X-Com – The Unknown Menace
Chapter Thirty-One – Here It Ends
Map of Mars:
www.geocities.com/aadlg/Unknown/atlas_b.gif
Viking probe picture of Cydonia:
www.geocities.com/aadlg/Unknown/Cydonia.gif
(All pictures were taken by NASA)
March 7th, 2002
Valles Marineris, Mars
Squaddie Jones looked at the yellow-brown sandy soil through the faceplate and wished that he could spit on it. However the helmet suit from his power suit prevented it and he wouldn't risk taking it out. Not only the greenie would most likely turn into a small ball of ice before hitting the ground, but he would be dead afterwards as the air of his lungs would be sucked out of them due to the low pressure of the atmosphere.
That or he would be dying from hypoxia a few minutes later if he tried to hold his breath. And when the desperation coming from the lack of oxygen finally made him gasp for air, it wouldn't do any good. The little amount of gases present on the atmosphere was composed mainly of carbon dioxide, not oxygen.
Yeah, all nice things to happen to you out there on the great Martian outdoors!
At the briefing done while on route someone had made a not too assertive complain about having to fight in a condition where a suit leak could became a serious problem, not to mention the fact that there would be dozen of armed aliens around. But the reply from one of the officers present who had been a Navy SEAL was also light: "Well, at least we are not going to fight underwater there. I'll tell you all that it would be much worse".
That had gotten Jones to remember for a minute the alien base on Antarctica and the flooded corridor. But he soon got his mind back into hearing more about this mad attack, where apparently everything could and most likely would go wrong, especially when taking a trip of millions of miles into Mars, something never done before.
And don't forget to mention the fact that there's an alien base out there, full of thousands of aliens ready to take over any intruders, he reminded himself.
If the opposition isn't tough enough, we will make them tough enough to make an even fight, his drill sergeant once told him. Jones wished that the bastard could be here and eat his own words.
His attention diverted from the soil littered with red stones to the high standing dark brown cliffs in front of him. Jones had already forgotten how deep the whole canyon were the X-Com force had landed but he remembered it was several thousand feet.
Hell, according to someone at Eta squad, who had heard it from someone else, which in turn had picked up a conversation between two officers that one of them was saying that Valles Marineris was a series of canyons bigger than North America. That had gotten Jones thinking.
He could see the northern cliff, its dark irregular peaks standing above him and marking themselves against the orange sky. On the contrary, there was nothing recognizable on the south as far as his vision could see. Could it be that they were standing in a canyon that big that you couldn't see both walls of it? Jones decided to dismiss the soldier's claim and stick to Eta's reputation: the soldiers assigned to it were too dumb to fight with the other troopers, let them jerk around with the robot tanks.
As he was contemplating the scenario, Corporal Rodriguez came from behind him and gave him a gentle pat with his heavy plasma as he passed by Jones. The trooper's attention was suddenly distracted by the metal noise and Rodriguez's voice: "Let's go Jones. This patrol is over. Terminado. Wanna play a poker hand at the Challenger when we get back?"
Jones dismissed the corporal with his laser rifle and resumed his walk back to the X-Com camp, together with the remaining members of Gamma squad. As they approached the provisional base they joined Private Pershing, whose tall figure had stopped on the path.
"Very funny. We got someone with a sense of humor around here". He said to them on the radio with a detached voice, and then continued back to the camp to the provisional barracks.
King and Rodriguez approached the location on where he was standing. Someone had planted a metal stake on the sand with a sign on top in several languages, all of them saying: "Welcome to Mars City One. Population: 244. Please don't step on the grass and don't feed the aliens".
Area 51, Nevada, US
78 million kilometers away from Gamma squad's location, Williams had just entered Robinson's office to join with X-Com's intelligence chief as they were about to get the latest intelligence report on Mars. The mission had launched itself without a single problem, much to his surprise due to the last dying statement of the man who he had met weeks ago. Davis had called it a bluff as he had heard the story but Williams wasn't so sure. There was a clear implication that others were involved in the whole matter but if they had tried to sabotage the launch of the Avengers and their flight to Mars or even warn the aliens, nothing had came up.
The mood of everybody at the base was of anxiety. Although only a few people knew the destination of the craft, everyone knew that something really important was happening. Or that it was about to happen. The story of the alien fleet on the other side of the Moon and the recent attacks on X-Com bases all over the world were putting pressure into everyone. Even the news of minor confrontations between Chinese and US ships in the Yellow Sea didn't seem to grab anyone's attention.
Checking his wrist he saw on his watch that only ten minutes were left until the transmission procedures started at precisely nine-thirty. As he entered the office Robinson's personal secretary looked at him. "Oh it's you Mr. Williams", she replied as if she was waiting for someone else.
"Good morning Jill. Is the Colonel around?" As he asked he half-expected Robinson to pop out of his personal door with a serious face since he was five minutes late.
"No, the Colonel hasn't turned in this morning yet". She looked at his office. "I guess that he finally must have overslept a bit. Even he must get tired after spending all of these late hours here working".
"He hasn't arrived?" For the year since Williams had moved into Area 51 he couldn't remember ever seeing Robinson being late. In fact he had gotten from him quite a number of looks of reprehension every time he arrived more than two minutes late for an appointment with him.
"No and I don't know what I should do". The secretary was clearly surprised by the occurrence. It looked to Williams that she was feeling as if the impossible had happened.
"Can't you call his quarters to see if he's already up? We have to be on the communications room in five minutes. It's very important".
"I guess I could but I'd hate to disturb the Colonel". A sudden remembrance came to her mind. "Wait. The Colonel yesterday left me something for you when you came this morning". She opened a drawer from her desk and removed a letter from inside.
Picking it up from her extended hand, Williams wondered what might be inside. Opening it up, he saw that on its back there was something written with Robinson's handwriting. Bringing it closer to his eyes, he read the words: Good luck.
Putting her right hand over the mouthpiece, Jill turned to him. "Sir, there's no answer from the Colonel's quarters. He must not be there".
"Try the base's desk. See if they can find out of his location". She went back to the phone and placing a finger between the envelope's flaps, Williams opened it.
On the inside there was only a single piece of paper. As he took it out, Jill moved back to him in confusion. "Sir, the desk officer says that Colonel Robinson was last seen by a Theta detachment close to the base perimeter. Apparently he couldn't sleep and had decided to take a walk outside. They have now started to make a search for him".
As she finished off the sentence, his heart froze as he read the typed words on the small paper.
"AMBER BLUE". The envelope on his other hand dropped without a sound to the floor.
