Futuristic Starpath X: For All Mankind

[Infab]

Shit, Sarge is down! Caine practically slid across the floor on his knees next to Krawczyk, drawing out his medical kit as quickly as he could. Neck shot. Possible artery damage. Need to work fast. As he slammed the kit onto the floor, opening it up and pulling out what he needed, he glanced over to the Upyri that was still somehow alive. He wanted to finish him off, but he needed to focus. Krawczyk was losing blood. Krawczyk was more important.

"Atlas, keep an eye on that fucker." he breathed, "If he moves, finish him off." A bit out of character for Caine, but this was a stressful moment. Especially since he possibly had more than just one one person to tend to.

Then, that loud noise on the other side of the door spooked him.

"What the fuck was that!?" he spat, looking to the door briefly. He drew his rifle closer to him, in case he needed to grab it, but returned to patching up the sergeant. "I got you, Sarge. You'll be back at it in no time, alright?" he muttered, making sure she was still awake and alert.

 

[bat_hacker]

At Caine's word, Atlas took several quick strides to the wounded Upyri marine, his heavy suit making resounding thuds and crunching noises as he flattened rubble beneath his feet. Even through his dive suit obscured his face and body, his rage was clearly only barely restrained as he reloaded his rifle in abrupt, mechanical fashion. The marine was attempting to retrieve his pistol from where he had dropped it on the ground, fumbling with bloody fingers. With his last step, Atlas brought the toe of his right boot against both the gun and the marine's hand in a quick kick that sent the pistol flying and very likely broke a few of the man's fingers, judging by how he screamed. Atlas punctuated his march by manually pulling back the charging handle of his rifle to chamber the first round, letting out a metallic ring as he leveled the barrel only an inch from the blackblood's face.

Without the somatic components of his language, he was limited to his bioluminescent semaphores alone and therefore a much smaller vocabulary. Regardless, he didn't so much as flinch. The Upyri knew his situation, Atlas had only a little to add.

"I beg you to move."

Suddenly, a great explosion rocked the building and sent Atlas reeling as the water swirled in his suit. This was much closer or more powerful than the aerial strike, and only by disengaging with the controls of his suit entirely could he keep himself from toppling over. His statuesque appearance despite the surrounding chaos would hopefully make him more imposing, even if his equilibrium was temporarily disrupted. He also temporarily dismissed the window containing the hacking details for the drone on his back. He had made some progress during the run but decryption--while normally trivial for a Fishman--was proving extremely difficult to juggle alongside the demands of active combat. Plus, the swirling dots representing the reflection attack were compounding his dizziness. He yearned to see the world with his own eyes, rather than the digital display of his suit, but it would have to wait.

 

[K0mori]

As Caine tended to Krawczyk and Atlas kept the final marine pinned down in one position, they were joined by Sergeant Oberto and his half of Patrol 2, as well as Kang and Champlin, who had just come down from the motel to regroup with the rest of the Patrol. As they poured into the garage the same way Squad 9 had done minutes earlier, Oberto's unit seemed a bit ragged already, but whatever they had seen along their approach still paled in comparison the carnage that 9 had left in their wake.

"Acheson, get to work!" Oberto called out as he saw Krawczyk's condition. The medic came sliding to a stop on his knees next to Caine, grabbing what he needed out of the open kit as well as supplies form his own pack. It became easier to work on the sergeant's wound with an extra set of hands, since one was required to hold the wound closed until stitches could be applied. It was close; had a medic not arrived in time, Caine knew that he would not have been able to save Krawczyk's life. The entire front of her uniform was drenched in her own blood, but she would live.

Krawczyk: 10 HP

"Good job, soldier," Oberto said, clapping Caine on the shoulder as Krawczyk lay in a daze, slowly being transfused with lab-grown Type-O blood. "I'll take command of your unit until she's back on her feet. You three-" he said, pointing to two male and one female corporal, "get in there and figure out what that noise was."

"Yes sir!" shouted the corporal, and she readied a shotgun as she took point to enter the hallway, noticing the smears of blood on the floor in front of her. A moment later, they had kicked in the door and swept the hall with flashlights, catching a glimpse of the dismembered upyri at the end of it. "...Fuck, what a mess," the Corporal said. They could not yet see Grecyirvick, and they moved forward cautiously. As they neared, they could hear Novy's voice.

"My partner needs urgent medical care." He motioned with his head to where Mazurek layed unconscious. "I'm wounded as well, but I can still carry him."

Krawczyk's eyes went wide as she gained some lucidity. "Private Novy!" she screamed out, causing the trio from 10 to pause and look her way. They gave each other a nod and quickly rounded the corner, expecting to find Novy trying to negotiate with the enemy, but instead were shocked to see the towering czrektir with his autocannon still pointed in the direction of the corpse of the upyri he had just obliterated. They understood and did not understand anything, all at the same time.

"What the fuck!" one of the privates yelled. "It's a xeno!"

"Hold it," the Corporal cautioned, putting her hand out in front of the man before he could point his weapon at Grecyirvick. "It's a czrektir- friendly. Do you speak our language?" she asked it.

With all this commotion, Sergeant Oberto was distracted from the captured marine and decided to take a look at the alien instead. "Hilmarsson, guard him," he said, directing a baldheaded, fair-skinned private toward Atlas and the still-suffering marine. He swaggered over, satisfied to see the powerful upyri brought low. The marine clutched at his helmet, his breathing becoming more labored, until he pulled it free and gasped for air desperately. It didn't take a genius to guess that the man had been shot in the lungs.

"Hey Acheson, you done with the sergeant?" Hilmarsson asked. The medic replied in the affirmative and quickly moved over to assist the wounded marine. Atlas kept his gun trained on the man as he struggled more and more to breathe, until he eventually slumped into unconsciousness. The medic continued working on him, eventually getting him stable, before sitting up and wiping the sweat off his forehead. "He'll live, but it'll take some time before he wakes up," he declared.

