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Description
The Scarlet Saga: Castaway
Issue 1: Derelict
Written by M.R.Maloney

Page 1:
Panel 1: The solar system as seen from the vast distance of space behind the narration, stars and nebulae visible around it.

Narr. (box, inset in Narr. 2 at the top of it): "'Given the millions of billions of Earth-like planets, life elsewhere in the Universe without a doubt, does exist. In the vastness of the Universe we are not alone.' ~ Dr. Albert Einstein, Physicist"

Narr. (box) 2: "The vacuum of space is mostly devoid of life, clusters of stars illuminating a sea of pitch black icy indifference. There are the occasional planets circling these radiant spheres, asteroid belts, comets and the like, but most of these are sterile and uninhabitable without centuries of terraforming, or paraterraforming for more immediate usage of land potential. The universe for so many centuries appeared to humanity as a silent field, waiting to be seeded with colonies if there were enough souls with the courage to conquer these harsh distant lands. The issue as always lay not only in the time it would take to prepare these potential worlds, but also how long it would take to reach them.

Then in the late thirty-fourth century light from an unknown source arrived on the edge of the Kuiper belt, within range of several terrestrial and mars-colony telescopes. Scientists across both globes debated as detail was recorded mere minutes before the light dimmed immensely, a secondary smaller light growing larger in its place. Something was on approach. It took a few hurried weeks of preparations to re-purpose a supply ship from Earth at the Mars colony and another month more for fusion-driven vessel to reach the mysterious object. Approaching slowly from the side, the brave crew were able to see the light was coming from thrusters moving an object more akin to a probe than any piloted ship, and of no design ever sent out in the history of human exploration. As the human ship made its approach the thrusters cut off, lights flashing on its surface surrounding what seemed to be a large hoop of sorts. Unsure of what to do the captain sent a laser burst transmission to Mars for instruction.

In far less time than it should have taken for the query to arrive, much less a reply, their sensors picked up a transmission. Not from Mars or Earth, but the object. It repeated a few times before the crew played back what they had received. Voices, speaking, singing, shouting in segments. All human remnants, radio and laser transmissions sent out into space decades and centuries ago, as well as depictions of the star constellations of some planet some distance beyond our solar system. Pieced together, the message seemed to say: Greetings. Welcome to the neighborhood, sorry we didn't see you move in before. Here's a fruit basket and our number if you need help."

Page 2:
Panel 1: Zoomed even further out, showing the local bubble. Faded a bit on either side of the panel are a human and an Allyv.

Narr. (box): "The years passed as the probe was examined and studied, every piece of datum reviewed before its full message could be given reply. The probe contained information for construction the first slip-drives and a comprehensive lexicon and encyclopedia of an extrasolar civilization, our nearest neighbors in the Milky Way Galaxy, a mere forty-two light-years away. Too far to travel even with fusion-driven ships, but with the designs found in the probe it would take mere days. Such a gift of technology and knowledge was suspected by many but the planetary governments agreed to make a reply. A human-built probe was constructed and sent with a mirrored database of human knowledge and a transmission in both human languages and that of the other species, simply summed up stated: Sorry for the shocked delay, any chance we could meet for a spot of tea? We'd like to get to know you better."

Panel 2: Zoomed out to show the Milky Way. On either side of the panel, faded a bit, are a couple more alien species.

Narr. (box): "Centuries passed as communications and meetings between humanity and the other species, known as the Allyv, grew from mere curiosity and transference of knowledge to a deeper sense of partnership. It was an inspiration and hope for humanity that its first extraterrestrial contact had brought forth not the fires and iron fist of invasion but open hands and open minds. Further exploration and probing of the Milky Way and its neighboring galaxies would uncover further species and civilizations spread across the light-years, most as unknowing of their fellow explorers as humanity had been of the Allyv. Some of these species had brief wars with the growing Alliance, but without the expertise of the Allyv and Humanity with the slip-drives their own numbers faced far greater casualties than those they sought to repel. Treaties were soon formed and peace reigned in the Milky Way once again. There were no more enemies to be found within it on a significant level and exploration was rapidly expanding beyond the neighboring galaxies as the Alliance sought more resources and knowledge, always the first to make contact, noticing other civilizations from a distance long before approaching them.
Until the end of the forty-fifth century when humanity would have a surprise meeting with an unknown vessel..."

Page 3:
Panel 1: The darkness of space, stars in the distance like pinpricks of light. There is, however, a small soft glow in the top right corner of the panel.

Narr. (box): " "As'Derlue.Obi.Yar.As'Hil.Dahn.Rute." ~ Husp Jer'Li, Ar'Siv Kolgri
“Nothing is ever empty. There is always story.” ~ Wild Heartbreak, Level Three Engineer "

Panel 2: In the background the soft glow expands like an underwater explosion before peeling back, the nose of a ship coming out of it. In the foreground we see The A.F. Lightbringer poised ready, cautious.

SO Sanders: "Captain Kayne, sensors are picking up a ship dropping out of slip-space."

Panel 3: Captain Kayne, looking at the console next to his captain's chair.

Captain Kayne: "Thank you Lieutenant. I can see that."

Captain Kayne 2: "Relevant data? Species, weapons and shielding, what can you tell me about its make so far?"

Panel 4: One of the ensigns on the bridge rubbing his eyes, looking up from the console. SO Sanders staring into her own console.

SO Sanders: "Captain, it's definitely not in the Alliance registry..."

SO Sanders 2: "It's either a prototype from one of the non-Alliance races or... From a species with no official record in the registry."

SO Sanders 3: "I'm having difficulty with the other readings... There's definitely some air, though it is far higher in sulfur. Power seems to be dropping in various sections. No active energy-based weapons detected, shielding is offline or non-existent."

Page 4:
Panel 1: Show the derelict The Questioning Darkness with all its battle damage.

SO Sanders (box): "Wow. There are a lot of holes in the hull. Some look intentional, docking ports or escape pods? Yes, I can see a few now. Definitely the latter for most, some pods seem to be welded in place from the outside. And... There are a lot of smaller holes. I'd say weapons-fire of some sort, though I've never seen holes like those before. They're... Like someone didn't impact it, but tore off sections, way too many to be a lone saboteur. I'm not reading anything discernible as life moving, but some sections seem heavily reinforced, and since the design is unknown...”

