Earh Bound: 2973 A.D. (IC)

Andes Mountains, March 3rd, 2973

The sound of two jets zooming overhead filled the air around the sharp cliff. The sudden vibration made a rock break off from the rest of the cliff and landed of Andre’s smoking cigarette, making him drop it off the edge. It was an overcast day, and the whole mountain had thick hase hanging over it. With a sigh, he turned to Alex and say,“I guess it’s time…” He calmly flicked on his communications as his helmet closed in around his head. “ OK, Ash, White, we are going over the mission plan again so things move smoothly. From what I see on my hud, I believe you are in position Wolf. First, Ash and I are going to work our way up this cliff silently, whilst Wolfy takes care of any curious eyes. Ones at the top, we will work out way through the initial compound and into the facility. Again, your sniper support will be absolutely key, Wolfy. Take care of any immediate threats without arousing suspicion. Hopefully, with this weather, we can get through the whole mission without any alerts, but just in-case, we will plant charges as we move through the compound in preparation for plan B. Once inside the facility we will take the most recently dated blueprint and set the incendiary and high explosive charges whilst Wolfy, makes sure no one comes in behind us. With everything planted we will head back the way we came and hop off the cliff and float to safety with these parachutes. At the last possible moment we will blow the compound and facility of high-heaven. Simple?” Andre said as he looked for even footing for their climb.

Link to OOC: OOC

Alicia nodded where she lay, some 3728 meters further, covered by her camouflage blanket, her spotter lying next to her with an advanced spotting binocular that provided even more information and tracking abilities than her sophisticated scope. "Roger that. We're spotting targets now, I'll paint them for you." She replied, while she and Black Wolf started simultanuously tagging targets with their scope and binoculars, relaying their position over the everyone's HUD. She saw them commence climbing. So far so good, she thought as she saw how they gradually progressed along the face of the cliff. Until now no enemy had spotted them, but she saw one of them turn around. In about 15 seconds, he'd see her allies. Allies was a big word though. Temporary allies, or rather, collegues. She had already started the rangemeter and ballistics computer when her spotter relayed her the same information. "One hostile going to spot you in 10 seconds from now. 7'a clock, hidden observation post. Taking him down asap." She said while letting the targeting computer do its job. She was trained to use it, but was also able to shoot accurately without it. She however often relied on the near flawless targeting system rather than her own aiming instincts. Despite being near flawless too, at a range of 3 and a half kilometer hitting things without a ballistic and weather computer would be hard. She aimed at the center of the body, hoping to hit his chest anywhere. The impact would drag the man back into the spotting post, where she knew no more enemies were hiding. It was a mere platform only accesible by a hidden ladder. "There's a ladder at his position. Over." She said, and exhaled. Gently she pulled the trigger and felt the Pegan rifle's recoil system absorb most of the recoil. In just 3 seconds he'd see her allies, about the same time required for her rounds to travel towards him. The man who was yawning was hit straight in his shoulder, the force of the impact tearing his left arm off while he dropped backwards into his observation post. The blunt trauma had most likely crushed his organs, and if he was still alive, he'd die to internal bleedings soon. Probably the impact had made his loungs tear open, forbidding him to warn his allies. "Target down." She said, already looking for another one.

Juggernaut was sweating a little in his armor, The desert wasn't exactly the warmest place on earth but the Gobi one would have to do. The money payed well and he was interested in working with the "Number One" Merc in the world as he was advertised. He took off his binoculars, overlooking the compound over a series of dunes. It looked well defended. A quick strike would really be the easiest way in. Juggernaut checked his weapons, His XML was cleared, loaded with ammo. He chose to take his handgun for the job, he felt the Incinerator might of been overkill. As far as he knew Vector was speeding towards him, or waiting over a nearby Sand Dune. They'd agreed to meet up inside the compound.

Juggernaut moved his eyesight around inside his suit to get his Navigation Suite to come online, a 3d schematic of the known layout of the compound came up. After moving it around for a moment he decided on a plan of attack. He moved to set the autopilot on his ship and got in, it was hovering nearby. Before deciding to jet out towards the compound, he got on the comns channel. "Vector, Juggernaut here. Copy"

Vector laid almost rock like under his camo net, the armor adding to its rigid shape. As he sighted through the scope of his SRS-99 he scanned the outer perimeter of the compound, looking for a proper place to enter. " Copy Juggernaut, this is Vector how copy?" he said quickly while taking his face away from the scope. The magnification in his HUD automatically reduced and he scanned the desert looking for the other NEXT. " I have eyes on Juggernaut, I am due east approximately 1500 meters out, copy?"


