Note: Several author's note at the bottom for those of you who read those. And sorry this is so late! L But it took me so long to write this, and this is perhaps the 8th version I made of this chapter. Sorry!
Warning: lots of story before action scenes. Please review and let me know what you think!
A/N: And for those who haven't realized it yet, Shellheads are the Krogan while the Hunters are the Turians.
Shanix Era: New Enemies, New weapons, "The more things change, the more they stay the same."
Day Four after First Contact
Shanix: Second Eden: Renewed Hope Hospital: Emergency Aid stations
Doctors, medics, nurses and anyone else who possessed any form of medical training beyond basic first aid was running to and fro between patients, treating the wounded and the dying. A good number were civilians who had been injured during the evacuation of the other cities and settlements to Second Eden, injuries that occurred during the scramble and chaos resulting in accidental injuries. Others who had taken up to volunteer in defense as their friends and families evacuated. But more than a fair few had suffered from wounds inflicted by the unknown aliens' weapons. Their muscles and organs torn as the metal pellets from their weapons deformed and flattened as they impacted the body, acting like the hollow-point ammunition of the late 20th and early 21st century. Instead of traveling straight through, a flattened piece of metal remained with the victims until they could be pulled out. But as some quickly learned, even then, the enemy could kill. Some of the metals used were radioactive, while for many had been successfully treated in terms of surgery and radiation treatment; still for many it was too late. While others were treated to flash frozen limbs, third degree burns, shredded muscles and electrocution type injuries.
Wounds reflected among the military personnel, many to a far greater degree. First, Second and Third Degree burns over great percentages of their bodies, limbs amputated due to frostbite damage, being treated to radiation poisoning; the military uniforms possessed basic radiation treatment kits after the Incident in the Epsilon Eridanius System.* Others also suffered massive blunt force trauma, knife wounds, missing limbs, from concussive forces, and, strangely: damage from high G-forces. What was most frightening all to the medical personnel among who had attempted to treat the wounds was disintegration. Some sort of energy was literally taking apart soldiers at the molecular level. Doctors were unsure of what to do, so depending on the patient, pump them full of medicinal steroids and/or sedatives to keep their bodies alive through the trauma. Thankfully to the relief of all, the energy dissipated on its own after a time from which the injured were brought in.
As grievous as the number of wounded and variety of wounds there were, those who knew better were grateful; realizing the damages could have been much worse. Other settlements had been razed to the ground either by their own residents or by the invading species. The crested aliens, which several of the military personnel who had seen them first hand and were nicknamed "Shellheads" were seen as the most responsible for the wanton destruction. While the other species, those with a more avian appearance had been nicknamed "Hunters" due to how much marksmen skill the aliens demonstrated. Executing headshots and long range sniper kills with their strange weapons. Many a trooper had lost their lives to their skills. And many more would again today.
Second Eden: Makeshift Military Motorpool
The sounds of saws, plasma torches, arc welders and pneumatic tools filled the motor pool. Engineers, vehicles, weapons and spare parts were scattered everywhere. To most it was sheer chaos, to the men and women of the engineer corp. of the UNSC, it was organized chaos. The motor pool was separated by types and weight: the unused lightweight ATVs nicknamed "Mongooses", the LRV "Warthog" and in several of its multiple variants, and the few M809 MBT "Scorpion" tanks. The Warthogs had repaired relatively quickly and most were just in the state of being prepped, fueled and loaded for use. What was the greatest issue for the engineers of the motorpool were the Scorpion MBTs.
They had come from the cruiser The Right of Way and were not part of the standard contingent on the planet. As such, they did not possess many of the critical parts needed for operation. While the MBTs were incredibly robust, able to take obscene amounts of damage and yet still be able to fight, several components, once destroyed, made it impossible to operate until the component was replaced.
