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Terra-33
Episode 0.0
Remi switched weapons hastily, his primary rifle finally empty. As the grip touched his palm, his pistol surged forward into his hand. The enemy were lit up in his HUD, last known positions blinking a dull red. He had only looked down for a moment, but it took the targeting software another second to lock down the fighters again. As the nearest brute smashed through the thick foliage only a few yards in front of him, Remi leveled the weapon at its upper chest. Half again as heavy as an average man, the thing towered over him when it raised itself to full height in preparation to strike. Remi's hand-cannon boomed and his stabilizers fought to control the recoil. The round struck the brute in the chest and it screamed. Reacquiring his stunned target, Remi let another shot fly, this one taking the animal in the face. The humanoid creature slumped to the ground, missing a large chunk of its cheek.
His, actually,
Remi noted, the large and uncovered genitalia hard to miss as the beast toppled backward at the end of his fall.
Dismissing his most recent victim, Remi scanned for nearby targets. The woods around him provided ample cover, but his systems helped maintain their relative locations. Scarlet pulses of light to his left caused him to drop to one knee and spin to try to keep visual contact. The HUD just pulsed, thin trees with violet leaves rising crazily before him, obscuring his vision. The flora on this planet was so different from his home world in coloring and formation, but he likened these slender trees to birch. They had yellowish-white bark which was unfortunately the same color as the light fur that covered the bodies of his current attackers. Some joker back at New Bernburg had called them yetis once and the name had stuck. He stayed still, pistol extended as he breathed lightly. As he noticed what looked like an indigenous canine burst from the trees, he stood and took a slow step backward. Immediately following the animal, another yeti came leaping across the tall grass and into the clearing. Remi jerked back, trying to get his sights lined up in time. Just as he pulled the trigger, the beast collided with him and bore him down heavily.
A snarling visage hovered beyond his visor and Remi cringed at the sight of one so close. He knew he had hit it, but didn't know where. His weapon was currently pinned at his right side and he wouldn't want to fire again without knowing where the round would go. Remi's left arm was still free, so he punched his fist up, aiming for the brute's thick neck. His melee gear engaged and a slap of blue energy struck his foe. The force of the amplified blow rocked the monster sideways and Remi blinked hard. He scrambled to his feet and began stepping on the brute's head. His sensors screamed a warning that he couldn't heed in time as another yeti struck him from the side. Their powerful legs propelled them more quickly than the collision software could detect, and Remi cursed again as he was slammed into the grass. His knees struck first, followed by his helmeted face. He tried to shake it off but his body had become sluggish to respond to his commands.
Remi felt the heavy beast behind him, covering his body while it rained blows on his head and shoulders. He shouted for help as his HUD flared with damage reports. An explosion of pain rocked him suddenly as a meaty fist thunked into the back of his head. He shifted his hips and twisted, finally rotating to be able to see his enemy. The yeti was roaring down at him, its mouth dripping saliva as its hand pulled back in preparation of throwing another punch. Remi also noticed in that split second that the animal was male, due to the substantial erection. As the fist came hammering down at him, Remi frantically thrust his head to the side. The fist struck the ground and shook Remi's head with the impact, despite the attack missing him. His melee systems were still charging according to the icon in the lower right of his vision and he knew that if he didn't scramble out of this position, he was going to be smashed to bits in a matter of moments. The beast was screaming again, this time in pain, as it held its injured fist to its chest. Remi still couldn't get used to calling them he or she, it made them seem more human, and they were anything but that.
Another wild punch slammed down, striking his chestplate with a snap. Remi couldn't breathe and his HUD was now blinking all over the right side of his vision, a small image of his armor displaying a black section across his right pectoral piece. The normally translucent display was growing more opaque, shifting to black in multiple places. Remi's eyes snapped open just in time to see the monster's face explode. He closed his eyes again as blood and bio-matter rained down on his visor. Realizing that it was unnecessary, he overrode his reflex and sighed in relief. Standing over him was his partner, who was shoving the heavy corpse off of him.
Thank God.
She grunted as she put her boot into the brute's chest and kicked, dislodging it the rest of the way. As the animal landed on its back, Remi heard her gasp and then she started giggling.
"Remi! What were you
doing
over here?" she drawled, her eyes sparkling behind the visor. "If you needed more time with him you shouldn't have shouted..."
"Very funny, Trix," he deadpanned. "Thanks for your help though, honestly."
"That thing is huge, pretty sure that you would have needed a new body afterward."
"Well I am irresistible, you said so yourself. Can't blame these dumb fuzzballs for having good taste," Remi said, dusting his armor off and looking down at his sunken right pectoral. The cables had come undone in the middle and were dangling on his upper abdomen. He pushed at the piece experimentally with his index finger and his eyes widened as it simply disconnected and fell to the ground.