Panel 2: Captain Kayne rubbing his chin.

Captain Kayne: "We might not have our sensors calibrated to detect whatever species might be aboard it."

Captain Kayne 2: "Lieutenant Sanders, gather two fireteams and get over there. See if there is a database that can be accessed to find out what happened to it. If we've just found evidence of a new threat, Command is going to want to know everything we can give them."

Panel 3: SO Sanders nodding to the ensign next to her, slowly letting some air into her helmet at a controlled rate, scrunching up her nose at the stench before the automatic filter kicked in. There are a few other ensigns behind them. Behind them is the shuttle airlock doors, and the walls around are all blue and gray.

Ensign: "Environment levels within acceptable limits Lieutenant. A little high on sulfur as Lightbringer scans indicated, but tolerable. Just going to stink quite a bit. Seems all the sectors with holes in them were sealed off, most likely emergency procedures."

Panel 4:Two of the ensigns nervously chuckling at each other, their faces mostly hidden by the reflection on their helmets.

SO Sanders: "Keep the helmets on, filtration will deal with the sulfur, and we don't yet know if there aren't other hazards. At the very least, if a mild acid or other chemical compound gets on the helmet you'll be able to remove it. You can't very well remove your face if the same thing happens to it."

Panel 5: Two of the soldiers pointing their guns around the room they had docked to from the perspective of within one of the helmets with a thermal overlay visual that shows only the extreme spikes of hot and cold temperatures.

Page 5:
Panel 1: The group of eight total spread out in the control room of The Questioning Darkness, the room almost entirely dark with green bioluminescence around the consoles and edges of the corridors. There is an organic sack on the ceiling that is pushing a bit of the air around. The section is badly damage with several long scratches on the wall, bent pieces of metal that were clearly used to club something, oil nearby the metal fragments. Holes in the wall nearby appear to lead to other sectors in addition to a set of locked bulkhead doors. There are also other corridors that are definitely designed that way, showing how the holes are not. SO Sanders is looking at one of the holes in wall. One of the soldiers is in the foreground. Wide panel.

SO Sanders: "♪"

SO Sanders 2: "They appear to have been chewed... Some burning to soften it, but torn off in pieces."

SO Sanders 3: "Keep sharp. We don't know what race created this ship, but clearly they had some trouble."

Soldier (over com, connected to both his and SO Sander's helmets): "Lieutenant Sanders, you should see this."

Panel 2: The soldier seen from behind, shaking, the lightbeam of his gun dancing on the wall. Beyond him is a bulkhead that had been melted and torn, almost completely missing from its slotted channel, a hole nearly the size of the corridor beyond removed. Through the hole lay the same blue and gray walls and the bioluminescent green, but there are long thin scorch marks and oil streaking the floor, with a spray of purple stain on the walls held in a pattern that can not be possibly mistake for anything other than blood spatter.

Panel 3: SO Sanders moved over to the hole, scraping off a sample of the spatter into a vial that is stickign out of a diagnostic handheld device. It doesn't flake off like dried human blood but pulled like soft gel, leaving a lighter color of blue underneath where it has been pulled off. The device has four vials sticking out of it.

SO Sanders: "Check your guns."

SO Sanders 2: "We don't know how long ago these were made."

Panel 4: One of the men, Harris, started poking the goo and pulling it back, playing with it like a curious child with a fascinating mess. SO Sanders is taking a sample of the oil as well into a second vial.

SO Sanders: "Some chemical reaction between the material in the stain and whatever makes up the walls might be why it didn't dry completely, or it could be the species normal blood doesn't dry, if it is even blood."

SO Sanders 2: "Spread out enough to give cover-fire if we need it fast, but don't wander."

SO Sanders 3: "Either the creatures who were attacked or their attackers may still be alive. Maybe both. We don't have enough information yet."

Panel 5: SO Sanders in the corridor beyond the hole, at the opposite bulkhead. The bulkhead is welded in place but there is a thin gap between the plates making it possible to see a room behind it. Her gun is against the gap, moving the light inside.

Page 6:
Panel 1: There is debris from some form of packaging and more of the gel, a pattern leading over to the opposite wall, passing more oil. It is a solid sixty meters at best, hard to distinguish much detail with the eye, but the scope on her gun solved that problem (we see more detail on it as it takes up most of the panel and the space around it is not as detailed). Light reflects back white from a few shapes, the top third of a skeleton of some unknown species, taller than any human, but difficult to gauge the exact height from the distance and how the body is curled against the wall in its position of death.

Panel 2: The scope lowered a little, showing the middle third of the skeleton, showing remnants of some metal and clothing of some kind, shredded and stained with the gel. The diagnostic handheld device in the panel as well. The device screen shows the purple gel and the details next to it.

Device (on the screen): "Composition: Glucose, mineral ions, hydrogen sulfide, carbon dioxide, hemocyanin, assorted molecules and elements."

SO Sanders: "It is blood..."

SO Sanders: "But not from any species in the Alliance."

Panel 3: The gun lowered to another corpse on the ground. There is metal being reflected the same color as one of the alloys in the ship's walls, some of the alien blood on the corpse, but the metal seeming to be moving on the corpse, blood dripping off of it.

Panel 4: The metal turned, showing that it is a group of four robots, blood on their heads, segmented and multi-limbed, each a bizarre blend of features, but all the same. Tentacle coils were between sets of mandibles, a sleek back that had groves outlining possible hinged sections or splits in thicker armor, and sixteen individually operating legs. Each robot is approximately half a meter in length, a quarter of a meter wide, and an eighth of a meter tall. Seven small spots on their head are reflecting red and faintly glowing.

Panel 5: The robots return to to resume rending alien flesh and organs from the bone slowly, shoveling the bits into their mouths below th tentacles, seemingly eating the corpses.

Page 7:
Panel 1: SO Sanders is backing away, a hand on her shoulder as she turns to face it.

Panel 2: One of the soldiers, Sargent Roderick Kuval pressing his radio button and waving a hand in front of her. SO Sanders presses his button as well.

SO Sanders: "This is Lieutenant Sanders, Lightbringer can you hear us?"

