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Post by Amaretto on May 18, 2018 8:22:26 GMT -7
December 4th, 2554 UNSC BC-4880 Indigo Dream UNSC Standard time 0952 The Middle of the Black
Commander Joshua Connelly stood in an observation room, staring at the Spartan on the other side of the protective glass. He was an ONI officer, trained for years in obtaining information from both enemy and friendly forces. His rise through the ranks was meteoric, and as such he was given harder and harder assignments. He had faced Spartans across the table before, but there was something different about this one. It was strange to see a Spartan out of the armor that had become their hallmark, but that was how Joshua was used to seeing them, at their weakest.
This Spartan did not seem weak, or even uncomfortable out of her armor, and it wasn't the first oddity about her. The Spartan was calm, her hands folded on the table in front of her, her long legs stretched out beneath the table, crossed at the ankles. Her face held a look of neutral boredom, emerald green eyes calmly staring at the door across from her, waiting her debriefing. If he was inside her head, he'd know she was checking off every second as it went passed, silently keeping track of how long he'd kept her waiting. She doesn't fidget, or squirm, or really move at all. She was older than most he saw, although exactly how old was classified, and she was from a previous class of Spartan unique enough to receive specialized service tags. She was spoken of in the same hushed tone people used to reserve for the Chief. Her file was so redacted he had to call in multiple favors just to get enough information for this interrogation. What he had been able to uncover did not help his feeling of unease.
"How long has she been in there?" He asks his assistant casually, turning his head towards the other man but not taking his eyes off the glass.
"Five hours, twenty-three minutes, sir," the young lieutenant replied after checking his data pad.
"Has she moved at all?"
"Some in the beginning. Seemed to be attempting to get comfortable, but you know how impossible that is in the chairs we give them," The lieutenant gave a depricating smile.
"Actually, I don't. I've never been on that side of the table." Joshua responded as he headed to the door. "Be sure all recording redundencies are in place. I don't want to miss anything."
"Aye, sir." The lieutenant replied to the now empty room. He shook his head and began going over all the data again.
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The Spartan sighed silently, her natural desire to move fighting with her soldier's bearing to wait perfectly still. Just as she was debating giving in and standing to stretch, the door opened and an ONI operative entered, data pad in hand.
"Spartan 742." Joshua stated as he approached. He stopped at the desk and looked down at her. "Do you know why you're here?"
She shrugged, a casual lift of one shoulder. "I assume it's not for my sparkling personality." Internally, she assumed it was because of the actions she had taken on her last station. Which, if you forced her to, she would admit were unorthodox, even for her.
His eyes narrowed. "Mind if I sit down?" He tried a new tact.
She made a sweeping motion with her hand, her open palm up. "It's your show, sir. I wouldn't want to tell you how to do it." Her eyes flicked to his collar. "Commander," she added.
He sat down across from her and reviewed the data pad. He had already memorized it, but the pause gave him time to think. After a few minutes of silence, Joshua placed the data pad down on the table in front of him. "You are here for review." He started. She arched an eyebrow.
"Review?" She asked, a hint of doubt in her voice. "Am I under charges?"
"Not yet," he answered. She settled back in her chair, crossing her arms over her chest.
"And this review will determine that?" She challenged.
"Among other things." He picked up his pad again and scrolled down to a section. "Please state your branch, division, name, rank, and service tag for verification."
Her voice was clipped as she answered, her posh and polished accent coming in thicker with every word. "Navy. Spartan. Elexa. Durin. Commander. Sierra. Indigo. Seven. Four. Two."
"Where did you train?"
"That's classified."
"How long have you been in the Spartan Program?"
"That's classified."
"What Spartan class did you graduate?"
"That's classified."
"Tell me about Hellene." He watched her as he threw the words out with the same routine tone he used on the other questions. Her eyes grew sharper and he saw a small tick in the corner of her right eye. He had finally unbalanced her, if only slightly.
"That was decades ago, when I was in the Marines. What does that have to do with anything I've done recently enough to possibly get me charged?"
"Humor me." He replied dryly.
She took a deep breath in and exhaled quickly, an exasperated sound. "Very well. Hellene. 2532."
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Post by God on May 18, 2018 9:04:02 GMT -7
There was a commotion at the observation room entrance. After some nervous back and forth, the newcomer was allowed access. Forgetting she was in dress blues, the tall woman ducked slightly through the door. She uttered no apologies, asked no questions, merely strode to the window and stood at parade rest. Captain Ayla Kane's uniform showed a snarling panther permanently affixed for unit. Before the lieutenant could ask, she spoke coldly. "Captain Ayla Kane, Sierra Zero zero one. Mission classified." She forestalled any further conversation with a raised hand, indicating the room beyond.
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Post by Amaretto on May 18, 2018 9:24:38 GMT -7
June 16th, 2532 0216 Local Time Drusus Marine Training Base, United Kingdom, Planet Earth
I was stumbling back from the bar, celebrating the end of basic training. I had a beautiful sixteen days of leave before heading off to the advanced officer's training I had been selected for. I'd planned on using the time to sample every bar and cocktail I could. My squad and I had started on this goal early, leaving the graduation ceremony as soon as the door opened and heading to the closest bar. That was at 1700. It was now 0200 the next day, and I was attempting to keep from relacing my boots. Pad Thai, while one of my favorite meals, was disagreeing with one of the dozens of drinks I had had.
"Hurk," I put a hand to my mouth and swallowed hard several times, keeping down the contents of my stomach by willpower alone. 'I will not honk on my boots..... I will not honk on my boots....' I repeated over and over again. I closed my eyes and could still feel the world spin. "Bloody...." I sighed, putting a hand to my head. "I am completely legless." I opened my eyes again and continued to my barracks. I was standing infront of my door, trying to remember the code, when a sudden blow to the kidney's completely immobilized me. I let out a strangled noise as my body locked up, my adrenaline momentarily overpowering the alcohol in my system. I summoned all my willpower and managed to throw myself to the side. Right into armored hands.
"....Bugger." I sighed, right before the world went dark.
Take it from me, my lambs, if there is any way you can arrange your affairs so you are not kidnapped after one of your bigger benders, this is certainly the path your life should take. I woke up strapped into the back of a Pelican, and it took me longer than I care to admit to figure that out. 'Hangover' is a kindly term, used by lads to describe a lower rung of hell. What I had was nothing so gentle. If there was ever a moment I prayed for death, it was that one.
The ride lasted long enough for the migraine to subside and to completely sober up. I had time to get my brain working again, too. It had to be UNSC soldiers that took me. I was far to insignificant for Insurrectionists to risk breaking onto a base for, and they did minimal damage in my extraction. I had been black bagged.
