loudly once more.
 
as written by barney_fife and Tiko

The Admiral made a quick grasp for his Disruptor pistol as he tried to make his way through the thick flora of the forest.

"Gods damn this isn't like any forest I've been into, I heard the Sagittaron woods were dense but not like this." He grumbled, coming up to an entanglement of large roots that blocked his path.

He grimaced before he stood back, taking his disruptor pistol out of its holster, he took another step back as he brought the disruptor weapon to bear on the gathering of roots.

The weapon made an audible whine, powering up before Steele fired three shots into the wooden obstacle, hoping the force of the disruptor blast would splinter the wood and blow a sizeable hole in the obstruction that would enable the Admiral to climb through.

When the smoke cleared, there was a large and smoldering hole in the entanglement of roots, slowly approachin with the weapon drawn, he approached, though it was obscured by steam from super-heated embers that danced with an orange glow on the ground. Once the path was cleared, he grabbed a machete that was sheathed on his back, and would slowly hack his way through the woods.

____

"Caw!"

Again the bird sounded its call before it released its grip upon the tree branch and glided through the trees overhead to take up a new perch.

"Caw!"

The animal still didn't seem particularly threatening as it followed Steele's progress with inquisitive curiosity.

"Caw!"

Another call answered, this one more distant from the first. There was a flutter of feathers behind Steele as another of the strange birds landed upon a branch not four feet from him. Its eyes blinked in rapid succession, the inner pair first, then the outer pair, but never all four at once. Overhead more of the birds where beginning to gather. At first one or two, then more as the trees began to fill with the raucous calls of the birds.

____

Steele was slowing only slightly as he noticed the birds start to gather. The man frowned a bit more as the bird's calls filled the skies.

"Damn birds..." He muttered, bringing his weapon to bear on a perched bird, firing a poorly aimed warning shot in hopes he'd startle it and make it fly away.

"Go on!" He called out to the birds.

"Get out of here!" He shouted, taking a few more steps forward, weapon still firmly in hand.

This alien place was starting to spook, but Steele quickly remembered his training. He assessed his surroundings and determined he needed to find a way to get to the high ground. As it continued to get darker, Steele produced another small pistol, this one was an emergency flare gun.

He fired a single shot into the air, white hot plasma giving off a dazzling glare as he took stock of his surroundings.

Spotting a large fallen tree, it was here that Steele decided to try and make camp. He surveyed his surroundings a moment, watching the birds and shaking his head, before he tore a large, dead branch to use as firewood from the tree.

"This isn't right." He commented, taking a Plasma grenade from a kevlar pouch, he slid the fuse switch forward, and the grenade let out a loud beeping sound, which increased in pitch as the grenade began to count down.

____

The gun shot effectively startled the bird who took wing with a ruckus of calls that were answered by a cacophony of others. It wasn't until he fired the flare gun that the growing flock scattered from their perches and took wing with such a panicked frenzy that Steele could hear the beat of their wings past his head.

The loud calls of the scavenger birds carried loudly through the forest - a fact that many predatory animals had adapted to. The edgewere swampcat was no exception.

The great feline beasts weren't known to make their homes within the Forest of the Fall, and its presence this far from the Edgewere Marsh was highly unusual.

The swampcats where a native predator to Aelora, and with their Aeloran heritage came all of the speed, prowess, and physical fortitude of Aeloran predators.

As large as a horse, but as light footed as a leopard, the feline maintained a perfect balance of stealth and power. Its thick mane of fur had shed its vibrant hues of greens, blues, violets and crimsons in favor of its winter coat of white and silver that shifted and blended beneath the shadows cast by the evening hours. Swirling stripes of black on bluish-grey fur added further to the camouflage as it crept through the trees.

The sound of the birds, the gunshot, and the flare gun all served to draw the apex predator closer to Steele's location. It wouldn't be long now before the animal had his scent.

____

As the birds scattered at the sight of the flare gun, he disarmed the plasma grenade and put it back into it's pouch. The flare still maintained stability, the fizzling ball of white hot plasma casting a brilliant white light through the forest, casting long foreboding shadows through the forest as the birds continued to flutter around. He would have to ignore them for now.

Steele kept his eyes peeled, switching the integrated LED Spotlight in the disruptor pistol on, and slowly scanning his surroundings, keeping one arm on the gun and outstretched, and the other shielding his face.

Steele backed up slowly, pressing his back against a thick oaken trunk, still bringing the light of the Disruptor pistol across his surroundings, by now the ionized ball of plasma above him began to dissipate, turning a dull orange, and then brown before it vanished entirely, bathing the forest once more in a thick veil of darkness, save for the bright blue-white beam that cut through the darkness. Even though the sun had not completely set, the canopy of the forest provided a much darker environment.

In another attempt to disperse the birds, he held up his Disruptor pistol, and fired three shots, sending three brilliant jets of green into the sky, cooking any nearby birds dead before they hit the ground, and likely stunning several more with the concussive crack from the Disruptor bolt.

Quickly he brought the weapon forward, back still firmly pressed against the trunk of the tree.

"I'll kill every last one of you bastards if I have too."

____

Steele's efforts proved effective at dispersing the flock as the carrion birds were rather unaccostomed to retaliation from their chosen quarry. The cocaphany of noises began to die down rapidly as the birds scattered and took flight away from his location.

The commotion had drawn more than the distant attention of the roaming swampcat though, and inquisitive eyes studied Steele from the creeping shadows that came with the dwindling light of dusk.

Kuruka had never seen a man dressed as Steele was, nor lain eyes on a weapon of the sort that the foreigner wielded. A wizard perhaps? He had heard that such individuals lived out there, far beyond the borders of the forest. Individuals that he shared blood with, but no real kinship. Still... curiosity tugged at him.

He had never felt a strong inclination to leave his home to seek out other humans, but now that he stood looking upon one, he felt compelled to learn more of this peculiar individual.

