Far Side Adventure Extraordinaire

Chapter 1 : The Far Side

The view before them was nothing short of breathtaking. Dark emerald skies stretched above the jagged horizon, sharp peaks curling inwards on the valley and the many buildings dotting it like claws. In the distance right beyond a small mountain range, an enormous tower stood tall, bathing the area in greenish-white light.

Everything about the scenery was utterly alien to them. Even the air seemed different, filled with a sort of dull electricity.

"This is going to be fun!" Aerrow grinned. Piper took a look at him and was immediately amused by the twinkle of excitement in his eyes. He looked like a kid on winter solstice. Then again, this was the beginning of an adventure into the complete unknown.

Suddenly, a piercing cry echoed from below, followed by what was visibly one of the winged creatures dotting the sky around them emerging from under the Condor. It hovered at their level for a moment, its black iridescent scales glimmering in the light. It had the same membranous wings and long tail as the dragons they'd seen back home, but its body was thinner, elongated. Its head was smooth, split vertically in the middle. On each side, three luminous purple eyes were disposed symmetrically, and for just a second Piper could have sworn it looked intently at her. Then it plunged back down to join a small group of its peers.

"Wow, this is... This is-" The young woman uttered.

"This is so awesome!" Finn exclaimed, practically climbing onto Junko's back to get an even better view. Aerrow and Piper exchanged elated looks, happy to forget all the trouble they'd gone through in the last few weeks, even if it was just for a moment.

"Uh, guys?" Stork's voice pulled the rest of the group out of their dazzled state. "Not to interrupt this very epic moment and all, but we've lost the time pulse. Navigation's completely out."

Welp. Seemed like the moment had passed.

Without losing any time the group rushed to gather on the bridge. Piper lightly tapped the glass sphere that usually indicated the time pulse, which had stopped budging entirely.

"I can't say I'm surprised," she sighed. "But this is an issue."

"Oh, you think?" Stork quipped, already jittery. "No compass, no time pulse, not even stars to get our bearings... You know what that means, right?"

Aerrow rolled his eyes with a slight smile.

"Doom?".

"Doom."

"Aw come on Stork, don't be like that. We literally just got here. We'll figure something out!" Piper reassured as she rummaged through a crate for blank pieces of paper. "I'm gonna start mapping the area. That big tower back there seems like a good starting point."

"Good idea, Piper! Junko, Finn, Radarr and I are going to go down there for some re-"

All of a sudden, the long frequency radio of the ship crackled to life, interrupting the leader and pulling the whole team's attention to it. Among the static, a voice slowly began to make itself more audible until the words were finally clear. It sounded almost...metallic.

"-zone. I repeat, this is a restricted aerial zone . Identify yourselves immediately or you will be neutralized. We are giving you thirty seconds."

A wave of panic washed over the group, and Aerrow scrambled over to the intercom.

"Wait wait wait!" He urged. "We haven't come looking for a fight!"

"Oh boy here we go." The pilot mumbled, feeling slightly vindicated in his anxiety. "I swear on all that is wicked and sullied, if they make one scratch on my baby..."

Piper gave him a light hit with her elbow, shushing him.

"Identify yourselves." The voice demanded again.

"We are the Storm Hawks. We come from Atmos. You know the... The other side?" Aerrow stated hesitantly. Did the people here even know about there being an "other side"? What if they did but were hostile? What if they were separated for a reason?

There was a moment of silence then. A muffled, indecipherable conversation could be heard on the other end of the line while our heroes looked at each other nervously.

"Maybe we should tell them we're here to save them from a spooky crystal witch?" Finn suggested.

"Shh!"

"Okay." The mysterious voice finally stated, their tone betraying absolutely no reaction, hostile or otherwise. "Keep going for about 7 clicks north-east. You'll see a docking station at ground level. Land there. And no funny business. Over."

And with that the communication ended.

The Storm Hawks all stood in stunned silence for a while, looking expectantly at Aerrow.

"North-east it is, i guess..."

"Are you serious? We're just going to do what they say?" Stork questioned. The leader shrugged, his look clearly asking if the pilot had a better idea.

A heavy sigh left the merb before he turned back to the controls.

"We're so doomed..."

—

The docking station couldn't be missed even if one tried. It was a massive pyramid partially hidden behind one of the sharp peaks around the valley, seemingly made entirely of metal or something akin to it. Its surface was marred with glowing teal lines like so many geometrical veins, and platforms protruded from its four sides, available landing spots conveniently highlighted. Other ships, big and small, could be seen parked there. Compared to the Condor, they all looked very different. Almost like manta-rays, and covered in the same sort of glowy bits as the pyramid.

Glued to one of the windows, Finn whistled.

"They know how to make sleek designs!"

"Tch... Not as pretty as the Condor." Stork huffed silently as he maneuvered the ship until it came to a halt on the platform. After the engines grew silent, the team assembled at the center of the bridge once more, unsure of what to do next.

"Alright everyone, let's not forget why we're here. Dealing with Cyclonis takes priority, so let's try and make a good impression on the people here. The last thing we need is to make more enemies." Aerrow instructed his team, determined to stay on track. Despite how much he wanted to, they hadn't come to the Far Side to do tourism.

Klank

"Uh... You all heard that, right?" Junko asked the others with a small nervous laugh.

Klank klank

Footsteps. Undoubtedly footsteps.

Stork bit his thumb, his soul visibly ready to leave his body at any moment. "Something'sontheshipsomething'sontheshipso-"

Piper instinctively slapped her hand on Stork's mouth to quiet him down, focusing on where the sound was coming from.

Klank.

All eyes lifted upwards. Whatever was on the ship was on top of it. Radarr let out a growl, fur standing on end.

"Everyone get ready..." Aerrow breathed, unsheathing his blades. Soon everyone was on guard, and the leader gave a small wave of the hand to their pilot. "Stork, open the hatch."

The merb almost protested, but he knew that would be useless.

"Might as well get it over with..."

With The pull of a lever, the roof hatch of the Condor slid open, and for a moment that seemed way longer than needed, there was complete silence...

Until a figure swiftly landed right in front of them, straight on her feet. Despite the multitude of weapons now pointed at her, she gave the group a relaxed grin, lifting both her hands in a surrendering gesture.

"Sup?"