Volume 1: Chapter 2: The Arrival
Originally Drafted: April 11th, 2022
Originally Published: April 12th, 2022
Updated On: October 21st, 2022
"Tis' but a scratch!"
/ UNSC Eternity, Bridge, Surface of Unknown Planet | October 29th, 2558. UNSC Calendar /
After the Eternity crash landed, the rest of the ships had arrived not long after on the surface of the Earth-like planet on one of its many continents visible from space.
The crew, still shaken from the abrupt landing, had slowly begun to get up as they regained their bearings. Captain Morgan was one of the first to recover as he looked around him. He breathed a sigh of relief as it appeared that everyone seemed to be fine, battered, of course, but not too terribly hurt. Though the full extent of the damage would have to be ascertained later.
He just hoped that the ship wasn't in a worse state than it already was. Having been built in the vacuum of space. It hadn't been expected to enter the atmosphere. Not until it was completed anyway. They found themselves in a troubling situation to be in for a relatively underequipped, impromptu battlegroup.
"How bad is it?" Morgan asked his Second in Command, an unassuming looking man by the name of John Chen.
"Still waiting on the preliminary reports from the rest of the Engineering team and their Huragoks to come in." Chen replied as he nursed his arm. He was injured earlier from the rough impact.
Around the pair on the bridge. The sight of the other crewmen moved about and made themselves busy. Heading to their stations as soon as they were able to check up on the aftermath of their unplanned landing upon hearing the Captain's words.
The silence in the room was broken by the appearance of their AI as the familiar orange glow signaling Monty's appearance made itself known. Causing both Captain and Commander to turn their heads toward the holotank. With a nod of affirmation from the Captain, Monty then proceeded to deliver his report.
"After a quick scan throughout the ship and from visual confirmation by the maintenance crew. I can confirm that we have suffered some noticeable damage on the external hulls after that crash landing. The Engineers are currently checking our internals as well for any signs of damage along the superstructure itself." Monty began explaining as he brought up visual feeds of the entire process.
"Unfortunately," He then added, "I've also received reports that our slipspace drive is currently inoperable, along with our engines. For now, sir, we seem to be stranded." Reported Monty as he pretended to let out an exasperated sigh as if he was physically tired.
His chosen form was a bit ruffled at the moment. With his usually pristine uniformed look appearing rather worse for wear. Possibly as an attempt to show his solidarity with the crew's situation. Though Morgan made no comment at the moment.
But, what Monty had said worried him. Stranded? That did not sound pleasant. But, remembering the state the Eternity was in before she left UNSC space. That was better than exploding upon landing. He could count himself lucky at least that the only damage they seemed to have suffered was with the ship itself and not the crew.
Speaking of the crew. He supposed he should have said something by now. Keeping up morale in dire situations was vital to their survival. Besides, it wouldn't be the first time that a UNSC ship had crash landed upon the surface of an unknown alien world, and he imagined it wouldn't be the last either. He turned to Monty who was seemingly in a thinking pose and asked.
"Monty, I need to make an announcement. Could you patch me through to the ship's PA Systems?"
"Aye, aye, Skipper." Monty saluted him. "Wait just a moment and I'll relay your message as soon as possible."
After a moment of the AI mimicking the actions of "working" on the task the Captain asked for him. An action that wasn't necessary for an AI to do, but helped the humans around them to know they weren't just being idle. Monty spoke once more.
"You're being received loud and clear, Captain. Any crewman within earshot of a speaker system should be able to hear you now."
"Thank you, Monty" the Captain cleared his throat before turning to address the crew. He grumbled a bit under his breath as he realized it was going to be a long day.
/ UNSC Eternity, Crew Deck, Surface of Unknown Planet. October 29th, 2558. UNSC Calendar /
There was a large crowd gathered in front of one of the ship's internal PA systems in one of the ship's many cafeterias and Saito Hiraga was among them. Initially starting off as an update on the ship's overall condition the Captain soon told the crew about their crash to this planet, explaining the details of the events that transpired.
They were totally lost, to put it bluntly. As well as being far from UNSC space, they were well beyond what was considered to be uncharted space. Fortunately for them however, they didn't appear to have left the Milky Way.
Although a path back home may still be possible, it will be necessary to address the issue at hand first. The Eternity was stranded.
Saito could only groan at the news. It's bad enough that we had to flee, but to have ourselves be stuck in the middle of nowhere? We'll be here for years! Saito thought to himself.
Throughout the room, he could hear whispers of quiet discussion. In the aftermath of receiving the news, most of the crowd returned to their posts, leaving behind a platoon of bored Marines and civilian contractors. Since many civilians kept to themselves, he was mostly in the company of the military personnel.
There's worse company out there. he mused. The Marines nearby could be crude and brash in conversation, but at least it kept his mind occupied.
He spotted a trio of Marines speaking in a volume that would be hard to ignore even for a deaf person over by a nearby table. Using all the colorful vocabulary a leatherneck could think of, the three of them discussed the news. Although he only heard the bits that he already knew about their situation, he was surprised at what was said by another marine.