Valles Marineris, Mars
Inside the camp set out the day before upon their landing, Illyuschenko tried to ignore the last news he had just received from Mother One about the situation on Earth.
Two X-Com bases had been attacked in the last 24 hours by the aliens with heavy casualties.
Stalingrad Base had been the first, but Colonel Bondarenko had left it well prepared for such an eventuality. The intruders had been repulsed by the plasma and laser fire from the security defense towers, resulting in the destruction of one of the incoming UFOs and the withdrawal of the remaining craft with serious damage, in opposition to the light casualties suffered by the defenders.
But in the case of the African base, Depot S-4, the damage and consequences were far more serious. With the call up of all available Avenger craft and soldiers to fight on Mars the majority of the combat teams were either gone or gravely undermanned, since the veterans were all here now.
It had been a massacre.
Colonel Warteens had less than two platoons of infantry and tanks to repel the intruders, especially after having taking a beating on Nairobi two days ago from a terrorist attack done by Ethereals and Sectopods.
It hadn't been enough to stop the aliens.
All communications with the base had been ceased after reports of a series of alien attacks and a desperate call for reinforcements. But there were none that could have reached Depot S-4 on time to prevent the slaughter.
Two fully manned Lightnings from Mother One had investigated the site the following day, with a couple of Firestorms flying along for protection. Among the ruins of the base they hadn't found any survivors. Not only, the warehouses on which the majority of the alien artifacts captured were being stored had been completely destroyed or left empty by the aliens. More than two hundred personnel had been killed, along with the loss of a war material cache that was more than worth its weight in gold.
Plus the other attacks on the preceding weeks, which had badly damaged Complex YY-18 and putting a stop on the Avenger production, plus the failed attempts at the Indian and European bases. The X-Com Commander took a deep breath and contemplated the dark monitor on the bridge of the Protector.
In his entire military career, Illyuschenko always had accepted the fact that military troops are meant to kill or be killed. And also that sacrifices were required most of time and the more he went up on the command ladder the more lives he had the power to decide over. His plan had been modified and approved by X-Com's High Command and ratified by the UN's Secretary himself after a long discussion.
When he had first informed the Secretary-General, Bomaka had refused to approve the strike. He had argued that it would take away most of Earth's men and equipment on a suicide mission, leaving the planet undefended. And finally, that the decision for such an attack should be left to the Council due to the seriousness of the proposal.
Illyuschenko had to threaten him to get his support. But not with physical force. Instead he simply said that he was ready to present not only his resignation but of the entire X-Com High Command if Bomaka didn't approve the attack.
Actually, Bomaka's critics were not completely unfounded. All of X-Com's Avengers had traveled together to Mars, in a trip that marked the maiden voyage of the first human space fleet and the first landing on the red planet. However, it also meant leaving Earth undefended against the aliens' battleships and the upcoming invasion. Not undefended, he corrected himself, trying to dismiss of the guilt he was suffering. "We left some troops back….. But even if all of us where back there we couldn't do anything….".
"Commander? Did you say anything, sir?" Illyuschenko was startled by the new voice and turned the chair to see a young officer standing close to him, with the upper section of the power suit removed and in a hurry. "No. Do you have any business here son?" he said in an unfriendly tone. The officer suddenly wished for some place to hide but kept on his mission. "Sir, well, the hyper wave detector we brought aboard the Valiant is now working sir".
"Good! Why didn't you say so! Now we won't be seeing an unexpected attack from the aliens! We can now know when they detect us and bring all of their firepower to erase our presence from this dust ball!" The tirade came out of a second from his mouth before Illyuschenko realized his error.
The officer stood in the same place, looking startled. "Sir? I'm sorry but I came from the South American team and don't speak Russian". Feeling relief, Illyuschenko just thanked and dismissed him with an order to be informed of any important alien communications. Then he went back to read the remaining part of the intelligence briefing submitted by Colonel Robinson to him, thanking whomever that he was speaking in Russian.
The lieutenant was still nearby, he waited to see what other news there were. "And sir, Area 51 is calling. They have successfully reactivated the Odyssey".
Area 51, Nevada, US
"I told you all!" Landon's face was gloating as the data from the space probe orbiting Mars started to flow into the computers at Area 51 with a twenty minute lag due to the time it took the radio waves to reach Earth.
On his side, Pharris simply nodded in surprise. "You surely did. I never expected that your piece of software that went onboard the Odyssey could do the job. I mean, to pretend that the probe had suffered a malfunction; deploy it successfully on the planet's orbit; and re-establish communications, after more than a month so that NASA had stopped by now to make any effort to listen to any signs from it. I take my hat to you".
Still with a grin that extended from one ear to another, Landon turned to Pharris. "I'm gonna leave you guys now". He winked. "Good luck on examining the data. If you need anything I will be shooting pool at the mess hall".
"Well done, Landon". Williams spoke to him, but he was already by the door, whistling happily as he walked away. Moving closer to Dr. Mantell, who was looking on the screen displaying the data that was arriving with an eight-minute lag from Mars due to the distance, he asked. "Is it any good?"
The scientist had stopped to pay attention to reality and was emerged in the data. It took him a couple of seconds to take notice of the question and to answer back. "Oh, yes. The radiation detector on board it is working perfectly and has made a couple of scans of the planet already".
"Doctor and what about Cydonia?" Major Prescott, seated also close asked. Punching in a number of keys to call the information, Mantell answered a minute later. "There are tachyons all over the area. The aliens are there alright".
Valles Marineris, Mars
On the other side of the landing area the X-Com troops had hastily built a firing range to calibrate the weapons after the long-range flight to Mars. Corporal King was standing in one of the stations, a shallow depression where a man could fit inside and with a small wall. He was working on a heavy laser, when another figure suddenly dropped out of the sky close to him. "I noticed you coming from more than fifty yards, Rumpole. You don't trick me".
He turned his torso to greet the female sniper, who was now trying to land on the Martian ground, using the anti-gravity equipment of her flying suit. Unfortunately, the suit responded in a not expected way and she unexpectedly pummeled to the ground in the last part, forcing her to bend her knees to absorb the impact. "Damn! I thought I had it covered by now!" she complained.
"When you are standing on a planet with less than half of Earth's gravity it takes some time to adjust for the additional push they provided. Even if we flew all the way here with the internal gravity at the craft set equal to Mars' own one".
She moved closer to him. "I know dammit! But it was supposed to be easier than if we had spent the whole trip in zero-g environment!" King nodded in agreement. The more than a month claustrophobic trip to Mars had been close to living for that time in a submarine, due to the necessity of filling up the Avengers with life-support systems for the journey.
