"The long Journey" (a Shadowrun crossover with everything)

[Praeothmin]

Just to let you know an update is coming soon...

You demanding crowd you... :)

[sonofccn]

Just to let you know an update is coming soon...

You demanding crowd you... :)

Tease. :)

Just kidding. Take your time, get it right then blow my socks off again.

[Praeothmin]

Just to let you know an update is coming soon...

You demanding crowd you... :)

Tease. :)

Just kidding. Take your time, get it right then blow my socks off again.

I'll try, but there's a lot less action this time, and simply more talking...

[Admiral Breetai]

talkings fine..we're both gonna be releasing dialog heavy chapters for the foreseable future then

khan and sonof have to take up the fighting chapters for a bit

[Praeothmin]

khan and sonof have to take up the fighting chapters for a bit

Weeeeellll, actually, this one's got talking, but the following one will have some action...
I can't help it, I have to go where the story takes me... :)

[Praeothmin]

So, here's the update you kept pestering me ab... I mean, you kept asking politely for... :)
Hope you guys like it...

Chapter 31

Cue “The Horizon has been Defeated” from Jack Johnson

He stood there, tired, his Pain Compensators working overtime, barely keeping his wound’s effects in check, as he surveyed the battle scene.
He was relieved to see all of his team members still alive, even though Cpl. Banner needed immediate help.
Knowing the threat from the creatures was over, at least for the moment, Doc went at work on the Cpl.
James came to help him while the others kept watch in case the creatures returned, and within minutes Cpl. Banner was out of danger.
Doc and James then went on to treat the others’ less severe wounds, the Starfleet medical kits helping lessen their pain while waiting to be fully treated aboard the Musashi.
James went over to Boomer and Newt to examine them and see how bad they’d been wounded.
He quickly ascertained that Newt was untouched, then moved to treat Boomer's wounds.
He gently patted down Boomer, looking for possible broken bones, only halfway through realizing he didn’t know how closely she resembled humans internally.

“I have bones, and they can be broken.” She said with a smile, having apparently read his mind.

“Are you a Doctor too?” Asked a surprised, but also very impressed Newt at James.

“Yes,” Replied James, “I’m also a Doctor.” He said, not wishing to explain to Newt the difference between being an actual Doctor, and his specific medical knowledge.
“You’re safe now, Newt.” He continued, smiling gently.
“We promised you would be, and as you can see, we both kept our words.” He said, nodding at Boomer.

He turned to his team and said:
“I’m proud of you guys!
You did great, and you’ve proven what I already knew: the MACOs are the toughest SOBs in this reality.” He finished with a grin.

The rest of the team, weary as they were, grinned in return.


Cue the Chronicles of Riddick soundtrack “The Hunt for Riddick”

Then, at the same time the remaining functioning Tricorder sounded enemy contact, James’s augmented ears picked up cautiously approaching footsteps.
Using hand signals he had taught the MACOs, he signalled his team to hide behind what was left of their defences.
As they silently moved in place, he too crouched behind a beat up, upturned table, facing the direction of the coming footsteps, after turning off the Tricorder’s alert signal.
Although the approaching group was stealthy, to James augmented hearing, they sounded like a fanfare, and every move, every step was heard.
He estimated five to seven people based on the rhythm and number of steps heard.
As they were getting ever closer, James was somewhat reassured, as he knew these were not creatures coming for another assault: the way their steps resonated on the floor of the corridors, he was certain they were bipedal and wearing combat boots.
Metallic clicking sounds told him they were carrying weapons, most likely rifles.
They were moving in a military manner, the point guard taking a few steps, sweeping for possible enemies, and then signalling for the rest of the group to follow.
And then they stopped, at the same time he heard some kind of pinging sound, regular, coming back every second.
He realized it had to be their version of a Tricorder, and that they most likely knew the MACOs were there.
Then he heard a whispered “stop”, telling him he was dealing with humans, like the people from the station.
He didn’t know if they were the kind of people to shoot first and ask questions later, and since his team was in no shape to fight against well armed enemies, he didn’t want to take any risks.

