Ad Astra Per Aspera 7

[Attention all personnel. Due to the unknown amount of time on planet, the dress code will be lifted to maintain a high morale. However, if it becomes a problem and people get too carried away, we will go back to the modified uniform regulation that was previously in place. That is all. Please enjoy the rest of your day.]

As I listened to the announcement, I run my armored fingertips along the side of the 1415 Super Rifle known by our forces as Thor. It was a beefy almost square shaped automatic rifle that fired a whopping .75 caliber round at 138 rounds a minute. It had a 100 round box magazine and bipod. Also if needed a scope could be attached as well and it could be converted into a sniper rifle. It was one of the most feared weapons on the battlefield. Correction, a human's battlefield. We didn’t know how the monsters of this world would fair against it, but the owner of it thought I would make the most use of it and asked that I keep it.

So, I did. Once the announcement was finished, I put it down and walk over to my tiny armory. Unlike the designated crew of this ship, I didn’t have any civilian clothes, so the announcement didn’t pertain to me.

I pick up the small scout rifle that chambered a measly 7.62 and put it on my back. Once the light click of the magnet catching the rifle hits my ear signaling that its attached, I put on my helmet and start to exit my room. I stop, turn around and remove my helmet and then continue. I decided I didn’t need it after all. It would just be dead weight. As I walk down the hallway multiple people excuse themselves and make way for me to pass. “The Hero of the Sunrise” they called me. Not that I really did anything special. I didn’t even kill the bloody thing. However, their morale at the moment was exceedingly high and I didn’t intend to lower it. I stop at the side door and turn the emergency latch to open it. Due to the last incident only the absolute bare minimum amount of electricity was being used therefore most stuff had to be opened and closed manually. Outside of our living quarters of course. Those still had power.

I take the small one-meter drop, turn around and close the door. “S.A.R.A.H. Begin mapping sequence Alpha through November. I want to be as accurate as possible.” I instruct my AI as I walk towards the forest. While the SUNRISE’s crew played house and waited for help, I decided it’d be quicker to do what I had done from day one. Set out on my own. Of course, the ship had captured images of the immediate area as they were landing but it wasn’t anything good enough to use reliably.

“Orders received. Mapping sequences Alpha through November active. I recommend sequences October and Sierra to run in the background to synchronize with the data from the SUNRISE.” She acknowledges and then recommends a genius idea I wouldn’t have thought of any time soon.

“Understood. Please run them in the background then.”

“Thank you for your consideration. Sequences October and Sierra will begin running in the background to match up the SUNRISE’s data for maximum accuracy.”

I stop and mess around with the data pad on the top of my forearm for a second and then continue my walk to the forest.

Commander Baja walked briskly down the hallway, the clicks of her heeled boots mixing in with the hustle and bustle of daily life.

“Morning ma’am.” “Top of the morning Commanda.” “Commander good morning.”

She returns everyone's greetings as she heads to her destination. Finally, she stops in front of door 104. She taps her chin in thought for a second before knocking.

…

Knock, knock

…

She tilts her head in confusion as no response is given. She knocks one more time and still gets nothing.

“Are you looking for Ozark ma’am?” Comes the faint question from behind her. She turns around and finds a young woman wearing coveralls speckled with oil and grease stains, one of her own Hull Technicians standing behind her.

“Yes. Is he still sleeping? There is something important I need to talk to him about.” She asks turning back towards the door.

“He is not ma’am. He actually departed quite some time ago. I want to say like maybe three hours ago or so.” She responds tapping her chin and getting lost in thought for a second. “I believe he went hunting or something. He had a Jackrabbit stowed on his back.”

“What? Alone? What is he thinking?” Commander Baja asks baffled at this revelation. “Thank you.”

“You're welcome.” The young woman watches for a few seconds as the Commander walks away before picking up her tool kit and heading up the hatch.

“Lieutenant, activate the radar for 30 seconds. I need to ping Hull Technician I’s location. He has left the ship with only a Jackrabbit.” Commander Baja commands as she enter the bridge.

“What? Only a Jackrabbit in that environment?” The Lieutenant asks surprised more at the weapon of choice versus the order.

“Yes. A foolish move to make even if he is trying to travel light.” She answers as the radar pops up on the holographic HUD. A small circle repeatedly permeates outwards from the center followed by the soft pings as the frequency for his helmet is bounced back. The entire bridge looks at her as the dot representing Ozark is shown as being in the same location as the radar. “Thank you, Lieutenant.” She says simply before storming out. “Why am I so angry?” She wonders to herself as she heads back to his room. Once she arrives, she inputs the override code into the pad and force opens his door.

