{Am I jealous already? Have I just joined the most influential group in Andromeda? I'm just a random guy who came across a door, and look at where I am. I don't belong there. I'm not a life-changer. I want to be one, though.}
The car gradually dived deeper, and with every metre travelled, the planet's base and details became easier to see.
Tallurre: "Mr Kleitos, you can see base camp, right? What are your honest thoughts here?"
He spoke in an intrigued way that made him look like he cared a whole lot about the appearance of the upcoming base that Stanley could analyse from this distance of ten kilometres.
Stanley: "Hmm." He paused to gather the right words to please the lawyer in the car.
"Well, It's obviously still a mess and needs major change to make it look professional. It looks like this group just forgot about decorating. Just going to work and no extra focus on pretty things. That's all."
Tallurre: "Really? I'll note that." Said with a little less curious tone than before.
The base camp of Broken Halo had tonnes of personality and little to show for it to the naked eye. Plenty of modular buildings that were shaped like big white shipping containers were easy to spot, as most had them stacked twice or thrice on top of each other. These buildings all had lights attached to them, and light poles were placed around these buildings, shining through the dusky sunset.
Slanted solar panels lay to the right side of where Stanley could see, in a rectangular formation, taking up most of the space on that side.
A giant modular building seemed to house some things that looked like rovers or buggies from above, slightly sticking out the front with tools and other things lying outside. The greatest detail from far above is that a kilometre north-west of the base was a giant crater the size of a meteor crashing down. It looked fresh, still burning.
Looks like they arrived a week ago and focused on getting to work rather than decorating the whole place.
{Pretty cool-looking base, I guess. I did expect guns, military bunkers and shit, maybe anti-aircraft tanks. I shouldn't rile myself up when Tallurre himself told me that they moved in recently. How did that giant-ass crater form?}
Then, on one of the bigger-looking buildings was a helipad. This one seemed like it was destined for Tallurre's car to be placed on.
Stanley pointed at it from his side window, causing Tallurre to look at him.
"Yeah, we're landing there, I'm guessing."
"Yep. Memorise those names, by the way. Particularly Oblivion himself."
Stanley looked back in disbelief at Tallurre whilst he was steering sturdily and safely downwards.
"Oh, You're telling me to memorise that guy's name? How could I forget? Thanks." Said Stanley sarcastically.
"Wipe that smirk off your face, Stanley. You'll die if you laugh. That's a warning."
Tallurre raised his tone to immediately startle Stanley as he was warming up to him. Stanley looked straight back with a face of worry and discomfort. He stopped his relaxed posture and put his arms together.
"Yeah-um." He put his left knuckle on top of his lips, thinking. W-why would he do that? I'd feel like you'd be able to tell me that at least."
"Because he hates his race. Despises the looks of himself. Either treat him normally, excluding the appearance teasing, or get obliterated by a subsonic punch."
Tallurre then took his left hand off the steering wheel, slowed the car down and grabbed his jacket and shirt layer and lifted it, revealing a disgusting purple scar that looked like it formed a spiral-looking shape, as his abdominal muscles all curved and manoeuvred to a point in the centre near his second-to-last rib. His muscles on that half looked fractured and cracked, all converging to that point. Deep purple, red, and brown colours all showed that he still needed extreme healing. Then pulled it back down, tucking it in and heading back to driving.
All Stanley could do was stare at it, making any normal person uncomfortable staring at something so personal. His eyes couldn't lock off the scar. The spiral mass of flesh looked impossible and improbable. Twisted like a wet towel being wrung.
"Holy. fucking. shit, Mr Ufushimi. How strong are you? That's not the damage one gets from a punch. That isn't a teammate. Only a blessed few species could manage that casually. D-do I have to see him?"
Stanley looked startled and DE-motivated from what his state was five seconds ago. Visibly uncomfortable, he was.
"Nope, nope, nope, nope. I should've guessed there would be an alien powerhouse. I assumed your group was some old men who make decisions and are corrupt and shit. My bad if you're offended, but I am from that scar. Goddamn."