I had heard stories, of course. Every recruit is instilled with a level of fear akin to God of ONI operatives. My train of thought kept returning to 'why me?' Not in the whiney way. More in the 'I'm just a recruit, what the hell can I offer' way. I felt the Pelican land, and hands unstrapped me and pulled me out. I was marched through silent corridors, something I was not used to hearing. I was finally stopped, and pulled around, then pushed back. A needle hit my neck and I felt a small, familiar burn. I knew exactly what was happening, I was going into a cryo-sleep. I had better been right when I thought about what happened to me. It was far too late to do anything about it now.
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June 23, 2532 Local Time Unknown Ship Unknown The Middle of the Black
I fell out of the cryo-pod and was caught by arms on either side. The sudden jolt rocked my head and I ended up emptying my stomach on the floor. I coughed and tried to spit the taste out of my mouth. They brought me here, they could wait while I finished honking. They were nice enough to not drag me through it, but lifted me up and carried me over it. I got my feet under me in time for them to being marching me again. I could hear people again, lots of them. The ship I had been brought to must be a large cruiser at least. I continued to catalogue the things I heard until I was finally stopped and the blindfold removed.
I blinked rapidly to restore my vision, finding myself in a briefing room, standing in a line with four others, all looking as confused as I felt. I focused on the man standing before us. He wore a black dress uniform, removed of all ranks and insignias. He stood back in the shadows, like something out of a spy vid. He looked at me watching him and quirked an eyebrow. I blinked and shifted my eyes. Maybe I wasn't supposed to see him? I glanced down the line at the others. The guy to my left looked about my age, the other three were obvious veterans.
"You all have been selected for a Black Squad Operation." The shadow man declared, breaking the silence in the room. The soldier standing to my left jumped slightly at the sudden noise. The shadow man stepped out of the shadows, and all eyes were on him. His eyes swept over us, but it seemed to me his gaze lingered on me. "There will be no names. No ranks." He walked towards us, holding a small stack of pads. "You will review your mission, then you will head to the armory to get geared. You will meet your squad leader there."
He stood at the other send of the line, and hands out the data pads as he named us.
"Mr. Gray. Mr. Green. Mr. White. Mr. Brown."
He finally stopped before me, and I watched his eyes narrow. I can see thoughts flooding his eyes, but I couldn't translate what they were. "MISS Red." He held out the pad and I took it with a nod, wondering in the back of my mind why he emphasized 'Miss' so much. He stared at me a moment longer, and then turned away so suddenly I could almost feel a vacuum in his absence.
I read over the mission briefing. We would be sent to Hellene, a small planet in the Troy system. There was an Insurrectionist facility there. We were to take it out, without our presence being known. My job would be forward assault, which suited me just fine. I closed my eyes for a second, committing the information to memory. While I don't have true eidetic memory, I had developed ways to make visual and audio recall easier. I flashed through the information to make sure I had it all and opened my eyes. The man who had given us the assignment was watching me closely. I held the pad out, and he stepped forward to take it. He placed his hand on it and looked at me intently.
"You have it?" He asked me quietly.
I nodded. "Aye, sir." He nodded once in response and took the pad.
"Gear up, Red."
I saluted and left the room.
When I received my gear from the armory, and saw all of it had a band of red somewhere. I smirked. "MISS Red indeed." I was getting the last of my armor strapped on when a pair of boots filled my vision. I followed the incredibly long legs up to a well built and armored chest, shoulders wider than two of me, and a well formed face. He looked like he had been chisled out of marble, he was so pale. He was at least a full head taller than me, and I clock in just shy of 2 meters. His eyes were what finally caught and held my gaze, though. A pale brown closer akin to gold, they were as hard as the metal they looked like. I wanted to say something sarcastic to him, or tell him to get out of my light or something, but his gaze held me. I was frozen. He was a predator. And for the first time in my life, I felt very, very small.
"Miss Red?" He asked, and my military training finally broke me out of my stall.
I stood up quickly, saluting. "Sir."
"I am Mr. Black, your squad leader. Are you prepared?" He looked over my gear.
"Sir." I nodded.
"Pelican 32. We'll see you there."
I felt like a broken vid track as I nodded again. "Aye, sir." I snapped my assault rifle in place on my back next to my shotgun and headed to the Pelican bay.
When I got there, I toed the line next to the Pelican, remaining at attention. I watched the flight crews moving around, making repairs, going about their days. I had wanted to be here for as long as I could remember. I had just honestly thought I'd have more training first, seen a few battle lines before being conscripted into Black Squad operations. Actually, if I was being completely candid, I didn't see myself getting into Black Squad. I wanted to be an ODST, one of the elite. I'd planned on serving in the Marines until I had the experience to pass the application process.
'Stop it.' I told myself. 'It doesn't matter now. You are here. You have a job to do. There are people who's lives now depend on you being at your best.'
I took a deep breath in through my nose and exhaled it quickly, forcing with it all of the thoughts and doubts. If I had known I was walking into hell, I would have taken longer to prepare. Maybe said a prayer or two. Although I doubt there was anything I could have done that would have prepared me for what was to come.
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Post by Amaretto on May 18, 2018 10:09:07 GMT -7
June 25th, 2532 2230 Local Time Ambrose Colony, Hellene
We had force marched for the last four hours, covering an incredible amount of ground from our LZ. Mr. Black seemed tireless, and the others were not far behind him. Or maybe they just had the combat experienece to hide their fatigue. Me? I kept my mouth shut and kept up, determined to not slow them down. When Black finally called a halt, I bent in half, hands on my knees, and tried to slow my breathing. My cheeks were burning and my throat was dry. I swallowed a few times and straightened up, stretching the other way. I saw Brown sitting and moved over to him. "You'll lock up if you sit too long. Better to stretch it out."
He looked up at me and smirked. "You're probably right." I held my hand out to him and helped pull him to his feet. He tipped his head up the couple inches he needed to, to look me in the eye. "Thanks Red."
I smiled briefly and nodded, moving away again. I saw Black ahead of the rest of us, laying flat towards the edge of an overhang, a set of binoculars out. I crouched down and made my way over to him, belly crawling the last few feet or so. I surveyed the area, and he silently passed me the binoculars. I peered through, my HUD highlighting the facility we needed to get to on the outskirts of town. According to the mission brief, only workers for the facility lived in the town. The impression I got from the brief was that the facility was much smaller than the one I saw. I looked at Mr. Black with a frown and a question in my eyes. His face was stone, but he gestured back to where the others rested. I nodded and begin sliding backwards until I was far enough away from the lip to get my feet under me again.