However, one of the benefits from the use of alien propulsion systems, besides cutting the travel time from Earth to Mars to a mere forty days, was that they created artificial gravity onboard. Thus, it prevented the soldiers from starting to suffer the effects of living under zero gravity, which would have weakened the body' bones and muscles.
"Hey how did you recognize me anyways?" He dropped what he was doing and said to her, slightly laughing. "Rita, you must be one of the shortest around here, not to mention the only midget on a flying suit". She kicked him to the side with her armored foot, the sound barely audible in Mars's thin atmosphere. He stopped laughing and cried in a mock voice "Ouch! That hurt!"
The small, bulky soldier made a half-heartily try but King dodged it easily like he was meant to. "Yeah right! Stand there in the middle of the range and you will see what really hurts then!" He turned down her offer with a move of his metal glove. "No thanks. Sergeant Hopkins will already have my ass because of the dents you just made on my armor and I can't afford one more scratch".
"Oh, can it! What are you doing with that heavy laser? Our squad has switched into heavy plasmas for quite some time now". He picked up the weapon with both hands and dropped on her arms. "Just finished correcting the scope. Try it". She picked the laser with both arms and assumed a standing firing position. Choosing up a large rock as a target, she took two shots at it, leaving two darkened holes. "OK", he added, "now go for something outside the range of the weapon".
As she finished switching from one target to the other, she just slipped a phrase "Waste of batteries" before pressing the trigger. Then she become shocked as the white beam carved another hole at the rock she had chosen. "What the fuck?!" She checked the range on the scope. "That rock is 405 meters away. But the practical range for this thing is 260 meters! Are you a magician King, or are you getting fancy with one of the rocket scientists?"
He accepted back the laser from her hands. "Physics 101"
Looking at her enquiring pose he continued his explanation. "In Earth the practical range of this thing is related to atmospheric conditions, such as temperature, smoke and clouds and so on. In here the air pressure is almost zero, which allows for the beam to suffer from less dispersion. You just need to adjust the sight for the new conditions and you have an even more powerful heavy laser. Of course, the battery runs out faster also, but I prefer it this way. Gives me an edge when targeting Sectopods".
They both smiled at that last comment, although they couldn't see each other's faces. Omega was one of the few squads in X-Com that could claim to have survived in a direct firefight with one of the Ethereal's armored plasma beasts without even a scratch. That happened due to the excellent coordination of all its members and their marksmanship.
"Very resourceful, Virgil Just don't loose any other targets meanwhile". The tone of her voice turned warmer and King turned to her, wondering what she was up to. "Say, I think I could use some adjustments on my heavy laser. Wanna go back to one of the tents and help me out?"
*************
Markovitch had just made another run into the Avenger' toilet to puke for the hundred time ever since they had landed three days ago. The nausea pills that a X-Com doctor had given her seemed to be working, at least barely since she now felt better. The physician had first mentioned that the long space trip plus the landing must have been putting a lot of strain on her organism.
She could understand that. Spending a month in a metal coffin with no more privacy than a curtain on her bunk wasn't that great. Or the landing, where the fleet had entered atmosphere at a completely opposite location from Cydonia right on the mouth of the Valles Marineris, in order to avoid detection. That had been according to the plan.
Unfortunately, the weather conditions in the area were being responsible for the formation of small dust storms and they had traveled most of the length of the canyon through rough turbulence until finally setting down at the bottom of one of the cliffs. Or the adaptation to this horrible place: Mars City One reminded her more of a shantytown or even a nomad camp. Conditions were minimal and that included life-support.
But when the Indian doctor had noticed the small Psi letter attached to the collar of her jumpsuit he suddenly stopped babbling about the conditions and she understood him. Psionics personnel defied science and doctors by its own nature.
Most doctors just simply gave up looking for any other medical explanation and simply attributed any physiological problems to them, when dealing with psionic capable troopers. This one had also the same attitude as he hastily finished the physical exam; she read it on his face expression. Not that she was able or willing to do anything with her mental skills.
She had never felt this bad before, expect when she participated on the interrogation of the Ethereal commander captured in Antarctica. That had been the last time that she had used her abilities, because of their reported damaging effects on the human brain.
Except for the selected members of the Psi squad, the strange group of volunteers from Area 51's personnel that seemed to have a special mental resistance, all of the other psionic able soldiers were banned from using them. The only exception was when there was a special need but the soldier would have to volunteer and the commanding officer to authorize it. Such as the questioning of the alien commander.
The memories of it were still painful to remember. Johnson took the decision heart broken because of its possible implications and only after she had pressed him. She and all of the psi troopers on the base had been put together in the alien containment room. The alien was being kept there under the power of a mental shield, which inhibited its powers.
However, when the protection was lifted for the troopers to gain mental control of the alien, the attack of the Ethereal was bad enough. All of the loose equipment in the room next to the cell immediately started to fly towards the troopers, in an attempt to loose their concentration. Markovitch wasn't the strongest psi, so her job was to weaken the Ethereal's defenses and allow for the others to take control of him.
It had worked, but it had also given her nightmares that still had plagued her on the weeks spent in the space journey onboard the Avenger. They had taken the robe off the Ethereal and it was ugly and threatening enough to see. He had been sitting down on a rock bed, a thin and frail figure looking completely helpless.
However, when the mental field was disconnected, all quickly changed. With an incredible speed it got up and faced his jailers. Much taller than a Sectoid, its face was close to the smaller alien, but it allowed for facial expressions. When she did her mental attack the Ethereal had simply turned to her, the black eyes burning red, his mouth opened showing sharp fangs. She became quickly engulfed in a wave of despair and fear. For a brief second she saw herself suffering the vilest tortures at an examination table in an UFO, followed by a feeling of something alien on her mind, probing and feeling, looking for her primeval fears and activating them.
Then finally the alien froze in place and all of the almost unbearable pressure was suddenly lifted off her mind. One of the other psis had managed to take control of him for brief seconds, before the alien regained control and felt down screaming and with uncontrollable shakes.
From that moment on she hardly had any memories. From what Johnson had told her, the officer had tried to place again the artificial mental field that would block the alien's psionic powers. That was the plan.
But after some seconds the alien had managed to gain mental control of the man instead. He simply had gotten up and, using the metal chair where he was seated, started to smash the controls. Fortunately several troopers were armed and ready for such an eventuality. The fully armored squad immediately broke into the containment chamber and killed the Ethereal commander with a couple of heavy plasma blasts.
