|
Post by littlebaron on Jan 20, 2016 10:17:59 GMT -5
You know the drill, scenes involving one character/NPCs go here as well as third-party scenes.
Mod Note: Free for aaaaallllllll
|
|
|
Post by Blacknife on Feb 1, 2016 16:36:23 GMT -5
How long has it been? 5 years I think? Yeah, defiantly 5. Why was I still doing this? What did I have to earn from doing this? I could be doing it for my own selfish desires, or I might be doing it for the people. They wouldn’t like it though, they are too brainwashed at this time to think that what I’m doing is right. They believe that ‘The Elders’ are the greatest thing to happen to the Human race. I’ve seen one of these ‘Elders’ they are not even the slightest bit good for Humans. What they do to people without even touching them, it still gives me nightmares.
The man walked down the metallic street in the drizzling rain, stepping in ‘pillows’ of water making them disperse or making the water stick to the sole of his shoe. He was dressed in the typical grey suit with white stripes down the side, but he was wearing an unbuttoned over coat on top that went down to his shins and he wore a small-simple backpack that was collecting droplets of water.
He looked around to look at the large sculptures of the aliens that had been erect to persuade people they were good. He saw everyday people, all dressed the same with the grey suit or green. He also saw Advent ‘Police’ patrolling around with their assault rifles and full body armour.
The man looked more closely at the people that were on the street, to think that they are now this comfortable with Alien overlords after only 5 years. It was a strange thought. Maybe they weren’t comfortable and they were scared but they didn’t rebel in the slightest. I wouldn’t blame them, after seeing all of the raids that the Advent soldiers did to any schemers or plotters.
The man kept on walking down the street passing many people and Advent as he did so. He never made any eye contact with anyone, this was the norm, you made eye contact with someone and the ‘police’ could arrest you for the stupidest reasons. He kept his hands in his pockets to keep them out of the rain and wore collar popped so that the rain stayed off his back, and to hide his face.
After he walked past the umpteenth patrol and statue, he got to a check point which allowed people to move in and out of different districts of cities. The checkpoints were a hive of activity with people coming in and out of them as the Advent checked all the people that came through for their papers and through any luggage they had, then making them walk through a detector. If it was quiet you were free to go, if it beeped, they would point guns at you and take you away to a room to the side.
The man advanced slowly and cautiously to the check point patting down all of his pockets for his passport and other ID. As he got to a check out he watched as a shifty looking person who was twitching and was sweating, went through the detector. It beeped. The Advent soldiers pointed all the guns at him and started shouting at him with their strange accent, the person swung his head back and forth and pulled a gun out of his sleeve and shot as quickly as he could at the soldiers. But before he had time to think what he had done, a cloud of bullets was emptied into him tearing up his clothes and spraying bright red blood all over the floor, which then spread in river as the rain mixed with it to let it stream away in a gutter.
The man snapped back to the checkout woman who had a straight face as if she had seen it before and gave her his ID and passport. She looked at them briefly before handing them back and asking to see the bag. The man breathed heavier as he took the bag off his back and placed it on the checkout so she could look through it. She zipped it open with some efficient technique and pulled out a clear plastic box with a green lid. She popped it open and saw a cling film wrapped ham sandwich and a carton of apple juice, she looked back at the man with a puzzled expression, before dismissing it and putting the box back together and placing it in the bag.
The man picked up the bag and slung it over his shoulder and put his ID’s in his inside pocket of his coat. He moved away from the checkout and went to join the long line for the scanner. All the people in the line were waiting anxiously before going through the detector. The line moved slowly as people walked through the device with no bleeps and sighed as they entered the new district.
When it came for the man’s turn he took and small breath in and walked casually through the scanner, readying himself to run if it was to bleep. He walked through the detector and sighed as it didn’t bleep. He picked himself up and headed forward again leaving the checkpoint behind him.
He walked for a few minutes before finding a large statue of a sectoid helping up a Human off the ground. He gave a small smirk at this and moved to sit down on the bench next to the statue. He wiped the grey bench off to get rid of the water and sat down getting his backpack off his back and getting the sandwich out of the box. He carefully unwrapped the cling film and rolled it into a ball and out it back into the box, he also took out the carton and placed it beside him.
He picked the sand which up and went to bite it, but ended up squeezing the ham out of it and it fell onto the floor. He looked annoyed about this and sighed, throwing the bread into the box and closing it. He got up and took his carton with him looking rather displeased with himself.
He walked a few dozen meters away from the statue before doing anything to the juice carton. He carefully took the straw out of the plastic bag and punched a hole in the carton with it. He put the straw in his mouth and moved it around with his tongue, until he heard a small click and he gave a smirk to that.
A huge noise was heard behind him which was followed by a strong heat and force that pushed him into the air, throwing him a few meters ahead of him. He pushed himself up off the ground and turned around to see the half the statue on fire and the other half in pieces surrounding a small crater.
People were scurrying and running away screaming from the statue and the man followed their example. He turned and ran as fast as he could before he threw the carton into a bin he passed and smiled at himself.
I forgot what this felt like, too bad Gary isn’t here for me to brag about what I just did.
(Might as well post something here I guess)
|
|
|
Post by littlebaron on Feb 5, 2016 11:25:47 GMT -5
May 3rd, 2016 Advent Patrol Zone 12, Outskirts of Minneapolis
Julia slipped away from the center of the party and headed towards the backyard, carefully stepping over crumpled plastic cups on her way. Her friend Ashley waved her over towards the table she was sitting at. Ashley didn't drink or smoke, and Julia only rarely, mostly because she didn't want Ashley to be too alone.
"What's up?"
"Not much. I wish I'd stayed home. Tyler isn't even here! What's the point?"
Julia rolled her eyes. "Get over him already, he has a girlfriend! There are plenty of boys in this world that are way more attractive and decent than him."
"I know, I know," Ashley sighed. "Is your boy here?"
"Yeah, no," Julia scoffed. "No one in this town is good enough. I'm a badass, Ashley, they couldn't handle me."
"C'mon, there's gotta be someone- hey, do you hear that?"
Sirens. Flashing lights. A loud crash from inside the house
"Shit, cops! ADVENT cops!"
