Hardtroopers are all cybernetic except for the brain and internal organs, Brooks just has his right arm as a prosthetic. Not to say many won't find it disturbing, but he's far from a cyborg in that regard.
Strange, they should know about Brook's prosthetic, specially Stillstorm
Maybe the topic never came up when she came in with Razorthorn and Mothwing, she just wanted them interrogated. The Doranzers know, as does Beryl and Fireblade, but not everyone would. Besides, the bridge crew wouldn't know, and part of this is him standing up to Stillstorm because he's sick of the shit he's getting.
I got the impression, Tempo knew, as she was looking at Brooke's arm specifically:
“The full crew complement was 80, plus eight Marines for security,” he replied, all eyes falling on Brooks once more, and Tempo’s eyes on his right arm.
highlighting by me
I also don't agree with the overdoing of usage of the word "both".
Using terminology like "All Humans present" would sound much weirder.
Nice chapter, enjoyed it.
And Brooke, now it's story time!
Although on the middle of a battle field during an ad-hoc diplomatic session is actually not a good time.
Vote for Outsider on TWC: charred steppes, borders of territories: page 59,
jump-map of local stars: page 121, larger map in Loroi: page 118,
System view Leido Crossroads: page 123, after the battle page 195
Hardtroopers are all cybernetic except for the brain and internal organs, Brooks just has his right arm as a prosthetic. Not to say many won't find it disturbing, but he's far from a cyborg in that regard.
Strange, they should know about Brook's prosthetic, specially Stillstorm
Maybe the topic never came up when she came in with Razorthorn and Mothwing, she just wanted them interrogated. The Doranzers know, as does Beryl and Fireblade, but not everyone would. Besides, the bridge crew wouldn't know, and part of this is him standing up to Stillstorm because he's sick of the shit he's getting.
I got the impression, Tempo knew, as she was looking at Brooke's arm specifically:
“The full crew complement was 80, plus eight Marines for security,” he replied, all eyes falling on Brooks once more, and Tempo’s eyes on his right arm.
highlighting by me
I also don't agree with the overdoing of usage of the word "both".
Using terminology like "All Humans present" would sound much weirder.
Nice chapter, enjoyed it.
And Brooke, now it's story time!
Although on the middle of a battle field during an ad-hoc diplomatic session is actually not a good time.
Not everyone present had known, but could all hear Stillstorm berating him, so Brooks decided he had enough and wanted to prove a point. Basically, some knew about his arm, but most didn't, simply because the weren't around those who knew, or no one saw it fit to tell them, ergo the Teidar and Soroin guards looking at him the way they are.
Chapter 4
Sorry it took me so long to do this, but I've been busy beyond belief, and I'll be even more so over the next few months, since I'll be away in Air Force basic training. Hopefully you guys like this while I'm gone.
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It was the second time today that Captain Alder had been called to a private discussion with Admiral Raines. He had just gotten back from a classified briefing with high ranking military leaders and analysts from across the world. Best as Raines was able to tell him, it involved the usage of UNSA and TCA fleet elements moving closer to the system where contact was made, and attempting a contact with the Loroi if possible.
“So where does this leave us, sir?” Captain Alder said, running a hand through his borderline regulation hair. “On being able to make contact with the Loroi, and being able to recover any survivors?”
“Well, Captain, you’ll be happy to hear our discussion bore fruit with the politicians and higher ups in power. Icarus wasn’t the only ship out with the Scouts on their mission. Not only was Europa in the area with Icarus, one of our Tankers, and three TCA destroyers were as well. There was a contingency plan in case of contact, friendly or not, that communications would be established with all of the ships, and they would jump to the last known location. These plans were put into action by Icarus as soon as it picked up the distress call, and it shouldn’t be long before the four ships arrive in the system.” Raines explained, watching the face of Captain Alder light up at the good news.
“That sounds great sir!” He said jovially. “But how did they manage all of this so quickly? The ships would still be covering a very large area of space, so a week seems rather fast for such an operation.” He said more seriously.
“Captain, I’ll level with you. These new ships we’ve made in the last two decades, in response to growing threats, are fitted with technology we still don’t entirely understand. There’s things about them not even I know about, much less most other Captains and Admirals. What I do know is that it’s happening, and those ships are the only ones capable of making it to the Bellarmine’s last known location in a reasonable timeframe.”
