07 - Losses
Our new weapon systems had passed their first test with flying colours. With increased power and deadly accuracy, they would be a significant step on the road to victory. Perhaps it was in response to this that the aliens decided their next gambit. After a period of quiet, they attacked on land once more, and no remote resort this time. They attacked a major port city.
It must have simply been nerves, but I imagined I heard a new, more urgent tone in the klaxon's wail, the field team scrambled immediately, and the Triton shot away, gaining speed rapidly to respond to the alien attack. Interminable hours passed, but eventually the squad arrived and set down. Dawn had yet to break, and the squad were forced to engage at night.
"Go, Go, Go, no time for chitchat people, we have a job to do!" was Bling Cat's order, the team rushed out of the hatch throwing flares to illuminate the murk. Immediately the first creature was spotted on the dock foreman's tower.
The squad opened fire, harpoons spattering off the metal structure, until Squeak brought his sonic rifle to bear, and the dense bolt smashed into the alien, crumpling it in a heap on the walkway.
The commotion evidently attracted the attention of the enemy, fire streamed in from the east, a bolt caught seaman Fish directly in the chest, smashing him against the side of the Triton, where he fell motionless. Zed was closest. "No pulse sir, he's gone."
Bling Cat spotted the alien lowering it's weapon. "Fucker, we'll see how you like it". Harpoons streaked out, glittering in the flarelight, and one struck the alien in the arm, it howled, but didn't fall. Jack Diamond used the gleaming metal spike as a guide, and blasted the alien.
With no time to attend to seaman Fish's body, the squad began to fan out around the Triton. Almost immediately, another alien was spotted approaching the stern of the vessel.
Zed pulled his dartgun and fired, but the small darts failed to take the alien down. Higurashi rounded the nose of the Triton however and opened fire on the creature's exposed flank, sending a steel shaft through its guts from the side.
The immediate area appearing clear, the Coelacanth moved out into open ground to the west. It immediately sent up warning alarms. One alien was ahead of it to the northwest, another in the building behind the Triton.
The Coelacanth issued a fire ahead warning and began to fire it's gas cannon at the target ahead. The darkness interfered with it's target solution however, and it was unable to land a hit. Higurashi joined in, as did Raven del Cid, it was del Cid's dartgun that finally put the alien down, lodging a dart in it's throat, causing it to collapse with a gurgling scream.
Meanwhile, more alien fire from the east caused Bling Cat and Jack Diamond to duck into cover. Turning, they spotted the shooter.
Dekkarax hefted his gas cannon. "Oh no you don't sonny", he quipped, as he sent explosive bolts pounding into the alien and the wall behind it. The creature's pulverised body fell with an audible splat.
An alien burst from the building to the north of the Triton, but Zed, still gripping his dartgun, fired instinctively, and the beast was felled.
The assault from the east continued, fortunately finding no new targets, the source of the attack was given away by the sound of it's fire.
Jack Diamond had taken high ground on top of a dockside building, and was able to sight on and shoot the alien.
Meanwhile, Zed crept stealthily through the building the last alien had emerged from. He spotted another through a doorway, and with Doomsly McSlaughter Jr. covering the door was able to surprise and stun it.
In order to spot targets and direct the squad, Bling Cat had moved to the foreman's tower at the edge of the dockyard. As he entered the main building, he was surprised by another alien inside.
The gas action of his harpoon gun hissed, the chamber was empty. "Shit", shouted the Lieutenant, and ducked back out of the door. Fortunately, the alien had not been able to react, and Bling Cat was able to reload and re-enter to put the creature down.
Having taken the elevated position, Bling Cat was able to spot another alien closing from the east.
"Another closing, Squeak, you're best placed, take it out".
"Aye sir, have a shot".
The team began to disperse, clearing out the last pockets of resistance. A lone panicked alien in the far northeast corner of the operation area was hunkered down in the concrete of the docks, firing wildly out at any who approached. Evetually, Doomsly McSlaughter Jr. was able to get close enough to spot it.
Pumping harpoons into the creature silenced it's fire, and the sweep continued. Raven del Cid burst into a building to the southwest, spotting one alien in the middle of the room, he quickly stunned it.
Roland Garros-Shanks burst in after him, and spotted a second alien which Raven had missed, and which was approaching his back. A solid bolt from the gas cannon put it on the floor. The area was clear at last.
On returning to the Triton, seaman Fish's body was nowhere to be found. Thinking the worst, the squad swept the area again, hoping that the aliens had not discovered and stolen the corpse. No sign was found until the squad entered the Triton, where the corpse was strapped into an acceleration couch. None of the squad had moved it, and yet there it was.
On returning to the base, Fish was transferred to the medical facility, where scans showed that his entire torso was shattered, however on attempting to perform a post-mortem examination, the body jerked up and threw off the doctors, becoming inert once more when they retreated from the room. This apparent Zombie Fish resisted all attempts to remove its diving suit, and would not communicate at all. It was left in the medical room, and rumours began to circulate that moans and muffled cries of "Braaaaains" could be heard from the door...
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OOC: For the forseeable future I'm going to be doing one update a week on Tuesdays.