Part 29: Retribution Cometh
Update 26: Retribution Cometh
"Commander Vault, tactical update. April twentieth.
Our ground game is strong. We can hold the Reticulans from gaining any more ground and we can prevent the Biomass from expanding further into our own territory. We can even strike into Biomass infested locations and set up a Biomass repulsor base further reducing the amount of land consumed by the mass. Most of Europe is now secure and Biomass free, though it is seeing a high amount of UFO activity. Our factories are producing the best armor we have developed, the enhanced version of the heavy armor suits, and we have even built a few enhanced plasma rifles and shotguns capable of incredible damage outputs. Given all of this, I ordered a shift in our research. From weapons and armor and technologies to a battle strategy that will do more then let us secure one region of earth at a time. We need to strike back at the Reticulans, hit them where they are coming from.
The research already paid off:
We now have a very good idea of where they are coming from. Obviously we can't totally confirm that without going to the dark side of the moon and seeing for ourselves, but the chances we are right look pretty good. The problem was of course the same problem we have faced since day one: earth is devastated. Producing our own space ship was going to be impossible. With that in mind, some genius down in the think tank came up with the wonderful idea of capturing an enemy ship and refitting it for our own use.
We hadn't even found a ship before the think tank named it 'Retribution'. Well whatever, it is a fitting name after all. That only left us with the chore of shooting down a UFO without causing too much damage and capturing it, refitting it, and then flying it into space. The first step proved to be impossible. Either the damn things shot our planes down, or we dealt enough damage to the UFO to ensure it never got off the ground again, and repairing a UFO that we downed in traditional style wasn't going to happen.
Strangely enough our problem got solved for us. A UFO crashed into the north western part of Africa all by itself. We didn't shoot it down and couldn't figure out why it would just nose dive into the ground like that. Stranger still, as far as we could determine it had come from space, entered our atmosphere and just crashed. We had a nearly perfectly intact spaceship just crash into our laps. We couldn't have asked for more. Hero's team was sent out immediately."
Rabbit: Sigh... Of course this one looks just like every other UFO in their fleet.
Fastball: I guess creative freedom isn't big for them.
Hero: At least we know what to expect then.
Robo-Canuck: AFFIRMITIVE. CHECKING THE AREA BEHIND US.
Redeker: Yup, you called it. Burn assholes.
Robo-Canuck: ADDITIONAL HOSTILE DETECTED.
Redeker: Not a problem.
Redeker: How do you like your Reticulan burger, flame kissed, or burnt to a crisp?
Panzer: Burnt to a crisp, definitely.
Fire Storm: Hey guys, behind us!
Hero: Whoops, okay enough joking around. Kill everything you see.
Hero: Nice. Got to love this new machine gun.
Fastball: Yeah, command's been pumping out new weapons lately. They even gave me an upgraded plasma shotgun.
Redeker: Incoming! Ow, why do they always aim at me?!
Panzer: Maybe they just don't like hybrids?
Redeker: Whatever, burn in hell.
Fire Storm: Fuuuu, that was easy!
Rabbit: Don't get too excited.
Panzer: Found the 'porter.
Hero: Gather up and we're going in.
Rabbit: You know, just this once, I don't know why, but I expected this one ship to look different for some reason.
Fire Storm: Very disappointing, okayyyyy...
Robo-Canuck: DANGER, THE ENEMY HAS FOUND US. GET DOWN.
Redeker: Ow ow ow ow....
Fire Storm: Toastyyy!
Redeker: Shut up.
Hero: Everyone okay? And damn it Redeker, can't you control the size of the blast when you do that?
Redeker: Not really.
Robo-Canuck: PLEASE HOLD STILL, PROCEEDING TO ADMINISTER MEDICAL ATTENTION.
Panzer: Ow fuck! Another hosti-
Rabbit: Panzer!
Hero: Holy shit! Waste that thing!
Hero: Got him!
Rabbit: Too late, Rocket!
Redeker: Ow ow ow... Getting my damn medkit for this.
Fastball: Covering the right side, Hero.
Hero: Right, Rabbit and I have the left.
Hero: Die!
Hero: Jesus, they keep coming over here!
Fastball: Still clear over here, everyone is patched up.
Hero: God damn it. Enough with the rocket launchers!
Fastball: Sounds like you're taking care of them over there.
Fire Storm: Alien!
Fastball: Whoops, our turn!
Hero: Rabbit, cover me a sec, need to reload this thing.
Rabbit: Check.... Heads up.
Rabbit: Never mind, Jackhammer still works well on these guys.
Robo-Canunk: AREA LOOKS SECURE FOR THE MOMENT.
Hero: Great, but can someone tell me what the hell that is?
Fire Storm: It's floating in circles...
Hero: I can see that. Can anyone tell me something useful?