Upyri Marine: 3HP

Meanwhile, Kang quickly followed behind Oberto, wanting to make sure that if the alien couldn't speak any human language, that at the very least the squad's designated translator would be present. This left Champlin behind in the main room of the garage, and she sat herself down next to Krawczyk and Caine to gather herself, as she was clearly stressed from the intense fighting so far.

 

[ChasmOfOrganicMatter]

The enormous weapon in Grecyirvick's clawed limbs shifted to his back, segments of carapace armor splitting open like dry paper to clutch and cling to the enormous rifle as a smaller weapon (this one larger than a medium maghine gun) was extracted with a single limb, nestled into the mess of limbs that it called its hands. Its attention did not appear to be upon the wounded humans but it was impossible not not feel as if it watched them from the opaque impassiveness of its ocular domes. As if they were barely worth its attention as it swung towards the new visitors.

"Enemies; Upyri, immediately present - yes-no."

Its voice was not synthesized like most of its kind but it was difficult to make out. They could not only hear it speak but the various mouthparts clattering, scratching, and clicking. Each one had a mind of its own and the voice that emerged was sonorous, deep, gargled, and not adapted for the language of English.

"Isolated from unit. Battle; attention attracted. Perceived squad-members under threat. Protected."

It gargle-intonated for speech, its head swiveling to and fro as a pair of insectoid creatures began to descend from above - the drones it had followed their progress with, now creeping into whatever crevices in its body they preivously emerged from.

Most czrektir did not speak much in the way of English. Those that could did not do so well. Grecyirvick knew the stereotype well; the belabored, somewhat clumsy speech of some of the czrektir who might be found in human fleets as immigrants, observers, or contractors. His mannerisms were attentive and cautious, but deliberate; that was how most of them were, and as long as it kept up the illusion of why he was here, it was a viable strategy.

 

[bat_hacker]

Atlas regained his equilibrium as the medicine man came over to treat the wounded blackblood soldier. He'd watched without pity as he gasped for air. A common form of torture they had employed against the Fishmen during their battles on Goldloch was to drag them through the Breach and allow them to starve for water. Fishmen could leave the water for short periods with no ill effects, despite a near-total lack of mobility, but over time they would succumb to exhaustion as they struggled to breathe, pain as they dehydrated, and a tragically slow fading of their light until they were still. The upyri would force the Fishmen to intermittently watch and undergo this terrible process, again and again, bringing each across the breach in turn until they were given what they wanted, only returning them to the water once their light had faded to a mere wisp. FIshmen tortured this way would sometimes never awaken. Others would never truly awake, living the rest of their days suffering from the Dreamtouch or Lightfrenzy. When the planet was liberated in the wake of the upyri exodus, Atlas had struggled to face his comrades in these states, and busied himself hunting for spinejaws, whose livers contained the gentle poison that would release the afflicted's light with dignity and peace. Unfortunately, even with the humans' miraculous medicine, there was nothing more that could be done for them save to administer mercy.

He couldn't bear to watch the medicine man save such a vile creature. The humans had told him their warfare was merciful and abhorred unnecessary violence or death, sometimes even when their very foes would give them no quarter. Instead he turned his attention to the large golem who had made his explosive entrance to the scene. The vast oceans of Goldloch were home to a seemingly infinite variety of creatures, large and small. Humans, he was told, were often intimidated by creatures simply for being larger than themselves, or for being unfamiliar, but since that was simply a common reality of Fishman life he quietly observed the large metal creature with cautious curiosity. The humans initially sprung to a state of agitation, in the startled manner that Atlas had himself encountered upon meeting some of the researchers, but the war chieftain had instructed them all to stand down. This was not a dangerous being. It spoke in response to the chieftain's query, but Atlas' translator did not appear to pick up on the true meaning. Still, this creature appeared to mean them no harm, only having obliterated one of the filthbringers with extreme prejudice. It reminded him somewhat of the Sea Swallower, an immense ocean creature that would burrow into sandy ocean floors and occasionally open its mouth to take in an unfathomable amount of water along with any creatures that might be swimming nearby. Despite the sudden and disorienting sensation of being swallowed whole (especially when one doesn't expect it), the Swallower only fed on parasites, spitting everything else back out harmlessly. It was so efficient and discerning at this task the Fishmen would often let themselves be swallowed intentionally as part of a regular hygiene routine. He had initially been told that this aspect of their culture had no parallel with the humans' but he often mused that they were very quick to bond with nearly any creature or individual that wasn't an explicit threat to themselves.

In any case, if the towering golem was indeed a friend as he expected, he would be a powerful ally indeed.

 

[K0mori]

"Enemies; Upyri, immediately present - yes-no."

Its voice was not synthesized like most of its kind but it was difficult to make out. They could not only hear it speak but the various mouthparts clattering, scratching, and clicking. Each one had a mind of its own and the voice that emerged was sonorous, deep, gargled, and not adapted for the language of English.

"Isolated from unit. Battle; attention attracted. Perceived squad-members under threat. Protected."

Oberto glanced at the Corporal, and then to Kang. "...So it understands us," he said simply. The two privates standing by tried to hide their disgust at the czrektir's bug-like biology. Kang, however, gaped in amazement at the strange creature. The Sergeant looked back at Grecyirvick. "Thank you for the assist. If you're isolated, you should stay with us. We can help you get back to your unit, or at least find you a ride."

"What should we call you?" Kang asked, while Oberto motioned the others toward Novy and Mazurek. While Novy was quick to get back on his feet, and it was a trivial matter to remove the knife from his body armor, Mazurek had to be picked up by both privates and carried back into the relative light of the garage. There, Pvt. Acheson was prepared to receive Mazurek.

---
​

About half an hour later, everyone in the Patrol, their alien ally, and the singular marine they took prisoner, were ready to move. Mazurek, like Krawczyk, had required stitches and a blood transfusion, and AUTO-262 had required a new sensory control board with gyroscopes, as the impacts it had taken during the fight had destroyed the robot's ability to see as well as to balance. Once operational enough, the robot took over on repairing itself, and was soon fully ready for combat. Atlas had spent the interim trying to bypass the drone's security- a task which he eventually succeeded at.

