The fuselage of the Second Chance looked like any other ship. Its black glass and paneled dark gray metal shone brightly under the sun of Valinor. Cargo doors opened from the bottom on the port side to let you, or any other craft it carried, off in a hurry. The control room and cockpit however were damn near 360 degrees of glass in the shape of a storm cloud to deflect heat and light on entry. As you wandered aftward the engine compartment of the ship began to take on the shape of a large tree root system. My eidolon drive had been grown and ran on organic jet fuels. I imagine it’s not unique but only because the universe is so vast. I’ve never seen another like it.
I waved to Fletcher as he rocked up to my ship. I’d need his aid in determining what exactly I was transporting. He came graciously and the ship was already loaded with the cargo when we arrived. Say what you want about the Bursar she was ruthlessly efficient. The interior of the ship is comfortable and lived in. The ship has two cabins, fore and aft. A multi-purpose projection room which I use as my ritual chamber. And a large comms stack room for reaching out in deep space. Plus engineering and the control and observation deck. And a cargo and vehicle launch bay.
It was a smaller package than expected, roughly half the size of one crate and that was with all the protective material and system surrounding it. Fletcher looked in on the crate and knew immediately it was Ganthanum, a radioactive material often used in the builds of advanced shield systems. This quantity must have just been a taste though because it would take 3-4 times that much to make even a small community shield system. I thanked Fletcher and told him this was all in the service of getting his answers. He left with a spring in his step.
On arrival in orbit over Morricone the first thing you notice is the orange glow of a marginal, dust-choked atmosphere of a planet often ravaged by sandstorms. Then you see them. Colossal mountain-tall mineral deposits all in piles of large roughly octagonal blocks. Mudd is located on the only fresh water source large enough to sustain life and in the centuries this has existed the population has never risen above the thousands.
Once I set the ship down I could see why the Bursar was nervous. A checkpoint I had never encountered had been set up and they were clearing cargo for the ships in front of me. This was Mudd though. How strict could they be?
“Alright so what’s your cargo?”
“I’m not sure exactly but I know it’s from the Bursar in Altura.” He was unimpressed by this name drop.
“Shows here your cargo is radioactive.”
“Yes, it’s an urgent delivery for Captain Ulan Darwin.” He was only slightly less unimpressed by this name drop.
“All radioactive material must be siloed and tested. You can retrieve your cargo in 3 days.” This wouldn’t do. I don’t want to hang around that long. And how much material would get used up in the testing? There wasn’t much to begin with.
“As I said, it is urgent. Is there anything we can do?”
“There is not. Move along. It will only be 3 days and it’s for everyone’s safety.” So I would have to convince the captain I had something of value for him without the item in question. Not ideal.
This place with its squat adobe buildings and people hurrying by in head scarves does not give off a friendly or welcoming air, The dust chokes the limited available air and for those not used to it, it requires a rebreather. I strapped mine on, strapped on Harrow’s, and we set off to find a garrison or outpost somewhere. Shouldn’t be terribly difficult.
The first garrison led me to a second and finally a third where I could meet Captain Darwin when he returned from patrol later that afternoon. When he finally arrived I was confronted by his lack of gear. Even compared to that of his soldiers. He was trying to convince you he’d do anything for his troops. And he might.
“Captain Darwin.”
“That I am and who might you be, friend?”
“My name is Eren. I’m coming from Altura where the Bursar has asked me to bring something she believes could be helpful to you.”
“And where is it?”
“Hung up at port for 3 days.”
“Oh so it’s radioactive.”
“Yes sir. Ganthanum.”
“Curious and enticing but seeing as I don’t know you from a hole in the wall and you’ve got nothing here. Move on and come back in 3 days.”
“I’d rather not. So let’s get to know one another. Have a drink with me.” I pulled out a rare mezcal made from the hairy cactus of Abalon.
“That’ll do nicely.”
Over the next hour he filled me in on how many men he’d lost, including his brother, trying to expand into the Prize. He wore the dog tags of every fallen soldier and prayed on them as if on a rosary. Much the same as my Namku. He told me of the flowing river in that valley. A valley cut directly into the desert where just over the ridge is a massive old growth forest. Copious fruit and nut trees lie amongst the old oaks and birch and poplar and redwood. The juniper berries ripe on the tall prickly pines and the sap flowing down the maple.
There was game in the Prize too. A place where water and food is so abundant it attracted dozens of creatures perfect for eating. A responsible settlement there could mean growth on Morricone for the first time in centuries. He wanted to see his home grow. Since childhood he’d imagined what could lie out there in the Prize. All the parents told the children about the danger. Told the children never to wander that far because there were creatures in those woods that would eat you just as soon as they would look at you. And they weren’t wrong. He also told me of the horrors that lurk in the woods. Massive, violent predators. Smarter. Meaner. And weirder than anything else he’d seen.
I wondered to myself about the Takarium deposits on nearby Valinor. Maybe a meteorite of some size crash landed Takarium in those woods before the people got here. It would explain the brush stroke of abundance through a desert of want. I filled him in on my hopes to get to Concord.
“Now that’s an interesting one. They don’t like outsiders showing up. But everyone who does they would have seen coming I guess. I know an exiled Adept here in Mudd who could get you coordinates. If you perform your rites and come with me on an expedition tomorrow, I’ll make the introduction. And it will mean a lot more coming from me.”
“Deal”
Corvid Grin 
Leave a comment