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Brutus, The Spartans, Two AIs and the Pirate Fleet (Part 4)
Posted By: Traumatised Marine<rbecalick@hotmail.com>
Date: 23 July 2003, 9:17 AM
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"Nathan, look!" Hissed Scott 299, indicating an extended trolley being pushed by a pair of wary nurses, beneath the white linen cloth was a large, peculiarly shaped body.
Nathan 156 narrowed his eyes, studying from a distance the shape of the body behind the cloth. His first impression was of some horribly deformed person, but then he began to consider...
However before he could voice his suspicion, he, Scott 299 and the other three young Spartans who were in the same batch group, were called in to the operating theatre for drugging.
"You stupid little-" The Surgeon halted mid-speech as if silenced, trying to suppress the eruption of fury he was about to unleash. He pinched the bridge of his nose with a hand that trembled with rage. He no longer held eye contact with the nurses, he simply looked down, his voice shaking with anger. He growled through gritted teeth,
"You just carried this creature... through the hall, with a simple cloth concealing it. God knows how many people saw it... GET OUT!!" He cried.
The two nurses bolted from the operating theatre, looking red and frightened.
The Surgeon threw off the cloth that concealed Brutus' sedated body.
"Just because this is a military medical facility..." The Surgeon muttered, "...still risks, people must be more cautious..."
He took a deep breath and recollected himself.
"Well," The Surgeon announced to his companions, "Congratulations you all. We are pioneers, the first to perform an operation on an alien with intent to keep it alive."
Brutus was distantly aware of voices, discussing something. Though he strongly wanted to listen, he was also so tired that his body screamed to his mind to not waste the effort and ignore the muffled dialogue.
"What was it? 10% increased muscle mass?"
"Yes, it was originally 15%, but that would have started to look suspicious. 10% just gives him the edge while remaining reasonably indifferent."
""Retinal enhancement?"
"Yes, yes. All of the neural improvements like eyes and reactions have been done."
The two voices continued until a radiating burn swept over Brutus, feeling like it was just below his skin. He gave a slight grimace from the pain and the effort meant he fell back into unconsciousness.
"Okay 'Brutus.' This is what we all want to see." Chief Silver said candidly, "How willing you are to kill one of your own species."
Brutus considered replying to this, but then thought perhaps the better testimony of his feelings would be in practical demonstration.
"You must know the Covenant weapons inside out by now, so I'm not going to review, let's just see how well you put what you've learnt to use."
Brutus was ushered into a small, dark cubicle, facing a blast door, and shut in there.
The voice of Silver piped in from somewhere at Brutus' feet,
"Okay Brutus, when we open this door, you'll meet your first Covie opponent, show no mercy!"
There was a pause, and then the door gave a warning hiss, and a shaft of light broke into the chamber as the door opened.
The door was too slow for Brutus' liking, and he ducked through it as it opened and into a well-lit, airtight combat arena. Several heavy-duty crates were placed about the floor for the obvious purpose of cover. Brutus poised his rifle skilfully and sidled to the cover of one of these crates. He checked the motion tracker that displayed on the reticule over his eye that protruded down from the rim of his helmet.
Hiding, as he himself was, there was an enemy, behind one of the other crates.
However, that enemy was choosing to remain still, as no movement appeared on the tracker.
It didn't matter to Brutus, instead he focused on listening, his improved senses being put into practise. And he heard it, the creature was obviously making an effort to keep it's breathing quiet, but not quiet enough. Brutus estimated where the sound was coming from, and peered around his own crate to the crate he believed his target was taking cover.
A spike of adrenaline lanced through him, he primed himself, plasma rifle ready. Then with a powerful, almost silent movement, he had vaulted over the crate and propelled himself off one of its edges towards a spot where he would be able to fire at his target.
He landed gracefully, his legs flexing and cushioning any force of the impact.
Brutus heard a squeal of surprise, and saw the creature that had issued the sound. He was disappointed to see what it was. He recognised it well from briefing; a Grunt. The little creature was startled, but clearly did not seem to think Brutus meant to inflict harm upon it. In fact, the little simian almost seemed relieved to see him.
"Hah!" Brutus thought, "You think I am a comrade! Your mistake, little one!"
Brutus levelled his rifle and fired a three-blast volley into the creature's chest, sending it flipping backwards, and ending up sprawled, motionless, it's charred blood messed the floor.
Brutus paused, considered the moment, and lowered the rifle. It had not been particularly satisfying, but it had been efficient.
Brutus proceeded to try different methods, testing his abilities with each new opponent.
The next Grunt he met, he decided he was going to immobilise with one of the integrations to his modified Elite armour; the URA-MJOLINER.
Out of curiosity, Brutus allowed the new Grunt to think he was an ally for a few moments.
He advanced up to it calmly with no indication of hostility.
The little creature saw him and gave a little whoop of excitement and scurried up towards him.