There was a sense of unease, however, as the Patrol exited the garage and made its way toward the inner city and the Mandela River. Several of them had nearly died in the opening hours of the operation, and this was after facing only minor resistance from their fanatical opposition. It was clear that they would not be able to take their objectives if they did not stick together and fight as a true team, and utilize all the advantages that their alien allies could offer them. They had a solid plan: as Krawczyk had described earlier, they would search the bridge from above and below for explosives, and if possible, take the bridge ahead of the heavier forces which were to follow them.

In the sunlight, it was easier to see Oberto's face. He had a Mediterranean completion, with a tall head, long nose, and dark hair that was slicked backwards. A well-trimmed moustache and beard gave him an adventurous look, and he seemed to wear a grin at all times, even when the rest of his expression changed or grew concerned. He was quite tall and thin, and could nearly see eye-to-eye with the captured upyri marine, whom they had learned was named Reyer, although they couldn't get much else out of him. He shuffled along near the front of the pack, with every other gun in the patrol pointed at his back.

They eventually emerged at the waterfront, where the air was eerily still and quiet. A few distant echoes of gunshots and bombs falling from above came from behind; pockets of enemy resistance were still being cleared out in the outskirts of town, but in the city center, and closer to the port, all was secure in upyri hands. The Patrol began to jog as they grew concerned at this sight; it was possible that enemy snipers would see them at any moment, and they would present nothing more than a shooting gallery. Instead, they moved through the long-destroyed glass curtain windows at the front of a grocery store to get into cover.

The isles were completely cleared of everything edible aside from a few patches of long spoiled and decayed items, which festered with mold that they could smell on the air. Similarly, the refrigerators, having not been powered for quite some time, were filled about an inch deep with putrid water and coated throughout with mildew. "Try not to breath this," Oberto joked, his voice barely above a whisper.

There was a sound, like something tipping over or being kicked across the ground, from a deeper section of the store where they had not yet been. Flashlights were shined, and a child, roughly ten was isolated from the shadows with his hands in the air. "Don't shoot!" he cried out.

"What the fuck is this?" spoke Cpl. Chou from Squad 10. "What are you doing here, kid?"

"Easy-" Krawczyk cautioned, trying to prevent the Patrol from getting trigger happy, but at the same time not wanting them to drop their guard. "Kid, are you alone?"

The boy shook his head. "We're, uh, we're down in the parking level, below the store." He coughed, and sounded very sick. "There's about sixty of us. We went underground when the bombs were falling."

"You're all waiting for help?" Oberto asked. "The UFS is on its way, kiddo. Get back downstairs and stay there. It's going to be rough for a few more days."

The boy nodded.

"Why did you even come up here?" Chou demanded, sounding almost furious that the sick child would put himself in danger.

He looked upset, but nonetheless put his hands down as he no longer felt threatened. "...I just wanted to be the first to see you coming," he said, coughing again.

Krawzyck motioned to the stairwell at the rear of the store that she now realized the boy had come up. "Sixty... goddammit," she grumbled. "Let's get moving!"

They moved through the building to a side door that opened into a warehouse which appeared more intact than the store itself. The roof, made of prefabricated metal sections with inlaid skylights, provided plenty of visibility here as they worked back toward the front of the structure, which overlooked the river and gave them a partial view of the bridge. There, they got low and worked to deploy the drone.

"AUTO" Krawczyk instructed, "move ahead and sweep the top deck of the bridge for explosives. If you find anything, pick it up and throw it into the water. Atlas, use the drone to check the underside. If you spot anything, you're going to need to swim out there and defuse it."

 

[joshuadim]

Mazurek groaned when he returned to consciousness as the medics did their magic on him. The sky above seemed as bright as the light at the end of the tunnel he had briefly glimpsed... or at least, he thought he glimpsed. He couldn't tell if it was the delirious pain conjuring up images in his mind's eye, or if the pearly gates really did send him back with a IOU. Regardless, he groaned as he sat back up, stitched and ready to go and reported for duty again. The job was not yet done, as there were still more Upyri to kill. For Eridia. For those he lost.

He did, however, make a mental note to himself to pay more attention in the future as to not get himself an express ticket to meet God with his currently stitched up wounds as a solemn reminder.

---

On their advance forward towards their objective, things seemed quiet on their end. From the occasional radio chatter, Mazurek could make out that the suburbs and outlying regions of the city had been, for the most part, cleared out. But the real fight was to be had in the city proper, where enemy concentration was at its heaviest and most fortified. That will be hell to fight through, to which Mazurek thought was yet another piece to claw back for every blood soaked inch. It had been the case like that for Novithus, for Trappist, and now for this hunk of godforsaken rock.

Mazurek stayed a bit behind the others as they overlooked the bridge and formulated a plan to check for explosives before crossing, keeping in mind his wounds were still stinging despite the first aid applied to him. But he did have a question to ask for their on-the-spot Kosok translator: "Hey, you got any easy words or phrases I should know for.... the uh, Kosoks?" he asked Kang, "Just in case in the future... y'know?"

 

[K0mori]

Kang sat down on a stack of wooden pallets between two racks of water jugs, one full and the other empty. This might have been another reason why some of the survivors within the city had moved into the subterranean parking level which was under their feet: fresh water. The private wondered whether there were other goods which had fared better in the warehouse than inside the dark and frankly disgusting supermarket. As the others planned their approach to the bridge, Kang thought about her own empty stomach and took out a snack bar from her pack. It wasn't a particularly appetizing snack, but it was dense and full of protein which would help keep her body moving even while her mind wanted to freeze up.

As she chewed, Mazurek came over to linger for a bit.

"Hey, you got any easy words or phrases I should know for.... the uh, Kosoks?" he asked Kang, "Just in case in the future... y'know?"

Kang swallowed and wiped her mouth on the back of her hand. "Well, um, yeah. Let's see..." she said, a bashful smile on her lips. "So, let's start with hello. You can say, 'spaska.' Yes and no...? Yes is 'yakka,' and no is 'nik.' Kadaren- it means like, a comrade, or a friend. You can say, 'ke'm kadaren' and it would mean, 'I'm your ally.'"

