《Zulu》
Chapter 01 - The Room
In a dark room with no light a naked man falls to the ground with smoke rising all around him.
¡°Where am I¡± The man on the ground asks but receives no answers
¡°A.I, where am I?¡± The man asks again as he breathes deeply and rolls onto his back upon the steel grated floor.
¡°A.I, Time Log¡± the man says out loud as he finds out that he is not blind but that it is dark.
¡°A.I, Date¡± the man says again as he brushes his hands across the ground to find that it is dusty.
¡°A.I Reboot¡± the man says yet again as he realizes that he is not wearing his head gear.
There still being no reply, still no answer the man moves to his feet, he does not know the layout of the room he is in and thus moves slowly, touching everything as he moves; soon finding his head gear covered in dust.
Wiping it down he brings it to the right of his head and activates it with his eyes shut. The head gear has one glass that sticks out to cover the right eye and goes back to cover the ear. When it activates wires go into the right ear, diving into it, breaking through the ear drum, clasping onto the skull and attaching itself with wires to the brain.
| [System activation in motion] |
Is what the man sees even with his eyes shut as he bends over and grabs his head in pain whilst the head gear sets-up
| [System activation complete] |
¡°Where am I¡± he gasps out as his hands hit the ground bent over from the excruciating pain he felt.
¡°Date¡±
¡°How long have I been unconscious?¡±
¡°Show map¡±
| [No maps founds. location unknown. personal mapping booting] |
¡°Contact HQ¡±
¡°Suggestions¡±
| [Find Provisions. Survive. Get Out. Search for HQ] |
¡°Where is my team?¡±
| [Unknown. Personal map loaded] |
A transparent image appears upon the screen covering the right eye, the map appearing has only the location he has been, and that is only the one room that he is in; He pays no mind to this though but instead asks again.
¡°Where is my team!?¡±
| [***** Team. Unit ****. Unknown] |
¡°Messages¡±
| [3 unread message. 2083 read messages] |
¡°Display¡±
¡°How old are these messages¡±
¡°Rough estimate¡±
¡°When did you cease functioning, rough estimate¡±
¡°Night Vision¡±
His view slowly adjusts to that of a light green coloured room. A single table and chair can be seen with a bag upon the table and a pistol on the seat. Moving over to it he picks up the pistol first and finds it covered in dust and in need of a clean. One clip of ammunition is positioned next to the bag that was blocked out of view from where he was standing.
| [Pistol ammunition ¨C 12 shots] |
Putting the pistol and clip aside he searches through the bag and finds 12 ration packs, 6 bottles of water, one set of military clothing with a belt, Rope, a serrated edge knife and a cleaning kit.
| [12 Ration Packs. 12 litres of water. 30 metre rope] |
After putting the clothes, belt and knife on. He sits upon the seat and grabs the pistol and cleaning kit. Dis-assembling the weapon part by part and wiping each individual piece down.
*I have 4 full days of food and water, it can be stretched to a healthy 12 days, but I can have it last for 24 days, half a ration pack each day and still be able to function.* is what he thinks to himself.
| [24 days of half ration packs] |
*Why was my date postponed?*
This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.
*How come I¡¯ve been let out?*
With the pistol pieces he finds that it¡¯s missing the firing pin and thus making the pistol useless. Sighing he puts the pistol to his belt, even though it¡¯s useless he knows may find a use for it.
*Confirmation that you stopped working after 20 years*
*Latest information on situation*
*Who authorised data deletion?*
| [Major ***** Head of Unit ****] |
*Damn it* he thinks to himself whilst putting on the backpack.
Moving across the green illuminated room caused by his night vision he grabs the dusty door handle and gradually turns it open, letting light slowly seep into the room.
Yellow light shines through the small gap, changing the colours of the room from green to sunset or sunrise yellow, green leaves can be seen through the door and he continues to slowly open it with knife at the ready but the door stops after it gets 10 cm away from the frame.
*Analyse problem*
| [Door blocked. Unknown object. Not electrical] |
Pulling the knife from his belt he puts it through the gap and uses it as a mirror. A Rock¡A slab of rock that looks like it was carved and placed there on purpose blocks the door.
*Suggestions*
*Not possible*
Looking back at his knife through the door he changes the angle and examines what¡¯s around. Trees, Leaves, Branches and more rocks. Putting down his bag he grabs the rope and ties the knife to the end of it. Roots of a specific tree that is near the edge of what seems to be a cliff is in a direct straight line and dives under the rock. Wedging his bag in the 10cm gap to keep it open he spins the knife upon the rope and throws it to the tree, making it shake from impact but nothing else. Pulling the knife he forces it free and brings it back, then spins it again and throws it through the gap. Hitting it again, making it shake again and then he repeats.
| [Advice. Sun is set. Get some rest] |
*I¡¯ve had enough rest*
| [Advice. Eat Ration pack] |
*Will do after I¡¯ve gotten this door open*
Ignoring his AI the AI stops giving advice. The sound of metal hitting wood continues to repeat throughout the whole night, making the tree shake more and more each time. The soil becomes unstable and only when yellow light seeps back through the morning does something happen. With a loud crack like that of thunder the tree gives way, moving forward, tumbling over the edge of the cliff. The roots lift from underground cracking the soil, ripping the ground apart and sends the slab of rock flying into the air. The floor in the room starts to shake.
¡°Shit¡±
If only moving the rock was the only thing it did. The door gets ripped out, then the sound of metal weakening resounds throughout the room. Grabbing onto what he can, which is nothing, he curls himself into a ball with his bag and rope as the room is pulled away from its structure. It tumbles forward, ceiling becoming ground and ground becoming ceiling over and over until it slides to a stop with the door pointing to the sky.
¡°Re¡Report¡± he wheezes out whilst laying in rubble.
| [Multiple fractures. Internal injuries. Commence concentrated healing?] |
*Yes* he thinks to the AI.
| [Bone re-construction in progress. Organs being repaired. Foreign objects being removed.] |
¡°Arrgh!¡± he screams as the healing progress continues. Tears leaking from his eyes without him knowing.
| [Healing complete. Advice. Eat four ration packs to restore lost vitamins and minerals] |
¡°Equipment¡.location¡± he wheezes out in slow words breathing hard from the process.
| [Bag to your right, under table and chairs. Rope hanging from door. Knife tied to end of rope. Pistol at your waist] |
Taking a deep breath then steadily letting it back out moves over to his bags location, digging through the rubble and moving the table and chairs. Opening the bag and eats 4 rations packs each containing a chocolate bar, Spam, bread, canned fruit and a Harvest can.
| [16 days of half ration packs] |
White light shines into the room from an angle, it has not past midday, or maybe it already has, all that is known is that the sun is still in the skis. Zipping his bag shut and putting it on he climbs out into the light, leaving his now destroyed room that held him for more than 20 years.
Next Chapter - Chapter 02
Chapter 02 - Non Human
Chapter 02 - Non Human
Climbing out of the room proved to be not difficult to him at all. Even though his muscles had not been in use for more than 20 years the coffin like bed he slept in ensured that even though he didn¡¯t exercise, didn¡¯t move, he was kept in the condition he entered in.
Stretching into the skies whilst standing upon the room he looks up.
| [Satellite Connection Established. No Servers Found. Unable to connect to HQ] |
*Time* he thinks
| [Unable to Download Time Data] |
*Time using the positioning of the sun*
*Date*
| [Unable to download Date Data. Weather suggest to be winter.
More Weather Data required.] |
*Location*
| [Unable to Download Location Data. Shadow Positioning suggest southern hemisphere] |
*Nearest base*
| [Scanning wide. Topography suggest possible base location to the south] |
*Show*
| [Mini Map Display activated] |
A small map showing contour lines and a few red dots appear showing possible base locations. Seeing that the closes red dot was in the southern areas the man begins to walk towards it. Moving at a moderate pace he sticks to thick cover moving fast in open areas only if he was unable to find a way around them.
Moving through the forest he realises that the forest is weird. Even though he has passed by rivers, lakes, trees and open grass lands there he has not passed by any living creature. No wolves, no lizards, no bugs, no fishes and most of all no birds. The forest he moves through has nothing. Noticing all of this he still opts to move forward as there is nothing else he can do. He must find a base.
Thinking about the strangeness of the situation as he moves the man doesn¡¯t see the sun set and only notices that its night when there is no more light; thus he trips and lands face first into the soft ground.
*Time*
Lifting his head the man looks for a place to make camp. He decides to not make a fire as the light from one would be too noticeable from afar.
His world turns green through his right eye and moves towards a big looking tree. The first branch is a solid 10 metres from the ground, too high to just jump for. Taking his rope from his pack he ties the pistol to it as for weight. Holding one end of the rope he throws the pistol end over the branch and it drops over to the other side. Retrieving the pistol he climbs the tree.
Reaching the branch he sits upon it and looks around. Truth be told he could just climb higher and sleep on a branch as it offers good cover from below and above (leaves from multiple trees), his military clothing are I.R proof (infrared proof) and thus his body heat except from his head and hands could not be seen.
However, instead of climbing up he spots light in the distance. A dim source of light that he only saw thanks to his night vision capabilities.
*identify*
*Distance*
| [Approximately half a click] |
*Time*
*Leave time display in miniature form*
| [Miniature time display activated] |
Surveying the trees and branches around him, he begins jumping from branch to branch, ascending at some points then descending at others. Moving towards the fire. It is the first sign of life he has seen all day.
Upon reaching the 100 metres mark he slows his pace to the fire. Practically crawling but in branches he advances up to the fire. At 30 metres away he stops completely and slows his breathing. He looks at the single person at the fire and watches if there is anybody else around.
Not sure whether to advance and speak to the person or retreat and pretend he were never there he lies upon the branch for a while. The time is 22:24. At 22:30 he decides to advance. He needs information.
Dropping down from the branch, he opts to make noise and not to stealthily approach, as he does not want to seem a threat.
Hitting the ground on his feet and hands he looks up to see a flash of light rush at him. He rolls to the right and sees a blade fly just pass his head. Looking forward again he sees another light. This time though he brings jumps forward and brings his knife up, barely deflecting it just a bit so that it only scratches his clothes.
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Standing on two feet with one knife at the ready he looks at the fire, but the person is gone. Staying still he listens for anything. There is no wind this night so it¡¯s easier to distinguish the sound of movement and sound of thrown objects.
He hears unusual movement at his left so he turns to his right and faces the person that tried to kill him. It¡¯s a woman, orange hair due to the lighting. He stares at her, and she stares right back. With a loud crack from the fire they both jump at each other. She has two knives out whilst he only has one. Both of them move fast, very fast. Knives get thrown, they get deflected, it¡¯s a hit and miss for them both. Soon blood drips from his forearms and cuts run along her face. More blades fly, more blood drips, but no major hits land, only small slices on each other.
They both stop again. Blades held up at the ready. He has cuts running along his arms, but all small nothing deep. She has cuts along her arms, legs and face. Again none of them deep. But they both know who¡¯s winning the fight. Even though he only has one knife whilst she has used more than a dozen, He is winning. They both stay silent, He is not aiming to kill as he wants information, and she is doing her best to kill. They stay locked and ready for what seems like hours to them, but in reality is only a few minutes.
¡°What do you want?¡±
She breaks the silence first. Thrown of guard at being asked a question he does not reply but holds his knife up, it must be a trick he thinks.
¡°Why are you here?¡±
She asks him whilst he examines her
Her arms and legs are bleeding faster now. The blood on face is going down her neck. Her eyes seem a bit fuzzy.
Lowering his arm he throws his blade at the woman¡¯s feet.
¡°Information¡± he states as he judges that he can take her without the use of a knife ¡°And fire¡± he raises both his hands as a sign of peace.
Not being able to even react to the knife thrown, she is visibly annoyed. ¡°Drop all your weapons¡±
Knowing that his pistol doesn¡¯t even work he takes it and again throws it at her feet.
¡°Your Bag!¡± She orders as her voice changes pitch, making it sound less threatening then she meant it to be.
Walking forward he doesn¡¯t take of the bag.
¡°Your Bag!¡± she shouts as he continues to come closer.
¡°STOP!¡± she shouts as she moves forward to stab him but is unable to due to the bloodless she¡¯s sustain and instead falls into his arms.
Holding her in his arms, he takes away her knives as easily as plucking flowers from a field.
Bringing her to the fire he lays her down and twirls a knife in his hands. He could very easily kill her now, make her pain pass quicker, she was dying anyway; But her could also save her, stop the bleeding.
*When was the last time a non-human spoke to us* he questions his A.I
*Chances on how we stand against them having changed*
| [Based on reaction, highly likely] |
*I guess I¡¯ll save her.*
Using the knife he cuts of her clothes, only leaving things that¡¯ll give her some decency of self. Tying what he has around long cuts he stops as much blood flow as possible, primitive if you were to look at it, but good enough that it¡¯ll work.
Moving over to the other side of the fire he takes another look at the woman, she is still conscious, but not really able to think, delirious would be how you would describe her.
*Display*
| [Ha, the fools at HQ moved all of us **** 2] |
| [We were better together. **** 3] |
| [Wished we could¡¯ve worked together one last time. Good luck *****. See you in the next life. **** 4] |
| [Unit **** 4 Deceased 1 Active] |
¡°You¡¯re crying¡± the woman states wearily from across the fire.
Bringing his hand to his face and wiping his tears. ¡°Heh, I guess I am¡± he states closing his eyes and taking a long and deep breath.
¡°Thank you for not killing me¡± she whispers falling to sleep.
Previous Chapter - Chapter 01
Next Chapter - Chapter 03
Chapter 03 - Idiot
Chapter 03
Opening his eye in the morning, he immediately sits up knife at the ready. He didn¡¯t realise he had fallen asleep. Looking around he finds that he is alone. The fire died a long time ago. The women already gone. Putting his knife back in his belt he moves to his backpack only to find that some things are missing.
| [Equipment updated]
[10 half ration pack]
[4 litres of water]
[Pistol]
[Knife]
[Pistol Ammunition ¨C 12 shots] |
Sighing at his lost equipment he drinks some water and eats some food.
| [9.5 half ration pack]
[3.75 litres of water] |
Looking at his surroundings one last time he searches for anything that might be of use, but nothing is there. Moving to the fire pit he fills it in, throwing dirt, leaves and plants all around. Making it look like no one was there. It¡¯s a rush job though, no one is looking for him and so he thinks that it does not have to be perfect. Taking only five minutes to do it, to the untrained eye, and those that are not looking for people, it would look like only animals were passing by.
Throwing on his backpack, he notices that his pack and clothes has changed colour to match his surroundings.
*New uniform?*
| [Unknown. No new data. Based on past data. Yes] |
*I see, so it could possibly be old*
Checking his map he begins walking in the southern direction. But not directly south, more like south south east.
*ETA to first dot*
*one day* he thinks to himself as he moves through the forests. *it¡¯s not that bad* he thinks as truthfully it wasn¡¯t. A single day hike is really nothing compared to a day in the field.
Hours pass by and nothing really eventful happens. Moving up and down hills, climbing over and under obstacles, there isn¡¯t much aside from moving from point A to point B. He realises though that there are still no creatures about. Something very weird and thus moves cautiously.
Before he knows it, the day is over and he spots the possible location from a hill top. Fire flies high in the air. A celebration he wonders? And so moves closer. But still choosing to be cautious he moves silently and is thus is horribly slow in moving.
His A.I states as he gets closer. Looking around spots the same woman thanks to the notification and moves silently towards her, as she is in a great spot to see the town? Village? Base? Upon reaching her, she still has not noticed him, she is laying down with has a type of binoculars out. Choosing not to speak he approaches her carefully and taps her on the shoulder.
¡°gargh¡± he shouts out as silently as he can.
Dropping to his knee, he finds that there is a knife in his left chest, puncturing his left lung but just missing his heart. Coughing out blood he holds the hand and knife in place.
¡°Oh, it¡¯s you¡± the woman states as she turns around to see who she stabbed.
| [Concentrated healing commencing] |
¡°Ye..ah¡± he gasps ¡°I..tss¡me¡±
¡°Stop sneaking up on people if you have no intention to kill them¡± she states flatly and pushes him down on his back.
| [Foreign object unable to be removed] |
Still holding the hand that stabbed him and knife in his chest. He pulls it out. Letting blood splat in the woman¡¯s face.
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¡°WHAT ARE YOU DOING!¡± she whispers hysterically ¡°ARE YOU STUPID!¡± she states trying to stop the blood flow.
Minutes pass, and he moves in pain, keeping as silent as possible.
| [Not enough vitamins, Lungs has been healed. Close wound. Stitches required] |
¡°Stitches¡± he coughs blood out onto the woman ¡°required¡±
¡°I don¡¯t have the equipment¡±
¡°Then burn me¡± he states as if it¡¯s the most obvious thing in the world.
¡°Burn you?¡±
¡°Screw it¡± he grabs a piece of ripped clothing from her (the ones that she no longer needs that were used last night) and covers his bleeding. He has no need to worry about infection. His body removes all types of foreign poisons. Also means he can¡¯t get drunk, or numb his pain from any type of drugs.
¡°Do you have a match?¡±
She doesn¡¯t reply and hands a lighter.
¡°Even better¡±
Grabbing a thick branch, he removes takes one pistol ammunition and breaks it apart on the branch.
Lighting it on fire.
*BANG*
A huge sound is heard. The branch is half gone, but the remaining is on fire. He brings it forward to his chest. Gritting his teeth he burns himself. Turning to look at the woman, he sees her moving away.
¡°Come on, you made too much noise¡± she states waiting for him to follow.
| [NOT HUMAN]
[THIEF]
[Personal Note Idiot Added] |
Following her he eats some food and neither of them speak.
| [5 half ration packs]
[1 litre of water] |
Moving far away enough she stops.
¡°Sit there¡± she points to a log, in which he does. Touching his chest he realises that it still hurts and can¡¯t move his left arm perfectly without running the possibility of opening the wound.
Twirling one of her knives she asks ¡°Why are you following me?¡±
¡°I¡¯m not¡±
¡°Then what are you doing?¡±
Knowing that he would die if he were to fight her this time he chooses not to lie.
¡°I was heading to the base.¡±
¡°I see¡± she replies throwing him her binoculars ¡°you were too late.¡±
Catching it in his right hand he looks at her with a question mark on his face.
¡°Don¡¯t you want to see?¡±
¡°Yeah, sorry¡± he replies still not quite clear as to why he was handed the binoculars.
Looking through them he realises that she took pictures of the carnage and a video. Playing the video he sees smoke rising from buildings, dead bodies everyone. Both young and old. The few living were running away with whatever they had. Being chased down by some kind of motorcycles. Ultimately being killed and beheaded.
¡°Why didn¡¯t you help them¡± he asks her. ¡°Are they not your allies?¡±
¡°What do you expect me to do? When I got there they were already under attack.¡±
Nodding he doesn¡¯t say anything back.
¡°I¡¯m headed to another base. We could go there as a pair. Safer that why and I won¡¯t be stabbing you by mistake again.¡±
¡°Yeah, that would be better.¡±
Taking out a ration pack, she begins to eat.
¡°Can I have my rope back?¡±
¡°No¡±
Agitated at the reply he takes it and does nothing in retaliation.
| [NOT HUMAN]
[THIEF]
[IDIOT]
[Personal note Bitch added] |
¡°What unit are you from?¡± she asks putting her knife away.
Staying silent for a while he wonders whether he would still be in his unit. Choosing that it¡¯s better to say it instead of pretending to be in another would be safer if more questions were asked he replies.
¡°I¡¯m from Zulu¡±
And she brings her knife back out.
Previous Chapter - Chapter 02
Next Chapter - Chapter 04
Chapter 04 - The Base
Chapter 04
Waking up the next morning. He stares into the morning sky, the little sky that he can see from the position he is in. Laying there he just thinks of what¡¯s transpired in the past couple of days. Other than the fact that he may no longer be at war with the non-humans he realizes he has gotten no other information and is still in the dark about everything.
Hearing a rustle to his right he immediately rolls to his left and brings his knife up to a crouching position, ready to fight.
¡°Morning¡± The woman says, putting her hand on her knives.
| [NOT HUMAN]
[THIEF]
[IDIOT]
[Bitch] |
Putting his blade away ¡°Sorry¡± he scoffs ¡°How far are we to the next base?¡±
Putting out the fire ¡°Half a day away.¡±
She walks over to his pack and grabs another ration pack and the last of the water
| [3 half ration packs]
[No Water] |
Gritting his teeth he doesn¡¯t say anything and lets her take it. As there is only half a day till base it should be fine he guesses. Grabbing some food as well they both sit opposite each other. Far away enough that if either of them drew a knife, the other would be able to react in time. Eating in silence neither of them say anything nor make any unexpected movements.
| [Half ration pack remaining] |
¡°We should get going¡± he says after finishing his meal.
Standing up to leave she makes no reply and just heads off. Obviously expecting him to follow without complaint.
¡°Hey!¡± he shouts after her ¡°WHAT ABOUT RECON!¡±
Receiving no reply he fills in the fire pit as best he can and throws little leaves and plants over where he and she slept. Spending only 30 seconds doing so, he knows that it¡¯s horrible and wouldn¡¯t even fool the dumbest of soldiers.
*idiot* he thinks again leaving the campsite against his will to chase after the woman.
Catching up to her he finds out that she isn¡¯t moving really fast. Going at a relaxed pace she doesn¡¯t even look for cover as she moves. Staying in the open and following the easiest path she is exposed to everyone and doesn¡¯t seem to care.
¡°What are you doing?¡± he asks her, following from afar and sticking to cover.
Again she doesn¡¯t reply but instead gives a look of ¡°Are you stupid¡± as a reply and moves on.
*Idiot* he thinks again and chooses to follow her slow pace from cover. From another point of view and to those who could actually notice him, it would look like he were stalking her. At times though she would stop moving and look around. At times like these he would just wait for a while then throw a rock or stick at her feet to make her move on.
Unknown to him though, the only reason she stopped and looked around was due to the fact that she could not find him, his backpack and clothes kept changing colour and his movements were always silent. Keeping track of where he was, is a near impossible task.
After hours of this repetitive pattern she stops at a cliff overlooking a wide open flat piece of green land. Sitting there she waits and does nothing. Still doing nothing when he threw objects at her.
Realizing that she was not going to be moving anymore he makes his appearing, seemingly rising from out of nowhere, he stands up from the bushes to approach her.
¡°What are you doing?¡±
¡°Waiting¡±
¡°For what?¡±
¡°Sunset¡±
¡°Why¡±
¡°You can¡¯t get in till sunset¡±
¡°Then why are we out in the open.¡±
¡°Why not?¡±
¡°We need to get to cover¡±
¡°There¡¯s no point¡±
¡°What do you mean there¡¯s no point¡±
Sighing the woman stops replying to the questions and just lays on her back, staring up at the sky. Not knowing what he could do, he just stands there dumbstruck at what she¡¯s doing for a while before doing choosing to lay down and wait alongside her.
As the sun moves from the middle of the sky until almost hitting the horizon, they both watch the clouds roll.
¡°You¡¯re crying again¡± she states.
¡°Am I?¡± he raises his fingers to his face. ¡°Sorry¡± he snuffs back
¡°Why are you crying?¡±
¡°Forget it¡± he replies. Not wanting to tell her that just looking at the clouds was a thing he and his unit never had the time to do.
¡°Are you really Zulu?¡± she asks standing up and stretching.
Eyeing her body as she stretches, he doesn¡¯t reply and just checks her out before forcing his eyes away when he notices what he¡¯s doing ¡°Is it so hard to believe?¡±
¡°Ha¡± she replies tying his rope to a tree ¡°we¡¯ll see soon enough¡± she states jumping over the edge of the cliff with his rope in hand and disappearing from his view.
Looking down from the cliff he watches as she safely jumps of the cliffs face multiple times to hit the floor. Then he proceeds to use the rope to follow her down. Upon reaching the ground he turns to see the woman already at the centre of the open ground. Perfectly open for a sniper to kill, but she does not seem to worry.
Knowing that she is heading to base he follows her out to the open ground.
¡°What now¡±
¡°Give it a few seconds.¡±
Staring at the sky they both watch the sun slowly drop over the horizon, they both watch and wait as the light slowly dims down to complete darkness.
His world turns green.
*PSSSSSSHHHHHHHHH*
All around them parts of the ground pops up by a centimetre. The woman goes down to one of these and lifts it up. What comes up is a rectangular pillar. About one metre high, 20cm across and 30 cm wide. The woman Sticks her hand into a slot and a hologram appears.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]
Her Name: aileD
Her Image: (Picture of her naked)
Her Birthdate: XXXX\80\02
Her unit: 01 ahplA
[/pc][/col]
[/box]
Then she falls and nothing more. The pillar goes back down into the ground. And she is nowhere to be seen.
Stunned at what just happened he doesn¡¯t actually move for a few seconds but just looks down at the ground she disappeared on. Soon enough he moves to the same position, lifts up the pillar and sticks his hand in.
*Ouch*
| [WARNING. Blood being drawn] |
A hologram appears the same way as before after his fingers get pricked.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]
Name: ERROR
Image: ERROR
Birthdate: ERROR
Unit: Zulu
[/pc][/col]
[/box]
The man raises an eyebrow at the mention of Zulu; the platform makes a sound, but does not drop. He tries to take his hand out but is unable to.
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[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]
Name: ERROR
Image: ERROR
Birthdate: ERROR
Unit: ****
[/pc][/col]
[/box]
The hologram corrects itself and then the ground gives way, releasing his hand he falls for a spilt second before his feet get clamped down to the ground and is pulled all the way beneath ground level. Moving down extremely fast he trusts that he¡¯ll be okay and repeats that in his head a couple of times.
When it stops he drops to his knee.
| [Night Vision De-activated] |
¡°Thought you were killed.¡± The woman states as she watches him on his knee
¡°That was going too fast.¡±
¡°You¡¯ll get use to it.¡±
¡°Come on¡± she states jumping onto the back of a vehicle.
| [NOT HUMAN]
[HUMAN]
[NOT HUMAN]
[NOT HUMAN]
[HUMAN] |
*Miniaturize labels*
| [Labels Miniaturized confirmed] |
Looking around a bit before following he notices that he has fallen into some kind of underground hanger, kilometres wide with people both human and not all around. Hanger 86 is painted in big letter all across the ground, walls and ceiling. Staring at the vehicle he sees that it has no wheels, no doors, no ceiling and no driver. Just seats on a flat hovering board.
¡°Are you going to follow me or what?¡± she states annoyed at having to wait.
¡°Sorry¡± he replies moving up to take a seat opposite of her.
With the vehicle in motion they pass through gigantic hall ways big enough for planes on the larger side to go through. Neither of them really speak though, and he catches her with her hand over one of her knives again. Realizing that since last night she has had a hand over a knife whenever he got close. Even when they were laying down, she had one hand close to one.
¡°This is why there are no animals above?¡± he asks breaking the silence, wanting to ease her just a bit.
¡°Animals avoid the place above, yes¡±
¡°What would have happened if it failed to recognise me?¡±
Looking at him as if he was a weird person she replies casually ¡°You would have lost a hand. Then if you were to proceed to try and get in you would have been blown to pieces.¡±
¡°I see¡Where are we headed?¡±
¡°Head Quarters¡±
Going through more places. They both stop talking again. The place is well populated, and everyone seems to be in military uniform. Everyone seems to be at ease, which was new to him. Everyone except her. The woman seating opposite of him was tense. He couldn¡¯t tell whether she was nervous of angry though, her hand always on her knife. He just watched her and she never looked at him, always looking behind the vehicle at those they past. It was easy for him to just lose track of time watching her.
¡°We are here¡± She says knocking him out of his though as they both get of the vehicle.
Heading through a human sized doorway, the room they enter is bustling with activity, maps are spread all across the walls, and hologram projects are almost everywhere, each table was in use and papers were constantly being passed around; each person was involved in some form of argument or discussion.
Neither of them interacted with any of them, but instead walked straight to the man in the far back watching a monitor. He was old with grey moustache and hair. Burned marks ran across his face and he seems to be using an artificial left arm.
¡°How¡¯d your mission go Delia¡± the man asks when we approach him.
¡°It succeeded, but the team is lost.¡±
¡°That¡¯s a shame¡Who is he¡± he states scribbling something down in his pad.
Moving her hand to her knife ¡°Someone from¡±
¡°General!¡± a man shouts from across the room making us both turn our backs to see him.
¡°What is it?¡±
¡°Sir. A Zulu is on base!¡± he shouts over the noise of the room.
Making every conversation, every argument die.
¡°Show me¡± the general replies and receives a hologram on his desk.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]
Name: ERROR
Image: ERROR
Birthdate: ERROR
Unit: Zulu
[/pc][/col]
[/box]
Whispers spread across the room.
¡°Silence¡± the general mummers out, making everyone shut up. ¡°Does anyone know where he or she is?¡±
¡°I do¡± the woman states
¡°Where then¡± the general replies
¡°He¡± she points to him ¡°Is from Zulu¡±
The sounds of weapons being drawn immediately occur. Each man and woman, each officer bring their weapon forward, knives out, some form of pistol forward, all at the ready and pointing at him.
¡°Stand down!¡± the general shouts.
And the weapons get pointed to the ground, but still ready to fire.
¡°What brings you here¡± the general ask him.
¡°The want of information.¡±
¡°We will give you what you need¡¡±he states with no emotion in his voice ¡°Delia assist him in what he needs¡±
¡°Sir?¡± she replies in an upset tone
¡°Quiet¡± he puts her down ¡°What was your last mission?¡±
¡°Shadow Mist¡± he replies.
Searching through his pad. ¡°That was a long time ago.¡± The general says ¡°Long before that incident¡±
Hearing this everyone is put ease. But they still have their weapons drawn.
¡°Here are your current living details, come back tomorrow, I¡¯m sure you are tired for the day.¡±
Taking the piece of paper being handed to him ¡°Thank you¡± he replies moving back down a path cleared out for him to exit to room.
¡°Wait outside for a while¡± the Woman says just as he exits.
Exiting the door he waits for a while. Wondering why everyone was so tense at his arrival. True enough, half of the people in there were non-human, but even those who were human had drawn their weapons on him.
*What¡¯s happened?* he questions himself
*Woooosh*
The door opens and the woman exits the room.
¡°What do I call you?¡± she asks
Thinking about it for a bit. Seeing as he is the last one left.
¡°Zulu¡± he replies
Looking at him for a while she replies.
¡°I¡¯m Delia, Follow me¡±
Previous Chapter = Chapter 03
Next Chapter = Chapter 05 - A Challenge
Chapter 05 - A Challenge
Chapter 05 - A Challenge
¡°You¡¯ve been asleep for three days¡± Delia says as he wakes up. ¡°Doc said you weren¡¯t in any danger of dying¡if only that wasn¡¯t true¡± she curses
¡°I¡¯m not that easy to kill¡± he states as he gets up to find that he isn¡¯t in his uniform
¡°You were constantly shaking and sweating in your sleep¡±
¡°Where are my clothes?¡±
¡°Would¡¯ve been a lot better if you just died.¡± She points towards the cupboard ¡°Been cleaned and dried¡Rare to find that type of uniform¡±
Moving over to the cupboard he opens it to find his uniform neatly hanged up on a coat hanger.
¡°It¡¯s hard to believe that you¡¯re really Zulu¡± She says exiting the room ¡°I¡¯ll be on the roof¡±
Changing in front of the mirror he takes a good long look at himself. Standing at 6 feet 2 he is lean and well-muscled. The burn marks on his chest are no longer present but an X scar still runs across the right side of his abdomen. He got it before he joined the unit. His face looks young, like that of an 18 year olds. He wasn¡¯t 18 though, he was much older; he just always looked young. With short black hair and the look of innocence in his eyes he reminded himself of someone who just got out of boot-camp and didn¡¯t know the horrors of war yet, some fresh new recruit out of training, but he did know war. He knows it too well.
Frowning at himself he looks away from his face and down at his uniform, making sure that each line was perfectly creased. He was on base now and any error was unforgivable as he knew he represented his lost friends; he needed everything to be perfect. He was the youngest in his unit at the time, but he was equally skilled as the rest of them, more skilled the others told him, he was the best his teammates stated; but he didn¡¯t believe it. Finally happy with the way he looked he turned around to find his backpack and fins it open in a corner of the room. His pistol, cleaning kit and knife however were on the table.
Taking seat at the table he went about cleaning the pistol again. Something drilled into him. Clean it every chance you get, twice a day if not fired, thrice if you did. He knew that there was no firing pin, but it was still something that represented him and what he looked like on base told others what he expected of them. Perfection and nothing less.
As he knew the procedure by heart he looked outside the window at the underground town. He was now in the civilian and living section. Families lived here, children played on the streets; politicians were live and happy. Nothing here even hinted that people were at war. Maybe they weren¡¯t though and maybe that base he saw before was just subjected to a raid? He cast these thoughts out though, they were too bright. Reality is never bright.
Looking back down to his dis-assembled gun, away from outside, he knocks his cleaning kit, making oil spill across the table. Sighing he folds his sleeves to his elbows and wipes it up best he can. Dirtying his arms in the process. His friends would never have been that clumsy. Though one good thing happened with the accident. He finds the firing pin for the pistol amongst the oil. Smiling he moves it to the edge of the table, before continuing to wipe the table down as best he can. Soon finishing that and re-assembling his pistol, he holsters it and his knife and exits the room after he unfolds his sleeves, leaving no creases where they should not be.
| [Equipment update]
[Knife]
[Pistol]
[Pistol Ammunition ¨C 11 shots] |
¡°Bring me to Headquarters¡± he tells Delia upon reaching the roof.
¡°No¡±
Stunned at the answer he received he stares at her blankly.
¡°They are in a middle of an Op and won¡¯t be able to help you until it¡¯s done¡±
Nodding ¡°Cafeteria then¡±
¡°This way¡± she says as she takes a step back and falls off the roof.
Moving forward he sees he get caught in some kind of invisible wave? Something he doesn¡¯t understand, and moves to sit in a vehicle.
Jumping instead of stepping of he too lands safely, being caught by the same thing and joins her in the vehicle.
Her hand was still upon a knife and neither of them spoke to one another as they were driven to the town centre. Passing through the town though, Zulu confirmed one thing. It was peaceful here. People would jog in the street, children played with one another and there were old people, as in old people that required the support of others. Something he had never seen before. Nobody lived to old age from his memory, nobody.
Upon arriving at the town centre they entered something much like a Caf¨¦ and took a seat outside. A waiter takes their order and when their food arrived neither of them spoke but they garnered much attention. Women kept stopping by to say hello but Delia just chased them away. She ate some form of noodles whilst he ate bread with soup. Something he knew the taste of.
Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.
¡°Hey Delia¡± a male walking to them says ¡°Finally left your home?¡±
¡°It¡¯s been a while¡± another male says
¡°You guys still alive? I thought the last mission was definitely going to get you guys killed¡± She joked
¡°Ha you know us. We¡¯re indestructible¡± says an approaching female holding a cup of coffee.
Eating his bread and soup, Zulu stays quiet as they were not addressing him and just listens to their conversation, he knew he would be included soon enough if they wanted to talk to him.
¡°Hey did you hear about the rumours?¡± says the first male
¡°What rumours?¡± says Delia.
¡°You haven¡¯t heard? That¡¯s impossible, what have you been doing the past few days?¡± says the second.
¡°I¡¯ve been stuck in my room as you guys kindly pointed out¡±
¡°Oh, right, that must have been fun¡± Says the first
¡°Well then, apparently there is a Zulu on base¡± the female says.
¡°Can you believe it? A Zulu!¡±
¡°And I here thought they were nothing but military bullshit to scare us, digitally made for entertainment.¡±
¡°Do you believe the things they can do though?¡±
¡°Like that bullshit story of how they could just disappear into the background even if you were looking at them.¡±
Hearing the last statement Zulu smiles unconsciously. Disappearing in plain site was one of their favourite things to do to scare new recruits. Good fun making them shit their pants when you appeared right next to them.
¡°What are you laughing at greenie?¡± the bigger of the two men agitatedly asks.
¡°Nothing¡± He replies, still smiling.
¡°Nothing?¡± the man repeats ¡°Then stop smiling¡±
¡°Don¡¯t worry about him¡± Delia speaks out
¡°No Delia, Greenies must be taught to respect their seniors. They mustn¡¯t just randomly join laugh at nothing¡±
¡°AHAHHAAHAHAHA¡± Zulu breaks out laughing. The fact that he was called the junior was too much for him to stifle it.
¡°He¡¯s the Zulu¡± Delia shouts putting her hand on the man¡¯s shoulder.
¡°What?¡± the man says ¡°Him?!¡±
¡°Yes, He is the Zulu¡± Delia repeats herself.
¡°But his face, he¡¯s too innocent. Just look at him!¡±
¡°Well I am¡± Zulu speaks with no hint of emotion, hiding his agitation that they brought up his looks. He never liked how he didn¡¯t get scars, or how he always looked like the perfectly home grown man who didn¡¯t know conflict. Lean and well-muscled, he was good at doing what he did, He was a soldier; he was Zulu.
¡°Ha, if that¡¯s true, then you wouldn¡¯t mind proving it?¡±
¡°Sure then¡± He replied drawing out his knife. He was fully recovered and he knew that he could take anything this big man could throw at him.
¡°I challenged you to the battle grounds then, do you accept?¡± the man asks recording the challenge in some kind on machine.
Eyeing what the machine Zulu realizes that the man did not mean an outright brawl. Apparently there a procedures now? Looking at Delia, he notices that she doesn¡¯t do anything, she seems impartial to the challenge. The two people this man came with though look happy and seem confident that the man would win the challenge. Having nothing to lose and knowing that he would win a fight with this man Zulu calmly replies.
¡°I accept.¡±
¡°Ha, Good!¡± the man replies ¡°You can¡¯t back out now. The challenge has been sent to the grounds.¡±
¡°Right, when¡¯s the match taking place?¡± Zulu asks
Checking his pad ¡°In 3 hours¡± then looking back at Zulu ¡°We¡¯ll see you at the ground in three hours.¡±
¡°We?¡±
¡°Yes, We.¡± He smiles. ¡°It¡¯s us four¡± he gesture to himself, the other male, female and Delia ¡°Against you and your team.¡±
¡°Wait, I thought you said you were challenging me!¡±
¡°I am, it¡¯s just this challenge requires a team of four. You will be alright yes? Or do you want to back out? If you do, everyone¡¯ll know! The data has already been sent!¡±
Grinding his teeth and annoyed that he had been tricked he clenches his fists ¡°No, I¡¯ll be fine.¡± Then forcing himself to relax, and removing all emotion from his voice ¡°just got to get a team together¡± he smiles as he starts to make a plan, stands and leaves with Delia following him closely, she was, after all, in charge of assisting and monitoring him.
¡°SEE YOU SOON GREENIE!¡± the man shouts and laughs from his seat.
Previous Chapter - Chapter 04
Next Chapter = Chapter 06 - The Challenge [Part 1]
-------------------------------------------------
A/N
COULD SOME ONE PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT ON WHAT THEY THINK OF THIS SO FAR!
I feel so lonely T_T
Nah, but truthfully, it would help if i knew what people thought of this.
Thanks for reading by the way.
Chapter 06 - The Challenge [Part 1]
Chapter 06 - The Challenge [Part 1]
Upon a pad that he was temporary given by Delia with restricted access, Zulu sat in the spectator stands of the battle grounds. He had given up on searching for team mates. Nobody wanted to be on his team. It wasn¡¯t so much that they feared him or that they were afraid of the opposition. It was more the fact that everyone wanted to see what he could do.
If he really were from the unit Zulu, they wanted to confirm if what they did was actually true. After all, no one alive has seen a Zulu in action before and recordings of them all seemed too fake or out there to believe.
He however did find the behaviour of these people peculiar. Those holding high rank were on guard around him, whilst those with low or no rank seemed like they were taking him lightly. Civilians however thought of him as a new comer, some new recruit that saw the uniform off a video and wanted to imitate it. It was true though, no one had the uniform he had and they were hard to get.
All of this was annoying to him though, he believed that no one believed he was from Zulu except for those who had seen the hologram of his entry record. The one the Machine screwed up. His unit¡¯s name was never to be on any official record, always blacked out. Which, to him added more to the belief that Zulu was a made up unit. He was wrong though, everyone believed he was from Zulu. It was just that nobody knew how to act around him.
¡°5 min till the appointed time¡± Delia spoke ¡°We best get going down.¡±
Handing back the pad ¡°Let¡¯s go then¡± he replies waiting for her to lead the way.
| [Name. Delia]
[Rank. Sergeant]
[Birthdate. 20/08/XXXX]
[Unit. Alpha 01]
[Equipment preference. Assault Rifle, Knives, Pistol] |
¡°You should forfeit¡± she tells him as they descended the stands to head down to the entrance. ¡°It¡¯ll save you a lot of pain¡±
¡°I won¡¯t be the one losing¡± he tells her ¡°I know how to handle myself.¡±
Leaving the stands he sees that it was beginning to fill up. Anyone with spare time was coming over to watch the coming event. Not really a surprise though. The big hologram projecting the next match has the details of both teams up for anybody to see and his details were intriguing.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]
Name: ERROR
Image: ERROR
Birthdate: ERROR
Unit: ****[/pc][/col]
[/box]
No image, no name, no birthdate and a blacked out unit drew the curiosity from everyone, those that had anything to do with the military and those that did not.
¡°Couldn¡¯t find a team hey?¡± The man that issued the challenge asked
| [Name. Matthew]
[Rank. Sergeant]
[Birthdate. 05/10/XXXX]
[Unit. Alpha 02]
[Equipment preference. Shot gun, Knife, Pistol] |
¡°Don¡¯t need one Sergeant¡± Zulu replied.
¡°It¡¯s your death¡± he laughs
Looking at the other two ¡°I¡¯ll just see you guys inside¡±
| [Name. Samuel]
[Rank. Corporal]
[Birthday. 23/06/XXXX]
[Unit. Alpha 02
[Equipment Preference. Sniper, Knife, Pistol] |
| [Name. Lucy]
[Medic]
[Rank. Corporal]
[Birthday. 07/07/XXXX]
[Unit. Alpha 02]
[Equipment Preference. Assault Rifle, Knife, Pistol] |
¡°You won¡¯t see us inside¡± Samuel responded.
With a confused look ¡°I¡¯m sorry?¡±
¡°You won¡¯t see us inside¡± He repeats ¡°that¡¯s not how these challenges work.¡±
¡°There¡¯s an objective and we have to work to achieve it.¡± Lucy tells him.
Turning to look at Delia. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me?¡±
¡°You never asked¡± she said, looking away. ¡°Plus, I wanted to see how you¡¯ll go about it.¡±
*Woosshhh* two different door open. One for his team and one for theirs.
¡°Good luck greenie.¡± Matthew says as he and the rest go through their door.
Entering his own, the door behind him slides shut and he sees that he is in the preparation room. A countdown timer is on the wall, ticking down from ten minutes. The objective is also displayed on another monitor.
| [Objective and Condition updated]
[Objective. Retrieve Data Chip]
[Time span ¨C 2 day and night cycles]
[Every simulated hour will have an additional ten protectors]
[Time sped up by 4]
[Only weapons replicated or provided may be use] |
In other words, it¡¯s a 48 hour simulated exercise that uses 12 real time hours. And every 1 hour or 15 min real time there will be another ten enemy soldiers.
Moving over to a table of equipment he sees things he knows nothing about.
*Analyse*
| [Backpack]
[Weapon type From Left. Pistol. Shot Gun. Assault Rifle. Sniper. Heavy Machine Gun. Grenades. Mines. Explosives. Rocket/Grenade launcher.]
[Protective Gear type from left to right. Helmet. Vest. Leg and Arm guard. Shield]
[Food Bars. Vit & Calcium Pills. Water Pills] |
Looking over the equipment he knows one thing. He has never practiced using any of these before, nor has he ever seen them in his life. Looking over to his right he sees a table sized machine with the label {Replication} upon it.
Approaching it he takes his pistol out, Ammunition and knife. Opens the machine. Places that in. Closes the lid and presses the only button on it.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{Machine currently replicating. E.T.A 30 seconds}[/pc][/col]
[/box]
Looking back at the clock there is 5 minutes until start time. Moving back to the table he grabs a backpack, puts 4 grenades inside, 1 mine, some explosives, Food bars and both pills. He also puts two grenades on his belt.
¡°Woah¡± he says grabbing onto the table to stay balanced ¡°What was that?¡± he questions to A.I
Letting go of the table when the shaking stops ¡°is it dangerous¡±
Deciding that he is fine he goes back to look at his equipment. Walking over to the supposed shield that¡¯s a fist size big.
*How does this work?* he questions the A.I
Sighing he chooses not to take it. No point taking something you don¡¯t know how to work.
*Ding* the machine makes a sound.
Opening the machine again he sees two sets of his equipment. One is behind glass and he cannot access, the other is open and easy for him to grab.
Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{Your Equipment will be returned to you after the exercise}[/pc][/col]
[/box]
Grabbing his fake stuff he equips it, lies down closes his eyes and concentrates on relaxing his breathing. 4 minutes until start time.
| [Equipment updated]
[Pistol]
[Pistol Ammunition ¨C 16 shots]
[Knife]
[6 Grenades]
[1 Mine]
[10 pounds of Explosives]
[1 lighter]
[6 food bars]
[6 Vit and Cal Pills]
[24 water Pills. 6 litres of water] |
--------------------
In the other room
--------------------
¡°Woah¡± Matthew says as all four of them grab hold of the table to stay balanced ¡°What was that?¡±
¡°Don¡¯t know.¡± The three of them reply
¡°Maybe cheering in the stadium?¡± Samuel jokes
¡°If it was dangerous we would be evacuated¡±
¡°Did you really need to antagonize him that much?¡± Delia asks Matthew
Picking up a shot gun and ammunition ¡°No, not really. But when would I ever get the chance to have a match against a Zulu.¡±
¡°You could have just asked you know, I don¡¯t think he would have declined. He seems like that type that enjoys it¡±
¡°Where¡¯s the fun in that. Plus he¡¯ll be more tense this way.¡± He smiles
¡°You knew he was Zulu before you approached us didn¡¯t you¡±
¡°I knew you were assisting the Zulu. So yes I knew who he was¡±
¡°Did you see how he dressed?¡± Lucy interject ¡°He was so¡.particular, it was like he was on the parade ground*¡±
Playing with his sniper ¡°Yeah, his uniform was perfect. When I saw it, it felt like he was going to yell at me for not keeping mine up to scratch.¡± Scratching his head ¡°I actually felt ashamed for once¡±
¡°You¡Ashamed?!¡± The other three say sarcastically in unison.
¡°HEY, I CAN FEEL ASHAMED¡± he says trying to defend himself ¡°It¡¯s just I generally don¡¯t care about what others think.¡±
¡°I do have to admit though¡± Lucy says ¡°he seemed eager for battle, his eyes seemed to hunger for it. Like it was something it had never seen before¡±
¡°Woah¡± Matthew says ¡°That¡¯s deep¡±
¡°Shut up Mat!¡± she replies ¡°I was being serious. He doesn¡¯t look like he¡¯s ever seen combat. But he seems to know a lot about it.¡±
¡°I know right. It felt like he¡¯s read all about war but never been there in person. Greenie is an apt way of describing him¡± Sam says
¡°But if you were to look at it from another perspective¡± Delia puts in ¡°The degree of perfection he had everything to was extremely high. Even the general doesn¡¯t have his clothing that well done on base.¡±
¡°So he looks like a greenie but dresses better than the general.¡± Matthew says ¡°¡.Do you guys believe what they say a Zulu can do though?¡±
¡°I believe that they always completed the missions¡± Delia says ¡°¡no matter what it is¡±
¡°I don¡¯t believe the way they do them though. Probably exaggerated to make them seem scarier to the enemy¡± Lucy states
¡°Should we be worried though, history shows that each time a Zulu is on mission. They are unpredictable. Their own teams have been killed by them.¡±
¡°The General would¡¯ve had him killed if he thought this Zulu was a threat to us¡± Delia says
¡°And have died in doing so if the stories are true¡± Matthew adds on.
{1 Minute till Start} an announcement from the monitor states
¡°Anyway I¡¯ll apologize to him after¡± Matthew say to Delia ¡°I was a bit mean¡±
¡°There¡¯s no need.¡± She replies ¡°If he really is Zulu, it would¡¯ve been better if he was dead¡±
Nodding their heads. The other three grunt in agreement. The appearance of a Zulu have been shown to bring bloodshed to the battlefield, for every side.
--------------------
In the Stadium
--------------------
The Stadium is filled to the brim. Something unusual for a midday event. Especially when it¡¯s not one of the main yearly held tournaments.
¡°Today we have something special for all you folks!¡± the announcer of the battle grounds says into his microphone ¡°You know all those rumours you heard about a Zulu being on base!¡± he says then pauses to let the question hang ¡°It¡¯s all true!¡± He smiles ¡°Alpha Unit 2 Will be facing off against Unit Zulu.¡±
The crowd all cheer.
¡°Today¡¯s match will last for a maximum of twelve hours. The team that retrieves the chip in the most effective way wins!¡±
¡°Here is a list of the chosen equipment for each person.¡± He throws his arm up making a gigantic hologram appear ¡°GIVE ONE LAST ROUND OF CHEERS FOR THE PARTICIPATES! He screams into his mic.
The noise that followed made the stadium shake. Forcing those in the waiting room to hold on to something to stay balanced. The excitement level for the match was something new to everyone, the stadium has never been so hyped.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Participants and Equipment.[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Name: ERROR
Image: ERROR
Birthdate: ERROR
Unit: ****
[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Pistol
Knife
6 Grenades
1 Mine
10 pounds of Explosives
[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Name. Delia
Rank. Sergeant
Birthdate. 20/08/XXXX
Unit. Alpha 01
[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Assault Rifle
12 Knives
Pistol
Rocket Launcher
2 grenades
Shield
[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Name. Matthew
Rank. Sergeant
Birthdate. 05/10/XXXX
Unit. Alpha 02
[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Shot gun
Knife
Pistol
2 Grenades
10 pound explosives
Shield
[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Name. Samuel
Rank. Corporal
Birthday. 23/06/XXXX
Unit. Alpha 02
[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Sniper
Knife
Pistol
2 Grenades
1 Mine
Shield
[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Name. Lucy
Medic
Rank. Corporal
Birthday. 07/07/XXXX
Unit. Alpha 02
[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Assualt Rifle
Knife
Pistol
2 Grenades
1 Mine
Shield
[/pc][/col]
[/box]
Previous Chapter = Chapter 05 - A Challenge
Next Chapter = Chapter 07 - The Challenge [Part 2]
------------------------------------------------------------------
A/N
My god learning how to use the tables were hard. i hope you guys can distinguish the A.I speaking to other machine notes. Colours a different so that should help!
Chapter 07 - The Challenge [Part 2]
Chapter 7 - The Challenge [Part 2]
Having been in the simulation for 2 real time hours now, a new batch of re-enforcements drops in; meaning that there are now 80 more protectors. The conditions of the exercise were made to push the teams to complete the task as soon as possible, as the longer you were to wait, the harder it would become. Originally there were only 30, now there are 110.
Zulu has been inspecting the grounds from afar, as the headgear he wears has the ability to magnify things both close and afar. He has been checking to see how re-enforcements came in, how the protectors reported to one another, how they patrolled the area. Watching all this from afar he has created a battle plan, one that he has imagined repeatedly in his mind to find all the possible things that might go wrong when executing it. One that is normal to him, but unusual to all those that watch him. One that he will begin in 10 real time minutes.
For now though he was just watching and marvelling at the simulation. From the spectator stand of the battle field you could tell that the grounds were 100m by 100m and could be split in twenty-five 20 by 20 fields. One that he was in. In a non-activated field it was grey walls and grey ground, but upon activation the ground changed colour, the walls did to as well. It projected what you would see. Looking from above it looked fake, but from the ground it fooled the eye. Hence each seat in the stadium had a projector, for the spectator to see what the participate saw.
