The Road to Europa

Nobody can hear a scream in the vacuum of space, or so they say. Death, darkness, delirium, are always so readily followed by revelation and an awakening in human perspective. Human reason has awoken us from the lost analogs at the dawn of mankind. Pushing us into ages of science, reason, and experimental understanding. But this divergence from the dark madness that so readily exists across the universe, is an exception not the rule. Every so often we are reminded that our efforts are vastly futile, when compared to those ancient ones that influenced the progress of all organic civilizations. Beings outside the realm of time and light, hibernate and use abilities that would appear unnatural, or even supernatural, in appearance to vigilantly monitor the ever-changing tides of developing civilizations. All we can do is pray our paths don't cross their physical influences in our universe, and that we die insignificant deaths of little consequence to the dealings of the universe. Though I fear that my fate won't be so kind.

Additional Statement - After Action Report -Captain Mada

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The gunship rattled as they passed through the extreme atmosphere that surrounded the hidden moon of Jupiter. Captain Mada looked at his soldiers as they descended into the raging storm on the surface of Jupiter. Their body language was all he had to observe to know they were calm, besides a tab on his Heads-Up Display. The HUD allowed him access to a heartbeat monitor. All of them were fully suited in light folded tungsten alloy pressurized suits, which hid their faces inside helmets. Inherent electronics allowed for communication and interface with SABRE. SABRE: Situational Awareness Battle Reconnaissance and Espionage, was a shared battle program that gave live intelligence updates and targets to soldiers. Not artificial intelligence by any means but a highly efficient program developed for combat.

Silently the team drifted down into the natural chaos that enveloped the atmosphere of Jupiter. The hidden moon was a moon that had collided with Jupiter long ago, but now stayed in a fixed equilibrium orbit just under the giant raging storm that so famously distinguishes Jupiter from other gas giants. The hidden moon was a research and development lab for Nile corporation, one of the major conglomerates that still existed after the exodus from Earth. Here hidden in the storm, the fringe of human understanding was being probed and tested. They were there for a search and destroy mission, and retrieval of any data that may have been extracted. Nile Corp was not without competitors or enemies. The storm didn't allow for any transmission of data, physical import or export was the only way to gain access to the research that was being conducted.

Captain Mada closed his eyes momentarily to pay attention to his intuition. The captain was the newest addition to a bloodline of beings that had a 'gift'. This intuition or sense that he had, was carefully cultivated for generations on Earth. A genetic mutation, a twist in fate, an advantage in an ever-dangerous universe. This gene allowed his eyes to see more wavelengths of color, and when in combat: a heightened battle sense of imminent dangers. It made him and his team lethal. His second in command Lieutenant Leba and his scout sergeant Niac must have been blood relatives in some way: for they too had similar battle sense qualities. Their fourth member on the team was the pilot, Ensign Ave, who stayed behind to make sure their exit was always intact.

A red light lit up the inside of the dropship indicating they were near their destination. The three soldiers stood, activating their magnetic boots and grabbing onto a rail above their heads. The gunship came to a quick stop, and they heard a hangar door close behind them. The back of the gunship was facing the hangar doors, to give the team physical cover as they exfiltrated the craft. The silence of the hangar was deafening, though a storm that had lasted for hundreds of years raged outside.

"Weapons armed sir. SABRE activated and linked to the internal computer in this station. I'll be your eyes." The pilot looked back from the cockpit and gave a thumbs up. Captain Mada was looking at his pilot when intuition flashed warnings, causing him to instinctively duck his head. Just as the ramp began to lower behind him all hell broke loose.

The gunship's defensive cannons began firing at incoming rockets. Loud explosions rang out. Smoke popped from multiple grenades to provide cover for the raiders now holding the station hostage. The team moved quickly down the ramp; SABRE gave them red marked diamonds to indicate enemies on their HUD, and yellow triangles to indicate incoming rockets. The three team members moved behind cover in the Hangar, Sergeant Niac went right, and the captain and lieutenant went left. Ten red diamonds lit up their display but as they moved forward with tactical fire, under the cover of suppressing fire from the gunship, those diamonds quickly dropped to five. A quick check on his soldiers' vitals allowed the Captain to know they were all alive, and calm.

