Poetry and lyrics are typically what I write, but when the mood strikes I sometimes try my hand at writing in prose. This is an example. Influenced a bit by Crysis, and a more scientific/realistic take on the recent vampire craze. I'm well aware that there is some somewhat cheesy "Hollywood" style action, but that's my favorite kind. Anyway, go nuts.
The 350 pound suit hit the ground with barely a whisper. The padded soles of the Phalanx Mark II armour ensured that not even the advanced ears of those abominations could hear it's footsteps, unless the user were in a full-out run. The soldier warily started from the chain-link fence he had just climbed over and began to search for a viable target. There, in the midst of the complex, was a large warehouse. It had only 3 visible guards, and none appeared to have any EMP devices.
The afternoon sun beat down on the compound. The buildings were old and worn down. The enemy didn't have a particular penchant for building permanent constructions, so this was likely a re-purposed former military base. Several smaller buildings filled the complex, but one clearly dominated the scene. Roughly 500 meters in every direction, this was a massive warehouse. It stretched 50 meters into the air, indicating it was several floors high. The three guards sat around the main entrance, smoking cigarettes and joking with each other.
The armour's cloaking system powered on. In this state, the suit was semi transparent, but the user did not have access to the same shielding and strength augmentations as the other modes. Although the soldiers were not the most vigilant, it was still wise to make some attempt at stealth. The soldier raised his silenced pistol. This 9mm handgun had a 12 round clip and came equipped with a UV flashlight and infrared sight, only visible through the users Helmet Mounted Display. This operation, however, meant that it would be wise to limit the use of these features. Such a beam was still visible to those things, and the repercussions of a flashlight were obvious.
The soldier crept closer still, careful not to walk into any motion sensors. His gun was still raised, and the only thing stopping him from quaking with fear was his suits advanced movement assistance software. He was about 30 feet from the entrance now. In the afternoon sun, his cloaking was only partially effective, so he was grateful for any shade provided. He edged slowly around to the side of the warehouse covered by the sun and waited for the patrolling guard to pass. Then he switched his armour's mode back to combat mode and leaped straight up. He flew 15 meters easily, and grappled the side of the building. His suits power was draining, but he had enough strength to grasp into self-made handholds while the reactor recharged. It read 100% just in time for him to launch the rest of the way up. Seconds later, a guard arrived to investigate the dull noise made from the steel giving way to gauntleted hands, narrowly missing the infiltrator.
He clambered onto the roof, his breathing getting heavy. This is where it gets tough. he told himself. Now that he was on the roof, he needed to find a way in. The most obvious way would be to power up and smash straight through the large, worn building, but that would defeat the purpose of his stealth insertion. Instead, he opted for an exhaust vent. He carefully lifted a grate off of the vent and laid it to the side. The soldier dropped down 5 meters but failed in masking his noise this time. He fumbled as he landed and though it was only a minor mistake, the sound of a steel glove smacking into aluminium resounded throughout the building.
Or maybe it was all in his head. At this point he was so nervous that he couldn't tell. He crept closer to the grate of the vent and his heart stood still for a moment. There, less than 2 meters away, was a Nightwalker. Command didn't expect any Nightwalkers to be up with the sun still out, which was the entire purpose of risking detection in a mid-day operation. The soldier didn't move a muscle. The monster put an ear to the vent and listened, wondering if it was worth investigating. The soldier lay in prone position and slowly reached for his gun. His suit, detecting his raised blood pressure and adrenaline, switched to emergency mode, meaning all power was put on stand by and would be diverted the instant he activated it. As soon as he did, his head mounted UV lamps would be turned on, and his shields and strength enhancements would shoot through the roof. He didn't risk setting it off without reason though, because it would only last a few minutes before the reactor cell burned out, and then he would be encased in 350 pounds of top secret technology. When a situation like this happened and Command deemed the risk of capture too great, it would detonate the armour remotely to prevent the enemy from reverse-engineering it. The Phalanx was the only advantage they had anymore. They could not risk losing it.
