Enter the Fein

Disclaimer: I do not own Homestuck.

Warnings: Violence, Death

Pairings: ?

Plot: Crash-landed on an alien planet where it seems everything is toxic to humans, John Egbert must find a way to adapt and survive. He will soon find out that though his ship appears to be devoid of all human lifeforms, he is very much not alone.

Ch 01: Reboot

John awoke with a start, cold and shivering.

He gasped for air, fog blurring his vision, ears ringing as if he were shell-shocked. He reached out, wiping with gloved palms at the thick glass, trying to clear enough of the condensation away that he could make out what was before him. He was dripping wet within his bodysuit, no doubt due to the cold contrasting with his body-heat while trapped inside the once air-tight chamber, though now it's stability was obviously compromised. There was a large gash in the metal above him, green-tinged water dripping down and pooling around his boots and gathering at his feet. He reigned in his breathing, hearing returning and beginning to pick up on small sounds. Beeping, chimes here and there, then a female voice, mechanical and familiar.

Please remain calm. Oxygen levels compromised.

John coughed and blinked to clear his vision, hands moving around the interior of the podspace, fumbling through the dimly lit life-canister in search of an oxygen mask. He found one after a few moments, shoving the mask over his mouth and nose and flicking the filter settings to operational. He took in a deep breath, closing his eyes and resting back against the padding of the seat he was securely fastened into. He shook his head, trying to clear the ringing still lingering in his ears, then focused on the announcement echoing in the main room outside of the canister that held him still.

Please remain calm, bay doors compromised. All personnel proceed with evacuation protocol. Please remain calm. Oxygen saturation at 67%. Regulatory masks required for further operations. Proceed to the nearest exit once masks are in place, seek out officers for further instruction upon evacuation. Please remain calm, bay doors compromised. All personnel proceed-

John shifted his arms, searching for the release catch across his chest and waist, finally looping his long fingers through the confines and releasing both belts at once. The clasps made a sharp sound as they came free and allowed him to slump forward, John coughing violently into the mask until his breathing evened out once more. How long had he breathed in the tainted air? What impurities had managed to sink into the soft wet tissue of his lungs before he'd regained consciousness. He grabbed for his goggles, sliding them down over his eyes and pressing the scanner along the right-side temple, the display focus popping up in a wave of red and blue. The sights took a moment to clear his vision before rebooting, and then finally he could see clearly again. The fog before him was dotted with neon blue sensors, reading, evaluating, filing away data in memorybanks for later. He reached out, searching across the edge of the glass until finally the pod surface cracked and shifted upwards and out, opening the life-canister enough that John could climb forward and squeeze through the opening. Something was blocking the door from opening all the way. A beam from the fractured hull? No it was another life-canister, coated in something dark, slimy. The pod was covered in condensation and...moss? Some strange kind of moss he didn't recognize. His scanner was quickly recording data, his eyes flicking up towards the light nearby pooling in from the ceiling where the top of the room had been punctured and foreign lifeforms had breached the interior cabin. He felt dizzy, coughing again to try and clear the microbes from his lungs, and then he made his way towards the first set of doors to his right, away from the too bright light beaming down from outside the chamber.

His steps were shaky, heavy and dizzying, but he managed to work his way away from the moss covering the pod where he'd awoken and towards the nearest wall, coughing at the sight of the spores in the air. The other pods nearby were empty. Some broken. But no bodies that he could make out, what was reassuring at least. They'd obviously crashed, somewhere unknown judging from the way his goggles couldn't seem to focus on anything around his pod too long without beginning to add new data upon inspection, green and yellow text popping up now and then under plantlife that he glanced across. He turned back towards the frame of the doors nearby, searching for the hand-panel to open access to the corridor beyond. The hand-panel was...covered in some sort of slime. The same slime that had been dripping into his life-canister when he'd awoken. It looked like it belonged on a set from Ghostbusters, not a federation ship. He swallowed, licking his lips. Chapped, also covered in some weird tasting residue. Great. He'd wash his face as soon as he got somewhere airtight and could take his mask off. He wondered fleetingly how many days it took for this unspecified moss to grow like this...everywhere. How long had there been an oxygen leak? How long had he been asleep? His hand hovered over the panel a few inches, and he spoke his name into the intercom.

"Biome Researcher Johnathan Egbert, requesting access to medical bay."

