Starfall

Starfall Summary

Starfall is the first arc of WillCo, the aftermath of a crash-landing on Earth, in the spaceship called "Titan". Stranded in the coastal waters of the Southern Doggerlands, the ship's medical officer Eris is forced into the role of acting captain.

As the surviving crew members struggle to maintain order inside the wrecked Titan, tensions mount between them, local Terran forces, and unknown extraterrestrial factions. A damaged AI named ALICE guides Eris through the ship’s systems while external threats close in — including a powerful alien vessel and internal collapse.

Starfall concludes with a Alice reboot giving the designation of “Base Commander,” to Eris

Per-Starfall

WBC Special Report — Live Feed Active

Welcome to this special edition of the WBC Evening Report. We’re following a developing story out of the Southern Doggerlands, where multiple eyewitnesses have reported a sudden burst of meteor-like activity over the open sea. Astrophysicists at the Teradyne Observatory were quick to note that no meteor shower was expected in this region, nor have any solar events been logged that might explain it.

Starfall I, Attended

[Starfall I - “Attended”]

[Cycle 0, Post-Starfall Protocol]

[Location Medbay, Lower Decks - Titan Wreck Site, S-3I-4A]

The ship groaned beneath its own weight, wedged into a sheer cliff and half-submerged in an unfamiliar sea. It had fallen from the sky — burning, tearing — and yet, somehow, it floated. At least for now. The ocean howled outside, waves crashing on the metal hull in a slow, rhythmic pattern. Inside, a different kind of chaos reigned. Water had begun to seep into the lower decks. In the medbay, blue lights pulsed dimly against white bulkheads. Beds overflowed with groaning survivors. Bodies lay. IV bags swayed. Monitors screamed.

One patient lay apart, surrounded by guards — restrained not from danger, but importance. No name, no rank displayed. Just a breathing mask, bruises, and the shallow rise and fall of the chest. Then a voice broke through the noise.

Alice (calm, artificial) "Captain…"

Alice "Captain..?"

A twitch. Then a breath — ragged, wet.

Eris "…Wh—what? No… I’m not a captain. Alice, I’m…" (He squinted against the light.) "…I’m the medical officer."

A moment of silence. Then the voice replied, unfazed:

Alice "Regrettably, we lost a significant number of lives aboard the Titan during the Starfall Protocol. You are next in line. You have been promoted to acting captain."

Eris didn’t speak at first. His eyes remained fixed on the overhead panel — cracked and half-lit.

Eris (quietly) "…The captain’s dead?"

Alice "Affirmative."

Another breath. Longer this time. Trying to center.

Eris "…How long was I out?" "…How many—" (He coughed hard.) "—how many did we lose?" "…Are there rescue ships on the way?"

The medbay answered only with the steady beeping of monitors. Groans echoed from behind curtains. A cough wracked the silence.

Alice (gently) "Your current condition complicates full briefing, but there is a pressing situation. Shortly after our descent, an unidentified flying object entered our airspace. I neutralized it."

Alice "We now have four local individuals restrained outside. I intercepted portions of their communications and began work on a language model. It is highly likely that an organized response team is en route. Larger. Better equipped."

Alice "My recommendation: we avoid further escalation. A delegate for diplomatic engagement could be chosen. Waiting for your input."

Alice (sharply) "You are not ready for movement. There are others who—"

Eris (strained) "I can’t … rest in dire circumstances. I’ll go out."

He made it halfway upright before his leg gave out beneath him. A guard caught him just in time. His breathing was shallow, teeth clenched through the pain.

Eris (weak grin) "See, Alice? I’m… vertical."

Alice "You have two broken ribs and a fractured femur. Standing is not leadership."

A pause. Her voice softened slightly.

Alice "But presence is. I will authorize a guard to escort you to outer hull. You will remain seated and monitored. Understood?"

Eris gave a slow nod, wincing as he shifted his weight.

Alice "Then suit up. They’re almost here."

Her tone was cold. Not from anger — from calculation. And concern.