Upon first entering the space Zulu played with the simulation. He threw his knife at a tree and it stuck to it. He went to walk a slope and a slope was made. He moved to climb and a tree and he did. It all felt so real to him, as if it was made to imitate real life and yet he felt that it was off. He could not stain his uniform when he stepped into a puddle. He could not smudge dirt onto his face. There was no wind when the trees were shown to move and the ground was always solid, even if it was shown to be muddy.
There were limits to the simulation and these limits made him worry. He knew that he did not know what he could and could not do here. Whether he would be able to play the role of a lost civilian. Whether or not he would be shot on first sight. He did not have enough information and that was a problem. For now though, he assumed everything he could do in real life could be done in the simulation and he would continue to make his plans based on that assumption until proven wrong.
Taking one last long breath
Dropping down from the tree, jumping and swinging from branch to branch, he reaches the ground with not a sound. The exercise took place in somewhere much like a rainforest. There was one single building that seemed to be a one level, one room site. The Data chip to collect is said to be in there.
Staying low he was moving fast. Being on the clock he needed to get to the drop point quickly. After watching everything for 2 hours he had figured out the re-enforcement pattern. At this time there would be two dropping by air. He needed to get to one for his plan to work.
The re-enforcement dropped far from the targeted base and to him they seemed to be easy pickings. Falling by yourself, separated from your friends. The moment you hit the ground was the moment you were at your most venerable; that was the time he wanted to strike. That was time he was going to strike.
Still moving quickly, he didn¡¯t have to care about being spotted, but he still moved low, and he still moved quietly. He was too far from anybody and to well covered, thanks to the naturel surroundings to actually need to try and stay in stealth. It wasn¡¯t a conscious decision for him to do this though, it was pure habit.
Having reached his destination with 30 seconds to spare he was yet again in another tree. The location the protector would drop down to was an open flat space. Open enough for a parachute to not to caught on a tree, but also open enough for someone to drop down onto the protector. This was a fault of the simulation. The protectors always fell into the exact same spot.
Looking up, time ticked onwards and the next round of re-enforcements came in. 120 was the number now. Soon to be 119.
Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.
| [Enemy distance 500m]
[Enemy distance 200m]
[Enemy distance 100m] |
A parachute opens and the protector¡¯s body does an upturn due to the force of the sudden air resistance. Zulu brings out a knife, a knife he was hoping he didn¡¯t have to use. He needed a quiet, bloodless kill; but it didn¡¯t hurt to be prepared for a bloody one.
| [Enemy on the ground in 0:03]
[Enemy on the ground in 0:02] |
Zulu jumps out of the tree. He was above the protector now and when he landed Zulu would be on him.
¡°Shit¡± he swears passing through the protector as if he was nothing and crashing into the ground.
Rolling to his side he quickly gets back to his feet and throws his knife. Piercing the protector right in between the eyes and staying there for a second before dropping to the ground. The body of the protector evaporating into the air like it never existed, leaving a grenade, assault rifle and clip on the floor. Plan A evaporate with the body. He did not have enough information.
Sighing he picks up the grenade and assault rifle, leaving the clip. Even though he has never used the rifle before, they all operated the same. Turn off the safety, look down the sight and press the trigger.
Plan B will commence at night fall, between now and then he will figure out how to get the safety off, start laying explosives and kill the Protectors that drop here. 40 real time minutes till nightfall.
--------------
Alpha Unit
--------------
Fiddling with the barrel of his sniper rifle Samuel is restless, a trait unusual for one so proficient with a long range weapon.
¡°Stop it¡± Lucy says to him ¡°They¡¯ll be back soon.¡±
¡°I know.¡± He replies now fiddling with the cartridge of the rifle ¡°It¡¯s been 55 minutes, do you think the Zulu¡¯s done?¡±
¡°Probably¡Maybe¡I don¡¯t know¡± she answers looking out for anybody that may approach them. ¡°Just keep a look out at the base¡±
¡°I think he is done. He should have finished by now¡± playing with his bullet necklace ¡°It¡¯s a simulation. They¡¯ll be no one after us and they won¡¯t leave their set routes.¡±
Sighing, she drops her rifle ¡°I know I shouldn¡¯t listen to you¡± she says as she moves to lie down next to him ¡°But they are running late¡±
Adjusting his scope ¡°they were meant to be back before the third re-enforcement Protectors came in¡think they were killed?¡±
*Rustle*
Rolling over and into a crouched position Lucy brings her rifle forward ready to fire.
¡°You guys are dead¡± Delia greets them ¡°I thought I told you to stand guard.¡±
¡°Sorry¡± Lucy replies not even bothering to argue or trying to defend herself
¡°Let it go Delia¡± Samuel states ¡°It¡¯s just a simulation¡±
¡°If you weren¡¯t so proficient with the sniper Samuel you would still be in training¡±
¡°Thank goodness I¡¯m the best then¡±
¡°Matthew still hasn¡¯t returned yet?¡±
¡°No¡± Lucy replies ¡°Think he may have failed?¡±
¡°Failed in scouting? Him?¡± she asks rhetorically ¡°No, he may have just been held up¡± shaking her head ¡°Let¡¯s give him another 20 minutes¡±
¡°That would mean that there would be another 50 units!¡± Samuel speaks up ¡°We should just go in now!¡±
¡°The last time we did what you suggested¡..¡± Lucy shivers at the memory ¡°I¡¯m never following your plans again¡±
¡°Hey that was a solid plan¡I just didn¡¯t think the sewage would get us at the end¡± he mumbles more to himself than anybody else
¡°Enough¡± Delia says ¡°Are the Protectors moving as we thought they would?¡±
¡°Yes¡± Lucy answers ¡°everything is going as we thought it would. It follows one of the most basic patterns¡±
¡°Our original plan of attack should work then. Even if there is going to be only three of us¡±
¡°Another drop of Protectors¡± Samuel says ¡°That¡¯s 70 Protectors on the field now¡±
*Rustle*
Delia immediate drops and rolls ending up behind Lucy who points herself at the direction of the noise
¡°Sorry for being so late¡± Matthew say upon arriving ¡°Got stuck between the first and second ring.¡±
¡°Only half an hour late¡± Samuel says getting up from his prone position. ¡°I¡¯ll start heading off to my location.¡± Pausing for a second ¡°is that plan still going ahead?¡±
¡°No¡± Matthew shakes his head ¡°That position is compromised. We will enter from Delia¡¯s suggested position.¡±
¡°I won¡¯t have a full view of the complex though!¡±
¡°We will enter from Delia¡¯s suggested position.¡±
¡°Yes sergeant.¡± Samuel fakes a salute, mocking him as it isn¡¯t required for the rank he holds.
¡°Luce, you¡¯ll be with me and Delia. We will need the three of us on the ground.¡±
¡°Aye sarge¡±
Previous Chapter = Chapter 6 - The Challenge [Part 1]
Next Chapter = Chapter 08 - The Challenge [Part 3]
Chapter 08 - The Challenge [Part 3]
Chapter 08 - The Challenge [Part 3]
¡°That¡¯s another drop of protectors. 80 on the field now. Samuel should be in position¡± Delia states putting her gun on her back and loading her rockets.
¡°I¡¯ll lead¡± Matthew says as he and Lucy both take out a ball of metal ¡°Luce you stay to my right¡±
Applying pressure to certain points on the fist sized ball of metal, it starts rumbling then projects a greyish coloured wall of energy. Lucy holds and equips it to her right arm, Matthew equips it with to his left.
¡°I¡¯ll see you guys in 20 minutes¡± Delia says moving off east.
Nodding Matthew starts moving forward, staying 10meters to the left of Lucy heading towards the building that holds the data chip. It is located in a clearing, as in no trees surrounded it. There were no walls, no trenches. Just flat land with grass growing to chest height. There is one dirt road, wide enough for the standard resupply truck to reach, but that was on the opposite side to them. Once you walk 20meters away from the building though trees start to appear and at 50meters away it was very much like any other part of the rain forest.
The protectors circle the building. Rings upon rings of them. The first ring having 10 people, the next having 20, then 30, 40 and so on; the distance between each ring averaged 50 meters. Close enough for each circle to see each other, but far enough to increase cross fire potential. As there are only 80 protectors on the field at this time, there are only 4 rings of protectors, with plenty of gaps in the fourth ring as it was not yet full.
With their fingers on their triggers, but not yet firing and shields covering four-fifths of their body the two of them weren¡¯t too worried even though the both of them stood out like a sore thumb. Next to nothing could get through the shield of energy, it stopped bullets, projectiles and explosions. It was sturdy enough to block out direct hits from grenades and null the impact of a rocket that blows up a 5 meter in front. Only a direct hit from a rocket could destroy them, a well-placed sniper shot, or a mine that they stepped on. The best way to down an opponent with a shield was to get behind them.
For its sturdiness, the shields had only one down side. When not activated they were easy to carry, but once on they became heavy. To move them, you had to kind of push them to go forward or pull them to go backwards with the arm and shoulder you were holding it with. It means shooting and moving is not possible.
*BANG*
A sniper shot goes off.
¡°That¡¯s Samuel¡± Lucy stops and starts shooting as Matthew pushes on for another 10 metres. ¡°Someone passed us!¡±
¡°It¡¯s fine!¡± Matthew throws a grenade ¡°Sam doesn¡¯t miss¡±
¡°3 down!¡± Lucy screams over the noise of returning fire.
*BANG*
Another sniper shot goes off.
¡°Move up!¡± Matthew shouts. ¡°We¡¯re being surrounded!¡±
And that is true. The protectors were converging on them. All of them leaving their set routes to come to the source of noise. 200 meters from the targeted building the both of them are still far away.
¡°Throw another grenade¡± she yells preparing to do so with one of her own.
¡°Aye¡± Mat says preparing another
*BANG*
Another sniper shot goes off
¡°Move!¡± Mat says again, throwing his in time with hers.
Ceasing fire Lucy pushes forward as the grenades fly in the air, while Matthew keeps firing forward. The plan they were executing was easy to understand. The two of them would push up front drawing the attention and killing as many as they could. Gaining ground when they could. Samuel in the back would cover them as best he can, trying to stop any from advancing past the two of them.
*BOOOM* *BANG*
Another sniper shot goes off at the same time as the grenades.
¡°That got a ton!¡± Matthew shouts, starting to move as Lucy stops.
¡°Stop talking nonsense!¡± Lucy replies firing not in front but to the side of her shield.
*BANG*
Another sniper round goes off.
¡°God damn it guys¡± Samuel says to himself as they had no radios. ¡°Move it!¡± Taking another shot and hitting he has taken down 6 protectors in 6 shots.
In his sights Samuel could see almost everything that was happening to Lucy and Matthew down below, but he was slowly losing sight of them. He had climbed up to a sturdy tree that peaked higher than all the others just over 400 meters away.
*BANG*
¡°There goes another¡± he says
*BANG* he fires another shot, but this time at the ground next to Matthew.
¡°You guys better not die on me while I¡¯m on the move.¡± He mumbles swinging the rifle over his shoulder and jumping into another tree.
*BOOM*
¡°That was my last grenade!¡±
¡°Close in on me!¡±
At 150 metres out phase two of the plan is now in motion and so Lucy and Matthew moved in to create an L shape with their shields.
¡°How many did we get?¡± Matthew asks
¡°May¡¡± she pauses and fires another clip empty. ¡°Maybe thirty in total?¡±
¡°I¡¯m taking your Land Mine¡± grabbing it out of her backpack.
*BANG*
A sniper shot lands next to Lucy.
¡°Sam¡¯s back¡± she shouts.
*BANG* *BANG*
Two consecutive shots lands at the same spot
¡°Delia¡¯s about to make her move¡± She shouts again
¡°Mine is armed.¡± He says tapping Lucy on the shoulder. ¡°Phase 3 is about to start.¡±
*BANG*
Another sniper shot goes off and another protector dies.
With the Rocket launcher on her shoulder Delia takes aim at the dirt road then switches aim to a tree 90 degrees to her right. Practicing the motion she has to make from dirt road to tree, over and over.
100meters out from the targeted building she knows that she is relatively safe as Matthew and Lucy are drawing the attention of the protectors. And those that she can see have their backs turned to her.
*BOOOM*
*That¡¯s the mine* Delia thinks to herself and stops looking back and forth from the dirt road to the tree.
Staring down the dirt road she was now aiming at the truck driving upon it. Waiting for a few seconds for it to get closer she aims 10 meters ahead of it, fires, then swerves to the tree and fires at that. Dropping the launcher on the ground once the second rocket leaves it, she brings out her assault rifle and runs towards the building.
*10* she starts to count as she pushes forward.
*9*
*8*
*7*
*6*
*5*
*4*
*3*
*2*
*1*
*BOOM* the rocket hits the truck directly, causing an explosion and making the truck do a front flip before evaporating.
Diving into the ground Delia bring out her fist size ball of metal and activates it
*BOOM* the second rocket hits the tree causing it to crack and fall.
¡°Shit man¡± Samuel says to himself. Watching the tree fall down and land on top of a large number of protectors. ¡°That¡¯s a bad way to go.¡±
*BANG*
He fires another shot. Covering Matthew as he makes his way into the building. Lucy staying in the tree line 50 meters away from the building.
The remaining protectors were now split in half. Half staying with Lucy and Matthew and the other half moving towards Delia. This causing their number to dwindle down faster and making it easier to pick off those that were halfway between the two locations.
The simulation ends and the 4 come together.
¡°Well that wasn¡¯t too bad.¡± Samuel says.
¡°We could have finished faster¡± Delia responds
¡°The program is better than last time.¡± Lucy states
¡°Plenty of errors in it still¡± Delia says
¡°Fun target practice¡± Matthew answers ¡°Let¡¯s go check the results.¡±
-------------------------
Zulu
-------------------------
With his world turning green Zulu could now see everything in the dark simulated night.
*Number of protectors*
*Time till next round of re-enforcements*
*300 meters out to the building*
Looking down at the trigger in his left hand
*Distraction will last for 40 seconds*
Pressing the trigger he drops it right after.
*BOOOOOOOOM*
The 10 pounds of explosives that he had carried blows up on the opposite side of the base. The torch lights the protectors were using all turn to face that direction and they move towards the noise.
An assault rifle starts firing from that side of the base and Zulu starts running. Just running. He runs diagonally towards the building. Heading towards the dirt road and the building.
He brings out the mine strapped to the outside of the backpack. Does a forward roll upon the dirt road and drops it upon it.
Rolling back to his feet he continues his diagonal run from the road and to the building.
Silence falls, gun fire stops.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
*BOOM*
Three grenades explode from that side of the base. Gunfire picks up again. A second assault rifle starts firing
Bringing out his knife he held it in his right hand and stabs a protector in the back of its neck as he run through it.
A third assault rifle begins to fire, and he runs around for a bit stabbing a total of 12 protectors before advancing to the tree line.
Silence arises as he stabs the window of the building, but finds that it does not break.
3 more grenades explode and he kick the door down.
He enters the building and finds that it is completely empty except for one table at the centre with a USB type device plugged into it.
*a USB plugged into a table?* he questions and raises an eyebrow and stops to inspect if there is any other unknown elements in the room.
-------------------------
The Control Room
-------------------------
¡°Set an alarm on it!¡±
¡°What sir?¡±
¡°Set an alarm on that Data Chip!¡±
¡°But sir. That would change the competition!¡±
¡°We¡¯ve been here for over 3 hours and he¡¯s done nothing the whole time except set up that explosive contraption. Then he starts moving and in less than 40 seconds he gets to the objective without firing a single bullet!¡±
¡°It¡¯s different b¡±
¡°Change the conditions now! Everyone wants to see him kill!¡±
Wavering for a second the man at the computer ultimately agrees and changes the simulation parameters.
-------------------------
Zulu
-------------------------
Raising his hand to the USB type device the room shimmers for a split second.
| [Warning]
[Simulation Conditions Changed] |
Pulling his hand back
*Show me*
| [Objective and Condition updated]
[Kill all protectors]
[Time span ¨C 2 day and night cycles]
[Every simulated hour will have an additional ten protectors]
[Time sped up by 4]
[Only weapons replicated or provided may be use] |
| [Objective changed]
[Kill all protectors] |
¡°You have to be¡± he shuts his mouth just as he was about to swear ¡°me¡± he whispers to himself and dives down to the ground as lights start shining through the window and doorway.
¡°Effing idiots¡± An old habit stops him from directly saying the F word. He grabs a few Vit and Calcium pills he swallows them. Then proceeds to grab 3 grenades, the three grenades he picked up from the 3 protectors that dropped in.
| [Mine explosion estimated time in 3 seconds] |
*Number of protectors* he pulls the pins on the 3 grenades
Throwing the grenades out, he pauses for another second
*BOOOOOM*
The mine and grenades explode at the same time.
*miniaturize numbers*
With the pistol in his right and knife in his left he jumps out and fires 8 shots in 2 seconds. Hitting 8 heads at the same time. And then rolling across the tall grass as lights shine on him and lose him.
| [Numbers Miniaturize confirmed]
[124] |
His heart beating was fast now. Faster than normal. He was dashing towards the open ground. He needed to get away. The area around him was too hot and he throws his knife forward. Stabbing another protector in the head.
Running past the dead body he picks the knife from the ground that dropped from the evaporated body.
Jumping he takes a step on what seems to be an invisible wall. Reloading on his second step. Performing a back-flip on his third
He lands back in the tall grass.
A projection pops up and stops him crouched down. The room turns grey and light returns to normal
| [Night Vision De-Activated] |
His heart rate was still beating fast. Faster than before. So he sighs and tries to slow it. Working on breathing in and breathing out.
-------------------------
In the Stadium
-------------------------
¡°That was unexpected¡± the announcer speaks into the microphone ¡°Who would have expected the program couldn¡¯t keep up with a Zulu¡±
He pauses letting that sink into the crowd.
¡°I guess they are capable of more than we are¡±
He pauses again.
¡°But here are the results¡± he raises his hand ¡°I guess there are no winners today¡±
Which was technically true. But wasn''t at the same time.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Statistics[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]
Unit: ****
[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]
Error
Error
Error
Error
Error
Error
[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Units: Alpha 1 & 2
[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]90 Kills
300 bullets
6 grenades
1 mine
2 rockets
1 hour 40 minutes
[/pc][/col]
[/box]
-------------------------
Zulu
-------------------------
The ground descends and he finds himself back in the waiting room. Dropping the bag on the ground he un-equips everything. Everything except for the pills. It was all fake except for those anyway and takes back his real equipment.
| [Equipment update]
[Knife]
[Pistol]
[Pistol Ammunition ¨C 11 shots] |
Leaving the room he stops for a second and sees commercial on the screen. It isn¡¯t a very important one but the face caught his attention.
| [Face identification complete] |
The commercial was an indecent one. Sexualizing the woman, promoting multiple partners. Promoting the use of drugs. Promoting unlawful behaviour in a certain part of the underground town.
*Show me*
| [Digitally made image of Zulu 2] |
*Possibility of mistake*
Clenching his fists, he doesn¡¯t unclench them. Grinding his teeth he closes his eyes. And walks out of the room.
¡°That was unexpected¡± Matthew says upon him exiting
¡°Take me to the general¡± he replies with his eyes still shut
¡°He is still busy with the Op¡± Delia states.
Opening his eyes, now blood red Zulu says again. ¡°You will take me to the general NOW Sergeant Delia¡±
Pausing for a second the four waiting outside hesitate. ¡°Very well¡± Delia answers.
Previous Chapter = Chapter 07 - The Challenge [Part 2]
Next Chapter = Chapter 09 - Zulu 2
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
A/N
If you guys see any inconsistancy with the numbers and equipment. Or any inconsistancy with in the story. Please do tell me.
Also. do you guys understand what happened when the "wall" warning appeared? if not i''ll explain it in the next chapter. i think its fine. if you think about it.
Hope you all enjoyed the chapter and
Thanks for reading!
Chapter 09 - Zulu 2
Chapter 09 - Zulu 2
Pushing his hands to his eyes and applying pressure to them he was comforting himself from the long hours of reading he had been doing in the library. Today was a Thursday and he hasn¡¯t left the library since 10am in the morning. Forgoing lunch and dinner for the time to read, he had nothing but snack bars for the whole day. Thursday was after all, the only day he could spend reading.
Feeling that his eyes no longer felt strained he looks back to the book. It was teaching him each part of the surgery procedure for a heart transplant. Detailed instructions and diagrams aligned next to each other.
*Thump*
Someone drops a pile of books in-front of him giving him a jolt and making him look up.
A lady in uniform with blonde hair, blue eyes, angular face and wearing a head gear that covers her left eye was now sitting opposite of him.
¡°I see you here every Thursday.¡± She says to him
Looking at her he immediately realises that she is at least a decade older then he, but still easy to the eyes and hard to turn away from. Checking her shirt for her name tag and rank, but failing to find any insignia of such he nods his head slowly.
¡°Just call me Ma¡¯am¡±
¡°Yes Ma¡¯am.¡± He responds instantly regaining his newly acquired military professionalism.
¡°What year are you?¡±
¡°94 Ma¡¯am.¡±
¡°Ah, so you¡¯re this year¡¯s new batch of recruits?¡±
¡°Yes Ma¡¯am¡±
¡°How is it so far? Are you enjoying it?¡±
¡°Yes Ma¡¯am¡±
¡°You¡¯re very wound up¡±
¡°Yes Ma¡¯am¡±
¡°Can you say something other than that?¡±
¡°Yes Ma¡¯am.¡±
Sighing she stops talking, creating an awkward atmosphere between the two. Moments pass and he slowly goes back to reading his book. Losing himself in it. Hours more pass, the moon rising higher into the night sky and his watch soon vibrates, bringing him back to reality.
Looking back up, moonlight is shining through the window directly onto the lady still sitting opposite of him, making her look angelic.
¡°Can I help you Ma¡¯am?¡± he asks awkwardly admiring what he sees.
¡°That should have been the first thing you asked when I sat here¡±
¡°I¡¯m sorry Ma¡¯am.¡±
¡°It¡¯s too late now.¡± She says then gets up to leave ¡°I shall see you next week.¡±
Lowing his head ¡°I am sorry again Ma¡¯am¡± he apologizes ¡°have a good night¡± bringing his head back up he finds her already gone.
Collecting his books he piles them together and leaves them neatly on the library table before he too exits the library and goes back to the barracks, preparing and sleeping for the next day.
-------------------------
One Week Later
-------------------------
Another Thursday and he is back in the library. Again he is surrounded by books and lost from reality reading them.
*Thump*
He is again shaken from his book and looks up to find the same lady sitting opposite of him.
¡°Hello Ma¡¯am¡± he initiates the conversation. ¡°How can I help you?¡±
¡°Good, you are learning.¡± She smiles ¡°And good evening to you too¡±
Looking at his watch he confirms that it is the evening. ¡°Good evening Ma¡¯am¡±
¡°You¡¯ve been coming here every Thursday since you¡¯ve signed up¡±
¡°Yes Ma¡¯am.¡±
¡°I would like it if you were to dive into more detail when responding to me¡±
¡°¡Yes Ma¡¯am¡± he pauses ¡°I will do my best¡±
¡°Why are you here every Thursday instead spending it with friends and family like every other recruit?¡±
¡°Reading Ma¡¯am. I am Reading¡±
¡°Yes. I can see that. But why do you not spend some time with friends and family instead of spending your whole free day here.¡±
¡°They¡¯ve¡± He looks back down to his books ¡°passed on Ma¡¯am¡±
¡°I understand that. Everyone has someone that¡¯s passed on¡± she says sounding apologetic ¡°But we all make new friends. Why don¡¯t you?¡±
Reading his book he replies slowly ¡°We¡.won¡¯t be together for long Ma¡¯am¡±
¡°Do you hate them?¡±
¡°Do I hate who Ma¡¯am?¡±
¡°Do you hate those we fight?¡±
¡°No Ma¡¯am. I¡¡± he thinks for a second ¡°¡do not know them¡±
Slamming the book shut the lady forces him to look at her.
¡°I...Sorry Ma¡¯am¡± he apologizes.
¡°How do you not hate them?! Have you not seen what they have done?!¡±
¡°¡I have never met them Ma¡¯am.¡±
¡°If it wasn¡¯t for them you wouldn¡¯t have been an orphan.¡±
¡°I¡¯ve never known my parents.¡± He nods ¡°But many people don¡¯t know their parents.¡±
¡°Your records predict that you would have fully graduated University at 16, but instead you¡¯re here at the age of 16¡±
¡°Because there are no Universities¡±
¡°And that is because of them¡±
¡°How can I hate them for me not having the opportunity to go to university when there has always been no chances for me to actually go there?¡±
¡°Because it is their fault that there are no more Universities.¡±
¡°That is what our records show.¡±
¡°And you do not believe our records?¡±
¡°I¡.¡± He pauses ¡°Yes Ma¡¯am I do believe our records.¡± He answers.
¡°You can speak freely with me¡±
¡°I believe our records Ma¡¯am¡± he answers again
Taking out a recorder she turns it on and hands it to him.
¡°I do not believe in our own records¡± she says out loud.
Turning off the recorder he rewinds the device then immediately overwrites what she has just said with blank noise, turning it off before speaking.
¡°I¡I am well read. I know a lot about history, why wars were fought in the past. What people thought about at the time, how propaganda works¡± he answers her not willing to directly say that the records that were provided to them were heavily bias.
This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.
¡°And how did you come by such knowledge. Schools have not taught such things since my grandparent¡¯s time.¡±
¡°They are not taught because there are other things more important to learn. Not because the government does not want us to learn it.¡± He replies with what the government has directly stated, not wanting to mention out loud that the government preferred the majority of people to stay dumb.
¡°And how do you know that?¡± she smiles understanding what he means.
¡°I¡am very, very well read Ma¡¯am¡± He answers again, trying his best to subtly say that he knows how to get his hands on restricted materials.
Laughing ¡°I like you.¡± She says getting up ¡°You are too smart for your generation¡± smiling ¡°I shall see you next week.¡±
¡°Good Night Ma¡¯am¡± he says, slightly happy to have a conversation where the other knew what he truly meant, but also knew that he couldn¡¯t get in to trouble for saying the words he did.
Turning back to his book at the table he again loses himself in reading. Again reading until his watch vibrates, telling him it¡¯s time to go back and prepare for the next day.
-------------------------
One Week Later
-------------------------
*Thump*
Again startled at the loud noise he looks up to find the lady standing instead of sitting opposite of him.
¡°You¡¯re following me today.¡±
¡°I¡No Ma¡¯am, I only get today to read¡±
¡°And what are you reading today?¡±
¡°Aerodynamics¡±
Grabbing the books out of his hands ¡°You are following me today recruit¡± she says, her face centimetres away from his.
¡°I¡Yes Ma¡¯am¡±
¡°Good!¡± She says dropping the book on the table and leaving immediately.
Following closely he sees for the first time at just how tall the lady is. Him standing at 163cm. She was at least a head taller than himself, meaning that she was roughly 178cm.
Leaving the library they took the steps down to the pavement. The sun was high in the sky and it was only just past mid-day. Street lights that he was so use to seeing on, were off. Green grass fills the empty areas between the cobblestoned pavement and 19th century style buildings.
¡°Where are we going Ma¡¯am?¡± he asks as they took a turn towards a dirtier area.
¡°You will see.¡± She smiles ¡°And don¡¯t worry. You¡¯ll enjoy this excursion¡±
Falling silent they move away from the 19th century styled buildings and enter the more war zone devastated areas. Walking for hours he does not complain at the fact that he thinks he is wasting his time. He did agree to follow and would follow that decision until he saw what she wanted to show him. He decided that it was his fault for not asking in the first place.
Arriving at a check point he makes ready to bring out identification, taking his dog-tags out of his shirt and card from his top left breast pocket. But instead of actually being stopped the guards opened the gate without question and waves them through.
¡°Wh¡Why didn¡¯t we get stopped?!?! It¡¯s against every procedure in the book!¡± he starts questioning once a few good metres away from the guards, going over what it could possibly mean over and over again in his head.
Watching him panic the lady just laughs ¡°You obviously don¡¯t read as much as you say¡±
¡°I¡Yes Ma¡¯am¡± he replies, not knowing what else to say, still thinking of what it means.
¡°I have special privileges¡± she smiles ¡°You need not worry about anything when you¡¯re with me¡±
¡°Yes Ma¡¯am¡± he replies before both of them fall silent and continue walking in the direction that she was leading.
Passing through 2 more checkpoints without being checked they arrive at a half destroyed building. Rubble all around the steps, and half of its roof gone the building was still very stable despite its ruined image.
¡°Welcome¡± the lady says upon entering ¡°To the destroyed medical ward of our garrison.¡± She gestures with her arms at all the patients lined up in beds all along the unbroken inside walls.
¡°I¡¯ve seen you reading books for over half a year now. Reading books at an incredibly fast rate.¡± She says moving in the aisle of the beds.
¡°Just the other day I saw you reading about heart surgery¡± she stops in front of a surgery ward and turns to him. ¡°Do you think you can do it?¡±
¡°I know the theory of it Ma¡¯am. I don¡¯t know if I can do it.¡±
¡°From this point on. Every Thursday I expect you to come here. I will endeavour to teach you what I can¡± she smiles again ¡°And help you gain all the knowledge that you will ever need¡±
Standing still he lets what she tells him sink in for a few moments before asking ¡°Who are you?¡±
Again smiling ¡°They call me Zee¡±
¡°I¡¯m¡±
Raising her hand ¡°I know who you are Recruit.¡± She laughs. ¡°Let¡¯s make these days interesting¡±
Previous Chapter = Chapter 08 - The Challenge [Part 3]
Next Chapter = Chapter 10 - Commissioned Officers
--------------------------------------------
A/N
Hope I placed this chapter in the right location. Just wanted to bring a flashback and tell you guys how he met Zulu 2 xD
Hope you all enjoyed the snippets of when he was younger ^.^
Chapter 10 - Commissioned officers
Chapter 10 ¨C Commissioned officers.
¡°Stop¡± a corporal at the door says as they arrive at the operations room ¡°You cannot enter¡±
Travelling from the Battle grounds to the Operations room took over half an hour, this half hour had allowed Zulu to come down a far bit. Though he was still angry, his eyes were no longer red. He was calm now, but still mad.
¡°I will enter corporal¡± Zulu says grabbing the neck of the corporal before he could react ¡°And you will not stop me¡± throwing him to the ground face first before pressing the button to open the door.
¡°You cannot enter¡± the corporal coughs out getting up with the help of Samuel
¡°It¡¯s always locked from the inside when a major Op starts¡± Delia says ¡°Which is why I said you won¡¯t be able to meet with the general¡±
*Wires*
¡°How long does an Op usually take?¡± Zulu asks as the wires from his head gear dig its way into the circuitry of the door button.
¡°Depends on how big the Operation is.¡±
¡°Stop that¡± the corporal says grabbing Zulus shoulder and in turn being thrown onto his back.
¡°Stop trying man. Just let the Zulu do what he wants¡± Samuel tells the corporal helping him up yet again.
| [Un-able to access door control] |
¡°But he can¡¯t enter!¡± the corporal states firmly as he moves forward but is stopped by Matthew ¡°Why aren¡¯t you helping me?¡±
¡°He will stop once he realises he can¡¯t do anything¡± Matthew answers. As in the Half hour he had continuously stated the impossibility of gaining access to that room without the proper authorization to Zulu.
¡°The general did say he had free rein on base.¡± Delia states also watching.
| [Power to door ¨C Disabled]
[Door Lock still engaged]
[Weakened structure points located] |
*Show me*
Images of red dots appear over the glass covering his right eye. Each dot locating a point not on the door but on the walls around it; Making him smile.
¡°What¡¯s so funny?¡± Lucy asks as she mistakes the smile for a smirk.
Placing his hand upon one of these points ¡°Just something an old friend once told me¡± Hitting it hard then moving onto to the others
¡°Architects will always put immense effort and resources into a structure, most often in a defensive point, such as a wall, door, or window¡±
Taking a breath and blinking a few times.
¡°But they tend to always fail to notice a large weakness in the design that makes all of this easy to circumvent.¡±
A crack appears joining each of these points around the doorway.
¡°The door itself may be indestructible¡±
Taking a step back
¡°But the walls around it.¡±
And performing a well-placed kick.
¡°Less so¡±
The sound of metal, steel and stone breaking rings out, the cracks enlarge and spread, The wall seem to vibrate with the door, but just as it seems to fall it remains standing and still¡It does not break.
¡°¡Well that was anti-climactic¡± Samuel says breaking the awkward silence that had followed.
Taking out his pistol and turning his safety off, Zulu makes to fire but halts as the door slides open, letting red light flash out onto them. A {Damage to outer Wall} warning was being played on the speakers in the room and the man that had given him his living details stands in the doorway, the General.
¡°Shut down that warning signal already!¡± he shouts to those in the room before turning to see Zulu and those that followed him.
¡°Sir!¡± the corporal that was originally pushed out of the way immediately comes to attention and salutes with Delia and the others.
Returning the salute ¡°What is it¡± he asks, immediately noting that Zulu didn¡¯t give or return the sign of respect.
Firing his pistol Zulu releases three shots without warning, making everyone jump.
| [Pistol ammunition ¨C 8 shots] |
The sound of metal, steel and stone breaking is heard yet again, stronger and louder than before. The cracks enlarge and spread out more, and this time the wall around the door crumbles, this time the door falls backwards into the room.
¡°Much better¡± Zulu says out loud with a satisfied smile, putting away his pistol.
{DOOR BREACH!} Another siren started bleeping into room and through the speakers onto the base. Alerting everyone in the underground of the destroyed wall, before quickly being shut down as well.
With the door that the general was standing in now gone, he was annoyed and mad. Zulu could see it, where others could not. The burn scars running across the face of the old general was ever more present, with the grey moustache messier then the last time he saw him. It seems to have been busy the last three days Zulu concludes.
¡°What are you doing!?!¡± the general yells in frustration, losing all sense of his outwardly calm look.
Taking one step before anyone can react, Zulu closes the distance between himself and the general. Taking hold of the general¡¯s left arm with one hand and holding the neck of said person firmly as to not give him much room to move, but not enough to stop his breathing with his other.
Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.
¡°Why did you authorise the use of Zulu images to the public?¡± Zulu demands to know, ignoring the general¡¯s questions.
Not faltering under the hands of Zulu the general maintains his line of question, like a true general should ¡°Do you know what you have just done?!¡± the general tries to push the Zulu back but stops when he feels the hand around his neck tighten ¡°Construction of this place has taken decades to complete!¡±
¡°And it has taken me less than a minute to destroy¡± Zulu responds squeezing the left artificial arm of the general, making him feel discomfit in his shoulder. ¡°Why are the Zulu images being let out to the public!?¡± he demands again, now projecting a recording of what he saw to those around.
Now realising what was happening the general calms down. ¡°...It has always been that way¡±
Putting what he hears into context, Zulu concludes that it was not this general that allowed the use of Zulu images but those that came before. Angry and annoyed at his own conclusion he continues his course of action and crushes the left arm, before yanking it out of the generals left shoulder, making the general fall to his knees. No blood flowed to the ground though, only blue liquid from now destroyed artificial arm. In his mind, the general was still responsible for not removing said images from use.
¡°Give me access to all your terminals! I will erase those myself!¡± he says making his way into the room.
¡°I can¡¯t¡± the general replies firmly clasping his left shoulder and making Zulu stop in his tracks from the answer.
Annoyed at the resistance Zulu comes back and goes down to his knees to be level with the general ¡°I am only asking as a formality General. From all I have seen, the way you and those officers behind you behave, you all know I have more right to what I demand then not. Even though times has moved on and things are different, it seems to me that you all know, even if the common soldier does not, that me being a Zulu, I have special privileges that you all must adhere to¡Am I right?¡±
¡°¡Yes¡± the General responds now weak.
¡°Then I am gaining access to your terminals and I will do with it as I will.¡±
¡°You will not be able to do what you want to.¡± An officer in the room steps forward and says.
Looking up at this fellow, he finds that it is a her, with blonde hair, stitches across her cheeks and an artificial right eye. ¡°And why is that.¡± Zulu asks getting up.
¡°The private sector has control of those, not us.¡±
Looking into the room of the officers again he notices that all officers in the room has some limb or part of their body replaced.
¡°The military no longer controls its own classified files?¡± Zulu asks.
¡°No¡± the general replies ¡°All classified data are filed then handed off to the politicians; to see if the private sectors may use it. We can see them but we no longer control them.¡±
Taking a long and deep breath before continuing ¡°I am sorry for my behaviour general.¡± He hands back the arm ¡°I did not think that the military would no longer be controlling the populace.¡±
Taking the arm back ¡°We will give you access to what we can.¡± The general states, understanding that he too would be annoyed at seeing the image of someone he fought side by side with being used in the way that was shown. ¡°Colonel¡± he calls ¡°Get me my tablet from my desk¡±
¡°Aye sir¡± the woman that had stepped up responds moving back into the room to retrieve said object.
¡°I cannot authorize you into the system. I do not have the capability to do so.¡± The general says ¡°I will give you my tablet though. It has full access to everything I can access.¡±
Looking at the crumbled walls ¡°You need to rethink your defensive structures general. It took me three pistol shots to destroy it.¡±
¡°Sir!¡± the colonel comes back ¡°your tablet.¡±
Taking it and handing it to Zulu ¡°The code is 0931945373473. Long but I did not decide it.¡±
¡°Thank you.¡± Zulu responds ¡°I will run through our current situation and come back later.¡± He says turning his back and leaving the general to go back to his business.
With Delia and group following in tow. ¡°What are you doing now?¡± Delia ask.
¡°Back to the living quarters, you need not follow me, I will be reading.¡± He answers, not stating that he work on trying to get access to the private sectors as well. ¡°Why did you all not try and stop me when I had the general.¡±
¡°You had no intention of killing him.¡± Lucy states. ¡°You put your pistol away and crushed his left artificial arm as you knew that he wouldn¡¯t receive any permanent damage or die from it.¡±
¡°As the medic stated, you had no intention of killing.¡± Samuel repeats.
Nodding Zulu does not respond, but makes a personal note.
| [Possible temporary operation unit members to consider]
[Sargent Delia, Sargent Matthew, Corporal Samuel, Corporal Lucy] |
Previous Chapter = Chapter 09 - Zulu 2
Next Chapter = Chapter 11 - Zulu
--------------------------------------------
A/N
Next Chapter will probably be an information Dump. About time I get to that. And with access to the data base, it will also be a logical thing to do.
Hope this chapter lived up to the climax I had been trying to make. I¡¯m not very good and concluding conflicts. Always my down fall ^.^
Chapter 11 - Zulu
Chapter 11 ¨C Zulu
¡°Can you hear me?¡± Zed asks
With his legs chained to the floor, arms tied around the back of the chair and eyes coloured white, he gives no answer.
¡°He¡¯s deaf to us now Zed¡± Zee tells him ¡°You can tell by his fuzzy looking eyes.¡±
¡°It happened faster than when we got ours.¡± Zig says
¡°Did you get yours time then?¡± Zed responds
¡°No, but it¡¯s barely been 10min.¡±
¡°The first stage isn¡¯t meant to take too long¡± Zed answers, still looking at him who is tied to the chair.
¡°He is a good choice. Better pick then the others¡± Zee says, changing the subject
¡°I liked the girl better¡± Zag frowns
¡°And I don¡¯t like being the only male in our unit¡± Zed speaks out
¡°Awwww¡± Zag laughs ¡°don¡¯t be like that¡± she moves to jump on Zed but he dodges, making her land on her knees
¡°Only 18¡± Zee speaks out ¡°He is the youngest out of us to get it.¡±
¡°You sure he won¡¯t change his position in time?¡± Zig asks ¡°Won¡¯t change his point of view from any sudden events?¡±
¡°Won¡¯t change his position in time?¡± Zee repeats, pauses and smiles before answering ¡°Oh he will.¡±
Giving Zee a look of weariness ¡°You know what I mean¡± Zig says. ¡°You¡¯ve spent the most time with him.¡±
¡°He is very much like us. He will change if there is enough reason to.¡±
¡°It took us all over a decade in the field to get to how we are¡±
¡°Do you not trust my judgement¡± Zee says taking out her knife. ¡°You can still stop this¡± she hands it to her.
¡°Stop it¡± Zed says ¡°The both of you¡± grabbing the knife out of Zee¡¯s hand. ¡°We¡¯ve both examined him for a time. Zee¡¯s monitored him for over 2 years. If you had any objections you would have raised it earlier. You¡¯re only worried because he looks young¡±
¡°He is young¡± Zig responds ¡°Only 18 as Zee has pointed out.¡±
¡°I liked the girl¡± Zag says again. ¡°She was better.¡± She sighs with dreamy eyes.
¡°You know why we didn¡¯t choose her.¡± Zed speaks up ¡°When it came down to it she was too passive, she wasn¡¯t aggressive enough when the time called for it.¡±
¡°Who would have thought the most promising one would have coward in the corner at the last second.¡± Zig sighs and sits on the desk.
¡°He wasn¡¯t the most promising¡± Zee smiles ¡°Mine was¡and is¡±
¡°There are no records of him before the age of 11¡± Zig states a fact that the four of them know
¡°The five year record we do have of him show him to be¡highly intelligent but not a genius. The past 2 years of monitoring him proves that to be true, but not only is he smart he is calm but brutal, disciplined but relaxed and most of all he is decisive.¡± Zed says, now leaning against a wall of the room with no windows. ¡°We can guess what he was doing before that though. Considering the fact our first records of him are in Noiizia¡±
They all nod in agreement, him first appearing in Noiizia said a lot about what he could have been doing in the past, even with this though Zig continues to voice her concern.
¡°That¡¯s the problem. Over half of his life is unrecorded.¡±
¡°Are we going to start questioning each of our pasts now?¡± Zee asks the rhetorical question ¡°since if we do¡none of us should be here.¡±
¡°¡He could have been living with the Non-Humans, a spy¡±
Taking another knife from her belt and offering it open handed ¡°You can still stop this¡±
Staying on the wall, Zed watches and stays silent, this time choosing to do nothing but let the event take its course. If Zig really did not approve of him, she has all the right to stop it by killing him now.
Pushing the knife away ¡°No¡± she replies ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m just agitated that my choice failed so miserably¡±
¡°If he was with the Non-Humans then it¡¯s all the better for us¡± Zee says ¡°We are officially on trying to kill them all, but un-officially¡¡±
¡°I wonder what he is seeing¡± Zag asks sitting crossed legged in front of the chair and quickly changing the subject.
¡°You know what he is seeing¡± Zed says joining in to change it as well
¡°Everything¡± Zag says ¡°but everything is different to all of us.¡± Recalling what she saw ¡°What I saw wasn¡¯t very¡pleasant¡±
¡°A combination of everything you¡¯ve seen in your life, with the added feeling helplessness, uselessness and dread¡± Zig recounts her vision. ¡°Why does it twist your memory, it took me a while to sort out what was real and what was not.¡±
¡°You could ask the Major¡± Zed says ¡°I would love to know the answer to that question as well¡±
¡°Only if we could find him¡± Zag says ¡°Do you think he died?¡±
¡°Him, dead?¡± Zed laughs ¡°He is too quick-witted for that.¡±
¡°Too paranoid you mean¡± Zig corrects.
¡°Yes¡Too Paranoid¡± Zed repeats as they all go silent and look at him who is tied to the chair.
¡°You guys can leave.¡± Zee says after a while ¡°You don¡¯t need to be here for all three hours.¡±
¡°It¡¯s better if we are all here¡± Zed says. ¡°You remember your first moments of awakening don¡¯t you?¡±
Looking down at her hands ¡°Yes¡± she says scrubbing them as hard as she can without injuring herself ¡°Sorry¡± she mumbles very quietly
¡°It¡¯s past¡± Zed replies stoically, equally as quiet.
¡°AAAAAAARRRGGGHHHH!¡± a scream starts emitting from the chair and he who is on it struggles to get out of his restraints; his eyes still fuzzy.
¡°See, I told you it¡¯s happening faster than it did for us.¡± Zig says.
Grabbing a rag ¡°We¡¯re lucky he didn''t bite his tongue off¡± Zag says putting it in his mouth, muffling the scream and removing the chance of that happening.
¡°It could be because he is young¡± Zee says ¡°he is at least a dozen years younger than the youngest of us when we first wore it. Younger mind, less memory, stronger body.¡±
¡°Did you tell him what wearing that would do to him?¡± Zed asks
¡°Only that it was the key to everything he wanted¡±
¡°And he agreed to it with only that much information?¡± Zig asks sceptically
¡°He trust me Zig. I¡¯ve taught him a lot in the past 2 years. Almost every day in the last 6 months¡±
¡°He isn¡¯t your son Zee¡± Zed says firmly
Scrubbing her hands again she doesn¡¯t reply.
¡°Guuyyzzz¡± Zag interrupts the conversation making the three of them turn to look at where she was looking and realize the muffled screaming had stopped ¡°His eyes are red¡± she states.
¡°It¡¯s not even been 30minutes.¡± Zig says getting off the table.
¡°Did something go wrong?¡± Zed asks getting of the wall.
¡°No, everything looks fine¡± Zee answers
The chains holding him down start to whine and begin to stretch.
Standing up ¡°Lucky we all chose to stay¡± Zag says quickly taking the rag out of his mouth and going behind him to keeps his hands together.
¡°Zee¡± Zed says moving to retrain his feet.
The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
¡°Yes, Yes¡± Zee answers moving forward to sit facing him on his lap and holding his face with both hands.
¡°Zig¡± Zed says.
¡°I¡¯m at the door¡± she replies.
Feeling his skin heating to higher temperatures then normal Zee looks into his eyes ¡°Can you hear me? Can you see me? Are you with me?¡± she asks but does not get a response; but she didn¡¯t need one, she knows he can hear her and that he can see her.
¡°Stay calm, try to control your heart beat, Think about the breathing techniques I taught you. Use them. You are safe here.¡±
Feeling his temperature continue to rise
¡°Stay calm, try to control your heart beat, Think about the breathing techniques I taught you. Use them. You are safe here.¡± She repeats it like a recorder over and over and over again, holding his face in her hands and keeping her eyes locked with his.
The chains continue to whine, soon snapping and stopping Zee from speaking.
¡°Zee¡± Zed says ¡°Get off him¡± still holding his legs.
¡°His eyes are still red¡± She replies.
¡°Get off him NOW¡± Zed demands as he his arms get pushed apart and receives a kick to his chest, sending him flying into the wall, breaking the table that was behind him.
An arms comes up and Zee goes up in to the air by the neck whilst another arm knocks Zag in the face, sending her at Zig.
¡°Stay calm¡± Zee says calming holding herself on his arm ¡°Breathe¡±
Letting go and punching her in the chest, he sends her at Zed.
¡°Remember guys¡± Zed says catching Zee ¡°We are to restrain him, not kill.¡± As his eye turns red.
¡°Yes Sir¡± Zig answers, as her eyes turn red.
¡°Aye¡± Zag answers, eyes turning red.
¡°Break his bones if you have to¡± Zee says ¡°don¡¯t let him leave this room¡± her eyes turning red too.
The room turn silent and steam starts rising from his body. Still in his chair everyone waits for anything. The temperature rises rapidly and the four spread around him.
¡°AAAAAAARRRGGGHHHH!¡± He roars, standing up and breaking the silence.
Like a signal the roar sets everyone in motion. He dashes to the door but gets blocked by Zig so he jumps but receives a punch and gets sent to the ceiling. Instead of crushing into it though his feet lands upon it, allowing him to jump from it and head towards the broken table.
Zag coming off from the east wall body slams him in mid-air, pushing him towards the west, where Zee had jumped off to slam him from that side. Colliding in mid-air to force him directly into a vertical drop.
Just before hitting the ground he rolls and pushes Zee underneath him. Landing upon her and sending a full strength kick into her chest before punching Zag in the throat, Making Zee cough out blood and Zag clench her throat as she falls to the ground.
Zed comes from the front running at full force to tackle him to the ground, this time successfully pushing him down as Zig jumps to give another full body strike as Zed rolls off him.
The full bodied strike is foiled though as with Zed off his body he raises both his legs to perform a backflip and kick Zig back at the ceiling.
¡°Break his bones!¡± Zee says without hesitation recovering from the chest kick that cracked almost all her ribs.
¡°Aye¡± Zag responds as Zig kicks off the ceiling and times a strike with Zed to successfully get him back down instantly shattering his left shoulder bones.
¡°AAAAAAARRRGGGHHHH!¡± he lets out another roar as his right shoulder bones get shattered as well before head butting both Zig and Zed, causing their holds to weaken just enough to break free and stand up.
Zee jumps again to kick him in the chest with the help of Zag from behind, but the kick never reaches as he dodges at the last second to body slam her into the wall. Causing her already cracked ribs to break and shatter.
Blood now covering his face and Zee on the ground he turns around with his useless arms to find Zig and Zag down at his feet. Breaking his legs, making him fall and knocking all sense of resistance from him.
¡°How is she?¡± Zed asks
¡°I¡¯m fine¡± Zee responds coughing out blood. ¡°He never hit my head¡±
A few minutes pass and his eyes go back to their original colour.
¡°It¡¯s past¡± Zed says, as all their eyes change back as well.
¡°Why is it so dark?¡± he says regaining control of his limbs.
| [System activation complete] |
The room turns green through his right eye and he sees blood all over his hands and clothes.
¡°I¡I¡I¡¯m sorry¡± he says looking down at his hands
¡°It¡¯s alright¡± Zee says coming up to cup his face in her hands ¡°It wasn¡¯t your fault¡± still spitting blood as she speaks.
¡°It was so dark¡± he says ¡°I heard you speaking. I thought it was a dream¡±
¡°It¡¯s okay¡± Zee replies. ¡°You had no control¡± looking directly at his eyes ¡°Stay calm, breathe¡±
¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me?¡±
¡°It might not have happened.¡± Zee answers ¡°Zed¡¯s didn¡¯t¡±
¡°What is this¡± he asks removing himself from her care and standing up, touching the new gear on his head.
¡°The major called it Nous hub. We just call it the I.G.S. Short for intelligence gathering system¡± Zed answers. ¡°Its main purpose is to provide the user with any information he or she wants. That be it legal or illegal ways, it is able to hack into everything.¡±
¡°The key to everything I wanted¡±
Previous Chapter = Chapter 10 - Commissioned Officers
Next Chapter = Chapter 12 - Present Time
------------------------------------------
A/N
I guess this wasn''t a dump of information, but it will be coming, in the next, probably.
Another flash back. Be aware that they will be quite frequent.
Its not a bad thing right? since i do have to get information about what happened in the past and present time.
I won''t ever label the chapter as "Flashback". Ill leave it up to you guys to realise.
Though you guys will probably realise what chapters they are by the titles after a time.
Thanks for reading ^.^
Hope to god i didn''t the names mixed up...they are all so similar i kept typing the wrong ones at times >.>
Chapter 12 - Present time
A/N - Don''t quite know if this was the best way for my info dump. But i hope you all like it.
Chapter 12 - Present Time
| [Unable to access]
[Firewalls in place]
[Unknown programing language]
[Need new data] |
Sighing Zulu unhooks his wires from the tablet the general had given him. The quickest way to obtaining data was for his headgear to directly download it, as it would then run through it and throw out useless information; crunching down numbers, specifying major points in people, battle, history etc.
An extremely useful tool for gathering and analysing data, a tool that made his life a billion times easier; a tool he has become reliant on.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{0931945373473}[/pc][/col]
[/box]
He types the number into the tablet, unlocking it whist taking a glimpse outside his room¡¯s window. Currently being 19:17 the lighting of the underground city was starting to dim. The pure white turning to bright orange, simulating that of the sun. If you weren¡¯t looking up at the underground ceiling that was 300meters above, then one would believe the lighting to actually have come from the sun itself. For the light was warm like that of the sun and there was an air current, a breeze that drifted through the place, the combination of the two fooled the senses.