She thought her time in university, when she started learning the language of the Kosoks before the war. She had wanted to be involved in the new frontier of foreign relations with alien races. The galaxy was huge and the human race was expanding faster and meeting more new civilizations than its learning institutions could account for, and even with AIs and learning models churning away, trying to automate the process of learning new languages from abroad, producing diplomats who could naturally communicate was something severely lagging behind.

The war interrupted everything. She stopped learning how to say things like "cultural exchange" and "trade opportunity" and instead learned words like "bomb" and "wounded." It felt like a waste of good intentions.

Kang's smile, which had appeared in that brief moment when she felt eager to teach Mazurek something new, began to fade. "Teres," she said, "that means human. The Kosoks took the name of Terra and applied it to all of us, including the upyri. They don't have another word for them yet, so, if you want to refer to them, use the term 'bokema-teres.' Bokema means attack, so it's kind of like, uhm, dogs... attack dogs," she said, grimly.

"What else...?" She tilted her head back and looked out the skylights at the distant movement of starfighters above the clouds. "Skedetim. It means, 'look.' That could be useful if you need to point something out. And, well, there's 'Shtykim,' which means 'listen.'" She waited as Mazurek said the words a few times and committed them to memory, and then taught him one last pair of useful phrases.

"Smarim ket- it means 'help me.' And ke'pita... that means 'thanks.'"

 

[joshuadim]

With every word given, Mazurek took a moment to mutter them a few times quietly to try to get a feel for them. Some were easier than others, as he could at least associate his own terrestrial knowledge to that of this alien language. When Kang explained 'Teres' and its relation to Terra, that by far was the easiest by far to get for him. 'Thanks' was also an easy one, as ke'pita rhymed with 'spasiba', the Russian word for thanks.

"Teres... kinda reminds me of Taras... like the story of Taras Bulba." he commented when Kang finished the impromptu lesson, "Something my mom told me and my siblings. You ever hear it?" Although the answer was likely no, he couldn't help but ask once he hit a nice memory in his head.

 

[K0mori]

Kang shook her head. "Can't say I have."

 

[joshuadim]

"It's a famous Ukrainian story. Very old. Talks about a Cossack. being Taras, and his family, where his younger of two sons falls in love with a Polish girl while Taras fights for liberation of the western Ukrainian bank from Polish rule. He finds his younger son, now wearing Polish robes, and shoots him dead out of rage. And then loses his eldest as he is captured and executed... then he himself is nailed to a tree and burnt alive when he loses the fight as the Poles betray a truce and attack." Mazurek explained with a chuckle, "I think it's some sort of... nationalist martyrdom from back then. Back when it was all different nations fighting one another. Doesn't make sense to me really, especially since my family are... were, Slavs of all kinds."

Mazurek visibly flinched when he mentioned that, before quickly shrugging and running a hand through his hair, "I guess it's also a story about revenge? Man hated the Poles so much that he lost his family, then himself. A warning in book form... I dunno, I'm not an expert on books. God fucking..."

He was angry at how stupid he sounded in the moment and grumbled to himself before sighing: "Are you nervous about entering the city?" Mazurek then asked, quickly switching topics as to divert attention away from his own self.

 

[K0mori]

As Mazurek's rambling story took shape, Kang was at first confused, then concerned, and then broke into a stifled snicker as the corporal grew frustrated with himself. The humor was exactly what she needed before he turned the subject back to the looming challenge in front of them.

"Are you nervous about entering the city?"

"Fucking terrified," she said. "I can barely handle a pistol. I've just got to keep my head low and stay close to you all, and do my best to talk us through any problems that can be talked through. It's weird, you know- you'd think that once we found out that there were aliens out there, that we'd all have gotten closer to one another, and I guess we did, but... how can you go back from that? There's probably a few hundred humans total who can speak the Kanad language, but somehow we've got a pact to go across that river as allies and kill a bunch of upyri people that were our brothers and sisters just a few years ago. It just makes me worry that this is going to keep happening," she said with a sigh.

"...nailed to a tree and burnt alive," she quoted, shaking her head. "...Shit."

 

[joshuadim]

"It just makes me worry that this is going to keep happening," she said with a sigh.

"...nailed to a tree and burnt alive," she quoted, shaking her head. "...Shit."

"We sure have a knack in making grim stories." Mazurek quipped before moving to the rest of her words. "It's just something we gotta take one step at a time." Mazurek replied, trying to provide some measure of an answer to Kang. "We can't predict the future, no matter how hard some program tries to calculate some events or some guy high on Talynite micro-shrooms reads some star signs or some shit. The *now* is the most important. And that's our job here."

Mazurek rubbed the back of his head as he let out a sigh: "I'll keep you alive. Consider that a promise." he added, "Someone's gotta stay alive to be able to speak with the Kanads once this war is over."

 

[Infab]

Sixty people? Good god, they picked the worst place to hunker down in. Sam sighed as the kid moved back to where the other survivors were. Of all the things to make their presence known. This could be a problem later, and he didn't have the medical supplies to tend to all of them if things went south here.

Once in the warehouse, Sam began looking for things to stack up to make some cover, in the event they were spotted. If it could be stacked up, it could be used for cover. If not to protect them from bullets, then at least to obstruct the enemy's view of them.

The bridge would be the rough part. Bridges had effectively no cover, save for maybe a few vehicles that could be shredded by heavy fire. And there was also the explosives that were likely rigged to it. All it took was an upyri commander giving a detonator a few clicks, and the bridge would be evaporated. Atlas and Auto would work on that issue, but hopefully a sniper didn't spot them.

"Once this is over, I'm requesting leave. Heard the Bahamas back on Earth weren't really affected by the invasion." said Sam. "Bring the family, relax on the beach for a few days. Sip a little tequila and watch the waves roll in and out."

He then glanced to his sergeant. "How about you, Sarge? What are you planning to do once the war is over?"

 

[K0mori]

Mazurek rubbed the back of his head as he let out a sigh: "I'll keep you alive. Consider that a promise." he added, "Someone's gotta stay alive to be able to speak with the Kanads once this war is over."

