Jenner's plasma jet flared viciously, blasting an incandescent hole through the Kharaa Hive.
"Well-done it is, then. An excellent choice, if I may say so." I said brightly.
I scoured the Med Bay with the plasma arc, incinerating any remnants of the Hive that appeared to have survived my initial kill-shot. I'm not aiming to leave anything to chance here. As soon as I've finished dealing with this one, I'll check out the isolation bay. Not much hope of finding Polyakov and his Blue Meanies alive now. Their tissue would have provided more than enough biomass to spawn all six Hives. The fact that the Kharaa are aware of me as a specific entity undeniably confirms that our prisoners were assimilated in fairly short order. Tough break for Polyakov and Co. I sincerely doubt any of them were aware of what was happening when their time came. It's rough justice, but better than none at all.
One glance through the isolation bay viewport was enough. Very little remained of the cryo-stasis pods themselves, as they had been digested to provide raw material for the biomass invading this part of the facility. If those airlocks had been equipped with ceramic door seals right from the start, our prisoners might still be alive. It's too late to do anything about it now, except to clear up the mess we've made. Naturally, I feel considerable remorse in deliberately consigning them to this miserable fate. I have no credible defence for my decision to leave them in a contaminated area. In the final analysis, Polyakov and I are equally to blame. His monumental stupidity and my casual arrogance have worked in perfect harmony to bring us to this point.
I'll let the philosophers work that one out. Right now, there are far more urgent matters requiring my immediate attention. DIGBY and JUNO have reported movement in all corridors leading into the atrium. After fumigating the isolation bay and Med Bay to saturation point, I scrambled through the re-opened doorway and rejoined the crew.
"What's the tactical situation, DIGBY?"
"The first wave appears to be comprised of amassed Skulks and Gorges, Sir. Forty organisms in total. No discernible attack pattern has evolved as yet, although the composition of the first wave suggests that a blitzkrieg strike may be imminent. Also detecting a number of Lerks and Fades mustering in flanking positions, approximate count is somewhere between twenty and thirty organisms. There is a strong possibility that these stealth elements will launch their attack while we are still engaging the first wave. Standard diversionary tactics. Somewhat inelegantly applied, though still potentially quite effective."
"Sounds like we're in for a real scrap. If they've managed to survive this long against the effects of the toxin, there's obviously a fair bit of fight still left in them. Not good at all. JUNO, how are the recon drones faring?"
"Drones ECHO through ZULU inclusive are almost in position, Captain. Awaiting your orders, Sir."
"Excellent. Take ALFA, BRAVO, CHARLIE and DELTA and position them on the ceiling above the main entrances to the atrium. Detonate on my command."
"Aye, Sir." JUNO replied. The four drones scuttled away obediently, disappearing into the shadows.
You know, having been gone for... awhile... I expected a bit more than page 20...
Ah well, I guess it's lucky I decided to check my inbox (>>300+ unread messages, 99.999...% spam, Charter's spam filter SUCKS) and was reminded of this story.
You know, having been gone for... awhile... I expected a bit more than page 20...
Ah well, I guess it's lucky I decided to check my inbox (>>300+ unread messages, 99.999...% spam, Charter's spam filter SUCKS) and was reminded of this story.
-_- You know that can come off sounding entitled, right?
Even though I know what the exosuits look like, I can't help but picture Selkirk's suit as Terminator Armor
A fairly close comparison, although the Jenner and Pasteur Mk. V variants are also equipped with 2,500 litre toxin storage tanks that conform to the general shape of the basic ExoSuit pattern. Makes them appear considerably more bulky.
... Uncomfortably similar to Terminator armour, in fact. Unfortunately, no Storm Bolters are equipped.
Even though I know what the exosuits look like, I can't help but picture Selkirk's suit as Terminator Armor
A fairly close comparison, although the Jenner and Pasteur Mk. V variants are also equipped with 2,500 litre toxin storage tanks that conform to the general shape of the basic ExoSuit pattern. Makes them appear considerably more bulky.
... Uncomfortably similar to Terminator armour, in fact. Unfortunately, no Storm Bolters are equipped.
Adeptus Ares Caledoni, 'Haggis Basher' Chapter.
May not have storm bolters, but he certainly does have a heavy flamer
You know, having been gone for... awhile... I expected a bit more than page 20...
Ah well, I guess it's lucky I decided to check my inbox (>>300+ unread messages, 99.999...% spam, Charter's spam filter SUCKS) and was reminded of this story.
