Well, better late then never. My internet crashed, so I was away from writing for several weeks. As a result, I had to do some brush up on where we were, and if I forgot to include something we talked about in the past, my apologies.
"For the time will come when you will say, 'Blessed are the childless women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!" -Luke 23:29
Coruscant, Galactic Senate, Office of the Supreme Chancellor of the Republic,
18:12 Hours Senate time
Mace Windu took a slow, thoughtful sip from the glass of water in his hand. He then swirled it around and stared at the clear liquid, sloshing about like a stormy ocean. He sighed dejectedly,"If only things were as clear as they once were."
"On the contrary, master jedi," Chancellor Palpatine said as he gave the jedi master a brief glance from over his shoulder,"I think the situation is quite clear. The means to accomplish our goal, however, is far harder to see."
Mace nodded slowly, taking another drink before placing the glass gently on the table before him. The evening sunset cast an orange glow across the room, reflecting off the water with a slight shimmer. Beside his glass was Yoda's, which was still untouched.
Palpatine turned and slowly made his way toward them, his robes billowing as he went,"It is unfortunate master Fisto was unable to join us. I imagine today's news broadcast has left him with no shortage of responsibilities."
Mace nodded again,"I spoke with him before master Yoda and I came here. His clone troopers are spread very thinly across the city. Its taking every trooper he has to put down riots in the upper levels." He glanced out the window at the pillar of smoke rising miles in the distance,"Many of the lower levels are in complete anarchy now. We just don't have enough troops to maintain order and calm the masses."
Palpatine scowled,"That hideous creature has caused panic on a scale we simply haven't seen before. Most of the core worlds are teetering between unrest and total anarchy." He smirked,"Ironic, former Confederacy worlds like Raxus Prime, and poorer planets like Ryloth are faring far better. When the populace doesn't have the means to view the broadcast, or simply doesn't care too, it prevents incidents like the one that occurred this morning."
The three beings sat together in silence for a moment, watching as the sun set over Upper Coruscant. The airways were seeing far less traffic, as many citizens simply stayed home to hide from the violence spreading across the planet.
It was truly pitiful. They were struggling to maintain order so close to the Senate, and the Flood hadn't even set foot on the ground! Palpatine couldn't help but shiver at the thought that, if this was the best the jedi and clones could do, they could be in deep trouble. Which brought another topic to his mind...
"How are our fortress worlds coming along master jedi?" The Chancellor asked.
Mace and Yoda exchanged a glance, deciding between themselves who would answer the question."Well," Mace began,"We've made tremendous progress in the few days we've had to prepare. For starters, each of the 7 worlds has been given a massive defense fleet to keep the flood from landing. Coruscant in particular has been given the largest." He leaned back in his chair, his expression growing serious,"It is generally agreed among our generals and military leaders that, if the infection makes it to the surface of Coruscant, our chances of stopping it are astronomically low."
"Because of this, we've decided to focus on not allowing the parasite to land. Anti-aircraft batteries and turbolaser towers are being deployed all across the planet, and we've made certain that multiple carriers are in orbit. If the flood tries to rush us with hordes of fighters, we will simply fill the skies with our own and shoot them down. Of course, the planet is complimented by its orbital platforms and shield generators across the surface."
"Kuat's shipyards are still fully operational, but non-essential areas of the station are on lockdown. A large garrison has been deployed on the surface."
Palpatine's eyes widened slightly,"So, do we expect the flood to head to the core worlds first?"
Mace frowned,"Unfortunately, the parasite is moving incredibly fast. We only have time to prepare a few defenses before we expect the first waves to arrive-"
"Master Jedi," Palpatine interrupted with a raised hand,"I thought you said we were on track?"
"Given the time we have to prepare, we are doing very well." Mace corrected.
Palpatine leaned back in his chair and steepled his fingers, satisfied with the answer. Mace continued,"The closest fortress world is Tatooine. If the parasite continues at roughly the same pace it is advancing now, we have a few days before it gets hit. Ryloth and Kamino are also close to Tatooine. Of course, if the parasite decides to strike at the heart of the galaxy, we may have a little more time out there. Mandalore is beyond the core, and Mon Calamari has a few weeks, according to current estimations."
"How are we preparing on Tatooine?" Palpatine asked.
"Given its sparse population, Tatooine has been given the smallest defense fleet." The jedi master said,"Although, Geonosis is so close the Separatists in the system could easily come support the defense fleet. However, the few cities on the planet have been given large garrisons of clones and battle droids." Mace glanced out the window again before continuing,"Unfortunately, since the population is made up of mostly criminals and such, the military presence wasn't received well. Dozens of clones and hundreds of battle droids were killed in partisan attacks, until the local crime lords threw their weight behind us. Apparently, when Jabba the Hutt and Republic troopers are working together, few criminals are reckless enough to start something."
A smile crept across Palpatine's face,"Good. Sometimes, a heavy hand is needed to ensure order."
Both jedi frowned at that statement, but decided not to comment. Mace continued,"Ryloth was also given a comparatively small fleet. However, the harsh terrain is proving to be a very useful advantage. If the flood land on one side, they will simply burn. On the other side, they freeze. So, we have a much smaller area to protect. In addition, the Twi'lek population is proving to be very receptive. In addition to the regular clone and droid units deployed on the surface, clone sergeants and mercenaries are training and arming the population as we speak to fight."
Mace sighed deeply,"Kamino is perhaps the most important world of them all. A massive fleet rivaling that of Coruscant is protecting the planet, and the few stilted cities on the surface are crawling with clone troopers. However, we don't know if the flood could take advantage of the sea life on the planet."
Palpatine frowned deeply at the thought of the flood in Kamino's oceans."And how are we preparing to counter this?"
"Well," Mace said cautiously,"We are deploying sensors near the base of every city to provide an early warning if the structural integrity of the city supports are being tampered with. Beyond that, there isn't a lot we can do."
The Chancellor scowled deeply."I see." He got up and went back over to the window. Several acclamators were orbiting ominously in low atmosphere above the city skyscrapers, almost low enough to touch one of the several columns of smoke rising in the distance."What of Mandalore and Mon Calamari?"
He heard Mace snort,"Ironically, Mandalore is probably the safest place in the galaxy right now. All across the galaxy, Mandalorians are crawling out of the woodwork and uniting to defend their homeworld. We sent a smaller fleet of cruisers ahead of the bulk of the defense fleet, only to find thousands of ships in orbit already." Mace pursed his lips together,"Amazing how stubborn they are when it comes to their homeworld. Anything from entire clans with battleships and cruisers to single bounty hunters in fighters are pouring into the system. While they made it clear they didn't need Republic help defending their world, the admiral in charge requested we send administrators to sort through the volunteers and assign them. A Mandalorian woman named Bo-Katan is leading the actual defense of the planet." His eyes glazed over in thought,"Apparently, she and Maul are on very bad terms, so they are staying far away from each other."
Palpatine hid a knowing grin, instead sighing pensively,"Must there always be quarrel amongst them?"
"They are Mandalorians, Chancellor."
"Of course." He said quickly,"And Mon Calamari?"
"Mon Calamari is being slowly fortified, since it has the most time."Mace said,"Given most of the surface is water, the islands are being heavily fortified with large garrisons and defenses. What's more, we are building orbital defense stations in tandem with the CIS as we speak." Now it was the jedi master's turn to rise from his chair and shuffle over to the window beside the Chancellor. The falling sun cast a golden glow on the two powerful men, once enemies but now allies by circumstance. Mace watched as a trio of LAAT gunships rushed past them toward a riot taking place somewhere on the streets."Chancellor," He said quietly,"We are doing all we can, but I think it will not be enough."