“And what of the other Scout Corps vessels out there?”
“They wouldn’t last a minute in any real fight, so the decision was made to begin contacting, and ordering them back home. No need to risk any more lives unnecessarily, especially given recent events. Ships better suited for going directly into a warzone will handle this. Best thing we can hope for at this point is that the Loroi will be willing to talk with us, because if they don’t, I don’t think I need to tell you how screwed we’ll be if either or both find Earth.”
“No sir, you don’t.” Was all he said in response.
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Lieutenant Brooks and Stillstorm glared at each, just feet away from each other. Neither took their gaze from the other, neither willing to back down. Many of the Loroi in the room looked on in revulsion at Brooks’ cybernetic limb, while others looked ready to pounce on him if he so much as moved an inch. Alex on the other hand, as well as the white haired Loroi called Beryl, and the pale skinned Tempo, had a mixture of concern and annoyance written on their faces. Alex and Beryl seemed most worried, while Tempo was extremely annoyed with the confrontation.
“I take it your males aren’t fit for military service, just like most of our females aren’t,” Brooks began, causing Stillstorm’s glare to sharpen. “But I’d be a fool to confuse you with any of our females. With that said, I hope its clear enough that neither of us are like your males, so don’t confuse us. I assume that’s the source of your opinion.”
“You choose to willingly mutilate yourself!” Stillstorm spat in disgust.
“We can’t regrow our limbs,” He growled back. “I wanted to keep fighting, so this was my only option.”
“Lowly primitive!”
“Temperamental bitch!” He said back in his own language. Not many insults would go across the species barrier, and this wasn’t one of them. His next words however, very much would. “If you think I’m intimidated by this, you're sorely mistaken.” The Irishman’s words only caused her glare to intensify, and his to not wander from its position. His left hand drifted ever so slightly downward, going towards the sheath she had. In response, he balled his right fist, the metallic joints clicking together as he did so.
Before the situation could get any worse, he felt a force thrown him backwards, almost on his ass. Almost, was the key word, as he felt a force push him backward, forcing him to lose his balance. Using the magnetic grip on his robotic arm, to stabilize himself, and landing in a position that made it look like a retarded attempt at a side leg raise. Getting back on his feet, he spotted the source of his sudden flight backward.
“So that’s what you people can do,” Brooks thought as the red haired Teidar’s eyes glowed bright green, before settling back to their natural color. The other two just stood and watched him, their expressions anything but friendly. “Temper, temper,” He said as he got back up. “But I got the message.”
“Captain Jardin, you will find that tact is a foreign concept to many Loroi. Our Sanzai communication is direct and truthful. As such, a Loroi conveys what is on her mind without varnishment or consideration. This is why we have developed that leave negotiations to those specifically trained for the task.” Tempo said, looking first to Stillstorm, and then onto him, this time for longer. “And require others to hold their tongues during the process.”
It was at this point he felt one of the Teidar, Mothwing, nudge his arm, and point to the benches at the back of the bridge. Not seeing the point in trying to resist, and wanting to leave the politics to Alex, he obeyed, and sat down. Brooks sat there and watched Alex talk things over with the Loroi, all the while a set number of eyes kept themselves locked on him at all times. Or more specifically, focused on his cybernetic arm, which was still uncovered. This is something Brooks noticed, and decided to clear up.
“Four years ago,” He said in a low voice, sliding his synthetic skin back on his arm, making sure it was nice and firm. “I was the last of my squad to make it out of an ambush. Although, not all of myself made it back.” He said, flexing his arm in the air, before resting it back down on his knee.
The four Loroi watching over him looked at each other, no doubt having a telepathic conversation, their eyes wandering back in his direction every so often, but saying nothing. It stayed that way until Alex finished his discussion with the red eyed Loroi, and was ushered back to where he was sitting with the white haired one. The Loroi that surrounded him, parted to give Alex space to sit down next to him. Or rather, as close as he could, since the white haired one sat between the two of them, her attention going back and forth between the two of them.
“So, how’d the talk go, kid?” Brooks whispered, tightening the synthetic skin, and rolling his wrist a few times. “We're gonna get chucked out the airlock or what?”
“She kept saying something about not being able to detect the Umiak fleets, something they could supposedly do with this ‘Farsending Device.’ They also claim that they couldn’t detect us either, like they can’t with their enemy now. She also said it's supposed to detect crews, including those on the Bella, but it didn’t.” Alex explained.
