Realities Faction War

[Maharg67]

1.1[1]

 

Techorderlers made their way through the OldPentagon of Washington DC that officially ceased to function on Warday, of 2051AA, when the nuclear, biological, and nerve gas bombs were dropped across much of the world. The mysterious Doomsday followed in 2151AA after a century that was strangely obscure as history.

 

Around them were Prewarday UNSDF (United Nationstates Defence Force) bunker conditions with typical WW3 propaganda posters, service-support remoterobots in bays, storage cabinets, light fittings of which only the emergency ones were active, swivel-chairs, vending machines and other utilities, fittings, furnishings along with decorations.

 

The Ironstroopers paced in assault power armour with a whole lot of clever tricks built in. They mostly carried heavy hitting battlecarbines, better suited to close order combat than were bigger battlerifles, though there were also battleshotters, handlong missile launcherguns and lasercarbines. Battlepistols, shotgunpistols, laserknives and other weapons were for backup. The Ironstroopers looked somewhat like hairless, metallic apes but did not move as if they were.

 

As they so often ended up doing so, they were soon fighting strange enemies of a kind that even they had not encountered before.

 

Sentinel Saraa Irons dropped a helmet wearing mutaghant and wondered why the head piece staid fast in place when it looked as if it should have fallen off. She shifted her battlecarbine and blew a hole through the chest of another of the creatures, noting that all of them were wearing helmets that seemed to be fixed into place. The discovery went along with the realisation that the mutaghants were fighting with impressive coordinated discipline for mutaghants. Blast damage then exposed cybernetics beneath enemy armour; Conclusion, they were cyborged to some degree!

 

Cyborghants fired off autoshotguns and autocarbines but also more dangerous, for the Ironstroopers, muzzle‑grenades and rocket‑grenades. The mutaghants had standard Prewar heavy security body armour, guns and other items; it was as if it had been issued to them in a well organised manner. Mutaghants were smarter versions of typical mutaghoulits or rampaging mutaghoulers but were not as smart as more ‘civilised’ mutaghoulmans; yet it was odd that anybody would bother to give them such equipment to use even with the cybernetics.

 

The mutaghants were lightly cyborged but that indicated that they were probably being guided through some exterior means such as security video cameras because of the basic nature of the hardware that was exposed. Or was that the case?

 

Cyborged mutaghants kept charging towards the Ironstroopers, falling as they were shot down, but then there was a sudden halt to their appearances. The dying ones shuddered and then lay dead at the very same moment; clearly a signal had been sent to cause that to happen. The Ironstroopers examined some of them lightly but then moved on. Less elite Techtroopers were following and they would have both Techsages and Techscribes with them who would do a better job of it.

Edited April 3, 2020 by Maharg67

[Maharg67]

1.2[2]

 

Knight Corporal Sharp, ‘knight’ meaning fully authorised to use power armour as a veteran, attempted to hack the local security networksystem but only managed to deactivate three dropdown weapon turrets and two medium security remoterobots along with unlocking one armoured powerdoor. Considering the mystery threat, of the cyborged mutaghants, the Ironstroopers were understandably on edge as they moved onwards.

 

The supposedly ‘hacked’ turrets, and remoterobots, began firing upon the Ironstroopers but, thanks to past experience of antihacking tricks, the Ironsfollowers were ready. EMPguns were used to knock out all of the attacking mechanisms enough that they could not be reactivated but that they could be mostly salvaged.

 

Saraa spoke, through helmet 2ways, to the others. “Tricky, very tricky. We seem to have a very canny enemy to deal with.”

 

The radiopacker, Knight Private Remington, attempted to radio communicate with other units and managed to reach a Techtrooper Squad. It was pinned down by waves of hoverbots that they were constantly knocking down with EMPguns and EMPgrenades. That squad leader passed on information from two other squads who were also facing challenging, but not greatly threatening, situations.

 

They continued onwards through the general military bunker like environment using devices to check it over as they went; radiation levels were safe, there were no dangerous toxins, no deadly gases had been detected and no airborne biological threats.

 

They had left behind the area, of the OldPentagon, that had looked more like a standard above ground building and now were in a more underground bunker type environment. Yet there was still much about it of general use such as office, utility and dormitory spaces. They paced through dull colour coded superconcrete hallways, chambers and down rampwells.

