Sam looked down to the dead Xantho. "I will avenge you," he whispered.
He faced the Lord, who was now limping due to the loss of one leg. The Lord fired its acid cannons at Sam, who used his laser blades to slice the acid before it could reach him. He then transformed into his beast mode. His gatlers were now on his back and he could feel his laser blades had infused into his claws. He sprinted towards the Lord, firing his gatlers and taking out the Lords leg's. The Lord collapsed.
"Laser claw strike!"
Sam's claws began to glow. He pounced and swiped at the Lord, slashing its head. He then jumped off the bleeding Lord and faced the heart of the hive.
"Dual Gatlers!" He revved up his gatling cannons and fired at the heart. The bullets penetrated the heart but didn't do any more then just go right through it.
"Laser claw strike!"
He slashed at the heart, but there was still no real damage.
"Pitiful human, your attacks can't do anything."
"Then why don't you tell me how to destroy it."
The Lord pointed its acid cannons at itself and fired. Before Sam's eyes, the acid seemed to begin healing the Xantho. It re-grew its leg and the cut on its head healed over. Sam had to start the fight all over again. The Lord began to advance on him slowly but surely, slinking over to him.
Sam fired his gatling cannons but the Lord just reflected them off its scales. When the Lord dropped its arms, Sam was gone. Bullets came flying from behind and caught the Lord off guard. It spun around to see nothing. More bullets came from behind, and it turned and fired its acid cannons. In blind rage the Lord had fired its acid cannons at the heart, and the side of it began to melt. With acid melting the flesh of the heart, the whole hive seemed to be aching in pain. A loud shallow groan echoed through the halls. The marines and Xanthos stopped their fighting as the groan passed them. It was clear that the marines far out-powered the Xanthos as the Xanthos had lost a lot of numbers compared to the marines. The groan woke something much deeper within the hive.
Malcolm reached for his axe. The groaning had intensified and had become more frequent as the heart disintegrated more and more. Malcolm saw Sam fighting an oddly coloured Lord and ran to his side.
"What's the deal with this guy?" he asked Sam.
"It says that it's the heart's protector but I just made it shoot the heart, causing these weird groans."
More groans vibrated the hive. Sam could hear explosions above and one rocked the hive.
"Sam, Titan says that they only need a few more runs before they reckon this place will be in ruins. We need to leave now," Pike said through the comms as another explosion shook the halls. Sam and Malcolm began to exit before hearing the cry of the Lord. They turned to see it being dragged away by a massive set of claws, dragged down into the depths of the hive. They exchanged a look of fear.
Malcolm hopped on Sam's back and Sam carried him through the crimson hallways. They reached Pike, Jareth and Lachlan and exited together. As they neared the exit, Sam yelled for everyone to get back as the bombers did one more run over the hive. The marines made it to a safe distance and waited for the bombers to finish the job. Sam took some time to look around. There were a few straggler Xanthos but Sam didn't really care about those ones. The peaceful Xanthos made it to the marines' side.
The bombers made their final run over the hive but before they reached it the ground shook and the hive exploded. A giant Xantho erupted from the ruins. Only the front legs of the Xantho and its upper body were exposed and out of the crater that was only a few seconds earlier a sprawling hive of Xanthos. The Xantho destroyed one bomber and another tried to swerve to avoid it but crashed into the side of a mountain. The final bomber, the Titan Bomber, avoided the Xantho and flew back up to space. It was now up to the marines to take down the monstrosity.
13: The Hive King
The Xantho had two giant tree-trunk like legs that reached out of the crater. The legs reached far beyond the body which meant that the legs, when bent, towered above its head. Two massively oversized acid cannons rested on its shoulders. It was the standard white and purple Xantho colours.
"Bow down, puny humans. Bow down to the hive king!" the King said in a deep booming voice.
"So that's what a hive king looks like," Sam said in amazement.
