Leonidas stood at the back of the transport, his eyes locked firmly on the door on the opposite end of the aisle. With only six seats, it was necessary for someone to stand unless the team left someone behind. And of course, that was out of the question for this mission. It had been possible to simply attach another seat or to trade places with Alia since she could maintain such a low center of gravity, but Leonidas saw an opportunity to test himself and seized it. This was far from safe, but the way he saw it, very few things that the Spartans did were. If the ride got rough, he would crouch down and wait it out, using the situation as a test of his reaction time and sense of balance. Leonidas had never made an effort to hide that he was quite crazy and not at all afraid of death; this was no exception.

Several weeks ago, they had discovered their unique weapons- his axes, Eagle's bolt caster, Ghost's Shadowkeeper, and Defcon's frost grenades- in the wreckage of the original XCOM's transport: an early-model Skyranger, bearing the tail number SR-77H. After this discovery, when the Commander wasn't focused on actively fighting ADVENT, he had worked tirelessly to pinpoint the location where the ship had launched from. Now XCOM's leader was certain he had the correct set of coordinates, and that was where the Spartans were headed. But the elite strike team was bringing a very special person with them.

Central had insisted on leading the mission personally, joining XCOM's best strike team in the mud and blood. Leonidas had given up his seat for the veteran and opted to stand, determined to bring the entire team on such a potentially crucial outing. They could, of course, have left someone on the Avenger, but he knew that "someone" meant Robin, who got excluded far too often in his opinion. She had yet to even get her first proper kill; how was the rookie meant to prove herself when she was constantly left behind? Presently, Robin was staring intently at the hatch, waiting for it to open. Beside Leonidas, Central checked his weapon for the seventh time- he had counted- and the Spartan leader took a moment to examine the gun himself. The multipurpose combat rifle was what the name implied: an amalgamation of different attachments and components to handle any role. Leonidas wondered why they didn't use more of them since they would be much more effective than ordinary rifles.

He didn't know why, but the Spartan King was especially anxious about this mission. There was no reason to be worried- an experienced seventh squadmate such as Central would surely tip the scales in their favor- but something in the back of his mind whispered that there was more to this mission than met the eye. No matter what he told himself, Leonidas just couldn't shake this sense of foreboding, and that made him all the more eager to get this whole thing over with. He looked around at the others, making sure that they didn't show signs of similar anxiety.

Ghost was seated as he normally was, with the Wraith upright between his knees and a thousand-yard stare on his face. Eagle, always the gun-nut, was admiring Central's rifle from across the aisle. Defcon was silently checking the systems of her new exo-suit, which had been given to her just two days prior. The arm-mounted rocket launcher would prove invaluable, Leonidas predicted. Finally, Alia was sitting across from Central with her eyes trained on the floor, fidgeting nervously with her fingers. The viper was clearly uncomfortable with the veteran's presence, squirming ever so slightly under his scrutinizing gaze. Another reason to complete this mission quickly.

The ramp opened, and the black cables unfurled just beyond it. Without so much as a second thought, Leonidas ran forward and leapt onto his line, swinging on his way down from the momentum. He released the rope to fall the last few feet, drawing his Killforge before his boots had even hit the ground. The Spartan leader's eyes darted around as he stepped forward, searching for possible threats, and mapping everything that could be used for cover. The cave before the landing zone was covered in ice, which was an obvious problem; the team was in Oman. Ice caves were not a natural occurrence here. As the others deployed behind him, Leonidas forced himself to calm down. He would need a level head to properly handle this operation.

"Something wrong, Leo?" The Commander asked him quickly, the words forming in his vision in a similar fashion to how orders were relayed.

The Spartan leader took a deep breath. "Nothing, Dad," he muttered, "I've just got a bad feeling about this. Feel free to borrow some horsepower if you need it." Few people knew about it, but Leonidas was mentally linked to the Commander via a specialized psionic chip. This chip was what allowed the Spartan King to see his orders, rather than just reading or hearing them. Routes and locations would highlight themselves on the ground, one for each soldier, and enemies were marked for easy tracking and targeting.