As Cpt. Mada moved from his cover, his vision enhanced for a moment, surrounded by waves of hidden spectral colors. The warning caused him to pause and steady his aim, his team did the same. Three targets appeared from behind cover, which would have caught any other team in the open. With quick precision each soldier moved and fired. Three rounds from each squad member and the enemy markers dropped to two. With SABRE and their intuition, the ten enemies stood no chance. Within three minutes the hangar was silent again and no damage had been sustained for their craft or their team.

Captain Mada and his team reached the end of the hangar and looked back. Automated robots began cleaning and clearing debris, stacking the bodies near the wall. Ensign Ave let out a laugh;

"Those Stowa-steaks are rare! Waste not - want not you filthy raiders!"

Returning their attention on the door, a ping resonated in their HUD, and they received a Wi-Fi scan of the halls and rooms for the next fifty meters. No targets identified by SABRE, no motion on the other side. Lt. Leba nodded and entered, stacked on the back of Sgt. Niac moving as one unit. Silently, the three cleared each door they passed, double checking that SABRE was accurate. Ensign Ave broke radio silence:

"Honestly Captain, you guys could move so much faster if you just trusted SABRE. What you're doing is overkill."

"The word is 'thorough' Ensign. Maintain radio silence." Cpt. Mada was annoyed. A green light lit up on his top right display as an affirmative response.

The team reached the end of the hall and Cpt. Mada suddenly felt the hairs on his arms stand up. He gave a signal to halt and the team moved to cover and then stopped. Another ping from SABRE revealed what the team already knew: targets on the other side of the door. Wi-fi scan revealed movement and hostages. Five targets using human shields, by their movement Cpt. Mada could see four of them were nervous. One stood resolute, while the others fidgeted and breathed faster than normal.

Cpt. Mada checked the vitals of his team. No spike in heart rate, normal breathing. They were ready and unfazed by the heavy action in the hangar. Reviewing the scan, the five targets were prioritized and assigned to each member of the team. A silent three count was given, the doors slid quickly open, flash grenades were deployed. Four combatants died, the fifth who had been calm and resolute was wounded and apprehended. No team members were injured, no hostages killed, and only ten minutes had passed from leaving the gunship. The captain broke radio silence this time:

"Ensign Ave, have SABRE do a scan of the installation. I want Wi-Fi, video, audio, and heat if possible. I don't want to miss anything."

A map of the installation appeared in their HUD as pings resonated. No other targets were identified. Captain Mada closed his eyes, and waited for any warning from his own senses; nothing came.

"Lieutenant, Sergeant- get our prisoner back to the ship." The captain nodded and his team responded. Captain Mada then began setting the hostages free, cutting the bonds that bound their hands and helping them up.

"Thank you soldier." The older man standing before him had a mark on his lab suit indicating he was Senior Research Officer. Captain Mada nodded but gave no verbal response and began to walk away.

"Aren't you curious what they were after?" Captain Mada felt his neck hairs stand up again at this simple question. A slight pounding in his heart began to build, Mada turned and looked at the scientist. The lead scientist was confused, reaching out one hand to beckon the soldier back. The captain stopped and responded, "They didn't escape with any hardware. Our mission is done here."

The scientist spoke again just before the captain could walk away, and he appeared to be climbing off the floor. "They only asked about two items: a key, and this artifact from Earth." As the captain turned to look, the scientist was now across the room, pulling a silver key from a chain around his neck. It showed oxidation, smoothed edges, and indents. Something about this key made the captain's stomach turn. All of his hairs stood on end and his heart rate spiked. The pulsating resonance from beyond the visible spectrum kept his attention fixated even as every fiber of his being screamed for him to flee. Some ancient warning from within his genes knew that key was poison. A poison that only his intuition could bear witness to its insidious nature.