Nightwalkers were roughly human in appearance. The stronger ones could mimic human faces, but most wore terrifying, unnatural ones. They generally appeared as gaunt, with shallow eyes and their hair falling out. They were usually very thin, with exceptionally long fangs and claws. Their eyes were nothing but whites, with a small, black pupil. Despite this corpse-like visage, Nightwalkers had unprecedented strength, speed, hearing, sense of smell, and other abilities. All of this was granted to them by a disease of unknown origin. Their flesh crumbled to dust when killed, no longer sustained by the mutated pathogen coursing through them.
The creature turned away, deciding it was nothing. The soldier knew he couldn't lift the grate free without making noise and if the Nightwalker got out of sight, he couldn't neutralize it. He acted on instinct, bringing his gun forward and firing simultaneously. The bullet hit the metal grate and blew a hole through it, but wasn't enough to kill the Nightwalker as well. He fired again, and this time the bullet went through it's head. The creature slowly disintegrated, screaming bloody murder. Stealth was now abandoned.
The soldier switched to combat mode and propelled himself out of the vent. He landed and brought his gun up in time to see two Thralls raising their guns. Thralls were humans, just like him. It saddened him to kill them, but it was necessary. They had given their lives of freedom for ones of servitude to their Nightwalker masters, with the empty promise of survival when the Nightwalkers had conquered humanity. The soldier's gun coughed twice and a bullet pierced each of their skulls. His aim was enhanced by an uplink with his helmet which gave an estimated area within which to aim in order to attain maximum efficiency. Essentially, a crosshair. Coupled with rigorous training and the cognitive enhancement of the Phalanx meant that this soldier could not be matched by mere Thralls. He abandoned caution and ran at top speed down the hallway, stowing his pistol and grabbing his SMG. This gun also came equipped with a silencer, laser sight, and UV lamp. It had a 60 round magazine.
The soldier took off running through the warehouse, on a catwalk roughly 30 meters from the ground. The platform lead throughout the facility, at some parts changing to closed hallways and corridors, then back to open catwalks. Labyrinthine corridors stretched for a great distance, twisting and turning throughout with no recognizable landmarks. The infiltrator had no idea where he was going, only that he would know when he arrived. The boots of the Phalanx armour made barely a dull thud as they sped along the floor at nearly 40 kilometres per hour.
The soldier turned a corner and fired a few rounds at nearby guard. He fell to the ground, dead, but was not the only threat present. 3 Nightwalkers had jumped roughly 30 meters up onto the catwalk, hissing. They lunged through the air, claws and fangs bared. Time stood still. The soldier aimed at the closest one, the one on the left, and fired. His gun burped 6 rounds and he turned to the next one even as the bullets tore through their target. Another 5 shots flew forth, slaying the second closest, the one on the right. The soldier jumped backwards and narrowly avoided a devastating aerial strike from the surviving Nightwalker. It leaped forward, even as the fleshless skeletons of it's comrades hit the ground. 10 rounds tore through the beast's chest, piercing it's sad excuse for a heart. It turned to dust as it hit the ground, it's ash grinding to a halt only a meter away from it's prey.
The soldier, thoroughly shaken, arose. He hurried past the deep hole in the steel walkway, along the path to find his objective. A few corridors and about 30 bullets later, he found what he was looking for. Nestled in the corner of the warehouse was a room labelled 'Control.' A swift kick sent the door flying open and a flashbang grenade killed a Nightwalker, as well as knocking out 3 Thralls. The soldier entered the room, gun sweeping left and right. Deciding the room was clear, he turned around, locked the door, and accessed a computer terminal. He hooked up his hacking device and waited.
The devices "loading" bar filled slowly, teasing him. He knew he didn't have long before a full security detail would be dispatched to take care of him. Glancing around the room, he looked for any unnoticed entrances. The room had only the door he had come in through. Although this meant he had no other escape routes, at least he didn't have to worry about any sneak attacks. He looked back down at his device and was pleased to see that it had downloaded the files Command was looking for, as well as planting a bug in their systems. Finally, he used his device to shut down the systems in the building, hoping for a distraction to cover his escape.