In turn, the Commander was able to see through his son's eyes in order to get a first-person view of the field, which helped him formulate these tactics. It was impossible for the man to actually use his son's brain to assist in his mental processes, and Leonidas knew it. The gesture was partially made as a joke to help calm himself, and partially to emphasize that he wanted to ensure everyone's safety. A small dot blinked near the center of his vision, which was the equivalent of a nod from his father.

Leonidas was the only squad leader to possess such unique technology; the other leaders used specialized HUD systems to create a very similar effect, but this required them to wear a high-tech headset with a physical display over one eye. The Commander was able to issue orders to them in the same way he did to his son, leaving no apparent difference. Most people assumed that the Spartan King wore some sort of contact lenses, or that his sunglasses were his HUD device. Those who knew the truth were sworn to secrecy; XCOM could not afford to take any risks with such a system.

"Why is it," Alia groaned as she appeared beside him, "That I am cursed to endure such cold conditions? The nights are bad enough aboard the Avenger! And now, in such a warm area of Earth, we face a frozen cave?" It was no secret that the nighttime chill of the Avenger was extremely uncomfortable for Alia. She was in no danger, but her lack of adequate body heat made it hard to adapt.

"If it makes you feel any better," Leonidas said, reaching into his pocket to produce a set of black fingerless gloves similar to his own, "this place is an anomaly in that regard. Take these." He handed the serpent the gloves, which lacked the hardened knuckles that his own pair featured, and she slid them onto her hands gratefully. Due to the absence of hard materials, these were able to fit anyone thanks to their elasticity. They also offered slightly greater insulation, which was convenient for Alia. He nodded as the serpent looked at her hands, "That's a good look for you."

The viper drew her weapon, smiling at him as she tested how the gloves felt with a weapon in her hands, "Thank you, Leonidas. I hope that this will help me retain body heat for at least a little while longer."

He shrugged, "Better than nothing. I carry those around as a backup pair, but I've never actually had to use them. And I don't think that I ever will, in all reality, so they're yours now. You need them more than I do anyway. We can see about other insulation when we get back."

Orders appeared in his vision, and Leonidas switched to combat mode as he started relaying them to the others. The squad moved forward into the cave, spreading out into the large room ahead. The far wall was clearly artificial, no apparent effort having been made to disguise it. The Spartan leader moved forward cautiously as the others took up positions behind ledges and boulders. All eyes were trained on the doorway in the center of the wall, watching for signs of activity. Soon, Alia was advancing right alongside him, smelling the air for threats. This was the scouting strategy that the Commander insisted that they use, and Leonidas found himself appreciating the reasoning. They were the best at stealth among the Spartans, and the ability to detect unseen enemies through scent was invaluable.

The viper suddenly halted, holding out a hand to stop Leonidas. Her tongue flicked out suspiciously as they stood mere meters from the doorway, and the Spartan leader gripped his shotgun in preparation for a fight. A moment of tense silence passed, then Alia shouted: "Take cover!" No sooner had she given this warning, did multiple white-scaled vipers emerge from small holes in the ground that, until now, no one had noticed. They held bolt casters similar to Eagle's, and judging by their stances, they were planning to use them.

"Ambush!" Leonidas yelled instinctively, snapping the butt of the Killforge to his shoulder and blasting the nearest enemy before diving into cover on the other side of the doorway with Alia. Gunfire erupted throughout the room as the Spartans dispatched their foes, pushing forward to regroup with their leader. A bolt streaked past his head, and Leonidas looked to see that more of these white vipers were in the second room with him and Alia. The duo lunged forward behind a raised platform, hunkering down as more projectiles came buzzing angrily at them from all sides. The platform had a huge broken containment cylinder atop it, with a hologram of a strange viper in front of that. There were two more similar stations nearby, though the holograms depicted different aliens. At the moment, Leonidas was far more concerned with the mass of very physical vipers that were shooting at them. "What the Hell are these things, Alia!?"

"Neonates!" The allied serpent called back, "The equivalent of a human adolescent! But h-how!? To my knowledge, they have not existed on Earth due to the use of cloning; ADVENT vipers are born old enough to be soldiers, and neonates are too young!"