The scientist placed his hand on the captain, sensing the soldier get tense before him. "I wonder what it is you can see? What do you perceive when you look upon this?" Across the room he swiped a key card, put his palm print on a pad, and scanned his retina. A blast door moved to reveal a hermetically sealed container with a marble pillar. The marble had runes inscribed on it in a language that was unrecognizable. Giving the appearance of being pristine as well as ancient was an unsettling characteristic. The captain froze, petrified in his steps. The very air around the pillar seemed to bend in unnatural ways, distorting the very space around it. Sonic reverberations of cosmic colors poured around and through this pillar. Nausea and daggers coursed through body, cutting deep through his training and conditioning. The very essence and foundation of this hardened veteran was destabilized. As if several bricks were suddenly ripped from a fortified wall, something deep inside the soldier began to erode away. These feelings were new to him.

"You don't see it at all, but you do see something." The scientist let out a dry chuckle. Captain Mada now observed the man before him. The stretched aged skin seemed perfectly healthy in front of him, though moments before in his periphery, pallor and age was evident. Captain Mada felt his right heel lift, trembling and before he knew it, he was leaving quickly.

"Captain- is everything alright? Your vitals are all over the place." It was Ensign Ave monitoring him through SABRE. No response was given as the captain retreated in fear from his field of victory. For once, flight was chosen in the place of fight.

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Psychological evaluation of Captain Mada: Recorded questioning and responses

"Are you an Atheist Captain?"

"I was."

"Was? As in not anymore? Do you believe in a god?"

"I have seen things I can't rationalize. Things that make me question my understanding of the very universe in which I exist. And since then, I know there is something bigger than humanity. Somewhere out in the darkness or buried deep in the moons and planets."

"What did you see?"

"What did Saul see on the road to Damascus? That made him believe in Christ. What made him blind? An angel? a God? What I saw didn't take my sight from me, but rather made me see beyond the reasoning and understanding of man. I am not blind, I SEE. And believe me Doc, it's worse."

"The road to Damascus made Saul into Paul. What did the mission on Europa do to you?"

"......"

"Start from the beginning. What happened on Europa?"

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"Nothing is medically wrong with you, Captain. You are exhibiting signs of shock. Can you explain what happened?" Ensign Ave was reviewing the medical report from the First Aid station on their gunship. Captain Mada was soaked in cold sweat, but his blood pressure was returning to normal. He shook his head.

"I can't explain it." Images of the key and pillar flashed through his mind. Sgt. Niac and Lt. Leba were standing over him with arms crossed, still fully suited in their battle armor. The ship was on autopilot out of the storm, and up to the light carrier that had brought them into close orbit to Jupiter. A few minutes passed and Captain Mada returned to normal once again, using the ritual of getting suited into combat armor as a way to reestablish normalcy. The psychological knowledge there was great distance now between him and the pillar also put him at ease.

When the strike team landed on the carrier they were immediately greeted by the Commander of the vessel. Commander Charon was a large man, his rank and his stature commanded respect.

"Captain Mada, welcome back. Unfortunately, we will have no time to debrief. We've just received word from the Board of Trustees that they just lost contact with a second research installation. This facility is on Europa. We are already enroute. We will be there in a matter of six hours. Rest, Eat and prepare for another incursion. We will take the prisoner off your hands. You are dismissed." Before any protest or word could be spoken the Commander marched off. He was always to the point and direct. Two security personnel came and escorted their prisoner.

Captain Mada looked at his team. They all were staring at him, looking for anything that might indicate his state of mind.