Juggernaut sighed, He didn't like being spotted first, it made him lose the advantage of surprise. Juggernaut brought up his VI interface and took out a range marker, Eventually spotting Vector. He did a quick nod, showing that he could see him. "Copy. Preparing assault on the compound, I'll drop in, and handle the muscle. Can you sneak inside and eliminate these Anarchists?"

Vector keyed the comm once to acknowledge and slowly rose from the dune he was against, slowly making his way towards the compound. Vector slowly crept between the large dunes , making sure to keep his head below the crest and keeping the rifle low under the camo net he still had draped around him. After moving another couple meters Vector dropped back down and slowly inched closer to the crest of the dune, slowly pushing the rifle over the edge and back to his eye. " Juggernaut, Vector......creep closer, ill take out the guards as you move in -break- trying to stay hidden as much as possible, how copy?


"Vector, I'll distract, I want you to assassinate the Anarchists. This is the best possible outcome."


Vector inwardly sighed and rolled his eyes inside the suit," Roger, ill provide cover" he said quickly rolling to his right and pulling the BR-01 off the three point sling. At the same time he pulled the sling strap on his sniper rifle tighter, making the rifle cling to his back as he got up. Vector then quickly stood up and took off at a sprint, BR-01 at his shoulder.


Vector was cut off halfway through cover on Juggernaut's side as he turned on Skimmer, the roar of the engines kicking up sand everywhere. "engage engines, run system scans" spoke Juggernaut into the main console of the ship. "All systems normal, prepared for flight" replied the ship back. Juggernaut typed a few commands into the console and the ship lifted off of the ground, and shot off towards the compound, preparing to drop down into it.

(Written by Snackpacman and Whiteblade)

The city of Al Qurayyat
Just outside of Jordan

A loud rumbling could be heard from the back of the truck as it continued along the dusty road. The driver’s hands trembled subtly as he reached for his cup of coffee and brought it to his mouth. The man in the passenger seat carried had a concerned look on his face as he looked out the window into the ending desert. It was later late afternoon and the whole desert was covered in a shade of orange or a form of amber. Looking a head he noticed the ruined city of Al Qurayyat, which had plenty of bombed out building. It appeared deserted, but the man lifted the rifle from off his lap and held it in his hands anyway. A small clicking sound could be heard as the rifle shook in his hands, partially afraid of the… ‘thing’ bumping around in the back. The truck continued to travel through the ruins, with the bumping and yelling persisting in the back of the truck.

---

Gobi Desert, Anarchist Compound
(AKA: Middle of fucking nowhere…)

Hearing the sound of jet engine, the Anarchist forces rushed toward the defenses. They quickly manned the AA turrets as well as the anti-personnel turrets. The compound took advance of the rocky terrain around it, using a natural rock wall to serve as a barrier, however, they left the rock wall un-defended when it came to attack from the ground, simply putting another AA turret at the crest of the large rock. The front gate had several layers of anti-personnel emplacement, however it had a miniscule hole for aerial attack, but no autopilot designed could make it through the hole. Preparing for some sort of assault, the Anarchists rushed around the camp.

“Your job is to find Amah’jig and neutralize him. This is strictly a hit mission. Algebra wants nothing else, but the man to be dead. Latest recon has him en route into Jordan by ground transfer. Finish it quick.” Annie’s gaze through the holo-screen was ice cold, but Talon simply tilted his head in mock confusion and held the stare. Seconds ticked past, punctuated by Sylvia’s occasional giggles. Unprofessional, but then again Annie was the only true ‘professional’ in their band of ‘companions’. The extraterrestrial still found amusement in the interactions of her human companions, and spared the occasional glance from the controls to watch the tension rise between the two.