"Not young enough, apparently!" Leonidas growled, mentally preparing himself for the possibility of being shot by a bolt caster. He had seen what Eagle's weapon was able to do to its targets, and was not eager to endure the kind of pain that a hit would bring. His Predator armor would be able to reduce the velocity of an oncoming bolt enough that he would most likely survive, and the neonates didn't seem to have the best aim, but there was a reasonable chance of getting hit regardless, so the young man braced himself as a precaution. The Spartan King would have a much easier time working through such an injury if he was ready for it. However, he was much more inclined to avoid being shot altogether if possible; there was no telling how severe the damage would really be, and he didn't want to find out.

In the first room, the rest of the team swiftly killed the neonates that were blocking them from the duo. Ghost slipped a bullet through the neck of one, and Defcon used her cannon to make mincemeat of another. Over comms, Leonidas quickly shouted the orders that the Commander gave him. He was just reading off what he was given without actually seeing anything, but to the others, there was little to no difference. This was one of the few scenarios that this system of relaying orders was inefficient, but the Spartan leader was more than capable of compensating. Eagle's GREMLIN served as a second set of eyes for the Commander, with its sensors remotely connected to his private terminal. If there was one thing that the Commander was good at, it was multitasking.

Eagle himself moved forward and fired his bolt caster, decapitating another neonate. Central broke into a sprint, stowing his rifle in favor of a Ranger's sword. With a single, decisive slash, he cut his target in half at the diagonal, stepping into cover next to where the young viper had just stood. This left nothing for Robin to kill, but she did not complain as she moved up to close in on her separated teammates. The rookie was full of energy and eager to get her first promotion, but she also knew to be patient.

As the others rushed ahead to join them, Leonidas and Alia retaliated against their attackers. The Ranger lunged over to the wall just ahead of them before taking aim at a neonate that had positioned itself atop a rock formation. Less than half a second passed between the moment Leonidas spotted his target and when he pulled the trigger. In a flash, the Killforge was shouldered and its sights lined up on the enemy viper. The incendiary ammunition created a virtual wall of flame as it passed beyond the muzzle of the shotgun, and though such a thing was completely redundant, it was terrifying to see it coming right at you faster than the speed of sound. Terror flooded the neonate's expression for an instant before the shot ripped through her, ending her fear- as well as her life.

On the other side of the room, Alia artfully dodged oncoming fire as she raced forward. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the subtle muzzle flash of a hostile bolt caster and moved her entire body at once. Knowing that the neonate would aim at her chest or head in order to hit vital organs since such a young and inexperienced viper would lack the tactical foresight to shoot her tail, the serpentine Spartan twisted around as she threw herself to the ground, feeling the bolt just barely miss her shoulder before landing on her back, her weapon already raised. The moment her crosshairs lined up with the hostile viper, she let loose a burst of venomous death, which the neonate caught in the chest. With a short scream of agony, the hostile viper collapsed lifelessly to the ground.

While Leonidas had been recovering from his injuries, he had passed the time by helping Alia to learn combat maneuvers such as the one she had just displayed. The viper rolled onto her stomach and pushed herself back up, completing her movement to cover behind a rock wall. In seconds, the other Spartans were able to find similar positions near the two operatives, taking advantage of the fact that their foe had just been thrown off-balance. As the neonates scrambled to find cover against the full force of Spartan Squad, Tygan came through on comms, telling them that he had been able to repair the transmission of a message from the equipment in the cave. No one bothered asking how.

"An extreme biological hazard is present throughout this area!" The voice of Dr. Moira Vahlen said desperately in the recording, "Genetically enhanced species in this region are of particular concern to the civilian populace! Do not approach under any circumstances! All attempts should be made to avoid contact with these lifeforms!"

"A bit late for that now, I guess," Eagle quipped as the message ended. He was right: the squad had walked right into this mess, and they were well beyond the point of no return. The only option was to clear the cave, which was no problem for the Spartans.

The team examined their surroundings as they advanced, picking off the appearing tangos. In the center of the cave were the ruins of a small base, resembling some of the Resistance camps in its somewhat ramshackle nature. Human corpses littered the ground, each one in the late stages of decay. The low temperature kept the stench down to a bearable degree, but that didn't change the fact that it was a horrible sight. Then it struck Leonidas that these neonates- these vipers- were living and fighting under such cold conditions. They seemed completely unhindered by the cold, while Alia was practically freezing. She was doing an excellent job of pushing through it, though. There had to be something that they were missing. Perhaps this was the "genetic enhancement" that Vahlen had been referring to?

