Earth Year 2840. On Route to the U.N.S. Aegis.
The Behemoth assault tank heavy treads crushed the glowing alien terrain beneath them.
"I ran your designation through the offline registry, and N032 doesn’t exist,"
Maroon stated coldly.
"High Command does not issue glowing swords, I will ask you one last time before I have you cuffed, who do you answer to?"
Maroon demanded but the armored man did not move.
"I answer to survival and right now, Commander, neither of us has the luxury of an interrogation,"
N032 warned.
"Conserve your breath, because you are going to need it,"
the armored anomaly added as Maroon tightened his jaw hovering his hand near his sidearm while Eva shot him a warning glance to not provoke the man.
"Why does he feel so familiar?"
Zeon whispered to himself as N032 rested his hand on the sword’s tapping his index finger against the crossguard in a rhythm of three taps, a pause, two taps, a pause, and one tap.
Zeon suddenly realizing his own right index finger was tapping his thigh in the same anxiety calming sequence his mother had taught him.
"Who is he, a clone or a brother I didn’t know about?"
Zeon muttered watching his own habits mirrored by a cosmic supersoldier.
"Approaching the crash site, Commander!"
the pilot interrupted over the intercom.
"Putting visual on the main monitor now,"
the pilot added as the tactical table projected a live 3D render of the ruined dreadnought embedded deep into a massive glowing mountain with fires raging across its exposed decks.
"The communications array is damaged, but the auxiliary mast still has power,"
Maroon planned.
"If we reach the bridge, we can punch a distress signal through the subspace interference,"
he concluded.
"Sir, what is that black stuff pulsating on the hull?"
Chang asked looking at thick necrotic veins of dark sludge identical to the eldritch horrors wrapped around the dreadnought’s metal like a parasite.
"It’s just alien fungus, ignore it,"
Maroon dismissed instantly.
"Pilot, bring us up to the main hangar bay doors"
Maroon ordered.
"Commander, wait! When the hull was breached in space, those things didn’t kill the crew but they twisted them into monsters. If that sludge is from the Abyss, then the ship isn’t safe!"
Zeon pleaded.
"Recruit, I do not take tactical advice from a grunt,"
Maroon snapped glaring at him.
"He’s right, The Abyss doesn’t just infect flesh but it also infects data and power grids, You’re about to drive us into a trap,"
N032 warned.
"Pilot, advance to the hangar immediately,"
Maroon ordered ignoring the armored man as the Behemoth rolled beneath the crashed dreadnought just as the tank’s threat detection systems began to scream.
"Commander, we have a target lock!"
the pilot panicked.
"From where, the jungle?!"
Maroon demanded.
"No, Sir, the lock is coming from the Aegis!"
the pilot cried as the dreadnought’s automated orbital plasma turrets, now woven with glowing violet necrotic sludge pointed at the tank.
"The ship’s AI... it’s been weaponized!"
Zeon realized in horror.
"Take evasive maneuvers!"
Eva screamed.
"Brace yourselves!"
N032 roared as barrage of plasma rained down like suns boiling the ground and throwing the Behemoth to the side.
"Armor integrity is down to forty percent!"
the pilot yelled as red emergency lights flickered.
"Pop the top hatch and make a run for the cargo loading ramp, move out marines!"
Maroon shouted but before Zeon could follow, N032 grabbed his shoulder and forced him to look into the opaque visor.
"Stay behind me,"
N032 whispered with a terrifyingly distorted voice.
"The guns are the least of our problems, kid. It’s the crew you need to worry about."
A/N:
Trying to cut alot of parts to make the pacing faster until Chapter 20, so im reducing the word count from 1500 words per Chapter to 600 words as some of my previous readers from my old book didn’t like the slow burner character world building pacing.
Anyways enjoy reading before i cut out alot of things.