One Giant Leap for All Mankind (D2)
To gain the trust of those around him, Vadir must convince them he means no harm. And from Vadir's memory Sergeant Munroe discovers the tragic beginnings that would doom the Dauntless Spirit.
Previously on the Fall Years: Vadir is surprised and grateful to be alive, the humans who have captured him are also curious to learn more about what happened and what led to him crash landing on Planet Earth. However, for him to do that he needs to understand them and so he connects via trace with Doctor Underwood and comes to understand not just her, but the world they have stumbled upon. It also dawns on Vadir that this is his first time on a new planet.
“You really wear this?” Vadir asked, scratching under the sleeves of the green tunic. The flight suit being in such a sorry state meant Doctor Underwood had to requisition a spare uniform for him to wear. However, he now wondered how the humans would see him dressed in their clothing.
“It’s standard issue for most serving men. Don’t tell me the Kaskari don’t have dress codes?”
“We do, but it’s not so basic and lacking.”
“Oh really? Impress me, spaceman.”
The phrase spaceman took him aback for a second. It sounded strange to his ear. Even though he now understood human speech. The way she described him sounded weird. It wasn’t exactly wrong, but in all his life he had also seen himself as from Ascendaris, even if he had never set foot on the world. Being called a spaceman reminded him he was the human equivalent of a nomad. A wanderer without a home. Would Earth be enough to fill that void?
“Vadir?” Doctor Underwood asked, snapping her fingers. “I asked you about Kaskari dress codes. Do your people do this often? Just drift.”
Vadir bristled and rubbed the back of his grey neck. “No, not normally. As for gear, other than the suit, we have combat gear with in-built shielding, too. I noticed you don’t seem to have that.”
“We’re still learning the ropes. We’ll get there.”
“Any other race saying that and I’d be doubtful, but you humans. Once you stop shooting each other. Who knows what you might achieve up there?”
“Shooting each other is something of a hobby of ours. Don’t tell me the Kaskari never had civil wars up there, either.”
Vadir leaned into her. “I won’t lie. We’ve had our problems in the past. It’s half the reason we’re even here. We’re trying to start again. It could be going worse though,” Vadir’s thoughts drifted back to the Dauntless. “She can’t be allowed to remain like that. It won’t be long until those things you call Deterrent start spilling out.”
The flaps of the tent being disturbed got both of their attention. As expected, the Welcome Wagon’s two medics entered. One was the smaller of the two and scruffy looking, while the other looked more well-kept and wore rim glasses. They both raised eyebrows at the sight of the alien wearing a United States Army uniform. Vadir imagined this wouldn’t be the last time that happened.
The man wearing glasses asked, “Reports are saying that he can speak English?”
Kate Underwood gestured at Vadir. “As fluently as any native. He picked up the language remarkably well. Either his native tongue is like ours, or his brain is wired in ways we can’t ever hope to match. At least not yet,” Kate said, managing a small smile to both men. “Vadir, this is Technical Sergeant Gregory and Technician Fifth Grade Munroe. They are Welcome Wagon’s squad medics.”
Neither seemed all that eager to get any closer. Vadir did not need a trace to tell both men were apprehensive of him. They are wise to doubt me, but I need to dispel that fast. If we’re to survive what comes next, we need to be on the same page. He strode over to the two of them and, as naturally as he could, he held out a hand for a handshake. From his glimpse into Kate’s mind, this would be a way for him to show his respect to them. He hoped this would be the first of many actions to undo the rocky start between humanity and the Kaskari.
The smaller man, Gregory, stepped forward first and took the handshake. It was a stronger grip than Vadir expected and he had to resist turning on his trace. He didn’t want to scare them just yet.
Kate said, folding her arms, "Impressive Vadir, you didn’t show off that power of yours."
Gregory cocked his head a little and looked past Vadir at her. Vadir felt a bit more pressure in the man’s grip. “What kind of power are we talking about here?”
“I can show you if you like.”
“Do it.”
