Lost Colony Ch. 08.5
Spoiler Alert!
The purpose of this summary is two-fold. For readers new to the story, you may skim this summary rather than read the first eight chapters. As the author, I'd rather you read the entire story, but if you just want to catch up you may do so. In addition, readers who may have forgotten some details can skim the summary. I'm aware that my chapters are released infrequently. By the time I publish chapter nine, you may have forgotten what happened in chapter five. This summary is for you!
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Major Spoiler Alert!
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In case it isn't obvious, reading this summary will spoil many of the twists and surprises from the first eight chapters. Stop here if you think you might read the individual chapters.
Cheers!
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Chapter 1
Our hero, Alain Sparr, is an exo-biologist sent as part of a mission to K2-136-b, or as the crew refers to it, Kaybe. The planet was colonized four hundred years earlier, but contact was lost early on. No one knows exactly what the mission will find.
Sparr works for a large company, K2 Genetics Holdings, sometimes shortened to K2 Gene, or just Genetics. They have purchased the rights to any new species found on the planet. It is Sparr's job to catalog new species and transmit their DNA sequences back. Earth itself is going through a protracted crisis, with disease, famine, and political unrest rife on the planet. New genetic material could hold the secrets to helping solve these problems.
At the beginning of the chapter, Sparr finds himself unexpectedly stuffed into an escape pod and launched toward the surface of Kaybe. Still under the effects of cryo-sleep, he is barely aware of what's happening, much less able to do anything about it. The pod lands on the surface. With little hope that a rescue is on the way, he takes off toward a city he observed during entry. He has no idea what happened aboard the ship, the Odysseus.
He is chased by wolf-like creatures which hunt in a pack. He kills two of them, cooking and eating the second. He resumes his journey, but while he's sleeping he is captured by slavers. They must be descendants of the original colonists but speak a language that he doesn't understand. He is placed into a wagon with other captives from a dusky-skinned race. He befriends one of the captives, a man named Efreem. Sparr has an 'implant' that helps him learn the local language, itself a mash-up of English, Spanish, French, and Mandarin. It will take a while though.
That night, the slavers stop at a campsite that has a waterfall and pool. The captives are made to wash. When the female leader of the slavers sees that Sparr is 'gifted', she goads him and one of the female captives, Kess, into sex while the others watch.
The next day the slavers reach a town named Vonde where the captives are sold. He observes that the town is ruled equally by a priestess named Liette and a man who Sparr dubs the Governor. It is the latter who buys him, while Liette buys Kess. He doesn't see what happens to Efreem.
Sparr is trained to be a gladiator. He is in his early thirties, quite tall, and in good shape. Under the constant drilling and mock combat, he grows stronger and sure with weapons. He goes to his first match, where he is given yellow and black chalks to mark himself with. He decides to mark his face with stripes like a tiger. A sexy, topless gladiator, Syreet, extends the stripes down his body, completing the effect. He wins his match. The crowd starts calling him 'Animal'.
That night Syreet sends for him and the two have a session in her house at the edge of town.
There is a flashback to the space journey to Kaybe. We meet Calista, a woman with whom Sparr has been having a fling. She works for K2 Mineral, a company very similar to Sparr's employer, except focused on mineral resources.
Chapter 2
* Sparr learns that the Governor still has his survival supplies, including his communicator, but has no way to retrieve them
* Flashback to aboard the Odysseus. He and Calista just had a session in zero gravity, but she abruptly calls quits to their relationship, mystifying Sparr
* He keeps training as a gladiator, getting stronger and faster
* He notices the local currency, discs called tokens which are intricate and seemingly unique from one another
* He finds out that the city he is seeking is called Shong. Apparently, it's largely abandoned
* The local religion is called the Origin. Their teachings revolve around a mythical figure named Omm who 'smashed the machines'. They sometimes take pilgrimages to Shong
* Sparr is called again to fight in the gladiator arena. He wins, as does Syreet in her match. But another gladiator that Sparr knows is killed
* That night Syreet invites him yet again to her home where they have a session with a female performer who was at the arena earlier
* While running errands for the Governor, Sparr sees a tapestry which is a map of the world. He gets some idea where Shong, and other cities, may be found.
