TCS: Survivors of the ARKs

ARK: Haywire

Many centuries ago, these ruins were a place of serenity and joy. One of man's most exceptional achievements, it's infrastructure stretching from beneath the surface to the clouds themselves. People met, relationships formed, and families were made within these walls, and the streets were littered by the masses, cheering and smiling, part of a perfectly peaceful society. A city conjoined and built under both the Terran Federation, and the United republics of Earth. It didn't take long for things to go south when tension arose between the two superpowers, and when war broke loose, this city, in particular, became a battlefield, with each opposing side fighting over control for it.

This city is Nova. By the time the wars had ended, it had been overtaken time and time again, ending up in the hands of the Federation as they accelerated their violent means to assert dominance across the planet, but to no avail. The planet laid in ruin after the great wars, and the material they had used to fuel their technology had turned out to be a vicious poison, now taken root in the soil of our very world. Forced to work alongside one another, the Federation and the URE turned Nova and many other cities into bases of operation, with factories producing materials, tools, and Machines that would one day contribute to the revival of mankind.

The Terran Federation left Earth, opting to search for a new world that would carry mankind's future, and the URE stayed behind to finish their own half of the work, eventually launching the ARKs into orbit so they one day could reseed our dying planet. And with that, Nova, alongside the rest of man's ruins, was left behind to dwindle and fall apart with time. And now, centuries later, after the ARKs had made landfall, and despite its dismal fate, the Colony ship's run to plant a new seed for mankind across the galaxy, Nova remains one of the last standing bastions of the old world. Nearly all other remnants had been knocked down by the ARKs, as they tried to cleanse the Earth of mankind's old mistakes. Unfortunately, we can't run from our past forever.

Nova's protective barrier remained active, and it was able to shield the buildings within from the cleansing of the ARKs, and the city is now an overgrown dystopia, ruled by the wilds. Flora lines the skyscrapers, the military bases have turned into fields in which the herbivores thrive and grace and the endless canyons of buildings become nesting areas for a multitude of prehistoric species. Yet, a majority of these ruins remain cold and empty, a place where no biological life can thrive, except for a certain group of entities that are feared by both human life and animal life in the reborn world.

The remnants of the URE's techno-organic police and military force. Ruthless machines whose code and protocols have been lost to time, unrecoverable, and in no shape to be helped and fixed. Packs of defense units roam the city streets, and in the upper sectors of the city amongst the tallest buildings, drones patrol the skies, searching for anything that may be considered a threat by the derelict system. They are led by the feared Juggernauts, one of the URE's less prominent, but stronger AI combatants. Large tek centaurs, standing tall and mighty on their horse-like legs, towering over other machines.

In the darker depths of Nova, a small drone flew, blending in with the derelict machines that crawled in its surroundings. Had their systems not been as deteriorated as they were, they would've known that this drone was not one of their own. The Federation scout scanned its surroundings as it soared between the buildings of the city, with a direct feed of information being sent back to a console back at the base of operations set up by the Terran federation. Suddenly, a shriek was picked up by the scout, and relatively close to it too. A mechanical but guttural scream that shattered the mumbling of the various other AIs that roamed the city. The scout's cover had been blown, by a Juggernaut.

They were not surprised. From what information they had gathered so far, they had become well aware that the Juggernauts were a tad bit more intelligent than their fellow ancient AI, seeing as their systems had not fallen apart as much as that of the defense units, or the enforcers. The scout turned in the blink of an eye, before bolting in the direction it had come from before even spotting where its attacker would come from. Only a second or three into its futile escape could one hear the thundering footsteps and clawing at metal as a heavy entity took chase after the drone. As it made a turn around one of the skyscrapers, it caught a glimpse of the pursuer. A Juggernaut indeed, as it galloped across the side of the building, at a perfect ninety-degree angle. To make its turn after the scout, it dug its clawed hands into a corner before swinging itself over and continuing its chase after the drone, occasionally leaving behind small craters in the walls as it jumped from structure to structure.

