"And that's our mission," Leonidas finished explaining, "Any questions?"
Eagle, the specialist and field medic of the Spartans, spoke up, "So we're going to rescue the same viper that helped us save the civs at that village?"
He nodded, "The very same. Does anyone have any gripes or reservations about this?" It had been two hours since he had originally brought the assignment to his teammates, and now they were going over a last-minute briefing.
"We all have our reservations, Leonidas," Ghost, their sniper, said evenly, "But if the Commander says jump, all we can do is say how high. We're with you as always."
Of the Spartans, there were five members. Leonidas was the ranger of the group and their leader. Defcon was their grenadier and heavy gunner, and always had a smile on her face. Eagle was as laid-back as they come, but he was focused and motivated when it came time to do battle. Ghost had actually been with the original XCOM twenty years ago, and often served as the "parent" of the group when he wasn't behind a scope. He was officially a sniper, but he often played the role of a marksman instead. Their fifth member was confined to the infirmary after an encounter with a sectopod, which had fractured two of her vertebrae. She would finish recovering soon, but not soon enough to deploy with the rest of the team on this mission. Defcon, on the other hand, was a different matter.
Leonidas made a short stop in the infirmary to brief the grenadier on their new assignment. Defcon, having regained consciousness shortly after her initial treatment, listened intently.
"Get her ready for action ASAP," Leonidas ordered the medical staff, "I want Defcon locked and loaded with the rest of us by the time the Commander gets a fix on the VIP's location."
"Why not take one of the other grenadiers?" The wounded Spartan asked curiously.
"Because I need experienced hands, and Moose is an intolerable neanderthal."
"Fair enough," the heavy gunner responded, "But can we skip the painkillers? You know how I am with needles..."
The Spartan leader grinned wryly. "Negative. Believe me when I say that you'd be suffering a lot more without that shit."
While Defcon had received some injuries during their previous assignment mere hours ago, the Commander had made this an all-hands-on-deck mission. The Spartans were unique in this way since they were the only team that would be sent out with wounded members when the task at hand was not absolutely critical. With a dose of painkillers, high-tech sutures combined with medikit-applied sealing foam to protect her wounds from opening in the middle of a battle, and some bandages for good measure, Defcon was perfectly happy to go and got temporarily discharged from the infirmary after just thirty minutes. She was tough, as every Spartan needed to be.
They made their way to the armory and quickly geared up for battle, having done this routine dozens of times already. Defcon changed separately from the others, being the only woman in the group, and the men simply followed the unspoken rules of visual privacy as they donned their kevlar. Eagle grabbed his assigned weapon―the exotic bolt caster―from the weapon rack. Unlike XCOM's standard firearms, the bolt caster was a sleek and aesthetically impressive gun made from a wood-like material and polished metal of a previously undiscovered composition. The power that the weapon boasted was unmatched, with the tradeoff being that it could only hold one round at a time and had to be reloaded after every shot. Eagle was something of a gun nut, and even though this special firearm could not be customized he still loved its raw stopping power; it had gotten the Spartans out of many sticky situations in the past.
Ghost had a pseudo-flintlock pistol of visually similar design, also one-of-a-kind, that was sighted-in so that it was nearly impossible to miss. He also carried his customized sniper rifle, the Wraith. With an enhanced long-range scope and an added auto-loader, the Wraith was a work of art in weapon form. Many ADVENT soldiers had met their end by this gun, and Ghost had a reputation for his accuracy; he never missed a shot. Using their newly-developed smart rounds, this record was sure to hold for quite some time. Though he often worked with much shorter ranges than was intended for such a high-caliber rifle, decades of experience and countless do-or-die situations had turned this obstacle into yet another achievement that made him the best. The sharpshooter had witnessed many things through the sights of his rifle; things that had changed him over the years, yet never broke him. Ghost had come to terms with his reality, refusing to grow numb to the horrors of war, yet unfazed by the bloodshed.