He thought inside his head, {Save me. I'm going to die, goddamn it. I know I can't keep a straight face around scary new people. Some new people just make me uncomfortable. I can't act normally like others. Maybe it was my upbringing.}
Tallurre, who is now getting extremely close to turning the car onto the pad, said, "Just greet him. That's it. You don't need to please or impress. Just moral respect. Anyways, We're basically here. Grab anything you brought and let's get out fast. We have to check you in."
Shhhhhhooooooooooommmmmmmm.
The car finally landed safely and softly.
Silence. Only leather being moved ever-so-slightly by the millimetre could be heard.
The realisation that Stanley touched down hit him hard mentally.
The noises of machinery, drills and a few people talking and yelling could be made out.
"Now, We're here. Swallow this. Since you're surane, I got a carbon dioxide air pill for you."
A clear pill with tiny yellow, beady things could be seen being held by his index finger and thumb.
{Oh? That's actually very kind of him. gosh. He prepped. I can breathe in most atmospheres comfortably, but he went out of his way to get me my planet's air.}
Stanley's uncomfortable tenseness disappeared for a second due to the gesture, and then he forcibly tensed himself back again to prepare for new meetings.
Tallurre unbuckled first.
"Ready now?"
Stanley took the pill down his throat. He wasn't.
"I guess. I have to be in the moment now."
Stanley then opened the butterfly door. Whoosh!
He stepped out and simply stared.
Deep oranges and dusty tans stretched across the sky, stealing Stanley's attention immediately. The warm, coy air soaked his body, slowly taking in the new gas all around him. A new sense of gravity registered quickly in his brain and settled into his legs. The footing was also dusty, soft, and smooth, making it easy to glide and slide on this planet. The smell of warm minerals and damp dust tickled his nose, nearly making him sneeze upon standing outside. The further he looked, the more he took in.
Hot metallic scents, Hard metal and plastic being melted and burnt nearby, and his face being lightened up by the amber sunlight on the planet, making him look incredibly warm and comfortable as the day slowly starts its process to fade into night. The wind blew softly as well.
No one was there on the launch pad either. They all had better things to do than wait for someone to finish collecting someone. Except for a random dusty mechanic with a baseball cap on Tallurre's side of the vehicle.
This was it. Base camp one. The Broken Halo's home grounds. His old urban life is now completely gone in the wind.
Stanley first walked a few steps, testing out the dusty grounds of the launch pad. Toosh, Toosh, Toosh. Thumps of soft dirt were heard quietly, as sound was filtered, as if they were muffled. He dug his right foot into the dust, seeing it move and float longer than it normally does on most planets. He stood still and looked at the nearby rocky mountains and hills on one side. He turned one-eighty and saw flat sandy dirt on the other side, with small cracked craters scattered across the horizon of the view.
This was indeed a new planet.
Stanley then heard talking from the other side of the vehicle and walked over carefully and nervously in this new environment. The air gave him goosebumps as he was a little sensitive to the warmish, fuzzy air that blanketed everything, mainly his face.
{Woah, Woah, Woah. I'm hella lighter. I feel like thirty kilograms in this mild arse-gravity. Comfortable. heh.}
Stanley smiled for a few seconds at the happy thought.
{The air is humid and heavy in my lungs. Jeez, I'm training them right now, training them right now. Even the sound is a tad bit muffled.}
"Hey!" He put his hands to his mouth, then mustered it in the direction of where no modular buildings lay.
{Coooooooool. I sound like I'm talking in another room. So muffed. Sounds probably travel twenty-five per cent less and in fewer directions. Weird and cool.}
Stanley walked to where he shouted, near a rocky ledge. He then bent down after searching for an object to monitor and observe, finding a random rock as his target.
{Rocky, brittle, full of holes, the same colour as biscuit brown.} He rubbed his thumb across the hand-sized rock.
{Dirty as well. Could this be a new type of Sandstone? shit, I've never seen this before.}
Stanley then tried crumbling the rock by squishing it with his two palms, only to groan and struggle, getting nowhere.
