Scardrac
Felsummer
AEON
The BladeMaster
Pt 1: The Hell-Hound's den
Year 2721, training program "Hell-Hound's den".
Only silence...
...
A loud SMASH is heard as my drop-pod rockets downwards into the stony ground of the field.
I await the pod's moment to open.
Clear weapons, initiate pod unlock system...
Ready, Aeon?"
I hear Johnson over the pod's overhead intercom. It's fuzzy, but I confirm myself.
"Ready, Johnson."
"5..."
"4..."
"3..."
"2..."
"Tear 'em up, Blade!"
I hear the pressure release from the drop-pod, and I am ejected.
Of course Johnson would land me here. Right over a cliff.
Not too large, the boots will survive this.
I let myself fall down, the armor's boots feel lighter as they expand and change shape to survive the fall mid-air. I slam down into the ground, stone cracking under my feet.
The armor locking for a brief five seconds releasing my body into freedom.
I stand and stare around, taking a look to feel where I am.
Johnson set me in my own personally created training program.
The Hell-Hound's den
I check my armory. I am in the BladeMaster Class Armor model 2.71, "Hell-Hound" edition.
I guess that's why my training field is named so.
I check my weapons and gear.
Checking my T.A.M.A.I., or Tactical Armor Managed Artificial Intelligence...
I activate my HUD, and GPS. Warming up.
The armor has a built in insulation feature, of course.
"What'do I got, Tia?"
Every T.A.M.A.I. has a social voice-ID AI communicator.
You don't pick the social AI, they sort of pick you.
There is a wide variety of social AI models, ones that pick to your style of combat.
Tia much fits me well.
"Checking armory."
"You have the BladeMaster model 2.71, 'Hell-Hound'. Coming with exclusive thermal imaging, transparency overlay, obviously basic 'AEON' armor features, but lastly... Your favorite..."
I grin wide under my helmet, clenching my fists as my wide arm-blades lengthen from their based at my forearm, sticking out with razor-sharp gleam. Not normal for an AEON armor set. I am the only one that uses them. Exclusive to myself.
"The jaws of the hound, as commanded to be specified as such."
I retract the jaws to their stationary confinement.
I then look around.
I know this place like the back of my hand. I'm at the bottom of the cliff, obviously. Right before the forest.
... Everything is covered in snow ...
I quickly activate thermal-imaging. An enemy would easily be spotted in this sea of blue on my HUD.
I would also seen easily in this black suit in the sea of white to infantry.
I quickly activate the transparent cloaking, snow falling onto my body would be the last of my worries of how I would get spotted. The flakes instantly melt off.
Footprints show easily in the snow, so I take advantage of the armor and climb a nearby tree, perching on a branch.
Three hot-spots quickly pass my view, and I move around the branch to better get my view of them.
Three simulated soldiers. They are simulated, but with correct feelings and fears. One would run if it sees necessary.
I turn my thermal off, only to see that they stop feet before my branch.
All three are placed in a triangle like fashion.
They all hear the silent -SHNNK- of the jaws, all looking up to see nothing.
I quickly fall, driving the two blades in to the front to soldier's skulls, the fast motions dismissing my cloak as the detectors are not given time to receive the surrounding textures.
The remaining soldier begins to run in fear, the two bodies below me still stick to my blade.
I then retract the blades, looking to the soldier, flaring my armor's fingered claws.
The soldier gets a good grip on himself, and aims his rifle.
The rounds are not real, only simulated. But carry the same force and pain as a regular bullet would.
Three bullets are fired, seemingly clanking against my chest. I lean back only slightly from the force, though a plugin for the armor set aids in stabilizing after a forceful assault.
...
The soldier bolts in the other direction, eyes forward on a clearing from the trees.
He trips in the heavy snow, slowly turning to see where I once stood. And where I still stand.
...
But he sees nothing.
Only the low howl of the snow fills his ears, nothing else.
My cloaking device seems to confuse him, so I decide to make a pretty kill.
I advance forward, feet causing the snow to separate below me.
The sharp -SHNNK- is heard, as the jaws extend from my forearm. The soldier still sees nothing, but hears hell coming for him.
He struggles to grab his rifle, and shoot in the direction I am in.
I then stop, allowing the strayed bullets to miss-fire off beside me.
... He lays still ...