-_- You know that can come off sounding entitled, right?
Was not my intention, thanks for pointing it out...
Wait. Wait. Waiiiit. Human brain fused with metal body? Followed by a request for an alliance...
Dr. Who reference?
Edit to fix vagueness...
Page 19.
You're new to this story. I can tell.
A brief recap:
A digitised copy of Selkirk's psyche is housed in a AI memory core. Therefore, he is technically an android. One hundred per cent synthetic.
The Kharaa intelligence proposed that Selkirk could join the Kharaa swarm, and use his particular talents to create a cybernetically-enhanced version of the entire Kharaa genome.
This would be a Very Bad Thing.
Wait. Wait. Waiiiit. Human brain fused with metal body? Followed by a request for an alliance...
Dr. Who reference?
Edit to fix vagueness...
Page 19.
You're new to this story. I can tell.
A brief recap:
A digitised copy of Selkirk's psyche is housed in a AI memory core. Therefore, he is technically an android. One hundred per cent synthetic.
The Kharaa intelligence proposed that Selkirk could join the Kharaa swarm, and use his particular talents to create a cybernetically-enhanced version of the entire Kharaa genome.
This would be a Very Bad Thing.
Clear enough?
And how the hell did a biological "you will be assimilated" expect to assimilate non-organic life?
Wait. Wait. Waiiiit. Human brain fused with metal body? Followed by a request for an alliance...
Dr. Who reference?
Edit to fix vagueness...
Page 19.
You're new to this story. I can tell.
A brief recap:
A digitised copy of Selkirk's psyche is housed in a AI memory core. Therefore, he is technically an android. One hundred per cent synthetic.
The Kharaa intelligence proposed that Selkirk could join the Kharaa swarm, and use his particular talents to create a cybernetically-enhanced version of the entire Kharaa genome.
This would be a Very Bad Thing.
Clear enough?
And how the hell did a biological "you will be assimilated" expect to assimilate non-organic life?
Probably the same way a biological entity voluntarily assimilated to a non-organic life did just that?
Wait. Wait. Waiiiit. Human brain fused with metal body? Followed by a request for an alliance...
Dr. Who reference?
Edit to fix vagueness...
Page 19.
You're new to this story. I can tell.
A brief recap:
A digitised copy of Selkirk's psyche is housed in a AI memory core. Therefore, he is technically an android. One hundred per cent synthetic.
The Kharaa intelligence proposed that Selkirk could join the Kharaa swarm, and use his particular talents to create a cybernetically-enhanced version of the entire Kharaa genome.
This would be a Very Bad Thing.
Clear enough?
And how the hell did a biological "you will be assimilated" expect to assimilate non-organic life?
Probably the same was a biological entity voluntarily assimilated to a non-organic life did just that?
So they just want his mind then. That makes more sense
Bloody astartes take all the credit for stuff the Guard did......
is that just a comment or to make a point about the story anyway marvellous work bugzapper
I imagine the kharaa are basically just zerg F5 F5 F5 F5 F5 F5 F5 F5 F5 F5 F5.....
It was as if someone had opened the floodgates of Hell. A torrent of frenzied Kharaa tumbled into the atrium, growling, snarling and screaming in agony. Even as the drifting enzyme clouds ate into their flesh, these creatures were being brutally compelled to hunt us down. Deep within the Lava Castle's darkest reaches, a cruel and calculating intellect coolly weighed its options, moving these expendable game-pieces around without sparing a single thought for their suffering. It probably felt as safe as houses, its mental essence spread equally among five other Hive entities. The loss of a single Hive was nothing more than an ineffectual pinprick, inflicted by insects. Once control had been fully re-asserted, other Hives would certainly grow to replace the one I had destroyed.
"JUNO. All drone units. Detonate." I said curtly. " Héloise, set your mist flow rate to one litre per second. Word of warning, something strange is about to happen to your HUD. If you can't make sense of the visuals, hand Pasteur's autopilot controls over to me or one of the crew. You'll be perfectly safe."
"Not a chance, Chérie." She murmured sweetly. "I was born for this."
"All units. Activate multi-spectrum sensors, phased array mode, 0.5 second sweep. One last thing; this is a 3D engagement. Don't forget to look up. Mark your targets, and hit 'em hard. Good luck."
