Killjoy

Planet XI
JP with Omni and Jaxx

Niko gripped the steering wheel, feeling the powerful engine of the 6x6 heavy-terrain vehicle rumble to life beneath him. The heavy-duty tires crunched over the frozen ground as Niko eased the vehicle out of the bay, the deep treads biting into the frozen surface of the landing zone, kicking up chunks of snow and ice. The mobile science lab trailer was pulled behind it. He grinned, enjoying the smooth responsiveness of the machine.

“I take five. Any more…you take UTV,” Niko explained. “Come. One in front. Up to four in back.” He popped the gull-wing hatchback so the crew could climb aboard.

Sestero fiddled with a motion tracker device, calibrating it for use as he made his way to one of the UTVs.

Captain Yoshida bid them adieu as they boarded the vehicles, “I will remain with the ship watching the feed as we await your findings. Be careful out there, team.“

The HTV moved away from the Nomad, steadily at first across the tundra. The Nomad’s vehicle bay closed behind them. In front of them, the landscape rose, jagged ice formations jutted out from the ground like ancient, frozen waves, while deep crevasses snaked through the terrain, forcing Niko to navigate with caution. He drove up an escarpment to get a better gauge of the terrain ahead and tapped at some buttons on the display in the central console.

“Doctors, that is where we go, yes?” Niko pointed to a spot on the map, one possible location where the doctors might likely find good ores or possible life.

With each meter, the terrain seemed to grow more rugged, the ice giving way to rocky outcrops and steaming fissures, signaling that they were drawing closer to their first zone of interest.

A cold wind howled outside, but inside the cabin, the crew was safe in their compression suits and strapped in for the bumpy ride.

Sestero saw a rift ahead and sped up to jump it on front of the team. The 6x6 could probably jump the gap too, with possible risks, otherwise they would need to take the safer, but longer way around. They could see Niko was itching to follow and take the jump.

Dr. Adama was in the passenger seat and the rest of the crew was packed in the lateral seating in the back, sitting face to face across from each other.

Dr. Adama replied, "Yes, I synced the GPS to this console already. However, I advise you not to make that jump. We can't afford to loose time, equipment and money if we break an axel on this ride." Then Dr. Adama looked at the map on his data pad again and made the adjustments for the safer path to use. He did enjoy having some fun but this was not the time for that since their paycheck was on the line.

Niko exhaled sharply through his nose, his grin fading into a more serious expression. “Ah, but spoil all the fun, Doctor,” he said with a playful edge, but there was no malice in his tone. Niko knew Adama was right. “Okay, okay. You are right. No jumping today. We take boring safe path.” He winked and steered the HTV towards the safer route down a natural sort of ramp, his eyes scanning the rugged terrain ahead. The moment of temptation had passed, replaced by the focus on getting the job done right. “Maybe next time, we can handle little thrill,” Niko added with a chuckle, shaking his head as the HTV rumbled on, now following the course Adama had marked out.

In the back of the vehicle, between the storage compartments, Maddox held one hand onto a handle to steady himself while clasped onto a hook by a carabiner-type clip watching out the window behind them and poised to pop out of the dorsal hatch on top of the HTV in case there was something to shoot at. Though there wasn’t much to be seen from his vantage besides Sestero, who followed at a safe distance behind the trailer, cruising on his UTV.