{The fuck! I love this rock! Sandstone just looks cool, and this type I'm seeing is new! Sturdy as some metals, yet having a brittle appearance from just the look of it. I really wonder what it looks like without being this severely damaged. Cool elements to observe. Maybe that's why Tallurre's fuck-arse group went here and bought the whole damn place. It's way too fucking big.}
Stanley, then with his first true smile in recent times, put the rock in his pocket and walked back to the vehicle. Two people were having an argument when he returned to hearing distance. They both were yelling at short distances, like an old couple bickering.
Mysterious mechanic: "Oi, Tallurre? What took you so fucking long, my dude? Sheng-Ri just got Aurora, and Magnus has been waiting for fifteen minutes, man. Stanley, I'm guessing that's him there?"
The man in the cap pointed down at Stanley aggressively but subtly while he talked so carefree and relaxed. The aspects of anger remained in a few syllables due to his accent.
Tallurre and the man both looked at Stanley, while he looked back with the only emotion shown on his face. calmness. Deep down, He thought he was staring grudgingly.
Tallurre: "Yep. Mr Kleitos. As of today, I went through the infamous door anomaly, and I so happened to be close," he replied, not losing his cool.
Mysterious mechanic: "Yeah, alright then. Cool. You were meant to be here with him before Aurora."
The man's body language got fiercer as he stepped closer to Tallurre's face with his arms crossed like a punk. He posed just like one would for a unique fashion cover, hitting uncommon arm and leg poses.
Tallurre, however, didn't like the mention of his brother, stepping forward to confront him with his hands in his pockets, standing with a tall, mighty posture, trying to match the height of the taller one. He tensed his eyebrows.
"Okay, we did plan it out. I got delayed since I had to inject him with Doxyine to get him out of the CELESTICA trance. Stopped the car and waited until he woke, then continued on my journey. Reasonable enough excuse, Hm, Daryl?
Tallurre: "In fact, Stanley, come here and introduce yourself to the Hippie in front of us."
He ushered in a small wave with his left hand to Stanley, who was still ten metres away from them.
Stanley: "Uh, sure. Hey man, I'm Stanley Kleitos. Good to meetcha, pal."
Stanley walked towards the man and brought out his hand confidently to the man, who looked back with slight amusement at Stanley's good manners.
{I-is he smiling at my appearance?} God, I should've changed. Well, I had no opportunity to. I really hope he doesn't judge me based on appearances. I'm not beautiful.}
"Meet Daryl Carter. We don't have room or patience for a whole repairs/machinery team, so Daryl here replaces A-tier teams.
The tall mechanic in front of Stanley, Daryl, wore grease-stained denim jeans over an oversized black shirt that read "LIVE AND DIE TO THE MAX!!!!" in a big font. Beneath that was a long-sleeved white shirt, made from exquisite material. His thermal. His face was average-looking, with slightly puffy cheekbones and a grin hanging on his face. His bright lime eyes did make his face seem more beautiful than it actually was. Curly hair escaped from beneath a faded blue baseball Mets cap, and many tools hung from his belt, like a wrench, screwdrivers, and a green drill on his left side. His boots were steel-capped, being the only workplace-safe thing he had on from appearance alone. His vibe, being given off, was high-octane energy powered by smugness and overwhelming talent.
Daryl: "Hey, Stanley. You heard my name, dude. I'm the mechanic, and I mainly focus on making sure everything here is in top shape and improving this base with Oblivion. Surely, You've heard about big guy O, right?"
His body language got even more absurd as he leaned backwards, keeping his legs in place. His arms then moved on to finger guns as he pointed at him, looking like he was shooting guns at Stanley's torso.
Pew Pew Pew were being mumbled under Daryl's breath.
Stanley: "Yeah, I've only heard little bits. Can't he be that bad? Right?"
Daryl: "Nah… actually, yeah. He's terrifying the first time you meet him. Just a little bit."
His tone speaks many words, as it sounds like he's figuring out his answer whilst saying it.
"He does have a kill count. But he is really kind to those who treat him normally, despite being a Nullari. No flex, dude, but I'm his best friend, Brah."
