AN: FINALLY, THE NASTY ONE HAS COME BACK TO FANFICTION! Welcome back everyone to the story of the Xenonaut faithful trying to keep the world a safe place for the residents of Earth. Last chapter we saw by far one of the quickest missions to date where a desert crash site was secured in under five turns. What awaits our heroic team as the first month of the invasion comes to a close? Tune in to find out as without further ado, let's jump into this shit!
Chapter 7: Village Showdown
== Back At Sandtrap (Evening Hours 9/22/1979) ==
Squad returned to base without incident following their desert skirmish as Meier and Rodrigues hoofed it down to the Medical Center to heal up from their injuries. The team was unpacking when an alarm sounded in the base at 2138 hours.
RADAR CONTACT DETECTED!
It was another Fighter UFO that had been causing problems over the airspaces of Western China and Northern India. Condor 2 piloted by Maverick was dispatched to the eastern edge of the radar range over the Middle East to intercept the Alien Craft. Ten minutes went by as the craft hung out over the same area before disappearing off the radar screen completely. The UFO had escaped back to space to present its findings to the alien leaders. A dejected Maverick was recalled to base to refuel and to await the next radar contact.
== The Next Day (9/23/79) ==
The research on the improved combat armor for the soldiers was completed as Dr. Snidely presented his team's findings to the Commander. The proposed new armor, entitled Jackal Combat Armor, was designed to have an increased resistance to the heat damage caused by the plasma rounds fired from the alien weapons. However, there was no guarantee that it would stop the rounds from hitting the soldiers, and repeated hits would significantly weaken the armor opening up the wearer to serious damage. In addition, the armor was also heavy which would reduce the amount of equipment weaker soldiers would be able to carry heading into combat and make them unable to travel longer distances in one go. The Commander was satisfied with the researchers work and dispatched Dr. Snidely back to his laboratory to start work on figuring out the Alien Biology. The Engineering team under Pyotr Radchenko began work on creating enough vests for all sixteen soldiers on base, a process which would take approximately three weeks to complete.
== Three Days Later (9/26/79) ==
Dr. Snidely's team finished their assigned research in record time thanks to the extra minds brought in last week. The report indicated that the aliens possessed central nervous and circulatory systems similar to humans, but no common origin between the species could be determined due to their vastly different body types. The report also indicated that the aliens could breathe our oxygen but only for short periods of time as they would eventually succumb to Oxygen Toxicity due to be used to atmospheres with only 5 – 6% Oxygen instead of the ours which has approximately 21% Oxygen. For further study, the team had installed low level oxygen holding tanks to hold captured aliens they would like the ground forces to capture alive. They then began work on the Stun Weapons research to assist the soldiers in this endeavor.
== Four Days Later (9/30/79) ==
It had been a quiet week for the base as no contacts had been found from the aliens as the base was preparing for their end of month report from the Council of Nations. All of the aircraft previously shot down were back up and running, and all soldiers that were wounded were fully healed and eager to get back in the field at some points.
RADAR CONTACT DETECTED!
Just after seven in the morning, the alarm rang detailing another contact this one appearing over Western Africa near the coast. Wasting no time, Condor 1 piloted by Spitfire was dispatched to seek out and destroy the target UFO. Nearly three hours later Spitfire had succeeded in his mission as the UFO crashed down in a small village in the middle of the Western Sahara Desert. Big Sky was dispatched to the site with a full ten-man team as they were tasked to secure the site and prevent as many civilian casualties as possible. The squad arrived just before sunset as they prepared to get the job done.
== On the Ground (1739 Hours 9/30/79) ==
The squad landed on the eastern side of the village without issue as the two teams prepared to advance together through the small village to the crash site on the western edge. Team 1 consisting of Vidrai, Kurniawan, Vetec, Abdel and Smith would secure the northern flank while Team 2 consisting of Santos, Danjuma, Zielinski, Prieto and Silva would secure the southern flank.
