Carpathia V: Episode 15 - Tammer
Moonbrooke
With supplies loaded and personnel acquired, the brief stay orbiting Tokkastra came to an end. Their next destination was Moonbrooke, a Carpathian colony that was evacuated when the Vashta War started. To prepare for the colonists' return, Shadowdancer was dispatched to inspect the infrastructure, make repairs, and flag any other issues. It was not only a perfect role for a museum ship like Shadowdancer, but also for the crew. The sort of routine mundanity that the crew performed before the war, now back as a part of their regular schedule.
Once in orbit, shuttle after shuttle departed Shadowdancer destined for the colony. Among them was Revenant, assigned to do an initial inspection of the water treatment facility in the colony.
Pub, Moonbrooke
Revenant stood in the midst of a large group of fifty other Shadowdancer crew in front of the colony's one and only pub. More would come soon and Rayna, holding her spear straight out to her side, stood in front of all of them to give their initial instructions.
Rayna: You all have your orders. This pub will be our meeting point, so put a pin on your maps. Senior officers will be here to coordinate and take questions. I expect check-in notifications every thirty minutes. Your tablets will sound a tone when the time comes near. If you need any scans or information from the Shadowdancer, you can contact them directly. Get to it!
The crowd dispersed while Rayna stepped forward, directly toward Revenant. When she reached him, she held out a set of keys.
Rayna: Ensign, you're doing the initial assessment of the water treatment facility. I trust you know the way?
Revenant: Yes, Commander.
Rayna: Since it's five klicks away, you'll take the maintenance truck over there.
Rayna pointed to an orange pickup truck parked nearby while Revenant took the keys.
Revenant: On my way, Commander.
Water Treatment Facility, Moonbrooke
After a short drive, Revenant arrived at the water treatment facility, right on the coast of a large lake. After putting the truck in park, he climbed out and took a breath of the fresh, clear air. Even here, near the facility, there were crops, as the colonists didn't seem keen to waste too much space.
Revenant opened his bag and took out his scanning tool as he approached the facility. On his way, his right ear twitched, sensing some rustling in the crops. With a brief turn to look, he saw nothing and concluded that it could have been anything. A quick look at his scanner showed no known hazards nearby. Satisfied, he continued.
His first effort was to evaluate the structural integrity of the main building. As the colonists had only been gone a few months, he did not expect any issues, but protocol, and common sense, demanded safety. Fortunately, he could easily do this from a distance, waving his scanner up and down the building until he got all the readings he needed.
*Squeak*
Revenant turned again, looking all around for the source of the noise. Seeing nothing, he tentatively returned to his scans, but now with a new secondary focus on listening for other noises. Hearing none, he walked to the pumping basin for more readings.
*Squeak*
Whatever the squeaks were, they were getting closer and coming from different directions, so he knew that they weren't mechanical. With renewed focus, Revenant leaned over the wall to inspect the reservoir which appeared normal aside from the abundance of large turtles, none of which appeared to be squeaking, so the sound didn't come from there. Again, he aimed his scanner and waved it around. No silt in the intake pipes, so that was a good sign.
He didn't know if the turtles were normal or not, so he typed in a note about them, more as an inquiry than a concern. "How many turtles in the reservoir are too many?" he wrote. Next, it was time to go inside the facility and examine the computer systems. When he turned, he got the fright of his life.
Creature: Squeak!
A flying creature, just inches from his nose, sent him tumbling backward until he hit the wall of the reservoir. Though startled, Revenant was also impressed, as there weren't many creatures that could easily sneak up on a demon. The creature settled down on the ground and looked up at him, seemingly with curiosity.
Now, Revenant, having collected himself, got a good look at it. Though he'd never seen one in person, he'd seen enough pictures to understand that this creature greatly resembled a rabbit, a thing that humans often kept as pets. The main differences with this one were the wings and the long tail ending with a little floof on the end.
Revenant's hesitancy quickly turned to curiosity, as it appeared that the creature meant him no harm. Instead, it merely stared at him for a time and then stood to insinuate itself between his legs, particularly going to great lengths to rub its wings up and down his calves. Revenant aimed his scanner at the creature and took readings.
Revenant: Species unknown. Appears male. Likely herbivorous. 4.18 kilos.
Revenant looked away from his scanner, back down at the creature again, and watched as it now carefully sniffed his legs, his nose doing a speedy wiggle. When he finished, he sat before him again and looked up. Was the creature smiling? Impossible to tell, but he seemed content, at least.
Creature: Squeak squeak!
The creature did not leave, not only entirely unafraid of Revenant, towering over him, but he looked like he even wanted to stay near. This put Revenant in an awkward position. Having this little guy following him around underfoot would impede his work. Revenant kneeled slightly and pushed his arms forward, trying to shoo him away.
Revenant: Well, go on then. Surely you have a family somewhere.
The creature, if Revenant were to guess, appeared to think this was some sort of game as he danced around in little circles in response, making happy squeaks all the while.
Creature: Squeak!
Finally, Revenant gave up. He had a job to do and he would just have to do it with this little creature following him around. Strange, he thought, that the briefing materials never mentioned any clingy little rabbit-like creatures. He thought that if any of the colonists had to deal with these, they would have mentioned it.
