I slipped from the townhall's main entrance and immediately ducked behind the pair of crates to my left, which I had used to conceal my initial entry. The two agents were further up ahead, playing a game of crazy eight. They had been at that before I arrived, while I was in there, and I never saw how long they did afterward-simply very strange. A very easy infiltration for my skill set, but my bruised ribcage and hindered arm appreciated the ease.
It was quite simple from there, I just had to get far enough to be confused as just a wandering camp resident. I rushed past another box of equipment and sprinted low to the ground until I made it behind a house. After straightening my jacket and composing my posture, I stepped out behind the house with confidence and pretended to always have been there. I don't even think they looked at me, but I didn't want to raise the suspicion of checking behind my back.
When I was far enough away, I looked around myself once more, then collapsed against the side of a building. A deep sigh, followed by me letting my head hit the wall and view drift to the sky, started a thought process I had tried to suppress until I got home. I had come here to collect information, compare stories, and to see them for myself. But now?
It was a simple fact at the beginning, they had murdered us then surrendered. Easy solution, just have them executed formally. But what that viper told me, with more than her words, was weighing heavy on my mind. Mind control, surely a very strange subject. One that I was in the process of trying to fit into my view of the world and its new inhabitants. And worst of all: it made sense.
Communications about enemy positions, predicting movement, near-flawless adaptation, all of these factors could be explained if they had the power to instantly and silently communicate with one another. If there were these alien overlords, the elders, that put these controls in place, then they had complete and utter control of every aspect of their army.
Now the only problem was, did the snake's story line up with real events. Of course, I had a direct source of information about the global events, but I really didn't feel like talking to doctor Kura. But perhaps a conversation with one of the agents or even Emir could put light into my situation. The latter, however, might entail a different problem. Emir was smart and suspicious, a dangerous combination. Nevertheless, he was probably the safer option.
That was the plan, prepare to make a swift exit, after talking to Emir. Simple in theory, but a lot of variables that I didn't want to deal with. The viper was a big part of my current unease, everything about her screamed utter fear and confusion, but perhaps that was all an act I hadn't looked past. On the other hand, the humans of the camp and these strange agents were becoming more and more of a liability. I spent all those years, trying to fit into this new society, failing to make friends, never making it past myself, and now I was on the precipice of making a series of quick decisions, based on uncertain information.
'What the fuck am I doing?' I rubbed over my eyelids, trying to dissipate the pressure in my head. The swimming stars and patterns eventually made way for morning light again and I shook my head while sighing deeply.
It took me a while before I managed to get back up and continue my journey back home. I passed a few groups of residents, who were strangely cheerful, despite the topics of lost livelihoods. But along the outer layers of the ruined camp were a lot fewer people, so I was alone when I reached the burned silhouette of my old house.
I had spent a lot of my life here, built it from scratch, bartered for furniture and possessions, set up decorations. That was when I thought I could spend my life this way. A few years back, when the fight from Xcom reached the point where everyone should have seen them as what they were, just a bunch of insane people who couldn't accept that we had lost, I began to lose that mindset.
Everything became unnecessary, life felt exhausting, interacting with others was just a constant repeat of the same topics, with the same arguments, with the same goddamn idiocy. Frustration turned to constant annoyance, which shifted my mind back to the pre-war acts I had done, leading to me becoming very, very tired of just existing. I had never been allowed to just exist; and when I finally did, I didn't like it.
I pulled the metal lockbox and grabbed my backpack. I'd still have to get at least one weapon from the armory since I didn't wake up with my M4 or pistol anywhere nearby. Those relics were either destroyed or confiscated, both options left me with the choice of asking and potentially blowing my plan to leave, or at the very least, raising suspicion.
I threw the backpack over my shoulder and made my way back towards the camp's center. This time, I was more on edge, flicking between the eyes and hands of every person I passed. The heavy rucksack on my back definitely raised a few prying eyes, but my fast-paced walking and unfriendly demeanor warded off any direct questions or accusations.
The armory was at the edge of the innermost circle, a metal reinforced building, with a set of heavy garage doors to the front. A shop window was the public access point, where weapons, ammunition, and other such supplies were handed out to the registered residents. I normally kept most of my personal possessions of that category in my home, only a small number of my personal spare weaponry was stored here.
I approached the metal frame and knocked against the sheet metal latch. It took a few more moments, in which I observed the chipped-off edges and numerous bullet holes in the house's exterior before the window was pulled upwards from the other side.
"Hey, Luis," I was greeted by the surprised visage of a young man. "Been a while since I've seen you around."
"Hi Max, yeah, I guess so," I rubbed the back of my head.
"So, where are you planning on going?" he leaned onto his elbows and looked me up and down, lingering on my rucksack for a small while.
"Not really sure yet, I'm just here to clear out my inventory. You don't happen to have my M4 or my M119 in there," I tried to shift the subject to whatever would close out this interaction quickest.
"Oh, you lost them in yesterday's slaughter?" Somehow, he sounded disinterested, despite the fact that his parents had probably suffered in the outer fields.
"Yeah, I passed out and no one's bothered to tell me if they even found the two," I chose to go along with his lightheartedness.
"Let me check," he shut the window and I heard him rummaging through metallic crates. He pulled something heavy, accidentally spilled a box of ammunition, and eventually emerged once more, with an apologetic look on his face.
