Jump Event 3999...

Shadow is overlooking the scans of the planets within the system they just entered, along with 4 of his companions that traverse through the multiverse with him. They are still searching for where the rest of the team ended up after the Jump Event. It has been 23 years already since he entered this timeline, thankfully he ended up on a planet that already had stellar traveling spaceships and was able to contract some local folk to help him get the materials to build the ship he needed to make his own way around. After roughly 36 months of work it was complete and Shadow set sail through the black abyss that was known as space. Luckily 4 of his Omega Squad members were only within a couple systems from him, this would help them get together faster and prepare for Cesam's arrival... Which was always chaotic... Each Jump Event was jarring for the first minute, immediately overrun with the new sense of the timeline they would be thrust into. New scents, new overall aura of the timeline, and the entirely new landscape the exited into. Eventually they ended up trying to see if there was a way to put up a beacon at their Exit point and uses a unique energy signal to relay their location to a receiver... They successfully completed the research and testing of the technology in Jump 2395, so far it has yet to fail at getting them to link back up and regroup.

Visi was the first to put up a beacon that Shadow could read, second closest system from the one he arrived in, on a planet that had rather colorful foliage and wildlife. Even though Visi's black and white stripes didn't quite fit in on the planet she did find herself quite fond of the array of color that was natural to it. The local wildlife seemed rather tame to her presence as she had already found a few curious species of creatures watching her from a distance but not coming near her as they saw her. Through the clouds the telltale jet black spaceship Shadow was so fond of recreating each time they jumped appeared and was on a slow approach to the beacon. Visi gave a wave towards the ship sure that Shadow had already seen her with the instruments he put on the ship. She was glad to be getting off the planet now as she didn't enjoy killing the smaller wildlife and burning the beautiful foliage in order to survive here. She would have made more if she could but with Shadow's Rules Of Engagement it was clear that if you did not spot anything on the first month of you're arrival to indicate space technology, but you do see indigenous sentient life that you must try you're best not to leave any superior technology for them. It was a good law though as many interstellar federations did not take kindly to uplifting species of life, they were more prone to leaving people marooned. As the ship touched down Shadow walked out of the cargo bay and down the ramp, clad in that black shirt and green pants uniform that he adopted from one of the military factions he was involved with on a few of his jumps, the shirt and pants both had softshell plates that would protect against most ballistics from spears to gunpowder projectiles though it did have it's limitations. With a short greeting the two headed on board the vessel to search for the others Visi taking a seat in the cockpit by Shadow and started working the scanners so Shadow could focus more on the actual piloting of the ship. "So I take it I am the first you picked up? or is Sanyah hiding in you're cabin again?" She smirks playfully teasing him as she glances back over her shoulder at him. Rolling his eyes slightly he shook his head, "You're the first but I had picked up another beacon before entering the atmo. Should only be a couple hours until we reach it a it is close. Using the slip drive of course." She nods and looks back to the holographic display in front of her, she was glad he ended up an anthro this jump, when he makes a ship as a feral some of the controls are harder to work with as he has to modify it for the anthro crew later. "Alright let's go find who it is then shall we?" She asks before getting a silent nods from Shadow as he powers up the slip drive and punches a hole through space to the next beacon.