Suddenly, the door flew off it's hinges and a Nightwalker stepped in. The soldier raised his gun and fired, but it expelled only 5 rounds. The creature was unfazed and tackled him to the ground. He reached for his sidearm, but it was wrestled from his hands and thrown away. The creature grappled with the soldier for a moment before the suit switched to close combat mode. The soldier's strength was magnified and he gave an unexpected shove. The Nightwalker was knocked off and it's prey recovered quickly. He grabbed his knife from his chest sheath and tackled the monster, getting only a few stabs into it's arms before it managed to disarm him. A swift punch sent him flying into the computer terminal, forming a large dent and causing the computer to spark. Then the Nightwalker jumped forward, intent on removing the soldier's helmet to expose his neck. However, the soldier extended his foot and rolled the Nightwalked into the wall. It slid down and somersaulted off of the top of the terminal. The soldier was once again pinned as he attempted to flee with his stolen information. He raised his head and looked for a solution, trying not to picture the Nightwalker raising it's fists for one final strike. Emergency mode was ready, but it would be of little assistance when here, pinned on his stomach. He spotted a Thrall's shotgun nearby and reached for it. His hand grasped the handle, and he prayed the gun was cocked as he pointed it behind his head.
A resounding thud shook the room and the wall was painted a dark red. The soldier pushed the smouldering corpse off of him before getting up. Now all he had to do was make a clean get away to the extraction team nearby. He started towards the door when he heard yet another noise. He dared to peek out as he saw not one or two, but at least a score of Nightwalkers waiting for him. He didn't think twice about activating emergency mode. Stimulants shot through him and his UV lights turned on, vaporizing one Nightwalker and blinding a few of the others. But to the stronger ones, it was a mere deterrent. They leaped forward at the same time as him. A swift smack to the jaw with his shotgun stock decapitated the lead Nightwalker, killing it in an instant. He hit the ground as two more flew past and one landed in front of him. A shotgun blast left a sizable chunk gone from it's head.
The two Nightwalkers who had flown past now ran back to get him from behind. He turned and blasted one before running down the hallway adjacent. With the control sabotaged, the lights had gone out, which made traversing the strange warehouse even more foreboding. He was running at top speed through the hallways, pausing every now and then to blast a Nightwalker away. By now the stimulants had worn off and his suit's power meter read only 57%. He was getting scared. He ran down one more corridor and stopped. Dead end. He spun around and blasted a Nightwalker who was almost upon him. His UV lights were dimming, a sign that meant his suit's energy had hit the halfway point. Three more creatures rounded the corner and three more shells were spent. Another Nightwalker rounded the corner and paused to hiss. The soldier cocked his shotgun and pulled the trigger, but no shells were fired. He tried again.
The Nightwalker lunged through the air at breakneck speed. The soldier's enhanced reaction time allowed him to duck under a potentially fatal punch. The creature slammed straight through the aluminium wall and fell two stories to it's death. By now it was dusk, and the Nightwalkers could easily stand the light for at least enough time to kill him. He vaulted from the building and rolled, allowing his suit to take the force with it's shields. His power dropped to 24%, but he ran on, desperate to escape the Nightwalkers leaping from the hole in the wall to chase him.
He fumbled for his SMG, reloading as he ran. Now rifle shots rang out and the dirt at his feet exploded. The soldier emptied his clip behind him and was rewarded with a few screams, some human, some not. Then he launched a grenade behind him and took out a few more enemies. A 32. round pierced his Achilles Tendon and he tripped. His suit power read 0%, meaning his shields were out and the power cell was about to go. It could only lend him enough power to keep the suit moving at a human pace. He crawled forward, pulled out his pistol, and spun around. He emptied the clip, taking out one Nightwalker and seriously wounding another. The wounded creature advanced, as well as a healthy one. He reloaded and managed one shot before the healthy abomination kicked the weapon from his hands. The bullet pierced the wounded one's head and managed to kill it. The surviving one pinned him to the ground.