Finally, Leonidas retrieved his own armaments. He slid twin axes into place on his back. These were yet another means of killing that XCOM could not replicate. The delicate yet wicked curve of the razor-sharp blade was impossible to copy, and the materials used were unknown to even their best engineers and scientists. The cache in which these weapons were found had been hidden from ADVENT, yet it had seemed like whoever had placed them had seemingly done so with the intent of someone using them against the alien oppressors. A mystery, to be sure, but one that Leonidas did not question very much; he and his team now had masterfully-crafted tools of death. His other weapon was his shotgun, aptly named "Killforge". The customized pump-action had been modified by an old friend of his so that a shorter draw was required to chamber a shell, helping its wielder get shots off rapidly. The same friend had also designed a forearm-mounted shell caddy that, when he flicked his wrist down, would deposit a shell in his hand for greatly reduced reload time until the caddy was empty. Finally, instead of regular munitions, Leonidas carried incendiary rounds designed to burn targets on impact.
Defcon met them outside, carrying her own custom weapons. The woman's cannon bore no name but was equipped with both extended magazines and an auto-loader, allowing the wielder to go far longer without needing to take much time to reload. This was for the best since the operative tended to burn through ammunition at an alarming rate in order to shred her enemies. On her back, Defcon had a grenade launcher that housed her own unique weapon that finished the set: explosive ordnance that could instantly freeze anything within their small blast radius. Unlike any of the other exotic weapons, these bombs, affectionately referred to as "ice-o-boomers" by the gunner, could be replicated, but only at a rate that could support a single soldier's usage from mission to mission.
They were the Spartans: XCOM's most versatile and elite strike team as of the present day. The best of the best that the Commander had at his disposal, and entrusted with the organization's most valuable weaponry. No other team excelled at killing aliens as well as the Spartans did. And now they were going to rescue one.
...
As the door to the prison truck flew open, she was blinded by the pale synthetic light of the streetlights. Coiled in the back of the vehicle and pressed against the wall, the viper squinted as her eyes adjusted to the light to make out the shape of a human male. Her vision was slightly clouded; after nearly three hours since the attack on the village, she was still suffering from the effects of a mild concussion. She had spent the entire time sitting in this truck, unable to see the outside world or even move around, having been unceremoniously restrained via a wall-mounted chain ending in a cuff around her wrist. The reptilian rebel had felt the vehicle moving when they were in transit, but it had seemed much longer than four hours since she had seen another living being.
The man approached her, asking, "Can you understand me?" She nodded, and he approached, drawing one of the blades on his back as he continued: "Good. Hold still."
The viper barely had time to flinch away as the axe flashed through the air, slicing cleanly through the chain. She threw up her arms defensively, even though it would do next to nothing if the human actually attacked her. He took advantage of this, swiping at the cuff on the viper's wrist and breaking it, stopping with mechanical precision to avoid cutting her arm.
"We're getting out of here," he said, offering her a hand, "Come with me."
"And then what happens?" The serpent hissed warily. She recognized this human as the warrior from the village who had spared her; his scent was unlike that of any other human she had ever met. While the viper was glad that he was once again helping her, it was now becoming awfully suspicious.
"You live to see another day," He answered firmly, "I'm with XCOM, and if we wanted you dead, I would have killed you in that village. Can you walk―er, slither?"
The serpent took his hand, and the soldier pulled her to a standing position as she steadied herself. "I will not require assistance to move," she answered, "But I have no means of defending myself except for my natural abilities. I am in no position to make demands, but do you have a weapon that I could use?"
"No," the human said gruffly, "If I'm getting shot, it won't be in the back. Just keep your head down, do as I say, and we'll get you out of here in one piece."
Her savior stepped out of the truck, looking around quickly before dashing away and gesturing for her to do the same. The serpent slithered after him, having an unusually difficult time keeping up. Normally, the viper would be faster than a human, but this one managed to carry himself forward at an even greater speed. The XCOM operative slid down into a crouch behind the concrete dividers on the road, and she followed suit. A dropship flew in a moment later, dropping off a MEC, a Trooper, and...
"A Purifier!?" she hissed in bewilderment. The flamethrower-toting Trooper looked over to the source of the sound, and her human companion grabbed her to shove her down below their cover.
