The Stormbreakers: A Stellaris Story

[HistoryDude]

So, Jericho knows the future… so she might be Paradox’s ally. However, she could also know the future due to being raised by the 115th Cycle’s Mira (as shown in Faith in Chaos’s Epilogue). I wonder which it is…

Also, I’m assuming Jericho is like a legend amongst XCOM… right?

 

[Nikolai]

So Jericho is already the stuff of legend. I wonder what part she will end up playing.

 

[Vilhelm]

Something tells me Blake and crew are going to see more of Jericho's immense power soon.

Also, I'm quite curious how the Elders/Ethereals are seen in the wider galaxy. I know one showed up when the Polish-Lithuanian Partogan-Levakian Commonwealth, and they were described as mysterious. With that in mind, have they gotten rightfully scorned for invading and occupying Earth, or is the galaxy too fixated on its impending destruction to care a bit?

 

[Macavity116]

So, Jericho knows the future… so she might be Paradox’s ally. However, she could also know the future due to being raised by the 115th Cycle’s Mira (as shown in Faith in Chaos’s Epilogue). I wonder which it is…

Also, I’m assuming Jericho is like a legend amongst XCOM… right?

Yes, Jericho is well known within the ranks of XCOM and is still a source of debate. While the argument over her creation has long since ended, there is still some disagreement over how she should be used. To some soldiers, she is considered to be on the same level as a robotic unit like MECs or Sectopods. (an artificial warrior with disputed sentience) She is also quite well known across the Eastern Hemisphere for giving the Elders trouble on her own. In case any other readers are wondering how Jericho became a mild celebrity before the events of this story, I refer you to Jericho's entry in DosiAARS: Prelude to the Stormbreakers.

Jericho's life under Mira's roof is discussed in Chapter 6: Explain Yourself.

So Jericho is already the stuff of legend. I wonder what part she will end up playing.

Hopefully, her destiny will be different from what we saw in After Everything.

Something tells me Blake and crew are going to see more of Jericho's immense power soon.

Also, I'm quite curious how the Elders/Ethereals are seen in the wider galaxy. I know one showed up when the Polish-Lithuanian Partogan-Levakian Commonwealth, and they were described as mysterious. With that in mind, have they gotten rightfully scorned for invading and occupying Earth, or is the galaxy too fixated on its impending destruction to care a bit?

The Ethereal takeover of Earth might have failed if it had gotten the attention of the Galactic Community. Neither the Hiigaran Empire nor the Triple Alliance would have stood by and permitted the enslavement of a sentient Pre-FTL species. Unfortunately, both superpowers had been distracted by the imminent arrival of the Fathership and Mothership of the Beast. The ADVENT Coalition was founded the same week the Blorg Homeworld fell to the Beast. It seems, however, that someone has convinced the Triple Alliance to take another look at the situation on Earth. (If "another look" is what you call an armada of heavily armed warships)

 

[Macavity116]

Just announcing a slight change in format: All pictures featured in the story will now have (mostly) lore-compliant captions, just like in Faith in Chaos. This is because I don't remember why I stopped adding captions to begin with.

The Prologue, Chapter One, Chapter Two, and Chapter Three have been edited accordingly.

 

[Macavity116]

So earlier today, I got nominated for Fan of the Week! Thanks @Nikolai!
To celebrate, here's the next chapter a full three days early!
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<== Previous Chapter (The Gang's All Here)

Next Chapter (Psionic Storm) ==>​

Chapter Four
The Second Battle of Pyongyang

The forces of XCOM were at a serious disadvantage during the Second Battle of Pyongyang. They were outnumbered and outmaneuvered. This battle is ADVENT's to lose.

Wednesday, May 2, 2035 – 1:30pm

“Stormbreakers! Listen up!”

Holly’s voice sounded from every radio receiver as she addressed the squad:

“We’re gonna make a statement today! The enemy soldiers at the bottom of that hill are ADVENT! You know who they are! Collaborationists! Fifth Columnists! Traitors! These are the men and women who sided with the aliens when they attacked our world twenty years ago! And now they’re coming for us! They’re coming to kill you, to kill your friends, and then they’re gonna keep on killing until there’s no free Humans left! Today we’re going to put our feet down and say ‘No more!’ We’re going to show these bloody bastards what happens when they try to put us in a corner! Everyone remember the plan, stay with your fireteams, and don’t bring any goddamned bullets back the Avenger! Leave’em with ADVENT!”

“HOOAH!!” I yelled alongside my teammates!

All of the Stormbreakers, plus Ludmilla, Sophia, and Homura, had found good fighting positions inside of the various buildings in this little town. We all had sightlines to one another and a good Overwatch of the main road. To our south, Menace Squad had also occupied a bit of good ground while up north, Delta Squad had dug into a hastily made trench and was waiting for their que to move.

The rumbling of engines and the crunching of boots on gravel was getting louder now. A column of ADVENT Peacekeepers was advancing up the main road towards us. The afternoon sunlight glinted off their black armor and helmets, and dust rose up from the treads of two tanks that brought up the rear of the column.

“Steady, boys and girls.” I said quietly to my fireteam. “Hold fire ‘till they set off those mines.”

Soylent, Matthew, Homura, Odette, Ludmilla, and Sophia all kept a tight grip on their weapons and continued to peek out of windows and doorways throughout the house we’d taken over. In those painfully silent moments, I remembered what Jericho had told us about knowing the future. Was she right? Did she really know what was about to happen?

A movement in the corner of my vision drew my attention. Ludmilla Kuznetsova had noticed Soylent trying to ogle her chest and was trading places with her more conservatively-dressed sister.

Jericho had said Ludmilla was going to die today.

Screw that!

Keeping my head low, I slunk over to the Kuznetsova twins and got their attention.

“This isn’t going to be like those other firefights we’ve gotten into before.” I whispered. “ADVENT’s about to hit us with some serious firepower and heavy weaponry. I don’t want you taking risks. Don’t stick your heads out of cover unless you really have to, and give each other cover fire if you absolutely need to move. Promise me you’ll watch each other’s backs, and that you won’t get killed.”

“I promise.” Sophia said meekly. “We’ll be safe.”

“Don’t sweat it.” Ludmilla replied confidently. “We’ve got this!”

Back to waiting, and listening to the sound of the enemy drawing closer and closer.

In those last few minutes, I became hyperaware of everything. It’s a mental thing that happens to me right before a big fight. Taking in the little details is how I keep my cool: The weight of my body armor slowed my breathing, and my sweaty fingers slid along my shotgun’s barrel. I could feel the heat of my breath, every stone and pebble crushed under my boots; hearing the lightest creeks in the floor above as Odette changed her footing. In the tense waiting, nothing escaped my eyes, either. I saw a lone songbird nesting in the gutter of the house next door, blissfully unaware of what was about to happen. I observed a flicker of movement in the house across the street as Isis Dekker’s little GREMLIN drone buzzed about the interior. I spotted Soylent’s eyes darting back and forth as he tried to stealthily peer down the front of Ludmilla’s shirt one last time.

Then the enemy appeared.

ADVENT Peacekeepers were now less than five hundred yards down the street. They had fanned out and were looking into windows and doorways as they went. One enemy soldier wore red armor that was decorated with a cape. The mark of a high-ranking officer. Slowly, I raised my radio and spoke softly:

“I’ve got eyes on an ADVENT Captain. Five hundred yards. Second man from the left of center. Blue Dragon? You see him?”

“Right in the middle of my scope.” Chihiro’s voice issued out of the radio a few seconds later. “Colonel, can I shoot?”

“Negative.” Holly’s voice answered. “Hold fire, let them get to the land mines.”

More anxious waiting.

Four hundred yards…

Three hundred yards…

CRASH!

One of Odette’s land mines detonated! An enemy soldier vanished in a cloud of smoke and dust while another was catapulted into the air and slammed into a building! The rest of the enemy squad started to dive for cover! Holly shouted for all to hear!

“GO LOUD!! FIRE AT WILL!!”

The sound of gunfire erupting on all sides at once was like a lightning strike! I could feel the deep thudding of each blast in my chest while a violent jarring sensation raced up my arms every time I fired my shotgun! In the first volley, four enemy soldiers crumpled right to the ground while their comrades scampered away for whatever cover they could find. The tank behind them ran its treads in reverse and tried to back away from the ambush, but it rolled over another one of Odette’s mines! A column of dirt shot into the sky behind the vehicle, the blast drowned out by the noise of battle!

A bright red light caught by eye! On my left, I saw Soylent firing his rifle out of a nearby window at an ADVENT Peacekeeper who’d been caught out of cover in the middle of the road. Not a single round reached its target, vanishing in a burst of crimson light in midair. The enemy was under protection!

“They’ve got a Shieldbearer nearby!” Soylent yelled, “Somebody get him!”

The drywall next to me erupted, spewing debris into the room! I threw myself to the floor as more Gauss Rounds sped over me, making loud snapping sounds as they went.

SNAP! SNAP! SNAP!

“Stay down! I’ve got you covered!” someone yelled over my head.

I kept my hands over my head while debris and bullet casings rained down from above! Matthew fired a few more shots out of the window, tossed a grenade into the street, and then took cover against the wall near me.

“We’ve got this, Trojan!” he yelled over the noise. “Get your girl and thin the heard for us! Do your thing!”

Oh, hell yes! Chihiro and I did indeed have a thing.

Almost reflexively, I scrambled back to my feet and started looking around for a way up. The whole western side of the house we’d launched our ambush from was shot to pieces as the enemy had started to return fire at us. Above me, there was a gaping hole in the ceiling and I could see through it all the way up to the attic two floors up. It wasn’t that far. I could make it.

By this point in my life I'd lost count of how many times I’d made use of my Meld-based Genetic Modifications. Luckily, this meant I could do it from muscle memory without thinking about it. Clutching my shotgun tightly in one hand, I jumped. I’d like to say I launched myself upwards like any normal person would, but I know that’s not what happened. I shot up into the air like a jumping spider, taking aim for the hole in the ceiling! I had timed the leap perfectly, and reached the top of the arc just before hitting my head on the attic rafters. With my free hand, I reached out and grabbed a beam, stopping my fall. I swung out and landed on the attic floor, not too far from that big hole in the wall that looked out onto the battlefield. The sounds of the fight were muted up here, but still loud as hell. Dropping to a prone position, I crawled right up to the edge and looked out over the wreckage.

It was hell out there. ADVENT forces were fully deployed and had started clearing houses. Smoke curled up from different places around the neighborhood as fires began to spread. Two floors below me, I could see the soldiers of Delta Squad starting to fall back through town while my team gave them cover fire. From this vantage point, I could see most of the town and the battle. The loud pinging sounds of ADVENT Gauss Rifles gave away those enemies I couldn’t see.

Setting my shotgun to one side, I pulled a pair of binoculars out of my pouch and refocused my mind. This trick always took effort and focus, but the payoff was worth it every time.

Chi. I’ve got a vantage point. Can you hear me?

I began thinking those words over and over again in my mind. I don’t have the Gift, so the only way Chihiro could pick up on my thoughts was if she was actually listening for me. After about a minute of mental silence, a slightly high-pitched voice wormed its way into my mind. Chihiro’s Gift had pulled through for us again!

Blake!? Is that you in the attic of the blue house on the corner? Binoculars in your right hand?

Yeah, that’s me.

My vision fogged for a few seconds as Chihiro took full advantage of the Psionic Link between us. Then I had a really disorienting moment of double vision as I saw the world from her eyes for a few seconds!

On the roof of a shopping center, Chihiro was adjusting the scope on her sniper rifle. I felt her eyelashes brush against the scope, and her skin getting hot from a nearby fire that was consuming the warehouse she was perched atop. Three XCOM Sharpshooters were around her, pouring sniper fire into ADVENT troops. I felt Chihiro’s skin crawl as she picked up the smell of fresh blood coming from Kathleen. Her teammate had been hit, but was still fighting! Pulling my mind out of Chihiro’s, I quickly noticed where she was relative to me, about seven hundred yards up the street to my left.

“Okay!” Chihiro said to her comrades. “Blake’s gonna start calling targets for us! Go ahead!”

I peered over the edge and spotted an ADVENT soldier wearing white and red armor. He was kneeling behind and overturned car with one fist pressed to the ground. Some kind of bright red energy was coursing along the pavement in waves before rising up to form a shimmering semitransparent dome. On my left, Holly fired her light machinegun towards an enemy position, only for her bullets to hit the shield and deflect harmlessly away.

“Enemy Shieldbearer!” I yelled aloud. “Two hundred fifty yards west-northwest of you! Behind that yellow car on its side! Aim low!”

For half-a-second, I saw the yellow car through the scope of Chi’s rifle. Then Chihiro looked at the target through my own eyes. She adjusted her aim.

Once she takes the high ground, Chihiro Tachibana is an unstoppable force on the battlefield.

CRACK!

The Shieldbearer never stood a chance! Yellow blood erupted into the afternoon sunlight as the soldier collapsed behind his hiding place! The enemy soldier reached up to his helmet to call for help, but-

SNAP!

Chihiro’s next round tore through the pulverized metal of the upturned car and finished off the Shieldbearer. I was already looking for the next target, and spotted a good one.

“Enemy rifleman! In the trench by the road! Two hundred thirty yards!”

This time, Chihiro looked through my eyes for nearly thirty seconds, adjusting her weapon the whole time until she squeezed the trigger. Dirt and blood sprayed up from the trench and the enemy soldier hiding there stopped moving. I didn’t hesitate, looking around quickly and calling out another target.

“Enemy officer!” I shouted. “Two hundred yards! Dead ahead, running across the street!”

“Where ya going!?” Chihiro yelled!

Dropping her sniper rifle to her side, Chihiro unholstered her pistol. The Shadowkeeper is a special one-of-a-kind weapon she had been holding onto ever since Operation Gatecrasher. Chihiro pulled the trigger three times in rapid succession, causing the ADVENT Officer to stumble and fall to the ground halfway through his dash to safety.

“Ha!” Chihiro laughed. “I’m too fast for ya!”

A sudden burst of gunfire forced Chihiro to duck down behind cover again! Someone was shooting at her! From my own high vantage point, I quickly spotted the enemy responsible and took aim!

BOOM!

My own shotgun let out a cannon blast of fire and smoke! I was sure I’d gotten the guy, just to be safe I peered around to see if I’d actually hit him, but a loud snapping sound told me to put my head down! Gauss rounds were flying over me! Splintered wood fell from the rafters as I shouted into my radio!

“I’m under fire! Does anybody see him!?”

“I got eyes on your guy, Trojan!” Hal’s voice came across the airwaves. “Across the street! Hiding in the white house! Living room, behind that bigass rocking chair!”

“We’ve got you covered, Trojan!” Homura yelled from below. “Go get him!”

I hooked my shotgun to its shoulder strap, reached up and unsheathed my sword, and jumped over the ledge!

Hitting the ground hard, my Meld-enhanced legs took the blow like shock absorbers! Moving faster than the speed of death, I was on my feet and charging across the street! Bewildered ADVENT soldiers tried to redirect their fire at me, but they were either too slow or gunned down by my squadmates! I was on the curb, across the lawn, and at the front of the house! The door was closed and barricaded from both sides. I didn’t care. XCOM Rangers don’t use the front door.

Launching myself forward, I crashed headfirst through the living room window! Glass shards and wood splinters flew everywhere! Clad in black armor, an ADVENT Peacekeeper rose from behind his hiding place to meet me! His big, boxy Gauss Rifle seemed to glare at me, but I was on him in seconds! Raising my sword in both hands, I brought the blade down in one sweeping motion! The sword connected with the top of the trooper’s head, slashed downwards across his chest, and sent him cascading to the floor!

A loud cracking sound right next to my head told me that someone had just tried to shoot me! Ducking down behind the big cushions of the rocking chair, I kicked the still twitching body out of my way and poked my head out of cover, trying to see who was shooting at me.

Oh… damn!

A whole squad of Peacekeepers was surging into the house from outside! They had their guns trained on me the whole time! I raised my shotgun and blasted one of them back out the door and shouted into my radio!

“I’m outnumbered over here! Need help!”

“Standby!” Chihiro replied. “We’ve got you!”

Crash!

A whole section of wall was blown away as a volley of sniper rounds tore through it! At Chihiro’s command, all of the Stormbreakers’ sharpshooters had turned their attention to my situation!

Chihiro, Kathleen, and Tsubaki were firing indiscriminately into the enemy’s flank! In front of me, three enemy soldiers crumbled to the ground, wounded or killed by the onslaught. The rest chose to scatter, looking for better cover. In the back of my mind, Chihiro’s voice triumphantly declared:

You owe me one for that, Blake!

Then Chihiro spoke aloud into her radio:

“The rest of Trojan’s fireteam is clear to cross the street! We’ll give ’em cover fire!”

Ludmilla, Sophia, Soylent, Homura, Odette, and Matthew all kept their heads low as they moved to rejoin me. One by one, they burst into the house and took up new fighting positions, dispatching the ADVENT Peacekeepers who had survived the initial assault from the Sharpshooters. Homura looked panicked.

“There’s a dropship!” she told us. “I saw it! Enemy soldiers just landed in the yard behind us!”

“Damnit!” Soylent said. “There’s already more of them coming up the main road. At least a squad of them, eight or nine soldiers!”

I swore and called Holly on my radio.

“Doomsday, be advised, my team is about to be flanked! We need help to break out!”

“Hold your position, Trojan. I’ll send somebody as soon as I can.”

I looked back up at my team.

“Alright everyone, we’re on our own for the moment. I want the Kuznetsova twins up on the top floor keeping Overwatch. Keep an eye out for that fireteam in the backyard. Vampire, mine the back door. Alecto, keep her covered! Soylent and Hanako, cover the main road. Now this goes for all of you: the second you think you’re going to be overrun, call for help. The only way we survive this is together. Everyone understand? Let’s get to work!”

We fanned out, taking total control of the little house. All around, the small Korean village was being annihilated one building at a time as ADVENT continued pushing XCOM back. Watching out a window, I saw Holly, Isis, Yutaka, and Sophie disengage from the fight and fall back. They’d been pushed out of the village entirely and were now fighting from a trench in the nearby cornfield.

“Here they come!” Soylent yelled. “Right side!”

Bracing myself against a bookshelf, I joined Soylent, Homura, and the Kuznetsova twins in laying down a volley of weapons fire as nearly a dozen ADVENT soldiers started trying to cross the street, using wrecked cars and piles of debris for cover. The gunfire was nearly continuous in both directions! Wood, plaster, and shredded insulation flew in all directions as our new safehouse was wrecked by a hailstorm of gunfire! In the street, bullets thudded into the pavement, the sides of old cars, and into the armor of ADVENT soldiers. Only two went down in that first wave of gunfire, and on our side-

“Gahaahgh!”

Soylent dropped his rifle and slid down the wall next to me, clutching at his arm as blood ran down his sleeve. I bent low to check out his injury.

“It’s not bad, you just got nicked! Man up and get back in the fight!”

Okay, I was lying about the wound being superficial, but I knew Soylent’s old Gene Mods would keep him in the fight, regardless of the fact that there was a Gauss slug lodged about an inch inside his bicep. He knew it too, and was back up in seconds.

Homura, Ludmilla, and Sophia had fallen back, moving away from the doors and windows. Sophia threw one arm out and pushed her twin sister to safety as the windowsill was shredded to pieces by gunfire! The incoming fire was getting too intense. The three of them were about to take shelter in the kitchen when a loud explosion tore through the house, kicking up dust and smoke!


“They’re inside!” Odette screamed from the back door! “They’re coming up behind us!”

The sounds of gunfire echoed all around the house, threatening to deafen us all! A flash of red light caught my eye and I heard a high-pitched scream! Odette fell backwards into the living room as a slim ADVENT soldier carrying a long club-like weapon entered the room.

“Lancer!” I shouted.

The ADVENT Stun Lancer activated her stun baton and snarled at me. Red light flickered as the weapon made an intimidating crackling sound. I reached up for my sword again and started to draw it from over my shoulder, but I was a second too slow! The Lancer was running straight at me!

CRACK!

The Lancer’s head jerked to one side and she collapsed in front of me! I ducked to one side as the now-dead soldier toppled over. Hitting the floor and sitting up again quickly, I shouted:

“What the hell!?”

Sorry, Blake. We got forced out of position! That’s two you owe me, by the way!

I don’t think I’d ever been so happy to hear my girlfriend’s voice, even if it was just telepathically. Using our Psi Link, Chihiro transmitted a mental message into my brain.

Keep holding the line, help is on the way. Jericho just came back. She’s got a dozen fighters with her. As soon as she’s done helping Voodoo Squad, she’ll come get you. Assuming I don’t get there first!

I raised my voice above the gunfire and yelled out to my troops:

“Help is on the way boys and girls!! HOLD THE LINE!!”

My fireteam mounted a desperate defense, fighting intensely as the enemy surrounded our house and started trying to force entry.

From the second floor, Ludmilla threw a hand grenade into the street, forcing the ADVENT soldiers to scatter. Her twin sister aimed her pistol into the yard and dropped another Shieldbearer as he ran for cover. Odette recovered from getting hit by the Stun Lancer just in time to gun down two more soldiers coming into the back door! She knocked over the old refrigerator and sheltered behind it as their comrades sent more Gauss Slugs her way. Matthew held down the trigger of his machinegun, sending a stream of hot lead into the backyard!

ADVENT forces saw the tracer rounds from his weapon and followed them back to the source, forcing Matthew to cease fire and relocate deeper inside the house. Homura had dropped her Assault Rifle somewhere and was now fighting exclusively with a pistol. She fired with lethal accuracy, dropping five ADVENT soldiers in as many shots! Her long black hair whipped around her body as she turned quickly to keep track of all enemy movements. Soylent swung his rifle like a club, striking down an enemy soldier who was trying to climb in through the window!

Even when deprived of her primary weapon, Homura Hanako was a lethal warrior. The Plasma Pistol seen in her hand is believed to be much older than the ADVENT occupation of Earth, and that Homura has been maintaining/repairing the weapon with household items.

After what seemed like an eternity, the fighting lessened. We could still hear the gunfire coming from other parts of town, but for just a moment, our house was no longer under attack. The enemy had pulled back.

“They just keep coming!” Sophia panted, reloading her pistol with shaking hands. “How long are they gonna keep coming!?”

“Hey, Trojan. I’ve only got two mags left. What about you?” Soylent asked.

I counted the shotgun shells remaining in my vest.

“Four. Then I’m out. What about you, Vampire?”

Odette pulled the magazine out of her Assault Rifle, showed me that it was empty, and then loaded her last full magazine into the weapon. Sophia, Ludmilla, and Homura were in similarly bad situations. There simply wasn’t enough ammunition for everybody anymore.

“I don’t think we can hold off another hit.” Matthew said nervously. “Is there any way we can get out of here?”

“No chance.” Ludmilla replied. “We saw from up top. They’ve got us surrounded on all sides. Step out that door and you’ll get killed. Hang on, Sophia and I are going to try and scrounge up some more ammo.”

While Ludmilla and Sophia moved into another room, searching for spare ammunition, Homura spoke up.

“How long did you say we’d have to wait for help, Robinson? You did say that help is coming, right?”

I nodded.

“Jericho is on her way back.” I said. “She’s got reinforcements with her. We just need to hold out a little longer… what are you-?”

A shout caught my attention!

