Ranger
Chapter 76: Bone
By Wanderer D
The group advanced cautiously. Angel's warning about the lack of the temple's regular occupants had put them all on edge. Where before, Sunset would be in awe at the faded grandeur of ancient human culture, now she expected each shadow and each small sound, be it crumbling rocks under her boots or the wind whistling in between the gaps in the walls to mean an imminent attack.
The soft jungle floor eventually gave way to large slabs of rock that made the road into the temple itself, although this did not stop trees and other vegetation from taking root in the nooks and crannies of the structure, deforming it in some parts, and completely collapsing it in others. Regular rain had built a solid amount of moss on walls and other surfaces, with only few interior parts exempt from the soft vegetation.
Once they reached deeper into the structure, however, the plants receded and it resembled more of what it had probably originally looked like, reaching out to to the sky, like a jagged bone, with sun-bleached rocks carved into complicated scenarios of gods, mortals and myths.
They had spread a little, to make themselves less of an obvious target. Elena, using her impressive stealth, was a little ahead and above—the structure was designed in such a way that she could sneak around at a higher level, providing her with a better vantage point, and better angles for shooting her Vector Rifle if needed.
Mox and Sunset followed Angel, keeping their eyes and senses focused on their surroundings. Earlier, despite the noise they made, the jungle hadn't cared. Now, it was silent. Monkeys being infamous for their rambunctious personalities it was a little bit unnerving to have them all be gone.
Thinking of this, Sunset looked up at where Elena hid, tilting her head curiously, but the Reaper shrugged. There was no sign of the previous occupants.
Sunset summoned her magic and felt the blood magic enhance her sight, but other than small animals in the distance and the blood flow of her companions, she couldn't detect anything. From time to time, under the rock, she would spot an animal or two, faintly glowing before presumably delving deeper.
Still, she kept her spell going for the time being, not trusting their surroundings at all.
They proceeded with caution for about twenty minutes into the structure, peering into the dark corners, ears straining to catch any sound, but it appeared like they were on their own. Finally, when they had emerged from the first part of the temple into a large empty area, a zocalo of sorts, with other temples rising around them, Sunset took a quick glance around—once more only noticing the occasional heartbeat of small underground animals—sighed and raised her fist, motioning everyone to stop.
Rather than summon Elena down to their position, she turned on her headset, then looked at the Viper. "Okay, I really don't like this… how much farther in do we need to go?"
Angel hissed and motioned at the buildings, then above them, making Sunset grimace.
"For those of us that don't speak Parseltongue?" Elena called in from her location.
"If by that you mean Viper language, she said that the only way to reach our destination in time is to cut through the old temple," Sunset said.
"Somehow I had predicted this," Mox said with a shrug. "If we still have to go through, we might as well make haste. If something awaits in the shadows we will find it quicker, and if nothing remains, then we'll get through much faster."
Sunset nodded. It was time to face the music. Giving the signal, they moved on, it wasn't long before they heard the first noise… a skittering sound, echoing from somewhere in the ruins and a distant, echoing cry behind them.
They recognized it immediately.
"Chryssalids," Mox said, turning around and studying the area behind them. "They've surrounded us."
"But how?" Sunset muttered. She shook her head, motioning for them to move on. "This is not good… why are they here?"
Mox cleared his throat. "I have heard of several of the more… unpredictable of our forces sometimes also relinquishing the control of the elders. ADVENT would generally send several pods to hunt them down and eliminate them… it is possible, something similar happened here and they were unable to hunt them all down."
Angel's tongue tasted the air nervously. The skittering drew closer and then faded away, but there was no sign of the creatures themselves.
"So you mean to tell me," Sunset said, "that a chryssalid came here… and fed on and possibly poisoned the monkeys that lived here?"
"It is entirely possible." Mox nodded.
Sunset glanced at Angel. "How many monkeys are we talking about here?"
The Viper hissed softly and Sunset winced. "Thousands?"
"So where are they hiding?" Mox asked, before slowly looking down at the stone floor under them.
"Shit." Sunset said. Then she looked up. "Run." She started following her own advice, running to the nearest set of stone stairs. "To higher ground!"
As if the vibration from their running had reached them, several alien cries rose from all around—and under them—and just as she was about to reach the stone stairs, the ground exploded in front of her, with two large scythe-like appendages stabbing down and piercing the rock in front of her to pull up the rest of the chryssalid out.