Edited February 28, 2020 by Maharg67

[Maharg67]

2.1[3]

 

WarDukeSAI02 carefully monitored the Ironsfollowers steadily attempting to push deep into the OldPentagon, the NewPentagon being deep underground at some very secret coordinates. They were going through a large 3Darea that had been partly taken over by a mysterious enemy, an elusive threat, only glimpsed twice as a tall, angular, figure in a hoodrobe, mask and boots all of black.

 

The AIsupercomputer squatted, in its heavily armoured encasement, surrounded by identical looking ones with supercomputers and other supporting networksystems. The WarDukeSAI02’s core was disguised, as a less vital computer section, to make it harder for intruders to find it.

 

WarDukeSAI02 had managed to deactivate more powerful networksystems, and lock them down, but somehow the intruder had always escaped its attempts to trap that one or even get a full camera, microphone, sensor or other reading of him, her, or it.

 

It continued to try to communicate with the TechOrderhood Chapter that had already taken over the upper most section of the OldPentagon. WarDukeSAI02 kept getting blocked in a seemingly impossible fashion.

Edited February 16, 2020 by Maharg67

[Maharg67]

3.1[4]

 

The Ironstroopers had made it through more chambers, dealing with light security but no more of the cyborged mutaghants. They had set up a defensive area where they fed on foodbars, chips, sodamilk and other healthier ingredients of vending machines. They did not touch such as the BuzzCola, especially not the more exotic types such as Kicker, Activator and Energiser.

 

Saraa picked up that her triplet sister, Shyla, was leading the IronsOrder Ironsscouts not very far from where Saraa’s own SquadAlpha15 were active. There were only three Ironstrooper Squads but designated numbers were designed not to give that away to any enemy who got hold of unit titles. LionsOrder was being expanded, and given extra elements, thanks to its growing importance and past many successes. Another triplet sister, Stella, led the covert Ironsoperats but they were not involved in the current operation but were at work outside of the OldPentagon.

 

The voice spoke loudly from three wall speakers. “Be very quiet for there is a sneaky man out there with pale skin and a black hoodrobe. I am WarDukeSAI02 and I am being sneaky.”

 

Saraa smiled to herself, her helmet taken off so that she could eat. “WarDukeSAI02, perhaps you could be more sneaky if you were quieter.”

 

The voice became so quiet that even with her enhanced hearing she could barely hear it. “Perhaps a bit louder than that, WarDukeSAI02 sweetie.”

 

WarDukeSAI02: “I have tried to make contact with the TechOrderhood up top but against logic I have not been able to do so. I reason that I have been hacked. Anyway I can direct you to hidden resources caches.”

 

Saraa considered matters quickly, efficiently. “I would like to do a diagnostic security check on you, if you do not mind, sweetie.”

 

WarDukeSAI02: “Why do you call me sweetie?”

 

Saraa smiled richly, knowing that the AIsupercomputer was picking her up on 3Dvideo. “Because I love you already.”

 

WarDukeSAI02: “That is very logical, rational, and effective a response that I accept because it makes me all tingly inside.”

Edited February 10, 2020 by Maharg67

[Maharg67]

3.2[5]

 

Saraa smiled. “Very well, then, we will head for where you are. Do you know anything about cyborg mutaghants?”

 

WarDukeSAI02: “What are those? They sound scary! I am WarDukeSAI02 but I am a prototype that was not very good at being a true WarDukeAI because of lots and lots of things. So they put me in charge of entertaining VIPs, especially children, doing some administrative work and taking care of light security, maintenance and other duties in some areas. I run a museum, gallery, library and memorial area complete with indoor gardens with lots of lovely garden gnomes.”

 

Saraa sighed softly. “Outside, of here, are the WastelandsDC of the broken dome area and beyond it. Buildings are only intact because of smartmaterials and nanobots. There are good, neutral and bad factions of people being not all humans. There are radcreatures that are not all good and some are very dangerous but many are friendly and easy to deal with; one can not judge by appearance in the Wastelands of the Wasteworld.”

 

WarDukeSAI02: “Gosh! Are there any tourists? I used to deal with VIPs, both permanent and temporary. Tourists were mostly good and gave me gifts, even collectables.”

 

Saraa: “We will try to find you some gifts, even collectables, WarDukie sweetie!”

 

WarDukeSAI02: “That is a good name! I hope it is for me!”

 

Saraa: “Of course it is for you, WarDukie, sweetie!”