"I'm telling you, man. This planet's definitely weird. Saw a bunch of little towns on the way down and they looked straight up like they were out of some old fantasy novel." Said one of them, a young man with a regulation crew cut on his head.
"Huh, sounds like one of those old Earth novels that were a hit back in the day." The second one added.
"I bet the way our ships crashed through the atmosphere scared them shitless." Replied the first marine to him. He gave a slight chuckle at the thought.
"I hear we even passed by a floating island." The third marine spoke up.
"Are you loco? Islands don't float!" The marine who started this conversation said.
"Saw it with my own eyes," He crossed his heart. "I know what I saw. And I swear I saw it float!" The third marine retorted.
Floating islands? Well that doesn't sound too far fetched. The technology of the Forerunners could allow architecture to float freely without any visible support. But an entire island? Perhaps he exaggerated.
Saito got up to leave, he had heard enough. As he walked out of the room and made his way to his own. He was interrupted by a familiar face.
"David. I didn't see you back there. Did you need something?" He smiled as he saw the unexpected visitor.
He was thankful inwardly for how he reacted fast enough to tear him away from that portal.
"Captain wants to see you on the bridge." Replied David, as short and to the point as he usually did.
He sighed. Things are definitely about to get interesting around here, he thought to himself. He straightened out his current outfit.
"Very well, lead the way."
As the duo made their way to the Bridge, he could see a flurry of activity all around him. Engineers, accompanied by their Huragok running back and forth throughout the structure of the ship. Checking to see if it was damaged in any way during the crash. He saw Crewman heading off to their respective areas as the Marines ran security detail, and he swore he even saw a Sangheili move past several humans as they walked. Still wearing their signature color-coded armor accompanied by some of those methane sucking little grunts.
Must've been part of the attached Swords of Sanghelios liaisons, I didn't know we had them aboard when we left. Saito thought.
Upon finally reaching the bridge, David took his leave after leading Saito. The man gave a curt nod at him as he left. As soon as he entered the room he noticed the presence of several others, aside from the Captain and his officers.
He saw that Captain Morgan and his crew were joined by the Commanders: August Ferdinand and Mira Parker. The ones in charge of their escorts on the Autumn-class Heavy Cruisers, Fires of Liberation and Just Another Day.
Accompanying them as well, was the Eternity's Science Chief, Doctor Diane Belle. Their resident spook the ONI Officer, Lieutenant Oliver Redding. And lastly, their Sangheili representative, V'tas Malum, of the Swords of Sanghelios. The ship's X.O. was not present at the time as he had excused himself to check in on other matters.
The people in the room, immediately upon regaining their senses had gathered here as soon as possible. With most of the crew set to work on gathering information and reconnoitering the area they now found themselves in. Especially since it was the presence of intelligent life on the planet that had caused them to act sooner.
Such a discovery had thrown a wrench in their possible plans and these people were no doubt already alerted to their presence. They set to work on formulating a plan.
"You've suggested sending your men to comb through this forest and evict the locals to secure the crash site. Surely the least you could do in this situation would be to contact their leadership and explain ourselves before things could get out of hand, Shipmaster." Drawled the voice of the lone Elite in the room.
"No, too risky at the moment." replied Lieutenant Redding as he shot his suggestion down. He gave the Elite a slight glare as he spoke.
"From their perspective, we dropped out of the sky in large floating ships armed to the teeth. They also don't appear to have any means of receiving any remote transmission. If we needed to contact them we'd have to send someone in person, and if we sent in some of our men to contact them, they'll probably assume we're hostile." Redding explained condescendingly to the Sangheili.
His disdain for the Elites had been a point of contention whenever the two were in the same room. But for the most part, the man remained professional. His personal opinions notwithstanding.
"Then all the better to contact them sooner to resolve any possible misunderstanding. I cannot fathom how you humans would find trouble in merely communicating with your own species." V'tas argued back.
"That's because we aren't entirely sure if we even are the same species as them." Chimed in Dr. Belle. Her voice was a stark contrast to the deep and warbling tone of the Elite. Sounding much gentler and pleasing to the ears in comparison.
"For all we know, they could be an entirely separate species that just happen to evolve the same features." The others around her made curious faces at her statement.
Seeing their confused gazes, she moved to connect her datapad to the nearby holotank and presented something. A series of images and videos. Taken by some of the drones deployed by the Eternity earlier.
To sum up the contents in a nutshell, it was fantastical.
The footage showed many of the locals nearby performing feats which can only be described as "magic" as the natives showcased abilities which were well beyond the natural ability of a human. Conjuring fire at the tip of their arms, creating gusts of wind out of nowhere, even manipulating the very earth they stood on.
"These images were taken from a nearby structure to our crash site." Dr Belle explained, "To the north east of us, is a walled facility with a series of five towers arranged roughly in the shape of a pentagon." She said as she showed them a scan of the nearby settlement.