"I'm going to make you suffer, cur!" it shrieked. It raised it's head and bared it's fangs, ready to bite straight through the soldier's armour.
The 350 pound suit hit the ground with barely a whisper. The padded soles of the Phalanx Mark II armour ensured that not even the advanced ears of those abominations could hear it's footsteps, unless the user were in a full-out run. The soldier warily started from the chain-link fence he had just climbed over and began to search for a viable target. There, in the midst of the complex, was a large warehouse. It had only 3 visible guards, and none appeared to have any EMP devices.
The afternoon sun beat down on the compound. The buildings were old and worn down. The enemy didn't have a particular penchant for building permanent constructions, so this was likely a re-purposed former military base. Several smaller buildings filled the complex, but one clearly dominated the scene. Roughly 500 meters in every direction, this was a massive warehouse. It stretched 50 meters into the air, indicating it was several floors high. The three guards sat around the main entrance, smoking cigarettes and joking with each other.
The armour's cloaking system powered on. In this state, the suit was semi transparent, but the user did not have access to the same shielding and strength augmentations as the other modes. Although the soldiers were not the most vigilant, it was still wise to make some attempt at stealth. The soldier raised his silenced pistol. This 9mm handgun had a 12 round clip and came equipped with a UV flashlight and infrared sight, only visible through the users Helmet Mounted Display. This operation, however, meant that it would be wise to limit the use of these features. Such a beam was still visible to those things, and the repercussions of a flashlight were obvious.
The soldier crept closer still, careful not to walk into any motion sensors. His gun was still raised, and the only thing stopping him from quaking with fear was his suits advanced movement assistance software. He was about 30 feet from the entrance now. In the afternoon sun, his cloaking was only partially effective, so he was grateful for any shade provided. He edged slowly around to the side of the warehouse covered by the sun and waited for the patrolling guard to pass. Then he switched his armour's mode back to combat mode and leaped straight up. He flew 15 meters easily, and grappled the side of the building. His suits power was draining, but he had enough strength to grasp into self-made handholds while the reactor recharged. It read 100% just in time for him to launch the rest of the way up. Seconds later, a guard arrived to investigate the dull noise made from the steel giving way to gauntleted hands, narrowly missing the infiltrator.
He clambered onto the roof, his breathing getting heavy. This is where it gets tough. he told himself. Now that he was on the roof, he needed to find a way in. The most obvious way would be to power up and smash straight through the large, worn building, but that would defeat the purpose of his stealth insertion. Instead, he opted for an exhaust vent. He carefully lifted a grate off of the vent and laid it to the side. The soldier dropped down 5 meters but failed in masking his noise this time. He fumbled as he landed and though it was only a minor mistake, the sound of a steel glove smacking into aluminium resounded throughout the building.
Or maybe it was all in his head. At this point he was so nervous that he couldn't tell. He crept closer to the grate of the vent and his heart stood still for a moment. There, less than 2 meters away, was a Nightwalker. Command didn't expect any Nightwalkers to be up with the sun still out, which was the entire purpose of risking detection in a mid-day operation. The soldier didn't move a muscle. The monster put an ear to the vent and listened, wondering if it was worth investigating. The soldier lay in prone position and slowly reached for his gun. His suit, detecting his raised blood pressure and adrenaline, switched to emergency mode, meaning all power was put on stand by and would be diverted the instant he activated it. As soon as he did, his head mounted UV lamps would be turned on, and his shields and strength enhancements would shoot through the roof. He didn't risk setting it off without reason though, because it would only last a few minutes before the reactor cell burned out, and then he would be encased in 350 pounds of top secret technology. When a situation like this happened and Command deemed the risk of capture too great, it would detonate the armour remotely to prevent the enemy from reverse-engineering it. The Phalanx was the only advantage they had anymore. They could not risk losing it.