{He obviously flexes being a friend to Oblivion, but I did expect something like a full-blooded Nullari or a Meridian, being the two naturally strongest species.} God, I'm actually gonna meet a Nullari. How terrifying, but kind of exciting to meet.}
Tallurre: "Talk and bond later. We need a tour, and then you can talk with Magnus for a good, honest talk where you'll probably live here as a scout. If you have an outstanding skill, one of us will point it out, and you can become a disciple. Daryl here got one, named Johnny."
Daryl then raised his eyebrow before turning to Tallurre, eyeballing him down whilst changing positions again. He could not maintain being still for five seconds.
Daryl: "You just bonded, you sad sack of potatoes. If you want to go down and meet the group, I'm doing it. You go talk with Aurora after she finishes up, Dingus."
He seemed mad, but only playfully.
Tallurre: "Mr Kleitos, meet me in the living quarters after."
Stanley: "Aye aye, Mr Ufushimi," Said Stanley, mockingly.
Then, they all started walking to the downward part of the hill, which, in order, Stanley followed right next to him with some discomfort, and Tallurre was ten metres back, walking slowly and staring up at the sky.
Daryl: "Now, as you can see, not many buildings have been assembled. I just got here; I'm still working on it."
He pointed out expressively the fact that the rectangular-shaped buildings are limited to only a few at the moment, with his fingers swaying wildly.
"Hmm, Yeah. I don't mind as long as I've got a toilet and a bed." Said Stanley.
{I do fucking mind. I want a good arse toilet. Not a shit one, but my dreams probably won't go to plan here.}
They both walked down, while Tallurre didn't catch up.
The sounds of talking, stuff being moved, and banging on walls were all around him.
To his left was the closer building, which seemed tightly secured. Plenty of metal covered the area and seemed to be the source of loud noises.
Daryl: "Containment. Anomaly Containment." He took Stanley's curiosity and answered it.
Stanley: "Huh?" He gave a four-second pause to figure out his words. "You keep them there because they are so rare?"
His face gleamed in the amber light. "Bingo, Dude! You understand! You deserve a medal! Haha!" The mechanic gave him a comfortable pat on the back, matching his sarcasm.
Further up ahead, to the right, was another building. More like an observatory, since there's a telescope and something else being pointed at the stars from its dome-like body.
"Communications. Don't worry about it." He tapped Stanley on his right shoulder, reaching over and innocently ushering his attention from the building.
Daryl wanted to walk past this after giving a quick definition. Stanley was confused about why he didn't feel comfortable standing for a few seconds near the white dome room.
"She's kinda busy." "Yeah, I understand."
They both moved in a speed-walking motion to come near the next building, which was located a few metres from the small observatory. He stood proud once again and said the following:
Daryl: "Now, this is where the bonding happens. I call it the home room; the rest treat it as the break room, sadly." He pointed out the big-looking building that had a big width and looked to be a two-storey area.
He seemed down, hearing his own words.
Then, immediately brought back after walking past that into the main area where all the buildings were close, almost like an unofficial plaza, except the buildings weren't facing inwards; more like they were placed in different spots. There was also a metal bench that had enough space for ten people on both sides, located in the middle of the plaza.
Then Stanley pointed at the building that had practically all the military cars in it, with plenty of red metal cabinets and tools scattered around the place.
"Yeah, That's where you mainly focus, right?"
Daryl immediately answered.
"Yeah, Brah, I dedicate my good time to those weapons, cars, vehicles, tech and more in that huge working space for me. I make Coooooooool shit, Stanley. Guns, knives, hover tools, flame shit, ice shit, crystal shit, and gravity shit. All kinds of shit!"
He started listing them off with his hands and fingers while looking at Stanley with glee. Daryl was clearly proud of his work. "Don't go inside, though. Unless you want to work with me. Too much dangerous shit there, man.
His tone got quieter, and he raised his right arm to point at the mechanic building and the room hidden inside.
Stanley: "What's in there?"
"Long story short, an explosion before you arrived, like fifteen minutes ago. Can't you see the smoke?"
From a little corner, past the cars, tools, and outdoor stuff, was a door slightly open in the dimly lit workspace on the left. Some sort of cloudy, thick gas was leaking out upon closer inspection.
