RP XCOM2: Liberation of Earth

[ZombieSplitter53]

Black0ut & ZombieSplitter
Supernatural Birds of a Feather
Part One

Annoying, eh? You haven't even begun to see how 'annoying' I can be, boy. As for you...Jianshi, was it? Charon's voice changed from it's typical joy to a very deep and menacing tone, as a slight growl echoed in the room, it's owner's body nowhere to be seen. Don't ever threaten me again, unless you want me to spear you with a piece of earth. Do I make myself clear, Ayame?

"Charon!" Red growled, before offering an apologetic smile, "I'm sorry, he usually isn't like this..."

Ayame laughed, and shook her head. "Nah, it's fine. I threatened it, it threatens me. Turnabout and all that." She knelt down in front of Charon with a big grin. "Though I would love to test you on that. You're not the only one who can manipulate earth, and trust me, for more intimidating does then you have tried to... penetrate me."

Implying that phrase is far more dirty than I like, especially when you consider my form. Not to show any hate to whatever you're interested in, vampire, but I wouldn't touch you with 6 ft. pole, in that particular way. Anyways, I'll leave you two be. But I will be keeping an eye on you, Ayame. The animal spirit said, a big puff of dust coming up from the spot he was.

Mark's face flushed in embarrassment, as he stammered out an apology, "I-I am so sorry for Charon, Ayame! I-I didn't know he would act like that! I...if you want me to go, I understand." Red said solemnly, mentally cursing his luck about his current situation.

Ayame stood back up and gave him a sympathetic look. "It's okay, really. You're not the first one to have an overprotective friend. Despite whatever differences the two of you might have, I'm willing to bet he acted like that because he was intimidated by what I am and the danger me being around you can be. He cares about you, and that's... really sweet. I just hope my crassness didn't offend you. I was just messing with him, but I seemed to have put you both off."

"Well, as a detective, you learn that people are weird complex beings, who, at one moment, might be completely pleasant to talk to, then, because of one word, go crazy with rage. You learn to always apologize for everything, so you live a little bit longer." Mark explained, as he stood up and poked his flask. "Truthfully, I don't know how to react to you. I haven't known you that long, but you seem like a very kind, albeit a bit provoking, respectable woman." Mark kicked the base of the spike, with little effect. After a few moments the spike retracted, and Red's flask fell to the ground.

Ayame sunk down back onto her seat. "That's an interesting way to look at me. Honestly, I haven't always been the kindest person. When you live as long as I have, you stop caring about other people, at least until you realize you're going to have to live with the kind of person you are, so it better be a person you like. Still, I... turned my back on humanity when these aliens showed up. Looked at is as another form of evolution. Then I was crossed, tricked into helping hunt down those Balmadaars, and I joined the resistance for personal revenge. Since joining, though, especially after joining XCOM, and seeing all the self sacrificing reasons people joined... I started to feel guilty for the first time in a long time. I ended up having to ask myself if I lost my humanity and became a monster when I ended up like this... or if it was when I gave up my humanity by choice. So... as faltering as your kind words are, I'm not sure if I deserve them."

"I see. Let me ask you this: Why did you throw yourself into the hail of bullets that would have killed me? Was that for revenge's sake? Why did you crawl into the vents when we could have tried to storm in instead? The thing about being a detective is that you get real good at figuring out other people's personalities and traits. Trust me, I've met some very unsavory characters, people who'd kill their own children or their lovers. People who'd trick you into believing that they cared for you, only to ram a dagger in your back. You aren't one of those people. If being defined as a 'monster' makes good people like you, then this world would be a better place." Mark stood up, and took a few steps towards the door, and turned back to face Ayame.

She smiled at him. "Thank you. That means a lot." Her smile dropped ever so much. "Before you go... why were you so shocked when I did save you? The way you spoke... it was almost as if you didn't think you were worth saving. Because you are, you know?"

Red's expression darkened, as he looked at the ground. "I appreciate you saying so, but I disagree. Truth be told, this place, XCOM, saving the world... I don't want to be here. The only reason I am here, is because of a promise my mentor and friend, Nick. This was where he wanted to be, fighting aliens, exploring ruins, stopping ADVENT... not me. And sure, I've met a lot of people I like, many whom I'm glad to know." Mark said quietly, his voice cracking slightly, "But a man who's watched his best friend bleed out, let his entire tribe get kidnapped, and fights for petty reasons, is probably not something to save."

Ayame let out a long sigh. "I guess we both have our crosses to bare, huh?" She laid back, placing her hands behind her head. "But whatever the reason, you're quite the soldier, and I'm glad to have you on the team. You're a good man, no matter what you think. And everyone deserves to have a second chance. My very existence is proof of that."

Red nodded, trying to refrain from saying anything negative. "I'll see you later then, Ayame. Take care and stay safe." Red said abruptly, as he walked out of her room.

Ayame let out another sigh, and closed her eyes. "Poor guy. Know how he feels."

 

[Dahlexpert]

Hunting trip

Northern Chile
UCFF Main Headquarters
August 7th, 2038, 0940 Hours

Luke was sitting on a stump, working on what looked like a bow and arrow. He also made a few spears. “Alright, this should be plenty to go hunting.”

The Torres siblings saw Luke, and Antonia yelled to him. “Hey, XCOM.”

Luke turned around and smiled at the siblings.” Oh, hey you two, nice work yesterday. I appreciated the back up.”

Antonia looked upset at that statement. She was about to argue until Luke said, ”But, I thank you both with standing guard with me. Seriously, I doubt I would have gotten overrun. But it’s always nice to have allies by your side.

Vicente looked a bit annoyed by Luke. “Well aren’t you confident? Don’t you think you're being a little to arrogant?"

“No, I’m confident in my powers. Not just my powers, but my natural skills. Yeah I’m not arrogant, but I’m just... well, confident in my powers and what I can do with them.”

Antonia looked at Luke’s hands. “How did you do that anyway? With the fire coming out of your hands?”

“It’s because I’m a Psionic. A red Psion more specifically. Which means I’m more aggressive than the others.”

A man wearing some jeans and a light jacket looked at the Torres siblings. “Hey, you two. You're up for guard duties, and for the love of god, give the XCOM soldier some breathing room.”

Vicente sighed. "Right, come on sis, let’s go. Later, XCOM." The pair walked off.

Luke shook his head. "My name is Luke. Luke Van Dam.” Luke shouted at the two, before looking at the man that sent them away. “Thanks. Are you good at hunting?”

The man gave Luke a confused look. ”Yeah, been hunting most of my life. But I don’t know the terrain that much, I just joined here like a few weeks ago. I’m from the resistance in Europe, but moved here.”

“Oh a European. I never seen the wilderness over there. Anyway, I’m getting off topic. Would you mind hunting with me Mr...?”

“Winter. Just call me Winter. I don’t trust you enough to tell you my real name, plus most people call me Wwinter anyway.”

Luke looked confused by the man. “Alright Winter. So I just need a few things. Mostly meat. Fruits and vegetables, I’ll get another time.”

“Very well, just let me get my rifle and I will join you.” Luke and Winter took one of the cars and went south. “So Luke, why are you hunting? Didn’t think most of you people know how to hunt.” Winter said

“I wasn’t born with XCOM, I was born in the wilderness. Was hunting most of my life, hence the bow and arrows. I found it more entertaining to use these simple tools over a gun, and it saves ammo.”

“Hmm... that’s smart. I prefer a gun though. No offense, but I never learned to use a bow and arrow.”

“It’s cool. I use it because it not only does it save ammo, but you don’t have to dig out the bullets.” Luke stopped and got out of the car. “Alright, let’s hunt some game. I just need a few animals.”

Luke and Winter traveled south and found a guanaco. Luke drew his bow and fired the arrow into the neck of the animal. He went to the animal and stabbed it in the throat and sighed. "Right, now for the fun part.” He put the knife into the animal’s chest and cut it open. He removed the organs from the animal and started separating its body parts. “Right, well, that should be good for now.” Luke looked towards the sun. "I need more meat though. This will not do.”

“Hey Luke," Winter said. "I have a question for you.”

Luke looked at Winter. “Um, sure. What’s up?”

“How are you so calm? I mean, here we are, outside the settlement, practically in enemy territory, and you’re armed like a cave man. How are you so calm?”

Luke smiled, and had a small flame come out of his hand. "I’m never unarmed, I’m never defenseless. I am a walking, talking, napalm grenade.” Luke closed his hand. "Come on. Let’s keep going.”

Winter just looked at Luke. "Psions and your space magic.”

Luke and Winter continued the hunt. They caught a good amount of food for the base. Luke looked at therir rewards. “Heh, yep, this will work. Hey, thanks for the fun.”

“I still don’t understand you Luke. I don’t get why you’re so calm. We're in the middle of a war zone and you're all smiles, with no care in the world. Are you... dumb or something?”

Luke sighed. "That’s a simple question. I’m at home. This warzone is nothing but a home to me. I feel comfortable hearing gun fire, explosions, and all that. I am right where I should be, that’s why I’m calm.”

Winter looks confused, never having met someone so calm in a warzone and calling it his home. “What, were you a warlord or something before joining XCOM?”

“I waged some wars aagainst gangs and bandits, but I am just used to this. I come from a clan that was forged in war. War is in my blood, maybe that’s why, or I’m just crazy. Who knows? But the reason I’m calm in a warzone is because I feel right at home here, more than anywhere.”

Luke and Winter got in the car and drove back to the settlement, Winter looking at Luke. This is a soldier of XCOM. If they have someone like this in their ranks, and after what they've been doing to ADVENT in a few days what took us months to do, is everyone on that ship monsters.

 

[ZombieSplitter53]

“Within the crucible of the grounded firebird lies the means for another to be born.”

XCOM Mission Parameters

Operation Powered Phoenix
Stealth Supply Raid
0200 Hours, August 14th, 2039

South American Continent
Former Country of Argentina
Nevado Ojos del Salado, Chile/Argentina Border

XCOM Forces

Menace 2-5

SQ Inverse, Luna [Ambusher]
SQ Kasagi, Ayame [Ranger]
SQ O’Brien, Morrigan [Specialist]

UCFF

Benjamin Castillo

Gear

Lethal Grenades: AP, HE, CU, AT, Viper, Incendiary
Utility Grenades: SP, TG, Flashbang, Smoke, Rebuff, EMP Grenade, Slurry Bomb
Miscellaneous Items: Medkit, Battlescanner, Combat Knife, Radio Jammer, Skulljack, Stimkit, Mimic Beacon
Class Specific: Bear / Wavepit Trap / IED Trap [Ambusher], Micro Missile Cluster [Specialist]

Mission Briefing:

Our search for a suitable elerium power core for the UCFF dropship has led us to the Cerro Ojos power facility on the western Argentina border. This remote facility taps directly into the molten core of the active Nevado Ojos del Salado volcano. This not only gives it an immense amount of power to channel off elsewhere, such as other institutions in Chile and Argentina and the rail lines, it allows the the immense power need for proper production of such products as power cores.

Intelligence has hacked into the facility and a quick search of their inventory has confirmed that the power core meeting our specifications is indeed in stock. However, simply assaulting the base is an issue. A facility that deals with raw elerium and terrawatts of raw energy does not make for a suitable battleground. Even if we were not to assume the aliens wouldn't destroy such a base of they felt they would lose it, one stray shot from either side could be disastrous.

As such, this is a covert mission. This will require a small team of only four operatives, but this should not be a problem If all goes to plan. Sneak into the base, and obtain that elerium power core without alerting the workers or the ADVENT guards. We'll want to hide the fact that this was the main mission, however. So destruction of the facility is an additional goal. We would simply prefer our people are not there when it is destroyed.

Objectives:

1) Infiltrate the facility undetected.
2) Locate and obtain at least one power core. Take more only if possible.
3) Plant charges near the facilities main power generator.
4) Escape the facility with the power core and detonate the charges. Stealth going out is not as important as going in.

Hazards:

General - You will be entering from the roof in the dead of night via the Skyranger. Staff will be lax, but the facility is open 24/7, so don't be spotted. Security cameras present a problem, which is why your first stop will be the security room to load a repeating loop program. The biggest danger will be the containers of raw elerium. An elerium explosion of any degree could destroy half the base. At the very least, it would give away your position. Avoid a fire fight at all cost.

Terrain:

The facility rests at the base of the mountainous volcano. Retreat through the back is not an option unless you plan to climb. The facility itself is medium size, with offices, including the security office, along with rooms for staff to sleep overnight on the second floor. The first floor contains the main factory, a spacious open area with generators that take up half of the building, constantly in motion as they draw up thermal energy from the earth. The other half of the building contains two connected labs where the elerium is stored and refined, and a smaller factory floor for the building of such items as elerium power cores. The holding room is small, as items do not stay here for long, so it might be a while until we get another crack at this, if at all. In the back of the facility is the main power room, which includes a generator that obtains energy from the thermal generators and a smaller back up generator.

