Chapter 8, part 1

Day of darkness...



Sector 1 hums with activity as new chambers are excavated and new facilities are laboriously assembled with supplies brought down from the surface.

The first batch of 15 laser rifles are completed, and work begins on a run of medi-kits.  On February 10th, however, the base's serene operation was intruded upon by a massive blip on the sensors.

It was the largest UFO yet encountered, dwarfing even the hulking vessel it had taken every munition aboard both Interceptors to down about two weeks ago - and yet had remained unseen by their radar coverage until only a few hundred kilometers away.  The commander knew launching his paltry fighter force would be useless, and so XCOM sat silently beneath the anonymous sands of eastern Libya.  Every eye in the base was glued to the radar repeaters as they waited to see what the alien craft will do.

The ship bore almost directly down on Sector 1.  The entirety of XCOM held their breath as the ship passed almost literally overhead.

There was no noise, but a a faint thrum seemed to permeate the air, giving goosebumps.  Whether some manner of alien propulsion was to blame or the natural reactions of one hundred frightened humans, no one knew.

The huge craft continued on its south-westerly course and the men and women of XCOM let out a small breath of relief.  Upon reaching the coast of Cameroon, the craft turned inland once again, headed for the Red Sea.

From there, it turned north-west, passing once again almost directly over Sector 1 - prompting renewed panic - before heading up to Tunisia.

Finally, the craft turned north-east, flew through the boundary between day and night, and disappeared over Russia.

Things at Sector 1 returned to normal.  The latest storeroom expansion was completed to make room for more captured hardware and additional munitions, and work shifted to the new living quarters and laboratory.  The first medi-kits rolled off the line.

On February 13th, the assembly line was interrupted by a low rumbling.  A rumbling that got louder.  People stopped what they were doing and looked at the ceiling.

CRASH

The floor shuddered suddenly, and bits of sediment rained from the corridor ceilings.  Arcoss the base, lighting panels flickered.

In the control room, green lights started turning red.

>Perimeter sensors tripped: no. 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 11, 13, 18, 19, 21, 22, 29, 30
>Weight on hangar external doors in excess of load-bearing specifications.  Clear excess sand and debris immediately
>Access lift anti-tamper device triggered.  Locking down elevator
>Explosion in hanger bays.  Activating fire-suppression system
>Explosion in elevator shaft.  Dispatch repair team

As if that was an option.  The commander pressed the Big Red Button: as of this moment, Sector 1 is in lockdown.

The soldiers stationed in Sector 1 were scattered all across the entire facility, but arms lockers throughout the base allowed them to take up arms with haste.  Off-duty troopers grabbed laser rifles along with the deployment team.  In the medbay, the wounded shrugged off their paper gowns and donned uniforms.  Once the laser rifles were all claimed, the remainder armed themselves with rapid-firing laser pistols.

XCOM lockdown procedure was strict.  Unless specifically ordered otherwise, movement between chambers is prohibited, and - most unconventionally - troopers are urged to isolate themselves from other defenders, and directed to pre-arm all explosive munitions - extremely dangerous.  Should the aliens reach the corridor outside or breach their compartment itself, the defenders were to employ their explosives to maximum effect.

When the alarm sounds, Armitage, Laura Rola, and Hikaru happen to be in General Stores 1, level 0, directly adjacent to the access lift.  memoire-blanche is also in General Stores 1, on the level above.  Armitage, closest to the elevator shaft, exits the compartment to assess the situation.  She immediately encounters and guns down a Sectoid, then retreats back inside and trains her pistol on the compartment's only door.

Mara Schaeffer makes a break from her compartment in Living Quarters 1 to the stairway of the Small Radar Array, intending to hide out it's more defensible upper level.

In General Stores 2, just down the corridor from Armitage's hiding place, Strangely_Scott exits his compartment with a primed Proximity Detonator in hand.  Ruby of Blue copies him.

In Living Quarters 2, Hero of Time and Twio leave their compartments to seek more isolated positions.

Everywhere else in the base, all the defenders start pre-arming their considerable piles of ordinance while leerily keeping one eye trained on their door.

Although she thought herself safe on the far side of the base, Mara Schaeffer is struck in the back by a perfectly angled plasma bolt traversing the long corridor between the access lift landing and the auxiliary radar. Minus one defender.

Armitage comes under psionic attack.  Hikaru pokes her head around the corner to spy Mara Schaeffer's killer, and spots not one, not two, but three Sectoids.  She arms a high explosive and advances on the trio, but eats a plasma blast to the chest for her trouble.  The primed explosive drops from her lifeless hands to the floor, just feet from her killer.

Hero of Time makes a right turn and enters the lower floor of the Small Radar Array, making sure to remain in cover.  Twio follows.

KABOOM.  Everyone in General Stores 1 thanks their choice of diety that the walls and doors of XCOM are blast-proof.

The aliens continue their mental assault against Armitage, panicking her.

With Armitage our of commission, memoire-blanche and Laura Rola exit their compartments and spot two Sectoids just outside Armitage's chamber.  Laura Rola dumps another high explosive at their feet and they both retreat back inside, sealing the doors behind them.