"You wanna get your face melted!?" he growled in a harsh whisper, "They clearly don't like what we're doing here. We need to get to extraction ASAP." The XCOM operative pointed to the top of a nearby three-story building. When he looked to her for acknowledgment, she nodded quickly. He put a finger to his ear, "Spartans, go loud!"
The familiar crack of a sniper rifle sounded, and the ADVENT Trooper was thrown over the side of the elevated road as the shot hit him in the chest. He screamed as he fell to the ground below, his death accelerated by his impact with the pavement. The tall building behind them, located across the road from the extraction point, was where the sniper had found his perch. Before the enemy could react, a metal bolt streaked through the night air to hit the MEC with extreme force. It staggered from the impact against its chassis but remained standing. She heard the shooter curse audibly, but the viper saw that the machine was nearly destroyed. A weapon that fired such projectiles must have been very powerful indeed to do that much damage with a single shot.
A grenade flew overhead, landing between the Purifier and the automaton before exploding into a small cloud, snap-freezing both enemies. The viper had never seen such an instrument before, but then again, the same was true of the powerful rifle that had nearly destroyed the MEC in a single shot, and the delicate yet intimidating axes of the human beside her. The serpent watched as her rescuer rose above their cover and aimed his shotgun in one fluid motion, firing at the Purifier and scoring a hit on the unit's fuel reservoir, causing it to erupt violently. The explosion incinerated the Purifier and finished off the weakened MEC.
"You are... very adept with that weapon," the viper commented, suddenly aware of how close she had come to meeting a similarly grisly fate just a few hours prior.
"I'd be dead if I wasn't," the soldier responded matter-of-factly, "Now let's get the Hell out of here before their friends show up."
They dashed toward the designated building, and a sectoid leapt out at them in an effort to halt their escape. It attempted to control the human, but he shook off the psi-attack with an angered grunt and kept running, slashing one axe across the alien's chest as he passed, decisively killing it without breaking stride. The serpent found herself appreciating the level-headed efficiency that this warrior displayed. As the duo reached the base of the building, he gestured for her to climb. She slithered easily up the gutters, reaching the top of the structure in moments. Another dropship flew overhead, and she heard the human curse angrily.
The woman with the large cannon and the man with the drone sprinted down the road towards the building where she stood. Out of the corner of her eye, the viper saw that the sniper was on the move as well, repositioning himself on his own rooftop in order to be closer to the objective. The dropship deployed a Captain, another Trooper, and another MEC near the base of her tower, and she reasoned that they were trying to recapture her. A moment later, the familiar transport from the village swooped in, dropping a rope for her to use.
"Get out of here!" the man with the axes shouted up to her, "We'll be right behind you!"
She shook her head, spitting venom like a projectile at the Captain as she took cover by the railing. The toxin did minimal damage, but her point was made regardless. "I will stay and fight," the former prisoner called back, "I will help!" The transport hovered for a moment, then was forced to retreat as the Captain began to shoot at it.
The sniper picked off the weakened Captain, apparently on-board with her plan. He was certainly a skilled marksman, that much was for sure. The heavy gunner sent a volley of shots at the MEC, weakening it. The man with the drone had to reload his weapon and was unable to assist. Her savior, though, had apparently had quite enough. He hurled one axe at the Trooper, killing it as the blade embedded itself in their ribcage, and sprinted forward. The rebel fighter then used the dying enemy to vault into the air, leaping off of their collapsing body with one foot while retrieving his axe with his free hand, his other hand already holding his second blade. As the warrior descended on the MEC, he swung one axe straight down into its head, combining his strength and momentum to nearly cleave the appendage in half. This, combined with the damage done by the heavy gunner's barrage, was enough to destroy the mechanical combatant.
The other three warriors scaled the exterior of the building and took cover by the railings, similarly to the viper. The sniper took up position beside her, his eyes sweeping the ground below for signs of any more trouble. He didn't even acknowledge her, instead focusing on the task at hand. Her savior soon reached the rooftop as well. Moments later, the transport came in once again and dropped five ropes rather than four. The man with the axes motioned for her to extract.
"I will remain as you do," she insisted, "I am not a helpless damsel in distress."
