(Incoming flashback post to finish (this is part 3 out of 4) Lion's Mars flashback.)
As Lion waited for Saw to reveal what the chip contained, his mind wandered back to the siege of God's Refuge several years back.
[i]
"Cover me!" Yelled Leon as ran across the main hall floor, trying to keep up with McKinze and the Edisons who were currently pushing through one of the corridors. Reed followed him, firing off bursts at any fanatic stupid enough to try and engage the SDF forces pouring in through the main gate.
As the duo rushed between debris and makeshift covers, a squad of marines assumed position to provide fire support. The sound of kinetic weapons fire filled the room as the Creed fanatics dropped like flies. Leon spotted a fanatic next to the corridor entrance who had managed to hide among the debris, he was readying a old ballistic machinegun while moving out from hiding.
With an evil grin on his face, visible even though most of the face was obscured by a gasmask, he took aim and was about to pull the trigger when Leon fired off two quick shots, turning his head into a red mist.
By the time he and Reed arrived at the corridor entrance, his limp body had fallen to the floor. Leon only gave the fanatic a quick glance of disgust before moving on.
"I got your six." Said Reed over the radio.
Three other marines had managed to cross the main room as well and were tightly following Leon and Reed as they secured numerous bedrooms, storage rooms and offices throughout the corridor. While some of the rooms had seen better days, most if not all of them were actually nicely decorated to Leons surprise.
They all had one thing inc ommon as well: an image of god. While all members of the Divinity Creed came from different religions, they were all united under the belief that there was a god. As such, drawings, paintings, statues and other religious icons usually depicted a old man with mixed facial features void of specific details.
Many of the rooms contained dead fanatics that had fallen victim to McKinze or any of the other marine crack teams tasked with sweeping through every single room in the massive fortress. After a few minutes the squad reached the end of the corridor which was in the form of a T-shape intersection.
Leon turned his face to the three marines. "You three stay here, keep it locked down so that the rest of our forces can push on." They nodded and took up positions for overlooking the intersection. Leon and Reed glanced back and could already see another squad on their way to push deeper through the fortress.
"Which way do we go?" Asked Leon.
Just as Reed was about to answer, loud gunfire could be heard from the left corridor.
"That way." Said Reed with a grin.
The pair moved on, passing by several dead fanatics where the shells on the floor and the blast marks on the walls were still hot. A thin layer of smoke filled the tight corridor. They pushed on a passed a marking indicating that one of the many hundred chapels in the fortress were nearby.
The closer the got to the chapel, the louder the sound of gunfire grew. Leon held his rifle tightly and clenched his jaw. Checking the helmet HUD, he could see that both Reed and himself were tense based on the pulse of the heartbeat.
They turned around a corner and spotted McKinze, the Edisons and several other elite marines huddling down next furniture, crates and some other makeshift cover at the opening of a large corridor. The Edisons were busy laying down precision fire while McKinze yelling in his radio.
"This is McKinze! Requesting fire mission on entrenched target, these fucking wankers got us pinned down!"
Leon and Reed rushed to the cover, sliding in next to McKinze who grinned at their arrival. "For a second there I though the two of you were lost in this godforsaken maze of a structure."
Reed chuckled. "We almost were, but then we heard the sound of your weapons as you pushed through the fanatics."
A burst from the enemy side flew past the group as they took cover. "What's keeping you pinned?" Asked Leon as he checked the ammo on his weapon.
"Take a look for yourself, lad!" Replied McKinze as he waited for the command unit to respond.
Just like the Edisons, Leon peeked over the barricade carefully, what he saw suprised him greatly.
The corridor was rather large and had the same design as ancient churches and mosques on earth with large arcs connecting pillars built into the sides of the wall. The left corridor had several windows as large as a tank. In the middle of the corridor were the remains of three fanatics that had fallen victim to the marines while the end of the corridor housed a impressive barricade with a dual heavy machinegun at the center of it.