We walked back to the group. "Sir?" I asked quietly.
"What, Red."
"Was our intel incomplete?" I hated showing my inexperience, but it seemed an important question to ask.
He was quiet for a moment before replying. ".... Something was incomplete."
He remained silent the rest of the short walk back to the squad. "Listen up. It's a good thing we made good time on the stroll over here, we're going to need it to complete our objective. We have 14 hours left to get in, do our job, and make the rendevous. The facility is bigger than we suspected. Our tactics will change a bit. Gray, Green, once we get inside you two will find a secure terminal and find us anywhere to make a good boom. Brown, White, you'll take the right wing. Red, you're with me. We take left. Once we leave this spot, we run quiet. Only necessary communication. Use your HUDs otherwise. Understood?"
"Yessir." We all chimed.
"Move out, soldiers." He turned and started moving at a much more rapid pace than we had been moving.
'Good thing we haven't been marching or anything yet today,' I grumbled in my head. In the interest of fairness, I seemed to be doing better than Brown. By the time we reached the outer perimeter, he was looking a little clamy. I lagged a little to move next to him. "you all right, brown?" I leaned over and whispered to him. I saw Black's shoulders tense and his ear cocked towards us, but he didn't stop me. Brown shook his head.
"fine." he whispered back. He wasn't, but it wasn't my place to call him on it, so I let it go. I moved back up to Black, taking up eyes opposite him. Gray had a panel open and wires ran from Green's pack to the panel. I let them do..... Whatever it was they were doing and raised my rifle to chest level, the barrel still pointed down. A short time later, the panel beeped and went dead. Gray nodded to Black and unhooked the wires, coiling them back into Green's pack. Black signaled us to move. We all crouched down and sprinted across the open ground to the wall of the facility. Hugging it, we continued on around the building. Black was on point, with me sighting over his shoulder. Gray and Green stacked behind me, with White and Brown bringing up our six.
We had reached our entrance point, and Gray and Green moved up to do what they do again, putting me next to Brown. He seemed to be doing better, but it still made me anxious to have someone not at their best at my back. I didn't jump at every noise, but I wanted to. I was beginning to feel a tension between my shoulder blades and between my temples. I frowned and took a deep breath of the night air. To this day, I can still remember how crisp it felt. There was a dampness to the air you could almost taste, like a storm about to break. I blink at my HUD, signaling Black. His eyes flicked to me, and he raised an eyebrow in question. I could only keep frowning, unable to describe my feeling of unease, but trying to put it on my face. He seemed to understand, and an acknowledgement light blinked on my HUD.
I did flinch when the door hissed open, and gave myself a mental shake. No sense worrying about what the night outside held, we were moving. I raised my rifle fully again and followed Black into the dark.
The hallway was longer than expected, made of plain metal walls. Only emergency lighting was active, bathing the corridor in an eerie amber light. I couldn't hear anything but us, moving as silently as soldiers can. The soft rustle of cloth, the occasional scuff of a boot, the intermitent slither of a glove adjusting on a weapon, were the only noises of our passing. We hit the end, found the next hall clear, and Black gestured to the right path and White and Brown peeled off. Another hand signal and Gray and Green stacked up behind them, peeling off at the first hallway they came across. My HUD winked at me and I returned the acknowledgement, and Black stood and started moving down the hall. I took my place three steps behind him and two to the left, allowing me to sweep my side of the hall and not be in direct line of sight.
We moved further into the facility, and the feeling between my shoulder blades spiked. I swung around, the light of my assault rifle breaking the amber doom. Black froze when I turned, keeping eyes on his end. I swept the hall behind us, carefully exhaled and listened, my head slowly turning from side to side. After a few heartbeats, I shook my head, turning back around to sight over Black's shoulder again. The HUD flashed yellow. I responded with a negative. Black nodded and continued forward. I matched his pace, but couldn't shake the feeling of being watched. The oppresive empty feeling was pushing down on me as well. A facility this large should have people, even in the dead of night, right? Security? Late night workers? A custodian?
So I stewed as I followed Black, and the sense of unease grew.
Black stopped in front of a door, pulling out a small box and pressed it over the reader next to the door. I moved up so I could watch the door and the hall, pressing my back against the opposite wall. After a moment the box beeped and the door hissed open. I trained my gun on the door, and Black raised his to cover the other side of the room. We moved together, entering and clearing the room in seconds. It was empty of people, but full of computers and screens. A soft, pulsing red light flashed from the walls, and alarms played across the screens. Black stains were everywhere, chairs were in disarray, at least half the computers broken. I moved my flashlight to one of the stains, knowing what it would be before I saw it in light.
Blood. Dark stains of it, at least enough for five people, splattered the floors, walls, and machines. Black's light joined mine, and then swept across the room again. His light stopped on several marks and dents in the wall. I moved up behind him, raising my hand to the dent and touching it tentatively. "what could have caused this?" I breathed without meaning to.
"Let's find out." Black answered, turning back to the computers, when our HUDs lit up. White and Brown had encountered something. And then White's dot disappeared.
"White? White!" Black yelled over their direct line comms. "Brown? Respond!"
I watched Black's eyes widen then narrow dangerously, and he turned to me. "We're moving out." And proceeded to sprint out of the room. I followed on his heels, and my training kicked in and I took up proper position. I blinked a question at my HUD to Black, and over my comms I heard Brown screaming and the sound of a rifle on full-auto burst.
"Brown! Report!" Black barked, including me on the channel.
"I don't-I-AAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" More gun fire followed.
Black and I picked up speed, I was no longer trying to sight while I ran, though Black was.
We were running blind into a fight. What could go wrong?
Everything.
Which it did, but that's beside the point right now.
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Post by Amaretto on May 18, 2018 12:12:30 GMT -7
We found Brown in what was probably a barracks at one point. Large steel frames were thrown around haphazardly, twisted nearly beyond recognition. Blood splattered across the walls, and large pools of it dotted the floor, making footing trecherous. Some of the blood was old and tacky, but some.... Vivid crimson and still dripping. The iron and viseral smell assaulted my nose while my eyes tried to make sense of the scene. I kept my weapon up, sweeping it across the walls and corners of the room, tense for any movement, anything to shoot at.
"Brown?" Black asked, and we heard a groan in response. Black moved over to one of the bed frames and threw it aside with a loud bang, uncovering Brown. His armour was dented in places, and he had a large cut on his bicep. His coconut was on the ground beside him, and he had a nasty bruise forming on his forehead.