He sighed, motioning for the others to extract instead. The heavy gunner went first, then the man with the drone. The sniper cast her a sideways glance, his blue face paint resembling the ghostly upper half of a human skull. This drew the viper's attention to his eyes; they held a sort of approval, yet were sharp like a knife. The sharpshooter took one final look at the battlefield, as if as a precaution, then moved to grab his rope and was whisked away into the transport ship. Then it was just the viper and her two-time rescuer.
Once again, he motioned for her to take a rope. This time, the soldier was far more forceful in his gesture, telling her firmly: "I always go up last. You extract now, or I'll knock you out and carry you up there; I need to make sure that you won't try anything."
The viper noticed that he was clutching an axe tightly in one hand, probably making ready to use it should she attempt such a thing. She obeyed, wrapping her tail tightly around one of the two remaining ropes and grasping it with both hands as the cord was pulled up into the transport. The human quickly followed her up and guided her to an empty seat. She sat down silently and made herself as small as possible, seeking to make a good first impression now that they had escaped the battle. He gave her an approving nod, taking a seat across the aisle from her.
The sniper was seated beside her, a large rifle set upright on the floor between his knees barrel-up. He had his back pressed against the back of the seat, but something told her that this was not unusual. The man stared forward blankly, as if sitting next to a viper was perfectly normal for him. Then, without moving his head, he looked over at her.
"So what's your story?" He asked simply, showing no sign of malice or ill intent. His voice was low and slightly gravely, signifying years of hard experience. The human also had a British accent that would be rather charming if not for his icy demeanor. He did not move as he spoke to her, remaining completely still but for his subtle breathing and the obvious motions required to speak. Presently, the human continued to look expectantly at her.
The viper inhaled, looking around at the others, who were also looking back at her and waiting for an answer. The man with the axes appeared more relaxed about it than his allies, simply gesturing for her to go ahead. And so she explained to them how she was somehow free of the Elders' control that gripped her sisters and was able to think for herself. The serpent described how she had been horrified by ADVENT's actions in the village earlier that day, and how it had been her first actual mission. She had never suspected that ADVENT would have lied to humanity until she saw them gunning down unarmed civilians who had not been hurting anything. The alien then admitted to her desire to join XCOM and the Resistance, wishing to help bring an end to the lies and unjust suffering of humanity.
As the rebel serpent finished her explanation, she looked around at the four humans. The man with the drone was nodding slowly and had that peculiar frown that she had seen some humans use that actually meant approval. The woman, who she noted to have much darker skin and hair than her allies, was smiling sympathetically at her. The sniper showed no facial reaction, instead looking at the ranger with a question in his eyes. He moved his hand, resting on his leg, so that it was clenched into a fist with the thumb raised into the air.
The other human mirrored the gesture, turning to look at the viper. "I think I might be responsible for your new freedom," he said almost apologetically, "If you remember, I gave you a pretty good wallop with my gun to your head. I might have knocked something loose enough for you to be free of the Elders' influence, but I'm guessing that you would've rather undergone a less painful way of doing that."
The viper looked at him curiously, "It was painful and unpleasant, but I must thank you regardless, human. I would much rather suffer a temporary trauma to my head than remain under my former masters' control." She paused, then added, "And I must apologize if I do not make sense when I speak. I do not understand your language as thoroughly as you do."
The man with the strange rifle shrugged, "You're speaking more fluently than some humans with English as their native language. I wouldn't worry about it."
"He's right," the sniper said, looking at her without moving his head again, "Even though you might not display perfect grammar, you seem to have a firm enough grasp on what our words mean."
"And you have a rich vocabulary," the ranger complimented her, "That's something we can all appreciate, I think. Speaking of... well, speaking, you have a name?"
"No," she said sadly, "We are not given names, and I wish to forget my designation number."
He nodded, "Alright. The Commander will set you up with a name when we get back, among other things."
"Th-the Commander!?" The serpent stammered, "I-I am to meet the Commander!?" The man with the drone and the woman laughed, while the sniper simply grinned. The man with the axes did not react, though he might have cracked a smile beneath his mask―she could not tell.
"Of course," the ranger explained, ignoring the reactions of his teammates, "All new recruits are initiated personally by the Commander. Even if that weren't the case, I guarantee that he's gonna want to meet you. This whole thing was his idea, after all."
