Day 29:
Shoes
Calling it an arm wasn’t exactly accurate. There were many moving parts that extended down and pulled at one of the lockers but the entire shape seemed like an arm. He had to stand on the bench to clearly see the hatch that opened at the top of the locker before the inside of the locker was pulled out exposing the empty compartment spots. In quick succession, each compartment spot and empty slot was filled with some item before the locker was returned. The hatch was replaced and the arm moved to the next locker. Two new arms drifted over his head to join the one he was watching and smaller arms off the main one moved to the boxes and bins the two new arms had, removing and apparently restocking the main arm.
“Is it more efficient than having people do it?” he asked.
The man looked over, closing the locker with the last of Artemis’s gear in hand. “Even if it isn’t, it frees up a few more bodies for the field or the medical ward. A few hiccups in the system are easy enough to fix and the mechanics and technicians that work on our vehicles, weapons, and everything else in the base are able to repair and fix any issues with the arms or tracks without too much interruption to any work they’re doing.” The man offered the last of Artemis’s gear. “Here. Put this on first. I’ll help with the rest.”
He traded what he held for what the man had in his hand. It was a vest of some sort and he donned it without much trouble. The man then went through and attached items he didn’t recognize. “I’d put a headset on you but you won’t understand a lot of the chatter and with a Dlmor, you won’t need it to talk with Torra.” He did tuck a few electronics into the vest and grinned at Artemis’s quizzical look. “Doesn’t hurt to at least have one on you.” He patted the pocket he had supposedly tucked the headset in before patting a different vest pocket. “This is a tracking beacon. If you get lost or taken, this is how we’ll find you. If you have to ditch the vest, make sure to take this with you.” The man patted another pocket. “There are three tubes of burs in here. Pop the cap and scatter the contents behind you. There’s about fifty tiny burs in the tubes that’ll shred anything that goes over them. And I mean anything so make sure none of them get on the path you have to take if you can help it. Other than that, the rest of it was just extra protection.”
“No weapons, right?”
He turned at the familiar voice and found Tolnoran standing at the edge of the lockers. The healer was beside him dressed in the same beige gear everyone was wearing. Tolnoran had several weapons on his person as well as far more gear. The healer also had a band around their right arm and had a helmet on. Tolnoran was frowning at him before looking to Tucker. “He needs a helmet or a hat, there, Tuck.”
He looked back as the man’s surprise edged his response. “It’s here, I promise.” The man handed him a helmet. It had some weight to it but he knew it was meant to save his life more than be comfortable. He put it on his head but Tucker strapped it in place. “Rest of the gear should turn most bullet and claw, if not leave a nasty bruise afterwords.”
“Good.” Tolnoran smiled. “Thanks, man. I owe you.”
Tucker waved the larger man off. “Don’t worry about it.” What jovial emotions had been in the space suddenly vanished. “I have to rejoin my squad. Be safe out there, Lieutenant.”
“You as well, Lieutenant,” Tolnoran added in the same serious tone. “I expect to see you at dinner time.”
Tucker gave a cheeky grin but it was sharp, heavy with the seriousness of war. “Planning on it.”
The man took off at a quick jog. Artemis looked to Tolnoran and the man gestured for him to follow. “Come on. The squad’s getting ready to head out.”
He fell into step beside the healer, watching Ysle and Tolnoran lead the way. The pair were intimidating from behind. He couldn’t imagine what they looked like from the front.
“How are you feeling?” the healer asked in a low whisper as Tolnoran left them at the edge of the squad to talk to a few people.
He shrugged. “I’m alright.”
“Any headache?”
He frowned at that and had to briefly turn his attention internal. There wasn’t anything beyond a dull pressure behind one eye and he didn’t count that as a headache. “Not at the moment.”
The healer relaxed some. “I’m going to send Trill with you once we get out there. They’ll be able to let me know where you are and if you need any assistance while I stay back and keep an eye on the others.”
A frown marred his face. “Are you sure? Won’t you need them for protection?”
“I won’t be getting close to the front lines and I know how to shoot a gun.”
It was stated so matter-of-factly that it threw him for a mild loop. A quick glance over and he noticed the two guns on the healer’s hips and the large rifle strapped to their back. He conceded with a sharp nod.
Tolnoran returned as the squad started to move under barked orders. “We’ve got to move quickly. The Kret are getting too close for comfort. Once we hit the dunes, though, it’s going to get tricky.” Tolnoran looked to the healer. “Stay with the vehicles. There will be three soldiers with you while the two field medics go out with the squads.” Tolnoran looked to him. “You and I will be heading out to the front lines. Stay close and stay on Dlmor until I or Dlmor tell you to dismount. If you get separated, back to the vehicles. Understood?”
