I wasted no time at all firing up the drone control system and launching my little helpers into the air. First priority was to identify any reactors or power plants I could repair and then find an ideal location near those to set up our habitation modules. The habs could run for years on their own systems, but utilizing existing infrastructure would make things much smoother.

I sent out a swarm of scout drones to begin mapping the area and to tag any points of interest for me to follow up on. Then I activated a few of the construction drones from the hold and directed them to start working on the Voidnet node, figuring the clearing was as good a spot as any. The Voidnet would connect me back to the others and let me relay my findings instantly, at least until they set out and entered cryosleep. It would take some time for the drones to finish their work, but that suited me just fine. They required little to no monitoring at this stage, so I was free to explore on my own.

Before setting out, the doctors back home had set up automated treatments for my time in cryosleep to prepare my body for the atmosphere of Venus, going off the last reports. Current data showed those to be close enough to be safe, but it had been drilled into me repeatedly to go out in an enviro suit first, just to be sure. I hated wearing the thing; it was so form fitting and made me feel weird. Give me a baggy engineer jumpsuit anyday. With a groan, I changed into the suit and felt it adjust to my body.

A shudder escaped me as the suit molded itself into a second skin. Selene liked how I looked, but between the two of us… they were the only one. I always felt so bulky. Tall, broad, decently muscled from my work, but I always had this gut that I couldn’t slim down no matter what I tried. And I always felt like I was looming over everyone else, taking up space. I shook my head. “Keep it together, Simon. It’s just a suit.” It took me another few deep breaths to focus back on my tasks.

The airlock hissed as it opened and I took my first steps on the planet’s surface. My helmet’s internal display updated with the reports from the drones, giving me a map in real-time as I set out. I had a small hover bike in the hold, but for now I opted to go on foot. A little exercise might be nice and I wanted to take in every detail. I set the suit to record my visual feed so the others could see everything when they arrived. Rosa would appreciate that; she was always harping on about properly archiving anything and everything.

The clearing was surrounded by habitation domes, making this likely to be the residential sector. The colony was nestled in a large basin, the cliffs surrounding it except on the western side, which opened into a cove that led to the sea. A pair of rivers ran through the basin, fed by waterfalls at the eastern cliffs, which split the colony into three distinct bands. A residential sector in the center, and two other sectors to the north and south. The north had more large buildings than the south, the south largely taken up by what were probably farms going off what I had seen coming in. The north was probably where the power plants and labs were, if I had to guess. I set off in that direction and let myself take in the sights.

I counted three large hab domes in the residential sector, set out in a triangular pattern around the clearing. They were connected by a series of enclosed bridges, with about half of them intact while the others had fallen to the streets or collapsed in on themselves. It was hard to pick out details from within the domes due to the sheer amount of foliage that had grown over them. One of the domes had absolutely massive trees piercing through the top, its bone white bark eerie in the overcast light.

I focused on one of the wider streets heading north and followed it to a bridge crossing the river. The bridge had held up marvelously, but the tower rising out of the river next to it had seen better days. It was green with verdigris and the upper levels were open to the sky, but it was still the most ostentatious building I had seen yet.

“Smug bastard built his home right in the middle of the river. Probably didn’t want to have to rub elbows with his loyal subjects in the residential sector.” I would have spat, but doing so in an enclosed helmet was not a wise plan.

I reached the near end of the bridge and was met with my first major obstacle: some kind of barricade covered the center of the span and it was covered in razor wire, though much of it had rusted away. I groaned in frustration. Clearing the barricade would be simple; a few construction drones could likely chew through that in a day or two (that is, a Terra day; Venus had a very slow rotation and the days here were more like seasons), but I was eager to explore and resented being stopped.

I looked over at the tower, which had its own smaller bridgeway connecting it to either shore. Maybe I could find a way to cross through that. I tapped into my suit systems and pulled a scout drone from the swarm to fly over and give me a clearer view of the other side. The drone arrived after a short delay and showed me that the bridgeways were intact. Excellent, a silver lining to this was I could see how the ruler of this doomed place had lived.

There was a slight breeze swirling around me as I stepped on to the bridgeway. The sky was dark and cloudy which added to the atmosphere of the dead ruin. The bridgeway itself was remarkably intact. I suppose this was one area where the colony didn’t cut corners or costs. Lavender vines with cyan flowers ran along the way, strange plants that had never taken root in Terran soil. The river was quiet, placid, stirring only slightly in the wind. It only now hit me that I was walking in the footsteps of ghosts long gone. A shiver ran down my spine as I wondered what it would have been like for them, in the end.