She sighs exasperatedly and slaps her forehead as she walks in and finds his helmet sitting on his desk.

“How long have we’ve been out?” I ask S.A.R.A.H as I bring up my forearm.

“We have been out 7 hours, 26 minutes, 4 seconds and counting. There is eight hours remaining before nightfall. Turning back now will leave us with approximately 3 hours depending on walking speed and breaks.” She responds while also providing all of the information I was about to request.

“Thanks, but we’ll be staying out tonight. We need to cover as much ground as possible.” I tell her as I continue walking.

[Not tonight boy. The Centarians are migrating, and you just happen to be walking in their path. You can choose to detour wait it out or take another route. However, their senses are some of this planet’s sharpest. They will sense you.]

“Is that so?” I ask Satan as he gives me some unneeded assistance.

Indeed. I also recommending relocating your ship as well. It may be durable, but I doubt it is durable enough to survive the 10 tonnes worth of weight from over roughly 3,000 creatures.

I sigh angrily. He had a point. Even if I got out of their path, I couldn’t just abandon the SUNRISE. “S.A.R.A.H, please calculate the quickest route back to the SUNRISE. We need to inform them of what is about to happen.”

“Understood. Calculating now... Here is the most convenient route. We will arrive with approximately 2 hours and 41 minutes of daylight remaining.” She responds and after a short pause, a small map with my path populates and is projected from my forearm. “Based off of our current reconnaissance of this area, here would be the best location for the SUNRISE.”

“I appreciate it S.A.R.A.H.” I tell her as I begin my trek back to the SUNRISE.

It took basically as long as S.A.R.A.H predicted. I ran into two cow sized beetle type creatures which were a major pain to kill. My rounds kept ricocheting off their shells, so I had to risk getting under belly shots. I had to admit. The skills God gave me now that I was relying heavily on them wasn’t all that bad. It was like having a pair of eyes in the back of my head. I was able to dodge and get in what seemed to be critical hits. After that it was three cat sized cricket type monsters which went down relatively quickly. Since they weren’t that big, I decided to bring them back with me.

“Lieutenant Powers, you need to relocate the ship now.” I tell him as a let the bodies of the three crickets hit the floor. “There are some creatures migrating and we are in their path. They are roughly 10 tonnes and there is roughly 3,000 of them. They will squash this ship eventually.”

“What? How do... Understood.” He starts to question me but stops himself. Instead, he gets on the intercom.

[[ALL PERSONNEL, PLEASE BUCKLE UP OR HANG ON TO SOMETHING. WE ARE RELOCATING THE SHIP IN T-MINUS 3 MINUTES. WE HAVE BEEN INFORMED THAT A PACK OF MONSTERS NATIVE TO THIS WORLD ARE HEADING THIS WAY AND OUR SHIP WILL NOT SURVIVE THEIR WEIGHT. I REPEAT. ALL PERSONNEL, PLEASE BUCKLE UP OR HANG ON TO SOMETHING.]

The ships bridge hums to life as the power comes on and they begin to make preparations for take off.

PATISSS

“Lieutenant! What is the meaning of...” Commander Baja storms into the room getting ready to blast the Lieutenant before going quiet upon seeing me. Hull Tech I, I take you are the one who provided the information.”

“I am. Unlike you, your Lieutenant is competent and listens to warnings.” I answer sensing some venom in her tone. So, I respond with equal venom.

“Thank you. You could have let the ship get crushed, but you came back.” She says trying to smile.

“You're welcome. I could not let innocent people die over one simple mistake.” I reply simply before looking back at Lieutenant Powers. “Thank you for trusting me.”

“Of course. The Hero of the Sunrise is the only person who has experience with these creatures. If you know something we don’t, it would be best to take the safest course of action.” He responds as we slowly begin to lift off.

“Hull Tech I. May you please accompany me to my quarters. I would like to speak to you in private.” Commander Baja asks unusually politely. So, I decided to accompany her.

“You see that?” “Yeah. She really does change her tone when he’s around or mentioned.” “OOOH! YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS!” “SHE HAS FEELINGS FOR HIM.” “OOOOH! SHE TOTALLY DESERVES LOVE!” “RIGHT, OH MY GOD!! WE GOTTA SUPPORT THEM.”

Unbeknownst to us, as soon as the door hissed closed the bridge immediately start squealing and get into a conversation about the Commander and I.