Iset
Guardian
- Joined
- Apr 13, 2006
- Posts
- 226
- Location
- Canada!!!
- Society
- The 3-Toed Sloths
Hello!
For some time now I've been working on an idea to write a fanfiction slightly longer than the normal few-page ones. I have no idea how long this one will be, as I think I will keep writing till I dont have anything else to write
I have just finished the first chapter, and want to know what you guys think. I'll try to do a chapter a week, if I have time. This is sort of the prequel to my Sloth's at Crystal Palace one, but if I can, I think that may become one of the chapters later on. Any ideas or suggestions are welcome, as this is just the first draft.
Enjoy!
CHAPTER ONE
Softly, softly.
Not a breath escapes my lips; and my feet barely touch the foliage as I glide over the jungle floor. The air is soft, small pools of green light escape through the canopy above, lighting the small insects and mammals as they scurry about their business.
But all I hear is silence.
Even as I walk I am recounting my training in my head; to be as stealthy as a berycled, as silent as a turp, and as ferocious and merciless as an atrox. But today, my quarry will be the most feared and accomplished predator on all Calypso.
Through breaks in the branches before me, I can see a sea of wild grasses, reaching almost as high as my shoulder. And almost high enough to conceal my prey, but not quite. Even crouching, now and then I catch sight of the grasses being parted, and the glint of light as the sun falls on some exposed armour.
I am stealthy as a berycled, quiet as a turp, and as ferocious as an atrox. I need not be afraid.
Carefully, I unhinge my rifle from its case on my back and insert my amp. Wistfully looking down at my hip I almost wish I could try out my new pistol, as unpractised as I am. But that would require moving in too close for comfort. Take the smart kill.
Looking back up, I aim my rifle and look through the scope, waiting for the opportune moment. But nothing. In the split second I had looked down, my quarry had vanished.
Suppressing the urge to panic, I begin to make my way to my left, hoping to come around behind my prey’s last known position. I can feel my nerves tingle, my entire body feeling as if it’s been lit on fire. I have to resist the urge to jump at every small sound, though even the sound of a bird taking flight causes me to whirl around, rifle aimed. I am loosing sight of my objective.
There; once more I catch a glimpse of shadow among the yellow grass. Only an arm, but one covered in the greyish-black composite that I easily recognize. I have him. Through my scope I can see the figure also has a rifle aimed, and is carefully searching the surrounding area. With a sense of dread I realize that it was only luck that I saw him first, and that I had come from the right direction. Had I come from the west, from the lowlands... I care not to dwell on what might have been.
Assured that I now again know his position, I circle him slowly, knowing I only have the one shot to at least disarm him. Kneeling, I stop my breath once more and take aim. One. Two. Three. Four. And I fire.
I hear him fall even before I see him—I am up and running towards him, dagger in hand even before the recoil has thumped against my shoulder. Only a few moments and I am on the ground, arms wrapped around his neck; and with a savagery that surprises me, I put the dagger to work.
It takes me a moment to calm myself. The adrenaline rush is just subsiding, and I take some time to massage my shaking hands. Only after my heart stops beating erratically do I look down at the crumpled heap before me, shuddering in its last death-throes. I trace the lines of the armour with my finger until he stops, taking in the beauty and craftsmanship of it. But I do not have time; soon this area will be swarming with his soc mates, drawn by the sound of gun fire. I grab his rifle to leave, and then curiosity gets the better of me.
With a jerk I pull off his helmet, and pull him on to his side. Turning him over still and I face him upwards. And fall.
It is not the face of a man that is looking back at me. Not even the face of a boy. But it is not the soft curve of the chin, or even the delicate nose that has me breathing hard; nor even the pool of blood, as much coming from the mouth as from the gaping wound on the neck. It is the eyes, string wide in horror; the very same green-blue eyes that I know so well.
And it is in that instant that I realize the head I am holding in my lap is my own.
“Iset! Iset, wake up love, it was only a dream. Come on love, wake up!”
The darkness fades, and I am all sweat-soaked sheets and shaking. I try to reorient myself to the arms around me, and to the green eyes staring at me with worry. Then all is dark for a moment and I feel the brush of lips against my forehead.
