literature

UAS Ch. 1- Arrival

Deviation Actions

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                In the year 2036 AD, humanity exploded outward from Earth and spread across the Solar System, the ultimate expression of the idea of Manifest Destiny. New colonies were established, ranging from the domed cities of Mars to the balloon towns of Venus. Massive exploratory ships spread outward, bringing brave teams of pioneers, explorers, and scientists to the cosmos, as Man continued his age-old quest to unravel the secrets of the universe. Under the rule of the Unified Colonial Administration, mankind was united as never before in his history; one people, under one government. It was a new golden age.
                On March 30th 2181, Triton IV, an undersea research station on Europa, the ice moon of Jupiter, mysteriously went silent. After 24 hours, a small submersible was dispatched from Poseidon's Landing, the principle human colony on Europa. Their last transmission before also going silent was a report that they had successfully docked with Triton IV. A search-and-rescue team was sent in, but they too were lost without a trace. With no other recourse, a request for the aide of a Special Environments Unit team, a Special Forces unit under the Colonial Marines, was sent to Earth. A team was immediately dispatched aboard the supply ship
Jeremiah. The trip would take months to complete.
                By September 29th 2182, they would arrive…


                The supply ship CAS Jeremiah, which looked like nothing more than a massive elongated box with engines on one end and a massive slowly-spinning wheel in the middle, slid to a gentle halt in orbit above Europa. On one side lay the immense majesty of Jupiter, a massive slowly-spinning orb, covered in the brilliant dirty-white and brown streaks of its roiling atmosphere. The Great Red Spot, a massive hurricane larger even than Earth, was only barely visible on Jupiter's horizon, slowly yet steadily working its way across the face of the gas giant. A few of Jupiter's many other moons were visible, some only just, others appearing larger than Luna. All of this was set against a backdrop of deep velvety black, liberally covered in the glowing pinpricks of distant stars.
                On the Jeremiah's other side sat the round bulk of Europa, an ice-covered moon only slightly smaller than Earth's own. Its surface was covered in a handful of craters, yet was oddly smooth compared to other moons, the ice an ugly brown tinge. But though one could not see it, even from orbit, the moon wasn't just a desolate ball of ice. Under the ice, a thick cold crust laced through with minerals from the profusion of asteroid and meteor impacts it had suffered in the past, lay an immense ocean of water that covered the moon. It was this sub-surface ocean that had led to Europa being colonized; and though none of it was intelligent, it was filled with life, mostly dominated by bizarre creatures that had adapted to survive around the deep-sea geothermal vents that provided them with the heat and nutrients that they needed to survive. It was this alien life that had attracted humanity's attention leading to the establishment of the main settlement of Poseidon's Landing and the multitude of underwater research stations that plumbed the depths of the alien sea to unlock its mysteries.
                Giant hatches in the Jeremiah's flank slowly slid open, revealing its cavernous interior, filled with containers packed with the essential supplies and equipment Poseidon's Landing couldn't make for itself. A quartet of large boxy shuttles with swept-back delta wings emerged, briefly orienting themselves before sweeping down to the moon below. Fire blazed along their edges as they flew through the atmosphere, making them look like a series of falling stars, but the flames died away as they moved deeper into the atmosphere. They dove for the ice-coated surface of the moon, pulling up at the last minute to fly mere meters above the ice, the pilots, sick with boredom after months of being cooped up on the Jeremiah, finally got a chance to show off their skills. The shuttles roared across the ice, heading for Poseidon's Landing, the only surface settlement on Europa.
                The Landing consisted of a bevy of geodesic domes and massive boxy hangars clustered around a single up-reaching tower, the top coated in a veritable forest of communications antennas and satellite dishes. Only a handful of windows, all made from a thin layer of diamond and a bevy of other special materials, pierced the ice-rimmed featureless grey walls, providing an excellent view of an endless sheet of ice and, if one was on the right side of the base, the massive bulk of Jupiter hanging in the sky. They were joined by a smattering of airlocks around the base's perimeter, offering access to the surface for the use of the staff, but only with the use of a bulky survival suit, for not only was the atmosphere of Europa hostile to humans, but the background radiation was also at a level high enough to cause serious illness.
                Doors on four of the hangars slowly ground open to allow the shuttles access. Each shuttle slowed as they approached, switching over to their VTOL engines, and they expertly spun until they faced away from the hangars, slowly backing in. As they settled onto their landing jacks the doors slowly slid closed, red warning lights flashing. As the doors closed and sealed, the entire atmosphere in the hangar was pumped out to be replaced with air suitable for humans. Once this was done, the lights ceased flashing, and the cargo ramps at the rear of the shuttles began to lower as doors at the back of the hangar opened and a number of personnel and equipment moved forward to begin the unloading.
                The large supply crates weren't the only things to be unloaded; a score or so of personnel also exited the shuttle, were they were ushered to a large briefing hall further inside the base. They were mainly replacement staff for those at the base who had died or had their hitch end, but six of them were the men and women of Team 18 of the Colonial Marine's Special Environments Unit, sent to investigate the sudden silence of the research station Triton IV, each carrying a massive, bulging pack on their backs. They were split off from the rest of the group and escorted to a much smaller briefing room deeper into the base.