Most of the psis involved in the whole matter, including her, had to be taken to the infirmary afterwards, some of them in deep coma. But the whole affair had been worthwhile. When Warrant Officer Fisk, a psi recruited from the base's technical personnel who had managed to control the alien, finally awoke after days of deep coma, he simply asked for a map of Mars and pointed to an area: Cydonia Mensae. But afterwards he had committed suicide less than two days later.
Her stomach gave another twist and she waited to see if she had to run to the toilet again. The doctors couldn't tell if what she was suffering was from the mental effort of the interrogation or if it was only the results of the space travel. But she knew what it really was.
**********
Johnson and Hopkins were wearing their power suits and were taking a stroll in the landing area, close to where the three Avengers belonging to the North American command were parked. They were standing in the space in front of the Avenger, Challenger and the Majestic. The craft were all covered in orange and yellow camouflage tarps, hoping to hide them from alien detection.
Johnson considered himself lucky to have three of the craft available: one had been originally bookmarked for use by the Eastern team but that was before the decision made by Colonel Jackson to comply with President's Vaughn's orders and abandon the project together with the US.
"The first manned outpost on another planet. Have you thought about it Hopkins?" The Sergeant looked at the camp and decided that he had been in better places on his recruit. All the Avengers had been parked close to the cliff and around them there ten feet igloos made of highly resistant plastic polymers, with a smaller rectangular section as an airlock.
They had been brought to supplement the sparse living space inside the Avengers and also as for storage for weapons and equipment. "Pretty shitty place if you ask me Colonel. I'm glad we are only going to stay here a few more days before packing up for Cydonia. If we stayed here longer I think the place or the conditions would kill us".
"Don't complain too much about the conditions Sarge. You're part of the team that broke into NASA to steal the plans for all of this equipment to live on the surface of Mars. Next time get us not-so-much-crappy designs, please". The loud laughter of Hopkins voice was heard on the radio. "Well sir, I plea the Fourth on that one. I never heard of such an action before".
Suddenly the short-range microwave radio was filled with alert warnings and both men froze into place, before running to the nearest Avenger. "What is going on?" He called on the radio as he went to reach the emergency stations in case the aliens had detected their approach and were attacking the camp, trying to be heard over the calls from all of the other officers in the field.
The voice of someone with a Californian accent, definitely Hunt, filled the channel. "All units stand down! I repeat all units stand down! The alert has been cancelled. Colonel, there's a problem in the outside quarters! The Major is on the scene". Both men immediately headed out to the main avenue, which linked all tents that had been raised by the cliff. They soon discovered where the disturbance was located as a number of X-Com troopers were standing beside it.
Finding Patterson, Johnson moved to his side as the other officer turned to him. "Colonel, one of the inflatable barracks suffered a rupture. The troopers inside are safe since they managed to use some of that repair spray to close it before the pressure dropped to zero. They have safely put their helmets and are proceeding to safely close the hole".
Johnson let go of a relief breath. "That was close. Make sure everyone knows the operating procedures for the material. We don't need losing people to accidents".
**********
One hour later, all of the company commanders were on board the Protector to finish the details of the operation. The group of men and women present all showed the tension of the week's space flight in cramped conditions plus the strain of trying to stay alive on a hostile planet. But a feeling of resolve was also present; with all of them knowing that everything was about to end.
"The Odyssey just made another pass at Cydonia. The area is still covered under a giant dust storm making it impossible to take any visual pictures but the radiation and hyperwave detectors made another scan". One of the small screens onboard the crew's compartment lit up showing a blue rectangular field crossed with horizontal and vertical lines with three clusters of red lights arranged in a rough triangle.
"The aliens are concentrating their activity into three areas, all separated by dozens of kilometers. The main source of activity seems to be here:" The visual image of what seemed to resemble a face came up to the screen. "It seems to be a natural large mesa formation at the first sight, but according to Area 51, its interior must have been excavated to transform it into an alien airbase, since there are multiple readings of Elerium engines and hyperwave transmissions coming from UFOs. More than a hundred craft seem to be based at this location and about half are Battleships".
Everyone stood silent or gave looks of apprehension. X-Com had brought fifteen Avengers for the mission and trying to perform a classical attack would be suicide since they would be badly outnumbered.
"Fortunately, that doesn't seem to be our target. The other two areas occupied by the aliens are the City, located on the west of the map and the Pyramid, situated on the edge of a corner made between it and the City and the Face but more to the south".
The image was replaced by one of a group of small pyramid like structures, all clustered around in a circle. To the right a ruined large mount could be seen. "As for the city, there hardly is any activity going around there. The probe has detected a number of Elerium engines but Area 51 has determined that they most likely are the signatures of Cyberdisks on patrol.
There aren't any UFOs in the area and it seems lightly defended. But in the case of the Pyramid, the whole picture is different".
The screen now showered a five-sided Pyramid that seemed more intact than the previous structures. A small crater could be seen on the ground right to the structure. "This thing is the largest of all of the structures, over five hundred meters tall and more than two kilometers long. There are also a number of Elerium engines buried deep inside that doesn't fit the characteristics of the ones used to power the UFOs. Something else must be inside that requires that sort of power. In fact their tachyon emissions match more the characteristics of the reactors found inside the alien base on Antarctica".
"The alien Brain" MacTaggert didn't let him finish off. "But if we attack it, the UFOs on that face thing will be on us shortly and overwhelm us".
"We need a diversionary attack". All eyes were on Bondarenko as the Russian Colonel moved closer and examined the data. "Something to distract their fleet while our main group drops undetected into the Pyramid and kills the Brain. But can we approach the area without being detected?"
Illyuschenko nodded. "The dust storm that presently covers the northern half of the planet should be sufficient if we move in complete radio and hyperwave blackout. We could send a small strike force to attack the City first from a northern approach while our main force moves in from the south".
"But will that be of any good?" Johnson objected and all officers turned to him as he pointed to the screen. "The City and the Fort are only a few miles away from one another and they are roughly twenty miles from the Pyramid. The flight time between the three structures means that the aliens will be able to respond in a few minutes. We can only hope that they don't have the transports ready to take-off, otherwise they will be on to us while we are still getting off the ramps of the Avengers".
"Johnson has a point". Bondarenko conceded. "And the diversionary team will have to hold the aliens as much as they can. And the aliens will be able to respond quickly and achieve in minutes full air superiority over the area, risking aerial bombardments on our men. It will be a suicide mission: by the time the aliens respond to the attack on the Pyramid, I'll doubt that there will be much left of the team".