The door-reader was quiet, not validating the words he'd spoken. He frowned, glancing around for a moment before deciding to tug off his glove, and then reached out again, hand hovering over the slime between his skin and the reading panel. Fuck it, he was probably already infected by whatever he'd been breathing in anyway. And he was heading straight to medical. He already knew this was going to feel gross. He hissed, clearly displeased as he slapped his hand unceremoniously down upon the thick slime, groaning and repeating his words again, a bit more forceful this time. The hand-panel chirped and whirred before the seal of the double doors creaked loudly then opened with a burst of green spores and splitting moss, John taking a step back for a moment then forward again when the doors opened fully to allow him inside. He took a few steps into the dim hallway, the doors sealing behind him, his boots thudding loudly along the empty corridor as he continued forward. He'd walked this path a hundred times, but for some reason now it seemed eerie, haunted. He'd never seen it so empty. Where was everyone? He steadied himself after a small coughing fit, then checked the oxygen levels in his sights and slid the breathing mask down his chin to settle around his throat. He spoke into the air again, accessing the voice recognition system hardwired into the ship's mainframe.

"Rose, what is the status of the ship's location and damage upon impact?"

The hallway was silent, the lights flickering dimly, though bright enough John could see the dust settling in the air as he continued to step forward through the chamber.

"Rose! Status report! What is the ship's current location?"

Nothing. He frowned, glancing down at the slime across his right palm with a little wrinkle of his nose. It smelled old and musty in here, and the sharp tang of the slime was making him sick. He wanted out of this suit, he wanted fresh water, a shower, and meds to kill his splitting headache and ward off whatever foreign microbodies had soaked into his skin and gotten into his lungs. And his eyes. As if his eyesight wasn't bad enough already. He exhaled roughly, coughing once, twice, before heading purposefully down the hall and forking left to the med-bay. He stopped short. There wasn't a hallway there - only rock to greet him. A sealed-off shaft of rock, crumbling with sediment his goggles didn't recognize, stirring in the air with his movement as he backed away from the impasse and turned again, trying the fork to the right. The damage to the ship...surely it wasn't catastrophic. Surely...there were others here somewhere. He couldn't have been the only one left. The only one...who'd survived? He picked up the pace, going the long way around the food bay and lounge room of the nearest docks full circle to the medical bay beyond. When he reached the door and pressed his slimy digits against the hand-panel they took a moment to read his fingerprint signature before opening up with a whir and happy chirps.

Welcome, Biome Researcher John Egbert. Access to Medical Bay Three granted. Med Bay Staff will be with you shortly. Please, have a seat while you wait. Thank you for your service.

John breathed a sign of relief, stepping into the brightly lit chamber and glancing around. The air in here held a medicinal scent, like rubbing alcohol and stainless steel. He began pulling off his other glove and shrugging out of his jacket, then went to his collar, tugging off layers of protective fabrics, begin the process of disassembling his bodysuit one layer at a time. He piled the clothes on the floor beside the nearest chair and glancing up towards the intercom in the center of the room, hanging from the domed ceiling. He tossed his breathing mask and goggles down atop of the pile, running his clean hand through his damp hair. He'd pick up sanitized equipment after the exam, before continuing to explore the shipwreck. Clearing his throat after a short cough, he addressed the intercom as he had tried to before, when she'd been unresponsive.

"There you are Rose, I was worried you weren't with me."

There was a small pause after John spoke before the computer voice chimed back in greeting,

I am always with you, John. I am here to assist all federally regulated personnel while aboard the Federation Starship Mondrogosa.

John chuckled softly, stepping over to the room division-bar nearby and stepping past the small waist-high door into the room beyond. He found the sink and washed his hands thoroughly, then stepped into the small shower and shrugged off his undershorts before reaching for the water and groaning with relief as warm water began raining down from above. Fuck yes, this would do nicely. He showered quickly but thoroughly, watching the slime-tinged soap bubbles circling the drain before shutting off the water valve. He stepped out, grabbing a clean towel and wrapping it around his waist while he walked from the shower to the lockers nearby, tugging out a clean pair of patient attire - white lounge pants and a white shirt. It was clean, and that's all he cared about. He managed to find clean socks too, and tugged on a pair of shoes that were almost his size, probably left behind by one of the doctors after shift-end. He returned to the main room, inspecting his right hand and under his nail-bed, then went to the mirror to check on his eyes, his mouth. He frowned a little, his eyes were ringed with green around his usually bright-blue irises. That couldn't be good.

