My eyes snap open to see a grey, miserable cloud covered sky, a weak light having bore through my eyelids and into my oculars. Heart beating at the pace of pattering rain, a cool sensation seeps into me via the back of my head, making me awfully aware of my currently missing helmet and, in effect, my missing companion. A groan escapes my dry chapped lips as I sit up, my whole body protesting to the movement. Whatever has happened, it's obvious it was something to the akin of being mobbed by a bunch of elephants, never mind the fact that, even with my armour and shielding, I wouldn't survive.
My body goes rigid as I stare at it; a thin humanoid on all fours bearing over me. It stares back, the huge eyes containing almond shaped abysses that were surrounded by a wood brown sea holding me in place. Metal encased fingers digging into the water-logged dirt, whilst forcing the imaginary hands that constrict me throat to leave with any thoughts to fight, the thing leans towards me, dragging its pristine white coat through the mud. Swallowing a glob of saliva down my dry and raw throat I force my eyes to study the flesh on its face, gazing at how the red dripped from the top of its head, like paint, to mix in with the white surrounding the mouth.
My airways decide to open again, allowing me to breathe and slow the beating drum of my heart. Eyes wondering back to my current counterparts, it blinks, a fraction of a second that allows me to determine the eyelids moving up. I sniff, the smell of wet earth, leaves, rotting wood and something indistinguishably sweet assaulting my nose. It tilts its head, probably having heard my sniff with the holes located on each side of its head, reminding me a little of a curious puppy having heard a strange new sound. I can feel an unbearable urge to snigger, not exactly the greatest of times but I was never trained for first contact situations, these sorts of things are for the pollies and spooks to handle.
The urge dies quickly like a rabbit taking a Spartan laser to the face, the humanoid binging up a large three-fingered hand. I ground my teeth a little, focusing on the hand that's moving at an agonisingly slow centimetre by centimetre pace. Half an inch away and my body moves on its own accord, moving back in the slightest, just enough for the thing to take notice and stop. It moves its' hand away, albeit slowly as if reluctant, and sniffs, causing the holes-for-a-nose on its face to flare.
Flinching, a surge of panic rises before being squashed, heat rising to my cheeks once I see the thing had moved to a crouch instead of staying on all fours. Both arms drape over the fist knee of its double jointed legs, hands subtly twitching every second and body looking ready to jerk in any given direction. Comparing it to a puppy again only this time enthralled with curiosity waiting for the command of its master to fetch the hidden ball, I shudder. This humanoid has no master to restrain it and there was no ball, just little me sitting in some dirt protected by bits of metal, cloth and hardened energy.
I grip the dirt and bite the inside of my cheek, forcing myself to be stiff as a dick as it shuffles closer and raises the same hand to make another attempt at touching my face. Watching its hand, however, didn't stop the involuntary gasp that slips out of my throat at the feeling of the cool, feathery touches. The fingers trace down my nose to the tip, slowly dragging across my cheek and around my mouth before it just at the corner.
It withdraws the hand back a bit and I look at its face, watching gaze at my hair that held an intensity usually reserved for something infinitely more interesting. But then maybe there is a lack of sapient species that actually contained hair or fur of any kind where it comes from. It touches my hair, recoiling quickly as if burnt, the flesh between its eyes scrunching together to form an eyebrow-less frown. A wry smile threatens to surface as the thing runs a hand over its forehead and horn-like appendages, as if believing a mop of hair has suddenly sprung into existence on the top of its head.
It seems intent on patting its own head and the rest of its body for any evidence of the strange substance that's growing on me, somehow reminding me of the old sci-fi vids about little grey men that abducted cows and shoved probes up your ass. Ok, that was a bit of a lie considering those things were grey, not red or white, and this thing hasn't shoved anything up my anal passages as of yet. Nor can the little grey men shove their faces into mine as I stare off into space. I jolt on the spot, nose smashing into the face of the humanoid and causing it to topple over.
I lean forward, instinctively bringing my hands to my nose to stop any blood from cascading out while trying hard to blink back tears that are being caused by the shrill music of pain in my nose. Funny how I can get shot and not flinch yet anything less and I turn into a blubbering idiot. I can already hear the sardonic laughing of my companion echoing throughout my mind at my flawless interaction with a new sapient species.
"'M so sorry." I mutter, though it comes out like a muffled bit of nothing to my ears.