As my suit's HUD cycled through all IR, UV and sonar frequencies, our view of the atrium transformed into a psychedelic fever dream. I glanced anxiously across at Héloise. At first, she seemed disoriented by this overwhelming barrage of visual data, although her ExoSuit moved surely as we began our advance. To my surprise, she was able to master this bizarre world-view with ease, gradually adapting her sight to process the rapidly flickering images. I confess that my hand hovered near the over-ride control as I watched her initial struggle, and it was with great relief that I guiltily tore it away.
Something was definitely happening to the Kharaa. Their initial onslaught of slavering, mindless fury had dissipated almost immediately, leaving them milling around the atrium in utter confusion. Most of the vanguard had been caught in the concentrated toxin clouds released by the drones stationed above the entrances to the atrium. The fact that all five Hives had simultaneously received an even more potent dose of Enzyme 42 only added to this confusion, and the entities therein would also be feeling its effects rather acutely at this point. If Kharaa are capable of expressing any of the more finely-tuned emotions, I'd suggest 'abject fear' as a reasonable starting point. As of now, they are sitting squarely on the anvil.
And we're about to bring the hammer down.
We broke cover, catching at least ten Kharaa by surprise. Gauss cannons howling, we fell upon them like wolves. Brilliant blue-white corona discharges flared, briefly illuminating the carnage as a stop-motion animation; a surreal sight. A couple of Skulks charged us and sheered away at the last second, desperately turning tail as the toxin clouds pumping out of Jenner and Pasteur corroded their tissues. A cloud of flechettes from Guinevere and Percival ripped these brutes apart in mid-stride. We continued to advance relentlessly, sweeping all opposition aside with almost surgical precision. There was no sport to be found in this slaughter.
Wait. Wait. Waiiiit. Human brain fused with metal body? Followed by a request for an alliance...
Dr. Who reference?
Edit to fix vagueness...
Page 19.
You're new to this story. I can tell.
A brief recap:
A digitised copy of Selkirk's psyche is housed in a AI memory core. Therefore, he is technically an android. One hundred per cent synthetic.
The Kharaa intelligence proposed that Selkirk could join the Kharaa swarm, and use his particular talents to create a cybernetically-enhanced version of the entire Kharaa genome.
This would be a Very Bad Thing.
Wait. Wait. Waiiiit. Human brain fused with metal body? Followed by a request for an alliance...
Dr. Who reference?
Edit to fix vagueness...
Page 19.
You're new to this story. I can tell.
A brief recap:
A digitised copy of Selkirk's psyche is housed in a AI memory core. Therefore, he is technically an android. One hundred per cent synthetic.
The Kharaa intelligence proposed that Selkirk could join the Kharaa swarm, and use his particular talents to create a cybernetically-enhanced version of the entire Kharaa genome.
This would be a Very Bad Thing.
Clear enough?
Actually. I've been here from the beginning. I was merely referring to the similarities of those two situations.
This entire ordeal is reminding a lot of us about 40K and to me particularly Space Hulk: Deathwing. Which is filled with a lot of blood and gore quite like this chapter.Yet of course everyone has a certain fan-boyishness to them and we all love a bit of Sci-Fi battles!
This entire ordeal is reminding a lot of us about 40K and to me particularly Space Hulk: Deathwing. Which is filled with a lot of blood and gore quite like this chapter.Yet of course everyone has a certain fan-boyishness to them and we all love a bit of Sci-Fi battles!
True. There's more than a bit of a Space Hulk encounter in this one. Unavoidable, given the circumstances.
Can't exactly sit the Kharaa down to a glass of wine laced with iocaine powder, can I ?
This entire ordeal is reminding a lot of us about 40K and to me particularly Space Hulk: Deathwing. Which is filled with a lot of blood and gore quite like this chapter.Yet of course everyone has a certain fan-boyishness to them and we all love a bit of Sci-Fi battles!
True. There's more than a bit of a Space Hulk encounter in this one. Unavoidable, given the circumstances.
Can't exactly sit the Kharaa down to a glass of wine laced with iocaine powder, can I ?
No you can't in fact here dwell on this typed it up myself "Good or Bad is a universal concept it's always a war between Black and White most can't see the world for what it really is, and what is the actual world? Muted Shades of Gray is the answer you seek... but the question is are you really on the correct side?" Now this may be incorrect giving the circumstances yet it really describes Selkirks view of the world. And my personal view as well philosophical it may be but the truth is what it holds are we really all Great People? You may see soldiers as in 40K kill for the Emperor but we all see the truth of a power hungry being feeding off others for his own benefit!
This entire ordeal is reminding a lot of us about 40K and to me particularly Space Hulk: Deathwing. Which is filled with a lot of blood and gore quite like this chapter.Yet of course everyone has a certain fan-boyishness to them and we all love a bit of Sci-Fi battles!
