Have you ever felt like you want to poop and vomit at the same time? Like your insides were somersaulting and not in a good way?
Yeah, that pretty much summed up his existence. Evan cracked open his eyes, breathing stuffy air that smelt horribly like cheese. He stared up to what should have been his grey ceiling but wasn’t. He tried to sit up and immediately regretted it. He gagged, forcing his lunch back down. His body was asleep and the minimal effort to move took up most of his brain power.
He lifted his hand, which was far heavier than normal, to his face…and stared. Since when is my hand black?
He glanced down at himself, someone had changed him. Gone was his normal grey uniform and in its place was the high-tech suit similar to what the Metrons wore though this was a lot more close fitting. His entire body was covered in bio armour of a deep, obsidian black with a non-reflective, textured matte finish. Iridescent trims of a purple blue gradient could be adored at certain angles, the shifting colour he knew was loosely inspired by beetle shells.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxfxo4JiLvR
On his chest was the government insignia and motto: an white outline of a three headed serpent, its forked tongues flared menacingly and right under it were the words of this great, wonderful, benevolent Dominion. The words that lived at the heart of every soul in Elysium.
Endure. Obey. Prevail.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHImRpqj7ea
Three simple words, really, said with such persistence, it might as well replace the words I love you. That brought a reluctant smile to his face. After a moment, he forced himself to his feet. He forced himself to face what was before him. He didn’t like what he saw one bit, in fact he would prefer still being unconscious.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqqCIu1E2b6
Red. Everywhere.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwTNdcdAgsv
The land stretched as far as his crusty eyes could see, in every direction. Red rocks jutted out like blisters, sharp enough to crack your skull in. The red land bled into the sky, the horizon almost invisible. The ground had small, visible pores on its surface that gushed out puffs of dust where he stepped.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcsH9N9EvtO
Mars. The Red Planet. Ares. The birthplace of Elysium. Crypt.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE6jnYpcIVl
Well, this should be fun, he thought grimly. They had abandoned him, he knew. Him and everyone else in a desolate place to fend for themselves. He could just hear to sweetened tone of Vireo in his white suit, his perfect smile murred with starved schadenfreude, “The Trails start now.”31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWqZFra8gK7
Think. What’s the first step? First: analyse your environment. He glanced around carefully.Nothing everywhere, no sign of life, no general direction that led anywhere. Just rocks and his dumb self.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ46pIlG42CW
Conclusion? Walk. And walk, he did. Okay.What’s next? Second: check your provisions, if he had any. A mental image of the design of the Aether Mk-VI Exosuit appeared, detailing all the parts that made up the suit. It was a good thing they made them study its design for Biomechanics back in his second year.
There was his helmet that supplied a steady flow of oxygen. Sleek and tapered for his head, with a transparent polycrystalline diamond visor that allowed to view his surroundings as easily as he would without the helmet. That was when he registered the first problem, his oxygen was stored to his sides within the suit and those tanks would last a duration of approximately seventy-two hours. Which, surely you understand, meant a big load of BAD. Three days was hardly enough time to come up with a plan and what would happen if- correction when- he ran out of air? Where would he get more? 31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnHuPvDhoek
That issue couldn’t be addressed right now. And it had nothing to do with him not knowing what the hell he was doing, of course he did!31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo8q3btlKQJ
Yeah…totally. 31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQyxhA4hPKq
He swallowed a lump in his throat and continued to scan his suit. On his back was an airtight bag. He took it off and searched its contains where inside was his uniform and a pouch filled, after he shook it curiously, with water. Which he obviously could not drink because airtight water plus airtight helmet do not mix. It was not like there was a straw picking out from his helmet that he could drink from like a slurpee. No. He would have to find shelter for that…that also has oxygen so he could breathe to do so.
Oh. This is bad. A lot more than he thought. Panic was soon back from its short holiday but he forced it down and told himself to focus. First he needed to find a place so he could hunker down and think. So he walked…and walked…and walked…and yes, he walked some more. 31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGddcHhfmEw
The landscape refused to change, nothing of interest showed itself from among the rocks and hours passed and Evan noticed a new problem.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdjjHDWqDYG
He was tired, dangerously so. His breath came out in strangled puffs, its humidity forming a fog on the inside of his visor which he discovered he couldn’t wipe. At least his cheese breath had dulled enough to be tolerant. He walked a little more, at least an hour longer before dropping to catch his breath.
He laid on his back, breathing deeply to calm his heart. He stared to the sky, much like how he did in the beginning and finally allowed his mind to process his situation. The sun had not yet set for a day on Mars was considerably longer than on Elysium. It looked red much like everything else, an angry, bulging eye in the corner of his peripheral vision.
Then he heard something. A guttural rumbling near him. He sat up, suddenly alert. It sounded again, this time longer. He tensed as he came up to a crouch, staring intensely around for any movement. Nothing disturbed the stillness.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdGpXeXpbPN
Grrrrrrrrrrr.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxPsLuHTox5
He flinched, then looked down at his stomach, “Grrrrrr,” it said.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzWVHJRAmng
Oh. Heat rushed to his face though he had no idea what he was embarrassed about, there was no one here watching him…or at least no one he could see.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4sWE7eNfWD
The ground shook and rumbled and this time he was sure it wasn’t his stomach. He turned just in time to dodge a metal fist to his face. He jumped back into a backflip and landed on his hands and feet, all feline-like.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO9XzRnwX2l
He looked up and smiled a cocky grin, “Well, it’s about time. I was getting bored.”31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡza0BvEZgFY
Finally, his first opponent. Even though an eight feet tall metal imma-whoop-your-arse was not what he was expecting, he welcomed anything to distract him from all the nothingness of the last few hours.
The Metrabot did not appreciate his tone and charged at him, swinging its nine ton fists in the air. It moved with smooth grace that was nearly human. He dodged to the side just as it brought down a fist. He grinned and then punched at its metal face…felt a knuckle cracked. He screamed. His bravado drained.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTDM6ohLC8q
Why the hell did I do that?!31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbhdxUdfu4r
A wild swing to his chest and he was knocked back several feet. He landed hard on his tailbone, a shooting pain went up his spine and he cursed. A metal foot the size of his head appeared above him and he rolled as it came down.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgspTSQr0XB
He jumped to his feet, backing away from the bot with its glimmering blue pixelated eyes staring dispassionately at him. Just a thought: maybe staying to fight was just a little bit moronic. He preferred not having his skull smashed in like the gaping hole on the ground.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvbUXSGRvfI
Okay, plan B.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqNl4Mxz0sg
He turned on his heel and ran, ignoring how the ground shook when the bot gave chase. Then, a strange heat streaked past him and a searing pain erupted from his arm. He screamed and stumbled on a loose rock and fell to his knees. He looked over his shoulder at the bot holding its arm that transformed to polarizer bazooka.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxt6XWw8qP0
His eyes widened as he quickly got to his feet and continued to run, putting in more speed, holding his injured arm to his chest. He needed a place to hide. NOW.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ81NNITyU5
But there was nothing. Just scattered rocks too small for him to coward behind. He looked around desperately, nearly shot as another blast zipped near his right ear. There!31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA4ZRMxC6ZU
Just over a low pile of jetting rocks to the left of him was a hole in the ground just wide enough for him to slither down. It was a foolish hope but it had to be an underground cave. Why did he think that? No idea. He was being chased by a killer robot. What would you have done?31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNuvWUy3Tfg
The bot was closer, its polarizer aimed for his head and fired…
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