...
Sitting in the lounge with several other crewmembers, Leonidas pored over a book about a man's journey to a distant planet. The book described said man's encounters with different alien races, some peaceful and some warlike, and his efforts to help the peaceful races defend themselves from their oppressors. Quite a simple plot, but it was enough to keep the ranger occupied. The man in the story ended up falling in love with one of the aliens and was currently fighting to defend that bond.
It reminded Leonidas of the fact that they had just recruited a viper into their ranks. While such intimacy as was in the book was not something that he compared to reality, he did compare it to the fact that they were effectively befriending an alien. XCOM would no doubt have to fight on an entirely new front in order to keep that alliance out of ADVENT's clutches.
It had been several hours since the Spartans had returned from their rescue mission, giving the viper time to rest before being brought into the fold. As Leonidas understood it, her first introductions had begun only a few minutes ago. Word traveled fast aboard the Avenger.
The door to the lounge opened, and the Commander walked in. He was closely followed by the serpent, who was smiling nervously and holding her hands together shyly in front of her. She was wearing a modified jumpsuit like the ones that the crew wore, except it ended below her abdomen with a skirt to accommodate her tail, rather than legs. Leonidas found himself reflecting on how much the sight contrasted that of the vipers he had faced in the field. Seeing no one else reacting, he rose to his feet and snapped off a crisp salute. "Sir!" he barked, prompting the other soldiers in the lounge to do the same.
"As you were, everyone," the Commander said evenly. The crewmates returned to their activities but kept their attention trained on him. Seeing this, he wasted no time in speaking. "Soldiers," he projected his voice clearly so that everyone could hear him, "This is Alia. She will be joining XCOM in the war against ADVENT." With these words, the Commander stepped aside and gestured to the viper, who nervously held up a hand in greeting. He continued, "Alia is one of us now, and she will be treated as such. Anyone treats her any differently, and you'll answer to me. Understood?"
"Understood, Commander," everyone said back. Leonidas questioned how many of them actually meant it.
The Commander nodded, satisfied, "Good. She will be tested today to see which squad she will be joining, so you'd better learn to get along; your squad might just be the lucky winner. That will be all." He exited, leaving Alia to face a room full of XCOM soldiers.
Taking the initiative and seeking to prevent anyone from acting out, Leonidas rose from his seat and strode over to the newly named viper, extending a hand. "You know me," he said, speaking just loudly enough for everyone to hear him, "But we haven't been properly introduced. I'm Leonidas, leader of Spartan Squad. It's good to finally have a name to know you by, Alia."
She shook his hand, obviously grateful to have a friendly face amongst the crew, "It is nice to know your name as well, Leonidas. I thank you for this chance to join XCOM and correct the misdeeds of my former allies."
He escorted her around the lounge, standing sentry while she introduced herself to the various crewmembers. Whenever someone had a look that said that they wanted to try something stupid, Leonidas would give them a murderous, narrow-eyed stare to deter them. Everyone knew that he was the Commander's most trusted soldier, barring Central, and that he would follow his orders to the letter. When XCOM's leader had said that they would answer to him, he had really meant that they would answer to Leonidas.
When the introductions had concluded, the Spartan leader sat back down in his chair and motioned Alia to take a seat as well. There were a few open chairs yet, and they did not belong to anyone. She sat politely, clearly unsure of how to act. The ranger sighed, putting down his book again as he explained that she was no longer a guest aboard the Avenger. The serpent was now a resident and a fellow operative―this was her home now, too. This made her relax a bit, but then the viper cocked her head at him curiously. He raised an eyebrow, silently inviting her to ask her question.
"You do not look at me when you speak," she said plainly, "Have I done anything to merit your distaste?" A few people snickered, whispering to each other. Leonidas knew that she was simply confused.
"I don't like eye contact," he explained cooly, "It makes me uncomfortable. Nothing personal―I'm that way with everyone."
The alien recruit nodded, accepting this explanation and relaxing. It was no big deal for Leonidas; this was something that everyone already knew. He had never tried to keep it a secret that he naturally avoided eye contact. The Spartan went to pick up his book again, then had an idea and looked back at Alia.
