Jon Messenger: Purge of Prometheus

Glancing down at the display, Keryn waited for the sensors outside the ship to calibrate to the alien atmosphere. Slowly, readings began bouncing back from the surface scans, painting a picture on her display of heavy energy readings. In the distance, the city of Miller’s Glen glowed like a torch on the thermal scans. Adjusting her trajectory, Keryn accelerated toward the jungle outside the city.

She clicked the throat microphone, activating the intercom once again. “Prepare for landing.”

Keryn landed her ship in a grotto far outside town. She and the crew had identified the spaceport on the other side of the city and had considered landing there. However, any chance they had to surprise Cardax would be one she would take advantage of. Approaching from the far side, and from outside the city, was their best chance at capturing the Oterian.

She shut down the fighter’s engines, keeping only the necessary auxiliary systems running. Intense sunlight flooded the cabin and she squinted her eyes against it momentarily. The thick shaft of light exposed the purple and red markings and deeply tanned skin that was the trademark of her race. She pulled free the clip that had held her hair from her face. Shaking free her long silver hair, she crinkled her nose at the smell that suddenly assaulted her.

“Is that really what I smell like?” she asked in horror. She couldn’t remember the last time she had showered and the coveralls she wore while piloting hadn’t been changed or cleaned in weeks. The rebreathers that cleaned the air in her ship were already strained and did little to clean away the grime that she acquired after chasing Cardax for the past few months. Shrugging away her own scent, she slid back the hatch to the cockpit of the transport ship and climbed out onto yet another unfamiliar world. Othus’ unique flora and fauna crunched underfoot as she finally stood on solid ground again.

The side hatch to the ship slid silently open and her remaining crew emerged. The three crew members — Adam; Penchant, the Lithid assassin; and the Avalon Cerise — stretched stiffly and squinted against the invasive sunlight. The halogen bulbs that glowed within the ship’s crew quarters were a poor replacement for true sunlight.

“Welcome to Othus,” Keryn remarked with a sigh, in mockery of the message from the Dormark .

Cerise turned in mock indignation, her pale, anemic body and large feathery wings stood out in stark contrast to the vibrant colors of the jungle. Sweat beaded along her hairline and her golden locks, matted from sweat and lack of washing, clung to the side of her head. She looked around and her eyebrows rose in surprise.

“Another smashingly beautiful country,” Cerise said ruefully, her privileged upbringing reflected in her thick dialect. One could almost consider her pompous beyond toleration; Keryn still had difficulties with that. “I can only imagine the magnificent cultural advances that such a backwater planet has managed.”

Keryn frowned. She didn’t care much for Cerise as an individual, but she knew Cerise was dedicated to proving herself once again as a soldier. Though frail by appearance, the Avalon appearance belied a surprising strength. The large, feathery wings allowed for limited flight, enabling Cerise to operate both as a scout and air coverage should the group get into trouble. Keryn opened her mouth to respond, but was interrupted by a low, rumbling voice.

“Enough of the small talk,” Penchant growled from behind the obsidian, featureless Lithid face. His clawed hands and spiked tail twitched in irritation. “Less talk, more getting me out of this heat. The sooner the better.”

“Alright, everyone,” Keryn said sternly, once again taking command of the assault team. Reaching into her pack, she pulled out a map of the area and laid it out on the ship’s wing. As the others gathered around, she began the mission briefing.

“We’ve been over this before, so none of this should be a surprise. Cardax probably set up shop near the spaceport. He knows we’re following him, so he’ll be established close to his ship for an easy evacuation. That’s why Penchant, once we get in the city, you’ll establish our safe house in this district.” She gestured to a market district that approached the spaceport from the south. “Once we have the safe house, we’ll block access to the port and flush him out of his hole.”

Keryn looked up from the map and met the eyes of her soldiers. “Remember, we may have a map, but he knows this city better than we do. These are his people.” Her voice gained a solemn edge. “There’s a good chance that this is another ambush. Stay on your guard.

“You all know your roles. Cerise, you’re the closest thing we have to a medic. Take care of McLaughlin and be ready for air support if we run into trouble. Adam and Penchant, you’re with me. And, Penchant, get into character.”

The black skin of the Lithid shimmered and rippled, as though a stone had been dropped into a pond. His form stretched and twisted, melting like wax before coloring and hardening into sharp Terran facial features with blazing red hair and beard. His clawed hands retracted, to be replaced with calloused and fleshy fingers. Where a dark Lithid had stood moments before, a bearded Terran now stretched its limbs.

“Better?” Penchant asked, his low growl the only thing that still remained of the talented doppelganger assassin. He stood naked, his new pink skin warming under the bloated sun.

“Much,” Keryn replied, suppressing a smiling. “Now try putting some clothes on before you embarrass Adam.”

The other two members of her strike team went about changing out of their coveralls and switching into more inconspicuous clothing. Turning away from them, Keryn proceeded to do the same.

Keryn stretched her lithe body and, covering her violet eyes, glanced toward the sky. A vibrant yellow sun burned brightly in the faintly green sky and the heat from the enlarged sun made her uncomfortable. Though only moments outside the cool confines of her ship, Keryn could already feel the sweat rolling down her back.

Propping open a hatch near the right wing, she pulled out a small travel bag and dumped its contents onto the flat of the wing. With little thought to modesty, she unbuttoned her flight suit and let it fall forgotten to the ground. She quickly donned the lightweight blue shirt and brown pants that she wore when not suffering from the gravitational forces of space travel. Clipping her pistol to her side, she pulled on the long, thin jacket to hide its presence. With a cursory glance around the grotto, Keryn placed her flight suit and the bag back inside its compartment. By the time she was done, the other two members of her assault team had also changed and were ready to leave the ship, their own sidearms carefully concealed amidst loose fitting clothing. Content, the three turned and began the three-mile walk to the city.

The group walked through the humid jungle in relative silence, each lost in their own thoughts. For Keryn, her thoughts were repeatedly pulled back to her own disappointment at her current assignment. As the Squadron Commander aboard the Revolution , Keryn had excelled, much like she had done in the Academy. Her uncouth battle techniques and quick reflexes within her squadron had established the Revolution as one of the flagships of the Interstellar Alliance Fleet and, as such, she had been poised to lead the assault on Earth’s orbital defenses. As the Fleet prepared to make the experimental warp to Earth, however, the High Council had approached her with a different mission, one that she wanted to refuse but found herself unable to deny.

Instead of leading Squadrons of fighters during the largest assault in the past few centuries, Keryn had been delegated to a seven-soldier assault team hunting down a smuggler fugitive. She had trouble accepting her assignment as anything less than a demotion for some unknown affront against the High Council.