“They’re coming back!” Soylent yelled. “Two squads across the street!”

And then we were in the thick of it again! The enemy was hitting us, this time even harder than before! An alien grenade smashed through an upper floor window and blew away part of the second story! Odette and Matthew barely got away with their lives as timber, concrete, and plaster rained down from above!

Two more Stun Lancers got inside the house! With my last Shotgun shell, I blew the first one out the way he’d come before turning my sword against the second. Then, as though I’d been hit by lightning, I felt my arms and legs seize up! Paralyzed and about to topple over, I just saw in my periphery an ADVENT Priest making his way through the chaos. The light of muzzle flashes flickered off his white and gold armor, while a Psionic Amplifier in his hand emitted a brilliant light, aimed directly at me!

I struggled as hard as I could to break free from the Sustaining Sphere as it began to form around me, but I couldn’t make my arms obey, and I fell to my knees and slumped over to one side, coming to rest in the inside wall of the my new telekinetic prison. The sounds of the fight around me were deadened and muffled, but I could still see the action. I wanted to scream as Soylent was thrown backwards by a blast from another grenade, to shout a warning as a huge Muton burst through a doorway brandishing its serrated bayonet, and then to cheer as said alien was gunned down by the combined efforts of Odette, Sophia, and Ludmilla.

Just when I thought my comrades had brought the situation under control, another loud explosion in the street sent debris flying into our little safehouse! Still paralyzed by the Priest’s power, I couldn’t turn my head to see what this new threat was… but I didn’t have to.

“JESUS CHRIST! IT’S A SECTOPOD!!” Matthew shouted.

The Sectopod is a fully autonomous and self-propelled heavy weapons platform. The Elders and their armies used these machines to defeat most of Earth's conventional military forces during the 2015 Invasion.

“Everyone, fall back!” Soylent barked. “Retreat!”

A huge metal leg, the size and shape of an industrial girder, smashed into the house from the ceiling, opening the air above me to the sky and the towering robotic warform above our heads. The Sectopod opened up a small hatch on its topside and began to deploy its main cannon! Sophia saw this and froze.

To her left, Soylent turned tail and began to run! The brilliant light and thundering sound of the Sectopod’s cannon tore through the house like a lightning bolt! Soylent ducked around a corner and collapsed on the living room floor, leaving a bloody trail on the walls and carpet!

Shocked beyond the ability to think or move, the older Kuznetsova twin let her rifle hang uselessly at her side as she stared up at the Sectopod. The giant war machine trained its cannon on Sophia! Again, I tried to break free from the Sustaining Sphere, but my arms and legs refused to obey. Mentally, I called out for help!

From his hiding place in the kitchen, Matthew yelled into his radio:

“Doomsday! The blast area is clear! Send in the RPG!”

Ludmilla and Homura lunged forward and grabbed Sophia around the middle, pulling her behind a pile of rubble just as the sound of a rocket-propelled grenade overpowered the rest of the battle!

CRACK-BOOM!

Two explosions, one after the other, ripped through the sky above me! The Sectopod staggered on its two thin legs, then began to topple. It keeled over sideways and crashed into the next-door house, sending all kinds of wreckage and debris flying in all directions! Little splinters of wood and pulverized metal bounced off my Sustaining Sphere. I was just about to thank my lucky stars for the shield when the loud crack of sniper fire was followed by the sudden collapse of the Sustaining Sphere!

The paralyzing effect was lifted and I could move again! Straightening up and looking around, I saw the crumpled body of the ADVENT Priest just a few feet away from me, hunched over a windowsill. Chihiro’s voice shrieked from a nearby rooftop:

“Back off, creep! He’s mine! And hey Blake! That’s three you owe me now!”

The loss of the Sectopod took the momentum out of the enemy’s assault. The playing field was level, and my troops began pushing back. Since my shotgun was completely out of ammunition, I threw it away and scooped up Homura’s Assault Rifle from the ground. The weapon had a shortened barrel to accommodate her small size, but that was a boon to me as well. Tearing throughout the wrecked building with the lightweight weapon in tow, I plugged every hole in the line I could.

I joined Ludmilla and Sophia in the garage and sniped two ADVENT troopers as they tried to cross the street. Then I dashed up to what remained of the second floor where Matthew was trying to lay down cover fire for Odette. Bracing myself on a windowsill, I fired in bursts towards an enemy officer who was hiding behind a wrecked car, forcing him to cease fire and keep his head down. Freed up to move, Odette ran around the side of the house and hurled a hand grenade like a fastball, blasting the Officer’s position and removing him from the fight.

Things were finally starting to fall under control again. Once more, the enemy gave up on the attack and started to withdraw. Five or six ADVENT soldiers aimed their Gauss Rifles at what remained of our safehouse and started to fire wildly and indiscriminately. I hit the floor and crawled behind the thickest bit of debris I could find while Gauss Slugs few mere inches above my head! Around me, everyone else did the same. After a moment, the firing ceased, and we were alone in our wreck of a house.

“How’s everyone doing?” I yelled. “If you’re not dead, sound off!”

One by one, the members of my fireteam shouted out from their hiding places.

One person was down: Soylent Green had gotten a full blast from the Sectopod’s cannon. Matthew and Sophia had used a Medikit to stabilize his condition and stop him from bleeding out, but Soylent was going to be out of commission for the remainder of the fight.

One person was missing: Odette Fournier had never returned after charging outside to toss a hand grenade. I wasn’t ready to write her off yet, Odette was a lone wolf. I was prepared to stake my life on her coming back. Quickly, Matthew poked his head out of the windowsill and looked outside at the wrecked street.

“We’re clear. Looks like they ran into that building our Sharpshooters are on top of.” He said

“I guess that means m- uh, I mean, Tachibana and Walsh took care of them for us.” Homura panted.

One by one the rest of my team filtered into a barren open space that had once been the living room. Ludmilla and Sophia were carrying four backpacks fully loaded with ammunition for all types of weapons, including the ADVENT Gauss rifles. With many words of thanks and gratitude, the team started to re-arm itself. Homura returned my shotgun in exchange for her assault rifle and asked:

“Where, when, and how did you two find all of that ammo? It’s incredible!”

Ludmilla shrugged.

“We’ve gotten pretty good at finding this kind of stuff over the years. Call it a talent.”

“You call it that.” Sophia quipped. “I think we’re just really lucky all the time.”

“Everyone load up quickly!” I ordered. “We’re going to fall back towards the Avenger in a minute!”

Sophia tossed a handful of shotgun shells to me. As I started sliding shells into the breach, I looked up at Homura and asked “Are you alright?” quickly before looking back down at my own weapon. When I realized Homura didn’t reply or acknowledge my words at all, I gazed back up at her again.

Homura wasn’t paying attention to me. I could see that her eyes were locked onto something behind me and to my left. Her jaw was slowly falling open as though she’d realized something. Then I froze as Homura raised her pistol, aiming at me!

“WHAT THE!?”

Homura adjusted her aim at the last second and pulled the trigger! I started to jump out of the way, only to notice that she had missed me on purpose! A purple light flared just behind me as some kind of Psionic energy dissipated! There was a Gifted enemy behind us!

Obeying my instincts, I opened up my mind to Chihiro right away. Even though she was about fifty yards away in a nearby building, she read the situation and reacted at once. Chihiro guided my weapon hand’s movements, forcing me to aim my shotgun into a corner of the room just to the right of Sophia! She squealed in fright and dove out of the way as I opened fire!

A shimmering wall of Psionic energy seemed to appear out of thin air! The deer slug hit the invisible wall and splattered like a fruit hitting the floor! Metal shrapnel flew in all directions and caused everyone to jump back!

In front of us all, and behind that protective Psionic Shield, a tall slender figure began to materialize. An alien, humanoid in appearance, was standing there. It was nearly seven feet tall, towering over Soylent, our resident giant. Purple light emitted from a pair of wicked-looking eyes while sharp white teeth snarled and gnashed at us.

The Elder’s Chosen Assassin reared up to her full height and growled at us:

“No one has ever done that before, and none shall do it again!”

We all raised our weapons! The Assassin drew her Katana and slashed it through the air! A wave of hot air rippled across the room, knocking all of us to the floor! Homura was up first! She charged towards the Chosen Assassin, who turned to face her. Homura tried to snatch the Katana out of the Assassin’s hand, but the foe was too fast! The Assassin drew her blade back and slashed Homura’s wrist! The teenager withdrew her injured arm and raised a pistol with her one good hand!

“The Elders have forbidden your intervention!” The Assassin snarled at Homura. “Be gone, interloper!”

The Assassin projected a beam of brilliant light from her Katana and blasted Homura clear across the room! She slammed into a wall and it caved in, burying her in pulverized plaster and splintered wood!

The Chosen Assassin spotted Odette trying to re-enter the fight through a side door! The Assassin unshouldered her own shotgun and fired a single blast! Blood splattered through the air as Odette grabbed her stomach and keeled over backwards, falling out of the door she’d just come in through! With her Katana, the Assassin cut Matthew's rifle in half, then slashed at his chest, destroying his body armor and sending him tumbling back to the floor! Sophia, Ludmilla, and I all attacked at once! The Assassin tried to hit me with her free hand, but was blocked when a Psi shield flickered to life in front of me. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I felt Chihiro’s heartbeat accelerate as she raced across the street towards us, projecting Psionic energy with both of her hands.

The Chosen Assassin tried to hit me one more time, but Chihiro’s Psi shield remained unbroken. While I scrambled to try and get around to the Assassin’s side, she refocused her attack on Sophia! She drew her Katana back and then lunged forward! Sophia lifted her assault rifle, determined to strike first!

“NO!”

Ludmilla Kuznetsova attempts to draw fire away from her twin sister during the Second Battle of Pyongyang.

Ludmilla jumped forward and shoved her sister out of the way! She raised her pistol and fired wildly at the Chosen! Without flinching, the Assassin brought her blade down and stabbed Ludmilla in the chest! With a terrible sound, the Katana pierced Ludmilla’s chest and came out of her back! The bloodied blade was only visible for a second before the Assassin withdrew it and kicked Ludmilla’s limp form out of the way. The younger Kuznetsova twin was dead before she hit the ground, her body collapsing on top of Sophia, who began to scream and wail unceasingly. Given a clearing at last, I raised my shotgun, took aim, and fired a deer slug right into the Chosen Assassin’s gut!

The Assassin roared and brought her blade down on me! I felt my body armor split in two before the floor came up to meet the back of my head! I could see stars blinking on and off in front of my face! Through a daze, I saw the Assassin turn away from me, preparing to attack someone else! But then-

Soulfire!

Bright blue and purple flames erupted all around us! The house was set alight as Chihiro made her entrance! The fire coalesced around both of her arms and took the shape of two burning shields! The Assassin plunged her blade into the floor and began dragging the tip along the surface, building up a wave of Psi-energy as she went. Chihiro tried to attack first! She banished her left hand shield and pressed her free index finger to the side of her head. When she pulled her hand away, thin whips of Psionic energy followed as though stuck to her fingertips. Chihiro pointed at the Assassin, and a bolt of lightning jumped from herself to the Assassin!

The Chosen pulled her sword up and took the blow without flinching! Then a rippling wave of invisible force washed out of the house like an incoming flood! Chihiro got caught in the deluge! Clutching her head with both hands, she screamed loudly before collapsing to the ground!

Seeing Chihiro go down lit a fire inside of me! Whatever pain and exhaustion had been in me before was gone in an instant! All I could think about was Chihiro, I wasn’t going to lose her like this! I started to clamber back to my feet, but the Assassin spun around and punched me in the face! For a moment, absolutely nothing made sense as I tasted pain and smelled blood. Clutching my bloody nose, I hit the ground again.

“You have fought honorably, with courage and conviction.” The Chosen Assassin said to me. “I see no reason to take your life. After all, the one I seek has arrived.”

The Assassin turned her gaze to the street. Sitting up, I followed her eyes.

About two hundred yards down the road, thirteen people were approaching. It was a mixed force of Resistance fighters from all over Eastern Asia: Japanese, Koreans, Chinese, and Mongolians. The new fighters had tipped the balance of the battle back into XCOM’s favor. ADVENT soldiers retreated before the fresh troops. At the head of the new formation was a teenage girl with brown skin, blue hair, and purple eyes. Her bright yellow tee shirt stood out against the dull, muted colors of the battlefield. Ignoring the defeated Stormbreakers, the Assassin stepped out of the wrecked doorway and into the street.

As soon as they saw the Chosen, the twelve Resistance fighters scrambled for cover, diving inside of buildings and slamming doors behind them wherever they could. Some brave soul noticed that Jericho was still standing in the middle of the street and yelled at her from a second-story window:

“Hey, that’s one of the Chosen! You need to run! Get outta there!”

Jericho did not move. She only had one weapon: an old and battered-looking alien rifle. Clutching her weapon tightly, Jericho stared the Assassin down with unflinching eyes. The Assassin was observing Jericho with an expression that bordered on respect.

“It’s fitting that we meet on the field of battle.” The Assassin said. “I have no intention of quibbling over ideologies, histories, or objectives. My masters command that I capture you, Jericho, and return you to your rightful place among the Elders; so that together you may complete their urgent preparation for what lies ahead.”

Jericho defiantly raised her archaic rifle and chambered a round.

The Chosen Assassin gripped her Katana with both hands.

Everyone else took cover.

Jericho joins the fight.

<== Previous Chapter (The Gang's All Here)

Next Chapter (Psionic Storm) ==>​

 

[HistoryDude]

So, Jericho is in the battle, now. Blake’s attempt to change history failed.

Will we get a visual of Jericho’s life with Mira next chapter?

Also, if all humans had their psionic powers unlocked by aliens doing experiments and Partogans are humans, how did Whetu and Mira have their powers unlocked? Desperation alone?

 

[Macavity116]

Blake’s attempt to change history failed.

If Blake wants to mess with time, he'll need to take some lessons from his daughter.

Will we get a visual of Jericho’s life with Mira next chapter?

No. Chapter Five: Psionic Storm will focus on the Jericho/Assassin fight as well as XCOM's escape from North Korea. A partial explanation of Jericho's life with Mira can be found in Chapter Six: Explain Yourself.

Also, if all humans had their psionic powers unlocked by aliens doing experiments and Partogans are humans, how did Whetu and Mira have their powers unlocked? Desperation alone?

Mira's Gift came out during her first visit to the Shroud. (When some kind of alien force pulled her into it) Her Gift was active from this point forward.

Whetu's Gift presented itself during the Battle of Lake Naho (Wars of the Famine) after King Inari tried to use his Unique Power against her. Whetu came within seconds of death and just barely saved herself.​

The Gift has to be triggered/activated somehow, otherwise it would lie dormant and undetected. Plenty of Gifted beings go to the grave never knowing they had it. Luckily, there are multiple natural ways the Gift can be forced to show itself. The most common way to force the Gift to reveal itself is to exposure to an outside source of Psionic Energy. This requirement can be fulfilled by being near just about anything that radiates Psi Energy, such as an Amplifier. Being on the receiving end of a Psionic attack is also sufficient. Exposure to Elerium (Called "Element 115" by XCOM) also works. Alternatively, a long period of intense meditation can sometimes bring out the Gift. It can also be triggered by feelings of extreme emotion. (Such as in Mira's case)

Members of Gifted Species (such as the Vanians or the Kelt) are often born with their Gift already activated, since the vast majority of the population is already radiating Psi Energy.

Other characters whose Gift presented itself naturally are:

• Ignatius Petoskey (Exposed to Element 115)
• Laura Harper (Possessed by an Ethereal)
• Matthew Hawkins (Extreme Emotion)
• Akira Robinson (Exposed to Psi Energy by Chihiro Tachibana)
• Manaaki Ranginui (Meditation)
  
• Tantomile (Exposed to Psi Energy by Akira Robinson)
• Sebakhira (Meditation)
  
• Manako and Makara Ranginui (Exposure to each other)
• Yukiko Takahashi (Extreme Emotion)
• The Beast (Assimilated the Vanian species)

Of course, all of these cases involve characters who were actually born with the Gift. Some characters, like Chihiro Tachibana, had to undergo a brain surgery that rebuilt her neurons and synapses into a configuration that resembled the ones found in Gifted Humans. Chihiro's artificial Gift is dependent on her re-wired brain and dozens of microscopic neural implants. Many of the Gifted soldiers in the ADVENT Army are in a similar situation.

 

[Vilhelm]

Another exhilarating ride as always!

I'm just wondering what the Siege Cannon is. Is that another word for Sectopod?

 

[Macavity116]

Another exhilarating ride as always!

I'm just wondering what the Siege Cannon is. Is that another word for Sectopod?

Thanks!

Oh, the soldiers of XCOM wish this was the case. As you'll see in Chapter 5, the enemy has brought a cannon so big it needs to be towed behind a truck. It's supposed to be used against the Avenger, but failing that, it can still wipe out half a squad of XCOM soldiers in a pinch.

 

[Macavity116]

<== Previous Chapter (The Second Battle of Pyongyang)

Next Chapter (Explain Yourself) ==>​

Chapter Five
Psionic Storm

​

In this Second Hyperspace War-era photo, Jericho is seen opening up a Psionic Rift, an extremely dangerous (and highly destructive) technique that usually requires a Psionic Amplifier. Despite having no formal training, Jericho has developed the ability to use her powers without any kind of Amplifier, a skill normally reserved for beings who are extremely well-versed and highly experienced in Psionics.

Wednesday, May 2, 2035 – 2:10pm

I know I said I wasn’t going to talk about the weather, but I really need to get a point across, and I can’t think of another way to do it, so just bear with me here: I’m originally from a place called Michigan. It’s a pair of large peninsulas that stick out into the middle of the Great Lakes region of North America. The lakes themselves are massive and cold, which means they can disrupt any weather system going through the area. Because of that, we Michiganders have a saying:

“If you don’t like the weather, just wait an hour.”

I’ve seen thunderstorms pop up out of seemingly nothing, watched a blizzard race across the landscape like it’s trying to win a race, and I’ve had the experience of seeing a windy December gale turn into a brutal ice storm that transformed my neighborhood into a frozen wasteland. I thought I’d seen all the different ways a bright and pleasant day could turn into something dark and terrifying. I thought I’d seen everything.

I’ve never been so wrong in my life.

When Jericho and the Chosen Assassin moved to attack one another, it was as though someone had plugged the sun into an amplifier! I jammed my eyes shut at the first pulse of violet energy, but brilliant red light filled my eyelids and blinded me anyway! Above, I heard loud screams and wails!

“What’s happening!? I can’t see!!” Matthew yelled.

A violent jostling sensation next to me forced me to open my eyes. The wall next to me had crumbled and was mere seconds away from collapsing! There was a mighty thud as something crashed into it again!

“The house is coming down!” I yelled. “Everyone outside!”

I stood up, and as soon as my head was level with the window again, I was bombarded by a new set of sensations. Psionic energy washed over the battlefield and my arms and legs suddenly started to feel a little numb. To my left, I saw something incredible!

Jericho was standing in the middle of the street, both hands raised in front of her face. A telekinetic shield flickered and wavered in front of her as the Chosen Assassin fired a continuous beam of energy into it! It was clearly taking all of Jericho’s focus to defend herself, and it seemed to be working. The Chosen Assassin was clearly having trouble maintaining her assault, her face screwed up in a mix of pain and frustration!

Looking behind me, I saw that Homura was getting back to her feet, battered but still combat-ready.

“Hanako!” I yelled. “Help me!”

I vaulted the remains of the windowsill and started closing on the Chosen Assassin! The two Gifted combatants were radiating so much light that I could barely keep my eyes open! I drew my sword and charged straight at the Chosen! In both hands, I raised the weapon above my head and tried to bring it down into her side, but the Assassin moved faster than I was ready for, and parried the blow with her own Katana! The Chosen gave me a look that made me a little confused… her expression was almost courteous.

“Perhaps you’d like to try a more adept sparring partner?” The Assassin taunted. “You could have learned much from me if we weren’t destined to be enemies.”

Her blade still locked onto mine, I felt the Assassin starting to push me away, hard! I dug my feet into the ground and tried to resist! I just needed a second, and I got it!

Taking advantage of the Assassin’s distraction, Jericho and Homura both struck! Homura fired her assault rifle in bursts, shooting the Assassin in the back four times, while Jericho conjured a semi-corporeal lance and hurled it forward! Yellow blood spurting from her wounds, the Assassin yelled and finally managed to shove me away! I fell over backwards and hit the ground! My sword and shotgun clattered around me, I reached for both as the Assassin turned her attention back to Jericho.

“That attack might have proved dangerous, if you knew what you were doing.”

Suddenly, Jericho was on the defensive again! She backed away and gave ground before the Assassin, looking over her shoulders for anything she could use as cover. But the Assassin didn’t strike. Instead, the alien reached to her belt and produced a small device.

“Grenade!” Homura yelled.

The Assassin tossed the little device to the ground and it detonated on impact! Where there was suddenly too much light, now there was none at all! Whatever this thing was, it had shut off the daylight! Total blackness pressed in against my eyes so hard I felt an aching sensation in my skull!

“Join me in the darkness, and I will end this quickly!” The Assassin declared triumphantly.

I could hear the sounds of gunfire and violence all around me, but now I was completely and totally blind! Fumbling around in the pitch blackness, I found my shotgun and aimed into the spot where I’d heard the Assassin’s voice, but Jericho shouted!

“Blake! Don’t shoot!”

I don’t know how Jericho had gotten directly in front of me, but I was sure glad she’d somehow managed to spot me in the darkness. Her words were followed up by a loud rushing sound, a noise like a torrent of floodwater rose in pitch before falling away again. The noise was then replaced by the jabbering chatter of at least a dozen ADVENT soldiers!

“By the Elders will, I am reinforced!” The Assassin yelled.

I blinked as rapidly as I could, trying to force my other Genetic Modification to do something useful. After a couple of seconds, my field of vision suddenly turned orange for a brief moment as my modified eyes finally defeated whatever was blinding them.

My vision came back, just a little, but it was back! It was as though I’d been plunged into a cloudy moonless night. The environment around me was still very dark and foggy, but I could see! Just behind the spot where the Chosen Assassin had vanished, a whole squad of Stun Lancers had stepped out of a rapidly closing Void Rift. As their psionic portal dissipated behind them, the enemy soldiers charged directly into the fray!

I scrambled to my feet as quickly as I could, just in time to dodge the bright red Stun Baton of an enemy Lancer. Panting, I slashed my sword wildly at the Lancer and cut a great big gash in her chest! As she toppled over, I saw how badly the rest of the fight had turned:

Jericho was under siege. Hidden in the shadows, the Chosen Assassin was firing her shotgun at Jericho with impunity, and it was all the Hawaiian could do to maintain a personal shield. Meanwhile, nearly a dozen ADVENT Lancers were running amok through the village! All twelve of the Resistance soldiers Jericho had brought back were holding the line valiantly, firing hundreds of rounds into the advancing enemy. I had to admit, without those reinforcements, our position probably would have been overrun.

About twenty feet away, I saw Matthew slumped over a windowsill, twitching. I couldn’t tell if he was alive from here. Next to him, Tsubaki was grappling with a Lancer in hand-to-hand combat, barely managing to keep the Stun Baton away from herself.