Should he speak up? Should he linger and study the man a time more? What if the stranger fired those blasts of light at him once he made his presence known?

Questions swam around in his head as his fingers gripped the shaft of his spear. Perhaps he would linger and observe the man for the night, and approach him with the rising of the morning sun... should he survive the night.

____

Steele trudged forward carefully through the thick, dark forest. Having cleared out the Carrion birds, he moved forward, slowly but steadily. Holstering his disruptor pistol, he withdrew an emergency plasma cutting tool.

With the flick of his wrist, the tool extended, and ignited. A brilliant blue beam of plasma was cast from the end of the tool to the hilt, making it resemble a beam sword of some kind.

With one broad swipe, he cut the foliage down, sending embers wafting up and about.

He took a step forward and took another swipe, cutting the foliage out of his way. The progress would be slow going, but he would eventually make it to the crashed ship, or to a much more suitable campsite, given his current position left him vulnerable.

As he hacked, he looked for anything that could be of use, higher ground, a cave, anything that would be more easily defensable and offer shelter against the bitter cold that had begun to creep on him.

____

Kuruka couldn't help but be perplexed by the strangers actions. He had gained the high ground, and found shelter from the elements via the fallen tree and had even begun to collect firewood and to setup camp. What then compelled him to abruptly abandon it only minutes later in favor of hacking wildly through the undergrowth in the dwindling light? Had the carrion shrikes frightened him so?

He mulled the matter over as he tried to formulate an answer. Perhaps he simply wished to avoid the attention the birds had drawn? No, that made no sense either. He was making enough noise hacking through the foliage to draw attention from miles around, and the weapon he now wielded was like a beacon in the night. Worse yet, it would blind its wielder and limit his range of vision to only a few feet.

Kuruka furrowed his brow, trying to make sense of it. The foreigner moved with all the clumsiness of a child unfamiliar with these lands, but how then did he make it this far into the forest to begin with?

The more he observed, the more the questions continued to grow, and the more elusive the answers became.

As Steele moved on Kuruka fell to a squat to creep beneath several low hanging branches to avoid making any noise. His movements were almost cat-like as he hopped atop a rocky protrusion upon the hilly terrain. With the noise Steele was making and the flashing of the light beam, Kuruka could safely follow at a solid distance out of sight and sound of the man without risking losing track of his progress.

Kuruka wasn't the only one to have taken an interest in Steele's movement's though. The carrion shrike's had drawn the swamp cat's attention, but Steele's hacking and flashing light beam served to pinpoint his location to the dangerous predator and illuminate him.

The beast was lean, and far from its home in the Edgewere swamp, but its body rippled with the shifting of its muscled hide that spoke of its health despite the scarcity of food this time of year. Two bounding springs landed it atop the decayed remains of a large tree, and despite its massive size, the snow and rotted wood served to muffle its landing to nothing more than the faint sound of dislodged snow falling softly to the ground below.

Its tail lashed the air in anticipation and the blue plasma reflected in its eyes as it made its move on the wayward human. One, two, three more bounds and the beast plowed through the undergrowth with swift and deadly intent to bring its quarry down before it knew what hit him.

____

Steele's seeking of a better campsite would soon pay off. In the form of a second proverbial feline that had fallen from the crashed ship. Situated inside a deep furrow was a damaged Lynx IFV. It's wheels and axles had been torn from the chassis by the rapid descent, it's front windows also were shattered, leaving shards of glass in every direction.

However the body, with it's rigid construction was largely intact, and the soft azure glow of the camouflaged hull of the IFV provided the Admiral with a brief moment of solace.

That moment of silence was short lived, as his ears caught something running through the underbrush. The Admiral would have scant moments to even get turned around when he saw the large feline running towards him, and lunging for it's kill. Thankfully, his extensive resume within the various special forces divisions of the United Aschen Empire would likely come into play this moment, years of enhancements culminating into an edge that a normal human would otherwise be without.

Enhanced reaction time due to superconducting neural dendrite enhancements being one of them. His reaction time from the moment the sound of the Feline charging, to his mind and body reacting were nearly an instant.

The snap reaction time likely saved Steele's life, as the Feline collided with him to take him down, Steele would quickly bring his arm up to protect his face, anticipating the cat biting down on his arm.

The teeth would likely rip through flesh if that were the case, but they would not crunch his bone. Ceramite-carbide ossification from his time as an Objective Force warrior laden his bone structure with a Ceramite-carbide compound on the cellular level, which meant his bones were hundreds of times stronger than that of a normal human.

His nanites would be working overtime the moment the wounds were sustained, trauma mitigation, blood loss mitigation, pain mitigation. Adrenaline surged and he fell back, using the hand with the blade to swing at the large cat. The Plasma blade would sever limb, or head cleanly in a single effortless swipe, and even slice the feline clean in two if Steele managed to garner a good swipe on the feline's body.

Failing that his arm closed into a fist, and his personal aegis engaged with an audible pop and a hiss, the hard-light field engaging with such suddenness, it would be enough to throw the feline off of Steele for a moment, should his blade not do the Swamp cat in.

Either way, he was in a fight to the death, and the Admiral intended to survive this encounter.
 
as written by Tiko and barney_fife

Though stronger than that of a normal human, the ossification of Steele's skeletal structure would be pushed to its limits by the immense pressure of the swampcat's bite. It served to greatly mitigate the damage sustained though, and what would have cost a man his arm under normal circumstances resulted only in several hairline fractures as the jaws slammed closed.

With its prey in grasp, claws raked against flesh and the beast shook its head with force enough to risk ripping Steele's shoulder clean from its socket. The ossification had protected his skeletal structure, but the muscle, tendons and ligaments were taking immense damage as he tried to land a counter strike.

Being shaken and mauled so would leave the blow haphazard at best, but the brilliant light of the plasma blade seemed to prove useful in itself. As the blade swung through the air the swampcat released its hold to duck back. Steele's speed and enhanced reflexes scored a hit across the animals face though, where the leathery hide was thickest and plated in scales.

