My First Field Trip

Posted on Mon Apr 19th, 2021 @ 8:31pm by The Narrator & Major Tatiana Skobelova & Lieutenant Commander Amie Cerys & Staff Warrant Officer Blaise Birch

Mission: S2:3: Snow Drift
Location: 'Coney Island', Planet Tripwire, Concordance Space
Timeline: MD-2 9.00

The little island Birch had selected from orbit did not look better as the Javelin settled onto its landing struts. A dozen square miles of rocky earth, with gnarled and angry looking tree’s with dark leafs, surrounded by a jagged coast line of shear cliffs cuffed in the sickly wash of the diminishing ocean. Waves capped with sickly yellow foam crashed against the islands single black sand beach.

One of the Marines had likened it to Coney Island, and the name had stuck for the same reason there is a Planet Bob somewhere in the Alpha Quadrant. The narrow clearing the large Marine transport had landed within perfectly camouflaged the Javelin, its active camp system changing the upper hull plates into a close match with the surrounding tree cover.

Kle followed the others out of the Javelin, the armoured EV suit enclosing her head in its protective helmet giving her visor a backlit quality to it with her glowing head fronds.

“Huh,” Kle said as she knelt down and drew her splayed-out gloved fingers through the black soil. “I sort of expected my first alien world to be a bit more…alien. This could be the Javik Coast back on Xilos if I didn’t know we’d traveled lightyears.”

The small unit of marines formed a quick parameter under the supervision of a corporal. After the marines were set, the corporal looked back at Tatiana for approval. Tatiana nodded her agreement. "All right, we have our landing site secured. Let's find out what's down on this mud hole."

"Reminds me of home," one of the troopers said.

"You come from New Jersey," another said.

"Yeah. Toxic ocean spray, fungus among us, tree's that look like the devil. If I could take off my helmet, I could smell my moms home cooking I betcha." That got a chuckle from the others.

"Cut out the chatter and pay attention to your sectors." Tatiana sternly told the marines. "I don't want to change my address to Camp Sunshine."

This was the one thing that did tend to bother her about working with marines; their chatter. Mostly, Amie ignored it all and just continued on as she was supposed to.

The chatter cut off immediately, and the Marines returned to keeping a watchful eye on their assigned sectors. But the Marine had had a point, the scene could have been one of a dozen worlds still recovering from a post-industrial ecological crisis. Hard to believe that parts of Earth, the human homeworld, had looked like this at the beginning of the 21st century.

Two of Birch's science techs were beginning to set up some equipment when they let out a shout. A small flattened disk with four stubby clawed legs scuttled out from under the support strut of the equipment, clearly upset that it had been disturbed by the pursuit of science.

Taking a deep breath, Birch welcomed the putrid stench as his own reminder of home. Absently, he tapped the IV port in his arm where he received his monthly dialysis. Thanks to such environs on his homeworld, he would devolve into a feral monster without regular treatment. Such was the fate of all Corvans.

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder," he quipped to no one in particular. Turning to the task at hand, he began pointing in tandem with orders given. "I want scanners set there, there, there, and there at 50 meters equidistance. Core samples need to begin immediately along with quantum spectral seismographer installations. I want a live composition of the magnetic resonance imaging for this region before the jarheads get itchy."

"Chief Birch, you do know that I can hear you?" Tatiana asked. "There is nothing wrong with the our fire discipline."

"You aren't the only jarheads present, Major," Birch said, casting a subtle aspersion and weather eye at Kle.

"Jarhead...Is that a dig at the helmet? Because, I mean, honestly that seems a little tame from you. Come on Mr Science, I was a combat engineer when I was in the Cadre. I like playing in the mud as much as everyone else," Kle said, digging a gloved hand into the sod. As she did so a large worm-like creature uncoiled from the disturbed sod. In fact it looked like five worms having a heated debate, or a starfish on a fad diet.

Cradling it in her hands, she turned to present it to Birch.

"Hey, you want to make first contact with this new alien life form I found? Show it your sensitive side," Kle asked, all innocence and artificial sweetener in her voice.

