Chapter 1: A New World

When Wolfen awoke, the first thing he noticed was the complete silence. There were no voices, no constant noise normally heard on a spaceship. Just silence, in its most defining form. The second thing he noticed was that the elevator was tipped sideways; he was lying on a corner between the floor and a wall. He groaned as he slowly stood, his body racked with pain from the impact.

"Glad to see you're finally awake, Mr. Pilot." Dios was sitting opposite him. His hair was disheveled and a large cut was on his chin, but other than that he seemed fine. "I was about to try to wake you up myself."

Wolfen stared at him, his mind lost. What was he doing here, why was he with Dios? Then, suddenly, he remembered everything, and the first thought that came to his mind was Miki. He looked around, trying to figure out the situation. He saw that the elevator's door was behind Dios, and it was open a slight bit, yet no light came through the crack. Dios noticed where he was looking and turned to the door. "Good morning to you, too. Or night, whichever the case may be." He stood up and stretched. "I tried to force open the door, but you see how far that got me. I figured I'd give it another try once you came around."

"Then lets waste no time." Wolfen replied, stepping up to the door and gripping the door through the crack. "Any clue of exactly where we are?"

Dios grabbed the door as well. "Well, we're still inside the Explorer, that's for certain." The two tugged against the door, and after a few seconds of straining it started to open. "If I had to make a guess, I'd say we crash-landed on Gevangenis. Guess we can still run that survey, eh?"

They managed to get the door open enough for them to squeeze past. "How the Hell can you act so unconcerned?" Wolfen demanded, giving him a hard look, "The ship has crashed, we don't know who's alive and who isn't, and for all we know we're stuck here, alone, on an isolated and uninhabited planet! Miki!" He shouted her name again, looking around for anything to hint at her location.

"What's happened has happened. And if I were you I'd worry more about finding out our situation than locating some bimbo." Dios found himself on the floor, his face stinging, but Wolfen wasn't about to continue. He turned and ran, leaving the doctor by the elevator.

Everything Wolfen saw crushed his hopes. The dark hallways were filled with bodies; the rooms he checked were stained with blood. He kept shouting for Miki, then his shouts escalated into screams as he became more and more desperate. His way was blocked several times by debris; equipment, conduits, and steel made impassable walls. He was horrified to realize that some were dripping blood.

Suddenly Wolfen turned a corner and slammed into something so hard he fell to the ground painfully. He swore, then saw a man standing over him. It was Ambrose.

"My God, Fallion, I was beginning to think that I was the only one to make it!" the man bent down and hefted Wolfen up by the arm. He had bruises all over his body and a giant gash on his shoulder. "Are you okay, kid? You need help?"

Wolfen's amazement at seeing his Commander had rendered him speechless, but his voice came back with force. "Commander, how long have I been out? Have you seen any survivors? Where are we? Have you seen Miki? Tell me you've seen Miki! And what about Dauras, and David, and…"

"Calm down, Fallion!" Ambrose snapped, but his eyes betrayed his strong voice with fear. "You can't do a thing when you panic." He stepped back and covered his eyes, as if he was having difficulty obeying his own advice. When he lowered his hand, Wolfen noticed that the man had seemed to age since the last time he saw him. "I've explored a lot of the ship, but you're the first living soul I've found. Where were you?"

Wolfen didn't answer at first. He felt himself sink back down to the ground, his mind once again a blur. Everyone was dead? It wasn't possible, his brain couldn't comprehend the idea. There were over a thousand people on board the Explorer, how could they all be gone? He looked up at Ambrose, who stared back in silent understanding. He opened his mouth, lost his voice, and lowered his head once again.

It wasn't possible. It just wasn't…

Wolfen sprung back up and gripped Ambrose by the arms. "Have you seen Miki?" Ambrose stared into his eyes for a moment, and then shook his head. "I haven't seen her, alive nor dead."

"Then she may still be alive!" Wolfen shouted, hope beginning to swell in him. He looked around and realized he had no idea where he was. Everything was tilted, and in his panicked search he hadn't paid any attention to where he was going. "Where are we?"

