"Get your gear ready."
Garrett went back into the officer's room that he had been using during the trip and got his armor. He then joined Jackie at one of the exit doors and opened the door. Jackie already had her M4 out, and Garrett took out his Kalashnikov, which was loaded with solid uranium rounds. He turned on the safety and stepped out. There was a large animal standing nearby. It was on its hind legs and had short claws on its hands. This turned toward Garrett and began walking slowly in his direction. Garrett aimed his Kalashnikov at the beast's head and fired two shots. The beast dropped dead, and to Garrett's surprise it began decaying at a rapid pace.
"Damn. So much for vicious wildlife."
Garrett started off in the direction of the dome. The dome was not visible from the dense forest. This forest reminded Garrett of fighting in Taiwan against the Chinese forces. Garrett swept around his gun and spotted another beast that would be a problem. He kneeled down and fired a single shot through its head. The heavy uranium rounds were apparently highly effective, and a single shot downed the beast. Garrett continued forward in the heavy forest. The ship was a half mile from the perimeter of the dome, so Garrett quickly covered this distance. He fired at everything he saw, scoring kills in three or less shots. A few small flightless birds fled at the sound of the gunfire, but everything else was shot dead.
Garrett soon reached the wall of the Pioneer One dome. He began to walk around the side of the dome, which was several miles in width. After walking and engaging hostile native creatures for about two miles, Garrett walked up to the edge of the forest. There was a clearing here. He motioned to Jackie to walk around the clearing. Garrett began heading around the clearing as well. He saw four people standing in the clearing. Garrett told Jackie to stay back and provide cover in case these people proved to be hostile.
Garrett jumped down from the small earthen bunks that surrounded the clearing and trained his gun on one of the men in the group. The men all turned toward Garrett. Only one of them was holding a gun, and he aimed the gun at Garrett.
"Are you the people who came for me?"
"Yes. Now will you lower your weapon?"
Garrett lowered his weapon and motioned for Jackie to come join him.
"So you're the people who came for us?"
"Yes we are."
"So shouldn't you be watching out for any beasts that could attack you in here?"
"Not in this area. There's an electronic system set up on a limited area on this side of Pioneer One that prevents beasts from moving between the different areas when there are people down on the surface."
"Oh. Well should we get going?"
"Yes."
"By the way, I'm Garrett, and this is Jackie."
"I'm Bernie," said the man with the gun, "a ranger, and these are Helen and Charlie, both hunters, and Alex, a force."
"In that case, I'm Garrett, gunnery sergeant US army, retired, and this is…Jackie."
"US army?"
"Well, I was in my nation's military back on my planet."
"Is that where you got your gun?"
"No. That is a long and pointless story."
"Okay. Let's go."
"How are you supposed to get back up there? Do you have your own ship somewhere?"
"No. We are going to use the main teleporter between this area of the forest and Pioneer Two."
"How far is that from here?"
"Not very far. Follow us."
Garrett and Jackie fell in behind Bernie and started heading through the sectionalized forest area. The area was divided nearly into separate rooms with tall dirt walls and doors.
"What's with the crates?" Garrett asked, pointing the muzzle of his gun at a pair of boxes."
"Those are a part of the aid system that Pioneer One set up for settlers before it was wiped out. That consists of the division of the forest into areas around Pioneer One, the crates, and teleporters between areas. Various objects are sent to these crates in the same way that they are stored in your armor. You know how that works, right?"
"Yeah. What do you mean that Pioneer One was wiped out?"
"Just as we were establishing communications when Pioneer Two arrived in orbit, there was a large explosion down here."
"I don't see any marks from an explosion. There was an explosion here?"
"There was a huge explosion. A lot of people up on Pioneer Two could also see it. The only thing that seems to have resulted is that the beasts on the surface have become very violent. According to Pioneer One's reports on the wildlife, very few animals were violent. And then after the explosion everything was violent."
"So why don't you just keep that electronic system on all the time so you can keep these areas clear of the native wildlife?"
"The system can't be constantly turned on or else that will have a negative effect on the system. You would have to ask one of the military officers aboard Pioneer Two to find out more about that, but they won't say anything that can be of any help."
"I know what you mean."
Garrett could see what he guessed was the teleporter ahead of the group.
"It's just like an elevator. Just get on and select where you want to go."
"Okay."
Everyone got onto the teleporter. Helen pressed a button, and then Garrett experienced an extreme burning sensation. Several seconds later, he was inside a large room in a teleporter with everyone else.
"Okay, we're here. Now you two have to go use that teleporter over there. The Principal wants to see you."