The viper noticed this and listened attentively as he spoke. "Do you know what our different teams are?" he asked, and Alia shook her head. "If you're going to be placed in one," Leonidas explained, "You should know how they work. It's pretty simple, really. First, you have the Rhinos, our loud-and-proud assault team. They handle anything that needs raw firepower and little else, which is more often than you might expect. They're the Commander's hammer. Three grenadiers, a specialist, and a SPARK unit make up Rhino Squad as of right now. Then there are the Jackals, the stealthy precision team. Invisible assassins who take care of anything that needs to be done quickly and quietly. They're the Commander's dagger. Two rangers, two snipers, and a specialist make up Jackal Squad. Those two teams are polar opposites on purpose, in case you were wondering."
"What about you?" Alia asked as he finished, "What about your team?"
The door opened, and a young woman walked into the lounge wearing a broad grin. She was tailed by Ghost, who went to lean silently against the far wall. "The Spartans," the girl said proudly, "are only the best team that the Commander has on hand!"
Leonidas chuckled softly, "Alia, meet Robin: the latest addition to Spartan Squad. You didn't see her before since she was still in the infirmary. Took more than a few bad shots on a mission, she did, but our little girl is nothing if not resilient."
The viper nodded, greeting Robin before turning back to him, "What about the other woman? The one with the cannon? I saw her sustain heavy injuries in the village, yet she was there when you rescued me."
"Ooh!" Robin chirped, "Leonidas is someone's knight in shining armor?"
He held up a hand to silence her, "To answer your question, Alia, it's because Defcon's injuries were not nearly as severe, and she had not only regained consciousness by then, but had recovered mentally to the point where she could fight. The Commander wanted all available Spartans to be on that mission. Plus, I'm pretty sure that we would've had to sedate her to leave her behind; she was set firmly on going. Defcon and I are both reasonably insane like that; we can work through nearly any wounds with a little bit of morphine and a medikit. She's back in the infirmary now."
Alia gestured to Robin, "Why was she not there?"
The Spartan officer leaned back, letting the young woman speak for herself. She sighed, "I still have a day or two before I'm cleared for duty again; I'm allowed to walk around the Avenger, but the folks in the infirmary want to make sure I healed properly before sending me out on a mission. The Commander thinks that I'm not experienced enough to go out with the others for an all-hands order. I'm not a real Spartan yet, so I don't count for that kind of thing."
"But you'll do us proud," Ghost said from his position against the wall, his fatherly side emerging now that they were on the Avenger, "Even the mightiest of birds had to start as a hatchling. Just look at Eagle."
"Thanks, Dad," Robin said sarcastically.
The serpent looked quickly to Leonidas, who chuckled, "No, he's not her actual father."
"Don't even have kids," the sniper added with a grin of his own, "I already have this lot to take care of."
"But to digress back to your original question," Leonidas said as he leaned forward again, "Robin is correct. The Spartans are the ones who take the jobs that require a certain finesse. We're able to do everything the other teams can and more, though they can do their specific jobs better than we can. We're the Commander's broadsword, to complete my little medieval weapons analogy."
"How is my squad chosen?" Alia asked, "From what the Commander said, I believe he will choose on my behalf?"
He nodded, "Based on your abilities, he'll determine which team is the best fit for you. I'll be blunt here: you're a viper, and that means you won't exactly be welcomed with open arms into most places in XCOM. Squads will be no exception, so be ready for a hard reception."
"What about the five of you?" she cocked her head at him, "You appear to be welcoming me very kindly."
"That's because we've seen more crazy shit than anyone else," Ghost interjected, "And Robin's always ready to make new friends."
"The Commander trusts you," Leonidas elaborated, "And we trust him. Ghost is right: we've seen enough shit to know that the Commander always has a plan. And of the Spartans, Ghost knows this best. He was with the man twenty years ago, back when Earth was initially invaded."
The door opened, and the Commander stepped into the lounge. "Speak of the Devil," Ghost quipped softly.
"Alia," the man said in his usual firm yet level tone, "We're ready to start testing you. Come with me to get geared up."