He called out:
“Don’t shoot, we’re not your enemy.
We’re in the medical bay, in the laboratory to the left.
Come in, but be careful, there are many holes in the floor.”

They came in cautiously, the two point men – or point woman in one case – coming in first, wielding huge machine guns on articulated harnesses.
They did a rapid sweep of the lab, their eyes widening at the holes in the floor, walls and surrounding furniture.
James also saw something else in their faces, an expression he read easily: recognition.
They knew what had made those holes, he saw.
Their sweep over, they aimed their weapons at the MACOs while taking a few steps inside the room, in standard cover formation.
The woman yelled “Clear!”, and the rest of the squad came in, weapons sweeping the room.
Their leader stepped between the two point men, a black man, athletically built rather than bulky, with an air of command oozing out from every pore of his body, a lit cigar dangling from his lips.

“I am Sergeant Apone, from the Colonial Marines.” He said with an authoritative voice.
“This is a private property owned by the Weyland-Yutani consortium.
Who are you, and what are you doing here?” He asked.

Slowly, James raised his hands and stood up.
He noticed a slight widening of the Marines’ eyes when they saw his size, a widening which increased when they noticed the creature’s tail hanging on his hip like a whip.
One of the Marines, a skittish man holding their scanner, said:
“He’s one big Mofo!”
But then was shut up by a man with the rank insignia of a Cpl.
The man had an intensity about him, even though his demeanour was calm.
He wasn't a big man, but it was clear by the way he stood and held himself he was a tough man, one who wasn't afraid of much, who remained calm in stressful situations.

James looked at their Sergeant, and replied:
“I am Major James Reynolds, of the Federation Military Assault and Command Operations, and this is my team.”
James made sure his demeanour, while relaxed, conveyed that he did not feel threatened at all by the Marines.
His appearance – the busted and smoking armor, multiple wounds, and the Alien’s tail dangling at his belt – strengthened that impression.
“We’re here because our ship needs repairs, and we detected this facility from orbit.
Our sensors were unable to detect any lifeforms at first, so we believed this station abandoned.
We found out some time later it wasn't, and that its inhabitants had all been taken by some kind of creatures.
These creatures were holed up under the Processing plant's Nuclear Reactor, where they took the people living here.
I went to investigate, but I found no living person.”

He said the last part with a sidelong glance at Newt, but noticed she was too busy hugging Boomer and being scared at the Marines to notice what James had said.
The Marines's leader, Sgt. Apone, was about to say something when his headset chirped.
He brought a hand to his ear to activate it, and listened to the incoming signal.

“Apone, this is Burke,” A weasely voice said, “Ask him what happened here.
Did they encounter the Aliens?
If so, where are they?” He finished expectantly.

“Roger that!” Apone said, then he asked the question.

“We killed them.” Said James.
“They were too dangerous to allow to live.
They kidnapped this stations inhabitants, used them to gestate and grow their youngs, killing them in the process.
These creatures are parasites, extremely dangerous parasites, and we couldn't, in all consciousness, allow them to live and propagate.”

He saw the doubt in the Marines' eyes, a doubt mitigated somewhat by the evidence before them, but James saw they wanted to believe him.

“What?” Was Burke's reaction.
“Who the hell do they think they are, deciding what to do on a Weyland-Yutani property?
They had no right doing that.
Hold them there, we're coming in.” He finished.

James had heard every single word, but he didn't react to them, waiting, not wanting to let them know about his abilities just yet.

“He's coming in. I feel safer already.” Said the skittish man.

“Shut up, Hudson!” The Cpl. Replied.

“Yeah, sure Hicks.” Said the one named Hudson sheepishly.

“By the way, Sergeant,” Said James, “We've found a survivor, a little girl.” He nodded towards Newt.
“Her name's Rebecca Jorden.
She says her parents were taken by the creatures.”

He saw Hudson blanch a bit at that, the man becoming ever so nervous.
He would need to be watched closely, else he could become dangerous in a stressful situation.