A trio of ADVENT troopers kicked out the back door and swept the area, barking at the teenagers to get on the floor. Julia raised her arms above her head and followed their orders without resistance. As soon as the backyard had been secured, the troopers exchanged words in the weird alien tongue- she recognized a few words, "Insurgents, incorrect, report" One of the soldiers walked over to her and pulled her to her feet. "Where are they?" he demanded, in English now. "We received reports that this was an insurgent meeting."
"I have no idea what you're talking about, this isn't-" The trooper shoved her to the ground. Was this someone's idea of a prank? "EVERYONE HERE IS UNDER ARREST UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE!" bellowed the ADVENT officer. "YOU WILL BE HELD AT THE NEAREST ADVENT PRECINCT UNTIL IT HAS BEEN DETERMINED THAT NO INSURGENT ACTIVITY HAS TAKEN PLACE!"
|
|
|
Post by Blacknife on Feb 16, 2016 13:58:20 GMT -5
George placed his cup of coffee down on the untidy desk he was sitting at and continued to type up his latest reports on the ADVENT patrol he spied on earlier that day.
He turned his head round slightly to look at Mike, who was also helping to look at the gathered intel on a disorganized table that had been collecting paper and pins with string over the last months.
George turned his head back to the computer screen and let out a small sigh as he was finishing up the report, before saving it and beginning the steps to print it off.
He set up out of his small seat and turned to face the square printer that quickly spat the paper out with the neat, black report that had just been filled out and was now being thrown on the table and was followed by George placing his hand on the table next to it.
“Come on Mike, surely we can figure out this patrol route.” George said in a rough voice, “We have all the notes and sightings, but how can’t we pin this down?”
“I don’t know, we have to get more I guess and wait longer if we have to,” he said moving the pins around the map to lay out different paths the patrols could take. He took his left hand back and placed it in front of him on the table.
George took a small note of this on a rough piece of paper behind him, before reaching for his coffee and placing it in front of Mike with some care.
“You want a drink?” he inquired.
Mike looked at George with some curiosity before picking the drink up, “Boy, it’s not like you to be so sharing,” he joked taking a sip from the coffee, “So what do you reckon the path is then?”
“I think that they pass the train yard when there is no traffic and then come across the path toward the bridge and pass along the settlement, they never come in, though - but they do look out for people trying to get things out or into here,” he scratched his chin before adding,” I just can’t figure out why they don’t say hello, they should, unless they already know too much.”
Mike turned his head to the map and back to George and then out the window to look at a setting sun. He got up out of his seat and went for his coat besides the door and stepped over George’s rifle that was perched under the coats.
“Well, I’m going to sleep on that thought. Have a nice evening then.” He said stepping out the door putting his coat on and walking down the path, leaving George alone in the shack.
George turned away from the table and went to his notes beside the computer and looked at them giving a small sigh. He turned back around and walked to the door, only to stop and pick up his rifle and standing in the doorway to face the setting sun and Mike leaving down the path.
He put the rifle in his shoulder and lifted it up to Mike, he looked down the scope and aimed for his head. He softly said to himself,” Mike is right handed, hates coffee and would never say anything nice to me. He was a good friend.” He said as he pulled the trigger which kicked his shoulder quite heavily.
Mike suddenly stepped forward and a viscous liquid came from the front of his head, before he bent backward slowly and raised his arms slightly, before another shot was sent through where his heart was which threw him to the ground.
George kept the gun in his shoulder as he advanced toward his squiring target. As he was no more than 5 meters from it the bloody mess, it morphed into a huge pile of rancid orange goo. It let a loud roar as it dragged its large body across the path, only to have its short journey cut short by another shot from the large rifle being pumped into its ‘neck’, severing the round ball off the body so it landed in a mangled pile.
George lowered his gun and pulled a knife out of side pocket and scratched a mark next to the tally of scratches that it had earned just above the magazine.
“We had a good run Mike, this sonofabitch didn’t convince me for a second.” He stated turning back to the shack rather pleased with himself.
|
|
|
Post by Ziv Adler on Feb 18, 2016 15:50:28 GMT -5
Mossad Archive Document 290286132 Analysis of Recovered Xcom Materials
Inventory of recovered items: - 1 Gauss rifle, marksman configuration - 3 Gauss rifles, standard configuration - 9 magazines of ammunition for above Gauss rifles, some only partially full - 2 partially-finished sets of prototype armor - Approx. 23 kg of alien metal alloy (precise composition unknown) - Approx. 5 kg of alien weapon fragments - Approx. 12 L of orange, semi-crystalline substance (referred to as 'Meld' by Xcom) - Approx. 6 kg of green crystals (referred to as 'Elerium' by Xcom) - 65 pages of handwritten research notes - Approx. 400 GB of Xcom research data - Approx. 350 GB of Xcom engineering schematics
Summary of findings: The Gauss rifles fire ammunition at speeds in excess of 2500 m/s, resulting in a significant improvement over the firepower of conventional small arms. Ammunition made from conventional metals shatters under the strain, necessitating the use of rounds made from the alien alloy. The alloy has an unusual structure that has prevented us from determining its precise composition, and the recovered research materials indicate that Xcom was no more successful. We will need a suitable replacement before we can start mass-production, or failing that the weapon will have to be redesigned with a lower projectile velocity.
The 'Elerium', as it is called in the recovered notes, is very promising as a power source, but we are again limited by our inability to identify its composition. With no way to make more, it is of limited usefulness in such a small quantity.
The agent responsible for the recovery of these items has indicated that the substance Xcom called 'Meld' is likely the most valuable of the materials captured. Xcom used it for a variety of purposes, including the development of sophisticated human-machine interfaces and genetic modifications. This substance consists of semi-organic nanobots suspended in a complex chemical compound. Both the compound and the nanobots are still undergoing analysis at time of writing.
---
Mossad Archive Document 290286319 Analysis of Genetic Modifications Made to Agent Ziv Adler
Xcom had a very advanced genetic modification program. They used the 'Meld' substance to bind alien genetic material to the subject's own genome, enhancing their capabilities. They kept the binding stable by using a surgically implanted vest to continually circulate a supply of Meld throughout the subject's body. The amount of Meld this requires is small, but not insignificant. Without this Meld re-circulation, the modifications will eventually be rejected by the subject, an uncomfortable but ultimately harmless process. Rather than wait, agent Adler requested that we remove the vest in an attempt to accelerate the rejection. We did so, and agent Adler made a full recovery within a few days.