I turned around and quickly spotted Chihiro. She was still lying facedown in the dirt where the Assassin had overpowered her. Bullets and gauss rounds were flying all over the place, grenades detonated and kicked up debris, and a large fire was slowly making its way up the block towards us. It only took me a second to figure out who I was going to help.

Dropping both of my weapons, I ran over to Chihiro and grabbed her by the arm. Crouching down, I pulled Chihiro upright and then allowed her to collapse onto my shoulder. Her head and arms hung limply and rested against my back while I wrapped my arms around both of her legs, keeping her in place. From up above, I heard two familiar voices yelling at me:

“Trojan! Get her outta here! We’ll cover you!” Kathleen shouted from a rooftop.

“The Skyranger’s coming to pick up the wounded!” Hal added. “We marked the LZ with white smoke bombs! Turn left at the corner!”

Then I heard a third voice, one that made my heart skip a beat:

“You intend to rescue your comrade? You do have an admirable sense of loyalty, for a Human.”

The Chosen Assassin was right behind me.

For half a second, I seriously considered dropping Chihiro to the ground so I could turn and fight, but then I thought better of it.

“It’s more than loyalty!” I yelled over my shoulder as I started to run. “Not like you’d understand that!”

A cold hand with long, thin fingers closed onto the top of my head! It felt like a huge spider had just clamped onto me! I yelled and started trying to break free! I felt a shudder run through the Assassin as she deflected another Psionic attack. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a flash of blue hair…

“Surrender, Jericho!” The Assassin yelled. “Your comrades have fought with bravery and conviction! They do not need to die for you! Give yourself to me and I’ll let them all leave here!”

With overwhelming strength, the Assassin pulled on my head and forced me to turn on the spot to face Jericho. She looked unharmed. Panting, Jericho seemed unperturbed by sparks and little arcs of lightning jumping off her own body. Then I felt a huge pushing sensation!

Chihiro and I both hit the ground! Turning my head, I saw that the Assassin was pressing her foot into my back, pinning me. With one hand, the Assassin had unshouldered her own shotgun and was aiming it directly at Chihiro’s head! Barely conscious and still dazed, Chihiro looked at me with unfocused eyes and murmured:

“B-Blake? Wha’s goin’ on?”

Straining against the weight of the Chosen Assassin, I reached out and grabbed Chihiro’s hand with my own.

“I’ve got you, Chi!” I said, trying to hide my panic. “I’m here, you’re okay!”

The Assassin let out a noise that sounded like a cackle.

“Honor and loyalty amongst comrades, even at the final moment!” The Assassin told Jericho. “These two lives are not worth yours, Jericho! Do not waste something so valuable! Give yourself to me and they both live!”

A loud rushing sound and brilliant purple light told me that Jericho’s answer was coming in fast! With the last of my strength, I put both of my hands to the ground and did the most insane pushup of my life! Pushing against the weight of the Chosen Assassin, I lifted myself off the ground in one herculean effort! I must have caught the Assassin off-guard because she immediately lifted her foot off my rising body. Without even stopping to think, I threw myself sideways towards Chihiro! My head slammed into the barrel of the Assassin’s shotgun as I went and I came to rest on top of my girlfriend! Pain shot through my whole skull and I bit my tongue trying not to cry out!

Then I heard the sound of an explosion behind me somewhere, followed by the Assassin’s voice, loud and full of indignant rage!

“You lack conviction! Your knowledge of Psionics is cursory! And now you can’t even strike a foe standing in front of you! You dare call yourself a warrior!?”

I looked up at Jericho. Her rifle was lying on the ground and she had both palms aimed at the Assassin. Purple wisps of smoke rose up from her hands as she said:

“Who said I was trying to hit you?”

Simultaneously, the Assassin and I both looked behind us. When I saw what was going on, I sprang to my feet, grabbed Chihiro by the arms, and started to pull her to safety. Psionic energy had washed over the entire battlefield, enveloping and engulfing the bodies of the fallen. One by one…

The dead began to rise.

An ADVENT Captain, his armor perforated with bullet holes, stumbled upright and began to shuffle towards the Chosen Assassin. All over the village, the sounds of gunfire tapered off and confused yells took their place. A window shattered as two re-animated corpses smashed their way onto the street. Enemy soldiers turned their weapons away from the forces of XCOM and refocused on the undead!

The Assassin raised her shotgun and blasted the re-animated Captain across the street, then frantically looked around as more and more fallen soldiers began to rise up from what should have been their final resting places. Isis and Hal emerged from their hiding places and helped me carry Chihiro inside another building while all around us, the rest of XCOM’s forces began to withdraw from the battlefield.

The Skyranger swooped low over a nearby house and settled in for a landing in the yard. Tearing my eyes away from the incredible scene before me, I followed my squadmates to the LZ. The Skyranger pilot, an American woman named Wendy Carter, laid Chihiro onto a stretcher and secured her in place. Then someone stepped off the Skyranger and came to me.

Ignatius Petoskey had taken the field. I’m not kidding around when I say he’s the oldest soldier I’ve ever met, he’s somewhere in his nineties. He’s mostly bald save for a few patches on the side of his head and he’s got a full beard. In my mind, I always picture him like one of those Generals from the American Civil War. When Petoskey came out of the Skyranger, he was holding a submachine gun in one hand and a Psionic Amplifier in the other. The two prongs of the Amplifier were lit up and a semitransparent little orb hung in midair between them. It shone like the sun and made me squint my eyes just to look at it.

Petoskey clipped his firearm to his belt and gently grabbed my shoulder. At once, all of the pain and exhaustion I’d been feeling since the fight started seemed to just ebb away. It was like I’d been dunked into the most comfortable hot tub in the world.

“Jericho?” Petoskey asked. “The Assassin?”

My mind refocused. I couldn’t help but notice that my thoughts were sharper and clearer now.

“Follow me.” I told him.

I led Petoskey back to the main street where we had left Jericho. Somehow, when we turned the corner, the scene was even worse than when we’d left it!

Bodies upon bodies had piled up in the street. What few ADVENT soldiers remained had been killed by Jericho’s re-animated army and then their corpses had been raised. The Chosen Assassin was caught in the middle of it all, under attack from every direction! Her sword and shotgun flashed in the afternoon sunlight as she tried to keep the assault at bay! Dead ADVENT and XCOM alike were closing in while Jericho stood exactly where I’d left her, keeping both of her hands raised and straining from the intense concentration.

“Oh, mon Dieu!” Ignatius gasped.

I checked my shotgun to make sure it was loaded, then said:

“Let’s go! We’ve got to help her!”

I started to run into the fray, only to notice that Ignatius wasn’t following. He was standing stock still, watching the fight with his jaw slightly open.

“Petoskey!” I yelled, “She needs help!!”

Just a few paces away from me, I saw Jericho cry out in pain and hunch over for a second before regaining her composure. She couldn’t keep this up forever! As long as the Assassin kept a handle on the incoming undead, the two fighters were in a stalemate, a battle of attrition!

Finally, something happened that forced both Ignatius and myself to act:

One more Zombie crashed through the ruins of the house where my fireteam had made its stand. This body had once belonged to a tall, slender Russian woman with brown hair. Ludmilla Kuznetsova’s head hung limply on her neck, unseeing and unknowing. Her legs carried her forward like some kind of poorly-programmed robot, and her arms hung limply at her side as though a puppeteer was only holding half of the strings. A second after the familiar Zombie had appeared, Sophia Kuznetsova stumbled out of the house and tried to chase the reanimated body of her twin sister!

“Ludmilla!” Sophia screamed! “Please come back! Don’t go! LUDMILLA! PLEASE!”

I pointed at Sophia!

“Petoskey! Help her! I’ve got Jericho!”

We both sprang into action! So did the Chosen Assassin! When Ludmilla’s body had shambled just a little too close, the Assassin raised her shotgun and fired at point-blank range! Ludmilla’s corpse crumpled straight to the ground as Jericho’s control over it was broken! At that same moment, Ignatius and I saw something break in Sophia. She fell to her knees and screamed until she ran out of breath! Ignatius pointed his Psionic Amplifier at Sophia and a purple beam of light shot out of the aperture, hitting Sophia squarely in the head! Immediately, she keeled over, unconscious. I ran around the Assassin’s flank and raised my shotgun! Then Ignatius, Jericho, and I all launched one last attack on the Chosen!

Two Psionic blasts and a deer slug hit the Assassin right on target! Ignatius vented Soulfire from his Amplifier, immolating the Assassin and everything in her vicinity while Jericho fired Psi Lances from both hands, impaling the Chosen through the chest!

As the smoke cleared, I finally saw that we’d landed a lethal blow! Blood pouring from her wounds, the Chosen Assassin stumbled forward and dropped her weapons. With one shaking hand, she grabbed Jericho’s face and forced her to come close.

“Wh-who!?” The Assassin gasped, “Who taught you to use the Gift like that?”

Jericho raised one hand and pointed her palm at me. My shotgun jumped out of my hands and into hers.

“I learned…” Jericho pushed the barrel of my shotgun into the Assassin’s gut. “From my mother.”

And she pulled the trigger.

The Chosen Assassin screamed and tumbled over backwards, hitting the pavement and lying still. Smoke curled away from the final injury Jericho had inflicted.

Then, before any of us could say or do anything, the Assassin’s body began to emit a powerful white light! A column of brilliant purple light shot down from the sky and enveloped our fallen foe, forcing all three of us to cover our eyes until both light sources had vanished.

When we opened our eyes again, the body of the Chosen Assassin was nowhere to be seen. Nor were her weapons. Just like before this whole battle had started, the voice of the Chosen Assassin filled our minds one last time, the Psionic intrusion leaving behind these chilling words:

“Though it pains me to flee from a worthy adversary, the Elders will not allow me to die in this world. When the time comes, I shall face my death with honor, but for now I will retreat. In fleeing this battle, I feel no shame, for the war has only just begun, and you are a worthy adversary. We will meet again!”

Then the voice was gone… leaving Jericho, Ignatius, and I to stare at one another with expressions of terror. In that moment of calm, the past few minutes seemed to finally catch up with us. I was in some kind of shock... and I don’t think I could have moved even if I had wanted to.

“All XCOM units, this is Central! The Avenger is ready for takeoff and the Commander has ordered a general retreat! Break contact and fall back to the Avenger! I say again! Break contact and retreat!”

Bradford’s voice jarred us all back to reality. The radio on Ignatius’ belt squawked loudly as squad leaders acknowledged the new orders. Jericho stirred first.

“We have to leave.” she said breathlessly. “ADVENT’s still got that cannon; they’ll be raining fire down on us before too long.”

Jericho was right. During the firefight and encounter with the Assassin, we had completely lost track of where the enemy Siege Cannon was!

The ADVENT Siege Cannon opens fire from the safety of the main road. This towed weapon system suffers from low mobility and is highly situational. This weapon is useful against both soldiers and grounded spacecraft.

While Ignatius shouldered his weapon and started to pick up Sophia, I pushed the talk button on my radio and said:

“Trojan calling anyone on this net! Does anyone have eyes on the big gun?”

There was a few seconds of static, followed by the voice of an American man.

“Smokes here!” said Cory Tucker, a soldier from Delta Squad. “We’re trying to immobilize the cannon now! We don’t have any heavy weapons, so destroying this thing is out of the question. You need to haul ass and get back to the Avenger right now!”

I looked back at Ignatius. He had Sophia slumped over his back; her arms wrapped loosely around his front.

“Time to go.” he said.

Ignatius started walking in the direction of the Avenger, but turned around when he noticed I wasn’t following. I had dropped my shotgun to the ground and tucked my sword into my belt as best I could. Jericho stood guard, watching anxiously as I bent down and picked up the broken and bloodied body of Ludmilla Kuznetsova. Ignatius winced.

“She’s dead, Robinson!” he called to me. “Leave her!”

Huffing and puffing, I threw Ludmilla’s body across my shoulders. Gripping her arm in one hand and her leg in the other, I caught up to Ignatius quickly and said to him:

“My sister would’ve wanted to bury me. I’m guessing Sophia wants the same. Let’s go.”

We got out of the village easily and joined a large group of XCOM soldiers fleeing across the open field back towards the Avenger. I couldn’t see any of the soldiers from my squad, so I fell in with a couple soldiers from Menace Squad instead. Bernard von Unfal was a skinny twig of a man with a narrow face and sunken eyes. He was walking with a limp and had to lean on the shoulders of another man. Artyom Sidrov was a Russian man in his upper sixties, yet he looked younger owing to how physically fit he was. Many years ago, he had led a Soviet Army in the initial invasion of Japan. Sidrov and von Unfal agreed to carry Ludmilla’s body between them, which gave me a chance to recover my strength. They both gawked when they saw Jericho put a reassuring hand on my shoulder.

“Is... is that...?” Artyom stammered. “Is the really her!?”

“No way! You’ve got to be kidding me!” Bernard gasped. “Jericho’s really here!”

Jericho ignored the staring men and spoke to me.

“Blake, I have to go back and get those Resistance fighters onto the ship. I promise, I’ll catch up with you and explain everything, okay? Just please have a little more patience with me, alright? Please?”

She looked like she was pleading with me, begging, even; which made me really uncomfortable. All she had to do was ask, really.

Before I could answer, I heard a loud whistling noise that I knew all too well!

“DOWN!” I yelled! “EVERYONE DOWN!!”

No sooner had Jericho and I hit the dirt than the earth heaved beneath us and a powerful bang made my ears ring! Looking up, I saw huge clods of mud and dirt raining down from the sky and a cloud of smoke billowing from a fresh crater in the middle of the field.

“That was the siege cannon!” I said. “Go get your friends quick! The Commander’s not going to wait for too long!”

Jericho got to her feet and ran back into town. I took Ludmilla’s body from Artyom and Bernard and started charging towards the ship by myself. All around me, nearly two dozen XCOM soldiers fled the scene! There was no order or discipline left, our collective morale had been broken by the artillery bombardment. Now we ran for our lives, and for the one ship that could save us all. The siege cannon shelled the field twice more! Both rounds landed hundreds of yards away from me, but they were nonetheless lethal! Two soldiers from Voodoo Squad vanished into the epicenter of an explosion, while the second impact sent a man from Delta Squad flying into the air before he crashed back to the ground and never moved again.

This was turning into a massacre!

By the time I got to the Avenger, I got an idea of just how bad the situation had become. Waiting at the bottom of the deployment ramp were two of XCOM’s highest ranking members: Chief Engineer Lily Shen and Central Officer Bradford. Chief Shen was a Taiwanese woman in her late twenties. Her orange tee-shirt made her stand out against the battleground like a sore thumb, but she didn’t seem to care. A GREMLIN drone buzzed loudly overhead, scanning the troops as they approached the ramp.

“Don’t stop down here!” Lily yelled to us. “Go straight up the ramp!”

Next to her, Central Officer Bradford was counting soldiers as they boarded the ramp. He was a worn out, grizzled-looking veteran with a scruffy, unkempt beard. Abruptly, he stopped counting and turned his head, pointing one ear towards the sky.

“Incoming!” Bradford yelled, “Everyone hit the deck!”

I threw Ludmilla’s body to the ground and hit the dirt next to it; then covered my head with both hands. The ground heaved upwards and fell down again, the movement accompanied by an earsplitting BANG! Desperately trying to ignore the ringing in my ears, I stood up and looked around. The enemy Siege Cannon had just fired on the Avenger and missed, but not by much. Dirt and mud fell from the sky, making a horrible sound. Somehow, the smell of the battlefield was even worse: sulfur, ozone, and blood all came together and made my stomach twist.

On the other side of a fresh new crater in the ground, I spotted Jericho and all twelve of the local Resistance fighters she’d brought along. Just when I thought they were in the clear:

“Another one!” Shen screamed! “Everyone drop!”

One more time, we all hit the dirt as another artillery shell came screaming in! Even though my face was pressed into the ground, I could tell that the Avenger had just escaped destruction by a matter of meters! Sure enough, when I looked up, there was now a fresh crater smoldering just a few feet away from the ship’s boarding ramp. On the other side of that crater, looking stunned beyond all belief, was Jericho and just six Resistance fighters.

One of Jericho’s comrades, a skinny Korean girl, was staring at the spot where, just five seconds ago, six of her friends had been alive and well. There was a look of genuine terror on her face. Now all that remained of her teammates was a huge hole in the ground and little bits of burned detritus that rained from the darkened sky above.

Jericho grabbed the girl and pulled her to her feet!

“Come on, Song! We’re almost there! Just a few more feet!”

The girl called Song and her five remaining squadmates scrambled back to their feet and dashed across the crater to the Avenger’s boarding ramp, reaching it at the same time I did.

“Whoa, whoa, wait a minute!” Bradford held out a hand to stop Jericho and her fighters at the boarding ramp. “Who the hell are you people?”

“They’re with me!” Jericho panted as she ran to catch up. “They can’t stay in Korea, ADVENT will kill them if they stay!”

When Bradford didn’t budge, she added:

“I’ll vouch for them, okay!? Just let us on board!”

I looked at Bradford, then back at Jericho, and then at Bradford again. He looked like he didn’t believe his eyes.

“Hey! Bradford!” I yelled. “That girl is Zander!”

Bradford did a double-take, his eyes going wide. Then he recovered and stood aside.

“I knew that! Get onboard!” He said unconvincingly. “On the double, move!”

As we stepped up the boarding ramp, Jericho hissed at me:

“Really, XCOM’s code-name for me is Zander!?”

“It’s a long story.” I answered. “Ask someone later. Right now, we’ve gotta move!”

Normally, the area at the top of the Avenger’s boarding ramp is a kind of cargo bay. On most occasions, this area is converted into a workshop for Chief Engineer Shen’s use. Today, however, it had become a triage zone. Injured, dying, and dead XCOM soldiers lay across the cargo bay floor in long rows. Several battle medics were hard at work trying to save a few lives here and there. On the far end of the room was an industrial elevator that led further into the ship.

“Don’t crowd the ramp!” Bradford yelled. “Keep moving in!”

Jericho and I started moving towards the elevator, but something caught my eye and I changed my course automatically.

Chihiro Tachibana was lying on her back in a far corner, wrapped up in heavy blankets. Two battered and bloodied soldiers were laid out on either side of her, and I had to step carefully and kneel down in the isle just to get close to her. I was so scared; I could feel my heart thundering behind my ribs. I put two trembling fingers to her neck, and felt a warm wave of relief wash over me when I felt Chihiro’s pulse and saw her chest rising and falling. In that moment, I found a little peace and justice in the world.

“What happened to her?”

I looked up to see the blue-haired Hawaiian standing behind me.

“She’s got a Genetic Modification.” I explained, choking back tears. “Whenever she’s telepathically attacked, her body kinda shuts down. It’s supposed to defend against Mind Control. She’ll be fine in a day or two.”

In the dim light, I could see Jericho’s violet eyes darting back and forth between me and Chihiro. She seemed to be thinking fast, considering an idea. But before I could figure out what Jericho was thinking about, the Avenger lurched and shuddered. A dull roar came in from outside, and when I looked towards the boarding ramp, I could see dirt and dust being kicked up by the spacecraft’s engines for just a second before the ramp rose up and slammed shut.

“All hands, standby for takeoff!”

Bradford’s voice issued from a series of intercom speakers all over the ship as it lurched again! I grabbed Chihiro’s hand and held tightly as XCOM’s flagship departed the ground and rose into the sky! The air was filled with the sounds of coughing, choking, and soft crying, all accompanied by the gentle rumble of the Avenger’s engines and the rushing of the wind outside.

The Avenger stages its escape. Due to the pressing nature of ADVENT's attack, nearly a dozen XCOM soldiers and Resistance fighters were left behind.

The ship’s running lights finally kicked on and Bradford’s voice sounded on the intercom again.

“Alright troops, we’re free and clear. Good work out there. We’re coming into cruising speed now. All squad leaders, take account of your troops and equipment, then pass your status to me. I’ll be in Engineering.”

For the first time in several hours, I began to relax. Slumping down to sit next to Chihiro, I was suddenly aware of just how heavy my armor was, even in its badly damaged state. I tried to reach up to my breastplate to pull it off, but something soft and warm tugged on my left hand. Looking down, I saw Chihiro’s hand squeeze mine ever so softly. I jumped! This wasn’t supposed to happen! At least not for a couple of days! Panicking, I looked up at Jericho and saw...

Something incredible.

Jericho had pressed both of her hands to Chihiro’s head, and the points where the two of them were touching were emitting a soft violet glow. In the low light of the cargo bay, I could see that Jericho’s entire body was radiating a warm and gentle violet light... a light that was fading. Right in front of me, Jericho’s body literally lost its light as her Psionic energy was siphoned through her hands and into Chihiro. My girlfriend gripped my hand even more tightly and took a deep breath before slowly opening her eyes.

Chihiro looked up at me from between Jericho’s fingers and said in a very groggy tone:

“So... what’s the score?”

I reached up with my free hand and gently brushed Jericho’s palm away. I held Chihiro’s face in my hand and this time, I really couldn’t stop myself from shedding a few tears.

“You: three. Me: one.” I choked. “Glad to see you back so soon.”

“Whaddaya mean ‘soon’?” Chihiro asked.

I looked up at Jericho, and saw that she now looked very tired. Whatever she’d done must have cost her a lot of energy. She swayed dangerously, as though she might swoon or faint. I reached out and grabbed Jericho by the shoulder, holding her steady.

“I’ll be fine.” she mumbled. “Just... just tired out. I need to stay here... stay and... recharge.”

“Wait, you mean you need to rest, right?” I asked.

“No...” Jericho’s frustration was masked by grogginess. “I mean literally recharge. Get my powers back. I just need a break.”

“You can get a break in Doctor Tygan’s lab.” Said a voice over my shoulder.

I jumped from surprise. Chihiro did too. Without getting out attention, Central Officer Bradford and Chief Engineer Shen had appeared behind us. They were being escorted by two armed XCOM soldiers. The sounds of the wounded and the ship’s engines had masked their approach. I quickly sprang to my feet and started to raise my arm in salute, but Bradford shook his head and waved me off.

“Good work getting the Jericho girl back here in one piece, Cadet.” Bradford said. “You’ve just made all of our sacrifices over the past twenty years worthwhile. Alright, Shen. Let’s get this over with: Tag her.”

Shen and the two soldiers moved so quickly that I had no time to respond! Chihiro screamed and moved out of the way as both of the soldiers grabbed Jericho and forced her to lay flat on her back! Chief Shen reached into her pouch and knelt down next to her, saying:

“Hold her still!”

One soldier pinned Jericho’s wrists while the other grabbed her ankles. Jericho didn’t move, but she did say:

“Ow! Wait! You don’t have to do that! I’m not resisting! I’m not fighting!”

Chief Shen pulled a small rectangular object out of her pouch, rolled up Jericho’s left pant leg, and then began affixing the device to Jericho’s ankle with a tight strap.

“Hey!” I protested, “What’s going on?!”

Bradford spoke to me, but kept his eyes on Jericho.

“We just got the only living subject of Project Jericho back. The Resistance Council had a goddamn cow when we passed the news onto them a few minutes ago. Both the Spokesman and the Commander insisted we take measures to ensure we don’t lose her again. Shen’s taking care of that right now.”

As soon as the device was secure around Jericho’s ankle, Chief Shen pulled a syringe from her breast pocket and then traded places with the soldier holding Jericho’s arms.

