Oath of the Survivor

The entire camp was in a panic as the shuttle washed away, a wide variety of skills on display as the crew desperately tried to get out of the raging flood.  While most were successful, Kyle saw some individuals get caught up in the waters and swept away.  At the edge of the cliff, he witnessed the shuttle crest the waterfall, then disappear from sight over the chasm.  The whole affair took less than thirty seconds, and in that time so much had changed.  The captains of both expedition shuttles were washed away, and people were scrambling in the disorder. 

Kyle immediately went into triage mode, finding the injured and treating the worst.  He found a couple of others with basic healing skills and put them to work.  C.H.A.D.D. was invaluable, providing scans and helping to sort the worst injuries.  Fortunately, the expedition forces were all at least a little way into E Grade, meaning the severity of the injuries for most was far less than it otherwise could have been.  Many were struck with rocks and broken tree limbs as they washed downriver.  Others were caught up in the chaotic skill usage, with a variety of different injury types.  Outside of the quick organization of his triage unit, however, leadership was lacking.

Kyle expected Skippy and Duroc to fill that role, but as the aftermath settled Kyle found that people were looking to him instead.  He was getting uncomfortable with their scrutiny, which was turning into annoyance. Blessedly, the entire unit got a ping on their nav bracelets from the captain. 

“We were able to get the shuttle stabilized, though it was damaged in the landing.  We have put in for evacuation.  For all those who were scattered, make your way to one of the following nav points.  We will have an extraction team in approximately six hours, picking up at the location of our crashed shuttle.  The other shuttle should be operable.  Relevant crew, reply on a private channel.  It is imperative that the remaining shuttle get off planet and back to the flagship as quickly as possible.  That is all.”

The communication cut off, and once again Kyle saw eyes looking to him. 

“What do you want me to say?  You heard the captain.  We’ll finish treating the people here and the shuttle will get airborne.”

A quiet voice popped up, a young man with a timid demeanor. 

“What about the people who got washed away?  Are you just going to leave them?” 

It wasn’t a question he’d thought about when he was dealing with these injuries, but he knew the answer as soon as he heard it. 

“Of course not.  I’ll get to as many as I can before the six-hour timeline is up.  Assuming it’s possible to find their locations with my nav bracelet, at least.”

Fortunately, that was something the technical crew could assist with.  In the span of five minutes, Kyle had the location of the shuttle programmed in alongside the locations of every survivor.  That was another neat trick of the nav bracelets, they could determine if the wearer was alive or dead.  In total, there were three different pockets of surviving crew outside the shuttle totaling fifteen people, and another twenty-three inside the shuttle itself.  All told, nearly half of those who had been caught in the flood didn’t make it. 

Satisfied he knew where they were, he turned to Skippy and Duroc. 

“Can you two take care of everything from here?  You didn’t seem terribly involved in the recovery.”

Duroc snorted, seeming more sheepish than usual. 

“It’s a little outside of our normal activities.  We’ll make sure things run smoothly here though.  Good luck!”

Skippy walked over and slapped him on the shoulder. 

“You can message me if you need any help or if anything fun is happening.  Otherwise, we’ll see you back on the ship.”

 With that, the tech crew helped Kyle send out a message that help was on the way. 

For a moment, Kyle questioned his choice as he stared down the precipice of the waterfall’s edge.  The rain was pouring down, causing the cascading water to rush ever-faster.  Stones near the sides were getting slick, and Kyle knew the descent would be treacherous.  One look at the notifications on his nav bracelet was all it took to dispel the doubts. 

“Anything I should be worried about, C.H.A.D.D.?”

[SCANS ARE INCONCLUSIVE, DR. MAYHEW.  THE MANA INFUSING THE RAIN MAKES IT DIFFICULT TO MAKE A DETERMINATION WITH CERTAINTY.]

“Your class doesn’t help with that, huh?”

[I ASSUMED YOU’D FORGOTTEN, DR. MAYHEW.]

“Just had more pressing matters to attend to.  We’ll talk about it later, once this is settled.” 

Kyle began to make his way down the cliffside, once again marveling at the changes that had occurred since his ascension to D Grade.  He navigated the slick rocks with ease, his body’s balance and strength more than up to the challenge.  The wet stones caused him to slip twice, though each time Kyle was able to find a handhold that would have been impossible to grasp before.  Even though it was his weakest attribute, his Strength had grown to a level that would have been considered high in the old Central Authority.

Near the bottom of the falls, he could see a line of destruction in the trees where the shuttle had tried to stabilize.  Looking at the nav bracelet, Kyle decided to start with the groups farthest from the shuttle to give them all the best chance of getting there safely.  The most distant group was on the far side of the river, and Kyle wasted no time activating HASTE to cross it. 

Hopping across the floating debris was a much damper experience than Kyle hoped, with each squelching step serving as a reminder that some things were best left to cinema.  Cringing at the wet feet, he refocused.  HASTE allowed him to move virtually unimpeded through the dense rainforest, though his Auric Perception was limited by the presence of the mana infusing the rain, just like C.H.A.D.D.’s sensors.  Speaking of…

“Has any of the rain gotten to you?  Is there any risk of damage if it gets into your chassis?”