They waited in silence, James deciding at one point to simply ignore the Marines until the one named Burke arrived.
He and Doc checked on the MACOs' wounds, making sure Banner's condition didn't worsen.
Newt never left Boomer's arms, and to James it seemed as if Boomer wouldn't have had it any other way.
She had strong maternal instincts it seemed, which James thought odd coming from a machine, as Cylons, he had been told, were more machine than man.
Apparently his source of information had been wrong.
Of course, Admiral Adama had most likely never seen a Cylon in a familial setting.

While looking after the wounded, James also discreetly signalled his teammates using their hand signals to remain calm and follow his lead.
They didn't have to wait for too long before three people came in, two men and one woman.
One man, in his early thirties, average built, close to six feet tall, black hair and with handsome features now twisted in anger, came in leading the other two.
James knew right away this was Burke, and he disliked him instantly.
The second man was of similar height and built as Burke, had shorter hair barely showing below a green cap, marking him as one of the Marines in front of James.
His Lt. Rank insignia made him out to be the team leader, but James had a hard time accepting this, as the man was unassuming, and exuded no authority whatsoever.
He was new at this, James thought, and this was certainly one of his first live missions, all his experience coming from simulators and wargames.
This explained the fact that no Marine paid him any heed when he came in, instead focusing all their attention on Burke.
Lastly came the woman.
She wasn't beautiful, but was certainly comely.
Tall, taller even than Boomer, she was just as thin, easily seen even through her loose clothing.
She had a full head of thick, curly dark hair, a bit longer than shoulder-length.
But what held Jame's attention was her face.
It had a mask of pure terror on it, her gaze stopping on each and every hole on the floor, every visible acid mark.
She was shaking and clearly didn't want to be there.

James rose to his full height again, the action having the same effect with the new arrivals as it had had with the Marines, Burke's expression even mellowing a bit as he looked at the huge, Alien tail-wielding giant of a man standing before him.

“You've seen these things and what they can do before, haven't you?” James asked the female, looking her in the eyes.

“Y... Yes!” Came the hesitant answer, her expression having answered the question for her before she had even spoken the words.

“Listen, pal,” Burke said, not wanting to lose control, “She's not the one you should worry about.” He said.
“I'm the one in charge here, not her.” He added, his tone almost menacing.

“If you say so.” James answered nonchalantly.
“What can I do for you, Mr. Burke?” He asked.

The fact he knew Burke's name surprised the man, and James saw he was becoming slightly nervous.

“You can start by explaining what the hell you are doing here.
This is private property.” He said.

“As I told your Sergeant, we are here because our ship needs repairs, and we were hoping to find suitable materials here.
But then, we noticed that the place seemed empty, and everyone was gone.
We found only this little girl,” He said pointing at Newt, “ who told us what had happened here.
The creatures she's seen before,” He said indicating the dark haired woman, “apparently kidnapped all the people and took them to the maintenance levels of the Processing Plant, where they stuck them in a wall and kept them there to be impregnated by these creatures.
They tried to do the same to me.
They failed.” He said simply.

“Where are these creatures now?” Asked Burke, trying to display aloofness.
The dark haired woman tensed at the question, eagerly awaiting an answer.

“Most of them have been killed, including their Queen.
The rest pursued me in the tunnels, but they left me alone when I killed half a dozen of them.
They may be regrouping and trying to find alternate strategies of attack.
They appeared very adaptive when I fought them.”

He saw the dark haired female gasp, and look at him more closely.
He saw hope in her eyes, hope of what he couldn't say, but it was there.
And there was some relief as well, as if hearing the new these creatures could be killed by humans was the best she had heard in her life.
James decided he had to learn what had happened to her before he left.

“On what authority did you decide to destroy these creatures?” Burke asked, almost livid.

“On the authority of one whose life was in danger.” James said stoically.
“They attacked us, we were forced to defend ourselves.
Might I remind you again that we were also trying to ascertain the whereabouts and situation of your employees, the people who lived here and were killed?
The people you so clearly seem worried about.” James finished.

That seemed to take some of the bluster out of the man, although he still looked at James with angry eyes.

“What's the problem, Burke?” The dark haired woman asked, her voice finally returned.
“You told me we were coming here to destroy those things.
These people destroyed most of them, you should be happy, damn it, I know I am.”

“Ripley,” Burke replied, “You don't understand the situation.
These creatures are living beings, we can't just exterminate them as we please.”