Palpatine didn't look at him. Instead, he just nodded slowly, clasping his hands behind his back."What are the reports from the battlefields, Master Windu?"
Venator-Class,"Resolute?" Vassek Orbit,
00:13 Hours Senate time, 19:54 Local time
A yellow interceptor came streaking into the hangar, sending Republic mechanics scrambling to safety until it came to a stop some 50 meters into the hangar.
The hatch popped open just fast enough so that Anakin didn't hit his head on the ascending glass. Growling, he hopped out and slid down the hull of his starfighter. His long-ish hair was messy, several stray locks attempted to obscure his vision before a finger brushed the offending hair out of the way. His eyes settled on the LAAT landing much smoother then his own entrance and marched toward it.
The double doors slid open, and several clone troopers limped out as medics descended on them. Anakin spotted Ahsoka returning a salute with a reconaissance trooper before hopping out of the gunship herself. As he approached her, she noticed him and brushed a bit of flood gut off of her leggings,"I'm alright master, no need to ask."
His expression softened briefly before turning foul again."Come on" he jerked his head toward the nearest turbolift and hurried over to it, Togrutan padawan in tow right behind him. The clone troopers waiting noticed his gait and stepped to the side, allowing the jedi immediate access to the lift. As Ahsoka stepped in, he closed the doors behind her with the button.
Now out of the public eye, Ahsoka leaned against the wall and slid to the floor. The fighting on the Justice had been exhausting and twice as terrifying as it really should have been. And this is what we're up against. She could feel the Force swirling with uncertainty, death, and fear as every other jedi could at the time. While the Flood seemed pretty immune to the effects of the Force, the sheer terror and destruction it was laying upon those who were part of the Force was throwing it into chaos. What once was like a comforting stream of water was now turbulent and filled with the cries of untold billions.
The emotions were rolling off her master in waves. She glanced up to see Anakin running a hand through his shaggy hair, a angry expression on his face."Kriff Ahsoka," He muttered,"Our own allies fired on us."
She had a guess where this was going."Yes, but they aren't anymore."
His expression darkened slightly,"Great. I didn't notice." He shook his head slowly in contained fury as the lift pinged and the doors slid open,"But I plan to find out why."
As she followed her master out the lift, she opened her mouth to say something, then shut it and decided to play with her lekku instead. She was afraid he was going to do something rash, but neither of them had the full picture yet.
Clone troopers were hustling about the hallways, but they all tried to make room for the two jedi generals. Ahsoka had to nearly jog to keep up with Anakin's brisk pace, which didn't seem to deter him.
As they entered the bridge, Anakin swept over to the holoprojector with a bark at the clone operating it to hail Maul and the Sangheili shipmaster. She slid to a stop beside him as the holograms of the two leaders appeared.
Before they set off on their joint expedition, Republic technicians installed a holoprojector on board the Sangheili battlecruiser. Hence, Valtamare was visible in all his glory. The shipmaster's eyes narrowed slightly when he spotted the two jedi, but other then that his expression was stoic. Maul appeared a few moments later, his breathing labored slightly and an incensed expression across his features.
Anakin stared the two warriors down for a few moments, apparently in an attempt to intimidate them. Neither seemed fazed. Eventually, he said,"Alright, I'm just going to cut to the chase: Who fired on our vessel, and give me a bloody good reason why."
His aggression didn't go unnoticed, and both of their expressions fouled."The parasite was aboard and taking over your cruiser, Skywalker." Valtamare snapped,"Since the crew was failing to retake the vessel, I ordered my men to fire on the infected vessel to keep it from spreading."
"THAT'S NOT YOUR CALL TO MAKE!" Anakin roared, jabbing a accusing finger in his direction,"I make that call. You don't kill MY MEN without a fekkin good reason, and not without MY CLEARANCE!"
"Hold your tongue, boy!" The Sangheili growled,"I've been fighting since before you were born! YOU weren't there to make the call, and YOU don't seem to grasp just how dangerous the parasite-"
"NO!" Objects in the room began to swirl around dangerously as his rage approached the tipping point,"IF YOU EVER FIRE ON MY MEN AGAIN, I WILL GIVE THEM ORDERS TO SHOOT BACK!"
"FOOL! I WILL WELCOME A FIGHT IF THE REPUBLIC BETRAYS MY WARRIORS!" He instinctively pulled his energy sword hilt off his hip and swung it menacingly.
"If the REPUBLIC betrays YOU?! Oh, that's rich, coming from a admiral that just fired on REPUBLIC SHIPS!" Anakin's eyes burned with anger as he gestured wildly with his hands,"I don't know if you realized, lizard, but I have 6 cruisers under my command, while you have 2! You-"
"FINE!" Valtamare shouted,"I am happy to send 6 cruisers to the next life!"
"ENOUGH!" Ahsoka stepped in between the two commanders, surprising them both. Her expression showed her patience with their quarreling was at an end."We are allies, cut it out!"
"YOU!" The shipmaster pointed a finger at her accusingly,"You're the jedi that killed my brethren when we first met!"
Ahsoka's expression fell quite suddenly, before turning defensive,"It was an accident!" The Togrutan cried.
"One that cost lives, child!"
Before she realized what was happening, Anakin stepped between her and the Sangheili,"You don't talk to-" Valtamare started yelling something back, making their discussion in unintelligible babble of shouts and accusations. The shouting lasted several long moments, drawing the attention of clone technicians in the room.
"QUIET!"
Anakin, Ahsoka, and Valtamare turned to Maul. The Zabrak's molten eyes were on fire and his arms were crossed angrily,"We will all perish if we turn on one another!" He snapped,"If we survive this mess, then you can both run to your superiors and and bicker. But until then, you two are allies! Complete the mission, then we can worry about this later!" He bared his teeth in a snarl, glaring daggers at the two jedi.
Skywalker glared at Valtamare,"This isn't over." He opened his mouth say something else, but Ahsoka wisely sushed him before they could start fighting again. When the holograms blinked away, Anakin stormed out of the bridge toward his personal quarters.
Eriadu City, Bassilmisk Park, Central District,
12:14 Hours Local time, 23:17 Senate time
The Type-52 Troop Carrier, christened the,"Phantom" by Covenant Troops was the replacement to the rapidly aging Spirit dropship. Introduced in the final year of the bloody Human-Covenant war, the model had only seen a few years of service, and had proven itself well time and time again.
Fast, agile, and sleek, the Phantom was a harder target to hit then its slower predecessor, while still carrying roughly the same number of troops into battle. Most models were new and in pristine condition, since they were never more then 5 or so years old.
That being said, it was called a,"troop transport for a reason."
As another pair of dropships projected a purple gravity lift to the soil below, Fieldmaster Vien Zahran couldn't help but notice the pace at which they were dropping troops and equipment was slowing, and each load seemed to carry less and less troops.
As the final Unggoy set foot on the grassy soil, a blue-armored Sangheili herded the noisy creatures out of the way to make room for a line of civilians headed toward the craft. Several more of his warriors were overlooking the procession, and thoroughly discouraging those who'd rather spread panic then get in line. When the transports had first arrived earlier in the day, civilians of all races, ages, sexes and shapes made a rush to get aboard the transport, many of the stronger pushing past the weaker for first dibs.
This struck a nerve with the more honor and family oriented Sangheili. As a particularly muscular Gran shoved a mother with a child aside to get to the front, he was met by a Sangheili major who picked him up by the neck and threw him against a large rock. With the crunch of the Gran's bones muffled by the sounds of the crowd, several warriors instead drew their swords and threatened the mob into tranquility. Several thugs decided to try and fight them, even pulling blasters. Those thugs now lay on the ground in either two or three pieces, depending on the situation. Other then a nasty shot to the arm of a young minor, the Sangheili were unarmed.