Since our supply of Meld is finite, we have focused our research efforts on finding a method that does not require much of it. Rather than using alien genetics to enhance the subject, we aim to use small amounts of Meld to fine-tune the subject's own genetic code, giving smaller but still significant increases in performance. Out initial findings are promising. Using agent Adler's genes as a baseline, we devised a process to improve his reflexes, and estimate a 25% decrease in reaction time. However, developing further modifications will require Meld for testing, and performing the modifications will require even more. If more Meld can be acquired, we would be able to make much more progress.
|
|
|
Post by Ziv Adler on Feb 18, 2016 21:04:10 GMT -5
Beneath the Knesset, Jerusalem January 27th, 2016
The Mossad Director entered the Prime Minister's Situation Room.
"Director. Have a seat." said the Prime Minister, indicating a chair in front of his desk.
The Director sat, and said "Sorry to bother you on such short notice sir, but this is an urgent matter."
He continued, "As I'm sure you are aware, many of the current world powers have surrendered to the aliens, and they are already establishing a new world government. It is only a matter of time before they come for us, and we will have no choice but to surrender as well. This is unavoidable."
"That's it?" the Prime Minister asked. "You came here to tell me there's nothing we can do?"
"No," replied the Director. "I merely said that whatever we do, this government will have to submit to the aliens."
The Director reached into his jacket, and produced a folder. He placed it on the desk, and said "It's time to tell you about Operation Handover."
"Give me the short version."
"In the event of imminent takeover of the Israeli government by a hostile power, the Mossad will take steps to make this takeover as inefficient as possible. With your approval, tomorrow we will stage a raid on the Knesset. Officially, Palestinian extremists will storm the building, killing you and several of your staff. In reality, you will be brought to a secure location until control can be reestablished. We will use your death to spark widespread civil unrest, aided by a corrupt transitional government. By the time the aliens arrive, the government will have lost control of the populace, and the alien takeover will be slowed greatly."
"You would start a civil war just to slow the aliens down?!" The Prime Minister exclaimed.
"Not quite. By our estimates, the arrival of the aliens will be what finally pushes the people into open rebellion. If we do not do this, there will be next to no resistance. The people will do as the government says. By removing government control, we free them to take matters into their own hands."
"People will die! The aliens are offering to make peace!"
"Do you really believe that? They have the power to eliminate us completely whenever they like. They will keep us around only as long as we are useful to them. If we can slow them down here, we buy more time to prepare our resistance, and infiltrate their new government."
The Director leaned forward. "I know this is a difficult decision. Sacrifice some lives now for the possibility of stopping the aliens. But I assure you, this is the right course of action. We have considered every possible response, and this gives us the greatest chance of success."
The Prime Minister sat in silence for nearly a minute before responding. "What about my family?"
"We will stage a simultaneous attack on your home, and fake their deaths as well. They will be brought to the same safehouse as you."
After a moment more, the Prime Minister reached a decision. "Your judgment has never let me down before. Very well, you have my approval. God help us all."
---
Israel News Network January 28th, 2016
The 3-hour siege of the Knesset has finally come to an end. IDF peacekeepers have stormed the building and neutralized the terrorist forces inside. Unfortunately, a number of government officials were found dead, including President Rivlin and Prime Minister Netanyahu. This is a terrible blow to the nation, especially in these already trying times. Mrs. Netanyahu could not be reached for comment…
---
Location Unknown Some time later
Prime Minister Netanyahu gradually came to, the sedative wearing off. The last thing he remembered was sitting at his desk when…
Right. The raid. He was given drugs that would slow his heartbeat enough to fool the doctors, and he must be in the Mossad safehouse. He opened his eyes and took stock of his surroundings.
It looked like a hospital room. Perhaps they wanted to make sure the drugs hadn’t done any damage. He saw a man sitting nearby.
The man spoke. “Good, you’re awake. Are you feeling alright sir?”
“I have a splitting headache, but I’ll live.” He replied. “Where’s my family?”
“They’re… safe.” The man said.
He knew that tone of voice. “What happened?”
“I’m afraid we were… not entirely truthful with you about some aspects of Operation Handover.”
“What?!” Netanyahu tried to sit up, but the pain in his head flared, and he laid back down.
“We did not involve your family. They are currently mourning your untimely death.”
He continued. “The plan we described to you would never have worked. It will not take long for the aliens to discover that the body we will bury is not yours, and they will start to track you down. We estimated it would take perhaps two weeks before you were found, which would give the new government enough legitimacy to undermine any chance of rebellion. We hope to instead send them on a wild goose chase. You will be given a new identity, and you will never see your friends or family again.”
“WHAT?!?” Netanyahu screamed, in spite of the pain. “YOU BACKSTABBING TRAITORS! I AM THE PRIME MINISTER! YOU CAN’T DO THIS TO ME!”
“No, Mr. Netanyahu,” said the man, handing him a mirror. “The Prime Minister is dead.”
A sinking feeling came over Netanyahu, as he realized where most of the pain in his head was concentrated.
He looked into the mirror, and an unfamiliar face stared back at him.
|
|
|
Post by Ziv Adler on Feb 19, 2016 9:30:23 GMT -5
"Allegations of corruption continue to be leveled at the Israel Transitional Government. Many are accusing them of using the current crisis as an opportunity for a power grab..."
"Did the Prime Minister fake his death? A growing number of people seem to think so, claiming the terrorist attack on the Knesset was an elaborate hoax. the Israel Transitional Government declined to comment..."
"Protesters gathered outside the Knesset today, calling for the resignation of Acting Prime Minister Moshe Ya'alon..."
"The meeting between the Transitional Government and the alien representatives was cut short today as a riot broke out in the streets of Jerusalem. A state of emergency has been declared..."
---
Director's Office, Mossad HQ March 6th, 2016
The Director read the latest reports. Everything was proceeding according to plan. Israel was in chaos, and although ADVENT was officially in control of the country they were unable to properly enforce their authority.
As far as anyone outside the Mossad (and many people inside it) knew, they had lost most of their intelligence capabilities due to the current situation. In reality, the higher-ranking members of the organisation were continuing their resistance.
