Among the many dorms of Babylonia, one of them housed the squad, Gray Raven. Inside the squad's dorm, the Commandant of Gray Raven was reading a file in her hand, thinking about the news of a new Construct joining their ranks.
The Commandant was pretty surprised about the news. As much as she knows, most Construct squads work in a group of three, but for Gray Raven to have the honor of a fourth Construct was suddenly out of nowhere.
However, what didn't help was the fact that the Construct's file is mostly covered in black ink; as if it was some kind of experiment. This, of course, annoyed the Commandant with how redacted the information is on this Construct.
Commandant: Why the hell does this Construct has so much black ink?
The doors to the dorm suddenly open, gaining the Commandant's attention. From her point of view, she immediately knew its the three Constructs that made up Gray Raven.
The first is a girl with black hair with red highlights, and red eyes, wearing a button-up black jacket. A red scarf wrapped around her neck along with a red headband that has little horns on top of her head.
The second is another girl with white hair, wearing a white uniform with gold buttons and linings, and white knee-high boots. On her head was a communications device that looked like a headset, with the headband on the backside of her head along with purple wing-like structures attached to each earcup.
And finally, the third is a man with caramel-blonde hair and blue eyes, wearing a black coat with blue linings. Underneath the coat is a black outfit, black combat pants with hip holsters on both sides, and combat boots. His most notable feature is the pair of short blue horns on his head.
The Commandant places the file down and stood up to greet the three Constructs.
Commandant: Lucia, Liv, Lee, didn't expect you three to be back this early.
Greeted the Commandant, getting a small response from the trio. It wasn't until Lucia's curiosity gain the Commandant's attention, and she knew why.
Lucia: Any news about the new Construct?
Lucia asked with a curious tone, yet with a hint of concern in her voice.
Commandant: One thing for sure, this file didn't help.
The Commandant answered, holding up the unknown Construct's file to Lucia, allowing her to see the amount of black ink on it. Lucia's eyes widen a bit, seeing the amount of redacted information of this Construct.
While Lucia looks at the file, the Commandant looks to Liv, who seems out of this world until she was called out.
Commandant: Liv, you alright?
The Commandant asks, snapping Liv out of her thoughts.
Liv: H-Huh? Oh, I'm fine... just surprised...
Hearing this, the Commandant places her hand on Liv's shoulder, calming the Construct a bit.
Commandant: Don't worry, Liv. I'm sure this new Construct will get along with us.
Liv nodded as the Commandant looks to Lee.
Commandant: Lee, your thoughts?
Lee: In my opinion, Commandant. I suggest we wait until the Construct introduces himself.
Lee replies with a stoic tone, yet caution in his voice.
Soon after, the intercoms in the dorm blares out, getting Gray Raven's attention.
<ATTENTION: Gray Raven squad, report to the Control Room immediately. REPEAT: Gray Raven, report to the Control Room immediately.>
Alerted, the Constructs of Gray Raven quickly left their dorm with their Commandant trailing behind, letting out a sigh.
Commandant: Time to meet the FNG.
-------15 Minutes Later-------
Arrived at the Control Room of Babylonia, Gray Raven squad waited for their briefing or much less the meeting of their new Construct into their squad.
The Control Room itself is full of staff working 24/7 to ensure Babylonia is well maintained, along with intelligence and logistics planning for the forces that are fighting on Earth.
Soon, the doors to the Control Room opens, and enters Hassen, the current leader of Babylonia, by his side is his assistant Celica.
However, it was the last person that entered behind the two that gained everyone's attention, especially Gray Raven.
The person in question appears to be a man, but his face is hidden by the helmet he's currently wearing. Not to mention the gear he had on him is a resemblance to a once autocrat Motherland, along with a Tommy gun-style rifle holstered on his back.
The Commandant examines the man from top to bottom, wondering if this is the Construct from the file she read earlier.
Hassen: Gray Raven.
Hassen greets the squad before noticing their stares at the Construct beside him.
Hassen: I take it you had read the Construct's file?
Commandant: Only the parts that weren't covered in black ink.
The Commandant replies with a shrug.
Hassen: In that case, I want to introduce you your new member to the squad. Meet...
As if it was on signal, the Construct steps forward and introduces himself.
Construct: EXO-07, Attacker-type Construct. Callsign: Noble, assigned to Gray Raven by Hassen's orders. It's a honor meeting you.