Since then, Zahran had no trouble keeping order among the evacuees. The biggest thing that worried him though was their sheer number. Thousands were pouring into the park, looking to get aboard the transports.
As another set of loud explosions in the sky dissipated, he was joined by one of his bodyguards, N'tho 'Sraom. The younger Elite glanced up at the sky, where the once-raging battle for the atmosphere had mostly faded."Fieldmaster, I am concerned about how many civilians are here," He muttered just loud enough to be heard,"We cannot protect so many from the flood."
Zahran sighed quietly, glancing back at the masses of beings. Humans, along with strange races he didnt recognize like Sullustans, Twi'leks, and Nautolans. He could see entire families huddling together protectively, as well as the individual young man or woman simply looking for safety. They all looked scared, many terrified.
His gaze turned back to the clouds, where a pair of Banshees streaked overhead,"We cannot simply abandon them. Do what you must to keep the flood away and the civilians in order. That is all we can do for now."
N'tho looked unconvinced, but said nothing."With our lives, commander." He wheeled around and went back to crowd control.
In truth, Zahran knew they needed to move quickly if they were to save the civilians. Unfortunately, the loading process was tediously slow. He could only trust in his warriors to do their best and hold the parasites back deeper in the city.
Suddenly, he was being hailed over the battlenet. The voice of Vul Soran filled his ears,"Fieldmaster, our men are reporting the flood have taken a bridge in the western edge of the city. It will be near impossible to hold the parasites back if they get across." He paused as an explosion echoed over the comms, then the voices of several Sangheili yelling."My scouts say the jedi has decided to land her clone troopers roughly 1200 meters beyond our line in flood-controlled territories."
"Destroy the bridge and anything near it." Zahran growled,"I must contact the Jedi. We'll need their assistance if we want to save all these people."
There was a short pause on the other side."Commander, I understand the urgency, but should we give our warriors time to retreat first?"
"I have an idea." The Fieldmaster paused briefly, as if letting the idea simmer a little in his mind."Retreat farther into the city. Once the flood are concentrated on getting to us, I want our scarab dropped right on top of them."
"As you wish, commander." Another explosion on the other end,"Stay safe brother."
LAAT Gunship, 2300 meters South,
Aayla instictively gripped onto the handle of the LAAT as the gunship lurched suddenly, nearly displacing several of the less diligent clone troopers. The hum of the engine muffled the cries of surprise, followed by some laughter and sarcastic remarks about their brother's sense of balance. As their general, she made sure to maintain a serious posture before heading into battle, but that didn't stop a small smile from sneaking onto her face.
Truthfully, little distractions like that were welcome, so long as they didn't get in the way of the mission. All of the troopers she selected to spearhead the defense of the city were seasoned veterans, having fought numerous battles against the hordes of mechanized Separatist battle droids. Their was something about fighting cold, but somewhat incompetent droids that didn't fully prepare any of them for going toe-to-toe with a galaxy-devouring parasite like the flood. She could sense their emotions, mostly suppressed anger and fear, fade for a brief moment into nervous amusement.
And if she was being honest, her own nervousness and anticipation was gone for a brief moment with the given distraction.
She heard a clone trooper call her name over the noise of the men and the gunship. She turned and made her way to the cockpit, where the pilot was waiting for her,"We put down in 90 seconds general. We've encountered surprisingly little ground to air fire, I would suggest opening the doors so the men can get their bearings of the city."
Aayla's eyebrows knitted together suspiciously. She glanced out the cockpit viewport, other then a few scattered combat forms firing blasters at them, the ground was nearly clear."How close are we to the frontlines?" She asked.
The pilot tapped something into a console, where a set of data popped onto a screen,"Maybe 2000 to 2500 meters, general."
"Inform the other pilots we're putting down as planned," she leaned back and started toward the personnel bay,"But tell them to be on alert."
Missing his reply, she delved into her own thoughts as the gunship doors slid open, bringing in a sudden rush of Eriadan wind and a few wisps of smoke. She went over and knelt beside the opening, where several of the more daring troopers joined her.
Sure enough, she could see a light presence of flood forms on the ground, some of which were awkwardly firing at the gunships. The resistance was met with a emerald green laser from the LAAT ball turrets, melting the flesh of the offending parasites and killing them where they stood.
"Doesn't get old watching those walking freak shows die." One trooper observed.
"Yeah, I never thought I'd find something I hated more then clankers, but these guys are well on their way to proving me wrong."
Aayla ignored the clone chatter. Her gut senses was telling her this was a bad idea, that there was something she was missing. She could sense concern coming from a clone sergeant, Lennox, as he scanned the city with a set of binolculars."I don't like it general. This is just too easy." He spent another long moment observing the city, before lowering the device,"This looks like a tr-"
"Woah!" Several of the clone troopers were pointing and gaping at a massive object falling from the sky a few miles north. It looked like a walker of some sort, with 4 titanic legs and a massive turret on top. Aayla watched for a few seconds before it fell out of view someplace deeper in the city.
"What the f-" Lennox sputtered for a moment, before shaking his head,"I hope that was a toy of our new allies."
"Alright lads!" The pilot shouted over the noise as the gunship began to circle a landing pad/parking lot of a large shopping center. The ball turrets let loose a torrent of green lasers on the slightly-elevated presence of flood below,"Looks like we're going in hot! Go make the Republic proud!"
Several troopers let out a whoop, while the others simply gripped their rifles and silently prepared themselves in their own private way for the battle below. Aayla took a long breath in, gripped the cold metal cylinder on her hip, and went into a crouch. 3.. 2.. 1..
She leapt out of the gunship before it touched down, igniting her blue blade and defensively batting away a pair of blaster bolts. The other clones began to slide off the side and land beside her, setting up a perimeter and trading fire with the parasite.
Over the roar of men, shots, and gunships, Aayla faintly picked up the sound of several dozen flood shrieking at the same time in their haunting, unnatural way.
Eyes widening slightly, she started toward the shopping center, headtails flapping obnoxiously against her shoulders in the wind. Several squads followed her as the pace of blasterfire picked up noticeably.
"General, we've got contacts on the other side of the street!" The clone sergeant shouted, picking up his pace to catch up with her,"Scratch that, all three si-"
Aayla ducked and rolled to the side as a spike-like projectile sliced through the air where her chest was not a moment before. The asphalt dug into her knees as she came up into a crouch. To her alarm, the buildings to her left were coming alive as flood forms began to pour out of the cracks. Doors, behind cars and dumpsters, second story windows. With a collective roar, they opened up with a hail of fire on the Republic forces.
"Kriff!" She ripped her communicator off her belt, activating it frantically with the force,"All pilots, its an ambush! Disengage and get in the air now!"
As one, the gunships began to obey, those on the ground lifting off while the ones that had yet to offload their cargo began to circle and bombard the flood hordes emerging from every side.
Another chorus of shrieks filled the air, this time met with the sound of wings flapping. Deflecting several more shots, she turned her gaze back to the shopping center and skidded to a halt. Her jaw dropped as her eyes widened with a rush of fear,"By the Force..."
The shopping center was maybe three stories tall, the end facing their particular lot easily a football field in length. The entire wall was dotted with windows and doors, mostly transparent glass.
In a waterfall effect, every single window and glass door shattered as hundreds of flying creatures flew out, wailing in a high pitched cacophony and spitting fragments down onto the survivors below. Like a horde of bats, they nearly blotted out Aayla's view of the building as they rushed head on toward her and the gunships in the air.
