Raptor One – Chapter 67
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I open my eyes and groan, a growl reverberates through the bridge as i right myself. “Report.” my voice comes out a little cracked, my body still not fully synched with my mind.
“We are on the waypoint, awaiting deployment.” Su’ra reply with his serious voice as he gets up along with most of the pack, saluting me.
I sigh as i get up. “Zu? How's the data of the terrain?” My growling voice reverberates as i get up, despite the light material that makes my armor it still moves while releasing a hiss and a heavy thump.
“We got heavy gravity, almost three times by human standards, planet is tidal locked, but the data shows permanent snowstorms, and periodic and frequent electromagnetic waves, data from the station and what i got from the planet gives out this phenomenon happens every long cycle, and the damaged tracks are outside the safe sector, the train itself is safe, but constant waves of wild life attacks between EMP waves are making retrieval impossible, the air space is also in lockdown due to anti air spores hidden on the ice.” Zu stops to breath a little as she gets up, looking at me. “The information don’t say much about the opposition, but the words anti air ins’t there for nothing....”
“I know it won’t be good, but look at the good part.” I grin and chuckle, my smile coming out feral, must be the desync.
“Which is?” Su’zu ask me with his cold voice, waiting for us beside the bridge door, hands closed.
“It’s simple!” Li’luk say in her peppy voice. “I got some time to look at his Viking, remember the Terran empire proud Viking army?” Li’luk ask us.
“I do remember sister, they got the highest death toll each first mission, so much the pilots call all the novices virgins.” Li’lak reply.
“Lets talk on the move.” i growl out and start walking, each step reverberating with a heavy thump and a hiss due to the magnetic lockers.
“Ok. So, i found out that their Viking technology, if compared to White’s Viking, shows that his Viking is at least FIVE TIMES better!” Li’luk say with a jump.
“That does not mean we are out of the black hole yet.” Su’zu reply before jumping down, wings open.
“Can’t say much about it.” Su’ra reply before doing the same.
“I’ll keep us safe.” i growl out before jumping down, my white feathers extending, showing the silver mixed under it, three red glowing holes can be seen on each side as i jump down, my wingspan twice of theirs as i land on the lower deck with a growl, my armor servos giving out a click sound as i land.
“Looking more menacing than usual Captain, something happened?” Su’ra ask me while walking beside me, his already small frame looking smaller because of the power armor.
“Nothing much.” I manage to growl out. “Just some desync due to change in parameters.” i finish my growling words and start walking to my Viking cockpit, but stop to growl a last warning before doing so.
“Nothing must be outside it’s containment for risk of fatal damage, as a medic, i can’t be beside you guys forever.” i point to my Viking. “Remember, masks on, belts on, only deploy when the red light pops... And lastly... Weapons ready.” i say and jump inside my Viking.
Some time passed after all the adrenaline of escaping a dying planet, this girl did not see much combat after that, but now...
I give a feral grin at the roar of engines and the sound of spinning capacitors, holographic windows pops here and there before closing as plates of armor moves around with me, the feeling of me and my Viking working as one pumping adrenaline inside me.
“*Connection update complete.*”
I hear Sigma as i jump, doing a tight back flip my Viking taking it’s Air denial mode before gently hovering into the drop module, it’s upper latch locking on my Viking.
I feel the physical tug on my body, the crane got me and moved me to the hangar bay door along with Alphy and her sisters.
“*Launch in...3...2...1..*”
Sigma counts before the small hangar bay door open with speed, launching my Viking and the drones into orbital descent, some looking gives me that we launched right after the electromagnetic wave passed.
I’m met with very bad turbulence, my Viking shaking like a leaf in a tornado as it descend in a very vertical nose dive, the front plates burning hot by the descent through the gravity layer into the mountains of ice, the armor looks like its going to fall out before rapidly cooling down by the planet cold temperature.
I give my Viking a once over and find that there was no damage, so i refocus on piloting into the bullet train last known secure zone.
The flight goes smoothly before being met with some barrage of anti air, all of which i manage to dodge, luckily they did not explode, but they are fast.
I’m forced to zig zag and do some barrel rolls to avoid damage because of the second barrage of... spikes?
I manage to easily find the problem and zoom in to see, and I'm met with some surprise.
“Zergs?” i growl out before easily evading the next barrage and leaving their attack range.
I decide to fly high so i can evade easier the spine crawlers, they did look different from what i know.
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I did manage to get some more flight done, but as soon as i arrive into the secure area where i locate the train, I'm met with unpleasant winged Zergs that decide to attack my Viking.
Taking each of the attacking enemy on my radar and my air superiority i dive down into the secure area, shredding the flying enemy and most ground forces along with it before hovering into the makeshift base, it’s turret platforms soon coming online and clearing the area.
“Bullet train, this is Raptor One, please respond.” I growl out.
“Alexei here, are you the reinforcements?” i hear a feminine voice.
She sound surprisingly human.
“Da, give me the heads up and the details for better support.” i ask Alexei.
“We got attacked by a ice breaker worm on the way to the orbital launcher, we managed to outrun the worm, but something broke the train tracks ahead, forcing us into stopping here, due to the heavy air and ground suppression we got no reinforcements until now...” Alexei say, giving me a more detailed thinking process to work from.
I stay silent while thinking, those are Zergs, which one I'm not sure, but it seen that there’s something guiding one side...
They won’t attack a low priority hard target for nothing....
“Sigma, start scanning the train.” i ask Sigma.
“Hey! Don't! Or I'll be forced to shoot...” Alexei protest, but fall silent at the end.
“I see that you know i can simply dismiss this mission right?” i growl back and hear her groan as she stays silent.