The Construct, Noble, greeted, earning a nod from the Commandant.
Commandant: Likewise, the name's Andra Cassidy. I'm the Commandant of Gray Raven, looking to see you in combat.
The Commandant greets back, getting a nod from Noble as well. Following after, the three Constructs of Gray Raven introduced themselves to their new member.
Lucia: I'm Lucia, squad leader of Gray Raven. I hope we get along.
Lucia introduced herself to Noble.
Lee: Name's Lee. I'm the engineer of the squad.
Lee followed after, still stoic with his new squad member.
Liv: I-I'm Liv, the squad's support... N-Nice to meet you...
Liv shyly greets. Hearing the Construct's nervous introduction, Noble can't help but feel bad for her, such a pure soul in a world of misery.
Hassen: Now that introductions are out of the way, lets get down to the main focus.
Stated Hassen, looking to his assistant.
Hassen: Cecilia, if you would?
Cecilia: Of course, sir. As of recently, our recon teams that had been deployed yesterday haven't reported in. Exceptions are either Missing or Killed In Action. However, minutes ago, we just received a mysterious signal around this sector in Eastern Europe, the best guess being Warsaw.
In the middle of the room, a holographic earth martialize, showing the European continent before zooming in on the city of Warsaw. A single yellow dot appeared on the map, blinking slowly.
Cecilia: According to the scouts' latest report, there's a possibility that the sector they were in is controlled by a large Corrupted force. Additionally, it also states there's an unknown contact that is neither friend nor foe of the Corrupted.
On the map, multiple red dots appeared around the sector.
Cecilia: Your mission is to clear out the sector, gather any intel, and if possible, find out what happened to the recon team.
Stated Cecilia, ending the mission brief.
Hassen: Any questions?
Gray Raven, along with Noble, shakes their heads, having no questions about their mission at all.
Hassen: Good, you're dismiss.
With their brief done, Gray Raven and Noble leave the Control Room, with the Construct being the last to leave, but before he can, Hassen called out to him.
Hassen: Noble, I need to speak with you for a bit.
Despite the Construct's face being covered by his helmet, Hassen can tell that Noble was raising a brow at him.
Noble: What is it, sir?
Both Hassen and Cecilia glance at each other before looking back at the Construct.
Hassen: Due to recent deployments, I have requested an A.I. within Babylonia's system to assist you when you're in the field.
Hearing Hassen's words surprises Noble a bit.
Noble: Sir, I do advise, but isn't this a bit questionable? After all, I just arrived, sir.
Hassen: I know, but take it with a grain of salt. We're in desperate times, Noble, and desperate measures must be taken. After all, you do remember what we're fighting, correct?
Noble: Yes, sir, I do.
Hassen: That's good to know.
Said Hassen as he snaps his fingers. From behind the leader's head, a drone came around its optics, looking around before setting its sights on Noble.
Drone: Oh, there you are Construct. I have been expecting you.
Hearing the drone's voice, Noble was surprised that it's the same voice of the A.I. when he first arrived
Noble: You're that A.I. I heard earlier.
Drone: Yes, I was. I must you're quite mysterious for Construct, you know that?
Noble: .....спасибо?
Drone: Ah! I forgot to introduce myself! I'm NTC 2540-9, or Ghost if you're wondering what my callsign is.
Noble: That's good to know.
As the A.I. and Construct exchange among themselves. Hassen clears his throat, getting the duo's attention.
Hassen: Ghost here has been designated as your companion with your operations. He's excellent at hacking in case you need to bypass whatever systems are corrupted. Along with intel gathering to have us updated when you're down there.
The A.I., or rather Ghost, spins the moveable parts of his shell as a sign of readiness.
Ghost: If you need anything you can count on me!
Noble: Хорошо
Hassen: Best get going you two. Gray Raven isn't going to wait any longer.
Noble: Yes, sir.
Noble salutes Hassen, heading his way out of the Control Room with Ghost trailing behind him. Once they were out, they were greeted by the Commandant, behind her is a spacecraft housing the rest of Gray Raven.
Commandant Andra: Took you long enough.
Ghost: Sorry Commandant Andra, but Hassen was just introducing me to Noble, but the good news is I'm assigned to take part in your operations.
Listening to what the A.I. just say, the Commandant was a bit surprise.
Commandant Andra: Really now? In that case, you're riding with us, Noble.
The Commandant stated, making her way to the spacecraft with Noble following after her.