Looking back down, he lets out another sigh. His headgear could not hack into this simple device, something that¡¯s never happened before, something to really worry about, but he pushes on.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{Non-Humans}[/pc][/col]
[/box]
He types into the device. It was the enemy he fought for so long, now they seemed to be his allies. The old records didn¡¯t have much of them. Sure a biopsy had been done multiple times upon many dead bodies, the difference was the extra organ with in their bodies and the extra Circulatory system. Separate from the one that passed red and white blood cells, this other set of blood channels passed something of a purplish colour, something so easy to mistake for blood. They never figured out what these extra organs were for.
That was why both humans and non-humans use to actually live together in peace a long time before that. Everyone thought that we were all one and the same race. In a sense everyone was na?ve.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{0 search results}[/pc][/col]
[/box]
¡°What in the world¡± Zulu mutters to himself.
He knows that the information he has is not wrong, and so he types it in again.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{0 search results}[/pc][/col]
[/box]
| [Advice ¨C search Humans] |
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{228,000,000,000 search results}[/pc][/col]
[/box]
¡°Well¡shit¡± he mutters at the number of results he receives.
Adding more key words he specifies his search, cutting down the number of results to only 1,000. Choosing to go with the top result, he opens the first link.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{Human History}[/pc][/col]
[/box]
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{A Quick Time Line from prehistoric times till Now}[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]>4.2 million years ago[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Appearance of Homo Habilis[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]>355 000 years ago[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Evolution of Homo Sapiens[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]200 000 ----- > 30 000 Year B.C[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]The Stone Age[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]30 000 ----- > 10 000 Year B.C[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]The Bronze Age[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]10 000 ----- > 1 Year B.C[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]The Iron Age[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]0 ----- > 1 000 Year A.D[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]The First Millennium[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]1 000 ----- > 2 000 Year A.D[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]The Second Millennium[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]2 000 ----- > 3 000 Year A.D[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]The Third Millennium[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]3 000 ----- > 4 000 Year A.D[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]The Forth Millennium[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]4 000 ----- > 4 328 Year A.D[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]The Fifth Millennium[/pc][/col]
[/box]
¡°Seven hundred years¡± he whispers looking back up and out of the window. ¡°Seven hundred years¡±
¡°Seven hundred god damn years¡± he says a bit louder, a bit angrier. Holding the tablet a bit tighter, he wants to bend it, he wants to snap it in half, but he doesn¡¯t.
¡°Seven hundred years¡± he whispers again, very quietly, less angry, calmer, before turning back to the tablet.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{3 000 ----- > 4 000 Year A.D}[/pc][/col]
[/box]
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{Notable Event(s)}[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]3 478 ----- > 3 641[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Old Human, New Human war[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]3 681 ----- > 3 824[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Free Peoples republic[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]3 824 ----- > 3 846[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]
Fall of Free Peoples republic[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]3 946 ----- > 3 952[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Old Human Genocide[/pc][/col]
[/box]
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{Old Human, New Human War.}[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]
Old Human, New Human War.
Quick Summery on the Start and End.
Started in year 3 478 A.D. Ended in 3 641 A.D
There are conflicting results on what really started the world war between the two sides. For simplicity sake we shall be naming one side as Old Human and the other as New Human. According to both records both Old and New Humans records they both state that it was neither them that started it, both stating it was the opposing side that did. It is impossible to truly figure who made the first strike, but blame for the war can be attributed to two very large groups that garnered massive support around 3 475 AD for their opposing ideology.
The Name of these two groups have disappeared over time, due to this purpose we shall call on the Pro- Human and Anti-Human Extremist. It is rumoured however that these groups still exist, but no evidence has been found to prove such findings.
It is said that these groups first started sprouting up around the year 3 468 AD, it was at this time that the knowledge of there being more than one type of human became wide spread.
The Anti-Human Extremist were a group composed of those Humans described in the textbooks at the time, A more scientific term would be Homo Sapien Sapien. They were the ones that everyone thought were the only humans. This group had an ideology that those that were not them should not be treated as equal, that they should serve. This is where the Old-Human side started gathering power.
The Pro-Human Extremist were a group that had the exact same mentality as the Anti-Human, but instead of the text book humans. It was the other, ¡°newer¡± ones. This is where the New-Human side started gathering power.
Before the year 3 475 A.D these ideologies had next to no support, in our records it was something people scoffed at. What happened in 3 475 A.D that changed people¡¯s point of view, we may never know. It may have been due to an elected official in a specific country and policies that favoured one side over another. It may have been some unknown mugging on the street. Either way, it was during 3 475 AD that both sides garnered massive support and grew in power, soon having their people in power over multiple countries.
It was during the Year 3 478 A.D that these two groups met in force. Their ideology being on the complete opposite end of a spectrum they could never agree on anything and so War started. That is what we can at best guess happened, as the records during the start of the war have almost been lost.
The Official end of the war concluded in the Year 3 641 A.D by the signing of the Equal Status Treaty. This treaty was signed by Major ***** leader of the Old Human Government and General Barret Harding.
The treaty took weeks to organise and many people died in the signing. There were factions on both sides that did not want the war to end, but mass majority did. Assassinations on both sides occurred, some by their own people, others by the opposing. With all this going on, it is truly an achievement for both sides to have officially end the fighting, at least on paper that is. The fighting did not end until 3 647 A.D where both sides were able to completely subjugate the renegade factions that continued, but The Year 3 641 A.D is the year that both sides came together to stop, thus that is the end of the war.[/pc][/col]
[/box]
Stolen novel; please report.
Pausing after reading the supposed history of the war He thinks upon it for a bit. The beginning was something new to him, he suspected that both sides thought the opposing started it, but had never considered the idea of Pro, Anti human groups. It wasn¡¯t something you would think about.
To have been fighting, dying for something he thought as a stupid ideology wasn¡¯t what it felt like in memory. All he knew and majority of the people he fought with, their aim was to survive, to exterminate the threat. This idea of being better then another never entered the mines of his and their minds. But then again, most wars started from a misunderstanding, a mistake, something small and insignificant.
However, he did not completely trust it what the document stated, though it may seem perfectly logical and seemingly possible, it could have been a fabrication made by the current people running the government. He would need to see the research papers themselves to truly understand it.
The ending of the war though got him wondering.
As he thought, The Major did not go to sleep with them and yet he showed up at the signing of the treaty.
*Could this possibly a different Major?*
| [Unknown possibility. Not enough Data.] |
Putting the matter aside, he makes a personal note come back round to it later. Pressing another link.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{Forces}[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Human[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Homo Sapien Sapien (Extinct)[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]New Human[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Homo Sapien Sapien Deviare
Homo Sapien Sapien Mermanur[/pc][/col]
[/box]
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Homo Sapien Sapien[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]
Homo Sapien Sapien Quick Summary
Homo Sapien Sapien were once the most dominant species on the planet, they first appeared over 355 000 years. They are credited with all the greatest discoveries, creations and inventions ever made. Ranging from the creation of simple farming tools to the ability of space travel.
They died out in the year 3 952 A.D, coinciding with the ending year of the Old-Human genocide. Three species of Humans came from the Homo Sapien Sapien, The Homo Sapien Sapien Aeternus, The Homo Sapien Sapien Deviare, The Homo Sapien Sapien Mermanus.
By far this species is the weakest of the three that now reside upon the planet. They are slower, easier to unsettle, dumber and more emotionally disturbed. It is truly a wonder how they dominated the world for so long.
The only thing records indicate of them, other than their brilliance in the face of defeat was their ability to think of things no one can imagine. The inventions they have created is a clear example of this. In a way can be thought of as creators. The most recent creations were made by **** 4 before she past.[/pc][/col]
[/box]
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Homo Sapien Sapien Aeternus[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]The Homo Sapien Sapien Aeternus is the last of the three now present species living on this planet to evolve. They were not involved in the Old Human, New Human war as evidence support the fact that they first appeared around 3 900 A.D.
They are all but biologically the same as the Homo Sapien Sapien. The only difference is that their blood cells are thicker, their lungs are slightly larger, and their heart beats stronger.
This combination of effects give them the ability to heal quickly, but not instantly, to live longer, but not forever and to think more clearly in the heat of the moment. They tend to be wiser, as they tend to see and hear more than the other two species, due to their life span. The oldest is said to have lived for 500 years, but the average life time seems to be about 300[/pc][/col]
[/box]
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]The Homo Sapien Sapien Deviare[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]The Homo Sapien Sapien Deviare were involved in the Old Human, New Human War. They fought on the New Human side, neither winning it nor losing it. Records first indicate them appearing around 3100 A.D.
They possess two hearts and have two Blood Circulatory Systems. One flows with nothing but adrenaline and the other flows with normal blood. This gives them heightened senses. They can see easier, hear clearer, and smell further. In the think of battle, they move faster, think quicker and have tougher muscles, making them physically stronger.
Another aspect these people possess is that they feel no pain, but are able to tell when they are injured and near/or in danger (A sixth sense of a sort). This makes it different from the condition of Congenital Analgesia, as they know by instinct what is life threating, what will injure and what will not.
The down side of these people is that they have shorter lives, but they are often more fulfilled with adventure and excitement.[/pc][/col]
[/box]
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]The Homo Sapien Sapien Mermanus[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]The Homo Sapien Sapien Mermanus were involved in the Old Human, New Human War. They fought on the New Human side, neither winning it nor losing it. Records first indicate them appearing around 3200 A.D.
They possess three extra organs, and one extra Circulatory System. One small heart attached to the first heart, another small stomach located near the gut and the last attached to the spine near the shoulder blade.
All three of these organs connect to the extra Circulatory System only. The Small heart pumps the liquid that flows in them, the stomach stores some substance it generates and the third we call the bine, it converts this liquid for use.
This species it the most different from the Homo Sapien Sapien, second to evolve they are not faster or stronger than them. They are no smarter, no sensitive. What differs them is their ability to control objects from afar, to generate water, earth, wind and fire.
They are more creative than any of the present three species, finding ways to improve their ability to control their abilities. But they are not creators, they pale in comparison to the inventive ways the Old species were, **** 3 is noted as having discovered ways for the Homo Sapian Sapien Mermanus to defend themselves and **** 2 to heal others.[/pc][/col]
[/box]
He smiles from reading the last part. Zulu 2, 3 and 4 are noted in history. They accomplished something they had wanted to do, something they all thought they wouldn¡¯t be able to get the chance to do.
Soon stoping his smile, he states out loud ¡°I am the last of my kind¡±.
He did not truly believe it, he would need to research it on his own. Find his own evidence.
¡°I am the last of my kind¡± he states again, to make him accustomed to the idea.
¡°I am the last of my kind¡± he states it again to finalize the point, to make it stick, to not be unsettled if it really were true.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]4 000 ----- > 4 328 Year A.D[/pc][/col]
[/box]
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Notable Event(s)[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]4 001 [/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Construction of Noiizia underground city.[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]4 053[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Destruction of Noiizia underground city.[/pc][/col]
[col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]4 162[/pc][/col][col colspan=2 valign=middle width=50% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Re-Construction of Noiizia underground city.[/pc][/col]
[/box]
------------------------
Outside the room
------------------------
¡°How long has he been there?¡±
¡°It¡¯s been over a week¡± Delia responds
¡°Has he been eating? Resting?¡± Matthew asks
¡°No, he is up all day and night. I¡¯ve seen him eating pills. But he doesn¡¯t take meals. He told me that they take too much time.¡±
¡°The President and Council wants to have a word with him. They have been waiting for 3 days now.¡±
¡°I can¡¯t drag him away. He doesn¡¯t even see me when I walk in, nor does he hear me. Only when I touch him or make a loud noise does he respond. I¡¯ve told him about it, he said he¡¯ll see the President when he is done.¡±
¡°What am I meant to tell the President and Council then? They are getting impatient that The Zulu has not appeared before him already.¡±
¡°Tell them that if he wants to see Him, they should come here themselves.¡±
¡°The President and Council¡here?¡± Matthew smiles. ¡°I would like to see that.¡±
Previous Chapter = Chapter 11 - Zulu
Next Chapter = Chapter 13 - The President
------------------------------------------
A/N
Aargh, Table Coding, so annoying. There are currently no holes in my story (Well i don''t see any). So if you see a contradiction, it may be there on purpose. Unless you think i haven''t, but i have put some in there on purpose, for obvious reasons,
Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Thanks for reading ^.^
Chapter 13 - The President
Chapter 13 - The President
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{Error}[/pc][/col]
[/box]
The Tablet States
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{Error}[/pc][/col]
[/box]
The Tablet states again.
¡°What the heck¡± he says out loud and shakes it.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{System rebooting}[/pc][/col]
[/box]
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{System rebooted}[/pc][/col]
[/box]
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{Insert Wires}[/pc][/col]
[/box]
Is all that is present on the screen, the buttons and touch ability do not respond.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{Insert I.G.S Wires}[/pc][/col]
[/box]
| [System Hacked. Do Not Follow] |
His headgear responds.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]{Crucial Update Required For I.G.S Insert Wires}[/pc][/col]
[/box]
The Tablet states again. Holding it in his hands he looks at, waiting and thinking.
¡°Zulu¡± Delia speaks through the door before opening it and entering, not waiting for a response.
Placing the tablet down on his desk, ¡°What now.¡± He asks, swirling on his chair to find that she is not alone.
| President: Vadimir
Date of Birth: 05/12/XXXX
Started office on: 28/05/XXXX
Aeternus |
¡°Zulu¡± A tall and skinny man, unmarked with anything except for deep wrinkles strolls into the room as if it was below him. ¡°Why have you not come to greet me?¡± he asks, agitatedly.
| [Time spent reading 13 days] |
¡°Mr President¡± Standing up to find that he himself is taller, he does a small bow ¡°I have been¡preoccupied¡±
¡°Tsk¡± the man lets out under his breath ¡°I have heard that your last mission was labelled Shadow Mist. We¡¯ve had multiple things labelled that. All of them successful.¡± Turning to look at all that is in the room. ¡°Which is the one you refer to?¡±
Eyeing the president as he looks at all that is in the room, Zulu finds that the man is disgusted at something. ¡°There is only one¡± He responds, not wanting to reveal what he does not have to.
¡°And which one is that?¡± Reverting his eyes back to Zulu.
¡°The forth one¡± he lies, picking one that occurred before the incident and president¡¯s birth.
¡°I see.¡± Bringing out a tablet and looking through it. ¡°Why do I not see your name on it then?¡±
¡°A Joint operation will never have my name present.¡± He answers knowing that the president will not be able to prove or disprove his lie.
Still holding the tablet ¡°I do not believe you¡± he states bluntly.
¡°It is the truth¡± Zulu shrugs ¡°If you don¡¯t believe then don¡¯t¡±
Putting the tablet away ¡°You are the councils new body guard.¡± He states as if it was already decided.
¡°President!¡± Delia protests ¡°You can¡¯t. We know nothing of¡±
¡°Don¡¯t tell me what I can and cannot do¡± the president slaps her, cutting her off and startling her.
Eyeing them for a second ¡°She is right.¡± Zulu says, calmly sitting back down. ¡°You know nothing of me¡± He looks back at his tablet that was now showing a blueprint with a blinking red dot at its centre. ¡°Why would you want me as your body guard?¡±
¡°Your presence will deter assassins.¡±
¡°Deter them and allow the council to keep their position.¡± He says studying the blueprint in detail.
¡°We are a democracy¡± the president states stoically ¡°Our position is decided by those who vote.¡±
Raising an eye, Zulu meets the presidents for a second before turning back to his tablet, not replying. The votes were rigged, not many people knew, but they both did.
¡°We do what is best for the people.¡± The president speaks out. ¡°I do not need to justified myself!¡±
¡°Majority of your citizens are happy, that is the only reason why there is no revolt.¡±
¡°You are to be the council¡¯s new body guard¡± he states again.
¡°And why must I be?¡±
The president walks forward and snatches the tablet out of Zulu¡¯s hands, forcing Zulu to look at him ¡°You are part of the military, and thus subject to us. You have already been assigned as such.¡±
¡°Technically I am not part of the military¡± Smiling, ¡°Thus I am not subjected to your military laws.¡± Looking at the tablet in the president¡¯s hand for a spilt second ¡°There are over a dozen different powerful nations.¡± grabbing the tablet back ¡°what is in it for me?¡±
¡°You are subjected to our military laws.¡± The president corrects. ¡°Technically you are a prisoner.¡±
¡°Technically I have immunity.¡± Zulu says ¡°You may not, but it seems the military still follow the old law.¡±
¡°tsk¡± he mutters under his breath again ¡°It stops us from turning on each other, Either way, You are still my bodyguard.¡±
¡°Your body guard? I thought I was meant to be the council¡¯s¡±
¡°You will be mine and in sense the councils¡±
Turning away and looking back out the window ¡°You and I are both not a stupid men Mr President. I am currently something like a freelance mercenary. You cannot strong arm me. What do you have to offer me?¡±
¡°I can give you your life¡±
¡°HA!¡± Zulu laughs ¡°My Life? Do you honestly think I care too much about my own life? My purpose has already been fulfilled. I am just a wanderer now¡± Still looking out the window ¡°And do you honestly believe that your life is currently in your own hands and not mine? You would have seen the recording of me in the arena by now.¡± Looking back at the blueprint on the screen he concludes that the tower in the far distance was its design. ¡°Again Mr President, what do you have to offer me?¡±
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
¡°You would not dare harm me¡± The president states ¡°I am in control¡±
Taking out his pistol, but holding it by the barrel instead of the grip as a sign of having no intention of using it. ¡°Did you know, the average distance for a pistol is about 30 metres? Your snipers are a good 300 metres away. 10 times the recommended distance for a pistol.¡±
¡°They are well out of your range¡± the President smiles thinking he has succeeded in strong arming Zulu.
¡°Did you know the average amount of time a bullet requires to travel 100 metres is 0.2 seconds?¡± Still holding the pistol by the barrel ¡°Do you think I can make that shot? Do you think I can do it three times in less than 0.6 of a second?¡±
¡°It is impossible. Even you have limits.¡±
¡°No, it is not impossible, just highly improbable.¡± Placing the pistol on the table ¡°If I have need of it, I may try and get 2 of them out of my clip of 6, and it would take 0.6 of a second to do. Though I would prefer to have more times for my shots¡±
¡°So you submit yourself to me? You agree to carry out the charges as my bodyguard and swear it under a blood oath.¡±
¡°What about a knife though? Is there a throwing limit for a knife?¡± he takes it out holding it by the blade ¡°Do you think I could throw it the distance and hit one of them?¡±
¡°Do you submit yourself to me!¡± the President asks, agitated at being barraged with rhetorical questions.
¡°Again, it is not impossible, just highly improbably.¡± Placing the blade on the table. ¡°It takes about 10 seconds for it to travel 300 metres. 1 second for 30 metres, I do have my limits¡± he smiles. ¡°Do you think I¡¯ll hit?¡±
¡°It is Impossible!¡± The president shouts, now realising that Zulu had no intent on backing down.
¡°Tell me Mr President. What is the one thing Zulu¡¯s are known for?¡±
¡°¡Succeeding their missions, no matter the cost.¡± The president says emotionlessly
Nodding. ¡°That is true, but you are skirting around it.¡±
¡°¡For never failing, no matter how difficult¡±
Nodding again ¡°True as well. But you know the true answer. I want the true answer.¡±
Gritting his teeth ¡°For doing the impossible¡± the President reluctantly says.
¡°Yes. We are known,¡± pausing then correcting himself ¡°I am known for doing the impossible. So tell me Mr President. What can you offer me?¡±
¡°You will still die!¡± the President puts up a last struggle.
¡°As I said, I do not care.¡± Smiling ¡°If I were to die, you and many other people would too.¡± Turning back to actually look at the president ¡°I will tell you this. Your snipers will miss¡So what do you have to offer me? Mr President¡±
Grinding his teeth ¡°What is it that you want.¡±
¡°No Mr President. You will give me an offer and I will accept or decline at my own will. You want me. What will you offer me?¡±
Not use to not being in control he retreats ¡°Come to the tower tomorrow. There the council and I will decide how to hire you.¡±
¡°The tower I see outside the window?¡±
¡°She will lead you¡± he answers leaving the room, feeling humiliated.
¡°Sir¡± Delia says in response, acknowledging the instructions.
¡°Do not interrupt me again¡± He slaps her out of annoyance.
With only Delia and Zulu in the room, Zulu goes back and takes his seat whilst Delia stays standing in the doorway, one hand on her cheek.
¡°Father?¡± Zulu asks her.
¡°¡Yes.¡± She replies hand still on her red cheek
¡°Is the whole council like that?¡± Zulu asks her.
¡°The people voted them, they run the nation.¡± Not answering the question.
¡°The election is rigged.¡±
¡°It is not!¡± she protests ¡°Voting is done publically. Everyone sees who votes for who!¡±
¡°There is more than one way to rig an election Delia.¡±
¡°I will not believe your lies.¡± She spits out.
Looking at her, he sees that he cannot force this opinion, but also finds that there is some doubt in her eyes, she does not truly believe what she says. ¡°I need food¡± he tells her and sees her leave without replying.
Alone in the room, door shut and snipers gone. He takes a long and deep breath. He never liked negotiating, it was never his best skill. Zulu 1 was the one that normally handed it. Zulu 1 had a way with words, he could weave tiny lies in every sentence and bring anybody to his terms, both gently and forcibly. It was a skill he himself was envious of. All he could do was push logic and facts forward, hoping that they see it true. More often than not, he avoided talking to those in power, it tended to bring trouble.
Putting his knife and pistol back on his belt, he closes his eyes. His purpose in life no longer existed, his mission, his goal, gone. He was now a mercenary, something good and bad. He no longer had to perform miracles. The weight of his side no longer rested upon his shoulders. Instead he has no side, he has no obligations to fill. He was free.
Opening his eyes he takes a look outside the window and stares at the tower in the far distance. ¡°I miss you guys¡± he mutters to himself before looking back down at the tablet to decide a new goal.
A simple one and a selfish one. Explore the new world and learn all there is to know. A lot can and did happen in 700 years. He has spent 13 days reading, but it is impossible to learn 700 years in just 13 days, there are still many things he did not know, things that he wants to know.
Like for instance, apparently animals the size of dinosaurs roamed the surface now, due to some experiment that went wrong sometime during the end of the 3rd millennium; they are apparently deadly and smarter than one would expect.
What he did not want was to get bogged down in another war, he did not want to be in charge of people that he would send to their deaths, he has had enough of it. If he had to though, he would do it.
But first, he had a few things he needed to do here. Looking at the blinking red dot he wipes his face as Delia walks back into the room with a tray of food.
¡°Your food¡± she says placing it down.
Grabbing her arm ¡°Why do you despise me so¡± he asks, face hiding all sense of emotion he felt.
Looking at him she pulls her arm back, not answering and leaving as quickly as she came.
Previous Chapter = Chapter 12 - Present Time
Next Chapter = Chapter 14 - Delia
-------------------------------------------------
A/N
I was trying to draw what it looked out side his window. but i''ve since given up. I can''t draw >.>
Hope you enjoyed the chapter.
Thanks for reading ^.^
Chapter 14 - Delia
Chapter 14 - Delia
¡°Shouldn¡¯t you be with the Zulu right now?¡± Matthew asks as he helps her up onto the hovering vehicle floating towards the hanger.
¡°I should be, but he isn¡¯t going anywhere.¡±
¡°Still stuck in the room reading?¡±
¡°How long has it been now?¡± Samuel asks
¡°He¡¯s sleeping¡± She says taking a seat facing them.
¡°13th day today if I remember correctly¡± Matthew answers.
¡°14th¡± Delia corrects ¡°He read for 13 days straight, then ate and now he is sleeping, I don¡¯t think he¡¯ll wake up for a few days.¡± She sighs looking away from them ¡°The president isn¡¯t going to be happy.¡±
¡°The president is never happy¡± Samuel jokes lightly
¡°He never is¡± she scoffs in response, still looking away, remembering what he was like as a father.
¡°Wait¡± Lucy says halting the conversation and making them turn to her ¡°He really just spent 13 days reading? Every waking hour?¡±
¡°Yes¡± Delia says letting her memory of her father go ¡°but I never saw him sleep¡±
¡°He didn¡¯t sleep for 13 days?!¡±
¡°I never saws him sleep¡± she says again.
¡°He must have!¡± Lucy states
¡°He must have¡± Delia replies for there was nothing else to say. In reasonable sense, he must have slept.
¡°The average organ stops functioning properly after a week without rest. The body needs rest time to heal damage cells¡± She re-enforces her judgement ¡°The longest on record a person has lasted without sleep is 11 days.¡±
¡°He must have, but that doesn¡¯t change the fact that he spent 13 days reading¡±
Nodding Lucy doesn¡¯t reply directly, but instead mutters to herself ¡°He must have slept¡± to re-assure herself that she is right; that all her knowledge on the different human bodies are correct.
¡°I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m on babysit duty¡± Delia complains
¡°Why are you on babysit duty anyway?¡± Matthew asks.
¡°The general believes that as I am the one that brought him here, I should be the one to keep an eye on him.¡± She sighs ¡°That I should stay close to him, that I should make him use to my presence and that I should kill him if he were to act against us.¡±
¡°Can you actually do it?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know¡the last time we fought...¡± She remembers about the first time they met ¡°I was drained from the day¡¯s mission¡± looking ahead she sees that the vehicle was slowing down at a group of six. ¡°Under the right conditions, maybe.¡±
¡°Sergeant!¡± the leading person calls out.
¡°Get aboard.¡± Matthew says back casually.
Making the six who were standing in line pick up their gear and jump on before the vehicle with no driver starts off again to the hanger.
¡°I wouldn¡¯t have missed¡± Samuel says as they shuffle around on the seats.
¡°Sorry?¡± Delia responds
¡°I wouldn¡¯t have missed.¡± He says again ¡°When the Zulu said that the snipers would miss. I wouldn¡¯t have missed. I never miss¡±
¡°Are you talking about the time when the president pulled you away from us?¡± Matthew asks.
¡°Yeah, we were stationed 300 metres away to keep an eye on the meeting between the President and Zulu in case anything were to go wrong.¡± Grabbing a bar of chocolate from a pack ¡°I would not have missed¡± he states again.
¡°Hey¡± Lucy grabs the bar of chocolate back ¡°Don¡¯t take my stuff¡±
¡°How¡¯d the meeting between them go anyway?¡± Matthew questions as Lucy moves her gear away from Samuel.
¡°Do we really have to talk about it?¡± Delia asks in agitation ¡°Why are you guys so interested in him anyway?¡±
¡°Do you really have to ask?¡± Raising an eyebrow ¡°A person from a unit that is said to have played a major role in the Old/New Human War, Fall of the Republic, Genocide and Partial Destruction of Noiizia shows up out of nowhere.¡±
¡°The fact that no one is able to be assigned to that unit and that all elements about said unit is blacked out or stated in some obscured way adds an element of mystery¡± Lucy says now sitting on her gear.
¡°Though he himself is not involved in any of those events, the fact that he is assigned to that unit is already rather amazing.¡± Matthew continues
¡°We have also only seen him that one time¡± Samuel says indicating the time at the arena ¡°He is always in that room and you are the only one that sees him every day.¡±
¡°How could we not be interested?¡± Matthew finishes.
Leaning against her seat more ¡°I don¡¯t like him¡±
¡°We can see that.¡± Samael says
¡°It¡¯s the way he carries himself.¡±
¡°Disciplined¡± Matthew states ¡°That¡¯s how I would put it. He gives of an atmosphere as if he was specially trained. Which is probably true¡±
¡°No, it¡¯s not that.¡± She sighs ¡°Did I tell you about how we first met?¡±
The three of them shake their heads.
Sighing again ¡°I had just finished the mission, the unit I was with failed to get out on time.¡± Pausing she lets that hang for a while ¡°Anyway, I was at my fire resting, confident I was alone and then he just Drops down from above. He entered the perimeter I set up without triggering any of my alarms!¡±
¡°So we fought. We fought to a standstill, in which I asked what he wanted and he threw his knife at me.¡± Pausing again ¡°he could¡¯ve have killed me then. He could have just thrown it at me and I wouldn¡¯t have been able to react. That was when I knew he never intended to kill me.¡± Agitation appears on her face.
¡°So he let you live.¡± Matthew says ¡°You don¡¯t like him because he went easy on you?¡±
Ignoring the question she continues the story ¡°The next day I was laying down from a high vantage point. Recording a base getting destroyed and he pops up right behind me, again out of nowhere and I stab him out of reflex.¡±
¡°Out of reflex¡± Samuel repeats.
¡°Anyway, I thought he was going to die so I pushed him down and held the knife there to try and stop the flow as much as possible, but he just pulled it out¡±
¡°He pulled it out?¡± Lucy asks.
¡°Are you guys going to let me tell the story or are you going to keep interrupting me.¡± Delia speaks out in annoyance
¡°Sorry¡± the three of them apologies at the same time.
¡°He pulled the knife out and burnt his wound. I know that burning a stab wound that¡¯s punctured the lung does not save you, but it did for him. That was when I confirmed that he was not normal. No normal person could heal that fast. No normal person could enter my perimeter¡±
¡°I was grateful though, grateful that I didn¡¯t kill him when he let me live the night before. So I helped him and made camp together with him. Asked what he was doing, showed him the devastated base and offered to bring him to another base. He seemed lost.¡±
¡°That was when I asked him what unit he was from, curious because he was extremely skilled for someone I have not seen before, and he told me; Zulu¡±
¡°I brought out my knife at that point. A Zulu I thought, no one can be a Zulu. A spy? Was my immediate thought; that made sense at the time. So I thought to kill him.¡±
¡°However I didn¡¯t move, something told to us all when we were recruits stopped me. We use to laugh about it.¡± Smiling at it in memory ¡°If someone ever claimed to be a Zulu, make them prove it and if it were true bring him/her to the General.¡±
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.¡°He had already proven that he was extremely good at close combat, and he already passed through my perimeter undetected.¡± Pausing she repeats ¡°He passed through my perimeter undetected¡±
¡°So I changed the base I was aiming for and came here instead.¡± now extremely agitated from thinking about it.
¡°Anyhow when I said I would bring him to base, he agreed to follow me, you would then expect them to stay near you yes?¡± she asks a rhetorical question. ¡°Well he did, but he moved hidden in the forest. I waited for him the first times, waited for a while for him to appear before me, ready to leave together, instead he threw sticks and stones at me! It was like he wanted me to guide him, but I didn¡¯t deserve his presence!¡±
¡°Entering the Base confirmed that he was the impossible. At that point I was willing to let things go, maybe he was just following procedure; he shouldn¡¯t be seen too often right? After all to be in Zulu is really amazing.¡±
¡°But then on the ride to Head Quarters he kept looking at me, kept looking at me with that innocent face, like he knew something I didn¡¯t, like he was better than me and that the questions he asked were simply test to see if I was going to lie or not.¡± Gritting her teeth ¡°I really wanted to hurt him!¡±
¡°Are you guys really talking about the Zulu?¡± one of the six people that got on board asks politely
¡°Shut up¡± Delia shouts at him, making him shriek. ¡°Sorry¡± she says immediately calming down ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to shout at you.¡± Taking a breath ¡°Yes, we are talking about the Zulu, just don¡¯t interrupt me again. Okay?¡±
¡°Yes Sargent. Sorry Sergeant¡± the man immediately answers.
Turning back to her friends ¡°Anyway. I asked for his name, as he knew that I would be helping him, He paused and waited for a few seconds before answering me. Telling me to call him by the Unit Name. He expects me to just respect him because he is in that unit. He believes that His name is above everyone¡¯s!¡±
¡°He is just so Very, Very¡Arrogant!¡± now angry
¡°Remember that time we went to the general?¡± she asks after a moment of silent, calm now.
¡°The time he broke the wall?¡± Samuel asks, thinking it safe to speak out. ¡°How did he do that by the way?¡±
¡°Yes, that time.¡± Delia says ¡°I don¡¯t know about how he did it. Anyway when the General came out, I was expecting him to do something to the Zulu, but No. the Zulu ripped off his arm! The general didn¡¯t even get mad!¡± Pausing again to calm down ¡°Any of you guys know what those special privileges are?¡±
Shaking their heads ¡°It seems only commissioned officers and above do¡± Matthew answers
¡°He believes he is above everyone¡± she states again ¡°That we should be awed at his presence. You know what I¡¯m talking about Samuel, you heard the conversation between the President and Zulu.¡±
Nodding ¡°It did sound like he had no respect for our President.¡± He agrees.
¡°The Zulu was out right taunting The President! He lied to his face claiming to be older than him, older than any of us.¡± Calming down again ¡°How old do you guys think he is? 18? 19?¡±
¡°20 at most¡± Lucy says ¡°No more than 20.¡±
¡°Yes, so 20 at most. The President called out his lie and The Zulu just shrugged it off, like it didn¡¯t matter and should be of no concern! He also threatened him!¡± grinding her teeth ¡°Just because he is in Zulu does not give him the right to be so dis-respectful. He is only 20 and yet he acts so arrogantly. He expects us to do his will!¡±
¡°Okay. He is a jerk, a prick.¡± Matthew says ¡°You don¡¯t have to keep talking about him now. The time we spent with him was not enough to judge his character, He hardly spoke to us.¡±
¡°Maybe it¡¯s because the first time you spoke to him you challenged him to a deceiving fight.¡± Lucy tells Matthew
¡°True¡± he smiles in return ¡°but if I didn¡¯t we wouldn¡¯t have seen what he did.¡±
¡°He is from Zulu¡± Samuel says ¡°Didn¡¯t we use to assume that anybody in such a unit would be arrogant?¡±
¡°We also assumed that they would be older, that they would be combat experienced.¡± Delia responds instantly ¡°This guy is none of those. He is young and you can tell just by looking at him, he has never seen blood on the battle field. What¡¯s worse is that he said he is a freelance mercenary. He pretends to have no purpose here!¡± Pausing ¡°He also implied that if we didn¡¯t offer him a good resources he would go off and help another nation. Why can¡¯t we just kill him?!¡±
¡°We get it Delia¡± Matthew says ¡°you don¡¯t like him. From how you are describing him, we wouldn¡¯t like him either.¡±
Sighing ¡°Sorry¡± she apologises ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to vent my anger out at you guys, it¡¯s just been frustrating the past couple of weeks. I¡¯ve had to wait on him for all his needs. I can¡¯t even say No. The general ordered me to assist him and his behaviour is unusual, I can¡¯t tell if he would jump at me if I did something not to his liking.¡±
¡°It¡¯s fine¡± Lucy says ¡°Everyone needs a place to vent their anger from time to time. It¡¯s good for you.¡±
¡°Don¡¯t you get the feeling that something big is going to happen soon though?¡± Samuel asks the group ¡°Like whispers and rumours of a Zulu only appear during a time of great conflict. Look at history. The Old War, The Republic, The Genocide, Noiizia.¡±
¡°That¡¯s another reason why I also don¡¯t like him.¡± Delia says ¡°His presence itself makes people curious and nervous at the same time. Why is he here? Where did he come from? What is he really doing? It would be better if he was dead.¡±
Looking at the six that jump on board the vehicle, she finds them listening closely to their conversation. ¡°You six feel like something¡¯s about to happen?¡± she asks them.
The six of them just look at her and nod their heads nervously.
Turning back to Matthew ¡°What are you guys doing anyway?¡±
¡°We¡¯re taking those six and others to the eastern base.¡± He smiles ¡°Some simple outdoor training¡±
Looking at the packs that each of them had ¡°How long is the exercise?¡±
¡°Should be about a week, shouldn''t be dangerous. Standard training op for all who just got promoted from recruit.¡±
¡°How many this time?¡±
¡°A good 80¡± Lucy grins
¡°Aren¡¯t you guys on R&R?¡±
¡°Yep!¡± Samuel chuckles ¡°But why would we miss this chance?¡±
¡°Wish I could go with you guys.¡± The vehicle stops at the hanger.
¡°Don¡¯t worry we¡¯ll be back before you know it.¡± Matthew says getting off with the others, leaving Delia alone in the Vehicle.
¡°Good luck with the Zulu!¡± Samuel waves as it drives off back towards town.
Watching them jump onto an aircraft ¡°And he asks me why I despise him¡± she mumbles to herself.
Previous Chapter = Chapter 13 - The President
Next Chapter = Chapter 15 - A Nights Walk
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A/N
Been working on this chapter for a few days. Was arguing whether i should or shouldn''t put this up. Changes how you view things? (Couldn''t tell if it was acceptable. If it was reasonable.)
In the end i concluded it was.
Hope you all enjoyed it, Thanks for reading ^.^
Chapter 15 - A Nights Walk
Chapter 15 ¨C A Night''s Walk.
Pushing off his blankets he sits up right upon his bed.
Dim, dull light shines through the curtain-less window, imitating that of a moons natural beauty, but not enough to be able to see everything in the room.
With the room turning green for his right eye and staying greyish black for his left he stands up right stretching his back, arms and legs; hearing cracking sounds as he does.
Grabbing his uniform he puts it on and runs his hands across its seams, making sure that no creases appeared where there should not be, only when satisfied does he move and grab his cleaning kit. Taking apart his pistol he cleans it, oils it and re assembles it. Holstering it at the end when finished, he stands and moves to the door.
| [Equipment]
[Pistol Ammunition - 08 shots]
[Pistol]
[Knife] |
Pressing the button that opens the door he finds that it does not open
Sighing he goes back to the table and kneels upon it. Looking out from the window he peers down to the ground, he is a good 15 stories high. The machine was not operating.
Putting his legs over the window sill he looks back into his room one time before turning back outside. A light breeze flows through him into the room and he takes a deep breath, once, twice and on the third, with his heart pumping fast and eyes now red he slides off. Free falling all the way down to land on his feet, crouched low. He takes another long and deep breath, standing up to rid himself of his eye colour and slow his heart to its normal pace.
¡°De-activate Night Vision¡±
| [Night Vision De-Activated] |
Street lights illuminate the pavement and roadway, light enough to not trip, but not to see anything in detail; mimicking what you would see in a real night. He walks slowly and casually going nowhere in particular.
The air is cold but he feels warm, even though he wears nothing but one layer, he does not shiver at the cool 5 degrees. Casually and slowly moving down the street he finds that no one is around.
¡°It is quiet¡± he speaks out in a whisper to no one but himself as fog slowly drifts upon him.
In time he takes a few turns, getting lost in the living quarters as every building looks the same. Though he wasn¡¯t really lost, if he wanted to he could have just brought up a map of where he was, but he did not want that. He needed a stroll, time to take in the limited sights, time be alone, away from eyes that kept close to him. Ultimately he ends up in somewhere very much like a park. Artificial grass lay far and wide, it is tempting to walk upon them, but he doesn¡¯t; he stays on the pathway he set out upon.
Trying to let his thoughts wonder, he fails in doing so, he was bothered about what was to come. He knows that he is free from everything, he has no obligations to fulfil, the war is over and he is very much alone, but not alone. He would like to see the world, see how things changed, whether they really were at peace or not. It would be nice to be in peace. He has never been at peace before, the idea did pop up in his mind once but it was something like a fantasy; He never thought he would get to experience it.
He had taken a gamble when assaulting the General. He did not truly know if he still had the same privileges as when he was stated in. At the time he felt personally insulted at what he saw, he was not happy. He knew perfectly well that he shouldn¡¯t have been doing what he was doing, but in some sense he did not care, he wanted the wrong that was done to be righted. In hindsight he thinks that he was lucky, but this luck brought up another question. Who was enforcing his privileges? It was clearly not the President and Council.
The President clearly wanted to gain control of him. The meeting between them didn¡¯t exactly go the way he himself had wanted it to go either.
¡°If only you were here¡± he says again in a whisper, now exiting the park and following the road again.
During conversation with the President he had pushed himself into a corner. It was true that he got what he wanted in the small exchange. The President had thought that threatening him was the right way to go about it. Something he found quite funny in a way.
In his time, death was something many contemplated every day. It was something he had done every single day. A soldier had to be ready to die, he had to be willing to accept it arms open when it came. A soldier does not decide that time nor place, so a soldier must be ready at all times and smile in its face. It seemed like that no longer happens.
A threat like that would not have occurred during the war. Then again he concluded that his time was rather black and white compared to now.
Ignoring all that, his very first problem was the meeting that he had missed on purpose. Had he wanted to he would have woken up in time for it, but the meeting was more than just a meeting.
Having already put himself into a corner he needed to delay it. He had agreed to be hired at a price, but he knows that they didn¡¯t just want him as a bodyguard. He could tell that his skills were something they all coveted and feared.
The records he read pretty much stated that the destruction of Noiizia, the place he is at, was caused by Zulu 4. That she had done it for no particular reason, that she went mad. Something he did not believe, he has never seen her angry in his memory, never mad. That is what the people here feared though. Something he was going to take advantage of.
However destroying the city was something he wasn¡¯t going to do. He had no intention of destroying this peaceful city for not having his own freedom, he would rather let himself die. No one knows that though.
The threats he had made at the President during their interaction were also empty threats. It was not that he could not complete them, but because his purpose had already been accomplished. He would have been at peace had it ended. He didn¡¯t have to have his questions answered. They were his own selfish questions, yet he was a bit glad the threats worked, he truthfully did not want to die.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
Entering the more city like area, where shops and food stores were located he finds some signs of life. Though such heavy fog had now settled in that it was hard to see past your hands outstretched.
¡°Delia must be awake by now¡± he smiles to himself ¡°you really shouldn¡¯t have locked me in¡±
¡°Good Morning!¡± a woman in her late thirties greets him as she opens her caf¨¦.
¡°Good Morning¡± he answers back, surprised at the greeting. No one has greeted him in such a friendly manner in a long time. ¡°Would you like some help?¡± he questions a bit awkwardly.
The woman stops for a second and looks at him that she cannot see, due to the fog. ¡°If you would like to¡± she shrugs ¡°You could open the umbrellas on the tables.¡±
¡°Expecting rain I see?¡± he asks moving to do as directed.
¡°Rain?¡± she replies with a bit of a laugh ¡°Did you just get back?¡± she asks grabbing a towel to start wiping the exposed tables.
¡°In a sense.¡± He answers moving from table to table and opening the umbrellas with such proficiency that the woman was surprised someone possessed ¡°I¡¯ve been away for a long time.¡±
¡°Happy to be home then?¡± the woman enquiries still wiping the tables ¡°I heard that the monsters have been more brutal than normal the past few weeks. Is it true?¡±
¡°Monsters?¡± he repeats back, remembering about what he has read ¡°No more than usual I would guess?¡± for he hadn¡¯t read anything about increase in the deceased.
¡°Really?¡± the woman says moving to another table. ¡°A few came back yesterday, they kept saying that the numbers had increased.¡±
¡°Muuuum!¡± a young child like whine rings out from the Caf¨¦¡¯s entrance ¡°Rachel won¡¯t wake up¡± it says sounding sad.
¡°tsk¡± the woman turns to the man that she cannot actually see and throws him the towel as he was done unfolding the umbrellas. ¡°Children¡± she sighs with a hint of laughter ¡°could you wipe down the rest for me?¡±
Catching the towel ¡°Sure¡± he answers without hesitation as she moves back into her Caf¨¦.
Wiping down each table, again with proficiency not commonly seen ¡°This place really is at peace¡± he murmurs to himself.
¡°Hiiiiii!¡± the small child that was previously whining about Rachel calls out standing right next to him.
Facing the kid ¡°Hi¡¡± he answers back.
¡°Are you the Zulu?¡± the child asks with innocent eyes full of curiosity
Putting the towel down on the last table he lifts the child up.
| Name: Olivia
Date of Birth: 08/03/XXXX
Mermanus |
¡°Why do you ask?¡± he asks her with a childish voice.
¡°Because of this¡± she answers touching the Headgear attached to his face with her little hands. ¡°Dad said only Zulus have them.¡±
¡°And is your dad always right?¡±
Shaking her head vigorously ¡°No¡± she answers openly ¡°Dad once said I ate his cake when I didn¡¯t!¡± she shouts with exaggerated hand movements, even though she was still being held by her waist in his arms. ¡°It was Rachel that did!¡± she blames her sister.
¡°Well your dad is right this time¡± he laughs
¡°Dad said Zulu are dangerous people¡± now looking directly as Zulu¡¯s eyes.
¡°Do you believe him?¡±
¡°No¡± she answers, again shaking her head vigorously
¡°Where is your dad now?¡±
Punching the air with her fists ¡°Fighting monsters¡± she says energetically.
¡°Put the child down!¡± a shout that Zulu knows comes from Delia is heard.
With the fog now almost clear he turns around and looks at her ¡°There is no need for a gun¡± he says bluntly
¡°Put the child down!¡± she repeats again.
Putting the child down ¡°Give your dad a hug when he gets back okay?¡± he rubs her hair
¡°Okay¡± the small girl answers standing still and looking up at him.
¡°Go back inside¡± Delia shouts at the girl
Facing Delia the girl gives a look of confusion ¡°Why?¡±
¡°There really is no need for this.¡± Zulu says hands out walking towards Delia, as the girl sticks closely with him.
A sudden push of wind blows at Zulu, lifting the child up and sends her flying slowly backwards.
Turning around he finds that the girl is now in her mother¡¯s arms.
| Name: Rebecca
Date of Birth: 19/08/XXXX
Mermanus |
¡°There really is no need for this¡± he repeats again now next to Delia he finds her a mess.
With her gun holstered ¡°No need?¡± she asks rhetorically ¡°You just tried to escape!¡±
¡°If I really wanted to escape¡± he says now heading to the tower with his map display ¡°You would not have found me.¡±
¡°You tried to escape¡± she repeats again.
¡°You have no right to lock me in my room.¡± He answers
¡°It was for your own safety.¡±
Contemplating it for a bit ¡°You need not worry about my safety¡± he states finding some truth in her reply.
Brushing her uniform ¡°The President is not happy.¡±
¡°And I bet he never is¡± he says, catching her off guard ¡°I¡¯ll go see them today.¡±
¡°You can¡¯t, there is no scheduled meeting.¡±
¡°I can and I will.¡±
¡°You can¡¯t!¡± she says back a bit more annoyed ¡°there are procedures and papers to file!¡±
¡°It will be taken care off.¡± He replies off-handily ¡°They want to see me.¡±
¡°You can¡¯t just do whatever you want!¡± she snaps.
Stopping he turns and faces her ¡°I don¡¯t know why you are like this Delia. I have been nothing but friendly to you. I agree that I shouldn¡¯t have left the room, but you shouldn¡¯t have locked me in without telling Me.¡± turning around again and continuing forward. ¡°I will be seeing the President and Council today.¡±
Previous Chapter = Chapter 14 - Delia
Next Chapter = Chapter 16 - The Council [Part 1]
----------------------------------------------------
A/N
I''ll be away for a while. Got exams coming up. Sorry for leaving it like this, But i figured i should post up one last chapter before i left.
Thank you for reading! Hope you all enjoyed it
Chapter 16 - The Council [Part 1]
Chapter 16 ¨C The Council [Part 1]
Stepping up to the high powered gates that prevents those unwanted from entering the courtyard, Zulu stops to find that a group of heavily armed guards, wearing black helmets, vests and armour were already approaching him from afar.
¡°You sent word ahead?¡± he ask assuming that that was the reason why the guards were so heavily armoured.
¡°No.¡± Delia responds ¡°They¡¯re Military Police.¡±
Raising and eyebrow ¡°Military Police¡± he repeats
¡°Who are you?¡± the closest person asks with a deep and commanding voice as they near.
Eyeing the man for a minute Zulu confirms that the 6 present are heavily armed.
| [Equipment]
[2 x Unknown Rifle]
[Pistol]
[Knife]
[2 x Grenade]
[Shield] |
¡°You know who I am.¡± He answers as his headgear makes him stand out ¡°The Council wants to see me.¡±
¡°The Zulu¡± the man mutters receiving a tablet from a guard behind him. ¡°I see no appointment for such meeting.¡±
¡°That is true, but the Council wants to see me¡± he repeats.
¡°There is no scheduled appointment.¡± The man in armour states from the opposite side of the gate.
¡°Are you really stopping me from entering?¡± he asks as he steps closer to the gate and raises a hand to it.
¡°Stop.¡± The man raises his pistol ¡°Do not touch the gate.¡±
Hovering his hand centimetres away, the smell of burning flesh starts to float into the air ¡°You¡¯ve seen what I can do?¡± he smiles, ignoring the pain.
¡°Step back and move away from the gate.¡± The man states again as the other five lift up their rifles.
¡°The Council really does want to see me.¡± Zulu says again ¡°Why do you not call them to confirm?¡±
Putting down his pistol and raising his rifle ¡°There is no scheduled meeting.¡±
Dropping his hand Zulu sighs ¡°When the Council questions why I¡¯ve disappeared be sure to tell them that I did come.¡± Turning around he leaves and plans to come back at night, when less eyes are around.
| [Concentrated Healing Commencing] |
¡°Stop¡± Delia shouts making the Zulu pause and turn back ¡°Contact the President, you know that this is a special circumstance¡± she says stepping forward to the gate, but not close enough to get hurt by it.
Turning to look at her ¡°There is no scheduled meeting.¡± The man states again, not budging.
¡°You are not following standard procedures soldier.¡± Delia states pronouncing each syllable slowly and clearly.
Finding that he does not respond ¡°You will contact the President or I will contact my Father¡± she says moving to grab a tiny device from her belt.
¡°Stop.¡± The man utters, immediately dropping his rifle and turning away to press a button on the outside of his helmet.
Moving up to stand next to Delia ¡°Thank you.¡± Zulu thanks her
¡°I didn¡¯t do it for you¡± she answers taking a few steps to stand near but further away from him.
¡°We will need your weapons¡± The man that had previously halted them tells them as he moves to open the gate.
¡°You will not have them.¡± Zulu casually replies
Grinding his teeth ¡°Follow me¡± he states not arguing the point as he moves off before the gates are wide enough for anyone to walk through.
Once open though they follow but Zulu does not hurry to catch up, as he knows that there is no need to rush. The man was under directions to bring him to the president and would be held responsible if he does not get there.
Staring up as he walks through the highly decorated courtyard that displays statues both human in figure and not, he confirms again that this is most likely the tower the blueprints that were displayed upon the tablet.
Its structure from the blueprints indicated that this tower was more than just a tower, it was more like a support beam, it acted both as an entrance/exit to the surface and a support to keep the city from collapsing upon itself.
As the exterior of the tower is highly reflective it gives off a grand feeling when approaching it. To the majority of people, they would described approaching the tower entrance as approaching the gates of heaven, as it felt like light and warmth came from inside. This is true to an extent, the weather controls for the city are located inside this tower.
The man made waterfall dropping down on the east face of the tower supplied the water for the manmade lake, which was not being appreciated by anyone.
| [Healing complete]
[Advice. Consume standard intake of Vitamins and Minerals] |
Raising his hand as he walks into the wide and open spaced reception hall, he clenches and unclenches it to find that no marks remain, no hint of it ever being burnt. Something he considered a blessing and a curse.
¡°You are lucky to have that ability¡± Delia says unintentionally as she observes him do this.
¡°Yes¡± he replies as they enter a glass elevator. ¡°Though it¡¯s too effective at times.¡± Looking down at the city as they ascend ¡°It leaves no traces of injury¡±
¡°People would kill to be in your position¡± The man that leads them says as he leans against the glass.
¡°People are often stupid.¡± Zulu laughs, remembering a time when he was in training.
¡°People are not stupid.¡± Delia says
Smiling at the statement ¡°Not all of them I guess.¡± Still looking at the city buildings getting smaller and smaller. ¡°Ignorance is bliss.¡±
Exiting the elevator and entering a small room with no windows ¡°This is where you will wait.¡± The man states with clear annoyance in his voice.
¡°Wait?¡± Zulu asks.
