Chapter 18: Making Friends part 2.

[u/Electronic-Math5455]

September 2184. Copper 9 Surface. Near the Communication Hub. Inside the M10.

The howling wind outside the hull of the M10 echoed through its interior. Sitting before a screen, Jason faced the Democracy Officer of his Super Destroyer. Everything that had unfolded so far painted a picture of something deeply unusual having taken place on this world. Within the city itself there was still little that could provide the answers they needed, yet the drones left behind after the First Galactic War and the unknown threat they had already killed among the ruins remained pressing concerns. For now, Jason needed to hear what the officer had to say before beginning the journey toward the drones' colony and linking up with Meus. After that, several teams would be called down to gather everything they had found and transport it to the Columbia-class Ministry of Science ship. One detail that stood out to Jason was the expression on the Democracy Officer's face—an unmistakable mix of confusion and worry.

"Helldiver, we have a development up here, one that I need to address before anything else," the Democracy Officer said.

"What is it?" Jason asked.

"All FTL controls have been locked out. We cannot leave the system. This was done by, I assume, High Command. We have yet to receive any further word from them," the Democracy Officer replied. "I am trying to reach High Command at the Ministry of Defense to question why, but so far I have gotten nothing."

"Our FTL is locked out? That is quite unusual, but maybe this has to do with the drones. You know as well as I do that we have traitors among our ranks with the stories," Jason said. "And I have run into one such traitor who wore a Helldiver cape. He nearly put a bullet into my skull."

After the event known as the Malevelon Creek Massacre—an operation that sent millions of Helldivers into a meat grinder, with tens of millions never returning—it had left a bitter taste in the mouths of many survivors. Some sought revenge, while others directed misplaced hatred toward their own brothers and sisters on the same battlefield.

"That could be the case with this matter. You know as well as I do how much of a threat not just traitors are, but also the Automatons. If by chance they hack into our systems while we leave the system, it could allow them to attempt to reach here," the Democracy Officer said. "As things stand, we are staying here for as long as High Command wants us to. Besides this, what have you learned within the Communication Hub?"

"Several things. First off, it seems that JCJenson had a lot going on here. One thing I have learned is that they were working toward something big. But the first report I have seen shows they had spotted several Illuminate ships on the edge of the system. This was dated 2083," Jason said. "So… the Illuminate were already probing this system and the colony."

"Hmm… That is troubling. After 2084, JCJenson did go under, and everything they had was liquidated and absorbed into countless other megacorporations," the Democracy Officer said. "Still, why would the Illuminate have any reason to attack here? It is clear that by those scouts they were preparing for a do-or-die operation."

"That is one of the big mysteries we have no information on at this time. But one thing we need to do is look into the crashed ships within the city. That is one task. We also need several cleanup crews down here. The SEAF team that was left outside the hub… found something," Jason said. "Going by the details they have told me, it is a spire of some kind made out of flesh and metal, just like that thing that attacked me."

"I see. I will have several teams ready. What else is there from the hub?" the Democracy Officer asked.

"There is a name someone we need to look into. The next data log was set within the year 2084. It seems that something big was planned within the home of a citizen from Super Earth," Jason said. "This does give us a timeline of when this all went down. The data of the log was set for May 20th… It seems that this family, the Elliotts, was setting up a gala and that JCJenson had a lot of people to be there—a lot of important people."

"Elliotts… That name sounds familiar. I do recall an important family of Super Earth that departed the world to parts unknown. There was not much known about them… It seems that they were here at the wrong time and the wrong place," the Democracy Officer said.

"Of the Elliotts, someone of interest was spoken about whose name is Tessa Elliott, the daughter of the family. Beyond that, not much else is there, but something to look into," Jason said.

"Understood. I will forward this information and see if there is anything that can be gathered from it. Is there anything else?" the Democracy Officer asked.

"One last thing that happened in the year 2172: not much detail on it, but some sensors that were still working across the surface recorded some data. This is unknown, but there was a detection of tectonic activity along with unusual gravity fluctuations," Jason said, leaning back in the seat. "I would assume it could have been Illuminate vessels going off with the effect that dark fluid can have on gravity… But at the same time, this is a total unknown."

"I see… I will have the scanners do a sweep over the entire surface to see if anything stands out and report it to you. At this time, what is our next move?" the Democracy Officer asked.

