Starset The Book

It Has Begun

I awake with a jump.
That was one of the strangest dreams that I have ever had.
All I can remember seeing is a ton of sand and a bright burning light.
I sit up and see I'm sitting on a pristine (save for the bit of sand) mattress. I appear to be at the top of a dune.
I hear scuffling and I turn around to see something scuttling slowly out of the sand not seven feet from me.
My instincts aren't kicking in and instead I stay sitting there. Awaiting something.
Anything.
Finally the creature pokes it's head out. It's small and ugly.
Green slime pours around it, dripping like mucus onto the red, now turning green sand.
The teeth also dripping with slime, open further to show a scaly tongue. The tongue flicks out as if tasting the air. The bluish figure of it finally distinguishable.
I reel back on my mattress and utter a cry as the creature grows. It's tiny legs seeming to split right off its body. Instead they pull away and stick to its skin at the top and a brand new pair of rough looking legs emerges.
These brownish grotesque legs start to move towards me. Finally they connect to the body and the whole creature has at least gotten eight feet taller.
The thing is huge and await for the next horrible moment.
It doesn't come. Instead the creature tilts it's slimy head as if confused at me.
It finally starts to walk over to me.
I hold in a cry.
If I were to die I would have rather been eaten by the giant monster.
It's head tilts back in place. It's scaly blue tongue slips out of its mouth slithers for a moment before retreating into the dark green cavern of a mouth.
My hands are over my mouth.
I remember the creature that smashed into our ship and pretty much screwed us all over. I'm now wondering where all my crew members went.
The big creature puts once small finger on the mattress.
With one swift movement it overturns it. I am thrown through the air and I slam into the sand. I can hear the creature snarling.
Looking for me.
I get up and try to run but find running through sand is not easy.
As I am running, I think I spot something metallic in the sand.
I decide to run towards that. I'm panting hard I can hear the creature behind me stomping and charging. It's an amazement it hasn't caught up with me yet.
I cry out. I have forgotten about the wounds from the giant flying creature battle. My stomach feels like it has been pulled farther than it should.
I keep running.
Stomp.
Rip.
The creature has swung out a nasty clawed hand and tore a hole in my back of my helmet. I'm going to lose all of my oxygen.
I finally reach the metallic thing and almost yell in joy. It's the missing mech suit.
I run past it and grab it. I'm almost pulled back but the will to go on is stronger and the suit is pulled from the sand. I look around for the minimizer setting and find it. The suit shrinks to the size of a lunchbox. It's not as heavy but it's still not the lightest thing.
I'm almost at the edge of the dune. I get ready to slide down it when I hear a giant screaming noise and it's all I can do to avoid another of the same creature erupting from the sand.
I dive out of the way. My dive is too great and I sail over the edge of the dune. Some force pulls me down towards the surface.
I wriggle through the air and I un-minimize the suit.
I clamber in and press the form fitting button and then I brace for impact.
Boom.
Straight into the sand and down. I fall into the sand and sink far down.
"Shit!" I yell. The sand around me compresses and slows but it's also crushing me.
Frantically I look at my options.
It seems to just be a lock and a booster. I press the booster option and I shoot straight up.
I yell as I'm spit from the sand at a high velocity.
I yell out of fear once I see what I'm headed towards.
It's another giant flying creature.
Finally the suit stops rising and both mech and human fall back towards the sand. I'm getting so low I can see the creatures again.
I decide to try something.
As I near the ground I use the boost option again. I boost toward the creatures warmth in my leg from the heat of the boost.
Slam.
Right into the biggest one. We both sink into the sand.
I look at my options again.
Lock, boost.
Wait! Page two.
Traction control. Melee.
I select the melee option and watch as a giant knife sticks from the suits arm. The creature still struggles.
I yank the knife from the arm and jab the creature hard with it. I use all my force and push it into the slimy gooey mess that was this grotesque creature.
The creature stops struggling.
Crack.
I hear the creatures neck snap as it hits the ground. Finally sinking through the layer of sand. I'm second to hit and again another resounding crack can be heard, as the mechs suit hits the cavernous ground.
I pant slowly. I'm tired. I decide to activate the lock feature.
The suit makes groaning noises as it locks up, a small shield surrounding it glowing red.
I relax and close my eyes.