“This is the solution I came up with.” Shen explained. “I reverse-engineered it from the Organic Implant we found in that Lena Bishop woman after we lost Doctor Vahlen’s island last year. It’s like a GPS tracking device without the GPS.”

Shen rolled up Jericho’s sleeve and pressed the needle into her arm. She pressed the plunger and held it down until she was satisfied the organic tracking device was inside Jericho’s body.

“We’re not losing you again, that’s for sure.” Shen commented as packed up her equipment. “Now kid, don’t you dare try and take off that bracelet. You really won’t like what’ll happen.”

Shen stood up and ordered her men to release Jericho.

“Central, if you need me for anything else, I’ll be in the Shadow Chamber.”

Chief Shen and her two soldiers departed, leaving Chihiro, Bradford, a very battered Jericho, and myself together. Jericho cautiously sat up and rubbed the injection site on her arm, looking forlornly at her new ankle bracelet. I stared at Bradford, unable to think of what to say.

On the one hand, I genuinely agreed with him that some kind of steps needed to be taken to avoid losing track of Jericho... but in that moment, I honestly didn’t know how I felt about her being forced to carry a tracking device. I wasn’t comfortable with the idea, that much was certain.

Bradford didn’t give me time to think about this, though.

“Are you okay, Cadet?” he asked. “You fit for duty?”

I looked myself over.

“I… I guess so.” I said. “I’m not hit, anyway. If you need me, Sir, I’m all green. Did Colonel Smith ask for me?”

“Yeah… about that...” Bradford said slowly. “It looks like Colonel Smith didn’t make it back to the Avenger before we took off. Same goes for Captain Green. Until we find a more permanent replacement, the Commander has decided that you will be the new Squad Leader of the Stormbreakers.”

Now I was getting overwhelmed! This was too much on top of everything else! My heart felt like it dropped into my stomach, my sweat turned cold, and Chihiro’s grip on my hand suddenly got vicelike. I tried to say something, but I was too shocked… my mouth just kinda hung open. Bradford gave me an understanding look and passed me a tablet computer.

“Here’s the most recent update to your squad’s roster.” Bradford said. “We took attendance as best we can, but obviously I’m expecting you to do your own headcount as well. Once the Avenger lands in Japan, I want you to bring the Jericho girl to the Commander’s office. We need to have a full debrief.”

I took the tablet from Bradford. He nodded to me and Chihiro, then he stooped down, grabbed Jericho by the arm and forcefully pulled her upright.

“You’re coming with me.” Bradford’s voice made it clear that this was not a request. “Doctor Tygan’s pulling up all of Vahlen’s files on the Jericho Project now, but he still needs to give you a full physical. Then we’ll get you re-integrated into XCOM. Let’s go.”

Bradford began pulling Jericho towards the elevator. She gave Chihiro and I an apologetic look; and then the words I promise I’ll talk to you later swam through my mind. Chihiro and I gave one another a terrified look before staring down at the image on the computer screen:

<== Previous Chapter (The Second Battle of Pyongyang)

Next Chapter (Explain Yourself) ==>​

 

[Macavity116]

Twenty pages!? 8600 words!? Yeah, I sincerely apologize for that. I'm trying to make future chapters shorter.

In the meantime, thanks for reading and I hope you're all having a wonderful holiday season!

Back to the story.
======

<== Previous Chapter (Psionic Storm)

Next Chapter (Three Teams, Three Missions) ==>​

Chapter Six
Explain Yourself

​

The Avenger lands in the Kanna Valley in central Japan late at night. This region is almost totally outside the control of the ADVENT Coalition and is separated from the Megacity of New Tokyo by a mountain range.

Wednesday, May 3, 2035 – 4:00am
Honshu Island, Japanese Archipelago

Hidden away in the mountains of central Japan, the village of Kanna had escaped alien rule thanks to its sheer inaccessibility. The near-complete destruction of the nearest city, Tomioka, meant that food and supplies had to come from the much more distant Mega-City of Tokyo. Thanks to its remoteness, the greatest amount of control the alien occupiers could exert over Kanna was the occasional foot patrol or flyover with a single aircraft. The Resistance, by contrast, had a permanent presence in town, a presence that brought in the food and medicine the people of Kanna desperately needed.

So when the Avenger swooped low over the city and landed in the nearby forest in the middle of the night, no alarms were raised, but a handful of men departed the village and set about the task of helping hide the ship. Tree branches and shrubs were carried up on ladders and thrown onto the top of the ship. Saplings and vines were strapped to the hull with twine and wire, and through the rest of the night, buckets upon buckets of dirt were poured onto the hull of the Avenger. By the time the sun rose, the Avenger was hidden. With her lights off and engines deactivated, a passerby would have immediately mistaken XCOM’s flagship for a forested hilltop.

Aboard the ship, we were still dealing with the aftermath of the fight in Pyongyang. All five squads had taken casualties. In total, eleven XCOM soldiers were dead, a further fifteen were injured, and to make matters worse, ten soldiers had been left behind when the Avenger made its escape into the sky.

The Stormbreakers had gotten the worst of it. Of course, we were used to taking bad hits like that, but this time was different. Odette, Isis, and Hal had all been shot during the fight. Once they were checked out by other medics, we let Yutaka take care of them, since he’s better at treating Gauss weapon injuries than any other medic. I was sure all three of them would be back on their feet in a few days’ time.

Ignatius Petoskey came out of the fight unscathed, but he wasn’t looking to get any rest either. He went to the Infirmary with Sophia Kuznetsova, who had been reduced to a sobbing wreck by the death of her sister. I couldn’t blame her, I knew how she felt. I’d been there before.

But we had an even bigger problem: Holly, Jake, Tsubaki, Kathleen, Sophie, and Matthew had all been left behind when the order to retreat came down. When I heard about this, I got sick and puked on the floor.

I’d abandoned six of my comrades to the enemy.

I didn’t get any sleep during the flight to Japan. I just sat in my bunk in the living quarters all night, staring at all of those empty beds. I don’t remember exactly when Chihiro joined me up there, but she did. We didn’t talk much. What could be said? Our friends were in enemy hands, and we didn’t even know if they were still alive. Just sitting there silently and holding hands was all Chi and I could do. It was traumatizing to think about what might have happened to our friends, let alone talk about it.

Finally, the Avenger landed in Japan. Normally, whenever the ship sets down, Chihiro and I have a specific job to do, but she would be going alone this morning. As the new Squad Leader of the Stormbreakers, I had to report to the Commander’s office. Reluctantly, Chi and I both got down from the bunk bed and started towards the door. I was dreading the upcoming meeting, and each step forward made me feel worse and worse.

“You okay, Blake?” Chihiro asked.

“Come on, you know I’m not!” I kinda snapped at her. “Don’t be stupid!”

Okay, I might have been in the wrong here.

Chihiro developed the Gift a few months back, and we’ve only just gotten used to it. On top of the usual telepathic and telekinetic abilities, Chihiro could read my mind whenever she wanted. Sure, we’ve found a way to put that Psionic Link to good use in combat, but it does have an effect on our private lives, too. It’s caused Chihiro to change her behavior around me. Sometimes, like now, she’ll pretend she doesn’t know what’s going on in my head. I really didn’t want her to do that today.

Chihiro picked up on my thoughts right away. She stopped walking and grabbed my shoulders with both hands, turning me to face her.

“It’s not your fault, Blake.” She said.

“I left them out there! I could’ve dropped Ludmilla and-”

Chihiro cut me off.

“If you went back for Tsubaki or Matt or Holly, you’d have just been caught too. Then that slimeball Yamamoto would be running the squad instead of you. Besides, I think giving Sophia a body to bury will help her in the long run. She can say goodbye properly. Trust me, Blake, you did good out there.”

I did trust Chihiro, and I didn’t have to say it for her to know. She gave me a small smile and a quick kiss.

“You’d better go.” She said softly. “Commander’s waiting on you. I’ll see you later?”

“Hell yes.” I said, stepping out of the door. “Don’t forget, Chi, I’m your Squad Leader now. If you’re late for breakfast, I’ll have you doing pushups.”

Chihiro laughed and swatted the back of my head. We parted ways in the hall, and by way of saying goodbye, I let a very specific daydream enter the forefront of my mind. Behind me, I heard Chihiro scoff loudly as she called back:

“Later, Blake! Love you!”

…

To get to the Commander’s office, I had to go up one floor to the bridge. The Avenger’s bridge isn’t like the starship bridges you saw in Old World television shows. The whole room makes a ring around a huge holographic representation of the Earth. Red, yellow, and blue icons show the locations of ADVENT, Resistance, and XCOM forces respectively. Central Officer Bradford was standing on an elevated platform and staring hard at one particular icon on the Hologlobe: a circular shape that kind of looked like an eye, resting just a short distance away from a big green “X” that marked the Avenger’s current location.

“The office door’s unlocked, Robinson.” Bradford said. “Go on in, I’ll catch up in a minute.”

On the far side of the bridge was a metal stairway that took me up to the Commander’s office. Inside I found a big conference table set up with five chairs on one side, four on the other, plus one more chair at the head of the table. At the other end of the table, a huge flatscreen television was mounted on the wall where everybody could see it. Five seats were already taken. The other four Squad Leaders were already here, as was Chief Engineer Lily Shen. The Squad Leaders broke off their conversation and looked up at me with mixed expressions.

Lieutenant Jane Kelly, the leader of Menace Squad, nodded politely at me before turning back to Chief Shen. Her reddish-brown bangs hid most of her expression from me. She had a noticeable scar on her right arm, marking the spot where she’d taken fire during Operation Gatecrasher, the mission to rescue myself and several others from ADVENT captivity.

Major Cory Tucker was the leader of Delta Squad. A longtime veteran of the United States Army, he was the most experienced fighter at the table right now. Just like me, Cory was an American with mixed black and white heritage, so it’s kinda difficult to describe his appearance in any certain terms. He does have purple eyes, a feature that instantly gave away his Gifted status. Cory pointed to the chair opposite him, silently letting me know that it was free.

The man in charge of Voodoo Squad was Colonel Pyotr Ilyshin. I have far more history with him than I can relate right now. Pyotr and I had first met on the Japanese Front of World War Three. Back then, he had been a foot soldier in the Soviet Army, taking part of the communist invasion of Japan. We crossed paths (and traded bullets) at Kyoto, Sendai, and Hiroshima. When the aliens invaded, we suddenly found ourselves on the same side. He didn’t even look at me when I stepped into the room.

Finally, the acting leader of Echo Squad was Captain Anna Petrova. She’s one half of what Chihiro and I call the “crazy couple.” Anna has always been a rather strange person, who liked to voice her crazy and outlandish ideas, but this personality trait was amplified a hundredfold whenever she was near her best friend, Japanese soldier Akaya Ogawa, who was equally as unhinged. Like me, Anna wasn’t a full-time Squad Leader, she was just filling in due to the absence of her squad’s original leader.

No sooner had I sat down across the table from the other four Squad Leaders than the door opened behind me again. Central Officer Bradford stepped to one side and barked:

“The Commander of XCOM!”

Lily, Jane, Cory, Pyotr, Anna and I all stood up at once and raised our arms in salute.

Three people followed Bradford into the room: Doctor Richard Tygan was a bald African American man who served as XCOM’s chief scientist. From the front, he looked unremarkable, but as he turned to take his seat next to me, I got an eyeful of the gruesome scar on the back of his head, marking the spot where the Doctor had performed surgery on himself to get rid of an alien control chip. Behind Doctor Tygan, Jericho came into the room. She looked a little better than yesterday, but not by much. She had rolled the hem of her blue jeans overtop of her ankle bracelet, hiding it from view. Jericho sat down on my other side and mumbled a nervous hello. Finally, the Commander stepped into the room.

Laura Annmarie Harper is an American woman in her late sixties. She’s mixed-race like me: her mother was white and her father was Hispanic. While nobody knows much about Commander Harper’s mother, her father is pretty well-known to us. Laura is the illegitimate child of Nico DaSilva, the very first XCOM Squad Leader to die in combat. During the 1962 alien invasion, he fought in the Battle of Pima and single-handedly took down a whole squad of Outsiders at the cost of his own life. His self-sacrifice that day was honored with a humble memorial in the old XCOM Headquarters. To say that his daughter followed in his footsteps is a real understatement.

Laura had been part of the US military since the late 1990’s, and had fought in all six years of World War Three. When the smoke cleared, she had reached the rank of General of the Army, the highest possible military rank in the United States. Naturally, when the aliens invaded, America’s one and only five-star general was quickly tapped to lead Earth’s first line of defense.

Commander Harper is a tactical genius. It’s only thanks to her that XCOM lasted as long as it did during the 2015 Invasion. The Kiryu-Kai Disaster would have been much, much worse if Harper and her forces hadn’t been there to give the Japanese some backup. The alien ship that became the Avenger wouldn’t have been shot down if Harper hadn’t been managing the air war. Many battles and engagements over the course of this conflict have been turned in XCOM’s favor by Harper’s quick thinking and tactical knowledge.

Returning our salutes, Commander Harper sat down at the conference table, invited us to do the same, and then addressed the group:

“Yesterday was a hard day. We took some pretty bad hits, but we’re still here and still fighting. That’s what’s important.”

Then the Commander looked at Anna and myself.

“Petrova, Robinson, I’m sorry that both of you became Squad Leaders like this, but after reviewing the After Action Reports, I’m convinced you both did the right thing in those situations.”

I heard Anna let out a sigh of relief. Jericho put a reassuring hand on my forearm.

“Which brings me to my first bit of good news.” Commander Harper pulled a remote control from her pocket and aimed it at the television screen. “Your comrades are alive.”

The television at the opposite end of the table clicked on. At once, we saw a live feed from the ADVENT Central News Network. A correspondent was standing on the darkened battlefield near Pyongyang, which was swarming with soldiers and vehicles. The Correspondent, a black man with wiry grey hair, spoke to the camera:

"ADVENT Peacekeepers heroically responded to an XCOM assault today. Due to their intervention, damage and loss of life were limited. The Speaker himself commended the troops for their brave sacrifice."

The image cut away from the Correspondent to show footage that made my throat close up. The missing Stormbreakers were shown being detained by ADVENT soldiers:

Soylent Green was resisting arrest, fighting and wrestling with the Peacekeepers until he was finally subdued with a Stun Lance.

Tsubaki Endo was lying on a medical gurney, refusing to talk with an ADVENT Priest. Both of her Cybernetic legs had been removed.

Kathleen Walsh was lying face down on the ground. While one soldier held her down, another was going through her pockets.

Sophie Ackermann was putting up the biggest fight of all. She squirmed and flailed desperately, screaming and shrieking at her captors. Finally, she was stunned three times and fell unconscious.

Holly Smith had been stripped down to her underwear and forced to stand still so a Peacekeeper could take pictures of her numerous tattoos.

Like Tsubaki, Matthew Hawkins had been restrained to a medical gurney and was also refusing to speak to the enemy. I couldn’t help but notice that he had a shiny black eye, and his interrogator was looking very frustrated.

Then the image changed, showing a few members of Echo Squad emerging from a house with their hands raised in a sign of surrender. As they were taken into custody, the Correspondent continued speaking:

“The ADVENT administration again assures its citizens that outreach efforts in the border territories will continue despite the recent brutal assault on peacekeeping forces by XCOM radicals. The administration is committed to ensuring a safe and secure world for everyone. According to government officials, recent attacks by dissident elements operating outside of the city centers have done little to slow the progress of ADVENT's ongoing development or outreach programs. Voluntary citizen emigration numbers are reportedly at their highest level in recent years, and with today's decisive blow to XCOM dissidents, local Peacekeepers expressed confidence that the so-called resistance organization is on its last legs.”

The image froze, leaving our distressed comrades on the screen for all of us to see. We all turned to face the Commander again. She set down the TV remote and raised her eyebrow at me.

“Well, Robinson and Petrova seem to be looking a little better.” Commander Harper said. “I want you all to rest assured that a rescue plan is in the works. I’ve made contact with several Resistance cells and they’ve agreed to put out feelers at all nearby ADVENT Detention Centers and Rehabilitation Facilities. I promise you that as soon as we know where those soldiers are, we will make moves to get them back.”

The Commander nodded at Central Officer Bradford, who stood up and addressed the group.

“In the meantime, we need to discuss the reason yesterday’s fight happened at all.”

With uncomfortable reluctance, all eyes in the room fell on Jericho. I felt her shudder next to me, but I couldn’t look her in the face. This was a conversation I really didn’t want to have. It felt like Jericho was in the same boat.

“You all know I’m too old to start believing in miracles, but that’s the word I’ve gotta use here.” Bradford said, patting Jericho on the back.

“Getting Sergeant Sato’s daughter back into the fold has got to be our greatest coup since Operation Gatecrasher. Now I’m sure everyone here remembers the Jericho Project twenty years ago, and what Vahlen and Sato were trying to accomplish back then. I guess I’ll pass it to the good Doctor and he’ll explain more.”

With much squeaking of chair legs, Doctor Tygan stood up and addressed the meeting.

“Last night, before the Avenger landed, I conducted a simple genetic test on this young lady and compared it against tissue samples salvaged from my predecessor’s work on the Jericho Project. I can confirm that this individual is in fact the end result of the Project, and is the self-same person Corporal Dekker claims to have raised in the years following the rise of ADVENT.”

Jane and Anna leaned forward in their seats, trying to get a better look at Jericho, who didn’t meet their eyes, choosing to look at the table instead. Doctor Tygan continued:

“I’m sure Cadet Robinson and his comrades will attest to her Psionic capabilities, having witnessed them so recently. Following my own tests, I also confirmed that all of the Genetic Modifications installed by Doctor Vahlen are present in Miss Ray’s body and are working as intended. During yesterday’s bout of combat, Miss Ray fought the Chosen Assassin and demonstrated her ability to use Psionic powers normally outside the capabilities of our own Psi Operatives. Thanks to her modifications, Miss Ray has shown she is capable of raising the dead in a similar manner to our enemies, an ability that none of our own Operatives possess.

“The Genetic Modifications made to Jericho’s brain are based on technology developed by many of XCOM’s greatest minds. This young woman has been living with the same series of organic Neural Implants since her mother’s last surgery in June of 2015. Doctor Moria Vahlen based the technology on implants salvaged from the brain of a deceased Ethereal.”

Awed whispers ran around the table. Jericho blushed and hid her face in her hands while everyone else tried to stare at her. Doctor Tygan ignored the interruption.

“Furthermore, you should all know that it’s not just Ethereal genetic material contained in Jericho’s body. Her muscle fibers are built from reverse-engineered tissue samples taken from a Muton in 1962, courtesy of Doctor Alan Wier, our first Chief Scientist.”

“WHAT!?” Cory yelled. “A ’62 Muton!? You’ve gotta be kidding!”

Commander Harper chucked at his indignation. We all knew why Cory was upset. It’s a well-known fact among XCOM soldiers that ever since the first alien invasion over seventy years ago, the race of barbaric warrior-aliens known as “Mutons” had been getting smaller and weaker over time.

Contemporary Mutons from 2035 are just barely bigger than average Humans.

Mutons from the 2015 war were comparable to mid-sized cars.

And according to reports from the 1962 war, Mutons were roughly the size of elephants and just as strong.

I couldn’t help it. I turned my head back to Jericho. She looked very sheepish and gazed down at her own hands again while I sized her up.

Jericho was just nineteen years old. Compared to everyone else in the room, she was a scrawny little kid. She was shorter than me and I probably had a fifty-pound advantage over her. The second I heard she had Muton muscles, my curiosity got the better of me. I tapped her arm and said:

“Muton muscles, huh? May I?”

Jericho raised her arm and flexed her bicep. While the others watched, I wrapped both of my hands around Jericho’s arm and tried to squeeze!

Two things happened at once: First, I noticed that Jericho’s arm felt hard as a rock! I felt like I’d just grabbed a piece of ceramic body armor! Second, a powerful jolt ran up my arm and punched me in the chest! It was like I’d been hit with a goddamned stun gun!

“Gaaagh! What the fu-”

I reeled backwards and nearly fell out of my chair while all of the other Squad Leaders burst out laughing! Chief Shen covered her mouth and snickered while the Commander covered her eyes and shook with silent laughter. Even Jericho giggled. While I… composed myself… she rubbed her arm with one hand and said:

“What Tygan didn’t tell you is that I’ve got Bioelectric Skin. I can sense electric energy, and I can shock anyone who touches me. And don’t worry, I only shock people I don’t like.”

“Right.” I said. “Remind me not to get in a fistfight with you.”

“In a way, you already did.”

Jericho’s last sentence caused the whole conference room to fall quiet. Nervous glances were shared until all eyes fell on Commander Harper, who looked unusually calm as she said:

“I’ve already talked to Jericho privately about where she’s been and why she came to find us. She and I have come to an agreement, and the first part of that agreement is she’s going to explain a few things and answer a few of your questions. So, let’s start… Cadet Robinson, she insisted you get the first question.”

I turned my head and gave Jericho a perplexed look. She was looking at me with an expression that carried a lot of emotions. I felt a little uncomfortable trying to read her face, so I pressed on. I only had to fish about in my head for a second to find one of the many questions I’d been dying to ask her:

“Jericho, the last time I saw you, you were just a few minutes old and Isis was carrying you into the treeline. That was nineteen years ago. Where’ve you been? What were you doing? What happened after Isis got captured?”

Jericho looked a little overwhelmed as she started talking:

“Isis, huh? I’m still not used to calling her that. She was my first mom for, like, half my life.”

“’First mom?’” Anna repeated curiously. “I thought test tube babies didn’t have mothers.”

“Uh… I mean… It’s kinda complicated.” Jericho stumbled over her words. “So yeah, anyway… I was with my first mom on Kauai Island until the aliens took her away when I was eight. Then I lived by myself for a couple of years. I ran with some street-rat kids in Hanapepe until I was ten, then I met my second mom.”

A misty, nostalgic look came over Jericho’s features. She was clearly looking back at a fond memory.

“Her name was Mira Mihaka.” Jericho said, “She found me in an alley one night and told me how I could get out of Hawaii, go somewhere else and find a better life… but then, she disappeared.”

Jericho sighed and gave a quiet little laugh.

“Mira disappearing... Yeah, that was something I’d have to get used to. Anyway, I followed her advice. Stowed away on a boat and ended up in Pyongyang. And you know what? She was waiting for me there! Right on the docks, like she knew what boat I was on the whole time! Mira said she knew I was alone, and if I ever needed a place to stay I could go to her place.”

“I see where this is going.” Jane mused. “How many times did you visit before you moved in?”

“Just the once.” Jericho admitted. “Mira and I lived in and around Korea for, oh, about three years. We had to keep moving because ADVENT was on our trail. We spent time in Korea, China, and Eastern Russia. We used to have a hideout in Pyongyang, but I live out of a safehouse in Mongolia nowadays.”

Jane raised her hand and asked:

“So where’s Mira now? Mongolia?”

Jericho’s face fell.

“Well, no. That’s just it.” She said. “Mira’s missing, and I mean really missing. See, she’d go away a lot. I got used to her telling me that she was gonna leave for two or three weeks at a time. She had her own business and she didn’t want me to know about it. Besides, I could take care of myself. Mira would go away for a couple of weeks, but she’d always come back. But then, about five years ago, she got really sick, and we both thought it was something serious. I tried everything to make her better, but after letting her rest for days, and letting her eat my share of the food, she wasn’t getting better. So, we went to the Mega-City of Beijing to visit a Gene Therapy Clinic. Mira went in there… and she never came out.”