Though the scales were highly resistant to extreme temperatures, the blade left a blackened scorch mark across them that gave the animal pause in considering its next move. Its quick action in jumping clear of the plasma sword also left it clear of the hard-light field as it leapt away.

Now several paces away it began to circle around Steele as it gave a defiant shriek. It was unaccustomed to prey that fought back so viciously, but perhaps it had wounded Steele enough for exhaustion to overtake him so that it could move in for the kill.


The initial bite left the arm searing with intense pain, the subsequent shaking left the socket stressed to its limit. Enhanced musculature, tendons, and the bone structure did all they could, and though a normal man would be left without an arm, Steele’s would be swollen and dislocated. Useless for now until the nanites healed the wounds and he could pop the shoulder back into place.

Blood trickled from torn flesh, soaking his clothing and dripping onto the floor. The plasma blade extinguished and the Aegis followed suit as Steele’s right arm hung limply. With one arm left, he withdrew his disruptor pistol. He was going to even the playing field or perhaps scare the beast off.

He crouched low, backing up several paces as he pressed his back against the cool metal skin of the IFV. Adrenaline surged through his body as he pointed and fired, in the direction of the shriek sending multiple brilliant bolts of green light downrange, and with a wide firing arc into the foliage before him. With each impact there was a green-orange flash and a plume of smoke.

The abrupt return of darkness had offered the swampcat concealment from Steele, and most of the shots struck only tree and earth. His final shot however drew an enraged yowl of pain from in the distance, followed by the audible crashing of weight through the trees and undergrowth that was fast receding from the immediate vicinity.

He hoped the shot had caught the Swampcat as he moved to pull the heavy armored rear hatch of the IFV open with his only good arm.

The hinges groaned in protest as the heavy door swung open with a loud thunk, and Steele pulled himself inside, reaching back out to slam the hatch behind him, struggling to lock it closed.

His eyes moved to the shattered windscreen panel. The wide reinforced glass panel offered excellent visibility to the drivers, and excellent small arms protection. But was useless now given the swampcat had ample room to get inside through it.
Leaning back against the rear hatch, he winced in pain as his arm hung limply in his lap. Disruptor pistol was trained on the windscreen, the driver and passenger seats, and the gunner seat provided him some concealment. Heaving a breath, his eyes moved about the dark cabin, searching for a first aid kit, which was secured to the wall alongside a small fire extinguisher.

Steele’s eyes then moved to the ammo indicator on the Disruptor pistol, there were a dozen discharges left on this microfusion cell.

Outside all remained silent as the minutes drew on.

The silence offered a sort of comfort to Steele, the armored skin of the IFV offering protection from whatever was outside, and the elements that seemed to conspire to kill him.
He worked to force his arm back into its socket. With an abrupt shove into the side of the IFV, there was a pop and a surge of relief. But the muscles and tendons were sore, and the cracked bone seared with pain.

He reached up towards the first aid kit, to bandage the wound on his arm and chest where the cat swiped him, applying bio foam to the deep wounds and wincing in pain.
After dressing his wounds, and bandaging what he could, he sat back against the back hatch of the IFV, morning would come soon enough, following a brief episode of light and fitful sleep.

____

As Steele roused from his slumber within his impromptu shelter, morning was met not only with the rising of the sun and the sounds of the forest birds waking to a new day, but it was also met with an unexpected visitor. Kuruka sat crouched atop a nearby rock, his spear resting loosely at his side. His garb and tribal tattooing spoke of a primitive culture unfamiliar to Steele, but his posture was non-threatening. Cautious and guarded, but not hostile.

Steele’s eyes opened up as the light came into the cabin of the IFV. As his vision came into focus, he spotted someone crouching on a nearby rock.
In a near instant, the Disruptor pistol was up and pointed at the figure standing on the rock, but Steele had neither the strength nor the will to go into another fight to the death. Whatever or whoever this was didn’t seem terribly threatening; but Steele wasn’t going to risk it.

“Identify yourself!” He called out, keeping the weapon trained on the figure in front of him, as he remained seated against the back hatch.

The sounds of the birds, the sight of daylight were a welcome arrival, but Steele knew he wasn’t in any condition to continue for the time being. His chest wound had stopped hurting. It was likely to have healed up, but blood still stained his clothes, and the bandage of his arm.

Kuruka tilted his head almost perplexed at the words that Steele called out. It wasn't that he hadn't understood them, but rather he didn't understand the question. Identify himself. The man's words were thicky accented and of a foreign dialect, but the languge was the same. The phrase on the other hand was unknown to Kuruka. Identify himself. Identify in what manner? It was simply not a phrase he had ever heard.

"I do not raise my spear to you, Ora'na'shawa. Let us speak, as Brothers," Kuruka replied carefully.

His eyes never left Steele, or the strange weapon he now brandished. He had already witnessed just what damages this man's peculiar objects could inflict the night prior.

Steele was perplexed at the primitive man before him, but slowly lowered his disruptor pistol, disarming it with a subtle click and letting it slide back into its holster as Steele pulled himself to his feet with his one good arm.
Slowly he turned back towards the heavy armored hatch, and with a grunt, the latch disengaged, a shove followed and the door swung widely back open, and Steele slowly stepped out, his feet hitting the undergrowth and ground with a slight crunch.

By now his arm was held in a sling that he had managed to put together. Using gauze, medical tape, and an old uniform shirt, it kept his arm immobilized, while his good hand clenched around the activator for his personal aegis.

Obviously if this strange man wanted him dead, he’d have tried to kill him as he slept. But Steele had more questions than answers, even as his eyes flitted to the forest canopy. The plume of smoke still seen in the distance from the ship, though it was not near as thick or hearty as it was previously.

Slowly, he started towards the rock Kuruka sat perched upon.

“What is this place?” Steele asked.