“So they think we’re infiltrators or something? That’s great. So where exactly does this leave us in all this?” Brooks looked around at their escort, whose eyes still hadn’t left the two of them.
“I don’t know, but we might want to shut up and watch what happens here.” Alex said his eyes focused on the control room, and the staff working in it. On the projection screen, four new Loroi appeared, all sporting rather wild hair styles. Three of which wore a uniform similar to Stillstorm, while the forth wore a green uniform. While Brooks didn’t particularly care about what they were saying, the tactical display caught the attention of both Humans.
“Sweet Christ!” Brooks muttered, taking a look at the layout.
“That’s not good. Even their fleet being understrength, has 28 ships in it. And this was described as a small fleet too.”
“And that weird pink thing said there were two more in the system previously. While this force doesn’t outnumber the combined UNSA and Colonial Fleets, it makes up a damn good chunk, to say nothing of what else they got up their sleeve.” Brooks pointed out, more than a bit unnerved.
“This is also ignoring the Umiak, who outnumber the Loroi forces 3-1. Not to mention how quickly the Bellarmine got destroyed by their weapons. I think we’re going to have a difficult time trying to convince the Loroi that we’ll be useful here.”
“Difficult? I’d say almost impossible, if the scale of this war is anything to go by. Our combined forces, already lacking in technology, might make up a single fleet in size. One fleet, when they have God knows how many.” The Irishman pursed his lips, joining Alex in thought as they both tried to figure out just how screwed Humanity was, if and when the war finally came to their doorstep.
As time ticked on by, they watched the engagement between the fleets of the two superpowers. Lances of blue light shot forth, skewering Umiak vessels in their line of fire. A flurry of torpedoes darted from the Umiak vessels, dead set on hitting the Loroi. Pink and red lasers shot forth to meet them, intercepting most, but not all. Neither Human missed how the Loroi laser screen was unable to stop them all, and hits began registering on Loroi ships. The white haired Loroi, named Beryl, sharply inhaled with each friendly hit.
Watching your comrades die in front of you, while you're powerless to do anything, is something Brooks knew all too well. As they continued watching the battle, two Loroi ship captains entered a friendly argument with each over their tally of kills in the battle thus far. Morbid humor on the battlefield and between veterans seems to be a universal quality after all.
“Holy shit!” Alex whispered, watching as a large number of what appeared to be cluster torpedoes accelerated towards an Umiak ship, and in a single bright flash of light, sent it, and its crew to oblivion.
Brooks simply grunted lightly, keeping his focus entirely on the battle display, watching as the Umiak tried to force themselves through the defensive formation. It was at this point one of the Loroi ships had been severely damaged, and tried to retreat from the battle. He watched as the bridge feed from that ship, the same feed that displayed the Loroi in green armor, cut to gray, as an explosion overtook the ship, and cut the feed.
“May you lasses rest in peace,” Brooks muttered, wrapping his left palm over his right fist, and placing it underneath his chin as he glanced over at his ‘guards’, who were far from happy seeing more of their comrades die in front of them. “I’m sorry.” He said in Trade, shaking his head slightly as he kept both eyes forward.
He listened as Alex and the white haired Beryl went on about how good the 51st Strike Group was, and about the enemy’s industrial capacity, and watched as more Umiak reinforcements poured out from the disk ahead. As tough as he thought he was, he couldn’t help but feel beads of cold sweat run down his neck at the sight of so many lights in the distance. But what he saw next, would make his previous sights a welcome reprieve.
The viewscreen shifted to show a massive, yellow skinned, insectoid like creature in front of them. Both Alex and Brooks recoiled in both shock and disgust as they laid eyes on the ugly creature before them. An act their guards didn’t miss
“Dear god!” Brooks murmured as he listened to the Umiak speak whatever message or demands it had. While there was undoubtedly some type of translator software being used to make the thing understandable, the clicks and ticks which were its native tongue, were hard on their ears. Alex, a bright young genius who graduated near top of his class, with only his propensity for getting in trouble stopped him from reaching Valedictorian Honors, and Brooks, an infantry officer who’d seen combat, and lost an arm to prove it, were as far apart as most men could get. One thing they did share however was a sense of unease as they listened to the insectoid speak.