The HMG had a large plate covering it and its operators, with texts such as "Die heretics!" and "Death to the non-believers!" written on it.
"Oh." Said Lion as he returned to cover.
[/i]
Pippin saw that Lion was zoning out, and nudged him back to reality.
Lion was on his way to break the arm of his attacker when he noticed that it was just Pippin trying to keep him focused.
"Thanks." He said, resuming the wait for what Saw had to say.
[With my schedule clearing up by next week and having more time, I'm thinking of rejoining. Is Zarbon still alive?]
[QUOTE=iAmaNewb;48786908][With my schedule clearing up by next week and having more time, I'm thinking of rejoining. Is Zarbon still alive?][/QUOTE]
[[URL="https://facepunch.com/showthread.php?t=1457037&p=48456792&viewfull=1#post48456792"]Afraid not.[/URL]]
[QUOTE=Damian0358;48786980][[URL="https://facepunch.com/showthread.php?t=1457037&p=48456792&viewfull=1#post48456792"]Afraid not.[/URL]][/QUOTE]
[well shit, is this Semen guy dead yet?]
[QUOTE=iAmaNewb;48787035][well shit, is this Semen guy dead yet?][/QUOTE]
[Nope. However, we are getting close to the final battle, where we could probably kill him. Joseph's fine, if you were wondering.]
((If you're rejoining, welcome back, iAmaNewb! Like Damian said we are very close to the final battle, but I've been coordinating and collaborating with some people about a sequel. Contact me on Steam or send me a PM if you want to know more about it. I'm on campus right now, but I'll be home in around two and a half hours, maybe sooner.))
[ I apologize for being incredibly busy. However, I will post large content so we can continue in this week later.]
[QUOTE=doomevil;48787742][ I apologize for being incredibly busy. However, I will post large content so we can continue in this week later.][/QUOTE]
[That's nice to hear. While I do wait for this RP to come to conclusion so we can start the next, do take your time in writing a good ending. Or else it feels wasted :v:]
Dwan commented on Saw's reluctance, noting how he tilted his head and nodded slowly. He did it because he liked hinting at his true nature, despite the fact that he believed that bad things would happen if people found out. It was a guilty pleasure, just like his guilty pleasure for riddles despite being awful at making them.
After speaking with Saw, he moved back slightly back to where he was originally was. As he waited for Saw to continue speaking, he looked over to the spot where the painting of Archius Kain that Saw had in his office formerly was. He remembered what Saw had told the group about Kain and the land of Erminglad. As he thought about it and how he hinted to Saw about his true nature even back then, a curious thought entered his head. One that slowly turned into a epiphany. He questioned the thoughts he had, as his face showed his feelings.
[The painting of Archius Kain burned days ago]
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agfzSFzbiD4/[/media]
The decryption was here, Harken Saw sighed, adjusting his tie as he walked forward. His computer suddenly gave bits of codes throughout the screen, they scrambled out to the screen, forming a small map of the entire Galaxy. The map spun by Harken Saw's right hand as a dot appeared. His eyes closed as he unleashed a load of relief into the air. The far edge of the Galaxy was the location. A identification code.
"Zeruel." He let out. He turned around to face the crew.
"The Planet's name is Zeruel. This is it, we go there and clean out their base of operations. I understand this may be a daunting task to others. Some are not willing to risk their lives on the line as that is completely understandable. As compensation for the things you all dealt with."
Harken Saw opened up his holo band and looked in front of his financial records. He blinked once before he selected everyone that was alive abroad the Archius. He finished the transactions and he was done.
"Congrats, all of you are now billionaires. Now, the question is... if you wish to continue on this journey despite the fact you've have been paid. The choice is yours: Do you wish to stop a syndicate that is bent on ruining lives? Or, simply... leave. Regardless of your choice I will take my fleets and hunt down these men. I do not blame you if you wish to find peace. But vengeance starts here." He let those options settle in.