¡°It is early.¡± Delia states
¡°It is almost Zero-Nine-Hundred¡±
¡°I will return when they are ready for you.¡± The man leaves promptly, not wanting to be in their presence.
¡°As I said, it is early.¡± She says standing at the door.
Taking a seat at the round table that occupies the centre of the room ¡°I know for a fact that The President and Council are already about their business¡± Zulu says.
¡°It does not change the fact that it is early¡± Delia responds.
¡°No, it does not¡± Tapping the table with his fingers ¡°It means the Council wants to make me nervous before the meeting, a form of revenge for missing yesterdays¡±
¡°Something you deserve¡± She speaks out bluntly, agitatedly taking a seat opposite of him.
Staring at her for a few seconds Zulu goes silent before leaning back onto his chair and closing his eyes. Today is going to be a long day and this form of intimidation was something he and his team had experience plenty of times before. The wait shouldn¡¯t be too long.
That was what he was thinking anyway.
Opening his eyes he finds that Delia is tapping her fingers upon the table, but so quietly that no one would know unless they were looking at her.
¡°It¡¯s been an hour¡± he says getting up and moving towards the door.
Receiving no response from her he presses the button to open it.
¡°locked.¡± he says grabbing the wires from his headset.
Hearing the tapping behind him getting louder he pauses mid-way, stopping before he actually allows the wires to dig into the door¡¯s circuitry. Remembering the tablet incident he puts them away.
| [Weakened structure points located] |
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
Sighing again at seeing the structures weak points he moves back to take the seat he occupied earlier. The weakened structure points required more bullets then he had and his extraordinary strength came at a cost, though he could very easily regain what the cost was he wasn¡¯t in any major need of getting out.
Hearing the tapping, again getting louder ¡°Thanks for helping me out at the gate.¡± He says to her.
¡°I didn¡¯t do it for you¡± she answers again.
¡°Then why did you do it?¡± he enquires
Receiving nothing but silence he lets out another sigh
¡°We will be here for a while.¡± Tapping the table as well ¡°Time will pass quicker if we have a chat¡That I can assure you.¡±
Being met with silence again ¡°I won¡¯t hurt you¡± he grins and regrets it immediately.
¡°I wouldn¡¯t be here if it wasn¡¯t for you.¡± She says after some more minutes pass
¡°And I wouldn¡¯t be here if it wasn¡¯t for you.¡± He smiles ¡°You were the one that brought me here.¡±
¡°That was because I said I would before I knew who you were¡± tapping the table even harder ¡°A mistake I won¡¯t be making again.¡±
¡°Thank you for keeping your word¡±
¡°The faster you see the President and Council, the faster you become somebody else¡¯s problem.¡± She answers his original question.
¡°I still do not understand why you are so annoyed with me.¡±
Eyeing him ¡°I can¡¯t believe how arrogant you are.¡±
Scrunching his eyebrows ¡°Arrogant? How am I being arrogant?¡±
¡°Is it ignorance then?¡± she questions
¡°I have been nothing but reasonable with those I¡¯ve met¡± he says calmly
¡°Reasonable?¡± No longer tapping the table ¡°How have you been reasonable?!¡±
¡°How have I not been?¡±
Looking down ¡°The Unit Zulu is held both in high esteem and fear.¡± She breathe out
Leaning against his chair ¡°That I know all too well.¡± Recalling the last few months before he went to sleep and the reception he received when he first came here.
¡°Do you really?¡± boring her eyes into him ¡°As kids we were told tales of how the Zulu are able to do unimaginable things.¡± Pausing ¡°Always killing all who stand in their way.¡±
¡°There are stories you tell to children about us?¡± he says surprised, as he believes what he has done should never be told to the innocent.
¡°Zulu¡¯s are dangerous, they are unpredictable, uncontrollable and inconceivable¡± She quotes something she learnt as a child. ¡°They are cruel and they care about nothing to achieve what they want.¡± Looking away from him ¡°but they are the best.¡±
¡°That statement¡is littered with mistakes¡±
¡°Before you came we would always just say that Zulu¡¯s are nothing but rumours. That the fact that all recruits are warned about the possibility of your existence is to scare us? To make us believe that there will always be someone better.¡±
¡°Do you believe that 100%¡± he asks.
Letting a moment pass and tapping the table again ¡°No¡± she replies equally as calm as he, but somehow exuding an atmosphere of hatred at the same time. ¡°But I believe most of it.¡±
Nodding his head ¡°You should never believe in anything 100%, not unless you have enough first hand facts for it.¡± he says
¡°How did you become a Zulu¡± she ask, peacefully, dropping all sense of hatred and annoyance. A question that she asks with nothing but the want to know.
Surprised at being asked a question in that kind of manner he thinks about it properly, ¡°I didn¡¯t know I was even being considered when I became one¡± and decides not to answer directly.
¡°You didn¡¯t even know you were going to become one?¡± she states more then asks, loudly.
¡°Are you jealous?¡± he says back, ¡°Jealous that I am a Zulu and you are not.¡±
Tapping the table harder, to calm herself down ¡°I would be lying if I said I was not.¡±
¡°Don¡¯t be¡± he replies ¡°There is nothing for you to be jealous off.¡±
Furrowing her brow ¡°So you are not arrogant, but simply just ignorant¡±
¡°Do you know why my unit is named Zulu!?¡± he shouts losing his cool, making his heart beat faster, making his eyes change, making her jump back. ¡°Damn it¡± he mumbles taking a long breath, losing the eye colour ¡°Sorry.¡± Sitting up straight ¡°Sit back down...Please¡±
Choosing to stand she takes a few paces back and leans upon the wall ¡°No¡± she replies, answering both the question and demand at the same time.
¡°It is symbolic in a way.¡± Sighing as he answers ¡°Your unit, its name is classified under the Alpha branch. You are the first to respond to any trouble.¡±
¡°That is because we are the best.¡± She responds with a hint of pride
Squinting at her ¡°You are the first response, the first on the ground, the first to die¡± pausing for a whole minute, he makes sure she understands what he means ¡°Then the second response would be a few more alpha units, if a third is required a bravo unit appears.¡±
¡°So you¡¯re telling me that the Bravo units are more capable then the Alpha units¡± she responds harshly with sarcastic laughter.
Staying calm ¡°Alpha in the phonetic alphabet stands for A, which is the first in the alphabet. Zulu stands for Z, the last letter in the alphabet¡Zulus are the last response, the last option, the last measure.¡± Again pausing, but this time only for a few seconds ¡°Though it seems things may have changed with the passage of time.¡±
¡°You have no right to say that.¡± She replies with irritation
¡°No right to say what?¡±
¡°That things may have changed with the passage of time.¡± Folding her arms ¡°You are barely 20 years old.¡±
Shutting his eyes ¡°I am older than I look¡± he answers stoically; irritated, but not showing it.
¡°Than how old are you?¡±
Staring at her ¡°¡You will not believe me¡±
¡°How old are you?¡± she asks again.
Contemplating it for a while ¡°When your eyes are truly open¡± he says not answering her ¡°I will tell you.¡±
Receiving a reply that is obviously provoking no matter how you look at it ¡°You are just an ignorant, arrogant, selfish bastard.¡± She spits out ¡°If your unit wasn¡¯t already within our software the President and General wouldn¡¯t hesitate in killing you. If you were not here I would be at the eastern base helping with the new recruits.¡± Yelling in anger now ¡°Why are you even here!?¡± she questions.
Calmly watching her he stays quiet and does not respond to that question. Instead choosing to turn and look at the camera that¡¯s been watching them the whole time.
¡°You¡¯ve seen enough¡± he speaks to it as he gets up and heads to the door.
¡°They won¡¯t open it just because you say that to the cameras¡±
Ignoring Delia¡¯s comment he continues to the door, it opening just as he gets there with the man that led them to the waiting room, no longer annoyed saying ¡°The President and Council are ready to see you.¡±
Previous Chapter - Chapter 15 - A Night''s Walk
--------
A/N
My exams are not over, I¡¯m procrastinating, don¡¯t judge me -.-
On another note ¨C can you guys understand why the guard was annoyed? I believe I gave enough hints in the conversation between Delia and Zulu (Though you don¡¯t really have to know, it doesn¡¯t even matter)
Is the pacing between chapters okay? (I¡¯ve been stating that they would have meeting since chapter 13, only to actually have it occur in chapter 17. Do you guys think that¡¯s a problem? Since if it is I¡¯ll change my story path from here on, just a bit, for future events.)
@ItsMeParker & JayJay. I''ve firgured out a way to bring that P.O.V you suggested, it''ll be a side chapter i''ll post up after a certain event occurs ~
As always, Thanks for Reading. Hope you all enjoyed it ^.^
Chapter 17 - The Council [Part 2]
Chapter 17 ¨C The Council [Part 2]
¡°He doesn¡¯t look all that impressive¡± An elderly woman whispers to the other six and President as they all watch the hologram of the waiting room.
¡°If he wasn¡¯t in uniform you wouldn¡¯t think he was even apart of the military.¡± A woman, daughter of the elderly says.
¡°Are you losing your touch Mr President?¡± a younger man asks insincerely.
Waving his hand the President shuts down the younger man¡¯s terminal, excluding him from the conversation that they were having.
¡°Why do we have that man?¡± the fourth member of the council, again male but seemingly middle aged, asks.
¡°He¡knows people.¡± The fifth, wearing a golden mask that blocks everything except his eyes from view answers with a rough voice.
¡°He needs to be put in line.¡± The sixth and last, but equally as important as the others state.
Waving his hand again the younger man¡¯s image re-appears in the meeting.
¡°Bring him to the meeting room¡± The President tells the guard waiting in his room.
¡°Sir!¡± the man replies and moves immediately out.
¡°The meeting will convene again in fifteen minutes¡± the president states then turns to face the younger man¡¯s projection, ¡°And you¡± he says steadily, ¡°Don¡¯t do that again,¡± before waving his hand to shut down all terminals, concluding their semi gathering.
Alone in his room The President swirls on his chair to see out and below at the City of Noiizia. Before he came into power the Leadership was extremely rocky. Too many people put up resistance for any change, both for the better and for the worse. The leadership was in a gridlock where nothing was being done and the rich were only getting bigger whilst everybody else were getting smaller.
His rise to power was a hard fought battle, one that involved many threats, many deaths and many attempted assassinations. The first generation he governed was the hardest, but it got easier as each new generation came. Force conscription to the military for 5 years was something that helped his rule, once you join the military you learn things, you see things that no civilian would. It changed people, it made the majority of people think alike.
Not many people knew what the city was like before his rule. Not many people were still alive from that time. The President was approaching his 330th birthday. He had past the average life span of the Aeternus, and he knew that he wasn¡¯t going to be alive for that much longer. Each day he felt weaker, each day he felt tireder.
Four of the six members upon the council knew what it was like though, and those four were The President¡¯s most loyal followers. The two others though, they were young, young in comparison, but still old if you were to compare it to the life span of the first humans.
The younger woman was nothing more than an immature girl in the president¡¯s eyes, she was nothing he worried about. He could tell the she was after his seat, but he could also tell that she wouldn¡¯t get it until he passed. Her mother wouldn¡¯t let her. However the woman was learning quickly, she was almost competent enough to take his role. She was the most logical person to pass control over to.
However the younger male had him worried. He was an upstart man who avoided the compulsory 5 year military service. Those who avoided military service were usually despised by the populace, generally kicked out of the country, but not this man. He instead had the favour of a large selection of them.
How he gained this favour The President had some small inkling to it, but he had nothing concrete. To prove to the people that they were a democracy he had to let him into the council, forcing one of his own to retire earlier then he would have liked.
Turning back to his desk he watches the last few minutes of the conversation between The Zulu and his daughter, Delia. He had been training her since she was just a girl, training her to take his place. Never letting her have a moment of peace, always teaching her, caring for her when her mother, his wife past.
Pausing it at the moment she yells he unconsciously smiles, being reminded of two things. The first is that with her auburn hair colour, green eyes and her slim physique she looks very much like her late mother, his late wife. The second is the falling out that they had.
All that he had done for her, she had thrown it away. All that training, all that knowledge, she refused to use it to help him. Instead she chose to stay in the military after the five years. Seeing her mad when he is not ultimately made him happy.
Waving his hand the terminals re-alights, five of the six council members are there and waiting.
¡°Where is he?¡± the middle aged man asks, irritated at the absence.
Looking at the clock the president stays silent, he had activated the terminals 30 seconds early and so refrains from commenting.
¡°Hello¡± the young man appears with a second to spare, carrying a mug with some hot beverage in it. Obviously trying to irritate The President.
¡°What are you doing?¡± the daughter asks.
¡°Enjoying a nice cup of coffee¡± the man replies sipping it.
¡°Put that away¡± the elderly woman demands ¡°The Zulu is almost there¡±
Eyeing the elderly woman he takes another long sip before placing it down out of view.
A miniature projection of those in the meeting room soon appears upon the table. Its position made so that the Council had a diagonal downward view of the Zulu.
¡°Welcome¡± The Middle aged man states with a slight smile ¡°I hope the wait was not too long¡±
The Zulu stays quiet at the welcome, instead choosing to just look around the room that he and Delia are in.
¡°I am sorry that it is so dark¡± the young man says, ¡°but it is a security precaution of sorts¡As you refuse to give up your weapons.¡±
Still looking around the dark room ¡°You cannot fool me¡± The Zulu says ¡°If you will not meet me in person then we will not have a meeting¡± He states turning and leaving immediately.
If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.
Pressing a button on his table ¡°Bring the Zulu to my office¡± the President states before releasing it and turning back to the council.
¡°So he too¡can see in¡the dark.¡± The man in the masks speaks out, sounding hoarse.
¡°It appears so.¡± The sixth member replies.
¡°Do we really need him?¡± the Daughter asks.
¡°I don¡¯t see why we do,¡± the young man says ¡°He isn¡¯t all that impressive.¡±
¡°You two know history.¡± The elderly responds ¡°Don¡¯t ask senseless questions.¡±
¡°Senseless?¡± the young man replies ¡°All I see is one man, skilled in destroying, but just one man¡±
¡°Gather in my office¡± The President says to them before again waving his hand, shutting down the terminals.
Bringing up his keyboard he types Zulu into it.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]****[/pc][/col]
[/box]
He sighs at seeing the result upon the display screens. The Zulu was in the system. Removing the blackening out effect of anything that directly states the unit has been something he has tried and failed to do for a long time.
He had grabbed files that were military only, reclassified the system; changed the programing language that all of Noiizia¡¯s technology ran off and yet still failed. Nothing that they had was secure. The Zulu has them in his hands and yet the daughter and young man do not realise this.
¡°Fools¡± the president says quietly to himself
¡°Fools?¡± The masked member of the council repeats walking into the office.
Looking up at him ¡°You know who I mean.¡±
Taking the closest seat on the left wall ¡°The Daughter¡and that i¡diot¡±
¡°They don¡¯t see how much a threat the Zulu is.¡±
¡°They¡are young.¡± His voice sounding raspy.
¡°Don¡¯t strain yourself¡±
¡°Hmmmm¡± the man nods.
Giving out a sigh ¡°Do you remember the last Zulu.¡±
¡°How can I¡Forget¡±
¡°Sorry¡± the president apologizes ¡°I still find it amazing that you survived.¡±
¡°She¡wasn¡¯t aft¡er me.¡±
¡°Either way when we first met her none of us would have thought she would do that.¡±
The man nods and stays silent.
¡°I still remember her eyes as she went into this tower.¡± Shivering without meaning to ¡°Red, bright blood red, but dark at the same time.¡±
¡°I¡Still have Night¡mares¡±
¡°I still don¡¯t understand why she let this tower stand when she destroyed the other two¡±
¡°Nor¡Do I. ¡°
¡°I don¡¯t want a repeat of that.¡± He sighs ¡°If we can somehow control this Zulu¡¯s moveme¡±
¡°Zulus¡± the man interrupts ¡°¡can¡¯t be con¡trolled.¡±
¡°You know what I mean.¡± The President responds ¡°This one seems a decade younger than the last one, he seems less experienced, and I had thought him to be easier to deal with,¡± resting his head against the palm of his hand ¡°but now I think he may be more trouble than we¡¯re prepared for.¡±
¡°Good afternoon Mr President, Sir¡± the daughter says, entering with her mother.
¡°When was the last time we all gathered for one person.¡± The elderly woman asks quietly taking a seat next to the masked member whilst her daughter stands next to her.
¡°You remember very well when the last time was.¡± The President answers.
¡°It¡¯s¡Ironic¡in a way¡±
¡°Ironic?¡± the daughter asks.
¡°The last time we gathered was for the previous Zulu.¡± The woman smiles at it ¡°Before she went mad.¡±
¡°Why do we not be rid of him then?¡± the young man asks talking to the last two members as they enter.
¡°For almost two and half centuries there has been no traces of a Zulu.¡± The middle aged man speaks out taking a seat on the right wall, closest to the president. ¡°If we do that what would the other Zulu¡¯s do to us.¡±
¡°And we don¡¯t know how these Zulus work.¡± The Sixth member says as he limps to take the last seat next to the middles aged man, ultimately making the young man stand next to him.
¡°You are the one who failed to bind him to our cause Mr President¡± the young man mutters ¡°I would not have.¡±
¡°You don¡¯t know what you¡¯re saying¡± The middle aged man says back loudly ¡°You weren¡¯t there when the last Zulu appeared.¡±
¡°I do not believe in those stories that you as a group have made up.¡± The young man leans against the wall ¡°Everyone else believes them because they are blinded by you all.¡±
¡°Zulus are¡Dangerous¡That is not¡a lie.¡±
¡°We have an army. One that is both large and strong. We need not fear him.¡±
¡°So you would have him killed?¡± The sixth man speaks out
¡°I¡¯m not a coward like The President. I do not fear one man.¡±
¡°Then how would you deal with the other Zulus, if and when they appear.¡±
¡°That will not happen.¡± The young man says full of stupid confidence.
¡°And how do you know that?¡± the daughter asks. ¡°The President is taking the right precautions. The Zulu is a threat to us all.¡±
¡°Quiet!¡± the President demands making them all go silent as he looks upon the screen to find that the Zulu was at the Door.
Pressing a button ¡°Send him in.¡±
----------
A/N
New navigation system on royalroad! I¡¯ll go back and remove the link to next chapter some time in the future. Got 1 exam left, but that¡¯s in 6 day¡¯s time ~
I hate using the word ¡°tireder¡± but I had to get a word that rhymed with ¡°weaker¡±, just didn¡¯t feel right otherwise.
So who is the real bad guy? Mwahahaha, Remember in people¡¯s own mind, they are always right. A man would never say that he is evil, hence in this chapter I tried to make it out that The President is a good guy. Did i succeed?
Not A Chapter
NOT A CHAPTER. I was writing, but then an idea for a different story came into my head. I had to write it down. Would love an opinion. Do you find it intriguing? or just Clich¨¦? I urge you to read till the end though, it¡¯s only 1.4k words.
If however you can''t be bothered, you can skip it. Here is a link
Next Chapter = Chapter 18 - The Council [Part 3]
Do also note that i won''t work on this until Zulu is finished.
I look down to my watch. 18:43. the meet up time was meant to be 18:30.
¡°Hey, Violet!¡±
¡°Hello¡±
¡°Sorry for being late, train delayed a bit¡.Did you wait long?¡±
She looks at me whilst tilting her head.
¡°Nope¡only just got here myself.¡±
¡°Ahz, that¡¯s good to hear¡Well then shall we be off?¡±
I move in a motion that indicates her to follow. We¡¯re meant to go out for dinner tonight.
¡°The restaurant shouldn¡¯t be too far away. Maybe a ten minute walk.¡±
She doesn¡¯t reply and I don¡¯t look back.
¡°A few of my friends recommended it to me, so I¡¯ve been wanting to try it for some time now¡±
¡°Hmmm¡±
¡°The best dishes are its pastas and I heard that their desserts are to die for¡±
I¡¯m not dating this person, though I¡¯ve always had feelings for her.
¡°When will you be heading back?¡± I ask her.
¡°I¡¯ll be leaving in 3 days.¡±
¡°Three days hey? I see.¡±
She doesn¡¯t speak much at all. So this is a bit awkward. I wonder if I should just stay silent till we get there.
¡°When are you leaving?¡± she asks me.
¡°Leaving? I doubt I¡¯ll ever get the chance to work in another country like yourself.¡± I shrug pretending I don¡¯t care, but she knows I do.
¡°Hmm¡±
¡°I¡¯ve never been as good as you in public events, it¡¯s only natural.¡±
We are almost at the restaurant. I still don¡¯t look back, I haven¡¯t looked at her since I said Hello.
¡°¡Sorry¡± she says.
This time I don¡¯t reply.
¡°Hello¡± a waitress says
¡°Hi, we had a table for two, Under the Name Daniel¡±
¡°¡.Yes, right this way please.¡±
I follow the waitress up the steps. But still don¡¯t look back to Violet.
¡°Right here please sir, mam.¡±
¡°Thank you¡± I say to the waitress as she leaves us with the menus
¡°You don¡¯t have to apologies¡You didn¡¯t have a choice in that matter¡± I say to Violet.
Still avoiding contact with her face I look through the menu.
¡°It would¡¯ve turned out this way anyway.¡±
¡°¡Sorry¡±
¡°Stop apologising¡± I say in a slightly irritated voice.
She doesn¡¯t say another word.
¡°Are you two ready to order?¡±
¡°Hmm, give us a Margherita pizza, one carbonara fettuccine, one Penne all''arrabbiata and 2 glasses of your finest red wine.¡±
Handing back the menus to the waitress I finally look to her.
¡°So, it¡¯s really been 5 years since last we met.¡±
¡°¡Yeah¡±
¡°You still trying help those that despise you?¡±
¡°¡Yes¡±
¡°You still trying to do what you hate?¡±
¡°¡Yes¡±
¡°You still happy being a lapdog?¡±
¡°¡¡¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know why you do what you do¡±
¡°¡¡¡±
¡°But I won¡¯t tell how to live¡±
¡°Your wine sir, Mam. 15 year old Cabernet Sauvignon.¡±
The waitress pours us a glass. I swirl it, sniff it and take a sip.
¡°Thank you.¡± I say to her, and she smiles then leaves.
¡°Remember high-school? All those times where we were oblivious to what was happening in the world?¡±
¡°¡¡¡±
¡°I really do miss those times. Rachel, Jack, Katherine, Alex, you and me¡±
¡°¡¡¡±
¡°Have you seen the others recently?¡±
¡°¡No¡±
¡°Will you see them?¡±
¡°¡No¡±
Looking to the wine glass, I go quiet.
¡°Are you still¡.by yourself?¡± she asks me.
I look up to her. Her face is kind of sad.
¡°Your dishes Sir, Mam. Carbonara fettuccine, Penne all''arrabbiata and the Margherita pizza.¡±
¡°Pizza in the centre please, Carbonara mine and the Penne is hers.¡± I say to the waitress
Once they are placed we begin to eat.
¡°Remember when we use to always eat together?¡±
¡°¡...¡±
¡°All six of us.¡±
¡°¡¡¡±
¡°Jack was always next to Rachel, Alex next to Katherine, and you opposite to me.¡±
¡°¡I¡¯m sorry¡±
¡°Why did you want to meet up?¡±
She brings out and envelope and hands it to me.
The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
¡°What is it?¡±
¡°It¡¯s something you need to see.¡±
I express an irritated face.
¡°I was kicked out of the program. I shouldn¡¯t be getting this.¡±
¡°¡Sorry¡±
¡°I said stop apologising¡±
Looking back to the envelope I take out its contents. Pictures drop out to the ground. Pictures of blood, decapitations, mutations and a single picture of a destroyed city.
¡°What is this?¡±
¡°We received that batch last week.¡±
¡°What does it have to do with me?¡±
¡°...Do you recognise the city?¡±
I look back to the destroyed city.
¡°It seems to be a remodelling of this city, or what an aftermath of this city would look like from an attack.¡±
¡°It was mailed to us¡.From you.¡±
¡°What are you on about?¡±
¡°We were hoping you could tell us that.¡±
¡°Well I definitely did not send this¡and the date in these pictures state it¡¯s from 5 year from now.¡±
¡°We weren¡¯t taking it seriously, but, we found signatures of you on it and¡¡±
¡°You had to see if I wanted something?¡±
¡°We¡¯ve been getting pictures like these once a week for the past few months.¡±
¡°All from me? 5 years in the future?¡±
¡°Each more gruesome and ghastly then the last.¡±
¡°It wasn¡¯t me¡±
¡°Then how do you explain that!¡± Her voice goes cold as she points to the corners of each of every picture. ¡°You are the only one capable of doing that¡±
The corners of the pictures are blurry, but clear. It grows old, crumbles then comes back to be new and continues to do so. It¡¯s unnoticeable unless you were looking for it.
¡°I did not send this¡± I state it in an angered but hush tone.
¡°How was your dishes? Would you like dessert Sir, Mam?¡± asks the waitress.
¡°They were lovely¡± says Violet.
¡°Give us the house special for dessert please¡± I say to the waitress.
She smiles, clears the table and leaves.
¡°I did not send it¡± I state again to Violet.
¡°Then how do you explain that?¡±
¡°Someone else has finally found a way to do it!¡±
¡°No one else has the capabilities to do so!¡±
¡°Then do you think I sent an image from that time to now depicting what I¡¯ve done? Why would I do that, why would I try to get myself caught if I did? It¡¯s not even possible to do so!¡±
¡°¡¡¡±
¡°Reply¡±
¡°¡¡¡±
¡°Reply god damn it¡±
¡°¡¡¡±
¡°REPLY!¡± I slam my fist on the table.
¡°¡We¡¯ve found bodies¡¡±
¡°Your dessert Sir, Mam. The house special, chocolate cake surrounded by the secret murky water, with floating bananas and special cream.¡±
¡°Thank you¡± I say to the waitress
We don¡¯t speak for a time.
¡°And that is why you think this is now real?¡±
¡°¡Yes¡±
We eat the desert in silence, but I catch red and blue lights in the window.
¡°Sirens? Aren¡¯t we in a safe zone?¡± I ask Violet.
She looks worried and gets up fast.
¡°We have to leave¡± she says just as the ground shakes and half the building we¡¯re in falls down. People are running to shelters, I too start running.
¡°Violet. What¡¯s happening?¡±
¡°¡The treaty has been dissolved.¡±
¡°Why hasn¡¯t the public been told?!¡±
¡°How could we tell them? If we did everything everybody knew would be gone.¡±
¡°Everything everybody knows is gone!¡±
Another shot lands, making me stumble, another building falls.
¡°Why was it dissolved?!¡±
¡°¡The pictures weren¡¯t only sent to us¡¡±
¡°What?!¡±
¡°Every country, every body of government got it.¡±
Another shot, another stumble, another building.
¡°And they are all from me?¡±
¡°¡Yes¡±
¡°This makes no sense!¡±
Another shot lands, but this time it hits close to us. We both go flying. I stretch out my arms. Grab Violet. Hug her and slow us down, but I get hit hard by another projectile and hit the ground. Blood pouring from my body. Looking at the sky from my back. The blue that was once there, no longer is. Clouds of black are everywhere. This place looks just like the picture, but only half way there. I look down to Violet. She seems safe and crawls off, stands and looks at me.
¡°Remember the time when we were in high school?¡± I say to her.
¡°¡the times when we didn¡¯t have to care¡¡± she says looking up
¡°¡Those were good times¡¡±
¡°¡I¡¯m sorry¡¡± she says as I close my eyes.
¡°You should be, it was your fault.¡± I say as tears roll of the side of my face.
¡°¡I¡¯m sorry¡¡± she says as the sound of a falling projectile approaches.
Chapter 18 - The Council [Part 3]
Chapter 18 ¨C The Council [Part 3]
| Council Member: .M.
Date of Birth: 07/10/XXXX
Started office on: 28/05/XXXX
Aeternus |
| Council Member: Viona
Date of Birth: 15/09/XXXX
Started office on: 28/05/XXXX
Aeternus |
| Council Member: Clarice
Date of Birth: 22/08/XXXX
Started office on: 24/03/XXXX
Aeternus |
| Council Member: Gervas
Date of Birth: 12/11/XXXX
Started office on: 28/05/XXXX
Aeternus |
| Council Member: Bryant
Date of Birth: 18/12/XXXX
Started office on: 28/05/XXXX
Aeternus |
| Council Member: Oswine
Date of Birth: 21/08/XXXX
Started office on: 24/03/XXXX
Deviare |
Standing in the centre of the rectangular office, facing The President, Zulu does not greet him nor does The President greet him. It has been a slow 30 seconds since he entered, Delia stayed near the door, far away from the eyes of all those present in the room.
Oswine fidgets whilst standing still, evidently eager to get the conversation started and thus impatient to the silence. The confident demeanour that Gervas, the middle aged man that first greeted him in the other room, had all but gone now that the Zulu was a few mere metres away.
The first words spoken in a meeting such as this is particularly important, everyone in the room knows this and such no members in the Council spoke out of place. Even Oswine knew that he would cause more trouble than he could handle if he broke this simple and important moment.
With perfect posture and impeccable uniform Zulu stares straight at The President, ignoring the Council. He knew what he wanted, but did not know how to get it. In this situation he was constantly trying to remember how Zulu 1 would have behaved. Would he have spoken when he first entered? Would he have waited like he was doing? Who was the one that was meant to start the negotiation? All these questions kept running through his mind, but nothing on the outside showed it. One thing that he did know though, was that, as he had started the silence, he could not be the one to break it.
All the Council saw was a Zulu, a man that wasn¡¯t just a man. Young by the looks of it, inexperienced when they looked closely, but somehow threatening.
More time passes, more silence ensues, but the battle of silence does eventually break.
¡°I am sorry about the long wait,¡± The President ultimately folds, ¡°Re-arranging our schedules was some-what difficult¡±
¡°What is it that you have to offer me?¡± Zulu ignores the apology that had to be stated.
¡°We offer you nothing¡± Oswine speaks out of turn, clearly interrupting The President who was about to speak ¡°You will help us or you will leave.¡±
Looking to Oswine for a moment then passing his sight over to The President and the rest of the Council ¡°Then I will leave¡± he takes a small step back.
¡°Stop¡± the masked man voices out, loudly, croaky, but clearly.
¡°You won¡¯t leave in one piece¡± Oswine says
¡°We do not want you anywhere else.¡± Clarice, the daughter speaks out.
Resting one hand on his pistol and another upon his knife Zulu takes a small step forward.
¡°What is it that you have to offer me?¡± he asks again.
¡°Your life¡± Oswine states
Taking another step forward but this time to Oswine¡¯s direction ¡°Does he speak for you?¡± Zulu asks only looking at him
¡°I do¡± he says, making the Zulu take another step closer.
¡°He does not¡± The President finally states.
¡°Then why does he speak?¡± Zulu steps back
¡°I speak for the people!¡± Oswine says.
¡°The people do not rule¡± Zulu replies turning his attention back to The President. ¡°What is it that you have to offer me?¡± he asks for a third time, articulating each and every word.
¡°Nothing!¡± he says yet again.
Sighing at getting the same reply from the same man Zulu looks down for a moment. Contemplating his course of action for a brief second before taking a small leap, rapidly closing the distance between himself and Oswine.
Quickly enough so that no one can react he sends a jab to his throat and another to his gut. Making him hit the wall he was standing in front of before falling to the ground, watery eyes open but knocked out and drooling.
¡°So much for a Deviare¡¯s sixth sense.¡± Bryant, the sixth man, smiles at the unconscious Oswine.
¡°If you agree to work for us¡± The President finally starts to state his offer ¡°we will give you a room in this tower, provide you with more than enough living expenses and give you command of a platoon to personally train.¡±
Moving back to stand in the centre of the office Zulu straightens his uniform. Delaying his reply to think upon the offer. It sounded fair but it wasn¡¯t. A lesson he learnt from Zulu 1 popped up in his mind at this time as well, but he refrains from smiling.
¡°I refuse¡± he states calmly. Never accept the first offer in a negotiation.
¡°You refuse?!¡± Clarice questions out loud but quickly goes silent as the elderly woman touches her hand.
¡°Why do you refuse?¡± Viona questions with less emotion then her daughter.
¡°They are not favourable.¡±
¡°They are very favourable¡± she states calmly.
¡°I refuse to work for you.¡± He states to the president. ¡°I refuse to train your soldiers¡± He states to the Council. ¡°I refuse to comply without question¡± he takes a step back as he finds that he wasn¡¯t in the centre of the room.
¡°Then what will you do?¡± She asks, not frustrated or flustered.
¡°I can work with you¡± he states it to the president ¡°As equals.¡±
The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.
Clarice moves to speak but stops again at her mother¡¯s touch. The president swirls around to face outside and thinks for a moment whilst the masked man re-adjusts his masks.
¡°But we are not equals¡± The President replies after more than a minute of silence.
¡°No¡± resting his hands on his two weapons and adjusting his stance ¡°We are not.¡±
Swirling back around to face the Zulu ¡°You will work with us when we request it. You will be given a room in this tower. You will be provided a more than adequate life. You will not command our military.¡± he changes the offer.
¡°I refuse¡± he says back without pause.
¡°You refuse?!¡± Clarice says again, this time ignoring the touch of her mother. ¡°The terms are favourable to you!¡± she continues saying ¡°you are being unreasonable.¡±
Turning to her ¡°I am being very reasonable¡± he says again.
¡°You are not!¡± she says as he shifts his look to her mother, who in turn grabs her daughters arm. ¡°But!¡± she tries to continue however stops as the grip on her arm goes tighter. ¡°Sorry¡± she apologizes and goes silent again.
¡°What do you want than?¡± The President asks. ¡°It is obvious that you will decline all that I offer¡±
¡°I want nothing to do with your ambitions.¡±
¡°Then you must not act against me.¡±
¡°I will not act against the people.¡±
The President raises an eyebrow and lets his view drift to Oswine ¡°So you are telling me that if we leave you alone, you will leave us alone?¡±
¡°I want more than that Mr President.¡±
Staying quiet The President and Council waits, 4 of them patiently whilst one stayed visually annoyed and another unconsciously making the puddle of drool he was laying in larger.
¡°I will take that room you offered me. I will have my own team of 6 inclusive and I will attend missions at my own will.¡±
¡°The room I will provide, but the rest.¡± He scratches his chin. ¡°If we are to leave you alone than you must leave us alone¡completely.¡±
¡°I am agreeing to not act against the people, I am agreeing to let you, Mr President, continue to trick them. That is worth more than you leaving me alone.¡±
¡°We are a democracy¡± Bryant speaks out ¡°The people vote publically.¡±
¡°Your use of peer pressure is impressive¡± Zulu replies looking at Bryant ¡°No one here is a fool,¡± then pausing due to Oswine¡¯s condition on the ground ¡°Most of us are not fools¡± he corrects himself ¡°do not treat me as one.¡±
Giving a nod Bryant stops speaking.
¡°Then we will decide who will be in your unit.¡± The president states
¡°Then we are at an impasse¡±
¡°I suppose we are.¡±
¡°And if we stay at an impasse¡¡± Zulu leaves the ending unspoken.
¡°We are not equals¡± The President sighs
¡°No¡± Zulu lets out a genuine smile ¡°We are not.¡±
Picking up a pen he holds it tightly ¡°Then she at least¡± The President points to Delia with it ¡°Will be in your unit.¡±
¡°No!¡± she shouts, immediately walking up to stand near but away from the Zulu.
¡°I can live with that.¡±
¡°No!¡±
¡°Then we are at an agreement?¡± The President asks standing up and offering a hand
¡°We are not!¡± she shouts
¡°We are at an agreement¡± he agrees walking forward and shaking it.
¡°I will not do this!¡±
With The President writing up the contract and the Zulu watching him do so, neither of them react to Delia¡¯s outburst.
¡°You will do this.¡± Gervas finally says something now that an agreement was made.
¡°I will not!¡±
¡°For the pe¡ople¡± The Masked man speaks ¡°You will do¡this¡±
¡°How is this for the people!?¡±
¡°What we do is for the people¡± Viona speaks out ¡°Even if you cannot see it, you believe that.¡±
Clenching her fist ¡°I do¡± she admits grudgingly ¡°But this!¡±
¡°It is an order from the Council and the Army.¡± The President states as Zulu finishes signing the paper. ¡°You have no choice in this matter¡± he smiles.
Holding in her anger ¡°Fine¡± she spits out.
¡°Now for the blood oath.¡± Clarice says.
¡°The blood oath¡± Zulu repeats taking out his knife.
The blood oath has been around for as long as history can be remembered. There was a time where every living person was required to pledge eternal loyalty under it to a king, for it stamped out rebellion and secured a kings rule.
It restricted the rights of those who swore them, to uphold them. Normally putting them in a perilous situation later in life. Breaking a blood oath ended badly for those who did, it generally led to crippling pain for an unknown period of time followed closely by death.
However death did not always happen, on the rare occasion do people live through it; but with the passing of what is now known as the Old Laws
¡°I haven¡¯t done the blood oath in a long, long time.¡± Zulu says clenching his left hand around the serrated edge of the knife. ¡°And I will not swear one now.¡± Pulling the blade out of his hand. ¡°This country follows the Old Laws and under those laws my word is enough.¡±
¡°I do not follow the Old Laws¡± The President states as blood drips upon his desk
¡°But I do.¡± Holstering his knife. ¡°Are we at an impasse again?¡±
| [Concentrated Healing Commencing] |
Tightening his grip around the pen that he holds. ¡°No¡± The President replies ¡°We are not.¡±
¡°That is good¡± he answers moving away from the president and towards the exit.
¡°Your room is on the middle floor.¡± Viona says ¡°The door with the letter Z on it.¡±
¡°Thank you¡± Zulu thanks her whilst pressing the button to open the door. ¡°There is one more thing though¡± he pauses at the entrance ¡°You will remove all images related to my unit, all images that are of them directly or indirectly from the public eye.¡±
Snapping the pen in his hand ¡°Very well¡±
-----------------------------
A/N
Have you realized, Zulu has yet to kill anybody....But death is coming, i assure you. it''ll be in a while. I have a plan okay!
I shall leave that "not a chapter" up ~
Thank you for reading by the way. And as always. Hope you enjoyed reading ^.^
Chapter 19 - The Room [Part 1]
Chapter 19 ¨C The Room [Part 1]
¡°The door with the letter Z on it.¡± He repeats approaching it.
The door¡¯s shape and size was not the same as any other door in the tower. It was not the standard single or double sized door, but instead looked to be a door made for a hanger. The letter Z was also not painted, nor printed upon it. It instead formed from how the hanger sized door shut.
To emphasize just how weird this door was, a hallway that¡¯s length was a good 50m long lead here and only here, boxes of unused objects sat in an unorderly fashion along it; which made getting to the door a hassle.
Searching for a button to open it he finds that there is none. Continuing his search he further finds that there is no keyboards, no hand printing station, no input device.
¡°I¡¯ve never seen that door open.¡± Delia speaks out, annoyed at her situation, but no longer angry, one could say she was resigned.
Frowning he leans against it and feels his skin tingle as well as a slight push back. An electromagnetic force surrounds the door.
¡°You people did not build this place¡± he smiles taking a few steps back and making a clearing 3 metres away ¡°Well not the important places¡±
Taking out his knife he clenches his left hand around it. The hand that had just healed, cutting it again. ¡°Can you please back up?¡±
¡°Why?¡± she asks, doing as instructed, not happy but no longer feeling the urge to argue.
| [Concentrated Healing Commencing] |
Flicking his knife and thus his blood at the door it lights up. Glowing red, a scanning beam of blue light shines down onto him and only him. The door rumbles and soon opens, revealing a place without light.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Identification Complete[/pc][/col]
[/box]
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Welcome Home **** 5[/pc][/col]
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¡°Home¡± he says quietly whilst reading the projected words.
Taking a step into the room he feels the ground sink a centimetre. ¡°Shit¡± he swears instantly increasing his heart rate and thus reddening his eyes, he immediately turns around and kicks Delia in the stomach, sending her flying and breaking boxes along the way.
With her safely out of the way and his foot stuck in place he hunches over to protect his head as much as possible. A mini sized rocket soon hits and explodes upon his back, creating a massive dust cloud whilst the destroying the remaining boxes and unused equipment.
| [Priority Acce¡¡ed Healing Com¡..] |
| [Muscle, B¡.e Re¡force...ent] |
In the dust and rumble Zulu lives but is in bad shape. Kneeling on what remains of his legs, he is missing an arm and has his spine exposed. Had he not known what was coming he would have without a doubt died. Had Delia not been around, he would have dodged.
His night vision was half gone as the glass that covered his eye was half destroyed. Ideally he wouldn¡¯t move, but he knows what is in the room and thus pushes and drags himself into it.
¡°Dammit Zag¡± he stutters out as the door shuts once he enters.
The room alights once it closes, allowing him to see what is actually there. The floor has little human shaped machines roaming all around. Each moving items from point A to point B, fixing, repairing and resetting the trap that he had just activated.
Ignoring these he looks to his right to find that the wall is occupied by multiple large conveyer belt like distribution machines. Each appearing to create, package and distribute a single but different unique item.
He smiles upon seeing what each of them are but does not move towards them. Ahead of him he finds a large table placed against the large, empty wall. Unfinished machines lay upon the desk and ground around it.
To his left he finds two chambers, both looking very much like the cryo-chamber he woke up from.
Spitting out blood he pulls himself along the ground, leaving a trail as he moves towards them. The first Chamber is occupied. A woman with short brown hair, soft cheeks, average in height and wearing the same headgear that he wears but over her left eye instead of the right looks to be asleep.
¡°Dammit Zag¡± he spits out with hints of laughter as he moves over to the second chamber.
Pulling himself into it with his one arm, he lays face up and pulls the transparent lid shut, tears of pain streaming from his eyes as he does.
Once the lid shuts some small human shaped machines jump upon the glass, each soon changing shape and merging with the chamber.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Emergency Treatments Commencing[/pc][/col]
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----------------
Delia
----------------
On her back and at the start of the hallway, Delia coughs and spits out blood as splinted pieces of wood and metal surround her. One long piece of a now destroyed pole sticks out and through her stomach, coincidentally the same place that Zulu had kicked her; ultimately pinning her down. The explosion, though small, was powerful.
Laying there and looking up she hears ringing noises and remains still. The long hallway now made sense to her. It was designed so that no one could escape when the trap activated. The boxes that once lined it were now replaced with mechanical looking arms that grabbed and trapped anyone dumb enough to actually be there.
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Knowing that she needs help she grabs the transmitter upon her belt, pressing the button she drops it right after. Being part Deviare the pain she felt was dull, it hurt but it wasn¡¯t that bad. Had both her parents been Deviare in species she wouldn¡¯t have hurt at all, but alas, that was not the case.
Soon a doctor and multiple Military Police (M.P) appear, the M.P having their rifles up and circling her.
¡°What happened?¡± one of the M.P asks as the doctor examines her wound.
¡°Explosion¡± she coughs out.
¡°We can see that.¡± The same M.P replies. ¡°Was there anyone else?¡±
¡°Zulu.¡± She answers and spits blood into the M.P¡¯s face as the doc moves the thing that pins her to the ground. ¡°Down the hallway.¡±
¡°Right.¡± The M.P acknowledges ¡°let¡¯s move¡± he grabs 3 of the 6 M.P and moves down the hallway with them.
¡°I¡¯m going to put you to sleep for a bit.¡± The doctor treating her says as he injects her with sleeping agents.
Waking up a few hours later, now in a hospitable bed, Delia finds that she is alone. Looking down to her stomach. ¡°Another scar¡± she mutters to herself.
Sitting up and pressing the button that calls for a nurse she sighs at what just happened. No matter how much she does not want to admit it, Zulu saved her life. She now owed him. Though it could also be argued that she now owed the Zulu two lives instead of one, as when they first met the Zulu had let her live, but letting someone live and saving someone are two completely different things. The cuts she sustained that time were not really life threatening to her, maybe to the first humans it would be but not to the Deviare, Aeternus or Mermanus.
¡°Hello¡± Clarice says with a smile upon entering. No doctor or nurse in sight.
¡°So you¡¯re my doctor?¡± Delia gives a light sigh of exhaustion upon seeing her.
¡°Only for you¡± she jokes taking the board that was at the end of the bed
¡°I¡¯ll be eating hospital food for a week¡±
¡°At least you still have a stomach.¡± Taking the seat next to the bed ¡°The wound penetrated and almost ripped it apart.¡±
¡°No doubt because they had to remove the thing that pinned me.¡±
Handing the board to Delia for her to look at ¡°What actually happened?¡± Clarice asks
¡°There was an explosion,¡± she states whilst reading that she would be released in two days
¡°We know that,¡± Clarice responds, ¡°What caused it.¡±
¡°You¡¯re here because of the council aren¡¯t you?¡±
¡°That¡¯s not fair Del.¡±
¡°I know,¡± handing the board back to her, ¡°But life isn¡¯t fair¡±
¡°I see you every time you¡¯re in here¡± keeping the board in her hands ¡°just because I¡¯m a council member and you are not does not mean I don¡¯t worry about you.¡±
¡°Why are you on the Council Clare?¡± Delia asks a question she has asked a thousand times before. ¡°You and I both know that it isn¡¯t a real Council.¡±
¡°You know why, stop asking me that,¡± holding the board more tightly ¡°when I¡¯m in charge things will be different.¡±
¡°You¡¯re still so na?ve Clare,¡± smiling for a split second before losing it, ¡°I hope that never changes¡±
¡°Things will be different¡± Clarice states more firmly then quietly mumbles ¡°Then you can comeback.¡±
¡°I am not going to come back Clare, I¡¯ve seen what The President has done¡you¡¯ve seen what The President has done.¡±
¡°Your Father Del.¡± Clarice corrects.
¡°Yes,¡± laying back down ¡°My father.¡±
¡°What your father did was for the people.¡± Clarice continues ¡°just look at how much better off they are, how much better off we are.¡±
¡°The ends do not justify the means Clare. Though we may be better off, what My Father did was and is not justifiable¡±
¡°When I¡¯m in charge things will be different¡± Clarice states again. ¡°Believe me¡± she pleads.
Breathing in and letting out a long breath. ¡°Let¡¯s not talk about this.¡± Delia suggest.
Relaxing her grip on the board. ¡°What happened at the hallway?¡± Clarice asks again.
Letting a moment go past, Delia thinks upon her situation, what occurred and whether or not she should let Clarice go back empty handed. Knowing how her father thinks she inwardly curses.
¡°The Zulu, he opened the door that we couldn¡¯t open¡±
¡°The Zulu opened it?¡± Clarice repeats
¡°Yes, he opened it.¡±
¡°Did he make the explosion?¡±
Thinking for a bit ¡°I don¡¯t know, I was sent flying before I saw him do anything¡± Replaying what she saw and what she felt in her mind a few times more. ¡°He kicked me then stepped forward¡no he stepped forward and kicked me at the same time, I think. Triggering an explosion at the same time saving my life.¡±
Clarice seeing that Delia could not exactly tell what occurred ¡°Our cameras didn¡¯t catch what happened either¡± tries to reassure her that her not knowing is fine.
¡°Why don¡¯t you ask the Zulu?¡± accepting the fact that she doesn¡¯t know what happened.
¡°We can¡¯t¡± Clarice replies ¡°No one has seen him since that time.¡±
Getting up ¡°You mean he¡¯s gone? Dead?¡±
Shrugging ¡°We don¡¯t know, when the M.P¡¯s got there the door was shut, bits and pieces of body parts were found. But not enough for a complete body. He may have been vaporized? Are you sure the door actually opened?¡±
¡°You mean I no longer have to follow him?¡± she asks feeling slightly happy but somehow slightly annoyed ¡°And yes the doors really opened. Why do you doubt me?¡±
Scrunching her eyebrows ¡°Our cameras Del.¡± She pauses ¡°Our cameras never show the door opening, it only sees you flying backwards, an explosion and the Zulu disappearing.¡±
¡°The doors really opened Clare!¡± Delia says a bit frantically ¡°I know what I saw, I am not crazy!¡±
Placing the board back at the end of the bed ¡°You''re tired Del, get some rest.¡± She says leaving ¡°I¡¯ll come back later.¡±
-----------
A/N
As Always, Thanks for reading, Hoped you liked it :P
Chapter 20 - The Room [Part 2]
Chapter 20 ¨C The Room [Part 2]
¡°You¡¯re fit for active duty¡± the doctor tells her, signing the release papers.
¡°Have I received any new orders?¡± she asks him getting dressed
¡°No,¡± the doc waits for to get dressed ¡°not that I know of.¡± He hands the papers to her.
¡°So I¡¯m on standby?¡± Taking the papers from his hands, ¡°No mention of the Zulu?¡±
¡°I don¡¯t know¡± the doc replies hurriedly leaving to go to his next patient.
¡°Tsk¡± she says under her breath scrunching the papers ¡°So much for a doctor¡¯s full care¡± she throws the paper in the bin as she exits.
Leaving her room she immediately pushes herself against the nearest wall. Hospital beds with patients were being rushed past her. The hospital was as busy as always.
Pushing her way through the organised but packed movement of people Delia does her best to stay out of the way. The hospital elevator was a no go for her and thus she takes the stairs down.
Her stomach had already healed, it no longer hurt and eating a burger was the one thing on her mind. The hospital food she had been made to eat for the past two days had been horrendous. It tasted of nothing, but provided you with everything the body needed.
The perfect food for a soldier was how it had been advertised. But no sane soldier would willing eat it unless they really had to.
Soon exiting the Hospital Delia looks up at the underground ceiling, ¡°I need to get out¡± she says as she looks upon greyish coloured metal.
Walking further along, she finds Clarice sitting on a bench, facing away from her and holding an unlabelled brown bag. She always sat there on the day of her release.
Taking a seat next to her ¡°Hello Clare.¡± she says grabbing the bag from her hands
¡°Ah,¡± Clare receives a small shock, ¡°Del,¡± With her hand on her heart ¡°Make some more noise the next time you approach.¡±
¡°I did,¡± taking a bite from the burger, ¡°You just weren¡¯t paying attention,¡± chewing on her food and swallowing, ¡°What were you thinking so hard about?¡±
¡°The Zulu,¡± she pauses for a short time, ¡°I can¡¯t believe I agree with Oswine.¡±
¡°So the Zulu is not dead.¡± Sighing because she now needed to follow him again ¡°Where is he?¡±
¡°No Del¡± shaking her head ¡°The Zulu has not been seen since the explosion. The President and older Council members refuse to believe that he is dead.¡±
¡°As much as I want it to be so,¡± taking another bite ¡°I don¡¯t think he¡¯s dead either.¡±
¡°And why is that?¡± Clarice questions her.
Swallowing, ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking about what happened for the past couple of days.¡± Taking a drink, ¡°The Zulu staged the explosion.¡±
¡°Staged the explosion? What do you mean?¡±
Chewing on her food ¡°The Zulu staged the explosion. He opened the door and set off a grenade of sorts in order to make sure I couldn¡¯t follow him inside.¡± Finishing the burger ¡°There¡¯s something he is hiding in that room.¡±
¡°Del¡± Clarice lets out a breath ¡°The door did not open.¡±
¡°I know what I saw Clare¡± standing back up ¡°He opened it and set an explosion to stop me from entering.¡±
¡°Del, It did not open. We have footage of it remaining shut,¡± shaking her head, ¡°You¡¯re just trying not to admit that the Zulu saved your life.¡±
¡°He did not save me life¡± Delia states back firmly ¡°He set that explosion!¡±
¡°You hate him too much Del,¡± standing up with her ¡°You owe the Zulu your life.¡±
Taking in a breath, and letting it back out. ¡°It doesn¡¯t even matter anyway¡± Delia states, not angry nor happily, ¡°The Zulu is dead.¡±
¡°Let¡¯s go back to the Council.¡± Clarice says taking a step to leave
¡°No Clare.¡± Delia responds stopping ¡°I¡¯m not going there.¡±
Sighing ¡°Then you are to report back to the general for active duty.¡±
¡°Yes Ma¡¯am!¡± Delia stands straight and moves to salute
Hugging her ¡°Come back well okay?¡± Clarice stops it
Hugging her back ¡°I always do¡± she smiles before breaking apart and leaving. Their parting from the hospital had become something like a tradition. She always tried to pull her back, and she always refused.
