100 Challenges
Prompt 054: Tower
Title: Hunter
Kathleen stared at the alien as it towered over her. At twelve feet in height it was one of the most frightening sights to a soldier in the field. Tall, bulky, and nearly impossible to injure, hunters were a real threat. They destroyed everything in their path and without much effort. Unless you had a rocket launcher or tank you were basically screwed. Kathleen had seen evidence of the monsters in the past, but this was her first time actually seeing one, let alone facing one.
There was no official information in the UNSC database but Kathleen had seen terrified soldiers in the field, muttering about giant walking tank monsters. All other soldiers who met hunters were dead. There were reports and rumors of a heavy weapon Covenant, but this was not what Kathleen had expected. It moved slowly and carried a large gun on its right arm like none that Kathleen had ever seen. From this close up she could see the worms wiggle in the openings of the armor. Could such small weak things really make up this monstrosity?
The hunter let out a great deep roar and raised its left arm. The large bulky shield was attached to the arm and the hunter lifted it like it was nothing. The shield started to slam down toward Kathleen but she moved quickly. The shield hit the ground where Kathleen had stood, cracking the ground slightly. The hunter then raised its gun and aimed where Kathleen now was. The weapon charged a brilliant green as the energy gathered.
Kathleen didn't know what kind of power the gun had, but from the multitude of burned bodies that she'd seen in the field she didn't doubt that it would be big. She wasn't about to give the hunter the satisfaction of making her another one of its victims. Kathleen ducked down and moved closer to the large enemy. The gun went off and she could feel the heat of the blast. From the feel of it, the weapon was at least as powerful as a wraith shot, if not more.
Kathleen took action, climbing up onto the front of the alien's armor. She didn't really know what to do but she let her instincts take control. Her hands shot toward the exposed eels of the hunter's neck and started to grab them, squeezing tight and pulling some out. The hunter flailed around a bit, unsure of what to do as it was being attacked. No human had ever attacked it like this. Orange blood coated her hands as she continued to frantically attack. It let out a cry of what she could only guess was pain and flung her to the side.
Kathleen moved to her feet and charged toward the hunter. It tried to slice the air with its shield but she dropped down under the shield and slid over the ground. When Kathleen had reached the other side of the alien she sprang to her feet. She grabbed a grenade from her belt and gripped the side of the hunter's back armor. She shoved her hand up into the exposed part of the armor. When she pulled her hand out she took the pin of the grenade with it. Kathleen dove to the side as the explosive went off, sending a shower of orange over the surrounding area.
Kathleen looked up to find herself facing another hunter, its gun leveled at her head. Crap, they came in pairs.
