OE 102
January 12th, 1:58 AM
Location: Unknown
Lao Xi Feng's naked feet pressed into the soft sand below, as he made his way across the beach, familiar, simple white robes clasping his form. A crescent moon and a gleaming sun both hung in the sky above... And a hazy, golden fog spread out, all around him, obscuring his view of the otherwise dazzling coastline.
It seemed, he thought... A pleasant dream. One well deserved after days of restless toil, ensuring the transfer of the Granzon… He had slipped into sleep faster than normal, and he found himself grateful for that, his worries feeling... Distant.
Clear, pristine water crested gently against the beach, lapping at his toes with its charming warmth... And he could feel a seductive calm impressing itself upon his person.
This place, he felt... Was one of peace. Even now, he could feel fatigue weighing heavily on his mind, his soul - and an overpowering desire to let go, to simply... Sit, and rest, in this beautiful place of solitude and tranquility.
A familiar, sing-song voice called out to him, across the water...
Carcosa!
The very word alone was enough to snap him back to his senses. This was no dream. He - of all people - had been beckoned to the world of the spirits against his will. He began to walk faster now, gaze turning to the misty waters, straining to see the owner of the voice. Perhaps, now that his senses had cleared, the true nature of the landscape about him was becoming clear as well - as he could not suppress a shudder at the sight of a desiccated skull resting on the beach, now suddenly aware of how dangerously close he had been to joining it, as his pace quickened once more.
At last, after what felt like an eternity, he came upon the singer. Her form was hidden almost completely by a long, golden veil - one that shimmered as beautifully as the morbid sands below in the twilight, seated atop a rocky outcrop in the water. He was seized by a sudden, manic desire to know who she was - to confirm if what he was experiencing, if what he was feeling, was real, and not just the product of tortured memory. Lao waded out into the water, eyes fixed on the figure as she spoke once more - still that lustrous tone, as if it were being whispered affectionately into his ear, every word a drop of poison that sapped his strength a little more.
The figure only reacted slightly to his approach, turning her face slowly towards him.
He was aware now that they were not alone - That there were figures moving towards them in the mist, clad in those ghastly saffron robes, gliding soundlessly over the waves.
That beneath his feet in the water was soft, cloying texture of corpse innumerable, hidden just below the waves.
Summoning the last of his strength, his hand lashed out, tearing the veil from the singer's face in defiance-
...But what lay beneath...
…Was anything but human.
Archbishop Lao bolted upright in his bed with a start, as though he had been electrocuted, his astral form returning to its mortal prison with all the force of a falling meteorite. Cold sweat was present on his forehead, as his conscious mind began to assemble the meaning of the vision... And arrived at only one, dread conclusion.
They were coming.
He thumbed an intercom switch located to the side of the bed, causing it to crackle to life.
"Get me Brigadier General Rogers, immediately." He said smoothly, reaching up to wipe a hand across his forehead as the focus returned to his eyes.
"We're in terrible danger."
January 12th, 2:11 AM
Belfast, Ireland
Alarms blared through the halls of the Air Christmas class, shaking many an exhausted crewman awake. Confusion reigned briefly, with the only bastions of order being the eternally calm C-Types, marching with ordered precision to their assigned stations. Crewmen hurried back and forth, calling to one another, everyone trying to remember where they were supposed be, and what they were supposed to be doing. Over the ship's loudspeakers, an announcement rang out, its purpose loud and clear:
The first test of Taskforce Upsilon's vaunted strength, it seemed, would come sooner that they had otherwise expected...
January 12th, 1:58 AM
Location: Unknown
Lao Xi Feng's naked feet pressed into the soft sand below, as he made his way across the beach, familiar, simple white robes clasping his form. A crescent moon and a gleaming sun both hung in the sky above... And a hazy, golden fog spread out, all around him, obscuring his view of the otherwise dazzling coastline.
It seemed, he thought... A pleasant dream. One well deserved after days of restless toil, ensuring the transfer of the Granzon… He had slipped into sleep faster than normal, and he found himself grateful for that, his worries feeling... Distant.