A chill ran down his spine as he thought about XCOM's former chief scientist. When her voice had played in his ear, Leonidas had wanted to remove his earpiece and grind it to dust beneath his boot. Not out of anger or fear, but because it felt so unnatural to hear the normally confident doctor sound that distressed. His instinct was to help, but it was just a recording; there was nothing that could possibly be done. The Spartan leader had hoped to find the woman here, but a small part of him was strangely relieved that he apparently wouldn't have to meet her face-to-face. Leonidas was always ready for anything, but he wasn't sure if he was ready for that.

More neonates came up from several vents in the floor, with some of them appearing behind the Spartans as well as in front. Leonidas cursed loudly as one of the flanking vipers charged, probably aiming to bind and crush him. As she rushed into melee range, he swiftly drew an axe and swung it straight down, timing his attack perfectly as to split the neonate's head neatly in half. The Ranger blasted another with his shotgun as she tried to take cover, seeking to clear the flanking party as quickly as possible while anger boiled within him.

Ghost fired his Shadowkeeper from the hip, eliminating the last neonate behind them. Not much of a force, but that was because the real threat lay ahead. From deeper within the cave came a small army of vipers, and while most were neonates, Leonidas spotted a few adults in their midst. "How many of them are there!?" he shouted, but then the Spartan leader noticed how tightly clustered the enemy units were. With so many of them in such a relatively small space, the enemy vipers were packed together closely enough for a different tactic to work nicely. The Commander must have had the same thought, judging by his next order. Leonidas glanced over at Defcon, who was looking right back at him, already holding her grenade launcher.

Leonidas nodded, and the Grenadier stood up and twisted the stock of the launcher, loading a fragmentation grenade. Taking a second to aim, she fired the explosive device over the wrecked structures and into the crowd of enemy vipers. The resulting blast killed four neonates and an adult viper, thinning their numbers by a surprising amount. There were less of them than it seemed, Leonidas reasoned. Behind them, Robin followed her orders to drop a grenade of her own down one of the vents, preventing any more company from coming through. Eagle reloaded his bolt caster to fire at one of the adult vipers. The bolt ripped through its target, taking half of her chest with it. The final adult fell as her heart was decisively pierced by a bullet from Ghost, thus preventing even a single one of them from getting a chance to attack.

Finally, Central gave a frustrated sigh as Leonidas told him to "Reap" without fully understanding what that meant. But Bradford acknowledged the order, drawing his sword as he dashed forward to cut down one of the remaining neonates. The First Officer then proceeded to slash his way through the rest of them, audibly breathing harder with each kill as the veteran pushed himself to his physical limits of both speed and endurance. Leonidas watched with admiration, resolving to learn how to apply his own abilities to such a skill. Soon enough, the only living things left standing were the Spartans, and Central wiped the blood from both his blade and himself as he caught his breath.

Through the duration of the fight, more recordings were broadcasted through comms. Vahlen explained that she had three subjects in containment: Alpha, Beta, and Gamma. The doctor stated that she was most intrigued by subject Gamma, though there was little explanation as to why the other two were apparently unequal. As the messages progressed, XCOM's former chief scientist described how uncomfortable Gamma was making her staff, even admitting that she was feeling such unease as well. Finally, it was revealed that Gamma had escaped due to a minor tremor, and had, as Vahlen put it: "Shattered the metal as if it was glass. Or a sheet of thin ice."

Suddenly, Alia appeared at his side, breathing heavily and swallowing rapidly- a clear indication that something was seriously wrong. "Leonidas..." she whispered, "I-I do not feel well..."

"Are you freezing?" He asked, placing a hand on her neck to feel her temperature, "Need me to warm you up?"

Alia shook her head, which struck him as odd; her scales felt ice cold. She seemed to grow more anxious at his touch, shutting her eyes as she suppressed a whimper, "No, no, something else. I-I think there's something deeper in the cave that... we need to investigate. I need to investigate." The urgency in the serpent's voice rang clearly in her friend's ears, and Leonidas nodded firmly as he gently removed her hands from his shoulders.