"Sorry, nothing in here. Feel free to get some of your other stuff, I doubt that we will come back here." He handed me a handwritten list, at the bottom of which I had signed. A small listing of ammo, two pistols, an old AK12, and the MP5 I had won during one of the camp's shooting competitions.
"Yeah, good idea," I pretended like this wasn't my plan from the start. "Give me a few mags for the MP5 and one of those pistols, then I'll be out of your way."
"Sure," the latch sealed again. This time, it only took a few moments, before he reappeared, a slick case now on the counter, with the silver body of a Glock at the side.
"One question first," he deliberately kept the weapons out of reach, forcing me to humor whatever he wanted to know.
"You aren't joining Xcom, right?" I did my very best to not roll my eyes, why was everyone so obsessed with joining these crazy idiots?
"No, I am not," I replied simply, keeping eye contact.
"Any reason?" He prodded further.
"Yes."
"You gonna tell me?" He was clearly not getting it, or maybe he was just trying to aggravate me.
"I just haven't decided yet," I relented and Max smiled.
Finally, he pushed the black case, containing my disassembled submachine gun, beneath the exchange slit at the bottom, along with a tied-together bundle of mags.
"But you'll be at the meeting tonight, right?" He asked as I put the equipment into my bag.
"What meeting, I was out cold until a couple of hours ago," I cocked my head, normally I was invited to any important event right away, not that any of this was normal.
"Something about the Advent things that we keep in the townhall, everyone's excited, grabbing guns and the sort. I figured you were among them," he continued to see if I'd let slip anything.
"Oh, yeah I guess I'm coming," I made myself sound dismissive, despite the fact that my mind was racing as to the implications of his statement.
"Good, I hope you change your mind," Max finalized and said his goodbyes shortly after.
I returned the gesture out of thanks for not making my departure that much more difficult, then turned away and began to head to the western exit. Originally, I would have left during the day, be past the river in that direction before the end of the night, but that meeting Max mentioned was beyond intriguing.
I made sure no one followed me, by ducking behind buildings, using the tighter alleyways as cover, and then made a short sprint outside the outer ring and into the pine forest. The midday sun hung above, slightly obscured by grey clouds, that moved quickly in the heavy winds. The treetops were swaying from side heavily, throwing the little spiky pines on top of me. I walked along the trodden path until I reached a crossroad, marked by a particularly thick tree.
I went off the pathway about a dozen meters, then began to dig a small hole behind a tree. Not deep, simply an outcropping, in which I placed my backpack. Next, I sat down and assembled the detachable parts of my machine gun, then checked the mags. I had a total of one hundred and fifty rounds, split into five magazines. Along with three clips of hollow-point rounds and a singular magazine of MAG slugs for my pistol. I loaded the handgun then hid the sidearm in my belt. I put the SMG in the bag, which I placed in the hole, then ripped off a few branches from nearby bushes and trees to cover the equipment.
Once again, I checked my surroundings. Only trees, no movement, enough natural noise, and small critters about that would have alerted me to anything nearby. But nothing disturbed my way back.
The feel of the entire camp was...odd, to say the least.
There were still the grieving families, distraught people, and the overall knowledge that all this would end within the next few days. But other than the small groups of quietly muttering humans, the rest seemed just as cheerful as the ones before. Everyone had some version of a smirk on their faces, carried at least a bit of levity in their conversation. I avoided becoming part of these talks, trying to drown out the increasingly strange atmosphere with thoughts as to where I would actually go after today.
The river to the west was the obvious choice. I would follow it downstream for a few days, see if I find a spot to set up a small campsite. From there, I would see what I thought of the hermit lifestyle I had avoided all these years. And if I didn't, there were now a few spare bullets in my pockets. I made my way to the mess hall, hoping to grab whatever food I could before I'd have to live off of wild berries, hunted animals, and foraged plants again.
The square building at the edge of the second-inner circle had collapsed on one side, the wall caved inwards. Instead of sealing or covering it, however, the hole was simply stabilized and turned into the new entrance. One of the wooden tables was occupied by residents and a group of three agents, two of which I recognized as the aliens' guards. I grabbed a plate and took from the laid-out food, which wasn't served by anyone anymore, probably cause she was dead. Nevertheless, I grabbed the portion for afternoon and evening, guessing that I wouldn't be able to come back for dinner.
I glanced over the room, which was very brightly lit in comparison to what it used to be, thanks to the lack of an eastern wall. I took the table next to the group, not wanting to draw suspicion, while having my back turned to them served the secondary purpose of eavesdropping.
Maybe it was because everything about that day had made me mentally prepare for impending danger. This constant edge to my vision, the pain in my body, and the questions in my mind served to throw a lot of my thoughts into the background, making way for conditioned responses. In a way, I was losing control over certain decisions, but gaining a sensory advantage.
I began to eat, chewing as quietly as possible while letting my posture relax. I took a breath in and focused on whatever was behind me.
"So you're actually gonna give ´em to us?" A man, whose accent I knew to be Siberian, continued a series of questions to the agents.
"There will be a vote, after that, it is still our commander's choice," one of the agents replied matter of factly.
"What about those mutons and the skinny ones," another chimed in, while still chewing on a piece of meat.
"That was a test run, plus, the mutons would have been trouble later. The others were...collateral damage and shooting practice." The agent from before had a fucking grin on his face, I could hear it in his voice.
