-I was originally planning on this being the final chapter, since the huge gap in-between 3 and 4 killed my interest and creative juices for this series. But I've decided to take another whack at the story and I'm hoping to churn out a few more chapters so I don't leave you guys with an unsatisfying ending. I haven't asked this before, but some thoughts on the direction of the plot would be really appreciated. If there's anything I can do to improve the quality of each chapter, don't be afraid to tell me if something is off or just not good. Like for example, the ridiculous wait for this one even when I said it would be out quickly...
Chapter 5: We've got hostiles
Banou's room became tense as hostility and silence permeated the air. Ren is unsure on how to approach the situation, seeing as he already disliked Thor from the beginning. This revelation has only fueled the fire and now his glare burns deep. Keeva just stretches her arms out in an indifferent manner; while Thor tightens his fists impatiently awaiting a response to his question. Banou answers him, but she does so under the comfort of Ren's body as she clings to his chest like a child. Her face reddening more with every word as she explains to the tall and robust male why the boy lies in bed with her. The girl avoids mentioning any of the "interesting" tidbits and merely states that she allowed Ren to keep her company for the night and nothing more. Keeva rolls her eyes as the blatant lie does not satisfy her intuition, but Thor seems more irritated. His brow furrows and he gives a strong dismissive huff as he continues.
He runs his large hand through his unkempt and short blond hair as he warns the girl of fraternization with this unknown Tenno. Thor lands his light blue eyes on Ren finally and scowls. The 6-foot man beckons to Keeva to follow in foot as he exits the room. Before leaving; the taller female talks with little Banou as Ren examines her for the first time. Keeva has a similar cut to Nisha, but her bob is layered and parted at the middle of her barely noticeable widow's peak as to not block her face. Her eyes are a dull hazel color that contrasts well with her ghostly white hair. Body wise, she is like built closely to Myrrha as shown by her athletic physique. Though her bust is slightly bigger, her waist is pretty even with her leader's and her flesh is light like Thor's (Ren's skin tone is a bit pinker than theirs).
"Don't get so worked up about it sweetie, Thor doesn't mean nothing personal by it." Keeva points out to Banou, who has relaxed somewhat.
"I guess so, but..." Banou says stopping short.
"But what?"
"N-nothing Keeva. Thank you for that. I feel more reassured."
"Oh? That's good to hear. Anyway, don't forget to be in the atrium at noon alright? We'll all be waiting." The slightly more developed looking woman mentions. She looks at the boy before leaving and squints her eyes.
"You better be playing nice with her ya hear laddie? Oy got me eyes on ya!" The woman teases playfully while motioning two fingers towards her eyes and then back at Ren. Now alone again, the mood has changed into a strange aroma of awkward stillness. The male Tenno stares at the back of the nude girl's head, admiring her silky brown back. He leaves his hands at his sides and lowers his eyes to the bed. Banou feels his heart beat against her begin to fade, as too does the warmth along with it. In response, she throws herself back and knocks Ren onto the pillow. Her body shifts around slowly to face him; the girl's dark skin covers his own light flesh. Banou starts pecking and nuzzling his neck.
"Ha-ha-ha! Stop Banou, th-that tickles! What's gotten into you?"
The girl does not pause her salvo of kisses to come back with a witty response. She reverts to her usual dead expression, but it appears grimmer somehow. Ren ceases his laughter to grab her cheeks with both his hands and tilt her head towards him.
"Hey! Look at me. I don't have to be a mind reader like you to know that something's wrong."
"No, I am alright! Honestly I am."
"No you're not. You're still scared, aren't you?" Ren tells her.
"Please do not do anything rash on my behalf. This is my problem, not yours." The diminutive girl says, shrinking more and more into his embrace.
"That's where you're wrong. It just became my problem. I'm not gonna sit back and let you be consumed by this uncertainty and fear. I'm gonna keep you safe."
His lips rest on her forehead for a moment and then leave before she can greet them. Ren attempts to gently remove his affectionate female companion, but finds her resistance to be enticing. She presses herself more securely on his chest and smooches the side of his left cheek repeatedly. The Tenno male lets out an annoyed snort and grasps her right breast brutishly. Despite the sturdy clasp on her flat chest, Banou refrains from recoiling to Ren's rough treatment. It is obvious to her that he is riled up and itching for a fight. The hand on her small bosom loosens so some fingers can trace her areola. Now both the boy's hands grope the tiny girl's upper body and bring her to a tremble and a whimper. She begins to lay down as Ren asserts himself on top of her.