My musings were interrupted by the end of the bridgeway and the entrance to the tower. Originally, it had held glass doors and windows all along the entryway, to dazzle and delight visitors. But time had done its bitter work and most of the glass was gone or shattered along the ground. I stepped lightly but my suit’s boots were sturdy enough that a little glass was unlikely to cause any damage. In spite of that, I took my time going through the entryway, trying to disturb as little as possible. The people of the colony, ruler aside, deserved better than to have their memories trampled on. The entryway led to a large atrium filled with overgrown vines and more flowers. These glowed with a soft bioluminesce. A few trees with black bark and bright purple leaves provided shade to an opening in the floor through which the river could be glimpsed. I imagine it too had been covered in glass at one point.

Faded banners and posters hung on the walls, most too gone to tell what they originally showed but a few had escaped the ravages of the centuries and I could see that they tended to be pictures of the ruler, his pasty and smarmy visage looming over everything. A pair of elevators sat at the end of the atrium, leading up further into the tower and I jogged over to see what shape they were in. Surprisingly, the cars were intact and most of the mechanisms seemed sound, but they lacked power and I doubted I could get them running with my suit charge. Thankfully, there was a stairwell next to the elevators that I could use to ascend. I paused for a moment at the base of the stairs and took a deep breath to steady myself. I didn’t do well with heights, though I was usually ok if it was an enclosed space. But I had seen damage to the tower from the outside and knowing my luck, there would be holes in the walls.

Still, I needed to get a better look at the colony and if there was any place that held records or security access, it would be the penthouse and its accompanying office. I took each step carefully, testing my weight and making sure the stairs could hold me before proceeding on. My suit’s scans fed me data on the condition of the materials and it truly was impressive how well most of this place fared. The builders knew their work. The stairwell was a spiral configuration circling around an open center. Railings blocked the center but there were a few spots where they had fallen apart so I was extra careful near those sections. Safety first, Simon. I made steady progress up the tower, enjoying the quiet and the ability to work my limbs after a long journey through the void. There was something soothing about being the first to see this place in so many years. A whole world of mysteries all for me to find.

After a while, I caught myself humming a bit of a song that Selene liked, a melodic ambient song of some kind. I knew the lyrics, had heard them a thousand times, but couldn’t bring myself to sing them aloud. I had a terrible singing voice, better to just hum. Still, I smiled at the thought of Selene. They were probably making a fuss over weight limits for the journey, trying to decide which things to take and which things could be fabricated locally. I’m sure they would find room somewhere for their stuffed animals, they never went anywhere without ‘their little family of friends’ as they called them. At least, I hoped they could find room. Selene had no idea, but I absolutely adored their stuffies. Never was allowed to have any myself as a kid, times were tough and my caretakers always insisted on things with practical value. Nevermind that objects of comfort had practical value to a child. It wasn’t efficient. The thought soured my mood and I lost the rhythm of the song.

I picked up my pace and vented my discomfort by pushing my body harder. The stairs were easy enough but I had gone up twenty stories and had another ten to go, guessing based on the outside of the tower. The gaps in the railing were more frequent now but I didn’t care. I was ready to be at the top already.

And before I knew it, I was. The stairs ended at a landing that opened into a receiving room covered in sleek but decrepit furnishings and a pair of doors at the end through which I could see the office. Doors on either side led to personal quarters but I only had eyes for that office at the moment. I was ready to see what secrets were within.

I took a single step into the receiving room and stopped when I heard the humming of systems firing up. Lights flickered on and my suit picked up on a change in the ambient air as circulation systems kicked in. I backed up to the landing to make sure I could see everything as the tower came to life.

“Welcome to Cryptopia, the crown jewel of Venus!” The voice was unexpected but it was hearing that name that made me jump… and fall right into the stairwell. “Oh shit!” The voice continued and I caught a glimpse of a feminine face peering at me from the landing as I plummeted.

Thinking quickly, I activated my suit’s emergency systems. My body went from being encased in a tight suit to being cushioned by a series of impact bags. Unfortunately, this threw off my trajectory and caused me to start banging into the stairs here and there. I tried to catch a railing but couldn’t get a grip on anything. I tried to reorient myself when I heard a tearing sound and my suit’s integrity was compromised. I had no time to even curse before I found myself hitting the ground floor and then falling even more, tearing right through the brittle tile. My hearing grew muffled as I plunged into some kind of viscous liquid that started to fill my suit. I tried to thrash and surface but couldn’t figure out which way was up or down. My suit notified me of a rescue drone on its way and that was the last sight I saw before I blacked out.

Vyria_Durav

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