Panel 3: SO Sanders standing there with Sargent Kuval standing ready next to her. No response to the radio.

Panel 4: SO Sanders pressing the a different button on her suit.

SO Sanders: "Fireteam Alpha, Fireteam Beta, switch to speakers and give me a callout."

Fireteam Alpha (three tails, coming from off-panel): "Fireteam Alpha, present and accounted for."

Fireteam Beta (four tails, also coming from off-panel): "Fireteam Beta, present and accounted for."

Panel 5: SO Sanders nodding to what Sargent Kuval said.

Sargent Kuval: "Lieutenant, Ma'am."

Sargent Kuval 2: "Protocol would dictate one fireteam guard any route leading to our shuttle-craft in the event of a radio blackout."

Sargent Kuval 3: "Always a sound decision regardless, but doubly so if a speedy escape is needed.

Panel 6: Kuval behind SO Sanders as she is heading toward the reader.

SO Sanders: "Kuval, Harris, Graham, you're with me. Thatcher, Lang, Jackson, Dufort, hold this position and do not let anything get by unless its wearing one of our suits or between us. If we're chasing it, subdue it. If its chasing us, let us know when to duck if you have a good shot."

SO Sanders 2: "One of you see if you can interface a data-pad with one of these consoles, but copy only for now. We can try translation and data simulation to read it later, but I'd rather not find out just how efficient the slip-drive of this vessel is at this moment."

SO Sanders 3: "You have your orders.”

Page 8:
Panel 1: Fireteam Beta fortifying their position in the control room as one of them tries to interface with the console, having opened a panel on the bottom with a bunch of organic wire hanging out now.

Panel 2: Walking down a corridor with SO Sanders and the rest of Fireteam Alpha. Bent and melted metal along the floor, streaks of oil and stains of the alien blood on the walls. There is an alien skeleton up ahead without any flesh or clothing.

Harris: "Seems like mutiny. Only one color blood so far. The bots are probably using whatever resources they can find to fix the ship.”

Panel 3: SO Sanders stooped down to study it in the foreground, the others talking in the back. The skull has ridges going from the outer edge of the temple back to the occipital bone, with another set of ridges on the bridge of the nose above the nasal cavity. The teeth are intact, displaying a top and bottom set which mirrored each other in form. Each held four incisors, six canine, two bicuspids and six molars, a total of thirty-six teeth in all. The skeleton measures two and a fifth meter tall with an impressively wide breastbone with sixteen pairs of ribs connected to it. Plantigrade bipedalism, but the hands and feet having only four digits each.

Graham: "Then how do you explain the holes in the outer hull?"

Graham 2: "And the lack of any sort of blast residue from weapons-fire? All we've seen so far are dead bodies and bloodstains."

Harris: "Easy. The robots have to fix internal systems and need more material found only in the hull. The ship doesn't need it to float through space and once in its own star system another vessel will come and take all the survivors back planet-side."

SFX (coming from off-panel at the bottom, mechanical): "Wrrrrrr"

Panel 4: Around the curve of the corridor is a small fire in an open panel on the wall, caused by an electrical short. This, in turn, is caused by a long metal spike driven through a robot's underbelly between two hard shells much like elytra in a beetle, and onward onto the panel. The robot is still attempting to move, but can't pull itself off of the spike, oil running out of the wound slowly. Harris is nudging the robot with the end of his gun.

Sargent Kuval: "Still think the robots are just for cleanup or repair?"

SFX (off-panel at bottom): "BONG!"

Page 9:
Panel 1: The fireteam turned, two robots thirty meters away, standing atop metal panels that had fallen onto the deck, organic and metal wires hanging from the ceiling dripping yellow goo and glowing from the organic ones, sparks coming from the metal ones. The robots mandibles are snapping, their abdomens lifted, a spike pointed upward.

SFX (near robots' spikes): "THRUUMMN!"

SFX (same) 2: "THRUUMMN!"

SFX (same) 3: "THRUUMMN!"

Panel 2: Kuval and Graham opening fire with their miniguass rifles, concussive echos reverbarating through the corridor as short-lived pulsed particle beams cut through the air and splash against the two robots' mid-segment as a visual sign of the magnetically accelerated slags hitting them.

SFX: "THOOM!"

SFX 2: "THOOM!"

Panel 3: The robots seeming to be unharmed, the metal slags just falling off of them.

Panel 4: The spikes thrumming again, more panels starting to fall in the far background.

SFX (near robots' spikes): "THRUUMMN!"

SFX (same) 2: "THRUUMMN!"

SFX (same) 3: "THRUUMMN!"

SFX (back near the falling panels, small) 4: "Kkh!"

SFX (same) 5: "Kkh!"

Page 10:
Panel 1: SO Sanders firing rapidly at a pair of the approaching robots as they scurried about, even climbing the walls.

SO Sanders: "Concentrate your fire towards the gaps between segments!"

SFX: "THOOM!"

SFX 2: "THOOM!"

Panel 2: One of the robots leaping directly at Harris, his face paniced as he fired a blast directly into the face through the tentacles and widening mandibles. The blast erupts flames through the back of the head as it melted.

SFX: "THOOM!"

Panel 3: The robot falling, almost crashing into Harris, another robot jabbing one of its legs into Graham's own as it starts climbing his ankles. Graham stabs a combat knife into the metal skull through one of the eyes.

Panel 4: The robot falling, its eyes flickering and turning off, releasing its grip, blood oozing out of the wound where the robot leg had gone through the suit.

Panel 5: Sargent Kuval checking Graham's wounds as SO Sanders and Harris lay down cover-fire against the incoming horde.

SO Sanders: "Aim for the heads! Keep moving back but don't give them any ground!"

Page 11:
Panel 1: Full page showing the hibernation system that S'Karr is in, cold air shooting out of it, and the room around it. There are multiple pods frosted over, though only one has a shadowed form within it, S'Karr. There is a barricade against one wall where there appears to be a sealed door, and a few supplies hung from a shoulder strap on the wall, as well as a few metal poles, and a console with a red square covering the top left 1/4th of the screen.

