《The Askium Detail》


 Foliage: Part I

    Her visor was cracked; so was her voice, the display panel on her right arm and at least two of her ribs.


    Bent. Not Broken.  Nora repeated those words every time she struck down a piece of unseen foliage with her Cascadium blade.


    Apart from being considerably larger in size Tessier 4B''s  vegetation wasn''t too dissimilar to Earth''s.


    Most forms of its flora and fauna bore physical and chemical resemblances to her home planet and  thanks to those shared qualities, command had deemed the planet deserving of further assessment, citing it as a potential food source exocolonies in the sector. This possibility led to her team''s -- her now dead team¡¯s deployment.


    Escort Duty. A heading she¡¯d seen a thousand times. Back on the mothership her only concern was completing her next mission thereby fulfilling her contract then catching not just the next but the fastest ship back to Earth, Askium to be exact with it¡¯s endless space ports.


    ¡°30 months in space and I haven''t shot at shit expect CGI and animals.¡± Ebukah said, clearly disgusted. He''d barely read the mission briefing.


    Nora couldn''t tell what annoyed him more, the assignment or the fact that the notification had interrupted his game.


    ¡°You¡¯ve barely been in space a year,¡± the reply was cold and fast. It came from the other side of the room, ¡°plus it''s basically free money, so who cares?¡±


    Mao made a habit of trying to mask her disappointment under the pretext of undemanding financial gain. Who cared?  She definitely did. Mao''s bloodlust or rather thirst for action wasn''t up there with Ebukah''s but it''d been months since she''d been shot at, she no doubt needed that adrenaline fix, she wouldn¡¯t spend half her free time maintaining her terrasuit and discussing specs.


    Most of her squad had kept on lounging as they had been in their quarters before they got assigned. The message meant they actually had to work for their credits so every moment spent not in a terrasuit was a blessing.


    Dieter, who''d been a more seasoned officer welcomed the mundane nature of the posting as always. Zasid was indifferent, the pretentious prick predicted this months ago.


    ¡°Told you to be realistic but you¡¯re forever daft, we''re too many systems away from any kind of action.¡± is what he might have said or ¡°What''d you expect when you took the Askium survey detail?¡± but he didn''t, he just kept yapping into his holophone like he''d been doing for the last 17 hours -- seriously the call log exists even though he doesn''t anymore.


    If only they¡­ If only we-. An animatronic voice paired with a light blue radiance interrupted her thoughts.


    Change of terrain detected approximately 500 feet ahead. Nora stared at the relief map displayed on her visor with dreaded obsidian eyes, the contour lines were jagged thanks to all the crevices but that just meant her suit was damaged but still functional.


    Using Geo-analysis and archival data, my system is predicting a slight depression before a steep drop of approximately 15 feet.


    "Well my guts¡¯ are telling me I''ll survive.¡± Nora said, now standing at precipice of the ridge. ¡° certain other parts disagree.¡±


    Chances of a positive outcome rest between 82 to 92  percent although with the current condition of your rib cage, this victory could prove a little daunting. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    No way this AI just talked to me about pain.


    To Nora''s surprise the forest floor was welcoming, she heard a soft crunch as opposed to the crack she¡¯d predicted when her weight hit the ground. She¡¯d sustained no leg or foot injuries prior to this but was still grateful for the cushion provided.


    The greenery returned to being a nuisance soon after, the foliage was wet and more than ankle deep here so Nora replaced hurried steps with gentle stomps lest she risk acquiring another outlet of hurt and God knows she didn¡¯t need any more of those.


    Her right arm was slashed, her thankfully intact head throbbed underneath its helmet and the area below her right breast flared lightly following the slightest of movement. She couldn¡¯t entirely feel it thanks to the serum but she knew all the agony in the star system were connected to those pain receptors.


    Most importantly, her mind just like her suit remained gallant. Nora took pride in that. The scenes she''d witnessed earlier would''ve driven even the most arcane of Magi practitioners mad.