A shot echoed in the old temple, drowning the screeches for an instant, and the chryssalid's head snapped back from direct hit from Elena's gun. It wasn't enough to kill the creature, but it was for Sunset to grab her sword from its harness and slice down with as much strength as she could.
The creature exploded in a shower of blood, splattering all over Sunset. Behind her, she heard more stone break and screeches and shots as more chrysalids emerged from under them.
Angel and Mox were shooting anything that moved as soon as it emerged from the ground. Most of the Chryssalids were smaller in size than the one that had tried to jump Sunset, and would usually go down with a shot or sword slice, however they were extremely fast and soon Mox was sporting a few cuts of his own, courtesy of the insectile scythes.
"These small ones seem to have already reached their maturity," Mox shouted, throwing down one and smashing its head in with the heel of his boot before shooting another one.
Elena's shots took down one, and then another.
"Any poison?"
"Not from them!" Mox replied.
"Bigger ones on your six," Elena informed them dryly.
"We need to get out of here... " Sunset said, slowly backing away, raising her shard gun to blow off the head of the nearest one. She got lucky and avoided the first sweep of the next one's scythes, but the follow up hit in the right spot between her armor links to leave a painful cut on her stomach.
She could feel the poison slowly spreading, and focused her magic on the injury, fighting it back. "Guys, we need to escape!"
Angel hissed something angrily.
"I know you know!"
More cracks and showers of stone around them announced the arrival of even more chryssalids. Sunset was pushed back, until she was back to back with Angel and Mox. She put her gun away and started slashing as many chryssalids as she could with her sword, rather than wasting ammo.
"Sunset!" for the first time since the fight started Elena sounded worried. "The ground!"
Rather than seeing it, Sunset felt it. Whatever was under the plaza where they stood was, it wasn't holding well the weight of several tons of stone, alien insects breaking through it and the trampling.
The ground under them buckled, giving pause even to the chryssalids. The aliens and resistance fighters looked at each other as the whole temple shook. The ground seemed to sink a little, but through sheer luck, the center held and the pressure of the rock slabs kept them in place.
"Nobody move…" Sunset whispered. The larger of the chryssalids chittered softly, seeming to understand her words and agree with her order.
"This is not going to hold…" Mox warned.
"We might still make it if there's no more attacks…" Sunset said. The chryssalids didn't seem to understand her per se, but it seemed to somehow sense that she wasn't to attack.
"Chryssalids are unpredictable and not trustworthy…" Mox warned.
"Maybe," Sunset conceded, looking straight at the largest of her enemies. "But they would have to be pretty stupid to do something like that right now."
It was then that four consecutive explosions of rock bursting out around them happened, and four large chrysallids landed from the newly-formed holes, screeching in defiance.
The ground shook, and Sunset glared at them. "Stupid, stupid, chryssalids!" she shouted just as the whole plaza collapsed under them.
o.0.o End Chapter 76 o.0.o
Which xcom Player doesn't Hate chrisilids?
8890052
I hate the new ones ever so slightly less.
8890062
Yeah. For me, the Egg Thing is more terriying than the Cocoon Process
Fucking hate those aliens. If there was any alien that was irredeemable, it’s the chryssalids. Nuke them from orbit.
8890065
It also helps I've never lost a soldier to them. I've had a couple close calls but I usually roll with 2 dedicated medics, especially when expecting chryssalids.
8890083
Lucky you.
8890052
The one that hasnt encountered them yet. Or that first found their terror from the deep equivalents.
8890089
Makes Sense
So, the gift goes both ways? Neat.
Edit: Think Sunset knows what they're saying too?
8890084
yeah well... I'll admit there have been some damn close calls and some near wipes from mutons taking advantage of my caution.
8890114
I see
Ha, it's like Aliens but in reverse, bursting out of the floors instead of the ceiling
Uhhhh. Why is this chapter 78?
previous was 75 sooo .... Typo?
I HATE 'Site Recon'!!
8890052
If ther is one he/she needs a re-edukation.
8890083
Bah! Why nerf the chryssalids? When Microprose made the sequal they made them (swim) fly!
Speaking of the differences between the timelines, any one else get the feeling that the next game will be Apocalypse rather than TFTD?