"Red, patch him up." Black instructed, grabbing Brown's helmet and standing up. I took his place next to Brown, pulling out a canister of biofoam and began applying it. Now that I was closer, I saw he had multiple lascerations on his head and arms. By the time I was finished, Brown was starting to rouse.
While I worked, Black was watching the helmet recorder, a look of stone on his face. He turned to me when he was done. "Get him on his feet, Red."
I nodded and pulled out a stim, giving it to Brown. He groaned and his eyes snapped open, sitting up with a start, his eyes wild and his breathing coming in gasps.
"Easy, Brown. It's Red. You're good, you're good," I said as calmly, trying to get him to focus on me.
Brown looked around wildly. "Red?" He asked, finally looking at me. "Where is it?"
"Where's what?"
"Gone. And Later." Black snapped, and turned his back on us. "Gray, Green, report." He barked and moved deeper into the room away from us.
"Where's White?" I asked Brown.
"Dunno. Dunno. It-it-it-it came and White went down. I-I-I-I-" He stammered.
"I said, LATER!" Black cut us off.
Brown fell silent. I stood and offered him my hand, helping pull him to his feet. His skin was clammy, and he had a fine tremor running through him. He picked up his rifle and clung to it like it was the last stable thing in his world. Maybe it was. Bloody hell, what did he see? I stepped back, surveying the room again. Some of the blood on the wall caught my eye. I raised my rifle and brought my flashlight up.
"Bloody manky...."
In large, bold, bloody letters, scrawled across the wall, was the perfect message. "We're All Damned."
"Black." I glanced over my shoulder at him, and he followed my light to the wall. His eyes narrowed as he read it, moving over next to me.
"Shit." He swore.
"Bout sums it up." I agreed.
"Brown, you ready to move? We're regrouping. Our situation has..... Changed....." Black said. Brown moved up, still shaking slightly.
"Ready, sir."
"Stack behind me on 3. Red, you take 6. Move out."
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Post by Amaretto on May 18, 2018 12:53:25 GMT -7
Gray and Green met us in a lounge that had the same treatment as the other rooms we had seen. Destruction. Blood. Unexplained dents in the metal walls. For all the gore in the rooms, the hallways were strangely clean. It set my nerves on edge. Nothing about this place made sense.
Green looked at the group. "Where's White?"
Black shook his head. "Not comin."
Everyone was silent after that. We took sips from our canteens, and each popped a stim. Black paced.
I couldn't take the silence any more. "What the hell is going on here?" I asked.
Black stopped and looked at me. Everyone else did too, except Brown. He huddled, muttering to himself.
"Where are all the people? Why are the hallways clear? Why is every room destroyed? What were they doing here?" I continued, looking at the group.
Black was the one to answer me. "That wasn't in our intel."
"Don't you think it should have been?!" I demanded, pushing off the wall and striding towards him. "What attacked Brown and White?"
Black leveled his metallic eyes at me, locking my gaze. "How about we go find out?"
I nodded once, sharply. "Let's."
As a group we moved back down the pristine halls to the computer lab we had first come across. Gray and Green got to work on the tech, while I posted next to the door, targeting down the hall. Brown posted across from me, watching the other side. Black spoke with Gray and Green in hushed tones while they worked.
It wasn't long before they had monitors up and running, various readings scrolling through.
"Found the lock overrides," announced Gray.
"Lock 'em." Black replied.
The door hissed shut and locked. I turned away and joined the others around the monitors. One was showing the specs of the facility. It was indeed larger than we had been told. It stretched underground and under the neighboring town. Countless labs dotted the map. Another screen showed reports from scientists. I scanned the readouts and felt my blood run cold.
"Stop, stop, stop." I said as I leaned closer. "This can't be right."
"What?" Black asked, moving up behind me.
"Bloody shits. They've got everything here. Chemical warfare. Biological warfare. And this." I pointed at the screen. "Genetics, complete with human testing. They're trying to make super-soldiers."
"How can you tell?" Green asked.
"This here. These markers are for speed, strength, endurance. Things like that. These drugs are used to speed reaction times, beta-blockers against pain." I tapped the screen, and a vid popped up. Researchers in white lab coats were desperately trying to control a man that looked more like a monster. His muscles buldged in odd places, his lips and nose were missing, and he was screaming, throwing grown men and women around like ragdolls. Security forces came into view, and the beast took 6 shsotgun rounds before he finally fell to the ground. It took two more to the head before he stopped trying to get up.
Another vid showed chemical and biological testing. People injected by hazmat crews, entire rooms misted with diseases; men, women, and children dying in horrible and painful ways. I raised a hand to my mouth, unable to turn away from the horror in front of me.
"Dear God," I whispered.
The cavalcade of obsenities continued for at least 30 minutes before Black cut in.
"Shut it off."
Gray shook himself like a dog coming out of water and began typing again. The vids closed out. Green sat in shock. Brown stumbled away and honked in the corner of the room. I commited all I had seen to memory. I would not forget the depths these terrorists sank to. I felt my heart harden, my stomach turn to steel. No. I would not forget. I looked at Black and saw the same look in his eyes, plus a little more.
I nodded once to him, and he returned it.
"Green. Find me the main reactor." Black said, and his voice sounded a little too loud in the aftermath.
Green took a shuddering breath and seemed to come back to himself. A few seconds of typing and a room toward the center of the compound and several levels beneath us was highlighted and brought up. "Reactor room."
Black nodded. "That's our new objective. We move as a group. We get there, set the explosives, and get the fuck out of here. It all goes."
"That will destroy the town as well," I looked at him.
Black looked back at me. "I know."
"We don't know the town is affected by this!" I argued.
"Gray, pull it up again." Gray frowned but did so. New vids came to life. Horrible monsters were shown tearing the town apart, but did not seem to be able to escape the perimeter wall.
"How did we miss that on the way in?" I asked, and then froze. I slowly turned to stare at Black. We had come up on the back side of the facility. The town was on the other side. Black and I were the only ones who had glimpsed ahead, using his binoculars. I had only looked at the building, but he.....
"The ledge." I whispered.
Black glared at me, giving me an almost imperceptible shake of his head. 'Later.' the look said.
"Get ready to unseal the door, and open our path to the reactor." He said, not taking his eyes off me.
"Got it." Green typed rapidly. "30 seconds."
"Stack up at the door. We go straight there. Shoot anything that moves between us." Black ordered.
"What about survivors, sir?" Brown asked.
I answered for Black this time. "After what we saw, after what YOU saw, do you really think there are any survivors?"
No one answered me.
"On 3." Black said. I counted down in my head, and as the doors opened, we walked into hell.