"It's only half a hive king. It didn't have enough time to fully develop. If it had more time to grow, it would be twice the size it is now and it would've been able to destroy your planet very quickly," a peaceful Devastator said.
"We need to take it down now before it grows too big then," Pike ordered.
"We'd need to take down the acid cannons first."
"Why?"
"Because the heart's protector used its acid to heal itself and I'm guessing that the hive king can too."
"I think we can do that. Send in the Titan Bomber."
"No, it'd get destroyed and we may need it for later. If my team and I can get up its back then we may be able to disable them. Can your team distract it?"
"Yes, we can. Good luck."
Sam and Jareth activated their beast modes and ran around the hive king while Matt, Lachlan, Pike's team and the remaining peaceful Xanthos distracted the Xantho. Sam and Jareth ran around the hive king in different directions and met up behind the beast.
"So how are we gonna get up to the acid cannons?" Jareth asked as they both looked at the king's back. Orange and black spines jutted from the king's spinal column in random directions, creating a semi-stair semi-ladder up its back.
"Well, I'm gonna climb up."
"Wouldn't it be easier to fly up?"
"I guess, but I kind of want it to know that we're up there."
"Whatever floats your boat, Sam," Jareth said as he took off.
Sam began his climb up the hodge-podge spines. Jareth quickly reached the top, and took a moment to look out onto the battlefield. The king began to shift, causing Jareth to grab one of the spines to stop himself from falling off. He looked down and saw Sam being shaken about by the movement of the king. His grasp loosened and he fell. Jareth jumped off the king's shoulder and flew as fast as he could to catch his brother. He felt Sam crash onto his back, which threw him off balance.
"Are you okay, bro?"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm good," Sam said as he jumped off Jareth's back and activated his beast mode. They both hovered where they were for a few seconds before flying back up to the king's shoulder.
"How do we disable the acid cannons?"
"I don't know. I would think chopping them off would do the job."
"How are we gonna chop them off?"
"With our swords - duh! What else are we gonna use?" Sam replied.
The king shifted position due to the marines down below firing at it. Sam and Jareth both readied their blades and swords. They hacked at the acid cannons but nothing was happening. As they made incisions the cannons would just heal over.
"I have an idea. Get off his shoulders and follow my lead," Sam exclaimed, jumping from the king. As they left its shoulders it swept its arm across the ground, knocking all of the ground marines to the side. It dealt some serious damage to them, and caused them to be down and out of the fight.
"Looks like it's just you and me, J," Sam said as they hovered in front of the hive king.
"No! Look!" Jareth pointed at the king's arm, which was still on the ground. Sam saw a peaceful Devastator run up the king's arm, slashing it with its scythes as it went.
The king raised its arm back into its default position, throwing the Devastator off it. It landed with a thud. The king fired its two acid cannons, completely drowning the Devastator in acid. Sam had to look away as the Devastator began to dissolve. Sam also activated his helmet as a deafening screech came from the dying Xantho.
"We end this now, Jareth. Distract it and try to get it to ready both cannons for firing."
"What will you do?"
"I'll get ready to blast apart his cannons," Sam said as his nail launchers revved to
life.
Jareth flew in front of the king and quickly gained its attention.
"Sam, whenever you're ready," Jareth said with fear in his voice. The King evil-eyed Jareth and aimed both acid cannons at him.
"Sam?" Jareth readied his shield even though he knew that it wouldn't protect him from the corrosive substance. He could see the end of the cannons light up and ready to fire. He feared the worse.
"Jareth! Move!" Sam yelled as he got in between his brother and the king. He fired multiple nails into each cannon.
"Another attempt failed," the king said in its deep voice.
"Wait for it," Sam said, smiling.
The acid cannons were ready to fire. Explosions erupted from the cannons, blowing them apart. Nothing was left of the cannons but bloody patches and ridges where the cannons had been blown off.
"Titan, finish it," Sam said over the comms to the bomber.