We already have several people inside ADVENT, and their number will only grow. The Director thought. Our agents are disrupting alien operations worldwide, and we have research teams working through the Xcom data. Eventually we will be able to make our move, as long as ADVENT does not discover the full extent of our plans.
This is where the war really starts.
|
|
|
Post by littlebaron on Feb 19, 2016 11:19:19 GMT -5
"Alright," the ADVENT trooper sighed, removing his helmet and placing it on his desk. "Let's get this over with. Name's Julia Shepherd, correct?"
Julia nodded wordlessly.
"And you're in for... underage drinking?"
"I wasn't even-" Julia protested, but he cut her off with a wave of his hand.
"Doesn't matter. You were present and didn't report. You had your duty as a citizen and failed, so the punishment for you is the same as the rest. One week labor."
"One week labor? For being near people who were drinking? That's insane!"
"I don't make the rules, Miss Shepherd."
Somebody shouted in the alien language from outside the office- no accent, however. That's strange, Julia thought. Usually the trooper's grasp on the language was mediocre at best.
"I'm sorry, one moment, please." The trooper stood and left the office.
"Rak-til shorak an-ti. Gadrat polsrat foram." Julia saw the shape of a much larger soldier through the frosted glass. He towered over the other one by a full six inches.
"Those are the orders? Are you sure?"
"Dra."
"I'll make sure it's fulfilled. I'll tell the transport drivers."
The trooper entered the room again and put his helmet on. "I'll take you to your cell, Miss Shepherd. You'll be taken to the labor camp early tomorrow."
"What was that about new orders?"
The trooper frowned. "Nothing. It doesn't concern you.
|
|
|
Post by Ziv Adler on Feb 21, 2016 15:51:52 GMT -5
Ziv Adler Personal Log 21:00 April 12, 2016
---
I never thought I’d see the Mossad enact Operation Handover, but here we are. So far it has been a complete success, with ADVENT struggling to establish order in Israel and looking for a Prime Minister who no longer exists. We’ve bought ourselves enough time to infiltrate the new government before they can regain control.
The Director has decided that I will not be one of our infiltrators, as he feels that my history with Xcom would lead to too much scrutiny on me. I doesn’t help that orange eyes, a remnant of my now-defunct gene mods, are quite conspicuous. Instead I will be working to eliminate key figures in ADVENT based on intelligence gathered by our undercover operatives. It will be good to be back to doing what I’m best at.
We also have people combing through the research data I retrieved from Xcom, and they have made good progress. Already they have devised a new approach to genetic modification that does not require a constant supply of Meld to maintain. Since Xcom already had much of the necessary data, I will be the first test subject. They aim to improve my reflexes, since mine are significantly below average for a Mossad operative. They could do more, but with so little Meld to work with they don’t want to use any more on a single agent.
|
|
|
Post by Random Commander on Feb 21, 2016 16:47:19 GMT -5
Lucy awoke in a comfortable king sized bed with a thick cozy duvet covering the lower half of her body, her arms were rested on top of the duvet so that they lay either side of her body but close enough that it trapped the air in the covers. To her left was an old oak bedside cupboard with a small analog clock which pointed to 10:34 and by the white light entering the room she assumed it meant in the morning.
To her right was an array of tall metal poles which had white monitors attached to them and a trolley with a variety of needles and bottles placed carefully on it. From one of the poles hung a bag that was connected to her right arm, the clear pipe from the bag was clear and had a lot of slack so that she could move freely.
The room was very large and open, it was very clearly an estate room as the walls were had very large curtain boards and the walls were painted a mat white, with the ceiling having many wooden carving as well as a small chandelier hanging on a thread of chain. The large oak door on the left of the room was around 8ft tall and many feet wide so you stand 4 people in a row with arm space. The only window in the room was on the right of the room and was almost as tall the whole room having great silk curtains as if they were woven by giants.
Lucy blinked and shifted her head so she could have a better look at herself. She was garbed in a light, matted sea-green dress, thin and seemingly purified for medical use, and free from any crimson stains of blood or otherwise. With her left hand she brushed her hair, noticing that it was no longer the modified magenta color that she edited herself - it was her old, natural brown hair.
Despite how her surroundings were serene and peaceful, Lucy couldn't help but feel out of place, as if this is all a dream to her. Her head throbbed slightly, and she knew better than to get up so soon. She laid her head back down and focused on the chandelier, trying to recollect her thoughts and wondered if she was truly alive, really dead, or possibly comatose. Failing to come to a conclusion, she gazed out the window, squinting to see a glimpse of the world she was in, so she could better get an idea of where exactly she is.
Minutes passed leaving Lucy in utter silence with her thoughts. The peaceful room was cool, not cold, but artificially cool. A noise made Lucy strain to hear for it was so quiet and it came from the door, the sound of a trolley being pushed effortlessly against a hard floor until it stopped as it hit loudest point just outside the door. Nothing happened for a few seconds but it that was broken by the doors being opened softly and with care, not to make much noise and a metal trolley came through with new medical bottles and bags on it.
A pale woman with jet black hair came through, wearing a loose white shirt and jeans which fitted tightly to her legs. She wore and sliver necklace around her neck and on her hand she had a silver ring with a small blue gemstone on it. She continued to push the trolley past Lucy's bed and began switching different bottles around, completely oblivious to Lucy.
Lucy wanted to get her attention, but she knew little, and with so little information, she couldn't tell if she was to be trusted or not. Not wanting to jump head-first into what might be a very bad decision, Lucy feigned sleep, relaxing and breathing with soft rhythm, as she watched the other woman switch the bottles, taking note of everything she touches.
The woman gave a deep sigh when she had finished switching empty bottles and the needles around. She looked at Lucy as if she looked at her like this hundreds of times before, so most of the compassion was gone. He held onto her trolley and shook her head as she was turning around, “If I were Michel I would've given up a long time ago on you."
Lucy reviewed her thoughts. She last remembered bleeding out on the floor of some drugstore, where Fisher took out two allies of whoever took over after this 'Danvers' guy, and told her he would handle everything. It seems he did, she woke up in a rather nice place. Even though it's not technically standard hospital procedure to furnish a room this nicely, nevertheless it met up to protocol. This woman was not wearing the standardized outfit of a Nurse, yet she still had an air of professionalism about her, and she knew to routinely switch the medicines of patients. She also mentioned her friend Fisher. Lucy would agree that this wasn't really Michel - not standard Michel anyway, he was really compassionate towards her. Concerning what happened, it wouldn't make sense for him to give up on her now, so her words matched up.