He lets go of her chest, that now is pushed forward with her erect nipples jutting out. Banou can see the beaming face of Ren who looks down on her with satisfaction. Her voice summons him closer; his ear is tickled by her lips. The words she has whispered to Ren cause him to swell with excitement, in more ways than one.
The morning is subsiding on The Little Lotus as the crew prepares for their latest endeavor. The Tenno sit idly as only three of them are present in the atrium and they intolerantly wait for the missing two to arrive. The trio chat among themselves at one of the rectangular metal tables lined up with a dozen or so more for several rows spanning the whole of the lower level of the atrium. None of them are dawning their Warframes yet as they toss around friendly and some not so friendly banter. Myrrha listens with keen interest as Keeva lets the recent "incident" involving Banou and the boy slip accidentally. Thor grumbles in disapproval, tossing a cold glance at the white-haired female.
"Come on Keeva, really? There's no need to bother the captain with petty nonsense."
"Petty is it now, Thor? Is there something going on aboard my ship that I don't know about. Because if there is and you're not telling, we're gonna have a problem." Myrrha states sternly as she eyes the man across the table.
"N-no captain, I would never hold anything back from you. I simply thought that-" Thor anxiously exclaims as he is cut off by Myrrha.
"I'm not asking you to think! I'm asking you to tell me what this business regarding a member of my crew and Ren is all about."
"Me and Keeva have reason to believe that Banou and the boy have been...well, um. We've actually seen that, the two of them. Were, you know?" The large muscular male stalls, with a hand rubbing the back of his neck.
"Were what? Stopping running around the subject and just say it already."
"We think Banou is having relations with that other Tenno..." Thor grudgingly announces with some relief as Keeva tries to hold back her laughter at his awkwardness.
"That's it? That's what all the fuss is about, that the two little runts are fucking each other? Don't waste my time Thor, because time is something we don't have."
Keeva questions their captain on this statement, to which Myrrha responds with a lengthy sigh. The extermination mission has evolved into an invasion of sorts as Eris is now a warzone unlike anything the Tenno squad has seen before. Myrrha motions for the two to stand and follow her over to a massive wall that occupies the end of the U-shaped atrium. The metallic wall has evenly spaced overlapping sections going horizontally towards the ends. With a wave of her hand and voice recognized command, a cephalon by the name of Marx greets the captain. As per her instructions, Marx causes the wall to part at the middle as the various sections fold in on one another until nothing is left. The three Tenno now look out onto the dwarf planet through three large vertical and rectangular reinforced glass windows that stretch to the ceiling. Keeva presses her face against the glass and frowns, while Thor crosses his arms.
"It looks like the Lotus failed to neglect the little detail of a possible skirmish, because now the Corpus and Grineer are here. And they're tearing each other apart." The captain notes to her teammates.
"Skirmish? That's an entire Corpus armada out there. What could they want with Eris that they would bring such a large force? Those Grineer ships are outnumbered at least 10 to 1!" Thor enthusiastically points out. Myrrha taps the glass to draw their eyes upwards to the atrium ceiling panels. The Tenno look upon an enormous Corpus flagship completely overshadowing their vessel as it cruises overhead. It comes within view of the large side windows and proceeds without any care of their presence. Not too far behind, a squadron of destroyers and cruisers follow in flight. Thor looks to the others with tense muscles.
"You think we can take them all?"
"I don't wanna be a downer, but they could have sent us to the Void if they really wanted to. Why didn't they captain?" Keeva plainly asks. Their captain answers her with a fist pound on the glass before her eyeing down the large Corpus ship.
"Because those bastards know we can't do anything to them! Not yet anyway."
Now the Orokin descendants stand vigilant against impending odds of something far greater than a measly routine run. Their foes accumulate in mass as all-out war breaks the dead of space around Eris. Myrrha finishes alluding to her assessment on the matter when Ren and Banou enter the room. Thor and Keeva acknowledge them with sideways glances to not remove their full attention from their superior's instructions. A gust of animosity flows in the direction of the small pair as they come down the stairs of the second level to meet the others. Ren looks concerned, not for himself, but for Banou who seems to be fidgety. Her gait has become strange and unsure since Myrrha's gaze took hold of her and now it is obvious to even the others.