Stretching her arms as she walks she feels a bit lighter. The past three and a half weeks had been tougher than she had wanted them to be, but with the Zulu¡¯s disappearance she could go back to how she lived her life before. She was free of him, she was happy, but felt a tinge of regret. The Zulu died saving her.
¡°I should¡¯ve been nicer¡± she mumbles before shaking her head and jumping upon on of the floating vehicles to head towards the General. ¡°Hope I can head to the eastern base¡± she says to get her mind away from her regretful thoughts ¡°It¡¯ll be fun to mess with the new guys.¡±
-------------
Zulu
-------------
Screaming out loud, but not being heard by anyone or anything Zulu slams his one functional hand against the transparent glass, leaving a bloody path of it as he slides it across. The chamber he was in had multiple restraints that were binding him down, but the restraints only held his chest, waist and ankles, he broke free of the one holding his hand.
Constantly convulsing, his eyes continuously change colour, going from red to hazel and back to red. His heart was no longer beating in any steady pattern, sometimes beating so fast that one would not think it was not a heart, and other times mimicking that of a corpse. He wanted to be asleep for this, but he could not be. The pain he felt could not be dulled by morphine, nor could he fall asleep by gas or compound.
As a Zulu he could not be poisoned, he could not be infected. His body rejects all things that are not produced by the body. This is a good thing, as it meant he could not be killed unless physically hurt or blown apart. However it worked both ways, his body rejects all things that are not produced by it, it is not selective.
With the chamber restraining his arm again, his legs break free, allowing him to kick the glass without meaning to. With each passing minute the chamber was turning darker and darker. The reconstruction of bone, muscle, veins and ligaments required him to stay still, he knows this, but he could not do so.
In such circumstances he knows that he should think of something, think of anything, get his mind away, but no matter how much he tried, he could not. He knows how to ignore pain, he has learnt the skill but he has yet to master it. This made the process even longer and more excruciating than it needed to be.
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In the heat of battle it was easy for him to ignore where he hurt, in the heat of battle it came naturally to him, however being in the heat of battle and being under the scalpel were two very different cases. In battle he could move, in battle he had things he needed to do. Under the scalper he had to stay still, he had to not move, he had no actual goal except for the goal of not moving.
He knows that it is possible, he had seen it done by the others, but the others were more experienced. They had more need of it than he did.
Breaking free of all his restraints he hits the glass harder, faster and more chaotically. Each hit being stronger and more precise than the last. Cracks soon start appearing, but they disappear just as fast. The chamber was being repaired as quickly as it was being damaged. The human shaped machines that had been roaming around the floor of the room were all now merged with the chamber.
Passing out at times he awakes only a split second later to pain. Feeling exhausted he wants to not feel, but the torture he was under did not let him. Under such agony he could not measure time. Under such agony he only knew pain. Pain that made him scream, pain that made him shout, pain that made sure he never stopped struggling.
Eventually though it stops, the chamber stops working and he lies there healed. Exhausted in more ways than one, he does not get up, but instead falls unconscious.
Pushing the now dyed red glass he opens the chamber and sits up to let his legs hang over the edge. Looking down at both his hands he clenches them and unclenches them. Twisting his body he stretches his back, flexing his arms he makes sure they move properly. Concentrating on his senses he finds that everything is back to normal. He ached here and there but it was more muscle pain from a workout than pain from an injury.
¡°Aargh!¡± he lets out a loud scream into the large open room, knowing that the room is sound proof, before hunching over to let out a long and heavy breath.
¡°I would have preferred death.¡± He mumbles to himself as he runs his right hand across his headgear, insuring that it is whole.
¡°Death would have been easier.¡± he shouts getting out of the chamber to stretch once again.
¡°Death would have been better.¡± he whispers, not actually meaning it, as he inspects the room with a clear head.
Ignoring the chamber in front of him he first looks past it to find drawers and cupboards. They were not located in a tidy fashion, but instead looked to have been placed there on a whim. Around them lay scattered tools, half built rifles and broken machines. Wrenches and rolled up blue prints leaned off them.
Moving towards these drawers and cupboards he clears the mess just enough to open the first cupboard. Finding clothes hanged up once he opens them, he puts them on as he has been stark naked the whole time.
Putting on the first he finds that it wasn¡¯t made for him and thus searches through the many, many sizes until he finds the right one. Only when he ensures that each crease is perfect and no wrinkles are present where they should not be does he turn his attention back to the chamber he got out from; collecting his pistol and knife he holsters them onto his new belt.
Now turning his attention to the other chamber he walks up to it and places his right hand upon it.
| Name: ERROR
Birthdate: ERROR
Unit: **** |
¡°Zag,¡± he says with a smile, waiting for the chamber to register his hand print ¡°You¡¯re going to be in so much pain when you wake up.¡±
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Authority Level 10[/pc][/col]
[/box]
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]Access Authorized[/pc][/col]
[/box]
A holographic image of her laying down emits from the glass in an x-ray like view. Showing in real time the beating of her heart, the air flowing in and out from her lungs and her blood circulating around her veins.
¡°No.¡± he says quietly as he sees the projected image of her.
¡°This can¡¯t be happening.¡± He changes the projected angle to receive a clear image of her head. More specifically a clear image of her brain.
Typing upon the glass.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]No Brain Activity Detected[/pc][/col]
[/box]
Slamming the glass he types upon it again.
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]No Brain Activity Detected[/pc][/col]
[/box]
He receives the same message and slams the glass again, harder. Making it crack and repair itself all at once.
¡°Damn it Zag.¡± He slumps to the ground, hiding his face in his own shadow.
-------------------
A/N
Err. I did say i have a plan. I''m not going to change it because you guys want another Zulu to be alive.
It''ll screw up my plans and Two Zulu''s will be like game breaking !!!
So why is the body there? As i said, i have a plan.
@J0nn0
I haven''t explained in direct words what he can and can not do yet. I will in a few chapters (It''s planned out!)
To anyone who actually drops this because not that much happened....well Sorry.
And as always. Hope you all enjoyed the Chapter. Thanks for reading.
Chapter 21 - The Room [Part 3]
Chapter 21 ¨C The Room [Part 3]
Staring up at the ceiling of the large spacious room, time ticks forward without him caring. His thoughts are full and in a mess, but his heart felt empty. It would have been easier if he didn¡¯t find her body. He would have preferred it if he didn¡¯t, or at least would have preferred the body to have decayed instead of staying in its perfect condition.
Slapping himself he shakes his head and does his best to collect his thoughts, pushing out his emotional side he thinks about facts and facts only.
The year is 4328. The war is over. My unit is gone. I am the last of my kind. The world has changed. We are at peace. I am a Zulu.
Shaking his head again he repeats it out loud.
¡°The year is 4328. The war is over. My unit is gone. I am the last of my kind. The world has changed. We are at peace. I am a Zulu.¡±
Standing up on his own two feet whilst wiping his face.
¡°My unit is gone. We are at peace. I am a Zulu¡± he whispers, repeating only the most important pieces of information.
Looking back at the chamber with Zag inside, he kicks one of the robots roaming the floor in frustration before turning his back to it.
Closing his eyes and taking a long breathe ¡°I am a Zulu. We are at peace.¡± He states with complete composure.
Opening them he turns his attention to the right of the room.
| Vit-3127. Cal-8124. Pro-2732. Min-9945. Car-7654. Mix-8218 |
Six conveyer belt like distribution machines, each containing six similar but different, unique items.
Walking over to them he grabs the Mix-8218 and injects himself with it. Crushing the injector once done making his hand bleed as he walks over to the table located at the large blank wall.
| Concentrated Healing Commencing |
Miniaturize minor healing notifications
| Minor Concentrated Healing Notifications Miniaturization Confirmed |
First inspecting the machines upon the table, that was more like a workbench, he finds that he can¡¯t make out what any of them are. Moving some of them to sit with the ones on the ground he pulls out the chair and sits upon it.
¡°My unit is gone.¡± He says quietly, almost serene like.
¡°My unit is gone!¡± he slams the table with a bleeding fist, red eyed¡angry¡infuriated that he could not do anything about it.
With his blood upon the table, making one keyboard and fifteen screens emerge out of the wall; arranged in three rows and five columns. A gigantic, rotating Z in black and red display upon the combined screens. The third column aligning itself with the seat he sits upon, ensuring that they all centred on him.
¡°My unit is gone.¡± He sighs, tired as he presses a key to awake the computer.
Nine of the fifteen screens start showing real time surveillance footage. Surveillance footage constantly switching viewpoints of the city, some showing footage as if it were flying from above the city, others in mundane rooms showing children reading books and a few within the tower itself, giving video of The President and Council.
Sitting there he stares at the nine outer screens that constantly change every second for a full minute, concluding that there must be thousands of cameras that were feeding footage to the terminal. ¡°As thorough as always.¡± He mumbles rubbing his eyes.
Changing his attention to the five screens of the middle area he finds data constantly being fed through it at an amazing pace. Too fast for any human eyes to properly read, but not fast enough to get past his head gear.
| Heat, Water, Electric, Weather Data. |
| Above Ground Activity Data |
| Military, Government, Law Data |
Having nothing he needed to know at that moment he looks to the last unseen screen, the one directly in front of him.
A black screen with one bleeping green small rectangular box is located at the top left corner. It was waiting for input.
With both hands hovering over the keys, blood slowly drips onto them. He doesn¡¯t know what to search for, nor what he should do.
Pulling his hands back he leans back on the chair and closes his eyes. Explore the new world, learn all there is to know. It seemed so pointless to him now. He wasn¡¯t needed. He was free and was not needed.
The year is 4328. The war is over. My unit is gone. I am the last of my kind. The world has changed. We are at peace. I am a Zulu.
Opening his eyes and sitting up straight ¡°I am a Zulu¡±
[box border=1 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=3 width=80% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][col colspan=4 valign=middle width=100% bordercolor=#202020 bgcolor=#f5f5f5][pc]4 053. Noiizia. Zag[/pc][/col]
[/box]
He types the year of Noiizia¡¯s destruction followed with the name he called her.
Pressing the enter key he waits, waits and finds that nothing happens. Typing on the keys he finds that it does not respond.
Grinding his teeth he stops himself from speaking, choosing to instead slam the keyboard in silence with his right fist, breaking it.
Pulling his hand back, he takes out the pieces stuck in his hand and throws them on the table. Staring at the destroyed keyboard he sees it slowly reassemble itself, unintentionally making him smile.
Inhaling and then exhaling he realizes that all fifteen screens were now showing an in depth real time blueprint of the tower. Showing all current locations of everybody in it as a red bleeping dot with their name and current heartbeat showing.
All except for him and Zag¡¯s body in the room, instead two green dots and four blue dots, unnamed and unmeasured were present on the screen in the room¡¯s location.
Recalling the blueprint that had been shown upon the tablet, he remembers the other reason he had wanted to enter the tower. Typing upon the keyboard he magnifies the room¡¯s bleeping layout, to give a more detailed image.
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Two bodies with heat signatures and four cylinder like object were outlined and highlighted in their respective colours.
Looking to the ground, where he had recently placed some of the unknown machines, he grabs one of the outlined objects.
Made of multiple pieces of metal and alloys his headgear is unable to identify what it is. Being 20 centimetres in length, coloured silver and shaped to fit on a forearm; there is no markings on it except for the Z symbol that was previously displayed upon the computer screens.
Holding it in his left hand he rolls back and forth upon the table. The fifteen screens were showing fifteen real time images from fifteen different angles of the object as it moved.
| Unknown Object Do Not Use |
Ignoring the warning he slides his left arm into it. Ensuring that the Z symbol is facing up he smears his blood over it. Waiting for a second the symbol starts to glow red, like how the door did.
Relaxing himself, he flinches as it tightens and drills itself into the arm.
¡°Why do you always make these so violent?¡± he says wiping his cheeks dry.
| Unknown Object Entering System |
| Cells Destruction In Progress |
| 10011011100110101101011011101011101
01101010101010101010111100000011011
00011101111000010110001101010101010
10011011100110101101011011101011101
01101010101010101010111100000011011
00011101111000010110001101010101010
10011011100110101101011011101011101
01101010101010101010111100000011011
00011101111000010110001101010101010
10011011100110101101011011101011101
01101010101010101010111100000011011
00011101111000010110001101010101010 |
--------------
Delia
--------------
Breathing in and breathing out Delia steadies herself as she looks down the scope. The target is a good 600 metres away, moving at what the scope says to be a constant 80 km/h.
She follows its movement, seeing the predicted outcome the scope was showing she stays in front of it. Pressing the trigger once, the recoil pushes against her left arm. Pressing it a second time and third the shock is less intense each time. Fire the clip empty, no recoil is seen on the last shot.
¡°You¡¯re getting better with it¡± a man with goggles standing over her comments.
¡°I missed¡± she says getting off the ground as steam starts to rise from the start and end of the barrel.
Putting on a pair of thick fireproof gloves ¡°It¡¯s still in prototype stage.¡± Disassembling the weapon ¡°Getting that close to hitting the target and minimizing the recoil as you did is amazing enough.¡±
¡°When do you think it¡¯ll be ready?¡± crouching low to see how he disassembles it.
¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± throwing her the scope, ¡°I didn¡¯t make it,¡± carefully placing the barrel against in a long box of ice ¡°I can¡¯t stop it from heating up so fast.¡±
¡°Why do we need this again?¡± she asks looking through the scope at the flying target that escaped her.
¡°It¡¯s the only thing powerful enough and small enough for a single soldier to kill the larger size beasts.¡± Picking up the shell casings that were burning the ground it lay on.
¡°Six shots.¡± Delia states ¡°Six shots and its extremely immobile. We can¡¯t use this.¡±
¡°That¡¯s why it¡¯s a prototype Del.¡± He replies placing the cases in a bucket of ice. ¡°It¡¯s not usable yet.¡±
¡°By the way,¡± he says taking off the gloves ¡°Thanks for helping me out. After the last incident not many people are eager to test these.¡±
¡°Not a problem,¡± Looking up and taking a long breath, ¡°I needed to see the sky again.¡±
Looking up at it with her, ¡°Not many people care very much about that.¡±
¡°Not many people didn¡¯t see it until they were 18.¡± She says with her eyes shut.
¡°Why are you here anyway?¡± he asks changing the subject, ¡°I thought you would be east with the new guys.¡±
¡°I would be,¡± sighing ¡°but the general said that there was no point, anyway, they¡¯ll be back later today.¡±
¡°Why didn¡¯t you initially go with them?¡± pouring the now warm bucket of water to separate it from the casing, ¡°You always go this time of year.¡± Throwing the casing, without touching them, into another bucket of ice.
¡°Why don¡¯t they melt?¡± Delia asks seeing the process.
¡°I don¡¯t know¡± shrugging, ¡°as I said earlier. I didn¡¯t make it.¡± Looking back at her, ¡°You didn¡¯t answer my question Del.¡±
Smiling ¡°No¡± she replies ¡°I didn¡¯t¡±
¡°You don¡¯t want to talk about it?¡± draining the steaming box the barrel lay in.
¡°I was assigned to keep an eye on the Zulu.¡± Helping him pour a bucket of ice into the box.
¡°Ah¡± he replies ¡°So how did he disappear?¡±
Looking up at him. ¡°How do you know that?¡± she questions ¡°The intel is still locked.¡±
¡°Intel leaks.¡± He shrugs, ¡°You know how it is.¡±
¡°Intel leaks.¡± She repeats, ¡°You¡¯ve been drinking with the general haven¡¯t you?¡±
Taking a seat next to the box, he doesn¡¯t reply.
Not pursuing the subject, ¡°How long till they cool?¡±
¡°On average?¡± he answers, ¡°maybe an hour.¡± He looks to the box and bucket. ¡°We¡¯ll need to replace the ice every ten minutes though.¡±
Taking a seat on fold-able chair next to him and rubbing the engraved Z on the scope ¡°Can I keep this?¡± she asks looking out from the clearing down at the open lake surrounded by trees.
¡°You know you can¡¯t¡± he replies not looking at her, ¡°We only have five of them.¡±
-------------
A/N
Wish I could draw, That Z I have in mind would¡¯ve been a pretty cool cover picture T_T
Hope you all liked the chapter. As always, thanks for reading ^.^
Chapter 22 - Zulu 4 [Part 1]
Chapter 22 ¨C Zulu 4 [Part 1]
Entering the private dining area exclusively made for his unit, he moves to take a seat next to Zee, as always, but crosses his legs together to trip and tumble.
¡°Take it slow.¡± Zed, catching him before he crashes to the ground says ¡°It¡¯s only been a day since you¡¯ve had it¡±
¡°Ye¡Yeah¡± he stutters ¡°Sorry, Sir.¡± He apologizes as he is helped to his seat.
¡°How are you feeling?¡± Zee asks chewing on bread.
Forcing each of his fingers to slowly bend and unbend ¡°I feel¡slow?¡± he questions ¡°tired?¡±
Blinking at the appearance of the word he says it out loud ¡°Lethargic¡±
¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± Zig says, pouring milk into her cereal bowl, ¡°It¡¯ll pass in time.¡±
¡°I also feel like,¡± moving to grab a glass but instead pushing it off the table ¡°feel like I¡¯m on fire.¡±
¡°That¡¯s normal,¡± Zed says catching it, ¡°you¡¯ll get used to it,¡± pouring a glass of water, ¡°We have higher body temperature than normal people.¡±
¡°Higher?¡± Scrunching his brows at his inability to move properly, ¡°how¡much higher?¡±
| Blood Temperature 74 Degree Celsius |
Smiling, ¡°No doubt you know the answer,¡± handing the glass to him with a straw in it ¡°You¡¯ll get use to it.¡±
¡°How is this¡possible?¡± he asks before sipping through the straw.
Not answering, Zed moves back to his seat, next Zig and opposite of him.
¡°There are trillions of Nano-bots in your blood system.¡± Zee answers, ¡°Replacing most of your red and white blood,¡± pausing ¡°Have you been eating?¡± she asks pulling his head back to see his face more clearly.
¡°I¡¯m haven¡¯t been hungry.¡± He replies shaking her hands of him ¡°I just feel hot¡± drinking more water.
¡°You won¡¯t ever feel hungry¡± she says pushing her plate of toast in front of him, ¡°Nor will you ever feel full.¡± Getting off her seat to get more food ¡°You should still eat though.¡±
Grabbing the toast, it crumbles in his hand ¡°How long till I¡¯m¡normal again?¡±
Picking up the knife and fork Zee had placed on the table, he struggles to hold them correctly.
¡°It¡¯s different for everyone,¡± Zig speaks up, watching him struggle, ¡°took me four days,¡± crunching her cereal in her mouth, ¡°It was three days for Zag, six for Zee and apparently a week for Zed.¡±
¡°Less¡time for each new person?¡± he questions.
¡°No,¡± she replies, lifting up her bowl ¡°That¡¯s just a coincidence¡± drinking the rest of the milk.
Finally successfully cutting the toast, ¡°¡So there is no telling?¡± he ask eating with shaky hands.
Wiping her mouth, ¡°Constant moving seems to decrease the time though.¡± She says getting up, bowl in hand.
¡°Which is why we aren¡¯t really helping you,¡± Zee states placing a bowl of cereal next to his plate of toast, ¡°Make sure you eat this as well.¡±
Slowly nodding, ¡°What are you guys¡Doing?¡± he asks as they gather their equipment.
¡°We¡¯ve got an assignment.¡± Zed answers, ¡°Zag there,¡± he nods in Zag¡¯s direction, who was on another table, ¡°Will help you through this stage whilst we¡¯re gone¡±
Getting no response at the mention of her name, ¡°Zag,¡± Zed repeats but still get no reaction, ¡°Zag!¡± Zed says a bit louder, a bit more demanding, shaking her from her concentration.
¡°Whaaat?!¡± she asks turning around with a spoon in her mouth.
¡°We¡¯re leaving,¡± Zed sighs, ¡°Help out the new guy¡±
¡°Ah,¡± she turns around and grabs the two solid cubes she was focusing on, ¡°Good luck¡± she says before turning back and taking a seat diagonally opposite of him.
¡°Don¡¯t eat anything else after the bowl of cereal.¡± Zee says leaving with the other two, without waiting for a response.
Sitting with Zag on a table made for ten, neither of them interact with each other. He struggles with his breakfast, constantly dropping his cutlery and spilling his drink whilst Zag slowly eats her cereal and stares at the two cubes.
Eventually finishing his breakfast, he finds that his fingers react better, but it still requires quite a bit of concentration to move them. Looking towards Zag he sees that she is still staring at the two cubes, bowl of cereal still present and spoon just staying in her mouth
Deciding to move closer to see what she is really doing, he stands to change seats, slipping instead, he knocks the table, falling upon his butter knife and puncturing his left lung.
Gasping for air he rolls on his back and finds Zag looking down on him from the table.
¡°What are you doing?¡± she asks, grabbing the butter knife, ¡°You shouldn¡¯t be moving without supervision.¡±
Feeling her mercilessly twist the knife, he coughs out blood and tries to stop her.
¡°I wasn¡¯t this uncoordinated when I got mine.¡± She frowns pulling it out.
| Concentrated Healing Commencing |
¡°Don¡¯t be so worried,¡± she smiles wiping the blood on her uniform, ¡°You won¡¯t die¡±
Coughing as he feels himself burn and fail to block the blood flow, he stands and falls over and over. Trying his best to move towards the drawers at the side of the room; to look for bandages.
¡°You¡¯re a Zulu now,¡± Zag says, crossed legged on the table and watching him fall continuously, ¡°Stop acting,¡± scratching her tilted head, ¡°like a newborn baby.¡±
Finally reaching the drawers he opens them and looks through them hysterically. Though with his very unresponsive motor skills he ultimately fails to successfully find what he wants.
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
¡°Stop it¡± Zag says as she appears behind him with a chair, ¡°You¡¯re a Zulu now¡± she repeats pushing him down onto the chair with strength one would not think was possible for her size. ¡°A single stab wound is nothing to us.¡±
Being retrained in the chair and not fully comprehending what she means, ¡°What are you doing?!¡± he shouts in panic.
¡°I really liked the girl better.¡± She sighs, still restraining him with ease. ¡°Stop struggling so much and just relax¡±
¡°You¡¯re a horrid medic!¡± he spits blood as he continuous to struggle
Pursing her lips and staring directly at him for a moment, ¡°Zee is the medic in our unit¡± she states before punching and knocking him out.
Waking up he immediately feels that his right arm is chained down.
The sound of metal whining and drilling being done shrill out as he shakes his head; to get use to half his world being green and the other half being its usual colours.
¡°Zag!¡± he shouts finding that his lungs are healed and all traces of it happening were gone.
¡°Zag!¡± he shouts again, but fails to get her attention as the noise of metal work was too loud.
| **** 4 Communication Established. |
¡°You¡¯re awake?¡± the sound of her voice feeds into his right ear.
Surprised that the voice was so very crisp and clear despite the fact that the noise of metal breaking was so loud, ¡°Where am I¡± he takes a while to respond.
¡°You¡¯ll learn that the headgear is a lot more than just an information gathering device.¡± The sound comes over with some hysterical laughter, ¡°I¡¯ve chained you down to the wall. There are five vials near you, labelled Vit-3100, Cal-8050, Pro-2634, Min 9706 and Car-7420.¡±
It cuts out as the sound of hot liquid steel is heard being poured and spilled.
¡°Sorry,¡± it comes back, ¡°There are five vials, Vit-3100, Cal-8050, Pro-2634, Min 9706 and Car-7420. Inject yourself with them and get free of the wall.¡±
¡°What?!¡± he instantly responds without thinking, ¡°What¡¯s going on? Is this another test?¡±
Waiting a moment and not getting a response, ¡°Hello?¡± he says, sounding worried.
¡°Sorry¡± she responds again, ¡°During this period, I am to,¡± the sound of sawing runs into his ear, making him cringe, ¡°I am meant to teach you like Zig taught me,¡± Sound of her throwing something away runs through, ¡°But how Zig taught me was slow and boring.¡±
¡°The way I¡¯m going to be teaching you is going to be fun and exciting.¡± A moment of silence followed by a short cackle ensue
Looking at his hand chained to the wall, ¡°How,¡± he pulls against it with all his uncoordinated strength, ¡°is this,¡± stopping to catch his breath, then trying again, ¡°Teaching me?!¡±
¡°You¡¯re a Zulu now,¡± she responds sounding amused, ¡°you need to realise that your old limits are no longer your current limits.¡±
Still straining against the chain, ¡°You¡Are not¡Teaching me.¡±
¡°You haven¡¯t taken the vials I told you to.¡±
Stopping ¡°You¡¯re watching me,¡± he states, searching the room, ¡°Aren¡¯t you?¡±
¡°Of course,¡± she replies as a box shaped toy like car moves further out of his reach, ¡°You still haven¡¯t taken the vials.¡±
Looking near him, he finds five vials labelled as stated. ¡°What are these?¡± lifting up the Car-7420
¡°Your body is in need of Vitamins, Calcium, Protein, Minerals and Carbohydrates.¡± Hearing more tearing of metal, he flinches, ¡°We gave you a Mix -7954 yesterday, but for you to tear yourself away¡± she grunts at something, ¡°you need those vials in you.¡±
Still just looking at the vials, ¡°I still don¡¯t understand how I¡¯ll get free¡± he responds.
¡°Take the vials!¡± she shrieks, as he hears the sound of something dropping.
Leaning against the wall, he injects himself with almost stable hands with each of the five vials, flinching each time he stabs a different point on his thigh.
¡°How does this help me?¡± he questions letting the last vial roll away from him
Watching the small box shape toy like care roll further away, he gets no reply.
Turning his attention back to the chain that ties him down, he pulls and strains with his slightly more responsive muscles against it. ¡°This,¡± he says after a time, ¡°is,¡± working up a sweat from the exertion, ¡°Not¡± getting tired but still trying, ¡°Working.¡± He groans collapsing to the ground.
¡°Keep it up,¡± Zag¡¯s voice sounding entertained feeds into his ear, ¡°remember how you felt when you first woke up.¡±
¡°How I felt?¡± breathing heavily, ¡°I was barely awake, barely aware at the time.¡±
¡°You remember,¡± Her voice states, sounding dark, ¡°all of us remember.¡±
Slumping against the wall, ¡°I do.¡± He replies closing his eyes and doing his best to emulate how he had felt.
Concentrating on himself, he forces himself to feel each heartbeat, to feel each lung shrink and expand. Seconds pass then minutes and an hour, ¡°This isn¡¯t working.¡± He sweets heavily, ¡°I can¡¯t do it.¡± He sighs opening his maroon coloured eyes.
¡°It is,¡± he gets calm response from Zag, ¡°You¡¯re halfway there.¡±
Feeling irritation at her comment, ¡°It¡¯s not!¡± he pulls his arm, snapping the chains and sending some of it flying at him.
¡°New limits,¡± Zags voice repeats, ¡°Pull out the pieces stuck in your arm and come find me when you¡¯re done. You¡¯re in my workshop.¡±
-----------
A/N
I had planned to write this flash back since chapter 9.
Thought''ll it''ll be less words, but whilst writing it i realized its longer than i had thought it''ll be.
Hence its now in parts, for the next 1 to maybe 2 or 3 chapters it''ll be a flashback.
@ItsMeParker. Space in the numbers was just a formatting issue i had on my p.c ~
@J0nn0. Thanks again for the drawings ~
Hope you guys liked the chapter. And As Always, Thanks for reading :P
Chapter 23 - Zulu 4 [Part 2]
Chapter 23 ¨C Zulu 4 [Part 2]
Walking through the orderly arranged workshop, the sound of metal on metal ensured that he was deaf to all else. The green dyed vision from his right eye combined with his left eye that saw the natural state of the large workshop floor was giving him a headache. Even with the headache though, he couldn¡¯t take his eyes away from watching the robotic arms heat, break, cut and move the things they were making.
Had the metal work not naturally require large orange flames to keep them mendable and produced constant sparks from the cooler cutting of them, the room would have been pitch black as no other light was turned on.
There being only one source of constant white light, that seemed like nothing but a dot when he first spotted it, he was naturally heading towards it. Like a moth to a flame, he wasn¡¯t questioning anything he saw. There is a plan. That was what he was thinking, what made him follow the instructions to find Zag. Zee wouldn¡¯t leave me with her without good reason.
Wiping the sweet from his forehead, I need a towel, he thinks to himself as his uniform was already soaking wet. Why do I even need to sweat? He questions as he knows that his body temperature was already twice the norm.
| Ideal Body Temperature. 18 ¨C 72 Degree Celsius |
¡°Zag¡± he calls out seeing the words appear, but as he had expected, receives no reply.
Ever since he saw his headgear state [Communication Disconnected] over 3 hours ago, he hasn¡¯t been able to get in contact with her. There is a plan he thinks again as he looks down and behind at the small box shape like car following him.
¡°How is this fun and exciting?¡± He questions it before looking back in front, knowing that he wasn¡¯t going to get a reply.
| Night Vision De-Activated |
Having reached a point where the source of light that was once nothing but a dot now seemed to occupy half of his vision. The sudden change of green to natural lighting makes him shut his right eye and try to rub it, but fail in doing so. The glass covering it prevents him from touching it.
In turn, shutting his eye tightly, and shaking his head from side to side, This is going to take some getting used to, he acknowledges before looking back up and ahead to see a sudden change.
The machinery at this point change to implement the use of conveyer belts, the sudden transition from ground to table was stark and did not flow well. However it was both irritating and beautiful to see, as the unison of movement from ground to table spread across both east and west of him for as far as his natural eye could see. Watching things move in sync was always something he found pleasing to see.
| **** 4 Communication Established |
¡°Hello there,¡± Zag speaks into his ear, cheerfully, loudly and clearly despite the fact that his noisy surroundings should¡¯ve technically made it impossible to hear, ¡°You¡¯re moving faster than I had expected you to.¡±
¡°It would have been easier if you gave me a map.¡± He replies, still heading towards the light.
¡°Have you even tried to retrieve one?¡±
¡°Am I not meant to get to you with what you¡¯ve given me¡like all the other times.¡±
¡°You are.¡± she says back, ¡°What we gave you is on your head.¡± With the sound of cranking coming through, ¡°Use your head.¡±
¡°Use my head.¡± He repeats then thinks questionably retrieve map.
A transparent image of where he has been and what he has seen appears over his right eye, transparent enough that he can see what¡¯s ahead of him, but not so transparent that it¡¯s difficult to see what is being displayed. Still though, annoying as only half his vision shows it.
¡°I¡¯m not authorized to be here?¡± he questions once seeing the word [Classified] appear.
¡°We are authorized to be everywhere.¡± She answers as the sound of gears turning starts up, ¡°authorized no matter what anything or anyone says.¡±
¡°You¡¯re telling me to break into files that are classified?¡± he shouts unintentionally, ¡°Just authorize me!¡±
¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡± she asks, sounding surprised, ¡°Have you not already gained access to restricted material without permission?¡±
¡°They weren¡¯t,¡± he replies, ¡°Those supposed restricted material are only frowned upon, it was not illegal by law to access them.¡±
¡°Ha,¡± She releases one loud laugh, ¡°Is that what you tell yourself? That because the things you accessed without permission is not stated in written words it is not restricted material? That even though it has been said multiple times in spoken words, but not written that it is not illegal?¡±
¡°The restricted material I accessed was history, philosophy, culture, arts, science and past government policies,¡± no longer loudly, ¡°none of which is technically restricted.¡±
¡°If everybody says that something is restricted, and majority of people believe that it is, but it is not written in words. Does that make what the people say is restricted restricted?¡± sounding amused, ¡°Who makes the laws? Is it the people or is it the ruler? Does that matter though? Should we not look at who enforces the laws? If someone says white is black, and everybody starts saying that white is black, then proceeds to enforce that judgement onto other people, soon making everybody who does not agree with it say that white is black, does that not make it true?¡±
¡°What I accessed is and should never be restricted!¡± he states back his belief, understanding what she was saying.
¡°What could happen if everybody knew history, philosophy, culture, arts, science and past government policies? Could people not start yarning for other things, could people not start wanting to use weapons that cause irreversible damage? Can a revolt not occur if too many people start having too different opinions? Is it not correct for us to remove the chances of this from happening?¡±
Staying silent he does not reply to the questions, instead choosing to stop and think.
¡°Is the life of the majority so bad even though they do not know? Does it even matter that no one knows of it? If people are happy with their way of life should it not just stay the way it is?¡± she continues her rant as the small box shape like car drives in circles around him, ¡°The people agree that what you have gained access to is something that shouldn¡¯t be made available to everyone, even though they do not know what it is, they have agreed to it.¡±
¡°That is only because they don¡¯t know anything about it!¡± he states back firmly, ¡°if they were to only look at it themselves they would want it, and not deny it like what has been happening.¡±
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
¡°But they don¡¯t want to look.¡± She answers, ¡°Is it wrong that they don¡¯t?¡±
Going quiet again he just ponders the question.
¡°The answer,¡± she continues to speak, ¡°is that it does not matter!¡± she starts laughing hysterically.
¡°What!?¡± he kicks the toy car, making it fly ¡°How does that not matter?!¡±
¡°The people¡¯s opinion does not matter.¡± Stifling her laughter, the toy car safely parachutes back to the ground ¡°People¡¯s opinion in general does not usually matter.¡±
¡°The people¡¯s opinions do matter!¡±
¡°People are often stupid.¡± She states flatly, as he hears the sound of gas being release feed into his ear ¡°Request the map, your I.G.S will retrieve it for you.¡±
¡°Authorize me.¡± He replies angered.
¡°You have told me that the people¡¯s opinion do matter, but then state that their want to not know the past is incorrect.¡± She sighs, as sirens begin to wail in her area, ¡°You have gained access to materials deemed illegal by the majority and yet state that it is not.¡± The bright white light blinks off.
¡°You are currently being nothing more than a hypocrite. You tell me that the people¡¯s opinion do matter, but perform actions telling me that you believe they do not. Retrieve the map.¡± She states
¡°No,¡± he says again, ¡°This place,¡± He unconsciously waves his hands to indicate the floor, ¡°Is obviously something the normal person has no way of accessing, this place is rightfully classified! If the normal person cannot access here, that I have no right to gain data to it.¡±
¡°We,¡± she says as if she was having a headache, ¡°are not the normal person. You are no longer the average person. We are different. Get the idea that we represent the normal person out of your head. We no longer do. We are separate from them. We are a part of the military but not in the military. We are authorized to be everywhere, no matter what anything or anyone says.¡±
Sighing for a long second, ¡°Now retrieve the map and come to me.¡± She states sounding satisfied that the argument was finally over.
Scratching his head in frustration, ¡°Argh¡± he shouts before sighing. He could not find any fault in her last rebuttal. He was no longer the average person. The average law no longer applies him. He knows that the unit has special privileges, he has seen Zee use these privileges an untold number of times.
Retrieve Map he thinks
| Access To Server Established |
The transparent image of the workshop¡¯s three dimensional blueprint appears expanded upon his right glass. It zooms in than out, above then under. Giving a quick, in depth overview of his location before setting in on a location with him in the centre and a 100m radius transparent outline of the room around him.
¡°I have the map¡± he tells Zag
¡°Good,¡± she replies, ¡°Now get into the state you were in before and run towards the direction you were before.¡±
Shutting his eyes and concentrating, he feels his heart beat, his lungs expand and shrink. He finds that he can feel it more precisely, and it comes to him quicker. Opening his eyes, it stays maroon in colour.
¡°Run you said?¡± he asks.
¡°Focus on your leg muscles as you do though¡± she instructs
Doing as he instructed, he feels his blood circulate quicker and muscles contract, taking a step forward he runs. Running faster than he thought possible. The wind pressure he feels throws him off balance, making him stumble and go head first into the conveyer belts.
Tumbling over them, he breaks the mechanical arms and rolls under multiple belts.
¡°Did you really just fall over?¡± Zag asks laughing at the incident.
¡°Ye..Yes¡± he stutters pulling out a screw in his right hand.
¡°Well, get up and try again.¡± She tries to stop her laughter, but fails
Grunting he gets to his feet, cuts and bruises line all across his shoulders, arms and back. Looking at where he fell he sees that not just one or two conveyer belts had been halted, but over a what seemed to be two dozen had been disrupted.
Shaking his head to right himself, he looks ahead and runs again. This time not falling from the air resistance, he can¡¯t quite tell how fast he is running, nor is his vision too well either, blurry fazed figures is all he sees.
¡°STOP!¡± he hears Zag shout into his right ear.
Responding to the yell he forces himself to halt but feels the ground shake, making him involuntarily jump. His sight un-blurs as he flies through the air, revealing him in a wider area. No lights are apparent and only the green coloured vision allows him to see.
Smashing shoulder first into a wall, he falls quickly down to the ground gasping and sees a four metre high robotic figure with six limbs. A ball with three limbs at the bottom supports it to stand up right, whilst the other three move freely above the mid-point. The letter Z could also be seen on each limb.
¡°Sorry,¡± Zag apologizes, not sounding sorry ¡°I was trying to catch you but missed!¡±
Sitting up against the wall, he clutches his shoulder in a pain. ¡°You could have told me how to stop before telling me to run.¡± He answers back.
¡°I could have,¡± the robot moves like a ball towards him, ¡°But where¡¯s the fun in that!¡±
Standing up to face it, ¡°You¡¯re in there aren¡¯t you?¡± he questions. ¡°The noise I was hearing was you getting it ready?¡±
¡°Yep!¡± She says happily, ¡°I¡¯ve been wanting to test this thing for a while now, but the others didn¡¯t want to help me¡±
¡°And I will?¡±
¡°You will.¡± She sneers, ¡°Else you¡¯ll just be in pain.¡±
A robotic arms flies horizontally from his right. He jumps and braces himself for impact, not even believing that he¡¯ll dodge.
¡°Nice!¡± she shouts, as he dodges and thus she makes another arm come from above. Smacking him back to the ground, ¡°don¡¯t worry,¡± she says, ¡°I¡¯ll stop before you die!¡±
¡°You¡¯re crazy!¡± he spits as he crawls on the ground.
¡°I¡¯m not,¡± she respond, using another arm to grab him by the neck, ¡°You¡¯re not even trying!¡±
Gasping for air, ¡°Stop!¡± he tries to yell but sounds like a puppy yelping.
¡°I¡¯m doing this for a purpose,¡± she responds casually
¡°No..¡± he struggles to in the grip, ¡°..aching¡± he states feeling his blood flow somehow quicken.
¡°There we go,¡± she says happily letting him fall to the ground, ¡°your eyes are now red¡±
--------
A/N
How do you guys find Zag so far? Took me a while to get those questions Zag asks down right.
Ended up re-writing this chap quite a few times because of that ~
Do you guys find the multiple rhetorical questions annoying? Firs time using that many in quick successions.
Thanks for reading by the way. And as always, Hope you enjoyed it ^.^
Chapter 24 - Zulu 4 [Part 3]
Chapter 24 ¨C Zulu 4 [Part 3]
Breathing rapidly and sweating steam, ¡°How am I meant to stop you?!¡± he yells sliding under the robot Zag operates.
¡°Oh!¡± she exclaims, halting her robotic suit and pressing a button that makes a siren ring, ¡°Sorry about that,¡± she apologizes, not sounding sorry as a large rectangular box dislodges from the ceiling and slams next to her.
Using two arms she rips it open and brings out a Katana, its blade length being 1.4 metres, twice the average length. It would have shined and glistened, if there was a proper light source. Had they been in the sun, the blade would have looked like a mirror, it would have reflected the image of anything without error. However had the blade been in the sun it would not have glowed an almost flame like orange in the dark.
¡°Don¡¯t you just adore this blade?¡± Zag says as she swings it around, creating an orange line and whistling sound as she does, ¡°It took me a long time to get the blade perfect,¡± throwing it at him blade first, it lodges itself in the ground next to him.
Grabbing the hilt of the blade, he finds that it is unadorned, surprisingly plain when compared to the blade and has no marks upon it except for an engraved Z at the bottom of the hilt.
Holding it with both hands, he finds that it balances well despite its long length. Letting it go the blade easily pierces itself into the ground, ¡°Why is it so hot?!¡± he shouts in anger looking at the burn marks on his hands, ¡°And why a Katana?!¡±
¡°A Katana,¡± Zag responds, ¡°Is the strongest blade ever forged, well to be more specific a Katana¡¯s design is the best blade designed ever created. Light, strong, sharp and flexible. You can¡¯t ask for a better blade.¡±
¡°But why a blade!¡± Blowing his hands, ¡°And why does it burn?!¡±
Another siren rings and another rectangular box dislodges itself from the ceiling to slam next to the previous location. Again using two arms Zag rips it open to bring out a rifle with no scope and an extremely long barrel.
Pulling out a bullet from the case, whose length was half the size of the average male forearm. ¡°This,¡± she says reloading it, ¡°is a completed operatable prototype rifle. You need to reload it after each shot and it takes about ten seconds to reload¡± throwing it to him with four extra rounds, ¡°You can use that or the katana. Only two things I have that are able to damage these arms¡± She waves the three limbs not keeping her stable.
Grabbing the handle and barrel he immediately drops it, ¡°Why do they burn!¡± he shouts again, waving his hand to try and cool it.
¡°Stop whining!¡± she shouts slamming a fist next to him and making him stumble.
Gritting his teeth he grabs the rifle by the handle and lets the barrel rest/burn his right shoulder. Taking an extra round and leaving the other three, as it was impossible to carry them all, he runs a good 100 metres away; leaving the katana with the remaining ammo.
The open area they are both in is a good 400m squared platform, with walls at two sides, a slope leading up and the conveyer belts at the other. Large boxes hang off the ceiling a good 50 metres high.
| Continuous Healing Commencing |
¡°We can start now yes?¡± Zag asks starting her chase before even finishing her sentence.
Turning around and running backwards, he can see clearly now despite the fact that he was moving extremely fast. After running and dodging for over an hour, he was use to moving at such high speeds, though his muscles ached each time he moved.
¡°You¡¯re still going to just run!?¡± Zag shouts with annoyance swinging two of its 4metre arms to crush him.
Kicking himself of an arm, he soars higher into the air and aims the rifle with the help of his leg at the centre of the robot, the place Zag operated it from, ¡°It¡¯s not fair that you¡¯re in there¡± he mumbles firing it and immediately flying into a wall as the rifle does a vertical 180 flip to dig itself into it.
¡°Woah,¡± Zag smiles as the robotic suit shakes but does not break, ¡°Good try there,¡± using one of the arms she pulls out the bullet hindering her view and throws it back, ¡°But It can¡¯t damage me.¡±
Holding the rifles handle and its reload bullet in the other, he instantly pulls himself up above and balances himself on top of it, barely dodging the return fire from Zag. Pressing a button and pulling a latch the casing for the previous bullet falls out clangs on the ground a good 20metres down.
¡°That¡¯s four seconds!¡± Zag shouts stabbing an arm into the wall to climb, ¡°Six seconds left!¡±
Pushing the other bullet into the rifle and pushing the latch that burns his hand back into place, he drops below it and uses his legs to kick against the wall to try and get the barrel out.
¡°8 seconds!¡± Zag says now within arm range, ¡°That¡¯s faster than my quickest time.¡±
Seeing an arm reaching up to grab him, ¡°Shit!¡± he curses giving up on the rifle and jumping away.
Landing he forces himself to roll forward, mitigating as much shock from the fall as possible, but still breaking an ankle. He grabs the burning katana with both hands and stands back on his feet, despite the pain, to see Zag launch herself at him.
Damn it he thinks rolling like a log to barely avoid it.
Red lines and dots begin to appear upon the glass on his right eye. The limbs are practically coloured in red, whilst there is only a single dot at its body, the dot appearing where the shot from the rifle had landed.
¡°I¡¯ve never used this before,¡± he shouts pushing himself back to avoid arm coming from above.
¡°It¡¯s a sword,¡± Zag replies, ¡°Just swing it and cut! You¡¯ve seen Zig do it.¡±
Bringing the blade up, cutting the ground as he does, he holds it in front of himself like Zig would have, ¡°Zig is a close range, martial arts, hands on specialist!¡± he yells swinging it like a person imitating a movie star.
Hearing laughter he holds the hilt tighter, no longer feeling the pain from the burn. Distracted at the laugh he fails to see an arm grab his broken ankle, lifting him into the air.
Feeling the pain from his ankle, and thus feeling the burn on his hands he drops the blade without meaning to. Accidently slicing the mechanical arm and being released.
¡°Well.¡± Zag speaks up, annoyed, ¡°That was lucky for you.¡± She pauses for a second, ¡°Why aren¡¯t you getting up?¡±
Lying face down, ¡°My ankles broken,¡± he winces rolling on his back
¡°Your point?¡±
¡°I¡Can¡¯t run?¡± he questionably answers
¡°BUT YOU CAN DODGE!¡± she laughs sending an arm at him.
Wide eyed at the reply he uses his three unbroken limbs and jumps out of the way. Grabbing the sword he mutters, ¡°Crazy Bitch¡± before throwing the katana like a spinning knife at her and jumping to remain behind as it flies forward.
The edge of the sword being so sharp, it slices the arms that try to grab and deflect it, making its way to hit the red dot on the body.
With a quarter of the katana in the body and his hands on the hilt, ¡°Stop.¡± Zag states as the edge of the blade is less than a metre away from her.
Holding the hilt, ¡°No.¡± he replies stoically pushing it in with all his force but finds that is doesn¡¯t budge.
¡°Stop.¡± Zag says again holding the sides of the blade with one hand. Sighing at being ignored she pushes the blade up whilst pressing a button on her consoles.
Bursting out of the robotics body, ¡°I did tell you to stop,¡± she sighs at seeing where he ended up, ¡°You¡¯re in shock.¡± She states grabbing both his shoulders, ¡°Don¡¯t worry about the arm,¡± she continues to say grabbing the katana and carefully sliding it out of reach, ¡°It¡¯ll grow back.¡±
| Priority Accelerated Healing Commencing |
| Muscle, Bone Re-enforcement |
Clutching his left should to try and stop as much blood as possible, his face is ghostly white, a symptom of shock, ¡°Cr¡Crazy¡Bi¡Bitch.¡± He mumbles not really realizing what he is saying.
¡°You¡¯ll be fine.¡± She replies casually, not sounding the least bit worried or sorry, ¡°With the correct amount of Calcium, Sodium, Protein and so on, it will regrow.¡± Holding his face as he shakes, ¡°I think it¡¯ll be easier if you''re unconscious though.¡± She states giving him another concussion.
Waking up and immediately jerking forward he hits his head against the glass lid before falling back down to lie down in the chamber he is in. Raising his left arm, he finds that it is actually real. Racked with confusion Was I dreaming? He questions himself
Stolen story; please report.
Then that bitch really is crazy he thinks before placing both his hands on the glass to see it register his finger prints and push it open. Checking his surroundings he finds a set of uniform hanging up next to the chamber.
Putting it on and ensuring that each crease is perfect, he stretches his arms and legs. Where am I?
Creasing his forehead, Do you answer everything I question?
¡°Zag,¡± he calls out looking around to see that the room he is in was completely different to the place he was in before.
The room is brightly lit but it is not neat, nor is it tidy. The ground is littered with gears, screws and what seems to be broken pieces of equipment. Walking through the workshop, multiple tables with no logical organised system surround him with unfinished gear on top of them.
¡°Zag¡± he calls out again upon finding her at one of these messy tables.
¡°Zag¡± he calls again approaching her but gaining no response.
¡°ZAG!¡± he shouts this time taking a step right behind her to feel the ground sink just a centimetre and get crushed by a punching bag.
¡°Oh,¡± Zag finally turns around to see him under the bag, ¡°Sorry¡± she apologizes, actually sounding sorry for once, ¡°I tend to get distracted when I¡¯m concentrating on something.¡± She kicks the punching bag of him and pulls up a chair.
Taking the seat, ¡°Thank you,¡± he says, ¡°For attaching my arm back.¡±
¡°I didn¡¯t¡± she replies shining a small torch down his left eye, ¡°When you first wore the I.G.S you felt like bugs were crawling, that were the nano-bots replacing your red and white blood cells as well as mapping out your whole body network for reference.¡±
Taking the torch back and pulling some wires from her head gear, ¡°This is going to feel weird,¡± taking wires from his headgear.
¡°What are you doing?¡± he asks a bit worried.
Holding the two sets of wires and seeming incredibly serious, ¡°These wires allows us to connect to anything directly, it also enables us to connect to each other mentally.¡±
¡°Wait, what?¡±
¡°I will only be able to see what you have seen and thought about since you¡¯ve had it,¡± still holding the wires but not connected, ¡°I need to connect to you to see if everything is working correctly, to see if there is no problems with the merging of machine and tissue.¡±
Grabbing his own set of wires back, ¡°No¡± he says back instantly without even thinking.
¡°It goes both ways,¡± she says still holding her set of wires out, ¡°If I connect to you I will be able to see what you¡¯ve done for the past four days, and you will be able to see what I¡¯ve done for the past few years.¡± Holding her hand out for his wires, ¡°this is something I will not force out of you, but if something is wrong and I do not find it now there will be problems.¡±
Seeing that he is still not willing, ¡°You don¡¯t trust me?¡± she questions.
¡°You¡¯re crazy¡± he replies without even thinking, ¡°What you just did beforehand had no purpose, I am not your play thing.¡±
Smiling, ¡°Had no purpose¡± she repeats, ¡°Do you find it difficult to move? Have you realized your old limits no longer matter, that you can survive tougher hits.¡±
¡°You could have made me realize it in a safer environment. You were trying to kill me.¡±
¡°I pursue to maximize my time,¡± she continues to smile, ¡°the way zig taught me took about a fort night, everything she taught me in that time I¡¯ve taught you in less than a day. You weren¡¯t going to die. We¡¯re both Zulu now, Family in a sense.¡±
¡°You made me play with your experiential robot!¡±
¡°I had to test it out, nobody wanted to help me, and you needed to be taught. I simply made the best of the situation.¡± She purses her lips, ¡°You weren¡¯t in any real danger, I stopped before it got deadly.¡±
¡°BEFORE IT GOT DEADLY!¡± he shouts standing up
Grabbing a hold of his arm and pulling him back into his seat with what seems to be apparent ease, ¡°I got too excited okay¡± she states, ¡°It¡¯s hard to stop when things get going. But we need to connect,¡± she says firmly, no joke or laughter in her voice, ¡°It is imperative that we do.¡±
Seeing her deadly serious, he stays silent and places his set of wires in her empty hands.
¡°This is going to feel weird,¡± she says again as the wires touch that whirl around and merge with each other.
| Direct Connection Established |
Involuntarily shivering at the experience, a huge amount of images start flooding his eye-piece.
¡°How do you feel?¡± she asks with both her eyes shut, seemingly concentrating.
¡°You destroyed the robot?¡± he asks making out the first of many images, grabbing his head with one hand.
¡°Yeah, there were too many faults in it, I may make a new one in the future¡if we live long enough¡±
¡°You haven¡¯t answered my question.¡± She says
¡°I feel¡weird¡± looking at her to see that she was wanting him to explain, ¡°hot, cold, pain and pleasure. My head feels like it going to explode.¡±
Smiling an embarrassing smile upon seeing his face heat up, ¡°Please don¡¯t talk about what you see to anyone else.¡± She asks.
¡°Ye¡Yeah, I won¡¯t¡± he replies nodding slowly, looking away from her.