Vadir engaged the trace, his veins lit up and not long after, so did Gregory’s. Unlike the clinical thoughts of Kate. Gregory's thoughts had a violent tinge to them. He was a man shaped by the Long War and all that came with it. The first memories showed a boy with troubled youth that the army would later mould into something useful, or so he hoped. In return, Gregory was shown the vastness of space and life in an environment he could only hope to experience one day. He let go of Vadir’s hand and stepped back, dazed and looking more than a little groggy from the eye-opening experience.
“What else can you do?” he asked, trying to keep his voice from slurring.
“I can wield the aether in various ways, but I’m no soldier. My training only really involves tracing. It’s useful when you have a big ship and lots of moving parts that easily break.”
Gregory stepped back. “I bet.”
“Enough of whatever this is. We have some questions for you, Vadir. Are you prepared to answer?”
Vadir turned his focus to look at the other man, Munroe. Sharper features in general. He wondered what type of man he would see if he traced him. And would he even want to? “Go ahead, I’ll answer to the best of my ability.”
“The big ship. Does it have a fancy name?”
“The closest word in your language would be Dauntless. Vadt Wer Undu. The Dauntless Spirit.”
“And that ship you came down in. Why were you the only occupant?”
“As you can probably tell, and both of them can verify if you doubt it. I’m not a soldier. Not like you, at least. I was never meant to leave that ship. My job was to keep her running. I got her here. I guess if that counts for anything.”
“He’s not lying there. I think he could help us better understand the vessel he came from,” said Gregory.
“Anything that’s Kaskari and you need help with, I’ll do what I can. I owe you that much. Even if you shot me down.”
“A lot of shit is happening right now that we don’t fully understand, and with Lazarus in its current state, we can’t take any chances on this one, Sergeant,” Munroe said.
“I don’t know, isn’t that Miller’s decision to make?”
Munroe rubbed the sweat from his forehead and gestured at Vadir, “I know you probably don’t have all the answers, but what happened from your perspective? After contact was made with those on the Moon.”
Vadir looked at his bruised hand. “I can show you. It’s a recent enough memory, but I warn you, raw memory can be difficult to stomach.”
Munroe held out his hand. “Do your worst.”
Vadir gave a small smile and grabbed the man’s calloused hand. He engaged the trace, his red eyes turned orange, veins shifted red and he took the soldier back within his own memory, to the moments after his ship made contact with those on the Moon. To the point where chaos was just a matter of one fatal choice.
The corridor’s lighting, now being a deep red, indicated a dire threat from the lunar surface below. Vadir had caught sight of the large domes as he did his maintenance duty. Had those who built those structures perceived a threat? The answer came soon enough as something rocked the portion of the ship he was in. The lights flickered and the alarm system blared, deafening him.
They were now being shot at!
The ship maintained a steady trajectory while casting a long shadow below. Beyond the moon itself sat a prize the Kaskari had spent centuries dreaming of and one they hoped they would eventually call their home. A habitable world that would give them the chance to begin again. Their only issue, the planet, was occupied by a lesser race. A race that had settled on the moon and now was reacting to an invasion. A soldier entered the narrow corridor and stopped before Vadir looking visibly distressed.
“You know what the red light means, Engineer Kor.”
“I know, I know. All non-combatants head to their allocated barracks. I just needed to finish this work first.”
“And have you?”
“Yes.”
“Then go already,” the soldier said before grabbing Vadir by the arm.
“These aliens, I've felt the ship shudder—are they fighting us?”
The soldier stopped ahead of Vadir and looked across the expanse, past the lunar surface to the jewel in the darkness. “It’s about to get so much worse, Kor. Remember those stories we were told about the Primor? The monsters born from death.”
“All the time. I just assumed they were just that, stories.”
The man shook his head and composed himself. “First contact had made contact with more than just the Terrans. They came across monsters that matched the description of Primordalis. But these are different. They’re faster, stronger and smarter, too. The captain made an executive decision to purge the lunar surface. It’s no wonder they are taking shots at us.”
“And the planet?”
The man shrugged. “We don’t know... we’re still trying to decipher the language.”
“It can’t be that hard, surely,” Vadir said, joining the man as they walked the length of the corridor and entered the ship’s next section.
“It is when you have more than one language to deal with. I need to get going. If I’m any longer, they’ll be questions.”