The petite girl brings her braided pony tail forward and strokes it while greeting her comrades. She seems to cower before the sheer presence of her somewhat darker leader and remains stiff in her stance. Not paying any real mind to the rest of the squad, Ren keeps his distance at an ear's length. He stares out the far-left window and observes the Corpus navy utterly decimating the smaller Grineer fleet with little effort. But his primary concern right now is what Myrrha has in store for the short girl.
The captain's words impale Banou and makes her step back in guilt. She is chastised for permitting such lecherous and unrefined relations to defile the honor of the Tenno warriors. As for Ren, however, the captain tosses a grim death stare as her muscles stiffen. The boy's blood runs cold; her eyes are like that of a hungry predator filled with bloodlust. Or in Myrrha's case, just lust.
Banou seems to be teetering on the verge of tears, but before Ren can reach out to her, Keeva steps in. The female cradles the younger Tenno girl and caresses her head. Banou buries her emotions into the sanctuary of her friend's bosom and wraps her arms around Keeva's waist. The blonde and muscular male scoffs, rebuking the woman's gentle demeanor towards Banou. The younger Tenno male sets his sights on Thor with a fierce stare and closes the distance between them. The two males are at arm's length now, waiting patiently for the other to make the slightest hint of aggression.
"Ren, that's enough. I grow tired of this trivial bullshit. Fall in line, because you're gonna be working together whether you like it or not." The captain issues this order, much to Ren's exasperation.
"Not like I have a choice anyway..."
"Yeah, you don't. So shut up and listen. You two just missed the briefing, not that I'm surprised." The woman says, flattening her right hand on the glass window next to her. She aims her pointer at a large ship in the center of the fray just above Eris.
"That right there. The big hunk of Corpus shit that's shooting down everything Grineer in its path is our first obstacle." Myrrha says.
"So what's the plan to take it down than?" Ren questions suddenly.
"We're not taking it down dumbass, especially not a flagship of that size and power. Without repeating myself, we're going around it. Keeva and Thor, I want you to inform Banou of her role and then head to the hangar bay. Pipsqueak, you're with me."
The boy cannot help but to look at Banou with responsibility, he knows how unforgiving Myrrha's punishments can be. Their eyes connect briefly and Banou tosses a weak smile at Ren. He relishes this rare expression from her until a pair of double doors end their moment. But now he can only think of the Tenno approaching him with her red and white Varida suit. With an unforgiving strut of malicious intent that has tortured him for so long. It has been two years since he first came into this world from the eternal slumber and in that time, he has been part of only one squad. It was a grueling experience to have Myrrha as an instructor before eventually going rogue to train under Teshin himself. He has never looked back on that decision, though Ren greatly misses the feeling of belonging. The people he knew before, the lives lost, and the betrayals of his past sins make him reminisce of the before time.
Those blue eyes of hers are cold as ice and hypnotizes his body from moving. A foreboding grasp on his shoulder sends the chill of suppressed trauma down his spine. Now the two are alone in the atrium with only the flashes of explosions from beyond the windows breaking the still ambience. Myrrha's somber visage morphs into uncanny sneer. Ren slows his breathing and does his best to appear composed. He does not look away and keeps eye contact with the intimidating woman, whose warm brown knuckles touch his cheek softly. She seems mildly amused at this and gives a low chuckle beneath her breath. The woman mandates that he follows, to her personal captain quarters to further elaborate on the mission. Ren knows better than to believe this, but what other choice does he have. Disobey her, and then what? The boy does as told and proceeds with caution.
It takes about three minutes of walking and a short elevator ride to reach the room. As the elevator comes to a stop at the floor though, Myrrha hits Ren with some blunt questions.
"Did it feel good?"
"What?" The boy inquires with a blank stare.
"Did you enjoy making that little mouse squeak? I bet you plowed her good, huh?"