"You heard him. Inspect your armor and weapons. I need you all rested, fed and ready in five hours." The team nodded and dispersed. Finding himself alone, Captain Mada sighed and let himself relax for a moment. Closing his eyes, he briefly relived the memory of looking at the pillar. He felt his stomach turn again, and his blood pressure rise, there would be no rest for him. Anxiously he searched for anything to keep his mind clear. It was first in collecting more ammunition that he felt his sanity about him, allowing him to escape the torment of his memories. Cleaning his rifle made sense, running diagnostics on his armor was real. The briefest memory of a silver key and old stone pillar causing him panic attacks confounded him to his core. Eating food eased his stomach, and a hot shower relaxed him. Returning to the hangar, he noticed that even the shadows now bothered him, but not when he looked at them directly. Only in the peripheral vision did the darkness begin to unnerve him. An appearance of movement when there was nothing there to move, and then when observed directly nothing more than a shadow. He felt errant hairs on his arms stand momentarily, then return to normal. Lost in his thoughts, a sudden slap on the back brought him up from the murky air of his own subconscious.

"You're alright Captain." It was his second in command Lieutenant Leba. The physical touch and affirmation brought a warm rush of comfort back to his core.

"Thanks Leba. Don't worry. I'm solid." The two of them hit their forearms together in front of them and nodded. Though Mada was his superior, Leba was easily a foot taller than him, more than likely a descendant of professional athletes when Earth was the home to all of humanity. Though large in stature Leba moved faster than someone his size should, the mere act of sprinting was a frightening act to behold, especially if you were this man's enemy. Ensign Ave and Sgt. Niac soon joined them. Ensign Ave had no genetic intuition, but was an expert pilot, who had flown hundreds if not a thousand missions. He was a savant when it came to things that flew, whether in space or in an atmosphere. Sgt. Niac was an athletic woman, who must have been a descendant of hunters and trappers. She was the quickest of them all and could sense a trap long before anyone else on the team. She didn't speak of her family or ancestry, Captain Mada suspected it was because her family had been a result of being "Stowas” or stowaways when the great exodus happened. Even though it was hundreds of years ago, that kind of heritage would make you subhuman in the eyes of many.

A hologram of a man appeared in the center of the circle that the team now formed. It was SABRE now giving them their mission objectives. His avatar was plain- no hair style, no clothes, no defining body parts either. A neutral mask of a man with only a sword on his back. The captain nodded and barked "Alright everyone listen up!" SABRE began to speak.

"The Europa Installation is not a top secret installation. Its primary task is the exploration of the ocean beneath the frozen outer layer of the moon. They have been documenting the primitive plant life and bacteria that exist, as well as attempting to find new treatments for diseases. The last message sent from the facility was nothing unusual, stating only they had finally reached the bottom of the ocean floor. That was one week ago. Our mission is to go to the station, repair their communication equipment if needed and reestablish contact with the crew. With the recent incursion to our top secret facility the Board of Trustees intends to be cautious hence the necessity of a tactical team." The hologram turned into a display of the facility, red triangles indicated the communications relay, as well as the main research lab that connected with a long shaft. Cpt. Mada spoke;

"I want two teams. Ensign Ave you are on repair. You will maintain our ability to exfiltrate if things go bad. Bring a S.R.C. drone and have a SABRE interface with it to assist you. Leba and Niac you are with me, we find the research team even if it means searching every square inch. Understood?"

All three nodded and answered "Aye Captain."

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I know I am just a pilot. I know I am not like the rest of the team. They see things and intuitively know things that cannot be known. I have been saved by them too many times to count and that is why I don't serve with anyone else. But have you ever had a gut feeling? or an overriding thought that just won't go away until you do whatever it is you feel you have to? I knew bad things would happen. I cannot be sure anything actually happened when they lost contact. I know that they claim to be my team. My gut says without evidence that they're not Mada, Leba, or Niac. I cannot prove it, and I don't know for sure.

On that note; consider this my resignation.

