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Several other missions happened. Some others went into the PsiLab for testing after earning the bird. Lots of people in the body shop. People are getting hurt hard by by these 'muton elites' everyone speaks about.
Emo went in the PsiLab and the other Sniper on active bought it on that big-arsed ship. Hell, just about everyone, but Crossblade again, is either bein' tested or hooked up to I.V. when it showed up.
This time we had one of our new interceptors available, shot that damn cloaked ship down. When they pulled Longbow out of retirement, I figured I was gonna sit this one out, too. Then they realized they had no Heavies, and were really scraping the barrel here. It was the biggest ship ever to be invaded to date, and over half the squad were squaddies like me... but hey, we got Crossblade, right?
I tell you what, though. This outfit has some sweet toys. Laser sniper rifle? Plasma pistol? SCOPE? And man, check out this armor. It's got a built-in grappling hook! Talk about making it easy to get to a good nest.
So, we put down. Longbow tosses out a sensor. Smart move, considering we don't want to run into any nasty surprises, and not much cover. Doesn't pick up anything. So Crossblade... I don't know if it's the funky suit he's wearin', or just one of those psychic abilities he's got, but he just vanishes. I mean, he's still on IFF, but it's like you can't see hi. That's when stuff gets real.
Longbow, from his vantage point I guess, pops off something out of my LoS. I just move up the side, looking for cover with a wide vantage point. That's when it breaks cover. One of the biggest, meanest looking robots I dun EVER seen. Not too accurate, though. Fortunately. That thing looks like it hurts when it hits.
Some idiot on the other side, another squaddie on first deployment, in Medic White, gets jumped by some of those Muton Elites. I guess he listened a little harder than I did about those horror stories about them, because after a grazing shot (it's not like he wasn't the one with the med-kits, now was it?), he panics and breaks cover. Yea... breaking cover with three hostiles in range is never a good idea. Ever. And pays for the mistake.
Me? I just hit the zone, man. Find a target, pop a target. What the hell, though. This freekin' laser rifle won't kill a damn thing but those little drones. But hey, it sure puts the hurt out.
So, two robots and who the hell knows how many of those elites trying to pincer us later... we're down to four. Crossblade makes the call that Longbow stays outside as overwatch, in case one of them tries to break and run. Personally, I think he's a bit worried that the PTSD will kick in. I, however, get tapped for the break-in.
It's kinda new for me, actually. Usually, I'm stationed on a different building entirely when we're doing this. I let Crossblade and Gonzo take the lead. No heroes here, man. Find me a good spot of cover that lets me fire through the door with a good range, and the door pops open for me.
Holy. Hell. No one has seen anything like that before. I took a shot, and it deflected it like it was some kind of Jedi with a lightsaber! What. Tha. Hell? Then... yea...
Look. I'd heard about it from one of the old sweats, having something play 'pull me out' with your mind. But I didn't know. God, I didn't know. And I never, ever wanna have that happen again. When they stunned it... I felt it. God help me, I felt it go down.
Playing cat and mouse with the remaining muton, Gonzo took a bad hit, but Crossblade finished it off, and we got Gonzo out to the evac point before he bled out.
After the mission was over, I was given the 'good job'. Only one confirmed kill, but plenty of assists. But what was more... I saw it in his eyes. He knew what I went through. And I knew... I don't know how, but somehow I just knew... he feels it every time he does it to one of them. And it takes a toll. You could feel the exhaustion. The immortal Crossblade... and even he was beginning to feel it. Jeez.
The CO said they couldn't promote me for some beaurocractic reason, but I don't care. Why? Because payback's what I do best. And now I'm gettin' some on these alien scumbags.
I didn't understand it before... how different it was here. Now I do. Hell, now I'm a freekin' vet, god help me. I've been there, and I came back alive.
But yanno what would be better than respect? Another chance to put an alien in my sights.