9eaming is always, and has always been, a ma0or rush of e8citement for Valek. %e suspected it had something to do with the residual energy charge from the beam, but he didn't really look into it for sure. All he knew was, the landing site was very pleasant. #ruly very pleasant. %is eyes were greeted with rolling hills of grass and a bit of a mountain range in the distance. 9ehind him was another mountain, but at the edge was a peek at a plant that certainly wasn't from any biome Valek had worked with before. It was a flower the height of a house. ust have been a different weather pattern showing through2 A 5uick check over himself confirmed that he made it out of the ship in one piece, and it was now that Valek hurridly checked his item pouch, sighing in relief as he discovered he still had the broken sword he sadly scavenged from the Attack. #he Attack... %e briefly forgot there was grass under his feet, or even ground as he dropped to his knees. !lunging the blade of the sword into the ground, he held his head as more memories flooded back. #his time, he was remembering the unpleasant parts. #he attack, and the fall of &arth. -- #he maroon tendril held the rand !rotector in its grip, holding her as if thinking what to do ne8t. (he held out the atter anipulator that was meant for him in the first place, and right as she did, she called out the only words she had time for, %ere, take it and run3 As she tossed it to him, the maroon tentacle suddenly pulled roughly down, retreating with its catch firmly in place. (he didn't even have time to scream. #hankfully the crash of the building hid anything of her death beyond that. As the dust settled, the atter anipulator sat on the wrecked debris that was once the podium she was standing at. #he last rand !rotector, it seemed, was no more. As he looked over the bodies littering the wrecked stands that once seated the congregation that attended his own graduation, he found himself staring in horror for a few moments. Avians, %ylotl, $lorans... so many !rotectors struck down. It wasn't fair. any of the fallen were recent graduates and tutors. &ven one of his closest friends was left as a fallen !rotector sprawled across the bench. ;neeling over this fallen friend, Valek covered the %ylotl and clenched his 0aw with anger at losing her. Valek knew that he had to get out of there if there was anything that could be done about all of this. %e grabbed the atter anipulator and took off running. <own across the ne8t set of steps, and through the reinforced hallway he ran. %is feet thankfully could keep up as he cleared room after room away from the eeting %all. #hese rooms passed by for a few moments, before he was face-to-face with a pile of rubble from the ceiling. It was rather surprising, but he aimed the atter anipulator as he was trained and pulled the trigger, the dirt and sod seeming to vanish as the tool compressed and stored the material for later use into the designated pouch it was coded for. As the tool finished removing the rubble, Valek looked around for a moment before making a mad dash to the ne8t room, stopping at the sealed door as the broken entryway lay shut. "ater leaked from the sealed e8it as Valek set his hand on it, cursing his luck as he tapped his head against the pressure-sealed durasteel door. It felt hopeless to him for several moments, before he felt a draft across the back of his neck and looked up. #he service vents3 Aiming his anipulator at the vent cover, he pulled the trigger and the metallic grate popped free and vanished as it too was compressed and stored. "ith a grunt of e8ertion, he ran at the orange-paneled pressurized wall and kicked off. %e managed to catch the opening of the vent and with a desperate growl of effort, he successfully hauled himself up into the vent. As he ran through the short passage, he looked down into the flooded room with disdain before moving on. %e wasn't out of the woods yet. %e came to the end of the service vent and stomped at the grate to knock it loose, before hopping down on the other side of the flooded room. --