Shout Outs...
Maxmagnus20019: Well Fayt replicated his sword, so it's easy enough to simply assume James replicated one. Although Fayt may wish he had a l33t replicated for himself too.
Gester: Well he is, kinda, you know, there, so it would also be weird if he wasn't mentioned at all. Glad you think my little tale is balanced though.
Dragon Chyld: Sadly the Deer-Creature was disqualified for illegal drugs. We're still looking for the dealer, but we have a suspect. --Glares at the blanket-- Yeah, Cliff will be in the this chapter, and Mirage. Well, they should, depends on when I get too lazy to keep going.
To Everyone: Settle yourselves in, this is a long chapter.
Fayt's a good guy, really. He likes to help people out, he tries to be diplomatic and polite, although his hard-headedness tends to get him in trouble. Really, he's a nice guy. Very nice.
But at the time I was thinking 'I won't kill him. I'll just throttle him. Really.'
James darted through the ruins, his sword in his hand as he ran to the next area. A large mushroom-like Shrieker waddled towards him, it's young plodding behind. James just hacked off a limb and kept running.
Eventually he came up to large structure and slowed down to a halt. After a moment he started to walk around to the back, sword gripped tightly in his black leather glove. Rounding the corner he saw three young long-eared males groaning on the ground. He walked up to them as one of them spoke. "Damn... Who was that punk?"
"I dunno Tepeki..." Another said as he tried to get up. "But damn was he--Oof!"
For the record, 'oof' was me putting my boot on his back and pushing him back down.
The other two beaten thugs looked up at this new arrival. He tipped his hat up and shouldered his blade before speaking. "Say, did you see a blue haired boy come by here?" One of the boys nodded. "How long ago?"
"I-I-I Dunno!" 'Tepeki' spat out. "Not too long ago..." The boy crawled away as James turned to look at the entrance. Putting his full weight on the boy underneath him he walked into the old ruined building.
"Oh man..." 'Tepeki began. "Think he was as tough as the last one Marafy?" The other untrodden boy shook his head.
"Did you SEE that sword? He's gotta be tougher! Right Buster?"
The trodden thug stood up, groaning. "Don't know, but... The Boss will take care of him."
"Excuse me." A bold voice said. All three lackey's stiffened and looked towards the owner of the voice, a 6'2 black leather clad, blonde man. "Have you seen a blue haired kid 'round here?"
There was a brief pause followed by three voices shrieking as the all ran away from the ruins.
The blonde male ran a hand through his hair. "Something I said?"
The zombie-beast raised it's sword to take a swipe at James but he had already stepped into it's guard, his sword slicing it shoulder to waist. As he took a short breather an explosion sounded within the old ruins. "Well, least I know where he is NOW!" James said to himself as he ran down the corridor into the room he knew Fayt would be in.
"He doesn't seem to be too badly hurt... That's a relief." Fayt said as he held Niklas's limp body.
"Naw, but your head must be outta whack." James said as he rounded the corner, walking into the cell. Fayt blinked for a moment looking up at his friend.
"What the? What are you doing here?"
"I could ask you that as well. What were you thinking running out here without backup?" James said, crossing his arms.
"I'm sorry, but I thought Niklas was in trouble... I couldn't... I didn't think..."
"I guess not... Ah well?" James shrugged his shoulders, smiling a bit. "Yah saved the day anyhow."
"Yeah, I guess..."
"Meena... I'm so sorry..."
"Huh?"
"...Sister..."
"Oh, right... My translator was built into my communicator..." Fayt said sighing.
"Was?" James said, tilting his head.
"Yeah, I kinda shorted the battery to blow up the cage."
James sighed and shook his head as Fayt stood up cradling Niklas. "Well, no use crying over split milk. I'll buy you new one when we get home."
Fayt nodded as he started to walk past his friend. "Sure thing."
"Freeze!" A voice shouted out the sound of a gun cocking echoing inside the room. Fayt turned to look at James, both nodding as Fayt set the injured boy down. A blast of energy struck the cell door, destroying part of the wall. Both slowly stepped out of the cell, a blue blast screaming out to slam into a stack of crates behind them. "No funny moves if you wanna stay alive. Play nice and I'll let you both live a little longer."