Lucy trusted the situation. She gave a small grunt, acting as if she was just starting to wake up.
The woman stopped in her tracks and turned in awe at Lucy's noise, she pushed herself away from the trolley and slid to the bed side and began encouraging her to wake up,
"Come on Lucy, you can do it, come on." She turned away from the bed side and looked at the monitors and then to the graphs of paper on the trolley, looking thoroughly at every spike and line. The woman then went back to the bed side with a glint of happiness, and somewhat relief in her eyes.
Lucy felt somewhat bad that she was acting all this out, but in her past experiences, she did it because she's always cautious about surprises. It might be a personal insecurity, but it sometimes saves her life.
She grunted softly again and tightened her already-shut eyes, then slowly opened them. She looked over slowly to the excited woman by her side. "W... Where am I?"
"Your-" she squeaked before clearing her throat to a deeper tone, “You’re in the Hunter's estate home," she replied shortly, as she got up off the bed side and gave her hand out to Lucy, “I’m sure that you will be okay to get out of bed, knowing that you have been fully conscious for a fair few minutes now. And I am sure you are famished now."
Lucy chuckled nervously and took the woman's hand. "Yes, very much so" she said, "and... uh... I'm sure you understand. Unfamiliar surroundings and all. They look nice by the way!"
Lucy got out of the rather comfortable duvet and put her feet on the floor, steadying herself on the bed and with the help of the woman before she finally stood. "Um... what is your name, ma'am?"
"My name? Abbie, Abbie Hunter," she stated helping Lucy walk over to the door, "But I'm sure that my name isn't really that important, what is more important is what you want to eat." Abbie offered to Lucy.
That's when the hunger really started to kick in. Lucy's stomach practically roared for attention. Clutching it, Lucy nodded at Abbie's statement. "Definitely more important. Gosh, I'd probably eat anything at this point!"
Abbie responded with a motherly smile and guided Lucy through the door and into a large hallway which spanned far behind them and in front, with beautifully furnished walls and large windows spread a few meters apart that flooded the hall with shafts of white light.
The two of them walked down the lengthy hallway and turned right to find a flight of oak stairs leading downward and the stairwell turned to the right to go down and continued straight on from where the two were standing, back up implying that the hallway was looped.
They continued down the right of the stairs and moved through a vast common room which had a red color style to it that had oaken furniture placed around as well. They went to the left of the room where there was a smaller door and Abbie pushed it open with little effort and revealed the stone kitchen that they had.
"Now what can I get you Lucy?" she asked with interest in her voice.
Lucy peered inside the kitchen, it was once again decorated in mostly oak furniture, and she caught a glimpse of a rack of well-designed pots and pans of various sizes.
"You know what? I have a craving for pan--" Lucy caught herself; she has travelled the world and knew that cultures are different from each other, and she had to adapt accordingly. Judging by Fisher's English accent and descent, Lucy assumed the mindset of an Englishwoman.
"Err... Flapjacks, sorry. Flapjacks would be great. Maple syrup if you have it."
"Oh you are very lucky, I am quite a good chef myself and I made some flapjacks yesterday for Michel," Abbie said with some pride guiding Lucy to a chair and sitting her down. She moved with some speed across the room and knew when to stop and start and what speeds to go at for the maximum efficiency.
She got to an overhead cupboard and opened it quickly but carefully and pulled out a hexagonal chocolate tin, which then she opened up and put it front of Lucy on the table, to show a dozens of large flapjacks that were sticking together with a golden sheen all stacked on grease proof paper at the bottom.
Abbie turned away from her guest and picked out a large drinking glass from the same cupboard, before closing it and heading toward the sink where she filled it up half way and slid it across the table to Lucy.
The skill of Abbie's precise movements suggested to Lucy that she has done this for a while. Abbie definitely had a greater skill in cooking than Lucy, but that's because Lucy was out of practice. Her flapjacks, which Lucy was practically inhaling at this point (who could blame her? She was starving), were as good as Abbie said they were, the sweet, fluffy bits of sustenance filling her with the comfortable feeling of being at home. It really felt good.
Lucy took a break to sip some water and examined her plate - she was almost done and nowhere near satisfied. "Erm, I apologize, but I'm not entirely certain that one serving could hold me over, could you possibly be bothered to make more?"
"Time is all I have Lucy, I can make more for you as any friend of Michel is a friend of mine... even if he hasn't been around for a few months to help me with you." Abbie responded as if Lucy was an old friend. Abbie's expression dropped slightly and picked up again as she started to get the ingredients out of the cupboards, high and low, to make another batch of Flapjacks.
"For a few... Where is he now?" Lucy asked, getting noticeably worried as she finished off the first batch of Flapjacks.
"Michel dropped you off in December and told me to look after you as he had to do something, I haven't heard from him since then." Abbie told Lucy in a flat one that resembled Fisher's. She got the oats out of a plastic bag and poured them into a ceramic bowl, all the while switching the oven on to the right settings.
"So a lot has changed since then, huh?" Lucy mused. It would make sense that she was comatose - she does remember getting hit in the head, then panicking as she realized that combined with the lack of blood, she would eventually pass out and be at death's door.
Lucy took another sip of water. "I'm surprised the estate is in such pristine condition, considering... you know..." She hoped the aliens weren't too tight on their grip of earth.
"What the aliens? Well you probably know them as that, but recently they have put in place a new government which has solved a lot of the world's problems pretty much overnight." She replied pouring the sugar into the bowl and cutting the butter which had come out of nowhere. "Sure they are strict, but they have almost got rid of criminal activities."
Lucy exhaled in amusement, "One day you think they are going to destroy all humans, the next day, you realize they only destroy the bad humans and give the good humans lollipops and Cadillacs, or something equally daft. God, I missed a lot. Er... how many months was I out, since I came to this estate?"
She sighed and rolled her eyes upward to show the was thinking, “So you got here on the 20th of December and the date is now 27th of July- so about 7 months. Michel said you were hit over the head by a metal pole or something like that so that would explain a bit." Abbie replied mixing all the ingredients together with some speed and throwing it all in the oven in an instant, before she turned the egg timer to 25 minutes.