True. There's more than a bit of a Space Hulk encounter in this one. Unavoidable, given the circumstances.
Can't exactly sit the Kharaa down to a glass of wine laced with iocaine powder, can I ?
From "For the EMPORER" to "that's inconceivable "
In a single post! That's genius!
Comments
"Well-done it is, then. An excellent choice, if I may say so." I said brightly.
I scoured the Med Bay with the plasma arc, incinerating any remnants of the Hive that appeared to have survived my initial kill-shot. I'm not aiming to leave anything to chance here. As soon as I've finished dealing with this one, I'll check out the isolation bay. Not much hope of finding Polyakov and his Blue Meanies alive now. Their tissue would have provided more than enough biomass to spawn all six Hives. The fact that the Kharaa are aware of me as a specific entity undeniably confirms that our prisoners were assimilated in fairly short order. Tough break for Polyakov and Co. I sincerely doubt any of them were aware of what was happening when their time came. It's rough justice, but better than none at all.
One glance through the isolation bay viewport was enough. Very little remained of the cryo-stasis pods themselves, as they had been digested to provide raw material for the biomass invading this part of the facility. If those airlocks had been equipped with ceramic door seals right from the start, our prisoners might still be alive. It's too late to do anything about it now, except to clear up the mess we've made. Naturally, I feel considerable remorse in deliberately consigning them to this miserable fate. I have no credible defence for my decision to leave them in a contaminated area. In the final analysis, Polyakov and I are equally to blame. His monumental stupidity and my casual arrogance have worked in perfect harmony to bring us to this point.
I'll let the philosophers work that one out. Right now, there are far more urgent matters requiring my immediate attention. DIGBY and JUNO have reported movement in all corridors leading into the atrium. After fumigating the isolation bay and Med Bay to saturation point, I scrambled through the re-opened doorway and rejoined the crew.
"What's the tactical situation, DIGBY?"
"The first wave appears to be comprised of amassed Skulks and Gorges, Sir. Forty organisms in total. No discernible attack pattern has evolved as yet, although the composition of the first wave suggests that a blitzkrieg strike may be imminent. Also detecting a number of Lerks and Fades mustering in flanking positions, approximate count is somewhere between twenty and thirty organisms. There is a strong possibility that these stealth elements will launch their attack while we are still engaging the first wave. Standard diversionary tactics. Somewhat inelegantly applied, though still potentially quite effective."
"Sounds like we're in for a real scrap. If they've managed to survive this long against the effects of the toxin, there's obviously a fair bit of fight still left in them. Not good at all. JUNO, how are the recon drones faring?"
"Drones ECHO through ZULU inclusive are almost in position, Captain. Awaiting your orders, Sir."
"Excellent. Take ALFA, BRAVO, CHARLIE and DELTA and position them on the ceiling above the main entrances to the atrium. Detonate on my command."
"Aye, Sir." JUNO replied. The four drones scuttled away obediently, disappearing into the shadows.
"Brace up, people. Here they come."
Ah well, I guess it's lucky I decided to check my inbox (>>300+ unread messages, 99.999...% spam, Charter's spam filter SUCKS) and was reminded of this story.
-_- You know that can come off sounding entitled, right?
A fairly close comparison, although the Jenner and Pasteur Mk. V variants are also equipped with 2,500 litre toxin storage tanks that conform to the general shape of the basic ExoSuit pattern. Makes them appear considerably more bulky.
... Uncomfortably similar to Terminator armour, in fact.
Adeptus Ares Caledoni, 'Haggis Basher' Chapter.
PURGE THE EXO SCUM COMMENCE ADEPTUS EXTERMINATUS.
for gods sake just forget it m8
May not have storm bolters, but he certainly does have a heavy flamer
Was not my intention, thanks for pointing it out...
Dr. Who reference?
Edit to fix vagueness...
Page 19.
You're new to this story. I can tell.
A brief recap:
A digitised copy of Selkirk's psyche is housed in a AI memory core. Therefore, he is technically an android. One hundred per cent synthetic.
The Kharaa intelligence proposed that Selkirk could join the Kharaa swarm, and use his particular talents to create a cybernetically-enhanced version of the entire Kharaa genome.
This would be a Very Bad Thing.
Clear enough?
And how the hell did a biological "you will be assimilated" expect to assimilate non-organic life?
Probably the same way a biological entity voluntarily assimilated to a non-organic life did just that?