He nodded as Dlmor shifted its stance under his hand.
With everything apparently said, Tolnoran turned and led them at a brisk walk over to the set of massive garage doors that were open. The sun was beating down from overhead relentlessly on the few soldiers still standing outside of vehicles he had never seen before. At least, not in person. They were some version of the tracked vehicles he had seen in some Antarctica documentary. Only difference between those and what he was looking at now was instead of just the four articulating tracks there were additions added to the outside of each track that looked like odd wings. He wondered if they were to help the massive - and probably extremely heavy - vehicles from sinking into the sand.
Tolnoran helped the healer into the closest vehicle before turning to Artemis and doing the same. His feet left the sand as Tolnoran hefted him up by the back of his vest. Artemis grabbed at the hand holds built into the door frame and took his weight out of Tolnoran’s grasp as soon as his feet touched the deck of the vehicle. He moved into the vehicle, Dlmor at his side before he had properly stepped into the vehicle. It was Dlmor that directed him to a seat near the nose of the vehicle. He sat down between two soldiers against the left wall and pulled at the seat belts he was sitting on. Dlmor shifted its form into that familiar bipedal one and tugged at them for him, strapping him into place. The soldier on his right reached over and helped, buckling the belt around his waist as Dlmor got the ones that crossed over his chest and shoulders buckled.
Once buckled in with all the straps tight - both soldiers tugged on the belts to pin him in - Dlmor reshaped its form back to the one he was familiar with but smaller so that it could tuck itself between his legs securely. Tolnoran came over and double checked the tightness of the straps as the engine that was already idling roared to life. It felt like the vehicle bucked forward and it was only because of the tight straps that he didn’t go anywhere. He was amazed when Tolnoran barely even swayed from the movement, one hand on his straps, the other in the strapping hanging from the ceiling.
“Don’t leave your seat till I come get you,” Tolnoran yelled over the noise. “No need for you to get swept up with the others.”
“Understood, sir,” he shouted back, sheepish but not knowing what else to say.
Tolnoran touched the top of his helmet, a gesture of comfort he took with surprising greed. He watched Tolnoran move to the cab, confused.
Dlmor sent him a brush of reassurance and comfort through Transference and he sighed. He appreciated the attempt but he wasn’t even quite sure why he had suddenly needed that touch, that comfort. He rolled his eyes when Dlmor pointed out to him that he had been through a lot and was now going into the midst of a battlefield to escape one danger only to be placed in a different kind of danger. He was aware of that. He knew it was probably very normal for someone who had never been in the heart of a real fight to suddenly want reassurance from the only person he knew and trusted in among strangers.
He felt Dlmor’s growl instead of hearing it. The creature turned a sharp glare on him and he covered those dark blue eyes with one hand. He shot back the same intent a “shush you” would have had had he been able to speak it and Dlmor simply pulled its head from under his hand and bit down. There wasn’t any pain from it, let alone any force in the bite itself, and he gently grabbed the creature’s lower jaw in turn shaking it like he would do a dog’s. A glint of amusement flickered through those large eyes as the creature licked his hand. He made a face reflexively and yanked his hand free. “Gross,” he muttered into the sound of the engine, rubbing the slobber into Dlmor’s fur. Dlmor chuckled, not fighting the return of its own saliva via its fur.
Adrenaline shot through his spine and he jerked upright, gaze snapping around. No one was paying him any mind. The only eyes upon him were Dlmor’s and the creature was already silently asking what was wrong. He grabbed at the fur at the back of Dlmor’s neck, trying desperately to hear over the noise of the vehicle.
There was no way- he had to be mishearing it. There was no way he could be hearing it, not when the engine nearly drowned out his own thoughts.
Dlmor’s head whipped around, pinning its gaze to the cab. His heart sank to his stomach as his adrenaline increased.
They both could clearly make out the sound of classical music being played over an old radio.
Dlmor saw or sensed something Artemis was not privy to. From one moment to the next, the creature was moving over him, wrapping itself around him not much differently than the time in the dunes where Dlmor had behaved like sunglasses for him.
He woke groggy and in pain. A low moan escaped him as waking brought movement to body parts that complained loudly at it. His head was pounding but reaching up only had his hand meeting an dentless helmet. There was a sharp light coming from his right side and the belts were pressing into him as if he was now on the ceiling instead of the wall.
His eyes adapted to the sharp light enough to tell him that was true.
He could make out sand in front of him nearly close enough to touch, which was much closer than the other wall had been. A glance around revealed he was one of two bodies still strapped in but the body three seats to his right was very much dead and half buried in the sand. He shuddered and looked away. The glare from outside was too much for him to see anything in that direction.