    Once again she found herself reeling back to the mothership. It was the loading decks rather than the barracks this time, a light freighter ship was being loaded by personnel and assistance droids.


    Ebukah, Artwin and Mao, the three magi on the squad telekinetically lifted and dropped ammunition boxes, a task like that could''ve easily been assigned to assistance droids but like scientists, explorers and a lot of other professionals had been putting emphasis not becoming super dependent on artificial intelligence lest mankind become too complacent.


    ¡°Crazy how that''s the most energy we''ll exert for this entire mission.¡± Ebukah said, clearly still annoyed. Mao didn''t respond till the reverberating echoes caused by the box she''d just dropped subsided.


    ¡°The planet''s uncharted, so if the gods of island gigantism are good we''ll run into something rabid.¡±


    Nora had scoffed playfully when she''d overheard that then but now wading through this green sea, she''d give anything for Mao''s prediction to have been even half accurate. What they would face was far from rabid.


    She''d take a bout with defensive humanoids or some brazen quadruped over the mounted butchery she witnessed earlier.


    That was the crazy part about all this, it was on a fucking horse! Getting ambushed by sentient indigenes, wildlife or opposition forces was nothing uncommon,  Nora''s job was literally to protect Earth''s -- and in this case Askium''s -- assets against such threats, but a mechanical fucking horse? No exoplanetary magic course could''ve prepared her for this.


    "Un¡­ fucking¡­ believable." She muttered in short breaths after cutting down what felt like her thousandth vine.


    Ahead of her the ground depressed chronically for about a mile before the dense greenery gave way to plains filled with what she assumed was tall grass. A bunch of conical mounds protruded the flatlands, one for every mile according to Anansi''s analysis.


    Nora''s gaze now enhanced by her suits'' telescopic night vision was fixated about 6 mounds down, making out a structure atop a moderately inclined hill on the end of a sorry excuse for a pathway that led down the hill and cut through most of the tall grass. Upon further analysis, Nora deduced the building had a North American air to its architecture; back on earth she¡¯d spent several holidays with distant relatives that lived on what was left of the Midwestern farmlands.


    Nora knew better than to let a gabled roof, a human sized door size, a porch and cheerful memories be the driving force of her hypothesis.


    Exoplanetary structures shared similarities with Earth''s, even a first year novice knew that. She needed something concrete, writing scripts or symbols did the trick.


    Nora found the latter. She''d read somewhere that the symbol laying muddy and rusted by the porch steps was the most recognizable one on earth after the Jewish and an ''S'' symbol she''d barely recalled.


    No way that''s a Church. Nora''s mind flashed back to the image of the detail posting. Uncharted was highlighted so many times and so far she''d run into pathways, a building, an aggrieved hunter and even skeletons. Incomplete skeletons with their accompanying heads resting too far away to make any biological sense.


    Uncharted my ass. This discovery paired with the other factors such as cadavers, the farm equipment and the cultivated land surrounding the church. The horseman isn''t even the biggest asshole involved in all this. She''d had her suspicions but now it was clear now, someone in hierarchy must have known about this.

 Foliage - Part II

    "Anansi Update me on the shadow search."


    Shadow Update: Despite not being able to pick up any sort of data whatsoever from the last encounter with your assailant, The Shadow database does seem to contain a small amount of isolated  reports from decommissioned field operatives. I will need further time to decipher this manner of encryption.


    Nora had asked for that information when the night sky was pitch black with the plethora of celestial bodies being the only sources of radiance. She gazed up and found beauty, she¡¯d almost forgotten this planet had two moons.


    A thin red slash stained the horizon by the time she reached the tall grass. The blades towered comfortably over her 6 foot frame, another gallant display of island gigantism. The Gods Mao spoke of played cruel games.


    Two mounds into this portion of her trek and her injuries started working overtime. The pain serum''s effects were subsiding and the stings in her sides felt like stabs now, the gash in her arm made its presence more known by the second and her head felt like a baby elephant''s ballet recital.


    She reached for her utility belt and produced a syringe, her last serum, she''d saved it for the moment she felt her fever symptoms started to creep in.


