2: Liberty in destruction

[two operatives wait in a shuttle hovering in space]

01. This is operative 1 Thane Fatima Hasan checking in from shuttle 358

02. This is operative 2 Thane aiek tubalcain, checking in from shuttle 358

CMD. We read you operatives, you’re clear to depart, visu-link is non-operational so we’re gonna need you to describe your surroundings

02. Budget cuts. By epicurosa! Were Thanes!

CMD. You don’t need to tell me twice. Also please refrain from invoking any god’s we don’t want to draw any unnecessary attention from entities we’d rather not deal with

01. Departing from shuttle… Now [a series of clunks of machinery and a fwoosh sound as they undock and activate thrusters]. Initiating free jump, any visuals for an opening?

02. Take your pick, the whole aft side of the hull looks like it’s been pulled out from the inside

01. What does this to a top of the line space station!

02. Leviathan maybe? Or an angel?

01. We’d definitely know if there was an angel in the area. And I don’t think leviathan’s leave anything behind.

02. I guess we’ll find out. Found a suitable landing zone, adjust by 6° and activate thrusters for 2.5 seconds

VO. the following 5 minutes have been removed from the recording for expediency

02. Landing in 3..2.. [the heavy thud of space suits landing on a metal surface can be heard, the station groans and clicks as it settles]

CMD. How’s it looking operatives?

01. We’re in a large hall, appears to be half of a shuttle departure lounge, comfy seats, luggage everywhere, you know the type. We’ll look around, tubalcain, check the structure. See if you can figure out what managed to tear the gorlan apart

02. There’s not even any burns! No witnesses and all signals from the Gorlan just suddenly cut out. It’s unprecedented!

01. Aiek! Focus.

02. Sorry sir. The structure looks like it’s been subjected to immense pressure, but only from one direction. If that makes sense, all the girders are bowed outwards and the hull, well imagine it’s out there presumably with the rest of the debris. [slightly mesmerised, as if he is being hypnotised, a strange sound plays but only in aieks mind , like shattering glass in forwards and in reverse over a drawn out soft droning] It’s sort of beautiful in a way, the way the sunlight glints off the shards of reinforced glass, refracting it all. There’s a certain beauty in it. destruction can be liberating don’t you think?

01. Excuse me? People died aiek

02. [the sound stops and he snaps out of it] Yes. Of course. Sorry

01. What’s up with you?

CMD. Thain Hasan what are your observations?

01. The air is thick with some kind of matter. Looks like skin…[she crushes it in her hand] Breaks up like ash. I’m taking a sample of it for further study.

02. Command where’s the nearest terminal?

CMD. Marking on your display.

01. Fine, let’s go

[time passes]

01. We’re in a corridor there’s a T-junction about 16 metres ahead of us with four doorways, two on each side. Damage seems to be relatively minimal, there’s a ton of these flakes everywhere and- we’ve got a body. Tubalcain check around see what else you can find. There’s a southern hemisphere Veatorian, male, their eyes have been removed from the sockets

02. Pressure change?

01. I don’t think so, under his fingernails- look, he did this to himself.

02. What the fuck? You’re right!

01. Scans say he died about 16 hours ago

02. Command, when did we lose contact with the Gorlan?

CMD. The halo beacon cut out around 17 hours ago

02.so there was roughly an hour between whatever caused the damage and that person scratching out their own eyes

01. What’s the room looking like?

02. No more bodies but it looks like they carved something into the walls…[he falls into a trance once more and the sound plays in his head again] it looks familiar

CMD. Describe it to us aiek… Aiek! Thain tubalcain respond! Thain hasan can you check on him?

01. Yes sir

[she walks over to him]

01. Aiek you can’t just stop talking like that, is this the symbol? Command; it’s a vertical line with three curved lines cutting across it horizontally. I- [an error beeps from her heads up display] nothing’s come up from the symbology database. When was the last time this was updated?

CMD. About 2-3 days ago

01. [mesmerised by the symbol] I’m sure I know this symbol it’s like- it’s on the tip of my tongue but I-

CMD. Thain Hassan don’t you zone out on me too…. Hasan!

01. Yes sorry Command- uh, I’m pulling him away. Aiek. Aiek can you hear me? He’s completely out of it

CMD. Get what data you can from the terminal and get out of there

01. He’s in no position to go anywhere

CMD. Come back for him, we need this data, he will be fine

01. I really don’t think that’s safe

CMD. You said yourself he’s not going anywhere and need I remind you how many cautions you’re currently on?

01. But-

CMD. Fatima!

01. … Fine, I’ll make my way over

[time passes again]

01. More bodies: human, Hass, malgaric. All wounds seem self inflicted. More- more runes same as before. Terminal is slightly damaged but the data port is fine. [the dataport clicks as she plugs in a storage drive] This might take awhile

[a wet gurgle/growl emanates from down the hall]

What was that?

CMD: looks like tubalcain is on the move again

01. that can’t be. He was completely out of it when I left him. no way he recovered that quickly

CMD. There must be something wrong with my tracker, he’s moving too fast. It says he’s in the room with you, can you see him?

01. It’s a circular room so it’s not like he’s hiding around any corners. Tubalcain!

CMD: telemetry says he’s right on top of you

01. [she gasps and and is killed, the sound of her bones and flesh being crushed being mixed only with the sound of her armour cracking and shattering]

CMD. Fatima are you there? Fatima answer me. Operative report!

[and aggressive static fades out the episode]