Alarms blared, their shrieking sound and pulsing red lights cut through the silence of the night. All over the base personnel heaved themselves out of bed, quickly returning to the posts they had held all day. Even the Strike Team Barracks weren't safe from the drums of war, as they too filled with the various combat personnel, all woken from what little sleep they had been allowed to get. For his own part Marius rolled out of his bed, his augments making a metallic sound as the landed on the metal floor. Groaning as he stood up straight, Marius stifled a yawn as he glanced at the clock before pulling his uniform on. In the darkness the green numbers on the clock slowly blinked 2:21 AM. "Damn" He thought as he opened the door, joining the steady stream of people in the hallway.
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“It is a sight of pure chaos and panic here. It just showed up overnight and has begun to shell the city, I am also receiving reports that is has been landing a number of troops all around the city. We, as of right now, have….Wait what was that?” The reporter stopped mid-sentence as he looked around for the source of a sound he seemed to have heard, the question of what it was came all too soon as a Chryssalid came scuttling from the shadows, making quick work of the Reporter and his camera man. As the camera slipped from the hands of the dead man it landed on the ground, cracking its lens, but giving a clear picture of the Alien battleship that hung high over the city, green plasma fire erupting from its underbelly.
Gritting his teeth the commander switched from that news feed to another. “As of right now we have no idea why the aliens have targeted Vienna, all we can say is –“
The commander quieted the feed as he silently hung his head, this had not been the Programs shining month. First they had lost Alpha squad and now, almost like they knew they ripped a limb off of the project, the Alien’s launch another Terror offensive. Keying his ear piece Lawson contacted Officer Bradford in central. “What is the status of Sigma” he said his voice low and his eyes never leaving the screen.
“All combat personnel are ready sir. As for Sigma they are probably getting their equipment together. They will be in the air in 5.” Came the hurried reply
“Good, get them To Vienna at best possible speed, let’s not lose more than we can afford to.”
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Marius yawned as the access lift stopped on the lab floor. Striding through the various research labs he finally came to the room he was looking for, the Cybernetics Integration Lab, lovingly called the MEC lab by everyone in the base. Walking in he marched passed the augment table to a small key pad that sat next to a raised platform in a wall recess. After punching in a short code, Marius stood on the platform and faced the room. Soon, a clamp like arm lowered from the ceiling and secured itself around Marius’s chest and waist. Others came down as well, four in total, each removing an augmented limb as the central arm lifted him upwards. As the arms preformed their macabre dance, the rest of the room was working as well. From a bay in the back of the room, a conveyor line brought forward the hulking mass of the full MEC suit and slowly, what was left of the man was lowered into the suit. Half asleep from this already familiar procedure, Marius was jolted awake by what felt like a massive static shock as the suit linked up with his augment slots. Blinking as the various targeting reticles and sensor readouts invaded his eyesight. Flexing his hands and shrugging his shoulders he strode forward and retrieved his waiting particle cannon. Working his way back to the access lift that would take him up to the hanger, Marius began to wonder how the rest of the squad was coping with the 2 AM wake up call. As he did so a slight smile crossed his face.
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“It is a sight of pure chaos and panic here. It just showed up overnight and has begun to shell the city, I am also receiving reports that is has been landing a number of troops all around the city. We, as of right now, have….Wait what was that?” The reporter stopped mid-sentence as he looked around for the source of a sound he seemed to have heard, the question of what it was came all too soon as a Chryssalid came scuttling from the shadows, making quick work of the Reporter and his camera man. As the camera slipped from the hands of the dead man it landed on the ground, cracking its lens, but giving a clear picture of the Alien battleship that hung high over the city, green plasma fire erupting from its underbelly.
Gritting his teeth the commander switched from that news feed to another. “As of right now we have no idea why the aliens have targeted Vienna, all we can say is –“
The commander quieted the feed as he silently hung his head, this had not been the Programs shining month. First they had lost Alpha squad and now, almost like they knew they ripped a limb off of the project, the Alien’s launch another Terror offensive. Keying his ear piece Lawson contacted Officer Bradford in central. “What is the status of Sigma” he said his voice low and his eyes never leaving the screen.
“All combat personnel are ready sir. As for Sigma they are probably getting their equipment together. They will be in the air in 5.” Came the hurried reply
“Good, get them To Vienna at best possible speed, let’s not lose more than we can afford to.”
___________________________________________________
Marius yawned as the access lift stopped on the lab floor. Striding through the various research labs he finally came to the room he was looking for, the Cybernetics Integration Lab, lovingly called the MEC lab by everyone in the base. Walking in he marched passed the augment table to a small key pad that sat next to a raised platform in a wall recess. After punching in a short code, Marius stood on the platform and faced the room. Soon, a clamp like arm lowered from the ceiling and secured itself around Marius’s chest and waist. Others came down as well, four in total, each removing an augmented limb as the central arm lifted him upwards. As the arms preformed their macabre dance, the rest of the room was working as well. From a bay in the back of the room, a conveyor line brought forward the hulking mass of the full MEC suit and slowly, what was left of the man was lowered into the suit. Half asleep from this already familiar procedure, Marius was jolted awake by what felt like a massive static shock as the suit linked up with his augment slots. Blinking as the various targeting reticles and sensor readouts invaded his eyesight. Flexing his hands and shrugging his shoulders he strode forward and retrieved his waiting particle cannon. Working his way back to the access lift that would take him up to the hanger, Marius began to wonder how the rest of the squad was coping with the 2 AM wake up call. As he did so a slight smile crossed his face.