Looking back on it, what Aayla did next probably saved her life and those of the troopers nearest her. She brought her arms together and threw them out to her sides, releasing a blast of Force energy in all directions. Several of the nightmare bats suddenly hit a wall and slammed backward into their companions, giving her and the other clones a moment to fall back before they were overwhelmed.
The Flood Swarms were undeterred, even as the panicking clones began to focus their fire on the new threat. Instead, wailing like a flock of tortured banshees, they split into hunter groups, headed for individual squads or LAAT gunships.
The first gunship lurched backward at the approaching threat, firing all its weapons into the swarm. As several dozen fell, thrice as many cut through the fire and made their way into every nook and granny of the gunship, including the personnel bay and cockpit. The gunship shuddered as the pilot waved his arms frantically before being overwhelmed, leaving the gunship to plummet toward the ground below.
Squads on foot were just as lucky. Backpeddling as they fired frantically at the approaching Swarms, they were bombarded by little pieces of bone and marrow, slipping between the cracks in their armor and embedding in flesh. The clones' frantic cries suddenly turned to terrified screams as the Swarms descended upon them, latching onto their bodies and covering them like a swarm of ants.
Aayla was knocked off her feet as the first gunship slammed into the ground, hitting an airspeeder and causing a terrific explosion. The sheer noise of the blast had her ears ringing, but only partially drowning out the screams, shots, and flood wails as the parasite sprung their trap.
Tasting blood, she rolled to her feet and saw several more LAATs get caught by the swarm, the gunships rocking as the pilots lost control or men tried to jump out to avoid their fate. They screamed as they realized the Swarms would just latch onto them and tear at them with their sharp teeth and talons.
For just a moment, Aayla felt like she was watching some sort of slow motion movie. Everything was quiet as the troopers retreated inwardly, followed by the swarms and blaster shots from approaching forms. She absent-mindedly stood, cutting down a 5 or 6 Swarms that decided to try and take her down with a flurry of modified Ataru strikes. it was then, as the final impaled Swarm screetched inches from her face that she snapped back to reality.
She broke off into a sprint toward one side, raising her communicator to her face,"All units, fall back! Follow me to the building! Fighters, this is General Aayla Secura, callsign Nova-327-43-2! I need an immediate air strike on our position, authentication Ryl-6-2, over!"
"Copy that, Nova." A pilot replied,"This is A'den-497, my wing's coming through in 30 seconds."
Given the sudden deadline, every surviving clone trooper made a mad dash in the direction their general was going, toward a mob of angry combat forms, pure forms, and a host of other monsters they didn't recognize. Both sides traded fire desperately, the clones having better accuracy, even on the move, leaving the pursuing parasites to strike the poor clones lagging behind. Aayla herself, knowing they were probably about to die, focused all her efforts on deflecting shots meant for her, then lunging with the Force to meet the wall of flood. Hopefully, she could create a breach for her men to funnel through.
Behind her, the air was filled with shrieks and screams and wails, most flood as many of the troopers had already fallen. Several roots emerged from patches of grass as the clones passed by, grabbing any clone they could and slamming them into the ground with a crack!
Above, a wing of Republic bombers set locks on the smoking wreckage of LAATs below. They each released four proton torpedoes each, the blue balls plummeting toward the battlefield below.
Aayla was knocked off her feet again by the blast, throwing her to the ground beside several combat forms that had suffered the same fate. With a surge of determination, she leapt to her feet before they could and went on the attack, killing several more before they could get to their feet.
Behind her, surviving troopers pummeled the parasites around her, creating a breach in their line to pass through. Not to be outdone, the Flood collapsed in on the breach and continued their assault with renewed vigor, but the bombers strafed their lines with heavy laser cannons, blowing dozens of parasites apart at a time and shaking the ground with fury.
Killing another combat form, she motioned with her lightsaber toward a side street,"Go, go, go!" Several troopers blew past her, panting but still giving support to their brethren as they could. Aayla waited where she was for the troopers in the back, deflecting blaster bolts as she could and doing her best to dodge anything she couldn't safely deflect.
As they last of the troopers made it to her, she noticed what remained of the Swarms suddenly break off to the side, migrating as one deeper into the city. Passing over the buildings and out of sight, she couldn't help but shiver as she turned around and ran with her troops, pounding the ground as fast as she could.
As they made distance between themselves and the parasite, she began to realize just how much city lay in front of them. They still had nearly a mile to go before they reached the Sangheili lines. She raised her communicator again, this time entering the ID of the Sangheili swordmaster she spoke to earlier.
Fieldmaster Zahran was making his way past the lines of civilians being herded toward the Phantom and Spirit transports. The process was still crawling at a tediously slow pace. Although he imagined it was worse on the ships, where they were apparently planning to load half a city onto for evacuation.
He stopped for a moment, glancing up at another departing trio of Phantoms. Was that where they were being taken? They simply didn't have enough to evacuate the whole of Eriadu. For that matter, where would they take them? And what happened when their new planet was attacked?
He shook his head grimly, dismissing the thoughts. He knew what the outcome of this war was likely to be. The Republic just didn't realize it yet.
Suddenly, he was being hailed over the battlenet. He activated his communicator,"Commander," Vul Soran began,"I'm being hailed by the jedi again. Apparently, she landed in a Flood ambush, she and the surviving clones are retreating through the city toward our lines some 1200 meters away." He paused for a second, growling in frustration,"She is requesting we send land transports to pick them up."
Zahran huffed angrily,"Fools. We don't have the means of evacuating everyone and saving their hides. Ready our defenses, I want every able body ready to defend this area and send the humans a few transports. I don't care if they have to ride on top of a single dropship, get it done."
Soran sighed. Did he detect a hint of disappointment from the blademaster?"Very well, Commander."
The roar of a ARC-170 pair tearing through the sky just meters above the city skyline was nearly deathening, almost enough to fade the cacophony of battle on the streets below. Shimmering green lasers erupted from the cannons mounted under each wing, heating the atmosphere around them to an unbearable temperature and screaming through the air toward a few of the many flood forms pursuing the retreating clone troopers and jedi below. Like a green rain of death, the lasers hit the pavement of the streets, blowing blackened pieces of rubble and metal along with singed rotten biomass into the sky. The monsters not annihilated by the volley shrieked their defiance at the attack, not pausing their charge even as the remains of their brethren rained down on them with rubble and the scent of burnt flesh and Tibanna gas. They continued to awkwardly fire blaster bolts and shards at the backs of the fleeing 327th troopers and the Twi'lek Jedi general, seldom hitting their intended target while giving more incentive to get around the corner of the next building.
As the General of the 327th, Aayla Secura had seen quite a lot of action, including impressively few retreats given the theatres the legion had been assigned too. Most had been coordinated, pulling back before the Separatists overwhelmed them or, if intel suggested very grim odds, before they even arrived. Few had been quasi routs, like she was faced with now. And even then, they usually had enough support to cover their retreat.
Today was different, and much, much worse. The enemy was far more determined, smarter, and the cost of failure much higher. They also usually had a guarantee of extraction when they reached the rally point. Blademaster Soran did not ease her mind very much with his promise that they would eventually arrive to pick them up.
So, they just had to sprint like madmen to the large airspeeder garage and hope they had pickup when they got there. She felt a nudge in the force and leaned to the left, changing her trajectory and narrowly dodging a bright red bolt as she rounded the corner. We also have to be alive when we get there, she thought to herself. If the flood beat us there... A large piece of roofing sliding off a building in the alleyway in front of her reminded her that she needed to focus on the here and now.