I can't think of anything comprehensive, my thoughts racing, heat speeding up and my breath becoming short and shallow. It's almost unbearable, knowing I may have potentially doomed my entire race to oblivion. A series of sounds resound from the humanoid, making my head snap up. It seemed to be on the same train of thought as I, if the downcast eyes and the wringing of hands were anything to go by. I can feel the corner of my lips tugging into a small soft smile, a picture of a person doing something similar flickers across my mind's eye.
I take my hands away from my nose and peer down at them, eye twitching at the sight of the bloodless gauntlets. I allow my eyes to travel back to the humanoid, which still seems to be immersed in its own little world of whatever. I move my hands forward and capture the opposite pair, forcing them to stop their slightly dizzying movement and bringing back the attention of their owner. Wide eyes and open mouth push a little snigger past my lips.
It seems to mentally flail a bit, not knowing what to do and eyes darting this way and that way before stopping and giving its head a little shake, eyes coming back to mine. I watch the thin lips of its mouth stretch up and out, creating a broad smile that seems to now be accompanied by a slight twinkle in its eyes. A shiver runs up my spine as if someone just walked over my grave, the smile making my stomach drop. It must have a sixth sense or something, its smile turning to a grin, showing the assortment of white, human-looking teeth.
I think smiling at it may have been the wrong thing to do as it jumps up while gripping my hands, dragging me up to my feet like a doll, easily towering over me and placing it at a good 7ft or so. It lets go of my hands and rapidly looks around then, motioning something to me, runs off into a bunch of big, poisonous looking bushes. I stand there just staring and blinking stupidly at the direction it had gone, not exactly sure what had just happened though thoroughly confused, especially since I am in a clearing, of all places, with no sign of my pod or equipment around. It's as if someone decided to be a bitch and take my helmet and other essential things for themselves while dumping me in the middle of nowhere.
I jump, the humanoid coming back and promptly dragging me through the bushes. I'm feeling the need to struggle but I think that it'll just encourage it so I'm just going to go with the flow. Maybe that way it will lead me to something useful. I sigh, really wishing some spook or polly was dealing with this while I consumed a liver eating substance of some kind. That way I would not have to deal with the jack-hammer of a headache that was currently making my life miserable. Damn lack of medical supplies and their lack of aspirin.
Headache forgotten, I laugh, the site of my crashed pod sitting in the middle of a crater, intact and awesome looking, greeting my eyes like some kind of beacon for the lost. Letting go of my hand, I turn to my companion, my face over taken by a grin so massive that it feels like it'll split. It motions to me in gesture that I now know means follow, making its way to the gentlest slope of the impact sight. I shrug and just slide down, the humanoid giving me what looks to be a disapproving glare though I hardly care. I run to the opening of the pod and sigh in relief at the pitch black helmet with the same coloured visor sitting on the seat alongside my sniper parts and pistol with the fuel rod cannon still clipped in.
Tentatively gabbing and putting my helmet on, my whole body relaxes, a weight that I never knew was there before lifting. The hissing of air pressurising and the high pitched beeping of the HUD booting up is comforting, meaning moderate safety from a bullet aimed at my head. I clip the pistol to my left hip and sniper parts to my chest, arms and lower back before opening a compartment in the pod, pulling out a rucksack. Footsteps from behind tell me that the humanoid has just arrived.
"Nice to see that I'm finally wanted." a voice drawls in my ear as I start loading ammunition, equipment, half of which I'm not entirely sure to, grenades, MREs, which origins are a mystery, and water, also a mystery. Thank God the rucksacks are made to take grenades and survive. "Took you long enough."
I roll my eyes and click my tongue, "I don't know whether you had noticed or not, Asima, but I was kind of busy with our guest here so please cut me some slack." I say, jerking a thumb to the thing that was currently peering over my shoulder.
Silence fills my helmet for a few seconds. "Well, at least you haven't started an intergalactic war so I guess I can give you brownie points for that."
"Gee, thanks so much." I huff, feeling very much underappreciated.
Slinging the rucksack over my shoulder, I pick up the fuel rod and give it a quick once over, making sure everything is intact. Once that is done I shoulder it and turn to my new companion, giving it a thumb up with my left hand to tell it I was good to go, though I'm not exactly sure it under stands.
"You know we're missing the calamari right?" Asima asks. I groan, all of my dreams and fantasies of grand adventures being ruined by the thought of the stupid honour wielding squid-face.
/-\
Well, here's chapter 2 after almost four months. Sorry about the long wait but I have the tendency to do things at my pace. Criticism is appreciated as long as it's within reason.
P.S. bet none of you can guess which alien Marian met first (hint; starts with an S)
Hope you guys enjoy this chapter ^^