The first thing I noticed as I walk down the ramp of our transport ship was that our three ships had all landed in a large field in the middle of a lush forest.
The field stretches out around us close to 500 feet in all directions and ends abruptly at a dense tree line, packed full of lush, green foliage.
The trees on the edge of the forest each stand nearly 150 feet tall, towering over the field below and casting long shadows across the long, swaying grass.
As I fully exit the ship, my men follow me with their weapons raised, ready for any threats that may appear, and as our ships take off and head back to the Devastation, our three groups meet in the center of the field.
As we meet up, mine and Mindal's men spread out to form a loose perimeter around us, watching for anything that may emerge from the dense foliage surrounding us, while Rathor's men all group up with us in the center.
"So here we are." I say as I reach Mindal and Rathor. "This planet doesn't seem much different than Earth, except for the enormous trees."
"You're right about that!." Mindal replies excitedly. "I've never seen so many giants trees in my life!."
"We should be careful." Warns Rathor. "We don't know anything about the wildlife here. And where there's forest, there's bound to be creatures inhabiting it."
"He's right." I reply while looking at Mindal. "We should should be extra careful and keep our eyes peeled while we look for a good spot to set up a base of operations."
We continued talking for a while, deciding on roles for our scouting mission, until eventually, our men shrink the perimeter and we enter the forest.
As soon as we cross the boundary of the field and enter the forest, the light coming through the densely packed canopy is noticeably dimmer.
The wind also disappears immediately, allowing the humidity permeating the air to seep into our skin and causing the men to start sweating.
As we walk beneath the shadowy foliage, millions of distinct calls from insects and small amphibians echo through the dense brush and harmonize around us like a kind of primal choir.
The trees cast long shadows on thick, twisting roots that seem to slither through the brush, making the footing uneven.
The air is filled with the buzzing of insects going about their lives, snacking on nectar from the vibrant flowers that hang from spindly vines, or flying around our men's heads in an attempt to drink their sweat.
We travel on through the forest for a while until I notice the men start to slow and I decide that we should take a short break to rehydrate and get our bearings.
While the men drink their water rations with Mindal and Rathor checking on their health, I decide to climb a massive tree near the group to try and see where we are.
I form my hands and feet into sharp, clawed appendages to help me scale the massive tree and I quickly make it to the top, while its' limbs groan in protest from my immense weight.
As I poke my head through its' leaves to look around I spot something equally spectacular as it was terrifying.
High above the endless sea of green that stretched out below me, an enormous lizard danced about in the sky, carried by large, webbed wings.
It twisted back and forth through the air around a large flock of small flying creatures that resembled birds.
Every so often it would dive through the creatures with its' large mouth agape, and exit the other side with hundreds of them within its' mouth before swallowing them and going for another pass.
It repeated this cycle several more times until all the creatures had been devoured, causing the lizard to fly off in search of more prey and allowing me to continue my survey.
After turning back to my task I began to see more of the land around us.
The trees below stretched on for miles in every direction, with a large mountain range on each side signifying the end of the forest.
The mountains were tall, dark monoliths, standing proudly against the horizon with bright peaks capped in snow reflecting light in every direction.
In the middle of the mountain range directly in front of us, was an enormous mountain standing twice as tall as the rest of its' siblings.
It was composed completely out of clean, black granite, with a tall peak that seemed to disappear into the clouds high above the ground.
The base was wide, spanning nearly ten miles on every side, with smaller mountains surrounding it like a natural wall.
Several small streams of snow melt trickled down from the mountain before merging into a massive, raging flow that cut through the smaller mountains and forest like a knife through butter, and traveled onwards to the horizon.
Having now found a natural marker for us to head towards I made my way back down the tree to convene with the rest of our group.
"I've got good new and I've got bad news." I say after I fall to the ground with a THUMP.
"Let's hear the bad news first." Says Rathor pragmatically.
"The bad news is that I saw some kind of massive winged reptile feasting on thousands of birds in the sky. The good news is that I've found a potential candidate for a strong base of operations."
"A flying lizard?!" Mindal says with awe. "Like a dragon!?"
"What's a dragon?" I reply in confusion.
"Dragon's were great reptilian beasts that populated ancient Human mythology." Rathor explains. "They could fly on large, webbed wings and were known to be very intelligent creatures."
"I'm not sure if that thing was intelligent, but it was definitely a flying reptile." I reply. "Either way, I think it would be best if we try to avoid a confrontation with that thing until we have some kind of fall back point."
"Agreed." Mindal and Rathor say before Rathor speaks again.
"With that said, tell me more about this potential base location while we walk."
As soon as he spoke, the men all gathered their things an followed me as I led everyone through the jungle and filled in Rathor.
"Yes I think that mountain will do very well as a secure base location." Rathor said as he nodded in thought.
"I believe with out material manipulating capabilities, we could easily hollow it out and construct sufficient fortifications to protect us from anything that might come knocking."
We continued out trek through the dense forest for another five miles before the sun fell below the horizon, forcing us to make camp for the night.
