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Project: Shadow Spartan, Chapter 2
Posted By: Agent Shade<silent_shadow13@hotmail.com>
Date: 13 July 2003, 4:31 AM
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Military Outpost Gamma-Twelve was the last pocket of military resistance on Regal V. Since the recent rebellion by the Spartan-IIIs, security was beefed up all over the complex and they kept on receiving more and more survivors from other military outposts that had been attacked and destroyed by the Spartans.
Major Kyle Drayman stood in the control tower that overlooked the outpost. The design was very simple. A square shaped perimeter that was made out of ten foot tall Titanium-AC battle armor surrounded the inner complex. There were platforms that were set up on the wall, allowing marine snipers and rocket jockeys to perch themselves and pick off an enemy coming at them. There was also automated drone turrets positioned a few feet away from each other along the wall. The turrets were protected by a blast shield, which could deflect a 102mm rocket, fired from a Jackhammer. Inside the complex, a system of bunkers and trenches had been set up, along with more automated drone turrets and man-portable rocket launchers and turrets. They also had a small group of M12 LRVs (Warthogs) and a single M808B Scorpion tank positioned inside. The Major felt they were ready, but he also knew that victory was unlikely, which was why he had thirty Pelican dropships on standby, positioned in the mountains that overlooked the outpost from the south. There was nowhere to hide. It was either victory, or the planet would belong to the Spartans.
Major Drayman scanned the surrounding vegetation. The outpost was positioned in a rocky desert, however, they was the odd positioned cluster of trees and bushes, which pissed the Major off. He lowered his binoculars and then watched the rolling thunder clouds approach.
"Perfect" he muttered to himself. He turned on his heel and walked among the rows of computer consoles, all operated by technicians. He could tell they were nervous. Shaking hands, sweat on the forehead, constant staring around the room, but like always, he expected this and choose to ignore it, for the moment.
"Status" he questioned. A nearby technician looked up.
"Everyone's in position sir. We've planted fifteen Hellcat mines in the rocks and trees, and our marine snipers report no movement" he said quickly. Drayman nodded. He should be happy that there was no movement, but he knew that the Spartans were out there.
"Keep everyone at full alert" he ordered. He received a few "aye sirs" but not a lot, which worried Drayman, as he stood near the window again. Beside him, Drayman's right hand man, Lieutenant Commander Hank Anural looked at him.
"What do you feel sir?" he questioned. Drayman lowered his head.
"They are out there Hank, I know it, and I just wish I could see them and kill them before they kill everyone in this base" he whispered.
"How do you know they will kill everyone?"
"Oh come now Hank, you've read the reports. These guys marched through three military outposts and four stationed base camps, without a single casualty. They moved so fast, but that was because they were unprepared. We are prepared and we know what we are up against. We will have a some what of a better chance then all the others who have died" he said. Hank nodded.
Spartan-241; Matt looked beside him at his leader, Josh.
"Got a lock" he said.
"Take it"
Hank Anural turned to walk away, when a bullet, fired from the bushes nearby, flew straight through the glass and punctured Hank's head. Major Drayman felt a spray of blood and brains hit him, before he turned and watched his headless friend fall to the floor. He quickly ducked and rolled as two more bullets came flying through the glass.
"Shit! Open fire into the trees!" he yelled.
Gunnery Sergeant Abe Johnson stood on the wall platform with a group of five marine rocket jockeys. He was crouched low, scanning the vegetation around him with a M6D pistol. Sadly, the 2x scope didn't help much, so he put it away.
"Anyone see where the fuck that shot came from?" he questioned his marines around him. No one answered. As Abe brought his M 19 SSM rocket launcher up, his radio earpiece in his left ear began to static and beep. Finally, a single frantic voice entered his ear.
"Fire at will! All forces fire at will!" Abe nodded.
"Fire at will!" he roared. Abe however didn't know what they were shooting at, so he fired his first two rockets into the clusters of trees and bushes nearest to them, as did most of his men. He reloaded, and then fired two more into the vegetation behind the burning ones. He fired an additional two more rounds, before he stopped and listened.