Nightwalkers were roughly human in appearance. The stronger ones could mimic human faces, but most wore terrifying, unnatural ones. They generally appeared as gaunt, with shallow eyes and their hair falling out. They were usually very thin, with exceptionally long fangs and claws. Their eyes were nothing but whites, with a small, black pupil. Despite this corpse-like visage, Nightwalkers had unprecedented strength, speed, hearing, sense of smell, and other abilities. All of this was granted to them by a disease of unknown origin. Their flesh crumbled to dust when killed, no longer sustained by the mutated pathogen coursing through them.
The creature turned away, deciding it was nothing. The soldier knew he couldn't lift the grate free without making noise and if the Nightwalker got out of sight, he couldn't neutralize it. He acted on instinct, bringing his gun forward and firing simultaneously. The bullet hit the metal grate and blew a hole through it, but wasn't enough to kill the Nightwalker as well. He fired again, and this time the bullet went through it's head. The creature slowly disintegrated, screaming bloody murder. Stealth was now abandoned.
The soldier switched to combat mode and propelled himself out of the vent. He landed and brought his gun up in time to see two Thralls raising their guns. Thralls were humans, just like him. It saddened him to kill them, but it was necessary. They had given their lives of freedom for ones of servitude to their Nightwalker masters, with the empty promise of survival when the Nightwalkers had conquered humanity. The soldier's gun coughed twice and a bullet pierced each of their skulls. His aim was enhanced by an uplink with his helmet which gave an estimated area within which to aim in order to attain maximum efficiency. Essentially, a crosshair. Coupled with rigorous training and the cognitive enhancement of the Phalanx meant that this soldier could not be matched by mere Thralls. He abandoned caution and ran at top speed down the hallway, stowing his pistol and grabbing his SMG. This gun also came equipped with a silencer, laser sight, and UV lamp. It had a 60 round magazine.
The soldier took off running through the warehouse, on a catwalk roughly 30 meters from the ground. The platform lead throughout the facility, at some parts changing to closed hallways and corridors, then back to open catwalks. Labyrinthine corridors stretched for a great distance, twisting and turning throughout with no recognizable landmarks. The infiltrator had no idea where he was going, only that he would know when he arrived. The boots of the Phalanx armour made barely a dull thud as they sped along the floor at nearly 40 kilometres per hour.
The soldier turned a corner and fired a few rounds at nearby guard. He fell to the ground, dead, but was not the only threat present. 3 Nightwalkers had jumped roughly 30 meters up onto the catwalk, hissing. They lunged through the air, claws and fangs bared. Time stood still. The soldier aimed at the closest one, the one on the left, and fired. His gun burped 6 rounds and he turned to the next one even as the bullets tore through their target. Another 5 shots flew forth, slaying the second closest, the one on the right. The soldier jumped backwards and narrowly avoided a devastating aerial strike from the surviving Nightwalker. It leaped forward, even as the fleshless skeletons of it's comrades hit the ground. 10 rounds tore through the beast's chest, piercing it's sad excuse for a heart. It turned to dust as it hit the ground, it's ash grinding to a halt only a meter away from it's prey.
The soldier, thoroughly shaken, arose. He hurried past the deep hole in the steel walkway, along the path to find his objective. A few corridors and about 30 bullets later, he found what he was looking for. Nestled in the corner of the warehouse was a room labelled 'Control.' A swift kick sent the door flying open and a flashbang grenade killed a Nightwalker, as well as knocking out 3 Thralls. The soldier entered the room, gun sweeping left and right. Deciding the room was clear, he turned around, locked the door, and accessed a computer terminal. He hooked up his hacking device and waited.
The devices "loading" bar filled slowly, teasing him. He knew he didn't have long before a full security detail would be dispatched to take care of him. Glancing around the room, he looked for any unnoticed entrances. The room had only the door he had come in through. Although this meant he had no other escape routes, at least he didn't have to worry about any sneak attacks. He looked back down at his device and was pleased to see that it had downloaded the files Command was looking for, as well as planting a bug in their systems. Finally, he used his device to shut down the systems in the building, hoping for a distraction to cover his escape.
