X-Com's Finest (An X-Com 2 play through)

Operation Steaming Serpent

Central was in his office when his comm chirped. "SIR! We've got a broken down alien convoy asking to be picked!" Central perked up. They needed supplies. Badly. He looked over the roster before calling out over the comms, "Pritchett, Ranger Van Dyke, Svangerko, and Watt – to the briefing room."

It was twenty minutes later and the team was sitting down listening to the situation, "Ok all, we all know we are running low on supplies. We've got word that an alien train has broken down and in need of repairs. Our job is to make sure that the supplies on that train are rerouted to a more beneficial destination. Watt, I want you to...."

Zalewski came bursting into the room followed by that metallic screeching noise that made everyone cringe. One of the windows looking into the briefing room actually cracked. As everyone tried to readjust themselves, Zalewski began, "I DID IT! Bastion had been shutting down at random intervals, and I discovered that he was overloading his circuits with too much power." Zalewski shook his fingers, "I didn't know what to do with this extra power that he had, so I had this GREAT idea! I'd just leave it open as a live circuit and he could zap anyone he gets close to!"

In the meantime, Bastion had been floating around the room, electrical voltage crackling from the open prod. Everyone, knowing how well Bastion could 'fly' began giving it a wide birth. As fate would have it, Bastion collided with the ceiling and went careening out of control. The organized briefing turned to a everyman for themselves scramble as the squad scrambled for cover.

Pritchett had been trying to dodge out of the way, but she bumped into Watt and then tripped over a chair. Landing on her rear, she could do nothing but scramble as the mechanical, screeching banshee of death came careening towards her. Hoping to roll out of the way, she threw herself to the left side at the last minute, but it was not to be. The shocking prod found open skin on her right ankle and a jolt of electricity shocked through her sending her into convulsions.

It was about this time that Pubentz walked by and stopped to witness the scene.

"Oh, you have GOT to be kidding me!"

While the rest of the squad was still scrambling to get away, Pubentz walked straight up to the recovering GREMLIN and grabbed it from the side, tucking it under her arm as best she could. As the screeching thing tried to recover its balance, she fished into her back pocket and pulled out a screwdriver and muttered to herself, "You call THIS engineering?!?"

Zalewski looked at his trapped GREMLIN, rather alarmed, "Please don't hurt him!"

Pubentz quickly took her screwdriver and opened the GREMLIN up. As the GREMLIN began to buck, she pushed it to the floor where she kept it still with her foot. As Zalewski tried to get close, she looked up, pointing at him with her screwdriver, "NOT ANOTHER STEP...or your Bast...stupid robot gets it. UNDERSTOOD?" Zalewski could only nod defeatedly.

It took a few minutes before Pubentz had finished.

"THERE. Now the stupid thing can turn its own power on and off."

Zalewski could only stare. "But....how did you know how to do that?"

"I don't want these things so I do what I can to make myself pretend they don't exist. I want the thing as quiet and as efficient as possible. So you learn how to make that happen."

As Pubentz lifted her foot, Bastion slowly rose into the air testing its new electrical apparatus. Pubentz just shook her head and left the room. With its new power, Bastion took a new liking to its new benefactor and rushed to be by her side – screeching all the while.

"ZALEWSKI! IF YOU DON'T GET THIS THING.." *screeeeeech* "...BLOW IT INTO SO MANY PIECES, YOU'LL NEVER GET IT..." *screeeech*

Zalewski rushed for the door but was stopped short by Central. "Just where do you think you're going Cpl?"