"Yeah, that sounds about right. Me and Fi... erm... Michel were co-workers, who tended to get in a lot of trouble back then. But... I guess since he thinks I'm out of commission, he's flying solo now?" Lucy nodded idly, "Yeah, I think he can handle himself. Hopefully..." Now it was Lucy who was expressing depression, but she shook it off.
"A lot of trouble back then? Boy, I didn't realize being an accountant for MI6 was such a big deal, but yes I suppose he off solo trying to get whatever job he had back now, I just hope that he wasn't sent on the field." She stated folding her arms and resting them on the table to get closer to Lucy.
Lucy gulped and made a face like that was the wrong thing to say, both from herself AND from Abbie. "Uh.. yeah, if he's trying to get his job at MI6 back, if I recall what he said correctly, they're going to do worse than just send him to the field. Yes, an accountant is a big deal, and he screwed up big time. Costed the life of a field Agent. Because of one small document."
She wasn't sure if auditing the wrong document in a database was that important in MI6, but she did know applying the wrong codon in her mother's genome definitely was. And they were both comparatively small mistakes that bring a whole operation down. Possibly.
"Hmm well, I try not to think about it too much otherwise I get bad thoughts and I need to stay positive whilst I'm the only one here." She finished before an awkward silence came between them both before Abbie giggled, “One thing that gets me about you, is how American you are, Michel has never been one to work with people from America, he's always held a grudge against them for some reason."
"Hmm... I guess I did something that got Michel's attention just the right way." Lucy thought on what she said for a bit, flushed her face and giggled with Abbie. "Haha, or maybe it's the fact I saved his hide a few times. I don't know."
The two of them were talking as if they were old friends which made Abbie more comfortable with the current situation. The two of them talked idly for a few minutes talking random subjects and exchanging jokes before a knock at the front door made the two stop. Abbie had a worried look on her face before saying, “I’ll be right back after I see who's at the door." She glided as she usually did out of the kitchen, leaving Lucy all on her own again.
Lucy held her breath. Usually this would be the part where everything went wrong. And they both felt so comfortable! She would hate to see an estate like this crumble to nothingness. With what little she learned about the world, about this ADVENT, about the rising megacities, she had a vague, but decent idea of what ADVENT would be doing at a place like this. Then again, it may not be as bad as she thought. Lucy decided she shouldn't hold her breath about it. But she was, so she let out a sigh of disappointment.
Abbie took her time getting back to the kitchen, her slow footsteps could be heard trudging back to her guest and when she came in the door way of the kitchen she looked like she had seen a ghost and looked at Lucy with a shocked face. This made Lucy uneasy and she readied herself for the news.
"It-it's a letter from Michel."
Normally, Lucy would be overjoyed to hear from Fisher again, and to tell him that she's alive and awake, but Abbie's sudden downgrade in mood tells Lucy that this isn't good news. "If it pains you to read it out loud, then I guess let me read it for myself" she stated, having a hint of worry in her voice.
Abbie moved over to where Lucy was sitting and handed her the letter letting it go prematurely so Lucy had to catch it slightly, Lucy looked at the letter and read to herself:
To my dear sister Abbie,
I feel that I can no longer lie to you about my past employment, yes it is true that I worked at MI6, but I did so as a field agent where I was sent to deal with 'bad guys' as such. My recent lack of contact with you is due to me working for two companies that revolved around fighting the alien menace; one being more malicious than the other and the other being an unsung hero that helps the effort. But as you know the aliens destroyed this organization in December and I ran for my life with Lucy, doing many regrettable things along the way.
I wrote this letter to tell you why I have been gone for so long, the short of it is that I got cocky and tried to stage a rebellion against ADVENT, but it failed miserably and I was sent to a labor camp to work out my time. But know this, if Lucy wakes up- never let her outside as she will immediately be spotted by the ADVENT police as a terrorist, for being an old friend of mine and supporting the organization I talked about earlier. By no means is she dangerous or a terrorist, or in the slightest way a treat. Just know this and what I said.
And if you want to know what I am truly like, turn the TV on the 27th at 12:30, the news will be broadcasting a live feed from the labor camp I am at.
Yours truly, Michel 'Fisher' Hunter
xxx
After she finished reading it, Lucy set the letter down haphazardly, trying to regulate her heavy, somewhat infuriated breathing. She regained control of herself and took a deep breath. Fisher was indeed cocky, and somewhat crazy, for pulling a stunt like this. But he was right - deep inside, Lucy somehow knew the aliens were not to be trusted. ADVENT was not to be trusted. There were obviously lots of resistance forces out there, in hiding, trying to live life from the bones of what little remained of the earth they once knew. Lucy knew that this was not the fate for Fisher, but at the same time, he wouldn't want her getting caught and being sent to a labor camp just as he was, either.
Lucy assumed an air of wisdom and determination. She stood up with a blank stare - one of her own, that she used on Fisher so many times back then - at Abbie. “Listen to me, Abbie" she began, "What you know of me and Fisher -- what you truly know about your Brother and I -- you know so little. Yes, I will follow his directions and lie low... for now. The truth is we're both determined, and what comes next in life will be quite the curveball."
She noticed the remote to a small TV monitor lying on the counter. She took it and looked over at the oaken analog clock - 12:29 PM. She pressed the power button and went over to Abbie, placing a reassuring, but powerful hand on her shoulder. "So get comfortable, because this may very well be the last moments of a quiet, comfortable chapter in your life."
The live feed of the camp was now displayed on the television, thanks to Lucy's impeccable timing. "It is true," she continued monotonously, "that your dear brother has done some nasty deeds, but his motives are still true and just. He regrets, Abbie, he regrets what he has done, and I know this. We don't necessarily know the true agenda that the aliens have, but I'll be damned if it doesn't include anything heinous. Back then, we fought them for so long, and they still ended up taking away everything from us."
The feed closed in a little, and Lucy pointed to the camp on the monitor. "For now, we lie low, but mark my words Abbie: eventually we will have to do things we may end up regretting, for a righteous cause. One day, when we have the support we need and the resources to spend, one day we will free your brother." Lucy took a deep breath and led Abbie to the dining room outside the kitchen.
"Take a seat, Abbie; I have a long story to tell."
|
|
|
Post by Ziv Adler on Feb 21, 2016 19:36:13 GMT -5
Nadav Berkowitz was asleep when ADVENT came for him. Before he could react, he was being forced to the floor of his bedroom.