Additional Statement -After action report: Ensign Ave

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The ride down to Europa was smooth. No turbulence. Not one disturbance. The moon was even facing the sun, giving it the appearance of day time where they were headed. The reflection of the ice was brilliant, and caused the glass on the cockpit to auto-tint to prevent sunburn or injury to the eye. Upon arriving at the coordinates of the base, they circled above it three times. No damage. No smoke. No signs of struggle. Upon approach to the base, the airlock doors opened and allowed them to enter. A thought ran through the Captain's mind.

"A gaping maw, waiting for a meal." The thought didn't seem to be his own. Captain Mada shook his head and refocused on the mission. The gunship landed and doors closed behind them and the air pressure was normalized.

"Weapons armed sir. SABRE activated and linked to the internal computer in this station. I'll be your eyes." Ensign Ave gave his thumbs up, a ping rang out from SABRE. No targets, no gunshots, and no intuitive warning. The rear hatch and ramp opened, and the team exited. Ensign Ave followed soon after wearing his pilot's survival gear suited for extreme cold as well as protection from small arms fire.

"SABRE now accessing S.R.C. drone." A crate in the back of the gunship opened and out climbed a robot to help Ensign Ave. Human like in form but with a head that had an antennae, as well as several cameras. The pneumatic noises of the drone were soon swallowed in the maddening silence of the hangar.

"Ensign keep me updated." The Captain nodded and in the deafening silence, the two teams departed without another word.

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As the tactical team pushed into the facility a ping from SABRE made them aware of no other life forms. The unsettling feeling that something was wrong began to manifest from deep within each of the soldiers. Room by room was cleared to reveal no signs of struggle. In fact it appeared as though every person at this station had up and vanished from existence, roughly at the same time. Once it was verified that the team was alone they made their way to the command center. Computers were running, displays were active, papers were undisturbed.

"Captain this is Ensign Ave, come in." The sudden radio broadcast disturbed the silence. Hairs on Captain Mada's neck and shoulder stood up. Both the Lieutenant and Sergeant stopped tense, perhaps they had felt it too. The instinctual feeling that they had spooked prey, or worse; they had alerted a predator.

"This is Mada. Report in." Captain Mada nodded at the two other soldiers, they took positions of over watch.

"Communications relay is up and running again sir. I had to reset the system but I have already reestablished contact with Commander Charon. He needs you to establish a link so he can have access to the security footage. Do you see a blinking red light on the center console? Over."

Captain Mada looked around and found a blinking red light.

"I see it. Instructions? Over." The Captain made his way to the light.

"Tap it twice and it should turn blue. Over"

Tapping the red button twice, it eased into blue.

"Okay Captain, that should do it. Commander Charon is in control now, I am watching on my end. Over."

A live feed began to play, which initially showed the team live, then it began to rewind quickly. Going back a week they found the evidence they were looking for. Shortly after they broadcasted they had reached the ocean floor, there was a celebration amongst the crew. Congratulating one another on the achievement, they all looked at their own live feed which showed a team entering a pressure chamber, preparing to walk on the floor of Europa. The video began to fast forward. The underwater explorers walked around in the dark abyss using bright lights to help illuminate the video. Lights pointed around and finally fell on what looked like a large metal door, housed in rock. The explorers moved towards it, when suddenly the lights went out, and then the feed was lost. The command crew began to scramble, then suddenly all of them unnaturally stopped in unison.

Each of them now looked like soldiers perfectly at attention, but their eyes were rolled back into their heads. The video feed began to fast forward and they stayed that way for days. In fast forward the crew began to rhythmically sway; as if they were all obeying some diabolical silent conductor. The date on the feed now reached present day. The crew began unnaturally moving their limbs in unison and all walked as if they were poorly crafted automatons. Single file they marched, towards the elevator that would take them to the pressure station and the ocean floor. Just as all of them crammed into the elevator, another feed popped up showing the arrival of the gunship into the hangar. The feed fast forwarded back to present.

The voice of Commander Charon emanated from the center console,

"Captain, you have your orders. Find the research team and ascertain if they are alive. The Board of Trustees was watching the video feed as well. They have informed me that they will pay each of you handsomely if you take on a secondary mission goal: Explore the ocean floor, and document anything relating to that structure. It is entirely up to you and your team. Over and out."