Annie broke off first, with an annoyed sigh as she pinched the bridge of her nose. Her voice sounded exasperated, but Talon and Sylvie both knew she wasn’t really worked up over Talon’s behavior. It was just a show, and the two of them both knew the meaning behind it. “Just don’t fuck this up Talon. It’s a job Algebra gave to us specifically. You know what that means…” she trailed off as she stared at Talon once more. “Yeah, sure they wanna see if I’m still up to it,” he said casually as a reply, with a small nonchalant wave. Annie opened her mouth to say something, but stopped when Talon’s expression grew serious. “I got it. Get in, eliminate target and any help he may have and get out. I’ll be back in a few hours, don’t miss me too much,” he teased the handler, the seriousness slipping away over the course of his words.

Annie might have made a retort, but Sylvia chose the perfect time to interrupt their banter. “We’re at the drop zone, Knighty. Don’t get too lost.” Her voice was melodic as ever and the words flowed like a gentle river. “You should really try getting into music,” Talon said as he hopped out the shuttle doors, a dozen meter drop to the ground below. “I hear that a lot, you know?” was the last thing he heard before the shuttle pulled away in silence, leaving him amidst the sands of the desert. He gripped his helmet tightly before he slipped it on, twisting it as hydraulics locked it in place.

The city of Al Qurayyat or what remained should be a bit further north, a few kilometers away. “Fucking desert,” he muttered in annoyance as he looked around. Sand dunes as far as the eye could see and then… even more sand. Not a single place to hide, unless he fancied trying to swim through the sand like a land shark. Which he didn’t, so it meant he’d have to simply hit them hard and fast. He kept on grumbling as he began to run through the desert, a literal trail of sand blowing through the air behind him. He’d reach the city in a few minutes at this pace and the falling sun cast a faint glow across the land. It might have been scenic if he’d been able to see himself, a lone figure charging through the sands, but alas he could not.

~

Talon slid to a halt, his feet digging into the sand as he did so. Just past this sand dune lay the ruins of Al Qurayyat, a sea of bombed out and demolished buildings. As he turned about, there was a faint, but present sound of a vehicle’s engine that rumbled through what was left of the city. It wasn’t clear, but at the very least it presented an opportunity for Talon. If he had caught them in the desert he would have been forced to charge them head on, but while they were in the ruins, it’d be easy to craft an ambush. He couldn’t see any movement amidst the ruined city, or any exhaust, so it was likely the vehicle was further in the ruins. Perfect… he thought before he went over the dune and charged into the ruins. As soon as he hit the streets of Qurayyat, he seemed to blur as if he had begun to fade from reality. The moment he met the first building, he simply vanished.

He crept through the ruins like a ghost; his steps left no trace, his presence invisible. He’d long since spotted his target, a lone truck that rumbled on through what was left of the streets. He’d caught a few glances at it as he stalked it from the shadows and on high, and though he hadn’t seen any sign of Amah’jig he’d gotten a good look at the driver and the rider. The rider was armed, a rifle at some sort, though Talon hadn’t been able to pick it out at this distance. He didn’t particularly care though; it wouldn’t make a difference if they never saw him. He watched as the truck made a left turn and Talon decided it was time to move.

He crossed what was left of the roofs effortlessly; hands found holds amongst crumbling stone, feet leapt from broken tile to tile. Like a hawk that had found pray, Talon gained on the truck quickly and as he did, he unsheathed Tonbogiri from the back of his armor, the concealing cloth lowered to reveal its blade. The truck continued on its path, no other streets for it to turn down, a straight road boxing it in. Talon leapt from the building, Tonbogiri gripped with both hands and plunged towards the truck. An electrical charge hummed from his armor to the weapon and the blade began to vibrate, its shape distorting. It was a 100 foot drop. It might as well have been five.

Ash was there pressed against the rock together with Lahare, his senior as a mercenary. The Boss was taking a smoke break, so Alex used the time for a break as well. His helmet opened, he enjoyed the look the mountains offered, even while covered in haze. But not for too long, as a few moments later, Andre told him it is about time as he was forced to drop his cigarette, commenting the matter with a sight. He understood this, as he used to smoke as well when he was younger, and sometimes after completing a mission. As Lahare started to brief him and White about the mission ahead them. It was an infiltration - retrieval mission, not his favorite kind of mission, but he made was a mercenary, so he had no right to complain. As long as it pays the bills, he was in. And he could serve under and learn from Andre, so every mission was a great opportunity for him. He listened carefully for every single word, nodding at crucial points. Once the briefing was over, Andre lowered his helmet, and Alex has done the same. The mission data was showing clearly, with other information as the current weather, time and things like that. Looking at the thermometer - minus twenty degrees of Celsius. " Damn us humans, according to history, the temperature here has dropped over thirty degrees in average during the last thousand years ... " he told, being grateful for the life support systems of his suit.