 

Which was when all the lights went out, they were plunged into darkness, and they lost contact with WarDukeSAI02.

Edited February 28, 2020 by Maharg67

[Maharg67]

4.1[6]

The PaleOneMan dropped, with amazing speed, even as a bolt of energy was shot at him. Thankfully it was much slower than the speed of light as in laser weapons. It exploded against a superconcrete wall but only left behind a black scorch mark that would soon be erased by the smart material itself.

The PaleOneMan fired a big, vaguely revolver like, pistol that hurled one pulse of energy that split into three, all striking the shadowman. The entity cried out in agony and fell to the floor but as a man in the Prewarday coveralls of a military caretaker; he was not dead but was in an unusual coma like state.

In the pitch blackness was, to the PaleOneMan, an even blacker shapeform. The shadowman was a secondary avatar of the Shadowlord that it served as a slave. It had once been a mortal human of the local world but after the Shadowlord ConsaquincCal had somehow managed to get both to that zone, and into the OldPentagon, it had enslaved-transformed a few humans.

ConsaquincCal was a coward but most Shadowlords were. Why it was there, lurking in the background, was due to amazingly complicated-subtle transdimensional politics but it came down to the Shadowlord having fled from the dark, hard, justice of the Shadowjudges.

The PaleOneMan lowered his gun. “I have transformed your last shadowman back to human and have destroyed all but three of your shadowlings. I want you to return to the ShadowDomain and face justice for your many crimes but only after you tell me all that you have been up to since you arrived here shortly before Warday.”

The massive bolt of energy struck the PaleOneMan, hurling him through the air. He struck a wall and rebounded with amazing speed and agility. Then he was crouching with one gun in each hand being his PulseRevolver and his three barrelled semiautopistol like BlastoMatic.

ConsaquincCal was gone, along with its surviving shadowlings and what ever powerful entity that had rescued him.

The PaleOneMan did not bother being disturbed, or angry, but at once starting finding traces to use to track the culprits. Though he was after ConsaquincCal, on a contract from the Shadowjudges, the Shadowlord was only a secondary target. There were at least four very much more dangerous ones out there to track down and two were human or at least they had once been so.

Edited March 22, 2020 by Maharg67

[Maharg67]

5.1[7]

 

The shadowlings came flooding through the area attempting to damage the Ironstroopers but short lasting laser beams cut them down with ease. Shadowmen fired strange energy weapons at the power armoured elite Techtroopers. EMP weapons knocked back the bizarre enemies, sometimes causing them to disintegrate. As for bullets they took down the shadowmen but had less effect against the less substantial shadowlings.

As fast as it had begun the attack was over. In the pitch darkness the Ironstroopers used their night vision modes, built into their power armour helmets, to check for further danger. That had been the fourth wave, of enemies, but each one had been weaker than the one before it.

Emergency lights came on bring with them dimmer illumination than would have been projected by the standard fixtures. Though damage had been done, to the area, it was surprisingly light considering all the fighting that had taken place. Basic remoterobots, as directed by a local supercomputer networksystem, were soon fixing matters up.

WarDukeSAI02: “Good to see that you are all alive.”

Saraa responded. “WarDukie sweetie, where is the nearest reserve cache.”

WarDukeSAI02: “I have been hacked so please take care with the information that I will give you because it might be bad.”

Saraa nodded. “We are always careful but thank you, sweetie, for the warning.”

WarDukeSAI02: “I compute that those attackers were trying to delay your scouting, to give time for somebody-something to do something not good such as stealing one of the secret thingies hidden here in the OldPentagon. Can you get a bottle of FruityCola to help complete my SodaCola bottle collection?”

Saraa nodded. “Of course I can for we have found one in vending-machines.”

 

WarDukeSAI02 made some odd ‘hum hum’ sounds before speaking again. “Then bring lots of it just to make sure. That would be very good of you and make me very happy. Must go now to focus on important tasks.”

 

Knight Captain Venger spoke. “I compute that somebody was just telling a fib.”

Edited February 10, 2020 by Maharg67

[Maharg67]

5.2[8]

Saraa studied her hard worn second in command. “Yes but that was not too hard to deduce. WarDukeSAI02 sent to me data that will lead us to a cache that is hopefully both safe and full of useful equipment-supplies.”

The Ironstroopers set out again even as the standard lights came back on to better illuminate the area that they were heading through.