Of all the tanks deployed from the cruiser, a dozen sat in this particular motorpool, others had been lost outside the city, were operating or were parked at other makeshift motorpools. Of the twelve, all had been damaged, two were repaired, another three undergoing, and the remainder being stripped of parts to repair the few they can. Seven tanks had lost several critical components such as the auto-loader, the neural net interface, targeting mechanism, gyroscopic stabilizer in several of the track pods. Realizing that it would be a futile effort to attempt to repair all seven, they dedicated their efforts to repairing another three of the seven and stripping the other four for salvage and parts.
If only they knew what awaited them outside the city walls.
**Second Eden: Military Command**
Lieutenant Major Felipe Silvera sighed. The general had yet to have left his office, leaving it to him and the other officers to maintain command. The problem was Shanix was quickly becoming the only settlement on the planet under Human control. These aliens had moved fast; advancing faster than they had ever expected, not just by air, but by land as well. Their armored vehicles moved with the speed of a M12 FAV LRV, but possessed the firepower of a Scorpion tank. Their infantry, from few reports were gathered from fleeing refugees and the small number of militia and other troopers, they learned of the two different species, and learned, though they were apparently allies, could not be any more different.
The avian of the species, which the troopers had labeled 'Hunters' were trained, fighting in small units, displaying obvious tactical skills; the main reason why they pulled back so many, police and militia can't stand against such a force.
And then there were the Shellheads, if the reports were anything to go by, were essentially their shock troopers. Charging in with reckless abandon, crushing anything and everything in their path, reports said of civilians ramming several of them with their vehicles, killing several by the majority getting by unscathed, or at least not care about it. Along with being the majority of their heavy weapons units, some of the weapons they carried would have given even a Sangheili a hard time wielding.
"Damn it, we're not prepared for something like this." Shanix was more or less an agricultural and R&R type of colony. Not beaches or anything of the sort but somewhere people could simply forget about their worries and just live. If it were not for the Right of Way's compliment of troops, armor and supplies, they might have not lasted as long as they did already. The Major sighed as he picked up a data tablet detailing the latest reports. The commanding officer of the Longsword and Claymore fighters, another gift from the fallen cruiser, reported several of his patrols had taken down several of the enemy aircraft, both dropships and fighters. Their recon reports matching those made by groundside in regards to troop movement and deployment. No casualties by the grace of whatever deity reigned above. But the CO reported that they would no longer be conducting recon or patrol flights. Their fuel supplies were limited as UNSC fighters used a much higher grade fuel for their engines than the civilian market.
This was quickly becoming a siege, a style of warfare they were woefully unprepared. Yes the city design itself made it a defensible position, forcing the enemy into a ground war and a bottleneck. And yes they were protected from the skies but they could not hold out for long. What supplies they possessed was it. Food, medical supplies, fuel, munitions. By their current count and the rate of consumption, they would be over whelmed in a matter of days, at most a week, perhaps more, a significant decrease due to the number of refugees who fled to Second Eden upon the General's command. "We need to get these people out of here. We-"
"Sir!" The lieutenant turned to face the communications officers who had called out, it's the Viery bridge checkpoint sir! They're under attack!"
"Damn it, someone get the General back here now, I want him here yesterday." Several of his peers balked at the way Silvera referred to the General but he didn't give a damn.' It should be him up here instead of me!' "What's the report?"
"Sir, reports of enemy armor coming over the Viery Bridge! Hard formation: heavy infantry in front, smaller units in the back! They've got some sort of personal shield generators! And they're just pushing the wrecks in front either off the bridge or forward to the checkpoint!"
"Damn it! Someone get the General up here now! I'm heading down there!"
**Viery Bridge: Checkpoint**
The air was thick with the smell of sulfur and discharged rounds. The clattering of spent brass casings could barely be heard over the gunfire and the yells of the Human defenders as they called to each other. Men and women as they called out to each other, for ammo, and assistance, the screams of the dying filled the air.
Bodies, both Human and alien, littered the area separating the Human defenders from the Alien attackers, creating a virtual No-Man's-Land. The alien force had pushed forward hard in the past several hours. Using one of their APCs, due to how despite all their armor and firepower, could move as fast an M21 LRV, and carry as many as over a half a dozen troops inside, to push the wreck of another of their APCs forward, using it as a shield against the defender's fire. The Human defenders had set up barricades using vehicles, sandbags, depressed roadblocks and even a garbage truck.