"That was a phase gun..." Fayt said.
"Let me guess... The infamous Norton, am I right?" James asked as the both turned towards a leather clad, golden skinned man. His eyes looked to be solid gold.
"Yeah, that's me. I am Norton the Great!" He exclaimed proudly. "Ah, it's nice to hear genuine Terran being spoken, eh? Seem like ages."
"Why are you here?" Fayt asked evenly, rage slowly heating within him. "You're not from this planet are you?"
"Gee, what gave that away?" James said, shrugging his shoulders. "The outlandish get up, or the punk hairdo?"
"Very funny. Just so you know I'm from Rezerb, and we ain't a part of the Federation." Norton said, his aim shifting between his two targets.
"Ah, and hence no UP3 hanging over your head..." James said nodding slightly. "But why would a guy like you travel to Vanguard III?"
"Good question..." Fayt added, looking towards his friend. "Rezerb is a planet full of joy-seekers, and they always reject Federation membership."
"Not much to say really... I... was... involved in this... er... unfortunate accident." Norton began. "I guess it was a bit much, even for Rezerb. So I was sentenced to spend the rest of my days in exile on a deserted planet."
"Harsh." James said, eyes on Norton's weapon.
"But... The escort ship they were transporting me on had engine trouble and ended up crash landing here." Norton said turning his gun sideways. "Can ya believe it? All I had to do was mess with their engine codes. Those stupid pilots ended up frying their engines! Ohhh, Man! All I was trying to do was create a distraction so I could make my escape. But… we crashed anyhow, and this planet is now my prison."
"And the others, Norton!" Fayt blurted out. 'Huhhh?' Was Norton's first reply. The second was a burst of fire that struck the floor behind Fayt and his companion.
It was a credit to both that they didn't even flinch. "That's 'Lord Norton' to you." Was the third reply.
"There must have been others. What happened to the other people on the escort ship?"
"Oh, those guys? Their dead, the poor fools. They were trying to send out a distress signal when a bolt of lightning smote the where they stood. Bam!" He laughed a bit, shifting his weight back a forth like a prancing peacock. "That crash part was unfortunate. But no use crying over spilt milk... I've been devoting myself to making this planet my kingdom. Ya get my drift?"
"Yeah... Your going to strong arm everyone into making things as cozy as possible for you." James said, gritting his teeth.
Good lord, even THINKING about having to stare him down and listen to him makes me feel pissed off. Norton the Great? More like Norton the Lame...
"So that's why you've been raiding Whipple?" Fayt asked, his arms shaking as the rage within grew hotter.
"Yeah, something like that. You're a smart kid." Norton said, grinning. "That's why I've been raiding the village, and that's why you've gotta die. Sorry boys. You'll be happy to know, however... I'll make the most of those parts I stripped from the escape pods..." Norton cocked the gun as Fayt took a half step forward, the rage now at a boil.
"Grr..." Fayt growled as a high-pitched noise started up. "It's guys like you..." Fayt began as energy began to gather near his forehead, creating a small circle of symbols that glowed purple.
"Huh? What the?" Norton said, looking worried.
The pot of rage was boiling over.
You could FEEL IT. Fayt's Symbological power radiated off him in warm, humid waves crashing against us... I knew Norton could feel it too... I definitely felt it, standing next to the source. The sound pounded my ears, but all I knew was this...
Inside Fayt was a power begging to be unleashed upon Norton with righteous fury.
"Ah, there you are." A voice cut in. A tall blonde man entered, looking at Fayt. The sound of Fayt's power faded as he turned to face the new arrival. "I thought I lost you when your distress signal went out."
Enter Cliff, stage right. And damn, did he have good timing. My whole body was shaking, just being near that amount of raw POWER.
"Might never have found you if it weren't for those explosions." He continued, one hand on his hip.
"What do you want? You're not one of those Federation guys, are ya?" Norton demanded, aiming his gun at the new arrival.
"Who, me? A Federation solider? Ha, yeah, that's a good one." The man said, looking amused.
"Well then, who are ya?"
"Cliff Fittir-- A Klausian, and member of Quark."
"A K-Klausian." Norton said, stuttering in surprise.