Narr. (box): (the Abeonai script for the Abeoden's language saying the first line, followed by the English phonetics and then translation)
" "As'Derlue.Obi.Yar.As'Hil.Dahn.Rute.” ~ Husp Jer'Li, Ar'Siv Kolgri
“Nothing is ever empty. There is always story.” ~ Wild Heartbreak, Level Three Engineer "

PAge 12:
Panel 1: Close up of S'Karr's hand slapping against the front glass of the hibernation system pod that she is in. Thin but tall panel.

SFX: "THUMP!"

Panel 3: The pod opening up. Gasping for air, the surviving member of the Questioning Darkness pulled a long tube out of its throat, coughing up the slowly dripping nutrient mix. Wide and tall panel. A lot of tubes are running into her body where her veins are. She is clearly the same cybernetic species as all the corpses and skeletons, though obviously alive. She has a lot of scars on her arms, both from cuts and burns, though they are mostly healed long ago.

S'Karr: "Huuuuufff!"

Narr. (S'Karr, box): "The good news is the system works as the engineers promised. The bad news is that I'd only be woken if the Gomag found new prey. Either I miscounted and missed a fellow crew-member who had survived... Or The Questioning Darkness dropped out of slip-space when the power dropped too low."

Panel 3: S'Karr pulling the various tubes out of her body and wincing.

S'Karr: "Nnghh..."

Narr. (S'Karr, box): "That was the plan, but what are they hunting? And where is the ship? Omnovo? Ythdar I hope not... The ship should be far away from it by now, hopefully keeping the Gomag form having a way to find it."

Panel 4: S'Karr pulling herself out of the hibernation pod, eyes wide in awe and terror, shivering.

Narr. (S'Karr, box): "If not Omnovo, then what? The home of the Gomag? Were the Gomags fighting amongst themselves? Or something altogether different... If Ythdar permitted a set of mechanical monsters to rise in her ordered Universe, then maybe she allowed other species to as well."

Page 13:
Panel 1: S'Karr pulling another layer over the hibernation suit, the second layer tattered and torn with a cloak on its back.

Narr. (S'Karr, box): "I've never seen the Gomag fight one another before, and I already searched The Questioning Darkness seven times over for supplies and other survivors before entering hibernation."

Panel 2: S'Karr looking at a console, showing four different boxes with text in the Abeonai script, only the top left of which is red.

Narr. (S'Karr, box): "The ship didn't alter course in slip-space... So it definitely isn't Omnovo... But another space-faring species? They..."

Panel 3: S'Karr gripping the console for a moment, shaking, teeth clenched, eyes shut.

Narr. (S'Karr, box): "They don't know the horror I've brought upon them."

Panel 4 : S'Karr's strapping supplies to herself and arming herself with a crude metal spear clearly made out of parts of the ship and a few devices on the wall behind where the supplies were. The spear is a long thin pipe with several sharp pieces of metal welded on each end at the tip and side.

Narr. (S'Karr, box): "Will they be allies against the Gomag or even wrose then them? Is such a thing even possible?"

Page 14:
Panel 1: S'Karr removing the barricade to the hibernation system room. We can see where the spear and supplies were, and the other devices aren't there now.

Panel 2: S'Karr looking out into the corridor beyond to her left (right of panel).

SFX (small, coming from side of the panel): "THRUM!"

SFX (same) 2: "THRUM!"

SO Sanders (off-panel): "Aim for the heads!"

S'Karr: "That's definitely not a Gomag..."

Panel 3: S'Karr looking to her right, seeing the closed bulkhead, gritting her teeth.

S'Karr: "Grrrr..."

Panel 4: S'Karr looking down the corridor ahead of her, seeing Fireteam Alpha being chased by sixteen of the Gomags with a few of the robots on the ground already as Fireteam Alpha keeps backing up but not facing her, firing at the robots as they scurry along the floor and climb the walls and ceiling. One of the robots falls as one of the blasts connects with it. SO Sanders appears to be slapping another chunk of metal into the bottom of her gun to reload it. S'Karr is behind the robots who are in the midground.

SFX: "THOOM!"

SFX 2: "THOOM!"

SFX 3: "THOOM!"

Page 15:
Panel 1: S'Karr hesitating in the background, but in the midground, we see a Gomag crouched and preparing to launch itself at SO Sanders who is in the foreground still reloading.

S'Karr: "Grrr..."

Panel 2: S'Karr charging, running up the wall, preparing her spear. All the Gomag are turning.

S'Karr: "GRROOOAAR!"

Panel 3: S'Karr's afterimages as she pushes off the wall, off the ceiling and launches at the Gomag as it starts leaping at SO Sanders, pulling a gray canister out of the strap with supplies, throwing it at some of the Gomags. The canister shatters and spreads gray foam that expands and coats five of the robots, stopping them in their tracks as they are blinded, trying to scrape it off. Wide panel.

Panel 4: S'Karr landing just beyond the Gomag, quickly jabbing her spear into the heads of the five with afterimages of her arms and sparks coming out of their heads, swinging the spear to knock away another robot that jumped at her.

Panel 5: S'Karr spinning, her cloak blocking the sight of one of the Gomag for a moment as it tries to sneak up on her.

S'Karr: “You'll not slaughter these as well!”

Page 16:
Panel 1: S'Karr as seen from near SO Sander's position, behind and over her shoulder, seeing S'Karr using a small welder on the robot that had been behind her cloak, right at its skull.

S'Karr: "Kulta ba yun'dur gro atonti!"

Panel 2: The humans continuing to back up, SO Sanders firing at one of the Gomags leaping at her, blasting it. We see the humans in the background, the reflection of the Gomag launching at her being destroyed in her helmet.

Panel 3: Large panel, a second Gomag using the husk of the one SO Sander's just blasted as a stepping stone of sorts in mid-air, leaping out at her, taking up the most attention in the center of this cliffhanger panel. SO Sander's eyes are wide in fear. In the distance S'Karr is lifting up her spear behind her head, about to throw it in the direction of the attacking Gomag launching at SO Sanders, but SO Sanders can't see that from her position, even though the readers can. Should be from a perspective about half meter behind SO Sanders and a meter to her left. S'Karr should be in the top left of the panel, the Gomag in the center, and SO Sanders in the bottom right corner.