Robo-Canuck: IT IS CLEARLY OF RETICULAN DESIGN. THE FACT WE HAVEN'T SEEN IT BEFORE IN OTHER UFO'S SUGGESTS IT IS IMPORTANT ENOUGH TO DESTROY BEFORE RISKING ITS CAPTURE.
Hero: Whatever, we're taking one of these cubes with us. And someone needs to help bring Panzer back to the helicopter.
Robo-Canuck: I will.
Hero: Thanks. Let's get out of here.
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Hero: Whoa, who the hell are you?
Lacroix: Huh? Me? Who are you? And where are all the Reticulans that were trying to kill me?
Hero: We killed them. You're safe now. Just tell us who you are an what you're doing here.
Fire Storm: ohhh, look at his lightish red armor. So pretty!
Redeker: Shut up dude.
Fire Storm: Ow... I have a head ache.
Redeker: Seriously, shut up, he looks familiar.
Lacroix: Not that it matters I suppose, but I was a prisoner of the Reticulans.
Hero: A prisoner? What did they want with you?
Lacroix: We had a deal with them.
Hero: A deal? You're a cultist!
Lacroix: I am... And you must be soldiers of that Council of Earth I heard them talk about.
Hero: We are. So what kind of deal did you make with them?
Lacroix: Why would I tell you. It doesn't matter anymore. When they got what they wanted they locked me up and did something to Psion. They held me for months until I got out and stole the ship. Not that I really knew how to fly the damn thing.
Redeker: Psion... wait, your his partner Lacroix!?!
Lacroix: Huh, who are you?
Redeker: I remember you, I was with X-Com!
Lacroix: So some of you survived? Amazing. Well it's too late for you now. It's too bad you didn't accept the Reticulan's offer like the Cult did. They will be floating in the skies watching the earth be consumed while you are all destroyed.
Hero: Maybe not. You just handed us a key to defeating the Reticulans.
Lacroix: Me? What? Whatever you say. I'm getting out of here and hiding out on one of the Laputas.
Hero: Laputas? What the... Fuck he's gone.
Redeker: Knowing he's alive is bad news. At least he said something bad happened to Psion. He was a real 'holier then thou' kind of prick.
"Every bit of good news comes with another piece of alarming news. It's tough to even figure out where to begin.
The best news is that we have a ship, and what appears to be its central computer cube or something like that. The think tank is figuring out how to decode and translate the thing so we see where the ship came from, and how to fly it.
We lost Panzer on the mission, and it's another grave moment here at base as we honor our dead. Hero's team continues to draw the toughest missions and it shows. Panzer was given a hero's burial ceremony, and a two rank promotion in his honor. Sergent Panzer will be missed dearly.
Continuing our list of problems is the surprise encounter by former Cult member Lacroix. Redeker came to me and talked to me first hand about his experiences with the cultists. After this chat I looked back at Zander's and X-Com's records concerning him and the cult. Little of it suggests his survival, or this 'deal' he and Psion apparently brokered with the Reticulans is good news. Further is the concern that we now have the Cult orbiting our heads on what Lacroix called 'Laputas'. We have no idea what or where these things are right now, but obviously we can not allow the Cult a safe haven.
For now though, those concerns will have to wait as we focus on what we do know. If this works the final showdown with the Reticulans could be closer at hand then we ever imagined."
--Soldiers Logs--
Posted by seaborgium
Personal Log Entry 10, Bruce "seaborgium" Smith, Janitor for the Council of Earth,
Been a while since I've had time to write down what's been going on, but damn things have been busy. I managed to finish off most of the whiskey, just down to one flask worth. Gonna save it for when we finally win this fucking war. Those repulsor bases are cool, but god damn it why don't we have robots to clean them yet? Or at least ear plugs? I asked for some, and they said ear plugs are for the people who go into combat. I'm tempted to stop cleaning the goddamn things and then tell them gas masks are for people who actually work.
Apparently we have to go blow up the moon now or something, or at least that's what I've heard. Saw some crazy alien ship we apparently captured. I swear I saw a movie like that once, from way, way back. Had some crazy shit about hacking their Gibson or something like that, haven't seen it in years.
As for the third floor bathroom, either my giant sign saying "Stop clogging the fucking toilet or I'm making you eat it" worked. Whoever was taking those massive, elder god level shits in it has apparently stopped. Thank god, whoever was doing it scared me. Not sure I could have made whoever it was eat it.
Hang on a second, the commander is stopping by.
Great, apparently they want the toilets cleaned on the ship we captured. Why the fuck it has toilets, and why the fuck they think I know how to clean alien toilets is beyond me. Maybe my janitoring skills have surpassed all others, and I have achieved janitor mastery. Or maybe he just hates me, I'm not sure. I'm bringing a gun though, fuck those security regs. Who the fuck knows if they actually managed to clear it properly, or if those toilets are going to try and kill me or whatever.
See you all later.
---End log