"To me?" Kuruka asked. "It is home. I have been told that some call it the Forest of the Fall, but my clan believes that this is a strange name for a place that has never fallen."

"Forest of the fall..." Steele repeated the words for a moment, and then held up his personal Aegis gauntlet, eyeing the screen. "Strange." He added; lowering his arm and looking back to the half-buried IFV.

"Not sure how you can exactly live in a place like this." He said, nodding to his arm.

"A place like this?" Kuruka asked. "What do you mean?"

He had taken no apparant offense at Steele's words, but rather he simply had no concept of a world beyond the forest.

"Where I come from, animals like what Attacked me last night would be put down before they could harm anyone." He said, shaking his head.

Kuruka frowned at that, but offered no explanation as to why Steele's words had prompted such a response.

"None the less I will be fine." He said, before he looked back to the plume of smoke. "How well do you know this place?"

"I know it as well as any," Kuruka answered before looking to Steele's bloody attire. "Your wounds do not bleed anymore. How is this?" he asked inquisitively.

He looked to his wounds for a moment, and he moved his arms slightly. The natural bone had fractured, but supported by the Ceramite-Carbide and nanites, the fractures had largely healed.

"You wouldn't understand." He answered, flexing the fingers in his right hand. The nanites had done their job quite efficiently, a stark contrast to his other Aschen counterpart in Aelora.

"I need to go back to my ship, can you show me the way?"

The primitive nature of Kuruka continued to be blatantly apparant in his next inquiry.

"Your ship?" he asked.

There was a blatant vacancy of understanding what Steele was talking about, but also a curiosity and inquisitiveness that came with a desire to learn and to understand this stranger whom he had stumbled upon.

Steele made a brief face, and then pointed to the plume of smoke in the distance. "I need to go there." He said. "There is a vessel of the sky, that lost its flight." Steele said, trying to phrase the words so the primitive mind could understand them. "I need to reach this vessel so I may return home." He said, moving his arm once more.

Kuruka looked towards the plume of smoke with a frown, but Steele's words intrigued him. He didn't understand half of what the man was talking about, but it sounded like this 'ship' was some sort of companion to Steele. A creature of flight that had become wounded? Curiosity compelled Kuruka to assist the man despite the dangers, if only to lay eyes upon this ship for himself.

"I heard a scream when I fired my weapon," Steel said. "Where is the creature that attacked me?"

"I do not know," Kuruka answered. "I tracked it for many miles last night, but it eluded me. I do not know how serious its injuries are. Its fate is in Le'thorian's hands now." He paused a moment in thought. "Its kind are unusual here," he noted. "Perhaps it was you who drew it here. You may yet see it again. Come I will take you to your fallen Brother," he offered.

A small nod and a feeling of relief overcame Steele as he brought his attention back to the IFV where he spent the night. He was going to scavenge it for supplies and parts, maybe even weapons. He didn't have the chance to completely search the vehicle the night before, but the daylight could afford a better search.

"I'm not sure how far it is, we'll need supplies first. I'm going to take whatever I can find." He said, nodding back to the IFV. "We'll need them." He said.
 
as written by Tiko and barney_fife

Kuruka shrugged and swung himself down from the rock he had been perched upon.

"We can leave when you are ready," he told Steele.

Steele spent at least five or so minutes rummaging through the inside of the IFV, emerging with a backpack slung over his right shoulder and a Disruptor rifle over his left. Spare ammunition, a ceramite vest, and a first aid kit were also found inside the IFV. Along with some food rations which were kept in the backpack over his back.

Once he stepped outside, he took in his surroundings once more, and approached Kuruka.

“Alright, let’s head out.”

____

Though the occasional glimpses of plumed smoke through the forest canopy didn't seem that far off, the actual travel was slow and arduous. Kuruka knew all the routes and paths that would take them clear of much of the denser undergrowth and rockier terrain, but even the clearer routes were slick with snow and ice, and low hanging branches. It was seeming likely they wouldn't make it to the crash site before dark.

"We should find shelter before the sun sets," Kuruka said. "It's not far off now, but it will be safer with the sun to guide us tomorrow."

The trek through the forest had been slow and arduous indeed, from making his way through the dense underbrush, to following Kuruka through slick outcroppings and routes around some of the dense growth.

Despite not being acclimated to the forest, Steele was able to keep up quite well. As the evening sun set, he surveyed his surroundings, and removed the sling around his arm, flexing his arm with an audible pop, the wounds had healed, leaving faint scars, the blood on the bandages looked relatively crusted, but the actual wounds had healed.
Steele quietly reached into his pack, and pulled out a bright silver packet, passing it to Kuruka. “Here, eat.” He said, before he started to look for a place to make a fire.

Kuruka sniffed the silver packet curiously. Now he wasn't alien to the concept of 'wrapping' food to carry it, or to help preserve it, but the nature of the packaging was something he had never encountered before. The material wasn't like anything he had ever seen. He couldn't tell if the packaging was in itself food, or if it was some strange casing like certain fruits and nuts have. It certainly didn't smell like food. Rather than letting his ignorance leave him looking foolish, he instead put it into his own pack to be examined further at a later date.

He spent a lot of time watching Steele whenever he could, and as the stranger moved off and began searching, Kuruka seemed inclined to let him take point on locating a camp site. Everything Steele did was a point of fascination for him, and it was one more opportunity to observe the man's actions and decisions.

Nothing about him made any sense to Kuruka, which of course just made him all the more intent to learn and understand.

"What is your name?" he asked Steele.

They had been traveling together for the better part of the day, and yet had not exchanged such. His curiosity had managed to dominate his awareness enough that it only just occured to him that he knew not what to call the man.

Steele noticed Kuruka as he inspected the silver packet. The Admiral was amused that something so simple as an emergency meal would keep the strange man’s attention. So Steele picked up his own MRE after selecting a place to make camp. The Camp itself was on some hilly rocks overlooking the forest, offering the advantage of height. After he lowered himself to sit on a boulder, he found a depression in the ground that would make an ideal fire pit.