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Post by Amaretto on May 18, 2018 12:58:29 GMT -7
The hall was crowded with grotesque monstrosities that were once human. There were at least two dozen.
Black dropped to a knee, firing into the masses. I sighted over the top of his head and laid fire down as well. Gray and Green spread to the other side of the door, firing into the other side. Brown screamed.
"RELOADING!" Black yelled, and I widened my spread to cover his area too. One of them managed to dive through the door, knocking Green down as it did.
"BROWN!" Black roared. Brown snapped out of his fugue and fired at the creature. Over the screams and gunfire, I could still hear a sickly wet crunch. I refused to flinch. Feel bad later. Survive first.
"Switching targets!" I yelled, swinging my gun around to the monster in the room with us. Brown was unloading into it, and it was happily tearing Green apart, oblivious to us. I strode to it in three quick strides, pushing the barrel of my rifle to the side of it's head and pulling the trigger. Three seconds later and it finally fell over, boiling spray and bits of gray matter splashed across me.
"Move!" Black called, pushing out into the hallway. I eyed Green's body as I followed. No tags to collect. No one cares who you are or who's waiting for you on a Black Squad mission. Callous as it was, he was dead, I was alive, and I wanted to do everything in my power to stay that way, so I could find the sonsovbitches responsible for this and personally serve them their intestines.
I stacked behind Black again, firing into the crowd in a wide spray, pushing them back. I felt the others move behind me, and felt a back hit mine. We moved in a circle, at least half of us continuing to fire as the others reloaded or switched targets.
It felt like an hour to move down the hall to the lift, but it all probably happened in under two minutes. We stepped onto the platform, and Gray slammed the controls. The reinforced doors shut, and the silence was ear splitting after the noise of battle.
I leaned back against the rail, breathing hard, trying to slow my heart rate and push back the adrenaline. Halfway to our target floor, the lift stuttered and ground to a halt.
"What now?" Black growled. Gray checked the readout.
"It says we're overweight." He answered.
"What?" Black asked, incredulous.
"It says we're overweight."
"That's not possible-" Black started to argue when the floor beneath us trembled.
"Oh, you have got to be bloody kidding me." I said, pointing my gun at the floor.
"Open the doors." Black said, not taking his eyes off the floor as it shuddered again.
"It's underneath us?" Brown shrilled.
"OPEN THE DOORS!" Black bellowed.
Gray worked at his pad as fast as he could. Large dents began forming in the metal at our feet.
"Gray???" I asked.
"Overriding!" He snapped.
Another dent appeared, directly in front of me.
"GRAY!" Black yelled.
"DONE!" He cried, and the doors opened. There was about three feet to squeeze through. We were caught between floors. Although that worried me less than the thing beneath me. If it was under the lift, it would see us as soon as we jumped out.
"Bugger." I sighed. I knew what I had to do. I was the closest, and the smallest. I crouched down, sliding my foot back to push against the lift wall behind me.
Black looked at me and seemed to realize what I meant to do. "RED!" He yelled, probably followed by 'don't' or 'stop', but I was already in motion. I launched myself through the narrow opening, flying through the door into the hall beyond. I tucked and twisted as I flew, landing hard on my backside and back, keeping my head tucked to my chest and sighting my rifle as I fell. I saw it, a horrible, twisted creature fresh out of a nightmare, hanging onto the under beams of the lift platform. The first shot went wide, but my second shot was dead on, right through the left eye. I hit the ground and kept my finger on the trigger. I watched it's head explode, and it hung limp for a heartbeat before it slowly released and tumbled into the darkness below.
I threw myself to the side, laying on my stomach in now, sighting down the hall. I heard scrapping sounds, and through the broken amber light, I saw people shambling towards me.
No... Not people....
They looked like old horror vid zombies. Decaying. Bits missing from their faces and bodies. I exhaled, and opened fire, aiming for headshots. Four people dropped before another gun began echoing above me. I stayed prone, sniper sighting each one, allowing the other soldier to spread wide, pushing them back.
I stayed down until the last one fell. I exhaled again, letting my head lower for a moment. Someone grabbed me by the upper arm and pulled me to my feet, slamming me into the wall. Black's eyes were on fire. "ARE YOU INSANE?! WHAT WERE YOU THINKING, RED?!" He screamed in my face.
I blinked. "I wasn't."
He stopped, blinked twice, and gave a bark of a laugh, letting go of me. "Well THAT'S true enough." He took a couple steps back, shaking his head. "Of all the..." He sighed.
"Gray, can you get the lift moving again?" He asked, turning back to the shaft.
"Should be able to."
"Good. C'mon Red." We walked back over, and he watched the hall as I pulled myself back up, then I knelt next to the open door as he did the same. "Get us moving again, Gray."
Brown was staring at me as we took our places again.
"What?" I asked. He shook his head and looked away. Gray worked his magic on the tech, and we were moving again.
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Post by Amaretto on May 18, 2018 15:27:26 GMT -7
The lift finally stopped, and Black double checked the schematics. "We're still three levels too high." He said.
"Lift doesn't go any lower." Gray shook his head.
"We're going to have to fight through three levels of those things?!" Brown asked, a look close to fear on his face.
"Yes." Black answered simply.
Brown looked sick. I wondered how he got selected for this mission. He was as green as I was, but he didn't seem to have a soldier's bearing. Or maybe I was being hard on him. I don't think any of us expected this level of terror on a mission. And then I remembered Black's face after the ledge, and wondered if that was wrong too. I gave myself a mental shake. Doubts and theology were above my pay grade. They were for commanders and generals in offices, who had the leisure of time to second guess their decisions. Grunts on the ground did what they were told to do and survive it.
The little voice in the back of my head didn't agree with me either.
I double checked my rifle, and saw I was running low on clips. I put it on my back, felt the magnetic seal click, and pulled out my shotgun. I pumped a round into the chamber, and stood next to the door. I blinked a ready at my HUD. Despite my British upbringing, I didn't feel much like speaking at the moment. I saw Black watch me out of my peripheral and my HUD winked in acknowledgement.
Brown stacked behind me, and Gray took up post behind Black. The doors opened, metal grinding on metal, and stopped halfway through. Black cut first, I followed, then Gray, then Brown. We stepped into the first destroyed hall we had seen. Lights hung off the walls, holes gouged into the sides, the floor pitted and marred. Smoke, blood, and electricity clung to the inside of my nose and the back of my throat, punctuated by the occasional sparks from random wire that twisted like nooses from the ceiling. We all clicked on our helmet lights, the beams following our gazes. Mine stopped on a crumpled form. I moved up to it slowly, my throat so tight it felt like I would choke. Too small to be a soldier. Too small to be a researcher. Too small....