                "Lieutenant, I cannot tell you just how pleased I am to see you and your team here. Welcome to Poseidon's Landing. Thomas Jefferson; I'm the Director of Poseidon's Landing," Director Jefferson said, holding out his hand with a smile. He was a short portly man, with thinning gray hair and bright brown eyes. But though he was smiling, it didn't reach his eyes; they retained a strained, heavy look that revealed just how much pressure he was under.
                "Thank you, sir. I just wish we could have visited under better circumstances," Lieutenant Lillian Stark said, saluting and shaking his hand. She was a short fit woman with dark close-cropped hair and intense grey eyes, dressed in a simple black Marine's uniform with a silver Lieutenant's bar. On the breast of her uniform was a bevy of brightly-colored ribbons and shiny medals, testament to her abilities and the regard the military held her in.
                The briefing room was fairly small, and with nine people it felt fairly cramped. Large vidscreens adorned each wall, and in the center sat a black-surfaced table, surrounded by chairs. Team 18 took their seats, eyeing the other two members of Poseidon's Landing, a tall dark-skinned man with hooded eyes wearing a black uniform with a golden eye as its unit patch, and a small nervous looking man with bright red hair.
                "I wish we hadn't needed to meet at all," Director Jefferson said. "That would mean we wouldn't be in this mess!"
                She nodded politely, and then said, "May I introduce my second-in-command, Gunnery Sergeant Yuriy Volkov?"
                "Call me Gunny," the tall, dour-looking Volkov said. He had a wiry build, with close-cropped steel-grey hair that made it look as if he were perpetually wearing a helmet, and bright blue eyes that seemed as if they could stare straight into your core. His chest was awash in far more medals than Stark's, including the coveted Heart of Valor, a medal only awarded for the most conspicuous acts of heroism and service.
                "Gunny, good to meet you. This is Mister Anderson," he waved to the red-haired man "my assistant, and Major Abney, of Colonial Intelligence," he gestured towards the dark-skinned man. "He'll be joining you when you enter Triton IV."
                "Mister Anderson, Major," Lieutenant Stark said, with a nod for the assistant and a salute for the intelligence officer, which he returned lazily.
                "Now that introductions are dealt with, down to business. How much do you know about the situation, Lieutenant?" Major Abney asked in an oddly soft baritone.
                "Very little, sir. One of the underwater research stations went off-air, and two exploratory missions to investigate also disappeared. Beyond that, nothing."
                "Then you're already fully up to speed," he said with a slight smile.
                "There's that little intel?" the Gunny asked, somewhat incredulously.
                "Sadly, yes. On March 30th of last year, Triton IV ceased to respond to communications attempts; at the time, it was believed to be just equipment failure. After 24 hours, a submersible was dispatched to investigate. In the beginning of April they reported in to tell us that they had successfully docked with the station; that was the last we heard from them. We sent in a search-and-rescue team; on April 10th they reported that they had successfully docked. That was the last we heard from them."
                "I assume that you've ruled out simple equipment failure," Stark asked.
                "Of course."
                "It's plausible that the station's communications equipment had a failure that they couldn't repair," Mr. Anderson said. "It's equally plausible that the submersible and the search-and-rescue team could have suffered the same malfunctions."
                "But not all of them at the same time," Major Abney said. "That stretches reason further than I'd like."
                "Once is happenstance, twice is coincidence, three times is enemy action," Gunny said.
                "In a manner of speaking, though I'm unaware that there is an enemy that we have to worry about."
                "Yes, that's when they usually take you by surprise. Is there any history of extremist groups targeting the stations on Europa? There wasn't anything in the admittedly-sketchy briefing packet," Lieutenant Stark said.