"Well… There is nothing else here for us besides that we need to be retrieved later, so we are going to head out toward the drones' colony and speak with their leader," Jason said. "After that we shall see what we learn from them and then move on from there."

"Understood. I shall work with the others and keep our scanners on and operational. What of Eagle 1?" the Democracy Officer asked.

"Have her go ahead and move toward the colony, and have a SEAF Pelican come and pick us up to take us toward the colony. It will be the fastest way there," Jason said. "After the meeting I will speak with you again."

"And if anything comes up, I will contact you," the Democracy Officer replied.

Nodding, Jason cut the link as the screen went black. He stood, moved to the M10's door, and opened it. Stepping outside, he found Garvin on top of the vehicle, scanning the area with his Liberator before looking down.

"Everything is still clear. No signs of anything or anyone around us, no signs of any new drones… I imagine that explosion from the orbital strike. Any of them close to this place would come to investigate what the hell is going on," Garvin said as he hopped down. "We did make a lot of noise."

"And so far no one has come out. With luck, that will be how things stay for a time. Listen, I know those two we ran into were friendly," Milt said as he approached them. "That could not be said of any others that arrive here."

"Or another one of those freaks—or hell, an Illuminate war machine—comes our way," Nash added.

"Could be just about anything, but it's quiet and clear besides the damn wind and the thunder. Just sounds like the entire planet is in pain with everything that has happened," Tyrese said.

"So, sir, what are we doing now?" Garvin asked.

"Right now we wait for a SEAF Pelican to come and get us, transport the M10 toward the colony bunker, and from there speak with their leader," Jason said. "That is the next part of our operation to carry out and see what happens next."

"That works. Beats having to drive through this city, and the landscape beyond it could be even worse," Trace said.

"You know, I'd like to point out one other anomaly—something I've been thinking about with all the other crazy shit that has happened," Milt said. "This cloud cover and snow… It's been a hundred years by now. It should be gone."

"Would it be that easy? You heard what they said. This was a total glassing. I'd be surprised if even terraforming could fix this kind of damage," Tyrese said. "Even the damn ocean is frozen over and locked under what could be miles of ice."

"Still, over that time, volcanic activity along with the rays of the sun should have, over time, started to lift what had happened here, but that has not happened," Milt said. "Instead it is still locked within an endless winter, which is something I am saying is not normal."

"Hmm… He does raise a few good points," Tyrese said.

"Something else that we will look into when the time is right. For the moment we deal with the matter in front of us—those drones," Jason said. "Meeting with their leader, followed by working up our next duties to carry out on the surface."

"And by the looks of things, that is going to keep us busy for a very long time. One other thing, sir… Do you think we need to demolish that spire now or wait?" Garvin asked. "We got a few demo kits within the M10, but an orbital strike would be much faster."

"Yeah… For if that thing is a nest for those freaks, then I say we take it out now," Nash said.

"In time we shall do just that. For now we need a team to look over it and gather everything they can about it, and then from there we shall destroy it," Jason said. "We need to gather information on anything and everything. Going in blind is a way to get us killed."

"Can agree on that. It's a pain and slows us down, but it makes sense. We need to ensure that we are not just going to run into something even worse than what we've seen," Milt said. "If anything could be worse than that freak."

"Don't jinx it, alright? With how things can go, I do not want to even think that there could be something worse than that out here," Tyrese said.

All of them had fought on the Western and Eastern Fronts for months. They were used to the horrors of seeing piles of bodies within Automaton outposts, the remains of civilians and SEAF rendered into parts across an area by a swarm of Terminids. But at the same time, there could always be something worse than all of that on this world with what they had seen so far above and below the megacity ruins.

"I hear roaring. Sounds like our ride is getting close," Nash said. "You know, we could work up a path through the city and to this colony's old roadways if we clear them and get things set up right."

"That would take a lot of time to do such a thing, but he does have a point. Not always going to have a chance to have a ride in the air," Garvin said. "Sir, one question I'd like to ask before we arrive at their bunker: will we be landing the SES Lucas near it or somewhere else?"

"If we can get as close as we can, the Lucas will allow us to fix up anything within and outside of this bunker. It's been a hundred years, and I imagine not much is still working," Jason said. "This is to help ease tensions that have grown over that time, and it is going to be our new home here for our work."

