Twelve Sided Leviathan

I flinch. I’m used to such things in my line of work. But I have to admit this whole place is pretty fucking creepy.

We must press ahead. I can’t analyze any samples if I’m dead, or worse, apprehended and snuffed out via the Keepers’ patrol guard.

The longer I sit and listen the more I can untangle the dissonance.

Other lights resolve in the distance when the Balefire subsides. A swath of Keepers have set up some kind of perimeter around the alien site.

Sometimes I doubt myself and often ask: why am I still searching for an answer to a question that even I can’t pose?

This new speed somehow transfers to my borrowed hover bike — I am an exobiologist, I know how energy transfers work — but at this moment I can’t help indulging in this magical way of thinking.

The sun dips below the horizon on the golden tundra, the last of its warmth going down with it. I pull my star cloak tighter to catch a moment of rest. But a bright light catches my closed eye, and Ria’s sensors suddenly perk up

He knows how I like the Balefire storms, he says it in way that makes my skin crawl. I don’t outwardly wince. I’ll at least give him some credit for knowing my weakness for these kinds of finds.

These unexplained energy storms threaten to engulf the newly discovered tech, much of which remains buried in the fragile terra of Demeter. The Keepers have been discharged into the area hoping to keep the phenomena a secret while they get a handle on it. They no doubt will orchestrate one of their famous cover ups once it’s found.