He held up the large silver packet, and tore the top open, inside were smaller tan packets, and a spork. He took the main course, a meat stew and slid it back into the silver packet before filling it with water from his canteen. He then set the silver packet on the ground, the top folded to seal it as it began to hiss, steam coming out from small vents on the side.

“Joshua.” He replied, opening another tan packet and pouring the orange flavored electrolyte drink into his canteen, shaking it and taking a swig. “You?”

“Go on.” He said, gesturing to the MRE. “I know it’s not the best, but it’ll keep you going.” He said, before he got up to gather some tinder, and some kindling. Piling it into the fire pit, he lit a match, and crouched down to try and get the fire going.

____

"I am Kuruka," the native man replied.

He seated himself on the ground and dropped his own satchel unto the ground in front of him as he watched Steele before rumaging through it to pull a square of cloth that had been tied with twine. He opened it and offered it across to Steele. Inside it rested a few pieces of jerky, dried fruit, and nuts.

"Where is it that you are you from?" Kuruka asked. "What reason did you have in coming here?"

____

Steele pondered the question he had been given for the moment. Where had he come from? Well, it was unlikely this primitive before him had heard of the Aschen Empire, and explaining a starship was also likely not possible.

So he gestured upwards, to the sky. "I come from a world far beyond the veil of the skies, among the stars. I came aboard the vessel we are seeking." He explained.

"I did not come here intentionally, but was pulled here; I cannot explain it." He said, looking up to the sky. He realized it was unlikely this was Langara he had crashed upon. There was no rescue party, and his only hope was reaching the vessel.

____

"Perhaps there was a reason you where brought here?" Kuruka asked as he looked up at the sky.

He couldn't even begin to fathom a world beyond the sky, but neither did he see any cause for the man to lie. There had been a time previously that strangers from foreign lands had been brought here, and with them change swept across the lands of the like that Aelora had not known in nearly two-thousand years. What ripples would this new stranger bring in his wake?

Curiosity and intrigue compelled him to follow things to their conclusion.

His interest in conversation faded off in the wake of quiet introspect while Steele got a fire going so they could eat and rest for the night.
 
as written by Tiko and barney_fife

Some time later...
As the embers of the campfire died down to nothing but a dim glow in the night, some instinctive sense of pending danger stirred in Steele's subconscious. The crack of a twig sounded off like thunder in the silence of the night as the former edgewere swampcat stepped out of the shadows and into the fading light of the dying embers.
There was a scorch mark across one flank that left the leathery hide blackened and devoid of fur, but it walked without any sign of limp or pain from its injury.

____

Steele's eyes shot open the moment the Swampcat managed to get close to the campsite. There was a twig snap, and it was almost immediately followed by a slight high pitched whine.

Steele's weapon was hot and ready to fire as he clenched the stock. He kept his breaths slow and careful as he listened intently.

Power transferred from the fusion cell to the primary energy collimator, from there it moved along the thermopole energizer and to the primary discharge capacitor. The disruptor pistol clenched in the Admiral's hand was ready to fire.

The Swampcat was stepping into the dying light of the fire, and Steele was staring at the animal with cold resolute eyes. The disruptor pistol was held in his hand, which was draped across his torso.

His eyes remained locked onto the Swampcat as he eased the muzzle of the weapon towards the beast, and then pulled the trigger.

The disruptor pistol barked it's report, a brilliant flash of light, the stench of ozone, and a searing green bolt moving directly towards the beast. The momentary distraction caused by a hit or a miss could afford scant seconds for Steele to get to his feet. His eyes went to the rifle that was resting against a nearby tree. He could use it's holographic sights to pierce the veil of darkness and find the werecat.

He clenched his fist and the personal aegis switched on with a pop and a hiss, the shimmering hard light barrier casting a soft azure glow on the campsite as Steele tried to reacquire his target.

____

The shot of Steele's disruptor pistol went wide and struck the earth just to the left of the swampcat who didn't so much as twitch a muscle. The result of his shot likely was a point of great confusion for Steele who could have sworn his aim had been true. Had his hand wavered with the fog of sleep still clinging to the deeper recesses of his mind? Where his reflexes not as honed as he had thought? Had the disruptor pistol itself been damaged?

As he gained his footing and pointed the weapon at the swampcat once more he was met with a chilling stare as the pair faced one another in the dim lighting.

Subsequent shots were met with the same result as the green bolts scorched the air and earth around the great cat, but none could find their mark. Try as he might, he couldn't line up a steady shot.

"You do not belong here," the animal spoke unexpectedly.

The voice that eminated from the feline's mouth was strangely resounding and feminine in nature. There was something unnatural about the voice though. Even though the animal's mouth moved and seeming to form words, the words seemed to reach him through a wide expanse and did not sync with the movements of the cat. It was almost as if there was a delay in him being able to hear the words outloud from when he saw the movements of the cat's mouth.

____

Steele was surprised as the first shot careened off to the side, impacting the dirt and sending it up in a plume of molten soil. This was a point of confusion in Steele's mind as years of training had honed his skills to a razor's edge. As he was standing upright, he stared at the cat through the shimmering translucent field of the personal aegis.

He took several more shots, each of them failing to make their mark. By the time Steele had gone to his feet he knew his mind was clear. But each green streak of light veered off to one side or another. One struck a tree, splintering it with a deafening crack and plume of steam, others seared into foliage, starting small fires that extinguished quickly.

"You do not belong here," The cat said, right as Steele was holstering his weapon.

"So, it talks." He replied, grasping the plasma cutter strapped to his belt, igniting it in a soft azure glow. He lowered his stance, keeping his feet wide and in a balanced stance, while holding the plasma blade with his right hand, and the shield in the left.