* He learns the Origin deals in flesh, offering the services of maidens and princes to those who donate (sacrifice) to the temple
* At the arena, he is sent into a death match against Efreem, who has been training elsewhere. Efreem has been drugged with something called the 'red draught' which makes him irrational and aggressive. Efreem is a good fighter, but Sparr survives, knocking his opponent bloody and unconscious. Unfortunately, the Governor sees what has happened and demands that one of the two die. Before Sparr has to choose, Liette the priestess makes a show of buying both him and Efreem for the temple
Chapter 3
* In the temple Sparr is shaved above and below by two maidens who briefly pleasure him
* Another priestess, Lell, comes to fetch Sparr to witness a temple ceremony
* He witnesses how the wealthy of the town come to 'sacrifice' tokens in exchange for drugs or sexual favors with the maidens or princes
* Flashback set at the very first meeting of the mission crew. Sparr sees Calista for the first time. The mission crew learn from the captain how little is known of Kaybe and what they will find there. Gets a hint that Calista is bringing 'something heavy' aboard the Odysseus
* Liette summons Sparr to her quarters. She's obviously interested in him, but instead instructs him and the priestess Lell to fuck while she watches
* He meets Efreem who is recovering from his bout with Sparr but is feverish with infection
* He befriends the temple cook, Silla, who is also a slave
* He attends an evening of relaxation with the temple priestesses, slaves, and maidens/princes. He uses the ruse of being a magician to recover some medication to help Efreem, and a solar-charging blanket from his survival gear which Liette has been holding on to
* He learns that the temple will soon be taking a pilgrimage to Shong, the city that he thinks represents the best chance of signaling his ship
* Liette summons him to fuck her, while playing a role in her brute/princess fantasy
* On the way out he finds his communicator and takes it with him
Chapter 4
* Sparr gives Efreem one of the antibiotic pills, which seems to help heal him
* Learns there is another, older religion called the Precipice which isn't very popular
* Learns that there is no written language on Kaybe. The population is illiterate
* The temple buys new slaves for the upcoming pilgrimage, including several young women and two young men
* Flashback where Sparr introduces himself to Calista for the first time. They begin a cautious approach to friendship
* Observes a temple ceremony to determine which worshippers will be allowed to attend the pilgrimage to Shong
* Fucks Liette again, once more following her preferred brute/princess fantasy
* Learns he will accompany the pilgrimage to Shong, as will Silla the cook
* Learns there will be some sort of ceremony before the pilgrimage, referred to as the Departure
* Befriends two of the youths, Tuck and Drian, that were bought for the pilgrimage. Starts to train them with weapons
* The Departure is a show put on for the faithful that didn't donate quite enough to accompany the pilgrimage
* Sparr is tricked into drinking the red draught, then roughly fucks one of the maidens on stage while drugged
* Joins the pilgrimage, along with Efreem, various maidens, guards, wagon drivers, priestesses, etc.
* Continues to train the two youths, Drian and Tuck
* While accompanying the pilgrimage, comes upon the wreckage of a fallen airship, proof that the original colonists had constructed machines at some point before succumbing to whatever disaster came along
Chapter 5
* The pilgrimage is ambushed along the road. Sparr, Efreem, and the youths Tuck and Drian help fight off the bandits
* Flashback. He and Calista go kayaking off the Florida coast together. She tells him that K2 Mineral is bringing a mini-sub along on the Odysseus
* He has an encounter with Kern, the captain of the pilgrimage guard. Kern tells Sparr that the Governor of Vonde was so unhappy when Liette bought Sparr and Efreem, that he wants them killed before they return to Vonde. However, Sparr saved Kern's life during the attack so Kern says he'll help Sparr find a good time to escape.
* Gets his first view of Shong from the road, confirming it is the city he saw during his emergency landing
* With the rest of the pilgrims, witnesses a sex show that Liette arranges between two of the maidens and a prince
* They reach Shong, which is the primary destination of the pilgrimage
* Sparr encounters two children singing an ancient Earth song. He bribes them to show him where they heard the song. They take him to the basement of one of the Shong towers where he finds a partially-functioning machine. That, in turn, helps him find another machine. He discovers that the tokens contain fabrication information for machines built by the colonists. He fabricates one part which he hopes might help him build a radio to reach the Odysseus
* When he emerges from the basement, he finds Shong, and the pilgrims in particular, under attack from a military drone. He, Silla, and Kern damage it before Sparr deals it a final blow
* He is sure the drone was searching for him, sent by someone from the Odysseus, but he has no idea who or why
Chapter 6
* Kern dies in the night, from injuries sustained during the drone attack
* Sparr tells Liette that he intends to leave the caravan. She allows it, but prevents him from recruiting either Efreem or Silla. He departs on his own, hoping to find another city called Santi which he saw on the tapestry in Vonde
* Finds a decorated rock wall that contains a cryptic mural which might hold a clue to what happened on the planet
* Meets an aging woman who offers her take on the mural (people in a city, people dying or dead, people living in smaller villages)
* Flashback. Sparr is playing a virtual-reality-like game with Calista, and two Alliance crew, Tracee, a medical specialist, and Kevin, a security specialist. Tracee wears a pair of sophisticated lenses which help correct for her vision loss. Calista wins the game, and the four go for drinks. Calista and Kevin seem close. Tracee lures Sparr back to his quarters where they have a session