Her heart ached as she heard several troopers behind her scream as they were struck by blaster bolts, their signatures in the Force flickering for a brief moment before blinking out entirely. How did we get into this?
An ambush. She should've seen it coming, should've sensed it so this wouldn't have happened. If Bly had been here, surely this wouldn't have happened.
She credited her experienced clone commander for their impressive record in the field during the Clone Wars. He would've deferred to her, of course, but perhaps he could've prevented this.
When Aayla had been assigned to the 327th Star Corps after the First Battle of Geonosis, she'd found herself out of place, like nearly every other jedi. As a padawan and young knight, she'd seen her share of action, especially since she'd chosen the path of a Jedi Guardian. She'd been well trained to defend herself and others. To fight.
But commanding? She'd realized it was a very different ballgame when she led several squads of troopers on the fields of Geonosis almost three years ago, one which she had almost no experience in. Being assigned to a legion only magnified her lack of aptitude, making her responsible for thousands instead of dozens.
Thankfully, CC-5052, known as,"Bly" was attached to the unit. Trained to lead large groups of men in the academies of Kamino, she'd found his advice and guidance invaluable, especially in the earlier days of the war. When they met after the battle of Geonosis, both were reeling from their experiences of the conflict, Aayla coming to terms of the Jedi going to war and the loss of most of her men, while Bly discovered that the warriors they'd been trained all their lives to serve, the Jedi, seemed to have no kriffing idea what they were doing.
Granted, Bly had said nothing, respecting a superior officer. A few evenings before their first deployment, she'd pulled Bly aside late one night and explained to him her lack of qualification to lead a unit of men. To say the clone commander was surprised was a bit of an understatement, both by how unprepared his superior really was, and the fact that she brought it up with him, a subordinate.
He came to realize that was based off of what he learned in Kamino. Jedi would know what to do. Respect them. Obey them. They are above you. Given how short they'd come to the mark on the first point, he supposed not everything he was taught was necessarily accurate. So, when Aayla asked for him to handle much of the tactical decisions while she acted as the figurehead (at least, for the first few engagements) he accepted. It was the beginning of a very close friendship between clone and jedi, much like Rex and Ahsoka, or Kenobi and Cody.
While she could now say she was an experienced commander, perhaps, if Bly had been there, they wouldn't have dropped into this. Another part of her was secretly happy she'd made him stay behind. While Aayla was a jedi, and attachment was forbidden, she was... close to him. Not romantically, but she thought of it like brother and sister. Hopefully, he felt the same way.
Using the Force as a springboard, she bounded over a large overturned dumpster, landing on both feet and setting off at a run alongside the clones. Despite being in great shape, they were all breathing very heavily from the prolonged sprint. Do those things even tire? She shivered at the thought.
The Airspeeder landing garage was only a few blocks away, but she wasn't sure in which direction, since she didn't exactly have the HUD that came with a clone helmet. She charged with the troopers into the street, arms pumping in sync as she crossed the open area. Farther down the street, to their right, several more flood forms emerged from a set of businesses, opening up on them with a mix of blaster fire and flood projectiles.
Aayla nearly tripped as a shard found its way into the trooper directly in front of her. It passed straight through the gap in his armor on the side of his knee before coming out the other side and lodging in his left shin. She vaulted over him with a flip as he collapsed to the ground with a cry of pain."General!" He pleaded, before shouting in pain and trying to bring himself up.
Aayla skidded to a halt, dust kicking up around her boots. With a flick of her hand, she tossed her lightsaber at him, taking his head off before he realized what was happening and summoned the lightsaber back to her hand.
The cold metal handle slapped back into her hand, and she broke off into a run once more. She felt a single tear slide down her cheek. There was just no way to help a man that went down in a situation like this. They were all leaving the fallen behind in an attempt to save their own lives. They simply couldn't outrun the parasite, carry a wounded comrade, fire back, and avoid getting shot all at the same time.
She felt like her head was going to burst, as several more men fell and she was forced to leave them behind. This is wrong! I should be helping them! But she couldn't. Not without getting herself killed. Like many times in the past, she fazed out that line of thinking from her mind and focused solely on the objective.
Getting out of there.
As she reached the other side of the street, the glass windows several stories up on the building to their left shattered, raining down bits of shrapnel as a pack of shrieking Flood Swarms descended on them. The clones shouted warnings to each other and raised their blasters to defend themselves as bits of sharpened bone rained down upon them. A pair of Swarms landed on a trooper, who shouted in fear as they latched onto him and brought him to the ground. With one smooth motion, Aayla's blue blade sprang to life and dissected them both. She leapt over the man and continued down the alleyway as the troopers around her finished off the Swarms (and their converting brethren) while maintaining their desperate sprint toward safety.
She heard a clone near the front shout,"Up ahead!" As they reached the end of the alleyway. Before them was a large metal structure with several floors and wide openings in the side for those with airspeeders to park. The ground entrance was a round, yawning hole, casting shadows on the lifts and stairs Aayla could just barely make out inside.
As she closed the gap to the entrance, she raised her comlink and activated it,"This is... Aayla... Secura." She shouted between gasps,"We need... pickup... stat!"
She could barely hear the static over the sounds of battle, before a deep Sangheili voice came back,"We're en route, human. But make sure you're in position when we arrive," He said sternly,"We cannot bring the parasite back with us."
"Sounds-" She looked up to see a bright red airspeeder emerging from one of the higher entrances. The speeder did a nosedive, right at the line of troopers. Aayla slid to a halt again, reaching out with her hands and calling upon the Force. The Speeder continued on its kamikaze route for a moment, before edging upward slightly. The speeder's engines whined as it streaked over their heads, slamming into a large building and erupting in a bright fireball.
The building creaked loudly in protest, before giving way and partially collapsing. The roar of falling debris drowned out the screams of the clone troopers below it as they were buried in a cloud of dust and debris. Several troopers dived out of the way for safety, while a handful were trapped behind the wall with the parasite.
Another punch of guilt and pain as she sensed the trapped troopers fear but grim determination. She put it in a box and bolted for the garage. She was exhausted from the run and use of the Force, but she wasn't about to give up.
The inside of the building was darkened, almost all the lights knocked out from an apparent conflict. Blood streaked the floor and walls, creating a horrific scene, but no bodies. Aayla's gut clenched slightly at the sight, she shook her head to refocus,"Up the stairs! Up the stairs!" She motioned toward the steps as troopers charged upward, shouting observations and warnings at each other as they went. Aayla put her hands on the base of her lekku and relaxed slightly, trying to catch her breath.
Several troopers noticed her condition and began taking up defensive positions around the room, watching the doors and the main entrance for any hostile activity. She felt a flicker of hope at her trooper's loyalty, even if it was a bit overboard."No! Get up the stairs!... I'm fine!" She motioned for them to follow and bounded up the steps, her troopers falling in behind her.
The next few levels were far darker then the ground floor, the only light coming from a few windows, the clones' flashlights, and Aayla's blade. Tables were overturned, vending machines smashed, trash scattered the ground along several puddles of sticky blood. A few glowing embers from fires provided a bit of illumination as well, but they added to the atmosphere more then they helped.
As she made it halfway up to the 4th floor, she heard a fresh volley of blasterfire erupt above her, along with flood and human screams. A trooper beside her seemed to deflate slightly as his comm exploded again,"General! It sounds like some sort of trap up there!"
Clenching her jaw, she used the Force to bound up the next flight of stairs and barreled through the doorway. It was the first level of parking, with dozens of airspeeders piled up on their sides and against the wall, their hulls blackened by blasterfire. Yellow, fleshy flood growths crawled along the walls and ceiling like a vine, slowly dominating the structure or wrapping along the cockpit of the speeders.