"It appears to be some sort of school as evident by many of the juveniles inside wearing what we can only describe as 'uniforms.' We can assume from conjecture that most natives of this planet have these supernatural elemental manipulating powers if they needed dedicated schools for it."
"By the Gods, that shouldn't be possible. Even with the gifts the Forerunners left behind." Muttered V'tas in disbelief.
"Are they a threat to us?" Asked Morgan , who had been silent for most of this meeting.
He'd kept himself busy with checking on the incoming reports from the ship's many engineers and crew to ascertain the damage the ship had taken, causing him to pay half attention when it came to matters outside of his direct control. He had mostly kept one ear open while reading the reports.
"Unknown currently, sir." Chimed in Monty as he appeared beside them.
"Considering how many of them appear to be children. I'd imagine the more experienced adults would prove more capable with these abilities, so I'd suggest we work on our own defenses in the meantime." Monty paused, but then moved to another portion of the table - this time showcasing images of the overall technological prowess of the natives.
"However, their level of industry is non-existent. Their technology is roughly analogous to the Renaissance period of Earth history. They shouldn't pose much trouble to a well armed squad of Marines overall, but I'd still advise caution." Monty warned them.
"Our ships can provide the Eternity with cover while you work on building a defensive perimeter around the ship itself sir, you can count on us." Spoke Commander Ferdinand. His ship, the Fires of Liberation had come unscathed and safely escorted the Eternity down.
"Aye, if they try to do any funny business with us, they'll meet the business end of an ARCHER salvo." Joined the voice of Commander Parker.
Morgan smirked at their enthusiasm. "Very well. In the meantime, Monty, how is the inspection going for the rest of the ship?" He had been anxious since they mentioned the possibility of the natives being able to harm them, he needed to put themselves in an easily defensible position before long.
"Rest of the ship is in serviceable condition, sir. With the exception of the engines and the slipspace drive, as I mentioned earlier. Our engineers are currently working alongside with the Huragok to see if they can salvage the situation. Aside from that, we aren't totally defenseless. Our guns are still operational and the missile pods can be armed at any time after we managed to bring the power back online."
"Good, but we'll still need to set-up a proper defense perimeter." He motioned for the display on the nearby holotank to change and showed a topographical map of the local area.
"As I suggested earlier. Sending out some of our Marine detachments to go and clear out the area outside before we commit to building anything would be our safest option. If there are civilians nearby, coerce them to leave. Use any means necessary short of lethal force. We can't have them snooping around us, not if we can help it anyway." Redding added.
"But won't the natives see that as a hostile provocation?" Said Morgan. "If we disperse a large number of the civilian population, they may see this as an act of war."
"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it." Redding waved it off dismissively, "For now, our main priority should be the safety of our own people first. Speaking of which." The Lieutenant turned to face Saito.
He had kept his mouth shut since entering the room. Hoping to avoid being dragged into this as he felt that such things were something he wasn't privy to.
"I think we may know exactly how we came here." Redding said as he gestured for the man to come closer, "We need to talk about you, Mr. Hiraga."
"Me?" Saito muttered in disbelief.
"Yes. You're the one closest to the anomaly at the time. Would you mind telling us about it?" Continued Redding.
"Whatever that energy pulse was, it managed to completely disable most of the ship and take us out of slipspace. We've got the crew working overtime to remedy the issue, but that still leads us to question why." Dr. Belle added.
"Why do you think I'm involved in this? I'm just as confused about it as you are." Saito asked.
"It's alright, human. We're not here to point fingers at you. We simply wished to ask what you saw from your perspective." V'tas said with a hint of curiosity.
"Loathe as I am to agree with the squid over here. You're a person of interest. The portal was clearly targeted towards you, as when you were pulled away was the same time as when we were dispersed." Redding, commented.
At this, Saito's attention peaked. He never considered he'd be the center of all this, in fact, he never wanted to be anywhere near any kind of danger. He hoped that the anomaly itself was just that, an anomaly. Some sort of supernatural freak event, but then again, that would have made it astronomically impossible. Narrowing down their list of suspects, it was clear that he was actually involved. But to what end, he didn't know.
"I'm afraid I don't quite understand it myself either." He finally replied. "When it appeared before me I was paralyzed. Simply frozen on the spot. I could tell that it wanted me to come closer, and I damn well could have been sucked in alone, had I not been pulled back." Saito explained.
"That reminds me, I still need to thank David."
"You can do that later." Redding cut him off.
Morgan only shook his head at this behavior coming from the Lieutenant. "Please, continue." He said, after Saito was rudely interrupted.
"I'm afraid that's all I know, sirs. I swear!" Saito said as he began to panic inwardly.
"Calm down, son. We believe you. But, as a precaution. In case another incident like this were to happen again. We'll need to keep you supervised." Morgan attempted to calm him.
"I'll assign one of my men for his security." Said Redding. "He's an important asset. We can't afford to lose him to another one of those anomalies if it happens again."