Civilians:

A small nighttime staff will be present, an unavoidable issue we will have to deal with. Terrorists we may be labeled, but terrorists we are not. Avoid killing civilians if at all possible. Set charges to go off on the facility's backup generator first. This will cause the civilian staff to evacuate, and any who stay behind when the main charges go off will be ADVENT soldiers.

Enemies:

While the civilian staff schedules are easy to find, ADVENT rotations are on a separate system and unknown. Enemy compliment will be unknown, but will likely consist of basic troopers. It is doubtful ADVENT soldier with any kind of explosives will be present, but the facility may contain a Viper, Muton, or some other alien force that can easily kill hand to hand without having to fire dangerous weapons.

 

[ZombieSplitter53]

Operation Powered Phoenix
Part One

Ayame watched as their transport flew off, leaving the team of four on their own. She knew there would be vehicles they could use for escape, but it wouldn’t be easy to take them should they get into a firefight. As such, sneaking would be essential, and she was just the woman to pull this off. “Alright, everyone. Stay behind me. I can do most of the work solo, so just make sure no one sneaks up on you, and we will all…”

“What are you doing?” Luna asked, giving her an odd look. “You know I’m in charge, right? And Castillo here is my second.” She motion to the UCFF second-in-command to her side.

Ayame scoffed. “Listen… sneaking missions are my thing so if you don’t want to get your ass spotted the moment you step in there…”

“Oh, boy…” Morrigan shook her head, and stepped away. She placed her hand to her head and said, “Come in, Irons. How is the visual feed?”

“Blurry, but good enough for me to identify the right power core,” Jack answered from back at the camp. “You just got there. Why do you already sound defeated?”

“Kasagi is arguing for control of the mission,” Morrigan answered with an irritated tone.

“Oh, boy,” Jack muttered.

“Listen, pipsqueak.” Luna stepped forward angrily, prompting Ayame to take a step back. “How many covert ops have you been on with other people?”

“Um…” Ayame tried to think. “A-a few, but…”

“And how many have you led?” Luna questioned.

“Well… none, but…”

“In all the missions and fights you have been on, how many have you led?”

“I… well, there was…”

“...without losing a significant number of people.”

Ayame’s eyes darted about, and it was clear she didn’t want to answer.

Luna sighed, calming down a bit. “I will be counting on all of you to get us through this, including you, if you are as skilled with stealth ops as you claim. But you have to trust me to lead if I am to trust you. Can I trust you to trust me?” She offered her hand.

Ayame considered for a few seconds, then nodded and shook Luna’s hand. “Alright. What is our first step?”

Benjamin looked down. “We should be right above the security room. We need to take it if we don’t want the cameras to be an issue.”

“Right.” Luna smiled at Ayame. “Think you and O’Brien can secure it for us?”

Ayame smiled back. “No problem.” She walked to the side of the roof and knelt down with Morrigan. “Can you lower me over this window?”

“I’ll try.” Morrigan took a hold of Kasagi’s ankles and slowly helped her creep upside down by the window. “Wow, even with your gear, you’re surprisingly light.”

“Don’t rub it in,” Ayame muttered, and creeped down by the window. She motioned to be brought back up. “Two guys, chatting in the corner. Rifles, but not expecting anyone.”

“Flashbang?” Morrigan asked, offering one.

“Flashbang,” Ayame agreed. She leaned down, activated the grenade, and tossed it into the window. As soon as it went off, Ayame swung down and crashed through the window. She was on one of the soldiers before he could react, stabbing her high-tech blade through his chest. The other raised his weapon to fire blindly, but Morrigan and sent her Gremlin after Ayame, GZ-MO, plowing into the man in a way that would likely upset Dr. Shen if she saw it used in such a fashion. Ayame dispatched him like she had the first, and all was quiet for the moment, Morrigan climbing in throught the window.

“Alright.” Morrigan walked over to the computer, and had GZ-MO link to it. “So far, so…” The two women turned to see the door opening. Apparently the ‘bang’ of the flashbang had attracted a nearby patrolling Muton, the lumbering, powerhouse alien squeezing through the door. “Crap…”

“Just worry about the computer,” Ayame insisted. “I’ll take care of this.”

“You can’t take him by yourself!” Morrigan insisted.

“We don’t have a choice.” Ayame slowly approached the Muton, the alien looking at the women he towered over with a unimpressed gaze. He cracked his knuckles, and charged, Ayame barely dodging to the side of the surprisingly fast tank. He turned quickly, and Ayame jumped up to kick it in the head. Even with her enhanced strength, her opponent was barely phased. It punched, and she again was barely able to dodge, and table in the center of the room exploding into splinters. “Might… be tougher then a thought.” She reached back to grab her sword, but the Muton wasn’t going to give her the chance. It reached out and grabbed her arm, lifting a squeezing. It took all of Ayame’s willpower not to cry out in pain.

“Hey!” Benjamin yelled after crawling in through the window, and fire a laser pistol across the Muton’s helmet. It turned towards him, and Ayame used the moment to her advantage. She sent a straight punch with all her might, smashing into the alien’s helmet and jabbing it in the throat. It dropped her in surprise, and she reached back, grabbing her sword and running the Muton through. It staggered, and Ayame pulled the sword out and stabbed again. And again. Over and over until it finally toppled, Ayame breathing hard as she gave the dead Balmadaar a sad look of regret.

 

[ZombieSplitter53]

Operation Powered Phoenix
Part Two

The trio were not out of the woods yet, however, as a pair of ADVENT Troopers stepped in to investigate all the noise. They leveled their weapons at the enemy infiltrators, and the all rose their hands. The troopers circled around, wanted to stand on opposite sides in case someone tried something. One stepped in front of the shattered window and demanded, “How many of you are there? Just the three, or are there more?”

“Just one more,” Luna said after driving her knife into his neck under his helmet. The other soldier gasped in shock and aimed at the window, but Ayame showed some impressive flexibility with a high kick that knocked the weapon from his hands. Benjamin quickly leveled a weapon at him, and the table were turned.

Ayame removed the trooper’s helmet and was about to knock the man out when one of their radios chimed in. “Report. What was the cause of that noise?” Ayame quickly raised her sword to the man’s neck, but her said nothing. “Respond! What was the cause of the noise.”

Ayame pushed the sword forward, and the trooper could feel blood trickle down his neck. He finally slowly reached to his earpiece and said, “Nothing to report. Clumsy Balmadaar tripped over a table. All clear.”

“Roger.” A moment of silence. “Everything Code Green then?”

Morrigan suddenly lifted her pistol and aimed it at the trooper, walking forward and pressing it against the man’s head. The trooper swallowed hard, Morrigan giving him eyes that said he would die if he said the wrong thing, and he said, “Everything is Code… White.”

“Roger.” The radio fell silent.

“What was that about, O’Brien?” Luna asked, moving to make sure the looping camera feed was secure in case someone was watching the feed from elsewhere.”

“Code White is an all clear,” Morrigan explained. “Daniel didn’t tell me much, but I once heard him bragging to Brigid about how smart ADVENT was. They ask Code Green because it makes it sound like an all clear, but really it means is wrong and the soldier can’t say what?”

“Daniel? O’Brien?” The trooped smiled. “You’re Daniel Hunnigan’s wife, aren’t you? He’s a friend of mine. Wait until he learns his wife, and XCOM I guess, are in Chile…” Morrigan fired, and the trooper fell over dead.”

The others stared at Morrigan. Without turning, she said, “He would have exposed XCOM as helping the UCFF. We couldn’t let him leave.”

After a moment of silence, Luna nodded. “Let’s focus on the mission.”

Morrigan sighed, and moved over to the surveillance monitors. She selected the ones along the path they would go to get downstairs. “These rooms have civilians in them, but they are mostly asleep. If we move fast, we can catch them between patrols. Get ready to move.” The others bunched by the door, and a minute later, Morrigan switched back to the looping footage and said, “Go!”

Everyone hurried down the hallway single file, not stopping for anything. Luna took the lead, while Ayame followed behind. They reached a corner, and Luna peaked to the side. One of the guards let out a bored sigh, and stepped into what was likely a bathroom. Luna gave the motion to proceed, and they were down the stairs and into a dark corner in a flash.

The first floor thrummed loudly with the sounds of large generators that took up half the floor, drawing up thermal energy from the earth. Luna wondered for a moment if the sleeping quarters upstairs were somehow soundproofed to drown out the noise, and thought of all the good a factory like this could do for the betterment of mankind, but was instead used to provide power to ADVENT and the aliens to be used to keep mankind under the Elders’ feet. “Come on,” she whispered, and the team moved to the back.

Here, the found labs were raw elerium was being refined. There were three soldiers patrolling among half a dozen civilians. “We’ll need to take those guards down fast, before they can fire or alert anyone.”

“And without missing them and hitting the elerium or a civilian.” Luna looked over to Ayame. “Think you could get to the guy near the back without being seen?”

Ayame nodded. “Give me sixty seconds, then take out the other two.”

Ayame ducked into the room, the only one small and fast enough to move around without the lab techs immediately noticing her. Luna watched her watch and motion for Morrigan and Castillo to take aim at the other two ADVENT soldiers. Once sixty seconds were up, they fired. Benjamin got a clean shot through the head, while Morrigan hit her target in the chest. He staggered, his shiny new armor taking the hit, but luckily Luna was ready with the follow up shot to finish him. The third guard turned, and quickly lost his head to Ayame.

Everyone piled into the room and barred the door, just incase anyone had heard that over the generators. “Alright, everyone.” Luna held her weapon up. “Despite what you have all heard, and likely all believe, we are not terrorist, and have no intention of hurting any of you if you cooperate.” She looked at a nervous tech nearby. “What do the doors in this room lead to?”

“U-uh…” The woman pointed to the north door. “Th-that leads to the main generator for the facility. Um…” She pointed east. “The factory and storage room are that way, a-an the opposite door… i-is the back way out.”

Luna leveled her weapons at the group. “Out that door, then. Go! You can circle around the front to warn the guards if you want, but this place is blowing up in a few minutes, so I wouldn’t recommend it!” The techs didn’t have to be warned twice, and Luna said, “Ayame, quickly. Go get the explosive ready by the generator. The rest of us will get to the target.

 

[ZombieSplitter53]

Operation Powered Phoenix
Part Three

Luna led Morrigan and Benjamin into the factory floor. Two troopers and a Viper had apparently heard the commotion, and fired. Ben and Morrigan darted left and right while Luna hunkered down behind a crate in the center. She tossed a smoke, and her two allies inched forward. Once they were in flanking positions, they fired careful shots, and took out the two troopers, but the Viper was gone. They looked back, and as the smoke cleared, the serpentine alien was squeezing the life out of Luna. She had a free arm and was stabbing it repeatedly in the tail with her knife, but it wasn’t working. “Go!” Benjamin yelled to Morrigan, and she reluctantly ran to the storage room as Castillo rushed to get into a better firing position. The Viper turned towards him and fired a plasma carbine in his direction, stripping away his armor and painfully searing his side. Using the distraction as best she could, Luna punched into the alien’s tail through the holes she had made and started ripping a tearing. It screeched in pain and anger, and turned back to finish her off. This gave Castillo the chance he need, firing two shots, one into the creature's back, and another into it’s brain.

Morrigan returned a couple minutes later with a pair of power cores in hand, one that they needed and one extra. Luna was patching up Benjamin’s side with a medspray when the door to the labs burst open, a dead Gunner flying inside. Ayame wiped some blood from her brow. “Let’s go. Come with me if you want to not blow up.” Everyone moved into the lab, Morrigan supporting Luna while Castillo carried the precious cargo. “Those guys came from the back way,” Ayame warned. “Letting those civies go might have sealed our doom.”

Luna shook her head. “We’re not going out the back. We are marching out the front cargo door in all the chaos.” She took some combat stims and injected herself, the rush of adrenaline giving her the strength she needed to stand on her own despite all her muscles screaming in exhaustion. “Blow the warning charge.”

Ayame grinned, pulling out a detonator and depression the button. The whole facility shook violently, automatic sprinklers going off. It felt like the whole building would collapse, but that was nothing compared to the bigger explosion. As soldiers and civilians alike rushed to get out of the building, the group made their way along the side of the main room. Ayame had dropped some C4 charges in the lab, and tossed a few more by the generators they passed. No longer worried about collateral damage, they fired at a pair of stun lancers that happened to get in their way, downing them in a hail of fire. Another Viper snuck up behind them and tried to grab Ayame without alerting the others, but she was able to get her sword up in front of her before it wrapped her up. She pushed forward, and sliced its tail into several pieces, rushing to catch up with the others while the alien bled to death.

