Species C543 System
4 Years 2 months 27 days Before C1764 FTL Jump
[Sil] looked at the controls for the pod and slowly shook her head, “This is not good.”
[Fred] only able to operate because of the minimal effort needed to move around in zero-g drifted forwards, “I would agree, but what is the problem?”
“I can’t get the beacon to respond. Even if we had dropped into the inner solar system by some manner, beacons are never more than [8 light hours] away from the stars they mark correct?”
[Fred] slowly nodded, “Yes. Perhaps we are on the opposite side of the system from the beacon? There has not been enough time for the message to get back to us?”
The Empress gave her bodyguard a withering look, “So we were forced out of tachyon warp, and didn’t drop out near the beacon, or inside a local gravity well? I don’t know the math [Fred] but the chances of that happening are zero or some infinitely small number. Errors in warp always dump you out at the nearest gravity well!”
[Fred] groaned, “I am attempting to reassure you. You have been transmitting with your authentication codes yes?”
“And my old ones like you suggested several [hours] ago.”
[Fred] was silent for a moment thinking, “I have been drifting in an out of consciousness?” she slowly asked.
“You have. The blood loss and the zero-g. Earlier you guessed that it was causing uneven blood flow and your brain was sporadically getting less blood than required causing the fainting spells and short term memory loss.”
“Then I suppose I also insisted on saving the stimulants and other medicines for landing, the pod must have determined if there are any inhabitable planets yet.”
“The star system is logged, and the planet’s catalogued. The fourth planet in this system is inhabited by species C543.”
[Fred] winced, “Letting the Empress even drop out of warp in a system with a class C planet would normally be something I would never allow. Given that we have,” [Fred] looked at the main console, “Only four days of life support left however and the rest of the planets here having nothing even close to a sustainable atmosphere.” She trailed off very clearly not happy.
“I’ve set the computer to scan some of the outer planets, I’m hoping that we can refresh the atmosphere on this class C world and move on to a habitable moon.”
“Empress, that will not work.”
“Why not?” asked [Sil] as she crossed her arms.
“This is an escape pod, once we land on a planet with more half a standard gravity or a livable atmosphere we will not be able to get back to orbit. Much less be able to get to any other planet within the time frame of the life support system assuming it can even refresh.”
[Sil] blinked, “Oh.”
[Fred] drifted to settle into the space between the escape chair and the control panel of the ship. Tapping at the console she brought up the data on the planet they were approaching and began to quickly scroll through it.
“[Fred], what are you doing?”
“If we are unlucky enough to actually have to land on the planet I would rather be prepared. Knowing the particulars of the local class C’s will help if for some insane reason, we must interact with them. I would very much suggest we try and land somewhere uninhabited. With the survival equipment, here, and my own skills we can survive indefinitely. I cannot promise the same accommodations as the home world however. Much less the accommodations of the palace.”
[Sil] put her hands on the console over the bodyguards making her pause, “We don’t need to pretend like this was an accident. The likelihood of my ship suffering a malfunction in warp, having faulty weapons, and on top of that dropping out of warp in a system with a beacon that will not respond to my access codes or any standard communication? It’s got to be one in a hundred billion.”
She lifted her hands away.
“Your husband, and now you. I do not think there has ever been such a failure in my family. When you return to the Empire, you will need a new bodyguard. First however you will need to survive this, and I very much intend to make sure you do.”
“[Fred]…” [Sil] trailed off.
“You should review the information on the class C’s as well Empress. Continue to send messages to the beacon, but we must now prepare to land on a planet of primitives and survive until a search and rescue party can find us. Start making tight beam transmission to the other nearest beacons as well.”
“[Fred] we’re on the edge of the Empire. Out here the closest beacons are to one another is thirty light years! If the beacon in this system is not transmitting, and assuming the distress signal does not fade into the background across thirty light years’ distance!”
[Fred] said nothing and instead tapped away at the console again, bringing up a small hologram of the planet and the class C species on it saying nothing else for the moment.
[Sil] turned to look at the things, more curious than frightened. The stories of what class C aliens were like had always struck her as being blown out of proportion. They were sentient creatures, albeit so far gone from the Class A genetics that it was a mercy to put them down. Most species received the classification due to a number of factors, genetics being the largest.
