Eodem: A Rifle and Sword Adventure (Complete)

Chapter 1: Planetfall

For Lieutenant Samantha Rose, today was the culmination of a childhood dream, to breathe fresh clean oxygen and to be like those great pioneers of the Old World coming across the seas to discover sights unseen. Hovering above the Space Ship she was a passenger of was her destination, a blue planet below her with its green continents and azure oceans. A youthful excitement filled her veins as Samantha's eyes feasted in awe over its arcadian surface. She couldn't wait to be off this sanitized floating hunk of metal and finally stretch her legs on solid ground.

It may not be Earth but the Probe did say it couldn't see the difference between it.

Samantha could hear the excited squeals of the first wave colonists behind her who too joined in her elation at looking down upon the planet. To these people, it was not just a lone blue planet in the cold vacuum of space but a new hope, new dawn, a new home.

Upon the edges of the explored frontiers of space, the Star System of Benham orbited an Earth-like planet. One virginal of the old world's consumption, innocent of its devastations and untamed of its wealth.

A whole new world, lands of untapped potential for some, a new beginning for others await those intrepid explorers and colonists onboard the Colony Ship, the Eodem lay before them like a wrapped present underneath a child's feet. All they needed to do now, is to prepare the Colony Ship for Planetfall and set forth the Seven-Ringed Flower of the United Federation of Earth atop of its soil.

'There it is, my first tour of duty' Samantha smiled. Remembering her mission's assignment, for she didn't travel across the stellar highways to go sightseeing. She was bound by oath by the state to be in Benham-3.

Checking her dress uniform for any last-second adjustments, Samantha looked down on her single silver bar Lieutenant insignia and neatly tidied its placement atop of her uniform. Having freshly graduated and immediately deployed to her first Tour straight from West Point Military Academy.

"Lieutenant Samantha Rose?" A rough cockney-accented voice approached behind her.

The Lieutenant, fresh out of West Point, turned around to meet an imposing man that easily towered over her by about two feet wearing what she could identify as the high-end Militech Hercules Exo-suit standing in attention to her. Examining by the insignia that hung by his shoulders, the man is a Sergeant.

"Yes?" she turned around. The armored man greeted her with a salute and was promptly saluted in return by her.

"I am Sergeant Lewis Crocker of Stryder Group, squad automatic rifleman and your Second-in-Command. Welcome to the Colonial Militia ma'am." the man replied with a seasoned composure. "Colonel Polonsky assigned you to become the C.O. of the Studies and Observations group, callsign Stryder. I am here to take you to meet him by the bridge." The Sargent explained.

"Affirmative, take me to them," Samantha nodded.

The two soldiers walked across the Eodem towards the captain's deck of the ship. On the way, Samantha noticed many of the colonists were peering just like her at the planet's orbit looking just as excitedly as she was. Many of the colonists had families with them and their previous lives career paths of carpenters, hunters, soldiers, scientists, and farmers will complement to make another successful colony of the UFE. When humanity finally had the ability and technology to make a new home outside of their crowded planet of Earth, they started with Mars. After their Red Planet neighbor, they began to colonize a moon at Alpha Centauri, then another one and another one until the UFE has now successfully expanded to over 26 planets in over 9 Star Systems with the new planet, named "Benham-3" being the newly inducted planet number 27 designated for surface colonization.