Kang smiled. "Thanks," she said. "You know, I wonder if the Kosoks are trying to learn human languages right now. I mean, it's got to be more practical for us to just learn their language, but some of them might give it a go..."

Krawczyk looked up from her map. "...I'd take it as a bad sign if a lot of them start speaking English, Chinese or Russian. Everything I've heard about them says they think we're nothing special. They wouldn't put that much time and energy into us unless they were planning on sticking around."

For a moment, Kang thought about the implication and nodded, but then offered a different perspective: "Well, maybe they like the weather here," she replied. "I haven't heard much about their other planets, but supposedly the kanads' homeworld is an icebox- colder than Siberia."

"Siberia?" the Sergeant repeated.

"On Terra," Kang clarified, and for a moment there was an awkward pause, which the Sergeant shrugged off with a grunt. "I'm just saying they might want to come see the sights, even if we're a bit primative by their standards. They've definitely earned it," Kang added.

"Once this is over, I'm requesting leave. Heard the Bahamas back on Earth weren't really affected by the invasion." said Sam. "Bring the family, relax on the beach for a few days. Sip a little tequila and watch the waves roll in and out."

He then glanced to his sergeant. "How about you, Sarge? What are you planning to do once the war is over?"

"I don't know," answered Krawczyk, sounding a bit guarded. "I guess I'll be helping pick up the pieces, and spending some time with my family. I just hope everyone makes it through okay."

 

[joshuadim]

"Siberia?" the Sergeant repeated.

"It's a large, wild and resource rich region of the Eurasia continent back on Terra. From what I know from my history textbooks, it was fought for between superpowers in the Third World War." Mazurek added as well to give additional context. "There's a big lake there, clear as day to where you can see the bottom called... Baykhal? Baicall? Baikhal? I can't remember the exact way to say it but I remember visiting as a kid. The fish and seals were bountiful after a long series of conservation projects."

Mazurek then looked to their immediate surroundings and grimaced: "Makes me wonder how much natural beauty these Upyri fucks destroyed across all sectors."

 

[Infab]

"I don't know," answered Krawczyk, sounding a bit guarded. "I guess I'll be helping pick up the pieces, and spending some time with my family. I just hope everyone makes it through okay."

"Yeah, you're not the only one." said Sam, looking back out the windows of the warehouse. "I think I've had enough death for a few lifetimes."

Eventually, Sam glanced back to Kang and Mazurek as they continued talking. Something about the Kosoks and Siberia. Cold weather being familiar to the Kanads. "Snow's fun and all, but I don't think I could stand living in a winter wasteland for my whole life." he muttered.

Then Mazurek spoke about the Upyri and their planetary conquests across the sectors.

"I heard the Upyri homeworld, Ker, is just nothing but arid desert and badlands. Somehow, they carved out a living there and turned it into some sort of citadel world." he said, eventually turning and sitting on the floor. "They seem to conquer other worlds and just take what they deem useful to their grand plan. Harvesting minerals, materials, and goods. Enslaving local populations. Taking over factory production. Whatever it takes to elevate themselves, and put their own schemes into play."

His eyes drifted down to the floor. "...And if they can't take it, they destroy it with whatever methods they have at their disposal. Death squads, nuclear weapons, orbital bombardments..." He sighed. "...I got to witness the result of that first method on Earth."

 

[bat_hacker]

"Atlas, use the drone to check the underside. If you spot anything, you're going to need to swim out there and defuse it."

"I understand. Allow me some time to prepare."

Atlas had finished hacking the drone on the way to the food cache and had spent the last several minutes silently searching its memory for any useful information. Unfortunately, it appeared as though the drone had not been active for several days prior to Atlas discovering it, having been brought in for recharging just before the assault on New Derbin had begun. The surveillance video was primarily aerial shots of the unblemished city, just high enough that it wasn't quite possible for him to distinguish upyri soldiers from their citizenry. Some movements of enemy armor were more clearly recorded, however, and while the data may be too old to be proper intel, he nevertheless gave it a digital annotation and uploaded it to command for analysis.

With that, he set about making the drone useful for Squad 9's purposes. It was likely that a single drone flying directly at the bridge would attract undue attention, especially if it wasn't responding to the blackbloods' commands. The bridge was in a wide open space, making stealth practically impossible, and the drone couldn't be submerged without damaging its electronics. There was no hiding the drone, so perhaps it would be better to disguise its intent.

First, he set to work making the drone look damaged. He raked the metal fingers of his dive suit against the frame, scratching the black paint until significant patches of metal shone in the light. He gently bent a few of the propellers until it wobbled while hovering. He snapped one of the down-facing cameras so it dangled by its wires and smudged dirt on another. He left the upward-facing cameras alone, since they'd be most important for photographing the underside of the bridge. Finally, he replaced the upward cameras' and control mechanism's encryption keys with one of his own. His goal was to make the drone appear damaged and dysfunctional, sending just enough information and responses to the upyri to maintain the ruse that it hadn't been commandeered. To them, it would appear that the video and control systems were corrupted by the physical damage the drone had allegedly sustained. He was betting they would waste their time attempting to regain control rather than destroy the drone outright. It would only buy him a minute or two, but that was all he needed.

His work completed, he plotted a somewhat circuitous route that would take the drone on a clumsy flight under the bridge before dropping it into the water once it had seen what it needed to see. He had turned down his external sensors while he was working, so he could concentrate, and as he brought them back up he noticed that his squadmates had encountered a civilian child and had been speaking amongst themselves. He read back the translation logs for the gist of the conversation. Something about sixty victims of warfare sheltered here and a conversation about the shark-faces and the tribes of the human homeworld. A frozen world and an equivalent human location. A legend of a father who forsook his son and lost everything to war and strife. Human conversation was certainly difficult to follow if not witnessed in real-time.