"Sorry, no time to explain. I'm kinda in a hurry." He said turning to the blue haired boy. "Just let me have Fayt, that Earthling boy over there, and his pal...
"Me? Jennings. James Jennings."
"Right. And James, and I'll be on my way. I don't plan on butting into whatever ya got going on over here."
Guess I shouldn't be surprised at the fact he didn't know me, but it killed his coolness factor by a point there.
"How do you know my name?" Fayt asked, looking at Cliff.
"Let's not sweat the details. Suffice it to say, you're my man."
"And me?" James said, crossing his arms.
"Well... Figured you'd want a lift off this rock, right?"
"Point."
"Hold it right there, or I'll blast ya!" Norton exclaimed.
"Huh? You talking to me?" Cliff asked turning to Norton, as if he had just found a bug on the bottom of his shoe that talked.
"You think you can fool me? There's no way a Klausian would come here! You're probably some sorta spy. It's so obvious! Har har har!"
"Really?" James said tilting his head. "Wow, didn't know wanna be warlords like you were worth the trouble."
"Shut up!"
"Heh. Still, I'm a nice guy, I'll tell you a lil' secret. That phase gun of yours has no effect on us Klausians. You didn't know that?" The Klausian said, crossing his arms.
"Shut your piehole!" Norton exclaimed as he fired three shots at the Klausian in question, who dodged each one neatly and precisely as he charged in, halting inches away from Norton.
"All right. I'm done lecturing-- Time to teach you a lesson!" Cliff exclaimed, rearing a fist back.
In the game there was a big old boss battle. Here? Nope.
Cliff's fist rocketed into the Rezerb's face, caving in his golden face and smashing his head back into the wall with one blow.
Talk about a glass jaw! And nose. And cheek. And forehead.
You get the drift.
Both humans in the room cringed at the sight as Cliff knelt by the body. "Well, so much for that guy. But I did try to warn him."
"Wow... I knew the abilities of Klausians outstrip those of a human... But man..." Fayt said shaking his head.
"No kiddin'." James added.
"Looks like I overdid it." Cliff said standing up. "Shoulda held back a little bit. Here, catch." He smiled, tossing something to Fayt.
"Is this... a communicator?" Fayt asked.
"Can't live without one. I couldn't figure out why you wouldn't have one with you."
"Don't ask." James said quickly.
"Yeah. Anyway, thanks for helping us out. You saved our lives." Fayt added, bowing slightly.
"Whoa there," Cliff said walking past the two younger humans. "Don't go thanking me just yet... See I've come to abduct you. Well... abduct Fayt anyway." Cliff smiled and turned to face James. "I got enough time to abduct you too, if ya want."
"And he's so bloody cheerful about it." James mumbled.
"What?" Fayt exclaimed.
"Now don't get all worked up... I'm not going to hurt anybody." Cliff said in a friendly tone. "It's just my boss wants to meet you. That's why I came all the way out here to find you."
"Boss? You mean Quark's Boss?"
"I don't think he means the Queen of England." James quipped.
"Funny. But yeah, our leader wants to see you." Cliff added. "But you've sure made it a tough job. First I went to Hyda and ran into that mess, thanks to you. Then, I find you here poking your noses into matters better left alone..."
"You make it sound like it was our fault Hyda got attacked... Geez..." Fayt said crossing his arms.
There was a brief pause as Cliff gave the blue haired boy a flat stare. "Just kidding, don't sweat it. Anyway, I got you now. And I did rescue you, so no complaining. And besides you wanna see your old man don't you? He's been captured by the Vendeeni."
"Dad?" Fayt exclaimed. "But why?"
"Well they sure went though a heck of a lotta of trouble getting him..." James added.
"Hey, don't ask me." Cliff said, shrugging. "All I know is your old man was abducted from the Evacuation Facility on Hyda."
Fayt took hold of Cliff as if to squeeze information from him. "What about my mother... And Sophia?"
"Well, we know your mom's safe. She should've already arrived at Remote Station #6. I don't know about the girl. I've had my hands full trying to track down your escape pod."
"How do you know all this? What else do you know?"
"Not much else... Sorry. But I do know what yer old man, Dr. Leingod, was researching."
