August 17th

Scarlet

“There it is. This is the unnamed planet that the ship directed us to,” Quentin explained as we looked out the screen. Below us was a frozen planet covered in ice and snow. He looked at me and explained, “Now’s your time to shine. We need you to quickly traverse the planet to retrieve the plasma capsule and find the psionic entity. When you find the latter, make sure to tell us so we can land closer to the source.”

“Got it.” I turned around and winked at him before making a salute. I was about to walk out of the room when he stopped me.

“Please survive. I’d hate to tell your parents that you died on a frozen wasteland,” he said before letting go of my shoulder. Don’t worry, Quentin. If I die, they wouldn’t know any better. I’m probably already dead to them.

I went to my room and got dressed in the winter gear we picked up in a station. It was free, which was nice. I kept my spacesuit on me in case it got too dangerous. I holstered my two pistols before tying a scarf around my neck and muzzle. Once I was done, I walked to the living room and waited for the ship to land. Fortunately, this one was smoother than normal as I remained standing.

I grabbed my motorcycle from the airlock and watched as the ramp opened up. Cold air blasted in, which would’ve chilled me to the bone if I wasn’t prepared. I walked out into the blizzard and started up my motorcycle. The ground was covered in snow, which would’ve prevented it from gaining traction. However, Harry upgraded it so it could drive through it easier. I supposed he had a use on the ship.

I revved up my motorcycle and drove towards the blinking dot on my SAD. I was starting to feel the chill, but I knew I had to move on. The cold was something I would have to live with. The Inuit people lived in a frozen land, and yet they survived. In comparison, I was covered in fur, wearing advanced winter gear, and riding a motorcycle that moves like a snowmobile. I shouldn’t complain. Granted, it’s also much colder than the polar regions of Earth. And it’s all for one reason.

The planet was in perpetual darkness. Many would think that we landed on the dark side of it, somewhere the star’s light didn’t reach. However, the truth was that the star’s light couldn’t reach the planet. A Dyson Sphere had encompassed the star that this planet orbited. It was why the planet was sent to the Shadow Realm. The alien race that built it probably thought there was nothing important down here. Either that or they hid the cannister here because no one but the desperate would search here. And they were right.

After a lonely hour on the motorcycle, I came across a sight that made me gasp. I parked the motorcycle and dismounted. It was a horrifying sight. I saw two tiny, frozen rodent-like creatures hugging each other. The sheer cold mummified them, preserving their bodies so that they didn’t decompose. It was too cold for bacteria, bugs, or fungi to survive, forcing me to see the horrified expressions they died with. They were pointing at the Dyson Sphere that blotted out the sun. It seemed that despite looking primitive, they knew the megastructure was what killed them. I looked behind them and saw a tiny hut that was almost entirely buried in snow. I wanted to take a closer look, but I started feeling chilly. One of the flaws of having a human genetic base is the lack of a natural winter fur coat. I want to see more about what happened to these people, but I need to keep going.

It didn’t take too long to find a more chilling sight. That was a horrible pun and I feel horrible thinking it. In front of me was a medieval city, completely frozen over with several frozen aliens laying on the ground. Due to them only being as tall as an upright rat, the city wall only came up to my waist. I parked my motorcycle as I walked over the wall. I know I’m getting sidetracked, but I feel the need to check this place.

I felt like a giant walking through ruins. Most buildings only came up to my knee, with several streets being so narrow I almost got stuck between the buildings on either side. I could see more frozen bodies around. Children were hugging their mothers as the latter futilely tried to protect the former. They probably thought that a dark god consumed their star. In truth, it was a heartless action by an advanced alien race. I can only imagine if this happens to Earth. We may know what it is, but we can do nothing to stop it. Which would be worse: not knowing what’s happening, or knowing what’s happening but being unable to stop it? Honestly, I don’t know, and I don’t want to find out.

