Homecoming

In the far future, a jaded corporate combat specialist finds that unwelcome suprises sometimes come in three's.

Awareness returns as intrusive light makes its way past eyelids slowly opening after a long sleep. The astringent stench of the nutrient yolk I’ve been encased in for much of this journey fills my unplugged nostrils and I just manage to hold back on splattering the deck with vomit.

Cahill, one of the newbie’s is dry heaving and I look down into her upturned grimace as she wipes yellowish bile from her slack mouth. All around us, other troops veteran and virgin alike are staggering out of cracked stasis pods as the automated assistance units spray us down. Cold water upon naked flesh soon shocks my mind into full functionality and I find myself wondering for the hundredth time why in the hell I put myself through this crap every four years.

Dried off and fully awake I move through the corridors making my way to my assigned quarters. The automated hatch slides open before me and I step in just as the lights come on and reveal the enclosure to full view. Everything’s as in place just as expected. Clean and clinical, just like me. I check the net for stored messages but there’s nothing there of worth so I switch to a dedicated server to see what’s on offer.

I smile as the mission objective unfolds before my three eyes.

5 Hours Later...

The shuttle drops from the mother ships belly fully loaded and planet bound ferrying a full complement of Oligarch Lariats, to Fairwater’s surface. The specialised combat unit had been tasked with cracking a separatist group that had so far proven to be a particularly tough nut to crack for the Oligarchy and I was just onboard to ensure that the mission went off without a hitch.

Strapped into my crash couch I could sense the uneasy eyes focused on me like laser sights but I ignored the collective gaze of the Lariat’s and kept my mind focused on the business at hand. I couldn’t care less for the camaraderie shared amongst these troops and cared even less whether they liked me or not.

They like myself, were here to get the job done and as long as they did what was expected of them and left me free to do what I’d been hired for everything would be fine. If not, then whatever went down would be handled in due course accordingly.

Touch down and disembarkation went off without a hitch and a solid defensive perimeter was set up around the shuttle.  The APC sits squat and bullfrog ugly on the hard packed ground with its engine rumbling as troopers checked and rechecked their armour and tactical weaponry.

I stood off to the side watching the Lariats stalking about in their azure blue armoured suits and smiled behind my helmets darkened visor because I knew that for all their well earned reputation for professional lethality they still paled in comparison when measured up against me and the particular variety of badness that my kind brought to any battlefront.

Our target lay five miles to the west of our base camp in a heavily fortified base and based on received intelligence there was definitely going to be heavy resistance put up by the separatists who like most revolutionaries of their type, usually chose to fight to the death for whatever cause they held most dear to their hearts and integrity.

I personally couldn’t care less either way what either side was actually fighting for as long as I was paid accordingly and just looked forward to getting the job done, off planet and paid in the following order. The call sign chimed in my helmet and I made my way towards the group now boarding the APC. We’d be on our way to the target soon enough and I soon found myself strapping into another crash couch as the vehicles turbines fired up and the driver set us on course for the objective.

Crucible...

Welcome to hell in a hand basket time was what I called this and any other mission that turned into a mess and that’s basically what had happened. We’d hit the target hard and fast with Lariat troopers breaking through the encampments perimeter defences like hot knife through butter.

The separatists were fighting wit all the fanatical ferocity expected of true believers but it was obvious that they really weren’t a true match for Lariat tactical awareness, efficiency and superior firepower. All the guerrilla warfare tactics, home made spike bombs and out of date laser carbines could ever hope to achieve was prolong the inevitable outcome for a short while but you just had to admire these people’s determination and tenacity in the face of their foes overwhelming superiority.

I saw rebels wearing old surplus combat suits going toe-to-toe with fully trained Lariat combat specialists decked out in state of the art powered Oligarch carapace armour knowing full well that they were totally outclassed before the first blow was thrown but they still fought on regardless and died in their droves as the Oligarch phalanx cut deep and long into the heart of their dream and then all of a sudden, that hell in a hand basket moment occurred.

The rebels were in seeming disarray and the Lariat’s were in the beginnings of going into pre-victory celebration when the rebels went into overdrive.

Almost faster than the eye could see, one, two and three Lariats fell to the ground, cut into neatly bisected chunks of smoking flesh and reinforced combat armour. They’d had no time to scream or cry out and as their bodies fell smoking to the ground I found myself shocked out of complacency as I realised it was now time for me to justify the fee I’d secured from the Oligarchy.

My HUD’s tracking sensors went into full on drive as I leapt into the fray. There were three of them decked out in state of the art combat suits. The gun metal grey metal of their armour marked them out as House Zephyr freelancers but if there was any doubt as to which house they truly belonged to that soon fled screaming into the arms of certainty when they ignited their energy swords and truly began to go to work on the Lariat forces.

Azure blue clad Lariat’s were falling left and right under the well coordinated assault of the House Zephyr trio. The energy swords cut through Lariat armour with effortless ease as two of the sword wielding specialists engaged the Lariats with a ferocity that was almost as fanatical as that of the separatists. The third Zephyr was blasting away at Lariat troopers with twin augmented hand guns and judging by the Swiss cheese effect the assassins ordnance was having on Oligarch armour I was pretty damn sure that anti-matter hollow tips were definitely in play here.

I fired up my weapons and joined the dance.