Saito shuddered at the thought. Working for ONI was one thing, but to be actively monitored by them? That would have been fuel for any conspiracy theorist out there. He'd heard of the tales and rumors that have come about when it comes to ONI operatives. To have one be monitoring his every waking mood had put him ill at ease.
"While I'd usually agree with that kind of thinking, Lieutenant. I'm afraid our man here is already spooked enough." Morgan argued.
"Don't worry, Mr. Hiraga. You'll be in safe hands. We'll have the details of your security ironed out later. For now, you can leave." The Captain spoke as he turned to him.
It relieved the anxiety he had somewhat as the Captain gave him his assurance. Glad that this ordeal was over, for now. Saito thanked the Captain internally and left the room.
「 Tristain Academy of Magic, Faculty Office. 」
Many hours had passed since those mysterious ships arrived and from all the way at the Academy, they could see the activity buzzing about from those mysterious ships. Arrayed in a defensive formation around the larger one, they had seemingly been content with staying near it so far.
Currently the teaching staff and local nobility within the school had gathered at one of their many meeting rooms within the faculty. Discussing their next course of action in regards to those unknowns. Their talks had gone on for so long that the sun had already begun to set. But they knew this meeting wouldn't come to an end, not yet anyway.
Professor Colbert called upon one of the servants to bring the staff some light food, as they couldn't leave in the midst of this discussion, it would have to do.
For hours they had taken to observing the movements of their strange visitors. With the largest among the already gargantuan of the ships being left embedded quite deeply into the earth, it had left the others floating nearby in a defensive orbit around the site.
Two of the three remaining airborne vessels circled the downed craft, while the last simply floated idly nearby. Three of them, they could ascertain were surely warships. The thick metal that surrounded their hulls and the cannons mounted along the ship, betraying any attempts at looking like anything else. It was a worrying thought to them being so close to such armed vessels.
What was even more worrying were the reports some of the teachers sent. Explaining that they saw dragons supposedly flying about in-between the ships, much like Tristain's own Gryphon Knights with the aid of a far-seeing spell. Having dragons meant that they most likely had an army of nobles as well. Further exacerbating the already unusual situation.
Old Osmond in the meanwhile had taken the time to send a letter to the capital via carrier pigeon. Detailing the current situation regarding their curious visitors. He had also requested for the aid of the Royal Palace in an investigation as to their intent.
Finished with that self-assigned task, he returned to the meeting room. Seeing that they had already finished a previous discussion, he cleared his throat and spoke.
"Is everyone in agreement then?" Old Osmond looked at the people gathered around him. They all nodded as they heard him speak.
"Very well, we shall attempt to meet with these foreigners tomorrow. To ascertain their reasonings for being here, and to ensure the safety of Tristain. No doubt their sudden appearance has caused quite a stir within our own internal affairs. But who shall we send as a diplomatic envoy?" Asked the aged mage as he stroked his beard in thought. Having foregone smoking with his pipe out of consideration for the already tired staff members.
Seeing the apprehensive looks around him. He thought he would have to resort to electing his own candidate for such a task, that was, before he was interrupted by his colleague, Professor Colbert.
"I believe I would be suited for this task, Director." Osmond nodded for him to continue. "As dangerous as they could possibly be, you'd need someone with experience to be able to lead the first contact."
Osmond hummed in contemplation. "I believe you also mentioned the possibility that our new neighbors could be Elves. Are you sure you still want to be the one we send out there?" He continued.
"Elves?! Monsieur Colbert, please do not make such accusations lightly. Do you realize the kind of panic that would ensue?" Asked another colleague of his, Professor Leonid, a wind mage.
"It would not surprise me if the Elves could build such monsters. Considering the teachings Church of Brimir has taught us of our great foe, we must prepare for the possibility." Colbert deflected.
"I understand your reasoning, Jean." Said Osmond. A surprisingly serious tone coming from him was worrying to many of the younger among them in the teaching staff.
"Which is why you should bring others with you as backup, should the worst come to pass."
Colbert couldn't fault him in his logic. But who else could he ask in this situation? Surely nobody would be mad enough to willingly walk into a possible Elven ambush.
A pregnant pause permeated throughout the room. It lingered for a tense moment as the fellow teachers looked upon one another with faces of apprehension before being broken by one of their own.
"I'll do it." Said the voice of one green haired colleague, Miss Longueville, a recent hire by Director Osmond.
Colbert looked towards the young woman and whispered. Her face showed no signs of hesitation. "Are you sure?" He asked in confirmation. "We could find ourselves in great danger just by being near them."
"I'm sure." She confidently replied. Her look was resolute as she stared back at him.
Sighing in defeat. "Very well, we leave in the morning after breakfast. The sooner we get this done, the sooner we can move past this."
"And with that, I believe our meeting should be adjourned." As everyone else made to leave, Professor Colbert stayed behind.
"Whatever else do you need, old friend?" Asked Osmond.
"It's about Miss Vallière." Colbert said as a sigh escaped his lips.