“That was a bad one, wasn’t it?” she asks softly, giving me a reassuring squeeze.
“No, no. The same as before. Only this time, it felt, I dunno, more urgent.”
Soft hands began to caress my shoulder, massaging out the stress and worry, and then began to move lower.
“You’re worried about the Land Grab aren’t you? Just say the word, please tell me, and I’ll have Siam take you out of the ranks, or at least change you to Medic. I hate seeing you like this.”
“It’ll be okay Lexxy” I murmur, finding it harder and harder to concentrate on thinking. “Really, I...will.” I gave her a lopsided smile. “It’s just... it’s just my first battle, that’s all. I’ll be fine once it’s over, I just keep thinking...”
“You don’t need to worry” she says, moving closer to me. “Because you have your tough,” and she began to tickle my neck, caressing the back of my ear. “Strong,” and she moved lower, tickling me on my ribs, causing me to try to curl away from her with laughter. “And definitely bigger,” as she pinned me under her, tickling me until I had no breath left to protest. “Lexxy, who will protect you from everything else.” With that last comment she leaned down and kissed me hard. “And I will not let anything bad happen to you.”
Some time later, the sunlight began to come up over the buildings of Treasure Island City and stream through our apartment window. I watch Lexxy get up, half hidden under our pile of blankets. The morning light lit up the fine hairs all over her body, and made her look as if she was radiating a soft golden glow. The perfect mounds that are her breasts, the curve of her hips as she throws on her robe to go make us breakfast... I want to stay in bed all day with her. But my customers will not be kept waiting.
Grumbling, I pull myself from our bed to grab a cup of chokra flower tea. Lexxy can barely stand the smell of it even brewing, and keeps reminding me how much it smells like the chai tea found on earth. To me it’s one of the only ways I can truly wake up. That and... I smile at the memory. Lexxy comes and joins me on our balcony, carrying two plates of roasted papplon, drizzled with honey.
“So where are you being sent to today?” I ask her, while trying to eat a mouthful of papplon at the same time.
“Some terra-formers are trying to start a new herd of exarosaurs on one of the land areas south of here. But they’re having a hard time keeping them alive for more than a day; it seems a pride of atroxes have other ideas. It shouldn’t take long for us to find them and take them down; the pride apparently is quite small, having just recently lost their alpha. Who knows, I might even be able to save an eye or two, that should fetch a few ped in town!”
“If you insist” I replied, still eating. “Though I don’t even know how you can talk about hunting while you’re eating. I think it’s disgusting. Besides,” I added, pointing with my chopsticks, “Those atrox are only trying to find themselves a new food source, and we keep pushing them further south. They probably see the herd of exarosaurs as a gift.”
“Trust my Iset to come to that conclusion” Lexxy chuckles. “And probably the only one on all of Calypso who has a soft spot for Atrox.”
As much as I joke around with her, I do worry. Helping her into her armour is a daily routine for us, but I still can’t help but think that she has been lucky all this time. The worse injury she has ever sustained hunting was a torn ligament and a few cracked ribs, but for how long? As the cities on both continents pushed further and further into the wilderness, the natural wildlife on Calypso had been pushing back just as hard. Now that the colonists no longer had to worry about the robot threat, it was the mobs and animals of Calypso that has become the enemy. Not a day goes by that I do not hear of some homestead being attacked, or some mining party gone missing. The fact of the matter was that many of the natural residents did not want us here, and had no problem showing it.
“Be careful love, please be safe.”
“I always am!” Came the reply, as Lexxy begins to disappear through the televator.
Left on my own, I only have a few more minutes to get ready for work myself. I was going to be stationed at Port Atlantis today, though I rotate through several cities to do my trading. It was often quite tiring to have to move to place from place depending on how the market was behaving, but I am sure I am more successful this way than if I had had a shop.
I pull on my favourite outfit; skin-tight pants and boots made from the rare ambulimax leather (and a beret to match—which I throw on at a jaunty angle). Over my hot pink bra I put a mesh tank top, and grab my pink dragon gloves; last years birthday present from my society leader.