A low grumble is heard, as I drive the jaws into either side of his torso, skewering and dicing him with a quick death.
The training program doesn't end here. This is only one of five groups spiraling a cave in the middle of the training field. A large cave holding intelligence, or the simulation's end-key.
I quickly cover my tracks by cloaking myself and climbing into the trees and hopping from branch to branch.
Careful to only step on the wide branches, as this suit could easily make a smaller one snap.
The trees seem to be declining down a hill, and I switch to thermal for a look-around.
Nothing.
I return to normal and descend downwards, following the hill.
...
I reach the end into a clearing, and the view is clear.
I've reached the den.
...
Only seconds before I charge in for a battle.
The den is a large cavern with a flat plateau before it, no hiding my presence besides my cloaking.
A large orange flag stands tall in the cavern. It is my job to get it.
Almost one hundred soldiers gather on this plateau.
This will not be easy.
The training programs are made to test my best skills in the real fight. So there is no limit to what I can't do in this battlefield that I could do in the real deal. Though, scoring is placed.
There is extra scoring for infantry kills using the gear given on the person. Ordinance called in would disqualify any extra scoring. Let alone scoring at all.
There is extra scoring for detected time. For each second detected by an infantryman, ten of 600 points are lost. All extra points are lost if you have been detected by one infantryman for a minute or more. This makes a stealth approach the way to go. Against infantry that is.
...
The plateau is fortified. Three generators keep heaters running, melting the snow. I turn on my thermal imaging and mark them all with HUD markers. I nod, and get as close as I can via treetops. Avoiding the weaker branches.
But that is too easy. It is always too easy. A branch from under me snaps, and I begin to fall. The quick body re-positioning system keeps me upright, and I quickly turn to claw into the tree. The wight of the suit making my slide down a ways. I am only about five trees from the plateau. I decide to hop from the height I am at from trunk to trunk, eventually reaching the last available tree within my grasp, climbing it. Quickly activating my cloaking, I climb from the edge of the plateau's cliff side edge.
GPS radar marks my targets. 0/100 infantryman slain.
I approach one of the generators, it being un-guarded at the time. I have to disable it without being detected. I quickly cut its controls from the coils using my main-hand claws, disabling the generator. Some heaters go off.
The BladeMaster
Pt 1: The Hell-Hound's den
Year 2721, training program "Hell-Hound's den".
Only silence...
...
A loud SMASH is heard as my drop-pod rockets downwards into the stony ground of the field.
I await the pod's moment to open.
Clear weapons, initiate pod unlock system...
Ready, Aeon?"
I hear Johnson over the pod's overhead intercom. It's fuzzy, but I confirm myself.
"Ready, Johnson."
"5..."
"4..."
"3..."
"2..."
"Tear 'em up, Blade!"
I hear the pressure release from the drop-pod, and I am ejected.
Of course Johnson would land me here. Right over a cliff.
Not too large, the boots will survive this.
I let myself fall down, the armor's boots feel lighter as they expand and change shape to survive the fall mid-air. I slam down into the ground, stone cracking under my feet.
The armor locking for a brief five seconds releasing my body into freedom.
I stand and stare around, taking a look to feel where I am.
Johnson set me in my own personally created training program.
The Hell-Hound's den
I check my armory. I am in the BladeMaster Class Armor model 2.71, "Hell-Hound" edition.
I guess that's why my training field is named so.
I check my weapons and gear.
Checking my T.A.M.A.I., or Tactical Armor Managed Artificial Intelligence...
I activate my HUD, and GPS. Warming up.
The armor has a built in insulation feature, of course.
"What'do I got, Tia?"
Every T.A.M.A.I. has a social voice-ID AI communicator.
You don't pick the social AI, they sort of pick you.
There is a wide variety of social AI models, ones that pick to your style of combat.
Tia much fits me well.
"Checking armory."
"You have the BladeMaster model 2.71, 'Hell-Hound'. Coming with exclusive thermal imaging, transparency overlay, obviously basic 'AEON' armor features, but lastly... Your favorite..."
I grin wide under my helmet, clenching my fists as my wide arm-blades lengthen from their based at my forearm, sticking out with razor-sharp gleam. Not normal for an AEON armor set. I am the only one that uses them. Exclusive to myself.
"The jaws of the hound, as commanded to be specified as such."
I retract the jaws to their stationary confinement.
I then look around.
