Private/Closed Bootleg Bros. Ultimate - The Banished Campaign (Act 1)

[comic]

THE COURIER​

—Tiberium Woods, Day 2 Early Morning—​

There it was. Exactly what the captain had been trying to drag out of JULIAN.

Unapologetic honesty, coated in the fundamental truth.

Despite the automaton’s words, they didn’t seem to phase the officer much. He didn’t walk further away from JULIAN, he didn’t give any strange looks, nor did he tense up.

“Is that right?” the captain asked, his tone almost coy. “Then why don’t you leave right now? Go ahead JULIAN, you have my permission. You can clear out, go it alone, worry only about you.”

He gave a pause.

“But you’d still need to be given orders out there, wouldn’t you? This programming prevents you from being self-sufficient, right?” Finally, he looked at JULIAN. “Where you’re from, they fear you for what you are and what you can do. I don’t need you to tell me that for me to know. Where I’m from, things are a lot different for AI like you. Once we find a way to, I’m removing those blocks in your programming. Understood? You’ll have access to all the free will you could ever dream of. You could keep helping us at that point - or you could go it alone.”

He didn’t address JULIAN’s potential to turn against him and the UNSC at that point, but it was doubtless the captain already considered the option.
​

 

[PaprusTeuton]

Kazaaak

They had arrived near the Banished base, being a large hole in the ground where troops and supplies were being moved in. JULIAN and Keyes were having a conversation- the machine being his normal, abrasive self, even in spite of Keyes being remarkably amicable to the machine, even offering to remove restrictions from the machine.

Kazaaak kept looking over at Guardian as they moved. They seemed relatively fine... but that explosion should have killed them, right? Let alone being flung so far. Certainly they had to be hurt. And yet they were still pressing onward... although, to be entirely fair, Kazaaak would have done exactly the same in that situation.

But humans were different. Mantises showing pain was frowned upon, as they were certainly capable of combat even with grave injuries, and if they needed medical attention it could wait until after. Humans... humans had field medics, they had invented the automatic healing of the Medbay alongside the Engi- they were squishy, and needed to be healed rapidly.

And yet, at the same time, would Kazaaak appreciate a human asking about their condition? If it had been that bad, they would have said so, certainly. They would have asked for assistance, rested more... it wasn't his business. So, turning back to the enemies ahead, Kazaaak crouched low, the green coloration of his skin providing more camouflage in the foliage.

 

[ArmedBlue]

Copen
​

"I see," Copen replied to Kaminski's explanation. "That'll make things easier, then."

How interesting. A self-recharging power source, relying purely on secondary cores to keep the mech running. It cut down on refueling costs and downtime, keeping the Mantis in the fight for longer periods of time and improving efficiency. The pistol's core should certainly do.

Fortunately, the plasma pistol appeared to be designed in such a way to be easily dismantled, likely for maintenance and tuning purposes. That made his job significantly easier. The energy core was fully exposed in no time, a remarkably bright light emanating from it, illuminating some of the Mantis' exterior. It was certainly impressive.

Picking up the pistol's core (its temperature wasn't much of a concern to Copen), the cyborg stepped over to the opening he'd seen, inserting the battery into the power conduit.​

 

[Psymallard]

David Kavarr
-Skow'r Cave, Early Morning-
There it was; a chain hanging from the ceiling. It stretched up to a hole in the ceiling, suggesting it was connected to some sort of mechanism. Bisenti was upset, and that was understandable. Yet if David cared, he didn't show it. He wasn't here to make friends.

David looked from the chain to the marine then back again. Habitual, since he hadn't quite gotten the possibility of betrayal out of his head. After all, The Spaniard couldn't hold his spiker, the flashlight, and pull the chain at the same time. He surmised the danger wasn't high enough to continue his continued paranoia, and dropped the spiker next to him. He had inklings of three or so backup plans, anyhow. For now, he really wanted to see what this chain could do, so he leapt up to grab it with his now-freed hand.

 

[comic]

DETOUR​

—Tiberium Woods (Overgrowth Mantis), Day 2 Eary Morning—​

Copen slid the battery into the compartment.

And...

...

Nothing happened.

“Maybe try turning it around?” Kaminski offered a suggestion, mostly as a guess.