"Unless we make an air drop using flying suits. That will reduce the time needed to deploy in case the aliens on the Pyramid respond in a matter of seconds to the attack on the City. They can also use the suits to keep themselves constantly on the move, making it harder for the aliens to pin and destroy them". Johnson nodded as he heard Illyuschenko's comments.
The other officers also agreed with the plan although some still had some reservations. Illyuschenko continued. "But we need to decide on who will perform the diversionary attack".
He scanned over the group of officers. "I need someone who has the most experience on hit and run attacks". Looking directly at each officer he continued, his voice now showing also a deep tiredness. "That team will have to try to stay alive for how long as it can, since they can expect no help and every second they gain is vital to us".
As his eyes came to rest upon Johnson he remained looking at him longer than he had at the other officers. When he spoke, his voice came with pain. "Colonel, you might not know how sorry I am for asking us this: can you do the diversionary attack and draw the alien's attention while we assault the Pyramid?"
Without thinking, Johnson nodded. "Yes sir". He barely gave any attention to what might happen to him personally although a trace of fear went afterwards over him.
Closing his eyes for a second, Illyuschenko whispered, so low that even Johnson couldn't hear. Spassibo!
Now speaking louder for anyone to hear, he continued. "You're one of my best teams, Colonel Johnson, otherwise I wouldn't be asking you this. I hope that you make it back alive but if not we will make the aliens pay for everyone who died on this war". The other officers' eyes became filled with determination.
March 8th, 2002
Far Side of the Moon
As the Large Scout moved across the side of the gigantic alien Mothership parked on the Moon's orbit, number One felt amazement at the size of the fleet. He was standing at an observation lounge on the mammoth ship where the hull of the ship would become transparent at a wave of a hand on a certain section of the wall allowing him to stand in the middle of space. Into every direction he could see the bright dots that marked the UFOs parked on the Moon's orbit.
The aliens had brought him to the giant ship after meeting one of the smaller craft, which had avoided detection by Earth's forces and landed at a pre-arranged location. One wasn't sure if the entire pick-up arrangement and the stay at the ship was the aliens' way of showing some courtesy or if it was their way to stating who was in charge. The communications from the aliens had been fairly neutral at a first glance and even the Sectoid officer who had been in command of the Scout vessel had seemed completely oblivious of his presence.
The moment he had set foot upon the larger vessel about a week ago he had been become bewildered by its size and crew. The kilometers long length of cigar-shaped craft was composed of dozens of decks and they seemed to be filled by thousands of aliens.
As he had walked through the ship he recognized all of the races that had been reported to operate on Earth but there were also some surprises that the Group had no idea of their previous existence. There were the tall muscular green figures of Mutons, the majority of them. They were apparently the race responsible for security since they were the only ones who carried weapons. In some cases they also had canine like aliens held tightly next to them by leashes. The creatures' body was spiked and when they opened their mouths they revealed rows of sharpened fangs.
As one of them turned to face One, the Sectoid officer sent a telepathic message sent a brisk warning for him to ignore it. He immediately turned his eyes off the beast and resumed his examination of the creatures onboard. The Floaters and Snakemen aboard seemed to be engaged into menial work, carrying equipment and supplies over the ship while Sectoids could be seen manning consoles. The Ethereals had been completely hidden from view but he had seen other beasts that looked more terrifying While the Ethereals' body was usually covered with robes in their cases the bipedal figures had nothing to cover their body, which was full of cybernetic implants.
He even saw a large figure at the distance in one of the corridors that the Sectoids seemed to fear more that the Ethereals. Unfortunately, it was moving away from him and it quickly disappeared into one of the side corridors. He decided that he should know more about these new races. Their reduced number showed that they performed highly specialized roles within the hierarchy of the alien society. But just what those might be, he wondered now.
At the distance one of the lights that competed with the bright stars on the horizon brought him back to the deck as it started to increase its speed. Another smaller craft started to head in the same direction. Those would be part of the strike force detached to hit the X-Com complex on Japan, One realized as he recalled the strategic discussions of the morning.
The aliens had requested his assistance in the final phases of the project, which called for the elimination of any rogue forces still fighting the aliens. Of course, they would leave some units and countries still intact to make an example for the others when the alien landings started.
March 9th, 2002
Xanthe Terra, Mars
The holographic display mounted on the pilot's station on the Avenger's cockpit reflected the orange tone of the Martian dust, with green symbols glowing on the air, giving indications to Clark about its speed and direction.
The three Avengers that composed Tiger flight had just entered the massive sandstorm that was covering the planet's Northern hemisphere. The antigravity drive used to propel the Avengers kept the craft relatively undisturbed from the two hundred plus velocity of the strong winds that were raging around the Martian atmosphere. However the mass of the dust particles would sometimes press enough to cause small deviations on the craft's flight path, keeping Clark and the other pilots absorbed into keeping into their straight course.
But that wasn't too easy also. Since they were on Mars and there was no GPS network to determine their position that left the navigators with few options. One would be to use a computer and a magnetic compass aligned with the Martian North pole; the navigator would take note of the distance covered by a calculation of the time and speed in each leg of the journey. However Mars didn't really have a magnetic field like Earth and the calculations were prone to errors.
The remaining option was even more archaic: to use the landscape for guidance like sailor on Earth had done before the invention of the compass. However the storm had turned all visibility close to zero, making it impossible to discern any features in the maelstrom of orange and yellow airborne particles. And the whole matter was risky, since to avoid detection the Avengers were flying as close to the ground as possible.
One serious mistake and the craft could plunge into the side of a plateau although most likely the crew would detect that they were flying too close to the ground. They needed to clear the high terrain of the south before being able to drop.
When Seymour told Clark that Tiger flight had finally reached the low level plains of Acidalia Planitia felt relieved. According to the flight briefing the whole area was the bed of an ocean that had long disappeared, with few elevations.
As Clark took the Avenger lower he felt relieved. The storm wasn't engulfing the ground completely as it did to the atmosphere leaving the first two hundred feet above ground level clear.
With a movement of his hand, he continued to lower the Avenger's altitude, taking the plane away from the hurricane that was raging the atmosphere. Soon the holographic display was filled with a dark red barren landscape where the only visible features were ancient impact craters of meteorites.
"Tell me which way to Cydonia Seymour". The co-pilot was already using the geographical features to check for their position, using satellite photographs of the area taken by the Odyssey probe. After a couple of seconds a green beacon appeared on display in front of him. But when he looked at the bearing and the distance he knew that something was wrong.