"You mean Symbological Genetics? My dad's an authority in that field, so it's no surprise you've heard of him."
"Right, Symbological Genetics. And 19 years ago... Ah, never mind. That doesn't matter right now."
"Uh..."
"C'mon! Ya don't have any other way off this planet do ya? Look I'm sure things will clear up if you just come with me. Besides, you'll be able to see your old man again."
"But according to you, my Father's been captured by Vendeen. So how could I possibly go see him?"
"Simple." Cliff said, slapping a fist into his hand. "Quark'll go rescue your old man too."
"Now we're talking!" James said nodding.
"Why would an anti-Federation group want to help my father?" Fayt asked, turning to Cliff.
"Well, tell ya what, it's kinda complicated. Let's not get into that right now. So... Are you two coming or not?"
"...Okay... James?"
"Sure, but first things first." James said, turning towards Niklas. "We have loose ends here to tie up first."
"Sure... Whatever." Cliff said. "But I still think you shouldn't have gotten involved.
James carried a limp Niklas in his arms as he watched Cliff set charges in Norton's command centre and Fayt create the music box parts. He over heard Fayt mumble something but paid it no mind.
"You done? OK, I'm gonna blow the place." Cliff said as Fayt stood up.
"Yeah, let's go." Fayt nodded, and three left the old ruins, running to the exit. Once they were all clear Cliff pulled out a detonator and pressed the button, causing the entrance, and half the building, to collapse in on itself.
"There." Cliff said, grinning. "Everything's back to normal now, huh?" Fayt turned to look at the larger Klausian, glaring.
"You're wrong, things aren't back to normal. Niklas' and Meena's parents are gone forever..." Moving over Fayt took the limp Niklas from James arms before turning around and walking away.
"Sure hope you ain't Quark's PR guy." James added before following his friend.
"Oh sure, gang up on me." Cliff said before finally following as well.
Getting out the Ruins of Coffir was easier than getting into the Ruins of Coffir, Fayt couldn't fight while carrying Niklas but I was able to deal with anything around here by myself to begin with, and Cliff was a great fighter, so we had nothing to worry about. Fayt's only worry was to make sure Niklas was cozy...
As the three men arrived at the entrance to the village Cliff stopped and turned, facing away from Whipple. "Finish up quick and get back here. I'll be waiting for you."
"Okay." Fayt said as he and James walked to the village.
"Don't keep me waiting too long, kids!"
"Hey, no worries." James added.
Moments later the two had walked near the centre of the village. Standing there was Meena, the village chief and a few other villagers. It didn't take long for them to notice the two humans approaching with an unconscious Niklas, Meena swiftly bounding over to them as soon as she saw them. "Niklas! Niklaaaas!" She cried out, as Fayt kneeled down, Niklas in his arms. "I don't care about the music box!" She said, face in her sleeve as she stopped before them. "I just care about my brother! My brother..."
"Don't worry, he's just asleep. He wouldn't leave you alone Meena." Fayt said, soothingly as James kneeled down and put a hand on Meena's shoulder.
"Yeah, he just needs some rest. He's had a rough day."
"Really?" The little girl asked as James nodded.
"Really." Fayt replied, nodding. A few other villagers walked over to them as James took Meena into his arms, both he and Fayt standing to take the siblings to their home...
I waited on the porch as Fayt put Niklas to bed and to finish fixing the music box. A few moments later I heard soft music emit from the house, before Fayt himself walked out.
Even though I didn't have any real impact on the events here... I felt... proud to be apart of them regardless.
It's the feeling of helping those in need.
Once Fayt exited the house James stood up. Silently the two made their way towards the village entrance, ignoring the bickering couple nearby.
Cliff smiled as he heard the duo's footsteps exit the village. He pushed off the rock he was leaning on and approached them. "You two ready?"
"Yeah." Fayt said, nodding.
"We're done here... Gonna miss those two though..." James said, stretching his arms behind his head.
"Don't get too sentimental here." Cliff said, crossing his arms. "Now, you remember the cliff by one of the escape pods? Our way out lies beyond there. Let's move out!"
So off we were again, back to Fayt's pod. We had to deal with the usual slimes, and something else...