I know this place like the back of my hand. I'm at the bottom of the cliff, obviously. Right before the forest.
... Everything is covered in snow ...
I quickly activate thermal-imaging. An enemy would easily be spotted in this sea of blue on my HUD.
I would also seen easily in this black suit in the sea of white to infantry.
I quickly activate the transparent cloaking, snow falling onto my body would be the last of my worries of how I would get spotted. The flakes instantly melt off.
Footprints show easily in the snow, so I take advantage of the armor and climb a nearby tree, perching on a branch.
Three hot-spots quickly pass my view, and I move around the branch to better get my view of them.
Three simulated soldiers. They are simulated, but with correct feelings and fears. One would run if it sees necessary.
I turn my thermal off, only to see that they stop feet before my branch.
All three are placed in a triangle like fashion.
They all hear the silent -SHNNK- of the jaws, all looking up to see nothing.
I quickly fall, driving the two blades in to the front to soldier's skulls, the fast motions dismissing my cloak as the detectors are not given time to receive the surrounding textures.
The remaining soldier begins to run in fear, the two bodies below me still stick to my blade.
I then retract the blades, looking to the soldier, flaring my armor's fingered claws.
The soldier gets a good grip on himself, and aims his rifle.
The rounds are not real, only simulated. But carry the same force and pain as a regular bullet would.
Three bullets are fired, seemingly clanking against my chest. I lean back only slightly from the force, though a plugin for the armor set aids in stabilizing after a forceful assault.
...
The soldier bolts in the other direction, eyes forward on a clearing from the trees.
He trips in the heavy snow, slowly turning to see where I once stood. And where I still stand.
...
But he sees nothing.
Only the low howl of the snow fills his ears, nothing else.
My cloaking device seems to confuse him, so I decide to make a pretty kill.
I advance forward, feet causing the snow to separate below me.
The sharp -SHNNK- is heard, as the jaws extend from my forearm. The soldier still sees nothing, but hears hell coming for him.
He struggles to grab his rifle, and shoot in the direction I am in.
I then stop, allowing the strayed bullets to miss-fire off beside me.
... He lays still ...
A low grumble is heard, as I drive the jaws into either side of his torso, skewering and dicing him with a quick death.
The training program doesn't end here. This is only one of five groups spiraling a cave in the middle of the training field. A large cave holding intelligence, or the simulation's end-key.
I quickly cover my tracks by cloaking myself and climbing into the trees and hopping from branch to branch.
Careful to only step on the wide branches, as this suit could easily make a smaller one snap.
The trees seem to be declining down a hill, and I switch to thermal for a look-around.
Nothing.
I return to normal and descend downwards, following the hill.
...
I reach the end into a clearing, and the view is clear.
I've reached the den.
...
Only seconds before I charge in for a battle.
The den is a large cavern with a flat plateau before it, no hiding my presence besides my cloaking.
A large orange flag stands tall in the cavern. It is my job to get it.
Almost one hundred soldiers gather on this plateau.
This will not be easy.
The training programs are made to test my best skills in the real fight. So there is no limit to what I can't do in this battlefield that I could do in the real deal. Though, scoring is placed.
There is extra scoring for infantry kills using the gear given on the person. Ordinance called in would disqualify any extra scoring. Let alone scoring at all.
There is extra scoring for detected time. For each second detected by an infantryman, ten of 600 points are lost. All extra points are lost if you have been detected by one infantryman for a minute or more. This makes a stealth approach the way to go. Against infantry that is.
...
The plateau is fortified. Three generators keep heaters running, melting the snow. I turn on my thermal imaging and mark them all with HUD markers. I nod, and get as close as I can via treetops. Avoiding the weaker branches.
But that is too easy. It is always too easy. A branch from under me snaps, and I begin to fall. The quick body re-positioning system keeps me upright, and I quickly turn to claw into the tree. The wight of the suit making my slide down a ways. I am only about five trees from the plateau. I decide to hop from the height I am at from trunk to trunk, eventually reaching the last available tree within my grasp, climbing it. Quickly activating my cloaking, I climb from the edge of the plateau's cliff side edge.
GPS radar marks my targets. 0/100 infantryman slain.
I approach one of the generators, it being un-guarded at the time. I have to disable it without being detected. I quickly cut its controls from the coils using my main-hand claws, disabling the generator. Some heaters go off.
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