The drone failed to escape as it attempted to gain further height, as the Juggernaut lept from one of the buildings, and with the sharp metallic blade that sprung from its wrist, it impaled the scout, smashing itself and the drone into a wall in which it latched onto with its 4 legs, inspecting the machine it had just put a massive hole through. As the blue glowing lights of the scout flickered and died, so did the live feed.

The console flickered and flickered, the last image burnt into the now static screen was the unhinged face of the techno-organic monster that had taken out the drone. It was quite the scare when the Juggernaut pursued the drone, and it came as an intense shock to the man steering it when it was violently impaled mid-air. The man had to take a deep breath to calm his racing heart down, and it took him a solid moment before he was able to collect himself again.

"And that is what we've been dealing with." The man clad in tek-tier tactical military gear said, as he turned away and leaned against the console to face his company.

The singular person who stood there nodded, humming to himself as he ran his hand through his wavy but short brown hair. It took him a moment before he was able to form his response to the footage he had just witnessed. "I'm not following on one thing though. Why do you want survivors to take care of these 'things' that are plaguing your ruins of a city. I mean you guys got your fancy and magical gear that lets you fly and level an entire settlement at the push of a button. How hard can it be for you guys to do it yourselves."

"Listen, Mister Morrington. We left the Colony ship and returned home with half the number of people we were when we left this planet centuries ago. We value the lives of each member of the Federation, and we're the last remnant of the original human race. We aren't like you guys, we aren't reborn clones of our past selves."

"So you're implying that the reason you're hiring survivors to do dirty work for you in Nova is... Because we're more expendable?" Chase snidely remarked whilst he upheld a sarcastic tone in his voice.

The man let out a short chuckle. "Depends on how you look at it. Yes, what you say is technically true, but remember, we're not asking you to clear out all of these AI for us. We already know how that would end- We're doing that job ourselves."

"Well, are you going to tell me what my actual mission is then or are you gonna drag this out another minute?"

A deep inhale and a drawn-out sigh. "Our scouts have been detecting traces of something that shouldn't be in there. We've seen footprints, fingerprints, and discarded tools- And they don't belong to any of us. We think there are survivors in there, and we need someone to get in there and tell them to fuck off."
The Federation member mumbled as he turned around to the console and pulled image files from folders, enlarging them so Chase could have a closer look at them. Pointing at one image that displayed what appeared to be the silhouette of a group of people across the wall of a building, he continued.
"The thing is, they've been around for a while, and seem content on staying too. They've been downing machines and salvaging them, but for what, we don't know yet."

"Salvaging I know all about. I lead a scavenger group for a while but left a few months back to help out the people over in The Great Settlement. We used to salvage scrap and ancient metal from ruins to use for armor and weapons."

"And that is probably what these guys are doing too... But salvaging tek metal and salvaging AI and techno-organic mass are quite different things. Again, we need a survivor to go in there and tell them to leave. Our own resources have already been spent, with half of us fighting to retake more sections of the city, and the rest of us trying to rebuild the parts we do have to a more... liveable state for our folks."

"Ok... Ok. Understandable. Now what's in it for me? I want to know what I'll be risking my life for, you guys did mention a hefty price upon completion in those leaflets you left in The Great Settlement."

"Right. Usually, we would treat this as any other commission, but seeing as valuta and currencies haven't returned a mainstay in this world yet, money is off the table."

Chase smirked, walking over to the tek console the member of the Federation leaned on, and in doing so, he exited the direct sunlight that shone upon him from the bright midday sky above, taking rest in the shade that the military canopy provided for the tek hardware and various other furniture they had scattered around in the area.
"How about you guys pay me in some of that fancy future gear you guys got? My old scrap gear could use a replacement." The survivor suggested, gently hitting his fist against his slightly rusty and torn chest piece.

"Absolutely not." The man in tek responded, seeing that Chase was eyeing the light but tactical tek gear he was wearing, his eyes eventually coming to rest on the tek firearm holstered on his hip.

Chase's cheeky smirk was immediately wiped away, as he let out a disappointed "God dangit."

"All that has to do with tek is off the table. The consequence of our technology ending up in the wrong hands is too dire to risk."

"So the feds are gate-keeping their tek."