The teams descended the ramp into the bright desert sun and spotted a civilian in front of them frantically signaling them. Silva and Prieto advanced to him and crouched down behind a fence line as Silva tried to get the man to calm down and explain the situation to him. Prieto looked off to his left and spotted another civilian in a bazaar carrying a heavy machine gun being stared down by a Sebillian (lizard creature).
"Contact!" he exclaimed as the teams moved into position to support. Team 1 advanced to the fence line to the right of the two soldiers and spotted another civilian hiding next to a house in front of their position. Vidrai hung back from the team to have a firing angle into the bazaar in case things went south with the forward members of Team 2. Zielinski and Danjuma advance to the bottom of the Chinook's ramp as they had a clear line of site on the creature from there. Santos exits out the side door of the Chinook and links up with another civilian carrying an assault rifle outside of a house of the squad's left flank.
== First Contact ==
With everyone in position, the squad laid down fire on the Sebillian's position.
BANG! SCREECH! BANG! BANG! SCREECH!
Three rounds were fired off at the creature, the first one from Danjuma struck the creature in the stomach causing it to screech in pain. The second round from Silva missed high and to the right, as Prieto's round struck the creature in the chest but it remained standing. Angered by the painful bullets, the alien returned fire.
BZZT! DEATH RATTLE MOAN!
Prieto ducked on instinct as the round from the lizard creature's plasma rifle struck the unarmed civilian in the head sending him to the ground as he exhaled his final breath. The round was intended for Prieto but the civilian standing in front of him was too slow to react and paid the price for his slow reflexes.
BANG! SHRIEK!
Vidrai had the alien's position zoned in from his scope as he fired the final shot that entered the lizard's brain ending his life for good as he fell to the ground lifelessly. The machine gunner waived in thanks to the squad which ended up being his last living action.
BZZT! BZZT! BZZT! DEATH RATTLE MOAN!
Three rounds suddenly struck the man in the back as he tumbled forward dropping his machine gun to the floor. The attack came from the other side of the bazaar which was unfortunately out of the squad's line of sight. With little time to mourn the dead civilians, the teams advanced forward hoping to avenge their deaths without suffering any of their own in the process.
== Clearing the Bazaar ==
Wanting to find the closest threat and neutralize it, the Team 2 advanced across the dirt road to their left and got to the low wall allowing them to see the entire bazaar as they spotted another Sebillian at the back part of the bazaar behind some stalls. The fire team opened up on the creature before it could react.
BANG! BANG! SCREECH! BANG! SHRIEK!
Prieto's shot missed to the left hitting a wooden shelf displaying fresh fruit. Silva and Zielinski both hit the creature in the chest and head respectively as it screeched then fell to the ground lifelessly after it's death scream awarding Zielinski the kill. Danjuma and Santos met up in the rear yard of the house on the squad's left at the bottom of the bazaar and provided overwatch for the other three as they advanced through the bazaar clearing it and a one-story home that bordered its far end. The three then advanced into the village center as Santos and Danjuma moved up to join them.
== Securing the Northern Flank ==
Team one advanced quickly up the right side of the village as they were met with minimal resistance on the way. Vetec cleared the two-story building on the other side of the fence as the others advanced through the village center past a water well. Reaching the other side, Kurniawan and Vidrai advanced further up the right flank as they cleared out the entire side of the village and spotted the UFO on their left. They proceeded to close in from the northwest corner of the village to be on the flank of any aliens inside of the craft. Smith, Abdel and Vetec meanwhile had moved into a two-story home with an attached one-story open room with minimal furniture inside. They heard movement above them as they found a civilian cowering in the room with them carrying a jammed rifle. Seeing the open door connecting the two buildings, Abdel quickly shut it as they awaited backup before pressing in to try and fell the creature.