Description
The Scarlet Saga: Castaway
Issue 1: Derelict
Written by M.R.Maloney

Page 1:
Panel 1: The solar system as seen from the vast distance of space behind the narration, stars and nebulae visible around it.

Narr. (box, inset in Narr. 2 at the top of it): "'Given the millions of billions of Earth-like planets, life elsewhere in the Universe without a doubt, does exist. In the vastness of the Universe we are not alone.' ~ Dr. Albert Einstein, Physicist"

Narr. (box) 2: "The vacuum of space is mostly devoid of life, clusters of stars illuminating a sea of pitch black icy indifference. There are the occasional planets circling these radiant spheres, asteroid belts, comets and the like, but most of these are sterile and uninhabitable without centuries of terraforming, or paraterraforming for more immediate usage of land potential. The universe for so many centuries appeared to humanity as a silent field, waiting to be seeded with colonies if there were enough souls with the courage to conquer these harsh distant lands. The issue as always lay not only in the time it would take to prepare these potential worlds, but also how long it would take to reach them.

Then in the late thirty-fourth century light from an unknown source arrived on the edge of the Kuiper belt, within range of several terrestrial and mars-colony telescopes. Scientists across both globes debated as detail was recorded mere minutes before the light dimmed immensely, a secondary smaller light growing larger in its place. Something was on approach. It took a few hurried weeks of preparations to re-purpose a supply ship from Earth at the Mars colony and another month more for fusion-driven vessel to reach the mysterious object. Approaching slowly from the side, the brave crew were able to see the light was coming from thrusters moving an object more akin to a probe than any piloted ship, and of no design ever sent out in the history of human exploration. As the human ship made its approach the thrusters cut off, lights flashing on its surface surrounding what seemed to be a large hoop of sorts. Unsure of what to do the captain sent a laser burst transmission to Mars for instruction.

In far less time than it should have taken for the query to arrive, much less a reply, their sensors picked up a transmission. Not from Mars or Earth, but the object. It repeated a few times before the crew played back what they had received. Voices, speaking, singing, shouting in segments. All human remnants, radio and laser transmissions sent out into space decades and centuries ago, as well as depictions of the star constellations of some planet some distance beyond our solar system. Pieced together, the message seemed to say: Greetings. Welcome to the neighborhood, sorry we didn't see you move in before. Here's a fruit basket and our number if you need help."

Page 2:
Panel 1: Zoomed even further out, showing the local bubble. Faded a bit on either side of the panel are a human and an Allyv.

Narr. (box): "The years passed as the probe was examined and studied, every piece of datum reviewed before its full message could be given reply. The probe contained information for construction the first slip-drives and a comprehensive lexicon and encyclopedia of an extrasolar civilization, our nearest neighbors in the Milky Way Galaxy, a mere forty-two light-years away. Too far to travel even with fusion-driven ships, but with the designs found in the probe it would take mere days. Such a gift of technology and knowledge was suspected by many but the planetary governments agreed to make a reply. A human-built probe was constructed and sent with a mirrored database of human knowledge and a transmission in both human languages and that of the other species, simply summed up stated: Sorry for the shocked delay, any chance we could meet for a spot of tea? We'd like to get to know you better."

Panel 2: Zoomed out to show the Milky Way. On either side of the panel, faded a bit, are a couple more alien species.

Narr. (box): "Centuries passed as communications and meetings between humanity and the other species, known as the Allyv, grew from mere curiosity and transference of knowledge to a deeper sense of partnership. It was an inspiration and hope for humanity that its first extraterrestrial contact had brought forth not the fires and iron fist of invasion but open hands and open minds. Further exploration and probing of the Milky Way and its neighboring galaxies would uncover further species and civilizations spread across the light-years, most as unknowing of their fellow explorers as humanity had been of the Allyv. Some of these species had brief wars with the growing Alliance, but without the expertise of the Allyv and Humanity with the slip-drives their own numbers faced far greater casualties than those they sought to repel. Treaties were soon formed and peace reigned in the Milky Way once again. There were no more enemies to be found within it on a significant level and exploration was rapidly expanding beyond the neighboring galaxies as the Alliance sought more resources and knowledge, always the first to make contact, noticing other civilizations from a distance long before approaching them.
Until the end of the forty-fifth century when humanity would have a surprise meeting with an unknown vessel..."

Page 3:
Panel 1: The darkness of space, stars in the distance like pinpricks of light. There is, however, a small soft glow in the top right corner of the panel.

Narr. (box): " "As'Derlue.Obi.Yar.As'Hil.Dahn.Rute." ~ Husp Jer'Li, Ar'Siv Kolgri
“Nothing is ever empty. There is always story.” ~ Wild Heartbreak, Level Three Engineer "

Panel 2: In the background the soft glow expands like an underwater explosion before peeling back, the nose of a ship coming out of it. In the foreground we see The A.F. Lightbringer poised ready, cautious.

SO Sanders: "Captain Kayne, sensors are picking up a ship dropping out of slip-space."

Panel 3: Captain Kayne, looking at the console next to his captain's chair.

Captain Kayne: "Thank you Lieutenant. I can see that."

Captain Kayne 2: "Relevant data? Species, weapons and shielding, what can you tell me about its make so far?"

Panel 4: One of the ensigns on the bridge rubbing his eyes, looking up from the console. SO Sanders staring into her own console.

SO Sanders: "Captain, it's definitely not in the Alliance registry..."

SO Sanders 2: "It's either a prototype from one of the non-Alliance races or... From a species with no official record in the registry."

SO Sanders 3: "I'm having difficulty with the other readings... There's definitely some air, though it is far higher in sulfur. Power seems to be dropping in various sections. No active energy-based weapons detected, shielding is offline or non-existent."

Page 4:
Panel 1: Show the derelict The Questioning Darkness with all its battle damage.

SO Sanders (box): "Wow. There are a lot of holes in the hull. Some look intentional, docking ports or escape pods? Yes, I can see a few now. Definitely the latter for most, some pods seem to be welded in place from the outside. And... There are a lot of smaller holes. I'd say weapons-fire of some sort, though I've never seen holes like those before. They're... Like someone didn't impact it, but tore off sections, way too many to be a lone saboteur. I'm not reading anything discernible as life moving, but some sections seem heavily reinforced, and since the design is unknown...”