They started their slow ascend to the top of the mountain. They had the best suits Styrgo Science Technology could offer, but it was no easy task after all. The mountains were still mountains, and they were still humans, no matter their suits. They slowly climbed, nearing the top with every minute passing. Targets kept on appearing as they were designated by White Blade and Black Wolf. " Good job on pointing targets. I can see them clearly on my display. " he commented, certain that no one was interested in his comments. A minute later, White Blade reported a threat, and also informed them about engaging it. Alex had to pay attention the the climbing, as they were even nearer to the top of the mountain. A few seconds later, he heard White informing them about the elimination of the target, and truly, a mark disappeared from his display. " Not bad for a woman. I maybe don´t like her, but she gets the job done. " he told for himself. " Nice job, White. I feel sorry for the poor bastard, not knowing what hit him. " he told out loud. A few minutes later, they were at the top of the mountain.

" I guess this is it, Boss ? "

Alicia's lip curled up slightly. This was one hell of a talkative mercenary she was dealing with! She ignored any further comments and continued giving tips on where to go to avoid detection. She aimed once more at the chest of a hostile who had picked the wrong path, and would stumble upon the mercenaries in a matter of seconds. There was not enough time to let the computer calculate the bullet path precisely, so she trusted on her rangemeter and instinct. Gently she pulled the trigger and peered through her sights anticipatingly as the target spotted the mercenaries. He lowered his hand to his com-device, and just at that moment the bullet strook home. The man was hit right between his shoulders and was hurled towards the mercanaries, where he dropped on the ground with a rather hard knock. Luckily the sound of his fall was mostly conceiled by the cold winds, as she aimed for another target already. "Sorry Lahare, this one was going to put his rifle up your butthole." She said, while continuing giving directions to the two to avoid any others from finding them.

LAHARE

Now at the top of the sharp cliff, Andre could hear a sharp wiz, fly over him until it stopped with a thump. Hearing Alicia and Alex over the comms, Andre rolled his eyes. "Thank you for worrying about my butthole, Wolfy.... glad to know I'm in capable hands." Pulling his rifle off his back, Andre eyed his surrounding, looking at the possibilities for approach. From what he could see, Alex and himself would have to split up to set the charges in the areas marked, without being spotted. One path skimmed around the outskirts, where a truck seemed to patrol quite frequently and the other went straight through the camp, with several half awake foot-mobiles were standing watch and/or patrolling. Seeing as Alex's armor actually had some sort of cloaking system, he would better suited to head through the bulk of the compound to the facility. Marking a path for Alex, Andre sent the bit of data to his partner. "Follow that route. I'll head around and set my charges on the outskirts. And Alex, I've told you not to call me boss. It makes my skin itch." Andre said slowly moving to the right with his rifle leveled and loaded.

---

The City of Al Qurayyat

Talon's spear pierced through the top of the truck, imbedding it's tip into the collar of the lone riflemen. Shocked, the driver of the quickly opened his door and ran to the back of the truck with a tablet in his hand, tapping away at the touch screen. The sound of several locks and general machinery could be heard in the back of the truck as he continued to tap away at the touch screen, sprinting toward the back of the truck. The bumping suddenly came to a halt as the last mechanical sound went off, and the back door of the truck flew open. The driver of the truck looked in horror at something at the back of the truck, but from Talon's view all he could see was him being quickly pulled in and soon a loud scream along with a flesh rending sound could be heard. An eerie silence followed excepting the sound of the desert winds picking up dust. With a slice, an amber blade peaked out the top of the truck. The blade quickly retracted from the whole, only to be followed by a loud boom. With a impulse burst, Amah'jig broke through the hole he made and jumped toward Talon, landing directly in front of him, Amah'jig made another impulse boost to the right, propelling him into the sea of ruined buildings. The sound of quick footsteps could be heard on the sand as Amah'jig began his usually strategy.