I held up my scanner and noticed that the plasma capsule was nearby. The pings were coming from the castle, which was the only building that was above waist height. I squeezed my way through the narrow streets again before reaching the front of the castle. Unlike the fortress on Daraxes, this one would’ve worked as a defense. At least according to those games that Quentin sometimes plays. I don’t see the appeal of watching arbitrary numbers increase while staring at a Risk map.

“Now if only my snout wasn’t so big,” I said to myself as I tried to fit my head through the double doors. After a few seconds of futilely rotating my head, I decided to lay on the ground and look inside. It got insufferably cold as I felt the snow and ice seep through the winter gear, but I persisted. The view I got painted a grim picture.

Unlike the aliens outside, this group was covered in frozen blood. Seemingly enough to kill a creature of their size. I could see several knife wounds on their bodies. It was clear that they were murdered. But why would someone kill others when everything was freezing to death? Wouldn’t they have bigger concerns? And my gosh, it’s so cold! I’m going to have to put on my spacesuit and call the crew over here! I at least wanted to get the plasma capsule so I had something to show them. Perhaps they should’ve sent Harry out here. He’s mostly a machine, so he wouldn’t even feel the cold.

After a bit of tilting my head, I realized that there was no plasma capsule in sight. In fact, there weren’t any signs of it above ground. It was then that I noticed the pings were from below the ground level. If I wanted that capsule, I had to destroy a historical artifact. To help with my decision-making, I opened up my SAD and asked, “Is there anything I could do to get the plasma capsule without destroying this castle?”

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

“What matters more: priceless historical artifacts, or going back to backwater Earth? If you wish to return home, you must destroy that building. There is no other way,” my SAD said before turning itself off. Just great. Good thing Quentin isn’t here to see this. I’d imagine he’d be trying to stop me.

I stood up and looked down at the castle. I took a deep breath before telling myself, “You got this, Scarlet. Just imagine that you’re Arthur kicking down my dollhouse.” I lifted my leg until my foot until it was at waist level. I grabbed my SAD and took a picture of the castle. I steeled my nerves as I kicked it with as much force as I could muster. Despite how small it was, it was strong. It couldn’t withstand my kick, but it took more force than expected. The stones fell to the ground as the interior of the structure was revealed.

There was something, or rather, someone, alive in there. I heard scampering as a tiny silhouette hid behind a column. “Whoever you are, reveal yourself! I’m not going to hurt you!” I announced as I hoped they could get me the capsule.

“But I will!” a squeaky voice shouted back in an extremely high pitch. It hurt my ears. Out from behind the pillar jumped a white-furred rodent-like alien. Unlike their kindred, they seemed unbothered by the cold. The alien held out their hand and formed a ball of ice in it.

“Magic? But that’s impossible! There’s no such thing as magic!” I shouted back as I pulled out one of my laser pistols.

“Yes-yes, it is. I made a deal-pact with a great spiritual-magic beast in that cavern back-over there,” the alien said as they pointed towards the mountains in the distance. “They promised me immortality-undying and ice powers as long as I remain their guardian-protector.” They seemed aggressive. Not that I helped by pulling out a gun.

I holstered my gun and held my hands out. “I don’t want to hurt you. All I want is the plasma capsule underground and to meet with that great being you talked about,” I said, making myself as unintimidating as possible.

“So big-giant want to get-take my stuff? Can me-Snerk fight big lady? She fat!” the alien, whose name I assumed was Snerk, asked themselves.

“I’m not fat! I’m average weight for my height!” I shouted back as I placed my hands on my hips.

“She wide, she fat-fat. Must weigh two hundred Snerks. Easy to kill. One fall kill her.” The alien rodent launched towards me. I must admit, they, probably she, were athletic. She practically flew through the air, ignoring the laws of physics. Gravity stopped as she approached me at high speed. However, she was only a few inches tall. When she was close to hitting me, I grabbed her and squeezed her body.