She barely stepped out of the way in time as a clone flew past her, smacking into the wall with a crack and throwing his head forward at an unnatural angle. In the center of the room, a particularly large, bulbous growth on the floor was surrounded by several tentacles. The troopers were surrounding and firing at the appendages, killing several but many shots missing and hitting the walls. Sometimes, a round would impact the growth, causing a part to burst and releasing a flurry of infection forms.
She spotted Sergeant Lennox pulling a concussion grenade off his belt and lobbing it at the thing."Frag out!" Several of the braver men that were close dived away from the monster while a glowing sphere sailed through the air and landed in the middle. Aayla slid behind the twisted wreckage of a speeder.
BOOM! The building rocked as a deafening blast rippled through the structure. After it passed, Aayla hopped up and ignited her blade. Thankfully, the troopers were cleaning up the last few infection forms on their own.
She extinguished her blade and headed toward the next set of stairs."Follow me!" She motioned for them,"Stay on your toes, we're almost out of this!" She turned and vaulted up the stairs, hoping to reach the next level before the clones did.
Panting, she bolted through the next several floors like she was possessed, quickly scanning the room for any flood before bounding up to the next one. Other then the usual blood and devastation, it was empty.
Eventually, she was greeted by a blast of cool air as she passed through the doorway. The roof was a mess, almost 1/4 of the surface had caved in or fallen over the side onto the streets below. A few broken speeders were present, their fires still burning gently like a pyre to their deceased owners. Thankfully, they were once again clear of flood.
She raised her communicator to her face again,"Pilot, we are ready for pickup!" She sucked in another breath of the fresh air greedily as the clones began to catch up to her,"Where are you?"
"Almost there human." The Sangheili said as the hum of several dropships became audible."We see you."
Her eyebrows rose as she saw 4 orange phantoms approach the building. Why did he only send 4? Still, she couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief as they began to set down and a pair of Sangheili warriors emerged from each. Just like Geonosis, she thought, Kriff, I wish.
The clones scurried toward the dropships while she stayed at the door and helped move the surviving stragglers along."Let's go! Let's go!" Eventually, the last man, who'd obviously screwed up his leg, made his way through the door. As a chorus of flood shrieks wafted up through the stairway, she shivered involuntarily and slung his arm over her shoulder. At least I can help one.
When she reached the ship, a Sangheili major in red armor stopped her as another helped the wounded man aboard. He narrowed his gaze as his eyes traveled from her face, to her headtails, back to her face."You are not a human," he proclaimed,"Humans are not blue, and they don't have protrusions on their heads." He glanced at her torso, and his eyes widened slightly,"You are also female," he said, sounding surprised."I was unaware the Republic put females in charge of legions."
Aayla shook her head impatiently and went toward the door,"Nice to meet you too. Now, can we go?"
His eyes widened again,"You are the one I spoke with," He said,"I've never heard such a bizarre accent."
Another flood shriek from the floors below. The Sangheili dropped his line of questioning reluctantly and climbed on board. As the craft began to lift off, Aayla glanced around the cabin at the survivors huddled around the cabin, then sat down on the side, legs dangling over the fall to the den of destruction below.
The trip to the park only took a few minutes. The Phantom duo passed over the front lines along the way, drawing some sporadic small-arms fire in their general direction while peppering ground targets with their main turrets. Soon, they burning buildings and explosions turned into deserted neighborhoods and convoys of Sangheili reinforcements headed to and from the battlefield. Occasionally, Aayla would spot a civilian or two in the mix, but for the most part, they seemed to have already made a mass exodus.
She certainly hoped that was the case. Hopefully, the Sangheili were clearing the buildings of innocents. If a family decided to wait out the fighting in their basement or safe room, they were essentially canned food for the parasite.
Shuddering at that thought, she glanced in the distance to see the park they were headed toward in the distance. The air was buzzing with activity, with dozens of dropships coming and going, dropping off loads of supplies and (hopefully) evacuating civilians on the way out. Several wings of Banshees and Seraphs screamed through the air in patrol patterns, with the occasionally ARC-170 mixed in the fray. But for the most part, it seemed the 327th was gathering elsewhere.
While she didn't know where their air support was at the time, most of the men were south of the city, Bly and Quinlan Vos leading a massive convoy along the highway into the southern edge of the city. It was going to be a bloodbath.
It was a good thing Bly was with them. If she had to pick a good commander to lead them into this mess, it would be him. With Vos and Jax backing him up, they wouldn't be wondering into any sloppy ambushes unprepared.
A part of her wished Bly was here with her. Aayla told herself that she simply wanted him safe like the rest of her men, but she knew there was more then that. It was attachment, it went against what she'd been taught all her life.
But she just couldn't bring herself to truly cut him out. Maybe it was wrong, but it also felt right, felt good.
It just didn't make sense.
She shook her head. Nothing really made sense anymore, not since the Clone Wars started.
The Phantoms passed over a horde of civilians huddled together in the center of the park like a herd of sheep. More were trickling in from all directions, while small groups of Sangheili directed them and herded them along. As the dropships came and released their cargo and passengers, they would then make their way over to the crowd, where several more Sangheili in colorful armor helped them onto the ships.
In the center of the park, she could see a large red tent planted atop a hill with some minimal defenses surrounding it. Sangheili with rarer colors of armor were filtering in and out of it, cementing her suspicions it was a command post of some sort.
A stiff breeze passed through the cabin as the Phantoms gently let down in a clearing a short walk from said tent. Ever professional, the men didn't say a word as they piled out and spread into a defensive perimeter, while attempting to not make it obvious as to not insult their hosts.
As Aayla slid off the edge of the Phantom onto the ground, it only took one quick glance at the red-armored Sangheili to tell he wasn't particularly amused. The Major hopped off, letting out a low grunt as he planted his feet. He made a motion toward the tent with his hand,"This way."
Eriadu City, Bassilmisk Park, Central District,
13:07 Hours Local time, 00:10 Senate time
Zahran clenched the side of the display table as he watched the battle for the city unfold before them. Blue-hued structures and terrain were covered by small dots and images shaded purple, Yellow, Orange and bright Red. While the Purple and Yellow dominated the airspace, red dots were spreading at a rate far faster then he would've liked.
The timely arrival of the Scarab in the western edge of the city had prevented the Flood from crossing the river at that point, and all the other bridges were either completely locked down or battlegrounds at this point. A steady stream of red poured into several different bridges, winking out as they succumbed to fire only to be replaced by another.
Unfortunately, the South side of the city was a mess. Made up of mostly neighborhoods, the red was everywhere and spreading fast. The spaceport in the center of the city was still under friendly control, as the clone troopers had seen it fit to land extra men there to reinforce the Sangheili already there, but wave after wave of red battered the purple and yellow line.
To the south of the city, he was told by the jedi that more reinforcements were on the way, but they were either to far away to show up or hadn't checked in yet. A pair of Banshees was already on the way to confirm their status.
Zahran growled quietly in frustration. His men were performing admirably, but they were still losing ground slowly. The frontlines directly to their south were inching ever so slowly toward the river, where he had teams of Unggoy hastily fortifying it for a final stand, if that is what it came too.
He shook his head, staring intently at the display as if looking for a secret. This was too simple. What is the parasite up too?
A minor aide approached him,"Fieldmaster," he began as Zahran glanced up at him,"Our teams are reporting a sudden uptick in Flood activity in the underground Mag-Lev railway." The young Sangheili shifted uncomfortably,"We don't have an exact location, but they are apparently trying to use it to bypass the river."
Zahran scratched his chin in thought. "I want armor and troops by all major exits." He said,"We can't get them all, but we can at least draw as many of them as we can to a few areas."
