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current_story:return_from_innocence [2023/08/24 04:16] – cromwellcurrent_story:return_from_innocence [2025/04/12 01:44] (current) – cromwell
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 "Acknowledged," Sheila promptly replied. "Acknowledged," Sheila promptly replied.
  
-"Anything?" Blake turned and asked Saal after the ship slipped into the lower orbit.+After the ship slipped into the lower orbit, several minutes slipped by in silence as scan after scan failed to register anything new. 
 + 
 +"Anything?" Blake finally turned to asked Saal as a curious chriping came forth from his console.
  
 "Yes," Saal responded excitedly as he studied the information coming in on the monitor.  "The refined metal traces have isotope ratios that correspond to Starfleet hull signatures.  They're coming from an area at coordinates three-five-six by one-eight-one.  Northern hemisphere, just ahead of the first eastern terminator." "Yes," Saal responded excitedly as he studied the information coming in on the monitor.  "The refined metal traces have isotope ratios that correspond to Starfleet hull signatures.  They're coming from an area at coordinates three-five-six by one-eight-one.  Northern hemisphere, just ahead of the first eastern terminator."
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 As morning broke, the locals emerged to tend their crops, climbing the steps from their canyon abodes below, and stepping out onto the fields to begin their daily task of clearing unwanted scrub and fungi away with a select number of farm implements and digging utensils.  They worked with speed and purpose, exercising their routine of nurturing their critical farmland before the scorching cerulean light of the dwarf sun parched the land once more after second sunrise.  The erect bipedal workers of the soil were humanoid beings, possessing large pupil-less eyes, and boasting skin colors that spanned a wide spectrum of blue.  They wore colorful, gossamer-thin silken wrappings to protect themselves from the harsh rays while the open mesh fabric allowed the ever-present wind to cool their skin.  These wrappings were all worn across the lower torso serving as loin cloths, while some of the female persuasion also wore them across the chest area as well.  An assortment of jewelry adorned a few of the workers, some with small pieces of metal and polished stones worn around the neck and wrists, while others worked the ceremonial accouterments into their indigo hair which tended to wear long.  Most prominent among these exotic tenants of the land were the cleanly crested ears that terminated towards the apex into supple points, lending to the often cliched reality that evolution selects for such tapered acoustical lobes among most if not all desert dwellers. As morning broke, the locals emerged to tend their crops, climbing the steps from their canyon abodes below, and stepping out onto the fields to begin their daily task of clearing unwanted scrub and fungi away with a select number of farm implements and digging utensils.  They worked with speed and purpose, exercising their routine of nurturing their critical farmland before the scorching cerulean light of the dwarf sun parched the land once more after second sunrise.  The erect bipedal workers of the soil were humanoid beings, possessing large pupil-less eyes, and boasting skin colors that spanned a wide spectrum of blue.  They wore colorful, gossamer-thin silken wrappings to protect themselves from the harsh rays while the open mesh fabric allowed the ever-present wind to cool their skin.  These wrappings were all worn across the lower torso serving as loin cloths, while some of the female persuasion also wore them across the chest area as well.  An assortment of jewelry adorned a few of the workers, some with small pieces of metal and polished stones worn around the neck and wrists, while others worked the ceremonial accouterments into their indigo hair which tended to wear long.  Most prominent among these exotic tenants of the land were the cleanly crested ears that terminated towards the apex into supple points, lending to the often cliched reality that evolution selects for such tapered acoustical lobes among most if not all desert dwellers.
  
-One such farm worker paused his tilling of the soil, laying his long-handled rake against a nearby rock and retrieving a red clay flask with a stopper make of a soft, moss-like material.  Popping it open, he took a long swig of nourishing liquid, tilting his head upward as he drank.  Slowly, he lowered the flask, his eyes fixed on a point beyond the horizon, past a distant mountain range where the daytime trace of a crescent moon rose.  A dark, oblong shape slowly formed behind a haze of heat mirages, growing larger and more distinct as it made its way over the mountains.  As it came closer, the main metallic body was clearly lens-shaped, held aloft by a smaller oval pedestal with a forward maw that glowed with rings of blue and white.  Looming even closer, the lower pedestal also held aloft a pair of rounded box-like appendages behind the lens-shaped main construct.  These appendages each hosted glowing ruby-red anterior faces, giving the impression that a set of angry crimson eyes were bearing down upon the world, ready to wreak havoc from the sky.  The gawking farm worker dropped his clay flask and stumbled backwards, his pupil-less eyes wide in horror.  One by one, the terrorized field tenants abandoned their farming implements and scattered in a single direction through their carefully cultivated croplands, away from the oncoming craft, and towards the construction site of their newest surface structure atop the canyon wall.+One such farm worker paused his tilling of the soil, laying his long-handled rake against a nearby rock and retrieving a red clay flask with a stopper made of a soft, moss-like material.  Popping it open, he took a long swig of nourishing liquid, tilting his head upward as he drank.  Slowly, he lowered the flask, his eyes fixed on a point beyond the horizon, past a distant mountain range where the daytime trace of a crescent moon rose.  A dark, oblong shape slowly formed behind a haze of heat mirages, growing larger and more distinct as it made its way over the mountains.  As it came closer, the main metallic body was clearly lens-shaped, held aloft by a smaller oval pedestal with a forward maw that glowed with rings of blue and white.  Looming even closer, the lower pedestal also held aloft a pair of rounded box-like appendages behind the lens-shaped main construct.  These appendages each hosted glowing ruby-red anterior faces, giving the impression that a set of angry crimson eyes were bearing down upon the world, ready to wreak havoc from the sky.  The gawking farm worker dropped his clay flask and stumbled backwards, his pupil-less eyes wide in horror.  One by one, the terrorized field tenants abandoned their farming implements and scattered in a single direction through their carefully cultivated croplands, away from the oncoming craft, and towards the construction site of their newest surface structure atop the canyon wall.
  
