The next morning, Daniel was despondent to learn it hadn’t been just a bad dream. The Meta Diamonds were just as inert as they had been last night, insides still black as pitch. It was a financial loss that would likely wipe out many of the gains he might make on this mission. He needed to take several deep breaths to try to relieve the pain in his chest from the sorrow. It was okay, he told himself. He hadn’t planned on selling the Diamonds, except as a last resort, anyways. This only meant that he had less of a safety net. Less room for error.

  After he’d calmed down a bit, Daniel started thinking seriously about what had happened to his Diamonds. He had looked at them the night before the expedition began. He’d foregone the practice his first night in the jungle. So, it had to have happened over the course of the last two days. Daniel wasn’t aware of any technology that would automatically drain the Diamonds. His Codex was Meta tech, but it shouldn’t do that. The one moment his mind kept coming back to was that moment in the cave. He replayed the memory over and over again in his head. That strange light was the same color as the Diamonds, right? There had to be something strange about that door.

  Hardgrave resolved to investigate when he got the chance, but first, he checked his status to take his mind of his losses:

  User Name: Daniel Sylvester Hardgrave

  Age: 18

  Pioneer Class: Zeta

  Rank: Private Second Class

  Status:

  Strength: 20 -> 22

  Dexterity: 24 -> 28

  Constitution: 19 -> 21

  Adaptability: 14 -> 15

  Psyche: 9

  Psionic Capacities:

  Slot 1: Empty

  Personal Attributes:

  Slot 1: Empty

  Slot 2: Empty

  Integrated Technologies:

  Slot 1: Empty

  Value of Personal Storage:

  14,112 Credits

  Value of Group Storage:

  142,067 Credits

  It was an outstanding haul, all things considered. The group was set to meet Quota early, though their speed of gathering the Briconium would likely drop soon due to the limited number of samples to be garnered. His stat gains had also been tremendous, especially for a single day. Furthermore, recovery after Xenomorph consumption also recovered a great deal of physical health and energy. His bruises and scrapes were gone, and he wasn’t sore in the slightest. Were it not for the loss of the Diamonds, Daniel would be on cloud 9. As it was, he did best to think positively as he started his new day.

  Unfortunately, Sergeant Gulliman had elected to have their whole group move with the river downstream. It was safer to move as one larger group, which was now necessary with all the dangerous Xenomorphs running around. The downside was that they would cover less ground this way. The group largely accepted the losses philosophically, with the exception of Daniel who could only watch as he was forced to move further and further away from the mysterious door. Still, there was little he could do besides look for more Briconium rocks and hope that they would double back eventually.

  If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  The day passed with little event. The Pioneers gathered more rocks and speared more Silverfish when they had the opportunity. Daniel’s group didn’t get the chance to try and hunt Sparkhooves, and when he raised the prospect to the Sergeant during lunchbreak all he earned for himself was a mouthful of spittle and an angry rebuke:

  “Do you mean to question me, maggot?!? Have you forgotten who has command here!?! Do you want to get us killed?!”

  The Sergeant’s face distended a little when he read Daniel the riot act. Deciding it wasn’t worth trying to explain himself, Daniel only nodded and did his best to look contrite. He had little choice but to accept the rebuke and keep moving, earning himself a sympathetic look from some in his team. O’Riley actually glared at Gulliman’s turned back, but Daniel signaled at him to stand down.

  There was one positive development, however. When the day was reaching late afternoon, Gulliman called for them to make camp. Once they’d finished with that, they were at liberty for the rest of the day. That gave Daniel and the others in his team the chance to sneak off to a secluded place with Jordan:

  “All right, Danny, this had better be goo-oh.”

  Daniel watched with satisfaction as his friend gaped at the Sparkhoof corpse he materialized without a word. He continued to gape as the others produced their spoils, before finally saying:

  “Yep, probably should have guessed as much after you asked me that question. Any chance you could let me know how you got these?”

  Daniel frowned in irritation, though not directed at his friend:

  “Even if I did, our mighty CO won’t listen to reason, so it won’t matter. For now, how about you teach us how to butcher these? We’ll make it worth your while.”

  Jordan enthusiastically agreed to their deal and started showing the ten how to dismantle the carcasses. After he did, there was a quick discussion of who got what. The others decided to give a full Sparkhoof to Daniel, while evenly splitting the other five. Jordan was promised a choice piece from all six, and they all got to work. Processing the meat was hard work, but the Pioneers were all highly coordinated and had a master to help them. Over the course of the following days, they secretively stripped and cooked their winnings from their first hunt during their free time. In the meantime, they ate a steady diet of Silverfish meat, but the low-grade stuff was growing less effective for their growth as the days churned on. The Silverfish also became less common as the population of fish finished their migration. As for the Harlacs, what few they encountered they either avoided or scared off.

