Footsteps.
The four's hearts beat faster and harder with each footstep heard. Whomever the squad were facing were getting closer as the footsteps only got louder and louder. It sounded like they were going to have a lot of company.
A command was heard as the soldiers arrived at the noiseless scene.
"There's the skoom! Get to work."
At least the Grineer commander's raspy voice reassured the four of them that they weren't facing the dreaded Infestation.
The Grineer soldiers approached the cryopod on the circular platform, muscles tensing as those with guns held them firmer and those with shields raised them higher. They watched over the dormant Warframe vigilantly.
"3...2..." Trey silently counted.
"1."
Trey pressed a button.
A deafening boom was heard as all the explosive charges were set off instantly, covering the scene in a jet black fog that danced around the cryopod. The ground violently shook as the air above turned into flames that consumed the Grineer soldiers alive; leaving behind charred bodies that crumbled away.
"Heads up!" The Grineer commander ordered.
The remaining Grineer troops raised their Grakatas as their muzzles pointed in all directions, the guns prepared to riddle anyone with bullets. The Lancer's fingers were placed on their triggers, ready to fire.
The smoke cleared.
"Go!" Trey whispered to the operative lying next to him.
Grett pressed a button.
The buried turrets came to life, popping out of the sand and the barrels pointed outwards. Clicks were heard as ammunition was loaded and the muzzles were locked onto the Grineer soldiers.
And the turrets fired.
"Argh!" Grineer soldiers yelled under their dying breaths.
Energy bullets darted their way out of the steaming muzzles and hit the soldiers with pinpoint accuracy, decorating the bodies with bullet holes. One by one, the soldiers fell to the floor, nothing but a puddle of blood streaming out of their corpses. After one was dead, the turrets turned to another unfortunate victim, riddling their victims with bullets again. The deadly cycle then repeated.
"Now!" Felon shouted.
The four Tenno operatives rose from the sand swiftly; as if they had been buried for centuries. Streams of sand flowed down their bodies as they pointed their guns at the Grineer soldiers who were taken aback. They then pulled their triggers without hesitation.
Still, they were incomparable to the invulnerable Warframes. The operatives had to duck behind thick covers of metal, shooting their guns as rounds were constantly emptied.
Grett sat behind a metal cover, breathing heavily as he reloaded his Tenora with a spin, glancing at Trey who was firing his Baza rifle by his side.
"Yeah, real smart of you bringing a silent rifle to this occasion," Grett remarked.
Grett raised his hands over the cover, firing his Tenora again as another Lancer became nothing but dead.
"They won't even know I'm here!" Trey yelled over the deafening sounds of bullets.
Grett looked at his partner; a disgusted frown on his face.
"You're right next to me!"
Trey stopped firing, as if he needed a moment to take in Grett's comment; to reconsider his life's decisions.
"Alright, you have a point."
The two returned back to the gunfight, side by side.
"Watch out," Felon calmly said, forcefully pushing Steve out of the way.
Before Steve could retort, a visible bullet shot through the empty air; where his head once was.
"Thanks!"
Felon fired back, his Strun punching a crimson hole into a soldier's stomach as cloned flesh flew off like crumbs.
"You're welcome."
Another shot from his shotgun, another soldier dead.
Although nothing but a beginner, Steve's accuracy was appreciated as each shot the man pushed out from his Sybaris rifle drilled two neat holes into a soldier's chest, leaving a stream of red that poured out of corpses.
Despite their training and will, the operatives were still severely outnumbered as Grineer soldiers constantly streamed in; when one died he was easily replaced by another who stepped foot into the scene. The turrets that Grett had painfully set up were nothing but junk metal now as they sparked lifelessly; dead because of Grineer bullets.
It was only a matter of time before the operatives ran out of bullets and ideas; having to surrender to the never-ending flood of soldiers.
They had to think of something, fast.
Steve crouched back under the cover, reloading his Sybaris.
A yellow, glowing button at the corner of his eye caught his attention.
He stared intently at the button he was once so persistent on pushing.
"...Grineer tech; it's meant for destruction..." Trey's comment flashed past his mind.
A smart smirk was formed on the operative's face.
Felon tapped Steve on the shoulder; as if he had to wake Steve up from a dreamy sleep.
"Hey, Snow White, you gonna help out or what?"
Felon blindly pointed his Strun behind him, and pulled the trigger. An Elite Lancer's body fell lifelessly behind the man soon after.
"I am!" Steve chirped.
Steve rushed out of the metal cover he was hiding behind, sprinting to the glowing button.
"Wait! What?!"
Felon stretched his arm out, trying to catch and drag Steve back; but the idiot was too fast. He ran out of Felon's reach and was now in full sight of every single person.
Dressing in a snow white suit was probably not the best idea for this occasion as the running Steve grabbed every man's attention.
"What the fuck?" Trey exclaimed.
"Man's crazy!" Grett shouted.
A glowing pair of Grineer eyes in the distance locked onto the man in a bright white costume.
He traced Steve with his Grakata.
And fired.
Steve stretched his arm out, the button was right there.
A Grineer bullet punched through Steve; making the man in the bright suit trip over from the unbearable pain. Fortunately, before he slipped, his hand slapped the button at the last instant, activating whatever the button was connected to.