"Colonel, please come up front". He called on the radio while correcting the course to the new indications. A few seconds afterwards Johnson entered the small cockpit area through the hatch built on its back. Patterson was following him but, due to the lack of space, he had to poke his head through the opening. "What's happening Clark?"
"We must have made a navigation error while we were flying blind on that storm sir. We are far northern than we should be. I'm sorry sir but I think our timetable just turned into dust".
Johnson didn't respond for a second. Then he asked. "Are the Challenger and the Majestic still with us?"
"They have followed us all the way. The tachyon detector is picking them moving behind us and clearing the storm. Even if they detected the course change they couldn't warn us due to the hyperwave blackout. But the short range laser transmitters should work now that we are clear of the blizzard".
"Give me an ETA as soon as possible and inform the Challenger and the Majestic of what's happened as soon as you can contact them". Moving back to the hatch he crossed it and turned to Patterson. "What do you think Mike?"
"The whole plan just went down the drain. Even if we reach Cydonia before the Commander hits the Pyramid we can't risk attacking. We would just be tipping off the aliens and instead of them reacting to us they would divert their forces towards the Pyramid". He shook his head.
Johnson started giving small punches into the hull of the Avenger. "I'm thinking that we should scrub this diversionary attack and head directly towards the Pyramid to help Bear team. They will be badly outnumbered already".
"Either way we can't use the hyperwave to inform them of what just happened. But that would risk alerting the aliens to our presence". Patterson looked to the ceiling and after thinking for one long second he shook his head and replied. "It's your call Colonel".
After considering all possibilities, Johnson spoke. "We'll stick to the original plan. We don't know if they also haven't been delayed by the storm. We'll just have to see who gets there first, if they or us and decide then".
The Pyramid, Cydonia Mensae, Mars
Here it ends. Inside the Protector Illyuschenko had just been informed that the first wave of Avengers was approaching the landing zone, located on the east side of the massive building that stood nearly one kilometer tall.
He had been preoccupied when he had found out when Bondarenko had told him that Tiger hadn't performed its diversionary drop on the City but it was no time to turn back now. Half of the strike force was now about to land on the ground while the other Avengers would stay a couple more minutes airborne and use the weapons mounted on their wings to suppress the alien's defenses.
"The Valiant has landed. Colonel MacTaggert is deploying". With his head uncovered by the helmet of the flying suit Illyuschenko nodded to Bondarenko. Looking over the rest of the men in the cargo area he saw all of them locking their helmets into position and checking their weapons. Even the psis from Area 51 were getting ready, snapping ammo clips into their plasma pistols and locking the psiamps to the sockets built into their power suits.
Illyuschenko was surprised for one minute as he saw the orange ground of Mars on a view port. His instinct told him that the craft was making an abrupt turn and that he was about to be projected but he repressed the feeling and the natural reaction to it. The artificial gravity inside the Avenger steadily gripped his feet against the metal floor although he still felt the attraction of Mars' gravity.
As the Protector completed its maneuver it discharged the plasma cannon it was carrying on the left wing. The light of the blast as it left the barrel of the weapon briefly illuminated everyone inside the craft.
Traveling fast, the ionized particles of the Elerium fuelled plasma hit the side of the massive Pyramid that seemed to dwarf the Avenger. Sand and rock were thrown down the side of the building as the pilot was already moving the craft away and clearing the area for the other Avengers still airborne to perform their own attack runs.
Illyuschenko was watching the whole aerial battle when Bondarenko came through the lock of the cockpit. The tone of his next words was somber. "The aliens are reacting. A large number of UFOs is getting ready at the Fort".
Closing his eyes for one second Illyuschenko felt a brief fear but to his surprise it wasn't of death. It was of failing on his task no matter how much he tried. "Beam the warning to Tiger in case they are still out there and tell the pilot to bring the craft down. Let's finish this".
Acidalia Planitia, Mars
"Red Dawn! Red Dawn!" The voice on the hyperwave transmitter distracted Clark as he was making the last turn over a range of low-level peaks. The yellow elevations marked the separation between the plateau of Chryse Planitia and the lowlands of Acidalia Planitia, which were thought to be an ancient ocean bed and stood on the West of Cydonia. The color of the flat rusted terrain underneath the craft had also started to change into a more brownish tone.
A projection of Mars' Northern Hemisphere was being displayed on the front of Clark and Seymour with blue symbols indicating the position of Tiger force. It started to become more filled with icons, as the Avengers on Bear flight start to transmit their information.
"We're late alright", Clark said with disgust. "Seymour, check the Fort for the Battleships. Colonel, the attack has started".
A couple of seconds later the co-pilot replied. "Tachyon scans show that a number of UFOs are starting to increase the output of their engines, apparently getting ready for take-off. There is also activity in the Pyramid".
"What's the status of the strike force?" Colonel' Johnson asked on the radio.
After some more seconds, Seymour reported again, now more relaxed. "All craft have reached the target area. Some are nearly completing the process of disembarking their troops". Something the threat detector made him paused. His voice raised an octave. "Confirmed: our own sensors are picking up hyperwave transmissions from the UFOs. They are scrambling to respond to the attack on the Pyramid. ETA: less than five minutes".
"What's the count?" Seymour's voice faltered once as he started to enumerate the types of UFOs detected and their numbers. "Total: over thirty enemy craft deployed, with more than fifteen Battleships detected".
"Bear is outnumbered!" Clark spoke the obvious but Johnson' request came a moment later. "Have they started to react?"
"Affirmative Colonel. The General has issued orders for some to perform attack runs on the Pyramid before they head out to meet the UFOs".
Hearing something on the radio channel Clark jumped into the report. "Incoming transmission from Bear, sir. I'll put it on this channel".
A moment of silence followed then Illyuschenko's voice was heard. "Attention Tiger Flight. We are engaging the alien forces. Code Violet. Switch to reserve status and stay concealed until we call for you. Odyssey will move into the horizon in ten minutes. Use it to report your own status. Over and out".
On the crew compartment of the Avenger Johnson frowned as he heard the Commander's indications. Code Violet meant that they should land in the vicinity of the area and avoid detection until further notice. They were now the only thing close to reinforcements available to Bear, in case anything unexpected happened to them during the ground assault.
He preferred to be out there in the Pyramid and aiding on the assault since they hadn't been able to launch the surprise attack that would distract a big portion of the aliens' forces. The whole plan was starting to have problems from its start.
Markovitch came near him. "I hope that Bear can pull it off. Things will be getting hot with all those Battleships arriving at the scene". Something clicked inside Johnson while he spoke but he couldn't tell why. There was a factor that they were overlooking, he could tell but he didn't know what it was.