Clear, pristine water crested gently against the beach, lapping at his toes with its charming warmth... And he could feel a seductive calm impressing itself upon his person.
This place, he felt... Was one of peace. Even now, he could feel fatigue weighing heavily on his mind, his soul - and an overpowering desire to let go, to simply... Sit, and rest, in this beautiful place of solitude and tranquility.
A familiar, sing-song voice called out to him, across the water...
"Along the shore the cloud waves break,
The twin suns sink behind the lake,
The shadows lengthen
In Carcosa."
The twin suns sink behind the lake,
The shadows lengthen
In Carcosa."
Carcosa!
The very word alone was enough to snap him back to his senses. This was no dream. He - of all people - had been beckoned to the world of the spirits against his will. He began to walk faster now, gaze turning to the misty waters, straining to see the owner of the voice. Perhaps, now that his senses had cleared, the true nature of the landscape about him was becoming clear as well - as he could not suppress a shudder at the sight of a desiccated skull resting on the beach, now suddenly aware of how dangerously close he had been to joining it, as his pace quickened once more.
"Strange is the night where black stars rise,
And strange moons circle through the skies,
But stranger still is Lost Carcosa."
And strange moons circle through the skies,
But stranger still is Lost Carcosa."
At last, after what felt like an eternity, he came upon the singer. Her form was hidden almost completely by a long, golden veil - one that shimmered as beautifully as the morbid sands below in the twilight, seated atop a rocky outcrop in the water. He was seized by a sudden, manic desire to know who she was - to confirm if what he was experiencing, if what he was feeling, was real, and not just the product of tortured memory. Lao waded out into the water, eyes fixed on the figure as she spoke once more - still that lustrous tone, as if it were being whispered affectionately into his ear, every word a drop of poison that sapped his strength a little more.
"Songs that the Hyades shall sing,
Where flap the tatters of the King,
Must die unheard in Dim Carcosa."
Where flap the tatters of the King,
Must die unheard in Dim Carcosa."
The figure only reacted slightly to his approach, turning her face slowly towards him.
He was aware now that they were not alone - That there were figures moving towards them in the mist, clad in those ghastly saffron robes, gliding soundlessly over the waves.
That beneath his feet in the water was soft, cloying texture of corpse innumerable, hidden just below the waves.
Summoning the last of his strength, his hand lashed out, tearing the veil from the singer's face in defiance-
...But what lay beneath...
…Was anything but human.
"Song of my soul, my voice is dead,
Die thou, unsung, as tears unshed
Shall dry and die
in Lost Carcosa."
Die thou, unsung, as tears unshed
Shall dry and die
in Lost Carcosa."
***
Archbishop Lao bolted upright in his bed with a start, as though he had been electrocuted, his astral form returning to its mortal prison with all the force of a falling meteorite. Cold sweat was present on his forehead, as his conscious mind began to assemble the meaning of the vision... And arrived at only one, dread conclusion.
They were coming.
He thumbed an intercom switch located to the side of the bed, causing it to crackle to life.
"Get me Brigadier General Rogers, immediately." He said smoothly, reaching up to wipe a hand across his forehead as the focus returned to his eyes.
"We're in terrible danger."
***
OE 102January 12th, 2:11 AM
Belfast, Ireland
Alarms blared through the halls of the Air Christmas class, shaking many an exhausted crewman awake. Confusion reigned briefly, with the only bastions of order being the eternally calm C-Types, marching with ordered precision to their assigned stations. Crewmen hurried back and forth, calling to one another, everyone trying to remember where they were supposed be, and what they were supposed to be doing. Over the ship's loudspeakers, an announcement rang out, its purpose loud and clear:
"Attention all personnel: Unknown Prana reactions detected in the vicinity. Enemy contacts are expected to follow.
All pilots, report to the hangar, and prepare to engage. This is not a drill. Repeat..."
All pilots, report to the hangar, and prepare to engage. This is not a drill. Repeat..."
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