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Ghosts of Onyx: GLADIUS
Posted By: ghost4231<ghost4231@hotmail.com>
Date: 19 December 2008, 7:02 pm
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0653 HOURS, OCTOBER 31,2552 (MILITARY CALENDAR)
ZETA DORADUS SYSTEM, NEAR ZONE 67, PLANET ONYX
Team Gladius crept through the forest, their SPI armor camouflage shifting to mimic its surroundings.
Top honors. SPARTAN-G043, Jack struggled to keep his team by the top for the last three years. That meant soaking up every lesson and teaching Endless Summer had for them, thinking, acting and moving together as a single precise unit. Gladius was toe to toe with Teams Katana and Saber. Top honors would show that they were the best. That they had won.
A sharp bang resonated through the jungle, vibrations rang through their ears.
Team Gladius fell into a prone position, Jack readied his MA5K, the cut down version of the MA5B assault rifle.
"Ouch." SPARTAN-G047, Scott murmured. "That was pretty big bang, not really something you could pull together from a bunch of flash-bangs and a few twigs..."
"A spot of artillery, maybe." SPARTAN-G058, Mitch snorted. "Maybe the commander having his fun with those new four-forties."
"Doubt it," Jack whispered, "the commander wouldn't use artillery on us, nor would he allow such ordinance to be tested that close to us."
"Mendez?" Mitch muttered, "he's probably playing with us, this is the last test."
SPARTAN-G073, Nick, pointed towards the triple perimeter fencing of Zone 67 and into the area beyond it. "Look, in the distance... Check it."
About three kilometers into Zone 67, a swirl of sand, a curtain of smoke... and fire.
Far into the Zone there was an explosion. A distant mesa exploded into a cloud of quartz dust, rock and flame.
Black dots flew about around the edge of the fading cloud of dust. Jack spied on them through his visor's optical magnification.
They weren't any sort of UNSC fliers, nor were they Covenant Banshees. They looked unmanned, no cockpit, no visible thrusters.
"Eh, what the hell is that?" SPARTAN-G053, Austin said. "Those aren't ours."
Jack observed as heavy machine guns hammered at the craft. A shimmering protective film winked into existence which the rounds hit--and bounced off.
"They're here..." Scott's voice trailed off.
"Mitch, track those... drones. Nick, Scott, try to get the Commander." Jack barked. "Austin, contact Team Katana and Saber. We got a situation."
*******************************************************
0706 HOURS, OCTOBER 31, 2552 (MILITARY CALENDAR)
ZETA DORADUS SYSTEM, BORDER OF ZONE 67, PLANET ONYX
Jack propped Austin's limp body behind a tree. The Spartans' SPI suit didn't help to soften the blast. The drone's energy weapon could burn through the toughened layers like paper.
SPARTAN-G053's midsection was blown apart, a gaping wound oozing a smoking mixture of ballistic gel and blood; congealing with every second that passed.
"Drone! Spread out!" Scott shouted over the TEAMCOM.
Jack rolled out from behind the tree-- just as it was hit by an energy strike. The tree exploded, along with what was left of SPARTAN-G053.
The drone converged on Jack's position, moving in for the kill. It's central eye glowed from amber to blood red.
Jack turned and ran. The drone accelerated, tracking him with ease even with his SPI suit, golden lances shot out from its center of mass, erupting dirt, soil, plants alike.
Through all the explosions Jack heard a word ring out: "DROP!" Jack hit the dirt, hard.
A SPNKr rocket lanced out from a brush of local vegetation, flying straight into the unsuspecting drone-- tearing it apart. The explosion blossomed leaving dirt and dust in its wake. Jack rolled and got to his feet.
Mitch emerged from the brush, rocket launcher smoking. Scott appeared next to him.
"Thanks for the save," Jack said. "Where the hell did you get that?"
"Lets just say I 'found' it." Mitch replied with a grin.
"Stay frosty, keep low, don't want to attract any more of those damned drones."
Over the TEAMCOM, Jack said, "Nick, you get any of the other teams' positions?" A rattle of gunfire and explosions sounded in the distance.
Nick's status light winked green.
"Team Saber are two kilometers south off Zone 67 currently being engaged by a drone." Nick said over TEAMCOM. "Theres a bunch of drones between us and them. I can't get them over the COM, I'll keep trying. Nothing on Team Katana."
"Something is trying to jam us." Jack reported over the TEAMCOM. "Nick, fall back and regroup with us at NAV marker 3bA."
Nick's status light winked red.
"T-eir-r-ght---top---us---" Static washed over the COM. "Th-ir lock--ng---ur--sig--l"
"Jack, we've got incoming." Scott observed, "count at least a dozen drones converging on our position."
"They must have been locking to our COM signals, go COM silent from now on." Jack ordered.
"Tut tut, a little late to say that don't you think?" Mitch chuckled.
The lead drone's eye glowed white-hot.
The drones moved in for the kill.
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