"Rose."

Yes, John.

"I don't think anyone is coming. Can you walk me through what I need to do to treat myself?"

The computer chirped softly while calculating a response, soft beeping echoing from above.

Unable to locate any medical staff in the nearby vicinity. Request to override privileges of medical staff to obtain treatment granted. Apologies for the delay, John Egbert. You may proceed to the purification chamber.

A second set of doors opened to the right of the main waiting room, allowing John into the area where medical staff tended to the injured while aboard the starship. John stepped inside and looked around, finding one of the instruments he knew the nurses tended to use to diagnose various ailments, and then stepped further into the room towards the full-body glass chamber surrounded by computer monitors.

"Alright Rose, I'm here. What do you want me to do first?"

Begin by simply scanning your retina and pulse points. First the throat, then the wrist. If necessary, access to further arteries may be requested by personel. Your cooperation is appreciated.

"Might as well for good measure."

He followed her instructions, clasping the hand-scanner and bringing it across both eyes, then down his throat on both sides to get a good reading. Then he held the device to his left wrist, and then finally tugged at the waistband of his pants and shoved the device down along his thigh before bringing it up to his eyes again so he could read the display across the back of the scanner. The device read the results over the next few moments then chimed softly and lit up with a few indicators before speaking in a soft, soothing voice.

Contamination detected. Alien antibodies must be eradicated from internal organs and blood vessels immediately to avoid further complications. Please step inside the purification chamber to undergo full system analysis and treatment.

John huffed softly, then set the scanner down and eyed the glass chamber warily. He hated those things, always made him feel claustrophobic. Then again, so did his life-canister, and who knew how long he'd been in there until he'd finally regained consciousness.

"I should just get it over with, then go find whoever else is awake."

He steeled himself then stepped into the chamber, soles of his shoes tapping lightly against the tile along the bottom, before he pulled the glass door shut and centered himself in the middle of the giant scanner. A green light moved 360 degrees around his body, lighting up with yellow lights along his eyes, his cheeks, his throat, and centered over his chest. Another light indicator, orange, hovered over his hand. The hand he'd planted in the slime before.

John Egbert. Please stand still and await decontamination of foreign microbes. Please remember to breathe evenly while the procedure commences with internal purifications. Once all symptoms read green and vitals have stabilized, the chamber will open. You may feel nauseous, and experience vertigo, after these proceedings. To confirm treatment of alien contamination - verbal recognition and authorization is required. Do you consent to medical purification? Please state your name for the record.

John inhaled softly, readying himself for the stinging pain of the purification to come. He was a biome researcher, he'd done this before. This wasn't the first time he'd encountered alien plantlife, but the proceedure sucked just as much every time.

"I hereby grant my consent to medical personnel, please continue with recommended treatment. Johnathan Egbert, confirmation of request to purify alien contamination. You have my full understanding and express consent."

Express consent accepted, procedure will begin in ten seconds. Recorded date for purification procedure request - John Egbert, Biome Researcher S Class, Starship Mondrogosa - Stardate 0900-572-983-799 - Please stand still and remember to continue to breathe evenly while chamber fills with purifying agent. You may experience some dizziness until chamber clears-

"Wait..."

John glanced up towards the top of the canister as green mist began expanding down through the air, saturating the oxygen with aerosol medicines meant to drive out any foreign contaminants and heal any damage to healthy tissue. He coughed a few times, then swallowed and glanced around the chamber, trying to remember to breathe normally and allow his lungs to absorb the medicine they needed. Surely he hadn't heard the date right. Nine-hundred...billion? 0900-572-983-799? That was...there was no way that could be the stardate. There was no fucking way. He hissed softly as the agent descended upon him, burning his eyes and throat as it healed away the tint of green that had been there before. The procedure took what felt like an eternity to complete, but as soon as the chamber cleared and the door opened again John was out in a heartbeat - searching through the nearby cabinets until he found what he had been looking for. Spectacles, with a built in retinal scanner. Like his goggles, only more functional for everyday use. He pushed the brim up the bridge of his nose and fixed the hologram lenses before his eyes, touching the scanner at his temple point and watching red and blue flicker before his vision once more.

"Rose. What is today's current stardate?"

The current stardate is 0900-572-983-799.

John stood, dumbfounded, checking the text in the corner of his vision. The scanner had read his request as well, and supplied him the same information. The date stood there in blue text, flashing twice to indicate new information had entered the scanner database.