I couldn't stop a reaction at that point, maybe I had gotten soft. I whitened my knuckles against my knife while staring a hole into the filet piece, as the full extent of this situation hit me.
"Just shows that these things will do anything you tell them," another indistinguishable voice chuckled in amusement.
"Gonna get what's coming to them," a woman scoffed bitterly.
I scolded the aliens mentally, before putting part of the blame on myself. If I had understood it sooner, if I had asked better questions, then I would have had more time. Time, I needed time for a plan.
What plan? Free the aliens and run? No, stupid. Go to the meeting and somehow convince everyone to stand down, with a series of logical and realistic points, about the aliens possessing at least human-level sentient? Who would honestly listen, they were out for blood.
'Emir would listen to me.'
Perhaps the only chance I had at using the information I had gathered. The man was the leader for a reason, the biggest of which was that he could get into a civilized discussion. With Xcom around as well, he was potentially the only one who could influence anything anymore. People respected him, even if he went against the agents, I doubted that the camp would turn on him. But how would I convince him of anything?
'Hey Emir, I snuck into the one place you told me not to go and talked to one of the aliens, who, by the way, know how to undo their restraints, and I really believe that they were controlled by an all-powerful race of space-wizards.' Yeah, that sounds about right up my alley.
Fuck, when did I forget how to talk to people in a convincing manner, wasn't this exactly what I was trained for? Analyze a situation and its participants and find the best possible solution. Yet here I was, going through one unrealistic conversation after another, never landing on phrasing that wouldn't immediately sound utterly nuts or reveal the fact that I had more knowledge than I had admitted.
What even was my goal here? Convince every last one of the residents that their loss was excusable by saying they were not in control of themselves? The only reason I even considered trying to change the aliens' situation, was because I had seen their fear face to scaly face. But how many others would see this same truthfulness? I had spotted something that I found worthy of sympathy, perhaps because I hadn't lost that much yesterday, or maybe because I felt pity.
Either way, if I tried to help the aliens, it would need to be from a distance. I still needed to leave, that was my highest priority and if I could help bring light into a dark situation, then I would have achieved everything I wanted to.
"I want one of those fucking snakes, the vipers," the woman from before continued her bitter remarks.
"Just wait your turn, nothing's confirmed yet," the agent dismissed.
I finished my vacant stare and scarfed down the rest of my meal, as the conversation behind me derailed into a topic I didn't need to listen to. Without looming at the group, I left my table and put the dirty tray on the shelf next to the new exit.
The afternoon was announced by an overcast sky, behind which the sun fought to break the dark clouds. I considered going straight to Emir since I needed to talk to him before the meeting started. But another idea had come to mind.
I took the same path as last time and arrived at the edge of the townhall shortly. A different set of guards were sitting on the chairs, still not very observant, but they were not playing cards. The doors were once again only leaned closed, so I slipped inside without any noise.
I was spotted right away this time, as the viper's head turned toward me. She had her muzzle back on, giving her snout this weirdly flat form. The overly humanoid facial features on the serpentine visage were nothing short of unnerving at that moment, cheeks, eyebrows, scaly lips, and intelligent eyes. Granted, her eyes were blue slits, and the long snout and massive fame made the alien origins clear. However, the manner she spoke in, the expressiveness of her face and eyes, only confirmed previous suspicions.
I motioned to keep quiet, as I approached slowly. This time, thanks to the proximity of the guards outside, I chose to kneel down instead of using the chair. Her long head tracked me the whole way, her eyes attempting to look into my possible intent. I, however, was a closed book for even experienced interrogators, so I was certain that the alien snake had no way of knowing what I was here for.
"I have something to tell you, can you take that thing off?" I started with a friendly demeanor.
She nodded and began fumbling with the muzzle, using her four-fingered, or rather clawed, hands. When I was forced to simply observe, I noticed that she repeated movements multiple times, without any effect. A low hiss sounded from her closed mouth and I took note of the fact that she broke eye contact. Was she embarrassed?
Finally, the strap clicked and fell into her slender digits. The viper flashed me a look, that I simply lacked the knowledge about her anatomy to put onto a single emotion.
"Alright," I started and she matched my height by lowering herself onto a layer of her own body. "I have bad news," her demeanor immediately shifted.
"There will be a vote in the evening, during which your fate will be decided."
"And the residents outnumber the agents many times over," she finished my assessment.
"Quick learner," I complimented.
"And they all want us dead, correct?" She continued, raising one of her scaly eyebrows. This gesture was a very interesting one since it was distinctly human in meaning. Well, or it could be from her own kin's culture.
"That seems to be the general attitude from everyone," I surmised.
"But the agents will get us out, they must be tricking them, keep us safe and-" The viper began mumbling and I rolled my eyes.
"Don't you get it, they are fucking with you. The agents don't care about any of you, they'd rather give you up to get new and loyal recruits out of us." The serpent paused and looked upon me with a fearful expression, that still carried a level of doubt.
"They took a few of you, the mutons, away, right?" I motioned to the empty cages.
"Yes, they were going to be transported to their base, out of harm's way," the viper explained.
"Did you hear their skyranger take off at all in the past day?" I leaned my head to the side at an angle and watched, as her slitted pupils went almost as wide as a human's would.
"B-but they said that Xcom ordered a seize fire, why would they break their own rules?" The question seemed posed toward the empty air.
