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Chapter 2
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RE:LEVEL
"Something crashed down from above. From out there, from the stars." muttered Rié through a thick accent. "God has sent something to help us."
The dark-skinned, wrinkled elder of the village sat in silence. His eyes were closed, but she was sure he was awake. His soul was likely being kindled by the very spirit-flame he spoke into.
"Tell me, Endu..." She leaned in close, letting her own dark skin become illuminated by the flame in the center of the glowing room. "To whom do you speak?"
He gagged suddenly, choked, and finally opened his eyes wide. He stared at her for a long moment. Eventually, he asked, "Erm... Who are you?"
[https://i.ibb.co/LgPJSqk/The-Second-Sister.png]
"Tch!" she scoffed as she marched outside. She planted her staff down on the wooden planks of the house's porch, then gently lowered herself down onto an upside-down bucket. She cast a careful gaze at the grassy, unkempt surroundings that she called her village.
For too long, we've sat with our hands idle. Then something lands in our lap, something falls from God's realm above... and Endu Fie can hardly remember a damn thing.
We've lost our way.
She opened her
Rié narrowed her eyes. Fifty damn EXP and we'll move to the next Stage. Fifty damn EXP...
And somehow, I have a good feeling that's exactly what I'll find where that star fell from the heavens.
She stood suddenly and pointed her finger up to the sky. Up to the spot where she'd seen the blinking light turn to an orange, fiery glow... And then sink.
Her finger trailed down the exact path she remembered. Hell, she hardly had to remember; her HUD was replaying the footage overlaid atop her vision. She knew exactly where it had landed.
6.5 KM
The text shrunk and became a blip on her vision, a black arrow pointing to her quarry.
I'll have this, yet. For myself, or for the grave.
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And she set off...
Ω
Seiko walked. She had been walking for... hours. Days, maybe. She looked up at the night sky. Days. Well, maybe another planet's days. Or a moon's days. Or a space station's days. That Paladin station, what was it called...? Tartarus?
Something sparked above. It soared like a blue comet, hovered down closer and closer to the horizon. And then, just before it fell between the mountains... it exploded.
Seiko gasped. She couldn't feel the heat this far away, but she heard that delayed, familiar sound...
BANG!
And down it went.
I wonder if it's a lander or a solo. I can't tell from over here, but...
She fist-pumped victoriously.
If I can get that craft, I can get off this rock! No more island woes for me, what luck I've got!
And she sprinted off into the trees, not a single thought spared as to how she'd usurp that ship from its owner, or who its owner even might be...
Ω
"Haah, haah..." His heavy breaths echoed within the cockpit. He clutched his chest, felt his beating heart.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
He held his breath for a long moment. Then he released, and the panting began again.
All of the lights on his ship's HUD had flickered out. It was dark in there. With the screen off, there wasn't any way to see outside, either.
HP
13/100
He had almost died. Talyn Revis had almost died plunging through the atmosphere from space.
What a disaster, he considered. He struck the console with a heavy, armored fist. Almost killed by re-entry! Damn those Paladins, damn their ships and damn their plascannons!
He struck the console again. The cockpit hissed as the glass screen began to lift up automatically.
Talyn leapt up in a desperate attempt to grasp it shut, but it was too late. The night sky was suddenly revealed, and glittering stars aplenty. He froze up for a long moment. No light pollution – this must be a Tribal Stage planet, no? Maybe I'll be lucky enough to get out of here alive.
...Huh?
Level 1.5? What kind of glitch is that? And why am I being warned about someone at such a low level, anyway!?
He pulled a plasgun from the holster on the sidewall of the cramped cockpit and stood from his seat. He lifted an offhand pair of binocs to his eyes, scanned the surrounding landscape.
I don't see any movement. Wait – dammit, there's one!
He lifted a shaking hand. The plasgun was heavy, unsteady to him. It locked onto its target immediately and his arm stiffened up with the HUD's own impulse. A silhouette through the trees, running right at him, outlined in red through his plasgun's smart system.
But instead of taking the shot, he holstered the gun at his hip. He grabbed the blue jacket laid atop his seat and tossed it over his white shirt. Then he leapt from the cockpit and jogged away, running south from the emerging figure.
Whatever kind of glitch or hacker this is, I'm better off staying away. I'd rather not take my chances right now, especially with the state of my armor...
And he was through the thick of trees just as her own boots crunched into the dirt near the wreckage.
Rié lifted her eyebrows. The ship was still flaming from the rear thrusters, the front hull was dug into the mound of dirt it had scooped up in its messy landing. It was quite the scene.
But the ship was a small single-seater, and, realistically, she had absolutely no clue what she was looking at. She could parse as well as anybody else could that fire was bad, fire hurts... But would the rest hurt her to touch? Or would it give her Exploration EXP, and would bringing it back to her colony give them enough EXP to boost to the next life stage...?
She approached, closer, closer still... And she placed one of her warm hands against the cool metal carapace of the machine...