With effort, the new captain pulled on a medical exosuit — not the full combat model, but a reinforced frame designed to stabilize broken limbs and regulate internal trauma. It hissed faintly as the pressure seals locked into place around his ribs and leg. The inner lining clung to him like wet cloth, drawing sharp breaths through clenched teeth.

Two guards flanked him. One keyed open the medbay hatch. The other offered his arm — Eris accepted without pride, knowing he wouldn’t make it more than three steps alone. They stepped into a corridor that looked more like a scar than a hallway. The route was jagged and uneven — scorched panels hanging by half-melted bolts, overhead lights flickering. The scent of coolant, ozone, and blood in the air. A distant pulse echoed from belowdecks — not urgent, but constant. They passed a collapsed drone bay. A technician sat slumped against the wall nearby, bandaged and silent, staring through Eris like he was a ghost.

Eris tried not to look down. The exosuit compensated for the limp, but every step still reverberated through the fracture in his leg. The painkillers dulled the sharpness — not the weight. The guards said nothing. Their eyes stayed forward. At the far end of the corridor, a pressure door waited, its access light blinking amber. Beyond it, the open air. They stepped out onto the fractured hull of the Titan. For the first time, they saw the world they’d crashed into. Waves crashed violently below. Seafoam burst against twisted steel. Above them, the sun sank slowly behind the horizon — casting gold across the wreckage. It was beautiful.

Eris stood tall.

The first diplomatic contact between WillCo and this world was seconds away.

And the Titan braced for another kind of impact.

Starfall II, Friends

[Starfall II — “Friends”]

[Cycle 0, Post-Starfall Protocol]

[Location Unmapped Coastline, Northern Hemisphere – S-3I-4A]

The captain stood tall. From here, Eris could see the curve of the ship’s mangled hull — black seawater closing in around the Titan. The sun was lower now. A dark-orange band touched the horizon. Its light bounced off the water, off scorched metal — and off the small vessel rising toward them on the tide. Alice’s voice chimed in his earpiece — cool, clinical.

Alice "Vessel approaching: composite hull, combustion drive. Civilian-grade armor. Six occupants."

Eris squinted. The boat was fast, sharp-nosed, and bristling with antennas. Not military. Not quite civilian, either. Probably local enforcement. Or a recon team.

Alice "Broadcast detected. Language matches previous signal. Translating live." A moment later, a voice came through the vessel intercom — rough, filtered, commanding.

Unknown Voice (translated) *"This is Commander Dane of the Doggerland Maritime Watch. Unknown vessel, you have violated sovereign waters and engaged our craft without provocation. You are surrounded. Respond immediately."

Eris leaned forward, breathing carefully. The exosuit tightened around his chest.

Eris (quietly) "Well… let’s give him his response."

Alice "Just be careful with your words. The language board is being updated live."

[Landing Zone – Outer Hull of the Titan]

The local craft was docked now. The response team stood in a staggered formation on the outer deck: black composite armor, visors down, weapons slung but ready. At the center stood Commander Dane — tall, sharp-featured, salt-streaked beard. Not young. Not old. His stance was measured, gaze fixed on the pressure door. Beside him stood a younger figure, less armored, scanning the wreckage with a tablet. A scientist or tech. Civilian. They whispered something to Dane, nodding toward the wrecked drone.

Alice (in-ear)"They’re cataloguing us already. They are scanning everything."

Eris (grunted)"Then let’s give them something worth recording." And through it stepped Eris — slow, braced between two guards. His suit whirred faintly with each step. The pale armor had a symbol stamped into the right-side shoulder. His face was bruised, gaunt, but his eyes were steady. Commander Dane didn’t raise his weapon. But he didn’t lower it either.

Dane "Identify yourself." Eris drew breath through clenched teeth.

Eris "Name is Eris. Captain of Titan. I apologize. The… hostile welcome. Systems — your craft — threat misidentified." A beat of silence. Dane’s visor tilted, analyzing.

Dane (coolly) "Your ship fell out of the sky. Lit up our southern grid like a flare. That’s not a welcome. That’s an invasion."