"They did?" I repeated with a furrowed brow. "What was their wording and who said that?: I quickly latched onto the discrepancy I had just discovered.
"The woman, the scientist in charge. She said that they had made a mistake due to not being up to date and that no one wants to mess with Xcom and their rule of not shooting aliens on sight." She paused repeatedly before certain words, which I had figured was just her trying to recall the exact phrasing.
"And they referred to Xcom as a separate entity the entire time," I mumbled to myself and the viper nodded in confirmation.
Then it clicked. The uniforms, the general way they acted, their weaponry, and everything else.
"These guys aren't Xcom," I concluded out loud.
"What?"
"They are pretending to be Xcom, so everyone will just go along with them. The equipment isn't anywhere near the technology Xcom has, the way they're acting with everyone, and these agents already looked like regular old scavengers. But how did they get a skyranger..." I trailed off.
"You have to help us, then," the snake burst my latest train of thought with her desperate-sounding plea.
"Do I?" I squinted back at her.
I will say this, I feel bad for what I did here, I said what I said and did what I did, but it was a different story back then. I was concerned with my own survival, double so now that I knew I was trapped in a camp with a few dozen of armed soldiers, pretending to be a military defense force. And the aliens had been the enemy for thirteen years. But here we are again, me and hindsight, what a wonderful mixture of regret.
The serpent's look was one of utter horror, mixed with...betrayal?
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"Yes you do, just...open the cages and show us in which direction to go. We can even split up after we are out of danger, you'll never see us again, I promise," she began to sound more and more distraught and desperate.
"The only thing I'll get by doing that is a bullet in the gut and a hunt for the lot of you. No, I am not going to do that," I concluded.
"At least open the cages, give us a chance to make it alone," her tail was beginning to sway back and forth and I took a precautionary step back.
"These locks are bear-proof, without the key, I won't be able to do shit to them unless you want the entire camp in here." I glanced down at the metal construct; stainless steel, at least five pins, thick and heavy, there was no way anything I had on me at that moment could help.
"I...you need...I-I..." No words emerged from her hanging maw, only heavy panting, that increased quickly. Her eyes shifted frantically, the thick tail beat nervously against the floor, while her entire body began to shake. The snake was having a goddamn panic attack, I recognized the hyperventilating, the endless wave of incoherent thought. The first sting of guilt hit at that moment, I knew how she felt. And I felt sorry.
"Hey," I got her attention again and looked into the uncertain blue pupils. "If today's meeting is actually more than just semantics, I will help you in any way I can. There is a person that has enough authority to change this entire ordeal, it will come down to if he believes me." Her expression softened slightly, but I had to make sure she understood that, "This is a big if, by the way. The only reason I even consider helping you is that I hope that you are intelligent enough to understand what the consequences of lying at this point are." Perhaps still a little mean, but I still couldn't take the chance.
"I have not lied to you," she hastily interjected.
"Let's hope the others believe that as well," I rose to my feet again and she followed me up.
"How long do you think it will take before you know if we will be killed?" The snake threw out, as I began to leave. Once again, I noticed the other aliens staring at me.
"You're trying to gauge when it will be time for you to try and break out on your own, correct?" I called her seemingly innocent question as what it was, an assurance.
I noticed the shift of her eyes, confirming that she had just been caught. "But you understand?" She countered with another question. And to think she asked for permission just hours ago, she was either getting desperate, bold, or comfortable; presumedly the first, considering her shaky voice.
"The camp announces meetings via the sirens, I believe you know the sound. Do not do anything that would compromise my attempt at help until then, after it, try whatever you feel like. And if you actually get out, just run as far as you can into the forest," I advised, though I figured that any more tips would just encourage irrational actions.
"You're still not going to tell me your name, right?" The viper scoffed.
"Like I said, we'll get to that," I returned the gesture and stepped away.
The way out was just as easy as the way in, though I was not less careful regardless. Judging by the sun, it was turning toward the late afternoon. Depending on the definition of evening, the meeting could happen very soon, I had to hurry. Not entirely sure where the camp's leader would be, I began my search near the medical tent, where I had first woken up.
The people in this area were more worn down, laying on stretchers or crouching against walls. Many missed limbs, only stained cloth concealing the wounds, while essentially everyone had many cuts or burns. I was stared at like a rookie stepping into the barracks for the first time, as I began to make my way to the tent. If Emir was actually around here, I would probably have to check multiple tents.
I walked in on an unexpected sight: the bull-like frame of Taren laid on top of a bed. He had been in the process of eating something out of a bowl, but his entire body seized its motion. A tiny moment in reality, but more than enough to consider my options and assessing the situation. There was no way he could catch me before I reached the other side of the medical center unless he sprung up and managed to grab onto me. Despite my damaged body, I felt close to certain that I could win another fight with him. Whatever he could come up with, I was ready for anything.
"What are you doing in here?" Anything but him just calmly asking a question.
My mind took a pause, as the sudden, cold shock of adrenaline entered my system and left promptly after. I blinked the last bit of the electrical current out of my body, before finally managing to focus.
"I...I'm searching Emir." Finally, my composure returned.
"He was there when I woke up, don't know where he is now. Maybe with that Kurna or Konu, whatever, the lady scientist from Xcom," Taren squinted into the upper left corner of his eye, confirming that he was telling the truth.
