Upon approaching Europa, we noticed a dark, metallic spot on the moon's surface. It was clearly visible as its colors contrasted the brighter pallette of Europa. As Anthony informed me, it's a landing pad.
We began descending, making sure not to do so too quickly, as we'd be blown to bits if we smashed into the ice.
- Rotate the craft to face upright. We don't want to faceplant into Europa's crust - Einstein instructed the copilot.
Anthony fulfilled his orders and now Jupiter could be seen through the window. To me, being unable to see the landing site was always a bit uncanny, but seen how many times we've landed successfully on other celestial bodies, I should probably get used to this.
There was nothing to worry about, right? We survived crashing into Mars, so what can a landing pad do to us?
Still, I wanted to see the ground below us, so made my way to the bottom of the rocket and found a window in the sleeping quarters. Seeing the surface was comforting. We were getting closer to the landing pad, with the rocket's engines slowing our descent.
We weren't talking at all, because we didn't want to distract the pilots. Even though both Einstein and Anthony are expierienced, it was rather easy for things to go wrong. As I observed the land below us, Claudius monitored the state of the engines, ready to inform Einstein about any malfunction, should one show up (I hope it won't).
During this suspenseful moment, Amber kept watch over Roby, to make sure that he won't use the opportunity to flee. Fortunately for us, the prisoner seemingly gave up on escaping. I guess he did notice that he has nowhere to run from us.
It was time for touchdown and right before we touched the ground, Einstein deactivated the engines, as they'd burn the landing pad if we kept them on, not to mention messing up our landing. For about three seconds, we uncontrollably dropped onto the landing pad. Even though it was hard to mess this part up, I still gulped as my heart rate accelerated. This short moment is usually creepy to me, because it's a sudden drop, like the climax of an action movie.
Luckily, our rocket didn't topple over and the landing pad was also in good condition. With a joint sigh of relief from everyone, we made it onto Europa.
Suddenly, a few robotic arms emerged out of the pad, grabbing our rocket to keep it in an upright position. With a loud clank, the whole pad started descending like an elevator. Multiple parts of a shiny, circular metallic hatch arranged themselves like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle to cover the dark sky above. The landing pad eventually reached its destination and froze in place.
Anthony opened the hatch up and we left the rocket one by one, with me being one of the first team members to do so. Dropping down onto the metal floor, I looked around the area. An unfamiliar logo was the first thing to catch my attention.
It was an atom stuck inside an ice cube, which was placed into a larger cube made of metal bars. Beneath the strange icon was the name of the facility: "European Science and Containment Centre".
There was a second logo on the wall behind our rocket, noticed by Sebastian. Both of the logos were neatly placed above airlocks, as if they were indicators. The whole room was perfectly symmetrical, with the cables powering the robotic arms lined up as if they were mirrored.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh0zqc6YPV7
- Whoever built this is a perfectionist - Sebastian commented, noticing the symmetry.
Dawn and Amber, under Anthony's careful supervision, brought a handcuffed Roby out of the rocket. Strangely enough, the former Martian leader didn't even try to break free. Even though it was peculiar, it made our arrival a lot less stressful.
The last person to leave the Hope was Captain Nigel, who was grumpy as always, even though he didn't have a particular reason to be in such a mood. It seems like it's just a permanent feature of his.
- How long are we going to sit here? - he asked coldly.
- As long as it takes the hunt to die down. Big Donny has been instructed by me to call us dead if the Agency pulls up - Einstein responded.
- When did you do so? - I couldn't help myself. When did our caretaker come up with the idea of playing dead?
- Shortly after the hunt broke out. We had a little talk about it - Einstein replied cryptically.
This response satisfied me, so I didn't ask any further questions.
With the rocket emptied, we made our way to the nearest airlock and underwent a seemingly unnecessary decontamination procedure, which is a fancy term for a short shower in a locked room.
- Here we are - Einstein told us as the lock opened up, revealing a corridor with dark gray walls.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnR3qZZWmtb
As we made our way into the facility, I noticed glass windows on the walls, letting us peek at the laboratories behind them. This place is partially a lab, after all.
Behind the first window, some men in lab coats were inspecting... something under a microscope. I'm not certain what the sample was, but I assumed it was ice or some type of salt found on the surface.
Walking further into the complex, we passed by several scientists, all of which had the centre's logo on their coats. Eventually, we made it to the containment part of the Science and Containment Centre.
In this section, there were more guards than scientists and the glass windows were replaced by metal bars. Behind them were cells even less spacious than Roby's cell on our rocket. Our prisoner audibly gulped upon seeing them.
We then made it to what appeared to be a main hall of some kind. Even though the complex was rather new, the walls were musty, or at least they appeared to be such. In the main hall, we encountered a guard with a different outfit than the others. Instead of a dark teal suit with a black utility belt, this guy wore a black suit with a bright gray utility belt.
His equipment was also different. While normal guards were equipped with tasers, walkie-talkies and oxygen masks, this dude had a small version of a laser blaster, a weapon which we're very familiar with, as we've used it several times during missions. The blaster belonging to the guy was seemingly a pocket version, much smaller than the rifle-sized ones we're used to. The man was also equipped with a tablet that gave him the ability to instantly view the footage from any given security camera.
- This guy is the warden - Anthony informed me.
Einstein was the first to approach the warden, as he was the informal leader of our group. Captain Nigel looked at Einstein with a hint of jealousy. It seems like he misses his old position as the leading figure in the Agency of Cosmic Espionage.
- Hello, there. We come from Mars Base Beta to deliver a very dangerous criminal here... I'm the leader... - Einstein introduced us, gaining a disdainful look from Nigel.
- Yeah, I know. I'm informed about every arrival and departure on this whole moon. This is, so far, the only facility built on Europa - the warden interrupted - May I see your criminal?17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYnMC7jj0CA
- Of course - Einstein pointed to Dawn and Amber, who were holding Roby. I got the impression that he felt like a clown, dissatisfied by his failure as the leader of the Martians. Prison was certainly a big shame for him.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqOqMpbbJp8
- What is your name? - the warden asked him in a rough tone.
- Robert Rupert - Roby reluctantly responded.
- That Robert Rupert? The governor of Mars Base Beta? You're evil? - the warden was surprised by the reveal. It seems like he has so many things on his mind that he didn't keep up with the situation on other celestial bodies, such as Mars.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfPCbAgBz6Z
- Yes, we exposed him as an evildoer - Arika confirmed.
- He tried to turn the colony into his personal army for further schemes - I added.
The warden took care of Roby, calling in two guards to escort the criminal to his newly assigned jail cell. However, it was now that Roby chose to act, after being suspiciously calm during our flight. He swiftly kicked the warden, who was keeping watch from behind. As the two guards prepared for an attack, Roby punched both simultaneously, being strong enough to temporarily stun them and break free.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlDASyceQlJ
It was up to us to stop him.17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzyIZOEJ9bo
and then Add to home screen.