"Let's check it out," he agreed, "But stay close to me. I'm not letting you out of my sight; this might be some sort of new psi-based attack, and I want to be able to respond accordingly at a moment's notice."

The viper agreed, and Leonidas motioned for everyone to move out, letting Alia place her hand on his shoulder in order to ensure proximity. For all he knew, she really would be safer with him, so he was perfectly willing to accommodate. The Spartan King trusted Central and his fellow Spartans with his life, but there were some tasks that he would rather just do himself. The Commander adapted accordingly, giving them orders for where to move as they advanced. Apparently, he was as undeterred as his son by this strange behavior and was similarly determined to resolve the matter promptly.

At the end of the room, the floor dropped away to reveal another area, this time completely covered in ice. Feeling Alia's hand trembling on his shoulder, Leonidas whispered, "Are you sure you're fit to keep going? You can always hang back and let us handle it."

Once again, Alia shook her head. "No. I will continue. I must." Leonidas nodded, not entirely sure that his friend was herself at the moment. Alia had always been reserved and passive in her interactions with the other XCOM operatives, including Leonidas, but now she was asserting a directive that seemed... questionable in nature at best. Still, he felt that the best course of action was to ensure that they had cleared the area thoroughly before leaving, and this was a step in that direction. The team had been planning on going down there anyway, but now they had a more specific reason to do so.

Leonidas stood on the ledge with Alia as the others moved forward to take up positions behind the frozen rock formations that were just ahead on the floor below. Ghost took the highest point within sprinting distance, quickly setting up behind a moderately-sized boulder on the right side of the chamber. Robin tailed close behind to serve as a spotter, and to cover his flank. Defcon and Eagle stood at ground level, with the Grenadier taking cover near a more centrally-located pillar, and the Specialist moving opposite of Robin and Ghost. Finally, Central accompanied the duo as they dropped down and advanced cautiously, weapons raised.

As the three of them approached the center of the room, the form of a human body could be seen in the ice. Central wondered aloud if it was Vahlen, but Tygan responded: "Unable to tell from this distance. Life signs are being obscured by-"

No sooner had they walked out into the open, did an imposing figure emerge from the mass of gigantic icicles ahead. Leonidas instantly recognized it as the viper from the hologram near the entrance of the cave and realized that they had just walked straight into a trap. "Despite the lack of a formal introduction," the Spartan King growled, taking aim with the Killforge, "I think that's Gamma."

"Vahlen created a Viper King," Central sighed, raising his own weapon, "Just what we needed."

The Viper King spotted them quickly, and let out a furious hiss as he brought himself up to his full height. Neonates appeared all around them, cementing the fact that this was, in fact, a trap. Leonidas tackled Alia to the ground as the royal serpent fired a bolt caster at them, and Central moved to find cover. Ghost was the first one to respond, sending a bullet straight at the King's head. The shot failed to penetrate, ricocheting off of the regal armor. "Goddammit!" The sniper snarled, "What the Hell have you created, Moira!?" Luckily, the attack did not appear to be completely ineffective; the Viper King reeled backward from the hit, hissing angrily as he clutched at his head where the bullet had struck him.

"Do not kill him!" Alia shouted, earning shocked looks from everyone, "Males are incredibly rare! He is too valuable to lose!"

"I smelled you from the moment you entered," the Viper King said loudly, speaking to Alia, "I require another mate, and you will suffice!"

Next to him, Leonidas watched as the enthralled viper rose and moved forward. "Yes!" She cried, dropping her weapon.

"No!" The Spartan leader leapt to his feet, bringing his shotgun to bear. The King responded by spitting a stream of venom at him, which froze painfully on contact. The Killforge was sent flying from his hand, solidifying into place when it landed on the ice. Leonidas himself was pushed back into the wall behind him, the rapidly-forming chunk of ice attaching his arm to the stone surface. The others opened fire, raining hot death upon the Viper King, but the projectiles that hit did minimal damage. A bolt streaked past his nose, and Leonidas noticed the other Spartans turning to deal with the more imminent threat of the neonates. He was on his own here.

A fiery rage burned within Leonidas, roaring to life from both anger and desperation. A warning from Tygan sounded in his ear, alerting them that the Viper King's venom was cold enough to cause major tissue damage. Of course, Leonidas was already intimately aware of this. Alia continued to move forward almost lazily, as if she was in a dream of some kind. With a roar, the Spartan leader threw himself forward and shattered the ice that bound him to the wall, rushing forward to free his Killforge from its own icy prison.