"How do you know about- why are you doing this to me?" Ren says, but his voice falls on deaf ears as he is pushed against a wall. They are just a hallway down from the elevator and her room, as the cold blue and grey metal presses on his back. She presses her forehead on his and their stares link with one another. A strong grip from beneath his crotch makes his tucked away bulge more noticeable and defined. His hands remain clutched on the sides of his thighs while his body begins to shudder. Myrrha's cocoa colored lips seal themselves around his light rosy mouth with such speed that Ren could not even let out a gasp of protest. Her tongue coats the inside of his mouth with her saliva and wrestles his own tongue into submission. Spit trickles down his throat, turning his slight bulge into a protruding mass. He cannot withstand the female's oral prowess and falls to his knees in a blurred state of confusion. The woman crouches over him and wraps her left leg around the boy. Her groin kisses the boy's member; the whiff of the female orifice sends it into a pulsating rage.
"You're such a dishonest horny little fucker, you know that Ren?"
"Myrrha please, the mission. We need to go; the others are waiting!" Ren begs, his strength failing him.
"Oh, someone's gone and grown a backbone I see? I wonder if Banou is just as bold as you are to talk back!" The woman threatens with a fiendish grin.
"N-no way, you w-wouldn't!"
Myrrha gives nothing more than a smirk as she stands. Those plump brown lips of hers pucker up and retract with a slide of her tongue. She gestures with a finger for the boy to follow "closely" behind her. Ren frowns as his happy camper down below wrestles underneath the tent he has been pitching. It pulls him forward to Myrrha's rear like a magnet and makes their walk feel endless. She comes to a sudden stop at the entrance to her room, not the least bit surprised at Ren bumping into her.
Once inside, the boy is relieved that his pants are still intact. He takes this time to view the personal tastes of the captain. She enjoys red and white as evident from her bed sheets, floor carpet and even the walls that are painted in a matching fashion. Like that of Banou's room, an outline on one of the walls reveals an arsenal. The individual components assemble themselves and take the shape of the Tenno storage area that he is used to seeing on his own ship. It is not long before Myrrha decides she has had her fill of teasing the boy and transfers into her Atlas Warframe. Her weapons of choice are the vicious Drakgoon scrap gun and a pair of Furax fists that possess some unusual red and black color scheme. Ren points to himself with a wave of both his hands to signal his lack of any kind of defense or Warframe. Her red and white shoulders give an apathetic shrug and she leads him out of the room.
"Whoa, hold on now! You can't expect me to go out there unarmed? I might as well fight buck naked then."
"Relax shorty, you won't need weapons or a Warframe for your first task."
"What exactly will I be doing?" Ren questions with a docile expression.
On the way to the hangar to meet up with their fellow warriors, the captain clues in the boy as to her strategy. Phase one is to get past the massive Corpus Flagship and at the same time evade being killed by already stationed Grineer anti-air cannons on the surface of the planet. Phase two will commence once the Tenno have reached the rendezvous point. Myrrha plans to create a diversion by having two teams, one of three and one of two working on separate assignments. Team A will consist of Keeva, Thor and Banou, while Team B will be Ren and Myrrha. Ren is only informed of his groups plan, which is to hijack a Corpus destroyer and spread chaos and confusion among the fleet. The Atlas holsters her weapons before answering the little Tenno.
"I'll be taking off with Team B from the hangar bay as planned, you know what you gotta do Ren."
Myrrha takes off down the corridor heading left and leaves Ren with a conflicting opportunity. Proceed as planned or, make his way to Sudo and his ship in the hangar bay after the others leave. It may be his only chance to flee and return to Nisha. But the situation has become complex now that Banou is part of the picture and Ren feels obligated protect her. His feet feel cemented to the ground and only the hum of the overhead hallway lights ring in his ears. Go left, or go right? Leave, or stay and fight?
'Just another regret to pile onto the ever-growing mountain of shitty choices. I just hope I'm making the right one.'