She detected his apprehension and asked. "What are you thinking about?"
"There's something here that doesn't quite fit the picture. And I don't know if it's just that I keep thinking that we should be heading to help them".
The Pyramid, Cydonia Mensae, Mars
It wasn't Egypt but to Illyuschenko it was strikingly similar. He had actually been to the country in the 1970's in a mission to provide training to Egypt's special forces and he had seen the Pyramids there. Only this one was more than the double in size when compared with the largest one in the Gizeh plateau.
And from its orange colored side a number of platforms could be seen at the distance all over the building that were in no doubt connected to the inside. Plasma fire was coming from them and heading towards the X-Com troopers and tanks that were racing to the pyramid.
As he cleared the ramp of the Avenger, Illyuschenko headed towards one of the hovertanks that had been brought all the way from Earth. The automated fighting vehicle was hovering seven feet over the sandy soil and waiting for instructions. More of the ellipsoidal shapes of the tanks could be seen at the distance where they were supporting the advance of the soldiers. Bondarenko's command squad was already waiting for him behind the tank. When he arrived the hovertank started to move with the soldiers using it for cover.
As the group of troopers moved they passed by an area that had been already cleared of aliens by the squads that had first deployed. And there were enough remains of the fighting. Fallen figures littered the area, most of them aliens but some in the dust covered white power suits while black marks and holes on the ground displayed the effects of plasma weapons and explosives.
As they passed the side of a small ridge they saw five dead Snakemen lying on the ground, some with their bifid tongues sticking out of their mouths. An X-Com trooper also was close to them but it seemed to be missing his helmet and head.
The group slowed for a moment but Bondarenko ordered all to keep moving. Their target was a large crater on the vicinity of the Pyramid. The thermal pictures taken by the Odyssey had shown it to be one of the main entrances to the building. They would storm the Pyramid from there while using the rim of the crater for cover.
As they moved on the trail of the forward platoons, with the increasing Pyramid in front of them, the carnage left by the fighting increased. Scores of dead aliens littered the ground, accompanied by a few human corpses as they climbed the two hundred feet tall edge of the crater. They were mostly brown Snakemen and purple Floaters.
As they reached the top, Illyuschenko dropped into the steep inclined terrain in front of him, his head turned upwards to the orange and brown sky. The atmosphere seemed to be full of green lighting and explosions as the Avengers of Bear force engaged the UFO fleet to protect the soldiers on the ground and prevent the aliens to reinforce the area.
A stray plasma shot blew sand in front of him and he ducked again. Around him Bondarenko and another soldier suddenly turned to the left and replied to the shot, hitting a Floater that had been mistakenly presumed as dead by the advancing X-Com troops. The alien died and its caped body slid down the wall until it rested on the bottom.
Looking at the direction of the towering figure of the Pyramid on the horizon and into the basin of the crater, Illyuschenko saw the entrance to the alien base. It was an opening on the ground, which stood at the end of an inclined ramp that had been dug by the aliens. It looked large enough for a medium sized UFO to use as and entrance.
Looking to both sides he saw troopers in power suits moving down the rim of the crater, together with the few hovertanks that they had brought along. The floor of the depression became filled with laser beams and plasma bolts. The small figures now retreating aliens could barely be seen but it seemed that they were trying to reach the entrance.
Then he looked upwards again as one Avenger crashed into the massive construction, with the explosion momentarily lighting its side. "Commander, that was the Akagi!" Bondarenko shouted to him on the radio as the remains of the craft rained down the Pyramid's side. "We need to get to the entrance. The Avengers won't be able to protect us much more".
But Illyuschenko wasn't looking at him. "Pull back the leading squads!" He quickly ordered in horror.
The momentary blast had also briefly revealed to him movement coming from the inside of the base. He had first wrongly interpreted as darkness but now he could see that it was a wave of dark aliens emerging from the opening and racing towards the human soldiers. "Chryssalids!"
Far Side of the Moon
When the aliens inside the alien Mothership had turned frenzy all of a sudden and One realized that something important was happening. The feeling was also present on the pair of unarmed Sectoid officers who served as his personal escort.
Turning towards one of them he asked for what was the source that was causing such the commotion in the aliens and demanded to be taken to the bridge.
After a second later the alien replied to him telepathically and refused his request. One also caught a deep fear inside the creature and wondered if it had just been in direct mental communication with one of the Ethereals. Those creatures projected an aura of terror around them that affected everyone. And while the other races seemed to see his presence around the ship more or less normal, the thin and tall aliens showed nothing but plain contempt towards him.
A slight impression on his body told One something more significant. The massive craft had started to leave the Moon's orbit. The Sectoids stared with their dull and lidless eyes at him without providing any explanation.
Moving down the corridor he went for the red lift that connected to the observation lounge. As he looked over his shoulder he saw that the Sectoids had stayed beyond but they also didn't stopped him.
When the upward movement finally brought him to the metal area he quickly passed a hand through one portion of the metal wall close to the lift. The outer hull of the craft seemed to dissolve into the darkness of space revealing the Moon's surface that was slowing passing under the craft.
It was as he had felt, One realized in shock. The Mothership and the alien fleet had started to move. Something very wrong was happening because the main body of the ships was supposed to stay on the Moon's orbit.
A sound behind told him that an alien had also used the lift. He expected one of the Sectoids but as he turned he saw an Ethereal clad on its red robe stepping outside the lift, followed by a violet faced Muton, who was also wearing a uniform of a similar color. That struck One as extremely unusual. He had spotted before that particular alien: it was the only one of its race that wore a different color on it's clothing. Could it mean that it was some sort of high-ranking officer, probably the only one on the Mutons? This was both frightening and exciting since at the same time he would have an opportunity to look closer into the aliens' society.
They only had limited information on the Sectoid Hierarchy and badly needed more information about the other races. And one of the assignments of his mission to the ship was exactly that. However, more pressing matters needed his attention.
Why are we moving? The alien's telepathic response came immediately after he had thought his question.
You have failed us! As the words formed into his own mind, One felt confusion. I don't understand. What has happened? Something very wrong had happened: either the aliens had decided to completely betray them now or some disturbing event had just taken place on Earth.
Your species will die! The Ethereals' death warrant made the Muton standing next to it start moving towards Number One. In panic he started to step back but after some paces he hit the wall of the craft. He was trapped.
Stretching his long and muscular arm, the Muton grabbed and lifted him by the throat. The strength of the alien made it almost impossible for him to breathe. Grabbing with both hands the arm of the Muton he tried to release himself from the creature's grip by scratching and hitting the limb of the creature with his nails and hands.