"No shit, what do you want?" The Admiral added. He was calculating the steps it would take to get the rifle. His mind betting that there was the possibility the pistol was damaged in the crash, or that it was damaged in the last attack by the cat. His eyes moved from the rifle on the stump, to the cat. A combat roll to the rifle, and then doubling back while he powered it on. He could use it as a melee weapon too if he needed.

____

"Why have you come here?" the animal demanded.

There was anger and venom in its voice as its words turned to a low hiss. There was something almost accusatory in the way it spoke and looked upon him.

“Oh excuse me; I was up minding my own business and then I’m hurling down towards this gods forsaken place where there’s talking cats and cavemen.” He said, unmoving from his stance.

“The frak are you supposed to be, some forest guardian?” He asked. “Pretty sure this Arclight blade should have cleaved your head clean from its shoulders. My turn for questions though; how does a talking cat know what does and doesn’t belong here.”

"You are unwelcome here. Leave this place," the cat roared before launching itself across the embers at Steele.

Before he could engage the beast, Steele woke with a start to find himself where he had fallen asleep. The fire beside him had died down to little more than glowing embers, but nothing seemed amiss. Kuruka was still resting, and the faint glow upon the horizon hailed the arriving dawn.

He awoke reflexively, engaging the personal aegis over him with an audible pop, a hiss, and a flash of blue light as he grabbed the disruptor pistol from besides him.

The weapon activated with an audible whine, an engaging of the holographic sights. Steele surveyed the surrounding forest which was barely visible in the dawn light.

“That was not a coincidence.” The Admiral muttered to himself, holstering the pistol and grabbing the rifle after disengaging the personal aegis. The rifle signaled its activation, and the holographic sights pierced the dark veil with wide-spectrum low-light enhancing optics. He used it to see what his eyes could not as he scanned the forest with the scope of his weapon.

There was movement in the forest beyond but nothing that caught his eye as alarming. The restling of a bird fluffing its feathers upon its night perch and a hare picking its way through some underbrush in the pre-dawn hours of morning. The scan of his surroundings turned up no sign of the swampcat from his dream.

At this point Steele was unable to go back to sleep and the sun was starting to peer even more over the horizon. He could capitalize on the opportunity to make excellent headway back towards the vessel.
He grabbed the rucksack and looked to the dying embers, before he cleared his throat.

“Kuruka, it’s time to go.” He said, looking to the dim light of the horizon, and then to the dim glow of the dying flames of the starship wreck.

Steele paused though for a moment as he noticed something was amiss. There was a slight clicking sound coming from a device on his wrist, the clicking was intermittent, and very faint. But the Admiral’s face darkened.
He held up his right arm and swiped on a small watch like band; which displayed the time, and several other features. One of them however had the man slightly concerned as his eyes read the red anquietas characters dance across the screen.

Kuruka cracked his eyes as Steele's prepertions for departure roused him. He watched the man intently, studying his expression and his mood as he fiddled with his strange contraptions.

"Does something trouble you?" he asked finally.

“The ship must have had a core breach overnight.” He said, looking at his watch.

“I’m detecting radiation, it’s nothing bad, but we’re taking about three rads an hour.” He said, deactivating his watch to conserve battery. “I’ll run another check the closer we get, but if the core’s breached then that ship’s going nowhere; and I’ll have to find another way off this rock.”

"Radiation?" Kuruka asked.

He didn't really make heads or tails of anything Steele had just said, but the effort to learn was present

“The air is poisoned.” Steele replied. “There’s an antidote on my ship, but we must make haste, if the core continues to breach, the radiation will only get worse.”

At that moment he started to round up everything in their campsite, before he started towards the plume of smoke in the distance, the sun now cresting the horizon.

“The swampcat came to me in a dream.” Steele added.

"Oh?" Kuruka inquired curiously. "Tell me about it?"

"It said I didn't belong here and that I should leave immediately. And then it tried to attack me." He said, looking to his disruptor pistol. "I'll need to field strip and recalibrate my weapon." He added, taking the weapon out and pointing it at a nearby flat stone face.

He engaged the holographic sights, lined up for a fissure in the stone, and then he fired, seeing if the brilliant green bolt would strike true.
 
The bolt did indeed strike true. Perhaps it had simply been nothing more than a dream. It would be no surprise if this strange land with its strange creatures, and foreign people had managed to worm its way into his subconscious, and thus his dreams.

Kuruka said nothing more on the matter of the dream himself, his curiosity seemingly sated.
 
He disengaged the sights and lowered the weapon. Everything had struck exact, his weapon was calibrated and firing true.

There was a deafening crack, a sudden rush of hot wind, the shockwave from the explosion as the ship went critical, the deafening tumbled echoed all through the forest and Steele had a visible look of terror.

"By the lords." He said aloud, the sky now becoming Darkened by a plume of thick black smoke.
 
The deafening crack sent Kuruka to the ground in a guarded crouch with his spear in hand as he looked around with wide and alert eyes.

Take cover? Stand his ground? Retreat? What beast of the Void could have unleashed such power?

The thoughts raced through him as his eyes darted to Steele who though horrified was standing his ground, and he chose to follow the man's lead.

"We need to go," Kuruka said with some manner of urgency. "Others will come soon. It's no longer safe here."
 
"You're right, but not in the direction you think. I have to retrieve the Core, or die trying." He said, pointing forward. "We must make haste!" He shouted, hoping that the explosion was perhaps a capacitor blowing, or a secondary core breach. "Maybe it can still be salvaged... maybe it didn't just all go up... no if there was a core breach the explosion would have been much worse." Steele said quietly, grabbing his pack and moving in the direction of the explosion.

It wasn't far, maybe an hour or so, before they crested a small ridge overlooking a large open meadow, sitting inside was debris, lots of charred and mangled debris. Fate had smiled upon the Admiral this day.