Jericho shook as she held back tears.

“I waited there outside the clinic for three days.” She half-sobbed. “People kept asking me what I was doing there, and I said I was waiting for my mom. They’d go inside and ask if Mira Mihaka was inside, and nobody had an answer. The Gene Clinic staff said they’d never heard of her! They asked if I wanted to go inside… but I got scared and ran away!”

Uncomfortable looks circled the table. Some of us had been fighting the ADVENT Coalition since the day it was founded. We had long since lost track of how many innocent people had stepped into one of those Gene Therapy Clinics, only to vanish forever without a trace. Jericho sniffed for a moment, and I instinctively raised one arm to draw Jericho into a hug. To my surprise, she started leaning into my side almost immediately, even though she couldn’t see what I was doing because her bangs had fallen in front of her eyes.

“We’ve been investigating those Gene Clinics for years.” Bradford told Jericho. “We honestly don’t know where those people have gone.”

Jericho looked up at Bradford.

“I know where they went.”

The whole room fell silent. Jericho pulled herself out of my arm and took a deep breath.

“That’s one half of the reason I came to find you.” She said. “I’ve been working on my own for the past five years, trying to figure out what happened to everybody who goes into those clinics. I followed the trains that leave from the back of the buildings. I mapped out the railroad networks… and I found the place.”

Jericho nodded at Commander Harper. The Commander picked up her remote control and once again clicked it at the television. A map of Central Asia popped up on the screen. On top of this image, a maze of black lines crisscrossed the terrain, showing all of the known railroad lines in Central Asia. Like a spider web, all of those black lines seemed to converge on one spot, in the center of the Aralkum Desert.

“Where the hell is that?” I asked. “Kazakhstan?”

“Uzbekistan.” Anna corrected. “Doesn’t really matter, both of those places used to be part of my country anyway.”

While the Squad Leaders looked at the map, the Commander spoke:

“According to Jericho, ADVENT has been diverting considerable resources and personnel to a very specific location in Central Asia over the past ten years. The exact details of the operations are highly classified, but our Cyberwarriors have been spotting the word “AVATAR” in a lot of the enemy communications related to this place. It’s safe to assume we’re dealing with a second secret facility, similar to the one we were planning to raid right here in Japan.”

Pyotr Ilyshin interrupted.

“So that’s why you came to us?” he said. “You needed help getting into this facility?”

“Yeah, that’s half of it.” Jericho answered. “I can’t get into the Aralkum facility alone. I need your help to get in there and find Mira. I’m certain she’s in there!”

“And per our agreement, we will help you.” The Commander said. “Now please tell us about the ‘other half” of your reason for joining us.”

Jericho cautiously looked around at the group, looking each person in the eye before speaking. When she got to me, I registered a surprising amount of fear and apprehension in Jericho’s face. Did she think we weren’t going to believe her?

“About two months ago…” Jericho cautiously began, “An armada of over seventy-thousand alien warships entered our solar system. The Elder’s Temple Ship is taking a fleet to intercept them and put up a fight. We’ve got about a month and a half until the new aliens get here.”

For a few moments, the whole room was quiet. We all stared at each other in complete shock. I felt that same awkward feeling in my gut I’d had on the day my little sister found out Santa Claus wasn’t real. Then, finally, Pyotr voiced what everybody was thinking:

“You really expect us to believe that!? Just like that… because you said it?”

One by one, everyone except Commander Harper voiced their unwillingness to believe Jericho’s newest claim.

“I’m with Ilyshin on this one.” Bradford said, folding his arms. “Just because you were right about ADVENT attacking before doesn’t mean we’ll believe every word that comes out of your mouth.”

“You’re pushing your luck, kid.” Jane remarked. “I can believe a lot of things, but not that.”

“Aliens, Zombies, magic powers, we’ve seen a lot of stuff, kid.” Chief Shen chimed in, “But I don’t think anybody here’s going to believe you without some kind of proof.”

Jericho hung her head, mumbling to the table:

“I know that… okay? You don’t have to rub it in.”

Oh, God. She was crying.

Anna shot a mean look at me from across the table. Jericho was seated between me and Doctor Tygan, and XCOM’s Chief Scientist wasn’t the type of person to hug a crying girl. Anna, no doubt remembering how I’d cared for Chihiro at Hiroshima, silently demanded I console Jericho. I had other ideas. There was one more question I was dying to ask.

“Hey, Jericho. Before the fight started, you told my team that you saw the future. Is this alien fleet thing… like that… at all?”

Jericho sniffed and then looked up at us.

“I didn’t see the future.” She corrected me. “I knew it. I know that there’s a huge fleet coming our way, and I know that fleet is on our side!”

For a whole minute, everybody just stared at Jericho, slack jawed. Then, one by one, we all turned our eyes towards Commander Harper. To my absolute terror, I realized that Harper had never joined in the wave of disbelief that had met Jericho’s claim. She was watching the rest of us with a look of rapidly depleting patience.

“I’m glad we got around to this topic, even if it took a minute. This, in my opinion, is more important than any upcoming raids or missions. This needs to be addressed.”

Bradford looked from Jericho to the Commander and back again.

“Explain yourself!”

I wasn’t sure if Bradford was talking to Jericho or Commander Harper. At any rate, it was the Commander who answered:

“When he searched her, Doctor Tygan found out that Jericho was carrying a portable hard drive, which she’s permitted me to look at. I spent all night and much of this morning reviewing the contents of that system and discussing them with Jericho here.”

Commander Harper stood up and pulled a small thumb drive from her pocket. It had a funny-looking adapter on the end that made it compatible with XCOM’s computer systems.

“I have reason to believe that alien fleet she’s talking about is very real. The Avenger’s sensors are picking up unusual activity in the vicinity of Neptune.”

Oh… oh man… I started to feel like my head was spinning. This was too much to accept, but Commander Harper wasn’t done!

“Furthermore, it seems that Jericho and her mother appear to have had advance warning of hundreds of future events. This drive contains a database called the ‘index of historical events’ which including several that have already happened to us. The database is written almost entirely in a history book format, referring to ourselves and our work in the past tense. This index also contains detailed information of the life stories of several thousand people, including about two dozen individuals aboard this ship right now.”

Everyone began to look at one another nervously. But Commander Harper had one last shoe to drop.

“The most curious detail about Jericho’s index, though, is that the record simply stops on a certain date, about a year and a half from now. Jericho has told me that her mother didn’t have any data from beyond that day.”

Jane Kelly put both hands on the table and pursed her lips.

“Commander, you gotta see that this is a lot for us to just take. You’re getting' really close to sayin’ we need to start believing in time travel! Jericho and her mom have a thing that tells them about the future, fine. But how’d they get it!? How was it even made?”

Jericho took a deep breath and answered:

“Before she met me, Mira worked for a time-traveler.”

Pyotr put his head in his hands.

“First Aliens… then the aliens turn our people into zombies… then aliens with magic powers come down and say they’re our new gods… and now time travel!?” he groaned. “How do I get off this crazy ride!?”

Anna bounced up and down in her seat and clapped her hands excitedly.

“Ohh! Please tell me her time machine is a converted sports car! No… Wait! A phone booth!” Anna giggled.

“After twenty years of living under the auspices of the Elders, I’m hardly surprised.” Doctor Tygan commented. “In fact, I should have anticipated this. Nothing is beyond the realm of possibility when dealing with the aliens, time travel included.”

Tygan’s statement shut down any further attempts at voicing disbelief. Commander Harper carried on.

“While the two of us were reviewing the Index,” the Commander said, “Jericho and I developed… conflicting interpretations… of the data. Jericho believes that every future event referenced in the database is going to happen, and that there is nothing we can do about it. I, however, don’t buy that. All of you who served with me in Japan know that I don’t put much stock in stuff like fate or destiny. Until I see proof showing I can’t, I’m going to try and stop some of these future events from happening, while encouraging a select few to go ahead. This future database represents the greatest intelligence coup XCOM has ever had. If we use it properly, we can put an end to the ADVENT Coalition before July!”

“December.” Jericho said in a low voice.

Commander Harper scowled at Jericho.

“And that…” she added, “Is the last part of the deal I made with Jericho this morning. We’ll find Mira, and bring her under our protection. In return, Jericho joins an XCOM squad, acknowledges our authority over her and she won’t go about spreading this “predestination” nonsense! Am I clear?”

Jericho looked back down at the table and mumbled,

“Yes, Ma’am.”

“You’re not going to run around the ship telling people what’s ‘supposed’ to happen to them in the future, correct?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“You’re going to obey all orders from XCOM officers?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“You’re not going to run off and do your own thing anymore?”

“I won’t, ma’am.”

“Good.”

Commander Harper glared at Jericho for a few extra seconds, then went on.

“I’ve decided that for security reasons, Jericho’s database of future events will be classified at the highest secrecy level. Commander’s eyes only from now on. For some of you, not knowing your possible future might end up being the best thing that’s ever happened to you. Trust me.”

Why the hell was Harper looking at me when she said that!?

Finally, the Commander addressed the whole table with a grim tone.

“We need to act on all of this Intel quickly, before ADVENT realizes we’ve got their number and changes their strategy. Starting tomorrow, we’re going to be running three simultaneous missions. Two in Japan and one in Uzbekistan. Squad Leaders, get out something to write with and something to write on…”

…

About two hours later, the meeting adjourned. I had taken nearly seven pages of notes and was ready to brief the rest of the Stormbreakers on what we’d be doing tomorrow. While Bradford, Tygan, Shen, and the Commander grouped up to discuss logistics, all of XCOM’s Squad Leaders huddled up for a pre-mission pep talk.

“We are XCOM! We don’t give up the fight!” Jane Kelly told us. “When we get out in the field, what do we do?”

“Survive! Adapt! Win!” Anna, Pyotr, Cory, and I said together.

“Now get out there and kick some alien ass!” Jane dismissed the group.

I would have followed them out the door, but a voice called out:

“Cadet Robinson, wait a minute!”

Commander Harper called me back. She told Bradford, Tygan, and Shen that they could continue to use the Conference Room, and that she was going to talk to me alone in her office. At her request, I followed Commander Harper into an adjacent room.

Commander Harper’s office was a small, subdued place. Aside from the desk and chairs, the only other piece of furniture was a trophy case that contained several relics from XCOM’s past: a model of the previous Skyranger, a 2015-era XCOM shotgun, a 1962-era Laser Pistol, the skull of a Sectoid, and a framed photograph of Moria Vahlen and Raymond Shen, XCOM’s previous head scientist and chief engineer respectively. Another door in the back of the room led to the Commander’s quarters.

Commander Harper sat down behind her desk and pushed aside a computer monitor to get a better look at me.

“Cadet Robinson: that was one hell of a defensive action you pulled in Pyongyang.” She said. “You also recovered Sophia Kuznetsova, who probably would have been left behind otherwise. I’ve also heard that you helped Chaplain Petoskey overpower the Chosen Assassin as well. Was yesterday your first time as a fireteam leader?”

Snapping to attention, I answered:

“No ma’am. I’ve been filling that role on and off since Hiroshima.”

“Cadet, that was twenty-three years ago.”

“Yes, ma’am. But if I might remind you, from my point of view it was just three years.”

“Mine too, Cadet. In fact, I daresay spending two decades in a Stasis pod doesn’t seem to have diminished your ability to lead troops on a battlefield.”

I wasn’t expecting the compliment, so I just muttered a quick word of thanks. Commander Harper nodded and went on:

“Listen, Cadet. With Colonel Smith and Captain Green both in enemy custody, the only remaining combat-ready officer in Stormbreaker Squad is Mister Yutaka Yamamoto. I know there’s a great deal of bad blood between him and several other members of the squad, yourself included. Letting him become the new Squad Leader would do a serious number to your unit’s cohesion. Therefore, I’ve decided for formalize your place as the new leader of the Stormbreakers.”

I let out a relieved sigh.

“Thank you, ma’am.” I said. “I wasn’t looking forward to adding the word ‘acting’ to every piece of Squad Leader paperwork that came my way.”

“That’s not what I meant.” Commander Harper said with a smile. “In my capacity as a General in the United States Army, I’m giving you a Battlefield Commission. Blake Alexander Robinson: Effective immediately, you are promoted to the rank of Second Lieutenant and granted all of the rights and duties that come with it.”

She picked up a uniform patch from the desk and passed it to me. I took the rank insignia with my left hand and saluted with my right. I was so excited that my hands trembled! In the back of my mind, I could have sworn I heard Chihiro squealing with delight!

“T-Thank you ma’am!” I stammered.

Commander Harper shook my hand and added:

“One more thing, Robinson. Since you’re the new Squad Leader, that means you’ll be getting this.”

Harper produced two items from her pocket. The first was a simple-looking key. The other was the kind of remote control kids in the Old World used to launch model rockets. The little brown rectangle had only one button that was hidden behind a plastic panel. When Commander Harper inserted the key into the remote, the panel snapped backwards, revealing a dark red button.

“Jericho and I agreed that she would join your squad.” The Commander said. “Which means you’re going to need this. Did you see Jericho getting her Arc Brace?”

“Arc Brace?” I repeated as I took the remote.

“It’s a little device Shen cooked up.” Harper explained. “And I mean her father, the older Shen. He made it as part of the original Jericho Project. You see, Robinson: there was always a fear that any Hybrid soldier created through the Project might be difficult to control. You’ve seen what Jericho’s alien DNA allows her to do, you’ve seen how dangerous she could potentially be to us.”

I rubbed my chest anxiously. That jolt of electricity Jericho had stunned me with in the other room was still making me twitch a little.

“Remember.” Harper said. “That girl is only half-human. We saw her Ethereal side in that fight yesterday, and I, for one, am quite anxious to see her Muton traits show themselves in a fight. Doctor Vahlen knew that there was a very real risk that we might lose control of a Jericho soldier and devised a system called the Arc Brace to deal with that. The device tied to Jericho’s ankle is the Arc Brace. Imagine a shock collar dialed up to eleven. If Jericho is getting rowdy, disobedient, or she just goes out of control, press that button and she’ll be hit with fifty-thousand volts of electric current for three seconds. I guarantee it’ll put her down for the count.”

My eyes went wide and my hands started to sweat.

“Oh…” I looked down at the remote in my hand with a whole new understanding. Taking great care to separate the remote from its key, I put one in my left pocket and the other in my right. “I’ll definitely keep that in mind, ma’am.”

Commander Harper clasped her hands together as though she were concluding some kind of business deal.

“Good. You head down to the cafeteria and get some breakfast. Then put your squad together for tomorrow’s mission. I want you in the Skyranger and on your way to the target first thing tomorrow morning!”

…

By the time I got down to the ship’s cafeteria, breakfast was almost over. The whole place was very subdued and quiet. Most soldiers were still getting over the shock of yesterday’s fight. I grabbed a tray from the buffet line and didn’t really pay attention to what food was being loaded onto it. I peered all around the room until I saw a group of Japanese soldiers clustered together around one table. Nine people were chattering away in Japanese, but I could recognize one slightly high-pitched voice in the crowd.

“Chihiro!” I said. “Is that you?”

Two men stepped aside so I could see what was going on. Chihiro was sitting on the other side of the table, and just like her comrades, she was pouring over a map of Japan, drawing circles and lines with a pencil. She looked up at me, smiled, and said in English:

“Heya, Blake! We’re just talking about the local Resistance movement here. You know my country’s got something of a history dealing with invaders, right?”

“They say the Russians are still licking their wounds, twenty years later.” I joked. “Can I join?”

Chihiro cleared a space and let me sit down right next to her. She also gave me a knowing glance that told me she already knew about my meeting with Commander Harper.

For about an hour, I joined in her strategy discussion with the other Japanese troops. In general, the country was in a curious position: After the alien invasion, the ADVENT Coalition had meticulously de-constructed every city on the Japanese archipelago, then built half-a-dozen Megacities overtop of the sites where Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, Sapporo, Kobe, and Kyoto had once stood. Then the aliens had gone out of their way to force as many people to immigrate to these cities as possible. Akaya Ogawa, a veteran of both the Soviet invasion and the alien one, told me:

“Because our country is so mountainous, nearly all of our people live in the cities, even before the aliens invaded. Almost three-quarters of Japanese land is sparsely populated and undeveloped. There are so many places to hide a Resistance network, you could secretly build an army in Japan and no one would ever notice!”

“But the terrain layout can work against that idea.” I said. “With all of those mountains around, how would you keep that force supplied and fed?”

“You know, Robinson, when the Russians invaded, I lived in the countryside for two years, and I lived on a diet of grasshoppers and acorns!”

Akaya gave me a very serious look when she said that. Chihiro immediately blurted out:

“No wonder your breath smells so bad!”

Everyone laughed. Akaya folded her arms and rolled her eyes at me. I started to join in the joke, but before the first words could leave my mouth, an uncomfortable silence fell over the whole cafeteria. Everybody turned their heads to look at something behind me, so I looked around as well.

Jericho was standing in the doorway, looking awkward. Nearly three dozen pairs of eyes bored into her as she walked briskly towards the chow line and picked up a tray. Whispers began to slowly rise from the tables like steam. Some voices were curious. Others had an air of reverence. A few were disdainful.

Having collected her breakfast of pancakes and bacon, Jericho looked around the room for a table to sit at. Quickly, the room became abuzz with activity as some seats were quickly filled by jackets, weapons, or people. At a few tables, men and women gathered together, creating a vacant spot. Finally, Jericho spotted Chihiro and me. Her face seemed to light up as she came our way. As she moved past one table, an Argentine soldier put his hands together and whispered a prayer. Akaya stiffened next to me.

“She know you?”

“We’re were the ones who brought her in.”

Akaya frowned.

“Huh. She looks a lot like a Human. Wasn’t expecting that.”

Akaya vacated her seat and moved to another part of the cafeteria. Most of the Japanese soldiers did the same. After a moment, it was just myself, Chihiro, Jericho, and Homura Hanako at the table. The Resistance fighter looked at the three of us for a moment, as though she wanted to say something, but then she picked up her tray, dumped the rest of her meal into the trash, and left the room.

“Hey, are you okay?” Chihiro asked Jericho. “You don’t have to eat in here, you know.”

“I’ll be fine.” Jericho murmured. “I knew all this was coming, I just need to get used to it, that’s all.”

There was that look again! Jericho was regarding Chihiro with the same expression she’d shown me in the meeting earlier. So many feelings and emotions crowded into one face that I couldn’t read it.

“Um, hey.” Jericho said. “Chihiro, you were listening to our meeting with the Commander earlier, right? Did you hear the whole thing?”

Chihiro choked and nearly spat out her food.

“Huh!? What!? How!?”

“Can’t hide the gift from me.” Jericho said. “Especially when you’re using it.”

Chihiro pinched the bridge of her nose and snorted with laughter.

“Okay, fine! You caught me. I was totally listening.”

Jericho seemed to be more at-ease now.

“Look, I know the Commander doesn’t want me talking about the future to you guys, but I still wanted to thank you both for something you’re gonna do for me in a few months.”

Chihiro and I raised our eyebrows at one another. Then Jericho pulled us into a three-way hug.

“So yeah. Thanks. For what you’re gonna do.”

At last, as she let go of us, I finally figured out that strange expression on Jericho’s face. She was genuinely grateful for the future favor I was supposed to give her, whatever it was going to be; but for some reason, Jericho was still really sad about it.

“Jericho,” I said. “Are you okay? I’m being serious. ‘Cause I’m pretty sure you didn’t know that was coming.”

I pointed to her ankle bracelet. Jericho sighed.

“Believe it or not, I really knew that was gonna happen. Trust me, Blake. I’ll be okay. I’ve got bigger problems than having a Taser strapped to my leg for the rest of my life. Besides…”

She tailed off and looked away. Following her gaze, I saw that Jericho was surveying the room. About a dozen soldiers were still gawking at her. Some of them looked away when Jericho, Chihiro, and I saw them. People whispered to one another behind their hands, snatching furtive glances at the three of us.

“Mira told me that everyone at XCOM and the Resistance were going to treat me differently ‘cause I’m only half-human. Because I was built in a lab, with alien DNA; and because I’ve got the same Gift as an Elder. That makes me nothing like you or your friends.”

Jericho balled up her fists and shook a little.

“People think I’m some kind of science project or an alien. Sometimes both. You haven’t been out there, in the frontier settlements. You haven’t seen the way people out there react when they see me use my powers or my strength. That moment when they realize the famous Resistance fighter they’ve been cheering on isn’t a real Human. Nobody out there likes me because they think I’m some kind of hero, it’s always because I’m the biggest monster in the room and I’m killing bad guys instead of innocent people. Then I come back to XCOM, and it’s like I’m a lost trinket someone found on the ground. Put a tag on me so I don’t get lost again!”

Jericho choked up and put her head in her hands. Tears ran down her wrists.

“And if I’m right about the future, then I’m supposed to save these people. Save everyone on Earth, even though so many people don’t think I’m one of them, and they’d rather see me in a cage, or a lab, or a weapon locker.”

Chihiro and I both put a hand on Jericho’s shoulder. We wanted to say or do something to make her feel better, but couldn’t think of anything.

“That’s why I need to find Mira.” Jericho finished, looking up at us and wiping her nose. “I wanna be wrong. I just want her to look at that thing she got from her time-traveler buddy and say ‘Oh no, that’s not right at all. Here’s how the future’s really gonna happen. This is your real destiny!’ I need to know if this is really how it’s all going to end… If this is really what I’ve got to look forward to from now on.”

Chihiro pulled Jericho into another hug, squeezing her tightly.

“We’ll find Mira. Promise.”

“Yeah.” I reassured her. “You already got us the location of the Blacksite. Now the only hard part left is getting in.”

<== Previous Chapter (Psionic Storm)

Next Chapter (Three Teams, Three Missions) ==>​

 

[HistoryDude]

So, Blake doesn’t approve of the taser knockoff?

Also, Jericho doesn’t really want to believe in predestination… but she does because of the evidence? I wonder what will happen if Mira tells her the truth?

What will be Blake’s reaction to learning that Paradox is his daughter?

Well, that battle was rather disastrous.

Also, my notifications missed two chapters. Come on!

 

[Macavity116]

So, Blake doesn’t approve of the taser knockoff?

Blake's really uncomfortable with the idea, yes.​

Also, Jericho doesn’t really want to believe in predestination… but she does because of the evidence? I wonder what will happen if Mira tells her the truth?

Jericho's beliefs are heavily informed by what her "mother" left behind after disappearing. Hopefully, once Mira is rescued, she can shed some light on the Index of Future Events; because Jericho clearly knows how, when, and why she's going to die. That kind of knowledge is obviously messing with her head. She needs help.​

What will be Blake’s reaction to learning that Paradox is his daughter?

The polar opposite of Chihiro's reaction.

*Author's note: Because I'm planning for Akira "Paradox" Robinson to be discovered and unmasked much earlier in this story than in Faith in Chaos, I've made her disguise a lot easier to see through. In chapters 4, 7, 8, and 9, Akira will be called out by multiple characters before being unmasked in Chapter 10. (Hint: her disguise doesn't work on the Chosen)

Well, that battle was rather disastrous.

I was going for the same feel as those desperate defense/retreat actions in Empire Strikes Back and The Last Jedi.

