Contents
4.6 LIGHT
Overview
Juna and Ste’s crashed pod settles atop a living “flower” mat, forcing them onto solid sea ice. They traverse a hazardous ice biome and discover an ancient, likely artificial pylon. Sophisticated Shrouded walkers then ambush them with engineered weapons, crippling the pod. EM signals reveal unfamiliar Shrouded, who begin dismantling the vessel.
Summary
The pod comes to rest in a dense bed of detritovore “flowers.” After Juna’s rising panic is blunted by the couch meds, she and Ste release the ball drone and confirm solid ice beneath. They descend and discover a stable, flat sea-ice plain, the first reliable footing in days.
They set off on two and a half legs, then reach a towering pylon: wind-abraded, efficient, and seemingly manufactured, though ancient and encrusted with life. Moving into sloped, geologically void ice, they encounter an ice biome alive with stains, worms, and cavities; a broken bubble nearly drops the pod, prompting careful geophysical scanning.
As the climb worsens and automated gait control falters, attackers strike from range with bundled, jointed projectiles like bolas, targeting the damaged leg and then a threatening arm. Giant lattice-framed walkers step in with ice-cleated feet; within their frames multiple caterpillar-like organisms operate tendons and a crossbow-like weapon, displaying chilling precision.
A second walker pins an arm; a third tears off a functioning leg, immobilizing the pod and ending any realistic hope of reaching the elevator. While Ste tries to mute the alarms, Juna detects intense EM chatter from Shrouded frequencies and sends their three-beat password. The walkers, from an unfamiliar colony, do not recognize it and, with surgical detachment, begin taking the pod apart.
Who Appears
- JunaNarrator; battles shock and panic, directs scans, identifies Shrouded EM signals, and realizes the attackers are strangers.
- Ste Etienne (Mai)Engineer-pilot; manages damaged pod, attempts manual walking and repairs, threatens attackers, then prepares for likely death.
- Shrouded (unknown colony)Operate multi-organism walkers with crossbow-like weapons; disable and begin dismantling the pod, ignoring Juna’s signal.