Away Team Report:- Operation Fantasia
Prepared by Leftenant North, HMSS Persephone Security team 2
Portal Destination: Morpheana
Purpose of Mission: First Contact
Team: Leftenant Price
Sergeant North
Corporals Smith, Pecario and Majors
Apothecary Brown
We entered the portal at 1400 Galactic Standard Time and set to the task of sending the mapping drones out across the sky to get the lay of the land. The area the portal had opened in was an open field surrounded by forest. After checking our systems we concluded the air was indeed breathable and relatively free of contaminants.
Creating a secure perimeter, we noted the portal had opened within a circle of carved black stones. The markings on them seemed to twist and move as we studied them. It was making the men more than a little nervous. Leftenant Price was quick to chastise any man who dared voice his reservations.
The return of the probes with their map data was therefore a welcome diversion from the unease among the men. The realm appears to be divided into three areas. There are two primary areas, one of Arctic aspect, filled with ice and tundra whereas the other appears to be an enormous forest studded with settlements of varying size and aspect. Far to the East the sensors picked up indications of a large body of water, seemingly the destination for the rivers that flow through the realm. The final area was the borderlands between the areas of lush growth and icy reserve. From what Apothecary Brown (always the keen geographer) could make out, it appears that the areas of greenery and ice expand and contract a great deal, with each passing over the area we were stood at different times. Upon our arrival, the green area was seemingly in ascendance, with the Wintry area marking a retreat.
The Leftenant made the decision that we should head to one of the settlements on the green side. I protested on the basis that all the foliage would give any attackers the opportunity to utilise cover to their advantage but was rebuffed.
We decided to leave Majors to guard the portal and make sure the data link back to the Persephone remained unbroken. As we made our way into the forest, the boys and I could swear we heard laughter. It was high and beautiful in tone, but so very cruel. Like the laughter of a wicked child stealing from another.
We made good time through the forest, noting some deeply unusual flora and fauna. Brown’s collecting of specimens and pictures were the only real impediment to our progress for the first couple of hours. Some of the things were saw were most amazing in aspect: tiny humanoids flying on dainty wings, horses with singular frontal horns and more besides. Brown’s report will go over these in far more detail I have no doubt.
Upon finding a village, we were approached by a large, deformed humanoid with a jutting jaw, sparse hair upon his head and a massively overdeveloped musculature. Its skin was somewhat between that of a human and that of some form of amphibian owing to the incredible humidity of its surroundings no doubt.
We managed to engage it in conversation using the aetheric translation modules developed by Professor Adams. Give him my thanks as needs be. The Leftenant suggested I speak to the locals, seeing as they were of less than noble social standing. Taking my leave I did just that, thankful his posturing and overbearing demeanour would not be a hindrance to establishing cordial relations.
It seems that we had come across a village of “River Trolls”. They were a fairly friendly bunch after I explained we were not allied to either of the “Queens” that ruled the realm and arranged for a representative of the Seelie Queen of Summer to be brought to us, that we may send a message, opening diplomatic relations. I inquired if we would need to do the same for the Winter Queen and was advised that doing so would be polite. Politeness means everything in that realm as we would quickly learn.
As the messengers arrived, the entire mood of the village changed. The Trolls hid away in their shacks leaving only us and Murkle, the first Troll we had met, in the village square. The messengers, for the most part, looked like tall humans with fine features and distinctly pointed ears. Their beauty was not to be ignored, even among the men. These messengers wore light armour, decorated in leaf patterns and delicate chain of silver and gold. They rode astride horses, a very primitive way of travelling for such sophisticated seeming beings.
As their leader dismounted, there was the cry of some kind of beast from the other direction and a rider astride some form of snow leopard and bedecked in highly ornate full plate entered the clearing. Murkle was cowering in a corner and sent the rest of the men to stand aside and protect him, leaving only myself and the Leftenant in the line of fire.
The two parties began consulting in a language we couldn’t yet pick up, but the body language was obvious. They meant to fight. One of the riders in green came and took our message from the Leftenant, smiling at him. The black clad knight kept pointing at the leftenant and the lead of the green riders made a move to block them. Something was said and the rest of the green riders herded me away with the rest of the men and set up a protective formation. The Leftenant hadn’t cottoned on and was yelling at the son to be combatants to listen to him.
His words fell on deaf ears as the two creatures began to clash blade to blade.
The fighting was brief and hypnotic. For all the skill and speed the green rider had though, they were no match for the black rider who was both stronger and better armoured. The black rider dispatched their foe and proceeded to walk towards the Leftenant. They took off their helmet to reveal the face of the most beautiful woman I have ever seen, with hair of pale blue, skin like ice and eyes like the white stars of home. She said something before grabbing the Leftenant (now standing in stunned silence) by the collar and kissing him deeply.
The kiss must have lasted all of thirty seconds to a minute, but it was the longest minute the Leftenant would ever know. When she dropped him to the ground he was dead. Frozen solid. She kept walking towards us, hand outstretched saying something again. I asked Murkle what was being said.
“When she kissed your chief she said she was claiming her prize. She wants her message now to deliver to the Queen.”
I handed her the message, fear twisting my insides I am not ashamed to say. As she took the message, she leaned in close to my ear and whispered two words in my own language… I recoiled, filled with fear and lust and shame.
“Nothing personal.”
She had killed a man and then taken the life of our commander, all as part of some political game between the two kingdoms. It made me wonder what else the creatures of this realm could be capable of.
She turned and left, leaving me somewhat shocked and the new commander for the group. I gave Murkle my rations as thanks for his help and we returned to base.
It was not the happy homecoming we hoped for. Majors was dead. We found him naked, lying next to a tree in a somewhat, inappropriate state. One of the men reported seeing something in the trees as we buried him. I sent the men onwards to the portal to make our exit. As they left, I lay in wait for the creature that had killed poor Majors. In time it came, flitting through the trees and singing in a low, husky tone. It had feminine form and was beautiful indeed. Thankfully, having already faced She in the black armour, it was not beautiful enough.
I waited until the creature was almost upon me. Seeing it up close it reminded me of a Dryad from my old school Classics lessons. It moved closer still to touch me.
I emptied the entire cylinder of my revolver into the dryad creature’s face and chest, then proceeded to finish the job with the shotgun setting at extreme close range. While it appears that beauty kills in the realm of Morpheana, hot lead at high speeds also shall suffice.
We were not followed after that.
It is my recommendation based on our experiences that we exercise extreme caution in dealing with the denizens of this realm. They are not united in desires or morality and even the ones that at first seem fair often become otherwise.
Captain’s Notes:
This report is to be restricted. Use all pertinent information to make sure that any we send to this realm are prepared for possible violence and psychological warfare at all times. Diplomatic relations are to be kept formal and unofficial contact between the crew and the denizens of Morpheana is to be kept to a minimum until the rules of engagement have been set.
We may be able to learn and trade from them, especially with the abundance of arcane energies in their realm. That said, we must never trust them.
danovvalravn 