Because of the translation software in his neural chip, Brutus understood what the creature said,
"Elite! Elite! You're come to save me! Thank you! Thank you Elite!"
Brutus nodded, and then, having had enough of stringing the little creature along, he decided to test out his stun-lance.
The foot-long electrode slid from his left gauntlet noiselessly, it's thickness honed to a shallow but incredibly sharp point at it's end.
The Grunt saw the device protrude from his gauntlet and gave a little squeak of curiosity, and stared at it. It did not have the chance to even realise what happened, Brutus did it so quickly, he brought the lance whistling through the air and gave the creature a slamming swipe to the abdomen. Such a blow would have surely caused the creature to collapse in pain, but upon contact the lance delivered a sustained 400 volt shock.
The creature doubled over in silent, violent, shock-induced spasms. After a few moments it fell and lay still. It was still breathing weakly, crumpled on the floor. Quite resilient considering it's size and the voltage of the shock.
Brutus had by now also tested his sedation darts on a Jackal, but his next confrontation was the one that everyone who was monitoring his fights had been waiting for; a fight with one of his own kind.
When Brutus and the enemy Elite met, there was a pause. Then the enemy Elite, also wearing blue armour like Brutus, extended it's right claw, pushed out below it's waist as a sort of gesture of acknowledgment, like a salute. The Elite waited for Brutus' response.
Brutus considered what he should do. He could return the gesture, then come right up to the enemy apparently as a friend, and kill the Elite with a sudden, unexpected melee. But Brutus decided it would be better if he gave the creature a fair chance and let it know that he was not it's friend, then it would have the opportunity to fight back. (He was curious as to see how this opponent would fight.)
So, to the other Elite's shock, Brutus levelled his plasma rifle in response, and opened fire. The first shot splashed into the enemy's shielded chest, however the following ones missed as it did a combination duck and sidestep, followed by a counter volley from it's own plasma rifle.
Brutus rolled under these shots, rolling forward, and then springing back up, propelling himself hooves-first at the Elite's legs. The Elite however, demonstrated brilliant reactions, leaping up in the air and not only avoiding the attack, but also landing and bringing both of it's hooves down crushingly on Brutus' head and jumping off. Brutus' shields took the damage, but they had now flickered out, and he was in serious danger, dazed on the floor.
The Elite was about to spin around to finish Brutus off, it would be over in less than a second. The Elite levelled it's rifle at Brutus' head, but to it's sudden surprise, Brutus flung his legs up and pinned the Elite's rifle and claw in-between his hooves. With a powerful jerk, Brutus' legs flung the Elite over his floor-bound body and into a solid wall, knocking out it's own shields. The Elite crumpled to the floor momentarily, slumped against the wall.
Brutus leapt up and as he did so, so to did the Elite hurriedly recover itself. Both were unshielded, so they sprinted for the cover of the crates as they half-aimed and fired at one another. Brutus was not hit, but he managed to score two hits upon his adversary before the pair of them reached cover, one clipping the creature on the shoulder and another on the thigh.
Brutus dove behind a single crate, while his enemy ran behind a pair, one stacked upon the other.
Both of them were going to wait until their shields recovered.
At least, that was until Brutus risked a glance over his crate and saw his chance.
In a split-second decision he leapt onto his crate as his enemy still remained hidden behind its cover. Brutus swiftly launched himself into an explosive ariel kick, speeding through the air towards the enemy's crates. His extended hoof connected with a deafening crash into the top crate, a titanic blow that sent the huge, heavy crate teetering momentarily. Brutus heard his opponent cry out in anger, terror and surprise as the crate toppled and came crashing down on it.
Brutus heard a blunt, wincing 'CRUNCH!'
He went to survey what had become of the Elite.
To his surprise, the Elite was not dead, before the crate had toppled it had tried to make a desperate, flailing leap backwards. But now it was pinned down, it's right leg was crushed and shattered beneath the immensely heavy, crumpled crate, blood was steadily issuing in a glistening pool from beneath the crate.
Brutus watched with admiration at the Elite. It was in terrible agony, and losing blood so fast it would be dead within a minute, yet it was still reaching with a weakly extended arm for it's plasma rifle that had landed just out of it's reached.
Brutus cast a shadow upon the defeated beast, and the Elite, realising it could not reach the rifle, turned feebly to look up at Brutus.
It gave a despairing gargle, and the Elite-equivalent of an expression of disbelief.
Silver and his team crowded closer to the monitoring screen, this was the climax. Would Brutus finish off his fellow specie or not?
Brutus looked down on the pitiful being, silent for a moment.
Then he gave the creature's head a swift, resonating kick with his hoof. The brutal blow was so powerful that the force of it's impact upon the head snapped the Elite's neck.
And so it lay, dead. It's neck at a sickening angle.
Chief Silver and his team were now convinced of Brutus' loyalties.
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