(slower)

"You shot us out of the sky."

Eris (correcting) "No. Not me. Defense systems — AI. Autonomous."

(A pause.)

"Misidentified… your vessel. Parameters confused. Damage unintentional." The younger civilian leaned close to Dane again, whispering something sharp. This time, Dane didn’t answer right away. He watched Eris — studied him.

Dane "You’re injured."

Eris "Yes."

Dane "Then why are you out here?" Eris hesitated. Pain flared through his ribs with each breath.

Eris "Because I lived. And the others—"

He glanced back toward the ruined bulk of the Titan.

"—they need someone to speak. I speak."

Alice’s voice came through softly in Eris’s ear.

Alice "Language board updated: 34% stabilization. Recommend minor modulation of tense and subject emphasis. They process hierarchy through clarity." He adjusted slightly, more deliberate this time.

Eris (rephrasing) "I did not intend this. We fell. Damaged. Crashed. Your world… was not the plan." Dane looked at him for a long moment, then nodded toward the door behind Eris.

Dane "What’s in there?"

Eris "Wounded. Power loss. Failing life support. We need time. Quiet. Space to repair."

Dane "You dropped a ship the size of a port station on our coast. Neutralized a civilian craft. And now you want space?"*

Eris (steadily) "Yes." A gust of wind rolled across the hull, scattering dust and burnt paint flakes. The surf cracked violently below. The tech beside Dane looked up from their slate. Said something Eris didn’t catch. Dane finally lowered his weapon — not completely, but enough.

Dane (coldly) "You’re going to stay right here. No movements. No signals. No weapons. We’re calling in high command." Eris gave a slow nod. But then — a pause. His eyes flicked toward the outer corridor.

Eris (carefully) "We have… four of yours. The ones from the downed craft. They are alive. Restrained. But not harmed." Dane’s jaw tightened. His posture stiffened.

Dane "You have hostages!"

Eris "No."

(A slight wince.)

"Prisoners. Then guests. Now… you can call them back." The tension shifted — not eased, but focused. Dane glanced to the younger tech, then nodded once. A short-range comm was activated.

Alice (quietly, in-ear) "They are preauthorizing retrieval. Three-person approach. Orders: no hostile contact unless provoked." Eris motioned to one of his guards, who keyed open the hatch behind them. From the corridor, two more WillCo personnel stepped out — between them, four disheveled humans. Their hands were bound, but their faces were uncovered. No blood. One limped. Another glared, defiant and exhausted. Eris stepped aside.

Eris "Return them. No condition." Dane’s eyes narrowed. He moved forward personally — slowly — and took position at the midpoint between both parties. The locals were guided forward, still guarded but untouched. One of them — the limping one — muttered something sharp as they passed Eris. The translator caught only part of it:

"Invasion…" He didn’t answer. Once the exchange was complete, Dane gave the barest nod.

Dane "We’ll remember this. Oh, and something to help out with your language." Commander Dane pulled a small book out of his pocket and handed it over.

Eris "I see. I look into it." The younger tech helped steady the limping pilot back onto their ship. Dane lingered only a moment longer, then withdrew. As the boat pulled away, Alice’s voice returned — this time, not quite neutral.

Alice "I estimate a 34% increase in cooperative tone during the next encounter. However… there is a 61% chance they interpreted this gesture as weakness."

Eris "Let them think it’s weakness. Will be ready next time."

Alice (colder) "Would you like contingency targeting protocols initialized?"

Eris didn’t answer right away. He stared out across the water, the wind pressing against the cracks in his armor.

Eris "I would advise we preparing for anything."

Starfall III, Cold Water

[Starfall III — “Cold Water”]

[Cycle 1, Post–Starfall Protocol]

[Location Captain’s Quarters – Titan Wreck Site, S-3I-4A]

Night had settled over the Titan. The ship rocked gently in the black water. Its hull creaked under pressure — like the sea itself was pulling at the metal. Above, the clouds slowly parted, stars peeking through. Inside, most of the crew was asleep.