Once outside, several troopers behind them fired, a shot grazing Morrigan’s shoulder, but the team didn’t stop. The darkness of night was their ally, as was a ADVENT solider starting up a transport truck. Luna and Benjamin fired into the door through it, the soldier, and the ceiling. Morrigan yanked the dead man out of his seat and jumped into the cab while the other two climbed in the back. Ayame caught up just as Morrigan shifted into drive, jumping and grabbing the back, Luna able to reach down and pull her inside. “Are all the civilians clear.”

“They should be.” Ayame looked down at a small blinking light on her wrist. “And proximity sensors say they found the bomb in the back.”

Luna nodded. “Blow it.” They all shielded their eyes as Ayame hit the detonators, first for the large bomb in the back, then the C4 charges she had been dropping. The facility exploded in a titanic show of light and sound, the entire area shaking violently. A chain reaction caused part of the mountain side to blast open, magma erupting out burying half of the already totalled building for a bit of overkill.

Morrigan struggled to get the truck under control as the ground shook around them, but was somehow able to keep driving without the truck flipping. She was aware of other trucks driving nearby, but she doubted any of them knew who was driving this truck. She turned south, and headed to the spot where they would be picked up fifty kilometers away. A shaky, explosive ending to a stealth mission, but everyone lived with the target item recovered. “Good job,” Luna said, struggling to stay awake as the stims wore off and her body faced the pain the viper had inflicted. “We’ll build this drop ship yet.”

“You XCOM people are an interesting bunch,” Castillo stated, leaning back and holding his side.

“You wouldn’t need us if we weren’t.” Ayame smiled at him, and looked back as the still exploding building disappeared from view.

 

[Dahlexpert]

The fallowing is a colabe between Dhalexpert & Zombiesplitter53

Food gathering, and family problems

Northern Chile
UCFF Main Headquarters

Lilith was in the fields gathering fruits and vegetables, Luke right next to her with an angry scowl on his face. Lilith looked at Luke to break the silence."It's been a while since we did this, huh? We haven't done this since we were in Alaska."

Luke was ignoring Lilith. After their fight, Luke was not talking to Lilith.

Lilith sighed. "Luke, I said I'm sorry, what more do you want?"

"Oh... I didn't think I would find anyone out here." Ayame said as she approached, one of the UCFF members behind her.

"What are you two up to?" Asked Tamara, placing a hand on her hip.

Lilith looked at the two ladies and was about to say something, but Luke cut her off. "The base needs fresh fruits and vegetables, it's not often we get to resupply our food. So that's what we're doing. I'm trying to gather enough to last us, hopefully until we have to help out another resistance."

"What he said, what are you doing here Ayame?" Lilith asked.

Ayame stuttered for a moment. "Um... Tamara and I were... going... for a walk. Yeah! To look for fruits and vegetables! What a coincidence!"

Tamara scoffed. "I thought you and I were going to have some fun. You know...funfun. Picking fruit is work, not fun."

Luke looked over the two ladies."Oh, a girl on girl thing. Well you can have your fun. Don't really need that much help."

"Luke, has anyone ever told you about subtlety?" Lilith asked.

"No, a gray skinned woman left me before teaching me anything about manners." Luke said with a bit of venom in his voice

Ayame was taken aback by the statement. She talked briefly with Tamara, who kissed her on the cheek, and head back to the base. Ayame turned back to the pair and said, "Sounds like you two have a few issues to work out."

Lilith looks at Luke and back to Ayame. "You don't know the half of it."

Luke decided to keep his family business just that, family business. He shook his head and cleared his throat. "Anyway, enough about my family problems, do you know anything about gathering fruits and vegetables?"

Ayame laughed. "Please, kid. I was hunting and gathering before... heh, let's just say I know a thing or two."

"Well then you can help out," Luke said. "I need all the food I can get. Otherwise the chef will not like that."

"Wait, the main cook told you to get these?" Lilith asked.

"Yea, said the crew needed a healthy diet. it's not a good thing to eat just meat all the time." Luke said to Lilith.

"Well, I can't tell you how happy I am to get your permission," Ayame said sarcastically, and leaned down by a berry bush. "Do you have a lot of experience with South American flora and fauna, kid?"

"No, I was born in Alaska and raised in Texas. Though raised would be down playing it." Luke looked at Lilith. "So no, I'm not exactly world traveled."

Ayame looked between the two. "Rrrright. Well, let me see what you have, and maybe I can give you some pointers."

Luke showed Ayame his basket, in it there was tomatoes, potatoes, carrots, garlic, and the like for vegetables. As for fruits he has very little, only having grapes. "Yeah, I need to work on the fruit, but I don't know anything about the fruit here."

Lilith looked at Ayame. "Ayame, you're well traveled. Can you teach my boy about this land?"

Ayame nodded. "Well... first of all, see these fruits? You can see they look the same as these over here. It is a defensive measure to fool animals. You have to look really carefully. If you see spots, they're bad. If you don't, they are good to pick."

Luke threw the berry to the ground. "Well damn, that was a waste of time. Alright, I could use some help."

Lilith patted Luke's shoulder. “Don’t worry Luke, mistakes happen."

"Yeah, don't stress out, Luke." Ayame grinned. "You're a Van Dam, right? Just a little help, and it'll come naturally to you, you know?"

Luke got a confused look on her face. "She knows of our people?"

"It's a long story, trust me on that. Anyway, Ayame, think you can help my boy here. Like you said, it might come naturally to him eventually."

"Of course," Ayame said with a big grin, and led Luke deeper into the forest. For the next hour, the pair search for various wild fruits and vegetables, Ayame telling Luke everything she knew. It seemed this wasn't the first time she played teacher, and was fairly good at it. As they were heading back, she held up a mushroom and said, "Mushrooms with spots get a bad name as all being poisonous. And... well, yeah, 99% of them are. But these ones are okay. If you are unsure, never eat them, but if you can remember what these ones look like, they're good. And tasty too, as long as you like mushrooms."

"Hmm, this has been very enlightening. I never would have guessed most of theses fruits were eatable. Some of these taste pretty good too. Now as for the mushrooms, I'm going to have to look into theses with this poison and non-poison mushrooms.. uh, thing."

"Heh, thanks Ayame for teaching my boy," Lilith said. "Back in the village, I gathered fruits in vegetables near our camp. I never traveled to other lands to see what they had to offer."

"Still, you have experience." Ayame gave Lilith a curious glance. "I'm surprised you didn't get a chance to teach him more of your tricks. He seems a good student."

 

[Dahlexpert]

Part 2

"Oh... well, um..."

"That's because she left me when I was twelve to when I was eighteen. That's why!"

"Luke, I told you I'm sorry. I didn't want to leave you I just had to."

"Shove it traitor. You left me the first chance you got, and that's the end of it."

"Oh... well, um..."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Ayame raised her hands. "Didn't realize I was stepping into a mine field. Luke, Lilith did not abandon you. I might not know the whole story, but I know your people, and they do not abandon their own."

"What do you know of my people? Whatever, it doesn't matter. We got what we needed, I need to take these back to the base." Luke took the supplies and headed back.

Lilith watched Luke leave the two behind. "Damnit boy, I left to protect that boy."

Ayame folded his arms. "I'm guessing he had it rough while you were in ADVENT, huh? One has to wonder if he would be so bitter if things had gone better for him, and if he is just looking for an outlet for anger. I have some experience with that myself."

"Damnit, there were so many things I wish I should have done for help him. I get why he's angry, I do, but I thought he could take care of himself. I thought that me not bringing him into the magacity was the good thing, but it looks like I was wrong."

"No... you were right?" Ayame placed her hands behind his head. "I've been around. Seen a lot of places after the aliens came, but I don't know everything. What Idoknow is it is usually a bad idea to be a psion around them. Tell me... if offered back then, do you think Luke would have joined ADVENT had they come up to him and asked him to join?"

"No. In fact I'm pretty sure he'd burn them alive. Matter of fact, I'm sure he probably did,I have no idea. But I know that with everything ADVENT took from Luke, he would never join them."

Ayame smiled. "So in other words... you saved his life."

"Yea, but he doesn't see it that way. I have no idea what he been through in though six years, I have no idea what he did. But all I know is when I brought him into the city, I never told ADVENT he is psionic. The moment they found out, I turned traitor."

"Then he is being unfair." Ayame turned back towards the camp. "Maybe I should go knock some sense into him."

"Ayame, Luke has his reasons for hating me. To him, he said to me, I left him the first chance I got. Do I understand it? Yes. I understand why he's angry. Doesn't mean I like it, but I understand. Also the fact that I'm the main reasons why his current relationship is currently rocky."

Ayame turned back. "That why that Alexis chick has been so mopey back at the Avenger?" She scoffed. "Someone needs to tell him that too much anger poisons your soul. And nothing will never get better if the two of you never talk, but it seems he refuses to listen."

"Yea good luck with that. He's not in the mood to listen to anyone. For now he's directing his anger at the aliens. Lilith sighed. "He's just as stubborn as his mother. Him and her are alike in so many ways."

Ayame shrugged. "Well... use that to your advantage. What would you have done with his mother of she was acting like this?"

"I would avoid her. His mother was reckless, aggressive, and didn't listen to reason. There were times when I could talk to her, but I needed help with that. For now I'm just going to let him vent. The fact that he even talked to me says he's calming down a bit."

"I guess," Ayame said with a defeated look. "Anything I can do to help?"

"No no, this is between us and the Chamber family. The one good thing in this is, at least my boy found someone to love him, so if I do die he will have a new family." Lilith said with a smile on her face.

"Alright." Ayame nudged her head back. "Gonna head back to base. See if Tamara is free to, um... talk."

"Ayame if you're going to sleep with someone, I don't care hell sleep with whoever you want. Except Alexis, I'm sure Luke would kill you."

Ayame rubbed her chin. "Well... she is kinda cute? Though so is Luke for that matter..."

"Ayame, trust me. An angry Luke is not a good thing, and they did say that they love each other. So for now leave them be, just have your own fun with anyone but Alexis.

Ayame laughed, and started back to camp. "Just messing with you, Van Dam. Just messing with you."

“Heh, yeah, I know. Anyway, mind helping me outwith this food. Since my boy took only some of it?"

Ayame shrugged and walked back to Lilith, grabbing half the load. "Anytime, friend."

 

[DarkGemini24601]

DarkGemini24601 and ZombieSplitter53: “Testing Chambers, Part 1”

0937 Hours, August 15th, 2038
Somewhere over South America
Onboard the Avenger
Floor 1, Rear Block
The Cargo Hold

XCOM’s Chief Engineer looked over the fruits of the past few weeks’ labor. She had to step back from the long worktable in front of her just to see it all. “Well, what do you think Rover? Did we do good?” Lily asked her robotic companion, even if it couldn’t respond verbally. There were a total of ten new creations that the engineering team had collectively turned from concepts into reality. From left to right, they included one grenade, one sidearm, two armor attachments, two primary weapons, three secondary weapons, and a brand new suit of armor.

The grenade appeared to be anything but standard, covered in a honeycomb of black speakers. Similarly, the sidearm had a similar structure within the barrel of an otherwise bulky white frame. The first armor attachment was made up of oily crimson chitin and was an external protective vest. The latter joined with back of an armor suit as well as the gauntlets - being a generator core wirelessly connected to a pair of projectors on the hands.

The first primary weapon looked like a standard beam battle rifle, save for a razor-sharp hooked bayonet attached to the gun’s barrel and body by a cylindrical container. The second bore resemblance to the rust-colored uranium blunderbuss, but instead of a plated barrel it had a tubular muzzle that ended in a wide laser projector.

As for the three secondary weapons, all were to some degree familiar. One of the firearms was a heavy machine gun, while the other ranged weapon was a mortar of some sort. The third weapon wasn’t a gun at all, instead being a streamlined, spear-like laser weapon. The armor was recognizable too, being an E.X.O suit that had extra plating and functionality.

Alexis stood next to her boss and friend, and nudged her arm. “The way you’re looking at these, I’m afraid you’ll refuse to let our soldiers use them.”

An-Yi sighed.. “I’ll admit I hate sending out the original prototypes into battle, but it’d be a waste of resources to not use them.”

“I think you’ll enjoy seeing them in use on the battlefield.” Alex grinned. “Speaking of in use, we’re here to play with them a little, right?”

“Well, not ‘here’ specifically,” Lily corrected, gesturing with one hand to the room they currently occupied. “If you help carry some of this equipment, I’ll show you the new facility the maintenance team just finished.”

“Oh… I wish Jack was here. He was so good at carrying things for me…” Alexis shook her head and started picking things up.