Panel 2: Captain Kayne rubbing his chin.

Captain Kayne: "We might not have our sensors calibrated to detect whatever species might be aboard it."

Captain Kayne 2: "Lieutenant Sanders, gather two fireteams and get over there. See if there is a database that can be accessed to find out what happened to it. If we've just found evidence of a new threat, Command is going to want to know everything we can give them."

Panel 3: SO Sanders nodding to the ensign next to her, slowly letting some air into her helmet at a controlled rate, scrunching up her nose at the stench before the automatic filter kicked in. There are a few other ensigns behind them. Behind them is the shuttle airlock doors, and the walls around are all blue and gray.

Ensign: "Environment levels within acceptable limits Lieutenant. A little high on sulfur as Lightbringer scans indicated, but tolerable. Just going to stink quite a bit. Seems all the sectors with holes in them were sealed off, most likely emergency procedures."

Panel 4:Two of the ensigns nervously chuckling at each other, their faces mostly hidden by the reflection on their helmets.

SO Sanders: "Keep the helmets on, filtration will deal with the sulfur, and we don't yet know if there aren't other hazards. At the very least, if a mild acid or other chemical compound gets on the helmet you'll be able to remove it. You can't very well remove your face if the same thing happens to it."

Panel 5: Two of the soldiers pointing their guns around the room they had docked to from the perspective of within one of the helmets with a thermal overlay visual that shows only the extreme spikes of hot and cold temperatures.

Page 5:
Panel 1: The group of eight total spread out in the control room of The Questioning Darkness, the room almost entirely dark with green bioluminescence around the consoles and edges of the corridors. There is an organic sack on the ceiling that is pushing a bit of the air around. The section is badly damage with several long scratches on the wall, bent pieces of metal that were clearly used to club something, oil nearby the metal fragments. Holes in the wall nearby appear to lead to other sectors in addition to a set of locked bulkhead doors. There are also other corridors that are definitely designed that way, showing how the holes are not. SO Sanders is looking at one of the holes in wall. One of the soldiers is in the foreground. Wide panel.

SO Sanders: "♪"

SO Sanders 2: "They appear to have been chewed... Some burning to soften it, but torn off in pieces."

SO Sanders 3: "Keep sharp. We don't know what race created this ship, but clearly they had some trouble."

Soldier (over com, connected to both his and SO Sander's helmets): "Lieutenant Sanders, you should see this."

Panel 2: The soldier seen from behind, shaking, the lightbeam of his gun dancing on the wall. Beyond him is a bulkhead that had been melted and torn, almost completely missing from its slotted channel, a hole nearly the size of the corridor beyond removed. Through the hole lay the same blue and gray walls and the bioluminescent green, but there are long thin scorch marks and oil streaking the floor, with a spray of purple stain on the walls held in a pattern that can not be possibly mistake for anything other than blood spatter.

Panel 3: SO Sanders moved over to the hole, scraping off a sample of the spatter into a vial that is stickign out of a diagnostic handheld device. It doesn't flake off like dried human blood but pulled like soft gel, leaving a lighter color of blue underneath where it has been pulled off. The device has four vials sticking out of it.

SO Sanders: "Check your guns."

SO Sanders 2: "We don't know how long ago these were made."

Panel 4: One of the men, Harris, started poking the goo and pulling it back, playing with it like a curious child with a fascinating mess. SO Sanders is taking a sample of the oil as well into a second vial.

SO Sanders: "Some chemical reaction between the material in the stain and whatever makes up the walls might be why it didn't dry completely, or it could be the species normal blood doesn't dry, if it is even blood."

SO Sanders 2: "Spread out enough to give cover-fire if we need it fast, but don't wander."

SO Sanders 3: "Either the creatures who were attacked or their attackers may still be alive. Maybe both. We don't have enough information yet."

Panel 5: SO Sanders in the corridor beyond the hole, at the opposite bulkhead. The bulkhead is welded in place but there is a thin gap between the plates making it possible to see a room behind it. Her gun is against the gap, moving the light inside.

Page 6:
Panel 1: There is debris from some form of packaging and more of the gel, a pattern leading over to the opposite wall, passing more oil. It is a solid sixty meters at best, hard to distinguish much detail with the eye, but the scope on her gun solved that problem (we see more detail on it as it takes up most of the panel and the space around it is not as detailed). Light reflects back white from a few shapes, the top third of a skeleton of some unknown species, taller than any human, but difficult to gauge the exact height from the distance and how the body is curled against the wall in its position of death.

Panel 2: The scope lowered a little, showing the middle third of the skeleton, showing remnants of some metal and clothing of some kind, shredded and stained with the gel. The diagnostic handheld device in the panel as well. The device screen shows the purple gel and the details next to it.

Device (on the screen): "Composition: Glucose, mineral ions, hydrogen sulfide, carbon dioxide, hemocyanin, assorted molecules and elements."

SO Sanders: "It is blood..."

SO Sanders: "But not from any species in the Alliance."

Panel 3: The gun lowered to another corpse on the ground. There is metal being reflected the same color as one of the alloys in the ship's walls, some of the alien blood on the corpse, but the metal seeming to be moving on the corpse, blood dripping off of it.

Panel 4: The metal turned, showing that it is a group of four robots, blood on their heads, segmented and multi-limbed, each a bizarre blend of features, but all the same. Tentacle coils were between sets of mandibles, a sleek back that had groves outlining possible hinged sections or splits in thicker armor, and sixteen individually operating legs. Each robot is approximately half a meter in length, a quarter of a meter wide, and an eighth of a meter tall. Seven small spots on their head are reflecting red and faintly glowing.

Panel 5: The robots return to to resume rending alien flesh and organs from the bone slowly, shoveling the bits into their mouths below th tentacles, seemingly eating the corpses.

Page 7:
Panel 1: SO Sanders is backing away, a hand on her shoulder as she turns to face it.

Panel 2: One of the soldiers, Sargent Roderick Kuval pressing his radio button and waving a hand in front of her. SO Sanders presses his button as well.

SO Sanders: "This is Lieutenant Sanders, Lightbringer can you hear us?"