"Ah, I see." Humming in thought, he asked. "How much is she involved in this?"
"I believe…" Colbert paused before recollecting himself. "I believe she may be responsible for this.
"Ah, today was the Familiar Summoning Ritual, was it not? Are you saying the young Miss Vallière called forth such fearsome vessels?"
"Not entirely, no. But the coincidence is far too damning." Colbert said as he began pacing around the room. "We've always known she was magically gifted, and if these ships are in fact her summons, that's enough proof of it. We may need her involved after all."
"And you want to bring a sixteen year old into a possible Elven ambush?" Quizzically spoke Old Osmond.
A faint hint of guilt flashing through his face, Colbert sighed. "We may not have a choice in the matter. If we can confirm that she did indeed summon these ships. Then we may have a bigger problem on our hands."
「 Tristain Academy of Magic, Dormitories. 」
Louise was a failure. She knew it by now. Today was her last chance at proving her worth as a mage, but she blew it! Quite literally in fact.
If it weren't for the timely interruption of those flying behemoths she would have rolled over and died in shame on the spot. She thought to herself, I guess I could count on small mercies The Founder could give me like that.
With her mood considerably dampened since the events of this morning she barely registered in her mind the presence of one notable redhead.
"Louise?" A worried voice asked her. Ignoring her presence she turned to look outside the window.
The twin moons of Halkeginia shone brightly over the land. "Louise?" The voice asked again, louder.
Continuing to ignore her, she looked further, this time towards the forest where she knew those enormous ships were seen to have been situated. It looked almost peaceful, were it not for the harsh lights emitting from those ship's lower halves, illuminating the forest.
What could they possibly be doing at this ungodly hour? What would require such bright lights to pour over the forest, bathing it in extremely bright illumination.
"Louise!" came the voice again. This time at a volume she couldn't ignore.
"What do you want, Zerbst?" Spoke Louise with a hint of venom. The Germanian woman was the last thing she wanted to see at this moment in time. For all the time she had known her, she had always been an instigator in her bullying. She was even the one who came up with that accursed nickname, "Zero."
"We wondered where you went off to since you never showed up for dinner. We were worried." She asked Louise. A Zerbst caring for the well being of a Vallière? It seems the world had indeed gone crazy if she had begun to worry about her.
"What do you want, Zerbst? Really, what did you come here for? To gloat?" She retorted. Louise wasn't in the mood for this. Her mind is currently occupied with the thoughts of how her mother would feel knowing she failed at the one thing she was expected to succeed at as a noble.
"No, Tabitha and I were wondering if you would like to come join us on a little adventure actually." Kirche said with a hint of mischief.
From her side the girl with blue hair holding a staff in hand came into her room as well.
"Wanted to take a closer look." She spoke, curtly.
"Why would you want me involved? I'm just a Zero, remember? I'd only hold you back."
"Au contraire, my petite friend. Tabitha here thought you would be pretty useful actually." Kirche said as she huffed her chest seemingly in pride.
Tabitha nodded. "Explosions. Useful for distraction."
"See? Your little explosions could be our way of getting close enough to those ships to see for ourselves."
Her explosions? Useful? She highly doubted it. But playing along she asked. "Assuming I do come with. How would we be able to leave the academy without the Professors knowing? They've locked the gates for goodness sake!"
"Sylphid." Tabitha said matter of factly.
"Sylphid? Your dragon? You mean, you want us to ride on your familiar?" Louise asked.
"Yes."
"Whose bright idea was this really? Tabitha, since I've known you, you were usually the more levelheaded of the duo you and the Zerbst comprise."
"Kirche." Tabitha bluntly stated.
"Of course it was her idea…"
"Hey, we all wanted to know more about our new neighbors? Wouldn't it only be polite to introduce ourselves?" Kirche said.
Louise pondered for a moment. Aside from having to write that letter she would have to send to her mother about her failure to complete the ritual. She had nothing else left to do at the academy.
A final adventure to cap it off before she went home would at least spell a better end than leaving after a failure of a spell.
She sighed in defeat. "Fine, but if things go wrong. I'm blaming you."
"Friendly fire, isn't."
/ Near the Eternity's crash site, A few moments earlier, Surface of Unknown Planet. | October 29th, 2558. UNSC Calendar /
With the area surrounding the ship being covered in thick forest, though their crash landing had left tracts of devastation in its wake as they landed, churning the ground in a trail behind them. But, despite all this. It was surprisingly still and serene, mundane in appearance as planets like these usually tended to be.
Though this would only last for a few moments more.
For within the hangar bay of the UNSC Eternity, waited a sizable force of Marines as they all prepared for their upcoming mission.
Faces of uncertainty and nervousness covered many of them like a porcelain mask. They didn't like having to evict civilians like this. Especially since if these kinds of things happened back home it was a prelude to a greater tragedy. Leading them away in an almost certain, fruitless attempt from a potential site of conflict. Some of them silently hoped that would not be the case.