[THE ADDITIONAL INSULATION AND INTEGRATION OF THE INFERNAL’S CHITIN HAS PROVED MORE THAN ADEQUATE, DR. MAYHEW.]

“Excellent.  Let me know if anything changes, you’ve survived way too much to get hurt by a little rain.”

[IT IS PREFERABLE TO BEING THROWN IN FRONT OF A FIREBALL.]

Kyle didn’t even try to argue.  In virtually no time at all, Kyle found the first group of survivors.  There were four of them, two of whom had major injuries.  A woman was desperately trying to stop the bleeding from the stump that remained of one man’s arm, while the other in relatively good shape had a swirling barrier of rainwater flowing around them, keeping the area beneath the dome dry. 

A dryness that Kyle ruined as he came plodding in, absolutely soaked.  Without a word, he kneeled down on the ground next to the injured.  Closing his eyes, he rested one hand on the ruined shoulder and his other on the chest of the unconscious person lying beside them.  First activating RESONANCE to increase the flexibility of the mana systems in his hands, he then used HEAL with each arm independently.  The strain from using the skill this way was much higher than the traditional use, but given it was a foundational skill from his Healer class he was more than capable of handling it.

C.H.A.D.D. gave him a rapid chain of instructions, which Kyle instinctually followed.  While he may not have picked up more purely healing skills, his attributes and the synergy between his skills more than made up for it.  The mana networks of each of the men were connected to Kyle’s, allowing the rejuvenating energy to flow through easily.  The precise control afforded by his high Intelligence meant even the smallest tears and damage was washed away, his Willpower allowing him to move enough energy to cover most of their bodies at once.  He’d come a long way from his time at Central Health, and his progress showed. 

With the exception of the woman still keeping the rain at bay, three sets of eyes rested on him.  The armless man looked down at the scarred stump at his left shoulder, the look on his face betraying the question he was going to ask. 

“I’m sorry, but I can’t.  I don’t know if it’s even possible, though I’m sure there are Healers out there who might be able to regrow or reattach a limb.  That’s just beyond the scope of what I can do.” 

The light in his eyes seemed to dim a bit, and Kyle offered a warm smile. 

“For now, you’re alive.  There’ll be time to figure out the rest later.  We still have several more groups of survivors to find before we head back, come on.” 

As an afterthought, he looked at the woman keeping the rain off of them. 

.“Is that a water manipulation skill?” 

She nodded in the affirmative. 

“Then I have a favor to ask as we walk.”

Enjoying the feeling of dry boots, they made their way from group to group, Kyle providing additional mana to the woman named Kiera through RESONANCE in exchange for her keeping them all relatively dry.  His healing skills were put to work every time they stopped, and although they nearly lost one man who’d been struck by a large stone, they were able to stabilize him.  All told, the scattered survivors hadn’t lost a single person in their journey to the shuttle.  As they approached, however, Kyle sensed that something was wrong.  It was just too… quiet.  The others seemed to pick up on his unease, and Kyle gestured for them to stop as he stepped towards the shuttle. 

The side of the shuttle had been torn open in the crash, and what Kyle saw as he turned the corner into the main galley froze him in his tracks.  He saw bodies, or at least what remained of them.  Many of them looked to have been sucked dry, leaving nothing but dry husks inside their clothing.  They just had to wear the damn red shirts, he thought. 

How did all these people die without raising an alarm?  That thought caused Kyle the most concern.  What could possibly –

Suddenly Kyle found himself wobbling, sharp pain in his ears.  He focused on ADAPTIVE REGENERATION, quickly repairing the damage to his inner ear.  HASTE active, Kyle rushed back towards the group of survivors to see them all on the ground, blood trickling out of several ears.  And he saw it.  A mosquito with a three meter wingspan perched atop one of the survivors, long needle-nose already draining all the life from its victim.

Kyle rushed the creature without a thought, baton already flashing out.  As if in anticipation, the bug disengaged, floating nearby lazily with its eyes regarding Kyle. 

[THE PATIENT IS DEAD, DR. MAYHEW.]

“Thank you, C.H.A.D.D.” 

Seeing all the blood pouring out of the man’s neck, Kyle knew there was nothing he could do at this point to save the man.  People around him were stirring, but the sonic attack the mosquito used was powerful.  It was little surprise that it was able to ambush the other survivors.  The bug began to zip about more erratically, before swooping in once more.  It tried to slip past Kyle to get to the survivors on the other side.  Kyle intercepted it once more, though wasn’t able to accomplish more than driving it off a second time. 

Rainwater mixed with blood on the ground as their deadly dance began in earnest.

~~~

Thank you all for reading!  Please take time to share a review, and if you'd like to support the work please check out the Starsworn Saga on Patreon for advanced access to chapters and other upcoming bonus content!

Starsworn Saga | The official page for early access to the Starsworn Saga! | Patreon