I reached towards it, and a hand grabbed my wrist. I looked up into Black's eyes.
"Some things, you can't unsee," he said so quietly, none but me could hear him.
"And those are the things you need to look hardest at," I whispered back. I saw an odd camaraderie in his eyes, and he let me go with a feeling of sadness. I reached down again, turning the body over. His young face was had marks all over it, as did his arms, and all other skin I could see. I memorized his face and felt my eyes burn. I swallowed hard passed the lump in my throat, and arranged his tiny form in a manner more comfortable.
"Sleep, little one. Sleep with the Angels." I whispered in lieu of a prayer. I grabbed a discarded labcoat from nearby, covering him. I stood, my cheeks dry but my eyes were still burning. I blink rapidly, forcing it down. Mental breakdown later. Blowing this sonovabitch up first.
The whole encounter took less than a minute, and at the end Black placed a hand on my shoulder. I looked up at him, and he lifted his other hand to his face with his thumb and forefinger pinched, and then spread them. I nodded, and raised my shotgun again. We kept moving.
After seeing what was in the hall, I was glad we moved quickly passed the sealed labs. Most of the viewing windows were coated a bright cherry red from the inside. I did not want to see what had been in them. I felt like I had hit my quota of horror, and knew the mission was far from over. I felt a hundred years older than I was, less 24 hours ago when we landed. I put it aside again, focusing on the site at the end of my barrel.
We made it to the stairs before we were attacked again.
We really should have paid more attention to what was in the labs.
Not everything was dead, and not everything was sealed.
Our mistake.
Gray paid for it. He was the last in line, and was just moving up to open the stairwell, when he stopped, and was jerked back with a yell. I turned, following him, but couldn't see what was dragging him back. Brown started firing into the black, the staccato of his weapon covering the scream. Black whirled around, taking careful aim and firing. Three bursts, and whatever had Gray let go, retreating with a howl I don't think human voices could make.
Black tossed me a box. "Red! Door!" And moved up to Gray, Brown was still sweeping his head back and forth across the hall, trying to see where whatever it was went. I slammed the box over the codereader and activated it, trusting them to keep anything from getting to me. It beeped and the door opened, and I was suddenly pulled through it.
I screamed with rage, fear was never even a thought. I struggled. I kicked. I swung my shotgun around and fired. I heard a meaty squish and didn't even have time to hope I didn't hit a friendly. My shoulder burned, and I felt something gouge my thigh. I screamed again, twisting and bringing the gun around to bear again. I pushed the muzzle against.... Something, and pulled the trigger. I pumped the gun and fired again, hearing a terrible squeal. I hit the ground, and was finally able to focus on the creature. It looked like four or more people had been fused together, multiple arms and faces coming out of what should have been it's torso. I pumped the shotgun, and fired, again and again until all of the faces had exploded. An odor I cannot even begin to describe filled the landing, and the creature slowly slid down the wall. Intestines and other bits leaked out of the massive holes as it fell.
Black appeared in the door, and saw me on my arse again. I think he smirked at me. "What does it take to kill you?" He asked sarcastically.
"More than that, apparently." I grunted, getting back to my feet. The world swam and I sank to my knees. "Course, I've been wrong before."
Black knelt next to me, pulling out the biofoam and checking me over, sealing my back, shoulder, and thigh. "Gray? Brown?" I asked while he worked. He shook his head in response.
"While you were here, the dogs returned. At least, I think they were dogs at one point." He answered. I noticed he looked a little worse for wear too.
"Pass me that when you're done with it." He did, and I quickly patched him up too. We returned to the hall and retrieved Gray's pack, thankfully undamaged in the skirmish. Black added it to his load, and I policed the clips from the others, reloaded my assault rifle, and switched back to it. Black accepted the clips I passed him.
"Two more levels, eh?" I smirked.
"Two levels and ten hours on the mission clock. It'll take us 2 to reach the evac point. With setting the charge in the reactor, we can't detonate until we're in the air, so we're going to have to fight our way out too."
"Oh, so, nothing too difficult then," I rolled my eyes.
"Walk in the park," he agreed.
I nodded. "Bloody hell. Well, let's do it."
He gave me a ghost of a smirk. "Let's."
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Post by Amaretto on May 18, 2018 16:24:19 GMT -7
The next two hours followed the same script: Move forward. Engage terrors. Win or retreat. Repeat.
We worked well together, barely needing to communicate. We developed and understood our own language in battle. We quickly learned each other's leads and tells, able to switch positions and alternate fire patterns at a level I considered art. We flowed together, a hail of fire, fury, and bullets, cleansing the mistakes of these men who thought to play God to get ahead in a war they could not win. We danced together, Black and I, a whirling dervish that carried us down our chosen path.
We gained the final level, and found a small room to hole in for a moment to patch our new wounds and take a stim and a some water. I sat against the wall, staring into space when Black lowered his bulk next to me. The reality of our situation was forefront on my mind.
A minute of silence stretched between us, broken only by the soft sounds of him checking his ammo. I felt the weight of his gaze, and knew he was studying me as he did so. I continued to lean back against the wall, gripping my rifle, my eyes closed.
"Elexa." I said finally.
"What?" He asked.
"My name. If I'm going to die down here, I want someone to know it." I answered with a sigh, opening my eyes and looking at him. "My name is Elexa Durin."
His face softened, and he reached out towards me, tweaking a lock of my hair. "Think I like Red." He said gently.
I gave a short bark of a laugh, though nothing was funny. "Oh you do, do you?"
"Yeah...." He whispered. I half-smiled and shook my head.
"If I survive, maybe I'll get used to it. But...." My voice trailed off.
"This your first Black Squad Op?" He asked.
I laughed wildly. "My first Op. They took me from Graduation."
His eyes widened. "They did not!"
I nodded and smirked. "They did. Soon as I got back to my bunk, they grabbed me."
He shook his head, his face full of wonder. "I would have thought you were more seasoned than that."
"What about you?"
"Me?"
"How many of these crazy days have you had?" I leaned my head back against the wall, watching him over my shoulder.
He was quiet for a moment. "Too many."
"You don't look much older than me."
"I'm probably not." He mirrored me, leaning back against the wall and looking at me over his shoulder.
"Ah. Makes perfect sense." I rolled my eyes.
"It's classified." He said with a wink, but there was a profound sadness behind his eyes. Without thinking, I reached up and across my body, resting my palm on his cheek. He looked at me in surprise.