And the defenders were being pushed back. Shellheads wrapped in a blue aura somehow charged forward in a flash a blue light; slamming into the defender's ranks, bypassing barricades to get at their enemies, taking multiple magazine and several defenders before they fell.
A yell could be heard above the din of gunfire and explosions, "Someone get a railgun up here!" One of the cars in barricade detonated as if to punctuate his statement, men and bodies flying through the air. The sounds of weapons barely dinned, even as several of wounded began to cry out for a medic. "I mean now damn it!"
A militiaman fired his MA5-C on full auto to the left of the wreck, even as he called out to one of the heavy gunners. "Watch the left! The left!" He turned to face one of the marines on a M41 Light Anti-Aircraft Gun (LAAG), "I said on the left f-urk!" He fell, a sniper round in the back of his skull.
"Sonuva-" The gunner swiveled the turret, firing as he went, "Eat this fuckers!" The 12.7x99mm ammunition tearing apart the aliens unlucky enough to be caught out in the open as they attempted to shift cover. "Yeah, from me to you ugly!" Raising his fist in the air in excitement, right before his face was slammed into the gun itself by a Shellhead, crushing his skull and killing him. The alien turned, again wrapped in a blue aura, as another marine opened fire at point-blank range with his M95 Close-Assault Weapon shotgun. The pellets splattered against the aura, falling apart at the molecular level before they impacted. The alien responded with a blast from its massive hand cannon, easily twice the size of the Human's palm, the slug slamming into his body before flying out the outer side. It turned as other fired upon it, a blue barrier around it shimmering with each bullet. Holstering the hand cannon, began gathering a blue aura around itself, and it one shift motion, the Shellhead flew forward, faster than any of they could see, crushing a SWAT officer into a concrete barricade. It redrew its pistol and shot several of the defenders as they tried to bring it down, killing a total of twelve defenders. It trained on a militia defender before a SWAT officer ran full pelt into the Shellhead, at the same time driving her knee into its crotch, knocking it off balance before she jammed her own M95 Close Assault weapon right below its maw, slipping past the barrier, and pulled the trigger. With a deafening blast, the air was filled with bits of blood and gore. The body fell with a great thud. Another four defenders were struck down by alien sniper, a trail of smoke leaving their helmets where the bullets punched through.
"Damn it where is that counter-sniper!" 1st lieutenant Dillian Killian was both pissed off and about to piss his pants at the same time. He was a Marine, he wasn't green. Having gotten his rank the old fashioned way rather than an academy, he had been part of the Heretic Wars, when the UNSC had sided with the now reigning faction on Sangheilios. He had taken part in the various war games between the UNSC and its Sangheili counterpart: the Spear of Sangheilios. He was no stranger to war, to death and battle. Still fear griped his heart. Never before had he been in a first contact scenario. And never before had he had to conduct a battle where he was leading, not just fellow marines, but police, planetary militia, and army forces. He ducked behind cover to reload his M395 Designated Marksmen Rifle(DMR) when he saw several of the militia and police defenders begin to run. "Do not abandon your posts!" Tapping his helmet, he shifted the frequency to a general array, linking him to every radio within range. "Listen up! We got a choice here people! Either: you stay and fight or you turn tail and hide!" In the corner of his eye he saw a few people get ready to run. "But remember this, you run, that's one less person to keep these miserable alien bastards outside the city! Fuck!" A sniper round planted itself not inches from his foot, barely missing his head. "You run and that's ten more bastards that get into the city for each one of you." He slammed the magazine home, slapping down the receiver, "You run, and everyone inside are all as good as dead. "So," He rose, shouldering his DMR and pulled the trigger four times, each of them hitting their mark, his aim firm even as the bullets flew past him, each 7.62 by 51 mm NATO round planting itself inside the brain of a charging Shellhead, "Stand your ground!"