Unaware of Ren's doubt, the other Tenno are ready and waiting to meet the enemy. Thor, in his Rhino, curls his mighty Fragor over his shoulders in anticipation. Keeva, in her Trinity, syncs with her team healing aura she has recently installed. Banou and Myrrha, in their Nyx and Atlas Warframes respectively, ensure their weapons are all properly holstered. The Atlas steps away from the group to reach the two-way blue spectral gate, separating the hangar from space. It vibrates and distorts as the Warframe's metal flesh pokes a hole in the steady stream of electrical waves pulsing over the gate. A nod from the Atlas lets the rest know that the mission has officially begun and the warriors turn to their own personal vessels. As per the strategy, Myrrha will not be taking her own ship and instead will travel via escape pod. She will utilize the tiny size of the pod to come within proximity to a nearby Corpus destroyer she has chosen. From there, she will take to space with her Itzal Archwing and board the Corpus vessel undetected. Her subordinates are to hold position at a midway point between the ongoing Corpus and Grineer naval skirmishes. An abandoned asteroid mining rig conveniently makes for the perfect hiding spot for the three Tenno ships that will await for Team A to complete their part. What it really comes down to is Ren's ability to carry out his own objective. To take the Little Lotus and charge through the Corpus defensive line once Myrrha has caused enough of a commotion to dissipate their formation. If successful in the push, the three waiting Tenno will provide supporting fire from their ships until they reach the mesosphere of Eris.
Ren reaches a large horizontally sliding door and appears at the cockpit of the Tenno ship. His backside hits the captain's chair and swivels the red velvet cushioned seat around to face the other seats laid out around the room. A light blue hologram of the entire exterior of the ship is projected just a bit below the captain's chair that rests on an elevated mound to oversee the crew's work. Ren pulls some levers, flips a few switches and brings up the ship's manual steering wheel. Normally, piloting a vessel of this size is divided into several positions or left to an A.I. on auto-pilot. No crew or any cephalon that Ren knows of can aid him now. Only the rumbling of the massive thrusters shaking the bridge accompanies the boy. Ren is not used to flying anything in general ever since he gave Sudo full steerage of the Neil's Horizon, but the Tenno warship handles smoothly. It accelerates at a slow pace in the direction of the Corpus filled space near Eris.
Several uncomfortable minutes pass as the thundering of explosions becomes louder. Ren has now flown within range of enemy fire and raises the ship's frontal shields. Even though he is now only less than 43 knots or around 50 miles from a few Corpus vessels, they seem too hellbent on killing one another to notice the Tenno ship approaching. A Corpus destroyer, dubbed Prophet's Will begins rotating to face the oncoming Tenno ship. Its own frontal cannons rise forward and start emitting electrical discharge to signal a shot lining up. A smile streaks over the boy's face as he pushes the Little Lotus harder into the fray ahead and the powering up cannons of a destroyer.
A smaller escort has now also taken note of the incoming Tenno ship and diverts its reserves into its forward shields to defend itself and the Prophet's Will. The escort ship's crew brace themselves for the Tenno's barrage, but their anticipation of an assault is misguiding in its direction. Concentrated blue beams slice through the unprotected rear hull of the escort ship, leaving the confused vessel crippled. The Corpus soldiers stare in shock as the Tenno liner daintily floats by them. The escort is roughly the same size as the enemy craft passing them by, but those dimensions are quickly altered as the destroyer behind them opens fire one final time.
A bloody mess of dead Corpus soldiers and their robot proxies litters the main deck of the Prophet's Will. Two bulky and large rock golems sustain the onslaught of Corpus reinforcements attempting to regain entrance to the bridge. The 7-foot-tall creatures push against a wall of their own bodily construction that blocks the large doorway to the room. Myrrha takes one glance backwards to ensure her golems are keeping the Corpus at bay and returns to the task at hand. It comes as no surprise to Myrrha that the ships weapons systems have gone offline, the crew must be trying to minimize the friendly casualties.
"You walking trashcans are dumber than you look if you think I didn't plan for this. But I'm sure as the Void you guys won't see this coming!"
Ren is now amidst the Corpus fleet as Myrrha's claimed Destroyer zooms past him and accelerates for the Flagship. The escort squadron gets word of the Tenno commandeering one of their ships and thus they form a protective blockade. This tactic would serve well as a defense from incoming fire, but the Tenno captain does not intend to shoot the ship down. Realizing Myrrha's plan, Ren establishes a connection with the bridge on her ship. His protests yield no response, except static and the sounds of pure destruction. The Little Lotus sails close enough to see the full extent of damage done onto the Flagship.
The Corpus commanding vessel is wounded badly by a right-side collision as several areas burst and rupture. The Prophet's Will has been destroyed in a fiery blaze of suicidal intent and has left the massive Flagship limping in retreat.
"Myrrha! Myrrha! Oh shit, this can't be happening. How could she just; there's no way she would. Fuck, what do I now?" Ren spouts off in vain attempts to contact the smoldering debris of wreckage. For a moment, he is lost, not even reacting to the few remaining ships that have begun to fire upon him. Until a short-range proximity transmission catches his full attention.