Checking to make sure I have my ped card and identification, I walk out onto my balcony and activate my teleporter chip.
For some time now I've been working on an idea to write a fanfiction slightly longer than the normal few-page ones. I have no idea how long this one will be, as I think I will keep writing till I dont have anything else to write
I have just finished the first chapter, and want to know what you guys think. I'll try to do a chapter a week, if I have time. This is sort of the prequel to my Sloth's at Crystal Palace one, but if I can, I think that may become one of the chapters later on. Any ideas or suggestions are welcome, as this is just the first draft.
Enjoy!
CHAPTER ONE
Softly, softly.
Not a breath escapes my lips; and my feet barely touch the foliage as I glide over the jungle floor. The air is soft, small pools of green light escape through the canopy above, lighting the small insects and mammals as they scurry about their business.
But all I hear is silence.
Even as I walk I am recounting my training in my head; to be as stealthy as a berycled, as silent as a turp, and as ferocious and merciless as an atrox. But today, my quarry will be the most feared and accomplished predator on all Calypso.
Through breaks in the branches before me, I can see a sea of wild grasses, reaching almost as high as my shoulder. And almost high enough to conceal my prey, but not quite. Even crouching, now and then I catch sight of the grasses being parted, and the glint of light as the sun falls on some exposed armour.
I am stealthy as a berycled, quiet as a turp, and as ferocious as an atrox. I need not be afraid.
Carefully, I unhinge my rifle from its case on my back and insert my amp. Wistfully looking down at my hip I almost wish I could try out my new pistol, as unpractised as I am. But that would require moving in too close for comfort. Take the smart kill.
Looking back up, I aim my rifle and look through the scope, waiting for the opportune moment. But nothing. In the split second I had looked down, my quarry had vanished.
Suppressing the urge to panic, I begin to make my way to my left, hoping to come around behind my prey’s last known position. I can feel my nerves tingle, my entire body feeling as if it’s been lit on fire. I have to resist the urge to jump at every small sound, though even the sound of a bird taking flight causes me to whirl around, rifle aimed. I am loosing sight of my objective.
There; once more I catch a glimpse of shadow among the yellow grass. Only an arm, but one covered in the greyish-black composite that I easily recognize. I have him. Through my scope I can see the figure also has a rifle aimed, and is carefully searching the surrounding area. With a sense of dread I realize that it was only luck that I saw him first, and that I had come from the right direction. Had I come from the west, from the lowlands... I care not to dwell on what might have been.
Assured that I now again know his position, I circle him slowly, knowing I only have the one shot to at least disarm him. Kneeling, I stop my breath once more and take aim. One. Two. Three. Four. And I fire.
I hear him fall even before I see him—I am up and running towards him, dagger in hand even before the recoil has thumped against my shoulder. Only a few moments and I am on the ground, arms wrapped around his neck; and with a savagery that surprises me, I put the dagger to work.
It takes me a moment to calm myself. The adrenaline rush is just subsiding, and I take some time to massage my shaking hands. Only after my heart stops beating erratically do I look down at the crumpled heap before me, shuddering in its last death-throes. I trace the lines of the armour with my finger until he stops, taking in the beauty and craftsmanship of it. But I do not have time; soon this area will be swarming with his soc mates, drawn by the sound of gun fire. I grab his rifle to leave, and then curiosity gets the better of me.
With a jerk I pull off his helmet, and pull him on to his side. Turning him over still and I face him upwards. And fall.
It is not the face of a man that is looking back at me. Not even the face of a boy. But it is not the soft curve of the chin, or even the delicate nose that has me breathing hard; nor even the pool of blood, as much coming from the mouth as from the gaping wound on the neck. It is the eyes, string wide in horror; the very same green-blue eyes that I know so well.
And it is in that instant that I realize the head I am holding in my lap is my own.
----------
“Iset! Iset, wake up love, it was only a dream. Come on love, wake up!”
The darkness fades, and I am all sweat-soaked sheets and shaking. I try to reorient myself to the arms around me, and to the green eyes staring at me with worry. Then all is dark for a moment and I feel the brush of lips against my forehead.