The wind had picked up speed and thunder boomed in the distance. Slowly, it was beginning to darken around them, but Abe kept his eyes peeled. Suddenly, the ground surrounding the base camp exploded.
"Shit! Get down!" yelled a marine Sergeant near Abe. Johnson dropped to the ground, shaking his head.
"Clever bastards" he murmured.
"We're being attacked! Oh my god, we're gonna die!" screamed a PFC.
"Shut up private, it's just our anti-tank mines going off" screamed Abe at the man, who fell silent.
"Who did they see them?" asked Corporal Strider, crouching beside Abe. The Sergeant shook his head.
"I have no clue" he said.
"Sirs! Movement all around us!" screamed another PFC. Abe looked up over the wall, and sure enough, could see green-armored figures running around.
"Fire!" he yelled, bringing up his Jackhammer. He and his team each fired off two rounds, but not a single Spartan went down. They reloaded and fired again, but received the same results.
"They're too fast Sarge!" yelled Strider.
"I know, just keep firing!" They kept up their onslaught for an additional five minutes, before their ammunition was out. The Spartans realized this and moved up. Corporal Strider took a bullet to his chest and fell back off the platform. Johnson grabbed a nearby MA5B assault rifle and began firing at the approaching behemoths. Around him, his marines did the same; however, Spartan snipers in the area picked many of them off. Two Privates were taken out by one bullet. A Corporal screamed and fell back as his arm was blow off. Abe slammed his last clip of 7.62 armor piercing bullets into his AR and fired a sustained three round burst. He could see a shimmer of energy in front of him and a Spartan retreated backwards slightly. I hit one, oh my god, I hit one, he thought to himself, before he finished off his clip. Abe tossed the AR aside, drew his pistol, when suddenly, bullets flew at him. Abe was about to get down, when four rounds caught him in the chest and shoulders. Johnson grunted, fell backwards, and flew off the platform. He hit the ground below, hard and groaned with pain. Blood flew from his wounds, but he stood and staggered over to a bunker.
It was chaos all over the place, but Major Drayman was content. So far, the wall hadn't been breached. Sadly, he thought this too soon...
Spartan-224; Sandra, handed Josh a remote detonator.
"Mission complete sir, C-12 explosives planted at the base of wall junction a-5" she said.
"Good, everyone, get ready to enter the base" he yelled, pressing the detonation switch. Two tones of non-nuclear explosives detonated, blowing a six meter gap into the wall. The marines who had been positioned around that wall, where either vaporized or blasted off the planet. Bodies rained down upon the ground, as did wreckage.
"Move!" Josh ordered. The Spartans moved quickly, surrounding the hole and firing off rounds at the marines inside.
"Sir, they've got more of those drone turrets and smaller portable ones. The ammo just tears away at the armor" reported Spartan-230; James.
"Fire off quick bursts as suppression fire. Use fragmentation grenades. Let's get some Jackhammers over here people" yelled Josh. While a small group of Spartans did their best to keep the marines occupied, a larger group of Spartans moved farther to the left and began to climb the wall. They reached the platform, completely unnoticed and began to man the drone turrets. Josh received confirmation that they were ready, and then gave the order.
Eight of the marine's drone turrets began spilling thousands of bullets onto them. Bullets struck the ground around the defenses like geysers, ripping apart humans and destroying vital equipment. As the marine defense forces turned to target the drone turrets, five 102mm rocket shells flew from the gap hole and smashed into a line of bunkers blocking their way. Bodies flew out in pieces, blood splashed on the ground. Small groups of marines retreated, but the Spartans charged inside.
"They've breached the wall sir, they're moving inside" yelled a tech, looking up from his data console. Drayman already knew it though. He watched the wave of armored figures sprint in, firing off deadly accurate rounds at marines trying to hold their position.
"Looking pretty bad down here sir" came the voice of ground commander, Lieutenant Ted Anderson.
"Agreed, do your best to hold out Anderson, I'm sending the Pelicans to come and pick us up" he replied.
"Roger." Drayman turned to his techs.
