NationStates Jolt Archive

The planet was barren of all life and beauty. To many of the Terran explorers, it was known simply as Faustus. Massive sandstorms raged across the world, covering any and all signs of visitors and civilizations. Tempuratures were unbearable, ranging from −140 °C at night to 40°C at the daytime. Even the air was deadly, consisting of hydrogen cyanide and carbon dioxide, with very little nitrogen and oxygen being non-existent.

The Germans had first discovered this deathly planet only ten years ago and had affectionately called it Faustus. Colonization was nigh impossible with their current technology unable to withstand the massive sandstorms and the air being poisonous to any life forms. With no other reasons to pay any mind to Faustus, the Terrans abandoned any hope of colonization and soon forgot about the planet…

"Sir you should check this out," Christian called over Captain Eichinger of the Forscher, a German explorercraft dispatched from Earth to look for intelligent life. Their mission was to retrieve a weather satelitte that was monitoring the sandstorms on the planet.

"What is it?" barked Eichinger.

"Sir...the computer systems have picked up something you should see..." Eichinger walked towards the screen. "It's picking up a bioreading. Only one creature on the entire planet."

"That's...that's impossible!!" Eichinger stared hard at the flickering light on the analyzer screen. He turned back towards the intercom. "Boarding parties on deck! Suit up in HazAtm uniforms and prepare for planetary embarkment!"

The party put on their HazAtm (Hazardous Atmosphere) uniforms and rushed to the docking bay. Many were very surprised to be boarding Faustus and even more surprised at the discovery of an actual life form on the planet.

“Men!! We will be embarking to the planet Faustus. The sandstorm that covered the planet has passed for now,” Eichinger pointed at a hologram of the planet. “Nonetheless, we need to stay together as much as possible because these storms are sporadic and very powerful. We will be landing at the Eliphas Sea, next to Mt. Iohan. There we should be able to make contact with the being. Let’s move out!!”

The crew boarded the shuttle where they launched towards their destination: Mt. Iohan.

* * *
The shuttle landed near Mt. Iohan. The crew walked out only to be met with a blanket of scorching winds and piercing sands. Another sirocco was brewing. It wouldn’t be long before their window of opportunity would be erased.

“Captain Eichinger, I am getting strange readings ahead of us,” said Ensign Darik.

“What is it?” asked Eichinger.

“Sir, I have the organic in target. It is on top of Mt. Iohan, but there is something within the mountain. Something big…like a monument,” answered Darik.

This is very odd, thought Eichinger. That would suggest that this…this creature built the monument by itself. But how did it get into the mountain?

Suddenly, the winds picked up. The minor smokescreen that blocked the explorer’s view had become a thick stratum of sand.

“Sir!! I can’t…I can’t see a thing! The storm is too thick!! We…we need to get back!” yelled one of the party members. Eichinger didn’t listen. He couldn’t.

“Sir!!” Darik now joined in the yelling. Eichinger pointed ahead of them. There in the background was the creature.

The nameless one wore a tattered poncho over its heavily massacred body. The creature looked as if it had been beaten and sliced by blades, having clearly open wounds and even exposed bone. Yet it was moving gracefully through the storm like a dancer amongst the winds...

The creature stood atop the mountain and sat. It closed its eyes and began meditation amidst the harsh sandstorm. The sounds of the searing winds acted as the planets natural chants as the being's psyche wandered amongst the underworld of Faustus. The time had come…

To Be Continued…

OOC: This is a massive invasion thread of planetary proportions. players can be what ever race they choose and can be good, evil, neither, or fickle. More information later.

The OOC thread is here
http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=505619

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The ground began to shake under the explorers as the winds grew stronger and stronger. The party tried to keep together with tether lines attached to each other.

“Sir…the wind…its too strong…we need to head…” Darik’s words were cut short as the ground collapsed beneath them. The crew plummeted down the newly formed ravine, at the very least escaping the monstrous sandstorm above them.

The crew awoke to find themselves inside of a latticework of catacombs, each room a vast cavern.

“Is everyone alright?” yelled Eichinger. The party moaned but they were all ok. “Darik. Where are we?”

“We must be in some sort of natural underground caverns. I’m not sure how far these caverns go across, but it seems like we should find a way…” Darik’s attention was turned to a strange object near some stalactite. It was big, could probably fit a human inside.

“This thing looks like a tomb of some sort,” Darik touched the coffin. Suddenly, the entire cavern lit up. Millions upon millions of tombs that covered the cave activated.

“Darik! What the hell did you do!?!” yelled Eichinger.

“I…I don’t know!!” he yelled back.

The stasis tomb opened. Out crawled a creature, almost undead looking. The walking Cadaver stepped out and walked passed the crew, not worrying nor caring about the others.

“Jesus, they look like zom…”

“Don’t say it!” interrupted Eichinger.

More and more of these creatures came out of chronogenic stasis, each walking towards certain spots with some sort of purpose in mind. Across the underworld, a sickly crimson lightning bolt flashed throughout the cables that connected all of the tombs. One by one, each sepulchre shutdown the chronogenic generators and opened. One by one, grotesque creatures stepped out of these metallic coffins. Each monster resembled walking cadavers, strolling what seemed aimlessly through the catacombs of the planet. But the Cadavers had a purpose: Exhumation.

“What is going on?” Eichinger yelled. Massive monuments began rising passed them from the underworld to the surface.

“Dairk…Darik where are you!!” Eichinger yelled.

“”Sir I’m here, I just…ACCGH!!!” claws seared through his HazAtm armour and ripped him in half, blood spilled all over the Cadavers. Behind Darik was the killer, a bigger more grotesque Cadaver with huge scythes for fingers and hundreds of tentacles each with teeth on the end.

“No…no…” more appeared around Eichinger. They all swarmed around him, each taking a pick at the new feast.

Above the surface, the ground began to tremble as massive monoliths began protruding from the ground. Across the globe more and more monoliths and obelisks were exhumed by these undead workers. Pyramids and even cities rose from the earth from eons of slumber. The creature soared above as the mountain collapsed, revealing an enormous mausoleum surrounded by a vast array of obelisks. The creature landed in front of the mausoleum and walked in.

“Mausoleum System Analysis,” it commanded with a fierce voice.

“Systems are 50% operational. Crematorium Caverns are active. Chambers are now fully operational. Gauss Iota Flux Batteries are offline. Arc Drives are offline,” replied the computer.

“This will do for now. Commence with the assembly of some Homunculi,” it ordered. Homunculi were the only soldiers they could create without the use of carcasses from other races.

He turned to the screen to see the countless obelisks arising, all preparing for launch. The monoliths began terraforming the planet to stop the sandstorms from wreaking havoc. All was well now, it thought. It would soon be time to feed his brothers. Their hunger for destruction and flesh knew no bounds.

The Age of Exhumation had begun. Countless other Cryptrealms would also begin to awaken, leading a massive army to wipe out all living creatures.

The Rise of the Xjhum’bi had begun.

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*sigh* Cmon peoples...

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