So they just want his mind then. That makes more sense
is that just a comment or to make a point about the story anyway marvellous work bugzapper
I imagine the kharaa are basically just zerg F5 F5 F5 F5 F5 F5 F5 F5 F5 F5 F5.....
It was as if someone had opened the floodgates of Hell. A torrent of frenzied Kharaa tumbled into the atrium, growling, snarling and screaming in agony. Even as the drifting enzyme clouds ate into their flesh, these creatures were being brutally compelled to hunt us down. Deep within the Lava Castle's darkest reaches, a cruel and calculating intellect coolly weighed its options, moving these expendable game-pieces around without sparing a single thought for their suffering. It probably felt as safe as houses, its mental essence spread equally among five other Hive entities. The loss of a single Hive was nothing more than an ineffectual pinprick, inflicted by insects. Once control had been fully re-asserted, other Hives would certainly grow to replace the one I had destroyed.
"JUNO. All drone units. Detonate." I said curtly. " Héloise, set your mist flow rate to one litre per second. Word of warning, something strange is about to happen to your HUD. If you can't make sense of the visuals, hand Pasteur's autopilot controls over to me or one of the crew. You'll be perfectly safe."
"Not a chance, Chérie." She murmured sweetly. "I was born for this."
"All units. Activate multi-spectrum sensors, phased array mode, 0.5 second sweep. One last thing; this is a 3D engagement. Don't forget to look up. Mark your targets, and hit 'em hard. Good luck."
As my suit's HUD cycled through all IR, UV and sonar frequencies, our view of the atrium transformed into a psychedelic fever dream. I glanced anxiously across at Héloise. At first, she seemed disoriented by this overwhelming barrage of visual data, although her ExoSuit moved surely as we began our advance. To my surprise, she was able to master this bizarre world-view with ease, gradually adapting her sight to process the rapidly flickering images. I confess that my hand hovered near the over-ride control as I watched her initial struggle, and it was with great relief that I guiltily tore it away.
Something was definitely happening to the Kharaa. Their initial onslaught of slavering, mindless fury had dissipated almost immediately, leaving them milling around the atrium in utter confusion. Most of the vanguard had been caught in the concentrated toxin clouds released by the drones stationed above the entrances to the atrium. The fact that all five Hives had simultaneously received an even more potent dose of Enzyme 42 only added to this confusion, and the entities therein would also be feeling its effects rather acutely at this point. If Kharaa are capable of expressing any of the more finely-tuned emotions, I'd suggest 'abject fear' as a reasonable starting point. As of now, they are sitting squarely on the anvil.
And we're about to bring the hammer down.
We broke cover, catching at least ten Kharaa by surprise. Gauss cannons howling, we fell upon them like wolves. Brilliant blue-white corona discharges flared, briefly illuminating the carnage as a stop-motion animation; a surreal sight. A couple of Skulks charged us and sheered away at the last second, desperately turning tail as the toxin clouds pumping out of Jenner and Pasteur corroded their tissues. A cloud of flechettes from Guinevere and Percival ripped these brutes apart in mid-stride. We continued to advance relentlessly, sweeping all opposition aside with almost surgical precision. There was no sport to be found in this slaughter.
It simply had to be done.
Actually. I've been here from the beginning. I was merely referring to the similarities of those two situations.
True. There's more than a bit of a Space Hulk encounter in this one. Unavoidable, given the circumstances.
Can't exactly sit the Kharaa down to a glass of wine laced with iocaine powder, can I ?
Edit your post, mate. It looks like spam.
No you can't in fact here dwell on this typed it up myself "Good or Bad is a universal concept it's always a war between Black and White most can't see the world for what it really is, and what is the actual world? Muted Shades of Gray is the answer you seek... but the question is are you really on the correct side?" Now this may be incorrect giving the circumstances yet it really describes Selkirks view of the world. And my personal view as well philosophical it may be but the truth is what it holds are we really all Great People? You may see soldiers as in 40K kill for the Emperor but we all see the truth of a power hungry being feeding off others for his own benefit!
From "For the EMPORER" to "that's inconceivable "
In a single post! That's genius!
May your pork by-products contain minimal sulphite levels!
Alternatively,
Have an Adequate Festivus. May your Grievances be trivial, and your Feats of Strength impressive.
I mean, I got that Camel Feat of Strength in WoW during Cata; that's pretty impressive.
More to come, folks. Holiday Mode engaged.
Currently in an eggnog-induced coma.