First Contact: The Island

The sand beneath the boat finally gave way and with a good hardy tug Lumir hoisted the damned thing onto the beach, nearly losing her footing as the bow lurched up and out of the water. Rowing herself to the shore, after being so rudely cast off from her original transport, had tacked on another half hour on to her arrival but now that she had made landfall she could get to finding the flower and get back on the road towards a very healthy pay check.
Tilting her head off to the side she quickly cycled through her tactical tool interface, mentally turning through the various different digital faces and devices. Compass, Geiger counter, temperature…ah, clock. Eye-flickering back up to the analog clock face she almost went about reading the blank face before quickly changing out to a digital read-out. This wasn't a combat zone, she could afford to be a little lazy and allow herself to the digital clock. Looking over the numbers she thought of just when she had left port and frowned. It was 9:26, the little self boating expedition she had been forced to take had tacked on much more than just a half hour to her arrival time.
Her lateness wasn't a major issue, but she didn't want to take any longer than she absolutely had too to find the flower. The clock flipped away and after another quick cycle through her tools she pulled up the compass.  It took a moment for the virtual needle to settle but once it had it showed that she was on a path due west. Good, at least her extended trip hadn't knocked her off her original course. She had still landed successfully on the Eastern coast of the island. If Mr. Goodchild's informants were correct the research facility would be a few miles to the south.
More or less satisfied with her location she turned her attention to the beach itself, studying the shore line and the dense vegetation that grew beyond the sandy divide. It was as pleasant as she had expected it, nice golden sands, sun beginning its accent into the sky, calm waters lapping up at the shore. The mercenary felt rather out of place standing on such a picture perfect beach.
Her boots chuffed softly in the fine grains as she drew closer to the forest edge, the fauna looking no less pleasant that the beach before it. It encompassed the look of a stereotypical tropical jungle, low hanging vines, and high canopied trees. But for all of its apparent welcoming nature she knew better than to be taken in by it. If there wasn't something to be wary of on this island then it would be crawling with tourists. Heck, the captain wouldn't have had a problem taking her to the shore if there was nothing to be wary of.
Though few things even had a chance of taking her unawares she walked cautiously into the enveloping heat of the jungle, on guard despite the presence of any hostiles. If she kept low and moved quickly she would more than likely make it to the facility with little trouble. If something charged her, that's where her claws came in…