"Yes."

"Fuck."

"However," The man continued. "We can offer you property. Some land here and around Nova, once we got things up and running on our end."

Chase seemed to quiet down hearing this, his facial expression going blank as he seemed tuned into what he was being told. Admittedly, finding a place to settle down had been one of his plans for the longest time now. He had been leading his group of scavengers for half a decade on their ARK of origin before they went on to become a mercenary group for hire, come the day of reseed. He had risked his life many times at the side of his men who he had already parted ways with a few months ago when he had made the decision to join acquaintances on a mission to space. And now, he was spending the majority of the free time he had on his hands to figure out what he wants to do for the rest of his life. He realized in this moment, that this could be a significant opportunity for him.

"A steady source of sustenance, a safe place to live, to work... We can offer you an easy transition back to a more modern way of living. A sense of society. When in human history did you say you were from again?"

"The nineteen-eighties..." He mumbled in response.

The man awkwardly raised his hand and rested it on the back of his neck, rubbing it a bit before letting out a drawn-out and high-pitched "Yyyeeeeeahhh It'll be similar enough I suppose. Welp, no time like the present. You've got what information we can offer you, and beyond that, you're on your own. Figure out what those folks are up to in there and get rid of them." He then said, before walking out into the sunshine and away from the tent at a slow pace, expecting Chase to follow not far behind.

"Wait, so I'm not getting any other help? You guys don't got any maps of the city I could use at the very least?" Chase asked a bit frantically, as he stepped after the man in tek.

"Nope. We ran out."

"You ran out- The fuck's that supposed to mean?!"

After having avoided the question, the man turned around one last time to let his eyes meet Chase's. "Seek me out when you finish the job. The name's Cole. Cole Novak."

Watching the man walk off into a more crowded area of the federation campsite, the survivor is left to his own devices, as he lets out a short sigh, raising his hands and resting them on his hips. "Hopeless, these feds." He shook his head, as the soft rumbling of another living being filled his ears. A few yards away from where he stood, rested his companion in the cold shade of the skyscrapers that surrounded them, amongst tall stalks of grass and bushes. A deep and dark green-scaled Baryonyx, with a row of yellow tinted stripes going down along its back, from its neck to the end of its tail. It raised its head up from the ground, glaring in its owner's direction whilst softly gnawing and chewing on the mouthpiece attached to the saddle.
"It's just you and me then, Barry."

As he trotted toward his scaly friend, a loud sound that echoed throughout this rather empty part of the city ruin made him stop dead in his tracks to turn around and attempt to identify the source of the noise, before it got louder and more apparent that it came from the skies above. It was hard to see much of the milky blue sky above, as the tall structures and buildings cluttered his view of the clouds above, but from the cracks and spaces between them, he caught glimpse of two fast-moving objects as they raced through the air above him. As the two tek jets disappeared over the city skyline, the survivor calmly sat himself down on the back of his companion, before it raised itself from the ground into an upright stance, and at this moment he began to realize the sheer power these people from the past future held. Dear god, he thought to himself, as he hoped they would forever remain on good terms with survivor-kind.

_________________________________________________________________________


In the dark shadow of a colossal structure, Chase took cover by the side of his companion, whom he had to struggle to get silent as their situation grew direr with each second. Their luck had run out after hours of avoiding commotion from the wildlife that resided within the city ruins, and the technological plague that crawled the walls of this unforgiving landmark of the past. Loud footsteps shook the ground not far from them, and the growling and rumbling of a larger theropod than the one Chase had beside him sent a wave of unease that crashed into the survivor and his tame.

Accompanied by the distressed howls of the Tyrannosaurus, were the much more rapid sound of metallic legs hitting the ground. A defense unit? No, too slow, Chase knew that. An enforcer? He sure hoped not, with their teleportation capabilities, he would not stand a chance. Fortunately and unfortunately for the man, it was neither of those that he had encountered, no, he had come upon a Juggernaut, and caught it right as it engaged in a violent exchange of blows with a Tyrannosaur, one that was probably just minding its own business before this ruthless machine had made the decision that it was a fiend.