“What do you think ‘object in question’ means?” Alex asked, prompting a small shrug from the Marine.
“If I had to guess, it's our ship they blew to kingdom come.” Brooks replied, watching as Commander Stillstorm broke out in a fit of laughter, and cut the connection between the two.
“Captain Jardin, Lieutenant Brooks, it is time.” Beryl said.
“For what?” Jardin asked.
“The Commander has ordered an attack on the remains of your vessel. You asked to…”
“Of course,” Alex replied, raising his left hand to his patch on his right shoulder, while reciting an old song from the mid 20th century. Brooks on the other hand, offered a short prayer for those who had died, as he watched a missile fire out from the ship they were on, and head straight for the remains of the Bellarmine.
“Merciful Lord, I ask that you please watch over these brave men and women as they enter your kingdom. Welcome them with open arms as your servants return to thee, for they did their duty well and true, and to the best of their abilities. May their souls find peace in your loving embrace, Amen.” As he finished the prayer, the Bellarmine exploded in a flash of light, thus marking the loss of another unit he was part of, and leaving him the last Marine alive.
“We must leave quickly!” Beryl said suddenly, grabbing Jardin’s arm, while the other Loroi sitting beside him did the same.
“What’s wrong?” Alex asked, only to be silenced by the white haired Loroi.
“Please do not argue. We must go immediately!” The two Humans soon found themselves with a Loroi on both sides, practically dragging them from their seats, and out of the bridge. Looking back, Brooks was met with a fierce scowl by Stillstorm, while her second in command raising a curious, but agitated eyebrow, before the door closed, and he and Alex were marched back to the detainment area.
Love it! Though I'm curious if Marines would really be that brash and brutally honest with a first time encounter with a nation/empire whose hearts they are trying to win over. Keep it up!
Good luck in Air Force basic training by the way, Quickdraw101. And come home safe!
That was quite the confrontation, and Brooks was almost too eager to provoke the Loroi.
Air Force? Good luck, if you succeed, you can look down on everyone else, both literally and figuratively. If not, there's always a plan B:
SpoilerShow
A guy approaches an army recruiter and shouts: "Sign me up for Air Defense!"
The recruiter, somewhat confused: "Uhm, why this branch?"
The guy, getting even more agitated: "They said that I'm not good enough for the Air Force, so if I'm not allowed to fly, nobody else will!"
Love it! Though I'm curious if Marines would really be that brash and brutally honest with a first time encounter with a nation/empire whose hearts they are trying to win over. Keep it up!
Good luck in Air Force basic training by the way, Quickdraw101. And come home safe!
Brooks isn't a politician nor diplomat. He's an infantry Marine, and many Marines aren't known for their good social graces, especially after something like this happens. He wasn't so much as eager, as he was pissed off with their attitudes and doubts.
Well I will say, though it seems common among fanfic writers to depict Stillstorm as someone who is quick to speak loudly enough to merit exclamation marks, she has, In fact, only done so in the comics when giving orders and never out of pure anger.
Stillstorm I reckon is no mere fireball who gets angry enough to speak loud over trivial things.
In combat being loud giving orders can be necessary given the whole life or death situations involved.
The only time she really expressed anger loudly was when she laughed in contempt at the Umiak commander.
Brooks isn't a politician nor diplomat. He's an infantry Marine, and many Marines aren't known for their good social graces, especially after something like this happens. He wasn't so much as eager, as he was pissed off with their attitudes and doubts.
Honestly, I assumed that it was his PTSD talking here, since it went beyond merely being pissed off. Even the Marines should've had some sort of basic diplomacy training, along the lines of "don't measure aliens by human standards".
Brooks isn't a politician nor diplomat. He's an infantry Marine, and many Marines aren't known for their good social graces, especially after something like this happens. He wasn't so much as eager, as he was pissed off with their attitudes and doubts.
Honestly, I assumed that it was his PTSD talking here, since it went beyond merely being pissed off. Even the Marines should've had some sort of basic diplomacy training, along the lines of "don't measure aliens by human standards".
His PTSD is playing a part, but this scenario isn't exactly something they've been trained for, because who thought one of the Marines would be speaking with a fleet commander? Overall, he's not best suited for this, ergo why he let Alex take the lead, and why he's going to be watching from a distance. His thoughts, opinions, and trauma aren't going to help him here.