I was still very taken aback by his sudden calm demeanor, but I was thankful for the information. I spun on my heel and immediately returned to thinking of how I should approach the following confrontation. Emir was with doctor Kura, the one person I needed to truly avoid. The biggest subject of our discussion had to be the fact that they were being recruited by impostors, which I could then use to get onto the point about the aliens. The aliens would be a more difficult job to make work, however.
"Hey, where are you going?" Taren managed to once again interrupt my thoughts.
"Going to see Emir, I thought you could guess that by my question," I really didn't want to humor him any longer, I had important work to do.
"I mean...yeah. I figured you wanted to talk to me, the way you barged in and all," his voice carried no hint of jesting tone or any other inconsistencies that would betray this as a joke.
"Why would I want to talk to you, pretty sure I put you in here," my bewildered expression scrounged my words a little, as I looked the man over. He carried no plasma wounds, only burn marks on his upper shoulder, nor was he missing any limbs.
"Yeah, you did," he righted his posture. "I am not mad you beat my ass, I know when I step out of line and I'm sorry about what I said." I couldn't believe my ears. "But you beat me so fucking bad that I could barely stand when the freaks attacked. I couldn't help them, I could do nothing," his voice staggered and wavered, he was actually beginning to tear up.
I was left standing out in the open, squinting in disbelief at the man pouring his heart out, until I managed to get back into some semblance of urgency. I finalized by shaking my head and finally exited the tent. The man yelled something through his whimpering, but I was already back in my mind.
Finding the scientist was easy, as I figured she was probably near their skyranger. The massive hovercraft was an odd sight to behold, as its bright white color contrasted the burnt background, while the rounded corners and sleek design had defined alien touches. The metal ramp had been lowered to the ground, the agents walking in and out, while residents were being shown around the interior. Without a way to approach more concealed, I took a purposeful stride through the landing zone, as if I knew where I was going.
And eventually, I found my target. Sadly, the olive-skinned man was still with doctor Kura. 'Too late to back out now.'
Emir immediately spotted me from his peripheral vision and turned to face me. At first, there was a cocked eyebrow, signaling me a curious inquiry, but that gesture turned into a slightly concerned look towards the woman to his left. I didn't even look at the woman and headed straight for the leader, immediately locking eyes with him.
"Emir, I would like to talk to you urgently," I stopped a few meters in front of the pair.
"What's this about?" I suppressed the barrel-roll my eyes wanted to perform.
"A private matter," I shot a quick glance at the doctor next to me, who was certainly staring back.
"Doctor Kura," Emir turned to her, flashing a professional smile. "If you would excuse us for just a moment, I will be right back."
"If you understood the matter we had been discussing, I do not expect to see you back until the meeting, you are dismissed," she glared at me for a moment, before stomping off towards a group of agents.
Emir nodded in response, then turned to me. "Come on," he quickly picked up the pace and I was partly grateful that he handled it rather effectively.
No words were spoken during our walk, leaving me with even more winding moments before the confrontation I had been preparing for the entire day. What I would say in this conversation would change the lives of many, maybe not all for the better, but it needed to happen. Many stared at us, as we strode through the pathways and back to the upper circle. Emir's hut was mostly undamaged, only one of the side windows was smashed. But it had a locking door and was far enough away from people to avoid a feasible eavesdrop. I let the man enter first, checking around us once more at the door, before entering and locking it.
Still rather dimly lit, like a lot of the camp, by the open fire of a torch. His table was still in the center of the room, two chairs opposite each other. I was about to try and take the same seat like all the other times I had been in here, but Emir had already sat down facing the door. I leaned my head slightly at the change of seating, not only because it was unusual, but also that my back would face the door once I sat down.
Regardless of my paranoid mind, I took the chair and leaned onto the table with my elbows. Only the sound of the fire flickering, with the occasional voice outside, hung in the air. Emir and I were simply eyeing each other, gauging the other's reaction, waiting to break the silence, while making it clear that this was beyond serious.
"Emir, they're lying to you," I began after a sigh.
He didn't respond, simply breathing in deeply and leaning back against his chair, showing that he understood.
"They claim they're Xcom, maybe some of them even believe they are, but they are actually some unrelated group. They see this as an opportunity to recruit people who have nowhere to go, by promising a revenge slaughter towards the aliens." I admit, not perfect, but it seemed to get the point across.
Emir was one of those people I knew I couldn't read consistently, which had furthered my assumption that he had also been some sort of spec-ops. But at that moment, I spotted a dead giveaway, his eyes going to the upper left side of his field of view, he was remembering something, or comparing my statement to a memory. I didn't talk, letting him take his time to think.
"How did you figure this out?" His voice carried almost no hint of intent or emotion, something which unnerved me.
"They mentioned a seize fire towards alien units, there, they admitted that Xcom was a separate entity on accident. Their entire spiel is that they pretend to look like them, so that everyone follows their orders," despite the fact that I was intentionally keeping my voice down, I was certain he followed every word carefully.
"When did they admit that?" He followed up while raising a brow.
"Why are you doubting me?"
"Because that's my job, who told they said that?" He crossed his arms at the stomach and leaned backward.
"Someone I trust," I remained unfazed by his accusatory gaze.
"And who is that someone?" He was willing to follow this line of thought and there was no stopping him.
I didn't respond.