"Rose, when is the last time you made contact with someone from starship, before you spoke to me just now?"

He thought back to the chamber where he'd awoken, the moss that had covered everything, the hull breach, the stones blocking the path to the med-bay he'd headed to before. The intercom system above-head was quiet for a long time, as if searching through database records. Then finally, she spoke.

Last known contact with federation personnel - recorded stardate 0309-469-311. Contact made with Engineering Personnel Systems Operator Dirk Strider. Recorded message available for playback. Would you like to replay this message?

"Oh my god."

John's heart felt as if it were about to beat out of his chest. His face felt flushed, his hand clasped over his chest, his sight fading in and out. A red alert popped up in the corner of his vision and a warning beep sounded from the scanner against his temple.

Distressed vitals detected. Recommended course of action - attempt to level breathing pattern immediately. Failure to comply will result in oxygen deprivation, consequences include failure to remain conscious, possible injury upon collapse. John, correct your breathing pattern immediately-

John couldn't focus, couldn't think. The last date he remembered was 0309-469-295. That was the date they'd set off from Earth to the space colonies off of Jupiter's moons. He had a station on Ganymede, a specialized job waiting for him there. They were going to work on strengthening the harvests among the moons, regulate the water filtration and renewal systems, the soil regeneration levels, the oxygen output from the trees in the newly harbored greenhouse atmosphere. The ship...they should have arrived by -298, but this recording...was from thirteen years later?

John, please comply with suggested corrective measures. Failure to comply with result in-

"Play the message! Play back the message, Rose."

Distressed vitals and oxygen level readings suggest breathing patterns should be regulated immediately before-

"Play it now!"

The computer hesitated, and John took a few deep breaths to calm himself before finding a seat and slumping down into the soft white upholstery, shivering violently with shock now that his legs didn't need to support him. There had to be an explanation for all of this. There had to be...some mistake.

Vitals showing signs of stabilizing. Attempt to play back record from aforementioned stardate in ten seconds. Record left by Dirk Strider, recipient status directed towards Dave Strider. No privacy locks detected in mainframe. Playback beginning now.

The hologram lenses before his spectacles panned out wide to create a floating monitor, and a man came into view. A blonde with a scruffy beard, cheeks hollowed out as if severely malnourished, dark goggles cracked on one side and stretched taut across his too sharp features. There was blood in the corner of his mouth, as if he'd been punched or had gotten into a fight earlier but had stopped the bleeding for now. He had scrapes along his exposed arms and shoulders, his clothes looked ragged, torn. He was a shell of a human being. John stared at him in horror, hand covering his mouth. He was going to be sick.

"Hey Davey. Don't have much time now, but I wanted to leave you something, incase you ever find your way back to the starship again."

John focused on the man, the gruff tone in his voice, broken by coughing now and then. He wasn't wearing a mask, and John was beginning to notice the tint of green along the corner of his mouth as well. It made his blood look too dark, nearly purple. It caused John's insides to twist uncomfortably, that sick feeling only growing stronger the longer the man spoke. This could have been me, if I had woken up sooner...why hadn't I woken up sooner? When Dirk did? What happened to us...? His heartbeat was too loud in his ears, drowning out the words being replayed over the scanner, but he closed his eyes for a moment and drew a deep, shuddering breath, grounding himself back to reality. When he looked up again, the man was smiling. He looked happy, speaking to the computer. He looked resolved somehow. Complete.

"I just wanted to say, I looked for you. I tried to find you for ages, Davey. I looked across the jungle, hunting down pieces of this fuckin' ship, hoping I'd stumble across your pod one of these days. It's been years now Davey, years since the rest of us woke up and went searching for any survivors. But now...we're out of food and water. Out of time."

The audio cut out for a moment, and the picture flickered and faded in and out before returning to the playback.

"-oxygen levels are too low, people are fading now in and out of their minds. There's no one coming for us Dave. We're all alone out here. I just wanted you to know I tried to find you, little bro. I tried to find you, every day. Every night. I searched for you. I'm sorry I didn't do better. I'm sorry I couldn't see you in the end."

The man in the recording coughed again, inspecting his hand and chuckling softly, John grimacing at the sight of too-dark blood splattered against his bronze skin.