All but one element that made TFTD already exist in XCOM 2:
-A few decades after the first Alien War
-Tech adavnces made in AW1 retconned away
-Gauss replacing Laser as XCOM weapon tech
-Altered Geo-political situation
-Some aliens modified, others replaced
Then we have the assault on the Ethereal world and the strike against the pyschic network, this actual meaningful damage to the Ethereal Empire is something we never managed in the Micropose timeline. We know that in both (all 4?) timelines The E.E. is fighting another more powerful enemy and in the Mp timeline the Micronoid Aggregate wins this war and then comes for us, que XCOM 2's "Pacific Rim" teaser scene.
Such cute little buggos!
8890089
I still have nightmares from the terror from the deep chryssalids.
Chryssalids. God i hate those things. In enemy within they made me have to kill the zombies of some of my soldiers. I had made personal bonds with them.
There is only one thing I hate more than Chrysalids, and that is the Brain Suckers from X-Com Apocalypse. I've lost SO MANY troops to those damn things.
I want the next scene to have Sunset spotting the smaller surviving Chrysalis killing those four in anger.
8890328
Those and the Poppers, they're so hard to deal with in turn based mode I use real time mode for reaction fire goodness.
Well that and I love raiding the gangs while dual wielding devestator cannons set to full auto.
8890189
Indeed.
Where do you get those small pictures you use as scene dividers? I've seen them before but hadn't given it much thought. Now I'm thinking it's something I might want to do myself.
Indeed
We might not agree to stop fighting, but we can at least agree to take the fight somewhere safer.
8890187 Typo :P It was late when I started...
8890494
Though so. XD These things happen.
Invasive species are often devastating for their environment. Invasive species from another planet even more so.
wait... monkeys? who's temple was this in particular? if they wiped out monkeys in sun wukongs temple....
burn them sunset
BURN THEM ALL!!!
Those poor monkeys.
I think I already said how much I despise Chryssalids.
It's not that they hard to kill, outside at the very beginning, it's just because of how much they are, the ridiculous amount of movement they have and the sheer damage they dealt.
But the absolute worst is during terror mission, you barely start the mission they already kill one third of the civilians and the zombies that raise from their poison gain a ridiculous amount of HP.
"Stupid, stupid, chryssalids!"
I see someone else has read Bone
Well, Sunset and Mox both have grappling guns, and between them should be able to lift Angel out as well.
That said...there are few things funnier than the comeuppance chryssalids get when they charge a soldier who gets an automatic counterattack as soon as they get close.
Stupid, stupid chryssalids.
Hah- bone.
8891465
I thought I was the only one and it's awesome
8891649
I saw that too. Stupid Rat Creatures...
"Why would you do that?" The fox asked. "Now we'll both die."
"I'm sorry," said the scorpion. "It's my nature."
That the Elders could lose control of chrysalids is down right horrifying and a situation they would certainly want to take care of immediately. I'm pretty sure that's how you lose a planet, and it seems like the Elders do kind of need this one.
That moment where even the xeno nightmare fuel monster knows now isn’t the time to be playing games.
Stupid, stupid rat..! I mean chrysallids!
I'll say it again.
Yer' a witch, Sunset Shimmer.
And now it's canon (as a blood witch)!
It's Site Recon all over again.
9181130
Yep, that was my feeling. With thousands of monkeys in place of the whale. Shudder.
Well ... that does not bode well ...
either one or the other, not both...
I smile every time I see this Bone reference.
It appears someone read the bone series
STUPID, STUPID RAT CREATURES!
Man it's been a while since I've seen a Bone reference, nice.
EDIT: wait you named the chapter Bone YOU ABSOLUTE MADMAN YOU,
-GM, master of Bone.
8890052
Just think.
The real OG Xcom players say the first version was worse than the Firaxis versions...
8891515
I say the same thing about sneks when they grab my OP Blademaster as well.
8890189
I don't mind Site Recon myself. In fact, I actually really enjoy it! Just needed Heavys with multi shot, a squad site sniper, and a support with high mobility. My only real gripes about the mission is the fact you don't get any chryss bodies at the end and the fact the first play through of that mission caused me to lose my best heavy that campaign. He went out like a god damned hero though. Favorite soldier story of EW.