“Don’t be lazy… we won’t have to walk far,” An-Yi reassured her friend with a sprinkling of sarcasm. The doors at the base of the steps leading into the manufacturing bay were opened, and four soldiers entered. They joined Shen and Chambers to assist with the heavy lifting. “Besides, it's not like we don’t have help.” Noticeably, all four were wearing their combat attire rather than plainclothes.

“Yeah, yeah.” She directed the soldiers to what they should carry, but wasn’t free from some of the manual labor herself. “I’m guessing these guys aren’t just here to help move things based on how they’re dressed.”

“Some of the gear suits classes other than a Trooper, and I figured I’d bring down the appropriate people down to test the new stuff,” Lily explained.

“More like Yakone volunteered us,” Heinrich grumbled, the Grenadier carrying the sizeable Mortar.

“What are you complaining about? You get to play around with that thing,” Maxwell countered, hefting the HMG.

“I could do that in the field too.”

Christoffer chuckled. “Regardless of how we got involved in this test run and how we feel about it individually, you’ve got three of the Mavericks ready to be your guinea pigs.” Glancing over from Lily to Alex, he added, “we’ve met in passing, but I don’t think we were directly introduced. I’m Christoffer, Maverick squad leader. This is Heinrich and Maxwell, and…” he nodded his head towards the quiet fourth. “This is Karen, not part of our squad but along for the ride.”

“Alexis. Nothing close to being some kind of maverick, but I’m not bad with a firearm. Welcome to the party. And trust me, testing out our news toys is half the fun.” She smiled at Heinrich. “Though you could always wait until the battlefield and hope all the kinks were worked out.”

The Hispanic-German shook his head. “Still don’t see how it’s my job.” Maxwell opened his mouth to say something, but a look from Heinrich made him reconsider.

Without too much more bickering, the six reached the desired floor where the new room had been constructed. It had a circular door split down the middle, which opened automatically to reveal a n utterly empty square-shaped chamber.

Alexis stepped in and looked around. “Um… roomy, I guess. Could use a chair… maybe a painting…”

Those two things materialized out of nowhere. The chair was hardwood, and the painting was a general landscape. “Is that to your liking?” a voice echoed from the top of the room.

“Whoa!” Alexis moved over to the chair, feeling it. “How did you do that, strange voice in my head?”

“This room is capable of materializing hard light holograms to simulate different environments for testing purposes.” After a pause, the voice clarified, “I am not speaking in your head.”

“Wait, really?” Alexis gave Lily a big grin. “We have our own danger room? I need to read more comics. How did we manage this technology… um… computer?”

Light pooled in front of Alexis, and took form as a Codex in front of Alexis. Dr. Shen derived this technology from the abilities I am capable of, as well as the ‘Psi Drone’ recovered from a Priorbus Tech-Artificer, it spoke, this time legitimately in her head.

The four soldiers with Alexis were quick to try and go for their weapons until Lily held up her hands. “Calm down, she’s not an enemy. Seshat is on our side.”

“Seshat, huh?” Alexis circled around the being. “Cool. Is there anything that brain of yours can’t do, Lily?”

“Wasn’t just me,” Lily corrected insistently. “Artyom did a lot of the work needed to prevent her from breaking down mentally.”

The Technician’s help was greatly appreciated, Seshat agreed.

Alexis picked up the painting. “Meh…” She turned to the Codex and asked. “So can you just replicate inanimate objects? What about, like… living things?”

The degree of accuracy is something that will require more work, Seshat began, the semi-organic AI being surrounded in another layer of illusions to copy Alexis’s appearance.“But I can simulate actors for the purpose of training exercise similar to how the mimic beacons work,” she finished, her lips out of sync.

Alexis shook a tad, rubbing the goosebumps on her arm. “Now that is creepy. Please don’t do that… unless it is to my sister. I’m sure she would simply love it.”

“Noted.” Seshat disappeared for now, becoming a stereo voice again. “I am ready to assist in the equipment testing whenever you are, Dr. Shen.”

“Alright…” Lily wrung her hands together for a moment, thinking. As she did, the other four deposited the gear in the corner of the room per Seshat’s request. “What do you want to mess with first? Weapons? Armor? The grenade?”

Alexis shrugged. “I vote for the grenade. I always like to start things out with a bang… so to speak.”

“Hilarious.” An-Yi shook her head, and told Seshat, “Run an analysis on the the sonic emitter prototype attached to Alexis’s belt, then create a simulation target… how about a Shieldbearer for irony’s sake?”

“Understood.” A series of blue lights scanned the grenade Alexis had on her person, and then a Shieldbearer formed, taking cover behind a lamppost that was being constructed even as the ADVENT soldier dug in.

“Cool.” Alexis lifted the grenade. “Now let's not ruin the moment by missing.” To ensure that didn’t happen, she opted for an underhand toss, the new device landing past the side of the post.

The grenade let loose a high-pitched whine, which sounded like a mosquito buzz at the distance Alexis was from the device. For the Shieldbearer, however - its senses approximately that of the genuine article - the noise was skull-splittingly painful, and the simulation trooper held its head in agony before being dismissed. “Reverb Grenade test was a success,” Seshat stated.

“Yeah, I probably should have warned you…” Lily started, “you don’t want to throw those anywhere near you. The frequency tapers off after reaching the extremity of the targeted radius, but if you’re inside it…”

“You’re going to have a bitch of a headache.” Alexis shrugged. “Guess that goes for any grenade, anyway. Still, really nice idea. Good for disabling, and it won’t be affected by armor.”

“Similarly… you have the Sonic Derringer, which is capable of a frequency that’s even more likely to outright knock out a human target… though I’m not sure how effective it’ll be against different aliens,” Lily informed Alexis, Seshat helpfully holographically designating the sidearm Alexis had with her.

Alexis lifted it up and looked it over. “Maybe we can input the information Jenn gets from autopsies. Might help us make accurate simulations to practice on.”

“True, but even if we figure out which ones it doesn’t work on it’s unlikely that we can correct those issues. You’d practically need Seshat there with you adjusting the frequency to be able to hot-adjust the noise in the field,” Lily noted. “Still, wouldn’t hurt to at least know which aliens we shouldn’t bother using sonic devices against.” The Shieldbearer returned, this time in front of Alexis so her derringer wouldn’t have range issues.

 

[ZombieSplitter53]

DarkGemini24601 and ZombieSplitter53: “Testing Chambers, Part 2”

Alexis narrowed her eyes. “Now did I fire five… damn, analogy doesn’t work with sonic bullets. Oh well.” She pointed it directly at the facsimile’s head, and fired with precision accuracy. Nothing appeared to come out other than the slightest of distortions, but the Shieldbearer seized up for one moment, and then collapsed onto the ground the next. “Cool.” Alex held up the weapon and examined it. “What is the optimal range on this, my good doctor?”

“The column extends out for about two meters, and then becomes a shallow cone for another three. Beyond that point it’ll be useless, so it’s a pretty close quarters weapon,” Lily answered. “It’s basically the sawed-off shotgun for Specialists.”

“I see. Bet O’Brien would get a kick out of it.” Alex walked back to the others, flicking a violet lock out of her eyes. “So what’s next?”

“Strand, why don’t you come over here with Karen? Let’s see how your pair of weapons lines up,” Lily suggested to the two.

“Works for me,” Christoffer replied, picking up his bayoneted battle rifle and walking over. Seshat created an ADVENT Trooper on the other side of the room. “So, what? Do I charge it and stab it with this bayonet?”

“You don’t have to waste the energy. See that button on the side there?”

“Yeah?”

“Try aiming at the Trooper and pressing it,” Lily suggested.

Chris shrugged. “Alright.” He captured the Trooper in his sights, who was moving slightly as he did so. “Now you’re just making this difficult.” He pressed the button, and the bayonet leapt out of its holster - the cylindrical connection turning out to contain a spool of sturdy wire. The blade missed the Trooper, but only barely. Because of this, the hooks on the side dug into the soldier’s armor.

“Press it again!”

Christoffer did so, and his battle rifle reeled in a struggling enemy trooper. “Well shit, that’s useful,” he noted, holding his weapon like a fishing pole. “You’re up, Karen.”

The Ranger nodded, pulling out her spear-like weapon and activating a series of laser lines across the spearhead that appeared functionally identical to the ones on the las-blade. Before the Trooper was even fully reeled in she was able to run him through from a slight distance, and the hologram shattered to indicate a kill.

An-Yi crossed her arms triumphantly. “Wow, the Scorpion Battle Rifle and the Lance make a great combination. What do you two think?”

“I might have to keep this,” the pair responded in unison.

“Scorpion Battle Rifle?” Alexis grinned at Lily. “Brilliant. Please tell me you named it.”

“The answer to that depends on if you’re being sincere or not,” Lily contested.

Alexis held one hand up and the other two her heart. “Honest and true. Wish I could take credit for it.”

“Then yes, I did name it,” An-Yi confessed.

“Clever.” Alex glanced at the other weapons. “Now how about something with a bit more boom?”

“I suppose that’s my cue.” Heinrich had set up his mortar to the side, a process that hadn’t exactly been brief. “How is this going to work, exactly? Hard to test the range of this thing in a small room.”

“Altering perceptual settings,” Seshat intoned, and a few seconds of visual distortion later Alexis and Heinrich appeared to be twenty meters apart.

“Whoa…” Alex rubbed her eyes, and started the short hike back to the others. “You and your hard light room just keep getting better, Seshat.”

It took her the same length of time to cross what seemed like a greater distance, which had the potential to be disorienting. Heinrich aimed the mortar’s barrel towards a target location, having to squint at how far it was. “Shen, can you help designate the spot I’m aiming at?” he asked, putting on his helmet. A basic HUD popped up as he connected it to the mortar, and Lily was able to indicate his target before he fired a simulated explosive. The shell soared through the air, and impacted with a blast more impressive than a regular grenade. “That’ll do,” Heinrich decided with a nod of approval.

“I’ll say.” Alexis nodded to Lily. “Another success, assuming of course all this perspective stuff is equivalent to the real thing.”

“The difference in look is mainly for your benefit. Seshat’s just running the calculations for any weapons we use in here, since actually firing them would damage the room,” Lily pointed out. “Maxwell, you’re up.”

The Dominican man nodded, placing his HMG on a bipod to held handle its hefty weight. He swiveled around, and started pouring suppressing fire downrange at a cluster of ADVENT soldiers. They took cover behind some rocks, weathering an extended storm of fire.

“Coolant systems working as intended,” Seshat analyzed.

“Good to see they don’t seem to work any differently between different types of weaponry,” An-Yi returned. “Alexis, you get to test two things at once now. Put on that EXO suit, and connect the armored vest to it.”

“You got it.” She walked over to the suit and hesitated. “Um… as soon as you show me how to get into it without making a fool of myself.”

Lily assisted in taking apart the armor and then fastening it around Alexis, and delicately attached the crimson plating onto her. “Alright, the suit should move along with you - the servos are automatic… and the subsystem should respond to neural commands when we test that out. First, we’ll experiment with the vest, then we’ll move on to the Heavy E.X.O. suit’s functionalities.”

“Got it.” Alex moved a few feet forward. “Really is effortless. Moves like a dream. Makes me feel powerful somehow.”

“Well, you could probably break someone’s bones with a punch from an EXO suit, heavy version or otherwise. That’s… not what we’re testing though,” Lily clarified. A Chryssalid appeared in a flash of light in front of Alexis, and swung down at her with its claws. They scraped against the armored vest, and while it managed to destroy part of the plating the insectoid was rewarded unpleasantly for its efforts. The oils ignited, and set it on fire, causing the screeching Chryssalid to run off in terror.

“Jeez, rude! A little warning next time!” Alexis watched as the burning creature disappeared. “Still, effective. This come their weird, gliding cousins? Drakes or something?”

“Yep. That’s the Hellweave your sister dreamed up,” Lily responded. She rolled her eyes. “And I wasn’t the one that materialized the ‘lid.”

“Alexis’ complaint is noted,” Seshat said unhelpfully.

“Rrrright.” Alexis placed her hand against the plating. “Can’t wait to see it out on the field. Give quite the fright. Now what, Lily?”

“Now we test out your different modules. The Heavy EXO you’re wearing is meant for our Juggernauts, and comes with built-in defensive subsystems. The first option is the Gas Dispenser, which will typically be used for deploying smoke cover - but could also be utilized to poison surrounding enemies. You can make sure that it actually activates properly with a mental command.”

“Alrighty then.” Alexis moved to get a little more distance from the others. “So this suit can, like… read my synaptic patterns? Is that the right way of saying it, or am I just trying to sound smart?”

“That’s close enough.”

Alexis stopped and concentrated. “Alright. Activating Gas Dispenser.” From exhaust ports on the back of the armor, smoke cover billowed out.

“See? Simple enough.” Lily walked over to the pile of gear, selecting the second and third modules and coming over to insert the former of those two. She had to wait awhile for the smoke to disperse. “Next up is the Distortion Field, which is like a less potent aid protocol… but it affects everyone around you.”