“THEY DO IT TO US!” Ripley almost yelled.
“You don't understand what these creatures can do, Burke.
One of them killed almost all our crew on the Nostromo, imagine what an entire nest could do.”
She was almost hysterical as she finished talking.

“Well, our friend here says he killed half a dozen by himself, so I guess they're not so tough after all.” Burke said lightly.
“Or our friend is exaggerating a bit...” He trailed off the last sentence, looking at James defiantly.

“Well, if you would care to take your head out of your ass, and examine your surroundings, you'll notice that there are a lot of acid holes in here, as well as on our armor.”
Some Marines smiled at James's words, a clear indication they didn't like the weaselly Burke either, probably even less than their Lt.
“One creature can't produce enough blood to create all these holes.
And the reason we're so efficient in killing them is because our weapons and armors are very, very efficient.
And I agree with Ripley: these creatures should not be left alive.
They are parasites, very dangerous parasites that can't be controlled.”

“Well, it doesn't matter what you think,” Burke said smugly, “you don't own this installation, and according to space law, since this colony is ours, we decide what to do with everything on it.”

“That's fine by me,” James said, “So why can't you accept that these creatures are so dangerous?” He asked.

“Because according to the colony logs, the first colonist was infected in grid 26 Alpha.” Banner's voice weakly said.
“And according to those same logs, he's the one who sent the colonists out to that grid, the directive dating six-twelve-seventy-nine, and it was signed by one Burke, J.” He finished.

“What?” Said a panicked Burke.
“What the hell is he talking about?”

“YOU SON OF A BITCH!” Yelled Ripley.
“You sent them to their deaths.”

“What? You're going to believe someone you don't even know?” Burke said, trying to salvage the situation.
“They have no proof, all the station's terminals are smashed, unusable.
Who says these guys didn't bring the people to the Aliens, hun?”

James looked straight at the man and took a small step forward, eliciting a reaction from the Marines, who tensed a bit and all pointed their guns towards him.

“Are you saying we are lying?” He asked, his voice icy cold.
He took another step forward, always ignoring the Marines, always staring at Burke.
“Or perhaps you are calling us murderers.”
His tone was deadly calm, daring Burke to respond affirmatively to his statement.
Burke took a step back, a single bead of sweat rolling down his temple.

“Look, I'm not accusing anyone of anything, okay?” He said nervously.
“I'm simply pointing out that there isn't any proof of any wrongdoing.”

But nobody was buying his excuse.
The Marines looked at him in disgust, even their Lt.
And Ripley was livid.

“You piece of shit.
You sent them out there and you didn't even warn them, Burke.
Why didn't you warn them?” She asked, full of fury.

Seeing he could no longer deny it, he looked at his feet, and answered in a subdued tone.
“Look, maybe the thing didn't even exist, right?
And if I'd made it a major security situation, the Administration would've stepped in.
Then no exclusive rights, nothing.” He said, his manner almost dismissive.
“It was a bad call, that's all.”

“For money?” She asked, incredulous.
“You justify killing one hundred and fifty eight people for money?
The company's going to nail your hide to the shed, Burke, and I'll be there when they do.”

“The company's not going to do anything, Ripley, because they endorsed this.” Burke said.
“And you won't say anything because I'm in control here, and I decide what happens.”

Ripley was about to jump Burke then and there, but the Lt intervened and blocked her path.

“Gorman,” Called Burke, “Arrest her and have your men arrest those people for trepassing and destruction of private property, after Commerce Code regulation 18967.” He finished with assurance.

The Marines seemed unsure of what to do, which irritated Burke, but one look to Gorman was sufficient.

“Marines, do as he says.” A struggling Gorman said.

“Well, you heard the man!” Apone barked.
“Arrest these people, and secure the little girl.”

The Marines slowly moved towards the MACOs and Newt, the one called Apone going for James.
“Aw man, this sucks!” Said Hudson.
“We're not supposed to be on the side of the bad guys, Sarge.”

“Of Course not, Cabron,” Said the point woman proudly, “We're the baddest of them all.”