After starting a fire, the men ate their rations before climbing into their thermal bags to pass out from exhaustion as Mindal, Rathor, and I stood watch over our campsite.
The night was fairly peaceful, with the only sounds reaching us being the millions of nocturnal insects and small creatures calling out to each other beneath the dense canopy.
We sat around the campfire talking about our plans to create a fortified base of operations throughout the night, until it devolved into lighthearted conversation about meaningless things.
We talked all night until the sun finally began to rise once more, causing beautiful orange light to dance across the horizon.
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A couple hours later, when the sun had fully risen, we woke them men and helped them repack their belongings before we set out towards the mountain once more.
We continued on through the brush for another five miles, until we finally reached one of the small mountains surround the huge one where we would make our base.
We followed the ring of mountains to the right until we came across the raging river that cut through the stone in a smooth tunnel, and decided to give the men some time to rest.
They started another small fire to reheat their rations and after eating, stripped off their armor and clothes and decided to take a short swim in the cool, refreshing rapids of the river.
After they had been sufficiently refreshed, they donned their gear once more and we headed into the dark, damp tunnel that the river had cut through the mountains.
I took the lead with my men, while Mindal and Rathor followed behind with theirs, and we walked into the echoing tunnel.
The tunnel continued on for some time, with the sound of the rushing water echoing off of the stone walls that supported the weight of the mountain above us.
As we ventured deeper into the tunnel, I started to notice animal bones appearing on the floor in front of us.
We continued on for another two hours, with the bones become more and more prevalent, until we found the source of the bones laying on top of a pile of bone and blocking the tunnel exit.
It was a large, hairy creature with six legs that rippled with muscle. It had a large, heavy head with a mouth that was populated by thick, yellow teeth.
It lay on its' pile of bones, seemingly asleep, as a loud snoring sound reverberated throughout the tunnel walls.
I watched the beast on its' throne of death for a short while until a plan formed in my mind.
I turned back towards my men and pointed at the man carrying the anti-material rifle, before motioning for him to make his way to me.
He slowly creeps forward until he joins me at the front and looks to me for instructions.
I point at the beast in front of us before pointing at him and his rifle, making a trigger-pulling motion with my finger.
He nods in understanding before slowly lowering himself to a prone position and moving the rifle to his shoulder to fire.
He slowly pulls the bolt of the rifle open before inserting a 60mm round into the chamber and slowly slides the bolt back into place until it lets out a quiet *click*.
Although I could barely hear the sound, the great beast in front of us seems to have noticed the noise and begins to stir, but before It can get to its' feet, the rifle is fired with a loud BOOM that reverberates off the walls of the tunnel.
The round instantly impacts the beast's head before exploding, and sends shrapnel and flesh flying into the walls on either side of it.
The beast goes limp and falls on top of its' throne with a large crash that sends bones flying out from beneath it.
With the beast now dead, we slowly move past its' body, gingerly stepping around the corpse and passing though the tunnel exit behind us.
As we look up, we can see the massive mountain looming over us like a monument to geology.
The dank air of the tunnel is now replaced by a breeze of fresh air that twists and turns through the ring of mountains surrounding it, allowing the men's sweat to finally evaporate from their skin.
The ground around us is filled with long, swaying grass that seems to dance in the wind, with large trees dotting the landscape.
Rathor moves to stand next to me before speaking.
"Yes, I think this will do nicely indeed."
I nod and our groups spread out, heading off to look for anything that might be of use around the mountain.
I take my men around the perimeter, searching for any other dangerous beasts that might populate the area, finding a few more and quickly exterminating them.
Mindal and his men keep watch over our extra weapons and supplies to stop any curious natives from potentially gaining access to any weaponry they might not normally have access to.
And Rathor takes his men to the base of the mountain to start the most important task of all.
When he reaches a large cliff face of black granite, he forms his arms into large, sharp spikes and begins to tear into the rock.
He smashes and rips into the cliff, throwing large chunks of granite out behind him which his men then carry away to place in the tunnel entrance, creating a choke point.
By the time I return with my men, he's successfully hollowed out a tunnel that stretches nearly 200 feet into the cliff face and connected it to a room large enough for us to store our gear and supplies in.
Mindal and I both get our men to help us move the supplies into the room as Rathor keeps hacking away at the rock face.
By the time the sun sets once more, he's hollowed out enough rough-hewn stone rooms for everyone to sleep in, with the large store room connecting them all.
As the men eat and get ready to rest, the three of us head back to work on the river tunnel to allow them a proper rest without the noise of Rathor's digging keeping them up.
The tunnel was now almost completely blocked off, save for a small doorway allowing access and the deep river flowing through the middle.
"I'm not sure how we can fortify this tunnel without damming up the river and causing a flood." Rathor tells us as we inspect the wall of rubble.
"If we had some metal, I could fabricate some kind of grate to support a wall on top of it, but I haven't found any ore in the mountain yet."