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Captain Mada stood in silence looking at his team. They had all gathered together to decide how to proceed.

"Ensign Ave, no matter the decision I want you here to ensure the gunship is in working order and ready to receive survivors."

"Permission to speak Captain?" Ensign Ave was looking at the captain with his eyebrows raised. Cpt. Mada nodded.

"I am not a doctor, but I have seen my share of death. The human body can only survive three days without water. We watched those Stowa-steaks march after a week without water! A week! And money? What amount of money can they pay us that they don't already? We are their top tactical team. They pay all our bills and then some! I think we go down, see the dead people, and report exactly that."

Captain Mada looked up at the other two members of his team. Lieutenant Leba was deep in thought but finally decided to speak.

"SABRE are you able to handle the water pressure in that S.R.C. drone?"

Ensign Ave let out a loud groan in disbelief.

"This drone is designed to work in all extreme environments. Including extreme cold and pressure such as this." The electronic voice of SABRE emanated from the drone. The Lieutenant nodded and

"I say we do it all. See whatever remains from the crew. And then we go knock on that door. Worst case, we have to retreat. Best case we discover something new and we get rewarded. Maybe even enough to stop risking our lives." He was confident in his answer.

Sergeant Niac spoke immediately after, "I agree. Let's do it all. I have relatives that could benefit from that reward, no matter how little." Ensign Ave threw up his hands. Captain Mada nodded in agreement, "With SABRE there as a fourth member, I don't see why not? Ensign you stay here, the rest of you lets head to the elevator." They quickly rechecked their weapons and gear, gave the SABRE drone any spare gear and marched to the elevator. SABRE spoke on the way there;

"The first phase of the descent is 25 miles through the ice. The next leg is another 40 miles straight down to the ocean floor station. Your combat armor is not rated for deep sea exploration, we will have to find your replacements at the bottom."

Their bravery and greed soon met with a chilling contradiction. At the elevator door their intuitions began to scream warnings. Dark foreboding waves exuded from the door.

"Do you guys see that?" It was Lieutenant Leba. Captain Mada and the Sergeant nodded. Frozen staring at the blatant warning of destruction. The drone pressed the button to call the lift but was met with a message stating the lift was still descending. Without pausing SABRE pried the doors open to reveal cables that reached out diagonally into the ice. On the floor of the ice there were tracks to help guide the elevator down.

SABRE broke the silence, "If we pursue now Captain we have a chance to catch the crew at the first station, before they can descend to the ocean floor." A ping rang out, followed by a map showing the elevator in transit on their HUD. The team was still processing the danger coming from their intuition. But finally Captain Mada stepped forward, keyed the pad for a service lift to be deployed. A sled folded down from the wall and onto the tracks, where he climbed on, and soon his whole team followed him on. The SABRE drone grabbed the back of the sled and pushed them onward and downward.

The descent was rapid and every inch of travel was met with more intense warnings from their cellular code. Darkness enveloped them slowly, and as the shadows formed, movement once again returned to Captain Madas eyes. Fear began to course through him, as he tried to focus on the movement to bring reality into focus. But it was in vain. They were building in acceleration downward, and the movement in the shadows began to meld with the fluctuations and wavelengths now thundering down on them. All light went out, their world was shadow on shadow. Charcoal floating on crude oil. and now to add to the chaos, SABRE began to mark targets on the movements that fluttered by in the maddening darkness. Captain Mada felt his team attempt to acquire targets, but each of them found the targets unmarked by the time they had it in their sites.

"SABRE?! What is going on?!" It was Sgt. Niac who shouted first.

"Sorry ma'am, I seem to need to reboot. Force reboot activated."

To their dismay, they heard their robotic companion power down. A world of ebony, and fear now swallowed them.

The gaping maw, fed.