"If you're out there, if you find this someday. You gotta understand, nothing is safe here. The plants, the air, everything is toxic. There aren't enough masks to go around for everyone, and now that the air's getting thin we're all fighting tooth and nail over scraps of whatever we can find. Some of the weaker ones...they've already died. But we're fighters, aren't we Davey? We've always been the tough ones."

The man stepped back, away from the recording window, then pulled a sword into view.

"I'm leaving her here for you Dave. If you want her, come and find her. I'll leave her waiting for you, when you wake up and come looking. We're in the mess hall of Deck E, the Engineer's lounge on Starship Mondrogosa's west-"

The recording suddenly ended, a series of red error messages flickering in the sights of the optical reader.

File corrupted. Unable to continue playback. Would you like to review the record again from the beginning?

John shook his head, trembling, tears pouring down his cheeks. Deck E, the Engineer's suite. That was on the opposite side of the ship. The place where the message had been recorded, John had to find it. He had to see for himself.

"Rose. I need you to lead me to where this message was recorded. Can you complete a remote transit request to personal scanner? It's an emergency, I need you to come with me. We have to...we have to find them..."

The intercom was silent for a short while before his scanner beeped and Rose's voice was suddenly much closer, much clearer than before.

Request for remote transference to personal scanner granted, due to ongoing state of emergency. Transit guide assistance granted to Biome Researcher John Egbert.

Rose beeped for a few moments, as if calculating code, then spoke up again.

Official Federation Fleet log, recording: Stardate 0900-572-983-799. In compliance with probationary exchange measures, transit guide granted to next highest personnel in direct chain of command. All access to ship memorybanks and mainframe now granted to Federation Fleet Exploratory Starship Mondrogosa First Captain Johnathan Egbert. To confirm acknowledgement of your promotion, please confirm your consent to Operational Management Guide System R.O.S.E. - Starfleet Regulation Autopilot Communications System. Do you consent?

John blinked blearily, reaching up to wipe away the tears streaming down his cheeks, numb to the warmth spilling from his eyes. The hologram lenses flickered a bit before returning to their usual state, and Rose's voice filled his ears again.

Awaiting confirmation of promotion from First Captain John Egbert.

John laughed nervously, hunching forward and glancing down at his hands, watching the way the neon blue lights flickered across his fingertips and palms, sensors reading the genetic makeup of his tears before logging the information in the ship's internal databank. He was alone. Completely and utterly alone. Billions of years had passed since Rose had spoken to another human being aboard the starship. He was on an unknown planet, a dangerous, toxic planet somewhere in the universe. He had no idea how the ship had crashed, where they were, how far from Earth...if Earth even still existed. By now their solar system's sun had likely gone supernova, wiping out all remnants of his homeworld or anything that had once been familiar. Who knew what changes could have possibly transpired over the past 900 billion years. The mere thought of such things...they were mind numbing. Completely overwhelming. It made him want to shut down, collapse in on himself and cry. He wanted to freak out. He needed time to absorb all of this information he'd so unceremoniously been given. And a promotion to Captain? This...was insane.

He balled his hands into fists, clenching his teeth and exhaling slowly. No. He could do this. He could handle this. If nothing else - he would try to find answers, to survive. He wouldn't just give up. There had to be something he could do. He had to find a way to the other side of the ship. And with Rose's help, he had confidence he could do so. The computer chimed again, repeating her previous statement, in standby mode until she heard verbal verification from her new commander. He shifted in his seat, standing up once more and glancing around the med-bay, shaking a bit but trying to keep the panic out of his voice when he finally spoke to the autopilot system.

"Johnathan Egbert, in compliance with emergency promotional regulations. I hereby accept probationary position as Acting Captain."

The computer in his ear chimed softly, and Rose spoke again.

Statement accepted. Captain, do you consent to redirect complete authority to, and be recognized by, your name John Egbert throughout the remaining extended functionality of the ship?

Yes, that's exactly what he wanted. His name would give him access to every part of the ship, including the bridge. He could find a mapping system there, hopefully, if the computer systems in the main hull weren't completely destroyed during the breach. He nodded, breathing quickening again, his pulse pounding in his ears. He was already brainstorming, already formulating a plan. I have to explore every inch of this ship, there has to be a way off this planet. There has to be somewhere safe I can go...

Rose piped up again, repeating her previous question. This time John was ready with his answer.

"You have my full understanding and express consent. Give me access...to everything."

Hope you're as excited about this as I am. Get ready for a wild ride. -Opal