The Fieldmaster slammed a curled fist into the side of the display table,"Why are we on this cursed planet anyways?"
The Sangheili aide tensed up slightly, as if trying to decide whether he was supposed to answer that question."Well," he began cautiously,"Fleetmaster Vadum agreed to aid the Republic against the parasite, we were sent here because it is apparently a major hub for space transport."
"Might as well just glass the meaningless place." Zahran mumbled in frustration.
The aide stood there for a moment, then beat a hasty retreat out of the tent, leaving Zahran and a handful of officers alone again. He glanced back at the display table. Very little had changed since he last checked. A mixed blessing. Hopefully, they would be done with Eriadu soon, fighting the Flood when they were this widespread on a planet was nearly hopeless.
As a wing of Banshees wailed somewhere overhead, he felt a gentle breeze as several rays of light invaded the tent. He looked up and saw N'tho Sraom, clad in his honor guard attire, poking his head in."Fieldmaster, the jedi is here with her clones."
"Bring her to my location, let the clones stay outside our defenses"
Sraom frowned suddenly,"The Major in charge of the operation already brought them here. They're approaching now, some 40 clones in tow."
Zahran growled in frustration. He would have to speak to the Major after this."Steady. Weapons drawn."
The Sangheli nodded,"Would you like me to bring her in?" He pulled his blade off his belt as ordered.
"Yes." He snapped.
As Sraom hurried off, his gaze drifted back to the display table. Still about the same as last time, except for a large yellow splotch in the park a very short distance from the command center. A big tactical error on the Major's part. Perhaps I should send him to the frontlines...
A few moments later, he heard the flap of the curtain and looked up to see A small blue humanoid flanked by Sraom and another bodyguard. A pair of large tails grew out the back of her head, something that told him it was definitely not a human. That, and the dark blue hue of her skin. She was dressed in a tight pair of leggings and a top he had only seen on civilians, not exactly battle armor. But, none of the jedi he'd seen so far dressed like warriors. A silver hilt rested on her hip, undoubtedly her lightsaber.
Her expression was somber, determined but obviously uneasy about the current situation. She bowed her head respectfully in greeting, a headtail slipping over the side of her shoulder,"A pleasure to meet you in person, Fieldmaster."
Zahran let a deep breath out and put his frustration aside for the moment,"Greetings jedi." He crossed his arms and stared at her, sizing her up.
Aayla stood silently for a moment as if expecting him to say something else. After a moment, she added,"You have my thanks for pulling me and my men out of there." She paused and her expression darkened,"I was... unprepared to face the flood."
He snorted,"That excuse can only be used so long." He turned and glanced at the display of the battle to emphasize his point.
Aayla crossed her arms at the jab, but decided to let it go."Anyways, last time I checked, I still had most of the 327th in orbit. I imagine you could use my men's help."
"It seems you're the only one who needed help." The Fieldmaster observed,"But regardless, I'll accept your offer."
Behind Secura, another Sangheili entered, the blue armored aide. The jedi, who seemed mostly unaffected by the insults, stepped aside so he could go through."Apologies for interrupting Fieldmaster," He blurted out,"But the parasite has surfaced at several different locations, including a subway around 400 meters west of here." His eyes darted to the table, then back to the higher-ranking Sangheili,"Our warriors are doing their best to fight them off, but they are dangerously close to the civilians."
Aayla stepped forward,"I'll contact my cruisers, they'll send down LAAT gunships so we can speed the process up."
For just a moment, Zahran started to see red,"Vermin!" he clenched his fist. "Jedi, get your dropships to the landing point. Major, get armor and heavy units to face the flood, stop them in their tracks."
As Secura and several Sangheili rushed out of the tent, he leaned on the display table and hung his head in frustration. As the dull echo of battle loomed ominously in the distance, several Mag-Lev stations across the city exploded in red.
Cloud City, Bespin, Industrial District,
21:13 Local time, 22:01 Senate time
John moved with careful precision as he descended the mound of rubble, once the floor and ceiling separating two levels of Cloud City. Now, it was nothing but a ramp. Pieces of debris and metal shifted under his armored boot like gravel, straining slightly under the weight of him and his team.
He leapt to the bottom and landed surprisingly quiet for something his size, scanning the room with his battle rifle for any sign of the flood. Nothing, other then overturned furniture, scattered trash, and a single bulb casting flickering shadows along the walls and ceiling.
Behind him, he heard the soft, reverberating footsteps of his teammates and the ODSTs in tow. With a single gesture, he beckoned them to follow as he plunged into the next hallway.
The far wall was lined with turbolifts and staircases, although the button panels beside each lift were dark and devoid of any activity. He moved quickly along the wall and crouched beside the entrance to one of the staircases."This is Spartan-117," he said into his communicator,"Grievous, do you read me?"
He was greeted with a hiss of static. Great. He changed frequencies so his team and the ODSTs could hear him,"I need your radio operator to keep trying to contact Grievous. The sooner we know the situation, the better."
A large ODST whose FOE tag identified him as Morgan blinked an affirmative. Turning back to the stairway, a fresh waypoint appeared several hundred meters in the distance."I've got blueprints to the entire city," Cortana hummed,"but a large portion of the city is dark. We don't really know what's going on in there."
"Are you asking to go back?" Chief questioned innocently.
"Makes no difference to me. I'm not afraid of the dark."
Smirking, he plunged into the stairway, battle rifle raised and scanning for any creepy crawlies. Seeing nothing, he descended the stairs as a soft patter of footsteps followed him.
After a few levels, he noticed his visor was fogging up slightly. It was a little like a fine coat of pollen or dust, tinting the air a sickly green color. Immediately halting, he turned and gave the ODSTs a visual,"Everyone's suit is sealed, correct?" They all nodded in affirmation,"Ramirez?"
The ODST glanced down at her arm, where a blood stained bandage had been tightly applied,"I think I'm good sir. We've got this thing pretty tied-."
John spun around as a distant Flood shriek echoed through the hallway. Raising his rifle, he carefully scanned the entire hallway in front of them."Blue team, see anything?"
"No sir."
He waited another long moment, a chill passing through his spine. Having faced the flood many times before, he knew some poor soul had just found himself caught in a flood ambush. Perhaps its Grievous, he thought to himself."Morgan, you still trying to raise the General?"
"As you requested sir." Morgan's thick American accent responded.
He let a breath out of his mouth and turned back to the task at hand.
After navigating their way through a few winding hallways, he found a large hole in the wall, opening into a mag-lev station of some sort. He stepped out onto a large waiting platform with scattered rows of metal benches firmly planted into the ground. The floor was covered in trash and blood, reds and blues and flood yellows. Overturned kiosks and commerce machines were strewn about, most flipped over with their glass screens cracked or shattered.
The room was bathed in a gentle blue, courtesy of emergency lights that were still working scattered across the walls and roof. They cast a haunting glow on the scattered flood growths, winding around and into benches and along walls like an invasive weed of the worst kind. Several infection forms were loitering nearby, apparently recent creations of the young flood hive.
He waited a moment for his team to enter the room then opened up on the parasites with quick, precise bursts from his rifle. As gunfire erupted, a few flood shrieks pierced the atmosphere as several combat forms and other monsters emerged from rooms and dark corners.
As he put a burst into the bloated top of a carrier form, the flood began to retaliate with blasterfire. Reds and blues hissed over his head and around his body, warming the air and occasionally nicking his shields. The accuracy of Spartan IIs and ODSTs were far superior, however. Soon, all the parasites were dead, their messy corpses splattered along the ground.