“*Unknown Egg batch detected... Scanning...*”
I hear Sigma say as she marks the most damaged part of the bullet train.
I fly closer for better scanning and flinch at the four turrets locking on me, my senses getting more desync as my brain processing power speeds up.
What seen to be an eternity to me is just a mere small cycle, i was ready to drop the module and engage, but ultimately don’t do so because i didn’t get further hostilities...
“*Scan complete... Knowledge database found... Hive Zerg and Primal Zerg Eggs detected...*”
Sigma announces for all of us to hear.
The connection with Alexei gets a little bad because of the rucus.
“Captain? Ins't that bad?” Su’zu ask me
“Da, it is.” i reply back and wait for Alexei words while getting ready to fly off.
“WAIT! WAIT! DON’T GO!” Alexei ask me, sounding very panicked. “WHY ARE YOU GUYS LOOKING AT! FIND THOSE HIVE EGGS!” i hear Alexei shriek in anger.
“They don’t seen to know there was Hive Eggs mixed in their cargo.” Zu reply to me in the comms.
“I do find it laughable.” Su’ra reply too.
“What's the difference?” Li’lak ask us.
My pack get silent, most likely looking at each other for answers.
“It’s simple.” I say in the comms. “Hive Zergs looks and DNA have a wildly different and chaotic look, but one thing they have in common is their tendency for bugs, the brood mother, the roachs, etc, if it’s not good for combat or reproductions then its waste.” I finish and sigh. “Primal Zergs on the other hand are independent, and have mostly beast features, they favor efficiency while not forsaking their own species unlike the Hive Zergs, look at the carcass, it’s mostly Primal zergs.”
I shake my head and wonder, how did a brood mother manage to sneak into the planet.
Not my problem.
“Sir, sir! Please, help us, we are dealing with the Hivers, just get us out of here before the alpha or something worse appear and I'll make sure to increase your pay!” Alexei pleads us.
“What do you think pack?” i ask and wait.
After some speed talk between each other Zu decide to talk first.
“It’s mostly negative, a three to two here, what do you think love?” Zu ask me, and i can feel the silence inside the drop module.
“Say, Alexei, what are you doing with those eggs?” i ask Alexei.
“Sure, sure! They are mostly used for research on bio engineering! The rest are redeemed as psionic pets!” Alexei reply very fast.
I sigh, a light growl leaving my mouth. “Drop on three, get those electromagnetic shielding back online before the next wave hit us.” I growl out with finality before hovering low and releasing the drop module.
“Yes sir!” My pack say in sync while i speed up to do a recon of the area.
Just the first pass shows that there are a group of primal zergs gathered outside the turret range, ready to assault.
I hover close to the group and scan it, i see no hiver inside, but i do see a big alpha, its six eyes locked on my Viking, i grunt in pain, surprised...
“*Brainwave connection detected*”
I hear Sigma remind me of my high psionic capacity, Lemi hiss in anger, alerted by the intrusion to our mind network.
*You...... Traitor......*
I hear a deep and primal voice.
“*You know nothing of me, beast.*”
I reply, my growl reverberates inside my Viking along with my voice, Lemi hiss in a fit of pure anger at his words.
*They.. Steal our children... Take our form.... Enslave us....... You are different.... You are one of us.... Yet a traitor.... Just like the mindless ones....!*
As i finish translating his feelings he howls, a wave of pure psionic energy hit me, i roar in pain while my Viking spiral down to the ground as i hold my head with both hands, completely stunned, dazed and in pain.
“White!....” I only hear my name as it comes from multiple voices before i crash down.
My Viking, just like the normal ones don’t have pilot protection, and being forcefully disconnected from the Viking due to brain overload i was left with no surface to hold, not that i can as i slam into the wall of my Viking, my power armor groan as it try to absorb the damage and fail.
The impact leave me further wounded as i struggle to breath while leaving tears of blood, my coughs brings more blood out of me as it run down the side of my mouth, i must have damaged my lungs due to the force of the impact.
I groan and growl as i try to get up, only to fail, my buzzing ears catch the sound of tearing metal, something must be trying to enter the Viking.
My mind is in a complete mess, i can’t even hear Sigma or Lemi as i lie on the ground of my Viking, the wounds to my body already healed, but the psionic scream was too much for someone like me.
The tearing of metal stops while i lie down, trying to recover my mind, i grunt and growl as i slowly sit up, my vision distorted and my senses blind, but my gamma core gives me a summary of my body and mind.
After a small cycle of rearranging my mind, it finally boots up.
“*Gamma Core Repair Complete*”
“White! Thank the machine god, are you okay?” I hear Sigma.
“Feeling like scrambled eggs, but alive....” I growl back.
“I’ll report to the pack, the children are giving fire support right now...” Sigma say with a sigh.
“Ugh... This is what i get for not cutting my pain receptors...” i growl out as i get up, a little dizzy before reconnecting to the Viking.
It starts up very fast, giving a look at the damage report i see that there was no damage due to the armor quality, the screen of the camera soon returns and i see the both my pack and the drones in formation around my Viking, the armor scratched, traces of something big trying to pry me out can be seen, i look at the far end of the screen and see the Alpha, some bullet wound and charred flesh can be seen, but the most damage was to it’s pack.
Both sides looks to be on a dead lock.
I groan a little before forcing myself upright, my power armor locking my feet in place so i can extend my hands and unlock the controls.
My Viking easily hovers before doing a low altitude transformation, landing with a thump, all four weapons ready.
“*Leave, i can feel the Primal Nidus wirm coming, i can give you my word that your brood won’t be harmed.*”
I growl out in anger, my head aching due to the damage.
*Traitors can’t be trusted.*
It’s deep voice resounds, the dead lock seen to be shifting for another front engagement.
Shit...