Ambrose looked around for a moment. This was a section of the ship he rarely visited. "I think we're on the third deck, residential section." He turned to Wolfen. "You're going to look for her? I'm going with you. We're probably better off together here."

The two continued their search, using any stairs that weren't crushed in the crash. They scanned rooms, hoping to find anyone still alive along the way. With every turn, however, all they could see was death. The rooms were lit by the dying fluorescent lights which each had their own method of power. The lights revealed strange shadow beasts on the walls as their beams crossed mangled metal and ruined control panels mixed with gruesome pieces of humanity. On more than one occasion, both men were forced to pause and lean against a wall, fearing they would lose their insides at any time.

At one point they came across an elevator shaft. Looking down they saw the elevator lying where it fell on the shaft's bottom. Realizing it would be faster than hoping to find usable stairways, they began to climb up the shaft, which was tilted just enough to allow an easy ascent. In this method they managed to reach the eighth deck, where Wolfen's quarters were located.

Wolfen gave Ambrose a helping hand out of the shaft as he glanced about. This deck looked just like all the others: darkened and badly damaged, with the occasional body. "I think Miki's station was on this floor, as well." He mentioned.

"We should check your quarters first. It was only about half an hour between our leaving and the incident." Ambrose turned and began to walk, but he stopped. A man's body lay across the way in front of him. The man looked to be in his fifties, at least Ambrose's age. The eyes stared up at the two men, and suddenly Wolfen realized why Ambrose had stopped: the man was still alive. Wolfen bent over the man, studying him sadly. The man's legs were crushed beneath the fallen wall, and blood was slowly streaming down the tilted hall.

Ambrose knelt down beside the man, placing a hand on his cheek. The man shook as he lifted one hand up slowly touched Ambrose's. His mouth opened and closed, a noise came out that sounded like a wretched attempt at speech. "Don't speak, just rest." Ambrose spoke in soft, comforting words. "It will be over soon."

The man gazed up at him, his mouth hanging slightly open as he gave another quiver. Slowly he reached down into his shirt and gripped something. His eyes were pleading, desperate, and he tried to reach his other hand up to Ambrose. Wolfen, who had never witnessed death outside the cockpit, turned away with tears in his eyes. He suddenly wished that Dios was with them.

Ambrose held the man firmly, tried to keep him steady. "Don't move, just let it go." His own eyes were sad, but no tears came. This wasn't the first person he had comforted in death. He stared the man directly in the eyes, trying to keep a calm, soothing face. The man stared back, and struggled to speak one more time. With a final, sputtering rasp, it came out. "Alanis." He slowly pulled something from his shirt, but his energy was gone. Ambrose stared for a short moment, and then, with a long sigh, reached up and closed the man's lifeless eyes.

Ambrose slowly laid the man down. He grabbed the man's closed hand and opened it. In it was a small silver pendant, fashioned like a horse. He unclasped it, and inside was a picture of a child, not old enough to even be in school yet, holding the man's hand. Ambrose broke down, weeping, his head lowered down so that it rested on the man's still-warm chest.

Wolfen didn't turn around, but he didn't cry. He felt vacant; he didn't know what to feel or think or do anymore. Why was all of this happening? What went wrong? He rested his head against the wall and tried to stop thinking. He didn't want to be aware, didn't want to understand. He just wanted to wake up, to learn that all this was just a dreadful dream, to find himself in his bed with Miki lying next to him, her stunning eyes close to his own.

"I'll make sure she gets it." Ambrose whispered, breaking Wolfen from his reverie. He had stopped crying, and was slowly standing. He closed the pendant and tenderly tucked it into his pocket. With a calm face and firm motion, he saluted the body, then walked past it. Wolfen turned to watch him walk away and realized how much he underappreciated the man. Bowing his head, his eyes shunning the corpse, he slowly followed.

The two walked on silently for a short time, both deep in thought. Ambrose walked like a battle-hardened soldier who was tired of the conflict. Wolfen was jumpy and frightened, his mind still reeling as he remembered those forlorn eyes staring up at him. Slowly he looked up at his commander and watched him. He wanted to say something, but he didn't know what, and he didn't believe he would have a voice if he tried.