The defenders, emboldened by the lieutenant's voice, cheered and fought back with renewed vigor. Showing a tenacity and spirit not seen before by the attackers or the defenders. Soldiers found their spirits yet again. Officers found their reason again: To protect and Serve the People. Militia remembered their families, their friends. Bullets found their marks, call signs called out and orders relayed. The enemy advance fell dead in their tracks. Marines and Soldiers remembered the call of duty and honor.
"Come on then!" A young police officer cried out. His sidearm depleted of ammunition, he grabbed a rifle from a fallen Hunter that had managed to make its way to the barricade. Leaping over, he fired as he ran forward, sliding behind a blown car for cover. "Let's go!" He cried, waving to the others. Before jumping up and letting loose a long burst from his captured rifle, making the blue barriers of one of the shellheads shimmer then shattered. Blood coming out of its wounds before it took cover behind a destroyed truck. It let out a fierce roar, rallying its own allies who began to, again, force their way up. Even with their renewed strength the defenders were weakening as their numbers dwindled. Shellheads fired great red blobs of energy from their weapons, detonating at impact and scorching the area. Some used their weapons like cudgels, literally throwing men into the air through sheer force and impact, dead before their bodies hit the ground. Blue spheres of energy throwing and pulling men into the air, others were creating a gravity well picking up debris, bodies and men, before detonating violently.
'Damn it.' Killian thought. 'We can't hold here for much longer. We're starting to seriously lose men.' The bolt on his weapon clacked empty; ejecting the spent magazine he reached for a fresh one, only to grab empty space. 'Oh no.' He looked to see others in a similar situation, stripping other weapons and ammo off the fallen. While others picked up the alien weapons and began to open fire. Doing the same he grabbed one of the fallen aliens' hand cannons before he clicked his comm. "Everyone fall back! Fall back!" He brought up the pistol and fired off a round, the recoil barely jarred him. 'This thing barely has any kick.' A round passed by his ear, bringing him back to the fight. "Damn it I said fall back!"
"Belay that order, stand your ground." Another voice called out.
"Who is this?"
"This is Major Silvera, get everyone to keep their heads down and eyes peeled, we're coming to you."
"Sir, this is Lieutenant Killian here sir. With all due respect, we need to get out of here."
"Trooper, I only have one thing to say: get down now!"
Instinct built from years of experience forced his body down flat on the ground. Right before he heard the iconic electrical whirring followed by the boom of a M68 Asynchronous Linear-Induction Motor, or Gauss cannon. When he looked up, it was obvious the 25mm ferromagnetic round had found its mark. A Shellhead had literally been ripped in two, torn apart at its midsection, what remained upwards of the torso was flopped down not five meters from the barricade, while everything else beneath had been vaporized in a shower of gore. When he looked back, he saw not just one, but several 'Hogs, from the standard model carrying the M12 LAAG, to the Troop Transport variant.
Regular troops disembarked from the vehicles, sans the gunners, and joined the other defenders in pushing the aliens back. Sharp cracks soon join the sounds of battle as sniper teams began to find their marks and take them down. The aliens began to fall back, their numbers beginning cut down.
The battle here was won for now. But not all battles are fought with bullets and soldiers.
**Tero City: City Courthouse**
What had once been a house of Justice and Rights had been transformed into a makeshift internment camp. Inside, people huddled around fires, doctors and nurses tended to the sick and wounded in makeshift sick bays. Families, friends, and couples all trying to comfort each other in the best way they can.