The dream... As he struggled to break the ice around the shotgun, Leonidas suffered from a vivid flashback to his nightmare from a few weeks ago. Alia, in danger from a monster; his weapon on the ground, unable to be retrieved; and himself, filled with a feeling of helplessness. But now he was not an infant- he was a Spartan. And he had more options available to him than just his gun. He was certainly capable of breaking the ice, but it would require time- something that he didn't have. Instead, the Spartan left the Killforge where it was, drawing his axes and turning to face the Viper King, who was currently in the process of binding Alia in a dominant fashion. Evidently, the instinct to breed was just as overpowering for him as it was for her.

Leonidas hurled one of his blades at the King, striking him in the shoulder. This threw Subject Gamma off-balance, releasing Alia, who looked at her friend with wide eyes. In an instant, the human was upon his foe, swinging his axe savagely as the Viper King dodged with a growing smugness. "I'll show you what a real king can do, bastard!" Leonidas screamed at him, nothing but fury in his eyes.

"She is mine, boy!" The Viper King hissed, slashing at Leonidas with his clawed fingers, "She has chosen her fate!"

"Alia doesn't belong to you," he growled, striking the King in the abdomen with a particularly savage blow, "She doesn't belong to anyone! Die, motherfucker!"

The other Spartans began to shift their focus to Gamma, forcing him to retreat as bullets once again pelted him from various angles. Leonidas didn't give him a chance to breathe, staying within melee range as he followed his prey. The King let out a loud hiss, and a psionic gate opened in front of him. He was creating an escape route! With a quick order from Leonidas, Defcon launched her rocket at the ground just ahead of them, knocking the male viper onto his back. Leonidas, who was a few strides behind his opponent, was spared from the effects of the blast. Without pause, the Grenadier lobbed her cryo bomb, which froze the mutant in place.

A second later, Leonidas was standing over the ice-bound king, axe in hand. He raised the blade over his head like an executioner, ready to behead this living atrocity. Just as the soldier swung downward, the viper broke free and rolled out of the way, causing the weapon dig into the ice rather than his armored flesh. Gamma rose, preparing another volley of freezing venom, but Spartan-1 was faster. The human kicked him in the chest as he easily pried the axe from the frozen ground, sending his adversary into a wall before driving the blade into his neck, aiming for a small spot where the blast of Defcon's rocket had weakened the nearly bulletproof hide. The sound of armored scales breaking and crunching, accompanied by the sound of flesh being torn beneath, was nothing less than revolting. Yet Gamma was still alive; he wouldn't be for long, but Leonidas was not satisfied with merely watching him die. If the Viper King was going to perish, then the Spartan King would hurl him through the gates of Hell personally.

Using the rooted blade, Leonidas threw the male viper to the ground and yanked the weapon free. The Spartan chopped once at the Viper King's neck again, bringing him closer to death. But this was still not enough; he had to finish the job properly. Gripping the axe with both hands, Leonidas roared at the top of his lungs as he threw every ounce of strength into driving the weapon into the partially severed neck of his enemy. The blade cut through scale, flesh, and bone alike as the Spartan King beheaded Subject Gamma through sheer brute force. This time, he was successful; the Viper King's head was divorced from his shoulders, his face frozen in a shocked expression.

Then it was over; the remaining neonates were mopped up by the other Spartans, and Leonidas stood in silence after a job well done. Blood poured from the stump of a neck on Gamma's body, pooling on the ground at his executioner's feet. Leonidas wrenched his weapon free of the ice, having lodged it there from the sheer force of his attack.

He expected Alia to cry, to scream, to react in some way that involved being upset with him. But instead, she simply stood, awestruck by the sight before her. "You..." she stammered, "You have surpassed... slain what is most likely the most powerful male on Earth- perhaps even in the history of my species."

"You're not mad?" Leonidas raised an eyebrow, "You were practically begging me to spare him just a second ago."

"I was under the influence of my reproductive instinct," the viper explained, "Now that he is dead, I am able to think clearly."

