The Rising Tide
Part 1
"All ships report in." Captain Aodhán of First Observance paced nervously back and forth. Once they arrived in system, the fleet began checking in, numbering twenty ships of various types. The captain had little reason to be worried. He had made this type of voyage countless times in his career with the Primary Pioneer Group. The tasks never bored him or gave him cause to doubt the necessity, but once appearing above the planet known as G617g, the smallest seeds of anxiousness began to take root in his mind.
The slightest displacement of air behind him caused the captain to turn around. The AI commissioned with the PPG, known as Eran, approached and hovered at shoulder height. "We are all accounted for, Captain." Eran dipped lower and moved to stare out the front viewport of First Observance. "Hmm. It looks rather drab, according to your standards, I suppose." The AI was triangularly pyramidal in shape, though its edges were slightly rounded, with a single eye that glowed a ghostly blue. Eran turned back around to face the captain. "Shall we begin?"
Aodhán folded his arms and nodded.
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Four sensor ships made orbit around G617g, and reported back some interesting findings. While the world did seem capable of supporting life, it did not, however, contain any sentient species. Still, there was much more to be discovered on the surface.
Eran floated leisurely around the bridge, processing the sensor information while humming quietly to itself. Eran paused, breaking its tune of an anthem it recalled often, and stopped its movement. Grid G6-472 was marked as "anomalous" and Eran selected the attached file. It indicated there was no fauna of any kind along a lush mountain valley where animal life should naturally flourish.
Apparently, the captain was mulling over the same information. "Eran, it seems rather peculiar that a section of land, such as specified, would be so void of life." The captain frowned. "We should call in the Advanced Survey Team, see what they can find."
Eran bobbed up and down to mimic a nod. "I concur this as well."
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Team Alpha of the AST made landfall just after the local sunset. The dozen specialists set up a makeshift camp just outside the designated area, and then set off towards the mountainside, their gear floating alongside them on equipment carts. The advanced sensors onboard the carts provided the same results as the preliminary look-see, but did find something interesting. A beep from one of the consoles brought Alpha Leader, Brennus, to consult with the readings. A very low radiation emission was detected due East.
Brennus wasted no time pinpointing the anomalous energy spike that emanated from inside the mountain. He reported the location to First Observanceand wasn't shocked to hear Eran was on the way down. Although it was the senior AI with the PPG, he found Eran to be overwhelming and difficult to deal with at times. Brennus shook his head. Taking the necessary precautions, Sentry Scouts glided on ahead.
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Curiosity has a way of controlling you when you lest expect it. Brennus laughed to himself when he heard his own words reverberate in his mind. Being a part of the Advanced Survey Team did have its perks. They were the first to see something new in the galaxy, something Brennus cherished mightily, and they had the most advanced equipment available to the Fleet.
Of course, it's only as good as the user who interfaces with it. Alpha Leader set his jaw and rechecked his suit's shield diagnostics. It was a nervous habit, one that he found himself doing every five minutes since the abnormal blip appeared in his heads-up-display.
When they arrived at the base of the mountain, Eran floated down from above, circling Alpha Team, as if to personally inspect it. Brennus gave the AI a look of forced amusement. "Care to join us, Watchman?" he asked, using its Fleet designation in a subtle attempt at condescension.
Eran tilted slightly to the right. "Why, yes. Of course." The AI sputtered along toward the front of the Sentry line.
Alpha Leader shook his head. These machines never do understand sarcasm. He motioned for his squad to pick up the pace and activated his suit's lighting system. The others did the same and the descending darkness was halted in their path. He looked back behind him, momentarily illuminating their tracks in the dry ground, and suppressed a shudder as he noted the range back to the safety of the base camp increase with every step.
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The captain of First Observance stood at the outer edge of the Observation Luminosity. The large, circular space was built into the bridge proper for real-time monitoring of teams or individuals. Currently, the scene from the Advanced Survey Team-Alpha was being transmitted in life-size holoform from the surface of G617g to the multiple image generators. He began to pace around the circumference when the holographic representation of Eran took the lead. The AI didn't bother with constant updates; the captain could see the events unfold instantaneously.
Neither did Aodhán feel the need to report back to Fleet Command over their investigation of a random, minuscule power surge in the middle of a deserted planet. He needed more information to go on if he wanted to properly assess the possible dangers present on G617g.
Aodhán took a seat and settled in for the unnerving anticipation of new discoveries.