"Because you have been spotted coming from the townhall today," somewhere between the resolute nature of the man, there was unsteadiness in his voice. "Luis, what happened in there?"
I did my very damned best not to react, not to sink into a hole with no bottom, crawl away into my thoughts. 'Fuck, when did I start panicking like this. I was better at it before, right?'
Who had spotted me? Did they hear in on us? No, he wouldn't need to ask what was said, unless he is trying to lock me into a false narrative. Why hadn't I noticed that I had been spotted? Maybe I had just become that bad at what I was trained to do, maybe the agents were better trained than I had initially thought. Was Emir working with them, did he lure me here and distract me while the others took care of the aliens?
"Luis," Emir spoke softly but reprimanding.
I snapped my vision back to the brown-eyed man and took another second to order my thoughts. This would have to lead to some kind of confession.
"I talked to them," I started small, I would let him lead the conversation, so I wouldn't let go of information he didn't have.
"Which ones?" He hadn't looked away from me since the start of his confrontation. If I hadn't been so on edge, I would be impressed.
"Just the one," it was difficult not to completely let my fears take over, so I chose to speak little.
"The viper they've been talking to? It's at the far left, facing the door."
"No, it was asleep. I talked to the one on the right, with the missing finger." At least I hadn't lost my quick thinking, remembering this distinct feature I had spotted out of the corner of my eye. This entire situation was getting out of hand quickly, my first instinct was to protect who actually gave me the information.
"And it told you all that, how? As far as I was aware, they couldn't talk without removing the mouth-cover." His softly spoken voice was almost drowned out by my heartbeat.
"I wanted to talk to it, so I took it off," I tried to reason.
"And it just let you do that?" He wrinkled his face in disbelief.
"Yes," I interrupted firmly. "They are not some stupid beasts or mindless drones, they are intelligent, sentient, and scared shitless." I leaned off the table, opening my posture.
Emir looked at me with an expression of doubt, but again, that uncertainty was present. "You think they're being at all honest about the shit they're saying, the...mind control, the elders, home-worlds?" He shook his head.
"Yes," I affirmed once again, putting as much certainty into my voice as I could.
"And why is that, Luis, entertain me," he raised his arms as if to openly accept whatever I would tell him, though I couldn't tell how much it was a jest or not.
"Because I am not stupid, I know when people are telling me the truth or not, you know that."
"And that's exactly it, people. These...things aren't people, they aren't humans, they are Advent killing machines. That is what they were made to be, that is what they will die as!" His voice seeped with anger, his gesturing was wild and wide, but he still kept locked with me.
"It was not their choice," I interrupted and Emir paused momentarily. " I know that they are telling the truth here."
"How, Luis, how? Do you have mind control abilities? Cause you sure seem to think you know absolutely everything!" One of the few times I had heard the man raise his voice like that.
"Emir, you have to believe me. These Xcom wannabees are controlling you. You and everyone in this camp will slaughter helpless and confused beings. They are conscious, there is not a lot separating humans from them," I began to argue, but a click behind me cut that short.
"I think that's enough," he broke eye contact and looked to the ground, as my eyes went wide.
I spun on my chair and faced the door, which had been fully opened and a man with a black bag was currently rushing behind me.-And people wonder why I don't like sitting with my back to the only door-I didn't have time to do much, besides turning my lower body as much as possible, right as the sack went over my head. The position of my legs, however, worked as intended and I managed to push the chair back far enough to take my attacker down with me. I ripped the sack off of my head and tried to get my weapon from my belt.
But, as another body entered my peripheral vision from the side, I knew I wouldn't have time to use the weapon. Instead, I used the windowsill to get to my feet, before the bulky man, again one of the aliens' guards, let a metallic baton shoot out from a handle. He pressed a button on the handle and sparks of electricity came sparking off the device. I had been hit with one of these before, or at least something similar, and immediately knew that a close-quarter fight with one was not something I could feasibly do.
Instead, I jumped and slid over the desk, while pulling the Glock from my belt. I landed on the other side, where Emir had tried to scramble away, but I was faster. I grabbed him and wrapped my left arm around his neck while putting the pistol against the side of his temporalis. He squirmed at first, but relented as I pressed against his head harder.
"Tell your fucking friends to stand down or your brain goes all over the wall."
"You forget something, I know your medical records from yesterday," Emir began calmly, before suddenly striking my elbow with his palm while pulling his head downward.
I was simply caught off-guard by the amount of pain in my injured arm, so I didn't react by shooting, at least that is what I like to think. My next best reaction was to go for the agent with the baton, but, just as I leveled my sights on him, an immense force of blunt impact sent me overtop the table and halfway across the room. I felt the all-too-familiar pain of a broken rib, beneath my already injured side. The neat suture of my puncture wound had opened from the impact of, what I would soon find out was, a rubber pellet out of the sniper-rifle of an agent beneath the window.
I gasped for air in shallow breaths, losing the feeling in my stomach for a second, before it returned with a burning fire of utter agony. I began to choke on either air or blood, both felt the same, while my eyesight flickered with black marks and swimming colors. I tried to blink some semblance of focus into my vision and thoughts but came up empty-handed on the latter. Within my shrinking field of view, however, I spotted figures looming over me, amongst which I discovered the frames of the scientist and Emir.