The aliens had corralled all remaining human survivors into several buildings, turning them into makeshift camps. So far, the only ones keeping guard had been the ones, as word had spread from a captured Scorpion Tank driver as he had been treated for a concussion and cracked skull, Hunters, at least in regards to the courthouse guards. Though no one could understand them there was an obvious tension between the majorities of the two different species. The majority of the prisoners had been captured by Hunters, or had been saved by them from Shellheads. There had also been more than one incident where a Shellhead had taken out some of the brawnier Humans and had engaged in a fist fight with them. Breaking bones and bruising muscle. It had ended with the arrival of a Hunter wearing more sophisticated armor and a strange patch on his shoulder. It had gotten into, near as those who were close enough to see and hear, a shouting match with an equally sophisticated armor wearing Shellhead. After which none of the Human prisoners had seen a Shellhead get closer than 20 meters of the Courthouse. They had tried of course, but the Hunters kept them away; using their rifles and bodies to push them away from the prisoners. The Hunters were more or less, amiable to the prisoners. Bringing them whatever supplies they found. Most of it food, water, clothing and most surprisingly, medical supplies, the Hunters seemed to recognize to a degree what was what, but still neither could understand the other. Few of the Hunters, and even one of the Shellheads, tried to be more, for lack of a better term, friendly with the Humans. Displaying their strange powers, creating blue spheres of pulsing energy, crouching down to reduce their intimidating aura, one even tried to give some of their food, but was halted by one of his fellows.
This behavior confused the Human prisoners. Were these aliens not invading their world? Were not some of their fellows slaughtering their friends and family as they ran? It was confusing for many of them. Not hours before their lives had been destroyed by First Contact with a new species, and now here they were, being contained and treated by them. Being protected by one species from the other.
Groups had been made, clustered around holo-screens, fire pits, and desk lamps. Each group deep within their own discussions: among which, were the first to see the newcomers.
"How's he doing?" Cris asked. His glasses were missing from his face, instead replaced by a black eye and split lip.
"He'll be fine." Katy said, her face and hair dirtied, and her hands covered in purple blood. "We managed to set all his bones and sew any wounds. How's Hood?"
"I'm fine." 'Hood' was leaning against a wall, his left arm in a sling. "Squid, you going to be ok?"
A groan came from the wounded Sangheilli, he had attempted to engage one of the Shellheads in hand-to-hand combat, despite being out of armor, when they had encountered one on the way to the spaceport. Needless to say, it hadn't turned out well.
"He will be fine. As long as he stops whining like a wounded cat'ila." Serana answered. "Come on, you are supposed to be a Sangheilli, not a whimpering Unggoy."
"Leave him be, we need to figure out what we're going to do next. Any ideas?"
"The way I see it, we got a few options: One: we wait. Or Two: We try and contact Second Eden." Mich said.
"Why not just break out of here?" Maho asked.
"Because not many of us are feeling suicidal today." Alexei answered. "Especially not after some of us have learned a new meaning to 'First Contact'." Alexei had been one of the last to have been forced to fight one of the Shellheads hand-to-hand. Thankfully for him, one of the Hunters had stopped it before it went too far. As it was, he was severally bruised and more than likely had a few cracked ribs.
"Can we contact SE?"
"Not unless someone has a working radio or something." Cris answered. "They took all of our gear. Just left us with the clothes on our back."
"Then all we can do is wait." Hood though, was less concerned about themselves, and more about their new 'wardens'. This wasn't looking like a total conquest or expansion. Their military force was too small. Usually an invading army would be large enough to subjugate whoever they attacked and then occupy the area without reinforcements. This was anything but. That was what worried Hood, either they could have gotten lucky and this was a rogue group acting on its own, or if they were unlucky, this was just the scouting party. And only time would tell which it was.
Author's note: Yeah, I know I keep misspelling Shanxi but for this story it's going to stay Shanix because I'm too lazy to correct it. I'll put up a poll later and if enough people really want the change, then I'll make the edit at a later date. Also, this is probably the 8th version of this chapter that I have created, and I still consider this to be crap…
A/N: Also, will be posting on my deviantaccount at a later date, a rough skectch of how the general city structure of Second Eden looks. Link will be posted in a new story, purely for codex entries for this story. First entry: The Heretic Wars.
Also, more than likely, there will only be one more chapter on Shanix with a major time jump. If you guys would rather I just make this the last chapter, let me know in the reviews. If enough people say so, then I will just give a condensed version of Shanix end later on as a codex entry. Have gotten started on basic plot how things will go Post-Shanix. So once this segment is done, things should be a lot faster. Also, anyone who thinks I'm hating on the Turians and Krogan too much or making their species seem a bit out of character, please wait until later in the story. I'll explain then.