"Well, that was fast." Leonidas was grateful that he wouldn't have to face her wrath. He retrieved his second axe, using it to break the ice around his gun so that he could claim it as well. Throwing the corpse of the fallen monarch over his shoulder, the Spartan thought about the possible uses for such a strong scale structure.

Alia stopped him as he walked back toward the ledge from which they had come. "You are a kingslayer, Leonidas. I am not upset with you, for it is an honor to be in your presence."

The Spartan King chuckled, "You sound like we haven't been friends for almost two months now. Honor ain't worth shit, Alia; as far as I'm concerned, nothing's changed between us."

The squad searched the area for anything useful, from information on the experiments here to possible clues to Vahlen's whereabouts. As the others investigated the corpses and buildings, Leonidas wandered back into the area with the containment tubes and holograms. He examined the three-dimensional figures intently, noticing several similarities to other units that he had encountered in the field. The viper was the most obvious- he was carrying its dead body- but there was also a quite intimidating berserker and some sort of legless... thing that he didn't really know about. The Spartan leader remembered Ghost's description of something called an Archon that seemed to fit the holo-image almost perfectly. One way or another, something told him that he would find out. As he walked between the stations, his foot struck a loose object on the floor.

Looking down and picking it up, Leonidas saw that it was a datapad holding an audio file on it. Just as the Ranger pressed "Play", Vahlen's voice met him once again, though this time she sounded distraught and much quieter, as if she had made the recording without wanting anyone else to hear her. "Since the fall of XCOM, I have created many weapons, built specifically to excel at destroying the enemy, to act as the edge that we will need in order to take back our planet. But these tools are not enough. I have now created a weapon to surpass all others that I have designed; one that will ensure that the aliens are defeated. I... wish that there was another way- I am, for the first time, disturbed by my own actions- but I see no other alternatives. I must sacrifice the freedom of one man in order to save billions from becoming enslaved by the aliens. I..." she paused, audibly checking her composure, "My own son... I have turned him into the ultimate weapon against the aliens."

The Spartan's eyes widened, and his heart froze. Leonidas nearly dropped the datapad, but was unable to stop himself from listening further. "We had experimented with genetic modification before, but with limited success, and the modified soldiers often experienced... negative side effects. But when thinking of my unborn son, I had a stroke of twisted inspiration: what if the problem lay in the fact that the subjects were adults? An infant must be far more... receptive to the genetic modification process. Furthermore, the unborn fetus is in a state of rapid development, and, as such, is highly susceptible to external influence. As such, it is possible to augment it to ensure that modifications are received without complication. At the risk of following in the aliens' footsteps, I tested my hypothesis on the only subject at my disposal. And I regret it more than anything in my life. But I cannot undo what I have done. I was so focused on defeating the aliens that I did not think about what might happen after the war is over. He will never be able to live a normal life. War will be his life, and when it ends... I'm so sorry..."

The recording ended, and the Spartan King numbly selected the next file, reading a list of the modifications that had been made to him. Enhanced muscular system, improved eyesight, adjusted hormones that led to a chemical imbalance in his brain that drove him to kill; a stomach-turning description of what made him who he was. Leonidas fell to his knees, looking at his hands. "Mom..." he croaked weakly, wanting to deny it all but believing it because he knew it was true. In a sick, twisted way, it all made sense. His strange behavior outside of combat, his near-superhuman endurance and strength, his obsession with winning the war; it was all because he wasn't truly human. The Ranger had trained his whole life to become exactly what he was designed to be: a weapon, designed to slaughter the aliens and drive them off of Earth.

No. Leonidas clenched his fists, tossing the datapad aside and rising to his feet. He had chosen this path for himself, and he was responsible for who he had become. Years of training had only sharpened the blade, not forged it, but the decision had been his own. Vahlen gave him fire, and Leonidas had given ADVENT Hell. She had provided the tools to become a war machine, but he had chosen to use them. He was Leonidas, leader of Spartan Squad and son of the Commander of XCOM, and he would not be reduced to a broken husk by actions taken years ago. This new knowledge didn't change who or what he was. It changed nothing. If anything, the Spartan King was better than ever; he no longer had to question why he was so different. He was different because he chose to be. Because different was his normal.

