Chapter 18 The Fall

The white armored troops of Project Freelancer were split across the ship to narrow down where the intruders were located so they could send the agents directly to deal with them.

One team numbered twenty one this troop was more casual due to not being in a highly valued pathway to get around the ship quickly.

"So what do you think are the odds of running into the intruder?" ones asked the group as they searched.

One of the more experienced troopers answers the question, "The odds are unlikely. Considering their twenty five groups. So bare minimum we got a four percent chance at most of running into the intruder." His words seem to work, relaxing those nervous about facing the intruder.

The lights in the hallway they were trudging through turned off, leaving the group in darkness, causing most to panic, turning on the flashlights of their assault rifles.

"You just HAD to open your fucking mouth." one of them bitched to the more experienced trooper that spoke earlier.

The older soldier rolled his eyes behind his visor as they kept going down the hallway, taking the lead. Arriving at the door and opening it, and head inside. the shut behind, and a faint energy sound was heard as the door rode up, and the experienced soldier's body fell into the hallway scaring the shit out of the rest.

One panicked trooper went into the doorway of the room and unloaded, but the bullets didn't land on the spartan, only the walls and furniture within the room. The soldier needed to reload before heading into the room to check the corners.

In one of those corners on the same wall as the doorway was the spartan Noble Six crouching down. Six had a grenade in hand and pulled the pin, and gently placed it at the troopers' feet outside.

The grenade exploded, launching those in the blast radius, killing most and knocking out the rest. Six exits the room, and with his magnum sidearm, and mercy kills those who survived, knowing that damage is not going away even after a trip to the medical bay.

The last white armor troop at the group's rear stumbled back, hearing the explosion, and pissed his pants seeing the Spartan approaching him. The Terrified troop noticed the spartan three pulling something off his hip and lit a crimson energy sword with a flick of his wrist, making the troop even more terrified.

"NO! NO! PLEASE, Don't kill-" Six slit the terrified troop's throat, leaving the spartan in blackness and silence.

Six took this pause to take a deep breath to calm his nerves as he noticed a new troop aimed at him with their assault rifles, but they were shaking with fear.

The spartan charged forward, using his energy sword to deflect the majority of the bullets soaring his way. The bullets left out were hitting Six's personal energy shield. Six slashes through the troops swiftly and elegantly.

Spartan kept running down the dark hall, ready for what else the project could throw his way; however, a sinister fragment watched Six closely. "Well this has become much more EXCITING." Rho said as he left the hallway and appeared in a secret storage room.

Stored within this room were spare Tex bodies if her current one gets destroyed beyond repair. Rho smirked having some ideas what to do with the bodies preparing for his battle with the spartan.

Meanwhile, Texas was walking across a high railing and noticed down on ground level and saw a search group looking for her and Six. Tex grabs two spike grenades, ready to end some lives like she enjoys doing.

Hopping down, Tex smacked a spike grenade into the head of an unlucky troop in white before dashing out of the blast radius and continuing her murder spree. She spun around her next victim and attached a spike grenade to their head before kicking them away so as not to be blown by her own grenade.

The agent in black kicked the shins of a troop before uppercutting him with one of Texas' many spike grenades and gave another troop a good old spike grenade, followed with a kick to send them flying away. Tex then tomahawk threw two spike grenades right into the heads of grunts of the project.

Tex notices a trooper wielding a shotgun and decides to give him a spike grenade and kick for the shotgun. Shotgun in hand Tex started to rapid-fire shells into other troops. until she ran out of ammo and just chucked the empty weapon into a troop, knocking them out.

The cannon fodder of Project Freelancer started to fight back, putting the black-armored freelancer on the defensive, ducking and weaving their shots, namely the missiles fired at her.

Tex got grazed by one missile, launching her forward and pissing her off. Sprinted towards a troop and gave him a spike grenade to his nuts and kicked him towards a bunch of troopers, so she killed four people with one spike grenade.

The cannon fodder of the Freelancer project fought back, landing some shots in black armored agents, causing her to duck and weave, especially the ones using rockets, but some rockets grazed her.

Tex was getting more pissed off as she ran to one of the remaining white armored soldiers and spiked a spike grenade into their junk before kicking them into a group that exploded, killing most and knocking out the rest. Allison tossed her last spike grenade to the remaining group, which took them out.