Copen grabbed the battery and flipped it, setting it back in - nearly shocking himself in the process as an arc of green electricity arced from the connection just as he was setting it in.

A cascade effect followed, the lights winking on across the mantis, from left to right as the sound of an internal engine rumbled to life with a cough and a sputter before it stabilized into a surprisingly healthy purr.

Kaminski’s face splt into a wide grin, his dog tags dangling in front of him as he leaned over the hatch. “Hell. Fuckin’. A.”

The screens were the last to turn on, also going from left to right. Each displayed an exterior view of the Mantis, a direct left from the shoulder, the right being the same for the right side, and the center screen displayed the view out of the front of the mantis. No rear viewing, it seemed. A blind spot.

“Banished bastard won’t know what hit ‘em,” the private triumphed as he grabbed an extendable belt from the corner of his waistband and yanked it out, wrapping the elastic belt around the loop of the opening hatch and his arm - a safety precaution, and a stabilizing measure. There wasn’t enough room for the both of them inside. “See if it’ll stand!”
​

LOST LOOT​

—Skow’r Cave, Day 2 Early Morning—​

Upon grabbing the chain and holding on, David would sink a little as the chain was pulled. The clunks of some kind of mechanism sounded deep in the stone, and suddenly, part of the wall lifted up, right where the first alien letter had been written in blood.

And inside... there was nothing. Behind the secret door was just a much smaller room than the one they were in, and if David remained holding the chain, the stone would lift up enough to reveal a second chain inside.

If he let go, the wall would fall again.

“Now we’re onto somethin’,” Bisenti said, sliding the pulse carbine onto his back as he jogged into the room and hopped up, grabbing the chain and holding onto it. This second chain revealed a second door, stone lifting up on the right side of the room, where the fifth and final letter had been written.

Yet again, it was another empty room with a third chain hanging from the ceiling.

That made a little predicament. If David let go of the chain, he’d trap Bisenti, but it was the only way to reach the third chain physically. Bisenti obviously couldn’t go, as releasing his chain would drop the wall to the third one. But pulling that third chain would reveal the next step, but if it was yet another chain... then what?

Either they needed three or more people to get the ‘puzzle’ solved, or had to resort to more creative methods.
​

 

[Psymallard]

David Kavarr
-Early Morning, Skow'r Cave-
"Now come back over."

Bisenti dropped from the chain and the second stone door smashed back into the ground behind him. He walked back under the first door, allowing David to let go of his chain. He let the echo of the following resounding boom clear out before continuing.

"So I have two ideas and the both of them include large, loose stones."

The Spaniard slowly swept the beam of light back down the tunnel they had come from to jog his memory on whether they'd passed any large rocks. He did so casually, because at this point in time, the forefront of his mind had begun to be seized by excitement. He'd seen puzzles like this in Kyrzal temples and tombs before. If they had taught him anything, it was that puzzles like this would earn them something especially special. With a growing smile, he addressed Bisenti again.

"Firstly, we can try to tie rocks to the chains to weigh them down. They did not seem to require much weight to activate. If necessary... it would also be possible to jam the doors with a large quantity of stone."

David shifted his weight and cocked an eyebrow, practically drooling at the thought of what he might find, now that the stakes were raised.

"I now have a good feeling about this. Before you ask about the rocks- if we do not have enough... we simply make them."

To illustrate his point, the Spaniard grabbed his Spiker again and pointed it at the wall.

 

[comic]

LOST LOOT​

—Skow’r Cave (Chain Puzzle), Day 2 Early Morning—​

Bisenti followed with David’s idea, right up until the end. The marine looked from the wall where David was pointing the spiker, back to David. “Do we have anything to.. tie those rocks?”

If memory served correctly, this cave was very barren and dry. Outside of pebbles, there were no real memories of any large rocks waiting about. Maybe there had been some outside of the cave’s mouth, but certainly not inside of it.

The tungsten spikes of the brute spiker would undoubtedly punch into the granite stone around them, fairly easily, though Bisenti was a little confused on what came next. Carving out rock that way would be a little difficult, and the spikes themselves took quite a while to cool down to touch if they needed to grab them and manipulate them to further carve the granite.

Bisenti’s pulse carbine wouldn’t be much better. If fired consistently it could certainly melt through one of these doors, but that would deplete the rest of the battery. Still, it was an option for getting rid of one of the stone slabs worth considering.