Even the most deformed class B’s could be brought into line given enough time though, and what usually separated the class C’s were their violent tendencies. Some were eliminated for their prestigious birth rates or other small factors, but behind actual violence was technological innovation. Any class C or B that was advancing towards a state where they might be able to access the beacon network had to be eliminated.
In the past when elements of class C races had escaped they proved extremely difficult to eradicate. Like vermin you could destroy most of a population, but leaving behind even a few hundred and they would pop up again in a few hundred years.
It was an annoying cycle. Species C950 was one of the most annoying ones and still a thorn that had to be dealt with on the outskirts of expansion. Still given the number of commandeered ships that had been destroyed fifty years ago they were not going to be a threat again for some time.
“Interesting.”
[Sil] looked at the hologram as an image of the C543 male specimen from the scouting mission appeared. The term alien was hardly useful when it came to describing class C and B species, but still it was the only thought in [Sil]’s mind for a moment.
The creature was blue, a dark almost black blue. A stark contrast to the Dorvakian species red skin. Like many of the class C races the C543 was covered in hair, almost literally.
[Sil] had seen many class B’s with the growths on their heads, and sometimes faces in the case of many males and some of the females.
The C543 male had hair on its head, face, and trailing down onto its torso only thinned slightly on the appendages. Glancing at the hands [Sil] noted that the species had four small fingers and not the normal three.
“What’s interesting?” asked [Sil] still looking at the image.
“They’re stagnant. You don’t usually see the warlike ones stagnate like this, they tend to advance in at least war technology which drags most everything else along. Records indicate that this species has been in a developmental standstill for nearly [1,000 years].”
“Some class B worlds do that, don’t they?”
[Fred] nodded, “Yes but it’s almost unheard of in class C’s.”
[Sil] flipped the image on the hologram looking at the female specimen, and frowned. It was nearly identical to the male with as much hair covering it. It had breasts like nearly all Seed females, but the only other physical difference was the average heights, the females were about two thirds the size of the males who were by themselves nearly the mass of two Dorvakian males.
“Anything particularly dangerous about them?” asked [Sil].
[Fred] was still looking at the physical specifications for the species, “Not particularly. They are strong and violent, about the only thing besides their appearance that is odd is the internal bone structure around the torso. They have bone growths between all their ribs. As well as an extra set of them.
[Fred] continued to scan through the data.
“This is possible due to their atmosphere being more oxygen rich than normal, they don’t need lungs as large as standard. So they don’t need rib cages that are as flexible, the growth would better protect internal organs.”
[Sil] looked at the bodyguard, “It is a deviation, not an advancement.”
[Fred] shrugged, “It would be advantageous in a battle, although in most modern conflicts more bone would hardly be useful. Even at their primitive development I doubt the additional bone growth is helpful.”
“What stage?”
“Stage three.”
[Sil] pursed her lips, “Well no chance of detection then. So long as we land somewhere isolated we should be able to avoid them correct?”
“Correct. The largest obstacle besides my own injuries will be finding such a location. This pod has population data for the planet that is nearly [500 years] out of date. It does not have more than passive sensors, and we will not have the environmental resources to maintain an orbit. Our life support will be down to [hours] by the time we reach the planet, that window barely affords us the luxury of choosing where we land.”
“Then we select one of the more unpopulated areas from the previous scans and hope they have not moved much.”
[Fred] moved through several additional screens of data faster than [Sil] could comprehend them and again shook her head.
“There is a reason this species has so much hair. The planet is barely habitable, and they have adapted and developed almost exclusively in the equatorial region of the planet. If we land in the uninhabited regions our best option is a freezing desert. We do that, and we are only extending our survival by a few days and assuming a rescue ship will be here soon.”
[Sil] winced, “So not an option.”
“No.”
“Renf.”
[Fred]’s lips twitched, “My thoughts as well. I will look for an unpopulated location on the equator.”
Species C543 System
4 Years 2 months 23 days Before C1764 FTL Jump
The planet was now clearly visible in the forward compartment of the escape craft, it was slightly smaller than the home world, but only by about five percent. It was not strange to see a planet without artificial lights on it’s surface, many of the outer planets were devoid of artificial lighting except in one location or city.