The king may have lost its acid cannon but it wasn't ready to give up the fight. It swung its arms at Sam and Jareth, trying to knock them out of the sky. Sam flew past the giant arms and fired multiple nails at it. As he flew away he heard the explosions and a loud shrieking.
He faced the king once more. It was clearly in pain. Jareth flew beside Sam, waiting for their next move.
"Titan, where are you?"
"We may be a few minutes more. We've got trouble up here."
"What kind of trouble?"
"They call themselves Chaos Marines."
"Get down here as fast as you can, okay?"
"Yes, Sir."
"Jareth, we need to distract it a bit longer."
"I'm not … the only … hive king … out there," the king managed to get out through its deep and heavy breathing. "More will come."
"I didn't think that there'd only be one of you, but maybe the rest will see your death and realise not to mess with humans." Sam could hear the sound of Titan above them.
"Jareth, we need to get rid of that other arm before Titan reaches it."
Jareth flew in front of the king while Sam flew behind it.
"Oy! Ugly! It doesn't matter how many Xanthos you send, Sam will kill them and their kings. You're nothing but overgrown insects under his boot."
The king was enraged by Jareth's taunting. It mustered all of its energy and strength and swung at Jareth, who was too busy taunting it to see the arm coming.
"Jareth! No!" Sam flew down to his brother, who was now on the ground.
"Sam, I'm sorry. I should've seen it coming. Behind you!"
The king had its clawed hand above them, ready to crush them. It lowered its hand at lightning fast speed, and the brothers gave each other a goodbye hug. They heard a crash come from beside them, and looked around to see that the Xantho had missed.
"Ha! How could you miss us?" Jareth taunted.
"It didn't. We've moved."
"What?"
"I thought about getting out of the way but a light appeared in my vision and then we were here."
Explosions rocked the plains as Titan Bomber flew over, dropping everything it had on the king. Sam and Jareth shielded their eyes from the dust storm the explosions had whipped up.
14: The End
Titan landed beside them.
"Good job," Sam said to the pilot.
They walked over to the bloody mess of flesh and scales that filled the crater. Remains of the king were littered over the battlefield.
"That was some nice flying there, soldier," Pike said, hobbling over to the marines with the rest of his and Sam's teams.
"Are you guys okay?" Sam asked.
"We've been in tougher situations. Just a bit of bruising is all," Matt said.
"So how are we getting home?" Jareth asked.
"Bring the ship down," Pike said to his team mates up in space. A giant ship parted the black clouds above them.
They boarded the ship and flew home. They were welcomed by a party to celebrate their victory over the hive king. While the party was happening, Sam stood alone on a deck just off the hall.
"Why are you out here, Sam?"
"Oh hey, Malcolm. I'm not really the party type."
"C'mon Sam, you need to celebrate. You're the first marine to ever kill a hive king."
"Really?"
"Yeah."
"But I didn't really kill it. Titan did."
"But you gave him the command to."
"I guess. Do you think that there are more Xanthos out there?"
"Most likely, but they now know not to attack Earth, knowing that you're its protector."
"Yeah, I guess."
"So what will you and your team be doing now, since the Xantho threat is over?"
"I want to know who these Chaos Marines are and what they're up to. What about you?"
"Me? I've been told that I have to run this place when the current Base Commander retires, or dies."
"So we're both screwed."
"Yep."
"Hoorah!" they both said, banging their forearms together.
Part Two - Zac's Destiny
With the great Xantho war finished, Sam and the S1 team think that they and Earth are safe, but a greater threat lurks around the corner. Who are these so called 'chaos marines' in black clad armour, and why do they constantly attack the base? Even with the new team mate, Lachlan, and the two new marines, Zac and Matthew, will they be able to stop the chaos marine threat or will one of their own turn out to be a greater enemy than they had ever thought possible?