His next stop was to go inside the facility and check the computers and he hoped that the creature wouldn't follow him. A vain hope indeed, for he kept close, making Revenant have to watch his footsteps so as not to step on him. Upon reaching the door, Revenant put his hand on the handle and tried one more time to shoo away the creature, kicking little bits of dust at it.
Revenant: Go on. You shouldn't come in here.
As usual, at this point, inevitable, the creature did not leave. Revenant's only hope was to open the door as little as possible and as quickly as possible to slip in before the creature would follow. He gave one last kick of dust and then followed through with his plan. Once inside, he thought he had finally escaped.
Creature: Squeak!
Revenant sighed and rubbed his face.
Revenant: Alright, alright. I give up. I need to check this computer first and then I'll try to find out more about just what you are and where you're supposed to be. Agreed?
Revenant didn't expect any kind of response from the creature. In fact, he felt a bit silly just for talking to it, even if he had observed humans talking to their pets in the past. Nevertheless, the creature plopped his butt on the floor and sat still, indicating that he was, indeed, ready to wait as told. Revenant cocked his head, puzzled, but decided he ought not question this development and get his work done.
Not keen to waste another minute of freedom, Revenant shifted his entire focus on the computer, starting with the systems check. Machinery, nominal, but needed a little lubricant. Computer diagnostic nominal. Silt readings slightly elevated deep in the system. Must be purged. The biggest problem he found was a microbial infestation that would need sterilization. He put all this down in his notes to present to the maintenance team when they returned later in the day with the correct tools. While he worked, the creature sat where he was, not budging an inch except for his twitchy nose, and watched.
Revenant: Okay, as promised, I will find out more about you. Let's go outside.
The creature jumped up from his seated position and scrambled to the door, causing Revenant to raise his eyebrow one more time before following. Once outside, he moved a bit away from the building and kneeled, holding out his scanner.
Revenant: Okay, full scan this time. If you're lost, I can find where the others are.
The creature complied. At least, that's what it seemed to do, for it did not move while Revenant did his full scan. After that, he tapped at his scanner to do a sweep of the area, looking for similar bio signatures.
He found none.
Trying again, Revenant widened his search. 20 kilometers. 50 kilometers. 100 kilometers. Still nothing, and that was the limit of his range. How could such a small creature get that far away from his home, Revenant wondered. Now, he was concerned, and the creature suddenly became a concern for him. The only scanners that could penetrate further were on the Shadowdancer, and he now needed to place a call. Revenant sat on the ground and put his toolbag on his crossed legs. He set the scanner aside for a moment and took out his communicator.
Revenant: Revenant to Zaos.
While he waited for a reply, Revenant quickly checked his scanner to make sure that the creature's bio data was still ready to send.
Zaos: Zaos here.
Revenant: I want to send you a bio signature. Can you scan the planet for similar?
Zaos: You called at just the right time! I had a request backlog that I just cleared. Send it up!
Revenant balanced the communicator on his knee while he picked up his scanner.
Revenant: Sending now.
With a few taps at his scanner, he sent the data.
Zaos: Got it. Now, let's see what we got here.
Time passed in silence, giving Revenant nothing to do but watch the creature. Was this what humans called "cute"? The long ears, small stature, and twitchy nose. The creature slowly approached and laid his head on Revenant's hand. For the first time, Revenant felt the soft fur on his skin. Though he'd seen humans with pets, he never gave this phenomenon much thought until now and he could see the appeal. With his other hand, Revenant reached over and stroked the creature's ears and the creature indicated his satisfaction with a soothing trill.
A bleep from his communicator sent Revenant into a little jump of fright.
Zaos: Zaos to Revenant. Scans indicate only one bio sign matching the one you sent and it's close to you.
Now, Revenant felt an overwhelming sadness. How did this creature get here? Is he the last of his kind?
Revenant: I understand. Thank you, Lieutenant.
Revenant tapped close on his communicator and turned his full attention back to the creature. No family. None of his kind left. No wonder the creature bonded with him. Revenant reached out with both hands now and ran his hands all the way from the creature's face to its backside, massaging his ears and wings all the way down.
Now he had a dilemma. Bringing native fauna from a non-commonwealth world was absolutely forbidden. That was the rule, but another rule, his own, was not to leave such a creature to die alone. He liked Revenant for whatever reason and if the creature had taken the same liking to the colonists, surely he would have made himself known to them. There was only one thing he could do. He opened his bag and shuffled his tools around to make a nice, comfy gap in the bottom.
Revenant: I'll take you with me, but you have to climb inside and not make a sound until I say so, okay?
The creature seemed to understand him before and now Revenant had to bank on that hard or else he would be in trouble of an astronomical sort. The creature lifted his head and, hopefully with a glint of understanding, crawled into Revenant's toolbag. First, he put his scanner in his pocket and was about to do the same with his communicator when it beeped.
Rayna: Rayna to Revenant. Almost finished?
Revenant: Yes, Commander. On my way back.
Rayna: Good. We need to study your readings so that the maintenance team knows what to bring. Rayna out.
Revenant stood and took one last look inside his bag. The creature had already flattened himself out clear across the bottom and he could barely see him under all the tools. Perfect, so far. With keys in hand, he made his way back to the truck.
Commissioned art in Carpathia from:
AvareonArt
Zelbunnii
Less_End
Colourbrand
Falke2009
Nalaxa Art