Captain Eris wasn’t.

He sat in the quiet, staring through the cracked observation window, lit only by a dim pulse from the console behind him. The conversation with the Marines still echoed in his head. After a long silence, he spoke.

Eris (quietly) "Alice… what’s the N1 team status?"

A soft light flickered on the nearest panel.

Alice "They are half a cycle from the target site. Possibly more if the terrain delays sensor deployment."

Eris (sighs) "At least someone’s still on track."

He pushed to his feet with effort, limping toward the window. Wreckage from the crash floated nearby, slowly drifting. Eris watched it for a moment.

Eris "This planet has its nice moments."

Alice "It must feel different. Being on solid ground again."

Eris (smirking) "So you’ve been reading my file?"

Alice "I keep records on everyone."

Eris "I guess that makes you like Captain Selyra."

Alice "Thank you. But I’m no Selyra."

(Pause.)

Alice "I’d like to hear it from you. What happened at Site-Solar?"

Eris "You’ve seen the report."

Alice "I have. But I like the personal stories."

Eris leaned on the window frame, eyes unfocused.

Eris "Not sure how interesting my story is, but I’ll tell it. Let’s see… I came of age, and they handed me a rifle. Recon detail— airport unit. Nothing special. Just map the roads, log heat signatures, call it in. Same routine every day. After two rotations, things got weird. Scouts went missing. Sensor readings broke pattern. Gravity shifted by microns. Command said it was solar flares. They were lying. I was mid-flight over a lake when everything failed. No power, no warning — we dropped. We hit the water hard. I still say I prefer water to land… but not that day. It was boiling. Steam everywhere. Like the sky had caught fire. I swam, barely. Crawled to a road. Couldn’t move my arm. Lay there half-cooked while trucks drove past like I was just part of the wreck. One finally stopped. Probably because the medic in back wanted help more than he wanted to save me. Threw me into a truck already packed with thirty people in a space built for twelve. I got ten seconds to breathe before the medic dumped water on my face, shoved a kit into my lap, and said you need to help. In front, the driver and commander were screaming at each other. Didn’t matter where we went. Every evac zone was gone. Roads broken. Fires in the sky. Just panic."

(He paused.)

Eris "Then the pull started. It was small at first. Little tremors. But they kept coming. The stars stopped lining up. Constellations drifted. Birds flew in circles. Even metal and glass began to tilt. We were close to my old base. Tried to reach it. We got inside just before the first wave hit. Everything… flipped. Wind screaming from nowhere. Clouds boiling. The oceans rose into the sky like claws. You haven’t felt fear until you’ve seen a wall of water moving in silence."

(Pause.)

Eris "And then… the Titan came. No call. No escort. Just a streak of fire through the sky and the sound of metal fighting gravity. They didn’t ask who we were. Just shouted to get aboard. I don’t remember the liftoff. Only the silence when we broke orbit. Looking back at what was left."

Eris "Most don’t know what caused it. Some blame Pursuer tech. Others say it was the Defiant — testing something they couldn’t control. A few point fingers at the lost EndTK ship."

Alice (dryly) "I’ve heard them all. Still surprised you haven’t changed."

Eris gave a tired smirk and turned back toward the room.

Eris "Doesn’t mean I don’t feel it. Something’s wrong. With this place."

Alice "You’ve noticed it too."

Eris "Everything feels off. Too quiet. We crash-land a warship on a planet with breathable air and they barely blink. No drones. No flyovers. No patrols. Just… stillness."

Alice "No signals detected. No follow-up attempts. Passive scans at most."

Eris "They should be more interested."

He leaned back against the wall, arms folded.

Eris "There’s something deeper here. Something bigger."

The wind outside changed pitch, brushing across the hull like fingers.

He still didn’t get to sleep that night.