"Hey jackass! If they blow up my ship, I'll make sure you go down with it!"
"M-Myrrha? you're alive?"
"I bet you wish I wasn't. Now hurry up and come get me. Before theses robo-pricks pick me up first."
"Uh, y-yes ma'am! Right away!"
After some evasive maneuvering, the Little Lotus manages to sink two escorts and force a supporting corvette to retreat. Ren makes it to the remains of the Corpus destroyer as the Flagship escapes to the far Northeast of Eris. Though the commanding ship has fled the scene, the battle does not turn in favor of the Grineer still. The boy can only ponder at where the other Tenno might be right now as he waits for Myrrha to board the ship.
A notification on the dashboard alerts him to the captain's presence as she enters the ship's bridge. Ren and Myrrha now fly through the weakened Corpus fleet, ignoring the random panicked radio transmissions of the enemy. The second phase of the plan is now underway with team B forming up in front of the Little Lotus. An approval from their captain disperses them behind the Tenno cruiser into a defensive line. Ren then raises the frontal shields and magnetic disruption field to form a battering ram against the smaller Corpus space units. The larger enemy vessels cannot engage the Tenno at this proximity and the forward shield deflects incoming fire of the less imposing Corpus weapons. At the same time, the Tenno utilize the Corpus ships to shield them from the Grineer ships that are taking advantage of the sudden loss of leadership among their more robotic foes.
Once they have cleared some distance from the Corpus fleet and the rear Tenno guard has taken care of any tailgating stragglers, they approach the second obstacle. The sky of Eris has darkened and become grim with the cracks and booms of anti-air shells. Myrrha regains command of her ship and stations the vessel just outside the kill-zone of the Grineer gun's reach. She has parked the ship over the designated point of entry, but will have to wait until the second part of her strategy is completed by her subordinates.
"Wait, you want me to go with them?" Ren questions upon being informed that he will be accompanying the others on their descent.
"Yeah, I do. And before you start your bitching, I've prepared a spare Excalibur and some weapons for you." Myrrha says while watching the landscape through the holographic display before the Captain's chair.
"But what if-"
"You'll get this butt and more when you're done."
Not allowing the boy to spit out any objection, she throws Ren out of the bridge and points him towards his ride. Ren walks to his destination and stands in front of his destiny in pure doubt.
'I'm going to be launched. From an escape pod. With no control over the landing. While getting shot at by Grineer cannons the size of a small building. Awesome...'
Fastening himself to one of the six seats available in the cramped pod, the green light flashes three times before going dark. The only window on the pod's door lets the boy see the shrinking Little Lotus as he travels further and further away. Ren has completed transference with the Excalibur Warframe and squeezes the Burston assault rifle tightly to his chest in anticipation of the hard landing to come. The poorly lit orange glow of the pod's insides and the constant rocking back and forth, cause his stomach to do back-flips. The close calls of explosions from Grineer fire, too fills him with anxiety. But with the hairiest landing the boy has ever experienced, he arrives unscathed.
Stumbling out into the light and pressing one foot forward, Ren peers into the distant Grineer facility. It lies just beyond a small mountain that borders a canyon. A full day's trek the boy believes, which makes Ren begin wondering if he has flown off course (25.5 hours for one full rotation on Eris). He digs his heel into the nitrogen-rich ice, that engulfs the entire dwarf planet in every direction visible. With no other option left, he must cross on foot to reach his new partner's positions and he must do so with haste. The Infested howling that fills the ambience of this world's barren tundra, forces Ren's body to move on its own. The nimble Warframe races through the frozen and inhospitable land, he would surely die within seconds of exposure.
It does not take long for his scent to be caught by roaming hordes of the Infested monstrosities and they are soon raining down upon him. He looks back every so often and drops a few of the beasts in snow before continuing his path. The barrel of his rifle burns as hot lead spews forth and tears the moaning creatures apart. Ren somersaults over a blockade of chargers and dodges the swings of ancient healers attempting to get better acquainted with his head. Their cries of anger only propel the Warframe faster. The Burston's semi-automatic fire comes to a silent halt, signaling to the user that ammunition is required. But Ren cannot oblige the hungry rifle as he has already burned through too many clips and must save the remaining two on backup. Even more so, his Warframe's energy is at a measly fifty percent and would serve best for an emergency slash and dash retreat. The mass of Infested at his back does not seem to be getting closer, but nor does it seem to be slowing down.