Suddenly and violently, I was grasped under the arms and lifted off of the floor, then pressed against the wall when I couldn't stand on my own. I was held by the shoulders and my head was kept upright whenever it would begin to drift into unconsciousness. After what felt like minutes of just trying to adjust to the world again, I managed to keep a straight head and relatively clear vision. It felt a little like being drunk or delirious from a lack of sleep, only with a lot more pain and a lot less buzz.
Oh, what I wouldn't have given for a drink at that moment.
But I digress. Eventually, I was deemed aware enough to talk to again, or perhaps they had been talking the entire time and I was just not able to hear them, thanks to the ringing in my ears. When the sharp, high-pitched noise dissipated, the woman began to address me.
"Luis Ringer, are you there?" She was mocking me, I didn't need to be fully conscious to get that.
"Still alive, you missed," I managed to gurgle out.
"And still very uncooperative, I see," she came closer and I had to look down slightly.
"What do you want from me, I'm not helping you," The disinterest didn't only stem from my mind's fogginess, it was simply the one truth I still had.
"Oh, but you have," she smiled widely.
She pulled back and I followed her movement with my eyes alone, letting my head rest against the wall behind me. "The one on the right, with the missing finger, you said, correct?" I could hear the satisfied grin in her every word.
"You know, I knew they were suspicious of us, but going as far as to try and convince someone like you to help them escape a righteous punishment...I didn't think they were that cowardly."
"You know I'm right, they weren't in control," my voice was far rougher than what I normally would sound like.
"You are such a pitiful man, do you not believe that they have to die for their atrocities, do you care so little for humanity? Maybe you are a co-conspirator, maybe you think that you can garner sympathies with them, but you're wrong! They are the enemy, the same exact enemy we have been fighting for thirteen years, while you were too much of a coward to help. This isn't about what you want or what you think. If you wanted some part in this, you would have joined us when I first asked."
I raised my head and spoke defiantly. "You will be killing beings that carry more humanity than what you claim to be harboring."
"I won't be the one killing them, I'll leave that fun to the people they've personally hurt. And I think I have the perfect starter," her eyes gleamed with an idea.
"Emir, you fucking traitor," I ignore the woman and stared the man down.
"I trust that this shows my dedication to your organization, doctor Kura," he didn't address me with words, but I caught a singular look from his eyes. He didn't want to look at me.
"Indeed it does, well done, there will be a place for you in our base. William, Erick, let's go pay our extraterrestrial prisoners a visit," she turned to the two men who were holding me.
I was promptly detained with a dense piece of wire or rope, the same I had seen used as a muzzle for the aliens, then supported at each side and walked out of the house. I stumbled and almost fell multiple times, but was always caught and brought back to my feet. Eventually, I even let my feet just drag along the ground, forcing the agents to carry me. This served no purpose, other than potentially annoy them and maybe prolong this temporary rest. Emir stayed behind, though he shot me a glance from the doorway, which I replied to by spitting blood and spit onto the ground. He turned away and closed the door.
I was dragged all across the camp, Kura in front, with the agent who had fired on me trailing behind. I know people stared and gasped at my apparent arrest at the hands of who they thought was Xcom, but didn't bother to look anyone in the face. Just around as we got within visual distance of the townhall, I heard the familiar siren cry out, announcing the planned meeting. While my conscious thought was brittle at best, I knew exactly why we were there, I had just selected their first victim.
Despite my failing vision, I could make out the shapes of at least ten more agents, all stacked up on the doors. Doctor Kura was barking orders, but I was fading in and out of focus, only making out a few separate words, something regarding being fast and precise. They even acted like they're actually competent, no, these guys were fumbling idiots, only well-equipped fumbling idiots.
The doors were pushed open wide and the agents poured inside, as I was left outside the door, still restrained and watched closely. To be fair, maybe that was best, I didn't want to face the ones inside, not only because one of them would die for my actions, nor the fact that I had failed in my mission to help, but also so that the viper I had actually been talking to couldn't see me. I felt sorry for her, truly, and I would not have been strong enough to hide a reaction to her surely distraught features.
"A counsel...choice...vote...your freedom...guarantee...speaker..." I failed to pick up on more, as my entire being seemed to retreat into sleep.
Everything hurt, thinking hurt, breathing hurt, my heartbeat shook my entire skeleton, my lungs failed to extend all the way on my left flank, presumedly because one of my ribs compressed it. I tasted blood in my mouth and felt the warmth run along my stomach, draining my strength with each passing second. I tried to observe, but my eyes seemed glazed over as if waking after a long night. Sounds were nothing but wind, that tore against the outside walls of my home, where I sat alone on my couch, as a roaring autumn storm was simply locked out.
Metal clanked, the vipers hissed back and forth, and the woman spoke softly and reassuringly. 'Come on, snake. You can figure this out, this is your signal.'
Maybe if I had hit the man to my left in the nuts, I could have had time to grab his pistol and shoot my way out of there, while screaming at the aliens to fight. But no, my mind didn't respond to the weak commands I was trying to deliver.
Eventually, most of the agents left the building, a colorful viper in toe. I was approached by the scientist and she asked me something, but I cannot remember if I even acknowledged her. Next, I was dragged away from the group by three men, towards the northern entrance. The figures in the distance grew smaller and the scenery changed to the burned remains of fields. The agents talked amongst themselves and chuckled.
"...take care of the snakes," I caught the latter part of one of the men's dialogue.
"Yeah, he was scared shitless," the man trailing behind us laughed and the one to my right followed suit.