Also, my notifications missed two chapters. Come on!

I'm having the same problems here! I missed notifications for a couple other AARs. It's mildly frustrating. Thankfully for you, I'm trying my hardest to stick to my schedule. New chapters every Friday.

 

[Macavity116]

<== Previous Chapter (Explain Yourself)

Next Chapter (Aralkum) ==>​

Chapter Seven
Three Teams, Three Missions

The Avenger's Infirmary as it appeared in 2035. Curiously, there is no record of the ship having an infirmary during her first year of operation.

Wednesday, May 3, 2035 – 9:30am
Honshu Island, Japanese Archipelago

As soon as we finished breakfast, Chihiro and I left the cafeteria and headed for the Infirmary. Ignatius, Odette, Yutaka, Isis, and Hal were the only Stormbreakers left, and of those five, three were injured.

Hal, Odette, and Isis had all been shot during the fighting, and were now recovering from surgery. When I got to the Infirmary, I breathed a sigh of relief. Ignatius and Yutaka were already here, chatting with their comrades. Isis, Odette, and Hal were all laying in medical beds with IV lines running into their arms. Odette couldn’t talk, owing to a thick feeding tube running into her mouth.

“Hey, Robinson!” Isis waved meekly from her bed. “Did you see Jericho? Is she alright?”

“She’s getting her troops together.” I answered. “Guys, listen up. We’ve got a lot to talk about and not much time to do it.”

Ignatius must have sensed my apprehension. He straightened up and gave me a serious look. Chihiro had been using her Psi Link to stay up-to-date on what had happened to me. Both Gifted soldiers gave me reassuring smiles that made me feel a little more confident. I launched into explanations: First, I told everyone that our teammates were still alive and that a rescue operation was in development. Then I repeated Jericho’s explanation of her life story. Isis hung on my every word while Ignatius looked increasingly uncomfortable. Finally, I shared Jericho’s revelation about an alien fleet doing battle with ADVENT halfway across the solar system.

Hal punched the air and said “Hell yes!”

Ignatius furrowed his brow in deep thought and didn’t say anything.

Chihiro and Isis both let out little squeals of joy at the good news.

Yutaka and Odette smiled and gave one another a high-five.

“So there’s other aliens out there who want to help us?” Hal said. “That’s great! It’s going to be just like Hiroshima all over again. We just need to run out the clock!”

“This is nothing like Hiroshima.” Yutaka said, rolling his eyes. “We don’t know anything about these alien interlopers. For all we know, they might want to do something worse to us than what ADVENT’s already doing.”

I cut in.

“And after tomorrow’s operations, we might actually find out what ADVENT’s doing to those folks in the Gene Clinics. We can only hope.”

Ignatius raised his eyebrow and asked:

“Robinson, did you say ‘Operations?’ Have new missions come down from the Commander?”

I nodded. In my mind, I quickly struggled with myself over which bit of news to share first. I was mostly worried about how Yutaka and Isis would react to what came next, but I also needed to tell them about Jericho’s knowledge of the future. I decided to start with the easy topic.

“Yeah, let me explain. The Commander told us that Jericho is going to stay with XCOM and join our squad, but we help her with a personal request beforehand.” I said. “She’s authorized a mission to that end.”

As I thought, Yutaka and Ignatius reacted in ways that I won’t consider “positive.”

Yutaka shook his head and clicked his tongue in a disappointed way.

“Unfortunate.” He said. “You’d have thought Vahlen would have programmed that girl to be more responsive and respectful to XCOM leadership. It’s not her place to make demands of her creators.”

“That’s only half the problem,” Ignatius added. “We haven’t even verified that it’s safe to let Jericho walk around the Avenger alone. She’s a hybrid just like those Jabbers we fought yesterday. I don’t trust her.”

Isis cringed at their words and snapped:

“That’s my daughter you’re talking about!”

Isis’ GREMLIN Drone buzzed over Yutaka’s head and beeped in an unfriendly way. Yutaka made a swatting motion with his hand, forcing Piper to retreat to a safe distance.

“You should not be blamed for the way she turned out, Dekker.” Yutaka said. “Without a male authority figure in her life, Jericho simply never learned to do as her superiors say.”

“Speaking of superiors!” I rose my voice to get the conversation back on track. “The Commander made a decision about how this squad is going to be run until we rescue Colonel Smith.”

Everyone stopped arguing and gave me their attention. I spotted the old hungry look in Yutaka’s eyes I’d seen a few times during World War Three. Behind him, Chihiro clasped her hands together and held them to her mouth, all the while bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet excitedly. She’d read my mind and already knew what I was going to say.

“Commander Harper has decided that since Captain Yamamoto has prior experience with XCOM’s heavy weapon systems, he’ll be taking Holly’s place as our Heavy Weapons Specialist.”

Yutaka was not happy with this. He clenched his fists and said:

“What!? You can’t be serious! I’m the only officer left in the squad! I should be-”

I cut him off, talking over Yutaka’s voice until he finally shut up.

“Also, Commander Harper has decided that I’m going to be the new Squad Leader until we get Colonel Smith back. To make that easier on everyone, the Commander gave me this.”

I slipped on hand into my pocket and produced my new rank insignia, holding it out for everyone to see. The symbol on the uniform patch was a gold bar, the mark of a Second Lieutenant in the US Army. Odette flashed me a double thumbs-up and Hal clapped his hands slowly. Ignatius nodded approvingly and said:

“That was long overdue, Robinson. Congratulations.”

“Lieutenant Robinson has a very nice ring to it.” Hal said. “I’d get up and give you a salute, but Doctor Tygan’s got enough pins and rods in my legs to make a statue out of me.”

Chihiro pushed past Yutaka and half-hugged, half-tackled me. She squeezed me so tightly I thought my head was going to pop off my shoulders!

“Okay!” I said. “Okay Chi! You can let go now!”

While I pried Chihiro off me, Isis asked:

“So what about this mission we’re doing for Jericho? Where is it? What’s the target?”

“Yeah,” Hal said. “And when is ‘wheels up?’ Tygan says the three of us need at least a week to heal before we’re combat-ready again.”

As my own smile fell, I saw the faces of my comrades get stern as well. We all knew each other pretty well by this point. They put two and two together on their own.

“Oh, lot sooner than that, huh?” Hal answered his own question.

“Yeah.” I said. “There’s going to be three missions tomorrow, and Menace Squad is leaving for theirs in a few hours; they’re heading into Tokyo to find a scientist who can help Jericho pinpoint the location of that new alien fleet. Delta Squad is going to hit that ADVENT facility a few miles from here, and our team’s been tapped to help Jericho raid an ADVENT Blacksite in Uzbekistan. The Skyranger’s leaving first thing in the morning.”

Yutaka looked around at the group, then he said what was on everybody’s minds.

“Robinson, you did tell the Commander that we’re understrength, right?”

“I did.” I said. “So did Kelly and Tucker. Both of their squads took bad hits yesterday as well. The good news is that Jericho brought a bunch of Asian Resistance fighters with her from Pyongyang yesterday. The Commander is distributing them to any squad that needs a hole plugged.”

I pulled out a slip of paper from my hand. It had the names of Resistance fighters who had been transferred to our squad.

“We’re getting three of them.” I said. “Sergeant Lee Chong-Il, a male North Korean, age thirty-eight. Private Song Soo, female North Korean, age twenty. And we also got Private Sophia Kuznetsova, but she was supposed to be joining us anyway. Their callsigns are Enforcer, Shakes, and Antigone respectively.”

“I guess they’ll be replacing Fournier, Macintosh, and I on the mission.” Isis sighed. “I take it everyone who can stand is on deck for this one?”

“No.” I said. This was the bad news I’d been hesitant to deliver. Chihiro’s face fell when she telepathically probed around in my head and saw what it was going to be.

“Petoskey, you’re going to stay here and meet with a Resistance Faction leader.” I said. “The Commander asked for you specifically. And Chihiro, you’re not coming to Uzbekistan with us. Delta Squad needs a Japanese interpreter who knows Tokyo very well.”

Chihiro nodded. She’d spent half of her life in that city and did indeed know it like the back of her own hand.

“Right. I’ll do my best, but you’d better keep in touch, Blake! You know how I feel about getting separated!”

I put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

“That’s not going to happen again. Please believe me.”

Chihiro squeezed my hand and answered:

“Of course, I believe you.”

Well, that’s one big thing out of the way. Now I just had to drop the other shoe.

“Guys, there’s one more thing I need to let you all know about. Jericho told us how she knew ADVENT was coming for us back in Korea.”

As quickly as I could, I retold Jericho’s explanation of her mother’s contact with a time traveler, and how both she and the Commander now had access to a database full of information about the future. Everyone reacted differently.

Yutaka suddenly became tense.

“No wonder the girl thinks she can tell us what to do. She thinks she’s got us at the end of a string!”

Ignatius looked completely unconvinced.

“I’m going to have words with the Commander later. She can’t really believe this nonsense, can she?”

Chihiro already knew about this. She tapped her head and gave me knowing smile.

Isis looked confused.

“So, she knew I was alive the whole time then?”

Hal got excited.

“This means we can kick ADVENT’s tail anytime, anyplace!” he declared.

Odette didn’t say anything, but she looked very thoughtful.

“For obvious reasons,” I told the team, “Harper has deemed all knowledge about the future to be highly classified. Commander’s eyes only. Jericho herself has been forbidden from telling anyone about the future as well.”

Ignatius leaned in close and stared into my eyes. I knew what he was doing and broke eye contact right away, staring at the wall over his shoulder. The telepathic intrusion only lasted a moment before I threw him out of my mind. Ignatius rubbed his temple pensively.

“No need to get cagy, Robinson.” The old man grumbled. “I just wanted to know if Jericho tried to tell you about your own future. She’s clearly feeling a temptation to do that.”

“Look guys,” I said. “If we spent all day speculating about what Jericho knows, we’ll never get anything done. We’ve got a mission ahead of us now, so let’s get to work! Yamamoto, to the armory! Tachibana, Skyranger! Menace Squad’s leaving in two hours. Petoskey, report to the bridge! We’ll all meet back here when this is all over. And you three… get some rest.”

Isis, Hal, and Odette all gave us encouraging waves as we left the Infirmary. Isis called after us:

“Tell Jericho to come visit me!”

…

Yutaka and I got to the armory before our new FNG’s. While we picked out new armor and selected weapons from the locker, I tested my Psi Link to Chihiro.

Chi? Can you hear me?

Sure can, Blake! Something you wanted to say?

I’m really curious to see if this Psi Link works when we’re on opposite sides of the planet.

You wanna fantasize about me without me barging into your head.

Guilty.

I knew it!

Chihiro and I shared a little laugh together. Yutaka looked around at me and then rolled his eyes when he realized I was having a telepathic conversation. After a moment, Chihiro’s voice suddenly returned to my head, this time with a little urgency.

Hey, I just passed Jericho and her troops. Who’s the creepy girl? Blue eyes, black hair, kinda skinny?

That’s Homura Hanako. She’s taking Delta Squad to that ADVENT site in the forest.

Oookaaayy… did you know she’s Gifted? I could feel it from, like, a hundred feet away! She’s really powerful!

No, I didn’t. Sounds like Delta Squad’s going to have an easy mission if she’s with them.

Sure, but why didn’t Hanako use her powers to help us in Pyongyang!?

Before I could answer, the far doorway opened, and three people entered. I recognized Jericho and two of the Resistance fighters she’d brought with her from Pyongyang. They approached and shook hands with myself and Yutaka.

The older of the two fighters was a North Korean man in his late forties. He had a chiseled face, reddish-brown hair and was kinda short.

“Lee Chong-Il, Korean People’s Air Force.” He introduced himself. “Of course, Mister Robinson here already knows me.”

“I remember you, Lee.” I greeted him with a smile and a firm handshake. “Long time, but it’s a small world, huh?”

“Getting smaller every day.” Chong-Il commented. “I don’t think you’ve met my old friend, Soo?”

A twenty-year old North Korean woman with messy brown hair and round glasses side-stepped into view.

“Annyeonghaseyo!” she said. “Eotteohge jinaess-eoyo? I’m Song Soo! Nice to meet you!”

Over Soo’s shoulder, I noticed that Jericho was watching her with an upset expression.

She’s really worried about Song. Chihiro’s voice spoke up in the back of my mind. Maybe she knows Song’s gonna die or something.

You can sense that through the Psi Link? I thought.

No. It’s pretty much written on her face. When I get back, I’m gonna teach you how to read a woman’s expressions.

Soo looked around.

“So, is it just going to be the five of us?” she asked. “I thought there was going to be a sixth.”

“There is.” Jericho answered. “We’re taking that supply runner Kuznetsova with us. She’s down the east trail, burying her sister.”

“Right.” I said. “You guys stay here and get your equipment straightened out. Yamamoto, make sure they’re gearing up for a facility raid. I want double explosives on everyone. I’m going to get Kuznetsova.”

…

I went down the Avenger’s boarding ramp and stepped into the Japanese wilderness to find Sophia. When I got to the ground, I took in a lungful of fresh spring air and relaxed instinctively. This was my first time back on Honshu Island since 2012. I was actually looking forward to exploring a little. As I walked down the forest trail, heading east towards the Kanna River, I couldn’t help but remember the way the deep thudding sound of Soviet helicopters had echoed off these mountains, now the only noise came from the wind rustling tree leaves or the roar of a nearby waterfall. Once I rounded a corner in the path, the trees opened up on the riverbank where Sophia had gone.

The Kanna River is a curious thing. It starts somewhere high up in the mountains, working its way between the rocks. For dozens of miles, the river is shallow and narrow, but when you’re about three miles away from the spot where the city of Onishi used to be, the river suddenly opens up into a huge lake, nearly two miles long, but only a few hundred feet wide. On the far end of this lake is the Shimokubo Waterfall. It’s not a natural phenomenon. The waterfall used to be a hydroelectric dam, but Soviet sappers blew it up during World War Three.

A Post-World War Three photograph of Shimokubo Dam, taken in the summer of 2013 during the reconstruction of Japan. Unfortunately, by the time the Japanese government had acquired the resources to rebuild the dam, the 2015 Alien Invasion had already begun. The dam remained in ruins throughout the entire Second Hyperspace War and remains so to this day.

The chaotic cascade of water racing over the wrecked dam caused a gentle mist to hang in the air. A little further up the riverbank, I could just barely make out the sound of wood being pounded with a hammer. Following the noise, I walked along the tree line until I found Sophia.

Sophia Kuznetsova looked exhausted. She was sitting on the grass, a hammer on her right, and a shovel on her left. In front of her, a section of overturned soil marked the final resting place of her twin sister. The head of the grave was marked with a wooden cross, freshly pounded into the earth. A small square was affixed to the front of the cross and engraved with the words:

Ludmilla Ivanovna Kuznetsova
Born - 29 February 2004
Died - 2 May 2035
Best Sister. Better Friend.​

Sophia looked up at me as I approached and rapidly re-adjusted her head wrap, making sure I couldn’t see her face. I turned my head and looked away until I heard the grass crunching under boots. Sophia had picked up her tools and moved to join me.

“I, uh, heard you were the one who brought Ludmilla back to the ship.” Sophia didn’t make eye contact with me as she spoke. “So, thanks.”

I pulled Sophia into a one-armed hug. She didn’t protest, just sighed quietly.

“I’m not gonna cry.” Sophia said. “I did that earlier.”

We stared at Ludmilla’s grave for a minute or two, not saying anything. Then Sophia stepped away from me and said:

“So, what do you want?”

“I’m taking the Stormbreakers on a mission tomorrow.” I said. “You need to come with us.”

Sophia blinked. With her face hidden beneath that wrap, all I could see was her eyes, which made figuring out her expressions really difficult.

“Why’d you want me?” Sophia asked. “Ludmilla was the better fighter.”

“We’re going to Uzbekistan. The Aralkum Desert.” I answered.

I knew those words would trigger a response in Sophia. During the mission planning meeting with the Commander, I had been warned about this. Sophia stepped away from me and looked at the grave marker in a forlorn way.

“We used to live there.” Sophia said quietly. “Ludmilla and I had a house out there… which means…”

Sophia looked back at me, her eyes wide.

“You’re going to Kantubek, aren’t you!?”

…

Sometime around sunset, the Skyranger took off from the Avenger’s flight deck. Telepathically, Chihiro sent me a goodbye message. It wasn’t a message composed of words, but rather a mental image of herself, accompanied by an unspoken promise that we’d see each other again. Meanwhile, I gathered my new squad in the Guerilla Tactics School.

The Guerilla Tactics School took the place of conventional combat training for all members of XCOM during the latter half of the Second Hyperspace War. In this picture from April 2035, four Stormbreakers are visible. Left to right: Holly Smith, Hal Macintosh, Chihiro Tachibana, and Isis Dekker.

The GTS is a room deep within the Avenger where XCOM soldiers train in the art of Guerilla Warfare. It’s got training dummies for practicing hand-to-hand combat, strength training and cardio exercise equipment, and a briefing area where soldiers can discuss tactics and strategy. It was this latter area where the six of us had set up shop tonight. With Sophia’s help, I had drawn our next area of operations on the marker board. Yutaka, Chong-Il, Soo, and Sophia all listened with rapt attention while Jericho watched over the proceedings with a knowing look. I wanted to ask Jericho how much of this mission she already knew about, but I was saving that for later.

“Soldiers, this is our next objective.” I began. “The ADVENT Coalition has constructed a research facility tied to the AVATAR Project overtop the ruins of another military research facility. Central believes it to be a high-level Blacksite.”

I tapped a point on the map.

“We’ve seen before that the enemy likes to put their Blacksites in remote, obscure locations, so no one here should be surprised that the aliens took over this place. This was Rebirth Island. During the Cold War, this whole area was part of the Aral Sea, it used to be one of the largest lakes on Earth. Rebirth was a tiny island in that sea. The Soviet Union had a small military base on the island, but other than that no one lived here. About forty years ago, the Aral Sea dried up and turned into a desert, causing the Russians to abandon their base. Both the base and the nearby town were abandoned and left to rot. Then ADVENT showed up.”

Sophia got up and pointed to another spot on the map, north of the enemy base.

“This is the town of Kantubek.” Sophia explained. “Or I guess I should call it a ghost town, since my sister and I were the only ones who lived there…”

Sophia trailed off as though lost in thought. After a moment, she continued.

“Ludmilla and I knew the aliens had a secret facility nearby, and we’d make a living by breaking in and stealing stuff from it. Food, power cores, anything really.”

I took over from her.

“Jericho back there has been investigating ADVENT Blacksites such as this one on her own for a few years now. She believes her mother, one Mira Mihaka, is being held inside this particular Blacksite. Because of Jericho’s… unique history… with the XCOM Project, the Commander has determined that making contact with Jericho’s mother will be our highest priority. Our mission objectives are as follows: Find Mira Mihaka and extract her from that facility. Our secondary objective, if the situation permits, is to use X-4 plastic explosives to destroy the entire Blacksite. Questions so far?”

Lee Chong-Il raised his hand.

“You said that place used to be an island, right?” He asked. “And that the lake dried up. That means that the enemy now has a fortified position on the high ground and they’ll be able to see us coming. How are we going to get in?”

“You’re right, Lee.” I said. “We’re going to be fighting an uphill battle. I’ve already picked out several locations for the Skyranger to drop us off, but I was hoping Jericho and Sophia could find the best possible LZ, since both of them have been there.”

Jericho shook her head.

“I’ve never gotten closer than about twenty miles.” She admitted. “And my database on the future doesn’t have any information on this mission. I’m guessing Mom never knew about it.”

Sophia stared hard at the map for a moment before saying:

“You’ve got no choice, you have to land on the plateau. See here, the sides of the hill are really steep. That’s where the drop-off used to be when the sea still existed. If you land on the seafloor, it’ll take hours to walk up the slope to town. The Skyranger needs to put us down here.”

Sophia pointed to a spot on the western side of the “island.” She went on:

“This is where the shoreline used to be. During this time of year, there are a lot of dust storms caused by wind blowing over the dried-up seabed. If we land upwind of the Blacksite, ADVENT will look right at us and think we’re just another dust storm.”

“Very good.” I said. “I’ll pass the word to Carter when she gets back. Meantime, assignments! For this mission, we’re going to break into two fireteams. Lee, Yamamoto, and Song: You three will be our battering ram. Yamamoto will carry the heavy weapons and explosives. Song, you’ll be his ammo bearer. Lee, you’ll be providing Overwatch. Jericho and Kuznetsova, you’ll be with-“

“Wait a moment, Robinson!” Yutaka interrupted. “I want Jericho with me.”

Everybody turned to look at Yutaka.

“You said it yourself.” He said. “We’re the battering ram. You’ve seen what that girl can do in a fight. I want her up front with me.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jericho trying to surreptitiously snatch glances at Yutaka. I shook my head.

“No dice, Yamamoto.” I said. “We need Jericho for the other half of the mission. Once we’re inside, she needs to identify Mira for us.”

Sophia asked:

“So, what are the three of us doing?”

“The actual rescue.” I explained. “Once we get inside the Blacksite, finding Mira’s going to be troublesome, since we don’t have any intel on what the interior is like. While we’re searching for Mira, the other team is going to disable the anti-aircraft defenses so that the Skyranger can pluck us off the roof.”

Sophia folded her arms.

“Okay. That sounds pretty straightforward.”

I looked around at the group.

“Any last questions?”

Chong-Il, Soo, Sophia, and Yutaka all turned to look at Jericho. She gave each of them a reassuring smile.

“Thank you for helping me get my mom back.” She said. “It means a lot, and afterward, I’ll help you overthrow ADVENT as best I can.”

I clapped my hands together.

“Right! Everyone make sure to turn in early tonight. Get plenty of sleep, and I want you all to assemble in the Armory tomorrow at zero-four-hundred. Wheels up at zero-four-thirty.”

Everybody left the Guerilla Tactics School and parted ways. Chong-Il headed downstairs to the rifle range for some last-minute practice. Song went straight back to the living quarters. Sophia said she wanted to be alone and vanished down a dark hallway. Yutaka wrapped one arm around Jericho and said:

“Lemme show you the ship’s bar! A cold drink before a fight helps keep the nerves loose and the body relaxed.”

When Jericho dug in her heels and refused to move, Yutaka added:

“Come on, Squaddie! Don’t make your Captain pull rank!”

With a lot of reluctance, Jericho allowed Yutaka to pull her down the hallway and out of sight.

No amount of drinking was going to help me. I just couldn’t relax tonight. I stayed in the GTS and closed the door. I spent the rest of the evening going over the plans for tomorrow’s raid again and again and again. I made contingencies in case the backup plans failed, then I made plans for how to act if those contingencies didn’t work. I paced back and forth throughout the room for hours, thinking and overthinking and under-thinking until the lights dimmed.

“Twenty-two hundred hours!” said a voice over the intercom. “Set the night watch and turn the lights out!”

Reluctantly, I went up to the living quarters and clambered into my bunk bed. Eventually, I got a little bit of rest. I wouldn’t call it sleep, but I did rest.

<== Previous Chapter (Explain Yourself)

Next Chapter (Aralkum) ==>​

 

[HistoryDude]

So, not everybody views Jericho as human, right?

That’s… kind of disturbing...

I wonder how Mira will tell XCom the truth about the future/past dynamic.

Also, if time was originally linear, how in the universe did Paradox change time’s shape??