"I'm tired of being on the offensive." Said Lion as held his head up high. "I'm with you, as long as you back us up."
Elsewhere, Yanim and her cohorts walked from platform to platform in the immense station, trading information and checking for work leads. Unbeknownst to her, she had just missed the largest payday of her life- all of her former crewmates would be walking away from their time on the Archius with billions of credits in hand, but as far as Harken Saw knew, Yanim Sidikan wasn't MIA, she was dead, thanks to Dwan's meddling. To make matters worse, the two who had inspired her to leave the crew, the ones she considered vile traitors, were there to collect their share in the prize.
She sneered and staggered slightly under the influence of her ever-present tazh, half-believing in the merit of her endeavors while emptiness chewed away deep under the surface. If she had known the truth it may have driven her to suicide...
"Wehell, shit" Pippin shook his head and laughed "I gave up on this ever happening yeeaars ago!" His expression became more serious with only a hint of a worried smile. "I'm in though, I've always wanted to help people, and I can't think of any better way than this!"
Dwan put his hands in his pockets. "We are ending this. Here and now.", he said bluntly.
Iska looked over to Lion, raising her index finger and giving him a half smile.
She turned back to Saw. "Mr.Saw can pay Volgrim clan with money. If Iska do not come home." she explained and continued. "Iska owe crew one last favor. This is it."
"You'll owe us a lot more by the time this is over with!"
Varn's eyes widened as the money poured into his bank account. "Do I want to go home and retire? Yes. Do I want to live the rest of my life, doing whatever I want? Yes. Do I want to do it now? No. I signed up to do a job and I'm finishing it. Just point and I'll shoot."
After a few presses of a button of his own, his share was gone. It had been redistributed among the Wolfpack. Each member had received several million credits along with a message from Varn. [QUOTE]Congratulations pups! You're now millionaires. If half of that money isn't gone after a victory celebration, you failed the final test.[/QUOTE]
Iska looked down on Pippin and let out a chuckle. "Who owes favor will be he who needs to be saved".
she said with a sly grin as she leaned slightly, crossing her arms.
Viper was took an spit second to check it's financial account, it didn't take long for Viper to "donate" the majority of it's paycheck to an massive list of seemly random organizations and charities, leaving only a bare necessary for itself to live on.
"Thank you, Mr. Saw. And to answer you're question. Yes, I will fulfill my duty to the crew of the Archius XI to finish what we had started and depart when it is done, no shorter nor longer than that." Viper said towards Saw as it stared though him.
Pippin smiled back at Iska and nodded
Harken Saw laid silent for what seemed to be an eternity, he nodded and clasped his hands.
"Good. Now I would like to speak with your bartender. He has told me something very important. In private." Harken Saw insisted.
Lion nodded. "We'll be right outside." He stepped out and crossed his arms as he waited. While waiting, Lion began moving around the millions of credits he had been paid. First he moved all of it from his open account to his other more secured and secretive ones.
About 30% was spread out on various emergency accounts, 40% was sent to a trust which would (incase of Lion's death) send all of its contained credits alongside his villa on Mars to Val.
The rest was sent to the Sol Foundation, a organization established to help refugees, veterans, terror victims etc. inside the Sol system.
[editline]3rd October 2015[/editline]
He looked at the crew. "So, what's the thing you guys are looking forward to the most once you get home?" Asked Lion casually to pass the time.
"Shit, I don't even know what home is anymore. I might buy a ship, or settle down somewhere."
Dwan watched as the rest of the group left Saw's office. He turned to face Saw.
"So, what's the thing you guys are looking forward to the most once you get home?"
"Seeing the family mostly, get to spend some quality time with father. Getting my own quarters back would be nice. And I guess breaking down the rookies and building them up again would be fun."
"So, which story should we tell first? Mines or yours? You are not from around here, you have suspicion not to mention minor leaks." Harken Saw leaned.
"Do not fret, I am not around here either."
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