Sighing heavily, Amie walked around a bit near where they landed. She raised an eyebrow when she spotted something and wandered over to a cove near the beach. "Now what is this," she said softly, kneeling down. It looked exactly like burnt wood, and she bet it smelled like that without this suit on. She run a finger along it, but then her eyes found something else. "Stones...why do they look sticky..." She forgot that her comms were on though, as she continued to look at what she'd found.

"If you don't mind me saying Ma'am, that looks like a stone that's been used in a fire pit. Had one back on Harlands Worlds where I grew up," one of the Marines guarding alongside the intel officer said. "You have meat out over the fire, as it cooked you'd get fat and gristle cooking off of it. The rocks near it would get coated in it."

"Exactly what I was thinking. Can't quite tell how long ago it was used though," Amie said as she looked over. "Forgot my comm was on. Likely was used a lot by the looks of it though."

"Got more over here," one of the science tech said from the other side of the clearing.

"Congratulations," Birch said sarcastically. "You found a common quartzite composite material covered in carbon scoring and what appears to be detritus biological matter. The only, and I cannot underscore that word enough, thing of note about this find is the deposits of subcutaneous tissue embedded within the rotten cocktail of decomposing fatty acid and protein chains. Not exactly a fossil. Leftovers from an unfortunate creature on the edge of a blast radius more likely, but I suppose we can keep it for testing if for no other reason than to use the stress fractures to better gauge the impact velocity of the orbital bombardments."

The science techs words put a bad taste in Tatiana's mouth. Things were getting interesting and not in a good way.

"Major, I found something," one of the Marines said from the tree line. He was standing in the shade of one of the scraggy tree's. Close up its bark really did look like the scales of a reptile, with its leaves narrow and drooping with a dark green lustre. But it was not the three he was concerned with, but what was at its base.

No larger than a standard-issue tricorder, the block of a beige coloured matter was half wrapped in a silver foil with an unmistakable bite mark taken from one corner. A ration bar of some sort, whose wrapper had the interlinked twined circles of the Concordance stamped on it.

As Tatiana moved up to where the marines was, she moaned as she recognized the Concordance mark. "What the hell made that?" She asked herself before remembering the marine. "Good find, Marine." She told him. "Commander Cerys, Chief Birch, please come to my position. You need to see this."

Birch reported to the Marine's position with a weary expression on his face. Hopefully this find would be more significant. "Yes, what is it?" He saw the half-opened ration bar. "We are quite busy. Did you really call me over here for snack time?"

Tatiana ignored Birch's facetious behavior. "It was more of a courtesy to keep your informed. You can return to your survey at anytime." Tatiana then turned to Amie. "Commander, I don't suppose you can tell me how recently this food has been eaten or what took a bite out of it?"

Coming up behind the rest of them, Amie raised an eyebrow. "I'm not scientist but...I suppose I can try." She got closer and looked at the item, but also pulled her tricorder. "Fire pits and partially eaten food, wonder what we've walked into."

"Javelin to away team, we've picked up a fast-moving contact closing in on the island. Must have been riding on the wave tops because we only picked it up ten miles out. ETA is three minutes. My co-pilot thinks if we dust off right now we can get over the horizon before we're spotted, but we'd be leaving you guys in the sticks. If we hang on for you to get back in we will be spotted if we take off. Please advise."

In the background, the comm burst the whine of the dropship's engines changed pitch as they spun up to lift-off speed.

Birch stuck two black fingertips between his equally onyx lips and let loose a shrill whistle. "Pack it up! Take only the readings and what you can carry! Leave the embedded equipment! Everybody out!"

"Skobelova to Javelin, take off now!" Tatiana shouted over the comm. "Come back when things have cooled off." She then turned to Birch. "We aren't getting any answers if we leave and if they discover us, a return trip will be much more difficult. This is our best shot. Everyone, find cover!"

With that, the Javelin's engine shrilled into action and the drop ship lifted out of the clearing. Wind buffeted the team from the downdraft as it turned and began to power over the treetops. It was only when it was past the far side of the island that there was a subdued rumble of thunder as it broke the sound barrier.

"You need help Sir getting your gear stowed?" one of the Marines asked Birch.

"Think that answers part of our questions," Amie called out as she pocketed her tricoder, searching for cover. "Of all the things to happen..."

"I need our transport to get the hell back here and evac us now!" Birch shouted at the Marine.