 

[Macavity116]

So, not everybody views Jericho as human, right?
That’s… kind of disturbing...

Yes. Very disturbing. As you'll see in future chapters, some members of XCOM (Including one of the Stormbreakers) view Jericho as more of a weapon/tool to be used. For people like Yutaka, she is a means to an end. Nothing more.

I wonder how Mira will tell XCom the truth about the future/past dynamic.

That, detective, is the right question.

Also, if time was originally linear, how in the universe did Paradox change time’s shape??

By creating the Time Core and then using it repeatedly. (Faith in Chaos - Interlude #2) The Time Core allows Akira's spaceplane, the Ark Angel, to force time to curve, bending the End of Time back onto the Beginning. She's causing irreparable damage to the Universe by punching an Ark Angel-shaped hole in the fabric of space and time. If the Time Core were to be severely damaged or outright destroyed, the flow of time would go back to being linear.

Also, don't forget this moment from Faith in Chaos - Interlude #4:

“You wanna see something else she’s lied to everyone about?”

Hakara gestured for Mira to approach the Time Core. He tapped his fingers on a touchscreen and brought up a diagnostic screen. It contained records of what exactly the Time Core did during its previous usages.

“When you met Akira, did she feed you some story about an XCOM scientist telling her about time being circular?”

“Yeah.”

“It’s not. She lied.” Hakara said simply. “Time is naturally linear. It only goes forward. Period. These loops… these Cycles… they don’t happen naturally. They’ve never been observed in the wild, and Arioch and I can’t create them under scientific conditions. This device works by forcing Time to curve backwards onto itself. Do you understand, Mira? Without Akira, without this... this thing, there would be no Cycles. It’s not just Akira’s powers that violate nature. Her ship does it too. Akira’s the one who decides when the Cycle begin and end… because she is the only one who can cause them.”

If she hadn’t been before, Mira was now seriously reconsidering her choice to join Akira’s crew.

I got the idea from an old episode of Star Trek, where someone discovered that all Starfleet warp drives were causing permanent damage to spacetime.

 

[Macavity116]

<== Previous Chapter (Three Teams, Three Missions)

Next Chapter (There's a Future in the Past) ==>​

Chapter Eight
Aralkum

Stormbreaker Squad assembles in the Skyranger bay before the mission to rescue Mira Mihaka. Left to right: Sophia Kuznetsova, Song Soo, Blake Robinson, Jericho, Lee Chong-Il, Yutaka Yamamoto.

Friday, May 4, 2035 – 4:30am
Honshu Island, Japanese Archipelago

Yutaka, Chong-Il, Song, Sophia and I all arrived in the Avenger’s hangar bay together, fully outfitted in our body armor and armed to the teeth with the weapons and equipment we’d need for this operation. Outside on the deck, the Skyranger was still refueling. It had only just returned from Tokyo, where Delta Squad (plus Chihiro) had been inserted on a VIP Recovery mission. The five of us were getting impatient.

Chong-Il checked his watch one more time.

“Where is she? You did tell her the reporting time, right Robinson?”

“I did.” I said. “Song? Kuznetsova? Did you see Jericho in the female barracks?”

Song and Sophia both shook their heads.

“She got in really late last night.” Song said. “Then she woke up around three in the morning and left. No idea where she went.”

A loud clattering on the nearby staircase caused all of us to turn our heads. Jericho emerged from the stairwell, looking completely disheveled. Her armor was hastily assembled and a hand grenade had slipped halfway out of its pouch. Jericho’s wavy hair was tangled and knotted up, and her blue hair dye had begun to fade; black roots were starting to show on the top of her head. Tucked under her arm was that beat-up old alien rifle I’d seen Jericho using in Pyongyang.

“Sorry!” Jericho puffed. “Sorry I’m late! I was having Chief Shen make some more ammunition for my Bolt Caster.”

Jericho set her weapon on the floor and dipped her hands into the pockets of her combat pants, producing about two dozen long, thin projectiles that were clearly meant to be fired out of Jericho’s bizarre-looking weapon. Song passed Jericho a bandolier. While Jericho quickly made herself battle-ready, I stepped over to the doorway that led outside, where the Skyranger was parked on the flight deck.

“Hey Firebrand!” I yelled. “We’re green over here! Ready to fly when you are!”

An American woman with pale skin and curly red hair stuck her head out of the back of the Skyranger’s deployment ramp. The Skyranger pilot had to yell to make her voice heard above the sound of the aircraft’s engines.

“Get everyone aboard!” Wendy Carter shouted. “We’ll be done fueling in a minute!”

The rest of the squad made their way through the door and began boarding the Skyranger. As Jericho walked past me, I caught a familiar smell that made me do a double-take. One by one, we all strapped ourselves into the flight seats. Yutaka, Song, and Sophia were seated on one side of the aircraft while I sat between Jericho and Chong-Il. As she settled into the seat on my left, I caught that smell coming from Jericho again. I had no choice. Once we were in the air, I just had to ask.

“Soldiers, welcome aboard today’s flight to the Aralkum Desert, on the Uzbekistan-Kazakhstan border.” Wendy said over the intercom. “Today’s flight will take approximately eight hours, at a distance of roughly five-thousand-eight-hundred-and-sixty kilometers.” The local time in Aralkum is one in the morning, and it’ll be roughly nine o’clock there when we land. I’m gonna turn the lights out once we reach cruising speed so that you can get a little extra sleep back there. Sit tight and enjoy the flight.”

With a loud roar of engines and a metallic groan, the Skyranger lifted off from the Avenger and ascended into the night sky.

…

Before too long, the Skyranger was over the Sea of Japan, streaking west towards mainland Asia. To reach the Aralkum Desert, we would have to fly over the entirety of mainland China and nearly all of Kazahkstan. It would be a long flight. Song, Chong-Il, Sophia and Yutaka all fell asleep right away, heads resting on neighboring shoulders. Jericho was the only one besides me who was still awake. She was holding her head in both hands and had a pained expression on her face.

Leaning a little closer to her, I picked up that familiar smell a third time. Now was the moment to ask.

“Um, Jericho?” I spoke cautiously. “Is everything okay? You were late this morning and you-”

“Smell like beer?” Jericho finished my sentence for me. “Yeah, I’m sorry about that. Yamamoto and I spent a lot longer in the bar than I was planning on.”

At the mention of Yutaka’s name, I tensed up. Jericho noticed.

“Blake, I.. I.. uh…”

She was clearly having trouble picking her words. Jericho made a frustrated noise and rubbed her head again.

“Sorry.” She said again. “I’m still a little hungover.”

That sense of tension in my gut was reforming into anger.

“Yamamoto got you drunk!?” Two decades’ worth of dislike for the man made my voice sound pretty hostile.

Jericho waved a hand dismissively.

“It’s not that bad.” Jericho rambled. “We hung out, we talked, we drank… and I’m a lightweight anyway. I’m, like, a hundred-thirty pounds or something like that. I just lost track of time and he was really interested in me, so we just kept talking and drinking and… yeah, this morning I was late ‘cause that beer did a number on me. Had to go to the bathroom and throw up... a lot.”

Jericho trailed off, holding her head. After a moment’s hesitation, I patted her on the back.

“That’s the beer Soylent Green makes.” I explained. “That stuff is weapons-grade. Colonel Smith always said she wanted to use his homebrew alcohol to power our Poison Gas grenades.”

“Yeah, do that.” Jericho groaned. “ADVENT might just surrender.”

I put on a serious tone and gently grabbed Jericho’s shoulder so that she would look at me.

“Listen,” I said. “You don’t know Yutaka as well as I do, Jericho. He’s got… a history.”

I snatched a quick glance across the darkened crew compartment, making sure that Yutaka was still asleep. He was.

“I’m ordering you, Jericho” I went on. “Never go anywhere or do anything alone with that guy. If he wants to take you somewhere, make up any reason or excuse to take a third person with you or else just get away from him. Understand?”

Jericho’s purple eyes seemed to wobble as she tried to focus on me.

“You don't have to worry about me.” She said, "Don’t forget…”

Jericho tapped her head.

"I already know how this is going to end.”

She jabbed her thumb at Yutaka. Jericho smiled at me, but her expression faltered when she saw I wasn’t smiling back.

“Commander Harper disagrees with you.” I said. “And no disrespect intended, but so do I.”

Jericho sighed.

“When we get my mom out of that Blacksite, she’ll show you the future. She’ll help you understand. She’ll help us both.”

“You got one thing right: We’re gonna bust Mira out of that Blacksite. Then blow the whole place to hell for good measure.”

…

This is the second time a secret military research facility has been built here. However, this is the first time that facility was raided by a hostle force.

Friday, May 4, 2035 – 9:45am
Aralkum Desert, Northwestern Uzbekistan


Fifty years ago, the region known as Aralkum was a totally different place. Where once there had been cool refreshing water and the chatter of waterfowl, there was now only dust and silence. Tufts of brown grass sprouted in clumps on the ground, which was stained white by a layer of salt. The windswept desert was dotted here and there with shipwrecks. Fishing boats, ferries, and other small pleasure craft were lying abandoned on what had once been the seafloor. Buoys rolled around the desert, pushed by the loud wind.

This had once been the Aral Sea.

In the days of the Soviet Union, this had been one of the largest lakes in the world. It had straddled the border between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. The fishing village of Aral lay on the northern edge of the lake, deep in Kazakh territory. A few hundred miles to the east was the Baikonur Cosmodrome, where Yuri Gagarin had launched on his historic spaceflight. To the far west, a massive hill suddenly rose out of the desert. Fifty years ago, this had been a small island. When the Aral Sea began to dry up, it became a large island. About a decade later, the water level dropped again, causing this island to become a peninsula jutting out into the middle of the sea. The water level continued to drop until finally, the Aral Sea was gone, leaving the former island as a steep hill in the middle of a dusty, salty, and windy desert.

An abandoned fishing boat in the Aralkum Desert, circa 2015. The drying and desertification of the Aral Sea is one of the quintissential environmental disasters of the 20th Century. The ADVENT Coalition frequently points to the destruction of the Aral Sea as evidence of Humankind's inability to care for itself, justifying the Elder's decision to come down from the heavens and begin their Uplift of Humanity.

The wind blew mercilessly across the landscape, buffeting clumps of brown grass that sprouted up between the rocks. Noxious clouds of dust, opaque and foreboding, swirled and billowed about the large hill that had once been Rebirth Island. The ruins of a small town were the only landmark of any note on the former island. Almost nothing remained of Kantubek. From high above, as the Skyranger swooped over the island, we could see gridlines in the dirt, marking the spot where roads had once been.

Firebrand brought the Skyranger down for a pinpoint landing on what, fifty years ago, might have been a beach on the western shoreline. Now it was just a sloping hillside overlooking a vast expanse of brown and white terrain. As we disembarked from the Skyranger, Sophia knelt down and pulled up some brown grass, crushing it in her hand and taking in the smell.

“Can’t believe I lived here for years, with that horrid place just a mile down the road.” She muttered. “Follow me. The Blacksite is this way.”

It was a brisk walk from our landing zone to our destination. Fortunately, everyone had gotten plenty of rest on the ride over, and the walk gave us a chance to stretch our legs after being cooped up for eight hours on the Skyranger. Song Soo and Lee Chong-Il seemed to wilt in the desert heat. I suppose people who spend their whole lives in Korea aren’t ready for this kind of climate. The heat wasn’t bothering me, instead, I was having trouble with the dust. With each breath I took, I fought the instinct to reach for my gas mask. Something about the air just smelled wrong. Yutaka seemed to be thinking the same thing. I saw his hand twitch a couple of times whenever it passed near the pouch containing his own gas mask.

Sophia and Jericho seemed to be having the easiest time. They were at the head of the group, keeping a brisk pace. Sophia seemed to know the ground very well. She was talking long, confident strides despite being weighed down by the seemingly endless amount of supplies and ammunition crammed into her pockets. Jericho wasn’t carrying anything except for her Bolt Caster and had a look of determination on her face.

“Hold on, Mira.” Jericho said to herself. “We’re almost there.”

Along the way to the ADVENT Blacksite, we passed within a few hundred yards of the town of Kantubek… what was left of it, anyway.

The village of Kantubek, population: zero. The locals abandoned the town once the waters of the Aral Sea began to retreat in earnest. Fifty years ago, this was a small community on a small island. Now it's a ghost town in the middle of a vast desert.

Every building was either partially or totally collapsed. Roofs had caved in, windows were broken, and the buildings themselves had been sandblasted by the dusty wind. All of the roads had been reduced to narrow pathways, owing to the encroachment of desert shrubs and grass.

It was the silence, though, that was most overpowering. Even though the six of us were alone in this town, Sophia, Jericho, Yutaka, Chong-Il, Soo, and I all maintained the quiet, speaking only in whispers if we wanted to talk.

“There’s something I don’t get.” I said to Jericho. “You said your mom took this database full of stuff about the future from a time traveler, but you didn’t say how your mom knew that time traveler in the first place.”

“They were working together.” Jericho whispered back. “But then they had a falling out, and my mom left. At least, that's what she told me, anyway.”

“What did they fight about?” Yutaka was listening.

Jericho cast a quick look back at him before answering.

“Mom says they were fighting about me, but I always got the feeling she wasn’t telling the whole truth. She didn’t tell me a lot of things. That why finding her is so important. I need answers as badly as you do.”

“Well,” I said. “Looks like those answers are right in front of us.”

Lee Chong-Il overlooks the ADVENT Blacksite from an elevated position. Throughout the entire Second Hyperspace War, the ADVENT Coalition denied the existence of this facility and continued to maintain those denials after the Triple Alliance Intervention. To this day, there is still debate and disagreement among the people of Earth over whether or not this facility actually existed.

We had arrived.

The ADVENT Blacksite, as it turned out, was a complex of four or five fortified buildings, a landing pad for dropships, and, perhaps most surprising of all… a train station. Observing the Blacksite from our vantage point, we were all very surprised.

“I mean… I shouldn’t be surprised.” Yutaka said, staring at the trainyard through his binoculars. “That’s probably how they’re keeping the base supplied.”

“It’s how my sister and I kept ourselves supplied.” Sophia said gloomily. “We’d figured out how to sneak into the trainyard whenever the security had a shift change. They never caught us and we could steal whatever we wanted, or just mess with the trains.”

Pause.

Everyone slowly turned to look at Sophia. Soo’s eyebrows had been raised so high they were threatening to retreat into her hairline.

“Mess with the trains?” Soo repeated, “When were you planning to tell us that!?”

“We really needed to know that sooner, Antigone!” I said, addressing Sophia by her callsign. “But now that we do know… let’s put that knowledge to use.”

…

A long time ago, a wise Human once said that the “supreme art of war” is to break your enemy’s resistance without actually fighting them. I’m pretty sure that what we were about to do wasn’t what he had in mind. But seriously, if you give six guerilla fighters a set of enemy-controlled train tracks and all the time in the world, then you only have yourself to blame for what happens next.

It took us about an hour to find a stretch of railway that was out of view from the Blacksite. Then we only needed to wait another forty minutes before Sophia spotted a moving train through her binoculars. From our vantage point on the former island, the distant train looked like a black snake slowly moving across the lakebed below.

“That’s the train from Muynak.” Sophia told us. “Comes once a day. If ADVENT’s still using the same schedule, then that train will be here in about an hour.”

“That train just became our ticket into the Blacksite.” I said. I already had an idea.

Because Jericho was with us, sabotaging the tracks was even easier. Using a small shovel, Chong-Il dug a cavity underneath one of the railroad ties. Soo took two hand grenades out of her pouch and stuffed them into the hole, which Chong-Il filled in. After that, we retreated to a safe distance. Hiding behind the ruins of an old house, Jericho introduced us to a new Psionic technique I hadn’t seen before.

“I learned it from some Mongolian Templars.” Jericho told us. “The technique is called Fuse, all I do is add a little Psi energy to cause a spark and start a reaction…”

A barely visible wisp of violet Psi-energy escaped Jericho’s hand and jumped towards the railroad tracks like a silent bolt of lightning! Then, both of the grenades detonated! Dirt and rocks were thrown up into the air and came back down like a black hailstorm!

Soo scrambled up the hillside and quickly scanned the Blacksite through her rifle scope.

“Nobody noticed.” She reported. “We’re clear!”

All six of us got to our feet and started making tracks. We moved into the ruins of Kantubek and climbed into the second floor of what had once been a government building. After an hour of silent waiting, Sophia was the first of us to hear the deep rumble of an approaching train.

“Here it comes.” Sophia whispered. “This train is usually about fifty to sixty cars long, so this is gonna be long and loud!”

The ADVENT train reached the damaged railroad tie… and jumped the tracks.

It was the most insane derailment I’d ever seen! The locomotive jackknifed violently to one side while the following car swerved in the opposite direction! Then, one by one, all of the following cars began to smash into the wreck, piling on top of each other until there was no more room! Train cars shot left and right into the desert, rolling over and over until they came apart at the seams! Shrapnel and debris shot out in all directions as the following cars hit the wreck site at full speed and disintegrated in a symphony of destruction! The crash kept going for nearly a full minute, but we didn’t wait that long.

“That definitely got their attention!” Yutaka said. “Let’s move!”

Yutaka was right. A whole platoon of ADVENT soldiers had departed the Blacksite compound and were making their way towards the train wreck. Chong-Il scanned the facility through the scope of his sniper rifle.

“Looks like our plan paid off. The facility might as well be unprotected. I only count nine guards. Six ADVENT and three Vipers.”

“Vipers.” I groaned. “Why did it have to be Vipers?”

A member of the Viper species doing combat patrol during the late Second Hyperspace War. What the Vipers called themselves was never discovered. Their entire race was enslaved by the Ethereals before the Galactic Council became aware of their existance, a pattern that seems to have repeated itself for every one of the Ethereal's thralls. Because XCOM's Central Officer Bradford killed the last Viper male in early 2035, historians consider the Vipers to be the last spacefaring species to become "Functionally Extinct" before the War in Heaven.

The Vipers were one of the many alien races who had taken part in the conquest of our world twenty years ago. They are huge, snake-like reptilian creatures, coming in at nearly nine feet tall and about two hundred-fifty pounds. Vipers are fast, agile, and highly dangerous. The only advantage we’ve got over them is their predictability. Earlier in the war, Central Officer Bradford found and killed the last male Viper on Earth. As a result, the ADVENT Coalition had resorted to cloning and genetic manipulation to keep the Vipers’ numbers up.

Once you realize you’re fighting a clone army, things get so much easier.

We crept closer to the compound. The enemy still didn’t know where we were, so maintaining our concealment until the last possible second was crucial. We made it to the low wall that ran around the Blacksite and kept our heads down as one of the Vipers slithered past. Next to me, Soo shuddered.

“It’s like a freakin’ Anaconda with arms and a gun.” She muttered.

Once the snake had passed, I whispered to my team.

“Let’s set up an ambush. I want three kill-zones of overlapping Overwatch.”

We split up into groups of two. Jericho and I went one way, Yutaka and Sophia another. Chong-Il and Song stayed together.

At long last, we were in position. I was tucked into a corner between two rail cars in the trainyard. Jericho had scrambled up an empty watchtower and was overlooking the compound. Song and Lee had reached the front door of the administration building and were in position to breach it. Yutaka was covering the building across the walkway with his grenade launcher. Sophia was crouched behind the thick base of a light pole, her rifle at the ready. Everybody knew we would have to make this a lightning strike. Take out the enemy as quickly as possible, rescue Mira, and get out.

On my signal, we went loud! Everybody moved at one!

Jericho raised her Bolt Caster and sniped one of the Vipers from clear across the compound! The alien was thrown backwards almost twenty feet and slammed into a wall, dead!

Song smashed out a window and shot down the security guard on the other side before he could take two steps! Then she adjusted her aim and shot the second guard as he reached for his rifle.

Another trooper started running across the compound towards us, weapon raised, but Sophia picked him off with her rifle, then she turned and fired a hailstorm of bullets into the second Viper! It went down, hard, and didn’t move again!

Blake Robinson engages a Viper. Armed with a shotgun and a sword, a well-equipped and well-trained XCOM Ranger can fend off a whole squad of Vipers with little trouble.

Two ADVENT soldiers and the last Viper tried to run past my hiding place, but I was ready! I raised my shotgun and blew one of the troopers clear across the walkway! Without pausing, I drew my sword and slashed the Viper’s head as it raced by! The alien crumpled, having never known what had hit her.

The third trooper tried to change targets, but Chong-Il was ready for him. The loud crack of his sniper rifle echoed off the buildings and sent the trooper spiraling to the ground!

The last guard turned tail and tried to run inside the Blacksite’s main building, but Yutaka was quicker on the draw. He raised his light machine gun and fired about four dozen rounds towards the fleeing trooper. Who needs accuracy when you have ammo to spare?

The ambush was over as quickly as it had started. All nine of the Blacksite’s defenders had been killed in a matter of seconds. The initiative was ours, but the enemy knew the Blacksite was under attack now. Alarms and claxons blared everywhere! Red lights began flashing in all of the buildings, and an alien voice began speaking over the intercom.

“I’m guessing that’s not a welcome message!” I yelled. “Let’s find Jericho’s mother and get the hell out of here!”

“I’m breaching!” Soo shouted. “Cover me!”

Soo and Chong-Il forced their way into the Administration building. Yutaka and Sophia took Jericho’s place in the watch tower and provided Overwatch while Jericho and I followed the other two inside.

I was disturbed by just how closely the interior of the Admin building looked like the lobby of a Gene Therapy Clinic. Under different circumstances, I would have ordered my troops to search the place for valuable Intel and taken as many pictures as I could. But we were on the clock. This Blacksite was too important for ADVENT to give up without a fight. That platoon was going to come back, not to mention the fact that the many non-combatant workers in the compound had almost certainly called for help by now.

Jericho and I knocked down the doorway of a promising-looking office and found a man dressed up like some kind of scientist. Off the top of my head, I think he was either a Turkmen or a Uyghur. He threw his hands up and surrendered at once.

“Wait!” he yelled, “I’m no soldier! I’m not armed!”

Jericho aimed her Bolt Caster directly into his face and said:

“I want the names of every Gene Therapy patient who came through here in December of 2030!” She shouted. “NOW!”

The scientist dropped his jaw and gaped at her.

“Yuh…y-you! You’re Jericho!!” he gasped.

“The names!” Jericho shouted. “NOW!”

The terrified scientist pointed to his computer desk. I nodded and said: “Hurry up.”

The man went behind his desk and started reaching for the keyboard.

“I can read your mind!” Jericho snapped. “Hit that panic button and I’ll fucking kill you!”

The man’s eyes went was wide as possible. He withdrew his hand from a blue switch right next to the keyboard and started typing away. A printer on the far wall came to life and several pages slid onto the tray. While I grabbed the papers and jammed them into my cargo pocket, Jericho approached the man and said:

“I’m looking for Mira Mihaka, a patient from the New Beijing clinic. I know she was here, so don’t lie to me!”

The Turkic scientist looked terrified.

“Tens of thousands of people come through here every year!” he pleaded. “There’s no way I could remember a single face amongst a crowd!”

I pointed at the computer screen and then patted the papers in my pocket.

“Can you make sense of this data? Could you find Mira’s information with this?”

“Of course!” The scientist answered at once. “Keeping track of people’s genetic information is of the utmost importance. If your ‘Mira’ person was here, then her genetic data is both on file and in the Centrifuge.”