"Get those Pelicans over here on the double, we need immediate evac" he said quickly. The response was fast and another tech reported the Pelicans were on the way. Drayman nodded, and then continued to watch his losing battle.
Abe fired the last of his assault rifle rounds at a Spartan to his left. He cursed as the bullets flew past the blur of a Spartan. Johnson stood up, running off to a final line of defense the marines had established. As he did, more bullets flew over his head, but the Sergeant ran fast, doing his best to avoid them all. His wounds were still bleeding and by the amount of dizziness that had overcome him, Abe knew that he had lost a lot of blood. However, he sucked it up and crouched beside two marine snipers. However, as he turned to fire his AR again, both snipers' heads exploded, courtesy of Spartan snipers on the wall. Abe roared in anger, and began firing at the Spartans around him, hitting a few. He reloaded, fired again, reloaded and fired for the last time. He tossed the AR aside, then staggered to get up, but couldn't. His entire body was going numb.
"No, not yet" he growled. However, before he could fight off the waves of nausea, a fragmentation grenade bounced on a rock, landed on his back, rolled off and hit the ground beside him. Abe looked at it.
"No way..." he whispered. The grenade detonated and Abe began a corpse on the ground, just like his fellow marines.
This battle was in the bag and Josh knew it. He watched his Spartans surround the final perimeter of bunkers and trenches, killing any marine who attempted to fire his/her gun. Josh had been worried at first about this battle. He knew that the marines here knew that they were coming and would be prepared; however, he knew they wouldn't be prepared very well. Josh was about to grin triumphantly, when the rumble of movement made him stop.
A Scorpion tank appeared from behind a corner of the base, fully armed, and being escorted by four Warthogs. The chain guns on the back of the 'Hogs began turning, letting loose millions of bullets on his Spartans. The Scorpion tank fired at the bunkers and trenches, destroying them, the marines inside and wounding the Spartans around it. Josh rushed forward, tossing a frag grenade on the ground near him. A Warthog came at him, but he dived quickly to the left, just as the grenade detonated, sending the Warthog flying backwards, and its occupants around it. A marine landed beside Josh, who struck out with his fist, making contact with the man's face. The marine fell to his knees, stood, but Josh kicked him in the face again, snapping his neck back and killing the marine. He picked up the Jackhammer the marine had been holding, then targeted the Scorpion tank, which had five of his Spartans pinned down. He fired off one round, which hit the treads of the tank. He rushed forward, smashing his boot into a wounded marine's face, and then fired another round. This one struck the hatches which held both the pilot and the gunner. The Scorpion stopped moving and the pinned down Spartans moved out, firing at a Warthog.
Josh watched another Warthog approach him. He took out his pistol and fired two bullets at the front tire, which exploded, tipping the Warthog over completely. The vehicle skidded along the ground, crushing the driver. The gunner and passenger bailed, and targeted Josh who fired an additional four rounds from his pistol, blowing off both of the marines heads.
"Sir, Pelican dropships inbound" said a technician. Major Drayman nodded.
"Okay, all of you, out of the control room and into the dropships now" he yelled. The techs didn't need to be told twice and moved quickly out. Drayman then grabbed a nearby radio.
"Lieutenant Anderson, get your people out of there, pick up is here" he said.
"Sir, this is Master Sergeant Owens. Anderson is dead, I am in charge and I am staying here to keep the Spartans away from those dropships, out." Drayman stared at the radio for a second, before turning and saluting the battlefield below. He then made a beeline for the exit, just as two Jackhammer rounds smashed into the control room, detonated the computers.
Josh watched the last Warthog exploded in a ball of flame, thanks to the rocket that smashed right into it. The occupants were already dead. The last of the marines had converged inside the structure.
"What is this, cat and mouse?" said Josh to Spartan-234; Ian, Josh's second in command. Ian merely shook his head and used his pistol to kill three marines rushing for the entrance. A roar of engines could be heard and Josh feared a Longsword was inbound with napalm bombs for them. It wasn't, and to Josh, it was much worse.
Thirty Pelican dropships, all which had been positioned near the back of the base, took off into the air and headed out to space.