Mazurek was currently speaking of the atrocities committed on the human homeworld. He had never quite understood what drove the upyri to appear, but they had seemingly sprung up overnight. The filth that spewed from their great structures choked the oceans in mere days, and after only a handful of desperate attacks on their lightless constructs the blackbloods were upon them, slaughtering Fishmen by the tens of thousands. Atlas had fled with the remaining clutches to the furthest depths, hoping to be spared the grisly fate that had been inflicted upon his brethren, but the upyri were relentless. They constructed these monstrosities of metal to pierce the breach and chase them to the darkest recesses of the great ocean. They showed no mercy, capturing every Fishman they could subdue and killing any they could not.

"Mazurek," Atlas's computerized voice spoke up, "I know the suffering caused by our enemies. They kill us for pleasure and sport, and show no respect for the light of any life except their own. Their reasoning is of no consequence. They must be swept away and forbidden from [translation not found]. Our oceans will become calm again. You must trust it." Atlas's somatic movements were calm but firm, meant to be reassuring.

"I have injured this watcher. The enemy will not suspect it as it flies and speaks poorly to them. I will return to the breach from this false body and swim to the constructed overhang to find the fire pouches. I am fast and quiet. None will witness me. Before I go, tell me to help where I am needed."

 

[Breadman]

It didn't take too long for Boyan to be back into decent shape to continue with the others. All that happened to him was getting shot and stabbed, nothing too bad, just life threatening if it wasn't for the medic and the giant friendly alien that saved his life. He'd have to figure out to properly thank it eventually. He followed along at a decent pace either way. The radio chatter made him wonder how much more the Upiry were going to put up. They were losing ground, but were fighting like cornered animals. The job was going to get harder and harder.

The squad eventually settled in a warehouse to rest before going back into the thick of it. The topic had shifted about and it was now about what kind of bastards the Upiry were. Boyan simply sat down on the floor with the rest to listen in. He didn't exactly have anything unique to say that wasn't already repeated, except to add to Caine's anecdote.

"They love their death squads, but they get overconfident when deploying them. Balkan peninsula became a no-go zone for them for a good while before they aimed bigger guns and even then it was a nightmare. People there never really got their act together up until World war 3 and even after there were some tensions. The invasion made things different. They saw a common enemy to rally against. Rumors started swirling around that there's a black market that trades in Upiry 'memorabilia' over there, but I wouldn't know anything about that."

 

[ChasmOfOrganicMatter]

"The bridge; the certainty of being trapped, pinned. Your bodies and armor; lacking sufficient protection for an advance. But your weaponry... unfamiliar with technical specifications. Capable of semi-accurate fire to the opposite side? The enemy expects advance across water or bridge... not on underbelly of bridge."

The creature's auxiliary limbs reared up, serpentine if not for their nonsensicaly combinations of joints, bending at near-random angles. They looked thin and spindly compared to its enormous primary arms but they were individually thicker than an adult human's and their carapaced covering made them look infinitely toughter. Enough to support the weight of the segmented behemoth, its head swivelling to watch the vulnerable passageway.

There was a problem with this. Well, there was the fact he did not like the possibility of dying for those who had created this problem and wanted to pretend they were the heroes now, but that meant he was likely isolated.

That was, unless the piscine one was capable of following him, presumably beneath the waves. If they could even get to their positions and not get spotted first.

"Myself - creature of vertical and upside-down surfaces; underside of passage-structure. Your comrade - he swims?" One of the centipede-like limbs extended its mandible-fingers Atlas' way.

"If we go first... perhaps we can scout enemy positions, sabotage, create diversion, facilitate the crossing."

Carefully, he peered out to scan not just the bridge... but the surroundings to it. Cover was the obvious one, whether to block bullets or visually obscure. Shadows, objects blocking lines of sight, brush or smoke - anything to make it harder to see him when he would creep towards the bridge. In spite of his bulk, such a creature was difficult to see when it lay belly-first to a surface; many had passed the rubble he had hidden himself in, but he was unsure if the aquatic one was any stealthier. It did not appear like the longest stretch to the water...

 

[K0mori]

"Mazurek," Atlas's computerized voice spoke up, "I know the suffering caused by our enemies. They kill us for pleasure and sport, and show no respect for the light of any life except their own. Their reasoning is of no consequence. They must be swept away and forbidden from [translation not found]. Our oceans will become calm again. You must trust it." Atlas's somatic movements were calm but firm, meant to be reassuring.

"They love their death squads, but they get overconfident when deploying them. Balkan peninsula became a no-go zone for them for a good while before they aimed bigger guns and even then it was a nightmare. People there never really got their act together up until World war 3 and even after there were some tensions. The invasion made things different. They saw a common enemy to rally against. Rumors started swirling around that there's a black market that trades in Upiry 'memorabilia' over there, but I wouldn't know anything about that."

Krawczyk shook her head in disgust. "There's always freaks who will idolize the worst we've got to offer. The only answer we've got for it is to show them what happens when they go down that road," she replied. With that, discussion about the upyri's methods came to an end. It was time to do something about it, and already the alien members of the party were suggesting improvements to the Sergeant's plans.

"I have injured this watcher. The enemy will not suspect it as it flies and speaks poorly to them. I will return to the breach from this false body and swim to the constructed overhang to find the fire pouches. I am fast and quiet. None will witness me. Before I go, tell me to help where I am needed."

The rest of Squad 9 and some curious members of 10 gathered to get a better look at what Atlas had done to the drone. It looked like it would barely fly, and from a distance, it would appear as if it had been attacked. Krawczyk and Oberto nodded. "This'll give us a chance to sneak a peek without giving ourselves away," Oberto said.

"Yeah, just a shame we couldn't keep the drone operational for more than just this," Krawczyk replied. "Kang!"

Pvt. Kang jumped up from the pallets she was sitting on. "Yes, ma'am?"

"Bring that receiver over here again and see if we can get a link to the drone," she instructed, and so Kang took out the same device she had used earlier to discover the proper frequencies used to interface with the drone. Now that Atlas had cracked it and taken control, it wasn't a difficult task to get the video feed to stream into the receiver's display.

Kang nodded. "Okay, so we let it fly, we get a good look at the feed, and then Atlas gets down there to remove the bombs?" she asked. And while this was the plan, hearing it spoken in less-than-certain terms gave everyone a sense of unease. Champlin walked to the window and took a look at the bridge, staring at it somewhat quizzically. As the Sergeants walked up to see what she was looking at, the gunner pointed out something they had failed to consider: "Uh, how high above the water line is the bottom of the bridge?" she asked. "Won't that be hard for Atlas to reach?"

