I would love to say I entered the new world with dignity. Maybe with a little bit of style and panache. Who am I kidding, I fell screaming from the sky naked as the day I was born with my butt cheeks clenched and my eyes screwed shut. It wasn’t a long fall but I weigh a lot and the ground was hard. I may have bounced painfully once or twice before coming to rest.

I spat a clump of soil out of my mouth. The loamy mud was surprisingly rich, not that I’m a connoisseur of such things, I’ve just tasted the ground back home a fair bit, normally with the assistance of someone's right cross.

Sitting up I whistled softly to myself as I took in the view. Nothing I had seen on the Drone feedback with Sandy could prepare me for what I saw now. I don’t care how awesome the camera quality, nothing could have caught the vibrancy of this place.

I had entered (fallen into?) this world on a grass-covered hill. I ran fingers that were used to feeling metal and concrete over the sea of green and laughed as the individual blades of grass tickled my false skin. My tactile feedback sensors more than up to the delicate task.

Surrounding the hill were dense woods. Trees that were unbelievable huge with thick bushy canopies stretched up, up, up into the sky that was so pure and blue I gaped like an idiot. I searched the data chips of old earth and realized that whatever these trees were, they were indigenous to this world and dwarfed the ones of my homeworld. The smallest of them was as tall as a four-story apartment building back home.

Sunlight streamed down on me, the rays providing a warmth I didn’t know I needed until I felt it. Glancing up at the sun I tried to filter the rays out but my augments weren’t up to the task and the fiery ball of heat seemed to float there gloatingly. I stood up, my body barely noticing the change of gravity, and holding my hands out I spun in a slow circle.

It was beautiful. Amazing. Breathtaking. Stunning.

...and my brain short-circuited.

There was a high pitched beep that came and went so fast I only had time to flinch before my vision went black and I lost control of my body. Slumping to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut I tried desperately to blink the blackness away. For a second I thought it was working as a spot of light appeared before slowly growing larger.

I was reminded of those old stories about the light at the end of the tunnel and wondered if I should start praying.

Unauthorized entry detected.

Primary world, Designated: Aeris, initiating analysis.

The pain came back with a vengeance. A white-hot stabbing throb that started at the base of my skull and radiated upwards.

Analysis complete.

Attempting Subversion of unauthorized threat.

I gritted my teeth as the pain changed. Not the intensity but the feel...if that makes sense? Like how a burn and a cut both hurt but they feel different. It felt like someone had put a balloon in my skull and was slowly blowing it up and it was only a matter of time till all that pressure was too much. My hands gripped and pulled up clumps of grass as my body fought against the invisible assault.

It was almost as bad as being burnt alive but if I could survive that then I could survive this. Sanderson wasn’t here to put me back together again though which was a little worrying.

As suddenly as it had all started the pain stopped. The pressure vanished and I let out a long contented sigh. Still couldn’t see shit though, except for blackness and that damn text box floating in front of me.

ERROR: *&$$*#012 - Partial Subversion successful

Attempting Integration.

This time I felt my muscles twitch and writhe uncontrollably under my skin. Which was strange because it wasn’t technically muscle. It was the all synthetic muscle fibers, each strand made from some fancy pants living alloy Sanderson had created. I was his pride and joy after all.

Integration successful.

Running internal scan.

With my vision still dark I did what I always do when I don't understand a situation and can't hit it in the face. I waited. The dampness from the ground seeped into my back muscles as I lay immobile on the ground. A gentle breeze tickled my skin while the sun warmed my naked flesh. I marveled at the smells. So clean and pure and fresh and I relaxed for the first time in a long time. Truly, honestly relaxed.

Internal scan complete.

Internal material commandeered.

Assigning Designation: Champion.

Complete.

Designation duration: Pending

Gift of Initiation: Gift of tongues

The darkness faded away to be replaced by the clear blue skies above me. A fluffy white cloud drifted past. Shaking my head and wondering what the hell was going on I sat up and scratched my back. The screens reminded me of what happened to the drone and I wondered if I was going to be kicked off the planet as a Foreign contaminant although the other messages suggested not.

The fact that I had been partially subverted was worrying and might cause issues down the line but I would take it over total subversion. I was a stubborn bastard by nature and the thought of servitude pissed me off.

The message about a successful integration was the most concerning. What had integrated with what? The planet to me? Me to the planet? The hill I was one with my butt cheeks?

After five minutes of sitting there bare ass to the grass watching the scenery with nothing much else happening I figured I was safe...for now and stood up.

Sanderson had said that there were civilizations here right? The rope bridge on the video feed was also a good indication of life. I figured my best bet at finding the pesky humans as Sanderson wanted was to find some village or town or whatever around here and get the lay of the land, so to speak. Knowledge not my own, downloaded from data chips long ago, said that most villages and towns were built around water, so all I had to do is find a river or lake and follow it upstream.

The knowledge from the data chip did not say what to do when surrounded by trees as tall as skyscrapers and thick as thieves. I’d be lucky if my city boy swagger didn’t get me lost three steps in.

I poured more power into my eyes, the augments kicking to life thanks to the energy boost and enlarging the trees in my vision. That didn’t do much for me, even with enhanced eyesight the forest eventually just got too thick to see through. That was fine though, I wasn’t expecting much from that.

Next, I redirected the energy to my ears and nearly fell over as the sound of so much life nearly overwhelmed me. Chirps and growls and the pitter-patter of feet mixed with the rustle and crack of foliage. The wind set of a cacophony of forest sounds as it moaned through branches too high to see, leaves shaking and falling only to be stopped by the lower branches before the whole process repeated. I was about to direct the energy to my nose in the hopes of smelling fire or ...I dunno, body odor of village folk? When a sound so out of place tore through the air.

The feminine scream of a woman.

Mud and grass flew through the air as I sprinted down the slope towards the tree line. My body moved with the same effortless ease it had back on old earth and made short work of the distance. I also found out why underwear and the support it provided was such a good idea.

Not used to running at such high speeds over mud I had trouble making a last-second change in direction and ended up clipping the side of a tree trunk that was wider than I was. Wood chips and splinters sprayed through the air. Twisting with the impact and grunting low in my throat at the flare of pain in my shoulder I continued on my way.

My hearing turned up to the max I tried desperately to keep track of the direction the scream had come from as the woods seemed to press in on me. I could get lost in here. I hopped over a fallen tree, enhanced muscles propelling me safely over the eight-foot obstacle. I landed with a roll and stopped in a crouch to listen.

If there was one sound Dockside could familiarise you with, it’s the sound of a struggle. In some ways, it’s a lot like sex. Grunting, gasping, the meaty smack of flesh on flesh. It differs in pitch though. The grunts are more guttural, the gasping more desperate, the meaty smacks more vicious. That’s what I heard. Along with the snapping of wood and the crunch of dry leaves.

Looks like I found my fight!