The odd thing about this planet were the ice caps, on a normal world the phenomena at most covered 10 to 15% of the planet’s surface area. On the planet below the ice caps covered almost halfway to the equator of the planet.
“Is it in an ice age?” asked [Sil] looking down on the world.
“There is not enough data. The planet has almost no tilt however, so I would hazard a guess at no.”
“Meaning no seasons either.”
[Sil] drifted away from the console and towards the back of the escape pod.
“This is insane [Fred]. Someone has tried to kill me, my ship exploded, my son no longer has parents, and I’m about to crash on an alien planet full of class C vermin!”
The bodyguard offered a weak smile, “It is Empress, but we have no options but to continue. I will be able to defend you against the class C’s provided we do not encounter to many of them. My injuries are going to be, troublesome in gravity however.”
[Sil] drifted forward to the other woman, “Are you in pain?”
“I have been in pain for three days Empress, but I can endure. I mean that in the absence of gravity I have more than likely not regenerated the blood I need, and no strain has been placed on my injury so it is not healing quickly.”
[Fred] hesitated, “I will be using one of the stimulants before we descend to land, to try and keep myself awake. I will not be able to guarantee your protection however as I recover. I will be able to offer safety, that is all.”
[Sil] snorted, “We’re landing on a class C planet! I understand the risk, like you said we have no choice. When we’re picked up I’ll move this planet to the top of the list, and be done of it.”
[Fred] tapped at the console, “You need to get strapped in. I am going to try and brace myself in the back of the escape pod. When we land, you will need to get out of the pod quickly.”
“Why?”
“There is only enough strange matter in this thing for a propulsive landing. So, we are going to make a partially ablative entry into the planet’s atmosphere. Landing will also be rough, with inertial damping systems operating only within a margin of two or three g’s.”
[Sil]’s eyes widened as she continued to explain and the Empress swore again under her breath.
“Why?!”
“These are emergency craft. You are usually lucky to be alive if you manage to make it into one. They are also designed for space; planetary landings are an afterthought.”
Ruck, Willinkree
4 Years 2 months 27 days Before C1764 FTL Jump
Year 3042 Day 35
Piral raised the triller to his mouth and blew the recall, the high-pitched sound broke through the cold stillness of the night and echoed through the forest.
For several moments, nothing moved.
“Tamer,” growled Duke Frin.
“Give her a moment, she will not be dissuaded from a scent easily if she has one.”
The old Duke muttered several things under his breath but remained otherwise silent up on his mount.
The leaves rustled and Green Flyer drifted out through the cold night air. Flapping her sides she silently landed on Piral’s outstretched arm and let a small whine.
“There is nothing fresh Duke, she is not pointing.”
Duke Frin sighed, “Are you sure Tamer, I find it incredibly hard to believe that all game has left this area.”
It was not particularly difficult to believe, the nobles had been hunting in excess for many months now, the new King being particularly indulgent in his own expeditions into the forest. The wildlife had either been thinned to such a degree that Green Flyer could not scent them, or more likely the game had migrated elsewhere thought Piral. He did not voice his concerns but instead held Green Flyer aloft up to the man as she nibbled on the sap covering his glove.
“She is my best Duke, bred from the same line as the King’s.”
Green Flyer let out a chittering as the man leaned in closer, and Piral slowly moved his hand away keeping the small animal calm. The last thing he needed was the small thing deciding the Duke was an enemy and trying to take her sap.
“The other Nobles have been reporting as such. Still, I was hoping a night time hunt would prove more successful.”
Piral said nothing as the Duke continued to mull things over in his head. They had been out for nearly the entire night, and even the Duke who had not gotten off his mount but for a few breaks looked tired. The other men in the hunting party who did not have mounts, Piral included were simply trying to remain standing.
The Duke slapped his mount lightly with his cane, the large six footed creature slowly unfolded it’s stubby legs and began to move forwards along the worn path in the forest.
Moving Green Flyer down into the small sack the creature would sleep Piral and the rest of the Duke’s contingent began to move. Almost the entire estate was on the hunt with him, and the man seemed to be determined to find something worth taking back.
Idly Piral hoped that his apprentice was managing the stable’s well enough in his absence, the young boy was certainly energetic enough to handle the multitude of creatures, but his attention to detail was lacking in most respects.