-The foundation site of the new lunar temple had been a painstaking practice in decorative brickwork, as laying each flattened square red stone in an architecturally-sound and precise manner was important to forming the impressive montage of concentric circles on the ground.  While the dozen or so long cylindrical columns were still lying on their sides, presently being hand-worked by the various masonry craftsmen of the village, the auburn stone trusses of the triangular roof cap had already been completed, resting neatly on temporary platforms, and ready to raise with block and tackle pulleys once the columns were ready to go vertical.  Scattered among the construction site were no more than a dozen of the blue limber aliens, most wielding stone carving implements and hunched over various  pieces of stonework.  Towards the center of the brick-laid foundation, two of the blue-skinned individuals stood around a raised flat stone table.  One was a tall, slender woman with toned muscular features, and armed with a scimitar style weapon worn low on her hip.  The other was a young male with gauze-like ceremonial robes flowing in the wind, and wearing an unusual number of ritual jewelry pieces on his body, which played host to stone and metal necklaces, arm bands, and hairpieces.  They were reviewing a large brown parchment splayed out on a flat stone slab, with small rocks placed at various intervals to keep the incessant wind from catching it and blowing it away.  Black lines and pictograms were sketched on it's surface, each outlined using straight and precise drawing tools to form an intricate and accurate depiction of what the final full-sized building would become when finished.+The foundation site of the new lunar temple had been a painstaking practice in decorative brickwork, as laying each flattened square red stone in an architecturally-sound and precise manner was important to forming the impressive montage of concentric circles on the ground.  While the dozen or so long cylindrical columns were still lying on their sides, presently being hand-worked by the various masonry craftsmen of the village, the auburn stone trusses of the triangular roof cap had already been completed, resting neatly on temporary platforms, and ready to raise with block and tackle pulleys once the columns were ready to go vertical.  Scattered among the construction site were no more than a dozen of the blue limber aliens, most wielding metal carving implements and hunched over various  pieces of stonework.  Towards the center of the brick-laid foundation, two of the blue-skinned individuals stood around a raised flat stone table.  One was a tall, slender woman with toned muscular features, and armed with a scimitar style weapon worn low on her hip.  The other was a young male with gauze-like ceremonial robes flowing in the wind, and wearing an unusual number of ritual jewelry pieces on his body, which played host to stone and metal necklaces, arm bands, and hairpieces.  They were reviewing a large brown parchment splayed out on a flat stone slab, with small rocks placed at various intervals to keep the incessant wind from catching it and blowing it away.  Black lines and pictograms were sketched on it's surface, each outlined using straight and precise drawing tools to form an intricate and accurate depiction of what the final full-sized building would become when finished.
  
 "They don't make them like they used to," the tall, lithe warrior woman commented while studying the architectural plans. "They don't make them like they used to," the tall, lithe warrior woman commented while studying the architectural plans.
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 They paused their critical review of the drawings to listen closely to a distant screaming.  It wasn't just one scream, but dozens of them. As the two aliens turned towards the sound, they spied several of the villagers racing towards them, as if being chased by fliers or some other blood-thirsty beast.  It was a confusing sight until they realized why they were running.  An enormous spoon-shaped metallic construct was plowing through the skies above them, its surface sculpted of interlaced metal plates and smooth reflective windows.  Composed of oblong and oval-shaped embodiments, the lustrous monster was as big as a mountain, yet wasn't held up by flapping wings or any visible mechanism that could beat the air into submission.  It simply slowed and came to a hover in the sky over them, casting a shadow upon the land and blocking out the light of the first sun.   They paused their critical review of the drawings to listen closely to a distant screaming.  It wasn't just one scream, but dozens of them. As the two aliens turned towards the sound, they spied several of the villagers racing towards them, as if being chased by fliers or some other blood-thirsty beast.  It was a confusing sight until they realized why they were running.  An enormous spoon-shaped metallic construct was plowing through the skies above them, its surface sculpted of interlaced metal plates and smooth reflective windows.  Composed of oblong and oval-shaped embodiments, the lustrous monster was as big as a mountain, yet wasn't held up by flapping wings or any visible mechanism that could beat the air into submission.  It simply slowed and came to a hover in the sky over them, casting a shadow upon the land and blocking out the light of the first sun.  
    