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Brennus found himself hesitating at the mouth of the cavern entrance. Eran had led them to the waypoint without so much as a note from its never-ending catalogue of tunes. Perhaps Eran is as unsettled as we are. However, what gave him pause were his sensors showing the temperature inside was much warmer, giving Brennus the impression they were entering the opened jaws of some great beast.
He swallowed and pressed on in the wake of the Sentry Scouts. As they entered the large cavern, the reflections off the walls from their illumination devices dulled as the surface absorbed the light. Only by directing a strong, single beam could the finer details of the area be revealed. The walls were composed of some sort of volcanic rock. The height of the ceiling could not be determined, as the air above them was layered in a cloud of mist. The ground felt loose underneath but solid enough to support their weight. The room was eerily quiet, given the size, but the silence didn't last long.
"Oh, my."
Brennusleaned past one of the Sentries to find Eran staring at a glowing round object in the center of the underground room. Brennus was startled, to say the least. The meter-wide sphere looked like a ball of water suspended in midair with static electricity sending tiny flashes of lightning over its surface. It looked vaguely familiar to Brennus, reminding him of the Fleet's most up-to-date form of advanced space travel, and he crept closer.
Eran circled the object twice, covering every possible angle, and took a position beside Brennus, forming a triangle with the sphere at the apex.
"The energy readings have diminished slightly since our arrival," Eran informed.
Brennus checked his sensors and frowned. "I don't read any change."
"Well, the variation is infinitesimal, approximately 0.0000000012 percent. I calculate--"
"--So it's breaking down, or you're due for a diagnostics check," Brennus interrupted, turning his attention back to the orb.
For once, the machine didn't react by telling him how structurally sound its programming was, or how its makers made it the pinnacle of perfection. It just hovered there, silently, as if in awe of the watery object. Eran made the smallest movement forward and Brennustook a step to halt the AI's progress.
He heard a crunch underneath his feet. Brennus looked down, shined his light at his boots, and was shocked to see a collection of unidentifiable bones scattered on the ground. His mouth hung open and his pulse began to race. He looked back up in time to see Eran arch an electrical inquiry to the object. He filled his lungs with air and he yelled, "No!"
It was too late.
A brilliant flash of white light suddenly filled the cavern, causing Brennus to fall awkwardly on his back, but his visor quickly polarized to save his eyes the need to adjust. A great primal roar echoed throughout the cavern and the walls became bathed in a crimson tint. Vibrations rattled everything and Brennus felt as if his body would shake itself apart. A high-pitched crescendo of multiple polyphony added to the audible chaos, and Alpha Team found themselves in the middle of a dissonant chorus.
Brennus found his voice again and struggled to regain his footing. "What did you do, Eran!?" he shouted over the noise. "Shut it off!"
Even hovering in the air, the AI still shook violently. "I had no reason to suspect any activation from a simple inquiry--"
The conversation was cut short when a dozen bipedal silhouettes seemed to leap out of an unseen gateway and materialize before them. Horror took hold in his heart and Brennus peddled backwards. One of the forms leaped in the air and struck down a member of Alpha Team, clawing away at his torso with tentacle-like limbs.
The Sentry Scouts quickly categorized these new beings, analyzed their posture, and assumed them as the threat they were. The machines opened fire with their beam weapons, slicing their enemy into disproportionate segments. More beings began appearing before them, but this time they were smaller, crawling over the ground towards the squad, and too numerous to count.
Brennus reached for the weapon at his hip. "Eran, close it down now!!!"
Watchman sent a jolt of energy at the orb, and a tremendous, forceful wave rushed out from the sphere and knocked Brennus flat on his back. His head hit hard, but he did not loose consciousness right away. The cavern was once again plunged back into darkness, and the rhythmic clanking of machinery hitting the ground filled the void of the previous cacophony. A muffled munching sound could be heard, and that's when Brennus knew his suit was inoperable. He was no longer hearing through the enhancements his suit offered, but naturally. His strength was almost gone, but he forced his head to roll to the left. Beside him, a fellow Team member was covering in the smaller bulbous creatures. He felt a tingling in his feet and knew that his suit had lost integrity.
Grief and sorrow washed over him, as he knew he was going to die. He tried to let the comfort of his father's encouraging words overcome his current feelings, but his thoughts were interrupted by a familiar sound of ions firing. With his last bit of strength he raised his head up.
Eran was frantically cutting down the remaining parasitic creatures with bursts of energy emitting from its eye, only pausing to limit injuring the members of Alpha Team. The larger forms had all been bisected and diminished to heaps on the ground.
Exhaustion replaced any other feeling Brennus had, and he closed his eyes to fall unconscious.