The ground rumbled.
Gunfire ceased as everyone present was unsure of what followed Steve's foolish actions.
Steve dragged himself back to cover; hiding under the Grineer console.
The yellow button; now red, was pressed. Metal was shook as Grineer soldiers unsteadily stood their ground.
An audible reloading was heard; surrounding the battle site.
A deafening silence filled the still air.
A combination of Mordda Turrets and Akkalak Turrets rose from their slumber; circular platforms opening as the turrets rose from the depths. The barrels of the Akkalak Turrets spun, ready to fire. Missiles were locked and loaded in the Mordda Turrets.
"Get down!" Felon bellowed.
The operatives all ducked, lying as close as they could to their covers, hiding for their dear lives. Unfortunately for the Grineer, no orders were given as the wide-eyed soldiers stared at the turrets, shocked, unsure of what to do as their bodies shivered coldly while the turrets turned to face the stunned soldiers.
Their own technology did not recognize them.
Their own technology turned on them.
The Akkalak Turrets fired; riddling the scene with bullets as the ground cracked with every heavy shell that landed. Grineer bodies were split apart as large bullets punched through bodies repeatedly, darting through the corpses and leaving behind a pool of crimson red that was only boiled by missiles from the Mordda Turrets. The rockets hit whatever they could; even lifeless metal that had been deemed hostile. The explosions roasted everything in the vicinity, leaving behind blackened, crumbling bodies.
The Grineer commander witnessed the horrific, bloody scene; watching his troops being drilled apart by thick bullets or blown to smithereens by missiles with his mouth agape. He fumbled around his pouch, carelessly whipping out a transponder with his shivering hand and sending out a message; a message for help. He then looked up; an Akkalak Turret was facing him.
The commander had a resigned frown on his face.
"Oh."
The turret fired, splitting his cloned body apart. The transponder fell to the floor; the message successfully sent.
A flurry of bullets and rockets continued to shoot out of the turrets as the scene was blanketed in hardened Grineer shells.
"Gu...guys? You guys fine?" Bob asked, gritting his teeth.
A cloud of smoke surrounded the battle site as the scene returned back to a dead silent.
An ocean of blood streamed all around the cryopod; which, thanks to its sturdy shields, remained unharmed.
The turrets deactivated, transforming back into their dormant state and joyous that they had done their job well.
Only two things remained.
The cryopod, and
the operatives.
Felon peeked over from his cover, only greeted by a bloodied skull of a Grineer soldier. Grett pushed away broken limbs and cracked bones that had landed on him as he rose; and Trey swatted away the thick, persistent fog of smoke, coughing as he did.
The operatives laughed triumphantly as they slung their weapons back over their shoulders, mocking the corpses that surrounded them; either fragmented by shells or roasted by rockets. They jumped around wildly, celebrating.
Lines of crimson Grineer blood painted the walls since bodies had been splat apart in front of them.
"Haha! Nice!"
"We're fine Bob!" Grett celebrated, raising his wrist comm to his lips, his chirp of victory echoing over the radio.
Remembering the silly scene of Steve tripping, Felon remembered; his friend had been hit.
"Steve?!" Felon called out.
An audible groan of pain could be heard from behind a Grineer console.
The three operatives rushed over, pulling Steve out.
They scanned the body.
Then rolled their eyes.
"Steve, you...alright?"
"No...I'm not."
Steve clutched Felon's hand, relaying his "last words".
"Tell the world what happened today," Steve begged.
Felon crouched next to him.
"What happened today?"
Steve remained silent for a bit.
"Tell them, about my sacrifice," Steve coughed.
"You're not dead," Felon clarified.
"I'm about to be," Steve insisted.
"It's only a flesh wound, dumbass."
Steve looked down, wide-eyed, embarrassed; his friend was right. The bullet had missed pathetically, drilling nothing but a shallow scratch on his right ankle, leaving only a small splat of blood that stained his white suit.
Felon shook Steve's hand off, and the three returned back to their main objective; the cryopod.
"I felt it go through me!" Steve yelled, limping over to the cryopod.
Ignoring him, the trio continued to observe the cryopod in a solemn silence.
"What? Why are y'all so..."
Steve realized what they had been so mute about.
"...quiet..."
Unknown to the four, some sort of timer on the cryopod had activated during their friendly exchange with the Grineer; now counting down and coming to an end soon enough.
"00:00:10...00:00:09..."
Although the four weren't scholars, the operatives understood that that meant how close they were from witnessing a God being awoken. And despite knowing that whatever laid underneath the frosted glass panels was a friend, the operatives had heard stories; stories of how confused, unsure Tenno had ripped apart whoever was standing in front of them, whether they were foe...
or friend.
"Quick! Hide!" Grett commanded, urgently.
The four dove and hid behind a wall together, peeking out as the timer came to a close.
"00:00:01...00:00:00."
The frosted glass on the cryopod became a transparent screen as the ice within the pod melted; white, cold smoke was released as the doors creaked opened and the ancient, Orokin cryopod, having served its purpose, was worthless now.
A man rose from his eternal slumber.
A Warframe emerged.