-"Stand your ground!" the warrior woman ordered to the frightened citizenry that scattered around them.  "Everyone!  Stand your ground!  We will fear the sky no longer!"  While some listened to her and stood nervously in the shadow of the strange craft in the sky, others were borderline hysterical, continuing to look for places to hide.+"Stand your ground!" the warrior woman ordered to the frightened citizenry scattered around them.  "Everyone!  Stand your ground!  We will fear the sky no longer!"  While some listened to her and stood nervously in the shadow of the strange craft in the sky, others were borderline hysterical, continuing to look for places to hide.
  
 "Bah-Ki!" the woman turned angrily to her companion.  "Do something!" "Bah-Ki!" the woman turned angrily to her companion.  "Do something!"
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-As the veil of transporter energy faded, there were gasps of awe and intrigue among the gathered crowd of blue-skinned aliens.  They whispered nervously among themselves as the four humanoids looked around at their new surroundings, their skin tones varying from brown to pink, and wearing uniforms of dual-tone primary colors.  The newcomers took no hostile action, and only scanned the crowd with their white pupil-filled eyes.  The crowd parted to make room between the strangers and the formidable, high-ranking warrior woman who was clearly their leader.  She stood commandingly with her arms crossed, her sword hanging at her side, and her blue muscular legs spread in a solid combat stance. Clearly, she was waiting for the foreigners to make the first move.  As if silently accepting the invitation to confer, the four uniformed individuals walked slowly up to the battle princess in a non-hostile demeanor, with the leading man in the red and black uniform raising his arm in greeting.  He was about to speak when the blue alien woman chose to break the ice first.+As the veil of transporter energy faded, there were gasps of awe and intrigue among the gathered crowd of blue-skinned aliens.  They whispered nervously among themselves as the four humanoids looked around at their new surroundings, their skin tones varying from brown to pink, and wearing uniforms of dual-tone primary colors.  The newcomers took no hostile action, and only scanned the crowd with their strange multi-toned eyes.  The crowd parted to make room between the strangers and the formidable, high-ranking warrior woman who was clearly their leader.  She stood commandingly with her arms crossed, her sword hanging at her side, and her blue muscular legs spread in a solid combat stance. Clearly, she was waiting for the foreigners to make the first move.  As if silently accepting the invitation to confer, the four uniformed individuals walked slowly up to the battle princess in a non-hostile demeanor, with the leading man in the red and black uniform raising his arm in greeting.  He was about to speak when the blue alien woman chose to break the ice first.
  
 "You are Starfleet?" she asked very clearly in Terran, though with an exotic accent bleeding through. "You are Starfleet?" she asked very clearly in Terran, though with an exotic accent bleeding through.
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 "Yes," Theo "Doug Forrest" Carter replied with surprise.  It was clear that the woman already knew something about them, so it made him even more hesitant to speak his next words, as he was effectively erasing the past few turbulent years of his life and pressing the reset button on his Starfleet career. "Yes," Theo "Doug Forrest" Carter replied with surprise.  It was clear that the woman already knew something about them, so it made him even more hesitant to speak his next words, as he was effectively erasing the past few turbulent years of his life and pressing the reset button on his Starfleet career.
  
-"I'm... Lieutenant Commander Doug Forrest of the Starship Republic..." he greeted her.  "This is Doctor Yezbeck, Lieutenant Anderson, and Chief Towe."+"I'm... Lieutenant Commander Doug Forrest of the Starship Republic..." he greeted her in a prim, professional tone that he hadn't used in years.  "This is Doctor Yezbeck, Lieutenant Anderson, and Chief Towe."
  
 "I am Dadjinn," she introduced herself, her Terran becoming more broken, but still understandable.  "This is Zharon and Bah-Ki." "I am Dadjinn," she introduced herself, her Terran becoming more broken, but still understandable.  "This is Zharon and Bah-Ki."
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 "Who's that?" Forrest asked with puzzlement. "Who's that?" Forrest asked with puzzlement.
  
-"That?" the alien woman returned, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.  "THAT is John Carter of Mars..."+"That?" the alien woman retorted as if it should've been the most obvious thing in the world.  "THAT is John Carter of Mars..."
  
 //<tag = Carter>// //<tag = Carter>//
current_story/return_from_innocence.txt · Last modified: 2025/04/12 01:44 by cromwell

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