James' head nodded slightly to the music of his MP3 Player as all three walked down the path. Cliff looked at the younger man before shaking his head at the carelessness of listening to anything but ones surroundings. He turned his head slightly as a flash of grey dashed towards the man in front.
James.
"Look out!" Cliff called out, knowing it was useless, his voice drowned in the loud music. Fayt turned and began to draw his sword as well, but neither he nor Cliff could react fast enough. The wolf leapt at James' right side, it's jaws aimed at his neck.
Cliff was charging forward, but knew even his superior speed wouldn't get him there in time.
It proved to be unneeded as James stiffened for a millisecond before his right hand flashed over to his blade's handle. Ducking and twisting his body at the same time he swung his sword at an arc, catching the wolf's neck and cleaving it from it's body. Head and body, now separate flew to land on the ground in front of Fayt, rolling a few feet before stopping. "Ummm?" He turned to James who had pulled his earphones away with one hand.
"Wow... something other than a slime... Weird."
"Uhh... Yeah... Anyway... Let's get moving." Cliff said shaking his head.
Guess Auron's training really paid off, although I could do without Cliff looking at me as if he was sizing up an opponent. I suppose he figures we don't trust him just yet and he might have to fight us.
Joy...
It didn't take us much longer to reach the cliff in question...
Cliff took a few steps ahead before tapping something on his wrist. "Hey, it's me. We're at the location, transport us up as soon as you can. Oh, and we have an extra person to transport as well. ...He's an offworlder too, a pal of Fayt's. ...Well we can't really just leave him here, can we? ...Look, the fact is I got him, all right? ...I said it's Okay. I haven't done anything. ...Yeah I know. Now hurry up and get us outta here." After that he turned around to face the pair of younger men. "My ship will be here soon. Once we're ready, it's good riddance to this hunk o' rock. My ship's not so big, but it's packing a gravitic warp engine. ...It's quite the speed demon."
"I'm sure." James added, stretching a little.
"Hey, Cliff..." Fayt began.
"Yeah?"
"There's something I've been meaning to ask you..."
"What's that?"
"Why does Quark's leader want to meet with me? I'm just a college student from Earth!"
If you only knew...
"Oh... um... 'no comment?' Heh... That's... eh, not doing it for you, is it?"
"No, it's not."
"Let's see, well... I guess the biggest reason is... Our leader wants to chat with you?"
James shook his head as Fayt cut the air with his arm. "Nice try, but that's avoiding the question. Why's your leader want to meet with me?"
"Hey, how should I know? I just do what I'm told. There's probably something our leader wants to talk to you about."
"And that something is...?"
"Well--You'll just have to come with me and find out for yourself. Sorry, kid, but I don't know much more than that." Fayt nodded once before Cliff's communicator beeped. Shortly after that a ship descended into view and the three were beamed up, off the planet...
And into the next chapter of their story...
"Well, let's get a move on." Cliff said from his seat at the front of the craft. "She'll be expecting us. The rendezvous point is Beta-747-372-406. You got that Mirage?"
"Roger." Said the attractive blonde female in the pilot's seat. She tapped in a view commands, looking over the readouts. "Engaging conventional engines... Gravitic warp core, normal." Shortly after that Fayt thought back to when they all got onboard the ship...
"Welcome back." A feminine voice said as the three men walked onto the bridge.
"Sorry to keep you waiting." Cliff said as the woman stood up. "This is my navigator and partner-in-crime. I leave the day-to-day operation of the ship to her. Mirage, this is our target."
"Yes, I knew right away." She said walking up to Fayt. "Nice to meet you Fayt. I'm Mirage Koas."
"N-Nice to meet you too." Fayt sputtered out.
"And that over there..." Cliff added as Fayt continued to stare at the beautiful blonde woman. "Is James Jennings."
"Howdy. Sorry if I'm being a bit of a pain." James said, tipping his hat slightly.
"None at all." Mirage replied, closing her eyes as she smiled.
"Fayt, you okay?" Cliff asked as Fayt turned to face the man. "Oh, and listen, don't fall for her-- She may look pretty, but she's a Klausian. Any funny ideas and your likely to meet a swift, yet painful, death."
"Unless of course, she likes you, eh buddy?" James added from his seat behind Cliff.