Scrunching her brows, ¡°You haven¡¯t sorted out your real memories from your altered ones yet.¡±
¡°I have.¡±
¡°You¡¯ve skipped your childhood memories,¡± she states, ¡°8 whole years of them¡±
¡°8 years I do not need to sort out.¡± He states still not looking at her.
¡°Sort them out,¡± she demands, then smiles, ¡°You can¡¯t look at me right now can you.¡±
¡°You know why,¡± he replies looking away and at the two cubes on the table they are at, with both his hands on his cheeks, ¡°Do you really believe that you can put that larger cube into that smaller one?¡±
¡°You¡¯re more adept then I have been lead to believe,¡± giggling, ¡°Yes, I do believe that it I possible, you see why I think so.¡±
¡°I see,¡± he says confused, ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡±
¡°It works,¡± she says, ¡°It will work¡How do you find the A.I?¡±
¡°Its useful, did you make it?¡±
¡°Part of it,¡± she replies proudly, ¡°It¡¯s not a full A.I though, we¡¯ve deemed it too dangerous to create one, the one you have, we have is partial A.I. It works in conjunction with the brain, without the brain it cannot operate.¡±
¡°What we see on our glass,¡± she taps her glass on her left eye, ¡°Are all different, we all notice and want to see different things. Yours,¡± she continues to say, ¡°Seems to be the most simplistic and straight to the point.¡±
¡°And yours is a jumbled with blueprints and ideas.¡± He replies.
¡°I wasn¡¯t insulting you,¡± she says, ¡°Yours is efficient and straight to the point.¡±
¡°The I.G.S has a reference of my whole body?¡± he asks adjusting his position on his seat, but finds that Zag wasn¡¯t letting him move freely, as she still held him down.
¡°The nano-bots mapped out your whole body in order to use it as a point to revert back to. It will strive to keep your body in that state when you are not in the red eyed state. Anyway,¡± she grabs his face so that she can see him directly in the eyes, ¡°I¡¯m going to update your I.G.S now, your brain will feel like its exploding then assembling and such, it will hurt, but not at the same time.¡±
Nodding and looking up, away from her face.
¡°You still can¡¯t look at me can you?¡± she laughs as his cheeks heat up.
| 10011011100110101101011011101011101
01101010101010101010111100000011011
00011101111000010110001101010101010
01101010101010101010111100000011011
00011101111000010110001101010101010
10011011100110101101011011101011101
01101010101010101010111100000011011
00011101111000010110001101010101010
10011011100110101101011011101011101
01101010101010101010111100000011011
00011101111000010110001101010101010
10011011100110101101011011101011101 |
----------
A/N
I think i''ve covered all the information i needed to say in this flashback.
Funny how i originally thought this flashback was only going to be 1 chapter long, but now is 3 ~
Thanks for reading, and as always. Hope you enjoyed it ^.^
Chapter 25 - Matthew
Chapter 25 ¨C Matthew
Sitting down casually on the steps that lead down to the open court yard, Matthew leans on his empty shotgun. Today being the seventh day, the aircraft that are meant to carry them back to central base should be arriving in two hours¡¯ time.
The new soldiers at this base numbered at 300 and simply loitered at the bottom of the steps, waiting for new instructions.
¡°Mat!¡±
Looking behind and up, but still staying seated, ¡°Took you guys a while,¡± he answers putting the shotgun down on the step.
¡°Blame Sam for that,¡± Lucy tilts her head to the right, pointing at Samuel, ¡°he couldn¡¯t decide what sandwich he wanted.¡±
Just chewing his sandwich, Samuel doesn¡¯t object and hands one to Matthew as he and Lucy take a seat a step below.
¡°Fish?¡± Matthew says as he takes the first bite, ¡°I asked you to get me chicken.¡±
¡°They were out,¡± Lucy responds handing a can of soft drink.
¡°They were out of chicken?¡± Matthew says, not believing it, ¡°You¡¯re telling me that the base¡¯s cafeteria run out of chicken?¡±
Still holding his can in her hand, ¡°Yes,¡± she responds, not joking, nor cynically.
¡°¡Right,¡± Matthew takes the can with a raised eyebrow, ¡°Thanks for the meal then.¡±
Eating in silence, the three of them look down at the 300 new soldiers. Each of them thinking something different but ultimately similar. These 300 are horrible.
The standard of a single soldier was dropping each new year. Had it been but a decade earlier, these 300 new soldiers would have been seen as recruits that had just finished their first week of training. They weren¡¯t incompetent, but they weren¡¯t competent enough.
A large portion of them still fumbled their weapon as they reloaded, others reloaded when their clip was still half full and a very small portion knew almost nothing about field procedures.
In this pile of dirt, as Samuel had once referred to them as, only a handful seemed decent. There was perhaps no more than 30 that passed by their standards, and maybe only 8 that the three of them thought had potential to be the best.
Squashing the wrapping paper that had once held his sandwich into a ball, ¡°Are they on stand down?¡± Samuel asks.
Seeing a nod from Matthew, ¡°I¡¯m going to make them do drills.¡± He tells him, getting on his feet and heading down the steps without waiting for approval.
Finding no problems with what Samuel suggested, Matthew stays silent and turns to look at Lucy, ¡°You¡¯re not going to help?¡±
¡°Nope,¡± she responds, chewing slowly, ¡°Pick up is in two hours, there¡¯s nothing more we can do to help them.¡±
¡°¡¡±
Still chewing, ¡°Even if I were to go down and help him nothing would be achieved, most of them will die when they make the rotation to the north-eastern base.¡±
¡°¡¡±
¡°They¡¯ll complain and moan, they¡¯ll just be nothing but fodder.¡±
¡°What about the thirty that seem to have a future?¡±
Finishing her sandwich, she leaves her drink on the steps and jumps down the stairs without replying.
Smiling to himself, Matthew remains on the steps and watches her and Samuel try and conduct the 300 new soldiers in drill.
The best thirty appear in the first rank, to make it easier for Lucy to help them, as each rank progresses the apparent skill level drops continuously until the last, where you cringe just watching them.
This batch of 300 really are horrible. Picking up his shotgun, Matthew leans against it again and just watches without too much thought. Two hours till pick up, two hours until pick up.
With the sudden shake of the ground, the 300 stumble, leaving only 10 people standing on the courtyard. That being the 8 the three of them thought had hope, and Lucy and Matthew.
¡°What do you think of them?¡±
¡°ma¡¯am!¡± Matthew immediately stands and salutes behind him, ¡°They are good ma¡¯am!¡±
¡°Stand down Sergeant,¡± The woman sighs taking a seat next to where he was originally sitting, ¡°And don¡¯t belittle me.¡±
Taking his seat upon the steps back, he hands her his open can, smiling, ¡°You know what I think of them.¡±
Grasping the can with a robotic left hand, ¡°I still want to hear it.¡± She downs the rest in one shot.
¡°They¡¯re horrible.¡±
Crushing the can in her left hand, ¡°They are horrible,¡± she repeats.
Watching the 300 get back into formation, ¡°We¡¯re known for our military strength,¡± throwing the can down the steps, ¡°This is disgraceful.¡±
Shrugging, ¡°There¡¯s nothing to be done. These guys are new and we have yet to be in any real life and death situations.¡± Taking another bite of his sandwich, ¡°They¡¯ve fought some beasts, but there is no real danger here.¡±
¡°Remember when we were in camp?¡± she sighs leaning on the steps, ¡°We were soldiers.¡±
¡°We are soldiers.¡± Matthew corrects, ¡°Don¡¯t forget that most of those guys are in their second year of military service, they are young and majority of them don¡¯t want to be here.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t need you to tell me that,¡± irritated, ¡°The best guys are south of here, this is a joke of a base.¡±
Just looking at those on the courtyard, both go silent. Samuel is busy shouting out orders and correcting them all equally whilst Lucy concentrates only on the first rank. It is a slow and painful to just watch. Each rank performs at different speeds and at different standards, nothing about them state that they are a one unified Company.
¡°Lucy and Samuel seem to still be the same.¡± She says as another movement is called and the Company again fails to perform it to standard.
¡°Lucy yes, Samuel¡He tries not to care,¡± eyeing him, ¡°But he still can¡¯t not help those that aren¡¯t yet competent.¡±
¡°You should hurry up and get promoted,¡± now looking up whilst leaning on the steps, ¡°If you stay the rank you are, you¡¯ll soon find yourself dead.¡±
¡°And if I leave, our front lines will be weaker.¡± He answers back the same as always.
Sighing, ¡°You guys and Delia are the only ones still thinking like that.¡±
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
¡°I can¡¯t be an officer unless I get a prosthetic limb¡± Matthew laughs jokingly, ¡°And I don¡¯t want to lose an arm.¡±
Clenching her left hand, ¡°You don¡¯t need a prosthetic limb to be promoted, there are a few without them.¡±
Feeling the earth shake again, the same ten remain standing on the courtyard.
¡°You know how they are treated,¡± Matthew replies, ¡°I¡¯ll prefer to be on the front than get scorned at.¡±
¡°You¡¯ll prefer death than to be scorned at.¡±
Pumping his shotgun, he stays quiet to the retort.
¡°Sorry,¡± She apologizes, ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have said that,¡± getting to her feet, ¡°You know I worry.¡±
¡°So it¡¯s true then?¡± Matthew asks staying seated and still watching the courtyard ¡°The beast are more active now?¡±
¡°¡Yes,¡± she answers, ¡°And Ulendar refuses to send any troops, they say they have their own problems.¡±
¡°Didn¡¯t they recently attack us?¡± scrunching his brow, ¡°They broke the treaty.¡±
¡°No,¡± shaking her head, ¡°apparently it was a renegade faction, we got the bodies of those that attacked us.¡±
¡°A renegade faction¡Didn¡¯t we lose three seasons worth of seeds?¡±
¡°They said it was a renegade faction,¡± tilting her head to the 300 below, ¡°We can¡¯t really afford to dispute it.¡±
¡°We still have good soldiers.¡± Matthew speaks up, ¡°There are plenty of alpha units.¡±
¡°Not enough.¡±
The ground shakes again, again leaving only ten upon the courtyard standing.
With her still standing despite the shaking, ¡°aren¡¯t there more earthquakes than normal?¡± Matthew asks her, ¡°I don¡¯t remember there being so many in a span of an hour.¡±
¡°We¡¯re right on top of a fault line,¡± she dismisses it, ¡°It¡¯s to be expected.¡±
¡°I guess you¡¯re right,¡± frowning, ¡°You¡¯re here more often than I am.¡±
After a minute, with the ground still shaking, ¡°Isn¡¯t this something we should worry about?¡±
Shaking her head again, ¡°The longest earthquake we¡¯ve had lasted for a solid eight minutes,¡± adjusting her stance to not fall, ¡°If anything the earthquakes you¡¯ve been here for have been shorter than normal.¡±
Looking at the courtyard, only 6 remain standing. A few of them have puked and some have crawled to hug their packs.
¡°No other base has to put up with this constant shaking.¡± She mumbles it intensifies.
¡°How,¡± stabilizing himself on the steps, ¡°hasn¡¯t this base collapsed yet?¡±
¡°A Zulu¡¯s design.¡± She answers back, ¡°We haven¡¯t modified it since it¡¯s been built.¡±
¡°Ha,¡± Matthew scoffs, ¡°Did you know a Zulu appeared on base.¡±
¡°Isn¡¯t that just a rumour?¡± she replies with a disdainful look at seeing the three hundred below.
¡°No,¡± chuckling, ¡°I challenged him to a battle and we lost horribly.¡±
¡°Heh,¡± she laughs, ¡°So you¡¯re still the same then, shoot first talk later.¡±
Keeping balance with his shotgun, ¡°Its more interesting that way.¡±
¡°I¡¯m just surprised that the central base is still standing, didn¡¯t the last one try to destroy it?¡±
¡°He doesn¡¯t seem to have any intention to do so.¡± Thinking, ¡°He doesn¡¯t seem to have any intentions at all.¡±
Feeling the grounds shaking intensify, she drops to her knees and the six still standing down below do so as well.
¡°Should we be worried yet?¡± Matthew asks as she has a confused look on her face, ¡°Its been a while since this started.¡±
¡°The base won¡¯t fall,¡± she states confidently, ¡°We¡¯ll be fine.¡±
Not questioning her judgement, Matthew places the shotgun on his laps to attach a strap.
Grabbing a transmitter, ¡°How long has it been since this quake started?¡± she speaks into it.
Getting only static as a response, ¡°How long has it been since this quake started?¡± she repeats the question, not sounding worried.
¡°It¡¯s a new record ma¡¯am!¡± a husky voice comes back, ¡°thirteen minutes and counting!¡± a moment of static, ¡°Would you like to join the bet?¡±
¡°Put me down for 16 for 50¡± she shouts into the transmitter before putting it away.
Helping her sit next to him, ¡°You guys bet on this?¡±
¡°You want in?¡± she offers the transmitter, ¡°It¡¯s one of the many things that keeps us entertained.¡±
Grabbing it, ¡°Sergeant Matthew, Alpha Two!¡± he shouts into it, ¡°Put me down for 20 at 100¡±
Not receiving a reply, he holds the button down but doesn¡¯t speak into it. Letting go of the button. ¡°Is that meant to happen?¡± he points to a small crack appearing on the steps.
Seeing the crack appear with him, she takes back the transmitter with force. ¡°HQ, what¡¯s on the radar?¡± she shouts into it.
Seeing the crack get bigger and feeling the grounds shaking intensify. ¡°We have a problem,¡± Matthew smirks, ¡°Don¡¯t we?¡±
¡°Don¡¯t be a smart ass right now,¡± she shouts at him, before yelling into the transmitter, ¡°What¡¯s on the radar?!¡±
As if the last yell was a trigger, the courtyard collapses upon itself and three gigantic worm like creatures fly up high into the air, revealing three enormous tunnels. Half of those on the courtyard are gone, whilst Samuel and Lucy try to control the remainder that scream in panic.
Sirens start to wail, bringing the base to alert level 1. Had this been any other base machine gun fire would have been firing into the courtyard, but this base hasn¡¯t been in danger for a long period of time and no guns were positioned in the centre of the base.
¡°Courtyard!¡± she yells calmly into her transmitter, ¡°Courtyard, men to the courtyard!¡± she continues to yell backing up the steps whilst pulling Matthew.
With his shotgun in one hand, ¡°At least you won the bet¡± he jokes.
¡°Come on,¡± pulling him, ¡°We need to get back.¡±
Shaking her grip off him, ¡°I may lose a limb this time!¡± he laughs jumping down the now destroyed stairs.
¡°Your shotgun¡¯s empty!¡± he hears her scream, making him laugh even harder.
------
A/N
Don''t count on my updates always being this quick -.-
Thanks for reading, As Always. hope you enjoyed it ^.^
Chapter 26 - Update
Chapter 26 ¨C Update
Ignoring the words that appear on his right eye piece, ¡°State update.¡± he demands whilst clutching his head.
| Updates include an A.I upgrade,
Arm guard with storage and controlling capabilities,
Improved data processing power,
Improved Healing, re-enforcement abilities,
¡¡¡.
¡¡.
¡
. |
Reading through the list of upgrades and then looking down at the arm guard that¡¯s merged completely. Explain.
| A.I upgrade includes an upgraded A.I |
You have to be kidding me. He sighs running his hand across the smooth metallic guard.
| Didn¡¯t you expect this to happen? |
¡°Ha¡± he releases a rough laugh, half annoyed. I did.
| You don¡¯t have to be mad ~
She only bent the agreement, she didn¡¯t break it |
Explain.
| I can only operate when attached to your brain.
Upon your death I too will die.
I am unable to do some things without your permission |
So you are a fully capable A.I, you just don¡¯t have the self-sustaining part?
If you are going to be this active, is there a way for you to minimize the words.
An excited but soft and clear feminine voice feeds into his right ear, making him jerk his head to the left.
Not so loud, shaking his head, Why do you sound so much like Zag?
No doubt her personality rubbed off on you too.
Hearing hysterical laughter feed into his ear, he smiles with a sigh whilst clutching his head in exhaustion. Even in death you¡¯re annoying.
| ¡°With your permission, may I occupy a small percentage of your arm guard?¡± |
Go ahead. He extends his left arm.
The arm guard begins to thin, looking as if it is disintegrating, metallic sand falls to the ground. When the arm guard reaches four fifths of its original thickness, it stops and the sand floats up onto the table, to swirl around directly in front of him like a mini tornado.
As the metallic sand settles, a lady like figure standing three inches high sits crossed legged and looking up appears before him.
¡°Hello Five¡± it speaks whilst tilting its head, ¡°I¡¯ve been wanting to try this for a long time¡±
¡°You look just like Zag,¡± grabbing it, it breaks apart like sand and reforms upon the table.
¡°I was created by her,¡± it giggles, ¡°And don¡¯t speak out loud, you¡¯re the only one that can hear me.¡±
Frowning at the implications of that, What do I call you?
¡°Four called me Ten,¡± pointing to the 3 arm guards still on the ground, ¡°She said I was the fifth to be created.¡±
Ten then, he grabs another of the arm guards on the ground, Can you continue to explain the updates.
¡°With pleasure,¡± it stands and curtsies, ¡°I¡¯ll only explain the biggest of the changes,¡± Pointing to itself, ¡°I am here¡±
Is there some way I can turn you off? Squinting his eyes.
¡°NOPE!¡± it balls over laughing, ¡°Anyway,¡± becoming serious again, ¡°Other than having an extra pair of eyes around you at all times, I am able to hack into everything¡well that¡¯s what I was told.¡± It pokes its tongue out.
Giving a blank stare at it, he doesn¡¯t respond.
¡°You¡¯re no fun.¡± It pouts then extends its left arm to let it disintegrate and float like sand in the air, ¡°The other major update, or upgrade you need to be made aware of is the ability to control 40% of the metal in that arm guard at will.¡±
Letting its arm reform, ¡°The metal¡¯s weight can be changed, giving it the ability to become lighter than air,¡± it floats in the air, ¡°as heavy as plutonium,¡± it drops like a rock; shaking the table as it lands, ¡°dense as iridium,¡± it becomes slightly skinnier, ¡°or as hard as diamond,¡± it slams it head into the keyboard, ¡°If used correctly, it can be used as the greatest shield or the greatest sword.¡±
Concentrating on the arm guard, the figure of ten completely disintegrates and attaches itself back to it, letting it resume its original thickness.
Zulu jerks his head to the left again, losing concentration and thus letting ten resumes its figure on the table.
¡°That wasn¡¯t nice!¡± it shouts with a puffed out chest.
¡°Sorry,¡± he apologizes, shaking his head.
¡°Anyway,¡± it continues on, ¡°Four figured out how to do this by studying and imitating the Mermanus¡¯s limited ability to control their surroundings,¡± floating backwards it sits on the keyboard, ¡°Four got so proficient with it that she was able to run on air with it, though it took her years to get that proficient.¡±
Concentrating again on the arm guard, Zulu makes it 20% thinner, making the metal move as sand to hover above Ten¡¯s figure. Holding his eyes on it, it drops like a net pushing Ten¡¯s figure down and making it immobile.
With Ten¡¯s figure disintegrating, it passes through as if the sand holding it down as if it was nothing and reforms itself, ¡°You get the gist of how to control it, The total amount of metal you can control is the size your two fists¡± it shakes itself as if throwing dirt off, ¡°The next major update or upgrade that you must be made aware of is the storage capabilities of the arm guard.¡±
| [Currently Stored Equipment]
[1 x Katana]
[2 x Hunting Knives]
[12 x Throwing Knives]
[10 x Za clip]
[10 x Zp cip]
[10 x Zs clip]
[5 x Vials Vit-3127]
[5 x Vials Cal-8124]
[5 x Vials Pro-2732]
[5 x Vials Min-9945]
[5 x Vials Car-7654]
[5 x Vials Mix-8218] |
¡°Please ask for the throwing knives¡± Ten request
Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
Throwing knives
¡°As you can see, it takes five minutes for them to be ready. So whilst we wait allow me to explain the rules,¡± curtsying, ¡°For the arm guard to store things it must first encode the item you want it to store. This encoding can take anywhere between half an hour to twenty four hours. It is unable to store anything with flesh, the arm guard is unable to encode it.¡±
Miniaturize timer
| Timer Miniaturization Confirmed |
¡°Once an item is encoded it will be absorbed in less than a second and does not have to be recoded if you take it out and want to put it back in.¡± moving into a thinking posture, ¡°Items that are similar to previously encoded items will take less time to encode, The storage limit of the arm guard is currently thought to be infinite.¡±
Pausing for a second whilst shaking its head from side to side, ¡°Four thinks it to be infinite, she hasn¡¯t found anything to say otherwise, she also stated that after a certain amount of stored items, it becomes heavy¡as in really, really, really, heavy.¡±
So I shouldn¡¯t rely on it too much?
¡°It has its uses,¡± Ten replies, ¡°You just need to plan ahead as it can only do one thing at a time.¡±
Miniaturize alert
| Alert Miniaturization Confirmed |
¡°Draw out the knife by pretending the arm guard is the sheath.¡± Ten states.
Doing as instructed, Zulu brings his right hand over the arm guard, and pretends to grab a knife. Sand like material begin to flow out of the arm guard and form in said hand. First its hilt then it¡¯s perfectly crafted blade.
¡°That is how you take something out,¡± Ten smiles, ¡°As it is now encoded to release throwing knives, you can proceed to take out the other eleven immediately, It only takes time to take things out when you are changing an encoded item.¡±
Inspecting the knife, it is only 10cm long. The hilt isn¡¯t really a hilt as it is still sharp, and can very easily cut the skin if not held properly. With the light shining upon it, it glistens, shines and reflects his own image without error. No markings except for a small engraved Z are upon it at the very tip of the blade.
Placing it down on the table, ¡°It¡¯s hot.¡± He says out loud.
¡°You know why¡± ten replies floating towards the knife than changing density to pick it up, ¡°Throw it please.¡±
Holding it with three fingers, he flicks his wrist to throw it a solid 20m, making it plunge itself into the ground next to one of the five conveyer belts; leaving a faint orange trail in its wake.
As sharp and well balanced as always. Getting off his chair.
¡°Wait!¡± ten shouts stopping him, ¡°Recall it.¡±
Raising an eyebrow. Come, he thinks with his hand open, but arm not outstretched.
Upon the command, the blade disintegrates itself into orange like sand and floats back to him, forming itself in the open hand. Glowing bright orange despite being in bright light. Throwing the blade immediately to the ground and blowing his now burnt fingers, ¡°This is pretty neat,¡± he states taking his seat back.
¡°It is pretty neat!¡± Ten laughs, ¡°The 14 knives and Katana are made of the same material. Once lost, you can recall it. It is similar to the arm guard material, but it is not.¡±
Floating down to the knife on the ground, it picks it up again, ¡°Now put it away.¡± It states.
Grabbing the knife, ignoring the burning sensation. Zulu brings it over to the arm guard. Store. The knife disintegrates and flows back into it.
¡°You don¡¯t need to bring it directly over to the arm guard,¡± it says floating back to the table, ¡°As long as you¡¯re within 5m of the object it can store it.¡±
Concentrating on his arm guard again, Zulu begins manipulating the remaining sand like material. Practicing and playing with it like a child that¡¯s found a new toy.
¡°The other updates are the same as always, just a bigger load than usual,¡± it claps its hands.
¡°Thank you Ten.¡± Zulu thanks it.
¡°Also, the eastern base seems to be on Alert level 1.¡± It brings up.
Letting the metallic sand he was playing with fall back to its natural state, ¡°Show me on the screens,¡± he says as the arm guard thickens.
The fifteen screens upon the wall blink of then turn back on. Revealing a base under attack. Three worm like creatures continues to rise above then dig itself into the ground, destabilizing the ground. In centre of the base humanoid like insect creatures crawl out by the hundreds.
¡°There are reinforcement getting ready at Hanger 85. Would you like me to delay them for you to make it?¡± it asks.
Typing on the keyboard, Zulu changes view to a different camera, finding Matthew with Lucy and Samuel. None of them seem to be in good shape, but they are still fighting rather well.
¡°No,¡± shaking his head, ¡°Let¡¯s see how well they do first.¡±
¡°Many of them will die.¡±
¡°I am under no obligations to help.¡± He states changing view to a camera lying on the ground. Capturing a close up image of a humanoid beast.
It has 6 limbs, three being legs to support it to stand, and the other three limbs as arms. Its natural state seems to be when all six limbs are on the ground, but in its upright position it seemed to be more intimidating, standing over 8 feet tall.
¡°Your possible temporary operation unit members may die.¡±
¡°Maybe, maybe not,¡± Zulu shrugs, ¡°I want to see how they handle it with reinforcement.¡±
¡°You''re a good person,¡± it replies, understanding that he does want to help.
¡°I am a nice person,¡± scratching his cheek, ¡°No one is a good person.¡±
¡°I¡¯ve proceeded to take down all images and reference to our unit.¡± Ten says spinning around to look at the screen, even though it didn¡¯t need to. ¡°And I¡¯m a girl, not an It¡± she states with what seems to be agitation, answering his doubts about it/Her.
-----
A/N
Would you guys prefer all her dialogue to be in the blue box? or have it as I''ve laid it out. where if she has taken physical form its not in the box. I personally like this format (Less coding and flows better, i think)
If you suddenly decide to drop this story at this point (After 50 000 words). I would love to know why ~
To Those of you that don''t, Thank you *bows* Hope you enjoyed the chapter ^.^
Almost forgot. Some High school science.
Density is some like thickness. Compare foam to like Stone. Foam can be squished, it has very low density, where as a stone can''t, it has higher density. (Tortex for the mini science lesson :P refer to comment #9 he does a decent job at explaining!)
Weight weight. like i weigh 80kg. Yeah, thats it.
Gas bubbles erupt from water because Gas is lighter than water, hence it tries to go above it. Thus being lighter than air would mean you either A float or B ascend upwards.
This was meant to be in A/N but i forgot to put it there ~
Chapter 27 - Delia AND MAP!
Chapter 27 ¨C Delia
¡°5 minutes till jump point,¡± a pilot shouts out through the p.a system upon the plane, above its own static.
Holding her helmet in her left hand and an ear piece in her right, Delia puts the ear piece in her right ear then proceeds to wear the helmet. The glass of the helmet is first seen to be like any other glass, but after a few seconds it flickers and loads.
A radar like circle presents itself in the bottom right corner and a three dimensional blueprint layout appears in the top left. The eleven others in her newly updated Alpha Unit 01 appear as green dots with their names next to it in the bottom left and the top right corner is occupied by a black circle, one that would change to an arrow when they jump.
Getting to her feet whilst holding one of the many, many bars that run across the ceiling of the plane, she moves between the eleven sitting down, five on her left and six on her right.
¡°Why do we get the parachutes instead of the nets?¡± one of those in her squad asks as she presses a button that opens the back of the plane.
Turning around and tapping the side of her helmet, she waits as the rest of those in her squad puts theirs on.
¡°Those nets are in high demand and small,¡± grabbing the bars with both hands, she holds on tightly as the plane does a sudden vertical dive.
¡°Contact made!¡± the pilot yells into the p.a system, sending the plane into a spin, ¡°You guys better get out now!¡±
¡°We¡¯re not at the drop point yet!¡± Delia voices calmly despite the fact that she was holding on for dear life.
¡°Go!¡± the pilot yells again pulling the plane up into a sharp ascent.
¡°Damn it,¡± Delia grits her teeth, knowing that it is pointless to argue, she lets her grip upon the bars go and falls out the back of the plane.
Seeing the plane from the outside, three figures blurred in black surround the head of it, with one clawing at the wing, ¡°Bats,¡± she mutters acknowledging why the pilot was so resolute in his yell.
Seeing her unit jumping out from the back, she spins around to see what¡¯s below her. Being 5 000 feet high in the air, her view is rather spectacular, well it would have been if it were not currently being ravaged by the monsters. Countless numbers of transport planes were also being hit, majority by the blurry blacked creatures and some from acidic projectiles being fired from the ground.
¡°Slugs,¡± Delia mutters calmly understanding the situation immediately.
¡°I still don¡¯t understand why we didn¡¯t get the nets!¡± the soldier that had originally asked shouts, sounding excited.
Ignoring him, ¡°Clearing to the east!¡± she replies tapping the device on her arm, making the circle upon the top right of her helmet change into an arrow.
Not waiting for a response she tilts right to go into an abrupt horizontal spin and nods back to a pilot through the windscreen of a plane, narrowly avoiding it, as it along with many others rise up. Witnessing none of the soldiers jumping out of smoking planes panic, she smiles as she balances off, stopping the spin and goes into straight a dive.
The original plan was to fly above the eastern base and jump directly into it. To jump and land directly in the middle of conflict. That way those in the base would get some immediate relief, a second wave of air units would arrive in an hours¡¯ time than a third and if more was needed, Beta units would arrive via land in 12 hours¡¯ time.
But given the fact that a battle is forever changing, in the four hours that took to get here, air units that have never been this far in friendly territory and ground units that were thought to only ever be used defensively had shown up.
With only 200 feet till ground Delia pulls her chute, she feels her shoulders receive an immense jolt upwards as the ropes stiffen and slows down dramatically; to land on all fours with a loud thud in tall wheat. Looking left as she takes her parachute off she spots a woman in a different unit fire her net and crash land safely into a jelly like substance.
¡°Status¡± she speaks unbuckling the assault rifle on her thigh and staying low as she runs for the woman.
Hearing no reply, she looks at the bottom left of her screen. Out of the starting eleven dots, five were black, four were red and only two remained its original green.
Shoving her hand into the jelly like substance, Delia helps hrt out. ¡°Dev Serg,¡± she gets pushed to the ground forcefully onto her back and sees her fire her pistol on top of her at an approaching six limbed enemy.
Rolling off her and getting into a crouched position she drops the pistol, unbuckles hrt assault rifle and creates a mini wall of dirt, all in one fluid motion. ¡°Merm Sergeant Ex,¡± she speaks breathing heavily, ¡°Alpha Unit Zero Six.¡±
Nodding she rolls and pushes up against the improvised dirt wall, ¡°Dev Sergeant Delia,¡± she looks at her radar to find enemies spread out systematically all around them but not in visual sight, ¡°Alpha Unit Zero One.¡±
Picking up her pistol and reloading it, ¡°My unit didn¡¯t make it,¡± she says with a tinge of regret, ¡°patch me into your unit¡¯s network.¡±
Getting a startle as a body lands with a thud and a crack, just a few metres away from her, chute riddled with holes, ¡°Status¡± she calls out again as she patches Ex in.
¡°On the way.¡± Two report.
¡°Immobile, under fire.¡± Four report.
Checking the top left of her helmet, the blueprint of the base that was previously shown had now changed to a map of the land, showing the topography of their location.
Coming to a quick understanding of the situation, ¡°I¡¯ve marked your location on the companies map,¡± she sets another rally point east of her location, and at one of the many Slugs
¡°Good luck,¡± four people grunt, understanding what she means before cutting themselves out of the units network.
Tapping Ex¡¯s shoulder, ¡°let¡¯s move,¡± She tells her as she breaks cover and runs to the tree lines.
Though the enemies were systematically spread all around them, they were not on the move. Instead they were staying still at what seemed to be evenly spaced out intervals of 500 metres.
Hitting the tree line she slows down and lets Ex pass her, making her take the lead. Tapping on her arm device as she hooks her rifle over her shoulder, she opens a channel to all unit heads within 2km of her, ¡°We need to take out the slugs.¡±
¡°Agreed¡± she receives a unanimous reply from 20 different people all at once.
Only 20, she thinks and sees fifteen units mark fifteen different locations on the top left three dimensional map.
¡°We¡¯re gathering the injured,¡± the remaining five state before cutting out and setting up their own network.
Tapping upon her arm again she switches back to her unit¡¯s network.
¡°Coming at your rear,¡± she hears over the comm and continues to run forward, not looking back, ¡°If we had those nets¡¡±
¡°Shut up jay.¡± Delia tells him off, ¡°Keep the waves clear if you aren¡¯t using it properly.¡±
¡°Yes sarge,¡± she gets a response followed by silence.
Passing through the trees, they run in silence and quickly approach another clearing, one much smaller than the drop point, but occupied by the enemy. Ex being in the forefront jumps down low and creates another wall of dirt, higher, stronger and less conspicuous than the last one made out of instinct.
¡°Location.¡± Delia whispers into her headset.
¡°Holding position, opposite your location.¡± She gets a reply.
¡°One slug, Eight Bats, Twelve Tri-Legs.¡± Delia states without even looking over the wall.
¡°Two Six-arms!¡± jay shouts in a hush tone.
Concentrating, ¡°Four Six-arms,¡± Delia corrects, concerned.
¡°What are Six-arms doing here?!¡± Ex states in hushed alarm.
Checking the situation of the other units, she taps her arm-device and connects with the closest unit not yet in combat, ¡°Unit One Eight, this is Dev Sergeant Delia Zero One¡±
¡°Zero One, Aet Sergeant Rexus One Eight,¡± a pained reply comes back, ¡°Situation?¡±
¡°Member count four, request help at location.¡± She pings her currently location on his map, ¡°One slug, Eight Bats, Twelve Tri-legs and Four Six-arms¡±
¡°FOUR SIX-ARMS!¡± Rexus replies back shocked, forgetting to follow procedure.
¡°Four six-arms,¡± Delia replies back calmly, ¡°Confirmation on back up?¡±
¡°Member count nine, ETA 10 minutes.¡± He replies than cuts out.
Tapping her arm device, ¡°They¡¯ll be here in ten minutes,¡± setting another rally point ¡°Grey circle left, we¡¯ll meet you there.¡±
¡°Yes Sarge.¡±
¡°Move.¡± Delia states nudging Jay to the right.
Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.
¡°Slugs have never slid with in a hundred miles of the border!¡± he speaks as he leads them to circle around, ¡°And the Six-arms,¡± sliding under a log, ¡°they¡¯ve¡±
¡°It¡¯s an invasion force,¡± Delia cuts him off, ¡°If they get the base, we will lose two thirds of the country in a matter of months.¡±
¡°It makes no sense though,¡± Ex speaks up, ¡°The border bases report no increase in hostile engagements and the dead zones can¡¯t occupy this many troops without us noticing.¡±
With the ground shaking from a natural earthquake, the three stumble but do not fall. Noticing the green dot that represented Grey turn black, ¡°Stop,¡± Delia states whilst diving to the ground immediately followed by Ex creating cover and Jay jumping into it.
¡°This is stupid,¡± Jay comments, ¡°We need to get out and come back with a more organised force.¡±
¡°That¡¯s not going to happen,¡± Ex replies agitatedly working on getting their cover less obvious to the naked eye, ¡°The next wave would have seen our planes fall, they¡¯ll come back by air and drop a few miles out of here to avoid this.¡±
¡°Well out of range for us to hook up with them.¡± Delia mentions seeing friendly units approach on her radar.
¡°Zero One, This is One Eight,¡± Rexus speaks over the Comm, ¡°Patch us into ur unit¡¯s network¡±
Doing as instructed, ¡°Five sergeants in one unit,¡± Ex comments seeing the dots change names and colours, ¡°Don¡¯t see that too often.¡±
¡°Five Merms, four Devs and three Aets,¡± Delia states the number of different species, ¡°One slug, Eight Bats, Twelve Tri-legs and Four Six-arms,¡± stating the number of enemies, ¡°25 kills with 12 people.¡±
¡°We need to separate them.¡± Ex says, ¡°Draw out the Six-arms.¡±
¡°They won¡¯t move unless we take out all twelve Tri-Legs,¡± Rexus speaks, ¡°and the bats, think that¡¯s what transported the slugs here. They won¡¯t move away from it without reason.¡±
¡°Equipment count.¡± Delia asks quickly forming a plan.
¡°5 assault, 3 shotgun and 1 sniper we left a hundred metres back.¡± Rexus replies, ¡°we have 10 grenades spread between us.¡±
¡°You guys had the nets didn¡¯t you?¡± Jay asks.
¡°We don¡¯t need to draw out the Six-arms,¡± Delia say whilst giving Jay a knock on the head, ¡°Our objective is to take down the slug and move to another,¡± marking a pathway on the three dimensional map, ¡°Given enough luck we¡¯ll meet up with other units as we approach the base walls,¡± playing a video feed from one of the base¡¯s cameras, ¡°If we get that far we¡¯ll have cover from the those on the wall.¡±
¡°I don¡¯t think the base will be able to help us.¡± A different sergeant says, ¡°They¡¯re too busy with their own troubles.¡±
¡°Have any other ideas?¡± Delia asks not expecting them to.
¡°You¡¯re asking as to start suiciding into these slugs,¡± the fifth sergeant voices out, ¡°Am I right?¡±
¡°¡Yes¡± Delia answers
¡°¡We know what¡¯s at stake here,¡± the same Sarge replies, ¡°This base was built at a stupid location.¡±
¡°You might want to call your sniper here, he is too far out for as to start.¡±
¡°That won¡¯t work,¡± Rexus answers, as they start to separate and create a four point rectangle.
¡°I broke an ankle as I landed,¡± the sniper says over the comm, ¡°I have a clear shot at your current location¡Won¡¯t be much use to you guys after.¡±
¡°Once you fire, the bats will come to you,¡± Delia says, ensuring she understands.
¡°I know,¡± an annoyed laugh comes back, ¡°But what else can be done?¡±
¡°We¡¯re in position,¡± Rexus states, ¡°Ready when you are.¡±
¡°Merms, create a fog around the clearing.¡± Delia commands, ¡°Snipes when you believe there to be enough cover, open fire.¡±
¡°Yes Sarge and¡Good luck,¡± she mutes herself.
Peering over the dirt wall and getting ready to fire, fog slowly start to settle in their surroundings, ¡°Remember,¡± she says, ¡°Once we start firing we need to constantly move backwards, pulling them away and diverting their attention.¡±
¡°Good luck,¡± two reply muting themselves.
Now waiting, the comms go silent. The fog slowly becomes thicker and thicker, and it also becomes colder and colder. The ground shakes, but this time not from a natural earthquake, the slug has fired another shot.
¡°Did the central base not see what happened to the last drop?¡± Ex whispers over the comm, still trying to make the fog thicker, ¡°don¡¯t they know that it¡¯s suicide to bring planes this close?!¡±
¡°It helps us,¡± Rexus says back, ¡°The bats have flown off.¡±
With the ground shaking again from the acid projectiles being released by the slug, a sniper round goes of hitting the projectile as it flew only 50 feet into the air. Making acid rain fall down all around the clearing.
Opening fire, ¡°That was an impressive shot¡± Delia comments under her breath falling back as screams and heavy feet can be heard running towards them.
Shooting and running, they keep it up and continue to pull majority of the forces away from the slug. ¡°I think we¡¯ve gathered all of the tri-legs to us!¡± jay shouts with a heavy breathe, ¡°Think they chickened out?¡±
¡°Shut up jay,¡± Delia commands again, as the ground shakes from another projectile being released by the slug.
Emptying a third clip of her rifle, ¡°Stop firing,¡± she commands, ¡°We¡¯ve drawn them far enough,¡± turning around she along with the others sprint away.
A large explosion sounds as they do, causing those that chased them to turn back and two lights blink black. Tapping her arm as she runs, ¡°Situation!¡± she calls out into the open network.
Hearing silence on it, ¡°Situation!¡± she calls out again, extremely concerned about her own circumstances. Being over 3km away from the walls to the eastern base, she knows that things were now looking grim.
¡°Eastern Base,¡± a reply comes through from the open comms, ¡°your unit is the last active unit on site.¡±
Static sounds out and heavy engine noises come from above. ¡°Bombardment of your location has been authorized by Central Base, Danger close.¡±
Slowly down to a stop, Delia looks up into the smoking black sky. ¡°Confirmation on incoming Bombardment?¡±
¡°Confirmed.¡±
¡°They¡¯ve written us of as dead,¡± Ex states, taking off her helmet and puking out blood.
¡°They want to turn this place into another dead zone,¡± Rexus says through the comm at a good hundred metres away, ¡°better that then giving the base over to the beasts.¡±
¡°Dig,¡± Delia states calmly
¡°What?¡± the three other sergeants responds simultaneity
¡°Dig,¡± Delia says again looking at Ex, ¡°We may survive that way.¡±
Understanding what she means, Ex begins moulding her surroundings as the other Mermanus do so as well. First throwing up slanting walls as temporary barriers then digging diagonally downwards.
The sound of whistling fall and planes overhead can be seen smoking and dropping their cargo. Pushing Jay into the improvised hole that was still being dug, Delia stays the most exposed.
¡°Use this.¡± Jay says passing a fist sized ball of metal.
¡°You had a shield on you the whole time?¡± Delia asks
Shrugging, ¡°There was no need for it,¡± he says as Delia activates it, ¡°It won¡¯t save us from the bombardment though.¡±
¡°No,¡± Nodding in agreement, ¡°It won¡¯t¡±
Map i use when i write, extremely rough but as we''ve past the 50k word mark i thought you guys may as well get to see what the country looks like.
Note - this is only one country of 12 that have a major influence of the world...so yeah Long story ahead
Note - it is subject to change depending on how the story unfolds
Note - Just cause it has that many landmarks doesn''t mean the M.C will visit everywhere
A/N
Didn''t know there was a Line thing, ill be using that from now on.
@AMP - Four is brain dead, but her body is fine. But she is brain dead, meaning that the brain is gone, Does that mean she is dead? Technically she is still clinically alive i guess, as the chamber she is in keeps her body alive. But she is brain dead.
Uni is starting up again for me, updates will slow down now because of that. Just because it coincidentally times with the time i got a donation button does not mean i am holding this story "hostage" -.- I''ll try to do at least one chapter a week, though no guarantees
That being said, any donations i get will go to food, books for uni and uni fee (HAHAHA LIVING IS EXPENSIVE!)
And as always, Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed it ^.^
Chapter 28 - The Eastern Base [Part 1]
Chapter 28 ¨C The Eastern Base [Part 1]
Sitting patiently at the desk with 10 of his 15 screens black, Zulu was accessing the battle plan headquarters had made for the re-enforcement deployment. It was simple and it was easy, something that he approved of, but there was one thing that troubled him.
Only the bare minimum number of fighter planes, and air to land aircraft were being deployed alongside the transports. There were no back up plans, no contingency, everything seemed to hinge of this one thing working.
True though it were, nothing really could go wrong with the plan. It was solid. Send in over 800 air units for immediate relief. Then another 400 if more is required and 2000 via land as the first air units move out. The base under attack had multiple inner walls, so having its centre cut off was trouble, but trouble that can be dealt with. The base¡¯s troop count was that of over 6 thousand, not small by any means.
¡®Hey hey,¡¯ Ten cheerfully turns on the two outer left screen and changes the two screens next to it, ¡®Look at this!¡¯
Diverting his attention away from the troop deployment, plan layouts and drop locations, Zulu turns to see the four screen Ten indicates. Of the three gigantic worms, two were moving without any trouble, constantly jumping and diving as if they were in water.
The third, it had stopped diving.
Give me a better angle
Two screens on the outer right turn on alongside with the two screens next to them flicker, for the first couple of seconds hundreds of lines of codes dyed in green scroll pass and then blink to reveal four different moving video feeds. Each video feed displaying, squad members, radar, map and targeted location.
The first screen he sees is that of someone on climbing a ladder, hurrying to get to a specific location.
The second was someone on ground level, under fire and seemingly asking for backup. The tail end of the worm can be seen on the person¡¯s view, struggling to move, looking like a fish flaying out of water.
The Third person was on a rooftop, running and jumping alongside three people with no helmets, not firing and ignoring those the person saw in need of help. The heart rate was steady, not panicked. It seemed as if the person knew what needed to be done.
The fourth was in a tower, looking as if the person was lying down and firing with a sniper. The frontal position of the worm could be seen, surrounded by people and under a constant barrage of bullets that seemed to do something, but have little effect.
Scratching his chin, he watches them move, run, dodge and fire as he decides on what to do. Typing on the keyboard he alters all the other screens except for the one directly in front of him to rotate between different video feeds to get a constant real time footage of both friendly and monster movements.
What is that thing?
¡®The worm?¡¯ ten questions in a thinking posture before smiling, ¡®It¡¯s a worm!¡¯
Slamming his fist on the table in annoyance, ¡°Stop messing around!¡± he states and sees ten¡¯s figure fall to the table on her side, curled up in a ball, as if she was in pain.
Seeing this happen, his annoyance quickly goes away to become that of surprise, finding that once his annoyance was gone, she stopped struggling.
Getting to her small feet, ¡®Four said she got rid of that feature,¡¯ she sniffs as silver metallic tears drop from her face and land at her boots to be reabsorbed by her body
Diverting his attention back to the screens, evidently she was lying,
Wiping her tears from her face, ¡®You wanted to hurt me!¡¯ she cries changing the top screen to be that of information on the worm
Ignoring her comment he looks at the changed screen.
[table=#899ca4]| Clitellata Lumbricus |
| Also known as | Worm |
| Biopsy | Uncompleted |
| Features | Earthworm like appearance
Seen to be over 50metres in length |
| Facts | Seen to be a creature used for tunnelling purposes |
[/table]
Frowning at the complete lack of information, Show me information on the other creature
[table=#899ca4]| Vespoidea Formicidae |
| Also Known as | Tri - legs |
| Biopsy | Completed |
| Features | Six shelled limbs
Three limbs upon the torso
Three limbs upon the waist
Small oval shaped head
Brown in colour |
| Outfit | Helmets and chest/back guards
Rifle with needle like projectiles
Retractable blade attached to arm not operating rifle |
| Facts | Most numerous foot soldiers
Combat skill differ from individual to individual, however on average they are all exceptionally skilled with both blade and rifle
Commonly seen staying on all limbs, but when in combat it may stand on three and fire from a higher vantage point
Seen to prefer to get in close and thus is always pushing forward in conflict
Possess no heart, how blood successfully circulates is unknown |
| Weakness | Standard shot to the brain kills it, but often require multiple successful hits due to helmet
Requires multiple shots to the chest |
[/table]
Nodding at the information, Is there any others that I should be aware off?
Not getting an answer the screen simply changes.
[table=#899ca4]| Laurasiatheria Chrioptera |
| Also Known as | Bats |
| Biopsy | Completed |
| Features | leather, rubbery skin
Four limbs
Wings that resemble a bat
Wolf like head and face
Strong, sharp claws
Black in colour
Able to release a cloud of black smoke. |
| Outfit | Helmets, wing and torso guards |
| Facts | Most common air unit
They tend to attach themselves onto aircraft and tear apart components with their claws, typically rendering the aircraft useless
Avoid battle at night without proper equipment, the black smoke that surrounds them almost makes them invisible at night |
| Weakness | Standard shot to the brain kills it, but often require multiple successful hits due to helmet
Requires multiple shots to the chest |
[/table]
Sighing at seeing what it¡¯s capable of, he turns his attention back to the four constant video feeds.
From the angles given, the two worm that were once constantly diving had disappeared, but the third still laid trapped.
Do we have video of how the worm was captured?
If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
Receiving no reply, one video streams start playing replacing four screens on his left. Sitting down and staring around a corner, the individual was waiting alongside two others for something.
Is there audio?
Again receiving no reply, the audio blares on, loudly at first, giving him a startle before settling down to a more comfortable range.
¡°Will this actually work?¡± The one whose video feed was being played asks.
¡°Don¡¯t doubt the plan private,¡± Lucy comes on screen with no helmet and drops an additional five small shotgun like rifles on the ground, ¡°By design these things are made to catch a falling object.¡±
¡°Designed to catch people Corporal!¡±
¡°Don¡¯t doubt the plan,¡± Lucy repeats sliding one of the shotguns to another helmeted individual, ¡°You¡¯ve only used these in training.¡±
Staying quiet the individual moves forward and picks up two mini shotguns.
The video feed cuts off then changes to another location. This time in an open area with gravel ground. Again the individual waits alongside two other individuals, but with two shotguns like rifles in hand.
¡°Remember guys,¡± Samuel voice comes from off screen, ¡°Any of you miss and this won¡¯t work.¡±
The video feed begins to shake and the individual drops his gun.
¡°Pick that up now!¡± Samuel shouts loudly and fiercely before running onto and off screen, carrying two of the same things that the individual dropped.
Falling down and grabbing the dropped rifle, the individual grumbles inaudible words, as if complaining before struggling to get back up and chase after Sam.
The video feed changes again, but this time to be with a group of what seemed to be a dozen people.
The feed is shaking heavily and the individual with majority of those around are on the ground.
¡°Get up! Get up!¡± Matthew voice shouts over the shaking, ¡°Move!¡± he shouts and a small image of him can be seen grabbing people, ¡°Move now or die!¡± he screams one last time before leaving them and bolting away.
The ground underneath the individual collapses in on itself. The audio feeds cuts off at this point, to avoid hearing the screams of those that are falling. Through the video feed, the individual is repeatedly firing his rifle away below, firing at the row upon row of teeth that is jumping up and swallowing them.
With the sudden cut due to the individual¡¯s death, the feed changes back to the first one. Though the group of people present is now much larger than the two that were originally there. Lucy can be seen in the front guiding them towards the worm that is high in the air.
A bright flare that is just barely visible appears high in the air and the direction that the group were running changes to that location.
¡°Quickly now,¡± Lucy shouts with heavy breathing, ¡°Its hit its peak height!¡±
The feed changes again.
The individual is upon a roof top, in a line with people too numerous to count.
¡°There!¡± Samuel shouts before firing his shotgun alongside everyone else, releasing small ball like projectiles that expand once it hits the ground to create a jelly like blob.
The individual drops his shotgun and picks up another, firing it at the same location, once done a group of people lead by Lucy can be seen appearing from around a corner. Immediately stopping and firing at the exact same location. Making the blob of jelly expand.
¡°What now?¡± the individual ask Samuel
¡°We wait,¡± He replies starting to climb down, ¡°And get the hell away from here before that lands!¡±
Reverting back to an aerial view, The worm is seen jumping high into the air, then falling and landing in the substance perfectly co-ordinately placed by those on the ground.
Looking back to the four live feeds playing on his right, ¡°That was really damn impressive,¡± Zulu comments watching them struggle to keep their position on it.
Checking the screen directly in front of him, ¡°But they are still losing ground.¡± He mumbles before asking, Can I speak to them?
Again receiving no reply, ¡°Ten?¡± he calls out and looks down to see her sitting whilst turned away from him.
¡°Ten,¡± he repeats whilst tapping the side of her arm, finding that she burst apart and metallic sand attaches itself back to his arm.
Sighing, ¡°I¡¯m sorry Ten,¡± he pauses, ¡°But you were out of line.¡±
Grinding his teeth, ¡°I am sorry about hurting you¡I did not know it was possible.¡±
Not getting a reply, ¡°Can we talk about this later?¡± he pleads agitatedly, ¡°People are dying.¡±
Creating an image of herself again, ¡®You were never that mean to four!¡¯ she speaks out.
¡°Zag knew when to be serious and when to not be!¡±
Fidgeting whilst standing, she doesn¡¯t reply but instead looks downwards.
¡°Though she has always been a bit extreme,¡± he exhales, ¡°Anyway, can I communicate with them?¡±
Nodding, ¡®You can¡¯ she answers.
¡°Good, can you tell me who they are?¡±
¡®Why does it matter?¡¯ ten asks as green symbols start passing by on the screens.
Looking at the screens, and waiting, ¡°They may die, the least I can do is know their names.¡±
¡®Four never did that¡¯
Smiling a sad smile, ¡°Zag did other things.¡±
A video feed starts playing, showing a person watching eleven people put on their helmets in some plane.
¡°What is this?¡± Zulu asks, as it was not what he requested.
¡®Something you might want to see¡¯
Annoyed, but staying patient, as he doesn¡¯t want to lose his A.I he watches the feed as the audio turns on.
¡°Go!¡± a voice that seems to come from a P.A system sounds out, crisply and angrily.
¡°Damn it,¡± the individual the feed was playing through comments letting go of their grip upon two bars to fall back and out off a plane.