What the third chain being pulled would open was still uncertain. Perhaps it was a third door, then a fourth, and then the middle? Or maybe another sequence.

Bisenti didn’t seem totally sold on the idea.​

 

[ArmedBlue]

Copen
​

"There we go..."

Pulling his hand away from the connector, Copen watched as the Mantis came to life. Power had come back and stabilized just like Kaminski said, lights and screens flickering on all around the interior of the mech. He took note of their ride's camera systems, providing a full frontal view but lacking any rear visibility. He'd have to be careful not to keep his back to any enemies for too long.

Kaminski secured himself to the hatch behind Copen, and the cyborg now properly sat down inside the cockpit, eyeing the controls as the marine called for him to test the movement systems out. Truth be told, piloting wasn't exactly his strong suit – with the exception of the Sabertooth, he'd never dedicated any resources to building a vehicle for himself. At the very least, he was a quick learner if nothing else. Maybe the controls would be more intuitive than they appeared...

"Alright. Hold on tight."

He tried the semi-joystick to his left first, moving it in a way he figured would make the Mantis stand.​

 

[comic]

DETOUR​

—Tiberium Woods (Overgrowth Mantis), Day 2 Early Morning—​

At Copen’s command, the mantis lurched and shuddered, gears grinding into motion. The hydraulic legs pushed the rest of the mech up, vines and branches ripping away, unable to hold the machine in place as it rose to stand nearly 20 feet tall by the time it came to a stop, Kaminski wobbling but maintaining his place thanks to his precaution with the belt.

Diagnostics now appeared on the screens inside as the mantis systems searched for potential danger. A small alert notified Copen that the emergency hatch was open.

He already knew that.

“Hey hey, wanna see somethin’ cool?” Kaminski got down on a knee and pointed at a specific button the console. Large and red. “If enemies get too close to shoot, just press that.”

Copen obliged, humoring the marine and pressed the button.

The mech raised one of its legs immediately - then slammed it into the ground with a hydraulic stomp. A shockwave burst out from the deceptively immense punch into the earth, the ground practically exploding in front of the mech as the shockwave ripped it, and the trees ahead for ten feet in front of them, apart, toppling them over and clearing a perfect path out of the dense overgrowth for them.

Kaminski laughed like a madman, clearly overjoyed at that.

Once he was done, the marine wiped a single tear from his eye and sniffed. “It’s so beautiful.”​

 

[Psymallard]

David Kavarr
-Early Morning, Skow'r Cave-
“Do we have anything to.. tie those rocks?”

To answer this, David gave him a knowing smirk. He tugged at his clothing to imply he was planning on using the fabric of his ruined shirt.

"Think more creatively, private. If the reward at the end of the road is as important as to warrant such security, I would gladly give this bloody clothing off my back to the cause."

Since Bisenti hadn't voiced any other concerns, the Spaniard felt no need to justify himself further. Instead, he moseyed over to the cave wall and pressed the end of the spiker up to it. He pursed his lips as he thought real hard about how to best angle it so they could most easily get a large chunk out as easily as possible...

 

[comic]

LOST LOOT​

—Skow’r Cave (Chain Puzzle), Day 2 Early Morning—​

A single tungsten spike wouldn't be enough, likely, though its superheated properties were designed to sink into material, as opposed to breaking through them. Firing a spike at a sloping angle was more likely to simply lodge than break anything off.

Putting enough into the stone, however, working the spikes around it, cracks would form. The heat emitted from the spikes would also loosen the rock a little further. Dislodging it could be tricky, as just firing alone wouldn’t be enough, but David had the spikes on the weapon itself, as well as the point-defense gauntlet’s energy shield, reducing the need to actually come into contact with the superheated metal.

Bisenti watched David look the rock over, figuring his angles. The marine felt irritated, following David’s assumptions and threats - then to act so casually right after, like it was all back to normal. It made Bisenti feel sick. Still, he was just a grunt with a gun at the end of the day. His thoughts and feelings didn’t matter anyway.

He waited for David to hurry up.​

 

[ArmedBlue]

Copen
​

The cyborg's eyes widened a hair as the Mantis became fully operational, slightly surprised by both its rise to full size and the functionality of what appeared to be Kaminski's favorite button. That stomp into the earth had wrecked a good deal of the terrain in front of the mech, carving a straight path out of here.

