There's actually a funny story about this part. I had written most of this part here when I was stuck in one of my stories one day so just wrote a random page and a half about something completely different, just off the seat of my pants. This was way before I started the Arquenia Saga. When thinking about what I wanted to do with this part, I realized that the thing I had written previously would work great, as long as I added to it some and changed it to fit into the setting. And so, here Part III is...
Part III: Zarien
Date: Amanela 2nd, 114 A.U.
Four minutes. The captain had handed him the time bomb that he was supposed to plant in part of the most advanced, most guarded, and most infamous air ship in the whole world and he had only been given three minutes to get in, plant the bomb, and get out.
Make that three minutes and fifty five seconds.
Zarien mopped the sweat off his brow and then quickly dived into the air pipe. The air pipes were the way that they had finally figured out how to get through to sabotage the Western 4th Command Center. The prep crew had somehow managed to cycle out the robots that roamed the air pipes looking for intruders for, coincidentally, another four minutes. Zarien clambered down the pipe, activating the sticky gloves for the hundred foot drop into the lowest levels. Zarien took a couple turns before he came to it. The great pit, as the prep crew had jokingly called it. The shaft that would get Zarien down to the bottom level of the Mothership without having to go anymore advanced forms of security. Zarien took a deep breath and with a yell, jumped down, counting as he fell.
"One...two...three...."
As soon as Zarien counted to the number six, he stuck his hands out. The sticky gloves attached to the metal duct and Zarien jarred to a stop, his arms feeling as if they'd break because of the stop. If he had been any race other than being an elf, Zarien was sure he would have broken one of his arms, if not worse. Zarien took a couple deep breaths, and then dropped the remaining ten feet to the bottom.
Landing lightly on his legs, Zarien crawled through a couple more feet of air pipes to come to a ventilator. Quickly cutting it with a rare corsha knife, he clambered into the room and checked the time on the time bomb. Two minutes and forty five seconds. He hadn't done it fast enough. He had done demos and prep for this before. And he needed to get through the air shafts in a minute to have enough time to do everything.
Oh well. Guess there's no escape this time.
Zarien burst out of the room into the hallway, gun in hand. From prep and demos, he knew right where the guard would be. Before he could even see the guard he shot, twice, one hitting the guard, the other hitting the video camera. They were both inactive by the time he could see them.
Zarien ran down the hall and then burst through a door into the computer room. The room was huge, almost too huge for being only one of the twenty power rooms that was used to power the west side of the Mothership. A blast in here would desolate this part of the airship. And then the rebels would be able to continue their plan.
Zarien threw the time bomb like a frisbee to have it hit a computer and then slide to the floor. The time bomb had been made tough. Zarien watched it land, and then fled the room. He had seen the time before he had thrown it. He had two and a half minutes remaining. Because once the bomb exploded, everyone in the near vicinity was probably going to die.
Zarien dashed down the hall toward the door to the ventilator, when suddenly, two armed elves dashed around the corner to meet him. Zarien's mouth dropped open. This was never part of the arrangement. All of the elves were supposed to be asleep after the wild chaotic celebration of Victory Day! There weren’t supposed to be any extra guards running around down here!
Zarien threw himself to the ground, firing his gun. Gunfire sprayed where he had just been. Two shots and the armed elves were down. Zarien picked himself up and dashed into the room, throwing himself into the shaft and clunking his head.
Ignoring the pain, Zarien scurried to the main shaft and looked up. it was a long way up. Zarien leapt up, using the sticky hands to clamber up the wall. Zarien was going to die if he did it the normal way. He had to take risks. Zarien didn't wait for one hand to properly attach before he moved himself forward, hanging by one hand at a time and ignoring the sticky pads on his feet. Using them would take too long.
Ignoring the tense pain of his arms, Zarien moved up the shaft. One of his hands slipped and he barely held on. He continued on, making good time. His mind raced. This was faster than he’d ever been in the practice simulations. Maybe he’d actually be able to get out of here alive!
Suddenly, Zarien heard a whirring sound above him and looked up to see a dark shape descending. Zarien opened his mouth slightly and then gave out a loud yell of indignation. The prep team had promised to divert all the robots! They said they’d been positive that the orcs wouldn’t be able to discover it in enough time to catch him! Gritting his teeth, he scurried up, trying to get to the exit pipe before the robot. He was getting closer… closer…
Zarien threw himself into the exit pipe just as a mechanical arm of the robot grabbed his angle. Zarien gave a yell and jerked back, grabbing the corsha knife. Slicing through the robot’s arm, Zarien threw himself further back into the tunnel when he heard a muffled sound behind him. And then a cosmic wave smashed into him.