Panel 3: SO Sanders standing there with Sargent Kuval standing ready next to her. No response to the radio.

Panel 4: SO Sanders pressing the a different button on her suit.

SO Sanders: "Fireteam Alpha, Fireteam Beta, switch to speakers and give me a callout."

Fireteam Alpha (three tails, coming from off-panel): "Fireteam Alpha, present and accounted for."

Fireteam Beta (four tails, also coming from off-panel): "Fireteam Beta, present and accounted for."

Panel 5: SO Sanders nodding to what Sargent Kuval said.

Sargent Kuval: "Lieutenant, Ma'am."

Sargent Kuval 2: "Protocol would dictate one fireteam guard any route leading to our shuttle-craft in the event of a radio blackout."

Sargent Kuval 3: "Always a sound decision regardless, but doubly so if a speedy escape is needed.

Panel 6: Kuval behind SO Sanders as she is heading toward the reader.

SO Sanders: "Kuval, Harris, Graham, you're with me. Thatcher, Lang, Jackson, Dufort, hold this position and do not let anything get by unless its wearing one of our suits or between us. If we're chasing it, subdue it. If its chasing us, let us know when to duck if you have a good shot."

SO Sanders 2: "One of you see if you can interface a data-pad with one of these consoles, but copy only for now. We can try translation and data simulation to read it later, but I'd rather not find out just how efficient the slip-drive of this vessel is at this moment."

SO Sanders 3: "You have your orders.”

Page 8:
Panel 1: Fireteam Beta fortifying their position in the control room as one of them tries to interface with the console, having opened a panel on the bottom with a bunch of organic wire hanging out now.

Panel 2: Walking down a corridor with SO Sanders and the rest of Fireteam Alpha. Bent and melted metal along the floor, streaks of oil and stains of the alien blood on the walls. There is an alien skeleton up ahead without any flesh or clothing.

Harris: "Seems like mutiny. Only one color blood so far. The bots are probably using whatever resources they can find to fix the ship.”

Panel 3: SO Sanders stooped down to study it in the foreground, the others talking in the back. The skull has ridges going from the outer edge of the temple back to the occipital bone, with another set of ridges on the bridge of the nose above the nasal cavity. The teeth are intact, displaying a top and bottom set which mirrored each other in form. Each held four incisors, six canine, two bicuspids and six molars, a total of thirty-six teeth in all. The skeleton measures two and a fifth meter tall with an impressively wide breastbone with sixteen pairs of ribs connected to it. Plantigrade bipedalism, but the hands and feet having only four digits each.

Graham: "Then how do you explain the holes in the outer hull?"

Graham 2: "And the lack of any sort of blast residue from weapons-fire? All we've seen so far are dead bodies and bloodstains."

Harris: "Easy. The robots have to fix internal systems and need more material found only in the hull. The ship doesn't need it to float through space and once in its own star system another vessel will come and take all the survivors back planet-side."

SFX (coming from off-panel at the bottom, mechanical): "Wrrrrrr"

Panel 4: Around the curve of the corridor is a small fire in an open panel on the wall, caused by an electrical short. This, in turn, is caused by a long metal spike driven through a robot's underbelly between two hard shells much like elytra in a beetle, and onward onto the panel. The robot is still attempting to move, but can't pull itself off of the spike, oil running out of the wound slowly. Harris is nudging the robot with the end of his gun.

Sargent Kuval: "Still think the robots are just for cleanup or repair?"

SFX (off-panel at bottom): "BONG!"

Page 9:
Panel 1: The fireteam turned, two robots thirty meters away, standing atop metal panels that had fallen onto the deck, organic and metal wires hanging from the ceiling dripping yellow goo and glowing from the organic ones, sparks coming from the metal ones. The robots mandibles are snapping, their abdomens lifted, a spike pointed upward.

SFX (near robots' spikes): "THRUUMMN!"

SFX (same) 2: "THRUUMMN!"

SFX (same) 3: "THRUUMMN!"

Panel 2: Kuval and Graham opening fire with their miniguass rifles, concussive echos reverbarating through the corridor as short-lived pulsed particle beams cut through the air and splash against the two robots' mid-segment as a visual sign of the magnetically accelerated slags hitting them.

SFX: "THOOM!"

SFX 2: "THOOM!"

Panel 3: The robots seeming to be unharmed, the metal slags just falling off of them.

Panel 4: The spikes thrumming again, more panels starting to fall in the far background.

SFX (near robots' spikes): "THRUUMMN!"

SFX (same) 2: "THRUUMMN!"

SFX (same) 3: "THRUUMMN!"

SFX (back near the falling panels, small) 4: "Kkh!"

SFX (same) 5: "Kkh!"

Page 10:
Panel 1: SO Sanders firing rapidly at a pair of the approaching robots as they scurried about, even climbing the walls.

SO Sanders: "Concentrate your fire towards the gaps between segments!"

SFX: "THOOM!"

SFX 2: "THOOM!"

Panel 2: One of the robots leaping directly at Harris, his face paniced as he fired a blast directly into the face through the tentacles and widening mandibles. The blast erupts flames through the back of the head as it melted.

SFX: "THOOM!"

Panel 3: The robot falling, almost crashing into Harris, another robot jabbing one of its legs into Graham's own as it starts climbing his ankles. Graham stabs a combat knife into the metal skull through one of the eyes.

Panel 4: The robot falling, its eyes flickering and turning off, releasing its grip, blood oozing out of the wound where the robot leg had gone through the suit.

Panel 5: Sargent Kuval checking Graham's wounds as SO Sanders and Harris lay down cover-fire against the incoming horde.

SO Sanders: "Aim for the heads! Keep moving back but don't give them any ground!"

Page 11:
Panel 1: Full page showing the hibernation system that S'Karr is in, cold air shooting out of it, and the room around it. There are multiple pods frosted over, though only one has a shadowed form within it, S'Karr. There is a barricade against one wall where there appears to be a sealed door, and a few supplies hung from a shoulder strap on the wall, as well as a few metal poles, and a console with a red square covering the top left 1/4th of the screen.