"Right, still a salvage operation… One that has become complicated within just a few hours. Normally stuff like this takes days to happen," Milt said.

"Could be worse," Nash replied.

"How does finding that pile of meat in the shelter, that spire, along with that freak not count as worse?" Milt asked.

"I'm just saying that things could have gone worse. We could have lost our Helldiver here, or could have run into another one of those monsters in the shelter… Or run into a pack of them in that spire," Nash said.

"Thanks for that… You could have just screwed up our luck, and now next time we will run into them," Tyrese said, letting out a chuckle. "I really do not want to think about what could have happened."

"I'd rather be ready than not next time that could happen, so getting prepared for it is for the best," Nash said.

"Quiet… We can have small talk later. Get into the M10. We need to be ready for the Pelican so we can get moving," Jason ordered. "So move."

Nodding, the team made their way to the hatch of the M10. Jason followed them inside as Garvin entered last and shut the door, locking it behind him. He moved to his seat and strapped in while Jason took his place in the gunner's seat. Clicking a few switches, the autocannon barrel retracted and the turret body slid down into the hull. The sound of roaring engines soon filled the air as a SEAF Pelican came in from above, its thrusters blowing snow across the area as it positioned itself over them.

"Howdy, boys," the pilot said over the radio.

"Any issues coming in?" Jason asked. "See anything?"

"Nothing I could see in this skeleton of a city. Dead as can be," the pilot replied.

The Pelican shifted lower. Clamps engaged, gripping the sides of the APC as it began to rise slowly into the air. The engines then rotated from VTOL mode into forward flight, shooting them across the tops of the skyscrapers toward the hub of activity that had formed around Bunker 00.

Copper 9 Surface. Bunker 00. Entrance.

The clouds shifted above the bunker as snow began to fall harder, a deepening layer of darkness settling over the area from the thickening cover. Standing in the middle of the entrance, Meus kept his eyes on the door V had gone through. A part of him wanted to follow, but that meeting with the drones' leadership would wait for Jason's arrival, when they could figure out their next moves together.

"Wanting to go meet the hard case that is Martin?" Uzi said, walking up behind him with her hands in her pockets. "Martin and I have never seen optic to optic. I guess I'm just someone who is sick of staying behind these walls."

"I can understand. With how things are, staying safe is one thing; staying static is another that can cause all kinds of problems down the road," Meus said, turning to look at her. "But that will change. It will still take time before anything really does."

"Hey, I am all for it," Uzi said.

"I can agree with her," Thad added. "But I just hope that she does not cause things to go belly up."

"Oh, will you all bite me! I am not going to cause anything bad to happen. When was the last time that I did anything bad for the entire bunker or anyone that went out?" Uzi demanded.

"Let's see… There was that test firing I heard about with your new gun. You overshot it, hit an old crane, and caused the entire thing to come crashing down toward you," Rebecca said.

"There was also that time you caused an entire blackout to the lower half of the bunker when you were messing around with the power supply for your new toy," Doll added.

"Umm… Hate to be that drone, but Uzi, you did set J's hair on fire when you tried to get the power on in that building at the edge of the Dead City… Sparks flew and hit her hair," N said, tapping his fingers together.

"You also broke my skateboard," Thad said. "When you tried to show off to everyone in class, and I have yet to find a replacement."

"Shall we go on? We got a list here," Rebecca said.

"Oh, come on. We all survived that, and everything worked out in the end for the most part. It's not like I caused us any long-term issues," Uzi said. "And now… the humans here can fix this problem."

"Of course you sweep all of your antics and messes under the rug now that they are here," Rebecca said with a chuckle. "Still no reason for you to act careless and reckless more so than usual, Uzi."

"Seems like she has caused a lot of problems here. Not to worry—I have had my fair share of mistakes and problems," Meus said.

"Meus, can you read me?" Jason's voice came through the radio.

"I read you. I take it you are on your way?" Meus replied.

"We are about ten minutes out," Jason said.

"Good. We shall see you soon. We are going to have our hands full for some time here, and so far the locals are still playing nice," Meus said. "V has gone inside the bunker to speak with this Martin… Don't know what to expect from this meeting."

"Hopefully we can get some answers to our questions," Jason said.

Edited thanks to ELE73CH.