== Approaching the UFO ==
Team 2 entered the open area past the village center which contained two trellises with vines growing on them. Danjuma was on point and spotted the UFO at the end of this open area with a tiny rock wall in front of the UFO's front door. On the right side of this area was the front door of the building Team 1 currently had an alien cornered in. Danjuma advanced to the first trellis and took cover behind the left side of it, while Santos took cover on his left allowing him a clear shot to the UFO should it open, but no cover for him to duck behind. Zielinski, Silva and Prieto advanced into the right side of the open area and took cover behind a second water well as they awaited their chance to advance closer. The UFO door quickly opened as another Sebillian was revealed before it just as quickly slammed the door shut to prevent any reaction shots from being fired.
Team 2 advanced cautiously as Zielinski went to the open door to cover Team 1's assault on the alien in the house, while the others used the trellises for cover as Danjuma and Santos were on the left side of the second trellis while Prieto and Silva were on the right side. Vidrai and Kurniawan advanced behind the rear of the building where the assault was to go down, as they enclosed the snare on the UFO. The door opened once again this time revealing two aliens as Danjuma hurriedly fired off a potshot which missed wildly high.
BANG! CLANG!
Despite the miss, the assault team was ready to breach the UFO shortly as Silva and Prieto moved to the low wall in front of the UFO to kick it off.
== Inside the House ==
Smith and Abdel advance into the main area of the house as they spotted Zielinski outside of the front door watching over them. Both peeked up the staircase and saw a Sebillian standing at the top of the staircase looking around wondering where the residents of the house were. Both raised their guns to fire as they wanted to end this quickly.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Smith fired off two shots, both of which missed high while Abdel's shot went low into the top step of the staircase. The alien quickly snapped its attention down the stairs as the new threats were identified.
"We can't hit it from here!" exclaimed Abdel as the angle of the staircase was too extreme for them to accurately hit the creature.
"Cover me!" he said as he advanced to the foot of the stairs.
BANG!
Smith's round missed the creature as it impacted the wall behind it. Abdel had his rifle up and let loose a round.
BANG! SCREECH!
The alien yelped in pain as the round struck home in its left shoulder. Angered, the creature returned fire on Abdel.
BZZT! BZZT! BZZT!
"FUCK! I'M HIT!" the Egyptian male shouted as he fell to the ground in a heap as the creature started to advance down the steps to finish him off after all three rounds impacted him in the chest and stomach.
BANG! SCREECH! BZZT!
Zielinski opened fire on the creature striking it with a round to the stomach as it yelled out in pain before returning fire impacting the wall in front of Zielinski's head. Without a second though, Vetec had charged into the room and was lined up on the creature as it was moments away from finishing his friend off.
BANG! SHRIEK!
The round from Vetec's gun impacted the creature in the throat as it weakly screamed before falling forward down the steps and collapsing on Abdel's already wounded body.
The three rushed to him as they pulled the alien carcass off of him to allow him to breathe as Vetec started to work on his injured pal.
"Hang in there Nour you're going to be fine!" he yelled as he pressed a bandage from his medical kit onto the bleeding wounds on Abdel's chest and stomach.
"Fuck they killed me man!" exclaimed Abdel in response as he was writhing around on the floor bleeding profusely making it difficult to treat his wounds.
"Just hold still buddy, it's minor! You'll be up and about in no time." said Vetec with a forced smile as he attempted to fix his buddy up.
"Liar..." moaned out Abdel softly as he stopped moving all together.
"Nour! NOUR!" exclaimed Vetec as he shook his friend trying to wake him up in vain. Zielinski just put a hand on his shoulder and shook her head as Vetec looked up at her in shock.
"NO!" he yelled before collapsing into a heap hugging his dead friend's body. The two female soldiers could only secure the house as they listened to the sounds of their comrade openly weeping over the death of a close friend.
== Securing the UFO ==
The breaching team was ready to take the UFO down unaware of the tragedy that had occurred within the house behind them. The UFO door opened once more as the lead Sebillian started to charge out of the UFO.