The double doors started to open, revealing Texas' new challenger. The challenger was the agent South Dakota wielding a Missile pod and was not here for a friendly chat,

"You think you're so fucking tough don't you Texas." South said to Texas. the number one agent was nervous seeing the weapon the pink and green agent was wielding, "Let me ask you something. Who's the monster now? BITCH!"

"Oh son of a-" Texas starts running to avoid the missile barrage coming her way from the angry gal in pink and green armor.

Elsewhere on the ship, Six had just finished slicing and dicing another unfortunate group of soldiers, leaving him with sixty-nine kills. Glancing at his energy sword and seeing it was running low on power.

"Guess I need to recharge its battery and refill it." the spartan said to himself as he placed the energy sword at his hip. Six kept walking until notice a red flash that came from behind him causing him to turn around.

"It's nice to finally meet you. Noble Six." The Alpha's hate fragment, Rho. the spartan, noted this fragment looked a lot like him, "See the resemblance?" Rho said in a mocking tone.

"My guess is you are a fragment from the Alpha." Six said, sensing the malice radiating from this fragment, even more so than Omega. The fragment nodded and explained to the spartan.

"You are correct. I'm the fragment that embodies Hate. As you can guess, I took the form of the person he hated most in this vast universe." Rho took note of Six clenching his fists in a sign of anger. "So how about I do what the Director could not."

Six got punched by someone that went right through Rho's hologram. Six's feet skidded across the floor as he remained standing. Glancing up, the spartan saw who punched him was... Tex?!

"By killing you." Rho's voice came from Tex's body as they charged toward the spartan while Rho's hologram watched on.

Noble Six got into a battle stance and waited for the Tex drone to come to him. He took note of the gauntlets on her wrists, likely what made their punch strong enough to send him flying backward.

Tex drone punches a few times, but the spartan avoids them except one to his side, launching him to the wall and denting it from his impact. The drone tried to backhand Six, but the spartan ducked under it. The drone tried to swing again, but its arm seemed to magnetize to the wall they hit.

Six kicked that arm hard as a cracking noise was heard from the arm and the attachment. Rho felt the hand was harder to move than before, but it was a minor inconvenience. Six raised his arms to block the attack with the drone's undamaged arm but was still launched back a few feet away.

The spartan three got tired of this fight, pulled his magnum, and shot twice right into the drone's visor. The bullets pierced through important pieces that allowed the robot to function. Rho was not pleased by this.

"You think the Alpha will not freak out like the others?" Rho said as the spartan put the hand cannon onto one of his hips, only glancing at the fragment of hate, "Or is he just a tool for your vengeance on the Director?"

Six fully faced the fragment and said, "I'm freeing him because I know what it's like to be used as a tool. treated like your, not even a real person." reflecting on his time as ONI's personal hitman, "And if I can bring back my old friend. it will make our victory over the director even sweeter."

Rho wanted to throw up but couldn't, lacking a mouth to do it, "Well. Then I would suggest hurrying up, don't want to see little Allie die twice." Six just ran down the hall as the fragment watching knew it was good he had a backup and planned to not underestimate the spartan in round 2.

Six was sprinting through the many halls of the Mother of Invention when he heard the ship firing missiles? Who are they firing at? It would be overkill. The Spartan got his answer when he felt the entire ship shake and the faint sound of explosions fill the hall.

"Whose idea was that?" Six's bet was on agent York as he picked up his pace to find agent Texas and both head to the front of the spacecraft.

Entering one of the many hangers, the spartan noticed Allison was doing battle with a tank. She was hanging from the long barrel of scorpion while the gunner picked up a grenade she dropped on him earlier,

"Hey bitch catch!" tossing the grenade towards Texas. However, the number one agent pulled herself up and onto the scorpion's barrel and punched the grenade back at the gunner. It exploded and killed him.

The scorpion pilot fired a shot that launched agent Texas off the barrel and landed hard on the floor. The scorpion turned to face the black armor agent and drove right towards her.

Six ran over and pushed her out the way as the tank slammed into the spartan three, nearly knocking the wind out of him.

Texas got to her feet to see the scorpion pinned Noble Six to a pillar as its barrel aimed at her, "Oh come on." She was tired of being shot at as She leaped out of the way where the tank fired.