Zephyr’s one and two were still making minced meat out of the Lariats when I engaged them with my twin short blades. The proximity alerts in their combat suits were the only thing that saved them as they both managed to whirl out of the way of my dervish assault run with barely a second to spare. They recovered quickly and I now found myself the centre of their undivided attention.

The sounds of the dead and dying Lariat troopers merged with the ongoing battle between the Fairwater Separatists and the remaining lariat troopers still engaged in battle served as a back drop to the unfolding tableaux as I stood revealed before the two Zephyrs.

My matte black armour marked me out quite clearly to be a combat specialist hailing from House Obsidian and even as the twin Zephyrs fell into their distinctive combat stance it was obvious that s**t had just gotten very real.

My twin swords were like extensions of my own arms as battle was joined and I soon found myself blocking and parrying against two supremely gifted combatants whose sword skills were of the highest quality. Steel met steel repeatedly with no quarter given and none asked as we continued to engage in our dance of death with screams of the dead and dying caressing our ears in a macabre serenade.

I assumed the Death Chasm stance to draw my foes in but they too were well versed in the killing arts and easily evaded with twin delivered Styx River ripostes. They met my Reaper Scythe sweep thrusts with Devil Denied defence blocks and the battle continued apace with neither side gaining any advantage whatsoever. I was getting tired and it was only a matter of time before the third Zephyr would get in on the act pushing already difficult odds into the realms of impossible.

I had to do something fast or risk losing my head to a House Zephyr blade.

My mind slowed down as I expanded my consciousness into the astral plane with third eye fully opened and as my mind travelled my body fought on against growing insurmountable odds until I alighted upon the mind of........ Cahill!?

Corporal Susan Cahill newly of the Lariat’s was having an incredibly bad day that had gone from bad to worse. Hours earlier she’d almost retched up her guts on the Vengeance’s deck after coming out of her stasis pod and she now found herself in the midst of a hellacious fire fight that made even the most rigorous of training simulations onboard the Oligarch warship look like child’s play. Most of her fellow troopers had fallen under the unexpected but supremely lethal assault led by the House Zephyr trio and she didn’t think she’d be getting out of this battle alive.

Her carbine was empty and she was down to two shock grenade and her twin energy daggers so she’d more or less resigned herself to her fate and decided to keep on fighting until she fell when her mind fell out of focus and she fell to the ground insensate.

I’d made contact and come out of my trance just in time to block the downward slash of Zephyr one whilst parrying Zephyr two’s incoming Scythe sweep to my left when my “saviour” arrived. The incoming shock grenade exploded mid air with the concussive blast literally blowing one of my assailants of their armour clad feet and the azure blue armoured figure that came flying through the air like an avenging angel of death before crashing into the disorientated and groggy Zephyr warrior was a relief to behold.

It was just the distraction I needed as the odds moved just slightly into my favour. Zephyr two hesitated for a second before compensating for the temporary loss of their partner and that was a bad mistake on their part as I launched into a renewed attack on the sole sword wielding Zephyr. We fought hard and long with steel clashing against steel and the respective reputations of our respective Houses fighting styles at stake there could only be one outcome.

The fact that it wasn’t one that I’d find to my liking just never occurred to me.

I’d forgotten about Zephyr number three.

 

I woke up in a world of hurt, concussed and groggy feeling decidedly worse for wear with the groans of the dying and wounded filling my ears. I could hear the hum of machinery and beeping of instruments around me and the distinctive antiseptic smell had me realising that I was in some sort of medical facility which I found strangely relieving for some reason. But as my vision cleared enough for to see the three faces peering down at me my relief turned to despair as I realised that I wouldn’t be picking up that Oligarchy long money after all.

The revealed faces of the Zephyr Trio filled my field of vision as I looked up at them.

Two men and one woman who I never thought I’d ever see again.

‘Welcome home Marcus. It’s been a long time.’

Maryanne’s voice hadn’t changed much over the years but the look of anger and disappointment in her eyes matched that of the two almost identical men who stood beside her.

Marcel and Tomas were twin brothers and Maryanne was their sister.

‘Welcome home little brother.’

And with that, my siblings walked out of the room leaving me alone with my thoughts of regret as nightfall fell on Fairwater and I was left contemplating the reality of my homecoming.

Author's Note

I haven't posted any of my writing on here for quite awhile now so I'm hoping to get some constructive criticism anyone who takes the time to read this piece.

Thanks in advance and I'll be sure to return the favour.

Reviews

[HoWiE]

Hey mate, nice work - this is like some sort of John Woo directed Gear of War / Halo: Reach / Devil May Cry crossover! There are certainly some impressive visuals here - the action flows well and the attention to detail is great; even if you don't know your shock grenades from your laser carbines, you definintely sound like you do! I like the idea of the mercenary 'Houses', this reminds of a Rival Schools of Kung Fu type set up and I think that works pretty well too. There are a few minor shortfalls that can be addressed with a quick edit and read through but nothing that detracts from the pace of the story, and I think it works well - good effort on posting this and I'm looking forward to more, you've been away too long bro.

[marvell2100]

Ok, I'm biased because I love Sci-Fi but this was a good story. A little Avatar, a little Dune, a little Universal Soldier. Good story here Michael. I could have used a little more detail about the planet they were on like the climate and terrain but overall a good story. I like the telekinetic touch added to the lead character.