MSNPC Leda: A Sound of Thunder
Sarah Terry
((Elder's Chamber - Temurian Settlement))
And there it was. Die cast, cliff jumped, bed made - whatever tired metaphor her brain trotted out - she had made a call and now she would see it through. Leda just hoped these Lurtz traders had more steel in their spines than their pretty words about trust implied. These Lurtz traders who may or may not have known Madame Lurtz at all…
Leda: We have a forward camp on the planet and we’ve been conducting regular excursions into the cave system - as much as we can, anyway. As a show of good faith for your generous offer, I’ll accompany you down to the surface to help get you oriented. I assume you have preparations you’d like to make first? What else can I tell you before we leave?
Willow: It is true that we will have preparations we would want to make before starting out. I have a store of weapons I would like to access. However, until then I do have several questions to which you could answer.
Ivalyan: :: eyes on Leda:: Tell us about the fear. Not the creatures specifically. The part that keeps the excursions going even when they stop going well.
She raised an eyebrow at Ms. Tall, Blue, and Earnest over there, and the Trill looked at her too, at least for a moment. Some part of Leda bristled at having her fear clocked by this young woman, but if they were going to walk into these caves… it was only fair they should know what was lying in wait for them.
Sylvax: People usually stop returning to dangerous places once the cost outweighs the reward.
She laughed under her breath, and there was a harsh edge to the sound of her voice.
Sylvax: So whatever’s down there... matters to you enough that you keep trying anyway.
Leda: We’re not risking our lives down there because we long for death-defying adventure, that’s for certain. The fear… ::looking up into Ivalyan’s eyes:: the fear is that we’ve been on the run for too long. That we don’t have another exodus in us. Drakos should be home - *will* be home - as long as we can get rid of those Traveler-forsaken beasts.
Her clawed hands clenched into fists as she spoke.
Willow: In order to conduct our extraction of the pests from the cave system, it would be ideal for any and all information you have regarding them.
Ivalyan: ::nodding once:: Numbers, behavior, territory if you have it. We’d rather know too much than walk in blind.
Sylvax: And anything unusual. ::a small pause:: Changes in behavior. Environmental effects. Patterns you couldn’t explain. Sometimes the details people dismiss are the ones that get
someone killed later.
Leda: I’ll send you our expedition reports. We’ve been mapping the cave system for almost a year now. The long and short of it is that these are primarily nocturnal, subterranean creatures. Extremely, almost… almost vindictively territorial. Maybe that sounds ridiculous, but most animals would rather defend than punish. These things will chase us out of the caves and then keep coming. We call them the Grevad. It means “screaming shadow.”
Willow: Any information that we can reference while we prepare would be ideal - greatly appreciated.
Ivalyan: ::quietly, still watching Leda:: Whatever you give us, we’ll use it carefully. You’re coming down with us. We’d like to make sure you come back up.
Her lip quirked up into half a smile.
Leda: That makes two of us.
Somewhere deeper in the settlement, machinery cycled loudly through a reset sequence. The familiar high-pitched chirp echoed briefly through the chamber before fading back into the constant industrial hum. If they were lucky, soon this would all be a distant memory…
Sylvax: We’ll gather our equipment and meet you at the forward camp.
The Trill’s dark eyes remained fixed on her.
Sylvax: And once we’re there... I’d appreciate seeing the cave system for myself before anyone starts making assumptions about what’s living in it.
((Drakos Prime - Outside Cave System))
It was always a bumpy ride down to Drakos Prime, but the shuttle they’d taken was an old standby and she’d performed admirably. Oh, she was rough and occasionally ill-tempered, but she made up for it by never letting them down. Leda shuddered as she realized the subconscious kinship she felt with the little ship. Next she’d be chewing the end of a yergo stalk and telling them about how things were different “in her day.” She shook her head as she stepped off the gangplank and sucked in a deep breath of the icy breeze. Getting old. It wasn’t for the faint of heart.
Pale blue lightning danced across the clouds and flashed the mountain range in and out of view. No, the conditions on Drakos Prime weren’t for everyone. It was what made it all the more perfect for the Temurians. They shouldn’t have to be fighting anyone for this place, and yet here they were. She pulled up her collar a little higher against wind and beckoned the group toward their forward camp.
Sylvax: Those storms weren’t exaggerating.
A small grin broke out on her face.
Leda: Makes you feel alive, doesn’t it?
Ivalyan/Willow: ?
The Trill crouched briefly near a series of deep grooves carved into the ground several meters from the camp perimeter. His brow furrowed slightly as gloved fingers brushed along the edge of one mark.
Sylvax: These aren’t territorial markings. ::He straightened slowly.:: Something’s hunting out here.
Leda crossed her arms as she stared as well.
Leda: See what I mean? My people have been living in space for generations now, but our ancestors were terrestrial. We’ve passed down stories of every kind of beast on the land and the sea, but the Grevad are… they’re different. Cruel. I’ve never known an animal to be cruel…
Ivalyan/Willow: ?
Leda led them to the forward camp, which was partially built into the rocky hillside nearby. The structure looked like it had been through hell, and it had. Shattered floodlights, defensive barriers in various states of disarray. She sighed darkly.
Sylvax: Whatever lives in there... ::A small pause followed.:: it’s been testing your perimeter already.
She looked back over her shoulder to the Trill, who was staring into the mouth of the cave.
Leda: That it has…
Ivalyan/Willow: ?
Sylvax: Let’s hope it’s as interested in staying hidden as we are.
Leda nodded darkly and then ushered the group behind the perimeter and into the main building of the camp.
((Camp Hemera - Drakos Prime))
The space inside was far from cozy, but it was much warmer than the surface, and there was a buzz of action inside that made it feel charged with purpose. She saw members of her clan cleaning and fixing weapons, huddled over machinery, cooking, studying readouts - a thousand little tasks that kept the camp up and running. She turned back to the group.
Leda: Welcome to Camp Hemera! This has been our base of operations since we landed our ship in orbit. Please, make yourselves at home.
Ivalyan/Willow: ?
She pointed at a large screen that dominated one of the back walls.
Leda: Too much Temurian blood, sweat, and tears have gone into making it, but this is our map of the cave system so far. You can see where we’ve marked various encounters with the Grevad, cave-ins, passages we’ve seen in person, versus what we’ve mapped with drones and LiDAR, versus what we haven’t been able to access yet. Any information we have is yours.
Ivalyan/Willow/Sylvax: ?
A sudden, dark rumble passed through the camp, and for a moment, everything grew still. Somewhere, a pipe dripped. A screen flickered. Then the moment passed and everyone took a collective breath.
Leda: ::shuddering:: Must have been the thunder. There are a lot of storms passing close today. ::turning back to the map:: The Orions have supposedly been working on a way in from this direction, but somehow they never seem to make any progress. It’s starting to feel deliberate.
Ivalyan/Willow/Sylvax: ?
Leda: ::crossing her arms tightly:: We had no friends in this sector, knew no one. When they turned up with an offer –
She was cut off by another rumble - deeper, closer. Machinery rattled, walls sighed against the wind. The proximity alarm began to wail. Leda's breath caught in her throat. This wasn't the storm.
Ivalyan/Willow/Sylvax: ?
Elder of Clan Gaspara
as simmed by