The spartan knew he couldn't overpower the tank's horsepower, so he put his legs against the pillar and started to push up and uplift the scorpion, took a moment to collect himself, and flipped the tank.

Tex didn't notice until one-shot was far off from her, glancing back at her bro to see him flip the tank. "Wow. you've been working out." Texas jokes.

The two felt themselves floating now? Like gravity was turned off, Six grabbed Tex's arm and chucked her towards a hallway that leads to the front of the ship while Six just leaped off a pillar.

Agent Texas and Noble Six were floating until they magnetized to a wall and started running along to move faster than floating through the air. As the two sprint along the walls, the spartan asked the fragment of failure,

"So you're sure we can access the Alpha from the command center?" wondering if this is a guess on Tex's part or if she got a reliable source to back it up.

Tex nodded, "The main computer has access to all the computers on the ship, so I can head straight to him on the inside." Six knew it was not going to be that simple, nothing if his experience with life told him. "However once I go in my body will be defenseless so you need to be on guard in case." Glancing back, to see Six understood clearly.

Six heard a faint sound coming their way, "Tex something is coming-" the spartan was interrupted when a black blue slammed into him through a wall and kept going.

"SIX!" turned around, seeing the hole in the wall, and considered going to help her brother, but she and Six knew they were on the clock, so she kept on heading to reach the command center.

Six looked at the person that tackled him through wall after wall, "Ready for round two?" Rho said through a new Tex drone he was piloting. Rho tossed Six to the floor and tumbled a bit.

Rho drew an assault rifle he picked up on the way and started to fire at Six to turn the spartan into swiss cheese. However, the bullets went through, and a holographic effect surrounded Six?

"Hologram, nice trick," Rho commented as he activated the thermal vision of the drone and scanned the room for the spartan but so far, no dice. "Have you run away like a coward?" saying to get an emotional response from Noble Six.

The next moment the assault rifle Rho was using was sliced in half by Six's kukri blade. Rho stepped back, tossed the destroyed rifle, and activated his wrist blades.

Six using Emile's knife, deflect and block Rho's attempts at slashing and stabbing him. Rho attempts another stab, and Six raises kukri to parry it. However, Rho retracted the blade before the blades met, then activated it once more and successfully stabbed Six in his side.

The spartan gritted his teeth as he slammed his elbow down onto the arm, snapping the blade followed by slitting the throat of the tex drone Rho was commanding. Six then gave the drone a good old Sparta kick launching to a crate with one of its edges hitting the back of the drone's neck, causing the head to nearly snap off with a few capable of keeping it attached.

Six walked to the hole, following Texas' trail, and removed the blade from his side with his suit, automatically sealing the wound and stopping the bleeding.

Meanwhile, with Agent Texas, she approached the front of the Mother of Invention. However, she ran into a very angry red-haired agent,

"Where! IS! SIX!" Carolina demanded from the former most hated person in the entire universe.

Texas answered Carolina's question, "Don't know, don't care, Carol, just get out of my way." The black-armored agent ran towards Carolina, hoping she could slip past the teal armored agent.

Carolina leaped from the wall and bounced off another, and sent a horizontal kick into Tex's side while Carol took a punch to the face by the fragment of failure. Carolina springs back to her feet on the floor while Tex lands on her feet on the hallway roof they are now fighting in.

The teal armored gal did a spinning kick, but Tex caught it as they had some fisticuffs and some kicks in between, with the last one avoided by Carol rolling towards the wall. Tex landed on the floor before lunging at agent Carolina who avoided and gave the black armor a kick to her head.

Texas springboard off the wall slamming Carolina through the double door, finally arriving at her destination. Carol grabs onto the railing while Texas lands on one of the floating doors.

"Why do you want to kill Six?" Texas asked and guessed she wanted to murder him due to the tone the red-haired asked that question earlier.

"THAT SPARTAN KILLED MY MOM!" Carolina was crying a bit under her rogue helmet. "I loved him... He was a father figure to me..." Her sadness was drowning out the anger within her soul.

Tex collects her words and says to Carol, "Six has done things he regrets, but that doesn't make him a bad person." If anyone was a monster, it was those who were using him as a tool for their own ends, "I'm sure he feels guilt for-"

"I DON'T NEED YOU AND SIX'S SYMPATHY! YOU TWO DONE NOTHING BUT TAKEN STUFF FROM ME, MY MOM, MY PURPOSE, MY FATHER'S LOVE...so I shall take it all back." Carol's screams and normal voice were oozing with her desire for Six and Texas's head.