His hands shook as he undid the buckles and the hot sand cushioned his fall. He hissed as pain shot up his left leg and peppered the bottom of his right foot. Looking down at his shoes revealed that his left was completely missing and the right no longer had a sole.
“Is it more efficient than having people do it?” he asked.
The man looked over, closing the locker with the last of Artemis’s gear in hand. “Even if it isn’t, it frees up a few more bodies for the field or the medical ward. A few hiccups in the system are easy enough to fix and the mechanics and technicians that work on our vehicles, weapons, and everything else in the base are able to repair and fix any issues with the arms or tracks without too much interruption to any work they’re doing.” The man offered the last of Artemis’s gear. “Here. Put this on first. I’ll help with the rest.”
He traded what he held for what the man had in his hand. It was a vest of some sort and he donned it without much trouble. The man then went through and attached items he didn’t recognize. “I’d put a headset on you but you won’t understand a lot of the chatter and with a Dlmor, you won’t need it to talk with Torra.” He did tuck a few electronics into the vest and grinned at Artemis’s quizzical look. “Doesn’t hurt to at least have one on you.” He patted the pocket he had supposedly tucked the headset in before patting a different vest pocket. “This is a tracking beacon. If you get lost or taken, this is how we’ll find you. If you have to ditch the vest, make sure to take this with you.” The man patted another pocket. “There are three tubes of burs in here. Pop the cap and scatter the contents behind you. There’s about fifty tiny burs in the tubes that’ll shred anything that goes over them. And I mean anything so make sure none of them get on the path you have to take if you can help it. Other than that, the rest of it was just extra protection.”
“No weapons, right?”
He turned at the familiar voice and found Tolnoran standing at the edge of the lockers. The healer was beside him dressed in the same beige gear everyone was wearing. Tolnoran had several weapons on his person as well as far more gear. The healer also had a band around their right arm and had a helmet on. Tolnoran was frowning at him before looking to Tucker. “He needs a helmet or a hat, there, Tuck.”
He looked back as the man’s surprise edged his response. “It’s here, I promise.” The man handed him a helmet. It had some weight to it but he knew it was meant to save his life more than be comfortable. He put it on his head but Tucker strapped it in place. “Rest of the gear should turn most bullet and claw, if not leave a nasty bruise afterwords.”
“Good.” Tolnoran smiled. “Thanks, man. I owe you.”
Tucker waved the larger man off. “Don’t worry about it.” What jovial emotions had been in the space suddenly vanished. “I have to rejoin my squad. Be safe out there, Lieutenant.”
“You as well, Lieutenant,” Tolnoran added in the same serious tone. “I expect to see you at dinner time.”
Tucker gave a cheeky grin but it was sharp, heavy with the seriousness of war. “Planning on it.”
The man took off at a quick jog. Artemis looked to Tolnoran and the man gestured for him to follow. “Come on. The squad’s getting ready to head out.”
He fell into step beside the healer, watching Ysle and Tolnoran lead the way. The pair were intimidating from behind. He couldn’t imagine what they looked like from the front.
“How are you feeling?” the healer asked in a low whisper as Tolnoran left them at the edge of the squad to talk to a few people.
He shrugged. “I’m alright.”
“Any headache?”
He frowned at that and had to briefly turn his attention internal. There wasn’t anything beyond a dull pressure behind one eye and he didn’t count that as a headache. “Not at the moment.”
The healer relaxed some. “I’m going to send Trill with you once we get out there. They’ll be able to let me know where you are and if you need any assistance while I stay back and keep an eye on the others.”
A frown marred his face. “Are you sure? Won’t you need them for protection?”
“I won’t be getting close to the front lines and I know how to shoot a gun.”
It was stated so matter-of-factly that it threw him for a mild loop. A quick glance over and he noticed the two guns on the healer’s hips and the large rifle strapped to their back. He conceded with a sharp nod.
Tolnoran returned as the squad started to move under barked orders. “We’ve got to move quickly. The Kret are getting too close for comfort. Once we hit the dunes, though, it’s going to get tricky.” Tolnoran looked to the healer. “Stay with the vehicles. There will be three soldiers with you while the two field medics go out with the squads.” Tolnoran looked to him. “You and I will be heading out to the front lines. Stay close and stay on Dlmor until I or Dlmor tell you to dismount. If you get separated, back to the vehicles. Understood?”
He nodded as Dlmor shifted its stance under his hand.