Keeping his gloved hand on the snout of his Baryonyx, Chase laid low as he observed the fight go down. It didn't last long, and for a moment his heart sank, watching the Juggernaut stow away both of its weapons, the large tek cannon on its left wrist, and the blue glowing blade on its right. And so with ease, the robot used what appendages it had that resembled hands, to grab the large theropod by its jaw, and with a forceful pull- unhinge it, before a mighty blow was delivered to the side of its skull, one where the bloody and gory hand of the Juggernaut emerged from the opposite side.

Sneaking past this robotic adversary would be the most ideal move, despite Chase's experience with fighting one before. He knew that on his own, facing it would be suicide, as even with the help of three others, the Juggernaut he once faced by the side of the Crusader and his acquaintances from The great settlement, they still failed miserably and almost lost their lives to it. But perhaps by the side of a large companion such as the one he had now, he might stand a chance.
For the moment, he considered it a worst-case scenario, but that would come to fruition as before they could even make their move to discreetly flee the scene, the Juggernaut's head snapped in their direction as the Tyrannosaur hit the ground with a loud thud. It was well aware they were present in the surrounding area.

And so that is how Chase and Barry would end up in the sticky situation they found themselves in, amidst a dimly lit clearing between the buildings, surrounded by overgrown streetlights whose spark was outshined by the god rays from the sky above. Hauling himself onto the back of Barry, Chase braced himself for what was about to happen. Droplets flew from the blood-covered arms of the Juggernaut as the blaster sprung out of its left arm, aimed at the two.

At the sight of this, the man kicked his legs to the sides of his ride and pulled at the saddle reins, maneuvering the Baryonyx toward the lifeless body of the unfortunate Tyrannosaur, hoping to use its corpse as cover from the tek cannon fire that he knew was coming his way at any second now. In the nick of time, they were able to position themselves behind cover as glowing projectiles graced them, but to Chase's dismay, the cover did not last long. Soon enough, the projectiles were able to make their way through the carcass of the dinosaur, blood and guts flying everywhere in the process. They didn't have a choice, the survivor realized. Their best bet was truly to charge at the robot and cross their fingers that they may gain the upper hand.

With the rein in one hand, and the other reaching for the firearm he kept strapped over his back, Chase took a deep breath that sank deep into his lungs before he exhaled, jolting the rein and telling Barry to make a run around the corpse and straight at the Juggernaut. He swung his shotgun over his shoulder and grabbed it firmly in both of his hands, cocking the gun before firing a shell at the machine. "Over here!" He shouted as he and Barry bolted around it.

Unsurprisingly, the shell and its many projectiles hit and ricochet off the tek plating that protected the ancient URE robot from harm, barely scraping the surface of its armor. The machine shook its body, before turning around to face its incoming attackers. Barry, knowing what his rider wanted him to do, let his jaw hang open as he charged at the Juggernaut, and as it lept at it, Chase got so up close to the machine that he realized they met eye-to-eye in height despite him riding a rather tall prehistoric animal. This shook him to his core, but at the moment, he couldn't think much of it, cause the next second, he found himself atop his foe, pinned down by the heavy creature.

A cocky smile grew on Chase's face beneath his helmet, seeing as Barry didn't have too much difficulty holding the robot down with its long arms, but the pride was quickly wiped off his face as a heat-emitting blade emerged from the Juggernaut's outstretched right arm, something that immediately set panic into the survivor's soul. "Oh SHIT- Abort, abort!" He screamed when he felt the heat of the blade sear against his leg. It didn't take long for his tame to recognize the danger, as it too felt the heat against its skin and scales, which caused it to leap off in fear of being touched by the blade.

Before he could see it coming, the left arm of the Machine came swinging at him, the massive blaster bashing the survivor off of his ride, and knocking his shotgun out of his hands as he hit the grassy ground, knocking the air out of his lungs.

Laying on the ground, Chase hyperventilated for a moment, trying to catch his breath as above him, the dinosaur and the machine fought it out, Barry biting onto its arm and clamping down hard enough to make it difficult for the machine to escape his grasp.