Texas kicked off the doorway she was standing on, launching it towards Carolina. The teal agent hops off the railing, landing on the glass wall, followed by agent Texas.

Texas's brutal brawler style clashes with Carolina's swift and agile fighting style, matching one another. Agent Texas found an opening in Carolina's attacks, got behind her and proceeded to suplex the redhead cracking the glass wall. While they fought, the Mother of Invention was entering the atmosphere of a frozen plant too fast, causing it to light on fire.

Agent Texas tried once more to get through to Carolina, " "Look, Carolina, if you come with me, I will take you to Six-" Tex looked down and could see the ship was about to crash. Tex leaps toward Carol to bring her back to the floor but,

"GO TO HELL!" Carol shouted, punching Tex, sending the black armor gal to the floor, refusing her help and offer. Carol glanced outside and braced for the crash, closing her eyes.

Carolina rockets through the glass window as the Mother of Invention meets the snowy ground, and she skips across it until stopping before being flung off the side of a cliff.

Her entire body was in pain as she barely could lift a bit of her body with her arms. The visor of Carol's helmet was cracked, making it hard to see, so she removed it and then noticed a figure approaching her? But it looked like Tex? with her head hanging from a string-like neck.

Agent Carolina says, "I told you I don't WANT your-" hands gripped her neck tight, silencing her with her windpipe being shut tight. Her legs kicked about as she struggled to get this person off her so she could breathe.

"Aw, little Carolina, don't struggle. I will reunite you with your mother." Rho spoke through the Texas drone, but it was broken due to the damaged voice box.

Carolina was losing consciousness until she heard a slash-through metal sound. Maine chopped down with the blade part of his Brute shot, dealing a massive blow to Rho's puppet as the lights flickered off and on.

Sigma says smugly to Rho, "Sorry but you're too dangerous to leave alive." Maine ripped the blade out of the robotic body as it collapsed to the side, turned off with Rho already leaving his puppet to who knows where. Sigma's focus turned to Carolina, "Now Carol. I believe it is time I collect what you owe me."

The spartan Noble Six finally arrived and saw Tex standing motionless by a monitor. approaching her as she just returned to her physical form, "Well?" Hoping their effort is going to pay off.

Tex says to her brother, "It's complicated. Alpha needs some- OH NO!" Six looked at what she saw, and the sight was enough to cause Six to sprint towards the window, jump through, and land on the snowy ground.

Sigma smiled as his puppet Maine ripped out Carolina's fragments and wondered what to do with the barely still conscious agent? Sigma heard the approaching spartan and got a cruel idea forming his digital mind.

Six ran at top speed to save Carol from whatever Sigma and Maine were doing to her. As he got closer, Six noticed that Sigma noticed him, and faintly a cruel smile formed on his flaming form. Maine then chucks Carolina over the cliff sending an arctic chill down the spartan's spine.

Six screamed as he zipped past Maine and dives after the falling Carolina, refusing to let her die like he lost Allison.

Noble Six grasped Carolina and fired the grapple hook attached to Carolina's hip; with it, Six was able to land on her feet, holding Carolina bridal style. Six glances at Carolina's face reminded him of Allison, but he shook that connection as he gently put her down.

Carolina recovered from the shock of being saved by Six as her rage rose to the surface once more, "I HATE YOU!" Six heard that a million times, but Carolina's words hurt the most, "I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU! I'LL KILL!" The spartan kept walking. Her screams of hate-filled his ears and mind.

Two Years have passed since Project Freelancer crumbled down left as a shadow of its former self. Six learned that the Dakota's were on the run alongside agent York, Texas, and the spartan himself. Wyoming retired and became a hired gun; no one has heard what happened to Maine on that day besides Sigma calling his partner the META.

We pan to a boxed valley stuck in the middle of buttfucking nowhere with only two bases on opposite ends of the valley. one with a red flag, the other was blue in color, the two forces were in an endless cycle of conflict like they were designed to.

Standing on top of the cliff stood a familiar black and red armored figure. Six scanned the valley seeing no conflict was happening at the moment, "I finally found you old friend." As Six climbed down the cliff side about face to face his toughest challenge yet, Idiots.

THE END?