    She had no doubt he was out there creeping too, she found it satirically hilarious she''d gendered him as a male. I mean I''ve known men crueler than this. A smile snuck up on her face. Hours ago she didn''t think she''d be alive let alone smile again.


    Nora halted and took a deep breath upon removing her helmet. It had been hours since her dark brown skin felt anything that wasn''t woven Cascadium. A calm temperate draft blew through her jet black curls, she basked in it almost in an attempt to draw energy from the current. but she was an Alchemist not an Aeromancer so that wasn''t possible.


    An Alchemist. She had almost forgotten that. The slight respite grounded her bearings; the breeze on her umber skin, the scent of an open field invading her nostrils, the rising parent star and its accompanying effects on the sky, a midnight snack on the streets after a night filled with beer, carbs and laughter, the echo of her nephew''s cocky laugh, the rest of her family in Askium. For a moment she''d almost forgotten who she was and why she wanted to live. That''s what pain did.


    Most of the physical and emotional manifestations of pain had subsided two mounds later, the building on the hill was getting larger and she felt healthier, the pain by on her sides were but a faint tingle, the mid range plasmite rifle and hoverpack that hung across her back felt lighter improving her posture.


    Most importantly her head felt clear, an Alchemist¡¯s most powerful weapon was it¡¯s mind and she¡¯d have to wield that weapon firmly when she faced the horseman. Nora ignored the voices telling her she could reach her extraction point without obstruction, another dance was inevitable. Even now she could almost feel him trotting on the opposite side of the path, waiting for the moment she stepped on it before he emerged like the accursed showman that he was. The path of course would''ve made her transit much easier but she needed time to plan.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    She''d spotted more than unkempt farmland when she first assessed the building, along with decapitated cadavers of humans and earth animals, all types of equipment she could and couldn''t identify, a clothing line, broken down hover vehicles, a chicken pen, a ravaged shed. This planet wasn¡¯t just charted, it was colonized and the former inhabitants were no doubt victims of the horseman''s wrath.


    Wrath? He was laughing the whole time. Like the sick version of some Japanese game show. Of all the things Nora remembered from the attack, the laugh stood out the most, she still heard it, maniacal and mimicking. Why¡¯d he laugh like that? It wasn''t even necessary.


    The ship had exploded the first time she heard that cancerous cackle, she lay there recovering from an unconscious stint and turned towards its direction. Ebukah was sending shots at the mounted assailant, most of them missed.  He was one head lighter a few seconds later.


    Dieter and Zasid''s bodies were leaking dark red liquid onto the beach sands, their heads lay closer to the shore and its red bioluminescent waves.


    Mao had abandoned technology and opted for arcane combat against the horseman. Mao uprooted chunks of rock and hurled them at the assailant, each hit leaving the mounted menace unbalanced. The horseman regained composure then sent his weapon, a flaming circular disc with buzz saw edges attached to a chain flying towards her.


    Nora stood dumbfounded watching her East Asian comrade, Mao teleported and reappeared above the horseman wielding a thin sword in both hands. Using downward momentum she wedged the blade into the rider''s shoulder blade before teleporting a few feet away. That was the first time Nora noticed the wicked similarity the horseman shared with his victims. However, that wasn''t the time for shock.


    She suddenly remembered her job then. The guillotined rider was distracted by the incision so she had to act. The plasmite rifle wasn¡¯t her surest bet but it was her closest.


    She''d barely had any time to process why the horseman wasn''t dismounted by the flurry of shots she''d dealt him before she saw Mao leaping towards the horseman. Mao telekinetically dislodged the blade and brought it to her possession in mid air, right before she reached the horseman she teleported behind him but this time he''d unfortunately predicted that.


    The horseman''s hand was already outstretched when Mao landed in its icy grip. Mao was choking. Nora¡¯s rifle was reloading. Mao repeatedly stabbed and slashed at the horseman¡¯s arm, he responded with a mocking laugh. His fingers made a slight movement and Mao''s head was sent flying upwards with the rest of her body left to the mercy of the planet''s gravity.


