INTERMISSION 1: Strange Readings
Hours in the future...
Your name is ELGEZI AASHIO. You are a COMMANDER in the IMPERIAL MILITARY, which means you command an IMPERIAL WARSHIP. Your ship is the PULVERIZER, given one of the most important of any job in the fleet: keep watch on the HOMEWORLD, and RELAY INFORMATION TO FLEET COMMAND.
You originally thought this job would be very interesting, and you'd be reporting information all the time. Instead, there has been jacksquat to report. There was a false alarm about a mutant burgundy about twenty sweeps ago, but other than that, nothing. Just the standard gossip of Alternia.
Until now.
You're currently sitting in a very tense board meeting. Subordinates are shouting all around, debating on what the hell to do. The topic of discussion is by far the biggest event to happen on Alternia in thousands of sweeps: energy signiatures, popping up all over the planet. Surrounding it, even.
Your crew had kept careful watch for hours, observing what was happening.
And then it happened.
Portals, too many to count. And from them emerged meteors, which started in the thousands. Then it was tens of thousands. And then hundreds of thousands. Millions, tens of millions.
You wished you could have gone down to rescue the wrigglers and grubs, maybe even the Mother Grub. But the risk of being blasted to the Dark Carnival and back was too great. But it's all over now. All that remains is a barren, lifeless planet.
You've made the reports. It will reach Fleet Command in a wipe. But for now, you sit and listen in the meeting, completely at a loss for what to do.
It's at that moment that an oliveblood ensign bursts in, panting heavily. "There's still life on Alternia!" he shouts. All activity and argument ceases. Slowly, you and the crew turn to the ensign. Now's your time to take action, you decide.
What will you do?
Elgezi: End the meeting, and get to the bridge.
"This meeting is now adjourned!" you shout. You quickly stand up from your seat, and push past the ensign on your way back to the bridge. You can hear the chaos ensuing behind you, but you do not care. You have much more important matters, and they lie where you are going.
You reach the bridge about the same time that the rest of the meeting attendants catch up to you. "Can anyone tell me why the fuck there's still life on Alternia?!" you boom, and the loyal faces of your crew stare back. Eventually, one of the technicians sitting at a command terminal speaks up. "We had been running the life scans, as requested. Just like the other times, we found nothing."
"Then why did some idiot come rushing in to disturb my meeting?!" you shout, and the technician flinches. Eventually, he regains his composure. "We thought we were running the scans too big, so we tried to narrow the scans down to small sections of the planet. Once we had done that, we discovered that the meteor showers must have been very light on the polar regions, for we picked up the vital signs of about ten thousand trolls."
You allow yourself a small smile. This is the best news you've heard all day. "How much capacity for trolls do we have on this vessel?" You ask. The technician runs the calculations. "We only have room for around two hundred on normal circumstances, as in, giving each troll an ample amount of living space. However, if we conserve the space carefully, then we can hold approximately three thousand more individuals." You think for a moment. "Are we talking adults or wrigglers? Remember, this is a planet for children." The technician seems flustered, and then re-runs the calculations.
"With those prerequisites in mind, we can double the storage capacity." You feel much more satisfied with the number. "What about our pocket storage? Is it possible to fit any more if we use those?" you ask. The technician shakes his head. "Most of those pockets are already filled with other things, some essential."
"What parts are there? Essential and non-essential."
"We keep our backup water supply in there, for starters. We also have munitions, food, medical supplies, and various repair items."
"Dump the water and munitions. We won't be needing our weapons anymore. And for the water, we are going to the poles, where there still should be some snow."
The technicians do some manipulating.
"It's done, Commander."
"How much room does that give us?"
"More than enough to fit the remaining four thousand."
"Perfect. Now give me a voice-amplifier. I need to make a message loud enough for the whole planet to hear."
A microphone emerges from the Captain's panel, and you take it from its stand. "Attention, all remaining trolls of Alternia," you begin. "My name is Commander Aashio, captain of The Pulverizer. We were unable to assist during the meteor storm, but we are here to rescue any remaining survivors. If you can, please get the northward and southward poles, as we have plenty of space to accommodate everyone. We will initiate the rescue in three days time. Be there, or get left behind." You set down the microphone.
Elgezi: Get this show on the road.
"Alright, land in the closest city! We need to begin scavenging enough food to feed ten thousand more trolls, so let's get a move on!"
The engines rumble to life after so long dormant in the atmosphere, and the barren homeworld grows bigger in the viewing window. It's time to finally prove your worth. It's time to become the most heroic troll in the history of your race.
It's time for a new beginning.