"Did you forget your nanites can rearrange the molecules of any matter?" The woman suddenly spoke in our heads, startling all three of us.
"As long as you have matter to consume, you can synthesize anything you might need."
When she finishes, I look to Rathor and see a huge grin on his face.
He suddenly turns to the rubble wall and spears his arm into it, before covering it in nanites and absorbing the material.
After the wall has been completely absorbed, he then places his and to the ground and a stream of nanites slowly leave his arm to form a large grid pattern that perfectly matches the shape of the riverbed.
Slowly, a shiny metal allow condenses within the nanites, seemingly growing out of them, until finally his nanites return and leave a perfect plasteel grate lying on the ground.
He picks up the grate and hammers it into the stone riverbed, and after he's satisfied with the placement, he turns back around to face us.
"Now this is the kind of thing I could really get used to." He says happily.
"Forget the fighting and death, I'll leave that to you too. You can count on me to get this base in tip top shape in no time!."
After finishing speaking he instructs us to bring him more granite from the massive pile of overflow he had dug out of the mountain.
Through out the rest of the night we'd bring him material and he'd absorb it, only to create various materials to block off the tunnel.
By the time the sun rose again, the tunnel was blocked off by a massive wall, composed of eight foot thick, plasteel reinforced concrete, with small gun emplacements resting on top, ready to spray death on any enemies that might approach.
Embedded within the wall was a large, plasteel gate, measuring nearly a foot thick and secured by a complex system of gears and deadbolts that held it firmly shut.
After finishing the wall, and with Mindal and I staring in awe at his creation, Rathor simply dusts his hands off nonchalantly, before walking past us and saying. "Well, this base ain't gonna build itself!" And heading towards men who were just beginning to wake.
After a short stint of shock, Mindal and I both follow him to greet our men and figure out what our newest goals would be.
When we enter the stone storage room, the men are all talking lightly about the prior days' journey through the forest, but they all quiet down expectantly when we enter.
Rathor jovially tells his men to finish their meals and come find him when they're ready to begin before heading off into an unfinished hallway and once again begins tearing rock from the walls.
Mindal goes to find his men and I walk over to mine, and my Sergeant speaks to greet me when I approach.
"Good morning Lieutenant! What's on the agenda for today?" He says.
"I'm not really sure." I reply. "I think I'll head to the top of the mountain to get a better look around and maybe find a small town or city that we can investigate."
"Sounds like a plan sir." He replies. "We'll finish our meals, suit up, and wait here for you, so come find us when you're ready to move out."
I nod in conformation, before leaving the room and exiting the mountain.
I gaze up at the tall peak of the mountain, skirted by swirling clouds, and decide to put my condensed nanites to a true test of strength.
I crouch in a low stance, commanding the nanites within my legs to compress like a massive heavy spring.
When I feel as though they're as dense as possible, I jump, commanding them to expand as fast as they possibly can.
The stone beneath my feet cracks loudly from the sudden acceleration, and my feet leave a large crater in the ground, as thousands of pounds of nanites are send hurtling into the air.
I rocket skyward extremely fast, with the clouds above coming closer to me as I fly until eventually, my momentum begins to die off and I land on the slope of the mountain, having travelled nearly a quarter of the distance to its' peak.
I smile at the results and crouch down low once more before launching myself again.
I repeat the jump two more times, and after a short walk to the summit later, I'm left standing above the cloud layer and peering out towards the horizon.
I look out at the planet below me and see the forest stretching far below. I can see the winding river, cutting a path through the trees as it journeys across the land.
I turn to look towards the opposite side of the mountain and I'm intrigued by what I see.
The trees of the forest continue on until they reach the mountain range where we were now building our base, and on the other side of the mountains was a massive grasslands that stretched far off into the distance.
I could see the long grasses flowing in waves far below, as the wind passed over them.
There were small streams that flowed from the smaller mountains into small lakes and ponds that dotted the fields.
What interested me the most however, was a small ring of young trees surrounding a walled town in the middle of the planes.
I could see primitive dirt roads stretching out from the gates of the towns, with wagons pulled by four legged creatures passing through the walls.
Bingo, I thought. This was exactly what I had been looking for.
After a short time spent observing the distant town, I headed back down the mountain to meet with my men.
When I entered the storage room again, my men were all waiting for me, wearing their black and red armor and carrying their weapons.
"I found some sort of fortified town on the other side of the mountains." I say as I move to greet them. "It should take us a full day to reach them and we'll start surveillance after that."
"Oh! I'll come with you!" Mindal says as his head peaks out from a doorway. "You'll need my help if you want to gain entry through the walls without bloodshed."
"I'll open up another tunnel on the backside of the mountains for you to pass." Rathor says as well, as he takes a break from his digging. "We'll need a point of escape anyways so might as well make it now."
I nod agreeing with them both and we gather our men before heading to the backside of the large mountains.
Rathor makes short work of the stone, tearing through it like a mining machine and clearing the way, and before I know it, we're exiting the tunnel into the planes while he builds a brand new wall behind us.