"What the hell is this about?" he asked.
An ADVENT captain stepped forward, and spoke in the odd alien language. "You have been leaking information about ADVENT patrols. You will tell us who you are working for."
Nadav knew his orders. With such a large operation, it was inevitable that some of their people would be discovered. But as long as he couldn't be tied to the Mossad, his loss was only a minor setback.
"Fuck you" he said, before popping his false tooth out of his jaw and biting down. The poison would kill him in under a minute, and there was nothing incriminating in his house. The operation was safe.
Nadav convulsed as the poison took effect. The captain gestured to someone out of sight, and another man entered the room, this one a civilian. He looked Nadav over for a moment, then nodded. The ADVENT soldiers stepped away from him.
As Nadav lay dying, he saw the man gruesomely twist and re-form. The last thing he saw was his own face smiling down at him.
|
|
|
Post by Ziv Adler on Feb 22, 2016 13:33:54 GMT -5
Mossad Safehouse 08:43 June 13th, 2027
Ziv sat in front of his laptop, thinking.
For more than ten years, the Mossad had been working to disrupt ADVENT from the inside, and still the best they could do was slow them down. Their efforts had cost the aliens time, but ADVENT continued to strengthen their control over Earth. Recently there was talk of giving all ADVENT employees cranial implants for ‘security purposes’. That level of surveillance would be disastrous for them. The Mossad was doing its best to stall the program while they devised a countermeasure.
Ziv looked up as someone opened the front door and walked in carrying a briefcase. “Good morning, Ashur.” He said.
Ashur Pensak was operating in the same area as Ziv, and the two were sharing the safehouse in the wilderness outside one of ADVENT’s megacities.
“Morning, Ziv.” Ashur replied. “Still planning your next hit?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t know how you do it, man. You must spend twice as long on prep work as I do, and yet you have more kills than me.”
“I don’t waste time on conversation.”
Ashur threw up his free hand. “Alright, point taken.” He said, before moving to a nearby workbench. He opened his briefcase and removed the pieces of a collapsible sniper rifle. He then retrieved a set of tools and started to clean it.
After a few minutes, Ziv closed his laptop, then got up and walked to the kitchen. He opened the cupboards, looking for something to help clear his head. For the last few minutes, he’d had a feeling that something was wrong, but he wasn’t sure what.
He heard someone behind him. He drew his knife as he spun around…
“Woah! Ziv, it’s me!”
After a moment, Ziv sighed and withdrew the blade from Ashur’s throat. “Sorry, you startled me. Something has me on edge. Are you… hurt…”
He trailed off, seeing the cut on Ashur’s throat where the blade had nicked him. It was dripping a translucent brown liquid.
Seeing Ziv’s stare, Ashur touched his hand to the wound. His eyes went wide as Ziv finally realized what had been bothering him.
Ashur always cleans his pistol first.
Ashur drew his handgun, but Ziv was faster. He plunged his knife into Ashur’s wrist, and grabbed the gun as it fell. Then he shot Ashur three times in the head. Ashur collapsed to the floor, and Ziv lowered the gun.
Then Ashur’s body started to writhe and grow, turning a sickly shade of brown. Ziv stood frozen in surprise for several seconds, before emptying the rest of his magazine into what he assumed was the creature’s head. It stopped moving.
The creature appeared to be made of slime, and would probably have stood over 10 feet tall if it was upright. It had a set of black claws on each hand.
As the adrenaline faded, Ziv realized the implications of what had just happened. He ran back to his laptop, and was about to start sending out a warning when he heard the ADVENT dropship outside. He hesitated for a moment before deciding he didn’t have time. He grabbed his laptop, entered a code into a panel on the wall, and then ran for the escape tunnel underneath the cabin.
30 seconds later, ADVENT kicked down the door, and the demolition charges went off.
---
A new message came over the ADVENT psionic network.
One of our shapeshifters has been discovered. The man who discovered it has escaped. We must act before he can warn the rest.
|
|
|
Post by Ziv Adler on Feb 22, 2016 15:54:48 GMT -5
June 13th, 2027
For the first time, the Mossad had been completely outmaneuvered.
Once ADVENT discovered the first agent and replaced him with one of their Faceless, it was only a matter of time. They spent years working their way through the network of Mossad infiltrators, gathering information and replacing any particularly troublesome agents. Ziv's discovery threatened to unravel all this planning, so ADVENT would not give him the opportunity.
At ADVENT facilities around the world, employees were escorted from their offices. Homes were raided, the occupants taken from their beds. By the end of the day, every Mossad infiltrator ADVENT had discovered was either dead or in custody.
At the same time, ADVENT attacked Mossad Headquarters, killing everyone inside before they could react. The Director barely managed to send out an emergency broadcast before he was shot.
---
Opening Secure Channel
ZA-14326 has joined CD-13170 has joined
ZA: I’ve been out of the loop for a few days now. How bad is it?
CD: Hard to say exactly. ADVENT has been planning this for a long time. They might have gotten all our infiltrators if something hadn’t forced them to act early.
CD: They didn’t stop with our ADVENT people. They raided HQ, and they’re rounding up agents from all over. Some got the Director’s message and went into hiding, but most didn’t. Ballpark, we’ve lost half our agents worldwide.
ZA: I think we need to activate Omega Protocol.
CD: Are you sure?
ZA: Half our agents are incapacitated, and who knows how many more have been replaced. We can’t trust any of our own people. This is exactly what Omega Protocol was intended for.
CD: I don’t think anyone ever seriously expected it to be required.
ZA: With the Director dead, we only need approval from two senior agents in extreme circumstances. I make one. I need your confirmation.
CD: You have it. You’re right, we don’t have a choice.
ZA: I’ll send the message. Good luck, Caleb.
CD: You too Ziv.
ZA has left CD has left
---
Somewhere in the Wilderness June 19th, 2027
In an abandoned shack with a radio tower on the roof, Ziv sat in front of a terminal.
No point in waiting. You know there’s no other option.
His finger hovered over the Enter key.
You also know there’s no going back from this.
After a moment’s hesitation, Ziv sighed and pushed the button. Once he’d verified the program was running, he ran out of the shack and into the woods.