Suddenly, however, he realized where he was; his own quarters where just across the next corner. His mind switched again, and suddenly he was running past Ambrose as fast as his tired legs could carry him. Ambrose noticed, but the man didn't pick up his speed; he was in no hurry to get his own vain hopes up.

Wolfen turned the corner and noticed that the door to his quarters was closed. He thought of it as a good sign. Calling Miki's name and running to the sliding door, he grabbed the side and pulled with the added power of adrenaline. The door slowly creaked open, and as he pulled he peeked into the room. He was horrified to see that there were no lights on inside. They must have been broken in the crash.

Wolfen tugged with all his might on the door, calling for Miki as he did, and when Ambrose arrived he added his own strength. Before long the door was half-open, and Wolfen quickly stepped inside. He took two more steps then bumped into something. Startled and confused, he felt at the object. It was large, probably made of metal, and completely blocking his path. A great fear rose in his chest, and he began to pace along the obstacle, feeling for an opening. He found none. "Miki!" He shouted, and began to feel along the other way. Still he found nothing.

Ambrose was standing in the doorway silently. He couldn't see Wolfen's frantic searching back and forth for an opening, but he could hear well enough to have an idea what was going on. "Come on out, Fallion." He stated quietly, "There's nothing here."

"NO!" Wolfen screamed at him, and he quickened his pace as he searched desperately. The giant chunk of debris was solid, everywhere he felt. The room was completely filled with the metal. Lost in his desperation, he screamed for Miki, pounding against the wall angrily. He wasn't giving up. He wouldn't lose her, couldn't lose her. He fell to his knees, tears streaming down his face as he begged God for help.

He felt hands grab his shoulders gently. "I'm sorry, boy. I really am. But we can't stay here." Wolfen shrugged the hands away. He didn't want comforting. The only comfort he would find would be to hear her voice, to see her beautiful eyes. Those wonderful green eyes that he had fallen in love with. She couldn't die. Not now, not in this place.

Wolfen stood up suddenly, his shoulder knocking Ambrose in the chin. The man gave a shout of pain and fell back, rubbing his chin tenderly. Wolfen didn't notice; he was already running out of the door. Ambrose, hesitating for a moment, glanced at the empty blackness that hid the room, and followed.

Wolfen's short legs pumped, his mind raced. She had to have been at her station. She simply had to be! He wouldn't accept that she was gone, he couldn't accept it! Someone like her, as great as her, didn't deserve to die now. She had to be there. He knew it, he would get there and she would be standing there, lost and confused but alive and healthy and back in his arms where she belonged!

Ambrose chased after him desperately. Despite the man's short legs, Wolfen was getting away from him. The adrenaline was pumping his legs faster than they had ever moved. "Wait, Fallion!" Ambrose shouted after him. He wasn't as young or active as the young man was, and his breath was coming in huffs. He jerked around a corner and slammed into the young pilot. Wolfen fell forward on his hands and knees, but he didn't utter a sound.

Ambrose was bent down, huffing and puffing, his chest feeling like fire. When he finally managed to pull himself up, he noticed that Wolfen was still kneeling down. Stumbling next to him with his hand gripping his burning chest, he placed a hand on Wolfen's shoulder. "I thought… I had… lost you… Boy…" He panted. Wolfen slowly turned his head to Ambrose. His wide red eyes were uncomprehending; tears were streaming down his face again. Wolfen closed his eyes and let his head lay on the diagonal floor, weeping.

Ambrose's breath was beginning to come back. "Dammit, Boy… I'm not complaining… but why did you stop? I thought you were headed for the… cadet's station?" Wolfen didn't answer, but his hand slowly lifted, pointing forward. Ambrose stared at it uncomprehending for a moment, then slowly looked up. His breath caught in his throat, his eyes widened in horror and realization.

Just a few feet away the hall, and the rest of the Explorer, for that matter, simply ceased to be. In its place was dusty, dry air. Far below them stretched a vast, cracked, rocky black desert of nothing. Overhead, bleak black clouds rolled. Far in the distance where dark mountains. There was not a plant nor animal in sight. But none of this registered to Ambrose just then. All he understood now, all that he could fathom, was that an entire third of the Explorer was gone.