The Spartan leader turned around, catching worried looks from the others, who were gathered behind him with cautious expressions. Leonidas didn't know how much they had heard, but he was sure that they had heard enough to understand what he was going through. Or, more accurately, what he should be going through. Anyone else would have needed time to process this onslaught of information, but not him. The young Ranger had lived his whole life abnormally, learning to take even the biggest twists and surprises in stride. If he did need time to process this, it would be on his own time. He said nothing, grinning slightly and nodding to them, then turning on his heel and hauling his dead adversary out to the mouth of the cave.

As they boarded the transport, Central stopped him for a moment. Leonidas steeled himself for the inevitable "if you want to talk about it" lecture, but instead, the older man handed him the head of the Viper King. "You forgot this," Bradford said simply, "Figured you might not want to leave it behind." Leonidas grinned, accepting the trophy before taking his rope and entering the vessel.

Kingslayer. That word echoed proudly in his mind, driving away any pain from knowing his own monstrous origins. It sounded... powerful. Fearsome. That was what he was. He was no monster- he was the vanquisher of the alien monarchy. ADVENT would be wise to count their days; the Spartan King was coming for them.

Kingslayer.

...

Kingslayer.

Alia sat in silence for the duration of the return trip, staring at the decapitated body of the Viper King. She was in the presence of a kingslayer, something that she hardly even understood. All she knew was that her instincts told her that Leonidas was superior to even the greatest males her species had to offer. The word had just popped into her head, and it was a perfect summary of what exactly the Spartan leader had accomplished. The serpent should have felt proud to call such a powerful figure a friend, but instead, she was just embarrassed.

She had done nothing when Gamma and Leonidas fought one another. Alia had just felt so... torn. On one hand, her base instincts had been demanding that she assist and preserve the Viper King so that they could mate. On the other, her conscious mind wanted desperately to help the Spartan, to show loyalty to the man who had been loyal to her. Alia's mind had been screaming at her body to move, to do something, but quite frankly, she was lucky to have even remained upright. She stole a glance at Leonidas, who was sitting on the floor with his back to the wall adjacent to her. He looked incredibly calm, and if Alia hadn't known better, she might have guessed that he was asleep.

Now there was no conflict within her. Normally, this would be a good thing, but in this case, it was anything but; now, her mating instinct had simply changed to target Leonidas. It was much weaker, though, since he was not a viper, and therefore did not produce the correct pheromones. The viper knew that she could maintain control, but she was worried that there would be a breaking point. And it wasn't just the fact that he had bested Gamma, either; in truth, Alia legitimately liked Leonidas as a person, flaws and all.

As soon as the transport touched down on the Avenger, the viper made her way to the Commander's quarters as quickly as possible. She hardly had to wait for the door to open, and the moment it did, the serpent ducked through. Alia kept her head held low, standing in the center of the room as she prepared herself to say what she knew had to be said.

"I know what happened back there with Subject Gamma, Alia," the Commander said evenly, "and I need no explanation. I'm no viper expert, but I understand enough to know that what you did- or rather, what you didn't do- wasn't your fault. So unless you have anything else that needs my attention...?" He let the question trail off, his point clear. If there was one thing that surprised her most about XCOM's leader, it was how informal he was.

Alia shook her head. "That is... I mean..." she sighed, taking a deep breath, "I appreciate your understanding and forgiveness, Commander, and I am forever grateful. But I came to you for another reason."

He raised an eyebrow, "And that is?"

"I recall that you ordered me to inform you if I began to develop... feelings for Leonidas?" The viper swallowed hard, watching as her superior's expression changed from relaxed curiosity to narrow-eyed intensity. This was going to be rough.

A/N: This one took longer than expected, but here we are!

At the suggestion of my wonderful beta reader (and some encouragement from the general public) chapters 1-8 are being revised! It's gonna be quite a bit slower, since it's a secondary priority, but we're doing it! See, up until chapter 9, I had no beta reader, which is a big part of why the quality went up after that.

There should be no changes major enough to the point that the rest of the story has to be redone, but probably enough to warrant going back and rereading those chapters once they've been updated. To prevent confusion, all eight chapters will be updated at once when they're all complete. I'll drop another heads-up via author's note when that happens!

As always, have fun and stay safe out there! -VV