Oliver had no idea of what the gravity of the planet was, or, by extension, how fast terminal velocity would be. He could only guess that it was faster than he had ever driven; probably over a hundred miles per hour...

One thing he did know for certain was how difficult it was to judge distance when plummeting straight down. With little more than a decent guess and wishful thinking, Oliver pulled the cord.

He grunted from the pressure the sudden deceleration put on his body, a touch of worry flitting through his mind as the harness he wore groaned under the force. But somehow it held...

His next worry was the plane that was diving to intercept him.

A few, carefully placed shots from his trusty FAL was enough to dissuade their approach, even though he was sure he hadn't actually hit them. After the loss of the other plane, they had clearly grown cautious of him- at least for the moment.

His feet struck the ground harder than he expected, and he was nearly sent tumbling from the impact. Quickly collecting himself, he didn't waste time trying to fully collect or fold the parachute. He simply shrugged out of the harness and stuffed the whole thing into the System Warehouse.

He could deal with repacking the parachute later. If he had the chance.

With more planes circling in his direction, and likely some sort of ground troops being sent in his direction, he knew he needed to get clear in a hurry. But breaking contact would be an issue with a plane already overhead, watching his every move. He was tempted to pull out the Scrambler and make a break for it, but doubted the bike could outrun one plane.. Let alone the dozen headed his way.

Though he was loathe to use it, he did have one good option left...

Scarper Charm – On activation, creates a temporary portal to a safe location within 1 mile. Portal remains active for 5 seconds. 1 charge is consumed on each activation. Charm is destroyed when no charges remain. (1 charge)

The charm had already saved him from trouble twice. It was his safety net against the worst outcomes... and being without it would make everything just a touch riskier.

Glancing around for another option, he knew he wouldn't find one. While this part of the planet wasn't really a desert, it may as well have been. Patches of short, reddish grass sprouted up in places among the hard packed red soil. The largest foliage he could see in any direction were simple shrubs that wouldn't provide much in the way of concealment.

Maybe one of the numerous mountains would provide a decent hiding place, or the many rocks and boulders that littered their surroundings... But even if he found a good spot, the plane would simply lead any pursuers straight to him.

Diving into one of the rivers could work, but all it would do is to limit the search area to the length of the river. That and he would have to reach the river without getting shot first.

Outnumbered and, with the planes involved, out maneuvered... The charm wasn't just the best option. It was looking like his only option.

The charm- a small aqua colored butterfly speckled with black stars- crumbled to dust as he activated it for the last time. Oliver felt a pang of sadness at the loss, even as he leapt through the glowing portal. The first item he had received from the System was gone, just like that.

As the portal snapped shut behind him, Oliver looked around for new options- and thanked the System for the good luck... Or the help, whichever it was.

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He found himself between a pair of large boulders near one of the mountains, effectively blocking view of the portal from three directions. Directly ahead of him, barely twenty feet away at most, was one of the rivers that flowed through the area.

Peaking his head out from between the boulders, he could see the planes of in the distance, circling the area he had disappeared from. He could only imagine their confusion at what had happened, and a small smile flitted across his face. He was clear, at least for the moment.

Though a look in the other direction quickly relieved him of that bit of hope.

Perhaps just a few miles away was the mountain the planes had all flown out from, and Oliver now had a clearer picture of the trouble he was in. Pulling out his binoculars only made it more obvious.

The side of the mountain gapes open like a massive cavern, a rocky overhang protecting it from observation from above- which explained the lack of warning the Rach had as to their presence. Within the cavern was what could only be a military installation. Structures dotted the inside of the massive cave, the purposes unknown. But he could easily assume that they were intended to house and service the pilots as well as their planes- and any other personnel.

A smattering of planes remained within the cavern, either as a reserve for emergencies or grounded for some other reason... Maintenance maybe, Oliver guessed.

Sweeping his binoculars slowly across the complex, Oliver got his first clear look at one of the people living on this planet.

The people- as they were clearly intelligent and organized- were slightly larger than the average human. A little over six feet tall and bulkier in general, the soldiers were all heavily muscled and powerful looking. His earlier assumption proved right, as he saw thick, scaly tails hanging behind each of them, their tips nearly touching the ground.

Their heads, which he saw in profile when one of them turned to point out at the surrounding land, did indeed have an elongated snout. And wide jaws. The slitted pupils of reptilian eyes scanned quickly across the area, and a simple cap sat perched atop ridges and frills of the lizard like head...

They reminded Oliver a bit of iguanas...

“First Roach people. Then... What were the Osquin? Mosquito people maybe? Whatever...” He sighed as he turned his gaze back to the man wearing the cap. “Now I get to meet lizard people... Pretty shitty first impression on their part, though...”

While he didn't understand the badges and metals on their uniform, it was obvious they were an Officer- mainly due to the fact that they stood before a group of armored and helmeted soldiers, gesticulating vaguely in his direction. Giving orders, he assumed.

Orders for them to go out and find him.

Within moments, dozens of the soldiers trooped out of the cave entrance and down a ramp that Oliver hadn't noticed until that moment, so cleverly had it been disguised. He knew that, before long, the area would be swarmed by soldiers... And, considering the weapons they carried- which looked suspiciously like rifles- he wasn't sure that trying to open dialogue would work. Especially since he had already killed one of their comrades...

And he wasn't foolish enough to think that a stand-up fight against those numbers was a good idea.

“Ok, think Oli... And think quick.” He grumbled to himself as he turned to consider his options. “Talking is a bad idea... Best case, it turns into an interrogation. Maybe torture, for all I know...”

“So... no talking, no shooting... Gotta hide and evade...”

His eyes traced along the river, following its winding path... all the way to where it passed just a few hundred feet from the ramp the soldiers were marching down. Casting his gaze to the sky, he tried to roughly gauge the time of day.

“A few hours until sunset maybe? Glad we were the group furthest East... Avoiding them in the dark would be a lot easier...”

As his eyes returned again and again to the ramp leading to their base, Oliver sighed softly even as his eyes took on a manic gleam. “Or... I can be a complete fucking lunatic...”

“I mean... they did attack us first, right? So... fuck them. Fuck their base. Fuck this planet.”

“I'll take whatever I want from this shit-hole. And take what I can sell.”

A dark chuckle escaped his lips as he crept towards the river. “Like I said earlier... When someone tries to kill you, you try to kill 'em right back.”

“Wish I had a damn scuba tank, though...” He muttered as he slipped into the water.