A short chapter figured I'd get this part out because I've come down with a MAJOR case of writer's block.
God, I hate writer's block. This probably will be the only chapter I release in a few weeks. Sorry about that. I know it's pathetic in size, but I promise a 6,000+ chapter once I get my shit together.
Guest(This is definitely on of the best stories I've read, it has mystery, conflict, politics and the unison of magic and technology. Your story is compelling and there very few grammatical and plot errors. The only flaw I can think of is the severe lack of professionalism of the nato soldiers, but other than that your story is great. Please keep up the good work.): Thank you man, you have no idea how much that means to me. About the professionalism of the soldiers, I can see where you're coming from. Misfit acts like a bunch of kids at times, but I feel like it's good-natured... most of the time. Either way, thanks again for the kind review :)).
Arms Dealer(Colonel Quaritch: Our only security lies in preemptive attack. We will fight terror with terror. The hostiles believe that this mountain territory is protected by their... deity. And when we destroy it, we will blast a crater in their racial memory so deep, that they won't come within 1,000 klicks of this place ever again. And that, too, is a fact. As much as we all want to avoid bloodshed, but in some cases we need to carry a big stick to hit a rabid dog.): Lol, an Avatar reference that I get. But here's the thing, the marines in Avatar were the bad guys... does that mean NATO is the real evil empire in this story? Uh-oh...
Poke-A-Poodle (Lol anti-guerilla warfare is the very thing modern military is trained for. They're just playing into NATO's hands.): We'll see... We'll see indeed. Afterall, this is a new and alien world. If only I could get out of this writer's block i'd be able to show you. But i'll have to wait until my brain starts working again.
Sorry once again for the pathetically short chapter, but I still hope you enjoy :)
"WARNING. LIFE SIGNS DROPPING. AUTOMATIC MEDICAL SYSTEMS ENGAGED. SEEK MEDICAL ATTENTION," The voice of the MTPS penetrated Eden's unconscious slumber. The robotic voice alerting him to danger more sever in the real world...
Eden's eyes opened slightly. Taking in the scene around him. His vision blurred from straining to comprehend what was going on around him, sensory overload rendering Eden temporarily blind. His stomach felt strange, but he couldn't diagnose what the problem was.
"Ugh," Eden groaned as he slowly woke up from his unconscious state. He cleaned the visor of the gas mask on his face with the cloth from his sleeve, wiping away any dirt and junk that blanketed the mask. His vision slowly sharpened, enough for him to take in the scene around him.
The Boxer had been flipped completely on its side. Eden was on his back still in the seat of the passenger compartment. That explained why his stomach felt strange. He noted that the door to the passenger compartment had been ripped open, the buggers had managed to tear it apart. Outside he could see the glow of a fire, flickering somewhere just out of his sight. His weary eyes soon noted something else…
A figure. It walked right by the gaping hole in the rear of the Boxer, stopping just in front of it…
It was that creature, the creature Eden knew for certain he left behind on Earth.
Mirrorface...
The creature seemed to observe the wreck, though it was hard to tell as it had no eyes… it didn't have much of a face in the first place. Just a plate that reflected everything it saw. Slowly though, the creature turned to face Eden. He froze, scared. What was it? What did it want with him? How had it followed him here? Eden considered this 'thing' to be supernatural, first in England, then in Baku, and now here in Mysterium. What the hell did it want, and why was it following him like this. The emotionless stare the creature shot at Eden sent shivers down his spine…
"Rooooaar!" In the distance, the faint whine of one of the buggers echoed through the forest. The Mirrorface slowly looked behind him, at the direction the sound echoed from. And then took one final look at Eden, before it took a few steps, and vanished behind the Boxer. Eden held his hands out, trying to get the creature to come back. maybe he could help?
"Wait!" Eden weakly said, "Wait, please!"
Eden felt a power overcome him. Shutting his eyes once more, as Eden fell into the void of unconsciousness…
"Eden! Eden! Wake up, Corporal! Come on, wake up!"
Eden's eyes opened to find Sherman shaking him awake, "Eden, we've got to get a move on!"
His heart raced, his brain was frozen in a fog of confusion and haze. Slowly, Sherman pulled Eden up on his feet, and it took Eden everything he could to not immediately collapse, "The fuckers got Scotty!" Cato yelled out from another part of the vehicle, "The buggers dragged him away!"
The vital signs monitor on his HUD as going crazy now, and Eden could feel it. His heart was racing. Slowly though, he began to calm down as he picked up his weapon from off the ground and secured the MTPS' battery.
"W-what happened?" Eden felt ashamed for asking, but he truly was lost.
"Huntsmen, they've dragged Scott away! I don't know where," Sherman told him, "We just have to find him! Come on!"
Sherman led the way through the lopsided interior of the Boxer, Eden looked back. The crew inside that piloted the vehicle lay there motionless, "They are dead, Eden! They tried to fight back against them, but the buggers ripped them apart!" Cato told him, ushering him forward. Outside, other soldiers were clambering out of their vehicles. The force, compromised of Royal Marines and German Bundeswehr Forces, had been completely taken by surprise. The Huntsman ambush overwhelming their defenses. The surviving members of the platoon were injured, and completely disoriented. The Huntsmen nowhere to be seen for now.
"We have to find Scott, and then burn down that damn hive!" Sherman told Hazard, "Cato, radio Juno. Tell them that we've been ambushed!"
"I would, but there isn't a signal out here. I've tried but the only answer was static," Cato said, holding up the radio.
"Shite!"
"We don't even know where their hive is, we're fucked!"
Eden saw the Huntsmen before. They weren't small creatures but they certainly weren't big enough to flip the Boxer on its side. Neither where they large enough to make that roaring sound. In fact, the only sounds Eden heard from the buggers were chirps and screeches. There must've been something else…
"We've got to be close by their territory," said Sherman, "Close enough that the fuckers thought they had to defend it. If not, we're right in it. By the entrance of their hive. Do we know anything about the buggers that can help us?"
"Phillip from Juno said that they don't like flashlights or loud noises. That's gotta count for something right?" Eden asked.
"Yeah, the MTPS has a flashlight function of the vest," Sherman pointed at it, "If we find the buggers again, we use it. Anything else that can help us find Scott?"
"The suit has a built-in Radio. Maybe if we can track where the signal is coming from, we can find his location?"
Sherman nodded his head in understanding, "Good. I'll get the rest of the platoon together. In the meantime, you lads suit up. We're going hunting."