Hero of Time and Twio make it to the upper level of the auxiliary radar.  While the upper levels of XCOM's facilities are not interconnected, at least they get to "enjoy" the anxious waiting game from one of the least cramped chambers in the facility, and don't have to endure the wait alone.  The only downside is that they can still see Mara Schaeffer's lifeless body at the base of the stairs.

Laura Rola's explosive detonates.  Although it is impossible either alien survived, the tide of extraterrestials does not cease: a Sectoid enters Armitage's room and shoots her point blank.

Although Armitage didn't have time to arm her whole arsenal, her high explosive charge detonates, and proves to be more than enough to vaporize both herself and her killer.  The psionic attacks continue, this time against Laura Rola.

Laura Rola steps out of her chamber and spots a Sectoid near the access lift.  She throws a grenade at its feet, but takes a plasma bolt in return.

Alive but clutching her chest, she ducks back behind cover.  Ruby of Blue makes a dash and entered the chamber across from Laura Rola.

The grenade successfully eliminates the Sectoid, but the victory is short-lived.  An alien presence subverts Ruby of Blue's mind and gains control of her body, and the repeated psionic battering prevents Laura Rola from so much as moving a muscle.

memoire-blanche exits and kills the Sectoid outside, standing with Ruby of Blue.

Unfortunately, Laura Rola is unable to help incapacitate Ruby of Blue.  memoire-blanche tries to avoid Ruby of Blue, but Ruby of Blue fires, killing the former comrade.

memoire-blanche's pre-armed grenade blows, but Ruby of Blue is outside of the blast, and stands watch over memoire-blanche's prone form until two more aliens enter, gunning Ruby of Blue down without hesitation.

The extraterrestrials pay for that a moment later, as the numerous explosive devices Ruby of Blue carried catch at least two aliens in a fireball.

Laura Rola steps out again into the ravaged corridor.  Near the access lift, she spots another Sectoid, though curiously, it is unarmed and facing away from her.  Grimacing from her wound, Laura fires a barrage of laser beams, but none make contact and she has to withdraw back inside.  Strangely_Scott tosses his proximity grenade into the corridor intersection to guard against encroaching invaders.

Sure enough, an explosion rocks the hallway moments later, marking another dead Sectoid.  Psionic attacks continue assailing Laura Rola.

Again, Laura Rola looks outside, and another Sectoid has taken the place of the last, although this one is armed and dangerous.  Instead of inaccurate laser pistol fire, Laura Rola primes and rolls a grenade its way, and then hurriedly ducks inside before the alien can return fire.

In General Stores 2, gummibar leaves her compartment in preparation to reinforce Laura Rola.  Likewise, Hero of Time takes the stairs back down to the lower level of the radar array.

Laura Rola hears and feels the thud of her last grenade, but the keening wail of a dying Sectoid is suspiciously absent.  In General Stores 2, gummibar is surprised to have a Sectoid pop out right in front of her, but she shoots it in the head with her pistol, downing it.

The next instant, an alien consciousness invades her mind, taking control.

Strangely_Scott opens the door, expecting to find gummibar right outside, but she isn't there.  He steps into the corridor and looks around for her, but instead spots a Sectoid holding an unusually large weapon just outside Laura Rola's compartment.  Laura Rola opens the door to subdue it, and finds herself facing not only a Sectoid, but also her former comrade.

What to do?  The Sectoid must die.  But gummibar is holding an armed explosive, not to mention the others in her pack.  If Laura Rola stuns her, she'll drop the bomb, effectively dooming her.  But if Laura does not, surely gummibar will kill her.  Solemnly, Larua Rola draws her stun rod, tags gummibar with it, and slams the heavy metal shutter closed again.  Goodbye...

Hero of Time presses himself to the wall as fiery debris fly in and litter the floor of the radar array.

Hero of Time rounds the corner into the hallway.  Nothing remains of gummibar, but father down stands another Sectoid.  He draws one of his pre-prepped grenades and bounces it to the alien's feet.  Hero of Time gives it the finger before taking cover in the storage room opposite Laura Rola's and sealing the door.  He hears a thump, then a wail.  Adios, extraterrestrial.

A moment later, he opens the door again, and another Sectoid has come forward from whatever endless procession of squat grey aliens must be clambering down the elevator shaft and pouring into their hangars.  He shoots the creature dead.

Laura Rola tosses a proximity detonator down towards the access lift.  She and Hero of Time take cover in their respective chambers, but to their immense surprise, this is not followed shortly by an explosion.  Hero of Time pokes his head out, and finding the hallway still clear - as much as that term can apply to a repeatedly bombed-out, fire-blackened, debris-strewn stretch of corridor, anyway - then steals forth into the forward storeroom once occupied by Armitage.  Strangely_Scott moves from General Stores 2 into the storeroom Hero of Time just vacated.

Laura Rola is still bleeding from her plasma burn.  With two other defenders in position and down to just her laser pistol and a smoke grenade, she takes a well-earned break and limps her way down the passage into General Stores 2.  In the newly completed General Stores 3, Atlas, who has one of XCOM's three completed medi-kits, exits his post to meet her.  Atlas treats the burns on her right arm and gives her a healthy dose of painkiller to help keep her on her feet.

to be continued...