"My mum was ONI. I was raised in this. I can't say I understand, but I understand as much as anyone can."
His eyes widened slightly, before narrowing again and he nodded. I dropped my hand and the moment passed. I took a sip of water and started focusing again. We needed to keep moving, and thinking about anything but staying alive was a distraction I could not afford.
His arm shifted next to me and he put it across my shoulders, giving me a brief squeeze. His face was stone as he did so, and he spoke straight ahead.
"Bruce. Bruce-135."
I stared at him in surprise before giving a genuine smile. "Hi Bruce. Nice to meet you."
It was his turn to laugh. "I think we're a little passed the formality stage."
I shrugged. "What can I say? I'm British. We love our formalities."
He chuckled again and looked at me. For the first time I saw the young man he must be off the battle field, face a lit with a gentle pleasure. It was like I was getting to see through the cracks in his armour to who he was hidden away. "Well then. The pleasure is mine."
I smiled back and nodded. "Indeed."
We double checked our weapons, stood and stretched. He double checked my wounds, making sure the biofoam was holding, and I did the same to him.
"Ready to complete the mission and get the fuck off this cursed rock?" He asked.
I nodded. "I've been ready since my boots hit the dirt."
He nodded, and raised his hand in front of his face, repeating the odd hand signal he had done to me before.
"What's that mean, anyways?" I asked.
"It's a sign my brothers and sisters used to... Well. When we survive this, I'll explain it on the ride back."
I nodded. "Then let's get this done so we can get back."
"Let's."
And into the fire we ran.
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Post by Amaretto on May 18, 2018 18:58:14 GMT -7
We gained the reactor in just under an hour, and I was amazed we didn't have any new wounds to cover. It had been relatively quiet on the way through the final level, but I was back to feeling a strain between my shoulder blades. We were being hunted. Black seemed to feel it too, and kept glancing up and looking around while he was setting the bomb. I continued to sweep the area as well, knowing whatever big bad was waiting for us would strike when we weren't expecting it. I tried to not think about what fresh horror it could be.
Black stood, and walked up to me. "It's done."
I nodded once. He held something out to me, a small device. "Take it. It's the remote detonator. You are not allowed to die without setting it off, and that's an order, Red. Do you understand?" His eyes bored into mine. He was telling me something without saying it. Golden eyes met emerald eyes, metal met stone, will met will. Equals we stood, and I understood.
I nodded once. "Aye sir."
He released the device with a nod. "Good."
We took a moment to swap ammo, him taking our remaining shotgun shells, I the remaining rifle rounds, and we split the last of the pistol ammo. Our supplies were low. Our odds were....
I forced myself to stop that line of thought. Surviving did not matter to the mission, but it mattered to me. And I knew, it mattered to Black. We would make it. We had to.
We nodded again, as if he was thinking the same thoughts I was. Who knows, maybe he was. We began to backtrack without anymore conversation.
As we cleared the level again, racing towards the stairs, an old cadence from training came to mind.
Helljumper, helljumper, where ya been?
I fired into a group of zombie like researchers, watching them fall back and fall apart. Black spun around me with the grace of a dancer, firing into a pack of research dogs trying to attack from behind.
Feet first into hell and back again!
We gained the stairs, and found another abomination waiting for us. We cycled firing into it's many heads until the smell of putrefaction overpowered all else, and the gore spilled everywhere and we slid as we raced up the stairs.
When I die please bury me deep!
We passed the place where Brown and Gray laid, finding a huge misshapen man standing over their bodies. Black dispatched him quickly with a few well placed pistol shots to the eyes. Behind him was another small handful of infected researchers. I launched myself at them, taking one out in the air, then landing and sliding on the bloodied floor on my hip, taking headshots as I flew by.
Lay a FAMA down by my feet!
Black met me on the other side, hauling me to my feet and spinning me around. I fired under his arm at new shambling horrors emerging from the labs around us. I felt the concussion of his weapon sounding on my other side as he took out his own group. I twisted around his body, bringing us back to back and switched to my pistol, dropping my empty rifle.
Don't cry for me, don't shed no tear,
We hit the lift and as we sprinted onto it, I glanced at the small form under the labcoat, silently saying a final farewell. Black hit the lift platform, slamming the button to move. I was right behind him through the doors, and up we went. A door must have still been open above us, because blood and bits began to rain down on us and various horrors began to fall. We fired into the shaft above us, trying to take them out before they could get us.
Just pack my box with PT gear!
The lift ground to a halt, and we were back above ground. The doors were jammed, barely open. Even I would have a hard time squeezing through it. Black gripped either side and pushed. At this point, I never doubted he could do it. We had forged a bond of perfect trust over the last few hours. His muscles strained, and I watched one of the biofoam wounds on his back rip open, but he forced the doors wide enough to get through. Patch up would have to wait. We had to move.
Cause one early morning 'bout zero-five,
We moved faster than I thought we could, backtracing our steps towards the forward corridor and the world outside. We rounded the final corner and found our way blocked by the thing that had been giving me the chills since we arrived. It was tall, stretched painfully thin over a strange skeletal frame. It's ribcage was exposed, and you could see it's heart beating. Black launched himself forward, unbelievably fast, pulling a small device out of an armour pouch while he did.
The ground will rumble, they'll be lightin in the sky!
I fired around him into the creature, forcing it's attention towards us. It moved quicker than I thought it could to, ignoring the giant that was on an airborne collision course and staring down at me. Black hit it, shoving the device into it's open chest and pushing off again, doing a perfect backflip and twisting in midair to land facing me, charging back at top speed. He hit me, forcing me down to the floor and against the wall with his body shielding me.
Don't you worry, don't come undone,
Fire exploded behind him, bone spurs and shrapnel flying out at horrendous speeds. I felt Black arch as some hit him. "NO!" I screamed as I watched the pain fill his eyes. He grabbed me and we were running again before the burning hail stopped. We hit the corner, sliding again and racing down the final hallway. We hit the door, and were flung out into the early dawn light. A storm had come while we were inside, the ground was mud and mush. The clouds hung on the horizon, threatening a repeat. We had made it. We were alive.
It's just my ghost on a PT run!
We ran straight for the perimeter wall. "There's no way we're making it over that." I gasped as we ran.
"We'll make it. We have to." Black retorted.
I was too winded to be sarcastic, which was just as well. I didn't have a good comeback anyways. Black hit the wall first, turning and slamming his back against it, lacing his fingers together. I sped up as much as I could, stepping from the ground, to his knee, to his laced hands with as much momentum I had. He grunted and launched me straight up. I grabbed the edge and held on and tight as I could. I felt his weight added to mine as he jumped, grabbing my legs, and thought my arms would be torn from their sockets. Black placed his feet on either side of me, using the catches in my armour to haul himself up so he could grip the edge of the ledge as well. He pulled himself up, and then grabbed my forearms and helped haul me up too.