"And if the Javelin tries to return it will more than likely be discovered." Skobelova shot back at Birch. "We are here to find answers and we can't do that orbiting in a ship. Now get your gear, find cover, and hunker down until it's clear. That's an order!"

As people scrambled to comply with the order, a new sound began to filter across the air. A loud, subsonic droning that rose to a light roar coming through the trees in the direction of high cliffs. One of the Marines near to the tree line linked his suits camera feed to the group channel.

+++

The view is from shoulder height, it's where the designers wanted the camera mounted. What can be seen is the scraggly limbs of a low bush and part of a tree trunk, and then a few meters of open scrubland before an abrupt drop-off. Those would be the high cliffs that lined one side of the island. But the view over the cliff presents the black volcanic beach that stretches along the western side, broken here and there by high promontory rocks.

A flickering range finder decides the distance from one end of the beach to the cliffs is over two miles, and what is arriving in view of the camera has the good decency to do so at the furthest point of the beach from the landing party.

It looks, for all the world, like a pair of co-joined pre-space flight jetliners that had been worked over by an army of rolling pins. The twin fuselages acted as pontoons, separated by a large deck area crowded with tethered down land assault vehicles. Sensor masts and a large radar disc studded along its side like the fin of a shark, matched only by the massive tail boom that rose behind it. Short stubby wings protruded from its side, with the massive array of fore mounted engines set above them. It was a ground effect vehicle, able to utilised a cushion of air trapped beneath its hull to fly at high speed close to the water.

Its engine note changed, and the craft wallowed into the shallow surf of the beach on its two pontoon fuselages. Ugly rancid foam swelled out in all directions from the tainted water, and with a final roar it pushes itself up onto the beach.

Almost instantly the ramp set between the two nose cones lowered into the sand, and under the cover of smoke grenades launched by built-in mortars, the stowed combat power began to roll off the deck. Thick six-wheeled IFV's sank into the sand before they gained traction, their low turrets mounted with stubby cannon mouths.

The display continued, with line after line of the IFV's rolling off the transport, and fanning out across the section of beach they'd conquered. Behind the armoured vehicles came the marching columns of soldiers, all uniformed in the same light grey colour scheme. But even from two miles out it was plain as day not many of them shared the same body plan.

The Concordance had arrived.

+++

"Do not fire unless fired upon." Tatiana whispered over the com net. "We can't beat them in a shootout, but it doesn't look like they spotted us. Could be a routine patrol. Let them have their picnic on the beach and stroll through the wastes. Don't let them know we are here and keep com chat to urgent transmissions only."

With her comms off, Amie swore in a few languages to herself before giving Tatiana a thumbs up. She was okay in a shootout but not great, and for sure out of practice.

Tatiana acknowledged Amie's sign. If they were to get off this planet, intelligence would have a good bit of data. Now came the worst part, waiting. Waiting to see if the Concordance had discovered them. Waiting to see if the nerves of the landing party don't crack and someone starts shooting. Tatiana would like to think that the marines were trained not lose their cool, but Tatiana had been in Starfleet long enough to know better.

"Major I can see them lining up on the beach. Light armour, probably APC's, say company strength in numbers of boots on the ground. No heavy kit I can see, but that sea monster of their's got box launchers on its back for something that ain't for ..." the Marine out on the far edge by the cliff reported in. "...looks like they're beginning to set up a camp on the tree line. I can see inflatable hab tents going up. No aerial support I can see. What do you want to do Ma'am?"

The glare Birch leveled at Tatiana from his black-within-black eyes was downright eldritch. "We shouldn't even be here right now," he hissed.

"You picked the damn island bread head," Kle hissed back.

"Now's not the time for this," Amie finally spoke up through the comms and looked at them all. "We have to find our own place to hide out without being seen as we find it. And we have to do it now."

"Observation post, keep track of what the baddies are up to. Above all, stay out of sight. If you're in concealment stay there. If not get there now without being seen. If these guys are on a routine patrol or training exercise they won't be on full alert. If they discover us, they'll be wide awake. Keep them in a relaxed posture." Skobelova advised everyone quietly over the com net.

"So much for this following any type of plan," Amie mumbled as she nodded to Skobelova. "Let's do this."