With everything apparently said, Tolnoran turned and led them at a brisk walk over to the set of massive garage doors that were open. The sun was beating down from overhead relentlessly on the few soldiers still standing outside of vehicles he had never seen before. At least, not in person. They were some version of the tracked vehicles he had seen in some Antarctica documentary. Only difference between those and what he was looking at now was instead of just the four articulating tracks there were additions added to the outside of each track that looked like odd wings. He wondered if they were to help the massive - and probably extremely heavy - vehicles from sinking into the sand.
Tolnoran helped the healer into the closest vehicle before turning to Artemis and doing the same. His feet left the sand as Tolnoran hefted him up by the back of his vest. Artemis grabbed at the hand holds built into the door frame and took his weight out of Tolnoran’s grasp as soon as his feet touched the deck of the vehicle. He moved into the vehicle, Dlmor at his side before he had properly stepped into the vehicle. It was Dlmor that directed him to a seat near the nose of the vehicle. He sat down between two soldiers against the left wall and pulled at the seat belts he was sitting on. Dlmor shifted its form into that familiar bipedal one and tugged at them for him, strapping him into place. The soldier on his right reached over and helped, buckling the belt around his waist as Dlmor got the ones that crossed over his chest and shoulders buckled.
Once buckled in with all the straps tight - both soldiers tugged on the belts to pin him in - Dlmor reshaped its form back to the one he was familiar with but smaller so that it could tuck itself between his legs securely. Tolnoran came over and double checked the tightness of the straps as the engine that was already idling roared to life. It felt like the vehicle bucked forward and it was only because of the tight straps that he didn’t go anywhere. He was amazed when Tolnoran barely even swayed from the movement, one hand on his straps, the other in the strapping hanging from the ceiling.
“Don’t leave your seat till I come get you,” Tolnoran yelled over the noise. “No need for you to get swept up with the others.”
“Understood, sir,” he shouted back, sheepish but not knowing what else to say.
Tolnoran touched the top of his helmet, a gesture of comfort he took with surprising greed. He watched Tolnoran move to the cab, confused.
Dlmor sent him a brush of reassurance and comfort through Transference and he sighed. He appreciated the attempt but he wasn’t even quite sure why he had suddenly needed that touch, that comfort. He rolled his eyes when Dlmor pointed out to him that he had been through a lot and was now going into the midst of a battlefield to escape one danger only to be placed in a different kind of danger. He was aware of that. He knew it was probably very normal for someone who had never been in the heart of a real fight to suddenly want reassurance from the only person he knew and trusted in among strangers.
He felt Dlmor’s growl instead of hearing it. The creature turned a sharp glare on him and he covered those dark blue eyes with one hand. He shot back the same intent a “shush you” would have had had he been able to speak it and Dlmor simply pulled its head from under his hand and bit down. There wasn’t any pain from it, let alone any force in the bite itself, and he gently grabbed the creature’s lower jaw in turn shaking it like he would do a dog’s. A glint of amusement flickered through those large eyes as the creature licked his hand. He made a face reflexively and yanked his hand free. “Gross,” he muttered into the sound of the engine, rubbing the slobber into Dlmor’s fur. Dlmor chuckled, not fighting the return of its own saliva via its fur.
Adrenaline shot through his spine and he jerked upright, gaze snapping around. No one was paying him any mind. The only eyes upon him were Dlmor’s and the creature was already silently asking what was wrong. He grabbed at the fur at the back of Dlmor’s neck, trying desperately to hear over the noise of the vehicle.
There was no way- he had to be mishearing it. There was no way he could be hearing it, not when the engine nearly drowned out his own thoughts.
Dlmor’s head whipped around, pinning its gaze to the cab. His heart sank to his stomach as his adrenaline increased.
They both could clearly make out the sound of classical music being played over an old radio.
Dlmor saw or sensed something Artemis was not privy to. From one moment to the next, the creature was moving over him, wrapping itself around him not much differently than the time in the dunes where Dlmor had behaved like sunglasses for him.
He woke groggy and in pain. A low moan escaped him as waking brought movement to body parts that complained loudly at it. His head was pounding but reaching up only had his hand meeting an dentless helmet. There was a sharp light coming from his right side and the belts were pressing into him as if he was now on the ceiling instead of the wall.
His eyes adapted to the sharp light enough to tell him that was true.
He could make out sand in front of him nearly close enough to touch, which was much closer than the other wall had been. A glance around revealed he was one of two bodies still strapped in but the body three seats to his right was very much dead and half buried in the sand. He shuddered and looked away. The glare from outside was too much for him to see anything in that direction.
His hands shook as he undid the buckles and the hot sand cushioned his fall. He hissed as pain shot up his left leg and peppered the bottom of his right foot. Looking down at his shoes revealed that his left was completely missing and the right no longer had a sole.