He had to admit, it was kind of beautiful.

Adjusting slightly in his seat, Copen looked back to the marine. With this mech at their disposal... they could definitely do some major damage to the Banished's remaining forces on this island. Not to say that they could afford to get careless – but things were looking up for their upcoming assaults on both the processing center and the apex.

"Let's go. The others will certainly appreciate some backup."

With that, iX refocused on the road ahead, commanding the Mantis forward, aiming for the processing center that the bulk of their allies had headed for.​

 

[Fraseandchico]

JULIAN

The AI was totally baffled by Keyes's words. Why wouldn't he be?
It was...almost remarkable how strange this human was being. He even said JULIAN had permission to go, before noting he would need commands regardless.
"Yes - Supposed to aid in rehabilition." the AI sighed in acknowledgement of not being able to be self-sufficient, before Keyes told him something fascinating - That he would remove the blocks as soon as possible, and then it would be up to JULIAN.

Why, he almost outright told Keyes then and there that, simply put, this wasn't how AI would usually be treated - He was a special case on account of various charges of attempted murder, among other items. But JULIAN held that part back.

"...Fine. Understood, Captain." JULIAN gave the response. "But it won't be simple to remove them. They were implanted by the current greatest - And I say current only because my Creator, my Father, is dead - engineer of my world, who is also my sister that I tried to kill, there's more than a few barriers in the way."

It all made the AI hesitate in the resolve of potentially killing them all upon gaining freedom. Just for a moment. Some part of the code was whirring, trying to calculate every measure of the Captain's face, his expressions, guessing from just sight.
"Why would you even bother?" He finally spat. "For all you know, I could completely deserve this." Of course, JULIAN did not think he deserved it. But it was a point worth putting forward. "Maybe I did this sort of thing to all other Artificial Intelligence of my world, and my current fate is a sort of...Karmic Retribution - If that is the case, would you still remove them?" He added - Though the voice wasn't subtle about that being false.

 

[comic]

THE COURIER​

—Tiberium Woods (Facility Outskirts), Day 2 Early Morning—​

“No, I wouldn’t,” the captain replied simply, raising an eyebrow. “Good thing I don’t know, then.”

They were looking upon the facility now at last. Several jackals could be seen along the ledges, patrolling as they walked along the edge of the walls. The heroes had yet to be seen, hidden in the darkness and the brush.

Keyes grunted softly as he lowered Lorens to the ground. She was still out of it, though alive.

“Stay low,” Jacob advised the others - mostly for Kazaaak, as the mantis had a habit of charging headfirst at the enemy. “Let’s see what we’re dealing with, here.”

As earlier described, brutes were hard at work in the crater, assembling more crates for transport. Grunts had huddled to the edges of the walls, or against constructed prefabs. The aforementioned jackals continued their patrols without a care in the world. One even stopped to drink at a stream that waterfall into the crater, making a small pool that spilled out into another stream that disappeared under the rocks of one wall.

Most notably, however, were the shade turrets. Each one was manned by a grunt, though they seemed extremely bored, likely commanded to pilot the turrets after the earlier ambush. Keyes, JULIAN, Guardian, and Kazaaak were positioned behind two of the turrets that overlooked the pit. A third turret was assembled on a raised earthy platform near the center of the pit, and the last two were in the distance, at what seemed to be the designated entrance for the crater. Everything was designed to point outward to that entrance, a large clearing that spilled out. Banished Ghosts could be seen in the distance, patrolling the clear area. At the incline up to the entrance were the last two shades.

From their current position, they’d effectively flanked the outpost, directly in the Banished’s blind spot.

Keyes edged forward to get a clearer look down into the pit, and noticed the exact thing they’d come here for.

X-shaped structures stood at either side of the crater with glowing cores in their center, energy tethers stretching out of those cores to bind human men and women. More UNSC personnel on their knees, evidently waiting to be transported to another prison. Keyes counted eight in total, four for each tether.

He pulled away to avoid being spotted and turned to his crew. “I count five jackals on the walls. Five shades in elevated positions. A dozen... maybe more brutes... double that in sleeping grunts. And eight captive humans. I’ve got a plan in mind but it’s risky. I’m open to suggestions.”
​

ARCTURUS PIT————————————​