Recon

Nathan chose to assist on the recon mission into the forests of the Wood Elves. Having grown up in an industrial working class sector of his planet, where smog blocked out the sky and everything seemed to be painted in a different shade of grey; Nathan had a great appreciation for nature and welcomed the chance to go and and see the forests filled with mythical creatures with his own eyes. The fresh air would be a nice change from the recycled oxygen flowing through the ship.

Nathan packed lightly but thoughtfully as they didn't anticipate running into any significant trouble yet he still wanted to be prepared. An AMXR7 **** rifle capable of firing over 800 rounds a minute would be his main firearm. He grabbed a standard UENF marine MH8 pistol as a sidearm but loaded it with liquid Nitrogen Cryo rounds. There were some very large beasts roaming that environment and the cryo rounds would be particularly useful in slowing those things down should standards bullets not be efficient enough. He packed away a handful of flash grenades as well as two fragmentation grenades. Finally he tucked away his favorite tool in combat, a custom made combat knife with a 20 centimeter blade made of a reinforced titanium alloy, sharper than a shard of obsidian.

The recon team was dispatched in an ADL2 light troop transport vehicle. It featured an open design optimized for jungle environments. Gunnery Sergeant Ray Jericho served as the vehicle's driver while Nathan rode shotgun. In the back of the vehicle was a team of four Ithaca crew members with experience in civil-reconnaissance. Also in the back was Lance Corporal Olivia Hadley, known to be the Ithaca's best sniper.

Nathan was taken aback with Hadley's beauty upon meeting her. She had a pair of piercing light blue eyes that reminded Nathan of a clear summer sky. Her coffee colored hair was cut to shoulder length, she used a clip on one side to keep it out of her face. She wore a skin tight white jumpsuit with light armor around the shoulders, chest and other critical areas, a pair of thigh high white boots completed the suit. The suit covered her from neck to toe and to Nathan's delight really showed off her curves especially her ass. A pattern of hexagons imprinted on the jumpsuit gave away its true purpose. The hexagons were able to individually identify and adapt to the colors of the environment providing an on the fly camouflage system for the Sniper.

Once he had finished staring at Hadley in the rear view mirror, he focused his attention on the task at hand. They were deep into the forest, following a crude dirt road that was supposed to lead them to the Heart of the forest. The Heart of the forest according to their gathered intel was a large Wood elf village formed around a sacred tree said to be as old as the planet itself. The Ithaca's knowledge on wood elves was very limited as they settled deep in the forests away from the other civilizations. The Recon Team was tasked with locating the Sacred tree and establishing relations with the Wood Elves. The team had brought along gifts of gold, silks and spices they had bartered for with the Human Empire.

Their travel was going smoothly, completely uneventful until they hit a fork in the road. At the base of the fork was a large stone monument in the shape of some king of predatory bird with a snake trapped in its talons. The road split in two directions to either side of the monument. It was unexpected, not mentioned in any of the data they had gathered on the path. The Sergeant looked to the crew. They were at a loss and deferred to Nathan, the highest ranked member of the team.