{Ok? Now, how could that have happened? Mistake from Mr Perfect engineer? Sabotage?}
"It was Oblivion, by the way. I said a dumb joke, and he punched one of my data processors. Shit, man, I'm still annoyed by that."
It was clear he was ticked off by it since he stopped posing uncommonly and stood straight, squinting at the room with a small amount of gas coming out of his mouth. Then he snapped back.
Daryl: "We gon move now, Dude. We have to take you to Magnus and let you see how insightful that guy is. I think he's busy, so I'll sit with you on the few waiting chairs we have."
Stanley: "Uh, why would you need waiting chairs when you got a small member count?"
Stanley asked curiously.
Daryl took around twelve seconds to answer, then said.
"New members, con, use your common sense. This isn't just all we need; we need people to keep this shit secret and dedicate their hearts!"
He tapped Stanley on the gap between both eyebrows, leaving him emotionally stunned.
They both headed next to the bigger rectangular building that could not leave their sight during the whole tour. It wasn't exactly bigger than the rest; it just looked like the size of an office with two storeys.
It only took them two minutes to reach it, but it didn't leave Stanley feeling any less weird. He had got accustomed to Daryl pretty easily, but Magnus? Who could that man be?
"Oh, by the way, Dude, you might need this, as you could get lost and head to the wrong room. It's a map."
Daryl tapped Stanley on his left shoulder, smiling and handing him a map of some sort. It had a bit of grease and a burnt corner. Its texture was smooth like normal paper, aside from the smooth, greasy bits that probably came from Daryl, and its title was the following:
MAP OF BASE CAMP 1 {Scale 1:10}
Stanley opened the map, seeing all the little markers spread across the map.
His eyes dart across the map. New things he hasn't even spotted appeared here.
"Rocky Cliffs", "Science Experiment Lab", "Underground Testing"
What are these things?
They all seem interesting, like they have their own designated area that doesn't barge in with the others.
These locations were all on his mind. How could he have missed this?
On the bottom right corner was a compass, showing the directions everything was in.
Currently, Stanley remains SSE (South-South-East) on the compass scale, near office 3 and the Gym.
{Woah, um. I'd swear I didn't see an entrance for the "Underground testing " space.} Stanley quietly mumbled each marker out to himself, thinking about the locations.
Stanley: "So, this would be Office 3, right?" He said nervously.
Daryl replied, "Yeah, dude. right 'ere."
'Would I get to see the rest later?"
"Yeah, man. You have to explore it, though. I have to head back to finishing prep after your talk."
They both stood in front of the automatic thick glass doors. One with hands on his hips, posing like a hero; the other with his arms tucked inside, together and crossed.
Stanley took a breath that was noticeable to Daryl.
"Whew, not sure how to feel here. Been a crazy journey today. Tell me, you already know me. Was I really wanted before today?"
He turned to look at the thinking Daryl. Even in thought, He still resonated with personality.
"Yeah man, we planned this all out like two months ago, I think. Today will be the day that will separate me from being a friend from a colleague if you say the wrong thing. I don't think losing me would be nice, as I'm easy to talk to, you know?"
"I agree, you're nice to talk to, but still. I'm going to get personal here. I've let down many and helped many. I've forgotten the ones I've helped a bit; the ones I've lost touch with still echo up here."
Stanley pointed at his brain.
"I feel lost. Ever since I lost my relationship with my ex, I can't respect goodwill from many anymore. I just need more to get me happy."
"Well, Stanley, all you can get right now is a good friend, man. You aren't finding a lover here. Fuck your mental belief. This is what you get, and happiness comes from figuring out something sweet from that little freedom and the choices you get.
An audible 'woah' could only be heard from Stanley, who seemed particularly shocked by the wisdom from the eccentric mechanic. It took him a minute to muster up a response.
"Well… thanks."
Stanley strode straight to the office doors.
"I think I've spent too long convincing myself I'm not enough."
Daryl shrugged.
"Just stop, then. Good thoughts, Good vibes. That's my motto."
Stanley laughed quietly enough to feel that he was gleeful.
"Yeah, Daryl."
He took one step towards the entrance and touched the entrance handles.
"Let's have a nice talk. One small step forward."