Aria was the next beacon he got on the energy scan, 4 systems away from Visi's exit point. Upon arrival this planet was much less welcoming... Radiation ticks clicked on the scans they had on the ship but they did not have the wear needed to counteract the higher than normal background radiation. This world was in some form of nuclear aftermath and it was apparent by the craters Shadow could see from the cloud level of the atmosphere. "Alright, nuclear fallout we need to grab 'em quick so we don't get sick." Shadow stated to Visi as he brought the ship down closer to the beacon area. Remotely he opened the bay door and set the ship down on a clearing closest to the beacon to expedite the pickup, however before either of them could head down to the cargo bay or onto the dead soil of the planet the brightly colored bird darted from their beacon point and into the bay. "Ah it was Aria, alright go help her scrub up and I'll get us back into space." Shadow taps a differently colored holographic button and the bay door begins closing, automatic rad cleansing powder puffed gently into the cargo bay from above. It looked like the room had dust on the ceiling and shook it loose as they took off the ground again while Visi walked through the bay. The large avian landed on a nearby crate and shook her feathers in irritation. "Urgh, I hate this dust and I despise worlds with such radiation so present. Good thing you guys picked me up, no idea what the native species would have thought of me if they found me. I have been living off of pills, MREs, and water I have to purify with tablets for the past 19 years Visi!" She exclaimed spreading her wings as she expressed her thoughts. Visi gave a soft giggle at Aria and shook her head, "Stop whining and let's get you cleaned up and give you the Xeraphotil Shot. Shadow is at the helm and scanning for the others, we are the first two he picked up. As long as we all get together before Cesam can get to any of us then we can get prepped." Aria hopped onto Visi's forearm as it was offered to her so they could minimize what radiation came off of her and was left in the cargo bay. "The first two? I hope it doesn't take as long a last time, he must've been on a planet that already had space tech." Aria softly mumbles the latter bit as she worries for the others, Cesam was starting to get faster at finding them and his rage burned more with each Jump that occurred.

Shadow zooms in on the newest scan, another beacon 64 systems further than they had been traveling from and a good section of empty space too, "Fate is making some of this easy, we'll see how long it lasts." He mumbles to himself and powers up the Slip drive to begin the slipspace jump. Kolt's Exit Point was on a medieval stage civilization planet. Luckily for him it was also inhabited by many dog species of anthro as the primary sentient race. Kolt had to keep moving around on the planet though and became a bit of a legend due to his travels and small skirmishes he had with bandits on the planet. Going off of Shadow's ROE he was able to enjoy the lifestyle of this civilization at some points but due to the beacon he had and the fact he simply did not age he could not stay around the same people for long. He rode a large beast quietly through some dense forests which are quite far from any native kingdom, his steel armor clinking softly with each trot of the scaled mount he was atop. Bags were affixed to it's rump above the base of the beast's tail, the length of which was the same as the length from it's jagged maw to the base of it's thick tail. These creature were not as dexterous as Sanyah or Shadow were in their feral forms, though Kolt chalked that up to mostly a lack on sentience and training. The beast stopped as the clouds broke above however and Shadow's ship was in sight descending towards him, "Crap, he isn't going to be happy about me being in such dense forest..." He cursed silently and dismounted his beastly stead. "Oh well, time to go back to big scope living. I'm going to miss you buddy." He says patting the neck of the scaled creature. The ship turns so that the ramp was facing Kolt as the ship slowly lowered and crushed the trees under the ship and it's weight. Shadow walked down the ramp and had his arms crossed while looking to Kolt displeased, say "Goodbye to you're pet Kolt we need to keep looking for the rest of the Squad." Shadow called out to him, Kolt patting the stead once more. "Yeah I know, I really hate that I can't take Rasengrov with me. We've been through a lot..." he admits in a softer tone to growing attached to the mount. "I know Kolt, but you know the many reasons we can't bring the creature with us. This is the world it was born on, and since you are wearing steel plate armor I'm pretty sure it's the only world with it's species. It should be with it's own..." Shadow states empathetic of the dilemma that each member of the team consistently has problems dealing with. Kolt nods softly and goes to the bags on the beast to take a few items with him, patting the shield he had forged himself and bear his initials of 'KS'. "You take care buddy, make sure you go find a pretty gal for yourself too." he gives the creature a bit of a smile as it tilts it's head to the side not comprehending... ANY of the situation in any sense. Kolt trudged up the ramp with his armor clinking as he passes Shadow. "Sometimes this ageless trait is pretty damn depressing." is all that Shadow hears from Kolt as he passes up into the ship's bay. Shadow turns to follow Kolt as the bay ramp begins to raise and close once again, Visi currently piloting the ship and taking it up into the clouds. The reptilian mount that was left with only the belongings of it's master cries out in a mournful roar as it is now understanding that whatever that flying thing was just left and had his master in it...