He cannot keep this up for another twenty-four and a half hours. A second glance tells him that close-quarter combat is most definitely not an option. Ren is too busy focusing on the trailing enemies to notice the threat lurking beneath the icy terrain. A massive tentacle of rotting flesh erupts from the snow-like substance of methane and nitrogen mixed ice. It lashes at Ren, missing by a few inches as it crushes Infested behind him. The Excalibur prepares for another strike with his unsheathed Skana blade, but does not feel the second arm rise to his poised back. He leaps over the first mass of Infested flesh and is shocked to see a different appendage wrap around his right foot.
The Warframe is flung like a rag-doll in an elliptical motion until Ren manages to severs the arm with a clean cut. Ren is hurdled through the frigid air, losing his Skana in the chaos. He smashes into some cold rock and shatters his personal shielding. His body falls loose from the humanoid imprint in the frozen surface and he hits the snowy floor. A great strain on his muscles weighs down on him as he rests on one knee. A sound of splitting ice draws the muzzle of his weapon upwards. An admirable, but vain effort as the boot of some heavily armored adversary presses on his hand. Ren grunts in discomfort, gazing up to in disbelief to see a Rhino Warframe towering over him. It is Thor that has found him and the Tenno has come searching for blood.
"Don't try to get up runt. Make this easy for the both of us!" The Rhino user growls with a powerful kick to kneeling Excalibur's chest. The smaller Warframe is thrown a few feet back and struggles to his feet. Seeing Ren stagger elicits a uproar from Thor, who regains his composure to taunt him.
"Did you think your landing this far out was a coincidence? Huh, runt?"
"I-I'm not too surprised...I do h-have some sh-shitty luck..."
"Ha-ha-ha! It wasn't exactly easy to pre-program the escape pod's location without Myrrha's cephalon noticing! But I believe things went accordingly alright!"
"And why's that?" Ren asks while raising his Burston at the Rhino.
"Because you're going to die out here and I'm the one who's gonna send you straight to the void!" Thor roars with a jump in the air, only to come back down with a ground breaking fist attack. The boy rolls away, much to the attacker's delight. The trademark stomp of all Rhino users freezes the Excalibur mid-air in a slow freefall. Ren strains to grasp his gun floating away while Thor rushes with arms stretched out. The stomp's effect fades as Thor almost grabs the boy, but spiraling uppercut causes the Rhino to stumble backwards. Ren has no time to gloat since a bullet ricocheting off his recharging shield has him strafing for cover behind some rocky formations. Thor aims his heavy-duty Lex side arm at Ren's cover and destroys the rock bit by bit with every shot.
Ren shrinks along with his refuge, but is baffled when the shooting pauses. A feeling in his gut tells him to move and he does so in perfect timing as Thor charges through the rock with ease.
"He-he, how long do you think you can keep dodging my attacks kid? Don't even bother radioing for help either. That Grineer base is jamming all our frequencies, so there'll be no interruptions!" The taller Tenno yells.
The Excalibur begins to grow slow in his reflexes and his Burston proves useless at the Rhino's iron skin ability. Thor barely needs to exert any physical energy as their battle is now in the confining space of the canyon Ren saw previously. Unfortunate, but also reassuring since it means that he was tossed a considerable length to have come this far and in the right course as a plus. Not lucky though as at the rate Ren's fatigue is increasing, Thor will soon be dragging his lifeless corpse to be disposed of by the Infested.
'The Infested...' Ren contemplates as an idea begins to brew.
Ren turns to face his unrelenting opponent, who becomes curious of his newfound optimism. The Excalibur throws his weapon away and sprints at the Rhino. The snow flutters in the air from their speed, but it is the Rhino whose momentum stops first. His iron skin explodes into shards as he falls on one knee and lurches forward. He looks behind to see the Excalibur standing tall with his ethereal blade disintegrating back into a mist of blue energy. But instead of going for the kill, Ren ignores his opponent and sprints away.
"Coward! Come back and fight!" Demands Thor, chasing after the fleeing Tenno.