Noticing that many of her troops were feeling this way, particularly the newer recruits, Colonel Elizabeth Williams spoke up through their comms. "Now, I know this might all seem a little out of sorts with what we usually do." She began to speak, "But, damn you all. We're Marines. We go in first, so the eggheads know what they're getting into"
She decided to add a little more impact to her speech. With a brief clear of the throat and a flick of the switch to louden her voice, she said:
"Out of the frying pan and into the fire. Am I right, Marines?"
She said it in a rather playful tone, hiding any hint of nervousness.
"Oorah!" Came back in response from throughout the deployed teams and she gave a light chuckle at that.
With her voice relayed, she noticed many of the veterans among them giving pep talks to the greenhorns. She could always count on her men to step up to the job when it came to it.
The Eternity's vehicle bays began to open up. Revealing, for the first time to the UNSC, their first real glimpse of the world they now found themselves in.
It was a peaceful scenery that greeted them as the smoke cleared and their engines quieted, as the darkness of the night was held at bay by the light of the twin moons that hung over them. The ambience of nature was heard as the crew began to pile out, later overtaken by the roaring sounds of the engines that powered their vehicles and the shuffling of armored feet from the Marines.
Vehicles and Marines then came out in full force, both on land and air as the iconic four-wheeled Warthogs accompanied by their aircraft exited.
They were given the orders to clear out the local area of any trespassers and potential hostiles, so they can secure their immediate surroundings. They soon got busy as they ventured forth away from the Eternity and into the unknown.
Marines began to build basic checkpoints along the roads found near them. Applying sandbags and small prefabricated fortifications along with motion sensors beside them.
Pelicans, Albatrosses, and several Broadswords flew from above, sweeping through the skies and ensuring their security.
Throughout the forest, many of the native wildlife had fled upon hearing the loud roars of the UNSC's engines.
The trio of students soon made their way to the stables where the larger familiars that could not fit inside the halls of the Academy were allowed to stay.
Inside of which was an assortment of various animals. From large bear-like creatures, to large non-winged lizards, to something as mundane as horses, but what stood out the most was the blue dragon that sat in anticipation waiting for them. Eagerly flipping its tail back and forth as she noticed their presence.
Tabitha led her dragon familiar outside the stables before the trio mounted it up. The creature attempted to snuggle up to her all the while. The ride would have been uncomfortable with the three of them, but they had promised it would only be a short trip.
"Ready?" Tabitha asked
"As ready as we could be for a possible life threatening adventure!" Responded Kirche. Sounding unusually chipper at this.
Louise simply nodded along.
The dragon lifted up its impressive wings and proceeded to flap. The winds below pushed downwards causing the creature to lift up, and before they knew it. They were airborne.
Philippe was an ordinary villager. He was a peasant who worked the lands he was granted by the local lord, and lived a rather simple life.
After a rather tiresome day, especially with that tiresome interruption from earlier. He was just about to go to bed. Only to be interrupted before the sweet bliss of rest could take him.
It was the sound of heavy footsteps coupled with a strange growling noise and the sounds of dirt being kicked up. Philippe froze on the spot at the unfamiliar sounds.
"A monster attack this late at night?" He muttered out loud.
He knew he couldn't stay here the entire time. Rest wouldn't come to him anyway if there was an attack. So, he summoned as much courage as he could and got out of bed. Putting on his work clothes, he stepped outside and grabbed a farm tool as he went.
He found that many of the men in his village as well had woken up for the same reason. A few women among them included.
"Anyone see the cause of that commotion?" Asked an elderly man who looked to be far too frail to be by himself at this hour.
"No. We came here to check just as you all apparently did." Another responded. He looked confused as he looked all over as to where the noise could have come from.
Everyone's ears perked up the moment after as the noise came back again.
"There it is again!" Philippe pointed out. He felt his resolve waver as he knew that the sound was getting closer.
"That accursed growling is causing me to lose my sleep, damn it!" Another cursed. He seemed visibly irritated as he brandished a short sword he carried on his person and prepared it to strike at whatever would be coming to them. "Come out you foul beasts!"
A pair of glowing "eyes" soon became visible to the crowd of villagers as if to answer the irritated man. It sped through the forest and appeared in front of them, kicking up dirt and dust as it went. It stopped in front of the gathered crowd who all stood in awe at the strange person who emerged from it.
He stood in front of the glowing eyes of the… creature? They weren't sure what it was. With the tusks on its front, it looked rather much like a type of metal pig with the tusks on its front.
The man in strange clothing began fiddling with a strange device. Was it a magical artifact of sorts? Wondered Philippe as he looked at the scene before him.
"What in the world is that thing?" Blurted out a young man.
"It looks fast and agile. Like one of those cat creatures, a puma… I think it's called?" Another responded to his query.
"No, look at the front. It's like those feral pigs you oft find in the wilds. Warthogs, I believe?"
"It doesn't matter. Look!" Another said. Philippe couldn't believe the conversation happening beside him and was thankful by the interruption.