BANG! SCREECH! BANG! SHRIEK!
Silva fired his rifle first as the round struck the alien in the chest stopping it in its' tracks as it yelled out in pain before Danjuma finished it off with a headshot. The other alien smartly remained in the craft as it didn't want to test the other four soldiers that hadn't fired yet.
Not giving it a moment's rest, Silva advanced to the right side of the door and popped it open giving Danjuma and Santos a perfect shot on the creature which was hiding on the craft's interior right side.
BANG! SCREECH! BANG! CLANG! BANG! CLANG!
Danjuma unleashed a burst from his rifle as the first shot struck the creature in the chest causing it to scream out in pain. His other two rounds struck the UFO walls around the creature suppressing the creature, and also Silva unintentionally.
BANG! SHRIEK!
Santos' scope was already trained on the alien as he stepped in front of Danjuma after he'd finished firing and hit the alien in the head sending it to the floor of the UFO lifelessly after its scream of pain. Prieto moved inside and cleared out the rest of the small craft before they regrouped with the others and learned of Abdel's death. The entire squad woefully mourned the loss of a good soldier as they solemnly secured the site for transport back to base. Meanwhile, the Commander had already placed an order for a new soldier after hearing the radio communications between the squads. The aliens just had to add another tally to the casualty list before the month ended.
== Mission Seven Summary ==
Alien Combatants Killed: 6/6
Civilians Saved: 4/7 (2/4 Armed, 2/3 Unarmed)
Xenonauts KIA: 1/10 (Cpl. Nour Abdel)
Xenonauts WIA: 0/10
Kill Tally (Active Soldiers Only): Sgt. Santos (5), Lt. Vidrai (5), Sgt. Fujita (3), Lt. Meier (3), Cpl. Kurniawan (2*), Cpl. Loharani (2), Cpl. Zielinski (2), Cpl. Vetec (2), Sgt. Lefebvre (1), Cpl. Silva (1), Cpl. Prieto (1), Pvt. Smith (1), Cpl. Rodrigues (1) and Cpl. Danjuma (1)
*Game doesn't count these as they were killed by the UFO explosion not him physically. I'll still tally it anyway.
Promotions:
Alten Vidrai to Captain
Fernando Santos to Lieutenant
Natalia Zielinski, Alan Vetec and Bayomi Danjuma to Sergeant
Natalie Smith to Corporal
Medals: Order of Gallantry awarded to Cpt. Alten Vidrai and Lt. Fernando Santos for five confirmed alien kills.
Active Roster:
Cpt. Alten Vidrai
Lt. Jens Meier
Lt. Fernando Santos
Sgt. Masao Fujita
Sgt. Clair Lefebvre
Sgt. Zee Loharani
Sgt. Mohandas Bhandari
Sgt. Joaquim Rodrigues
Sgt. Natalia Zielinski
Sgt. Alan Vetec
Sgt. Bayomi Danjuma
Cpl. Andy Kurniawan
Cpl. Augusto Prieto
Cpl. William Silva
Cpl. Natalie Smith
Out of Action Roster:
One Unknown Soldier (Yet to arrive on base)
Memorial Wall:
Cpl. Benjamin Muller (KIA on Mission One)
Cpl. Delfina Calvo (KIA on Mission Two)
Cpl. Konsta Mattila (KIA on Mission Two)
Cpl. Rameen Bhabra (KIA on Mission Two)
Cpl. Moheem Kurd (KIA on Mission Two)
Cpl. Nour Abdel (KIA on Mission Seven)
AN: And that's a wrap on this chapter as the aliens got one more kill in as the easy-going Egyptian met his end this time out. How will the end of the month report go? What will the incoming funds be used for? Tune in next time to find out as we explore that and another mission next time out! Until then, this is "The Nasty One" signing off!
PRAK aka "The Nasty One"