"Fuck, take them down!" roared Josh. Seven 102mm rockets flew up at them, however, only one Pelican exploded, and another was wounded. The others all escaped. Josh's anger rose and he threw a grenade into the air in anger. The Spartans around him stood silently and watched their leader storm about pissed off. Josh decided to forget it for the time being and concentrate on the matter at hand.
"Those marines must die, let's go get them" he said, breathing in deeply. The Spartans charged inside and hunted out the last of the military resistance on Regal V.
Major Drayman stared out a small window on the Pelican he sat in and watched his military base become nothing but a floating planet in space. He sighed, and then watched the Pelican towards three UNSC ships, which was all that remained of the space fleet. Regal V now belongs to them thought Drayman.
"Concentrate on your opponent's movements, feel what he or she is going to do" John said to his son. Samuel was out of the MJOLNIR-X armor and dueling it out with John. The two of them circled each other, fists up and eyes trained on each other. John made the first move and faked a punch to his Sam's head, then moved in with an uppercut to his stomach. Sam rolled to the side, grabbing John's arm and using it as a base for him to spin into the air, and kick at John's head. John lowered his head, but was brought down by Sam as he still held onto John's arm. However, the ex-Spartan was quick to get up and he was all over Sam with punches and kicks. Their movements were blurred as John punched and Sam blocked. Suddenly, the tables turned and Sam struck out with his fist, catching John in the chest. John staggered back, and then received to additional punches to his chest and stomach, followed by another to his face. John flipped over in the air and landed on the ground.
"I think he's done" called Cortana from the other side of the room. John grinned, and then accepted Sam's hand, who pulled him up easily.
"That was much better. You read my mind perfectly and matched yourself up with my movements. I believe your training in the martial arts is complete. We just have one more thing to do and that is, your swords" said John. Sam nodded.
"John, a moment?" said Cortana, who appeared on a desk near John. Sam walked over to the weapons and began to practice with a MA5B assault rifle. John walked over to Cortana, whose face was grim.
"What is it?" he asked.
"Its Vice Admiral Jameson on the line" she said. John's brow furrowed and he looked at the small holographic video screen that appeared beside Cortana. Jameson's worried expression filled the screen.
"Hello John" he said. John saluted.
"Admiral Jameson, sir, I did not expect you to be calling" he said.
"I know, but this is important and it's bad. The Spartans have control over Regal V. Military Outpost Gamma Twelve was destroyed this morning. It was our last pocket of military resistance down there. We need that Shadow Spartan John, or the Spartans will continue their reign of chaos" he said. The news struck John like one of Sam's punches, except deeper on an emotional level. He nodded.
"Yes sir, he will be ready in two days" said John.
"Good, I was hoping it would be that soon. Keep in touch. Jameson out." And with that, the Admiral's face disappeared, leaving John alone with his thoughts. Cortana looked at him.
"Hey, you okay?" she asked. John shook his head and looked at Sam, who was firing off perfect bursts of ammo at a target.
"Sam!" yelled John. His son put the weapon and stood at attention.
"Come on, we must hurry" he said. Sam looked confused.
"Hurry? You said I have another week to train" he said.
"It's been shortened to two days I'm afraid" John said gravely. Sam's eyes widened.
"What's happened?" he asked. John sighed deeply.
"The Spartans took control of Regal V this morning; there is no UNSC military resistance on that planet. They need you sooner than a week" John explained quickly. Sam's gaze fell to the floor.
"Mom?" he asked. John knew how Sam felt, since he felt the same way.
"She's fine Sam, on the other side of the planet, but we need to hurry" he said. Sam looked up and nodded.
"Yes sir" he said. John escorted Sam over to the MJOLNIR-X armor which hung on the wall. He helped Sam in, and then assisted him with the blades. As practice, Sam put his hands on the hilts of the blades and pulled them out, twirling them each one at the same time, then sheathing them. He did this a few times, before John raised his own two practice swords and looked Sam in the eye.
"Time to learn a version of fighting, much like Kendo, except using swords that require one hand"
TO BE CONTINUED
By: Agent Shade
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