HORIZON: The Fall

Chapter Three - The Glass Cliffs (1)

If I remembered the surgery at all, I wouldn't hesitate to recount it. But, you know – they knock you out for that.

LOCATION: GLASS CLIFFS (DEFIANT, REGAL SYSTEM)

I woke up to soft light flowing into a window, a pleasant change from the harsh lights of my hospital bed. I sat up, looking around the room I was in. I was lying on a large comfortable bed, with floor to ceiling windows in front of me. It was a pretty featureless room with spotless white walls and –

Wait...

I was sitting up!

I nearly jumped out of the bed in excitement – and I did kind of fall out of it. I stumbled to my feet as quickly as I could. My vision was perfect, and my arm was back, although it was metal, and I could walk. I could walk! Well, at first I kinda stumbled and fell. But that wasn't important.

After staring at my new prosthetic arm for several minutes, amazed at its plated metal surface, I took a mental note of the things that I noticed. Firstly, my entire arm was metal, from my shoulder to my fingertips. Secondly, my eyesight had been significantly improved. Small details that I never would have noticed before now shone out to me. Thirdly, I felt a bit taller. I didn't know if that was from the surgery or from being in a bed for so long, though. I really couldn't be sure; it was all a lot to take in at once.

After I got over my excitement – which took a while – I inhaled the scenery beyond the window.

Prometheus.

The city of forever.

Its white skyscrapers touched the clouds, twisting towards the heaven in beautiful spires. Even from a different island, I could still see the greenery mixed in the towers. Regal Prime's purple gas clouds swirled in the distance, a reminder of where I was. I had never seen a planet so beautiful. Sure I had seen it on maps and such, but it was different when you were standing right there, taking in its vast beauty with your own eyes.

Mother would have loved a place like this, but instead, she was stuck on Achilles, a planet with mountains of trash and air so thick with pollution it was unfathomable how anyone was able to survive. I remembered how she used to find plants in the muck, and she had begun a beautiful garden at our home, attempting to breath some beauty and life back into our grim city. Hopefully I would be able to take her here one day.

Since the moon I was on – Defiant – was the military headquarters of the entire Republic, I could see the Navy's administrative office. A ridiculous amount of dropships were flying to and from the office. The three-winged building's glittering glass walls were a beacon of sanctuary for those who resided in Prometheus. Although I had never been there before, I did know that the Grand Admiral's office was located within its walls. Like many nice thoughts, it was soon ruined by my realization that most of the rich Academy snobs came from here. That dimmed the view a bit.

I could see waves pounding the rocks, which were just below me. The room I was in had a dresser and a bed pushed against the far wall, and behind a wall of floor-to-ceiling glass windows was a small office. Folded on the dresser sat a navy jumpsuit, which was a black with a blue stripe running down the middle. After changing, I waited in my room for a bit, doing nothing but twiddle my thumbs until a knock sounded at the door.

Though initially hesitant, I opened it to an older military officer. I fumbled for a moment, saluting as quickly as I could.

"No need to do that." His voice was thunderous, catching me off guard. "We are the same rank now. I'm here to escort you."

Same rank? I glanced down to the pin on his uniform – the one which read, "Captain."

Captain.