Question of the Week:
(Disclaimer: I am not in any way promising this to be every week, but it should be pretty regular. The question may or may not refer to the part of the story that I just wrote, or to the story at all.) Out of curiosity, how many people are currently reading this serial?
Part III: Zarien
Date: Amanela 2nd, 114 A.U.
Four minutes. The captain had handed him the time bomb that he was supposed to plant in part of the most advanced, most guarded, and most infamous air ship in the whole world and he had only been given three minutes to get in, plant the bomb, and get out.
Make that three minutes and fifty five seconds.
Zarien mopped the sweat off his brow and then quickly dived into the air pipe. The air pipes were the way that they had finally figured out how to get through to sabotage the Western 4th Command Center. The prep crew had somehow managed to cycle out the robots that roamed the air pipes looking for intruders for, coincidentally, another four minutes. Zarien clambered down the pipe, activating the sticky gloves for the hundred foot drop into the lowest levels. Zarien took a couple turns before he came to it. The great pit, as the prep crew had jokingly called it. The shaft that would get Zarien down to the bottom level of the Mothership without having to go anymore advanced forms of security. Zarien took a deep breath and with a yell, jumped down, counting as he fell.
"One...two...three...."
As soon as Zarien counted to the number six, he stuck his hands out. The sticky gloves attached to the metal duct and Zarien jarred to a stop, his arms feeling as if they'd break because of the stop. If he had been any race other than being an elf, Zarien was sure he would have broken one of his arms, if not worse. Zarien took a couple deep breaths, and then dropped the remaining ten feet to the bottom.
Landing lightly on his legs, Zarien crawled through a couple more feet of air pipes to come to a ventilator. Quickly cutting it with a rare corsha knife, he clambered into the room and checked the time on the time bomb. Two minutes and forty five seconds. He hadn't done it fast enough. He had done demos and prep for this before. And he needed to get through the air shafts in a minute to have enough time to do everything.
Oh well. Guess there's no escape this time.
Zarien burst out of the room into the hallway, gun in hand. From prep and demos, he knew right where the guard would be. Before he could even see the guard he shot, twice, one hitting the guard, the other hitting the video camera. They were both inactive by the time he could see them.
Zarien ran down the hall and then burst through a door into the computer room. The room was huge, almost too huge for being only one of the twenty power rooms that was used to power the west side of the Mothership. A blast in here would desolate this part of the airship. And then the rebels would be able to continue their plan.
Zarien threw the time bomb like a frisbee to have it hit a computer and then slide to the floor. The time bomb had been made tough. Zarien watched it land, and then fled the room. He had seen the time before he had thrown it. He had two and a half minutes remaining. Because once the bomb exploded, everyone in the near vicinity was probably going to die.
Zarien dashed down the hall toward the door to the ventilator, when suddenly, two armed elves dashed around the corner to meet him. Zarien's mouth dropped open. This was never part of the arrangement. All of the elves were supposed to be asleep after the wild chaotic celebration of Victory Day! There weren’t supposed to be any extra guards running around down here!
Zarien threw himself to the ground, firing his gun. Gunfire sprayed where he had just been. Two shots and the armed elves were down. Zarien picked himself up and dashed into the room, throwing himself into the shaft and clunking his head.
Ignoring the pain, Zarien scurried to the main shaft and looked up. it was a long way up. Zarien leapt up, using the sticky hands to clamber up the wall. Zarien was going to die if he did it the normal way. He had to take risks. Zarien didn't wait for one hand to properly attach before he moved himself forward, hanging by one hand at a time and ignoring the sticky pads on his feet. Using them would take too long.
Ignoring the tense pain of his arms, Zarien moved up the shaft. One of his hands slipped and he barely held on. He continued on, making good time. His mind raced. This was faster than he’d ever been in the practice simulations. Maybe he’d actually be able to get out of here alive!
Suddenly, Zarien heard a whirring sound above him and looked up to see a dark shape descending. Zarien opened his mouth slightly and then gave out a loud yell of indignation. The prep team had promised to divert all the robots! They said they’d been positive that the orcs wouldn’t be able to discover it in enough time to catch him! Gritting his teeth, he scurried up, trying to get to the exit pipe before the robot. He was getting closer… closer…
Zarien threw himself into the exit pipe just as a mechanical arm of the robot grabbed his angle. Zarien gave a yell and jerked back, grabbing the corsha knife. Slicing through the robot’s arm, Zarien threw himself further back into the tunnel when he heard a muffled sound behind him. And then a cosmic wave smashed into him.
Question of the Week:
(Disclaimer: I am not in any way promising this to be every week, but it should be pretty regular. The question may or may not refer to the part of the story that I just wrote, or to the story at all.) Out of curiosity, how many people are currently reading this serial?
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