Blurry black figures of creatures soon become visible upon the plane, ¡°Bats,¡± the individual mutters and turns around to see what¡¯s below.
Countless numbers of planes, surrounded by black figures were spiralling both upwards and downwards, acidic green projectiles were seen hitting and missing.
¡°What is this?¡± Zulu questions.
¡®It¡¯s Delia¡¯s Video feed.¡¯ Ten responds
Immediately getting off his seat and heading to the door, ¡®Plane at hanger 85, I got a plane out of storage for you¡¯
A/N
Now that i look at it, this chapter should''ve been before the previous one. The pacing would have been a lot better. For that mistake, i am sorry. *Bows* But hey, amateur writer here xD
@ admira, i''ve taken up your suggestion. ''...'' will be Ten speaking when in physical form as it is only Zulu that can hear her. Thank you.
Colour for the things that appear on screen changed because the site is about to undergo a new code format. I may find a way to get it looking like before, but that will be when i got more free time ~
Was the changing video feed overly confusing?
That being stated, Hope you all enjoyed it. Thank you for reading and i''ll see you all next time ^.^
Chapter 29 - The Eastern Base [Part 2]
Chapter 29 ¨C The Eastern Base [Part 2]
¡°Sir,¡± an assistant voice comes through the projected hologram
¡°What is it.¡± the man responds, not looking up from the reports he was reading.
¡°There are people at ground floor waiting for you,¡± Answering calmly ¡°they¡¯re from the entertainment district.¡±
Still casually reading the reports ¡°What is it about?¡±
¡°They said something about the deletion of certain sets of data,¡± pausing a second, she then adds, ¡°They seem to be furious. Sir.¡±
¡°Send them away,¡± The man tells the assistant, ¡°Schedule a meeting to be held in a fortnight.¡±
¡°A fortnight sir?¡± the assistant questions, ¡°I don¡¯t think they¡¯ll be very happy about it.¡±
¡°A fortnight,¡± the man repeats sternly as he throws the reports he was reading down onto the table and cuts their communication.
Leaning back, he gives one big sigh before typing upon the table and waving a certain image away, establishing communication to The President.
¡°What is it Bryant.¡± He receives an instantaneous question.
¡°The Zulu,¡± Bryant sighs, ¡°He¡¯s alive.¡±
-----------------
Zulu
-----------------
¡®So,¡¯ Ten asks as she sits upon the dash of the aircraft currently being flown by her, ¡®What do you think?¡¯
Loading a rifle, unloading it and then reloading it again, ¡°Of them?¡± he indicates the screen currently playing a live feed, ¡°Or the aircraft?¡±
¡®Both¡¯ Ten tilts her head
¡°The aircraft,¡± he says still unloading and reloading the standard assault rifle, ¡°It¡¯s an aircraft,¡± He answers not knowing what to say about it, ¡°But them,¡± he indicates those he sees on the feed, ¡°They are more competent than I thought they would be.¡±
¡®This aircraft was handmade by four!¡¯ ten responds as if she was insulted.
¡°What¡¯s so special about it?¡± Not looking back to her, and still loading and unloading the rifle, ¡°I see nothing but a cockpit and a 3metre square of empty space, capable of projecting and playing holograms.¡±
¡®I,¡¯ she squeals loudly then pauses, ¡®don¡¯t know¡but four made it and hid it! It has to be special!¡¯
¡°Catch!¡± Zag shouts throwing a pistol and short sword at him.
Catching the pistol, but missing the sword, ¡°What are they?¡± he asks as he picks up the sword and inspects them both thoroughly.
Handing a set to Zed, Zee and Zig, ¡°A pistol and a sword.¡± Zag shrugs.
¡°Really?¡± he questions, not knowing if she really meant it.
¡°Can¡¯t you see?¡± Zag states lifting her sword, ¡°A sword,¡± then lifting her pistol, ¡°And a pistol,¡± making a face as if wondering if he was alright, ¡°what else can they be?¡±
¡°But.¡±
¡°Not everything Zag makes is like the katana, or that rifle,¡± Zed cuts in, swinging his sword, ¡°It¡¯s just better if we know where our weapons come from.¡±
¡°Can you find anything special?¡± Zulu asks, still loading and unloading the rifle.
Seeming to search frantically, but staying still on the spot, ¡®No,¡¯ Ten answers, ¡®but why would she hide it if it wasn¡¯t special!¡¯
¡°You¡¯re really asking why she did that.¡± Finally satisfied at his ability to load and unload the rifle, ¡°You¡¯re really wondering why she does things?¡± Zulu straps it to his right thigh muscle and places three magazines into three slots on his shirt, and four upon his pants.
Mumbling inaudible words, Ten quickly changes subject and states ¡¯12 minutes till drop point.¡¯
| Equipment update
Knife
A. Rifle V1
A. Rifle V1 Ammunition ¨C 192 shots
Pistol
Pistol Ammunition ¨C 12 shots
Grenades ¨C 4 |
Katana
Spinning the pilot seat around, Zulu faces the controls and the Video feed appears partially upon the windscreen.
Give me manual control
¡®Aye captain,¡¯ Ten imitates a salute and floats to hover just behind his left shoulder, ¡®Why is it that you¡¯ve stopped having long mental conversations with me?¡± she asks and points out, ¡°You know you¡¯re just wasting your breath.¡±
Taking controls of two sticks, one on his left and the other on his right, ¡°Muscle memory¡± Zulu comments pulling the aircraft up, and making it ascend, ¡°And I¡¯m more used to it.¡±
Pressing a few buttons upon the sticks, ¡°And I am sorry about before,¡± he states again as the aircraft picks up speed.
¡®Its fine,¡¯ Ten responds agitatedly and sits on his shoulder, ¡®You didn¡¯t know¡¯
Going silent, Zulu keeps the aircraft ascending and continuous to increase its speed, having already broken the sound barrier, the G force he feels is intense, but nothing he couldn¡¯t handle.
¡®3km out!¡¯ Ten shouts, making Zulu press a few more buttons and rapidly bring the aircraft¡¯s speed down.
¡°What are those?¡± he asks as he finds there to be planes just ahead of him.
¡®Planes,¡¯ Ten answers plainly
¡°I know that! I meant what are they doing here?¡± tilting his sticks left a bit, his aircraft tilts left, ¡°Didn¡¯t the airdrops get cancelled?¡±
Waiting a few seconds, ¡°Ten?¡±
¡®Give me a second!¡¯ she exclaims then proceeds to say, ¡®It¡¯s a bombing run.¡¯
¡°Why didn¡¯t you notify me?!¡± Zulu asks immediately in annoyance as he pulls up alongside one of the planes and looks over at the pilot, ¡°Call it off.¡±
¡®I¡¯m sorry!¡± Ten states, ¡°done, but!¡¯ sounding afraid, ¡®They¡¯ve already started¡¯
Looking away from the pilot and up ahead of his own aircraft, he rapidly increases his speed whilst dropping altitude at an extremely steep incline, ¡°Show me Delia¡¯s location!¡±
A green overlay appears upon the windscreen, then flicks off and Delia¡¯s location appears with red markings alight. Upon the Video feed, still being displayed, he sees a person with no helmet moving dirt away and them in a hole.
Pulling the aircraft into a level flight, he stops his decent and continues to increase his speed.
¡®You¡¯re below 300 feet!¡¯ Ten voices out, concerned, ¡®Less than 100m from ground level!¡¯
Jerking his controls right, he sends his aircraft into a sudden barrel roll, then left and right again. Narrowly avoiding green projectiles rising high into the air.
¡®What are you doing?¡¯ Ten shouts trying to take back control of the aircraft, but finds that she is unable to without permission.
¡°You¡¯ve,¡± he states pulling back hard on the two sticks and pressing two of the four pedals at his feet, ¡°Never seen me,¡± making his aircraft come to a complete halt, with its nose pointing upwards, ¡°In combat before,¡± he pushes a different pedal and flicks a few switches, ¡°have you?¡± he asks sending the aircraft vertically upwards, like a rocket, at Delia¡¯s location.
¡®I¡¯ve seen four!¡¯ ten exclaims over the horrendous roar of the engines.
Smiling at the reply and pressing buttons that were just left of the left stick, ¡°She was always the most reserved,¡± he lets out a small laugh as the windscreen begins its targeting system.
¡®Reserved?!¡¯
Flicking a few more switches on his right, ¡°I¡¯m glad that Zag kept this plane¡¯s layout the same.¡± He states calmly letting lose eight missiles and opening fire.
With each missile hitting its target less than 50metres away from his aircraft, eight of the bombs that were being dropped explode with it in air, sending unavoidable shrapnel directly to him.
Passing through the explosion and pieces of metal, Zulu keeps his fingers on the triggers upon his two sticks. Ensuring that he hits the other bombs still dropping with its bullets. Causing more explosions and more shrapnel to hit the aircraft he flew.
With red lights blaring all around him, ¡®Wings compromised!¡¯ Ten shouts as the aircraft takes a sudden turn to a direction he did not want to go.
Flicking switches, pressing buttons, pulling sticks and pushing the pedals, Zulu finds that his back engine worked perfectly, but he had no control of where he flew. He was like a metallic tube, flying diagonally upwards.
Looking up through his windscreen, he curses silently as he watches the last two bombs slowly slip by him to the location he was trying to protect.
[table=#899ca4]| Eject |
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[table=#899ca4]| Eject |
[/table]
[table=#899ca4]| Eject |
[/table]
Doing as the windscreen instructed, he releases his grip upon the two sticks and pulls a cord just between his legs. Causing the windscreen to blow out and him to fly out with the seat.
¡°Why?¡± he asks Zed as he practices sword movements learnt from Zig, ¡°Don¡¯t we ever use the army made equipment?¡±
¡°Military equipment,¡± Zed answers disassembling the pistol, ¡°Isn¡¯t always reliable,¡± tilting his head at Zag, who was absent mindlessly humming a tune, ¡°Zag there is always reliable.¡± Then remembering what happened when they left him alone with her, ¡°Reliable when it comes to our equipment.¡± Zed frowns
| You blew up Four¡¯s handmade plane!¡¯ |
Ignoring Tens apparent sadness of the aircraft¡¯s loss, Zulu searches his seat for the parachute.
| ¡®How could you do that!¡¯ |
| ¡®Four spent months making it!¡¯ |
Where¡¯s the chute?! Zulu questions not being able to find the cable for it. Where¡¯s the chute?!
After a few more seconds of searching and not finding it, There isn¡¯t a chute is there Ten?
Waiting a moment,
He hears her say it, as if he deserved it.
Pressing both his hands against his forehead in frustration, Zulu quickly calms down and sighs. Unclipping the buckles that strapped him to the seat, he kicks himself away from it and falls without a chute.
Staring down at the ground below him and with the help of his head gear, Zulu sees the devastation that the bombs had caused upon the land. Craters that measured 20 metres in diameter could be seen littered randomly all over the place. Slugs still fired, but there were a lot less than previous, planes above him were still present, but their numbers had dwindled quite a bit and were still performing evasive manoeuvres.
¡°Bats¡± he mutters as he sees cloud of smoke rising up at him. Changing his centre of gravity, he allows himself to unbuckle and equipment the Assault rifle strapped to his thigh muscle.
Opening fire at the cloud of black smoke rising towards him, ¡°Identify targets!¡± he shouts above the rushing air pushing against him.
Through his eye piece, it switches view, from that of standard operating nothingness of day time, to night vision then to infrared. Staying upon infrared, it picks up the bodies of the Bats and outlines them in the smog of black smoke.
With each of them outlined, he sees that the creatures were ignoring him, seemingly not caring about one man falling without a chute. Staying come as he takes aim and in turn makes each of his shots hit, six of the eight bats fall back down, through their own smoke before he is forced to reload.
Going through the motion of unloading the rifle, Zulu spots one of the last two fly back and perform a shriek with no sound.
Finishing loading his rifle, he opens fire at that one first, stopping its shriek and making plummet down alongside the other.
Spinning around to get a view of what¡¯s above him, he finds there to be debris falling a mere 10 metres away from him, and sees other bats flying to his location. Spinning back around, he clasps both his arms to his side and dives diagonally away from the fiery debris. Number
Running through the possible courses of actions he could take in his mind, he quickly decides upon one and spreads his arms open, creating more friction between himself and the air rushing up at him, allowing him to slow down and steady his aim.
He opens fire upon those closest to him, using the recoil of his rifle to stay in a controlled spin. Giving him the ability to fire all around him.
Unloading his forth clip, a bat claws at him, forcing him to deflect it with the rifle and lose it in the process. Ultimately cursing at the loss of it he closes his left eye, as now being surrounded by more than a dozen of them the black smoke made it impossible to see via normal means.
Force into a close combat situation whilst free falling, he sees first hand at just how large these creatures are, he who stood at a height of 6 foot 2 was easily toweredby one of these hunched, wolf faced beasts.
Thinking on his feet, he grabs another one of the beast¡¯s claws as it strikes at him, finding it to not only feel leathery, but dusty at the same time, making it difficult to hold on and quickly forcing him to pull onto it in order to be dragged close to its main body.
The creature seems to shriek, but again makes no sound, as it uses its other limbs to cut and strike him off, but finds that with each time it struck, Zulu simply grabbed onto that limb and went with it, thereby avoiding and reducing the creatures ability to keep stay stable with its wings.
The other beasts, upon seeing this occur move in to help, constantly circling the falling pair and moving to strike at his exposed back. Only to have it backfire and have him come to them.
With the cloud of black smoke surrounding them, what was happening in the fight was chaotic in a sense. He had to keep on his toes, grabbing the limb just above the claws at every strike, and constantly move.
The beasts back suddenly stop trying to attack him and back off. Leaving him only with one that he holds.
Knowing full well that the creature¡¯s ability to fly with him upon it was hindered, Zulu makes his way from clawing limb to clawing limb up to its neck and holds it from behind. As if riding the creature, he holds on tight and when his head gear indicated only 50metres to ground, he brings out his knife to stab it in its throat, thereby making it go limp and stopping its struggle to be on top.
Crash landing in one of the many craters that had trees surrounding its edge in such a fashion, he feels the jolt of the ground through the soft flesh of the creature, hearing bone snap and seeing blue coloured blood splatter all around.
With black smoke still surrounding and thus hiding him, Zulu rolls of the bat, coughing up blood as he does so and lays on his back staring up at the 13 remaining still flying 100 metres in the air.
In a circle, they surround and look at him as he looks up. They flap their wings only to stay in flight, but they stay 100 metres high and look down upon him, upon him who lies there breathing heavily.
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If it were not for his infrared ability, it would have looked like 13 balls of black smoke encircling him. If it were not for their bodies being outlined, these creatures would have been annoying as hell to deal with.
¡®Get up!¡¯ Ten sounds out in the seemingly quiet situation he is in, ¡®get up!¡¯ Ten says again frantically floating around him, ¡®There are more incoming.¡¯
Getting to his knee, he grits his teeth as he gets onto his legs, only to stumble and force all his weight upon his right leg.
His left leg was completely shattered, and was nothing more than dead weight until more of the bone in it was fixed.
Looking back up again, at the 13 bats still encircling and flying above him, he waits and does not move.
¡®What are you doing?¡¯ ten questions his unmoving self.
¡°They¡¯re talking to each other.¡± He replies, ¡°They¡¯re talking to each other and we cannot hear them.¡±
¡®Talking about how to kill you!¡¯ Ten shouts what she deems to be the obvious.
Nodding at her answer, ¡°I want to see.¡±
¡®You want to see how they kill you?!¡¯
Smiling at the statement, and how stupid it sounded, ¡°Yes.¡± He pulls the knife out of the creatures back and move to sits upon the sharp slope of dirt created from the bombing, ¡°I also want time for my leg to heal.¡±
¡®Aren¡¯t you here to save the base!¡¯
¡°It will be easier when I am able to run.¡±
Finding no way to retort his last rebuttal, Ten goes quiet and watches the 13 flying beasts as they wait.
Only half a minute later does he hear the sound of tree branches snapping, and feel the wind shift, as if announcing their arrival.
¡¯12 Tri-legs¡¯ Ten counts as they appear from one direction at the top of the crater.
Getting to his feet, ¡°I¡¯ll only have one leg,¡± he smirks taking out his pistol and getting ready to move.
¡®You might want to turn red?¡¯ Ten says hoping that he does.
Staring at one of the 12 Tri-legs as it stares back at him, ¡°There is no need,¡± he replies with a smile, leaping 10 metres towards it just as the wind dies.
Grabbing hold of it via the neck, he slices its throat with the knife and uses it as a pivot point in mid-air, changing his trajectory to leap at another whilst firing his pistol lip empty at those lined up. Stabbing the one he flies at in the slits of its helmet, the lands with his knee upon its collapsed chest.
Only now with two dead do the rest of the tri-legs react. With him so close and in the middle of them, they don¡¯t open fire and chose instead to go for the hands on approach, of bring out their black retractable blades.
Leaping again at another, Zulu reloads his pistol and opens fire upon the six he had previously shot at, hitting the same location as previous, only this time killing them. With knife and empty pistol, and in a proximity to close to do anything, he prevents the rest from ever swinging a full swing. Stopping some swords with his pistol as a shield and stabbing/slicing at them all.
In less than a minute he finds himself with 12 bodies around him. In less than a minute the so called threat was disposed off, and he finds himself sitting again in the same slope of dirt, waiting for his leg to heal.
¡®They¡¯re that weak?¡¯ Ten asks as the 13 bats again talk in silence.
¡°No,¡± he answers, ¡°they were just not ready.¡±
This time however, he waits for a couple of minutes, a couple of minutes he surely needed.
¡®Four Six-arms¡¯ Ten states as they appear from the same direction of the previous 12. ¡®you are going to turn red this time yes?¡¯
Getting to his feet, Zulu finds that he is able to put some weight upon his left leg, but also finds that it¡¯ll snap and break again if he tries to put his full weight upon it. looking at the four that appear looking at the 12 dead bodies, He sees that upon each limb, their back and torso, these creatures had some hard shell like features, but its joints were empty and flesh.
Looking at the faces of the four Six-armed creatures, they look right back at him. The head of these creatures, were not covered in any of the seemingly hard materials its limb or other parts of body were, instead it seemed to have an abstract, but almost human like head. Dark in colour, or maybe it was the helm that it wore that made it seem dark, he could not tell.
The eyes however, there were not that of a beasts, they were not crazy, nor were they monstrous. They looked human, they held intelligence and he could see them thinking.
Are you playing a joke on me Ten?
¡®No!¡¯ Ten states seemingly equally surprised
Then an error. He dismisses his headgears reaction to the creatures. These things were not like him, they were not human.
Dropping both his knife and pistol, he places his hand against his arm guard, down low, to slowly draw out his orange katana. First making the hilt form in his hand then pulling it out in an arc like shape, allowing the blade to slowly materialize from hilt to tip.
¡®What are you doing?¡¯
Be quiet
With it in his hand, he breathes in and breathes out and breathes in again, changing his eye colour to that of the colour red. They four that watch him discard their own projectile weapons and bring out their retractable blades. Each of them carrying six, all similar to one another, all sharp, black in colour and seemingly releasing a cool blow of chilling air.
¡®You turned red¡¯
Stop talking
Stepping away from each other, the four move slowly and deliberately around the Zulu, and he lets them do so, keeping an eye on them and allowing them to stand equally spaced apart in a square like position, with him in the centre.
¡®You let them surround you!¡¯
Shut up, Zulu states to Ten with an extremely violent tone.
¡°Are you ready?¡± Zed ask as they surround him in a square like formation.
With a short straight sword in his right hand and a pistol in his left, he nods in response.
Smiling, Zed lowers his sword and points his pistol to the ground, tilting forward a small bit and lowers his head, low enough to acknowledge that he was ready, but not so low that he could not see him.
Zee, Zig and Zag do the same from their respective positions. Copying the movement, and performing what Zig taught him, he follows suit, lowering himself to each of them individually, and when he pays his respects to Zag, they all stand up straight, straight sword and pistol at the ready.
Once in position, the four of them cross their own arms in front of themselves and tilt slightly forward, with a lowered head, low enough that they seem to acknowledge him, but not so far down that they cannot see him.
Like a ceremony, Zulu stands perfectly still then points the katana down with one hand to his side, a posture that Zulu 3 had taught him, performing a small bow to each of them, and when he bows to the last one they all look back up.
The air is silent, the slugs have stopped firing. The planes above still flew, but the bats had left them. It was as if every one of them were watching this fight that was soon to begin.
Then they started, and they started fast. Four of them jump forward, whilst he jumps upwards. High into the air, as if he knew that this was how it was going to play out, because this was a fight he had had before, and it always started the same way.
Clashing sword, and firing his pistol. He dodges and slashes and dodges again. Breathing heavily, he focuses on the movement of them and does his best to try and control his own movements.
¡°Remember!¡± Zed shouts with immense concentration, ¡°This isn¡¯t about who is the fastest, or who is the strongest.¡± Firing his pistol at the location He was about to land, ¡°This is a game of chess and endurance.¡±
Looking down calmly at the four beasts below him, he analysis the steps he needs to take. Not being able to alter his course of movement in the air, he changes his centre of gravity to be up on his chest, allowing him to fall back down arm first with katana at the ready.
Swing the blade at the first, it is stopped by six of the black swords, surprising him, as the blade has never been stopped before, but not enough to make him stumble. Altering his centre of gravity again, he places his feet of the arms of the beast, kicking off whilst slicing upwards to make it jump away, allowing himself to backflip and land on his feet, and face the four, now in front of him.
To those who did not know this fight, it would seem like the 4 would have the advantage, to those that were not skilled, this would have been true, but these four and him were skilled in swordplay, true though it maybe, they had the numerical advantage, the 4 however had the extra burden of not getting in each other¡¯s way, of not striking the wrong target.
¡°Keep moving!¡± Zed states in annoyance as he comes crashing down from above, and barely misses ¡°If you don¡¯t know where to go, just run away!¡± pausing a second with pistol pointed at him, ¡°Run away and come back later.¡±
Jumping back towards the trees as two rapidly close the distance upon him, Zulu blocks three blades and dodges the rest, smiling whilst doing so. He sends on diagonal downward slash back at them as he twist his body to barely move between two tree trunks to place his feet against a third.
¡°Never lose sight of those that you¡¯re fighting,¡± Zed continues speaking to him, making him search and find that he has lost Zig.
Smiling as he pushes himself of the tree trunk and back through the two trees he had just come through, he slashes at the two he passes, but is again, blocked. Having past two of them and again not being able to land a clean hit, he continues his rush forward at the two behind them. Diving into a roll, he dodges their blades and gets to his feet to send one slash at their backs.
However them having six blades, prevents him from landing a single cut, forcing him again to jump away.
For a time, this pattern continues, he slashes and dodges, he hits but is blocked. Under this constant barrage of moving blades that goes from open space to dense trees and back to open space, Zulu comes to understand why these creatures were feared. They were skilled.
In a perfect scenario neither side should win, in a perfect scenario, all of them should be equal in strength, equal in speed, equal in intelligence. In a perfect scenario, both sides should lose strength and simply give up.
This however was not a perfect scenario. The Zulu, though out handed (quite literally) was better than them. He was faster, though not by much, he was more adept. Each of his strikes was more accurately placed, and each of his steps landed on the ground with more precision.
Searching rapidly for Zig as he runs through the empty town, he fends of attacks coming from Zed, Zee and Zag. Always just barely getting away without a scrape, but he knew that he was being driven into a direction they wanted him to move in. He was being herded.
Sending an upward kick into the chin of one of the creatures, his smile turns into to a laugh. A loud and haunting laugh, one not because he did not feel danger, but because he felt at ease. He was driving them into a corner, he was now controlling their movements and the four knew it.
They felt that with each blade strike their co-ordination was weakening, that each strike their arms jarred a little, their reactions became tiny bit slower, their thoughts became a tiny bit more dis-organised. They felt fear for a mistake and this fear became pressure to not screw up, in turn leading towards a downward spiral that resulted in them becoming slower and less in touch with one another.
¡°You¡¯ve lost control of your movements!¡± Zed states firing the last shot in his pistol, allowing Zee to send a horizontal slash that forces him into a building. ¡°And in turn.¡±
¡°Ha!¡± he shouts as his blade comes down onto the flesh of a hand, across on a leg, diagonally upwards on an arm, and horizontally across a neck, before a kick to the chest to both push the body and enable him to jump back away from another of the creatures rapidly trying to slice him.
With three left he quickly jumps back once he lands, into the creature that tried to slice him, rapidly closing the distance, to that which is too close to use a blade. Elbowing the creature in its chin, he follows it up with a knee to the neck and a vertical slice down, splitting it in half, to roll in between the two halves and dodge the third creature.
Allowing his blade to continue its trajectory, he releases his grip upon the hilt, to catch it again as it flies just past his right shoulder, allowing him to jump and spin as he gets up. Sending the blade just between two left arms of the creature, and separating its upper half from its lower body.
Getting hit in the back by one powerful swing, ¡°You¡¯ve died.¡± Zig says appearing from within the building, ¡°You¡¯re lucky I only used my leg,¡± She states as she places her knee on his back, pinning him to the ground.
Looking towards the last of the four, standing a good 12 metres away from him. The laugh he had been unconsciously making ends. His smile disappears, and he again remembers that this, though similar to his past, was not training.
Giving one quick swing of his Katana, he flicks the black slimy blood that had accumulated upon it, before bringing it up in front of him and waiting for the last Six-arms to come to him.
The battle now had dramatically changed, from a 4 vs 1, where the focus for them was teamwork and him which was separation, to nothing but a simple duel, where the better skilled would win, and one he knew he would win.
Leaping forward at the creature as it was not leaping to him, the battle is fast and easy. Learning the trick to deal with these beings, he prevents the creature from being able to use a full swing, getting so close to it that they can literally kiss.
The creature tries rapidly to open a gap, but is unable to, until Zulu suddenly stops, to perform an upward swing, cutting off its three lefts arms in one clean blow.
¡°Good try,¡± Zed commands him as Zig turns him over to place her sword on his neck and knee upon his chest, ¡°For your first time, it wasn¡¯t bad¡± he continues to say as Zig pulls her sword away and he offers a hand, ¡°But you¡¯re very predictable.¡±
Slicing the last arms off the Six-arms, it falls to its knees and Zulu¡¯s blade comes to rest on its shoulder. Looking down into its eyes, ¡°You fought well.¡± It moves its mouth, as if speaking, but no sound comes out and then waits, as if it were asking to be finished off, accepting its end. Sliding the blade across and through its throat, thereby doing as he thinks the creatures asks, Zulu catches a little bit of a smile upon its mouth as the head falls to the ground.
Coming out of that battle without a single scratch, Zulu looks up, and feels something like regret come over him. It reminded him of a crude training exercise he once had.
¡®That took only twelve minutes!¡¯ Ten states floating just ahead of him, "And you haven''t used the sand yet."
Seeing the bats start to fly away, ¡°This wasn¡¯t an invasion.¡± Zulu says out loud, letting his Katana dematerialize
A/N
Argh, how do people write so much. I find actions scenes to be the hardest thing to write. How other authors have so many of them, i don''t know. Its hard T_T (but fun i guess)
I''ve read this quite a few times, i don''t see any mistakes, but if you do find some contradictory things from this chapter and previous ones, do tell me. I''ve started to write things down, its finally too big to keep it all in my head ^.^
I tried putting in past and present, seemed like a good idea to me as i was doing it, do you guys think it works? [i am after all experimenting on this site (learning what i can and can not do in writing)]
That being said, Hope you all enjoyed it! Thank you for reading ^.^
Chapter 30 - The Eastern Base [Part 3]
Chapter 30 ¨C The Eastern Base [Part 3]
Watching video feeds play and seeing reports constantly update, ¡°Whose aircraft is that?!¡± the general shouts as multiple screens display it prevent a proper bombing run from occurring.
Waiting for a couple of seconds, he receives no response from any of the thirty officers in the room, ¡°We have no idea whose aircraft that is?!¡± he shouts in anger, not quite believing it to be possible.
¡°We¡¯re in the most well informed room in the country!¡± he continues his rant, ¡°And no one here knows anything?!¡±
¡°Sir,¡± an officer with an artificial right eye and a fresh scar that¡¯s just had its stitches removed calls out as she approaches, quite casually, with a tablet, ¡°It¡¯s ours.¡±
Gaining the generals full attention, he snatches the tablet out of her hands, ¡°How is it not registered in our data base?¡± he demands an answer as he watches a recording of it taking off from hanger 85, ¡°How did we not see it take off?!¡±
Waiting a second, ¡°Colonel?¡± he calls her rank.
¡°It happened during the short technical glitch.¡± She gives her answer as another officer updates her on another matter.
¡°Tsk,¡± he throws the tablet back to her mad but chooses not to blame her, it was a machine malfunction, it was not human error, ¡°Tell the planes to sweep back and resume their bombardment, we need that field cleared before the Bravo units sweep through in 4 hours¡¯ time.¡±
Seeing her not move to follow his order, he senses that something is not quite right, ¡°What is it now?¡±
¡°We¡¯ve lose communications with all aircrafts in that location.¡± She responds like it is fact and nothing can be done about it, ¡°We¡¯re doing our best to re-establish them.¡±
Looking back to the monitors he watches the debris of said unknown aircraft, ¡°Do we still have comms with the Eastern Base?
¡°Yes sir.¡± turning to watch the monitor¡¯s with him, ¡°They¡¯re still under heavy attack, but apparently they¡¯ve secured the North West corner.¡±
¡°Send out another wave of planes, they¡¯ll have just enough time to do their jobs just before Bravo arrives.¡±
Hearing the sound of a door sliding open, ¡°Who the hell opened that door!?¡± The general yells without looking towards it, a room in operation should have its doors locked at all times, a standard military op to avoid unwanted eyes gleaning sensitive information.
¡°That would be me General.¡± A man seemingly in his middle age and belly hanging a bit loosely enters.
Instantly recognising the voice, ¡°Mr Gervas! Sir!¡± The general snaps around as he addresses him, ¡°What could we have done to be blessed with your Holy presence?¡±
¡°Don¡¯t be clever with me General.¡± Gervas walks straight up to him, ¡°We¡¯ve come to know of your situation.¡±
¡°This is a military operation Mr Gervas, Not a Governmental one.¡±
¡°It is General,¡± Gervas locks his eyes with the Generals, ¡°But I am here and we are waiting.¡±
Feeling pressure the General clenches his jaw shut tightly. Gervas was not intimidating to the general in the less, with his round belly, loose clothing and tired face, Gervas looked like nothing but a worn out man. The general on the other hand possessed a mechanical arm, had minimum amount of fat and was thus almost nothing but muscle and bone. He had multiple scars, signs of a proud warrior who¡¯s survived many harsh conditions and knows how to handle almost every situation.
The pressure he was feeling was not from Gervas, but the Invisible hand of another, and so, ¡°What do you want?¡± he ask Gervas what his purpose is.
¡°Why General,¡± Gervas smiles, ¡°You should be happy, I¡¯ve come what some vital information.¡±
Waiting as they both look at each other, he wants me to beg, the general quickly realises the situation but before he can react he is nudged and his attention shifts, ¡°What is it Colonel?¡±
Being handed her tablet, he examines it to find out that all aircrafts at base were now not operatable, not because the aircrafts malfunctioned, but because the lifts that gave them access to the surface were no longer responding. Inwardly cursing, he assumes incorrectly that this is because The President had arranged it to be so.
¡°Can you Please tell me the President¡¯s orders?¡± the General asks politely as he hands the tablet back to the Colonel.
¡°You need to smile more General,¡± Gervas takes out a slip of paper from his pocket, ¡°Frowning does no one any good.¡± He hands it to the General, ¡°All aircraft for this operation are to immediately halt and word of a Zulu being sent to base for re-enforcement is to be sent on an open frequency.¡±
Unfolding the paper he reads it carefully and his frown intensifies, ¡°It will be done,¡± scrunching the slip of paper, ¡°Is there anything else¡Sir?¡±
¡°No,¡± maintaining his smile, ¡°That will be all,¡± and he leaves as promptly as he came.
Seeing the door close, ¡°We¡¯ve sent out the broad cast sir.¡± The Colonel informs the General, ¡°The base ask if there is anything they need to do when he arrives.¡±
¡°Inform them that the Base is subject to his control upon arrival and that all located there are to follow his commands without question.¡±
The Colonel looks towards another officer and nods towards him before turning back to the General, ¡°Didn¡¯t the Council state that the Zulu was Deceased sir?¡± she ask
¡°They did.¡± Looking back to the monitors
¡°An open frequency is a bit too suspicious though,¡± watching the monitors with him, ¡°Won¡¯t the other nation¡¯s spies think it weird?¡±
¡°What¡¯s suspicious is that those creatures are attacking us Colonel.¡± The general squints at a particular monitor, ¡°They are attacking us with only four different species¡not counting the worm¡±
------------------
Lucy
------------------
On her knee and with her rifle lying down next to herself, Lucy examines the person she is hovering over.
¡°Will he make it?¡± A squad member asks
Grabbing hold of a 20cm needle whose width was that of an average male¡¯s little finger, ¡°Give me time,¡± she replies as she holds it firmly to suddenly yank it out from the man¡¯s chest, causing him to convulse and making blood splatter all over herself.
Moving quickly, she places both her hands over the gaping wound, seemingly trying to block the flow of blood and actually succeeds. Not because her hands could stop the pouring blood, but because at the same time as she covered the gaping would with her hands transparent liquid gathered there, aiding her in containing it.
Shutting her eyes she concentrates immensely, forgetting about her location, she pushes the unwanted noise of gun fire, grenade explosions and screams away from her mind and imagines how the veins were meant to connect, how the muscles attached themselves to the skin and in turn she accelerates the bodies healing capabilities of the one she is trying to save.
Prioritizing the closing and fixing of veins instead of durability a solid ten minutes slowly passes before she takes her hands away and open her eyes, ¡°Take him to the back lines,¡± she tells three people in his squad, ¡°The bleeding has stopped but he won¡¯t be any use to us out here.¡±
¡°He¡¯ll be fine?¡± The same person asks
¡°MEDIC!¡± another call for first aid is heard nearby.
¡°Get him to the med Bay¡± Lucy picks up her rifle, ¡°He needs better attention.¡± She tells the one that asked before getting up and heading down to the location she had heard the call for aid come from.
Staying low and passing by person after person firing behind improvised shelter, some alive and active, some wounded but still fighting and many just lying there dead, a highly unsafe line of defence had somehow been established after some form of order had been created. The north-west corner was now somewhat secure.
With the capture of the worm located just a bit inside the northwest corner the others had disappeared, probably due to some fear of being captured as well, but the inability they had of finishing it off complicated matters as they couldn¡¯t just let it go, thus a large portion of available troops were stuck there keeping the captured worm from causing any trouble.
At the point of capture Lucy was meant to rendezvous with Samuel and Matthew however the forces baring down intensified at that moment and stopped the rendezvous from happening, thus Lucy went from unit to unit, attached at times and not at others. Acting as part of the wondering re-enforcement units that came and went where they were needed.
However not wearing a helmet and also not wearing any form of communication gadget, Lucy was forced to move without proper instruction, listening in on orders when she could, following those that moved and piecing together what others that held rank shouted, she understood their situation was better than when the surprised attack had begun, but still in dire need of help.
¡°MEDIC!¡± the same shout is heard again but above, making Lucy realize that the call for help came from a rooftop.
A bit lost at this point, Lucy stops and drops down behind cover with a group of other soldiers. She knows the base layout quite well, but the path she would normally take to get to the rooftop was destroyed, rubble that had formerly been the staircase up there no longer existed and the ladder was past the safety line.
Shouting over the gunfire, ¡°How do I get up there?!¡± she asks a helmeted individual who is currently reloading.
Gaining her attention the person looks at her then up at the rooftop just in front of him, ¡°You can¡¯t.¡± he replies after a very quick analysis.
¡°I need to get up there.¡± Lucy tells him.
Passing the loaded rifle over to another person and getting an empty one back, ¡°The Stairs are destroyed and the ladder is past them,¡± he nods his head at the place they¡¯re firing at, ¡°Unless you want to fly up there.¡±
¡°MEDIC!¡± the shout for help is heard, sounding more frantic then last time.
¡°I need to get up there!¡± Lucy states again, coming off as desperate even though she did not mean to.
Hearing the sound for first aid he understands the situation, ¡°I¡¯ll see what can be done,¡± the soldier passes the now loaded weapon to another and begins talking over comms to said individual, reducing his need to shout.
To not sit and dawdle her thumbs, Lucy takes over the man¡¯s former role of reloading weapons for a time. Each reload taking ten seconds to complete and five seconds to receive and pass off, thus she reloads a total of fifteen rifles in a span of roughly four minutes.
¡°We can get you up there,¡± a woman shouts from within her helmet as she approaches low with another two, ¡°But its been over ten minutes since that medic call first came,¡± she looks up at the destination 30metre high , ¡°Do you still want to go up?¡±
Seeing the man from earlier resume his former post of reloading alongside others, ¡°Yes,¡± Lucy answers without hesitation grabbing hold of her own rifle.
¡°Very well then,¡± the woman replies, ¡°Don¡¯t move.¡±
Staying absolutely still wind slowly begins together, with three mini tornadoes forming around Lucy, each tornado being controlled by one of the three. In seconds the mini tornadoes spins faster and shrink instead of grow, in a few more seconds the three start circling around Lucy and collude together with her at the centre.
Making her loose her balance, the three tornadoes become one medium sized tornado that spins her in full circle once before disappearing, sending her diagonally upwards into the air.
Losing her sense of direction due to the one incredibly fast spin Lucy tucks herself into that of a ball and spins forward and upwards, soon reaching her peak height she experiences weightlessness and in that split second of weighing nothing she reacquires her sense of direction; making her realise that she had just barely cleared the 30metre high roof.
Dropping only 2 metres she lands with an unceremonious thud upon her knees and draws the surprised attention of those that were about to open fire on her.
¡°You called for a medic?¡± She shouts a bit dazed from her extremely dangerous lift.
¡°That we did,¡± a pained but familiar voice replies, ¡°But that was over ten minutes ago.¡±
Blinking a few times to rend her dizziness away, ¡°Sam?!¡± she shouts as she sees him slumped against the parapet, away from the fighting, whilst the others ignore her and go back to shooting.
¡°Hey Luce,¡± he smiles a bloody smile, ¡°been a while.¡±
Forgetting their current location Lucy drops her rifle and runs the 10metre distance between herself and Samuel. Completely upright in her approach she grits her teeth as she feels something hit her, causing her to fall face first next to Samuel as she arrives.
¡°Damn it Luce,¡± Samuel comments seeing her hit the ground hard, ¡°Whose going to heal the medic?¡±
With the help of her left hand, Lucy gets onto her knees whilst blood comes out of her nose and scrapped cheek, shutting her eyes she grits her teeth in pain. A needle like the one she had first pulled out from a person she had healed was now lodged in her back right next her right shoulder blade, stopping her ability to move her right arm and causing tears of pain to slide down her face.
¡°It hurts that much?¡± Samuel asks concerned despite the fact that three of the very same needles were in his chest, but not actually as deadly as the single needle in her, due to his vest reducing the distance it penetrated him.
Lifting his left hand, as Lucy was on his left side, he rubs his hand against her check that isn¡¯t scrapped, ¡°Stop trying to move,¡± He tells her, ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± he lies ,¡±I wasn¡¯t the one in need of dire help,¡± he sees her relax and slump.
Relieved to see her do that Samuel lets his hand drop and looks to the man on his right. Lying there in a pile of blood that also soaked him, the man had eight needles embedded in his chest and arms, he was the man in dire need of help, and he was the man that required a medic¡¯s immediate attention.
¡°thisshig rrerrk¡± the sound of static sound through the P.A systems set systematically around the base rings out, just barely audible above the sound of fighting, ¡°Zulu Re-enforcement imminent, All Forces subject to his control upon arrival.¡± A short break follows from the announcement then its states again, ¡°I Repeat Zulu Re-enforcement Imminent, All Forces subject to his control upon arrival.¡±
With wonder and confusion surrounding majority of those at base gun fire cease for three whole seconds at the repeat of that statement, then with a scream of pain sound out and the fighting resumes, most if not all simply ignoring the announcement.
¡°The Zulu is on his way here,¡± Samuel restrains his sudden urge to laugh ¡°Do you think we should be worried?¡±
------------------
Delia
------------------
Eyes closed and consciousness barely present, the feeling of exhaustion and confusion surrounds Delia¡¯s hazy mind. Her arms hang loose, her legs do too, the sensation of being carried is what she is feeling. Slowly forcing her eyes open, her hair drapes down to the ground, and moving foliage of undergrowth is all she can see besides it.
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Prisoner? is the first thoughts that come to mind, but she clenches her hands, and finds that her wrists are unbound. No Tilting her head left, she sees Ex in the same position as herself. Slumped over a shoulder, but knocked out cold.
Raising her hand to reach out to Ex, the one holding them stops and instantly drops them both. Making a loud thud, as they both hit the ground softly, Delia coughs out blood as the sound of twigs and branches snap. Rolling onto her back she finds the one that was carrying them dashing off into the distance, with an orange glow trailing the person¡¯s movement.
Shutting her eyes tightly this time, she feels dull sensations of pain, along her legs, up her back and all over her arms. Pushing herself to understand her situation, she thinks back to the last thing that she remembers.
Slugs, explosions, dirt, hole opening her eyes, she brings herself to the present, instantly alert and thinking of the next step. She is alive, she has survived and some person is carrying both her and Ex. Her thoughts, jumbled but somehow making some sense, she makes herself sit and figures out that a multitude amount of bones are broken.
Gritting her teeth and she maintains her sitting position, she needs to be able to see around herself. With the surroundings seemingly clear she assesses what she has upon her. Clothing, an empty utility belt and nothing else. Weapon-less and not knowing her current position, she knows that the only thing that she can do is wait, wait for the one that carried them to come back.
For a while nothing but the dominate sound of trees falling and quick movement of things can be heard. The sound of fighting, but no gun shots, no human gun shots but plenty of monster fire. Just listening to these sounds with her eyes staring at where it came from it all comes to a sudden halt. As quickly as these sounds had filled her ears, it left as if it were never there.
In the few seconds of silence ¡°Notify me earlier next time Ten!¡± a man voice sounds out, breaking it, angered and causing her to scrunch her eyebrows in hearing it.
¡°No,¡± the voice sounds closer, full of self-righteousness and somehow making her agitated at its approach, ¡°I did not notice that she had woken up.¡±
Focusing her attention to the sounds location, she sees a man seemingly appear out of thin air, breaking his own camouflage. Approaching with his orange coloured blade slowly evaporating into the air he halts for a second before rushing forward to kneel right next to her.
Grabbing a hold of her forehead and chin ¡°Can you hear me?¡± He asks, and she slowly nods with confusion as his hands feel hot, not quite burning but just below that degree and his red eyes seemed to see all.
Light suddenly shines into her own eyes, making her shut them but his fingers force them to open. ¡°Stop talking!¡± he mutters agitated.
¡°I wasn¡¯t¡± she starts to speak.
¡®¡¯I wasn¡¯t talking to you.¡¯¡¯ He interrupts her, ¡°You¡¯ve been out for at least an hour or two,¡± gently letting her go, ¡°You have multiple fractures upon your right leg and left arm, your helmet kept you alive in that pile of dirt¡± moving over to Ex, ¡°you¡¯re lucky that you¡¯re alive.¡± He states with full confidence in his diagnosis.
Shaking herself out of her perplexed state, ¡°You¡¯re Zulu.¡± She says sceptically.
¡°I am.¡± He replies, not turning to see her, only focusing on the current condition of Ex.
¡°You¡¯re a Zulu?¡± she corrects herself, thinking that that could be the only logical choice.
¡°I am.¡± He states again, neither correcting nor helping Delia¡¯s confused state of mind.
The irritation she felt from first hearing his voice suddenly increases at that reply, ¡°You¡¯re That Zulu¡± she confirms, absolutely certain of it.
Lifting Ex up and draping her over his right shoulder, as if carrying a rug, ¡°Who else could I be?¡± he questions, as if it was stupid to consider anything else.
With Ex in that position ¡°Stop!¡± Delia quickly raises her hand and gets up onto her left leg, ¡°I can walk!¡±
Awkwardly maintaining balance, she looks squarely at him in his eyes and feels a shiver run down her spine. Trying to look away she can¡¯t, not because they were pretty but because they seemed provoking and it felt to her that they thirsted for blood. He felt dangerous, he felt like the reputation his unit had.
¡°Then stay near me,¡± he finally says after more than a minute of deep analysis, ¡°If you¡¯re not keeping up I will carry you.¡± He takes Ex off his shoulder and holds her in his arms, as if he were carrying a princess.
Turning around he start jogging in the location he had just come from, staying as low as possible he moves with consistent haste, jumping and ducking all in one fluid motion even though he was carrying another person.
Doing her best to keep up, Delia does surprisingly well considering the fact that she had multiple fractures along one of her legs. However she was making a lot of noise as she moved, something she was not proud of but nothing she could do about it as just trying to keep up took all her concentration, even with this though she was steadily falling behind.
Soon arriving at an aftermath of a battlefield, Delia slows down involuntary to see decapitated heads, limbs and sliced weapons lying all around in a hectic measure. The monsters that she and her units had to run from were sliced up so very meticulously, every limb of the six-arms were separated from their bodies, and every head was sliced off. It screamed of efficiency.
¡°What are you doing?¡± Zulu stops and looks at Delia, ¡°Do you want me to carry you?¡±
¡°No,¡± Delia crouches with difficulty and picks up an adequately medium sized stick, ¡°I just need this.¡± She says leaning upon it to get up and see that his eyes were no longer red, but simply maroon in colour, less threatening than it had previously appeared, but still quite discomforting to look at.
He looks at Ex in his arms and frowns, ¡°Then keep up.¡± He states with annoyance before turning and leaving instantly.
Keeping up with a little more ease than last, they move through the forest quickly until Zulu halts a good 20metres ahead of Delia.
¡°How many?¡± Zulu puts down Ex
¡°How many what?¡± Delia asks stopping next to him
¡°Tsk,¡± he hands his pistol over to Delia with a few clips, ¡°Stay here, out of sight and keep quiet.¡± He tells her as his eyes revert back to blood red. ¡°And don¡¯t shoot me.¡±
Grabbing the pistol and leaning on her stick to get onto the ground with ease, ¡°Did anyone else make it?¡± she asks looking down.
After a moment ¡°They didn¡¯t.¡± Zulu responds without hesitation or remorse, simply stating a fact as if without thought and leaves them both.
Shutting her eyes. I am sorry. She apologizes to her dead unit. Another unit with me as the only survivor. She spits blood to her side and then looks up ahead in the direction he ran off to.
Spotting him in the distance Delia sees that he is in the mist of preparing to fight. Hiding behind trees, he moves at odd intervals to stay out of the monsters enemy line of sight. Seemingly satisfied with his position he draws out his sword and waits for a full minute before jumping in and instantly diving onto the six-arms whilst ignoring the tri-legs.
The bats in the area release a soundless scream and proceed to grab the slug that was being heavily protected and try to fly away.
The Zulu however prevents it from happening, using the Six-arms as stepping stones he leaps up and slices a few holding the slug, forcing them to drop it.
Watching the fight from out of the enemy¡¯s sight, Delia is both impressed and worried at how proficient he is. One man, he was a man, with a sword taking on over two dozen monsters.
Monsters that even with a full unit that held many sergeants were unable to do anything against. Monsters that required the sacrifice of two to suicide whilst the rest pulled the weaker ones away.
After five whole minutes of watching, the Zulu brings out throwing knives, an unlimited amount by the looks of it, but what Delia realizes is that the way he fought these many things seemingly made the creatures expose their venerable side to all other except him. Probably due to the fact that they were now in a position in which they could not afford to be distracted by anything else and thus almost seemed certain that the Zulu was the only threat present.
Paying attention to the monster¡¯s movements, whether consciously or not Zulu had created a position for her to open fire with relative safety. It was as if he were creating a situation where the enemies cared about nothing else except him.
Raising the pistol she takes aim at the closest but the sound of air comes from Ex stops her from firing. Turning to looks at Ex, she sees her taking air in like a person taking a breath of oxygen for the first time.
¡°Ex¡± Delia calls out to her, watching her release that one large breath before continuously inhaling and exhaling small amounts.
¡°Ex¡± she calls out again and awkwardly makes her way towards her with the help of the stick.
Getting close enough she leans in over her and tries to see what she can do however her breathing quickly becomes that of quick successive coughs. First coughing out saliva, which soon turns murky and ultimately becomes blood.
Forgetting that one of her leg and arm is broken she lets go of her stick, leaning in on both her knees and putting pressure upon her left arm. Something she quickly regrets as it makes a loud snap and she falls upon Ex.
Damn it she curses getting off Ex and seeing bone now protruding out of her left arm.
The sound of battle halts and Ex¡¯s cough worsen. She is awake now, but tears of blood seeps out of her eyelids and a stream flows down her nostril.
Holding Ex¡¯s head in such a position as to prevent her from choking on her own blood, ¡°Can you hear me?¡± she questions her not quite knowing what to do.
¡°Shit,¡± The Zulu mumbles under his breath reappearing with his dispersing sword.
Moving up to Ex he pushes Delia out of the way making her hit the ground hard. About to speak up Zulu takes the pistol out of her hands and immediately opens fire into the trees, making one lone bat fall out.
Seeing the bat hit the ground, she keeps silent and watches him examine Ex. Sighing whilst examining her, he looks as if he is too tired to care anymore. Bringing her head close to his face, the two of them stare into each other¡¯s eyes.
Fear, what she felt when looking into his eyes was not present on Ex¡¯s face staring into them. Instead the coughing decreases and stops. Her breathing steadies itself and the blood flowing from her nostrils slows.
An orange blade appears in his left hand, out of sight of Ex¡¯s vision. He whispers something to her, quiet enough that Delia can¡¯t hear it and the moment just seems to freeze, they both seem calm, peaceful but the blade in his left hand is suddenly pushed in from the back of her skull.
Stunned and speechless at such an action that held no hesitation, They kill all that get in their way, Something she was told a long time ago springs into mind.
¡°She didn¡¯t make it,¡± Zulu says closing Ex¡¯s now dead eyes.
¡°You killed the others?¡± Delia asks, ¡°Didn¡¯t you?¡±
Moving over to Delia Zulu grabs her right arm, ¡°They didn¡¯t make it.¡± he answers and performs a sudden yank, pushing and pulling the protruding bone back into place, causing Delia to flinch, but not scream, as it was pain but dull.
¡°You guys use to be stronger,¡± Zulu comments mainly to himself but loud enough for Delia to hear and takes out three vials from nowhere, ¡°Well in my memory you guys were harder to kill,¡± he injects himself with the three vials at the same time and sighs, seemingly refreshed.
¡°What are you talking about?¡± Delia ask using her stick to slowly create gap between them.
Looking at her and realizing something, ¡°Forget it.¡± he sighs again.
After a moment of quiet, Zulu gets back up on his feet, ¡°We need to get going.¡± He states, ¡°We¡¯re pretty much at the walls already.¡±
Slowly getting to her feet ¡°Why are you helping us.¡± Delia finally asks the question that¡¯s been bothering her since she woke up, ¡°I am¡Grateful.¡± She speaks through her teeth, finding it difficult to say, ¡°But why are you here?¡±
Eyeing him as he stands there thinking, his evaluating gaze does nothing to settle her uneasiness and thus her agitation intensifies, but for the first time, she sees that he is actually injured. No deep cuts or gashes, no heavy injuries but his skin all over seemed to be burnt. ¡°I guess,¡± he finally says after a time, ¡°It¡¯s simply because I can.¡±
¡°thisshig rrerrk¡± the sound of static sound through a P.A systems rings out, just barely audible at their distance, ¡°Zulu Re-enforcement imminent, All Forces subject to his control upon arrival.¡± A short break follows from the announcement then its states again, ¡°I Repeat Zulu Re-enforcement Imminent, All Forces subject to his control upon arrival.¡±
He looks at Ex¡¯s now dead body and turns around, ¡°Come on,¡± he says, ¡°they¡¯re expecting us.¡±
Seeing him move off ahead of her, What kind of answer is that?!