“Ke’el.”
“Yeah?”
“Stay safe.”
“You too, and Kor, don’t leave your barracks until the alert is lifted.”
Vadir held up his hands. “I promise, not like there’s anywhere for me to go, anyway.”
The soldier was soon gone, hurrying off up the corridor, his heavy boots reverberated around them as Vadir took the right corridor that would take him to his barracks. The only reason he would have to leave those confines is if the ship was damaged and they needed a small team to do repairs. Or worse, if an evacuation was called. For now, he was better off not getting in anyone’s way.
The trip took him past one of the ship’s Rapid Deployment Pods used by his people in times of war to quickly begin any ground-based operations. What caught him off guard with this one was that it had been launched and had since come back. While possible, it still put him on edge. He used the interactive panel nearby to run a diagnostic scan of the pod. There were no problems with the craft. It even showed that the last launch had fit around ten Kaskari drop-soldiers. Now the pod flagged to him that only one person occupied it. From his current position, the airlock was well-lit, but from the inside of the pod he could see, it looked pitch-black. He engaged the comm unit.
“I’ve detected someone on board. Do you need medical assistance?” he paused and for a second realised that if it wasn’t a Kaskari, this solitary life sign could either be Primor or the race the Kaskari were struggling to make formal contact with.
Through a hiss of static, he got a response. “Help me–two sides fighting a war down there. They're not interested in why we’re here. They just see us as another threat.”
“You docked safely; the airlock should cycle you in.”
“Can you do it for me?”
The question had him raise an eyebrow and Vadir stepped back before taking in a solitary breath. The only reason the lock remained sealed could be due to contamination or the alert itself. He cursed to himself for not being well-versed in the ship’s combat protocols. “I’m running the cycle now. You should be able to enter the airlock in a second.”
Once the pod confirmed it was secure, the door opened and out stumbled a bloodied and battered-looking Kaskari. They fell into the airlock door and could barely hold themselves up.
“What kind of weaponry does this?” he asked.
“I don’t know, it punched through our shield units like it was nothing,” wheezed the Kaskari soldier.
The final part of the cycle ended and the last door opened, allowing the soldier to more or less throw himself at Vadir, who caught him well enough. Vadir put one bloodied arm around his neck and headed for the medical bay. He spoke into his suit’s comms. “This is engineer Kor. I have a soldier who needs urgent medical assistance.”
“I’ve got your location, a medbot and team will be with you soon.”
“So you’re the guy keeping this place intact,” the soldier said.
“I try my best. How about you? Enjoying first contact?”
The man choked out a laugh. “I can’t blame them for shooting first. I’d probably do the same.”
Sooner enough, the team arrived and took the soldier off his hands while the Medbot listed off his various ailments. Just as Vadir was preparing to resume his trek to the barracks, a sudden scream pierced his ear, and he found himself drawn back to the sound. Poking his head around the corner, he found the soldier, bent over one of the medical officers, jaw buried in the neck. He scrambled back in horror and put a hand over his mouth to stifle any noise.
I think I just doomed us all.
Munroe stepped back, looking dazed and confused. He flexed his hand a few times. “You do that often?”
“No,” Vadir said. “Most of what I did was fix small issues with the ship. Nothing special.”
Munroe, to his surprise, put a sympathetic hand on Vadir’s shoulder. “You couldn’t have known a Morte had infected that soldier.”
“I should have known, though. Between the blood and the airlock. It didn’t cycle because it detected a problem. I just override the lock on impulse, trying to help someone.”
“Those Rapid Deployment Pods? I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“I don’t know exactly how it works, but the name speaks for itself. When my people want to establish ground control. The pods punch a hole through aerial defences. It’s quite effective. Not that they ever got used until now.”
“Makes sense, Gregory. We should get this guy to show us around the ship he crashed in.”
“Are you sure?”
The man looked over to the Technical Sergeant. “I mean who better to show us how this stuff works, than a guy whose job it was to maintain it.”
Vadir folded his arms. “After all that’s happened so far. It’s the least I can do.”
Been reading this and I don't even remember how it got in my TBR list