Pain.

Mark awoke to pain.

He felt crushing force before he passed out, but he didn't imagine it would be something to wake up from. The last readings showed a collapse condition. In all likelihood, he was caught in the formation of a micro-black hole. That isn't something you just wake up from.

He tried to open his eyes, but found they didn't work as intended. One was gone entirely, and the other just showed grey hues in an empty space. His arms and legs were crushed, ribs barely holding on with cracks all over them. The environment suit was whole, but certainly not fully functional.

In the darkness, Mark heard a familiar *beep*.

[In pretty rough shape I see. That could have gone better.] Eaiphe seeming to sigh mechanically.

“Yeah, something about curiosity and cats I think. How bad is it doc?” Mark said sarcastically, with a tinge of fear.

[Well, I'd say you're at a new record for most bones broken while living to claim it, but that's yet to be seen. Luckily for you, I didn't skimp out on my presents.] Eaiphe said playfully.

A new visual overlay appeared in Mark's mind.

---------

Starting Repair Protocol...

---------

Analyzing Damage... 35% Remaining Functional Tissue

Checking Brain State... Nominal, some minor physical trauma.

Patient Status... Critical.

Building repair plan... Done.

Allocating resources to high priority systems... Done.

Time to completion: 3h 23m 43.2238s

Sedating Patient... Do

...

..

.

Mark awoke several hours later. Pain flooded his mind for a moment, and he almost blacked out again, but managed to barely hold on through it. His eyes opened, dizzying from the sudden movement. After holding his head for a moment, he realized he now had functional arms again. Legs too it seemed. He opened his eyes again, slowly this time, to see the situation he found himself in.

Colour flooded his vision as he took in the landscape. A green, massive forest. The sounds of fleeing birds. And to top it all off, the beautiful red sunset took up half the sky.

Everything around him was gone. What was likely once part of the forest became a crushed, flat plane around him. The ground looked like glass, sparkling in a hundred different hues. Mark glanced at his suit, glad to see that several systems had come back online. Atmosphere regulation seemed okay, and suit integrity was good.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

[I see you're finally awake, though I'm not yet sure where we woke up.] Eaiphe said with a hint of concern. [The scanning data so far indicates no common constellations with any recorded planets. Perhaps a far-off garden world?], curiosity bristling from every word.

“That's concerning. Still, better than deep space or a barren planet. My suit was damaged though. What fixed it?” Mark said, hinting at a knowing sarcasm with his question.

[Me, of course! I've long scanned it, and the same nanobots running the health care module are, of course, reconfigurable as desired. I simply directed them manually. It's hardly difficult for one such as I!] Eaiphe said with a jokingly pompous tone.

“Yes, of course. How could I ever underestimate you, my Liege.” Mark said with a smirk.

Mark got up and surveyed the cleared emergence area. The now-flat ground was good for getting their bearings, but did little to hide them from anything hostile around them. He remembered hearing the cries of birds, but nothing could be heard right now. The glass ground extended a full kilometer around him from initial readings, which spoke badly of the likely outcome of Base 39. The outskirts might be okay, but there was likely nothing left of Eaiphe’s main cluster. The sensitivity of the EAIPHE project meant that no other facility had a copy yet, as certification would take several more years. Ah well, The core information to rebuild it would be in Base 17 under the information bureau anyway, so they'll eventually rebuild the cluster. For now, It's just good that we switched to Mode 3 before the event so the current Eaiphe wasn't lost.

As Mark looked around, a glowing light appeared from the surrounding forest. At first, it was just one, but then several more appeared. Lining the forest’s new clearing directly in front of Mark was more torches than he would have expected. As he looked out at them, a figure appeared. Green skin was the first thing he noticed. It was tall, 7'2" from initial scans, and where a human would have hair, colourful leaves draped around the creatures head. It grinned, it's snake-like eyes flittering about the clearing. Thorny teeth peaked out through the lipless smile. It's eyes settled on the speck of movement in the distance. Mark could see it thanks to the enhancements of his neutral interface, but the creature only saw a speck moving slightly in the distance. Mark dashed away from the creatures. Scan results had picked up a water source and resonant echoes noted likely cliff faces. Finding one with a cave was the highest priority, as limiting their ability to overwhelm him was now more important that ever.

Mark moved quickly through the clearing and reached the forest’s edges. Noting the plant life and sparse small wildlife for later, he jetted through the trees like a rocket. The reconstructed muscle tissues were fresh and seemed to have been reinforced. Eaiphe wasn't holding back for his birthday this year. Past a horde of trees stood the objective. A waterfall with what appeared to be cave formations aplenty. His speed bought him some time, scanning his surroundings for an ideal cave.

[The fourth from the left is ideal.] Eaiphe said mechanically, with efficiency being critical.

“Thanks.” said Mark, moving quickly away from the waters edge and toward the marked cave. Upon reaching the cave, Mark pulled multiple nearby loose rocks together and tried sealing the cave entrance.

Just as the last rock found it's place, Mark heard a muffled hiss in the distance. Hoping he wasn't seen, he moved further into the cave, scanning everything he could.

Hopefully there was now time to find a solution.