RPG_DLSU One Shots

 King Xeros — The Helm Answers The passage opened ahead of them as they climbed. Blue-white light traveled through the crystalline walls in long, steady currents. It illuminated the seams where GrimCo had driven metal braces into the ship, exposing the torn edges of the installation work. Here and there, a conduit hung loose from the ceiling. The deeper vibration beneath their feet had settled into a regular rhythm, like a great structure finding its balance after a violent blow. Kris led the ascent with his weapon ready. At each junction he paused long enough to check the next stretch of passage, then moved on. The route they had crossed on the way down seemed subtly altered. Curved walls had shifted into new alignments; narrow openings had widened, and one sealed recess now stood open behind them, revealing a flight of steps descending into darkness. “Keep to the marked route,” he said. “The ship is rearranging passages. We don't need to find out whether it closes them behind us....

  The passage descended in a slow curve through the hull. The blue-white light moved ahead of them, visible through the translucent walls. Every few seconds, it divided around a crystalline support, then converged on the other side. GrimCo conduits interrupted the pattern wherever the company had forced its equipment into the ship. Francis followed the changing signatures on his Hyperpad. Vale walked beside him, carrying his diagnostic unit. His attention kept drifting toward the walls, where the light was growing brighter. "You've seen this pattern before?" Francis asked. "I've seen the ship react to the interfaces. I've never seen it behave like this." "Because the first interface is down." Vale shook his head. "We shut down auxiliary connections before. The response was always local." Francis glanced at him. "And now?" "Now the response is moving through the entire vessel." Francis turned back to the display. ...

 The dark-crystal door opened another handspan. Cold air spilled across the chamber floor, carrying the smell of mineral dust and something faintly metallic. Beyond the opening, footsteps approached through the darkness. Their rhythm was slow and heavy, each impact followed by a faint vibration through the crystalline deck. Kris shifted toward the opening, bringing his rifle to bear. He chose a position with a clear line of fire and enough room to withdraw without crossing Cat's position. "Hold the doorway," he said. "Keep the center clear." Yosef drew Min-woo toward the injured prisoner. The Android settled beside the GrimCo operative, keeping one hand near the man's restrained wrists while Yosef checked the damage to his own equipment. Stephen crouched in front of the prisoner. "Look at me. Can you stand?" The operative swallowed and nodded. "Then stay seated until I tell you otherwise." His eyes kept returning to the opening. Cat watch...

King Xeros - Interior Exploration:  The Helm The seven crossed the chamber. Behind them, the empty chair continued to glow. For several seconds, nobody spoke. Then Francis stopped. Cat took another step before noticing. She turned. Francis was looking back toward the chair. “What?” “The light.” Cat followed his gaze. The crystalline structures surrounding the chair were still illuminated, but the pattern had changed. It was no longer pulsing randomly. The light was moving. Slowly. From the base of the platform upward. One branch. Then another. Then another. The illumination climbed the crystalline structures like veins filling with blood. Francis walked back toward it. Kris immediately moved with him. Yosef looked at Min-woo. “Watch the prisoner.” Min-woo nodded. The surviving GrimCo operative was still on his knees against the balcony wall, one arm hanging uselessly from the broken wrist. His helmet had cracked during the fight. There was blood beneath it. He was breathing hard. S...

King Xeros - Below the Decks  The seven moved deeper into the Xeros. For the first thirty seconds, nobody spoke. They were listening. Not to footsteps. To the ship. The deck beneath their boots carried a faint vibration that had no mechanical rhythm. It rose and fell slowly, almost imperceptibly, as though something enormous were breathing somewhere below them. Cat raised one hand. The team stopped. Kris moved half a step ahead and angled his weapon toward the passage. Francis crouched beside the crystalline deck. “What?” Francis placed two fingers against the surface. The crystal brightened beneath his glove. He withdrew his hand. “It responds to contact.” Rome looked down. “Pressure?” “I don't know.” “Electrical?” “I don't know.” “Thermal?” Francis looked at him. “I don't know.” Rome considered that. “Good.” Francis gave him a flat look. Rome turned away. Kris watched the corridor. “Enough.” They continued. The passage curved gently downward. There were no exposed cables....

King Xeros - The Pursuit The Xeros did not accelerate. It changed its relationship with distance. One moment it was above the curve of the moon, its crystalline hull catching the reflected light from Peak of Evening. The next, it was impossibly farther away, as though the space between the vessel and the station had been stretched while nobody was looking. Yosef watched the telemetry collapse into nonsense. “Min-woo.” “I see it.” “Conventional propulsion?” “No.” “GravTech?” “No.” “Then what is moving it?” Min-woo paused. “The vessel.” Yosef looked at him. “That is not an explanation.” “It is the most accurate available description.” Ahead of them, Xeros crossed the stars. Its silhouette was unmistakably that of a vessel, but not one designed according to Neon Odyssey principles. The long crystalline body resembled a ship's hull. Structures rose from it like decks and superstructure rather than a spacecraft's modular frame. Three great sail-like vanes extended from the aft porti...