Narr. (box): (the Abeonai script for the Abeoden's language saying the first line, followed by the English phonetics and then translation)
" "As'Derlue.Obi.Yar.As'Hil.Dahn.Rute.” ~ Husp Jer'Li, Ar'Siv Kolgri
“Nothing is ever empty. There is always story.” ~ Wild Heartbreak, Level Three Engineer "

PAge 12:
Panel 1: Close up of S'Karr's hand slapping against the front glass of the hibernation system pod that she is in. Thin but tall panel.

SFX: "THUMP!"

Panel 3: The pod opening up. Gasping for air, the surviving member of the Questioning Darkness pulled a long tube out of its throat, coughing up the slowly dripping nutrient mix. Wide and tall panel. A lot of tubes are running into her body where her veins are. She is clearly the same cybernetic species as all the corpses and skeletons, though obviously alive. She has a lot of scars on her arms, both from cuts and burns, though they are mostly healed long ago.

S'Karr: "Huuuuufff!"

Narr. (S'Karr, box): "The good news is the system works as the engineers promised. The bad news is that I'd only be woken if the Gomag found new prey. Either I miscounted and missed a fellow crew-member who had survived... Or The Questioning Darkness dropped out of slip-space when the power dropped too low."

Panel 3: S'Karr pulling the various tubes out of her body and wincing.

S'Karr: "Nnghh..."

Narr. (S'Karr, box): "That was the plan, but what are they hunting? And where is the ship? Omnovo? Ythdar I hope not... The ship should be far away from it by now, hopefully keeping the Gomag form having a way to find it."

Panel 4: S'Karr pulling herself out of the hibernation pod, eyes wide in awe and terror, shivering.

Narr. (S'Karr, box): "If not Omnovo, then what? The home of the Gomag? Were the Gomags fighting amongst themselves? Or something altogether different... If Ythdar permitted a set of mechanical monsters to rise in her ordered Universe, then maybe she allowed other species to as well."

Page 13:
Panel 1: S'Karr pulling another layer over the hibernation suit, the second layer tattered and torn with a cloak on its back.

Narr. (S'Karr, box): "I've never seen the Gomag fight one another before, and I already searched The Questioning Darkness seven times over for supplies and other survivors before entering hibernation."

Panel 2: S'Karr looking at a console, showing four different boxes with text in the Abeonai script, only the top left of which is red.

Narr. (S'Karr, box): "The ship didn't alter course in slip-space... So it definitely isn't Omnovo... But another space-faring species? They..."

Panel 3: S'Karr gripping the console for a moment, shaking, teeth clenched, eyes shut.

Narr. (S'Karr, box): "They don't know the horror I've brought upon them."

Panel 4 : S'Karr's strapping supplies to herself and arming herself with a crude metal spear clearly made out of parts of the ship and a few devices on the wall behind where the supplies were. The spear is a long thin pipe with several sharp pieces of metal welded on each end at the tip and side.

Narr. (S'Karr, box): "Will they be allies against the Gomag or even wrose then them? Is such a thing even possible?"

Page 14:
Panel 1: S'Karr removing the barricade to the hibernation system room. We can see where the spear and supplies were, and the other devices aren't there now.

Panel 2: S'Karr looking out into the corridor beyond to her left (right of panel).

SFX (small, coming from side of the panel): "THRUM!"

SFX (same) 2: "THRUM!"

SO Sanders (off-panel): "Aim for the heads!"

S'Karr: "That's definitely not a Gomag..."

Panel 3: S'Karr looking to her right, seeing the closed bulkhead, gritting her teeth.

S'Karr: "Grrrr..."

Panel 4: S'Karr looking down the corridor ahead of her, seeing Fireteam Alpha being chased by sixteen of the Gomags with a few of the robots on the ground already as Fireteam Alpha keeps backing up but not facing her, firing at the robots as they scurry along the floor and climb the walls and ceiling. One of the robots falls as one of the blasts connects with it. SO Sanders appears to be slapping another chunk of metal into the bottom of her gun to reload it. S'Karr is behind the robots who are in the midground.

SFX: "THOOM!"

SFX 2: "THOOM!"

SFX 3: "THOOM!"

Page 15:
Panel 1: S'Karr hesitating in the background, but in the midground, we see a Gomag crouched and preparing to launch itself at SO Sanders who is in the foreground still reloading.

S'Karr: "Grrr..."

Panel 2: S'Karr charging, running up the wall, preparing her spear. All the Gomag are turning.

S'Karr: "GRROOOAAR!"

Panel 3: S'Karr's afterimages as she pushes off the wall, off the ceiling and launches at the Gomag as it starts leaping at SO Sanders, pulling a gray canister out of the strap with supplies, throwing it at some of the Gomags. The canister shatters and spreads gray foam that expands and coats five of the robots, stopping them in their tracks as they are blinded, trying to scrape it off. Wide panel.

Panel 4: S'Karr landing just beyond the Gomag, quickly jabbing her spear into the heads of the five with afterimages of her arms and sparks coming out of their heads, swinging the spear to knock away another robot that jumped at her.

Panel 5: S'Karr spinning, her cloak blocking the sight of one of the Gomag for a moment as it tries to sneak up on her.

S'Karr: “You'll not slaughter these as well!”

Page 16:
Panel 1: S'Karr as seen from near SO Sander's position, behind and over her shoulder, seeing S'Karr using a small welder on the robot that had been behind her cloak, right at its skull.

S'Karr: "Kulta ba yun'dur gro atonti!"

Panel 2: The humans continuing to back up, SO Sanders firing at one of the Gomags leaping at her, blasting it. We see the humans in the background, the reflection of the Gomag launching at her being destroyed in her helmet.

Panel 3: Large panel, a second Gomag using the husk of the one SO Sander's just blasted as a stepping stone of sorts in mid-air, leaping out at her, taking up the most attention in the center of this cliffhanger panel. SO Sander's eyes are wide in fear. In the distance S'Karr is lifting up her spear behind her head, about to throw it in the direction of the attacking Gomag launching at SO Sanders, but SO Sanders can't see that from her position, even though the readers can. Should be from a perspective about half meter behind SO Sanders and a meter to her left. S'Karr should be in the top left of the panel, the Gomag in the center, and SO Sanders in the bottom right corner.