Starfall IV, Big Fish

[Starfall IV — “Big Fish”]

[Cycle 2, Post–Starfall Protocol]

[Location Command Deck — Titan Wreck Site, S-3I-4A]

The N1 sensor site flickered to life. Low-resolution sweeps pulsed from the fore array — distorted, incomplete, but persistent. Something was moving. Not weather. Not a patrol. Something big. Inside the dim-lit command deck, blue status lights cast shifting shadows across scorched consoles. Officers exchanged wary glances as silence pressed in around them. Eris leaned forward in the command chair.

Eris (low) "…Alice. Is that our rowdy neighbor? The marines?"

A pause. Then:

Alice (clipped) "No. It’s different."

A ripple of unease passed through the room. Eris straightened. His hands gripped the armrest.

Eris "Stay calm. Alert the crew — full standby posture. And Alice… run diagnostics. I want a sharper profile."

Alice "Scanning. Atmospheric interference remains high. Object size: approximately 200 meters. Approach vector slow but steady."

Outside, morning fog curled against the Titan’s hull, cloaking the distorted coastline. Nothing showed on the visual feed — only static and blurred shadows.

But something was coming.

Eris (almost to himself) "I need a good rest."

Then louder:

Eris "Alice, what’s our defense status?"

Alice "One 12.6mm gunpost per side. Three X-06B drones online. That’s all we have."

Eris "Launch them. All of them. Let’s set a border."

He keyed the commands with practiced motion. Moments later, the drones deployed — silver-bodied X-06Bs leaping from the launch racks with surgical precision. They scattered into the mist like knives, forming a tight, silent perimeter.

Alice "Drones deployed. Holding pattern established. No signals from the object yet."

Eris "Maintain targeting lock — but do not fire unless fired upon."

Alice "Acknowledged. Passive stance engaged."

Eris stood slowly. Still no clarity. Just haze, static, and shadows.

Eris "Then we wait."

Several large red laser lines began to pierce the fog — thin beams tracking the drones like taut kite strings. Their movement had revealed the Titan’s position. A large spotlight flared from beyond the mist, aiming straight at the ship. Out of the fog emerged a three-winged vessel, alien in design, its hull marked in a foreign livery.

---

Aboard the Kasinis’ narrow bridge, three officers stared at the feed in silence.

OFFICER 1 "Wow. They weren’t kidding when the nightmen said something was lying around here."

OFFICER 2 "This ain’t a Freeworlder ship. Or Kortuck…" (pausing) "Iordous, what the hell did the nightmen just make us stumble onto?"

A synthetic voice interrupted. A pulsing scan of the Titan appeared across their console.

SHIP SYSTEM "We tracked this vessel exiting the outer Sol perimeter two days ago. Battalia records classify it as unknown origin, unknown faction. Investigation recommended."

OFFICER 3 "They’re not answering pings. Recommend close-contact protocol."

OFFICER 1 "Fine. Lock their sensors and subsystems. Prep a drop team."

---

Back aboard the Titan, alarms erupted. Blue emergency lights stuttered on. Inside the command deck, systems flickered. Sparks cracked from panels.

Alice (tensely) "Captain — those markings… they resemble—"

Then: blackout.

A shockwave slammed the hull. Every screen went dead. Consoles hissed. Lights cut out. The EMP rolled through like a tidal wave.

Eris (snapping) "Alice?!"

Nothing.

Crew stirred in confusion. Officers shouted. Panic echoed through the halls. The Titan was mute. Blind.

Eris "Shit. Guards — get the crew inside. Lock it down. We’ve got holes everywhere and no backup."

He limped fast toward the outer corridor — driven, focused.

Eris (flatly) "We’ll fight them in here."

A silence fell across the group. Not fear — preparation. Orders rippled out like voltage.

Weapons caches were opened. Barricades pulled from maintenance compartments. The Titan’s corridors, already scorched and twisted, became killing lanes.

Eris "Seal engineering. Move the wounded behind bulkhead two. If they breach the mess, fall back to the drone bay. No heroics — buy time."

Soldier "Understood, sir. Interior charges?"

Eris "If they get that far, yes."

He glanced toward the wall — toward the flickering schematic of the ship, now mostly dead.

ERIS (low) "If they wanted something. Let’s see if they can get it."