“Centrifuge?” I repeated.

The scientist went to his office window and pointed towards the Blacksite’s main building.

“Inside there.” He said. “There’s a canister that contains genetic material for use in the-”

The window shattered violently and a loud CRACK caused me to jump backwards! Jericho dove for cover and screamed!

“SNIPER!”

The scientist collapsed to the floor in a pool of blood! I didn’t have to wonder about who had done it, though. A moment later, a new voice snaked into my mind, slithering through the air just like one of those damn Vipers.

“Just wait a moment, you two. I can’t just let you find out the truth like that! It’ll take all the fun out of the game, and I don’t like a spoilsport.”

Jericho reached out to pull the dead scientist away from the window, but I grabbed her by the shoulder and yanked her back just as another Gauss Round sailed through it and smashed into the wall!

“It’s one of the Chosen!” I yelled. “Get away from the windows!”

More gunfire came from outside. I could hear Sophia and Yutaka yelling to one another as the fight outside restarted in earnest. Keeping a tight hold on Jericho, I almost threw her out into the hallway and then followed her through the door, slamming it behind me. Chong-Il and Soo were further down the hallway, aiming their rifles out a window and firing on someone down below.

“ADVENT’s onto us!” Chong-Il yelled. “I don’t know how long we can keep this up!”

“We’ve got to get into the main research facility!” I shouted over the gunfire. “That large building at the end of the block!”

The four of us burst out of the doorway into a whole new firefight. The group of Peacekeepers sent to investigate that explosion on the railroad tracks had returned. Until now, Sophia and Yutaka had been holding them off alone, but now the six of us fought together! Taking cover behind shipping crates, idle vehicles, and any other form of cover, we started fighting our way towards the main research facility.

Song Soo provides covering fire for Sophia Kuznetsova. An XCOM Gremlin drone hovering above the scene. The winch and pulley system on Soo's back is part of a wrist-mounted grappling hook launcher.

Jericho alternated back and forth between fighting with her Bolt Caster and with her Psionic powers. She would snipe a Peacekeeper, drive another insane, and then shoot down his comrades as they raced to help him.

Yutaka seemed to relish being in a target-rich environment. He propped himself up against the side of a cargo truck and fired wildly into the enemy squad until the barrel of his machine gun began to overheat and melt. While Soo detached the barrel and replaced it with a fresh one from her backpack, Yutaka engaged the enemy solely with his grenade launcher! Each explosion sounded like a lightning strike!

Chong-Il had found a concealed shooting position. Hidden between two bushes next to a building, he was firing his sniper rifle as fast as he could pull the trigger! Enemy Peacekeepers were pinned down behind their cover for fear of being picked off if they showed themselves.

Sophia, on the other hand, was much more careful with her shots. She emerged from cover and opened fire only when she spotted an enemy trying to reposition. Every time Sophia fired her rifle, somebody went down. Racking up hit after hit with impeccable accuracy, Sophia had become something like a traffic cop, shutting the enemy out of whole sections of the battlefield!

And the whole time, I was in motion! Dashing from one piece of cover to the next, I was searching for a way to outflank the enemy. Holding my fire, I shouted out to my squad:

“Freud! Get rid of that officer’s cover!”

Yutaka’s reply came immediately:

“Grenade! DANGER CLOSE!”

I threw myself to the ground and felt the air ripple as a grenade popped off just on the other side of the metal barrier I was hiding behind. As soon as the shockwave passed, I sprang up and aimed my shotgun, firing into a cloud of ash and smoke! A shriek of anguished pain told me I’d hit my target. Ducking down again, I heard Chong-Il shout:

“They’re starting to lose ground! They’re pulling back!”

“Keep pushing!” I yelled back. “Advance! Move forward!”

The six of us had pushed the Peacekeeper squad all the way back to the main entrance of the Blacksite’s research facility. Smoke and flame curled up and away from the battleground, while on the roof of the facility, a tall humanoid alien watched the proceedings, his face hidden behind a dark hood.

Somehow, when he spoke, I could hear the voice of the Gur-Mon Madron as clearly as though he’d been standing right next to me:

“The Elders would really prefer it if you didn't interfere with this facility, Jericho. Not to spoil the surprise, but it's kind of important to this whole scheme of theirs.”

“I already know the surprise, you freak!” Jericho screamed as she aimed her Bolt Caster upwards and fired!

The Chosen Hunter side-stepped to avoid the incoming projectile and sneered down at us.

“No, you don’t. You really don’t know a thing. Maybe you should spend some time with the Hanako girl when we’re done here. And by the way, where'd you dig that thing up? It's older than you are.”

A loud crashing sound diverted my attention. A whole section of the building’s façade came crashing down as something emerged from within. Huge, bulky robots that stood on two legs marched out of the Blacksite to meet us. The guns in their hands were so big that I’m just going to call them cannons from here on out.

“We’ve got MEC’s!” Soo yelled.

“Fall back!” I shouted. “Get out of range!”

Too late! One of the enemy MEC’s had crouched down and fired its shoulder-mounted grenade launcher! I could just barely make out the little black speck in the blue sky as it tumbled through the air towards us!

The ADVENT Coalition is one of many Galactic powers to develop fully robotic warriors such as the MEC pictured above. Because these machines are fully robotic and do not contain any organic materiel, they are highly resistant to the bio-mechanical virus known as "the Beast." The downsides to using MEC Troopers are their high maintenance costs and a general lack of a sense of self-preservation.

Then, with a noise like glass shattering, the grenade exploded in midair! Too high up to harm us, it popped like a firework! Looking down, I saw what was happening. Jericho had dropped her Bolt Caster to the ground and was focusing all of her powers onto the incoming bombardment. All four of the MEC’s tried to lob grenades at us, only for the explosives to detonate prematurely. After a few seconds, Jericho got the advantage! One of the MEC’s was torn to pieces as a grenade exploded inside of the launcher!

“Let’s go!” I yelled to the rest of the team! “Finish ‘em!”

One MEC keeled over immediately as Chong-Il put a sniper round through its head. Soo and Sophia teamed up to take down another one of the MECs while I set to work on the last one, firing my shotgun as quickly as I could pull the trigger!

“Soldier down!” Someone yelled from my right!

I couldn’t deal with that right now, a huge-ass MEC trained its cannon on me and I jumped behind a storage container at just the right time! The metal groaned and clanged as Gauss slugs the size of my head tore through it! I turned the corner quickly and tried to fire at the MEC one more time, but with a heart-stopping click, my shotgun jammed! Swearing with every curse word I knew, I dropped my shotgun and drew my sword, charging headlong at that huge robot!

The MEC took two seconds to change its stance and aim its cannon at me… and two seconds was all I needed!

Pointing my blade forward, I ran straight at the MEC and drove my sword into a gap in its armor plating, in an area analogous to the waist of a person. I could feel dozens of cables and lines being cut by the first hit, but I wasn’t done! I ducked low as the MEC swung at me with one hand! I grabbed its cannon with one hand, holding it in place. With the other, I pulled on the handle of my sword, cutting further into the MEC’s body and severing more cables and hydraulic lines! Finally, the MEC started to make a series of loud grinding noises. The machinery was breaking down! I pulled my sword free, jumped back, and got in a new fighting stance, ready for round two. The MEC, however, was finished. All of its servomotors made one last effort to move the arms and legs before giving out. The robot collapsed to the ground and didn’t move again.

“Did you just bring a sword to a gunfight!?” The Chosen Hunter laughed loudly. “My sister would love you!”

Instinctively, I turned my head to see what direction the voice had come from.

Madron was within arm’s reach of me.

I didn’t think. There wasn’t enough time to do that. I turned my whole body to face the Hunter, gripped my sword in both hands, and lifted it above my head, ready to bring the blade down on his head! Lazily, as though he didn’t care about what was going on at all, the Hunter raised his pistol and fired!

It felt like I’d just been punched in the chest! All of the wind went out of me in an instant! I wasn’t even aware of falling over, I was just suddenly on the ground, and my whole front seemed to be numb. Slowly, a searing pain began to spread out from the center of my chest. Vaguely, somewhere in the corner of my vision, I saw Madron return his pistol to his holster and start to walk away.

With each breath, a shockwave of pain radiated across my torso, but I knew that unless I made some kind of noise, my squad was never going to find me.

“H-he-hel…” I gasped.

The sounds of gunfire and explosions were overwhelming! I took in a deep breath, and the pain in my chest caused me to see stars!

“HELP!” I hollered. “I’M DOWN!!”

A second later, I heard the loud crack of the Hunter’s pistol going off again, quickly followed by the loud rattle of a machine gun. Whoever was trying to help me had gotten held up by the Chosen. Cursing, I reached up to my chest and felt the point where I’d been shot.

My body armor was absolutely pulverized. The ceramic plate had crumbled to dust! When I felt the powder on my fingers, I felt a huge surge of relief! So, I wasn’t dead yet! Fighting the immense pain in my chest, I forced myself to sit up. Sure enough, the whole front side of my body armor began to crumble like broken pottery. A flattened Gauss round slid down the front of my uniform and hit the dirt with a quiet plop!

Well I’ll be damned… actually, no… today, I was the luckiest man in Uzbekistan, and I was gonna put that luck to good use. Resisting the urge to pass out from the pain, I stood up, grabbed my sword and my shotgun, and rejoined the fight.

The Chosen Hunter was nowhere to be seen, but the main battle was still going on. Yutaka, Chong-Il, and Jericho were all still fighting. Sophia was hidden behind a shipping container, where she was tending to Soo with a Medikit.

“You’re going to make it!” Sophia was saying to Soo. “That’s a promise!”

“Trojan! What the hell happened to you!?” Yutaka shouted while gunning down an ADVENT trooper.

I crouched down behind the same shipping crate Yutaka was using for cover and shot an incoming enemy soldier.

“Got on the wrong end of the Hunter!” I answered. “How are we?”

“Jericho got that freak to lay off us for a minute!” Yutaka explained. “And ADVENT is still giving ground. They’ve given up the main entrance to the facility. It really looks like they want to retreat!”

This was our chance. Now or never.

“You and Antigone stay out here and keep ADVENT locked down!” I ordered. “Jericho, Enforcer, and I are going in to rescue the VIP!”

On my signal, Chong-Il and Jericho broke cover and made a mad dash for the now shattered walls of the Blacksite research facility. Behind us, we heard the deep thudda thudda thudda of Yutaka’s machine gun.

“Go straight in!” I yelled to Jericho, who had reached the door first. “Find cover and get down! I’m throwin’ a bang!”

With one hand, I reached into my cargo pocket and withdrew a nonlethal stun grenade. I tossed it over Jericho’s head as she stormed into the building and yelled:

“FLASHBANG!”

Jericho and Chong-Il both threw themselves behind a wrecked computer bank and covered their ears as the flashbang detonated! I skidded into the building and ambushed three ADVENT troopers on the other side of the wall! Jericho blasted one with her Bolt Caster, Chong-Il got another with his pistol, and I cut down the last one with my sword.

Finally, after God-knows how long, we had a moment to breathe. The fight was still progressing outside, but the three of us caught our breaths as we looked around the darkened chamber we now found ourselves in.

Clearly, this place was some kind of laboratory, but the equipment and devices we found inside were of a much more… gruesome nature.

Jericho looked up at the apparatus in the center of the room. Dozens… no… hundreds of stasis tubes were stacked neatly on shelves, each one containing a human body. Men, women, children of all ages and races could be found here. Most horrifying of all, though, was that every single person in these tubes was clearly dead. The bodies were in varying states of decomposition. In a few tubes, only skeletons remained. The shelves were stacked seemingly all the way to the ceiling and went back for nearly a hundred yards.

The Processing Center of the ADVENT Blacksite. XCOM claims that somewhere between 250,000 and 260,000 people were processed in this Blacksite facility over the course of 15 years.

“What in the Dear Leader’s name is ADVENT doing here!?” Chong-Il gasped. “With all of these people?”

“I think we’ve found the missing civilians.” I breathed. “The ones who never came out of the Gene Therapy clinics.”

“Mira’s in there!” Jericho said. “We’ve gotta get her out!”

She started racing across the hall towards the rows of stasis tubes, but stopped short when we heard the loud rumble of machinery and the whole building trembled. Two at a time, each rack of stasis tubes began to sink into the floor!

“No!” Jericho screamed.

Purple light emanated from her body as she used telekinesis to try and stop the retraction of the shelves, but some unseen force conspired against Jericho. Slowly, inexorably, all of the shelves and racks retreated into the floor and were sealed away, while above and behind us, the sound of slow clapping and laughter could be heard.

The Chosen Hunter was watching us from a balcony that overlooked the entire laboratory. He was looking down at us like a child plotting to steal his younger sibling’s favorite toy.

“Now that you've finally seen behind the curtain of ADVENT's facilities, do you feel better in knowing the truth?”

Jericho leveled her Bolt Caster at Madron. He didn’t flinch. Jericho, on the other hand, looked like she was losing her nerve. The Bolt Caster shook in her hands, and when Jericho spoke there was a warble of fear in her voice.

“Where’s Mira!? Where’s my mom!?”

The Hunter looked, if anything, overjoyed. He knew something we didn’t, I could tell. He took a step back from the railing and clicked his tongue at Jericho.

“You must be talking about the one who you escorted to the Gene Therapy clinic in New Beijing. That was… what? Five years ago now? Yes, Mira Mihaka was here. Her genetic profile tripped a number of alarms, threw up some… red flags… you know what I mean?”

Jericho tightened her grip on her weapon.

“What the hell are you talking about!?” she demanded.

Madron laughed.

“You don’t know!!” he howled. “That bitch really didn’t tell you!?”

Jericho shouted over the Hunter’s voice:

“I already know she wasn’t Human! She was Partogan!”

Chong-Il and I both dropped our jaws and stared at one another.

“Jericho,” I gasped. “Mira’s an alien!? What the fuck is going on!?”

Madron laughed again. He was having fun with this.

“You didn’t tell your own teammates? Oh, Jericho, what a naughty girl you are. The Elders will have to make your reeducation very intense.”

The Hunter took a step towards the balcony railing again, but Jericho put her finger inside the trigger well of her Bolt Caster and yelled:

“Why would her being a Partogan raise an alarm?”

The Hunter shook his head.

“That wasn’t what caught the Elder’s attention.” he said. “It was her past… her history. Where she’s been and what she’s done.”

Madron tapped his head with one finger and continued.

“The Elders are knowledgeable beyond your comprehension, Jericho. When they discovered your mother’s history, they took special interest in her. Mira Mihaka has seen and done incredible things. She has been to incomprehensible places. She transcends the goals of the AVATAR Project itself, and was worthy of the Elder’s direct attention.”

The Hunter took one more step towards the edge of the balcony. He smiled an evil, demented smile at us.

“What I’m saying is: thank you for paying me a visit, but your mother is in a different Blacksite, and I’m going to take you there myself!”

And then he drew his pistol.

The whole balcony exploded! Shrapnel and debris flew everywhere as Chong-Il, Jericho, and I all dropped to the floor! The Hunter vanished into the smoke and flames, tumbling to the ground floor alongside the rest of the wreckage! Looking up, I saw what had happened:

Yutaka Yamamoto, Sophia Kuznetsova, and Song Soo had charged into the building! The barrel of Yutaka’s grenade launcher was still smoking! Sophia was already raising her assault rifle towards the spot where the Chosen Hunter had fallen! Soo was firing a pistol with one hand and clutching at a wound in her abdomen with the other; her chest, stomach, and mouth stained with her own blood!

Jericho conjured an inferno of blue-and-purple Soulfire, engulfing the whole area in violet flames while the rest of us poured even more weapons fire to the spot where we’d last seen the Hunter! Just when I was starting to think that nothing could survive this storm of hellfire we were inflicting, the voice of the Chosen Hunter cut through the violent noises like a knife!

“ENOUGH!”

A huge pulse of Psionic energy rippled out of the smoke and flames! All six of us were knocked off our feet! Weapons clattered loudly on the floor and I looked up just in time to see the Hunter emerging from a column of smoke and flame. He looked battered but was clearly still fit for a fight. Panting, he shouted at us:

“You put up a good scrap today, Jericho. I'll give you and your friends that. Next time don't expect to get so lucky! I’ll tell my sister that you send her your regards!”

A rippling, shimmering hole opened up in midair right behind the Hunter! He started stepping backwards towards the Psionic Rift!

“He’s getting away!” I yelled.

Jericho conjured a Psi Lance and hurled it with all her might towards the Hunter. He took one more step backwards and vanished into the Rift. At once, it began to close, and the semi-corporeal lance streaked through the portal just before it shut and vanished.

At long last… there was silence. Complete, total, blissful silence. We were alone.

The Blacksite compound was in flames. Each and every building was wrecked. The vehicles were shot to pieces. The trainyard looked like it would never be used again, and there was so much smoke in the sky, I was hard-pressed to believe it was really mid-afternoon.

I sent Soo and Sophia back to the Skyranger, with instructions for the aircraft to be brought here. Yutaka, Chong-Il, Jericho and I began searching the ruins of the facility for any usable salvage or Intel. Yutaka went from one enemy body to another, picking apart their weapons and stuffing useful components into his pockets. Chong-Il pulled apart several computers and recovered their hard drives. Jericho retrieved the stasis tubes and tried to identify some of the corpses inside.

And me? Well, I found something. On the far end of the building where we had fought the Chosen Hunter, I finally found the Centrifuge that scientist had told us about. Above the contraption was a big canister, filled with a slurry of green-tinged liquid. I remember the scientist saying that this thing contained the genetic information of everyone who had ever passed through here. Maybe Doctor Tygan could glean some new Intel off this thing. Cautiously, I removed the canister and took it with me.

Blake recovers the Blacksite Vial. Afterwards, a number of Resistance spies inside the ADVENT Coalition reported that this action disrupted the AVATAR Project and set progress back by a month.

The Skyranger arrived a few minutes later. After landing in what remained of the trainyard, Wendy took one look around at the destruction and let out a low whistle.

“Six people did this? Holy shit, man. That’s scary.”

“Hold up,” Yutaka said. “I’m not done.”

He shoved his machine gun into Jericho’s hands, causing her to stumble backwards. Yutaka then jogged back to the Blacksite research facility. He reached into his cargo pocket and produced a fistful of X-4 plastic explosives. He stuck the compound onto one of the building’s main supporting columns and activated the countdown timer on the detonator’s keypad. Then he returned to us and said:

“Okay, now we’re done here.”

One by one, we all boarded the Skyranger. Before sitting down in the jumpseats, we all took off our armor and checked each other or injuries. Luckily, only two of us had actually gotten hurt. I had a gigantic bruise on my chest marking the spot where the Chosen Hunter had shattered my armor. I didn’t need any medical attention besides the occasional reminder to “walk it off.” Soo had been shot once in the gut, just below her stomach. We cautiously laid her down on the floor and allowed Yutaka some space to do what he did best.

“Right now, my priority will be seal and secure the wound.” Yutaka told her. “I’m going to pack the site with gauze. This is going to hurt, but it will stop the bleeding and guard against infection until we get to the Avenger’s infirmary.”

Over the noise of Soo’s screams and wails of pain, Sophia clambered up the ramp and banged her fist on the doorway that led to the cockpit.

“We’re all aboard! You can take off!”

The boarding ramp closed, sealing us up inside the Skyranger, and the aircraft lifted off from the Aralkum Desert, leaving the wrecked Blacksite behind.

About a minute after takeoff, the Skyranger was hit by a small shockwave, confirming the total destruction of the Blacksite.

While Yutaka worked on Song, I rounded on Jericho.

“Care to explain why you made us risk our lives for an alien!?”

I was feeling pretty pissed. This whole time I’d been operating on the assumption that Mira Mihaka was a woman…. A Human woman! In the back of my mind, I was hoping Jericho would say that the Hunter was lying. But when her face fell, I felt a sick sense of confirmation.

“You’re not supposed to find out until later… a lot later.” Jericho answered meekly.

“Excuse me?” Chong-Il said. “This is more of that ‘stuff that’s supposed to happen in the future,’ right?”

Jericho nodded.

“None of you were supposed to find out about the Partogans until they actually showed up.” She said. “Remember when I said a huge space fleet is coming towards Earth, and that ADVENT and the Elders are trying to fight them? Well, it’s a Partogan fleet. The people coming to help us are Mira’s people. And she’s the one who called them here.”

Painful silence filled the Skyranger for a few minutes while we took all of that in. This whole time, I’d been thinking that Jericho was trying to find her “second mother” out of some kind of love or affection. Now I thought of another reason Jericho was trying to find Mira.

“So…” I asked. “What’ll happen if that Partogan fleet gets here and Mira doesn’t call them to say hello?”

“I have no idea.” Jericho admitted. “And I don’t want to find out.”

<== Previous Chapter (Three Teams, Three Missions)

Next Chapter (There's a Future in the Past) ==>​

 

[HistoryDude]

That’s going to be a problem.

Why are countries still a thing if ADVENT rules the entire world?

So, XCom is using guerrilla warfare at some times? That’s not a bad strategy, especially with the approaching Partogan/Triple Alliance fleet.

The phrase is bring a knife to a gunfight, I’m pretty sure.

Are the main characters ever going to find out that humans and Partogans are the same species?


How does Blake know the Chosen Hunter’s Name now, because I’m pretty sure he didn’t earlier in the AAR?
Also, that seems to be something ADVENT would keep on the downlow.

 

[Macavity116]

That’s going to be a problem.

Yes... this is going to be a serious problem going forward.

Why are countries still a thing if ADVENT rules the entire world?

Once you get away from the Megacities, ADVENT's control erodes considerably. In rural, sparsely populated regions, some Old World governments and institutions still exist, functioning at reduced capacity. XCOM is actively trying to restore the Old World governments and borders. As you'll see in Acts Two and Three, some of the more powerful governments survived the initial invasion and are secretly operating in-exile (United States, Japan, and Russia for instance)

So, XCom is using guerrilla warfare at some times? That’s not a bad strategy, especially with the approaching Partogan/Triple Alliance fleet.

XCOM2 is a game all about using Guerrilla tactics against the aliens. Including a reference to this type of strategy is pretty much mandatory. You can expect to see another instance of Guerilla fighting in Act Two, as well as a couple of pretty direct references to the (real-world) Tet Offensive and the Fall of Saigon.

Are the main characters ever going to find out that humans and Partogans are the same species?

That moment of fun will play out over Acts Two and Three. ADVENT failed to kill off every Maori on Earth, and XCOM will need somebody to translate Partogan to English. Plus... a certain character from My Sistership will get to use her Unique Power to make First Contact proceed smoothly.

How does Blake know the Chosen Hunter’s Name now, because I’m pretty sure he didn’t earlier in the AAR?
Also, that seems to be something ADVENT would keep on the downlow.

Blake knows the names of the Hunter and Warlock, owing to the fact that other XCOM squads and Resistance cells have crossed paths with those two Chosen.

As you'll see in a later chapter, the Chosen Hunter has been active for ten years and the Warlock for fifteen, affording plenty of time for XCOM to discover their names. Because she is the youngest of the Chosen, the Assassin's name hasn't been discovered yet. She's only been around for five years. Because the main protagonists don't know the Assassin's name, her name is hidden during the Prologue, Chapter 4, and Chapter 5.