“That was a bad one, wasn’t it?” she asks softly, giving me a reassuring squeeze.
“No, no. The same as before. Only this time, it felt, I dunno, more urgent.”
Soft hands began to caress my shoulder, massaging out the stress and worry, and then began to move lower.
“You’re worried about the Land Grab aren’t you? Just say the word, please tell me, and I’ll have Siam take you out of the ranks, or at least change you to Medic. I hate seeing you like this.”
“It’ll be okay Lexxy” I murmur, finding it harder and harder to concentrate on thinking. “Really, I...will.” I gave her a lopsided smile. “It’s just... it’s just my first battle, that’s all. I’ll be fine once it’s over, I just keep thinking...”
“You don’t need to worry” she says, moving closer to me. “Because you have your tough,” and she began to tickle my neck, caressing the back of my ear. “Strong,” and she moved lower, tickling me on my ribs, causing me to try to curl away from her with laughter. “And definitely bigger,” as she pinned me under her, tickling me until I had no breath left to protest. “Lexxy, who will protect you from everything else.” With that last comment she leaned down and kissed me hard. “And I will not let anything bad happen to you.”
Some time later, the sunlight began to come up over the buildings of Treasure Island City and stream through our apartment window. I watch Lexxy get up, half hidden under our pile of blankets. The morning light lit up the fine hairs all over her body, and made her look as if she was radiating a soft golden glow. The perfect mounds that are her breasts, the curve of her hips as she throws on her robe to go make us breakfast... I want to stay in bed all day with her. But my customers will not be kept waiting.
Grumbling, I pull myself from our bed to grab a cup of chokra flower tea. Lexxy can barely stand the smell of it even brewing, and keeps reminding me how much it smells like the chai tea found on earth. To me it’s one of the only ways I can truly wake up. That and... I smile at the memory. Lexxy comes and joins me on our balcony, carrying two plates of roasted papplon, drizzled with honey.
“So where are you being sent to today?” I ask her, while trying to eat a mouthful of papplon at the same time.
“Some terra-formers are trying to start a new herd of exarosaurs on one of the land areas south of here. But they’re having a hard time keeping them alive for more than a day; it seems a pride of atroxes have other ideas. It shouldn’t take long for us to find them and take them down; the pride apparently is quite small, having just recently lost their alpha. Who knows, I might even be able to save an eye or two, that should fetch a few ped in town!”
“If you insist” I replied, still eating. “Though I don’t even know how you can talk about hunting while you’re eating. I think it’s disgusting. Besides,” I added, pointing with my chopsticks, “Those atrox are only trying to find themselves a new food source, and we keep pushing them further south. They probably see the herd of exarosaurs as a gift.”
“Trust my Iset to come to that conclusion” Lexxy chuckles. “And probably the only one on all of Calypso who has a soft spot for Atrox.”
As much as I joke around with her, I do worry. Helping her into her armour is a daily routine for us, but I still can’t help but think that she has been lucky all this time. The worse injury she has ever sustained hunting was a torn ligament and a few cracked ribs, but for how long? As the cities on both continents pushed further and further into the wilderness, the natural wildlife on Calypso had been pushing back just as hard. Now that the colonists no longer had to worry about the robot threat, it was the mobs and animals of Calypso that has become the enemy. Not a day goes by that I do not hear of some homestead being attacked, or some mining party gone missing. The fact of the matter was that many of the natural residents did not want us here, and had no problem showing it.
“Be careful love, please be safe.”
“I always am!” Came the reply, as Lexxy begins to disappear through the televator.
----------
Left on my own, I only have a few more minutes to get ready for work myself. I was going to be stationed at Port Atlantis today, though I rotate through several cities to do my trading. It was often quite tiring to have to move to place from place depending on how the market was behaving, but I am sure I am more successful this way than if I had had a shop.
I pull on my favourite outfit; skin-tight pants and boots made from the rare ambulimax leather (and a beret to match—which I throw on at a jaunty angle). Over my hot pink bra I put a mesh tank top, and grab my pink dragon gloves; last years birthday present from my society leader.
Checking to make sure I have my ped card and identification, I walk out onto my balcony and activate my teleporter chip.