A/N
Sorry about the long gap in update time, but well...Can''t say much since i don''t quite know if it increase or decrease.
I know there are still questions lingering from previous chapters, i know that items have not been used. I will use them later on, i will answer those questions in due time.
Now as always, Thank you for reading guys! Thanks for waiting and i hope you all enjoyed this chapter!
@RusticSoldier
Zag = Brain dead. Brain death via defnition (Grabbed from wikipedia) is the complete and irreversible loss of brain function (including involuntary activity necessary to sustain life).Brain death is one of the two ways of determination of death, according to the Uniform Determination of Death Act of the United States
It is not a coma ~
@IronOrc,
Thank you for your correction of my use of "Of and Off" in previous chapters, i have as of yet to correct it online but will do in some time...probably. I have answered your question in chapter 27 (If you want to go back and see)
@Mr.mas :3
I''m sorry to hear that. Hopefully this chapter wasn''t as confusing as the other two. I have a plan to do a recap chapter soon, where there will be spoiler tags for each chapter pretty much outlining in dot points about what has happened. Hopefully that will clear things up?
You''ll probably dislike how Zulu treats Ten for a while...He needs time to get use to her ;P
Chapter 31 - At The Eastern Base [Part 1]
Chapter 31 ¨C At The Eastern Base [Part 1]
Letting his eyes fade back to their original colour ¡°You can come out now.¡± Zulu shouts whilst on his knee next to a large amount of corpses and looking up high at a bat flying, screeching a soundless cry.
| ¡®You burn through your supplements faster than Four¡¯ |
¡°Why aren¡¯t you showing yourself Ten?¡± he lets his sword dissipate and takes a large breath before quickly getting back to his feet, to not let those on the wall see him in too tired a state.
| ¡®¡I don¡¯t completely trust her.¡¯ |
¡°Something I need to be aware of?¡± forgetting about the runaway bat, he looks at a group of soldiers staring down at him, looking confused and hesitant, from upon the wall.
Scrunching his brow, he clenches his fists but stays quiet.
¡°What happened?¡± he asks as his nails dig into his palms.
¡°Betrayed¡¡± a voice recording plays of Zulu 4 sniffing with shock, ¡°I¡was betrayed?¡± she repeats with an odd realisation in her voice, ¡°Betrayed!¡° now shouting, crying, angered, ¡°Betrayed...¡± Her voice quietens and nothing but the sound of weeping is heard for a long time then, ¡°They will die!¡± she shouts angered, and laughing hysterically, ¡°They will all die!¡± she sounds crazy, crazier than her usual self¡and she just¡laughs.
¡°What is this Ten?¡± the recording shuts off and he turns his back to those looking down at him, looking instead at the place Delia should soon be appearing from.
| ¡®The last thing we heard before she separated us.¡¯ |
Seeing Delia appear leaning heavily upon her stick for support, ¡°Did she succeed?¡± he asks quietly.
¡°I see¡¡± Releasing his clenched fists. When we get back to Zag¡¯s room, we¡¯re going to have a long talk. He forces himself to relax and pushes this particular subject aside.
¡°Identify yourself to them,¡± he tells Delia as she approaches, ¡°They may react better if you speak first.¡± He turns back and looks up at the wall.
¡°Alpha Unit Zero-One, Sergeant Delia,¡± she shouts and shifts her head slightly to her left, indicating the Zulu, ¡°Accompanied by Unit Zulu, Requesting Entry.¡±
Seeing a few of them move off, ¡°The entry point is inaccessible,¡± Zulu says to Delia, ¡°When they throw down a rope, I will carry you.¡±
Still leaning on her stick, ¡°¡Okay,¡± she looks down, evidently not happy but also not willing to cause trouble.
| ¡®You don¡¯t need the rope¡¯ |
Lifting his left arm and shifting his view to his arm guard, ¡°True.¡± He says out loud and concentrates.
A Cloud of silvery metal sand gathers around his left hand, It¡¯ll be easier with the rope though, he sees Delia¡¯s looking at him through the side of her eyes. ¡°What?¡±
Shaking her head, ¡°Nothing,¡± she looks away.
Flicking his hand, the cloud of metal returns immediately to his arm, ¡°It¡¯s one of my many tools.¡± He says guessing at what she was wondering about.
¡°Scared?¡± he repeats questioning it.
¡°I am not.¡± Delia answers immediately turning back to him.
Looking deeply into her eyes, ¡°I wasn¡¯t talking to you,¡± he comments with a slight smile, disappointed that it was true.
Shifting her view away, ¡°Then who were you talking to?!¡± she asks agitated.
¡°Delia?!¡± a feminine shouts comes from on top of the wall, drawing both Zulu and Delia¡¯s attention to it.
| Name: Staci
Rank: Major
Date of Birth: 09/12/XXXX
Station: Eastern Base
Aeternus |
¡°Staci!¡± Delia shouts back
Throwing down a long piece of rope, ¡°Come on up!¡±
Taking a hold of the rope with his left hand Zulu grabs Delia around her waists and feels some small resistance from her, before she herself hooks her right arm around his neck, making it seem as if they are both happily embracing one another.
Concentrating again, the metallic sand wraps around his left hand and attaches itself to the rope, climbing it and as it climbs it pulls him with Delia up.
| ¡®Enjoying your situation?¡¯ |
Ignoring Ten they soon reach the top of the Eighty metre like castle wall and Delia pushes herself off Zulu with a little force, to be embraced immediately by Staci.
¡°I can¡¯t believe you¡¯re alive!¡± she exclaims before breaking the embrace and holding her at her shoulders, ¡°You¡¯re injured?¡± seeing Delia favouring her right leg.
¡°She is,¡± Zulu breaks their reunion, not giving Delia a chance to speak, ¡°How is the situation Major?¡±
Drawing her attention, ¡°Get her to the med bay,¡± she states as two soldiers move and leads Delia away, ¡°You¡¯re the Zulu?¡± she replies with a questioning gaze, looking up and down at him, examining him, ¡°You¡¯re younger than I thought you¡¯ll be.¡±
Looking squarely into her eyes ¡°But I am older than I seem,¡± he replies with hidden annoyance, ¡°What is the situation Major?¡± he repeats
The ground shakes but no one stumbles and no one falls.
¡°It¡¯s all clear Ma¡¯am.¡± A soldier says as it soon stops.
Nodding ¡°I am not relieving control of my base to you¡¡± She says and looks for a name or rank upon Zulu¡¯s uniform but fails to find any, finding there instead to be no insignia of any sort upon his clothing. ¡°¡We¡¯re pushing these monsters back out.¡±
¡°You may call me Zulu¡± he tells her looking now to those that gathered around
¡°You expect me to call you by your unit name?¡±
| ¡®Half of them are frightened¡¯ |
| ¡®The Major is wary of you¡¯ |
¡°I do Major,¡± taking what Ten says in, ¡°Some of your men are frightened,¡± he points out, ¡°Where is the General?¡± Looking down back to her
¡°Dead.¡± she answers without hesitation.
¡°The Colonel then?¡±
¡°Dead as well.¡± She answers again without hesitation.
¡°Then you hold the highest rank I assume,¡± Folding his arms he frowns, ¡°There is no point in confusing the command tree and your men seem to not want to follow my orders,¡± he sighs, ¡°I will act as a third party here.¡± he concludes
¡°You will not do as I order?¡± she questions looking up at him.
¡°You have no right to order me Major Staci.¡± Those that are skittish adjust their weapons, ¡°Treat me like a high ranking mercenary.¡±
¡°High Ranking mercenary?¡±
| ¡®There is no such thing anymore¡¯ |
Sighing at being told that, ¡°I will aid you if I agree with what you suggest, If not I will watch and do nothing. I will take no command of your men and I will advise you if I see a gap in your plans.¡±
A breath of relief fills half of those surrounding him. ¡°So a ranking officer that¡¯s outside of the command tree?¡±
¡°Yes, a ranking officer outside the command tree.¡± Looking away from her and at the smoke rising within the base, ¡°So what is the situation Major?¡±
¡°I¡¯ll debrief you at Command Central.¡± Staci answers turning around and heading towards the steps, ¡°Get back to your stations!¡± she shouts at those watching them.
Following closely neither of them speak, moving quickly they pass through streets whose box shaped buildings seem perfectly fine then to some with signs of wreckage, until they find a building, near the front line, windows destroyed and roof collapsed.
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
¡°No!¡± a man shouts as Staci and Zulu enter this particular building, ¡°We can¡¯t afford to do that, if we move anymore men we will lose it!¡±
¡°I am ordering you Sergeant!¡±
¡°What¡¯s going on here Piers?¡± Staci asks as she and Zulu walk up to a large command table with holographic images displaying real time position of all at base, surrounded by over ten other people.
¡°Major!¡± the two of them stand up straight, along with everyone else in the room.
¡°At ease,¡± she waves her left mechanical arm that begins at her elbow to get everyone back to work, ¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡±
¡°You¡¯re sergeant here is refusing orders!¡± he points his finger across the table towards him.
¡°Mat?¡± Staci looks towards Matthew.
¡°His orders make no sense!¡±
Rubbing her forehead with her left mechanical hand, ¡°This is why you need to get off the front lines and become an officer Mat.¡± Looking towards Piers, ¡°What was your orders Piers?¡±
¡°To gather half of the men looking covering the immobile worm and use them to push forward!¡±
Looking at the table with holographic figures displaying real time movements, Zulu ignores the conversation occurring right in front of him, choosing instead to study the current situation and in turn spots an unusual large amount of enemy troops in the south west quadrat of the base, away from the fighting.
¡°They¡¯ve been retreating ever since we first encountered them.¡± He says to Ten out loud and immediately realises that he¡¯s gained the attention of all at the table.
¡°That¡¯s why we should push forward now!¡± Piers states then squints, ¡°Who¡¯s this?¡± he asks annoyed at seeing an individual who held no rank at the table, even though what Zulu said helped his cause ¡°Some fresh recruit?¡±
| Name: Piers
Rank: Second Lieutenant
Date of Birth: 20/02/XXXX
Station: Eastern Base
Mermanus |
¡°Zulu¡¡± Matthew answers lowering his head slightly towards Zulu.
¡°Zulu?!¡± Piers repeats surprised and suddenly cautious
¡°What do you mean?¡± Staci asks ignoring Piers sudden change in attitude.
Reaching to his head gear Zulu extracts some wires from it, drawing the alarmed attention of all those at the table. Staci waves her left hand again, indicating them to stand down and Zulu brings his wires to the holographic table, letting them attach itself to it, making them dig their way into the circuity of the table and merge with them.
The holographic 3d image changes from that of the base to that of the land just west of the base. Showing his own predicted location of the enemy before the bombardment, ¡°If you see here, before the failed bombardment you will notice that the slugs are systematically stationed 100 metres away from each other.¡±
Changing the display again, ¡°Now right after the bombardment you can see that those that are still alive have not moved.¡±
Shifting it again to after he killed one squad of bats, tri-legs and six-arms, ¡°And as soon as I engaged them they all started moving, some heading here as a group, which I¡¯ve dealt with, but many of them simply disappearing altogether.¡±
¡°What does this have to do with anything at base?!¡± Piers butts in but is ignored by all at the table.
With the aid of Ten, the images change again to just before the wide base announcement. ¡°Now we see that the front line is being pushed in on all sides, the safety line is slowly losing ground,¡± changing the display again to now, ¡°and now after the announcement they¡¯ve been pushing outwards.¡±
Taking his wires out of the table and putting them back to his head gear, ¡°They are retreating, not because of us, but because they choose to¡This was never an invasion¡±
Looking up at those at the table, he finds that no one disagrees with him.
¡°So my orders are valid!¡± Piers says after a few seconds of silent contemplation about the situation, ¡°and he¡± pointing at Matthew ¡°Is disobeying them.¡±
¡°Your orders Lieutenant are stupid and completely wasteful of resources.¡± Zulu reprimands him with a stern voice, ¡°there is no need to push out with additional troops, move slowly instead of rushing and you will get your base back.¡±
After a second of pure shock from being told flat out he was wrong, ¡°You said it yourself!¡± Piers shouts forgetting about the caution he once had, ¡°They are retreating! It is the best time to destroy these monsters, to pay them back for what they¡¯ve done. They are running¡±
¡°The enemy is giving you the base back.¡± Zulu emphasis with a calm but strong voice, ¡°Do not make them change their minds.¡±
¡°Yes,¡± Staci says nodding, ¡°Forcefully moving out will not be a good idea, they are giving our base back at a decent speed.¡±
¡°Is that your orders Ma¡¯am?¡± Piers interrupts her, ¡°Or has the Zulu taken command of this base against your wishes?¡±
¡°Second Lieutenant Piers,¡± Staci states with extremely firmness, ¡°I order you to walk away from this table.¡±
Going silent, Piers opens and closes his mouth then stands up straight and salutes, ¡°Yes Ma¡¯am¡± he states with immense anger before walking away favouring his real foot over his fake one.
¡°Ma¡¯am?¡± another officer speaks up.
| Name: Ormonde
Rank: Warrant Officer Class 1
Date of Birth: 28/02/XXXX
Station: Eastern Base
Deviare |
¡°What is it Ormonde?¡± Staci asks.
¡°What about the soldiers out of the safety line,¡± nodding at Zulu, ¡°If what he says is true would it not be best to send some men ahead to save them?¡±
¡°Yes,¡± she replies, ¡°As I was saying before Second Lieutenant Piers interrupted me, we will not commit to a full offensive,¡± she tilts her head slightly towards Zulu, ¡°it would be stupid to make them change their minds,¡± looking down at the table, ¡°we will instead not push forward, keeping our current front line. We will send out multiple units to get in contact and escort soldier behind enemy lines back here.¡±
Looking up she sees everyone nodding, ¡°Will you help us?¡± she asks Zulu.
Staring down at the table as everyone looks at him, ¡°No,¡± he replies, ¡°I will not.¡±
¡°I see,¡± Staci nods, ¡°Then we thank you for your advice and ask you to wait outside.¡±
| ¡®Did she just ask you to leave?¡¯ |
¡°Did you just ask me to leave Major?¡± Zulu asks raising an eyebrow.
¡°That I did Zulu¡± she answers.
Looking down at the table he smiles, ¡°If you want to find me,¡± he points to the south west quadrat of the base where a large number of monsters were gathered, ¡°I¡¯ll be there.¡±
Looking to where he points, ¡°Why?¡± She asks him.
¡°Are you not curious as to why there is a large gathering in that location?¡± he looks up and finds that everyone is looking away from him.
¡°Why are they there?¡± he asks them and finds that no one is willing to answers.
| ¡®None of them are proud about it¡¯ |
Turning around he walks out of the building, ¡°Ten do you know?¡±
| ¡®Sorry¡there are no digital records¡¯ |
¡°Then I guess we¡¯ll go find out.¡± He scratches his neck
¡°Hey!¡± Matthew walks out of the building
Looking back, ¡°What is it Sergeant?¡± he faces him
Throwing one of the two weapons he holds, ¡°You¡¯ll need help.¡±
¡°Thanks,¡± he catches the weapon and cocks it, ¡°Do you know what¡¯s there?¡±
¡°I do,¡± looking down and pumping his shotgun, ¡°But if you want to know, you best see it yourself.¡± Looking back at him, ¡°I refuse to speak of it.¡±
A/N
Just wanted to point out in case you all missed it. Staci was first seen in Chapter 25 - Matthew :P
Also wanted to remind you, Zulu is older (A LOT OLDER) than he looks, no matter what you say, ones looks always plays a large factor in how one is treated. And so in turn He does know how to deal with it in a civil manner ~
Thanks for reading all, though this may have been a slightly boring chapter (less eventful than others, i think) Hope you all enjoyed it and thank you for reading.
@Elohim,
It may be a while before your questions on the Human-monsters stuff are answered...as in a long long time (So sorry)
Chapter 32 - At The Eastern Base [Part 2]
Chapter 32 - At The Eastern Base [Part 2]
Approaching the safety line that has yet to move outwards, Zulu attracts a lot of attention as he walks past others to reach it, but is left well enough alone and unhindered.
| ¡®Why¡¯d you let her order you?¡¯ |
¡°It was not an order,¡± Zulu answers out loud and attracts even more attention to himself, ¡°It was a request and the request had proper reason behind it.¡±
| ¡®You were making everyone nervous.¡¯ |
¡°That I was.¡± He replies and sees Matthew jog a few metres in front to speak with those few in charge at the front line.
| ¡®But you made it seem like she had control over you!¡¯ |
¡°It doesn¡¯t matter,¡± he answers her, ¡°she knows she does not.¡± Stopping next to Matthew and those he is talking to.
¡°Never thought I¡¯ll see a Zulu.¡± one of the two in charge comments putting up a front of complete ease.
¡°If you¡¯re with us I guess we can start pushing the line.¡± The second says, again hiding his uneasiness.
¡°We¡¯re not here to push the line out,¡± Zulu corrects them.
¡°The pit,¡± Matthew tells them with a sense of dread, ¡°let¡¯s hope the monsters cleared it out.¡±
¡°Lets,¡± the two of them say at the same time with a small nod, then the first sighs whilst scratching his neck, ¡°Guess we¡¯ll wait till we get further orders, would¡¯ve liked to get back at those things whilst we had the chance.¡±
Turning the safety switch off on his rifle, ¡°Sergeant.¡± He calls Matthew ranks with a hint of annoyance.
¡°Right,¡± Matthew nods towards Zulu and looks at the two, ¡°I¡¯ll catch up with you guys later.¡± moving off, leading the way for Zulu who follows two steps behind.
| ¡®You still could¡¯ve left in a different manner!¡¯ |
¡°Drop it,¡± he tells Ten.
¡°Who are you talking to?¡± Matthew asks giving into his curiosity.
| ¡®You know, I could just lead the way.¡¯ |
¡°Eyes front Sergeant,¡± Zulu doesn¡¯t answer him, ¡°We¡¯re no longer in the safety zone.¡±
¡°We¡¯re barely fifty metres from the line,¡± spreading his arms open to demonstrate the emptiness amongst the collapsed buildings and cracked pavement, ¡°But yes,¡± holding his shotgun so that he is ready to fire, ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± he looks back forward and walks quickly but with caution at the same time, getting off the centre of the pathway and staying near the broken walls.
| ¡®He¡¯s going so slowly!¡¯ |
¡°Fast enough.¡± Zulu replies, maintaining the two step distance from Matthew
¡°Seriously though,¡± Matthew asks without looking back, ¡°Who are you talking to?¡±
¡°Nobody.¡± He answers after a short moment, making it obvious to Matthew that he should stop asking and will probably never know.
| ¡®Still, why did he volunteer? I had the impression that he disliked you.¡¯ |
Stepping over rubble that leads through a once present building, ¡°Sergeant, why¡¯d you volunteer to help me?¡± Zulu asks as it too peaked his interest.
¡°Mat,¡± Matthew says, ¡°Or Matthew, you can call me that, and I didn¡¯t exactly volunteer.¡±
¡°I see Sergeant,¡± Zulu nods once, ¡°the Major ordered it.¡±
Accepting the fact that he was going to only be called by rank, ¡°Kind of, she told me to get out of the building,¡± smiling a bit, ¡°I didn¡¯t belong there¡and going to the front to follow others when I could follow you wasn¡¯t as appealing.¡±
Rounding a corner Matthew fires one round of his shotgun and yells, ¡°CONTACT!¡± with a grin.
¡°A war junkie,¡± Zulu sighs with a shake of his head.
¡°What was that?!¡± Matthew shouts over the sound of him firing another shot.
Stepping forward to close the two step distance between himself and Matthew, Zulu kicks him in the back of his knees, making Matthew collapse to the ground, saving him by a hairs breath as four needle like projectile implant themselves in the wall he was standing in front of.
Dropping down and pulling the back of his shirt, Zulu yanks him with him as he jumps a good 4 metres backwards to cover.
¡°I lead now.¡± He tells him with a voice that demanded it and gave no other choice but to follow, turning him over at the same time so that Matthew can see him clearly.
Slightly confused as falling and being pulled back took barely second, Matthew nods slowly, regaining his awareness he scrunches his eyebrows annoyed but grateful at the same time.
¡°How far are we?¡± Zulu asks.
| ¡®We¡¯re practically there already, just past that flaming vehicle¡¯ |
¡°We¡¯re there,¡± peeking out of cover, ¡°it¡¯s those stairs that lead downwards¡± Matthew says.
¡°Alright,¡± staying crouched, ¡°Stay behind and provide supporting fire.¡±
¡°Will do Zulu.¡± He frowns.
Taking a breath of air, but choosing not to change to his hyper active state, Zulu bolts out of cover and fires his clip empty before sliding to a halt behind a flaming vehicle for cover.
Reloading his clip that takes him 4 seconds to complete, ¡°They¡¯re pulling back!¡± Matthew shouts moving ahead and steering well clear of the flaming cover.
¡°Sergeant!¡± Zulu shouts seeing him move ahead of himself but gets no response as he fires another shot and stays behind cover that is ahead of himself.
Looking out from behind the Flaming vehicle, Zulu spots a wall of tri-legs protecting a group of six-arms who in turn are protecting one that¡¯s carrying a creature he cannot see.
Opening fire upon another group of tri-legs rapidly approaching, ¡°What are they carrying?¡± he asks out loud.
¡°Sargent!¡± he calls out seeing that that group had no intention of fighting, as he pushes on to meet with him while the last of the approaching tri-legs drop to the ground.
¡°I,¡± Matthew starts to say but stops as both he and Zulu see that the monsters were looking towards them but not reacting towards them, even though they were less than fifty metres away.
¡°Hold your fire.¡± Zulu states grabbing a hold of Matthew¡¯s shotgun to physically prevent him from doing anything. ¡°They¡¯re going to back away.¡±
¡°How do you know that?¡± Matthew tries to wrestle his shotgun out of his hand but fails.
¡°Because,¡± He sees the six-arms argue with one another, ¡°They seem to have gotten what they came for.¡±
A bear like creature suddenly appears out of the stairs that lead down into the ground, standing two heads taller than any of the six-arms, it roars a soundless roar and those around it step back, immediately going quiet they all turn around move off with haste.
¡°What is that?¡± Zulu asks as it turns around and snarls with red blood dripping from its mouth before turning back and leaving.
¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Still trying to wrestle his shotgun out of Zulu¡¯s one hand, ¡°but we need to stop them!¡±
¡°You don¡¯t know?¡± he watches the creature walk upright away
| Name: Not yet classified
Known as: White bear
Facts: Never seen in combat. |
¡°I¡¯ve never seen it before.¡± Giving up on releasing Zulu¡¯s grip upon his shotgun, ¡°but we need to stop them.¡±
¡°Yes, let¡¯s engage with an unknown hostile¡± Zulu replies with a sense of sarcasm then says with a serious tone, ¡°They are leaving and we will wait.¡±
¡°They are leaving with their objective,¡± Matthew emphasise
¡°Their objective is not my objective.¡± Letting go of Matthew¡¯s shotgun, ¡°If you want to stop them, go right ahead, alone.¡±
Looking back to the monsters on the move, ¡°Fine,¡± he sighs admitting to himself that there was no way to stop them.
¡°Good,¡± seeing that the creatures were well clear, ¡°let¡¯s move.¡± Zulu steps out of cover and walks with weapon at the ready, just in case something unexpected were to happen.
Reaching to the top of the stairs, ¡°Isn¡¯t this place an earthquake prone area?¡± he asks looking down the many, many steps that lead to a broken through door.
¡°It is,¡± Matthew replies looking down there as well.
¡°I don¡¯t understand the need for a base to be located here,¡± Walking down the stairs he pauses and looks up behind him, ¡°you¡¯re not coming?¡±
¡°No,¡± Matthew shakes his head at the top of the stairs, ¡°I¡¯ll wait up here.¡±
¡°No,¡± Rubbing his eyebrows with his free hand, ¡°You will go back to the safe zone, you will not disobey this order.¡±
Shifting his stance a bit, ¡°I will.¡± He answers
Squinting his eyes, ¡°You will.¡± Zulu says with a slight sense of distrust before walking down the remaining stairs.
| ¡®I¡¯ve removed him from the possible temporary operations unit member list¡¯ |
¡°Thank you,¡± Zulu says with appreciation, a war junkie was never good thing to have on your team.
Entering past the broken doors which lay upon the ground, the room¡¯s lights were blinking on and off, making it difficult to see. Blood of varies colours lay upon the ground, pieces of tables and chairs stood scattered across the wide room.
Walking past it all he comes to a terminal on the far side of the room, embedded into the wall and next to another passage way with the door broken through.
¡®Plug me into that.¡¯ Ten says reappearing as now he was alone, ¡®I can¡¯t reach it through the main network¡there¡¯s an Air Gap¡¯
Leaning the rifle he holds against the wall, he grabs the wires from his headset and bring it to the terminal, allowing them to dig their way in.
¡°So,¡± Zulu says as he sees numbers and symbols flash across his eye piece, ¡°What is this place?¡±
¡®It¡¯s designated as Facility Zero-Two-Five¡¯ Ten voices, ¡®Subject number One to Hundred are located here, were located here.¡¯ pausing a moment as she looks for more information, ¡®There are no descriptions of any kind.¡¯ she concludes with annoyance
Tilting his head left Zulu peeks past the broken doorway and looks down the long corridor, seeing it clearly with a green tint in one eye whilst the other saw darkness and light altering back and forth, due to the lights continuous flicker. Destroyed doors that lined the corridor could be seen to have been broken into, red blood were smeared across everywhere but no physical body remained present.
¡°How far did the creatures penetrate?¡± he ask picking up his rifle as if expecting something to happen, even though he knows that he is very much alone.
¡®Fourth floor,¡¯ Ten answers, ¡®All subjects from this to that floor have escaped or have been terminated.¡¯
Showing the layout of this underground place 5 levels can be seen to be present, starting at the place he stands there is one passage that travels for 20 metres, leading to another room seeming to be the same size as the one he is currently in. That leading down one level to another perfectly identical one with another passage leading back along the way the previous one came, but just one floor below. This pattern continuing onwards to end at the last level.
¡°All security measures have been destroyed I assume?¡± turning on the flashlight attached to all models of the rifle he holds.
¡®Almost all,¡¯ Ten hovers next to the terminal, looking at the screen despite the fact that she does not need to.
¡°Turn them all off.¡± He tells her
¡®No.¡¯ Answers back without pause.
Opening and closing his mouth, Zulu stops his first reaction going off and instead asks calmly, ¡°Why?¡±
¡®There are people upon the fifth level, along with 20 subjects till in their cells.¡¯ Turning around to see him, ¡®They are in the cells for a reason, I don¡¯t think turning off the security measures are a good idea.¡¯
Finding no fault in her logic, ¡°Then do you know why they are there?¡±
Shaking her head, ¡®As I said, there are no descriptions of any kind.¡¯
¡°Turn the lights of then, the flickering is a pain to see.¡±
¡®Done!¡¯ the lights on all floors go out.
Grabbing the wires attached to the terminal, Zulu puts them back into his head gear and points his rifle with the torchlight down the corridor, prioritizing light over to his left than his right.
Stepping through the doorway a putrid stench fills his noise, ¡°What is that smell?¡± he coughs continuously before taking a step back out and finds there to be no smell in room.
Breathing normally, ¡°Ten?¡± he asks.
Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.
¡®There is no data or description of any kind!¡¯ ten says with full annoyance at not knowing, ¡®Best I can guess is that it¡¯s the subjects that escaped or died?¡¯
¡°It smells worse than a rotting corpse,¡± Zulu takes long deep breaths as he flashes his light over the room, hoping to find a gas mask.
¡®There are no masks,¡¯ Ten comments concluding his unsuccessful search.
¡°At times like this I wish I had one of Zags masks with me.¡± He sighs in disappointment.
¡®You do.¡¯ Ten says sitting on his shoulder and looking downcast, ¡®Well you don¡¯t but there is one at home¡The one she use to use.¡¯
After a moment of silence, ¡°Well then,¡± He points his flashlight back down the corridor, again keeping the light heavily upon his left, ¡°I¡¯ll just dash through.¡± He concludes slightly dissatisfied that he wouldn¡¯t be inspecting each of the cells, as each cell was small.
Being only five levels and each corridor being twenty metres long whilst having twenty cells, each cell couldn¡¯t be any larger than two metres each, barely enough space to stay in. It didn¡¯t follow the regulated prison conventions, well the prison conventions he knew of.
Dashing through the corridor then going down the steps in each room and dashing through another corridor, Zulu finds that each corridor and room to be exactly the same and equally destroyed, each room and corridor equally bloody, despite the amount of blood present no bodies could ever be found.
All this was seen up until the last room upon the fourth floor. Here the doors that lead to the fifth floor had yet to be broken through, though dents and cut marks could easily be seen present.
¡®It looks as if they ran out of time,¡¯ Ten comments examining the markings, ¡®Given another ten minutes I think they would have broken through.¡¯
¡°Well,¡± Zulu puts his rifle down and takes the wires out of his head gear, ¡°You think you¡¯ll be able to open it for me?¡±
Floating around the door as Zulu lets his wires dig into the circuitry of the door, ¡®No, I can¡¯t,¡¯ Ten tells him, surprising Zulu, ¡®The doors too bent and damaged, it¡¯s physically impossible for it to open the way it should.¡¯
Putting his wires away, ¡°So I¡¯ll have to break through.¡± Zulu runs his hands over the damage door, feeling the dents already made, ¡°these feel like they were down with a hand.¡±
¡®Or a paw,¡¯ Ten corrects him, ¡®the White bear like creature probably did this.¡¯
¡°Almost as strong as I am I guess?¡± he asks, trying to compare.
¡®Maybe,¡¯ Ten says, ¡®you can¡¯t tell until you fight it.¡¯
¡°Well then,¡± Zulu finds where he should continue the work of the white bear, ¡°I guess I should get started.¡±
¡®You could just cut your way through,¡¯ Ten says floating sideways left and right.
Smiling at the fact that he did not think of that, ¡°True¡± he pulls out his orange katana.
Planting one foot against the door to make it easier to cut, Zulu slowly pushes his blade into it and see it start to glow red. Pushing it all the way through until the hilt of the sword touches the door Zulu removes his foot from the door and proceeds to draw a perfect vertical ellipse before taking the sword out and letting it dematerialize.
¡®There are people behind the door,¡¯ Ten warns as Zulu as she disappears and he places his left shoulder against the cut piece.
¡°Right,¡± he says as he starts to push and hear the sound of metal screeching against metal before the ultimate sound of heavy metal falling free and hitting the ground. Giving way to light being shine upon his face.
¡°Hold your fire!¡± a man with a headgear that looked like his shouts immediately upon seeing a person and not a monster.
Picking up his rifle Zulu steps through and looks towards the man.
| Name: No Data
Birthdate: No Data
Station: No Data
Aeternus |
¡°Who are you?¡± the man asks with caution as Zulu approaches him.
¡°Who are you?¡± Zulu ask the man in return.
¡°I,¡± the man pauses, ¡°am no one.¡±
¡°Then,¡± Zulu copies his pause perfectly, ¡°I too am no one.¡±
Nodding the man formulates an idea of who Zulu is, ¡°I assume you¡¯re from another Facility,¡± the man waves his hand and the sound of weapons being put away emits throughout the room, ¡°Is it just you?¡±
| ¡®He thinks you¡¯re his equal¡¯ |
Not responding to Ten, ¡°What is the situation here¡¡± He ask lingering on the last word, trying to get a name out of the man.
With a face holding a bit of confusion, ¡°We¡¯ve lost eighty subjects and been periodically moving from room to room, sealing each door as another was destroyed.¡± Looking at the door Zulu just came through, ¡°Did you come from advance weapons?¡±
Tilting his head forward slightly, to give the impression that he is answering the question, ¡°What about the last twenty?¡± he asks the man.
Visually relaxing he raises a hand, ¡°Were you the one that turned off the lights?¡± the man asks not answering
Stying silent for a moment ¡°The flickering made it impossible to see properly upon the upper levels,¡± Zulu answers and makes up a reasonable excuse.
¡°Well,¡± the man scratches his neck, ¡°Could you turn them back on? I¡¯ve been trying to get it working, but whatever you did knocked it right out.¡±
Grabbing his wires from his head gear, he inserts them into the terminal next to the door he just came from.
| Night Vision De-Activated |
¡°There you go,¡± putting the wires away as the lights come on, ¡°So about the last twenty?¡±
¡°They are still locked up in their cells, safe.¡± Motioning his hand at the corridor that held them, ¡°Would you like to see them?¡± he ask
¡°I would,¡± Zulu replies.
¡°Very well,¡± the man moves with ease towards the terminal next to the corridor and opens the door, ¡°Could you leave your weapon here though, don¡¯t need to give the subjects any ideas.¡±
Shaking his head, ¡°I don¡¯t think I can,¡± Zulu answers, ¡°I can¡¯t leave it unattended.¡±
Squinting, ¡°Advance weapons,¡± the man replies, ¡°Stay well away from the cells then.¡±
Nodding at that, Zulu advances past the doorway into the corridor and is pleasantly surprised that there was no smell.
Hearing the sound of buttons being pressed whilst seeing the door shut and lock behind him with only himself and the man in the corridor, ¡°What are you doing?¡± Zulu asks him.
¡°Just a precaution.¡± The man turns back and starts walking down the corridor with Zulu, ¡°I assume you want to see our grand prize and not these here.¡±
Looking through the glass doors as he walks past them, ¡°That I do.¡± Zulu answers as he tries to see through the murky coloured fog that clouds the human like figures, but fails to do so.
¡°The gas in each cell are routinely changed every ten minutes,¡± The man says as he sees Zulu looking at them, ¡°Each gas possesses a horrid smell, so horrid in fact that it cripples them, we change it every ten minutes so that the subjects never get use to them.¡± He says with a hint of pride.
¡°How long do they generally last?¡± Zulu asks, hiding his disdain at their situations.
¡°Generally,¡± the man pauses as he thinks, ¡°a month or two, but our grand prize.¡± The man smiles an unpleasant smile, ¡°It¡¯s lasted for more than a year.¡±
¡°A Year!¡± Zulu lets out a bit of fake amazement, ¡°It must be a spectacular creature.¡±
Letting his unpleasant smile spread out larger, ¡°It truly is,¡± the man starts typing into another terminal, opening the door to the last room.
Stepping through the door and out of the corridor, Zulu finds that this room is different. Thought the dimensions are exactly the same as all the others in the centre of the room stood on gigantic cylinder with the insides clouded with murky fog.
Hearing the door shut and lock, he sees the man move to a terminal right in front and operate it.
¡°This one had a twin when we captured it,¡± the man says as the fog slowly starts to fade, ¡°But the twin escaped whilst this one played a distraction,¡± Sounding tired, ¡°We had just captured it a few days ago, but after today, it¡¯s no longer with us.¡±
With the fog cleared away, a person hanged naked, her arms chined to the ceiling whilst her legs chained to the ground.
¡°It looks almost human,¡± the man laughs, ¡°Doesn¡¯t it.¡±
Nodding slowly, ¡°It doesn¡¯t.¡± Zulu replies taking a step closer only to feel the man place his hand upon his chest.
¡°Your weapon,¡± the man demands, ¡°You¡¯re too close.¡±
Sighing, Zulu just hands him the rifle he holds and steps past him.
The woman had green hair, something any person would think was dyed. Her skin being ghostly pale, she breathed short and haggard breathes, looking weak but alive. If it were not for that one black leathery wings that sprouted out of her right shoulder blade and her eyes that seemed to glow gold, she would have looked completely human.
¡°Was her wing always like that?¡± Zulu asks not quite sure.
¡°Oh no,¡± the man replies, ¡°Its left now resides in another Facility.¡±
Staying quiet a moment as he looks into the eyes of this creature, ¡°Do you ever wonder if what you¡¯re doing is right?¡± he asks finding that her eyes were well and truly alive, holding hatred despite the fact that she has been hanging there for more than a year.
¡°Of course it is,¡± the man answers without hesitation, ¡°Without what we do we would know nothing about these amazing creatures.¡±
¡°Then tell me,¡± Zulu starts to walk around the chamber, ¡°What is it that you¡¯ve found out?¡±
¡°Well,¡± the man says and moves along with Zulu, out of his vision, ¡°For starters these creatures understands everything we say.¡±
¡°So they are not stupid.¡± Zulu says, ¡°But we already know that by the weapons they use.¡±
¡°Yes,¡± the man responds, ¡°But did you know that they speak on a frequency too high for us to hear, and in their own language as well!¡±
Nodding but staying quiet, Zulu stops in front of the creature again, ¡°Do you ever release them?¡± he asks and hears no reply, not turning away from the creature, ¡°Do you ever release them?¡± he asks again.
Zulu feels a stab from a needle with fluids flowing into him, immediately causing him to flinch and strike behind him with his right elbow, knocking the man that injected him.
| Unknown compound entering system |
Grabbing the needle still in his neck he pulls it out and stumbles back against the glass with blurry vision, ¡°What did you just do?¡± he asks looking at the needle now in his hands.
¡°There is no facility in charged of Advance weaponry,¡± the says wiping blood from his lips, ¡°You are an escaped subject.¡±
| Unknown compound being gathered |
Gaining his normal vision back but still feeling a little bit numb, ¡°Stand down now,¡± Zulu states with a hint of anger, ¡°I am no subject.¡±
¡°You are not human.¡± The man says calmly. ¡°I¡¯ve analysed you¡± tapping his headgear that covered his left eye, ¡°You are not human.¡± Standing up. ¡°In a few seconds you will pass out,¡± touching the chamber that the creature with one wing hanged in, ¡°And I¡¯ll be able to play with you too.¡±
| Unknown compound being expulsed |
Feeling the blue coloured drug that had been injected into him coming out of the injected area he feels normal again but pretends to weaken, ¡°You will regret it.¡± Zulu pretends to fall unconscious.
Laughing, ¡°I will not,¡± the man approaches Zulu and grabs him by the collar.
With his collar being grabbed, Zulu opens his eyes with blood red as their colour. Knocking the man¡¯s hands away Zulu grabs him by the neck, in turn standing and holds the man in the air by it.
¡°Impossible!¡± the man gurgles out as he struggles to breath. ¡°Who are you?!¡±
¡°I am not a subject,¡± Zulu slams the man into the ground, making him cough out blood onto Zulu face, ¡°My Unit is Zulu.¡±
Stunned amazement fills the man¡¯s eyes as he hears the word Zulu, before being replaced with one full of panic, ¡°No!¡± the man screams with fear, ¡°You don¡¯t exist!¡± the man screams and screams in fright and horror.
Knocking the man out to silence him Zulu leaves the man on the ground and looks towards the chamber, the creature in it having a curious expression upon her face.
¡®What are you going to do with him?¡¯ Ten says reappearing now and repeatedly stomping the man¡¯s face.
Wiping the blood from his own, ¡°What do you think?¡± he answers her moving towards the terminal that controlled the chamber.
A/N
WHAT IS AN AIR GAP?
An air gap or air wall is a network security measure, also known as air gapping, employed on one or more computers to ensure that a secure computer network is physically isolated from unsecured networks, such as the public Internet or an unsecured local area network. [Grabbed from Wikipedia]
As Always, Thank you for reading and I hope you all enjoyed it ^.^ro
Chapter 33
Chapter 33
As he pushed the lever, the gigantic cylinder chamber started to rise from the ground. Eventually reaching the ceiling and locking in place, separating the inner of it from the outer, where he stood. An airtight chamber.
He pressed the button that the man had previously pushed, which made the gas that had once been sucked out from it re-emerge inside. Only this time the tortured one was different. A man instead of a woman.
¡°How is she?¡± Zulu asked as he watched the prison fill with unknown gasses.
¡®Good, I think.¡¯ Ten replied sitting on his shoulder and facing her. ¡®As good as a one winged creature would be I guess.¡¯
Seeing the man awaken just as the gasses become too thick to see through Zulu smiles and turns to look at the creature.
¡°What is she?¡± he asked making a glowing orange knife materialize in his right hand.
The chains that had bound her had been broken, but her ankles and wrist still had the iron bands. The weight of which was astounding for their size. It wasn¡¯t something that would detriment him, but if he wanted to make this things escape easier, he knew it best to remove them.
And as if she knew what he was thinking, she held out her wrists and waited. She showed no fear, no hesitation in her movements. She was without a doubt alert and awake, even though she seemed extremely frail she did not look weak. Her eyes gleamed gold, sparkling even when light wasn¡¯t too abundant.
¡®Stop staring.¡¯ Ten said
He frowned as he realised that he was. The fact that she had no clothes made him feel even worse. He dropped to his knee as she was sitting on the ground and placed his knife against the iron bands, cutting them with extreme care as to not burn her if he could. He was unsure if her immune system could handle any avoidable problems.
¡°Can you understand me?¡± He asked her but saw that he got no response. Only her stare that remained unwavering.
¡®She can.¡¯ Ten answered. ¡®We were told that.¡¯
¡°I know that Ten.¡± Zulu sighed, annoyed.
¡®You know she thinks you¡¯re talking to yourself.¡¯
Zulu rubbed his forehead with his fingers. ¡°I know you can understand me, you can stop pretending.¡±
He waited and let his knife dematerialize. He knew he could wait. The door to this room was locked and the people on the other side weren¡¯t suspicious of his actions. But no matter how long he waited, it seemed to him that she wasn¡¯t going to react. She was not lifeless. He could tell that she was just waiting too. Her calmness annoyed him and he was in no mood to be treated like this by someone he had just helped.
Eventually giving up on this waiting game, he stood up and brought out the headgear that the man in the chamber was previously wearing. Though it looked similar to his, he could immediately tell that it was vastly different, it served a different purpose to his. This seemed to be used only for easy access of data. It held no direct link to the brain, hence the easy removal from the man¡¯s head.
¡°Ten?¡± he asked.
¡®Connect me¡¯
And he did. Zulu brought the wires from his own and allowed it to break into the circuitry of the machine.
¡°So what can you tell me?¡±
| [¡®There is no A.I¡.Give me a second.¡¯] |
He tightened his grip upon the headgear, but otherwise remained calm in his appearance.
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¡°Tell me when you find something important.¡± He stated and turned around to find that the woman was standing right behind him, her right wing stretched out, expanded. She stood only an inch shorter than he.
Keeping his surprise to himself. Zulu took a simple step back, but found that she took a step forward as he did. Not allowing him to create distance. So he placed his free hand on her shoulder, and gave a gentle push¡which sent her tumbling to the ground.
She was weak he remembered, and instead of helping her he simply watched as she moved back into a sitting posture, staring at him. She was trying to do something, he could tell, but he just couldn¡¯t figure out what. Not that that was the first problem he had.
Knowing that he would soon get a full rundown of this place, destroying it was one of the first things he wanted to do. He smiled thinking about how the President would react. Would he be happy, probably not.
Having just replaced her with what seemed to be the head of the facility in the chamber he knew he had two options. Kill her along with all of the others imprisoned, as death would be better than living, as well as kill the soldiers that were in the other room.
Or he could free this one, and others that wanted to live, giving them the chance to run from this place and still kill the soldiers in the other room. Though he highly doubted any of them could possibly move too far. Considering how weak this one here was.
Either way he had to kill the soldiers, that was a given. And it made him mad, mad at himself.
He had acted partially on impulse, on emotion, not logic. He knew that he had every right in putting the man in the chamber, for the man had attacked him, but he could have simply left him when the man recognised him for what he was. A Zulu. He did not regret his action though, he simply disliked the reasons that lead him to them.
| [¡®This place is what you suspected.¡¯] |
¡°An experiments lab.¡± He said out-loud, hatred in his voice. ¡°How many others are there?¡±
¡®It doesn¡¯t say.¡¯ Ten appears hovering near him. ¡®But there seems to be at least a dozen.¡¯
¡°tch¡± Zulu scoffed and picked up the rifle the man had confiscated from him. ¡°Locations?¡±
¡®No data.¡¯ Ten replied. ¡®But they report to the President.¡¯
Zulu looked at the woman still waiting on the ground. ¡°You have two choices.¡± He said to her. ¡°Die now, or make a run for it when I clear out the rooms.¡± He paused a second and raised the muzzle of his rifle to the woman¡¯s head. ¡°I will not kill all those on base to help you.¡±
The woman pushed the muzzle away from her forehead. Indicating to him what she wanted. He gave a slight smile, he knew that she would. ¡°Wait till the lights comeback on.¡± He said to her and walked over to the locked door.
A/N
Hello All,
Chapter''s relatively short, sorry for that. It''s going to take a while to get back into writing.
it''s been a damn long time. Still have note for this story, so it hasn''t changed.
To those that are still reading, Thank you for coming back.
To those that are new, thank you for reading.
And to all the others that skipped to the last chapter. Go back and read :P
Chapter 34 - Matthew
Chapter 33 - Matthew 02
Standing at the entrance to the facility, Matthew waited even though he was told to go back. With his shotgun at his side, hours had past and the moon was high in the sky. The dead bodies that laid around him did nothing to deter him from where he stood, for he put them there whilst the Zulu was underground, he defended the entrance.
Checking the number of shots he had left again ¡°Screw it,¡± he mumbled and took the steps leading down into the facility. He hated this place, he did not fear it, only hated it. He knew along with everybody else what this facility was for. Research and development. That¡¯s what people said.
Logically no one should have feared it nor despised it, it was for the betterment of their knowledge and knowledge was power. But the people who went in, never came out the same¡if they ever came out that was. Always more serious, always more angry.
He himself had once spent time in one of these facilities and he would never forget it. Though the few that knew him claimed that he did not change. A battle crazed maniac who looks for the thrill of a battle.
But that was only because they never saw him alone, never heard his own thought. He wished to die, but he did not want to die meaninglessly. Dying would be easier than living with what he¡¯s done, but he couldn¡¯t let himself just drop, he didn¡¯t deserve an easy end. One of the few that ever left he knew better than most what happened in them. He knew things about these places that he didn''t want others to know he knew.
Like for example the experiments weren¡¯t only done on monsters, but disgruntled workers, law breakers and a few lucky souls. If he could, he would destroy these places but he couldn¡¯t. He believed no one shared his view. That majority of people believed the price for knowledge was well and truly worth it. But if people could see what he saw, they could change their minds, but they never would.
Passing through the first doorway, he looked out at all the blood of various colours sprayed across the floor. With the lights constantly turning on and off it gave off an eerie feeling, which only brought back memories of his time working in one of these. Memories he wish he could forget.
He walked straight up to the first terminal located to the side of the room and pushed a few buttons. He needed some information that he could only get here. There were people he knew, people he was fond of that were sent to other facilities. Trying to but failing to activate it, ¡°Damn it!¡± he yelled and shot the screen with his shotgun.
He looked down the long corridor and wondered if the Zulu would kill him for not going back? He secretly hoped he would. He did say that he wasn¡¯t going to obey his command. Either way he loaded one shell into his shotgun.
Holding his breath and turning on a flashlight he had attached to his shotgun he ran through the corridor. Not caring at the condition of any of the open broken rooms, he reached the next terminal and activated it successfully.
Surprised at the fact that the encryption was already broken, he smiled and searched for what he wanted but found that the terminal did not have access to it. Making him remember that with each level the data available became more accessible, and that for the best chance of him to get what he wanted he needed to get to the lower floors.
¡°I should¡¯ve just followed the Zulu down.¡± he mumbled to himself, forgetting about the number of beasts he killed alone upstairs.
He soon descended the floors in quick succession stopping on the forth. Not having seen the Zulu on any of the previous floors it was obvious that he was on the fifth. He turned on the computer and placed his shotgun beside him. Without encryption he went straight for the information he wanted. A list of the dead. He knew more than likely what he would find, but he needed confirmation.
Scrolling through the names, it occurred to him that it was strange how the facility chose to keep them recorded. Some way to remember those that¡¯s been sacrificed. A stupid way to remember them by he thought. With the way they were treated, it would¡¯ve be better if they weren¡¯t remembered at all. A list of the tortured, a list of the damned. Citizens thrown in with monsters and abandoned by their own people.
The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
¡°Why isn¡¯t there a stupid search function?¡± Matthew rubbed his eyes after going through over five-hundred names that began with the letter M. As he looked back to the screen it, along with the flickering lights in the room went black.
He instantly grabbed his shotgun and dived to the ground, twisting the torch as he dropped. He landed in darkness whilst hearing gunshots, screeching metal and screams radiating from the level below him. Almost as quickly it all started it ended and the lights came back on.
Staying low on the ground due to curiosity, not fear, he crawled to the steps that lead to the fifth floor. He knew he should¡¯ve left, the gunshots and screeches could only have been caused by the Zulu, but he needed see.
Down below he couldn¡¯t see much. With how the walls were positioned he only saw one, the first, dead body in the facility. Not that of a beast, but that of a humans. With blood still pouring out, the man was well and truly dead, but Matthew now knew that the Zulu wasn¡¯t killing monsters but people instead. People of the facility. Something he¡¯s wanted to do for a long, long time.
¡°Time to leave.¡± He said to himself getting to his knees, but not so fast that he did not see the Zulu appear, followed quickly by that of a one winged creature that seemed to sense his eyes on her.
¡°You!¡± the Zulu bellowed jumping up the steps before Matthew could react and kicking him in the chest. ¡°I told you to leave.¡± He said with his foot on Matthews¡¯s chest.
¡°And I said I wouldn¡¯t.¡± Matthew spat out blood with a smile.
¡°You said that you would.¡± The Zulu pushed his muzzle down on the arm that Matthew held his shotgun with. Stopping the use of it.
¡°I said I would disobey your order.¡± Matthew¡¯s eyes wondered towards the one winged creature, woman. ¡°You¡¯re freeing the monsters.¡±
¡°I¡¯m freeing them from monsters.¡± The Zulu increased his weight on his chest, cracking two of his ribs, then pulled back. ¡°What are you doing here?¡±
¡°You know.¡± He smiled a bloody smile looking back to The Zulu. ¡°You¡¯re not as scary as I thought you¡¯ll be.¡±
The Zulu squinted his eyes.
¡°You¡¯re too reasonable.¡± Matthew continued. ¡°I¡¯ve pushed you and you¡¯ve never pushed back.¡±
¡°Even now as I lay under your feet.¡± He wriggled his arm that was pinned by his rifle. ¡°You still wait for answers, still believe that I have reasons for what I do.¡±
¡°Martha and Nora are both dead.¡± The Zulu announced as if he were marking a roll.
Not pausing for a second, despite getting confirmation on what he wanted to know. ¡°It¡¯s like you¡¯re na?ve.¡± Matthew continued. ¡°Young and still in ne..¡± Matthew received a kick in the jaw.
¡°Is death what you wish for?¡± The Zulu asked.
¡°Would.¡± Matthew coughed. ¡°You give it to me if it were?¡±
The Zulu took his foot of Matthews¡¯s chest but kept his firing arm pinned to the ground. ¡°You¡¯ll get it soon enough.¡± He answered after a short time.
As Matthew moved to sit up. ¡°But not from you.¡± Matthew said and felt the hard end of a rifle hit him hard in the head.
A/N
Thank you all for the welcome back! Happy to see that you all are still reading.
Unsure if i should''ve put this chapter of Matthew up. Though it is developing his character, is it too much of a change from what you know of him? Does his reasoning make any sense at all? I see sense in it, but it''s a weird, somewhat crazy kind of sense.
Next chapter will be back to Zulu''s P.O.V (Unless i can''t move forward without having a Staci chapter.)
@j0nn0
You''re a Mod now?! Congrats! Times do change ~
And as always, Thank you all for reading, hope you''ve enjoyed the chapter.