One of the engine nacelles on the back of the vessel had exploded, that must have been the explosion they heard earlier, the main body of the vessel was mostly intact. However there was hull cladding, charred and mangled pieces of debris, and large chunks of missing hull, in addition the ship had come to rest in a position indicating the lateral structural members had ruptured, which meant the ship had broken her back.

"I need to lock down that rad leak, I have to seal the core breaches and disengage the reactor, and then you, and I need radiation meds."
 
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Kuruka did not look too pleased with Steele's decision to press on, and his unease was more than apparent as they reached the ridge. He had a tight grip on his spear and his eyes darted about, wary and on edge.

He couldn't understand a word of what Steele was talking about, but he recognized the urgency in the alien words.

"You must hurry, this place is not safe," he warned Steele. "You go, do what you must. I will guard."

The explosion had left the area too open, and too exposed for his liking.
 
Steele offered a wide satisfied grin. "There's no safer place if I can get that thing operational." He said, gesturing down to the ship.

"Come on! I'm going to need your help!" Steele called out, moving through the foliage and out into the open field, in a near full run towards the ship.

It didn't take long for Steele to make it to the airlock, which was still open from when he bailed out on the crashed ship.

There was a metallic groaning, a rumbling from deep within the ship, as well as a slight shaking as the weakened superstructure settled somewhat. Fires were still going around the vessel, but much of the surrounding vegetation had managed to quell the blaze.

The vessel had carved a fairly deep gouge in the ground, and so the fore section was relatively flat against the ground, but Steele had somewhat of a climb, so he reached up and pulled himself up and into the open airlock door. He briefly lost his footing when the ship shook once more, something deep within must have settled again, but Steele reached down.

"Come on, I'm going to need your help! Stay low and follow my lead!"

If Kuruka complied, the Admiral would pull him up into the Airlock, the floor was firm, but unsteady, the interior past the open airlock doors was pitch black, but Steele turned on the flashlight mounted on his weapon, and shone it into the airlock, which lead to a large cargo bay.

"We'll have to crawl through the Jeffries tubes, since the tramways are down. We'll need to get some radiation suits, and then go to Main Engineering, watch my back, gods only know what tried to make this thing home."
 
Kuruka watched on, not moving at Steele's initial urging. Every instinct within him told him to leave and to put this place far behind him. Nothing but misfortune would come of this.

It wasn't until Steele called him a second time that his human intellect and curiosity gave way to instinct and he crossed the open ground at a low jog, quickly catching up to Steele. He cast a final glance around surrounding tree line before passing his spear up into the airlock, followed quickly by himself.

Nothing of his surroundings made any sense, and he struggled to comprehend just what it was he was seeing. He was finding it more and more difficult to understand what Steel was saying as alien words reached his ears. Jeffries, tubes, tranways, radiation, suits, engineering...

There was one unmistakable phrase among the rest though. Watch my back.

Kuruka picked his spear back up and gave Steele an affirmative nod.
 
Once on top of the airlock, after checking the inside of the ship, he looked back out at the clearing all around them. It had just immediately donned on Steele that everything appeared dead; petrified and ashy. It was as if all the organic matter within the surrounding foliage had been destroyed at the molecular level.

There was a brief sense of dread that crossed the Admiral's face.

"Thalaron radiation." He said quietly, surveying his surroundings. "This is not not good." He added, turning back to the hallway. "There shouldn't have been anything on this vessel capable of emitting thalaron radiation, or gamma rays for that matter." Steele said, frowning slightly before turning to Kuruka.

"We must make haste, keep your head low and follow me."

Turning back into the cargo bay, Steele moved in, the interior pitch black, lit only by a few embers from fires that erupted during the impact, and his bright blue-white flashlight.

Moving slowly, and deliberately, as the thick smell of smoke, ozone, and death filled his nostrils, Steele approached a large doorway at the end of the cargo bay. Steele grabbed the emergency latch and attempted to pull, struggling with all his might the latch eventually gave way, opening with a heavy clunk and a rush of air, this air was thick, as parts of the ship had been pressurized, there was a hiss, and the door opened to reveal a ladder going up, and down, as well as conduits, pipes, and dull red emergency lighting.

"We're going up." Steele said, pointing upwards. "These are special maintainence conduits, we call them 'Jefferies tubes.' We use them to get around the ship if the trams are down, or a deck is sealed. We're going to what's called the CIC, which is the heart and mind of this ship, if water borne vessels exist here, I believe you would call it the bridge."


Grabbing the ladder, he started up. Pointing up. "It's going to be a climb, we have six decks to go up."
 
Kuruka shook his head, clearly not understanding Steele still. Even his explanation of a bridge went over his head as he had never set foot beyond the forest, and into more civilized reaches of Aelora. Certainly he had never been to the coast.

The darkness did not trouble Karuka as greatly as his blatant lack of understanding and ignorance did. His eyes gleamed in the dim light, and his night vision was sharp and honed from his years of traversing the forest in the dead of night. It wasn't as sharp as that of the Mira, but he picked out the contours and shapes within the shadows cast by the fires and flashlight easily enough. Being able to see them did little to help him understand what it was he was seeing though.

In particular the dull red emergency lights captivated him. Certainly some manner of magic he had never known was at work here.
 
Steele reached out, and grabbed the ladder to the jefferies tube, hoping that Kuruka was not far behind. Step by step, rung by rung he climbed, six decks worth of ladder until they reached the access door for the officer's mess, which would allow him to access the main bridge, and the ready room.

It took them about an hour of climbing through thick smoke to reach the officer's mess. Heaving the door, Steele stepped forward, this room was much more brightly lit, evidence of tools and equipment strewn about, bathed in the sunlight that cast through the windows that gazed out into the forest all around them.

Everything was relatively furnished, from the tables and chairs, to the carpeted floor.

Coughing, Steele groaned, he had to do something about all this smoke, he was starting to feel light headed, from the carbon monoxide buildup from the fires.

Turning towards the hallway, he grabbed the doors, and heaved them open.

