XCOM: Ranger

by Wanderer D

Chapter 229: Creep

They made it pretty far into the tundra before the first signs of alien activity were spotted. ADVENT wasn’t as active around here as in the urban areas. They hadn’t encountered any road patrols on their way, not seen any sign of ADVENT transports either. Not surprising, since there were no settlements around for them to keep an eye on, and just like Gilda had said, the area was so inhospitable, it would be a miracle to even encounter wildlife.

But the signs were there now: occasional pylons that expanded the ADVENT Network all the way here with the aid of satellites. With nothing around, what was the point of not having them there?

“We’ll stop over there,” Gilda said, pointing over to a nearby pylon. “The ADVENT structure we’ve seen is just half a mile from here.”

“So, I guess there’s a lot of security there?” Scootaloo asked, trying to peer from the window, but not making anything out other than the colossal transmission pylon and more dirty-white wasteland.

“Not really,” Gilda said. “There are… a few guards, but the place is just creepy.”

“Creepy how?”

“You’ll see.”

They slowed down and parked at the base of the structure. When Scootaloo got out, she could feel the hum of energy coming from it, almost like some sort of heartbeat. The heavily armored vehicle with her friends and Dragon Team in it parked immediately after, and so did the larger truck that had their equipment.

“Howdy, there!” Apple Bloom said, jumping off her ride and getting close to the pylon, running an appreciative metallic hand down the smooth black surface. “Ah haven’t seen one of these heavy-duty ones in years.”

“I only know they are hackable,” Sweetie said, frowning at the thing.

“They’re a lot more than that, Ah’m tellin’ ya,” Apple Bloom said. “Mighty powerful transmitters, and with a huge array of uses.”

“I look forward to talking about that with you, then,” Shen said. She turned to face Ember, who was checking the straps of her armor while her team got their bearings. “Do we go in with you?”
Ember glanced at Scootaloo and the others. “Nah.” She turned to Gilda, “If your info is correct, then it’s only token security here, right? We’ll take them out, then contact you. You can drive them up once the area is secure.”

Gilda frowned. “Yeah, can do. But let’s make this quick, that place gives me the creeps. I’ll send one of my guys to guide you there, just so you don’t get lost.”

“Thanks, please make sure our girls here are kept safe while we’re kicking alien butt, would’ja? If anything happens to them—”

“Ha. You think you’d get chewed out? I don’t even want to begin to tell you what will happen to me if Dash finds out her girls were not in one piece.”

“Fair enough,” Ember said. “Alright boys and girls, come on, ADVENT awaits.”

Ember pulled up the neck of her uniform when the wind blew past, making her shiver. She hated the cold. Given the choice between a Snow-white Christmas and smoldering heat, she’d take the first volcano that came by. Cold was not a good thing, even if Deadwood loved it. Why would anyone want to be in an area where the best you could hope for was in the minus range?
Oh sure, the temperature could technically be say, a toasty 30 degrees. Sure. But whenever the wind blew, it felt like goddamned -5 and anyone that said otherwise was dead inside. And dead to her for that matter.

Still, as much as the weather sucked, it would suck less the quicker they were done here. She crawled all the way to the edge of the canyon overlooking the structure. Gilda had said it gave her the creeps, and she could see why: it was nothing like what humans would build.

A giant platform was at the center of it, with spinning metallic rings, keeping within them a crackling, blue-orange ball of energy that didn’t quite blind her, but definitely got into her head if she looked directly at it. Several smaller pylons were evenly set around it, spaced every so often and growing in size the further away they were from the center, all the way to the edge of the small valley, interrupted only by occasional small circular platforms with bent pylons pointing at their center.

“Trojan, talk to me.”

“Bogies all over the place… not many, just spaced out. No ADVENT, just mutons. I can probably take care of most of them—”

“No, just mark them. I want to take them all out as quickly as possible. The less of a chance they have to send a signal, the better.”

“I’m ready to hack their signal if they try,” Security said.

“Breaker, you and Fridge take the west side of the valley, Coyote and I’ll go down the middle, Trojan, you do your thing on the East side, Security will support. Wait for my signal.”

“Roger that.”

“Wilco.”

Ember watched the others take off, then nodded to Coyote, the pair of them getting to the edge of the ravine and climbing down as fast as they could. She pointed to the first pylon on the right, and Coyote hurried there, scatter gun at the ready,

Two mutons were closing in on their location. “We’re ready,”

“I have clear shots,” Trojan replied.

“Make sure to make them count,” Security grumbled on the radio, “Otherwise Angel will be disappointed.”

“Angel?” Breaker asked, “Since when did Sunset decide she’d share?”

“Trojan wants her for his own, that’s what’s happening,” Fridge added.

“I’ll take that as you being in position,” Ember said.

“Don’t you think this is too little security for what’s here?” Coyote asked.

“I never try to understand the Elders. Mark.”

They moved almost in unison, but Coyote's question bothered Ember, even as their enemies went down with their attack. Her rifle hummed with power as it tore through the closest muton’s chest. It didn’t go down immediately, but their surprise attack had it stunned long enough for a second shot to finish the job.

Coyote’s scattergun at close range shredded the next enemy’s armor like tissue paper, and on the radio Trojan and the others confirmed their kills.

“I really don’t like it boss,” Security said. “Only six guards? No chrysalids or sectoids? No berserkers? Something’s not right.”

“Well, for now it seems like the enemy is down… anything? Anyone? Nothing more?”
“Nothing on our side, boss,” Security called, “I’m heading closer to the center, but I don’t see any enemies.”

“It’s too easy,” Ember whispered, glancing around at the structures. “It can’t be that easy.”
“Nothing on our side either,” Breaker called in. “We’ve swiped our area. It’s clean.”

Ember licked her lips and shook her head. “I don’t like this, but the longer we take the worse it’ll be. Call them in.”

Liquid bubbled inside several large tanks, containing barely visible shapes within. Hundreds of monitors showed statistics and charts, measurements and numbers, processes being performed, simulations being completed.

A red light flashed and several of the screens changed to security footage showing Ember’s team taking down the token resistance in place. An office chair shot across the room, its occupant lifting her legs in order to avoid impeding its speedy arrival at a nearby console.

“Oh, oh! Looks like someone broke into my experiment!”

“And it’s not the local gang! Great! It’s XCOM! Not the Witch’s team, but XCOM! Perfect for testing you out, don’t you think?”

"This body you have given me is inferior! I should have my father’s design!"

“Oh, don’t be a spoilsport, your father’s design wasn’t meant for you.”

"I… recognize these soldiers. They were part of the attack."

“Excellent! A personal stake in all of this! Let’s see you play terminator with them! Oh, look! More! And what’s this? Is that… a cyborg of some sort?”

"Apple Bloom…"

“Why don’t we pay them a visit?”

"Yes… let’s do that."