The modified radio tower sent its signal on all frequencies it could reach, highjacking other broadcasts as it went. This message would be heard across the globe.
Of course, this drew the attention of ADVENT, but it took them minutes to arrive. By then Ziv was gone, and the damage was done.
---
Attention all Mossad operatives.
ADVENT has shapeshifters. I don’t know how many of us have been compromised, but we have lost more than half our people in the past week. The Director and his second in command are dead.
On the authority of agents 14326 and 13170, I am activating Omega Protocol. As of now, all Mossad agents, contacts, safehouses, and other resources are to be considered unknown and untrustworthy. Anyone in our datacenters, you have 5 minutes to grab what you can before the Thermite charges blow.
I urge you all to continue to fight the aliens however you can, but from now on you are on your own. The Mossad is no more.
|
|
|
Post by littlebaron on Feb 24, 2016 23:40:43 GMT -5
Julia crawled back into the tent she shared with Ashley, all her muscles aching from labor. They were building something here, some sort of facility, but it's purpose wasn't apparent. Mostly she just lifted, carried, and dug in the soft dirt. She'd been running and lifting weights ever since her leukemia had been cured, so thankfully the work wasn't extraordinarily difficult, but the same couldn't be said for many of the others. Especially Ashley. She was already sitting on her cot, her dirty face streaked with tears. She couldn't-or wouldn't-work very hard, so the ADVENT troopers were twice as harsh with her. A bruise even shone on her cheek where an officer had struck her earlier. Julia set a reassuring hand on her knee as she sat down across from her. "It'll be ok, Ashley."
"I just want to go home."
"I know," Julia sighed. "Me too." Do I really have a home to go back to? "But we'll be back soon. Tomorrow our sentence is over, and you'll see your family again. You'll see your friends. You'll even see Tyler, as much as you know I don't want you to."
A small, quick smile broke through the grime on Ashley's face. "Thanks, Julia. You always know-"
"Rak-tar anrash!" interrupted an amplified voice from outside the tent. Fifteen seconds later, one of the new soldiers- the taller ones with bigger, sleeker guns, stormed into the tent and grabbed them both by their arms, dragging them outside.
"Hey!! What the fuck?!" Julia demanded while Ashley screamed in terror. "Tanlak boranti!" the soldier bellowed, throwing them to the ground. "Mol doraten tan-shi." He pointed them in the direction of the woods, where ADVENT soldiers were herding kids and- other soldiers? What was going on?
As Julia and Ashley stumbled towards the edge of the forest, ADVENT trooper urging them along, Julia briefly spotted a taller officer tearing an assault rifle out of the arms of a shorter one. The smaller fought to take it back, so the officer cracked him across the face with the butt of his gun. The scene disappeared behind a tent before she could take it in, but Julia could've sworn that the officer crushed his skull under an armored boot.
At the outer limits of the forest, they were handed shovels and ordered to dig. And so they did. With other kids, with soldiers stripped of arms and armor, all under the supervision of those strange tall troopers. It must've been half an hour before they stopped. The troopers then pulled them up out of the hole they had dug and had them all stand together in a small crowd. The tension was palpable in the air as the soldiers began to fan out and surround them. No one was under any illusion of what was about to happen.
The soldiers steadied their rifles and Ashley took her hand. What do we do? She mouthed.
On three. Run.
"Tal!"
One.
"Tar-ah!"
Two.
"To-shar!"
Three.
"KATH NARAD!"
"RUN!"
Gunfire erupted around them as the ADVENT forces opened fire, purging delinquent and inferior soldier alike. Blood and tiny flecks of bone and flesh splattered onto Julia's skin as she bolted towards the forest with Ashley close behind. Others ran, most getting gunned down but a few managed to break through the circle of ADVENT unharmed, Julia and Ashley among them. They ran harder and faster than they ever had run before in their lives, fueled by adrenaline and sheer, outright terror. They ducked through trees and underbrush, narrowly avoiding the hypersonic rounds tearing the forest apart. Only when they felt safely out of sight of the ADVENT did they slow down even a little. The two girls collapsed beside a narrow creek and gasped desperately for air. "How- how did-" Ashley sputtered. "How did we do that?"
Julia could only shake her head. "I've got no fuckin' clue, Ash. Not a single fuckin' clue." Only now was she registering the pain from her wounds. She gingerly peeled off her bloodsoaked t-shirt to reveal two gunshot wounds; one clear through her thigh, another that had nicked her side. "Shit," she muttered, wincing in pain. "Ash, are you hurt?"
"No, I think I'm ok. Physically, anyways.
"Jesus," Julia cursed as she sank to the riverbed. The adrenaline was wearing off and the awful pain of her wounds was starting to set in. "Tear up my shirt, I need- holy fuck this hurts- I need bandages. Now."
|
|
|
Post by littlebaron on Feb 25, 2016 17:26:11 GMT -5
Two days later.
Julia was awake and Ashley was gone. They'd been staying at a bend further down the creek, with little to drink and even less to eat, but at least they were safe. But now Ashley was nowhere to be found. Not at the riverbed, not off looking for food, nowhere. Julia jogged through the forest, shouting "ASHLEY! ASHLEY, WHERE ARE YOU!" over and over again to no avail. Where had she gone? Where could she have-
Julia's thought process was interrupted by the distant, but quickly approaching roar of helicopter blades. ADVENT, probably. Still combing the forest for survivors. She wasn't terribly worried, several choppers had already flown overhead...no, something was different here. This one wasn't just fly slowly overhead. This one had a mission. Had she been found out? Shit, shit, shit, she thought as its spotlights cut through tree branches that were still thick with morning dew. She began to run as several ropes spilled out and ADVENT troopers hit the ground with dull thuds.
"Dakan serak!"
Julia stopped and held her hands over her head. An officer came forward, with someone cowering behind him. "Takash noran anti?" it demanded.
"Yes," Ashley said, stepping out from behind the officer. "That's her."
"Ashley? How could you?"
Ashley looked at her with a mix of pity and despair. "I just want to go home, Julia."
"Yeah? Well fuck you, you dirty traitor bitch. At least you have a fucking home to go back to. I swear to god, if I ever see you again I will personally- ARGH!" A shock from a stun lance cut off Julia's words. The last thing she remembered before completely losing consciousness was being carried to the helicopter.
|
|