We jumped over the other side, landing and rolling, coming up running, heading straight into the tree line.
We had survived.
We had escaped.
I turned to him when we hit the trees, a huge smile on my face. Black grinned back at me.
"Mission's not done until we hit that button," He reminded me. I nodded, but that didn't do anything to dampen my enthusiasm.
We raced through the woods to the evac point, making a two hour hike in half that. I have never before and rarely since been so happy to call in for extraction. Black made the call, confirming our ride home.
"ETA 5 minutes. They're just around the corner." He informed me. I smiled.
"Good. I can't wait to be off this rock." I moved on the hill a little, moving closer to him. Because of the slope I was finally able to look him in the eye.
He moved to stand in front of me, placing a hand on my shoulder. "Good job Red."
I smiled broader and clasped his shoulder too. "Thanks for getting me through-"
BANG!
I was momentarily blind as boiling red filled my vision and a weight crashed down on me. I blinked as I fell, staring over Black's shoulder, and seeing a man in camo with a rifle sighting us down. I brought my pistol to bear as I fell, and watched the top of his head explode before I hit the ground.
"Black? BLACK!" I screamed, rolling him over. He blinked, trying to focus.
"Red?" He gasped, and I saw the wound in the side of his neck.
"Shit." I swore, fumbling for more biofoam. I was out. I started patting him down. "Where's your biofoam Black?!"
He coughed. "Used it... On you...."
I glanced at the skies. "Where the fuck is that damn pilot?"
"Red..." He gasped. I looked back at him.
"Oh no. You are not allowed to die because of one damn Innie hillbilly after what we just went through. No sir. Fuck that." I shook my head, closing both my hands over his wound.
"Elexa..." He whispered.
I stopped talking and looked at him. We both knew it was too late. My bravado was just that. His hand shook as he lifted it to my face, cupping it gently.
"Complete the mission." He breathed. "Live."
I nodded, taking one hand off his neck and holding his hand to my face. "I will Bruce. I will."
He coughed. "Promise...." he sighed, and his eyes emptied. His blood stopped pumping against my other hand. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I released his wound, and placed his hands over his chest, kneeling by him until the Pelican arrived.
Soldiers jumped out, moving over and pulling me to my feet. I rose, shaking them off and pointing at Black. They picked up his body and loaded him up. I followed on my own. On autopilot, I strapped myself in.
We took off, circling around the zone. As the pilot powered up thrusters, I pulled the small device out of my pouch.
"1...
2..."
BOOOOOOOOOM
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Post by Amaretto on May 18, 2018 19:04:08 GMT -7
December 4th, 2554 UNSC BC-4880 Indigo Dream UNSC Standard time 1313 The Middle of the Black
Elexa looked up at the commander sitting across the table from her. "Does that answer your questions?"
Joshua tilted his head. "Did you ever cry?" He asked.
Elexa smirked and stood. "We're done here."
"No we're not." Joshua stood too.
Elexa leaned forward on the table between them, leveling her icy glare at him. "Yes. We. Are. Or I will do something I regret."
Joshua laughed. "Like what? Want to hit me?"
"I do, actually, but I wouldn't regret it. Picking up this table and beating you into a bloody smear is something I might regret. Or at least regret having to go through another inquiry about why I did it. Now I am walking out that door, and you can tell your bosses at ONI if they want to put me under review again, they will send someone else."
She stood slowly, as if only precise movements would control her anger, and she stalked out of the room.
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Post by God on May 18, 2018 19:57:57 GMT -7
June 25, 2532 0300 Local Time Ambrose Colony, Hellene
They were on their way out of the atmosphere when the pilot yelled. "Fuck! Covenant!" The Pelican banked sharply, but no weapons fire came. The covenant Corvette was well off the port bow of the dropship as it had come about. There was no risk of collision, the sudden bank had merely been instinctive evasive maneuvers. It proved unnecessary as I came alongside in the Black Cat, a fresh-off-the-line light stealthship. "Pelican, brace for turbulence." I banked gently, forcing the pelican to turn completely away from the Corvette just in time. Both vessels were rocked as the alien vessel's engine core went up like the overcharged nuclear reactor it was. "Congratulations, Black Squad, you now have armed escort."
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June 28, 2532 0730 GMT Bathurst UNSC Hospital, New York City, NY
"She's so sweet, staying by her side all night. Pity she got in so late." I'd heard a lot of that from the UNSC nurses since I showed up in Petty Officer Durin's recovery room. She had drifted off by then, but I'm nothing if not patient, especially after reading the debriefing from her first day. I was wearing Spartan fatigues, no armor. Probably why the nurses assumed what they did. The lights came up for morning shift, and I set the PAD down on my lap, shifting very slightly. The seat wasn't designed to be uncomfortable, but it also wasn't designed for people over 2 meters tall. The marine, tougher than any human I'd met so far, stirred. "Morning sweety," I said, just loudly enough the nurses could hear.
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Post by Amaretto on May 18, 2018 20:06:26 GMT -7
Elexa blinked and looked around, surprised, but thankful, to be alive.
"What happened? Where am I?" She asked groggily, raising a hand to her head. In a rush, the memory of Hellene came back to her and she tried to sit up, finding she could. She studied the other woman, wondering who she was, but the fatigues didn't tell her anything.
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Post by God on May 18, 2018 20:16:25 GMT -7
"Combat recovery, Bathurst Hospital, Nuu Yawlk, Nuu Yawlk," I answered in a Nuu Yawlk accent. "I'm apparently your ma... lover, if the nurses are to be believed." I was speaking with my natural, clipped native accent again. "Ayla, Spartan One. I have an offer for you, when you're well enough for reactivation."
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Post by Amaretto on May 18, 2018 20:22:36 GMT -7
Elexa frowned slightly, trying to piece together what happened after she detonated the explosives on Hellene, but found only fragments through the battle fatigue. She shook her head and decided it didn't matter. She was here now. She looked the other woman over, slower than she did last time. "Lover, eh?" She grinned lecherously in the way only Marine's can. "I can work with that." She laughed.
"As soon as the doctors get in here and unhook me, I'm ready to return to duty, ma'am." She clipped, her own accent crisp and polished. "And ready for my next assignment. Offer." She frowned, slightly. "Whichever it is. I'm fit and ready, ma'am."
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