Commandant Andra: Not gonna lie to you, Noble. You're stepping into some shoes the rest of the squad would rather leave unfilled. Me, I'm just happy that Gray Raven has a new member for additional strength.
Entering the spacecraft, both Noble and the Commandant sat on opposite sides from each other, with the Construct sitting next to Lucia.
Commandant Andra: Just one thing... I've seen your file. Even the parts the censors didn't want me to. I'm glad to have your skill-set. But we're a team.
With Gray Raven in, the spacecraft doors start closing up as it engines rumbles to life.
Commandant Andra: That lone-wolf stuff stays behind. Clear?
Noble: Got it, ma'am.
Nodded Noble as he looks to his side to be greeted by Lucia smiling at him.
Lucia: Welcome to Gray Raven.
Noble just nodded, not saying a word as he looks to his A.I. who's still cheerful.
Ghost: Don't worry, Noble. Surely nothing will go wrong on your first mission.
Silent, Noble can't help but feel that something unexpected is going to happen later on.
------------1 HOUR LATER-----------
Somewhere in Eastern Europe
Upon touchdown, Gray Raven walked among the devastated lands with a moderate pace as their A.I. scans the environment multiple times. As they walk, Noble takes a few glances of the destroyed Corrupted bodies that litter the earth, wondering if theses are the enemies that Hassen speaks of.
The hot wind blows gently against the squad as they continue toward their mission objective. It didn't take long until snowflakes started to fall in the air, but that didn't hinder them one bit, still focused on the path before them. Sounds of their feet clicking against the concrete street didn't help the awkward atmosphere between Gray Raven and their new member.
Lucia, Liv, and Lee would occasionally take glances at the silent Noble, who was walking behind the squad. The three were trying to read his expression, but can't due to his helmet.
Ghost notices this as well but decides not say anything since it'll be even more awkward.
Noble felt his squad mates' gaze on him, but it didn't bother him. After all, he was the new member of Gray Raven. Best that he keeps up with first impressions.
Suddenly, a ping within Noble's helmet alerted him, causing him to stop. Which also cause the rest of Gray Raven to stop as well.
Commandant Andra: Noble? What's-
The sound of mechanical clacking alerted the rest of Gray Raven, looking forward to see a horde of Corrupted slowly approaching them.
Lucia, Liv, and Lee immediately got into their combat stance as the Commandant falls back to Noble.
Commandant Andra: Lucia, Lee form a perimeter! Liv, I nee-
The Commandant was cut off when Noble suddenly rushes forward with incredible speed, surprising Gray Raven.
Auto-rifle in hand, Noble unleashes the flaming bullets at the Corrupted, the orange tracers burning and piercing the bodies where ever they go. The bullets continue to flow until the magazine ran empty, alerting the Construct. He then switches to his sidearm, an SI-2, and fire at any Corrupted he can see.
One Corrupted attempted to grab Noble from behind, but the Construct was quick to sidestep and sweep kick the Corrupted in the legs, falling to the ground. He then unsheathes his knife and stabs the Corrupted in the neck before finishing it off with two shots from his sidearm.
The Commandant was the first to snap out from her initial shock of watching her new recruit engaging the horde, looking to her Constructs who were snapping out as well.
Commandant Andra: Cover his flank!
Lucia: Yes Commandant!
First, to lead, Lucia went forward and cut down the incoming Corrupted with her sword, using her speed to her advantage, avoiding the attacks thrown at her.
Providing covering fire Noble and Lucia, Lee fires precise shots at the Corrupted horde, aiming for their weak spots as he takes them out with ease.
From the back, Liv used her laser pods to blast the Corrupted from afar while being careful to not hit any of her squadmates.
Rifle in hand, the Commandant switches the safety off before aiming down the sights, aiming directly at any Corrupted that were near Noble. Finding her target, she pulls the trigger, letting the bullets fly as they hit their target.
Switching back to his primary, Noble removes the empty drum mag and inserts a fresh one in before pulling the charging handle. He then bashes the Corrupted in front of him with the rifle stock to the ground before riddling it with bullets. Looking around for any remaining Corrupted, Noble took out a few while the rest of Gray Raven finishes off the rest.
Noble: ....Clear.
Noble reported, seeing that there ain't more Corrupted in the area as he loads another mag into his tommy. He then looks back, sawing Gray Raven looking at him questionably.