  The group collectively became more conservative with their fish consumption, but Daniel’s team continued eating their Sparkhoof meat in secret. They grew stronger and stronger from the bounty, the meat solidifying their muscles and hardening their constitution, while the fish had been uniquely good for their dexterity. A week, then two passed in a monotonous, yet pleasant haze, and everyone became used to jungle life. It was day 15 when the first real turning point happened.

  The distant rumble of falling water alerted the group to the river’s end. They approached the white-water rapids with extensive caution, peering over the edge and down a sheer cliff. The drop must have been more than 100 meters, river water cascading off the edge in a downward plunge that crashed into a carved-out pool below. The verdant, multicolored jungle stretched out for kilometers beyond the cliff, spreading out as far as the eye could see. A plethora of rainbows was generated by the falls as they churned and gushed, adding to the spectacle. The beginning rays of an azure and vermillion sunset caught the leaping water droplets, sparkling with a gemlike allure. Birds seemed especially active in this place, tweeting and fluttering this way and that. Daniel could see a flight of enormous birds with dark emerald plumage flying in formation in the far distance. Every Pioneer was forced to hold his breath in the face of nature’s beauty.

  Without saying a word, they made camp at the waterfall’s edge and spent the sunset playing cards and relaxing. Still, it was back to business the next morning, and Gulliman was quick to bark orders once again:

  “We’ve hit the end of our rope here. We’d be fools to brave a climb down. It would be best to backtrack and start heading upriver, where we haven’t gathered samples yet. With our current fitness level, we should be able to get back to our first campsite within a few days if we run travel by night.”

  There were a few collective groans at that, which the Sergeant silenced with a fierce glare:

  “Weaker soldiers than you have done much harder! Now quit whining and start running.”

  They did as ordered and took off back the way they came at a swift jog. As belligerent as the Sergeant was, Daniel saw that he was right. He felt reborn has he sprinted back up the river, powerful legs churning the mud like steady pistons, eating up the kilometers with ease. When night fell, the light of twin moons guided the Pioneers well as they navigated the winding river. The Sergeant seemed less careful than he had been before, seemingly confident that they had discovered all that the jungle had to hide from them. The men were less cocky, eyes darting regularly towards the tree line with caution. But nothing terrible happened, so eventually they got over their fear of the night and soldiered onwards.

  The group ran quickly, but as they taxed themselves Daniel realized something. His people were obviously much stronger than the others. The men who had nothing but fish to eat had started to flag somewhat on the second straight day of running, while the older men who had hunted with Daniel on the first day were totally unbothered. The difference was plain for any observer. It wasn’t surprising at all, but it also wasn’t Daniel’s revelation. He realized, with a slight thrill of dread, that it might be a problem. No sooner had the thought crossed his mind than did pain blossom in the small of his back. Daniel pitched forward in surprise, crashing through the mud in an undignified tumble that came to an uncomfortable halt when he ran into a tree. Somewhere, in the back of his mind, he heard Gulliman calling for a halt, and Hardgrave spit out mud as he tried to orient himself. Confusion floated in a thick cloud through all his thoughts. What just happened?

  The answer to that question came in the form of the Sergeant grabbing him by the collar and slamming him into the tree. Stars burst into Daniel’s vision, and he clawed reflexively at arms of his attacker. Struggle as he might, Daniel wasn’t much more than a newborn kitten in the face of Gulliman’s rage:

  “You disobeyed orders, you scum sucking whore!” Gulliman bellowed, face clearly purple even in the limited moonlight, “What did I tell you about hunting Sparkhooves? You put this entire group in danger!”

  He’d found out, though it was probably only a matter of time anyways. Daniel fought to speak, tried to defend himself and say that they had gotten the meat before Gulliman had given the orders, but deep down, he suspected it was hopeless. The Sergeant’s authority was practically absolute, and he doubted anything he could say would change the man’s mind. Behind the belligerent CO, he saw his friends preparing to rush to his defense. Jordan looked uncharacteristically livid as he readied his spear to dash to the rescue. But then something seemed to catch the blond man’s eye and he turned away from the confrontation, toward the forest. Daniel watched as the others did the same and their expressions changed from outrage to fear. In spite of himself, Daniel’s head turned to follow their gazes, eyes widening as he did.

  From the depths of the black forest blinked a legion of angry yellow eyes. They watched the group with an eerie curiosity that mixed with a dangerous hunger. Gulliman was the last of the group to look around and see the danger, and as the first bloodcurdling war cry rang out, he had only one thing to say:

  “GET DOWN!”