"Hey, I fed it. I wasn't scared, they just freak me out," came from my left in a defensive tone.
"Why, the tits?" The agent to my right mocked.
"N-no, the...eyes and...arms," the accused stammered out, the other two burst into laughter again.
"I heard they're venom sacks," after their amusement died down, the man behind noted.
"That makes sense."
"Yeah, still weird though," they collectively agreed.
Eventually, the ground changed once more, shifting from ashen remains to sand and small rocks of the established paths. I followed the mental layout of the area around the camp, trying to guess where I was going to be taken. Sadly, I hadn't heard what their orders were, so their intentions for me were still obscured. Though their attitude and equipment suggested the simple solution of execution. That was it, I was a human, so they couldn't just let the people of the camp take care of me. What a bunch of cowards.
During the five or so minutes I was being carried by the three, they had to switch me out in between them, as I still refused to walk for them, the camp's siren had stopped, and my mind had successfully restarted. Still in the clutches of deep pain and impaired senses, but I could think clearly again. Maybe it was also to do with the fact that the adrenaline, that had kept me up until recently, had finally run out. It had certainly contributed to my inability to tell up from down, but I would not have minded a little bit of help with the pain from my injuries.
With my head still lulling limply, I began to scan my executioners out of the corner of my eye. The modified assault rifles of the three locked light, yet sturdy, their pistols looked magnetically attached to their thighs, while their body armor seemed to be a mixture of kevlar and high-density fiber. magazines in pouches, a knife in the back pocket, a communicator device on the chest, and small buds attached to their ears. Not a lot to go on, if there was any chance to survive this, it would need to happen instantly and perfectly. But without any weapon of my own, hands cuffed at the front, and being as injured as I was, the was no way I could make the first move without some sort of opportunity. Now, I had to be patient.
We were in the middle of a small clearing, thick bushes around us, with trampled ground; this was an outside campsite.
"Ah, fuck this guy!" I was let go from one side and took the tumble to the ground. "We're far enough away, let's just do it here, get this shit over with."
"We're supposed to let him witness the festivities, first. But I agree that we shouldn't carry this fuckhead around anymore." The other man also let go.
Two took position by leaning against a tree, while the third was next to me in the middle.
"I think we can have a bit of fun here," he turned to me.
I didn't acknowledge him, sitting on the ground in a slouched manner.
My unresponsiveness was met with a kick in the jaw from the side. The force sent me to the ground and my world began to swim once more, only much more painfully now. I recollected myself and sat back up, still not looking at the man.
"Oh, a tough guy," he smiled.
The other two laughed, as the man began circling me, trying to gauge a reaction. I didn't play into it.
Finally, he seemed satisfied with his point of attack and football-kicked me into my left flank. Luckily, he missed my injury for the most part, though I felt another one of my ribs cracking. I collapsed onto my side and clutched the area, as he and his friends began to cheer and hail. Now, instead of having adrenaline and confusion stifle my mind, it was simply an insurmountable wave of agony.
I heard the other two leave their post and approach. I knew what was coming, or I could guess. In preparation, I brought one hand up to protect my head and the other between my legs, as I tucked my entire body into the fetal position. Lastly, I tensed every part of my body that would obey and closed my eyes. One more breath in, then it started.
They had chosen their positions, one began beating and kicking against my head and neck, while another punted me in the stomach and against my fractured forearm. The last one did less, as his target was my back, which I guess didn't seem that fun to boot against. Still, two were more than enough to tenderize every muscle in my body.
Maybe it stopped being fun when I didn't scream or beg for them to stop, but they eventually halted their assault. Only after a solid minute of catching their breaths, did I realize that I was no longer being attacked. Slowly, I unfurled and looked around, maybe this was my chance.
But no. They were too far away for the short burst of movement I had in me. If I had tried to go for them, I would have collapsed before I had made it halfway.
One of them noticed I had turned to them and alerted the others. "Hey, guess you could say that he is...still kicking?" Everyone paused to look at him before another celebratory flash overcame them.
Fucking hilarious, if you asked me.
At that moment, the otherwise quiet night was shattered with the sounds of dozens of rifles going off in the distance. And they were coming from the direction of the camp. I closed my eyes and quietly shook my head. The agents, however, seemed somehow similarly distraught.
"That is so fucking unfair!" One complained in the tone a child would to his mother, after being denied a toy.
"Hey, maybe they'll chase one out here and we can take that," another tried to assure his comrade.
"Unlikely," the first one dismissed and plopped onto the ground.
"You wanna do it now, see if we can maybe catch one or two on the way back?" The third guy suggested, referring to me.
"Yeah, sure," utter disinterested in his tone.
I heard the cocking of a handgun, then the footsteps of one of them. With no way out of the situation, I chose to face the man for the first time. Using a lot of mental fortitude not to grunt at the exertion, I kneeled in the middle of the clearing.
Moonlight brought deep blues and dark shadows into everyone's faces and into every corner of the forest. The polished sidearm gleamed in the pale illumination, as I stared the man down. He inspected the weapon, before turning to me, then leveling the barrel between my eyes. I didn't shift my vision, continuing to gaze into his eyes.
But then I spotted it. A tiny bit of movement, a pattern of colors that didn't quite fit, and once again, a pair of slitted, blue, reptilian eyes stared back at me through the bushes.