Ghost: That was a reckless maneuver, you know that Noble?
Ghost exclaimed, had observed the Construct's actions of reacting quickly without hearing his Commandant's orders.
Noble: Weren't you the one that said that nothing will go wrong on this mission?
Ghost: Fair point.
Around this time, an annoyed Commandant stops in front of Noble.
Commandant Andra: Noble, what the hell were you thinking!?
The Commandant shouted, which was understandable to Noble. After all, he rushed in without hearing her words.
Noble: Apologies Commandant. I thought it would be wise to take out the Corrupted quickly to continue on the mission.
Hearing the Construct's statement, the Commandant sighed.
Commandant Andra: Understandable, but you can't just rush towards the enemy unexpectedly, Noble. Listen to my orders next time. I can't risk having you killed on your first mission.
Noble: Da, Commandant.
Noble apologies, getting a nod from the Commandant.
Commandant Andra: Alright, lets get going Gray Raven.
So after, Gray Raven continues on their march towards their mission objective. On the way, the Commandant keeps her glances on Noble, who was inspecting his equipment while his A.I. asks questions about said equipment.
After traveling for some time, Gray Raven finally reached their objective, a worn-down church. However, upon entering, they were greeted by the sight of dead Constructs and destroyed Corrupted littering the scene.
Commandant Andra: Jesus Christ....
Ghost went ahead and scan the multiple lying Constructs, but grim when he found no life signs.
Ghost: I'm afraid there's nothing we can do... I'm sorry....
Ghost stated with a sad tone. The Commandant takes in the sight, knowing she can't do anything about it for the fallen Constructs, taking a deep breath, she gave her orders to Gray Raven.
Commandant Andra: Lucia, Noble, you're with me. Lee, Liv, check the perimeter.
Getting their orders, both Noble and Lucia stayed with their Commandant while Lee and Liv went ahead in the church.
Inspecting one of the many dead Constructs, Noble notices something is off with the body he's examining.
Noble: Commandant, I found something.
Commandant Andra: What is it, Noble?
Approaching Noble, both the Commandant and Lucia look at the body the Construct was inspecting, noticing the cuts and slashes on the body.
Ghost: These deep wounds seem to be caused by something sharp, perhaps a blade? Strangely, the Corrupts we encountered mainly used blunt force, and not a single one carried a bladed weapon.
Ghost explained, scanning the body while the trio tried to figure out who's behind it.
Suddenly, Noble flinches, quickly standing back up as he turns back and aims his tommy at the darkest corner of the church, confusing the Commandant, Lucia, and Ghost.
Commandant Andra: Noble, what's wrong?
The Commandant asks, getting back up as well, readying her rifle.
Noble: We're not the only ones here.
Noble replied, alerting both the Commandant and Lucia.
Ghost: Are you sure operative? I'm not picking up anything on my sensors.
Noble: Rely on your senses, not your tech.
Lucia senses the presence as well and quickly went into a battle stance next to Noble. The two looking at the same corner.
From the shadows, the presence reveals itself. A white-haired girl wearing a black and red outfit, red thigh-high socks on the right, a long strip of black cloth wrapped in a bandage-like manner on the left, and a pair of black boots. Behind her is a black and red sheath housing the sword itself.
Ghost: A Construct?
Ghost calls out, disappearing from everyone's sight and still in touch through the communication system.
Commandant Andra: Best guess I presume?
Noble: Now's not the time Commandant.
Commandant Andra: Oh right...
Focusing their sight on the Unknown Construct, red lighting suddenly starts emitting from her. Suddenly, Lucia winces and held her head in pain, causing the Commandant to divert her attention away from the unknown Construct.
Commandant Andra: Lucia, what's wrong?!
Lucia: ...what... I feel... strange... I can't discern her appearance... there are errors in my visual signals... and my thoughts... it feels muddled...
Lucia shakily replies, shaking her head.
???: Lucia...
The Unknown Construct calls out.
???: The error, the fault, must end here...
At rapid pace, the Unknown Construct unhurriedly stepped towards the trio, all the while unsheathing a crimson blade from her waist.
Commandant Andra: NOBLE!
Noble: I'm on it!
Stepping in front of the Commandant and Lucia, Noble tracks the movement of the Unknown Construct, his sights trained on her.
Noble: Кто ты, черт возьми, такой?
Noble whispers to himself, can't but feel that he...
Saw that face before
End of Prologue