    Nora let out a loud shriek of disapproval and another barrage of plasmite bolts, both left the horseman unfazed. The mechanical steed exhaled two thick white puffs then trotted towards her. Nora instinctively set the rifle to maximum impact; a mode reserved from inanimate obstructions such as walls and vehicles. The horseman¡¯s proven resilience required it.


    The longest seconds in Nora''s life were the ones she spent watching the horseman approach her being. Each gallop sent a furnace of fear through her chest, her mind told her to dash into the trees on her left or dive into the gleaming waves crashing on the coast to her right but she needed to be brave, as brave as Mao.


    The horse''s slow trot came to an end right above Nora. The steed rose on its hind legs with the horseman spinning his chain in a circular motion, the flames from the blade forming a bright yellow oval above him.


    That''s it! The fucking chain!

 Foliage - Part III

    That''s it! The fucking chain! Nora hadn''t felt this much relief since payday. At that point she''d diverted from her original course and aligned her trajectory to the path that would lead to the house on the hill. She could make out more of it''s features without the aid of telescopic lenses now.


    Even from this far she could see its white paint was chipped and cracked, the also white wood was weak from extended periods of low maintenance and repeated rainfall, earlier she''d noticed the roof had holes big enough to fit a wolf. The structure was one thunderstorm away from being a ragged pile of failure.


    Nora pushed aside some blades of grass for the final time, her foot landed on more grass -leveled grass but she could feel the stones underneath. The path was standard exocolony width, enough to fit 2 vehicles or 4 horses, at this moment the only horse she was concerned with was the one that stepping out of the tall grass on the other side of the road.


    Chains rattled and he swung the steed towards her. Strangely the mounted menace wasn''t the source of the fear she felt, she was afraid her aim wouldn''t remain true, the fear of failure always reigned supreme at times like this.


    "Set jetpack propulsion to voice command." She said clutching her rifle.


    It was like Deja vu; her rifle still on maximum, the horseman leaning to the side, twirling his wicked chain, trotting at a mocking pace. She prayed he''d opt for a stylish kill, after all he''d proven to be a showman first and an equestrian second.


    The split second she¡¯d been waiting on had arrived.  This was the second time Nora had the view of the horseman''s underbelly, she intended it to be the last.


    A ring of fire spun next to the horseman¡¯s tilted form. Nora''s rifle pulsated with dark blue bubbles, her visor crosshairs were locked on right below the circular blaze and she''d switched to shotgun discharge so it displayed several spread out aims rather than one fixed target.


    Streaks of blue plasmite shot past the horseman, the last time Nora tried to hit the rider with a maximum capacity shot he''d used the horse as a shield and the only discernible difference was a strange pile of dark violet smoke emanating from it''s nostrils.


    This time, one of the shots struck true and detached the spinning disc. The sudden shift of weight left the horseman hanging tightly to the steed''s reins to avoid falling off. "Bitch!" said the horseman from a non existent mouth.


    The resulting impact from the next barrage of shots sent the horseman flying off his mount. He landed about 4 feet away and Nora landed --boots first on his chest seconds later. She unsheathed his sword, Mao''s sword, a slim blade inscribed with Hanzi inscriptions. Nora clutched the blade by its jade hilt and drove it through the horseman''s chest multiple times before dislodging it and ascending with her jetpack landing about 50 feet from the house steps.


    Nora hurriedly scanned the surroundings ignoring the pungent smell of decay, within these incomplete corpses of men, women and children, she¡¯d spotted a couple of two fallen terrasuits. Nora surveyed the first suited corpse fumbling at the utility belt, hoping to find unused explosives, she found some. The gods of war were kind. We should''ve prayed to these ones, Mao.


    Three of the dead man''s plasmite bombs were latched unto her belt now, she grudgingly searched the deceased''s other pouches hoping to find the accompanying detonator. She found plasmite power packs, a portable first aid kit, a Cascadium blade but no detonator.