I moved the scarf down from my face to reveal my muzzle. I flashed my teeth as I growled, “Show me the capsule! If you don’t, you’ll be my prey!” Fear filled her face as an instinctual reaction took place. Frantic squeaking erupted as she panicked, unable to speak words.

“Snerk want live! I get the tube!” the rodent alien screeched. I set her down in the castle ruins as I pulled my scarf back up. It only took three minutes for her to return empty-handed. She cried, “Tube too big!” I shoved her into a pocket as I moved stones out of the way.

After a while, I managed to find the plasma capsule. It was large. So large, in fact, that I wouldn’t be able to lift it myself. In fact, I didn’t think Quentin would help me much in that regard. It would be a job for Gruma and Harry. I opened my SAD and called Quentin. “How’s it going?”

“I have good news and bad news. Good news is that I found the plasma capsule and know the location of the psionic entity. The bad news is that we’re going to need Gruma and Harry to pick up the capsule,” I said.

“Moving the ship right now,” came Quentin’s curt response as the communicator turned off. I pulled the rodent alien out of my pocket and placed her in the snow. Despite it chilling me to the bone, she seemed unaffected. Are those psionic powers that powerful? She claims it’s magic, but I’m inclined to believe that it’s psionic. Otherwise, my SAD would’ve shown it as a stat.

My thoughts were interrupted when our spaceship landed right outside of the city. The hatch opened, revealing Gruma in winter gear while Harry calmly walked out. I took the opportunity to run back towards the ship as the cold was starting to get to me. I felt like I was going to get hypothermia while my limbs would be frostbitten. I hopped over the wall and ran into the ship.

I got inside the living room and breathed a sigh of relief. Warmth flooded my body as I removed my boots, scarf, gloves, and jacket. I grabbed a blanket before walking into the kitchen. When I got there, I saw that Quentin had already prepared a cup of hot chocolate for me. I took it and quickly took a sip. It scalded my tongue, but I barely cared. It was warming me up, preparing me for the psionic entity. Quentin was sitting at the table, reading something on a strange electronic device. It looked like a small tablet. “What are you holding?” I asked him.

“This?” he replied as he pointed to his device. “This is a cellphone. I thought you knew about those.”

“Cellphones have to be flipped open. That’s a flat surface.”

“Oh, right.” He facepalmed. “I should’ve told you about the progress humanity has made since 2009. Pretty much, Nokia flip-phones have been phased out in favor of smartphones. They were a burgeoning technology when we were young. You just missed the explosion of popularity that they had.” He then held his phone in front of himself before a camera flash shot out from it. He showed me his phone’s screen, showing a picture of me drinking hot chocolate. “I can take pictures like this. I was also able to browse the internet on Earth, but internet connection off-world is terrible.”

I chuckled at his joke. A smirk crossed his face before he sighed. “Despite all the pictures we are taking, no one will believe this journey. Especially you.” He looked at me with a shy smile. “When we turn you human again, everyone will find your story utterly insane. People are more willing to believe someone turned into a robot than into someone like you.”

“A freak,” I replied as I looked at my hands. My inhuman hands. “An animal.”

“Why would you call yourself that? You aren’t one!” he shouted as he slammed his hands on the table.

“I appreciate your concern. I really do. However, the alternative is calling myself something else. Something the shares a term with those a little too into a being like myself. It almost ruined cartoons for me. It made me realize that having to live in hiding wouldn’t be the worst fate,” I said as my ears drooped. I sighed. “And, of course, I had to look like a vixen.”

He looked at me. “We’re going to turn you back. But if, hypothetically, we couldn’t, there’s no need to be afraid. You are a real person with agency. If someone tries to make uncomfortable advances, you could always reject them. And if someone gets violent on you, we’ll be getting psychic powers to deal with it. No one messes with jedi!” He jumped out of his chair and had an air lightsaber duel. It brought a smile to my face. He was dorky, but it was cute.

“Thank you,” I said before putting up a brave face. “It’s time we retrieve what we most seek. It’s time to get those powers.”