                "Nothing like that here at all," Director Jefferson said. "We've never been under any kind of threat out here; not even the possibility of a pirate attack. And there haven't been any demands or anything."
                "And no one has stepped forward to claim responsibility," Mr. Anderson added. "Or at least, if any have done so, they haven't where we can hear. The station and the rescue parties just disappeared."
                "Well, that's what we're here to solve," Lieutenant Stark said. "Where's Triton IV, and what sort of research were they doing?"
                The director pressed something on the table's surface, and a three dimensional hologram of Europa sprang up, hovering just above the table. A pair of lights, one red and one blue, was flashing steadily on the globe, spaced a good distance apart. "The red light is Poseidon's Landing," he said "and blue is Triton IV. We're in the Northern Hemisphere, not far from the pole. Triton IV is closer to the equator, perched on the Great Chasm." He pressed another button, and the globe was replaced by a hologram of Triton IV. The research station consisted of a handful of geodesic domes and a pair of cubes raised on stilt-like legs arrayed around what looked like a massive cube and cylinder smashed together, all of it perched on the ice near the rim of a massive canyon. "The Chasm is the deepest mark on Europa's surface; it extends nearly all the way through to the mantle, and it has a very unique biosphere. Over here," a section of the hologram, what looked like a flat plain broken by a veritable forest of thin towers, began to flash, "is the Smoker Forest, a large series of hydrothermal vents that most of the sea life around here relies on for nutrients and warmth. The Chasm and the Forest are why we put a research station there. Triton IV investigates the biology and geology of the area, as well as conducts experiments designed for the unique conditions."
                "What does the station use for power?" Stark asked.
                "A combination of geothermal from the Forest, hydroelectric from nearby currents, and a nuclear reactor."
                "How many personnel are assigned there?"
                "Around a hundred and fifty," Mr. Anderson said. "Mostly scientists, with a small security contingent and support staff."
                "What's the security for?" Gunny asked.
                "Mostly to make sure the scientists don't kill each other in one of their innumerable feuds," Major Abney said with a slight smile. "But some of the sea life is somewhat hostile, so they also escort the scientists if they need to venture off-base for an experiment or expedition to the Smoker Forest."
                Jefferson's watch beeped softly, and he glanced down at it, and then stood. "I'm afraid that I have other pressing matters to attend to. Lieutenant, how long do you think until you'll be ready to leave?"
                "Let me and my team go through all of the data on Triton IV and formulate a basic battle plan first. Say, a few hours at most?"
                The director nodded. "Very well. Mr. Anderson here can access anything you need; everything pertaining to Triton IV has been declassified for you and your team. I'll see you again before you leave." He turned to go, and then looked back at her. "And don't take too long. Triton IV will be running low on essential supplies by the time you get there. I'd like to have survivors."
                "Don't worry, sir. My team won't fail."
                He nodded. "I'll hold you to that." And with that, he left.
The author (that's me :) ) has rated this story PG-13 for violence and strong langauge. If there's a censor warning for future chapters, it's because the language just got a lot stronger.

And so it begins; behold Chapter 1 of Under an Alien Sea. As always, tell me what you think, both good and bad, but as you do keep something in mind: this is only the very first draft. If I decide to take this story any further (and I really think I might), then there will be at least 2-3 rewrites. Anyways, enjoy.

Table of contents:
UNDER CONSTRUCTION
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Kajm's avatar
Ok! Off to a good beginning. You definitely worked out the details... my only thought here is the medals those two are wearing. If they are a special ops team, ready to jump into the job, would they be sporting such?