"Hey, w-wait a sec! Who said I was falling for anyone?" Fayt sputtered out.
"Relax, I was just warning ya." Cliff said, grinning.
"I... was wondering. How long will it take to get to your leader?"
"Oh, we'll be there soon. It's about three hours to the rendezvous point. Mirage..." Cliff added, standing up. "I'm leaving you in charge. I'm going to go take a shower." He started to leave the bridge as something beeped on the controls.
"Oh Cliff... It looks like you can forget that shower."
"Huh, what is it?"
"I've just detected a gravitic space anomaly up ahead. I'm bringing us out of gravitic space to avoid it."
"You serious? Think it's hostile?" He turned and walked back to his seat, sitting back down. After a moment of turbulence the gravitic warp engines cut out.
"We're back in normal space. ...Two Vendeeni Battleships detected 400,000 km ahead."
"I guess that answers the 'is it hostile' question." James quipped.
"An ambush, eh? Man, it's bad enough having to worry about Federation ships. ...Open up a comm link."
"Hold on. ...Connection confirmed... Okay, the link's open."
"Uhhh... This is the Eagle, a Klausian ship. We don't want any trouble with ya..."
"You're wasting your time. The enemy ships are already prepared to attack." Cliff turned his head, looking back towards Fayt for a brief moment.
"Seems they know who we've got onboard... Escape's our only hope. It'll be tough without using gravitic warp, but we've got no choice... Reverse course! Conventional engines, full power!"
"Roger."
"Full power to rear shields! And lemme see a chart for this region!" Mirage nodded as the shutters on the bridge closed. "...Alright, course 116, mark 267! Activate auto-evasion program! Fasten crew safety harnesses!"
"Roger. ...Course entry complete, speed maximum... Program activated." Four harnesses slipped over the passengers on the Eagle as it turned to escape the twin battleships in the vastness of space...
"Hey, feeling lucky kids?" Cliff asked. The ship shook before a reply could be made.
"We've evaded round one from the enemy disruptor cannon. ...Nearing objective point." Mirage called out.
"All right, as soon as we're there, go into gravitic warp."
"Cliff, gravitic warp is currently non-functional..."
I swear if you listened closely enough you could hear a hint on panic in her voice. Otherwise she was so damned calm it was like listening to Lieutenant Commander Data's female counterpart...
"I got a hunch it'll function the moment we reach the objective point. Get us on a straight line between the ships and that planet, then pop us up starside-- we'll open up the distance that way."
"Very well-- but we won't be able to designate our warp designation."
"Like being here is any better?" James quipped as Cliff gave a brief nod.
"He's right, we're toast if we stay here! Anyhow, space is big, right? Our odds ain't that bad!"
"You got a hunch?" Fayt exclaimed from the back as Mirage offered up another 'Roger'.
A moment later a short alarm sounded. "The enemy's fired again... Four rounds now approaching..."
"Four huh?" Cliff said. "Either we get to gravitic warp first or we get pummelled... Now's the time to pray gentlemen!"
"Unfortunately it looks like we might loose the race. Here comes the first round now, and we're seven seconds from the objective point."
"God hung up on us..." James muttered in his seat.
"Aah, who cares if we take a few rounds?" Cliff said shaking his head. "Warp our butts outta here!"
"Warp engines damaged... but still functioning." Mirage reported.
"You bet it is! Activate gravitic warp!"
The ship began to accelerate in the vastness of space, the one shot missing, the one following grazing the ship's fin. The last nearly impacted, but the ship's engines had kicked in, speeding it beyond what the round could achieve.
"We've thrown off the Vendeeni ships." Mirage declared, a very slight hint of relief in her voice.
"Phew... That was close..." Cliff added, shaking his head.
"Yes, but now we're pretty far from the rendezvous point."
"Well, it can't be helped. Besides, it won't hurt to make her wait a little longer. Let's take our time."
"Wow..." Fayt began. "Your hunch really paid off."
"Finally, some respect!" Cliff said, turning around in his seat.
"Yeah, a healthy respect for your recklessness."
"What's that supposed to mean? A little more honesty would be nice-- like 'Heeeey, Cliff that sure was something,' or 'You're a genius Cliff!'"