His vision had gone blurry, his head felt as if it was spinning after the blow he sustained, but as he crawled on the ground, trying to reach for his weapon, trying to reach for anything his hands could wrap around, he noticed something he hadn't thought of before now, something that had flown over his mind as he faced this powerful robotic adversary.

As he reached for his shotgun, Chase was able to grab onto something else, something he couldn't really identify nor recognize before he held it up close to his face, so he could peer at it through his shattered visor. A minor proximity mine.

In the heat of the moment, he failed to think twice about what he was about to do. The only thing that ran through his mind, was if he could throw this small piece of metal precisely enough, it could practically act as a powerful hand grenade. The risk of him and his companion getting harmed didn't cross his mind, nor did the possibility that he would attract more derelict AI to the scene with this move, but it didn't matter. It was now or never. Crawling around in the grass, he turned to the four legs of the Juggernaut, and without hesitation, he flung the proximity mine the same way one would throw a frisbee, letting it fly over and hit the ground between the horse-like legs of the machine.

"Barry, RUN!" He screamed at the top of his lungs as he tried to carry his own weight in getting off of the ground, but he wasn't even given a second before the faint noise of beeping could be heard from beneath the Juggernaut. The machine curiously bent its upper body to inspect what was happening below it, but as it did, the explosive went off. In the blink of an eye, it was engulfed in upwards flying dirt and pebbles, followed by a gust of fire that spread across the surrounding area, hitting Chase and scorching the back of his armored wear as he curled up into a fetal position.

Deafening ringing filled his ears, blocking out all other noise, and in his blurry vision, he could see Barry recoiling in distress, roaring at the machine as it went up in flames behind the survivor, before looking down at its owner and gently making its way over to him. The Baryonyx put his arm in its mouth, dragging the man away from the burning grass that soon would reach him. The ground shook from the footsteps of both the theropod and the ones of the machine, who Chase only caught a glimpse of as he was being dragged away by his companion. Letting out one last unhinged shriek, the machine fell to the ground, engulfed in fire and flames as dust and dirt fell from the air all around it.

Beneath his helmet, his cheeky smirk returned, as he watched the machine go lifeless, and his scaly friend began sniffing and huffing all over his face whilst it poked around his upper torso with its snout. With a hazy and weak voice, he croaked at his companion, "Thank you, Barry... Thanks...", before reaching an arm up to pat it on the side of its long head.

A moment of peace... For what felt like a long time, the two were left in complete silence, Chase remaining in the grass and listening to the crackling of the fire that emerged from the withered machine. Was this what he would have to deal with, had he met more of those murderous AI? They had been lucky to avoid contact up until now, but if a near-death experience is what he would be served with every encounter, how long would he last out here? The survivor remained in denial, refusing the idea that he could lose his second chance at life to these soulless beings, and in his pride, he hoped that this had only been a worst-case scenario and that the next encounter would go much smoother than this.

Lost in his own thoughts, Chase hadn't noticed that his companion was now hunched down on all four, hissing and growling at something that had emerged from the thicket of the broken city. Another AI, he wondered, without even lifting as much as a finger, but fortunately for him, his pondering was broken rather quickly as a human voice shouted from a handful of yards away.

"Oi!" The deep voice called, accompanied by the sound of metal pieces clicking at the touch of one another. The sound of armor, perhaps a weapon smacking against it? "You alive, over there?"

In a similar fashion as Frankenstein himself, Chase hauled his upper body up into a sitting position as he reached for his belt, recalling that his shotgun was not by his side any longer, making his side arm his best bet for any sort of self-defense. Again, his actions were disrupted when he laid an eye on the man behind the voice, and a wave of relief washed over him.
"Don't we know each other?", he asked the man who stood there, clutching what Chase made out to be a tripod in one hand and a flora-covered sword in the other.

"I think we do. You were on the Nemesis ship when it left for space. The name Bob any recognizable to you?"

Letting out a light sigh, the survivor whose ass was still planted on the ground nodded. "Chase. Chase Mornington." He said as he took Bob's arm which he lent the survivor to get him off the muddy ground.