“Hudson and Vasquez, shut up and do your jobs.” Apone said, and Hudson did indeed shut up.

The Marines were about to put handcuffs on his team just as Apone was about to cuff James.
He had decided not to do anything for the moment, to see where this was going, but then Burke decided to rub it in.

“You see, Ripley, there's nothing you or your friends here can do about anything, because I'm in full control of the situation.” He finished with a grin.

James look Burke straight in the eyes, smiled, and then he moved.

As Apone's left hand was reaching for his handcuffs, James's right hand, fingers extended, moved downward past the rifle then curved upward to the right, bringing the rifle's barrel in a circling arc to finally point at the ceiling, his left leg kicked Apone hard enough to crack his chest armor.
While Apone's body was floating through the air, James went for Gorman.
He was reaching him as his actions started getting noticed by everyone but Boomer, because she had seen him move a fraction of a second before the others.
As he reached Gorman's back, his left hand went under the man's left arm, and it gripped his throat, while his right hand first un-holstered the man's pistol before coming up and under his right arm to touch Gorman's jaw with its muzzle.
As his actions slowed down to normal speeds, Apone's body impacted an upturned desk, crumpling him in a heap on the floor, and Boomer had seized Vasquez's machine gun with her right hand, and had smashed her left elbow down on the arms of the woman, with enough force to break Vasquez's right forearm and the harness's buckles.
Gripping the machine gun with her left hand, she brought the barrel of the weapon up in Vasquez's face, knocking her out, right before her right foot came up to kick at the other point man's machine gun, pinning it to a wall.
Before the man could do anything else, he was facing the muzzle of his partner's weapon.

Not wanting to be left out, Doc had used the attention Boomer was getting to sidestep to the left of Hudson, knee him in the groin while his left hand clamped down on the man's rifle to point to the floor and his right hand gently rested his huge combat knife on his throat.

James looked around, smiled, and looked at Burke, who looked absolutely terrified.
The only other person in the room who didn't look completely lost was Hicks.
His rifle was aimed directly at James, but his demeanour was far from nervous.
He had the look of a man who was patiently waiting for an opening, a man who was carefully weighing the odds.
James respected the man, and so shifted Gorman around so that his body was shielding him from Hicks.

“Care to repeat that last part again?” He asked Burke with a grin.

[Admiral Breetai]

God that was glorious

why hasn't Sonof or khas seen this glorious gotten inspired and produced more awesome?

[sonofccn]

Whoot! :)

Poor,poor Apone! Get up! Also remind me never to get on Boomer's bad side. I do have a question however, how did the Sulaco miss a Sovereign class starship near orbit or did they bug out and I'm forgetting things again?

why hasn't Sonof or khas seen this glorious gotten inspired and produced more awesome?

Because Praeothmin has clearly taken all the awesomeite of course. ;)

Edit: of course I did write an update about a kickarse no nonsense unit I just posted it before this update because that is how awesome Praeothmin's chapter was. It inspires backwards through the time stream *cue archaeologists uncovering giant stone mural of Apone throwing down with James* :)

[Admiral Breetai]

I'm gonna have to do something to live up to your chapters both of you.

but I think it's an Akira class IIRC not a sovie if it was a Sovie those Basestars would have been run over (literally if kirkinger so felt inclined)

Apones titanic struggle is glorious

[sonofccn]

@Admiral Breetai

Your right Akira class, my bad. :(

[Praeothmin]

Very glad you both liked it even though it was a talkie...

Action coming up soon, as well as the explanation on why the sulaco didn't see the Musashi, and why the Musashi didn't react to the sulaco arriving...

[Admiral Breetai]

I'm gonna start writing up a tales of the mid rim story in the summer (my version of a block buster) with each chapter being a critical story to one of my characters and the war.

you guys mind if I do a shout out to the Musashi and the AT-AT rumble?

[Praeothmin]

No, I don't mind at all, be my guest...

[sonofccn]

@Admiral Breetai

I'd be honored if you'd do shout out to "Rumbles" knock yourself out.

Very glad you both liked it even though it was a talkie...

Yeah it was great, I really liked how you captured each of the Marines and slimy Burke.

[Praeothmin]

Thanks!