"All I'm adding is this." James said. "If it's stupid... and it works... It ain't stupid."
"Uhhh... Thanks pal. I think."
"Sorry to interrupt while your having so much fun..." Mirage began, responding to an alert.
"What is it Mirage?"
"The gravitic warp core is overheating, we should reduce speed immediately. The engine will scram if we don't."
"Whaaat? Didn't I specifically request that you tell me these things sooner? Get back to conventional space, pronto!"
"Roger." The transition back to normal space was rougher than James had experienced yet... He didn't need to play the game to know what that meant. "Bad news."
"Now what?"
"Both the conventional and gravitic warp engines have scrammed. The back up engine isn't functioning, either."
"Great... Anybody want to go out and paddle our way out of here?" Surprisingly it was Fayt who uttered that little quip.
"I'd say, we have a problem." Mirage finished.
"Damn it!" Cliff shouted, smacking his armrest with his fist. "Where're we now?"
"We're currently within Elicoor II's gravitational field."
"If all our energy sources are shot, then we can't communicate either... Well, I'm sure she'll figure out something happened when we don't show up when we're supposed to..."
"One would hope so."
"Well, Mirage, come up with something."
"I'll see what I can do."
"What CAN we do?" Fayt asked. "Aren't all the engines scrammed?"
"When it rains it pours..." James said, shaking his head.
"For starters, we have to land before we crash." Cliff began. "Then, we wait to be rescued."
"Great plan." Fayt quipped.
"Look, my mission is to bring you to our leader. Until then, I'll watch out for you-- trust me! You're as safe as... as a turtle in it's shell!"
"A turtle dropping out of orbit..." Fayt muttered to himself.
"Huh? You say something?"
"Nothing."
"We'll be entering Elicoor II's atmosphere in another 30 seconds." Mirage said. "Get ready for a bumpy ride boys. And... Keep wagging those tongues and you'll bite them off. I wouldn't want anyone to die of blood loss."
"Yes Ma'am." Cliff.
"Roger." Fayt.
"Here we go again..." James.
Unlike the landing in the pod this one was like a rock smashing into the ground. Thankfully the ships retro boosters were enough to keep us in one piece. And hey, any landing you walk away from is a good one, right?
Well, except one minor detail...
"Just our luck-- we landed right in the middle of a city!" Fayt said, watching the view screen.
James nodded, standing up from his seat, leaning between Cliff and Mirage. "No kidding. I think we can officially kiss the UP3 goodbye."
"We're also out of power, and the helm is outta whack." Cliff added. "You two should be happy to be alive."
"We are pal." James added, turning to look at Cliff. "I'm just worrying about staying that way and dealing with this lil' fiasco we got ourselves in."
"Say, Mirage? What kinda planet is Elicoor II?" Fayt asked standing up and looking over her seat.
"The second planet in the Elicoor system has an axial tilt of 32.6 degrees, and is 0.8 AUs from it's parent star. The gravity is 0.9G. Other than the fact it's atmosphere is compromised of noble gases such as neon, instead of nitrogen, it has an atmospheric composition, which closely resembles that of Earth. According to my data, the technology on this planet is near that of Medieval Earth, or around the 17th century. Although the planet is registered in the Galactic Atlas as an underdeveloped planet, it appears to be in a constant state of conflict, so there are no figures for the total population of sentient beings."
"Not even enough for an educated guess?" James asked. Mirage's response was to shake her head. "What about our current whereabouts, other than 'a city'."
"Well sentient life forms do live in this area."
"Yeah, they're kinda surrounding us at the moment."
Mirage nodded before continuing. "We don't have detailed information, like government, but this is a pretty large city. External air temperature is minus five degrees Celsius. Both falling and deposited snow have been detected. We also know there are two major continents on this planet. There's the one we're on now, and another one to the east. The continent to the east appears to have a slightly higher civilization level." Mirage looked up as metal clad figures with pikes moved into the view of their screen. "We seem to be surrounded by a group of local soldiers now. What will you do?"
"Not much we can do with the Eagle scrapped like this." Cliff said shaking his head. "Fighting our way out isn't really an option... Well, at least we're still in one piece!"
"For now, maybe..."
"Ah well, let's just step outside and see what happens."