“Sweet. Stand back.” The violet haired vixen in the power suit closed her eyes and extended her arms for the sake of showing off. Much like when the room had been changing appearances, everything within a few meters of Alexis was shifted slightly out of place.

“Alright, and finally… there’s the flashburst. Everyone, please avert your eyes when she uses this unless you want to be seeing spots. This is the flashbang without the bang.” Lily inserted the third module, and then backed off.

For the sake of the others, she turned away (even if she wasn’t sure that would matter). She held out her hands and shouted, “Flashburst!”, as though she was using a super power. An omnidirectional splash of light momentarily surrounded her.

“All subsystems are working according to specifications,” Seshat affirmed.

“Was that… really necessary?” Lily questioned Alexis.

“Well… yeah!” Alexis walked back over. “What is the point over doing something cool without some showmanship?”

“The scientific method,” Heinrich grumbled.

“Alright, and finally…” Lily picked up the successor to the uranium blunderbuss and donned the remaining module. “Allow me to demonstrate the Irradiator Blunderbuss and Flux Shield.” An ADVENT soldier appeared across from her, and Lily approached, firing off a sickly red-orange laser at them that caused them no physical wounds. Still, they collapsed lifelessly to the ground. “Irons worked out the problem we were having with the original blunderbuss. It wasn’t penetrating armor, and thus wasn’t irradiating targets. Now… the shots just bypass armor, and at extreme close range the beam is potent enough to kill a normal human.”

An ADVENT officer formed next. “As for the Flux Shield… it’s based directly off of Seshat’s abilities. The Codex is a being always in motion, never really stable in form. By applying that into a rudimentary shield…” Lily put up a distorted golden bubble around herself, and the officer’s shots were dulled as they passed through it, “you can halve the effectiveness of anything but lasers. It has a hell of a power drain though.”

“Magic bullet sponge and a kick ass radiation gun.” Alexis nodded in approval. “Makes you wonder how long we’d last if ADVENT had our imagination. Luckily, people like Dr. Shen here are inventing for XCOM.”

 

[ZombieSplitter53]

For Those We Must Protect, For Those we Love

1600 Hours, August 16th, 2038
Northern Chile
UCFF Base, Enginnering

Jack sat at a table at the side of the small engineering section of the UCFF base, tinkering with various gizmos. He couldn't help but overhear the UCFF Commander chatting away with some of the soldiers in Spanish, nor could he help a small smile as Rivera walked over. "They really have respect for you, huh?"

Jorge chuckled nervously. "You could understand us, huh?"

Jack shrugged. "You grow up in Chicago, if there is one second language you'll pick up, it's Spanish. At least back then. I guess know it would be some alien language."

Jorge sat with him. "You know... to be honest, sometimes I wonder if their trust and respect is misplaced." He rubbed the slight stubble on his cheek. "I wasn't born a leader, and I wasn't expecting to be one. I make mistakes, I can be impulsive. One of the reasons why your Mr. Bradford doesn't care for me."

Jack shook his head. "I'm sure he likes you just fine."

"Nah, it's okay. I left a bad first impression, and he probably feels he is here to clean up a mess. And maybe he is. I have to be honest, I wasn't that keen on calling XCOM in the first place."

"Oh?" Jack looked up at him while tightening some screws with a small screwdriver that looked comically tiny in his large hands. "May I ask why?"

Rivera chuckled. "It isn't because I don't respect you guys. Quite the opposite. I mean, everyone respects you. Not just here, but everywhere. Whenever I communicate with other resistance groups, they compare everything to XCOM. Engineers want to be as great as people like you. Soldiers, including my soldiers, want to be as great as your soldiers. And I would like to capture at least a small amount of your Commander's greatness. That is why I didn't want to call for your help. Because you're the best. And if I have to turn to the best for help, I am saying I am in big trouble."

Jack nodded in understanding. "Just remember that you guys need our help because of how well you are doing. Which has drawn attention from ADVENT. Sounds a little weird when said out loud, but you're in trouble because you are so good at this."

Jorge shook his head. "Because they are good at this. I am just trying to keep up with my own people."

Irons put down his project to give his full attention to the UCFF Commander. "You know... I haven't been with XCOM since the start. But I have heard stories. You see, Atka has prosthetic left limbs and right eye. She lost them getting our base. Ironic that one of the greatest advantages we have nearly destroyed us by destroying the Commander, as it cost her so much. It was only by getting the advanced prosthetics that she was able to get back into being the Commander you respect, but it took so much work retraining her body. She has faced despair, she has lost family and friends, and she sits with the weight of the world on her shoulder, no matter how much of that weight we try and take from her. So even she, regardless of her greatness, has her doubts."

Rivera smiled. "So if she can handle the entirety of XCOM with all she has gone through, I should stop complaining and just deal with my small group here in Chile."

Jack chuckled and picked his project again. "I wouldn't try to put it in such a harsh manner, but something like that."

Jorge nodded. "Thank you, Mr. Irons. That does help."

"No problem," Jack said simply.

Rivera watched him in silence for a bit before asking, "So what are we working on? I thought this was your time off from the dropship work."

"It is. This is what I enjoy doing in my off time. Tinkering with gadgets and gizmos." Jack pointed to a flat head for Jorge to pass to him. "I like keeping my hands busy." He motioned his eyes to a group of gadgets to the side. "For example, I just finished these a little while ago. Been working on them since I got here."

Jorge picked one up. "Look like the motion sensors we use but... more complicated."

Irons nodded. "That's what they are. They are sensors of my own design. They link up with each other to make a virtual net, and link to a central computer. Each has a small camera to let you see what they see. And they can be paired with special devices your soldiers carry that will send a signal to the sensors so you know if it is one of them setting them off."

"Really?" Jorge chuckled. "That's... wow. Thank you. These will come quite in handy."

"No problem. Like I said, I haven't been with XCOM since the beginning, but I did do what I could to fight the occupation in my own way before. Used these myself. Didn't stop me from being caught and forced into labor for four years, but I would have been caught sooner without them, and they gave me the heads up I needed to destroy my data before they got me."

"And what is this?" Rivera asked, referring to the device in Jack's hands. "It looks like one of those old police speed radar things with a big battery."

Jack nodded. "Used that as a base, but added a few more things to it." Mostly finished with it, he turned it on and handed it to Rivera.

It had a large screen with a green cone cone point up, and three bars at the bottom, one pointing left, one right, and one down. The bar pointing down was lit, and the cone had several dots moving around. Jorge looked at the people walking around in front of him and smiled. "It is a motion tracker. An extremely accurate one."

"Thank you. I do what I can." Jack took it back and pointed at the screen. "These dots will tell you where someone is moving ahead of you in the cone. If someone is moving behind you or to the left or right outside the cone's vision, these bars will light up. This has nothing on the kind of data our battlescanners can provide, and has a limited range, but where as the battlescanners are limited to where they are set up, this is always moving with you. It will help when the enemy knows where you are but you don't know where they are."

"Anything to stop them from getting a jump on us. Thank you." Rivera went back to watching Jack work for a bit before asking. "You have any family, Mr. Irons?"

Jack was a bit caught off guard by the seemingly random question. "Why do you ask?"

Jorge shrugged. "You just work like a man with something to protect. Something to fight for. You see, I fight for the freedom of my people, but more specifically the freedom of my family. They are in the megacity to the south. It is the safest place for them right now, as long as they do not say something to draw ADVENT's attention. They do not know why I did not go with them, and I am sure they would hate me if they knew, but it is not for their love that I fight, but for my love of them."

Jack hesitated, and softly said, "My family doesn't need my protection. My parents are gone, I don't think my uncles made it, and my wife made it clear she didn't want my protection when she cursed the danger I brought by helping the resistance and left with..." He fell silent, the last part a slip.

Rivera scooted a little closer. "Please, do share. I am a man who is good at keeping secrets, you know." He grinned. "And I am also persistent in my search for information."

Jack sighed. "Nobody knows this. I don't want anyone to know. It brings about undue pity. But... I have a son. Jack Jr."

"Yeah? Where is he? How old is he?"

"He'd be..." Jack hesitated as he tried to remember his son's age, a hesitation that hurt him, though he did not show it on his face. "He's ten now. And I don't know where he is. I haven't seen him in going on eight years. His mother didn't want me to be able to find them. It wasn't until after they left that I wondered if she was right. I... I drove them away, and I lost a son because of it."

Rivera frowned. "Would you change it if you could? Leave the resistance to live with them."

Jack stopped what he was doing, slowly placing the motion sensor down. "I've never really thought about that. Not dwelling on the past, you know?" He closed his eyes in thought before answering, "No... I wouldn't. I suppose you and I have something in common. We have people we love. Family we want to protect. We want to be with them, but we have a battle to fight. And even if it means losing the love and respect of the people we most love, we will fight to protect them."

Jorge stood up and patted Jack on the shoulder. "And we will win. But in order to do that, I should leave you alone to do your work. Thank you for sharing, though."

Jack watched as the UCFF Commander walked off for a few seconds before saying. "Nice talking with you, sir."

Rivera looked back and grinned. "Any time."

 

[ZombieSplitter53]

Misplaced Hero Worship

0937 Hours, August 25th, 2038
Somewhere over South America
Onboard the Avenger
Barracks, Chamber's Room

Brigid hummed softly to herself as she worked on her math problems for the day. Math had never been her strong suit, but it was one of Jennifer's, and the young woman had been glad to tutor the girl a bit since she had come on board. Not one for math, or homework in general, Alexis was doing her part by slowly brushing Brigid's hair.

"How are you holding up," Alexis asked as she slowly ran a brush through Brigid's yellow locks.

"Holding up?" Brigid thought for a moment what she meant. "Oh. I'm... o-okay."

"Now, Brigid." Jenn lowered her head a bit. "If you have a problem, you should talk about it. Trying to avoid it only makes it worse." She shot a glance up at Alexis.

Alexis mouthed mockingly, shooting a dirty look back. "Do you miss your mother?"

Brigid sighed. "Mommy said it would only be for a little bit. She told me... I have to be strong. That I'm a big girl now. But... I miss her a lot."

"It's okay, Brig," Jennifer assured her. "Your mom is an even bigger girl, and I bet she misses you just as much. But I heard their mission is just about done, and you'll be seeing her again really soon."

Brigid sighed. "I still remember when I lost my daddy. He was a good man, you know? He was in ADVENT... which I guess are all bad. But he was good. I bet... I bet if he was still here, he would help us, you know? Quit them to be with us... o-or be a spy even."

"I'm sure he would have." Alex put the brush to the side and lifted Brigid onto her lap. "Why don't you tell me a little about him."

Brigid smiled softly. "He was really strong. He taught mom how to fight, you know? And all the other ADVENT people said he was brave. And he was super nice. Him and mom only ever fought a little, and he was friends with all the neighbors. Plus... plus he wasn't my real daddy. But he acted like it. He treated me just like I was, and he adopted me, and he gave me his last name. He was... the best dad in the world."

Jennifer nodded. "Sounds like it."

"He does," Alexis agreed. "But don't worry. We'll make sure ADVENT pays, and stop them before anyone else has to lose their parents. I promise."

"I sure hope so," Brigid said softly.

----------

Chile, South America
Outside the UCFF Base

Ayame dragged Morrigan into the woods near the base by her wrist, pushing her ahead a bit when they reached a small clearing. "Beagán dúr, níos mó láidir, soith beag bídeach!" Morrigan snapped, rubbing her wrist."

Ayame narrowed her eyes. "Watch it. I recognize a few of those words. Watch those tiny shots."

Before Morrigan could comment on that, Luna stepped forward. "Enough trying to avoid me. We are returning soon, and we need to talk."

Morrigan avoided eye contact and muttered, "I wasn't avoiding anyone. I was... busy."

Luna scoffed. "Whatever. We need to talk about that ADVENT soldier you killed."

Morrigan casually leaned against a tree. "You'll have to be more specific. I've killed a lot of ADVENT."

"You know exactly who I'm talking about." The Chinese woman slowly approached. "We had that man under control, and you shot him. Shot him like a woman trying to hide a secret."

The red head folded her arms and shrugged. "He recognized me, and knew I was in XCOM. It wasn't like we could carry around a captive on a sneaking mission. And if we knocked him out, he either would have died when the place blew, or woke u, escaped in time, and lived to let ADVENT know XCOM is involved in this."

"Good thinking," Ayame said. "But that isn't the only reason."

"He knew you because he knew your husband." Luna stopped in front of Morrigan. "And from what he said, it sounds like your husband is still alive."

"Even I've been with XCOM long enough to know one of the main things you're here for is revenge for his death, among other things."

Morrigan turned her head away. "Yes... it sounds like it. What does that have to do with..."