"Attention, Citizens." The man began to speak as he held something up to his face.
"For your safety we advise you all to stay away from this area for the foreseeable future." Boomed the voice of the strange man, likely aided by that device he was fiddling with prior. He was covered in some form of armor over his chest, shoulders, knees, and head.
To accentuate his statement, from behind a large bipedal creature appeared, which looked to be some form of golem. It was excessively armored and armed with what appeared to be oversized muskets. The sight of it was menacing to the villagers.
Some of them attempted to harass the man, only to be met with the booming sound of the massive muskets the golem had. Freezing in their tracks. It fired warning shots in front of them and received several glares from the armored men.
Panic began to set in as the crowd began to realize the gravity of the situation and the crowd of villagers began to scream and flee in all directions. Many of them having left their homes in quite a hurry with nothing but the clothes on their back.
"Go on, keep moving!" Shouted a gruff looking Marine as he stared at the fleeing villagers. A pang of guilt threatened to well up within him as he did his job.
The panicked crowd never bothered to look back even as their forms became nothing but silhouettes against the night sky.
"We should land somewhere close to the ships inside the forest!" Shouted Kirche. The sound of the wind streaking past them covering her voice.
"Acknowledged." To which Tabitha relayed the suggestion to her dragon.
The glaring lights of the Pelicans combed through the forest at night, giving information and pointing the way for the Marines below to find any stragglers. Bands of brigands and monsters alike, all fell in retreat upon hearing their loud noise and blinding illumination.
All was going smoothly for a time. Aside from a few hiccups.
Of note was a minor skirmish with a particularly stubborn band of bandits that had only ended in a one-sided massacre. Their crude firearms and melee weaponry could barely reach the Marines that encountered them. But of particular note from this encounter, was a lone mage among them.
Waving around his wand and throwing nearly imperceptible wind spells that threatened to cut off limbs and heads, the mage had managed to hold off a squad of Marines for a time before he was taken out with a well aimed shot to the head.
Taking note of this, they made it a priority to take out those kinds of targets first as the information was relayed back to the Eternity.
As the area was about to be cleared, the spotters above had seen an unusual flying object.
"Eyes front! I see a large avian heading towards us." reported the co-pilot of a D79-TC Pelican.
"I see it. Should we report this back to command?"
"Affirm. They'll definitely want to hear about this."
They circled around the forest looking for a clearing to land on. Aside from a few close calls. The trio managed to evade being spotted by the foreign forces combing through the forest.
When they spotted an ideal location they set down as gently as they could possibly be to avoid alerting any possible hostile creatures, such as the Orc tribes who are said to live among the forests. They crept along the edges of the tree line, moving as silently as they could to approach the ships.
From the academy, they already looked magnificently large enough, but at the distance they were at. They were huge! Far larger than they would have thought from their limited view offered at the Academy.
Visible among the vessels were the impressively large cannons mounted on them. How they could aim such things without a visible operator they didn't know. The details of the ship became much more clearer as they approached.
There were letterings of some strange writing system inscribed on its side, not too dissimilar to Albionian were emblazoned on the vessel. "UNSC" the meaning of the acronym completely lost to the trio.
"Do you recognize that script, Tabbie?" Kirche asked the Gallian girl.
Tabitha scrutinized the ship as the rest took turns watching around them for any suspicious signs.
"Possibly old Albish." Tabitha surmised. "It says 'UNSC Eternity.'" She was surprised at how similar the writing seemed that it was almost legible for her.
"We see them. Three Juveniles have entered the perimeter. Should we scare them off, sir?" Asked an ODST Sergeant through the radio. His squad had been following the trio from a distance as they made their way through the forest.
Taking immense care not to give away their position by sticking as close to the darkness of the shadows as they could.
"If they attempt any hostile actions, report back immediately. You are not allowed to fire upon those juveniles." Replied the voice over the radio.
"Affirm. Over."
From where they stood, they could see lights that illuminated the sides of the ship. No doubt to help light the path along the way for the crew. But at that size, how numerous was the crew anyway?
With how tiny the ships in Halkeginia were by comparison, barely over a few hundred for the largest of ships, they were amazed at the engineering marvel before them.
The ship was clearly thousands of mails long, in comparison to the airships they were more acquainted with, barely exceeding the length of hundreds of mails. With windstones being such a prized commodity for the usage of airships, the nation that built this vessel would surely have been quite affluent.
"Be advised. Delinquents are attempting to bypass our security net. How do we proceed?" The trailing ODST's reported in.
Moving with methodical precision, they crept through the underbrush just slightly off behind the trio.
"Prep your tranquilizers," The radio responded back, "If they get too close they might get themselves hurt. We can't afford to antagonize these people by killing some of their kids."
They attempted to move closer before they were interrupted. The sound of the wind being sliced by the rotors of an aircraft came upon them. The aircraft looked menacing to the young teenagers as it shone a harsh light on them.