"Hold on just a second!" Fayt said, pushing past James to face Cliff. "Even minimal contact with inhabitants of an underdeveloped planet will get us in trouble-- besides we have no idea what they'll do to us once we're out there."
"Hate to tell ya bud..." James started. "But we've made contact already."
"Rather forcefully at that." Cliff added.
"Well, still..." Fayt started before Cliff stood up and put his hand on Fayt's shoulder.
"Don't worry." He began. "I've got a hunch they won't kill us right away."
"Another hunch?"
"C'mon, trust me! Didn't we make it here safely?"
"That's debatable." James said as Cliff shook his head.
"I tell you, my hunches are always right!"
"How about the time we almost crashed into an asteroid because of a... hunch?" Mirage added, almost sounding a tiny bit smug.
"Aw, but that was just ONE time!"
"One time!" Fayt repeated, shaking his head.
"Anyway, I don't think we have any other choice." Cliff said, facing the two younger men.
"What do you think they'll do?"
"Well, we'll probably be taken prisoner."
"You say it like you don't even care."
"Yeah, but only you and I will go out."
"Huh? What about Mirage? And James?"
"Yeah, what about me?" James added, waving his hand about in the air.
"We'll have them wait until later to make an escape." Cliff said, one hand on his hip. "Mirage, James, wait until nightfall, then leave under the cover of darkness."
"Right. I don't think it'll be a problem. James, are you OK with this?" Mirage turned to the brown haired male.
"No worries here."
Actually I was kinda worried... This was not in the script... What the hell did Mirage do during the game anyhow? What was I supposed to do?
"Will you two be OK? I mean Mirage..." Fayt began before Cliff cut him off.
"Remember, she's a Klausian-- just pity the solider who tries to take her in."
"Want us to come rescue you?" Mirage asked.
"Nah, no need. They'll probably be too many of them anyway. We'll think of something... Mirage, scout about town for a bit and find away to contact the Diplo before moving on. Don't put yourself in danger, trying to hook up with us. They should be able to home in on our position, so long as we make contact. They can come get us then."
"Roger."
"And what about me?" James asked, crossing his arms.
"I want you to exit the city and go on to the next town. Wait for us if you can, but for the most part stay out of trouble. If anything goes wrong you'll be all we've got." James simply nodded in response.
"Are you sure he'll be fine Cliff?" Mirage asked, turning to the male Klausian.
"I have a hunch he'll be fine..." Cliff said, grinning a bit before turning to Fayt. "OK, time to go."
Mirage stood up to face the blue haired boy. "Fayt, be careful."
"Thanks. You too Mirage. James... stay safe."
"No worries. If you get the chance, tell me what the seafood is like."
"You HATE seafood."
"I know. I just want to know how much I have to hate it."
Fayt grinned a bit as he shook his head.
"Cliff..." Mirage began.
"I said it'll be okay. ...I'm counting on you."
"Okay, be careful."
Both Cliff and Fayt smiled a bit as they turned to leave. Once the door closed James reached behind him and pulled out a pack of cards. "So... up for a game of Texas-Hold'em style Poker?" Mirage frowned a bit, looking at the deck. "What, it's not like I'm asking to play strip poker or anything."
"It's not that... I just never played this... Texas Hold'em before."
"Really? I guess I'll have to teach you then."
The rest of our time was spent between playing poker and preparing for our journeys. Thankfully there was enough juice in the ship to replicate what I needed. Mirage questioned me about it. All I said was 'It's the fastest way to the next town. What did you expect?' She seemed a little doubtful, but I told her I'd be all right. I packed some food and water and all my Fol.
As for our rounds of poker, I took all but a few of the early hands. Then she started to win a few here and there until it was about 50/50. It was a challenge.
And she was QUITE easy on the eyes to boot.
Eventually though we both went to a couple of rooms on the ship and laid down, to gather our energy for nightfall.
Little did I know that something would happen on my little journey that I didn't think would happen for quite awhile yet...
Damn, that was my longest chapter yet! Over 6,400 words! Really! Of course that includes the Shout Outs and this. In fact I think I'll pad it a bit more. Pad, pad, pad... Pad-pad-pad... OK, I'm done.
Please, Read & Review!