An ODST cursed quietly over the com,"That was too close." John glanced back to see the ODST gunner brushing at a wisp of smoke rising from his shoulder plate. The metallic armorpiece was singed, a single blaster burn on the wall beside him showing just how close it had come.
Turning back to business at hand, he scanned the room one more time for hostiles. Clear. His team had set up a defensive perimeter anyway.
As he crossed the room, he was greeted by the unpleasant sensation of rotting bodies squishing beneath his armored boots. While disgusting, it also gave him a strange sense of satisfaction. Perhaps I just like grinding flood into paste.
Red. He snapped his rifle in the direction his motion tracker indicated in almost perfect synch with his teammates. Nothing. Just open floor under a blue light.
He heard one of the ODSTs snort in amusement,"Jumpy Spar-"
Movement again. Without warning, a large tentacle shot down from the roof and wrapped itself around the waist of the offending trooper. The man let out a shriek as it hoisted him up. John and the rest of them snapped their weapons upward.
The roof was covered in floodgrowths. Several more tentacles emerge from burrows within the bloated mass, reaching out for more targets as the screaming ODST is lifted toward a long, thin gap in the growth.
The Spartans and ODSTs opened up on the growth, ripping through the creature and dropping greenish flood juices and under-developed infection forms on them. They focus fire on the tentacles holding the ODST, destroying several flailing appendages, but not before the man's arm is caught in the crack. Screaming and writhing, the ODST slowly disappeared as he was sucked deep into the growth."Help me!" He shouted,"Aaaahhh!"
John fired into the growths around him, but all it did was drop several fully formed infection forms down onto the rest of his teammates. More tentacles emerge, striking out as the ODSTs and Spartans.
Seeing the danger, Fred yanked his knife out of the sheath and lunged, hacking away at any that made it through the wall of fire. Several tentacles wrap around another ODST, who begins to flail until his teammates lash onto him and try to pull him free. A pair of tentacles let go of the trooper and lash out at his comrades, flinging them hard against the wall and floor.
"Get him down!" John shouted as he continued to fire at the monster. While her teammates laid down a wall of suppressive fire (although there wasn't much suppressing to be done) Kelly dashed toward the tentacles pulling the trooper up and leapt onto him. Pulling her knife, she began hacking at the appendages with superhuman speed, cutting the panicking ODST free and falling to the ground with him.
Chief had had enough."Break contact!" As Kelly pulled the trembling trooper to his feet, he, Fred and Linda covered them and the rest of the ODSTs until they were past them. Then, he pulled a pair of frags and tossed them, before sprinting away.
BOOM!
As the fiery explosion engulfed most of the parasites, Blue team covered the retreating ODSTs while keeping up with them at a normal human's sprinting pace. Filing through a doorway, they entered a large room that appeared to be a terminal. One ODST tripped over a overturned ticket kiosk, before scrambling to his feet and sprinting toward a staff room behind the counter. Thinking for a moment, John ordered everyone into the room while flood screeches echoed in the distance. Fred was the last one in, sliding the door shut forcefully behind them.
After quickly scanning the room and finding it clear, the ODSTs bent over and began panting heavily, while the Spartans congregated in the center of the room. It appeared to be a break room of sorts, and unlike most places they'd been, was relatively orderly.
John glanced back at the ODST who was grabbed, Parker. The trooper was hyperventilating, and, if he had to guess, not from their short sprint. Trembling, he began to whimper pitifully into the comm.
Hill, the surviving sergeant, put a hand on his shoulder,"You good kid?" Parker shook his head."That had to be rough. But you gotta pull through trooper." He slapped him gently on the side of his shoulder plate,"We're ODSTs, the best of the best. We're made for this sh-"He paused, before taking in a deep breath himself,"Falling apart will do nothing Parker. There's nothing we can do for the dead, only fight to avenge and to protect the living."
Ramirez cursed loudly,"This whole thing's a freakin mess." she growled,"We shouldn't have agreed to fight someone else's war against these things."
"If the Flood isn't eradicated Corporal," Hill glared at her under his helmet,"They're going to hop galaxies. This is our fi-"
"We're wasting time and lives." She retorted,"The Flood is unstoppable."
"We have to try! Giving up wi-"
"Giving up on this place will save UNSC lives." Ramirez hissed,"Probably our own included."
"They should just glass this place." Morgan added.
"Enough!" Hill snapped,"You can't glass a gas giant, fu-"
Parker, who'd been listening to the whole exchange, began to shake and sob violently."We're gonna die!" He squeaked, sliding down a wall into a sitting position,"They ate Gunny, they almost ate me..." he moaned loudly and hung his head,"They're gonna get us all!"
Hill knelt beside Parker, placing his hands on his shoulders,"Get it together kid!" he shouted,"We are not going to die, we are not going to give up, we're going to march out of here, complete the objective, and kill any freak that's dumb enough to get in our way!"
"I can't do this!" Parker said, shaking,"We're gonna die we're gonna die we gonna die..."
The spartans glanced at each other. Kelly, the best,'people' person of the team, went over and knelt beside him,"hey..."
"Sir!" Morgan shouted, drawing their attention,"I've reached Grievous!"
Kelly joined her team again, congregating around the radio operator as a harsh mechanical voice came across the other side,"I need support immediately! All units, send backup to this location immediately!"
As the Spartans listened to his coordinates, they were interrupted by a sudden shout,"Parker! I need help over here!"
Spinning around, they see Hill trying to steady him, the younger ODST having a seizure of sorts. His face was streaked with sweat and eyes wide with fear as he grasped at an unseen enemy,"Sarge! It hurts! It hurts!"
Hill clenched the man's shoulders,"You'll be okay kid! what're you talking about?"
Parker's violent trembling intensified, before his pleas turned to screams and his eyes rolled back into his sockets. Suddenly, a two-pronged tentacle shot out of his open mouth and wrapped around Hill's neck. The sergeant caught off guard by the sudden attack, grasped at the squeezing appendage,"fu-"
Pop pop pop!
The infected ODSTs chest and head exploded in a shower of red, splattering Hill as his corpse slumped to the floor. The sergeant was pulled down by the neck with him, grasping at and undoing the deathgrip around his throat.
Covered in the blood of his teammate, Hill crouched into a ball, burying his helmeted head in between his knees and began hyperventilating. The trooper was quiet for a moment, shaking from a overwhelming amount of adrenaline."WHY!" he screamed,"WHY!" Yanking out him Magnum, he fired another round into what was left of Parker's head.
Still breathing too fast, he rose to his feet and gripped his pistol, staring at his fallen brethren. A moment later, he felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see Kelly behind him."We need to get moving toward the objective," she said quietly,"There's... nothing more we can do for him."
The ODST grew quiet, his breathing slowly slowing down to a normal level. He nodded silently and holstered his pistol, grabbing his rifle from against the wall.
John glanced at the other two ODSTs, who were staring dumbfounded at their teammate's body. Ramirez, the medic, glanced nervously at her bandaged arm,"What... what was that?"
"He took his helmet off." Chief said sadly, hoisting his rifle,"The spores got him."
"And if my seal broke?" She asked, raising her arm toward him,"Say, a tear in the bandage..."
John stared down at her for a moment, then nodded slowly. As Ramirez retreated instinctively, he motioned toward the door."Let's get going."
Raising their weapons, Kelly and Fred were the first out, followed by the ODSTs, then Linda and John. As they went, Linda pulled a grenade off her belt and tossed it in the room behind them, then trotted away to a safe distance with the rest of them.
Alright, probably my last update until high school and sports let out. Since I don't know what my college situation will look like, I'll try to get a few chapters out over the summer.
God bless, Usernames out.