Kolt went to the crew's quarters to have a proper shower and cleaning of his fur, and to get dressed into the much lighter and more protective uniform Shadow used for the crew. Shadow enters the cockpit, seeing Aria feeling much more healthy from the Xeraphotil treatment and the month of time it had to work on her body while they were traveling to Kolt. "Finally back to 100% Aria?" Shadow asks with a soft smile as he sits down in the primary piloting seat, Visi handing off the controls to him as they reach the empty space. "Indeed, glad we developed that drug to help with radiation removal or else we would always have trouble with nuclear worlds." She chirped at her seat near another holographic screen. A blip gently blinks on the holographic map that was displayed on the panels near Shadow showing the next beacon and the great distance they had to go to reach it. "Don't tell me this is the only other beacon in this galaxy Visi..." Shadow says looking at the star map displayed. "As you wish." She slyly remarks and continues the scans and viewing more of the maps Shadow had acquired. Shadow sighs heavily as the journey was always long between galaxies and he did not like taking trips in space for longer than 30 months. "Alright, let's head for the last beacon in this galaxy then, to the '3rd' arm as they refer to it." He states starting up the slip-drive again.

Sanyah sits on top of the apartment building she was living in, holographic billboards splayed across many surfaces of the buildings that surrounded her in the hi tech city she lived in. The skyscraper she resided in was quite larger and wide enough to fit the ship she knew Shadow would be using when he came to collect the team. The planet was advanced in technology but had yet to make any real commercial trips to space, mostly just military and government satellites and rovers exploring the 12 planet solar system. She spent a lot of time learning history of the planet and picking a rather unnoticeable career where she didn't spend time around the same people for long. She liked the setting this planet had but was anxious to get back to space, and the ROE they lived by outline that being a gray man in settings like this are best. Each night she would go up and watch the sunset, knowing that it was more likely than not that Shadow would come in under the cover of night to get her. The sound of thrusters from the all too familiar ship Shadow would rebuild each jump got gently louder and the feeling of a large presence nearby made her pick up her bag that held her items and turn to look for the slow gentle shimmer of the active camouflage they would use for stealth on the ship. The cargo bay ramp lowered breaking the active camo at the rear of the ship where Kolt stood to make sure she made it in just fine. He wore a black stealth suit attached to the cargo wall with a braided tether to make sure he wouldn't fall out, the light in the cargo bay turned off to assist with stealth. Sanyah smiles seeing Kolt and launches her bag at him, letting him catch the heavy thing and throw it back further into the cargo bay. Sanyah they got a sprinting start to leap into the cargo bay, Kolt getting a grip on her arm as she came up from the roll she did to lessen the blow of the titanium allow deck when she landed on it. "Heya Kolty, how are you doing?" She asks him as the cargo bay ramp begins to shut while the ship slowly ascends into the air. "Ah you know, same ol' same ol'." He says and releases her arm when the ramp shuts fully. The lights in the caro bay turn back on after a moment and Kolt detaches himself from the tether, walking back towards the stairs to the upper deck. "Glad to have another one of us back, we have 5 of the team so far Shadow said that we have to decide one which galaxy to try and look at next since you were the last one in this galaxy." Kolt says over his shoulder as Sanyah follows after picking up her bag. "Ooo a debate this should be fun."

After they decided on which galaxy to try and explore to see if they get in range of another beacon or not, the long trip began. A lot of time screwing around and playing games that Shadow had picked up before leaving helped fill the gaps between meals and help dull the boredom of the long flight through the maxed out slipstream. They finally arrived in a system in the new galaxy 23 years after the Jump event, and after the first couple of scans they fine that there are rather close to another beacon. Here we see Shadow and the team members he has picked up so far looking at a map of the solar system they are currently getting a beacon reading from on a moon of a gas giant. Which one of the crew might be there?

Hopefully more art is to come soon and more stories with it!

All of these characters I own.
Art by  Sixbane