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A Series of Wierd Events - Sequel, Part One[STERFRYE]
Posted By: Hunter_Killer<jlp8118@sbcglobal.net>
Date: 3 December 2003, 3:51 PM
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-- AS TOLD BY STERFRYE --
As the Bumblebee entered the atmosphere, it began to buck with bone-jarring force. The edges of the boat began to glow as well and g-forces started tugging at us.
"So," Agent Shade began. "What now?
"Well, I though we'd head towards Alpha Base. After all," I continued as the lifeboat gave a particularly hard jump and my stomach went with it, "that's probably where the others are heading."
"Wait a minute, this is the game, remember? How do we know that there even is an Alpha Base?" Simpsons sounded worried.
"Well, if you must know, I've been picking up slightly garbled radio traffic from the others."
"Anything else?"
"Well, in my free time I've been writing a symphony, completed legendary mode and deduced a mathematic formula for world-peace. So, do you want to get to Alpha Base or land and let the Chief rescue us? I figured we'd better do Alpha because we don't know who MC is here or how good he is."
"All right then. Do it."
"Done," I said as I heard a beep.
I looked around, confused. The beeping came again. It was the pilot's helmet. I put it on and it continued beeping, with each beep coming higher and faster than the last. I glanced down at the radar in the HUD...my jaw dropped and I immediately began to scream.
"Uh, is something wrong?" Simpsons said. "Did our airbrake fail or something? Because your screaming is making me nervous."
"I KNOW THAT!!!" I yelled in sheer terror.
"Well, has the brake failed or what?" Shade asked.
Plasma bolts suddenly flew around the lifeboat like rain. It stopped quickly; they were ranging shots. That meant that the first volley had come from far off.
Shade stared incredulously and then said, "What was that?!"
"SERAPHS!!!!" I screeched as I slammed my fist on the space bar. The boat shot forward (Down?). The temperature in the boat immediately jumped to uncomfortable levels. More shots came- closer, this time- and I jinked left. The g-forces caused black spots to appear in my vision, and I kept screaming. One Seraph flashed by, its shields taking the brunt of the heat.
More shots followed. The Seraph that had flashed by turned around for a head-on pass. Its engines were flaring pure silver. I used the lifeboat's joystick and juked away from it.
It continued like this down through the atmosphere. Clouds began to pass by us as we came in at a 45 degree angle. I had kept overall movement to a minimum, even when jinking, so as to not put too much stress on the hull or heat shield. The Seraphs had roared around as they pleased and it was going to cost them. The sensors began registering explosions behind us. Another Seraph screamed by, and its shields failed. Its looked like a giant can opener had taken itself to the Seraph as the fighter's skin, hit by the sudden wall of atmosphere, was pulled back off of the ship like a banana peel. It exploded.
Two had managed to stay together, however and continued to pursue us. We had reached an area with several large structures...and a tunnel. If I could get through it, they wouldn't be able to follow me. With any luck, they would slam into the wall. I gritted my teeth and angled towards it. Could I fly through it? I said a silent prayer as I looked at my airspeed.
1,331 MPH
Crap, we were coming in at Mach 2! I leveled out and tilted the ship back its rear. We were flying forward, while the boat was pointing straight up.
"Go back," Shade groaned. "I think I left my stomach on the Autumn.
The airspeed indicator dropped rapidly, and a sonic boom rolled across the ground as we dropped below 600 MPH. Our speed was 469 MPH, still too fast.
I brought my fist down on the air brake button and the flap button. I felt the ship shudder as the already overtaxed hull groaned in protest. Our speed dropped again to 243. The tunnel was close now. I had no choice.
One of the Marines must've gotten a look out of the canopy, because he screamed at me, "Just what do you think you're doing?!"
"I don't have time to explain, just hold on to something!"
He started off, "AAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"
As though they suddenly understood what was happening, everyone else screamed too. Myself included.
"AAAAAAAAA!!! AAAAAAAAA!!!"
We went in.
I came in level, which was a mistake. I should have turned the Bumblebee on its side to maneuver better, but it was too late to correct the error. Immediately, we encountered a hard left turn. I closed the right side brakes and flap, punched the engine up and rammed my foot on the yaw pedal. I even went so far as to use the hat button to trim us even further to the left. We barely made the turn. The Seraphs weren't so lucky. They had been so concentrated on getting a kill that they followed us and they both cratered into the wall.
Now it was just a fight be the force of gravity, several walls and me. I did a repeat performance for the right turn that came next and adjusted as necessary.
We emerged from the tunnel and found ourselves above a river in a canyon. It looked remarkably similar to Blood Gulch. And, as fate would have it, was being patrolled by several...
"NOT AGAIN!!" I screeched.
"Now what?!?!" Simpsons yelled back
'BANSHEEEEEES!!"
One spotted us almost immediately and dropped down on our six. I tried to turn the boat out of the way, but I wasn't fast enough. The boat screeched as a round from the Banshee's Fuel Rod Gun splashed into the rear of the Bumblebee and rocked it. I grappled with the stick, but the round had vaporized the airbrake, flaps and control surfaces. The lifeboat was now a flying, uncontrollable brick with six souls aboard.
"We're going down!!"
"I'm too pretty to die!"
"I sure picked the wrong day to quit smoking!"
"And I promise I won't ever drink again, if you'll just get me outta this alive..."
I was worried we were going to hit a rock arch that hung over the river at 126 miles per hour, but that fear was laid to rest as gravity took over, and the lifeboat dove into the river at a shallow angle.
FWABOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!!!!
I came to about three minutes later. I groaned, removed my helmet, and looked around. The lifeboat was in ruins. Water was dripping in through a crack in the canopy. The red emergency lights cast a dim glow over the scene. The others were unconscious and still belted in. Simpsons was closest, so I unbuckled myself, walked over and shook his Flood body.
He groaned too, and I asked, "How do you feel?"
"Shaken, not stirred," he replied.
Shade, who was sitting across the aisle, opened a single eye. "Dude, you are never driving again.
"Shade, you act as though I want to. But we're dead. There is no way out of this tin can."
Shade wrestled with his straps and asked, "Why is that?"
I pointed to the window, which was pitch black. "I think we're several hundred feet under."
"Dude," this is a river. Rivers do not do deep depth. I think the stuff across the glass is mud. And besides, we've at least got to try to get out of this thing."
"Only to get blown to smithereens by Banshees? Staying down here or fighting," I said. I shook my head in disgust. "What a choice."
Simpsons had awkwardly freed his body from the chair. "I think we have a fighting chance. It's easier to take a banshee down than one thinks. Plus, I think you underestimate the storage capacity of this particular tin can. There's bound to be some Jackhammers in the cargo space. Assault Rifles too. Besides, how many Banshees were there?"
I closed my eyes and thought hard.
"Six."
"Okay, then. We are dead."
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