"Do not give me that crap!" Luna snapped. "You knew! That is why you shot him." Morrigan didn't respond, and Luna stepped away, pacing a bit. "You lied to us! You lied to the Commander! You have a husband, a living, breathing, murdering spouse in ADVENT!"

"And?" Morrigan let out a grim laugh. "You think I'm going to hesitate if I encounter him? I'd be happy to kill the bastard myself! Would you be so willing..."

"My sister." Luna squeezed her fists tightly. "I have a sister in ADVENT. And my file reflects that. I don't keep things like from my allies. And the Commander wouldn't have held it against you. But she deserves to know."

Morrigan stepped forward. "But the people I was with before would have! And... and I was so used to lying. Besides, you... y-you don't know what it is like to have to admit that your own husband turned you in to be tortured, tested on, and eventually killed!"

Luna was taken aback by the statement, and slowly shook her head. "I'm sorry. I understand the shame that comes from such a confession. I don't plan on spreading it around to the entirety of the Avenger. But I have a duty to the Commander. I have to tell her. And you'll have to accept the consequences of lying."

Morrigan stepped back to the tree and slid down against it, sighing. "Fine... I understand. I'm... sorry to put you in this position."

Luna nodded. "I'll try and explain your side as best I can."

Luna left the two woman, and Ayame softly said, "It's Brigid, isn't it." She sat next to the Irish woman. "You didn't want anyone to know because you didn't want her to find out."

"Like you would understand," Morrigan snapped, but let out a long breath. "Sorry. It's just... Daniel was so important to her. She meant the world to him... or at least, it seemed that way. And she loved him. He is a hero in her eyes. If she found out it was him..." She slowly pulled her legs close and buried her face against her knees. "Do you mind if I... have a moment alone."

Ayame stood up, and rubbed the woman on the shoulder before leaving her to contemplate the past couple of years.

 

[Dahlexpert]

The fallowing is a colabe between Dhalexpert & Zombiesplatter53 Resolving family issues

On board the Avenger
The Bar
2000 Hours

The bar was unusually quiet at this time of night. A radio by the counter up front was playing some slow, sixty year old song. Alexis sat with her sister, the older sister staring down at her beer bottle, the younger with a hard lemonade. The pair had come to spend some time together and relax after the day's work, but had hardly said a thing, Alexis not in much of a talking mood lately.

Lilith entered the bar, and saw the two sisters. She pared them on their shoulders as she walked up. "Well, it's good to see you two, you both seem kind of down."

Alexis didn't respond, not even looking up. Jennifer, on the other hand, have a small scoff and muttered, "I'm sure you can Guess why. According to dad, you set all of this in motion."

Lilith looked at the two and figured this would happen. "Alright, let's get this started. Yes, I told your dad everything about my son. And dealt with my sons anger, and I understand what he did now." Lilith looked at Alexis, who was still looking at her beer. "Sigh, look Alexis, I'm sorry. I figured that it be better if you know fully what my son did. Instead of you going further into his memories and figuring it out."

"Since you've been gone, I've had my good days, and my bad days. It's... strange," Alexis said softly without looking up. "I know... I needed to know. That I... I-I would find out eventually anyway. But... I can't stop thinking that... that I wish I had never learned this..."

"That's a normal reaction Alexis. Look, what you learned about my son is overwhelming. I understand that, but think about it. Is the Luke you've been with the same one that he told you about? Is this Luke a criminal, or an honorable man?"

Jennifer looked over the bruises on Lilith's face. "Did Luke do that to you?" she asked, Alexis looking up to see what she was talking about. Jenn shook her head. "What... what if Luke hasn't changed? What if he is only directing all is anger and hatred at the aliens and ADVENT? What happens if we win this war, and he no longer has that outlet?" She placed a hand on her sister's arm. "I'm not trying to push one side or the other. I... just don't want my sister to get hurt anymore."

Lilith rubbed the bruises on her face, and looked back at the sisters. "This was the cause of Luke holding in his anger for me for years. This was a completely different matter then what's going on between him and Alexis. Look Alexis, Luke would not do anything to you. I mean think about how many times he could have taken advantage of you. The hospital, every time you two are alone, the first time kissed you. Think of all the times Luke could have gone to far but didn't. He's changed. Or at least he's trying."

"Part of it... isn't a question of will he do it again," Alexis said. "It's... does he deserve forgiveness for what he did."

Jennifer lowered he eyes. "I... I-I don't know if I have any right to speak for someone else or what they've done, but... doesn't everyone deserve a second chance of they work for it?"

"Exactly. Alexis, I know you're hurting. But Luke is also hurting. He wants to earn your trust again. And not just yours." Lilith looked at Jennifer. "He wants to earn your trust and your father's as well. Look Alexis, Luke is not perfect, but please, I'm begging you, give him a chance."

Alexis sighed. She gave Jennifer a small smile. "Still jealous I got him and not you?"

Jennifer puffed her checks a little and blushed, looking away. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Lilith couldn't help but chuckle, then bust out into laughter. "Sigh, you two. You remind me so much of me and my sister."

"H-how so?" Jenn asked, obviously wanting to move to a different subject.

"How do you two remind me of myself and my sister? Scarlet was much different then Alexis. But like her, she was very confident, beautiful, and teased me constantly. Me? I was younger. I kept to myself, didn't really talk to anyone else. You two remind me of us."

"You don't seem very... reserved now," Alexis noted, finally taking a drink.

"What changed me...? I guess having to take care of Luke. I never had a child of my own, so when my sister told me to take care of Luke, I guess that changed me. I failed, of course, didn't raise him properly, and the way he sees it, I left him the first chance I got."

Alexis gave her a sad look. "He shouldn't try to place all the blame on you. Especially when you joined ADVENT for his sake in the first place. You said he was sick, right? And you needed the medicine you couldn't afford otherwise."

"Yeah, I did, and I think he understands that. But after I got the medicine he needed, ADVENT took me a few months after his birth day. That's when I found out he was psionic, so I left Luke behind to keep him from ADVENT. Then the last four years happen."

 

[Dahlexpert]

Part 2

Alexis shoulders slumped. "So... if I break up with Luke... that means you two will probably drift apart too."

Jennifer shook her arm. "That isn't fair. You should think about yourself right now, not others."

"Alexis, the relationship between me and Luke has always been on thin ice. To Luke, I betrayed not only him but our whole family by joining the ones that drove our people to exaction. And I understand where he's coming from, but over time I think Luke has slowly started to forgive me. I joined the resistance, and brought Luke with me. I brought him here and gave him the means to fight ADVENT. But I'm getting off track. Alexis, think about your future. Either Luke will be there or he won't."

"There are so many factors to consider," Joe said from behind Lilith. "Take your time. Don't rush things. The last thing you want is a hasty decision." He looked at Lilith. "Can I talk to you for a second?"

Lilith was taken aback from Joe coming behind her. "Sure. I have plenty of time."

The pair stepped to the side, sitting at a table just out of earshot of the sisters. Joe ran a hand through his finely combed hair and let out a long breath. "Quite the pickle we have here, huh? I..." His eyes darted across Lilith's face. "What happened to you? Did... did Luke...?"

"This was the something that was bound to happen between me and Luke. He held in his anger for me for years. When I told you what happen, what Luke did, that was all he needed to take out years of anger that he had for me out. He always thought that I left him, that I gave up on him. That the moment he joined a gang and when I joined ADVENT, that me joining and getting him healed, that was me leaving him the first chance I got."

"Well, he shouldn't... attack you." Joe ran a hand across his face. "I... I don't know what to do, Lilith. It is Alex's choice. And I'll go with whatever she decides. But I can influence that choice by giving Luke my support or not. And... well, like I said, I don't know what to do right now."

"Well this is their choice. I know how Alexis is feeling, but Luke? Luke is also feeling depressed. I have never seen Luke so defeated. If he were to ever go out, he may use the aliens as target practice. Look, Luke can't even face you three. To him, he thinks you're all angry with him, and want nothing to do with him."

Joe couldn't help a chuckle. "Alex, yes. Jenn? I can see that. But I doubt he gives a crap about me or how I feel. He made that pretty clear the other day. He'd probably do the same thing to me that he did to you if he could get away with it, though probably not stop until my head was bashed in."

"Luke is testy right now, yes. He may not trust you right now. But he does not hate you. He want's you to be there with them. Your opinion matters very much to him, just as much as Alexis."

Joe leaned back. "Luke... told Alex he loves her. Did he mention that to you?"

"Yes, I would have never imagined that. Luke saying he loves someone, that was unexpected. I'm happy that he found someone to care for, but like I said, Luke wants to earn all of your trust again."

Joe slowly leaned forward. A brief look down at the table said he wish he had something hard and intoxicating to drink, but he would have to do with sobriety. "Listen... if... if she loves him... then... she should probably stay with him. I don't know if he has changed, but it is obvious he at least wants to change. And if there is one person that can help him do it, it is Alexis." He held up a finger. "IF... and this is a big if... if he really loves her, and didn't just say that to cover his ass."

"He meant it. Trust me Joe. Luke wants to change. And I'm glad you want to at least try and trust him. Trust me, you will not regret it."

Luke entered the bar wanting to get something to drink, to forget the last few days. He sees the Chambers family and his aunt, he immediately turned around and tried to leave.

Jennifer noticed him, and Joe followed her gaze. He quickly stood up and went after him. "Luke!"

Luke turned his head to them, "Sorry didn't know you guys were in here, I'm just gonna go to the cafeteria and get some water there."

"Luke, please." Joe grabbed his shoulder. "Come... talk to your mother and I."

"What's the point? You're still pissed at me. And she's not my mother, she's my aunt. My mom died years ago."

Lilith looked at Luke. "Luke please, I know you don't want to talk to anyone right now. But please hear him out."

Luke looked between them and sighed."Fine, I will hear what you have to say."

As he say with them, he noted Alexis quickly retreat from the bar, Jenn following after. Joe sighed. "Luke... before we do anything, we need to settle things between you and Lilith."

"There is nothing to settle at all, I refuse to be used by someone who left me the first chance she got."

"I left so ADVENT wouldn't find you. I left because I thought it was the best thing for you."

"Yeah, you wanted me nowhere near ADVENT. Then bring me right to that heart of ADVENT, yeah, that worked out just fine!"

"I thought you could take care of yourself, I never thought you would be attacked, kill the gangs and raiders and then leave the settlement!"

 

[Dahlexpert]

Part 3
You should have have been there then! What, you think you can leave me for years and be a guardian again?! That's not how thing work!" Luke shouted at Lilith, his anger getting the better of him again.

"Luke!" Joe took a deep breath. "Can you at least understand that she had good intentions. She joined ADVENT, usually a one way street, to save you. Doesn't that count for something?"

"Yes, and I'm grateful for her getting the medicine that I needed. But she could have found another way, anything at all. She could have stolen the medicine. But no, you joined the people that killed your sister, my mother, and our whole clan, I would have been happy dying if that meant you never joined the enemy."

Lilith slapped Luke. "How dare you? My sister wanted what was best for you. I wanted what was best for you. You think your mother wanted this life for you? She wanted so much more out of you. She saw you as a young worrier, someone that could have been the next leader of out tribe when she died."

Joe rubbed his wrists nervously. "Alright... listen... I'm... not a counselor. I'm a lawyer... or at least I was twenty years ago, but I'm the best you're going to get. Luke, Lilith was wrong. She made some bad calls. But foresight is a bitch. I'm sure there are plenty of things she wish she could go back and change. There are things... I wish I could go back and change. Like... not making a choice that killed my love and doomed my daughters to this existence. But... there is nothing I can do to change it, no matter how much it kills me inside. Don't you think Lilith's choices, the one's that led to your suffering, kill her inside too?"

Luke rubbed his check and looks at Lilith. "Maybe. I still think she could have found a way to help. Anything would have helped."

"Luke I was a hunter of our people, I was not a healer. I never learned to use the environment to heal wounds.If I did, then yes, I would have healed you. And I taught you to hunt. If I never did that I'm sure you would have never rebelled ageist the gangs and the raiders and left the settlement."

"Here's the thing, Luke," Joe stated slowly. "You want redemption. Forgiveness for what you have done and to prove you are not the same person. But isn't your aunt doing the same? To seek forgiveness, you should be willing to give it. Lilith can never take back what happened. But she loves you. She is your mother now, for better or worse. And I know something about child and parent growing apart. I went through this once with... um, someone else. Don't let it happen to you too."

Luke looked between Joe and his aunt. He rubbed his head ,thinking about what they both said to him, and sighed. "Fine. I understand what your saying and I get it. I should be willing to forgive my aunt for what she's done. Very well. I will try to forgive everything you did."

Lilith pat Luke's head. "Thank you son, I greatly appreciate it. Now there's the problem of the purple haired woman that left here fairly quickly."