“Hmph,” Talon grunted as he missed his target and landed on the roof of the passenger seat rather than the trunk as planned. He pulled his weapon free with ease and turned quickly, but not fast enough. Already, he could hear the locks as they clicked open and hissed as gas escaped. He hopped off the truck to the dusty street below to watch, unconcerned with the sound of bones crushed and flesh torn. As Amah’jig, if the creature even deserved a name anymore, tore through the truck, Talon simply whistled in amusement. He’d certainly be able to fetch a higher bounty once he dragged that ‘thing’s’ corpse to Annie.

It took off into the ruins with inhuman speed, so Talon crouched low and forced his body into ‘overdrive’. His heart beat faster as it increased the blood flow to every part of his body, oxygenation of the blood increased several fold, the world seemed to slow around him as his mind sped up and his muscles burned with energy, salivating to be pushed to their utter limits. His hands gripped Tonbogiri tight, and an insane bout of laughter echoed through Qurayyat’s ruins. "Ahhh....." he sighed and the sound was filled with ecstacy and insanity. This place was about to become the battle ground between two monsters. One simply looked more human like than the other, and it could be questioned which being was more monstrous.

A simply kick cracked the ground beneath his feet and sent Talon into the air for dozens of feet. His hands carved through the eroded rock as he created his own purchases on the remains of buildings. He scurried up the side like a machine and flung himself onto what was left of the roof. From above, six stories up, he watched the sea of ruins like a hawk and tracked Amah’jig through all of his senses. He could make out the faint sounds of feet against sand below, though the wind made it impossible to pinpoint. He would catch a glimpse here and a flash there, but never enough.

It was a literal game of cat and mice, only the roles had yet to be decided. A smile crept to Talon’s expression as hunted switched with hunter rapidly, and he drew forth one of the three Black Blades. A faint charge ran through the metal and the blade hummed as it was charged with destructive force. He held to it carefully and tensed, ready to whip it forth at the first opportunity he had. If Amah’jig thought ranged weaponry would save him, amongst these ruins Talon was about to prove him dead wrong. "Come on...." he muttered with anticipation and his expression grew further crazed.

The mission data popped on in Alex´s mainframe and a second later, it was clearly visible on his visor. The rout Andre designed for him was leading through the middle of the camp, between several hostiles. Also, the camouflage in his suit was limited for the briefest of moments, so he could not just walk through the entire camp, so he had to manage his time carefully. " Roger that, Bo- ... uhmm, I mean, Lahare. My bad, my bad. " he said as a way of apologize as they were splitting up. " Got your track, heading there now. " he continued, walking around a stacked pile of crates. Once around that, he carried on next to a number of buildings, careful not to be spotted. His Gruber Experimental Assault Rife with an installed silencer was loaded and ready, but he wanted to avoid using it at all costs. As he was at the last building, that led to a road which crossed the camp, he was nearing the first bomb site - a power generator. Ash turned around the last corner, seeing that a guard was standing there, taking a smoke. " What the heck are they smoking if it stays lit even in this kind of weather ? " he wondered out loud. Regardless, he had to be taken out, Ash had to hurry. He holstered his assault rife on his back and approached the guard from behind. In an instant, he placed one of his hands on his mouth, dragging him back between the buildings. There, he kicked his knee from behind, and as the man was on his knees, he twisted his neck. A swift death. Looking around, he hid the body under the elevated basis of the building, taking his packet of cigarettes as a personal prize.

" This is Ash, one tango down, nobody noticed. Continuing to designated site one. " he updated his situation. He leaned at the corner of the building. Several tangos were approaching, but it will take them some time to find their dead friend. He kicked in the camouflage on his suit and made a dash to the other side of the road. The optic camouflage his suit used made the light seemingly pass through his suit. It was some sort of nanotechnology that Ash partially understood, but now was not the time to wonder about it. He crossed the road and got out of sight once more, turning off the camouflage thus allowing it to recharge. Slowly approaching the generator, he prepared the first charge. A few seconds later, it was on its place - stuck at the power generator, ready to blow it sky high. " Ash here, first charge ready and set. Proceeding to site two, the fuel depot. Also, Lahare - I took a packet of cigarettes from that tango. A victory smoke once we wrap this up ? "