"Run!" Shouted Kirche as she broke into a sprint, grabbing both Louise and Tabitha as she went.
The sound of rotors followed them as it trailed behind. No doubt scanning the forest for where they were hiding in. Having decided this was enough trouble for one night, they began to run back to Tabitha's dragon.
From behind, however, they could hear the shouting of several men. They began calling out to them in a dialect reminiscent of Albish, the language spoken by natives of the floating isle.
Were these the men from the ships? How had they found them so fast? Why were they speaking Albish? Louise thought.
The trio sprinted as fast as they could and two of them, Kirche and Tabitha had barely made it aboard before Louise stopped behind them.
"Go on without me!" Louise shouted. "I'll buy you some time!"
"Are you crazy, Vallière? You could be killed out here!" Kirche returned Louise's declaration.
"There's no time, just go! I'll hold them off." She declared. "At least the Zero would finally be good for something now, eh?" Louise attempted to snarkily reply.
Seeing the standstill they were at, Tabitha interrupted.
"No time to argue, we should go." Tabitha said as she urged Kirche on.
"Damn it, Louise." Kirche relented. "Fine, but we'll get the Professors to come save you!" She said before they disappeared into the night towards the direction of the academy.
As she saw her two accomplices vanish from view, she turned around and saw the silhouettes of dozens of men around her.
She soon found herself surrounded, as the ODSTs and several Marines circled around the lone figure they left behind. They switched out their primary weapons for less lethal stun guns. Set to the lowest possible setting as they could to prevent any accidental death on their part.
With all of them having been informed earlier before heading out about the natives strange abilities, they were prepared to do more than just incapacitate her if the situation called for it.
Not one to waste an opportunity to take out as many with her as she could - her mind made up as she recalled her mother's Rule of Steel, and began to chant.
Pouring as much of her willpower into her foci as she could, she aimed her wand at the oncoming shadows and prepared to shout.
"The damn juvies a mage!" Shouted a Marine in fright as he took aim at her as she began casting her spell.
"Fireba-" She said as she attempted to call forth her power, but was left unfinished as instead she felt a searing pain all over her body. It misfired and detonated a nearby tree. Splintering the wood apart and showering nearby Marines with shrapnel and dust.
Before she knew it she was on the ground, her eyes staring at the sky above her. She never knew the stars could look so beautiful. Was this it? Was this her fate? To die in the forest by herself, surrounded by Brimir knows what kind of abominations. Amidst the screams and shouts of men speaking an unknown language, she heard one of the men approach her speak.
"Target incapacitated. Should we bring her in for questioning?" A tired looking helmeted figure looked down upon her. His faceless helmet offered no hint as to who had apprehended her, and her mind ran afoul with many horrible thoughts.
Louise was unable to do anything in response.
Authors Notes: And there we have it, another chapter done. Tried to mix things up a bit here and have a not so peaceful first contact. Would make for a decent twist on many of the other x-overs eh? Eh, not really too confident I pulled it off quite well anyway. Was hoping to hear what y'all would think.
Anyway, poor Louise has been captured by the UNSC and the Academy will soon find out. Where shall we go from here? Who knows. Expect the story to veer off greatly from canon in this story. You could probably imagine that the usual events aren't gonna play out exactly after this point.
But that's for you to find out and me to write… eventually. Updates may or may not be frequent. Varies greatly based on how well my internet is willing to cooperate with me.
Thanks for reading, I'll see you in the next one. じゃ、またね
Mail - a unit of measurement in Halkeginia. Roughly analogous to a meter.
Update: I've made a Discord server for this story, or any other future writing project I might do. Feel free to drop by, I'd appreciate any help. Discord /sDgJN8F4tY
Update 2: I've added a few more extra scenes and changed a bit of dialogue and terms used in the story. Got inspired by a certain other fic for it. Hopefully this'll be more readable.
I also had to re-upload this chapter because I couldn't figure out how this site's features work yet... My bad.
With this update out of the way. I should be able to work on the next few chapters. Hopefully I will figure out how to write the rest of this by now.
Update 3: Many thanks to TheCasualReader for pointing out something I missed. I intended to add translations to the bit of French/Tristainian dialogue but forgot about it.
Update 4: Just some slight adjustments to the dating.
Update 5: Re-wrote bits of the chapter. Changed some lines and characters. Thought that adding some sub-chapter titles like in the Bungie Era games would be a neat idea. Updates are probably gonna slow/sporadic at this point as I will be going back to College in a bit. I dropped out two years ago and I figured it'd be time for me to actually start going since I can't stay stuck in a rut personally forever. I'll see y'all whenever.
Update 6: If you're wondering about the changes here: Added a new character in a retcon. The UNSC Eternity's X.O. (Which I somehow forgot to include even though I've had the character idea in my notes this whole time.) I was planning on having him be introduced later on in the story but I figured I could squeeze a cameo from him here.
Aside from that, I made it so Louise would be captured by Sargeant Dizdar's squad instead if that wasn't obvious enough.