1: Chaos
Months had passed since Sam and the S1 team took down the hive king and defeated the Xantho army. Sam and Matt were now at high school while Peter, Cheyenne and Jareth were still at intermediate. It was interval and Sam and Matt were seated together on one of the benches that littered their school's main courtyard. They went to an all boys school which meant they would never see Cheyenne outside of base.
"I think it's really cool to be at a new school," Sam said, relaxing on the bench.
"Why?"
"Because it means that no-one knows about us being you-know-whats.'"
"You mean marines."
"Shhh."
"I know that you're both marines," a familiar voice said, coming from behind them.
"Oh, hey Lachlan."
Lachlan, from the S2 team, also went to the boys' school. He was the same age as Sam and Matt and was also in Sam's class.
The bell rang and the boys headed off to class. After school they all met up at base.
"So how was school?" Jareth asked his brother.
"Ugh, boring as hell. It's hard not having my whole team with me."
"Oh, it's okay, Sam. We'll be there next year. Well, most of us will," Peter said, looking over to Cheyenne who just poked her tongue out at him.
"Sam, can I see you for a minute?" The Base Commander's voice said as his face appeared briefly on Sam's bed screen.
Sam walked up the stairs to the Base Commander's throne room. As usual, he was sitting on his throne. Sam walked over to him.
"Who gave you authorisation to go off planet and kill the hive king?"
"Oh, uhh … well, that was months ago. Why are you bringing this up now?"
"Because the hype of your victory has died down. Now, who gave you the order?"
"No-one. It just sort of happened. Matt, Jareth and I flew up to the Xantho ships. I handled mine pretty well but when I went to help J and Matt we got captured and then the ship flew back to its planet. So I thought that while we were there we'd end this war."
"I'm glad that you did, but next time please tell me your plan."
"Yes, Sir." Sam turned to leave.
"Sam."
"Sir?"
"Keep up the good work."
Sam left with a nod and a smile. He was running through the halls when an explosion rocked the base.
"Sam, come with me to the command centre," the Commander said as he ran past Sam.
"Doc, what's going on? Is it another Chaos attack?" the Commander asked as they arriv
ed at the command centre.
"Sadly, yes it is," Doc replied. The Chaos Marines had been attacking the base over the previous few months since the Xantho war ended but it had never been a strong attack.
"There are a lot of them this time."
"Sam, get your team ready. Head down to the front gate and meet up with S2. Don't let them enter this base," the Commander said.
Sam ran through the halls of the base. Jareth, Matt, Cheyenne and Peter met him close to the front gate, and together they met up with Chris and the S2 team.
"So, Sam, how are we gonna handle this?" Chris asked.
"Same procedure as always. Me, Jareth, Cheyenne and a few of your guys rush into the fray with melee weapons while Matt, Peter and the rest of your team give us covering fire from the wall."
"Well, okay then. Lachlan, you and I will go with Sam while the rest of you get up on that wall."
"Yes, Sir," the rest of Chris' team said as they parted from their leader.
"Good luck, Sam," Matt and Peter said as they followed the S2 Marines.
The synchronised sound of marching and bullet fire surrounded the base. Explosions were infrequent and varied in power but not much got through the shield that encased the base. The gates were the only way in and there were only three of those. The gate opened and revealed hundreds, if not thousands, of Chaos Marines firing and steadily walking toward them.
"Shall we?" Sam asked as he activated his laser blades.
"I do believe we shall," Chris replied, pulling his sword from his back. Cheyenne activated her armour's power to control her ten swords. Jareth activated his chimera armour and unsheathed his cobra-sword. Lachlan's thunder claws whirred to life. They all ran through the open metal gate and faced the front line of the Chaos attack. They easily sliced through the first two layers but the Chaos Marine numbers were too great. Too many Chaos Marines were missed and had to be killed by Matt or Peter. Some even made it through the gates only to be killed by the line of Terminator Marines with their shields raised, forming a barrier within the wall.
The Chaos Saga Page 5
