There is no other place as dangerous as the land below us. Monsters we couldn't conceive of in our most vivid dreams, and a variety of environments with their own dangers. Forests one could wander in for days and find themselves walking in circles, plains so vast you can see the curvature of our planet when not impeded by hills, and mountains that stab into the sky so deeply it only speaks to the altitude we had resided in. Even the atmosphere down here boasts of bountiful air, enough to feel as if we are walking onto a different planet altogether.
I only wish that my dearest Aneyra could have lived to witness this world's terrible beauty.
-Excerpt from a recovered journal of Varus the Explorer, of the First Decent
Lyra was awoken by multiple sensations. First the chill morning air hit her skin as the roosters began crowing and the watchmen announced the hour and weather, the blue hour. When her consciousness finally focused she smelled something freshly baked, and she felt her stomach growl. She inhaled a deep breath, filling her lungs with air as she'd never felt before. She sat up, wiping the drool from her cheek and nearly falling off her bunk. Proclus snorted at her, trying to look away.
"What?" Lyra croaked.
"Your cowlick, it's as long as an arrow" Lyra felt her hair and sure enough, a lock was standing at attention, curving upward like a single horn she had seen on some of the oxen in the pens.
"Lucky to be a heavy sleeper, but a trait you'll have to lose down here." Wallace stretched and popping several joints. "Ain't that right Cass?"
"Weh?" The girl below Lyra sputtered incoherently.
"Just a little longer, few more minutes ma."
"Wallace make sure Caleb wakes up." Proclus was wrapping various tools into a small leather bundle, and stuffing them away in a coat pocket.
"Hah, gladly." Wallace grinned almost gleefully as he grabbed a whistle from a pouch next to his cot and leaned in right next to the boy's ear. The shrill sound made him shriek and roll away, only to fall on the ground completely wrapped up in his blanket. Cassie covered her ears tightly and Lyra winced, before noticing that one of the beds had already been made.
"Hey, where's Hota?"
"He gets up earlier than the rest of us. We'll meet in the pavilion for some breakfast, then we're all to meet the Commander at the square. Lyra, I want you to come with me to the armory." Lyra nodded, and went to wash her face under the quarter pump and went to relieve herself.
"I'll follow ye if that's alright. Got a couple words to trade with Goldry, the old coot."
"Wallace, you are literally the same age as him." Cassie stared at him.
"Aye but I ain't crazy."
"Debatable." Caleb mumbled under his breath, still rubbing his ears.
"Alright guys, get a move on. Remember we have an assignment today. Come on Wallace" Lyra moved to catch up, Procus smiling at her, his eyes directly on the strand of hair she had smoothed down. She rolled her eyes, smiling as they made their way to the other side of the compound.
Lyra was starving, and nearly walked to the pavilion to eat without meaning to, but was stopped when she heard metal ringing on metal.
The survey corp focused on the exploration of the ground world, utilizing various tools and domesticated species of birds, hounds and rodents. A survey member was more likely to carry an ax or hammer as a tool instead of a weapon, though certain team members were required to carry some form of defense. When it came to weapons corp members traditionally utilized range weaponry such as the hand crossbows, but were known to keep spathas or pilum, but they were considered a last resort should any creature interfere with their survey work. As such, metal working was more often used for tools and wear instead of weaponry.
YOU ARE READING
Waypoint
FantasyA single boy wanders an ancient world of ruins and monsters. He has been told only one thing: to prepare for The Severance. Cast to wander a primordial world, he must figure out what the voice had intended, and as it commanded, he must prepare for w...