"Yes, well..." Joe sat back and shook his head. "That's a horse of a different color, isn't it?"

"Yeah, and darling, by this point, is long gone probably back to her quarters." Luke lowered his head. "Tch, I tell someone I love them and now they can't even face me, how funny that life still feels the need to knock me down."

Joe huffed, and crossed his arms. "Jeez, Lilith. For all your talk about the Van Dams, I thought they'd be more determined then this. Didn't take Luke for such a quitter."

Luke slammed his fist down and stared down Joe. "Who are you calling a quitter?!"

Lilith lightly pulled Joe's shirt. "Um, Joe? Calling us quilters is a personal insult."

Joseph gave Luke an unimpressed look. "Then why is he being such a quitter? Seems to me he gave up. If I'm right, just a little bit ago, he saw us and tried to run away with his tail between his legs."

Luke's anger started to boil over. Lilith saw what Joe was trying to do, and joined in. "He has a point Luke. Our people always faced our troubles head on. We never backed down. Even in a relationship. So why did you try to run from them?"

"I'm giving them space, to make their decision about me."

Joe shrugged, and let out a sad sigh. "Very noble. Doesn't explain all this quitter talk now. 'Oh, she's never going to talk to me again'. 'Alex will never face me again'. 'Told her I love her right before I lost her'. I don't think I want my girl with such a wimp."

"Fine!" Lukes anger finally got "You want me to prove myself to your daughter?! Fine then! I'm sick of this feeling sorry for myself garbage anyway." Luke stormed out of bar,

"I hope you know what your doing, Joe." Lilith said. "Now that Luke has a new motivation, who knows what he's going to do? I'm sure he's going straight to Alexis right now."

"Good." Joe stood up. "To be honest, Alex... refuses to talk about Luke. Makes it hard to make a decision if she refuses to address the problem. I doubt this will be solved today, but at least it'll get the ball rolling. Towards what conclusion? Who knows?" He walked to the bar. "For now... I need a shot."

"Yeah, me too after today. Oh, and thank you for defending me. I very much appreciate it."

"Anytime," Joe simple responded.

 

[Dahlexpert]

Part 4

The Chambers' Room

Alexis held her arm over her eyes, laying on her bed. "Leave it alone, Jennifer. I don't want to talk about it."

Luke barged the door open and looked at the sisters "Jennifer, would you mind giving me and my girlfriend a few minutes alone."

Jennifer jumped, and held up her hands. "No, I... w-what are you going to do to her?"

"For the love of god, calm down. I'm not going to do anything to her. I need to talk to my girlfriend, and do something that I should have done days ago. And that is show Alexis why I still care for her."

Jennifer looked nervous, but slowly nodded. "I-I'm... gonna be right outside though, so... n-no funny business." She reluctantly stepped out.

Alexis sighed, but didn't move her arm from her eyes. "Pro tip, Luke. Don't bust a door down then expect everyone on the other side to be calm about it."

"Don't care, we need to talk about what happens. I'm done running from this, and I will not allow you to avoid me like a child."

"I-I... I amnot avoiding you like a child, Luke!" Alexis sat up. "I said I need time to think. An I can't do that when you're... you'rehere!"

"Really? You're not avoiding me? Then what do you call earlier? The moment I entered that bar you rushed out, I don't know what you call that but that's called running away."

Alexis sat up. "I only left because my father had to keep you from running, you hypocritical ass!"

"Fine. I tried to leave because I did what you're doing. I didn't want to talk about this. But I'm done running. I insult myself from running away from the best thing to come into my life. I refuse to lose you over something I did over ten years ago."

Alexis shook her head. "You can't force me to stay with you. That isn't how this works. I'm sorry, but you can't use your strength and fear on everything."

"I'm not going to force you to do anything, I'm here to make my case. So will you hear me out. or will you just not and just run?"

"I am not running!" Alexis shouted, almost childishly, her face turning red. She panted angrily for several before finally saying, "Just... say what... you wanna say."

"Fine!" Luke cleared his thoughts, and calmed himself down."You wanna judge me on what I did in the past right? On things that I did over almost ten years ago. I admit what I did was wrong, but more importantly it was the past, that's not the person I am now."

Alexis folded her arms. "So, what? If enough time passes, the terrible things you do don't matter anymore? Apparently I can go shoot... I don't know, Yakone, leave for ten years, and tell Lily, 'Lay off, it is in the past!' Is that it?!"

"Fine, maybe the past matters, but people change. Do you know how many times I could have taken advantage of you and didn't. The second time we met, when I had you across the table and I was on top of you. The hospital when I fondled you, and when we were in bed together kissing. There were so many chances that if I was my old self could have taken advantage of you!"

"I don't want to hear that anymore! Just because you didn't those times doesn't mean the first time you really want it but I say no, you would probably just have your way with some other..." Alexis fell silent, and held her hands over her mouth, shocked by her own accusation. "No, I... I mean... I didn't..."

"What, you think that if you turn me down I'm going to go to who? Your sister? Qwen, Yak? You think I would choose any woman over you? You think I would go to any woman on this ship to satisfy me! How can you belittle not just me, but yourself? Does an 'I love you' mean nothing now?"

Luke rubbed his head. "When I said I loved you, that was not some in the moment bull shit! I love you and damn it I would never betray your trust in me. Or did you never have it to begin with? Maybe you just went with what I did the whole time, letting me take the lead. Maybe you don't care for me, maybe you just said I love Luke just to anger your dad."

"No! That... that..." Alexis lowered her gaze. "That isn't true. I meant it. Yeah, it was in the moment. Yeah, getting my dad to back off was part of it. But... b-but I really did... do... Luke, I..."

Luke looked at Alexis, and sees that she was stumbling. Luke couldn't help but laugh." Ha ha look at you, you're stuttering, you're confused. You really are hopeless aren't you?" Luke said while grabbing her hands and clenching them. "Darling, when will you realize I'm not going anywhere, I'm going to stay right here by your side no matter what."

Alexis pouted, her cheeks puffing up. "I wasn't worried about... y-you... still need to prove you're a changed man. But... m-maybe... someone could help you with that. Someone... like me."

Luke smiled at Alexis, almost relieved. "Are you saying you'll stick by me, or are you trying to look adorable?" Luke teasing Alexis.

Alexis sighed. "I... I-I still need time, Luke. This is a lot to digest, you know. But..." She smiled softly. "I promise I won't run any more."

Luke hugged Alexis. "Well you're not as angry as you were before, and it's a start for us fixing things. I just wish our first fight wasn't about my past."

Alexis softly hugged him back. "I'm going to talk to Jenn a bit. But maybe we can... I don't know, grab a bite to eat or something tomorrow?"

 

[Dahlexpert]

Part 5

"Yeah I would like that, take things one step at a time."

As Luke headed out, he opened the door and had Jennifer stumble forward, right into his arms. "What? No! I wasn't... listen, shut up!" she rambled incoherently.

Luke looked at her and back at Alexis."Your sister is a terrible liar." Luke looked back at Jennifer. "And your sister is fine, I did nothing to her."

"I know!" Jenn snapped, then cleared her throat. "I mean... I know. What makes you think I was ever worried about that?"

"The fact that you were listening, and that you were probably so into it that your in my arms right now, and haven't moved yet."

Jennifer scoffed, and pushed away from with. "You, just..." She pointed to the door. "Out! Or, I... I'll kick your butt!"

Luke, looking unimpressed with the green hair woman, decided to just do what she wanted and leave. But he turned around and looked at Alexis l. "Oh, and darling? I look forward to tomorrow. It's been a while since we actually had a regular date. I hope we can have a lot of fun together again."

Alexis nodded. "Remember Luke; one step at a time."

"Yeah yeah I get it, though if you expect me to stop flirting, you have a better chance of getting the aliens to surrender. Or I could stop flirting with you and be ordinary as hell, and just down right boring." Luke said teezing Alexis.

Alexis rolled her eyes. "You and I both know that would be death to you." She smiled softly. "And me."

Luke chuckled at Alexis statement. "Sigh nice to see that through all this, my girl still has her rebel like attitude."

Alexis chuckled. "See you tomorrow, Luke."

"Yeah see you tomorrow." Luke left the room and whispers to himself, "Thanks Joe and Lilith, for giving me the kick in the ass I needed, thank you both."

 

[Black0ut]

The Constant of Life: Pain, Part 1

0938 hours
Aboard The Avenger


Red strolled through the hallways of the Avenger, getting his daily walk in while trying to see the sights. He saw many of his colleagues and gave them a warm, albeit wry, greeting. After he completed his daily tour of the allowed areas on the Avenger, he quietly walked back to his room, making sure no one saw him.

Upon entering, Mark uttered a deep and heavy sigh, his fake display of cheerfulness getting to him. The days leading him to this point had been rough, and made him brittle, but it never compared to how painful that day would be. The Sioux man walked to his bunk sitting down and taking out a flask. He drank the entire contents of the container, his mood too sour, and too bitter, to care for any of the consequences that could arise, whether they be from handed down from the commander herself.

Mark threw the flask on the ground and proceeded to stomp on it, his anger forcing itself out on his surroundings. After a few moments, Red picked up the flat remains of the metal flask, shoving it into his pocket so his fellow roommates wouldn’t see it. Red then flopped onto his bed, tired and frustrated. As he began to drift to sleep, a memory floated up, one that he had fought to suppress for years, but always failed, the accursed thing always returning within the first three months of the ‘day’.

--------------
5 years ago
--------------

“Graves! Why are you sleeping? It’s business hours! What if a client came in? What-” Red started, keen on lecturing his mentor on his manners, until another voice interrupted. It belonged to a fairly average-sized man, whose hair had just begun to turn grey. He wore a white shirt underneath a brown leather duster coat, accompanied by a faded pair of blue jeans. The man had a long scar that stretched past his left eye, but was mostly hidden underneath the grey-ish fedora.

“Red, I keep telling you, it’s fine. There ain’t too much crime here, and the local militia acts as our police force. We’re as safe as we’re gonna get.” Graves explained, hoping to alleviate Red’s anxiety, “I’m happy we don’t have a case. That would typically mean someone got killed, and I’d rather have no work in a day, than have to bury a friend. And, for the last time, just call me Nick.”

“It’s a culture thing, Graves. Y’know, a sign of respect? Something that you don’t have for anyone, much less your partner?” Red shot back, as he took a seat at his rusted desk, as he began to re-organize their files.

Nick glared at Red for a brief moment, before casually responding with, “Well, much better to be considered an asshole that does good things for others, than a good guy that does asshole-ish things to the people he protects. Besides, I know you’ve been enjoying our latest moment of peace, since you’ve been having fun with that girl on your so-called ‘Men's night out’.”

Mark froze, his hand hovering over the desk with an old case’s details scrawled with bad handwriting. He didn’t speak for several moments as his brain processed the words. “H...how? I… We met in secret! We didn’t even show that we liked each other in town, much less that we’ve been dating!”

“Two words, kid. Private. Investigator. That means I keep tabs on everyone that I know.” Graves looked at his acolyte-turned-partner, a sly grin appearing, “You didn’t think I got to be 46 by not knowing my friends? Oh, please. I’ve know about your ‘secret’ since it began. But I won’t tell anyone about it as long as I get to catch some shuteye for the rest of today.”

Red’s faced turned the same color as his nickname, before he let out a heavy sigh, “Fine, fine. Graves, you sure can be dick when you want to…” Mark trailed off as he continued his task.

“Takes one to know one, Rookie. And it’s Nick. N-I-C-K. Nick. Try saying it a few times, maybe that’ll help you out of your current predicament.” Nick quipped grinned lazily, as the front office door opened, revealing a woman in her early twenties, with a desperate look in her eyes. She had long, brown hair, and had a slender frame that hid the underlying muscles she had.

Her frantic green eyes fell on Mark, as she attempted to calmly compose herself, but failed miserably. “Mark, I think someone trying to kill me. I got death threats, and… my parents are missing. I think I need help.”

“Oh… um… well do you have any idea who could be gunning for you, Ms. Daniels? And take your time, as you just went through a terrible circumstance.” Mark asked, putting his detective persona on, as a means to disconnect from the rather personal connection he had with her.

“I don’t know… my family’s had a few enemies, like the…” The woman began, as her eyes widened in sudden clarity, “Avilas. Destiny Avila. She said that she was going to settle the blood debt between our families… oh god… She’s going to kill me isn’t she?! Oh god… you gotta help me, Mark! Please! I need you more than ever…”

“Sage… of cou-” Red started before being interrupted by Nick.

“Excuse us, Ms. Daniels.” Graves said quickly, getting up and motioning for Red to follow. Upon reaching the other side of the room, Graves sighed and turned to face Mark. “Something doesn’t feel right. Her information came far too quick for it to not be a trap, and she’s faking her emotions. Something’s up and I don’t think we should accept.”