The Excalibur runs through the icy maze of a canyon and eventually finds what he has been looking for. A quick turn left on a corner, and Thor loses sight of Ren. The bloodthirsty Rhino races to catch up, but when the Tenno does make it around the turn, he stops dead in his tracks. An Infested horde meets the Tenno, but there is no sign of the Excalibur anywhere. The Rhino curses the boy as he is surrounded by the beasts from the front and back, the canyon walls sealing his fate.
The boy did not just vanish though as an unoccupied Grineer outpost built inside the canyon walls, provided him with a quick escape route. The depressurizing room and locking door behind him, tells that it is safe to breathe in here. Passing through a second door, he enters the main area which appears to be a small living quarters and nothing more. There are no other doors and if this is the only room, then he doubts the visible ventilation shafts would take him any further. Before exiting his Warframe, he powers on an old generator to bring the central heating system back on. His butt drops onto a cot as hard as the icy ground outside and the blanket breaks like glass under his bum. Knowing the previous owner was probably some grimy and gross Grineer, it does not bother Ren too much.
What does frustrate him is how he was almost killed by another Tenno and now he is trapped in an icy labyrinth with marauding Infested at every turn. He looks down at his pinkish and beige light toned hands and stares back at the Excalibur that stands lifeless in a corner. It is not his own Warframe, but it does remind him of the Excalibur back on his ship. With Sudo probably worried sick being unable to reach him, he thinks of everything he has worked so hard to get just being taken from him so easily. The only reason Ren did not leave this team as he had done so in the past was because of Banou. Someone seemingly weak like him, yet in the girl there lies a strong resolve. He needs to get back to them, finish this mission and then keep the promise she whispered in his ear that very same morning. Ren must-
"Y-you think y-you could h-hide from me, kid?" A cold and weary voice projects from behind the door. Ren sits still, making no sudden movements.
"You r-really thought a few Infested would s-stop me? I'm gonna...make sure...you...su-suff...er..."
The Rhino enters the room, holding onto the doorway as his body shakes violently. Ren understands and watches from the cot. The Rhino takes three steps before collapsing and going silent. Not dead, but barely alive. Ren walks over to the fallen Tenno, who now appears so weak and vulnerable.
"I'm not like you, that would kill one of his own. Even for what you did to Banou."
Ren forces the Tenno out of his Warframe, something he caught on after Myrrha did it to him back at the relay. By channeling energy like one would into a melee weapon, that flow can be redirected through into other Tenno to overload their transference synergy. The battered Rhino husk is no more as Ren drags Thor to the cot. The large Tenno's body has sustained some injuries as when the suit is damaged, so too is the operator inside. The extent of the damage is not physical for the most part, but it is more internal. He figures with the room warming up gradually that it would be best to remove Thor's attire to inspect for any serious wounds.
Ren never actually focused too much on the man's appearance, but now that he lies before him unconscious he can see his features clearly. The Tenno wears a full set of Manduka apparel of orange and blue colors. Besides Thor's blonde hair, blue eyes and muscular frame, he does not recall any other physical details. Something is disturbingly wrong thinks the boy. He goes to remove the man's head gear and finds the face underneath to be suspiciously bizarre as the nose is quite small for someone of his size and has a peculiar curved incline to it. As if that particular part does not match the rest of him. Furthermore, an odd device is sticking out from where the belly button would be. It flashes a blue light upon contact and then a smaller section of the circular piercing juts upwards slightly. Another poke and the device comes together again and detaches from Thor's body.
Ren steps back as his face tilts to the side and his whole being becomes stiff. Thor's body begins to contort, his flesh wriggles and spasms as if something were squirming under the skin. The man is transforming, but into what ponders Ren?
Who or what Thor really is, now starts to show through forming physical attributes. The muscles shrink somewhat, but the body still holds a robust figure. Most noticeably are the widening hips and expanding fabric at the chest region. The face undergoes drastic change as well, except for the style and color of the blonde hair. Puffier lips, longer eye-lashes and a less rugged chin appears. The man called Thor is gone and in his place lays a woman with nearly identical features. Still tall and well-built, a female version of Thor is knocked out on the simple cot.
Ren is left standing speechless. He contemplates whether Thor was originally a man or a woman and if so, would raise even more questions. One thing is for sure the boy thinks. For what she had done, there can be no forgiveness.