It was true- the bridge was roughly five meters above the waterline at the center, which would mean that Atlas would have to climb one of the bridge's pillars, then clamber along the metal struts beneath the concrete to reach any planted devices that would need to be removed. Swimming in the current of the river would be a challenge for a human commando, but all the climbing above the water would be much easier for a human than for a fishman. And while no one had any doubt that Atlas could get there, the true question was: what if there are bombs with delicate triggers? If Atlas is unable to safely disarm the bombs in situ, and cannot move them to the water without detonating them, then the danger could be unacceptable.

Myself - creature of vertical and upside-down surfaces; underside of passage-structure. Your comrade - he swims? If we go first... perhaps we can scout enemy positions, sabotage, create diversion, facilitate the crossing."

Oberto's eyes lit up. "That's perfect... if the two of them work in tandem, they could not only sweep for bombs, but maybe even catch the enemy off guard on the other side of the bridge."

Krawczyk smiled for a moment, but then grew more serious. "We'd need to get Atlas's suit to the other river bank. We can't expect Grecyirvick to carry it. So..." she drummed her fingers against the side of her head. "...what if a few of us swam under the bridge with him? Once we know that the path is clear, we can have Atlas run a rope across and tie it to a pillar on the opposite bank. Then, we can pull our way across without worrying about the current, and then help the two of them secure the other side of the bridge? Assuming we can't just walk across the top, anyway."

It seemed like a workable plan. Oberto preemptively sent two of his men to locate a rope of some sort which could be towed across the water to the opposite side, while Atlas spun up the drone's propellers and guided it up through an open skylight in the roof. Its automated route was then activated, and the Patrol gathered around Kang's screen to watch for any signs of enemy traps.

Atlas rolls to survey the top side of the bridge using a drone (Marginal): 4/3 - Passed.

They watched as the warehouse they were all standing in grew smaller in the video feed, before the drone wobbled its way toward the river. For a moment, all was nearly black on the screen, as the camera was not positioned over the roadway in a manner which would grant them a viewing angle, but outside, it was descending through the sky toward the opposite bank and sweeping back toward the bridge. It moved diagonally from one side of the bridge to the other, giving them a close view of the far end of the structure. Nothing seemed out of place; the few bits of debris here and there were easily identified. Another pass showed them the close-side of the bridge, and again, there was no sign that the enemy had planted any device which would destroy the bridge.

It made sense; if the upyri were still fielding vehicles in the outskirts of the city, like the light tank the humans had just encountered, then they would want to use this bridge to move back and forth to their strongholds within the heart of New Durban. If there were bombs, they would be on the underside of the bridge.

Atlas rolls to survey the underside of the bridge using a drone (Unlikely): 5/4 - Passed.

By now, it was clear to Atlas that the upyri had noticed the drone and were attempting to regain control of it. He closely monitored their attempts, but did not intervene, as any active resistance to their efforts would doubtlessly tip them off. Instead, he waited and hoped that his encryption keys would hold long enough to make the 'sneak and peek,' as Oberto put it, possible. It dropped through the air and hovered just above the waterline, dragging its dangling camera across the surface as it wobbled under the shadow of the bridge.

Kang made some adjustments to the receiver's monitor, and soon they had a clear picture of the underside of the bridge, taken from the drone's upward-facing cameras. They counted the pillars as it moved along, and soon, found what they were looking for. First, a black bag positioned within the metal truss of the bridge was seen with what appeared to be a cable running out of it, looped hastily around the beams to keep it from sagging low enough as to be seen from either side of the bridge on the riverbank. "That's not a cable, it's a demolition fuse," Krawczyk remarked.

They found another bag at what was about halfway through the bridge, and a third at the far end. The third one had a large plastic box zip-tied to a strut, with what appeared to be antennae pointed downward into the open air. "A remote detonator," Oberto observed. Moments later, the feed cut out as the drone fell into the water, disappearing from view completely.

Now, they understood the task at hand. AUTO-262 would not need to walk across the top side of the bridge, thankfully, but now they would need to send Grecyirvick across the bottom of the bridge to determine the safest way to remove the explosives, whether they could simply have their fuses cut, or if they would need a more delicate treatment. Atlas would swim below, towing a rope of some sort across the river in the process. He would be present if any of the devices needed to be hacked into- especially the remote detonator.

"Sarge," interjected Hilmarsson. He arrived carrying a fire hose which had been located at the rear of the facility. From appearances, it seemed long enough.

Krawczyk nodded. "Good job. Atlas, let's head upstream; I was looking at the map a minute ago and found a stormwater outlet. We should be able to get you into the water safely, there. Grecyirvick, you can find your own way under the bridge, but first I'd like you to sync up with our comm system. We need to be able to send and receive messages with you."

 

[joshuadim]

"Mazurek," Atlas's computerized voice spoke up, "I know the suffering caused by our enemies. They kill us for pleasure and sport, and show no respect for the light of any life except their own. Their reasoning is of no consequence. They must be swept away and forbidden from [translation not found]. Our oceans will become calm again. You must trust it." Atlas's somatic movements were calm but firm, meant to be reassuring.

Mazurek looked at Atlas for a moment as he spoke before nodding. "And Terra got it easier than most, comparatively." the Corporal commented, "What the Upyri did to Eridia, my home... to me, is immeasurable. I don't know if it will ever recover... but one can hope."

The conversation turned elsewhere as the plan then came together, with deviations proposed by Atlas and Grecyirvick to improve it. Mazurek listened intently and voiced no concerns, finding himself as pleased as Krawczyk was with it. "Need me for anything Sarge? I might still be a bit banged up, but I can help whatever way I can." he then spoke up, volunteering for duty.

 

[Infab]

Sam shifted a bit where he was sitting, listening as the plan came together and the others did as they needed. His main worry is if the upyri across the bridge spotted them. Upyri snipers were crack shots, and have proven it several times over the course of the war. All it took was a glimpse of one of them, and the plan would be shot to hell.