Given a few years he would be a suitable replacement Tamer for the Duke, and Piral would have enough pay to purchase his own estate. Nothing a single room home and his own field to work, he and his wife would be able to raise children not indebted to the Duke. They would still be subjects of the King certainly, but there was little call for war between the kingdoms at the moment so Piral doubted he would be called to fight.
Green flyer let out a warning chittering and Piral frowned, reaching down to his bag he slowly patted it trying to calm the creature.
“Hold!” shouted the Duke.
Piral paused, creatures within half of the local forest had no doubt heard that declaration. Green Flyer continued to chitter.
The guard on a similar mount to the Duke leaned to the side, and Piral barely caught his words, “Sir? What is it?”
“Starfall!”
Piral blinked, and his hair which was nicely combed and laying relatively flat stood up at that making his tunic uncomfortable for a moment. Ignoring that he snapped his eyes up to the sky, near where the Duke had been looking and spotted it.
Piral, the Duke, indeed everyone else in the contingent had heard of Starfall. It was canonized legend, and were it not for the relics of the King’s they would be like every other fantastic tale.
“Starfall!” shouted a young pup behind Piral, the excited youth continued to repeat his statement voice growing shriller.
No one could calm the pup, the sun was rising in the sky and the darkness of night was fading with it. Even so the large conflagration of fire in the sky was what the legend described.
Everyone watched as the fire which had started in the far horizon approached with a speed faster than any type of flyer, faster than a bolt, impossibly fast. The fire died away and in the light of the gleaming sunlight a piece of the heavens was revealed, a shining egg or small star was still falling through the air.
Piral watched as it slowed, and within moments hung in the air. The object would have been easily mistaken as a bird, so far away it was merely a speck. Still, nothing in the sky gleamed like that.
Piral had to thank the stars for the luck of being on top of the mountain pass, everyone in the hunting party could clearly see the Star Fall slow above the trees in the valley far below before descending into them and disappearing from view.
“We are retrieving the Starfall!” shouted the Duke as he raised his cane into the air and brought it down on his mount’s side.
The creature let out a vicious roar and twisted around only hesitating for a moment before it dove of the beaten path and into the foliage making a straight path for the star fall.
Caught up in the moment Piral let out a whoop of joy as well, the rest of the men from the esate behind him let out similar yells of jubilation.
The last men who had claimed a Star Fall had become Kings, if they could claim it!
Stumbling out of the pod [Sil] collapsed onto the hard dirt and retching emptied her stomach of the emergency rations. Letting out a moan she rolled onto her back and looked at the alien sky.
“[Fred]?”
There was no response.
Slowly lifting her head the Empress looked back at the small metal canister she had been inside of for close to [four days] and retching spit bile onto the front of her now filthy ship suit.
Ignoring it for the movement and rolling onto her stomach [Sil] crawled back to the pod.
“[Fred]!”
The woman was at the entrance to the pod and still breathing. Summoning her strength, the Empress grabbed the bodyguards shoulders and briefly standing hauled her out of the pod. Something in the nose of the thing ruptured and [Sil] flinched away letting out a yelp.
[Fred] flopped to the ground limp.
The front of the pod was on fire now, [Sil] looked at her bodyguard for a moment and then at the small transmitter and beacon in the front of the crashed vessel.
“Damn it [Fred] I am going to replace you.”
Grabbing the woman again and resolving to ignore any other explosions [Sil] slowly dragged her away. She was bleeding, a streak of blood on the ground forming as [Sil] dragged her away.
The front of the pod was now conflagration of fire, acrid smoke was beginning to pour out of the back of the back hatch and up into the air. Dropping [Fred], [Sil] staggered back to the pod and grabbing the heavy hatch swung it back down on the entrance.
It slammed home with a resounding clang and the seals moved into place, [Sil] staggered and fell backwards onto the ground beside [Fred]. So long as the seal held, the fire would quickly die, given that the atmosphere had a higher than standard concentration of oxygen though if even a small gap were present it would feed the thing. There was nothing to do, [Sil] was not even sure if the escape pod was equipped with fire suppression systems.
[Sil] closed her eyes and felt an intense weariness in her entire body. Several days without gravity would not have degraded the musculature to far, but it was noticeable moving in gravity again.
Danger gone for the moment the Empress passed out.