But to no avail. A few seconds later his larynx started to break until it was finally crushed. His eyes opened wide as he found that he was unable to breathe. One finally died when the strength of red dressed Muton handgrip snapped his neck vertebrae and the spinal cord inside them.
The Pyramid, Cydonia Mensae, Mars
The alien trap was costing dearly to Bear team. Illyuschenko watched in horror as entire squads that had advanced too much were being surrounded and overwhelmed by the hundreds of Chryssalids who had stormed from the opening.
The main body of the X-Com force had managed to somewhat form a line to contain the aliens but not everyone had been able to reach it. The leading elements that were wearing flying suits activated the anti-gravity device and managed to reach safe positions but the other had only their legs to try to escape.
The dark exoskeletons of the creatures felt down or were completely blown into pieces as the soldiers with blaster launchers used their powerful weapon to try to stop the alien advance. But new creatures quickly replaced the holes on the alien ranks, with their claws balancing in front of their bodies as they run.
The lead soldiers stood and kept firing until the aliens took them down. In some cases explosions followed afterwards, revealing that they had somehow managed to activate a grenade in an attempt to die before from being impregnated to breed new aliens. As the last white form disappeared on a crowd of aliens, Illyuschenko issued an order. "All fire-support squads concentrate firing on the locations where our soldiers were".
He saw then that the remaining laser HWPs had stopped to buy time for the troopers to regroup in a line that forming a hundred yards away from him by the base of the crater's walls. When the aliens swarmed the tank as it kept pumping laser rounds at close range until it finally went dead.
It had been brought to exploit the laser vulnerability that the alien Sectopod tanks had. Now one of the Chryssalids stood standing over its wrecked turret, raising its claws as if it was enjoying its kill. In rage, Illyuschenko lined up his heavy plasma and fired a blast that hit the devilish creature on its main body and drop to the ground next to the dead hulk of the tank.
It took them several precious minutes before the platoons were able to take out the Chryssalids. In a couple of places the aliens managed to reach the line and wreck considerable damage before they were killed. And as the last ranks of aliens charged sand covered white figures could be seen walking besides them, the soldiers who had been impregnated and now were nothing more that walking Chryssalid cradles.
When Bondarenko stopped firing his weapon after the last of the aliens had been killed, the Colonel simply spoke out. "Lady in Heaven!"
"Save your prayers comrade". Illyuschenko was pointing to the plain where they had landed. When Bondarenko turned he saw three Battleships and a number of smaller ships touching down. And sudden green lightning coming from the entrance told him that there were still aliens left inside. Bear force was about to become trapped between the aliens carried inside the UFOs and the ones inside the Pyramid. "Commander!"
Illyuschenko stood silent. Here it ends. One way or the other! "Commander!" Bondarenko's voice started to show deep anxiety and it irritated Illyuschenko. We are going to die here, haven't you seen it yet?
Packs of heavily armed Mutons could be seen deploying from the entrance. The aliens had left their shock troops to the end. And I need to lie and convince you otherwise. So shall it be. The last time.
"Call Tiger for assistance. Deploy two platoons to hold out the western wall against the alien reinforcements and order the remaining platoons to prepare to attack the opening". Bondarenko snapped at the brisk commands in surprise but immediately started issuing orders.
Now, where's that gun? Dropping his hand to his hip he gave a small tap on the plasma pistol that he had there. Not yet.
Close to the City, Cydonia Mensae, Mars
The order had finally come through out the radio and the three Avengers of Tiger Force were starting to lift from their positions on the outskirts of the City. They were heading to help Bear who had been trapped while attempting to break through to the Pyramid's inside and find the alien Brain.
Moving his hands on the air, Clark cancelled the upward motion of the Avenger and the large craft stood suspended on the air like a dragonfly. With a motion of his right hand he aligned the Avenger towards the direction of the Pyramid while on its flanks the other two craft performed the same maneuver.
When he was done he pushed his other gloved hand forward while at the same time he started to raise the craft's altitude to clear the terrain and allow them to reach Bear as fast as possible. They were finally getting out in the open where the aliens could see them but there was no need for deception anymore.
Looking over the small view port built on the fuselage of the Avenger, Johnson saw the formations of the City far away, barely visible on the brownish landscape that now seemed to melt with the pinkish sky. The winds above were moving the clearing on the dust storm and the darkness was slowly covering the area as the airborne particles overhead blocked the sunlight, engulfing the area on a reddish penumbra.
The peaks of the small pyramids that littered the City were still visible though, more than ten miles away. They seemed more like natural formations than artificial alien constructions at this distance and under the minimal light. Johnson remembered that if everything had gone according to the plan they would be inside them by now.
The now dead plan, he remembered it with disgust. Now they were in the hands of fate. Looking away from the view port he saw Markovitch seated down with her eyes closed.
She seemed as if she was trying to relax before what was probably their final mission. If they didn't broke through the cluster of alien ships around the Pyramid and helped Bear reach the Brain it would be pointless to make it back to Earth. He didn't notice the lines of stress building around her eyelids.
The whole thing seemed hopeless to Johnson. The aliens hadn't even deployed half of their forces on the Face and they would still have a tough time fighting the ones at the Pyramid. Two Avengers had already been shot down and…. More than half of their strength still not deployed? The realization came to him as a shockwave and he rushed to try to understand why they were holding back.
Next to him Markovitch had by now completely given up on trying to relax. Something was close to her inside her mind, making her very uncomfortable and giving her goose bumps. First she had put it to the fact that she was picking up the fear and anxiety of the near thirty persons that were onboard the Avenger.
But a twist on her stomach told her that it was something else, completely different. She was felling a sensation of massive vertigo that overwhelmed her and made it hard to breathe. And she started to hear whispers coming from all directions but the voices weren't of anyone onboard the craft. Concentrating on what they were saying she felt repulsion and the feeling almost made her puke again as she identified a voice that rose above all others. The mental image lasted for less than a second before she opened her eyes wide.
"The Brain!" The call made everyone onboard the Avenger to look at her. It also momentarily distracted Johnson before another voice caught his full attention. Clark seemed distressed as he spoke. "Sir! We have more than twenty Battleships getting ready to lift at the Face. Their hyperwave transponders show that there are heading to our location!"
That gave Johnson the final piece of the puzzle but before he could say it Markovitch spoke first. "The Brain is not in the Pyramid! It's close, I can sense it! It must be on the City!"
André Galvão, 2002