Suddenly, the door flew off it's hinges and a Nightwalker stepped in. The soldier raised his gun and fired, but it expelled only 5 rounds. The creature was unfazed and tackled him to the ground. He reached for his sidearm, but it was wrestled from his hands and thrown away. The creature grappled with the soldier for a moment before the suit switched to close combat mode. The soldier's strength was magnified and he gave an unexpected shove. The Nightwalker was knocked off and it's prey recovered quickly. He grabbed his knife from his chest sheath and tackled the monster, getting only a few stabs into it's arms before it managed to disarm him. A swift punch sent him flying into the computer terminal, forming a large dent and causing the computer to spark. Then the Nightwalker jumped forward, intent on removing the soldier's helmet to expose his neck. However, the soldier extended his foot and rolled the Nightwalked into the wall. It slid down and somersaulted off of the top of the terminal. The soldier was once again pinned as he attempted to flee with his stolen information. He raised his head and looked for a solution, trying not to picture the Nightwalker raising it's fists for one final strike. Emergency mode was ready, but it would be of little assistance when here, pinned on his stomach. He spotted a Thrall's shotgun nearby and reached for it. His hand grasped the handle, and he prayed the gun was cocked as he pointed it behind his head.
A resounding thud shook the room and the wall was painted a dark red. The soldier pushed the smouldering corpse off of him before getting up. Now all he had to do was make a clean get away to the extraction team nearby. He started towards the door when he heard yet another noise. He dared to peek out as he saw not one or two, but at least a score of Nightwalkers waiting for him. He didn't think twice about activating emergency mode. Stimulants shot through him and his UV lights turned on, vaporizing one Nightwalker and blinding a few of the others. But to the stronger ones, it was a mere deterrent. They leaped forward at the same time as him. A swift smack to the jaw with his shotgun stock decapitated the lead Nightwalker, killing it in an instant. He hit the ground as two more flew past and one landed in front of him. A shotgun blast left a sizable chunk gone from it's head.
The two Nightwalkers who had flown past now ran back to get him from behind. He turned and blasted one before running down the hallway adjacent. With the control sabotaged, the lights had gone out, which made traversing the strange warehouse even more foreboding. He was running at top speed through the hallways, pausing every now and then to blast a Nightwalker away. By now the stimulants had worn off and his suit's power meter read only 57%. He was getting scared. He ran down one more corridor and stopped. Dead end. He spun around and blasted a Nightwalker who was almost upon him. His UV lights were dimming, a sign that meant his suit's energy had hit the halfway point. Three more creatures rounded the corner and three more shells were spent. Another Nightwalker rounded the corner and paused to hiss. The soldier cocked his shotgun and pulled the trigger, but no shells were fired. He tried again.
The Nightwalker lunged through the air at breakneck speed. The soldier's enhanced reaction time allowed him to duck under a potentially fatal punch. The creature slammed straight through the aluminium wall and fell two stories to it's death. By now it was dusk, and the Nightwalkers could easily stand the light for at least enough time to kill him. He vaulted from the building and rolled, allowing his suit to take the force with it's shields. His power dropped to 24%, but he ran on, desperate to escape the Nightwalkers leaping from the hole in the wall to chase him.
He fumbled for his SMG, reloading as he ran. Now rifle shots rang out and the dirt at his feet exploded. The soldier emptied his clip behind him and was rewarded with a few screams, some human, some not. Then he launched a grenade behind him and took out a few more enemies. A 32. round pierced his Achilles Tendon and he tripped. His suit power read 0%, meaning his shields were out and the power cell was about to go. It could only lend him enough power to keep the suit moving at a human pace. He crawled forward, pulled out his pistol, and spun around. He emptied the clip, taking out one Nightwalker and seriously wounding another. The wounded creature advanced, as well as a healthy one. He reloaded and managed one shot before the healthy abomination kicked the weapon from his hands. The bullet pierced the wounded one's head and managed to kill it. The surviving one pinned him to the ground.
"I'm going to make you suffer, cur!" it shrieked. It raised it's head and bared it's fangs, ready to bite straight through the soldier's armour.