* Back on Kaybe Sparr continues his journey toward Santi
* Encounters a colonist-era production facility of some sort. One machine in it is working, apparently fixed by someone from the Odysseus, using modern technology. The machine is making tiny strips used for collecting DNA. The building is monitored by a drone but Sparr is able to escape undetected
* Comes upon Racas, a town built on stilts over swampy terrain. Gets an inexpensive bunk for the night, but is woken by his implant at some point in the night when his gear, including his communicator, is stolen
* He pursues the unknown thief, guided in part by the last bearing of his communicator. He comes upon an abandoned warehouse which seems to be where the thief went. He goes around back but is startled by an animal which appears to be half dog, half bear. The animal is placid, but he decides to avoid it by going in the front of the warehouse instead of the back
* Inside he witnesses the thief selling the contents of his pack to a fence. He waits for the thief to leave then confronts the fence. The fence pulls a vintage pistol on him, but after a brief standoff lets Sparr leave
* Sparr pulls his own pistol and waits for the fence to emerge from the warehouse. Ignoring Sparr's pistol, the fence tries to shoot him. Sparr shoots first, killing the man. He takes the pistol, the man's tokens, and some stolen merchandise the fence had been carrying
* The bear/dog insists on following him so he decides to let him follow along and names the animal Bogg. Bogg has a pack which the fence was using to haul goods. Sparr does the same
Chapter 7
* He continues on the road, protected in part by Bogg, who scares off the dusk hounds
* He comes to a coastal town called Caibo
* Learns that Bogg is a trained animal
* Learns that in the town (and others, apparently) most people choose to follow either the way of Stone (travel by land), or Wave (travel by water). The ways have other differences as well
* Books passage on the Shai, a ship to Santi, an inexpensive bunk below decks. The ship is awkwardly designed and difficult to steer. Sailing, apparently, is still an emerging discipline on Kaybe
* Meets Ost, a timber merchant, and his two daughters Sylva and Aine
* While aboard ship, discusses sailing and ship design with the captain, Jance. Carves a crude model of what an Earth sailboat looks like and discusses the advantages with Jance
* Meets three travelers from the religion known as the Precipice, two priests and a girl referred to as an interpreter. Their teachings seem to be closer to the truth than those of the Origin, but the priests won't reveal much. They tell him they are looking for someone to 'quiet' a place called Horn Island. From their description, it sounds like drones are present
* Sparr has a session with Aine, who books an upgraded room just for that purpose
* Flashback. Sparr, Calista, Kevin, and Tracee are practicing zero gravity drills. Calista is highly competitive, but Sparr is slightly faster when he tries a new technique
* Flashback. On the way back from the drills Tracee and Sparr are talking. She predicts that since she and Sparr had sex, Calista will now be interested in Sparr. Sparr also explains to Tracee that the rights to make a claim on Kaybe will only be protected for one year. He will have only one year to make a claim before his employer loses its exclusive access
* Back on Kaybe Sparr agrees to 'quiet' Horn Island in exchange for a few tokens and access to more of the Precipice teachings
* He goes ashore at the island, to discover a mine in operation, protected by a military drone. He takes out the drone by creating a landslide above it, then bashes it with a rock until it's destroyed
* Inside the mine he takes several ingots that were made from the ore. He shuts the mine down.
* There is a non-military drone which sees him inside the mine and takes his photo. It heads for the surface but Bogg blocks it at the door long enough for Sparr to destroy it
* He finds a map of sites on Kaybe, including mines, factories, and replication facilities like the one he found in Shong
* He find a list which shows that *someone* is tracking everyone aboard the Odysseus, except Kevin and Calista. He alone has been marked as "contain". Realizes he has been betrayed by Calista and Kevin
* He hitches a ride off of the island and to Santi
Chapter 8
* In Santi he is able to locate a replication facility, but the entrance is blocked in front by a merchant stall. He sneaks around back and runs his tokens through the fabricator
* He finds a part for an air car, giving him a new idea. He will build an air car to help in his mission to find the Odysseus
* Several hoods, including the merchant whose stall fronted the fabricator, confront him in the building. He fights them, killing two and letting one go
* Visits Aine, who bandages, bathes, and fucks him
* Takes over the merchant's stall so he can maintain access to the fabricator and more easily come/go
* Visits the Precipice house, where one of the priests, Ota, gives him more information about their teachings. Their teachings are conveyed both with oral history and illustrations. The Precipice seems to know that men arrived only four hundred years earlier, and that their presence somehow broke the balance of the world. The illustrations suggest that 'disrupting the balance' was closely tied with flight from the cities, and may be related to drilling/mining
* Flashback - He and Calista finally get together, having sex on the beach after snorkeling
* Back on Kaybe, Sparr visits Ost the timber merchant. He helps Ost come up with a way to move heavy/expensive timber to clients
* He sells some merchandise to a local hood
* Begins selling liquor at a loss, generating a fresh supply of new tokens to feed into the replicator, accelerating the pace of locating air car parts
* Finally gets enough air car parts that he can start connecting them to each other
And that takes us through the end of chapter eight. I hope this summary was helpful, and that you keep reading Lost Colony.
Thank you!"
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