    Something sleek dirty and white rested not too far from the cadaver''s fingertips. A rifle, outdated by at least 4 generations. Nora would know, she¡¯d spent countless hours listening to Mao and Artwin geek out about ammunition. This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.


    The corpse''s other fingertips were of more interest they were clasped shut, Nora thought it foolish to believe what she wanted to believe about the dead man''s grip. She had no time to believe in it.


    After all she could see the headless horseman limping to his surprisingly idle horse, for some reason she''d expected the contrived beast to have gone wild and ravenous.


    If you can¡¯t take down this barely standing structure¡­ this¡­  this homestead with two bombs and 2 rifles you might not be an Alchemist. She¡¯d almost been convinced but another said it would be wise to make sure the whole weight of the building came crashing down. She pried the corpse¡¯s fingers open unleashing a symphony of cracks, a slim oval disc rested on rotting flesh and bones


    For the last time Nora scanned the area for anything salvageable, the hoverbikes nearby were not and for a split second she saw the second half her plan crumble until she spotted the rear of something very familiar behind the house. Okay now you guys are being too kind.


    Nora suit broke through glass, wood and dust. The house''s interior would''ve been marvelous in its heyday. A perfect setting for shared living. A large dining table and 12 seater couch solidified that fact.


    Nora scanned the interior looking for anything akin to support beams or pillars, she settled for the corners and threw two explosives at them, the circular devices stuck the pillars at the corner of the house like pieces of gum under a wooden desk. Next was the floor. Please be a hollow basement. It definitely sounded like one when stomped, it had boomed and shifted so much she thought she¡¯d the victim of her own plan. Nora tossed another bomb at the roof directly where she stood.


    She¡¯d expected a rude entrance by now. The horseman''s tardiness granted her another slight respite, this whole time she thought she¡¯d operating on borrowed time. She calmed her nerves, priming her mind.  A rude awakening of timber and metal filled the room. Stained black hooves crashed through the door and landed on the already worn wooden floor, the sheer weight of the assailant''s nudged Nora''s prediction in the right direction.


    "Your mine now you annoying little wench!" bellowed the horseman. How an alien came to know so many earthern slurs was the most confusing part of this hole debacle.


    Nora¡¯s fingers made a gesture and blue flames and timber filled the air, far more timber than before. Nora flew upwards past the debris and watched the wretched structure collapse into  heap of wood.


    No horseman in sight. For the first time in hours, that message bore positivity, before this she''d known he was more concealed than away. Nora hovered and landed next to the ruins, landing just by her means of escape. When she''d first sighted the hovercraft she''d prayed to whatever gods would listen for it to be functional. Plasmite as most prized mineral in the galaxy for a reason right?


    She tapped the spot where the controls would be on newer models hoping an interface would light up. It did, it took its sweet time but it lit up.


    Seems this was a public vehicle at the homestead. So there is no need for biometric authentication.


    Nora felt too blessed these past few minutes. The last thing she wanted to do as rip off a bunch of arms to which one would unlock the hover.


    She accessed the hoverbike''s map and set a course for an eastern portion of the island, the tank was half full but with plasmite batteries that meant it could drive for twelve hours uninterrupted. The engines let out an uncomfortable whirr when Nora triggered ignition, usually plasmite powered bikes were as silent as lionesses stalking prey. The vehicle hadn''t been used in so long, she had to let it warm up.


    Every second she spent there felt a second too long. She envisioned the horseman''s blade jutting out of the wreckage, signaling yet another quarry. She envisioned a more tranquil time when her team would have analyzed the house''s carbon data, abandoned abodes were always a treat for Artwin.


    Artwin, she didn''t even see him die, nobody did he was on the ship when it exploded, a blast that sent some metal into a collision course with her helmet.


    The thought made Nora wish for a another explosive. She settled for arson, switching her rifle to torch mode.


    Nora was 2.67 miles away from her extraction point when the plume of smoke changed from grey to black. With any luck the salvo team would find her before the horseman.


    Hoverbikes left no tracks, he''d have no idea where she was going but she''d learnt too much on this island to ever think in absolutes again.