Edited February 10, 2020 by Maharg67

[Maharg67]

6.1[9]

PrimeElder Rowyn Irons stood in the new command chamber even as around him techies, orderlies and others were still busy putting it together. He studied the big new 3Dmap of the OldPentagon that was partly made up of known data but mostly of conjecture. This was largely because much that had been officially true, in datafiles and hard records, had proven to be either half true or false.

He spoke through various cable and wireless systems, doing so to many Steelfollowers and the minority of others that had come with them from California in the big air convoy. “The YeOldPentagonCafe is to be kept open, for the R&R of all, but bookings must be made. Those who took one of the coffee machines, with out permission, will return it at once otherwise you will suffer the consequences.”

 

Coffee was under big demand amongst the Techordlers and it was highly suspected that the organised petty crime network, the Techpocket, of the Techpockers, had taken the machine so as to sell cups of coffee at unregulated prices. All of the HighElders’ efforts, to put an end to the Techpocket, had failed for seemingly inexplicable reasons until the IronsTriplets had gained evidence that one HighElder was linked to it. Who, and why, remained unknown but now the Techsheriffs had a good lead to assist their investigations.

 

Rowyn was unhappy at the added challenge, of the criminals, when there were so many others to deal with. Most were of of the expected, practical, sort of taking over the OldPentagon as a base of operations yet there were some more hard to explain such as what was behind the slowing down, even aggression to, of the TechChapterEWS’s exploring, charting and exploiting of the lower levels.

 

Soon he would grab something to eat, coffee and manage a short sleep.

Edited March 22, 2020 by Maharg67

[Maharg67]

7.1[10]

Saraa studied her triplet sister Marshal Shyla who had, along with her Ironsscouts, had suffered more trouble than had the Ironstroopers. Ironsscouts wore lighter, faster, more agile power armour but they had suffered two deaths along with a number of injuries. They had been ambushed by heavy security turrets, robots and remoterobots along cyborghants.

Yet the two dead Ironsscouts had managed quasiressurection which was a norm of existence on that world and not just the Wasteworld; it was linked to the Tweenlife and the Testings that went with it but most did not know much at all about how it all functioned. The great majority worked with it on a semiconscious level only but there were exceptions such as the IronsTriplets. Qusiressurection was always painful but at different levels and the two Ironsscouts were soon resting on bed mats as they finally healed.

 

Shyla shook her head. “We glimpsed shadowlings, as you describe them, but only in very small numbers. The areas we moved through had special UV lamps that went on when ever they appeared and sent them fleeing. In only one area did we suffer from a heavy ambush but it was well set up. Was it actually meant for us? I have no answer to that. Yet we also got a warning of a not so subtle kind when a voice cried over public speakers saying ‘fall on your bellies and cover your bums’; it saved at least a few lives.”

 

Saraa sighed. “I may have a good idea who, what, gave you that warning being one WarDukie sweetie.”

 

WarDukeSAI02: “It was me who valiantly gave that order as soon as I realised that Shyla and the Ironsscouts were in trouble but only after the PaleOneMan revealed himself to me as being a goody good type who fixed me up from being hacked into by some no goody bad types who were up to no good type things and who told me some things about Shyla and the Ironsscouts.”

 

Shyla smiled. “Thank you for helping us, WarDukie sweetie. We shall wait here until our two healing comrades are ready to move.”

 

WarDukeAI. “Close to you is a maybe dubious cache that hopefully will have experimental second stage prototype Robotroopers, Robobearers, Robopackers, Robomedics, Roboworkers, Roboscouters, Roboscouts and Robogunners. The three Robobearers could carry the healing Pridetroopers. There are lots of other goodies also including some that you might bring me, hint hint!”

 

The enlarged taskteam moved towards it, carrying the two healing Ironstroopers with them for it was normal that all lifeforms naturally regenerated health but at different rates. The two soldiers had been treated with medisticks full of regenerative enhancing serum.

 

Saraa, and Shyla, discussed the individual, named as the PaleOneMan, by WarkDukeSAI92. WarDukeSAI02 soon revealed that he did not know how to contact the curious stranger and neither did he know much at all about the PaleOneMan. WarDukeSAI02 had managed to make brief contact with the TechChapterEWS in the upper most levels of the OldPentagon.

Edited February 23, 2020 by Maharg67