*

The jungle was far more difficult to navigate than she had thought. If it were not for the compass in her display reminding her of the correct direction she would have long since lost her way in the thick foliage. Thankfully, her misdirection had been the greatest of her problems. While she had heard a number of things off in the distance – none of them sounded the least bit friendly – none of the bellowing beasts in the deeper reaches of the jungle came out to meet her.
Having mentally logged about a mile of travel she knew that the facility could not be but an hour or so away at her current pace. That could easily be turned into a half hour or less if she ran. It wouldn't be a bad idea. From what she could tell, whatever was lurking in the darker reaches of the thick flora about her it did not stray this close to the coast line. Even if something were to catch her scent, she highly doubted that it'd be able to run her down.
Straightening from her hunched, sneaking pose, her body tensed for a moment poised to sprint towards her target when the sound of distant voices reached her ears. There were other people? Perhaps from the facility? She could have sworn the file said it had been abandoned nearly a month ago.
None of that mattered at this point. She'd have to investigate before moving on. It'd be a fool's move to charge right into a hostile strong point when she could deem who else might be on the island with her right now.
Her reaction was immediate, snapping back down into a low posture that brought her into the thick underbrush about her. Taking no chances, she mentally executed the command to activate her suit's stealth function. In a short moment she was no more than a faint transparent shimmer amongst the shifting grasses and vines, a bright red timer popping up in the upper right of her in helmet display, a fast moving five minute count down.
Her swift but silent strides brought her close to the source of the voices, the volume rising from a distant murmur to audible words and phrases. "… and that…"
"I think it's…"
"…the pink co--…"
"My goodness! That's Cattleya amethystoglossa! I'm amazed at how many wonderfully rare flowers grow on this island."
She was almost on top of them. They didn't sound like militants…but it was supposed to be a research facility. Edging around a particularly thick tree trunk, the owners of her voices slid into her line of sight. What she thought might be two well armed paramilitary soldiers, turned out to be a frizzy haired woman in a lab coat and a wiry, poorly dressed teen. Glancing down at her cloak timer she read it as 2:31 and quickly shut off the function. She had wasted valuable battery life on two people who couldn't have picked her out on one of her bad days!
Neither the lab coated woman, nor the dirt coated teen beside her even turned their heads to look back as she made her final approach. "So…you're some kinda plant specialist, doc?" the teen, obviously a girl by the sound of her reedy voice, asked.
"Well yes, actually. Though the term on my degree is 'Botanist!'" the doctor replied. Botanist, eh? Her luck seemed to still be with her. If the woman really was from the facility, she more than certainly have some good information on the whereabouts of the flower.
From a small speech analysis she had chosen her target. The girl was the flight risk here, closer inspection pointed to her being destitute more than likely living well below the poverty line. If she took the doctor, the girl would be gone…and she did not need her alarming anyone else in the area if there were more in their party.
The doctor, on the other hand, had a much more positive and empathetic disposition from what she could tell. Were the girl to come into harm's way she'd probably stay and plead rather than flee. It was settled then.
The movements were executed with practiced ease, her hand dipping down to the grip of her combat knife as soon as she began to rise. In one smooth motion she had one hand around the girl's shoulders and pulled her backward sharply. Dully flashing in the sunlight, the blade of her knife pressed firmly into the teen's grimy throat. All of thirteen seconds had past and she had a secure hold of her hostage. This job really was too easy.
"Make a single move, doctor, and you'll have the pleasure of watching this girl bleed out at your feet." Her voice, devoid of all emotion, would more than likely make the situation all the more real for the woman. The girl tensed in her arms. Starting to struggle, then noticing the knife at her throat and quickly ceasing her movements. "What the hell is this!" she barked up at Lumir. The doctor spun around to the sudden flurry of motion. Eyes widening at the sight of her companion's situation she quickly lifted her arms in defense. "Oh my goodness! Wha-what…please don't hurt Norda! We-we'll do whatever you want just don't hurt anyone!"
Well, things seemed to be going well so far. "If I like what I hear then everyone will step out of this alive and well. Now, I'm going to have you answer a few questions for me, questions which I assumed with be answered truthfully." Her thumb pressed a bit more firmly into the back of the knife, visibly dimpling the flesh of Norda's neck. Clenching her teeth together, the girl stiffened in her arms once again. "Don't tell her shit, Doc!" Wincing at the sight of the firmly pressed knife, it would seem that that was the exact opposite of what the Doctor had in mind. "W-whatever you need me to tell you…I'll tell you. Please, just let the girl go…"
"That comes later doctor. Now I need answers. Name, to begin with. I already know who my well spoken captive is but we've yet to be introduced."
Norda craned her head upward and sneered at the mercenary, while this certainly wasn't an ideal situation, she could take the threat of death. She'd had a number of people threaten her with such an end before – a number of them even more real than the one facing her now. The masked woman didn't scare her a bit, and that made Lumir a bit apprehensive. Perhaps she had snagged the wrong hostage.
"Martin. Dr. Elizabeth Martin. We-we're not spies or government or anything! Really! I can tell by your…ummm…suit that you're a part of a some military organization. Really, we're just civilians…" Dr. Martin gave a small placating smile, hoping to diffuse some of tension. It had quite the opposite effect. Lumir was beginning to feel, moment by moment, that the situation might soon slip out of her hands. It wasn't a feeling she much enjoyed.
"I see. Civilians or not, this is still a very interesting place for you and your patsy to be, Dr. Martin. For both of you to be here I assume you're looking for the Curatio Effloresco." Norda, much more animated now that she hadn't been killed within the last minute or so, canted her head off to the side in confusion. "We're looking for th' what?"
"She mean's the 'Healing Bloom.'" The doctor replied.
"That would be correct. If I've heard correctly, you're a Botanist. I assume you've be privy to some very useful information regarding the flower. Would I be correct in the assumption?"
The doctor's small nervous laugh was not the response Lumir had been hoping for. "W-well…you see…about that. It-it really is extremely rare, one of the few plants on the planet that has such a conservative number of blooms. I've never gotten a chance to study or even see one of them before."
Lumir sighed heavily, "Wonderful…you two have turned out to be just as useless as I thought you might be. Do you know anything about the labs on this island?"
Both the doctor and the street girl looked at Lumir with interest. "Labs? Like, sciency stuff? Why would anything like that be here?"Lumir shifted her knife and arm up, shortening the girl's air supply rather quickly. "I would be most appreciative if you'd keep your mouth closed, girl." Grinning, Norda complied, having little choice to do anything else. The teen's annoying prevalent humor was beginning to wear on her nerves.
"I had no idea that there were labs on this island…but if I were to end up in one of them I might be able to find something for you."
The mercenary couldn't help but smirk beneath her mask. Bargaining now, were they? Perhaps the minor annoyances she had to deal with would prove to be worthwhile. "That's good to know, Dr. Martin. Very good in fact. If you and the chatty one here are up to a little walking…I think we can work out a deal of sorts."

*

"This sucks!" Norda cried out for what had to be the hundredth time since her wrists had been bound. The sound of the girl's voice was even beginning to wear on Martin, but she knew that the girl was right. They were not in the best of situations at the moment.
The suited woman had taken the lead after their sudden meeting. With a brief exchange of information and an ultimatum – "Come with me and you and the girl get out alive." – Norda had been bound and they had set off for the facility that the woman said was near the western coast of the island.
"Hey! Robot Lady! How close are we to this place? We've been walking forever!"
Martin heard what she thought was a snicker come from the woman in the lead before watching her, with more than a little fear, turn her helmeted head back to look at them.
"I'd say about a half hour more, and you better be glad I'm in a good mood right now, street rat, or I would have strung you up by now."
"Ha! At least I wouldn' have to be stuck behind you anymore!"
"Are you insinuating something, girl?"
"Just the fact that I smell better than the stuff that's been commin' off of you!"
The doctor sighed softly shaking her head as she walked along behind the pair as they continued to bicker back and forth. It was obvious that this trip was quickly headed downhill, and showed no signs of stopping any time soon.
Lifting her head slightly she though a short moment on whether or not she should voice the question that had just popped into her head. Looking around  their current predicament and feeling that she and Norda had little else to lose at this point she went ahead "Ummm…excuse me!" she called out, cutting off the stream of banter between the mercenary and the teenage girl. Lumir shifted the blank face of her helmet towards the doctor. Martin wondered what the face beneath that opaque oval looked like.
"Yes doctor?" she replied, "What do you need?"
"I was just wondering…who exactly are you? You got a good deal of information out of Norda and I, but we don't know anything about you."
Lumir turned her head away, returning her attention to the forest ahead of them. "That is of no concern to you, Dr. Martin. Who I am and what I do is none of your business." Her tone was flat and cold, flatter and colder than how she usually spoke. Had she hit a cord or something?
Despite the tone, she pressed on. "But…not even a name? If you are from some kind of Military group, I wouldn't be able to find you, right?"
Lumir turned to look back at Dr. Martin again, "Lumir." And she was facing the jungle ahead once more.