Red stood in shock, which quickly shifted to anger and rage. “What the hell, Graves? What the fuck is the matter with you? I know Sage. She would never tell such a horrible lie, for any reason.” Mark growled, keeping his voice to a level only he and Nick could hear.

“That doesn’t mean that she immediately innocent. Don’t let your hormones mess with your head, kid. That leads to an early grave.” Graves cautioned, glancing over at Sage.

“I don’t need your help, Graves. I’ll help her myself if I have to!” Red yelled, his anger being unleashed.

“I didn’t say that.” Graves responded, contemplating his options. Finally, the older detective sighed, “I’ll go. If she is in that much danger, I’m more suited to dealing with any threat, and I can find clues faster than you. Plus, if something’s amiss, they’ll target this office, which means one of us will have to stay here regardless. Please, at least trust me with this.”

 

[Black0ut]

The Constant of Life: Pain, Part 2


Red looked back at the girl he loved, and turned to his closest friend, his thoughts playing out in a display of uncertainty. After a few minutes, he responded with a grumble, “Ok. Fine. You go…”

Sage was patiently waiting for the pair to finish up, fidgeting and looking ever fearful for her life. She then asked, “W-what do you think I should do, Red?” Her tone was shaky, despite her trying to remain calm.

“I… My mentor’s going to go and investigate your house with you. If the criminal is as dangerous as you say he is, you’ll need the best we have. And should he come here, I’ll make sure he doesn’t leave.” Red responded, his tone a bit more melancholy than normal.

She nods, almost reluctantly as she likely would have wanted him to go with in place of Graves.

Graves walked over to the door and opened it, gesturing for Sage to follow. As the two departed, Red sat down in his chair and began to pour through his cases. Charon, please watch over him. He’s more likely to get hurt than I am. Red mentally asked, slightly worried if his cohort was right.

As you wish. I’ll protect Master Graves from harm. A deep gravelly voice psied. The wolf spirit followed Graves, and subsequently Sage, out the door into the crisp evening air.

After an hour and a half, the door shakily moved as if someone was trying to open it. Red grabbed the spare gun under the desk and got behind said desk, aiming the weapon at the door.

After a couple of moments, the door opened and Graves staggered in, his attire torn and bloody. “Hey...kid. I found… that ADVENT hates their elders… At least I took out the men who ambushed me...for the most part.” Graves reported, his whole appearance horrifying. He was missing his left arm, which had a knot hastily tied to try to prevent flow, but due to it’s poor quality, it was doing a horrible job at keeping Graves blood inside. He also had a gaping hole in his head where his right eye should have been. The wounded detective walked slowly over to his chair and sat down.

“Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit! No, no, no! What the hell happened, Nick!” Mark replied frantically, as he rushed over to his mentor.

“Your girl… Sage. She played you. She isn’t in love with you. In fact, she’s trying to get into ADVENT’s ranks and get a decently high position in their ranks. Guess the quickest way to do so? Get unique individuals to ADVENT and from that point… I don’t know. They either kill you outright or try to ‘science’ you by cutting you open. That’s my guess at least.” Graves murmured wearily, grabbing the young Sioux man,and looking him in the eyes. “Find the resistance cell towards the west, and join it. Be careful and cautious as people aren’t nice as you naively think they are.”

“Graves, don’t talk like that! You’ll make it out of this fine, you’ll see! Just hang in there!” Red desperately cried out, rushing around the office like a madman, searching for any medicinal supplies.

“Red...shoot me. I don’t want to bleed out slowly, and you...you need to get the hell out of dodge.” Graves murmured, as he once again stared into his protégé’s eyes.

Red paused, tears streaming down his face as he slowly grabbed the revolver off the floor and shakily aimed it at his friend and mentor. Mark struggled to fire, and instead lowered the gun. “I...I just can’t do it… I can save you! Just let me get so-” The young Sioux man said.

“Red...it’s ok. You don’t even have to look when you do it. Besides, I've lost too much blood already.” Nick murmured, on the verge of passing out, his eyes practically pleading with Mark, "Please."

Nodding slowly, Red aimed the gun at Nick, closing his eyes simultaneously. Breathing in, he let out a blood-curling scream, as he fired, the sound more deafening than Mark’s scream. The memory seemed to shatter, as if something was protecting Red’s sanity.

-------------------
Present Times
-------------------

Several tears streamed down the large man’s face, the memory seared into his brain. Why… why didn’t I listen to you?! Why didn’t you let me go instead? Why...why did you leave me to rot away with this fucked up world…? Dammit! Red thought, standing up. He began pacing, his mostly bottled emotions finally giving way, Red’s control ebbing away. Okay...I need to do something. Anything. If I don’t… I may try the airlock and see how good I can fly… No! I...I...I have to be positive… Mark began wiping the almost dried tears away, a new look of resolve on his face. Besides, I already have people who’d shed a tear for me. People who genuinely care about me. I can’t let them suffer for something so selfish and petty. I’ll just… drink. I’ll go to the bar and wash my sorrows away and I won’t feel like shit. Probably. The large man threw open the door and proceeded to his aforementioned destination, the revolver he used so many years ago lying in it’s case under his bed.

 

[DarkGemini24601]

A Warrior Awakens, Part 1

1417 Hours, August 17th, 2038
Somewhere over South America
Onboard the Avenger
Floor 1, Front Block
The Engine Room

Prior to the end of the Chilean Operation

Yakone Ipiktok sat at one of the lab tables, resting a cheek in the palm of her hand. The Inuit-Caucasian's boot tapped against the floor, making a regular clang as leather met steel at steady intervals. Her beam PDW and deactivated las-blade lay on the counter in front of her; the Ranger's shortened scatterlaser was on her hip. "Tygan, are you sure that the Codex is working for you now? Seems like she's being vindictive."

The Chief Scientist glanced at the brain of XCOM's synthetic A.I., which was currently lying on the examination table. "Be patient. Seshat is decrypting the data at the fastest possible speed."

Yakone groaned, glaring at the Codex brain before shifting her gaze over to the stasis tube - the occupant being whom the encrypted information concerned. "What's so important about him?" she mumbled, the now-clear glass revealing a heavily muscled man within.

"If the Shieldbearer prototypes that Judgement Squad fought were any indication," Heinrich remarked as he knelt in front of the vitals monitor, "I imagine a lot."

"Or 'defective' could mean he's useless, kraut," Yakone contested with a grin.

"When have I ever given you permission to use my squad's joke on me?" Bauer snapped. "I don't call you 'half-Eskimo', do I?"

"What are you going to do about it?" Yakone contested. "That insult wouldn't bother me."

"Tell your boyfriend how you oogled the sleeping clone's dick," Heinrich replied with a small smirk as he stood back up.

A flash of anger stole away Yakone's smile. "I am not staring at the Shieldbearer's junk, you lying asshole!"

Heinrich chuckled triumphantly. "Then don't call me 'kraut' and I won't... 'mistakenly' tell Leon that."

Yakone merely growled in response. A few seconds later, the Codex's optics lit up, and Seshat's luminous body reformed as she hopped off the table she'd been resting on. "Decryption finished. Would you like for me to read off the termination assessment file, doctor?"

"Yes. Go ahead."

Seshat brought up the file as a 'holographic panel' in her head that only she could see. She began to speak. "Final Entry for Adam Brock, Serial Number ES-08721."

***​

"From the completion of his artificial growth, 08721 has experienced behavioral anomalies, the likely culprit being the heightened level of Balmadaar DNA included into his genetic makeup. Upon being awoken once his period of accelerated growth had completed, Adam attempted to strangle one of the science staff technicians and had to be tranquilized. Afterwards, he had his adrenaline levels forcibly lowered from a buildup that occurred during the aging process. He calmed after that, but tended to ask questions about what he was and became obsessed with Balmadaar warrior culture after seeing one on-site.”

"Adam repeatedly attempted to give himself ritual tattoos like the ones he had seen, and lashed out when corrected verbally or physically. In addition, he refused certain orders such as eliminating unarmed combatants in simulations. The final incident involved another attempt to ritually scar himself. 08721 responded to remedial action by breaking his chief handler's neck. Brock will be terminated in his sleep after a final neurophysical analysis to ensure that further prototypes do not suffer the same issues as this one."

***​

"Jesus," Yakone uttered after Seshat had finished. "And people say I have anger issues," she grumbled incoherently.

"Are you reconsidering waking him up now?" Heinrich asked Robert. "He sounds dangerous."

Tygan rubbed his chin, then replied, "No." Explaining himself, the African American continued, "He became violent when he wasn't about to perform his... rituals... and when asked to perform unethical actions. If we allow him his... eccentricities, we shouldn't have much to worry about him." The scientist looked at Yakone.

"What?"

"Be ready to assume a defensive role just in case. But please... don't antagonize him."

Yakone rolled her eyes. "I'll be good," she reassured him as she put her sword in it’s sheathe on her back.

Tygan nodded to Heinrich. "Wake him up."

The Hispanic-German got to it, receiving the proper access codes from Seshat as well as making sure those were the unlock sequence and not the termination sequence. The liquid began to drain into a small canister on the side that heated up to evaporate the preserving gels harmlessly as puffs of steam. The Shieldbearer prototype inside lurched slightly as he no longer floated, though restraints within - ones that looked as if they were not part of the standard tube design - kept him from slamming his head into the glass. Once the interior was dry, the glass slid around, disappearing into the solid back of the stasis container - and Adam began to stir.

The clone slowly opened his ocean blue eyes, scanning the room and seeming drowsily oblivious to the three people in front of him at first. However, he seemed to be quickly snapped out of his stupor as he realized that he was not in the blacksite any longer. His gaze jumped from Robert to Heinrich to Yakone, and with a snarl he rushed the Ranger - picking her out as the most threatening target.

Ah, shit. An emerald glow crackled around Yakone's fist as she initiated her Overdrive from that point and she threw a punch at the freight train of an ADVENT soldier that was bearing down on her. To the Inuit-Caucasian's surprise, he caught her fist in his, and twisted with a monstrous strength. "Aghh! Let go!"

Rather than do that, Adam tackled her to the ground like a football player, and raised his other hand - this one balled into a fist like Yakone's. With a mental prayer, the Ranger used the physical enhancement technique her mother had showed her recently, and increased her strength in her legs to deliver a powerful kick to the Shieldbearer's gut. That shoved him backwards, preventing his punch from landing and likely knocking her out. Still, Adam seemed more caught off-guard than hurt, taking a fighter's stance instead of hunching over in pain. "What are you made of, iron?" Yakone complained as the door into the laboratory opened, and the base's one and only official security guard stepped in with a laser pistol in hand.

"Don't move," Christoffer warned the Shieldbearer, his aim steady and his tone final.

"You're strong," Adam said in a baritone to Yakone, seemingly to pay only partial attention to the armed guard. "Who are you?"

"You could have asked that before attacking me," Yakone growled, shaking her hand to get the pins and needles out as her biokinesis healed the strain placed on it by 08721's grip. "My name's Yakone Ipiktok."

"Where am I?"

"Uh..." Yakone rubbed the back of her neck. "Let me ask you something first. Do you know what the scientists that were working with you planned on doing with you after you killed one of them?"

"No." Brock crossed his arms, eyeing Tygan with clear suspicion. "Don't recognize him."

"He's... not one of them," Yakone informed Adam. "They were planning on killing you. We more or less rescued you."

"You attacked the facility." Adam considered her words. "Resistance?”

Cautiously, Yakone answered, “yeah.”

“I should kill you,” the Shieldbearer stated as more of a fact that a threat. That didn’t stop Yakone from tensing, placing a hand on the handle of her las-blade. The man across from her lowered slightly into a stance that suggested he would charge if he needed to - seemingly unafraid of the gun pointed at him from behind.

“Yakone!” Tygan protested.

“How do you expect me to react to that?” she shot back.

“I won’t warn you again, move and I shoot,” Christoffer insisted.

“ES-08721’s telekinetic shielding would render that attack moot.” With a flash of golden light, Seshat teleported in-between the two most directly involved in the standoff. “Please, there is no need for hostilities,” she asserted, holding up her hands out to either side. “If ADVENT were going to terminate you, then obeying their orders serves no purpose. In addition, they did not allow you to carry out the rituals you desired to perform. Your options are, as I understand them, three in number. You can leave the ship, be imprisoned onboard, or join the Resistance.”

Adam eyed the synthetic being, stoically considering those three options. I have no understanding of what it is I would do on my own, Brock considered. And imprisonment would be a result of attempting to fight. Escape is a possibility, but ultimately meaningless. There is only the question of if I can trust them. It seemed he had little choice in more ways than one. “I was born to be a warrior,” the Shieldbearer spoke up. “I will join you.”