"We have to be as careful as possible. We screw up, we're not getting across unless its under a hail of sniper fire... or worse." remarked the medic. "A few of us could sit on overwatch. Keep a lookout for sniper nests. That way we can at least avoid their lines of sight."

He glanced to the others. "Anyone have any binocs? I could slip into one of the buildings nearby, take a peek from one of their upper floor windows." he soon said, "...Anything to make sure the rest of you don't get shot."

 

[Breadman]

Somewhere else in the city

"You see him?"

"White building to the left. Fifth floor." Morcai squinted to enhance his vision. The muscles around the bionic eye moving just enough to zoom in. The enemy sniper gave himself away with a shot to one of the commandos. Lucky for Sid, it wasn't fatal. Didn't stop him from screeching. The soldier peeked behind his cover enough to spot the glint of the scope with his eye. "Do you see him on thermal?"

"I do now." Their sniper squeezed the trigger and a loud bang followed. "Scratch one vamp down."

"Upiry, Loren. They're Upiry." Commander Sinclair chastised him over comms. "Stay up there and cover our movement." She looked outside of cover to make sure there were no other surprises. "Clear. Sid, can you move?"

"Stings like a bastard, but plating took the hit." He spat out through his teeth as he got up. "Score one for R&D. These things work good against sniper shots."

"Try to avoid getting hit more than once. Sustained fire will probably shatter it." Mordecai spoke while giving him a hand.

"Yeah, I'll try to remember not to get shot in a battlefield, newbie." Sid glared to his comrade and pushed past him with a intense shoulder bump after he got up on his feet. Forcing the second in command back a step. Mordecai had expected some hostility when he came into this unit, but not in the middle of a mission.

"Don't pay him any mind." Jacob, their technician, placed a hand on his shoulder. "He's just sore that you get to be second fiddle this mission." A reassuring smile crossed his face. "That's his spot. All nice and comfy on the seat next to the boss and all."

"He can stew on it for all I care. If he keeps the attitude up, he's going to get shot again and endanger the team." Mordecai rolled his eyes at the realization where that aggression was coming from. "If he was so concerned with his spot them he can show me he's competition."

"Oh this one's got bite!" Jacob chortled and patted Mordecai on the shoulder "You know what? Give the guy a run for his money. Haven't seen him sweat in years." At least Jacob wasn't a problem. Loren was a wild card. Mordecai couldn't get a beat on him. The commander was cold this entire mission, but that was probably for the best. They had a job to do on this rock and the offensive needed them to work on causing as much disruption as they could. That meant everything was a potential priority. Artilery, ammo dumps, motor pools, VIP targets. Nothing was off the table. They needed to find it first. Figures that the "blender team" would be out to do the dirty work with as little clarity as they could.

"Mordecai." Sinclair snapped him out of his thoughts "Come on." She tilted her head to where the others were going. "We're behind schedule." He simply nodded and followed after her.
---
At the warehouse

"Oh ne." Boyan spoke up and walked up next to Mazurek. "You're not going out without me, my friend." He pointed to him in a mock accusatory fashion "Don't think you can sneak out without me."

 

[joshuadim]

"Oh ne." Boyan spoke up and walked up next to Mazurek. "You're not going out without me, my friend." He pointed to him in a mock accusatory fashion "Don't think you can sneak out without me."

"Well if I get turned into swiss cheese again, I'll be happy to know that I won't be alone in that matter." Mazurek jested in a dry manner, before returning his attention back to Krawczyk, awaiting assignment and orders for his role.

===

In Orbit above Achenar
​

The Ursataari had been victims of Upyri atrocities in the years prior to the war, with some clans suffering more than others. Clan Blacktooth in particular saw several of their worlds fall at the hands of Upyri strike forces, where they indiscriminately bombed without a care to achieve victory. It was the very definition of dishonor to spill the blood of den-mothers and younglings, and the evils held true in the minds of those that had arrived in orbit above Achenar. Clan Blacktooth had already participated before in the fight on Terra with a smaller expeditionary force, specifically in the Battle of Berlin where Ursataari drop troops landed behind Upyri positions and caused mayhem for the attackers with their great firepower despite being outnumbered heavily.

For Jemmez, son of Chief Torric, he now had the chance to prove himself as part of the secondary expeditionary force sent to Achenar as he listened to communications at the vessel's head.

"Ursataar vessel, identify yourself." a curt voice spoke out on the other end from the humans.

"This is the vessel "Glorious Sunrise" of Clan Blacktooth, you speak with Jemmez, son of Torric. We approach to help Humans." Jemmez spoke as he went next to the pilot bay where two of his compatriots steered their vessel, which brought about a prolonged silence for a few moments. Some of the other Ursataari in the ship shifted as they anxiously awaited their commitment to battle to be approved. But then the radio spoke up once more: "You are cleared for entry. Follow the coordinates sent."

The Ursataari broke out in cheers on board as their transport ship lurched and advanced towards the planetary exosphere for atmospheric entry. There were eleven other battle-ready warriors, all of whom were commanded by Jemmez in this outing. They had all trained together as younglings as a class, and now they would all face their test of mettle together.

["When did you get so good at speaking like the little ones?"] one of his peers spoke up with a chuckle.

["Necessary to speak with them in the fight."] Jemmez responded as he helped fasten the fellow green warrior's chestplate. ["Make sure your armor is well attached. The invaders are well armed. I don't want to lose anyone. Check your weapons too."]

His fellows doubled and triple checked their gear as the vessel rumbled, the heat on the outside plating growing more intense for the ship. Jemmez himself held to one of the railings above for additional support for his massive frame. It would be a lie to say he wasn't nervous, but all Ursataari had to go through their trials as a test - to be accepted among their clan, and others, as fighters with honour and bravery. For Jemmez in particular, the stress was also do to his own father proud. He was the son of a Chief, and his actions carried weight not just on himself but to his kin as well.

["Five minutes until arrival!"] one of their pilots spoke up through their comms, which began the long countdown until they touched down at last.