It wasn't long until Steele and Kuruka happened onto a large room, surrounded by dead computer consoles, the room was dimly lit, dull red lighting casting a red glow through the smoke that filled the room.

Steele went first to main engineering, keying up a holographic display, he began to type away, looking up to the screen, and down to the console.

"Main power... let's see if there's enough reserve power to get the main reactor back online... come on..." He muttered, keying several commands to no avail.

And then the ship shuddered, there was a loud thunk that echoed throughout the hallways, the ship began to vibrate, and shudder again.

Then everything fell silent.

Steele entered the commands once more, and the ship made a loud clatter, a hum, and then silence.

The third time, there was a deafening clatter, the ship shuddered, and the lights suddenly came on, bright white light exposing the entire bridge. Gusts of cool air began to blow, and the smoke began to clear.

Steele initialized fire suppression next, using the automated damage control systems to quell the blazes all through the ship, cutting off fuel and depressurizing compartments.

Holographic screens came to life next, chimes, and flickering lights came on next, the large view screen showing the outside, and targeting data which scrolled across in anquietas text, which likely looked like magical runes to Kuruka.

Steele moved from engineering to the main command station, and keyed up navigational data; which scrolled across as red errors, and Steele growled.

"Unable to ascertain navigational beacons..." He muttered. "But I've got an IFF Transponder..." Steele said, keying up the information. "Sheila Nagala... The Admiral of the Fleet... she's maybe a couple kilometrons south of our position... I wonder if I can get propulsion online..." He then turned over to Kuruka. "You... go over there." He said pointing to communications.

"Put your finger on the flashing yellow dot on that screen, tap it twice, and then tap the blue symbol that looks like a triangle with crescents coming out of it."
 
Kuruka's eyes searched over the communications screens that Steele was directing his attention to, but it all danced before his eyes in a dazzling array of colors and symbols that were incomprehensible to him.

He threw Steele a questioning look as he absorbed the man's instructions. Yellow flashing dot...

It was difficult to focus his attention to any one specific point as his mind tried to absorb the entirety of what he was seeing at once. Even the simple instruction of yellow dot was practically a feat unto itself as he tried to narrow his attention down to the handful of lights right in front of him.

Yellow flashing dot...

He pressed it once, and then twice.

The blue symbol took longer for him to locate, but the description proved apt enough as his eyes skimmed the surfaces until he located it. That too was pressed.
 
"Good, good." Steele said, moving his hands over a set of controls.

As Kuruka keyed up the blue symbol, a second screen showed up, numbers and words scrolling across it, but there was one thing that stood out, a small box with a picture of a woman in uniform, and anquietas text, the box had an arrow, and a green jagged line denoting the IFF waveform.

There were three icons, all of them in Anquietas, buttons on the screen.

"Press the bottom square under the woman's picture, there another box will appear, I want you to press the box that most closely resembles the screen you're looking at, it will have a green arrow pointing up." Steele said, hoping to hail her portable computron and put it up on the main view screen.

While he waited for Kuruka, he keyed up the main propulsion systems, one of the Nacelles was offline, highlighted red on the overlay of the ship, there were also yellows, and greens all across the board, Steele needed to reposition the vessel and get the landing gear deployed.

Standing up from the command station, he moved to the helm, grabbing both control sticks, he keyed the maneuvering thrusters.

The ship shook, shuddered, and groaned as the engines kicked on, with a slight ease upwards, Steele kicked the atmospheric throttle, there was a roar, a constant whooshing sound, and the ship slowly began to lift off.

Red lights began to flash, alarms blared, but Steele managed to get the ship out of it's tree laden prison, straighten it out, and deploy landing gear.

With a jerk of the control stick, the ship touched down with a jerk, and the engines disengaged.

"Well... that's more than I thought she'd do." Steele said, making a face. "But until we get main propulsion online, we're not going anywhere..."

He was still waiting for Kuruka to key Nagala up on the comms.
 
Kuruka's finger hovered hesitantly over the screen as the vessel shuddered and threw him off balance. He grabbed onto the console and threw a look to Steele.

Surrounded by so much that he did not understand it was Steele's actions and expressions that he was now taking his cues from. The man seemed unpurturbed by the shuddering, so Kuruka ascertained that it was not something of immediate concern and he looked back to the screen and pressed the last box.
 
Once Kuruka put his finger on the screen it flashed, it was at that moment Steele gestured to a headset hanging from the chair. "Put those on, with the cups over your ears, it will allow you to understand our words." He said, before he keyed up the audio.

A moment later a stern female voice played over the comms in Anquietas, or in Common for Kuruka should he put on the headset.
"Unidentified contact, this is a secured military channel, identify yourselves."

Steele cleared his throat, and then spoke up in Anquietas.

"This is Marathon Actual, please respond."

There was a pause, and the woman's voice echoed over the comms channel. "This is Fleet Actual, Steele is that you? Are you the rescue party?" She asked, and Steele shook his head, speaking up. "That's a negative, sir, I'm stranded here, it seems the crew is either missing or dead, If it wasn't for one of the natives..." He said, glancing over to Kuruka, nagala interrupting. "I'm about a klick north of your position, hold until I arrive, I'll be taking command." She said, pausing. "Transmit all of your vessels tactical data and strategic capabilities, I've got an objective that requires neutralizing, It's come to my attention.. that they could become a threat to the Empire." She said, while Steele transmitted the information.

Roughly two minutes of silence went by, before Nagala keyed up the communication. "Cargo manifest has indicated there's a Thalaron device aboard your vessel, I need you to prepare it for deployment, strategic burst, and when I arrive we'll deploy it."

Steele paused, and tried to reply, but Nagala simply cut him off. "You have your orders, Admiral, I'll be there in one Centar."

Steele simply heaved a sigh, when the message was cut off, slowly rising up from his chair. "Thalaron device..." He muttered. "I have bigger things to worry about than a damn Thalaron device."
 
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