Felix

Crash Site Alpha – Present Day

When Control first assigned Felix to Chorus, Felix was in heaven. He had a decent bed in the middle of a lush jungle. While he didn't appreciate or admire the environment while stationed there, the greenery was leagues better than his current situation. Following the end of their civil war charades, the space pirate's main base of operations shifted to the remnants of an old ship that had crashed at Crash Site Alpha, the happening place with two and a half broken-down ships.

Unlike the bed he'd had with the New Republic, Felix's current bed was ragged and torn, a mattress that was quickly losing its filling. He yearned for the day this mission ended. He would get the biggest, softest bed money could buy and still live like a king with what remained. Filthy rich, that's what he'd be. Unfortunately, he couldn't complain at the moment. Well—he could—but not to anyone who would listen. If he mentioned it to Hargrove, his boss would quickly shoot down any idea of replacing it with a better one. If he complained to Locus, the brute would tell him to shut up and get over it. "It's not like we're spending much time at the base anyway," would be his response.

It was the quiet days like this one when Felix didn't care enough to get out of bed. He'd already contacted some of the other space pirates a few hours ago to take care of his duties and keep Locus off his back. His plan to avoid work succeeded for a few hours, but the green-clad soldier eventually found him. "What do you think you're doing?" Locus asked sharply, entering the room.

"Well, I was enjoying my day," Felix groaned, already sick of his teammate. "And I'll continue to do so once you leave." No reports had come in over the radios, so he had no reason to move. However, knowing Locus, Felix sat up and glared at his ally. He wasn't about to trust that Locus wouldn't pull something. Plus, he could feel Locus's gaze of disapproval under his helmet.

Locus walked to the corner of the room, where Felix's armor sat in a neat pile. He grabbed Felix's helmet and chucked it at him. Felix caught it, but the strength of the toss knocked him back slightly. "Get dressed. We have a job to do."

"A-A new mission?" Felix's heart rate steadily rose. "Why in the hell didn't you tell me Hargrove sent a transmission?" While he wasn't fond of Hargrove, he recognized his boss's authority. He wouldn't dare cross the head of the United Nations Space Command. If he stopped responding to transmissions, whether intentionally or not, there would be consequences.

And he knew that.

"He didn't. But you've been here all day. So I know you haven't done your rounds."

"Well, actually—"

"Don't."

"I did get some of our... associates to do my rounds for me," Felix waved his hand.

"Get up before I drag you out myself. Our work takes precision. These tasks are things you and I have done a million times and will continue to do many more. They're not just things you can hand out to others," Locus growled.

"Sheesh, fine," Felix grumbled, standing up and walking over to the rest of his armor. He began putting it on. "Can I get some privacy, please?"

"You have three minutes."

"Ten."

"Five."

"Fine."

Locus walked out of the room. But the soft banging sound just outside told Felix his partner was standing guard, ready to come in five minutes later when he inevitably failed to come out by himself. Finally opting to make as little trouble as possible, Felix hurried to get dressed and leave the room.

His timing was impeccable. As the door closed behind him, one of their other soldiers ran into the building. "Locus, Felix. Something's come up. One of our research outposts was attacked. Last we heard from them was during the morning check-in. They were supposed to report back an hour ago, but they haven't yet."

"And you're just telling us this now..." Felix's voice trailed off.

"This is why you do your own tasks, Felix. You would have known about this sooner, and we could have mobilized. Instead, we're here."

Felix sighed. "Whatever, come on. Let's check this out." Felix walked past the space pirate and toward one of the temples on the water. He walked by groups of soldiers standing around and talking. He wished he could hang out and do nothing meaningful the way they were. But that was a pipe dream.

As a man drove by on a Mongoose, he wondered if he should pick one up to travel faster. But by the time he could form that thought, he had already arrived at the light bridge. He and Locus crossed it confidently while the newer soldier trod carefully—as though it could vanish beneath his feet.

The mercenaries stepped into the temple and found Aiden Price, the former counselor of Project Freelancer, standing to the side. Their newest mercenary was with him, still dressed in all-black. But he was much larger than the rest, so Felix had no trouble picking him out of a crowd. Felix waved a peace sign in his direction, but the man didn't respond, simply opting to walk by him.

Before finding out what happened at the research outpost, Felix headed toward the counselor. "Hey, Price, how's stuff going with our new recruit?" He gestured his head to the side as though pointing in the newest mercenary's direction.

"He's been calling himself Sharkface," Aiden replied calmly, placing his hands behind his back.

Felix scoffed. "What is he, a Batman villain?" he mocked.

Deciding to humor the mercenary, Aiden explained, "His physical appearance, combined with a deep-seated sense of contrarianism seems—"

"Oh my god, shut up. I don't care." Felix wasn't in the mood for jokes, stepping back and placing his hands atop his head.

"Can we use him?" Locus asked.

Aiden turned to the other mercenary, offering, "If we continue our sessions, then absolutely. His history against the freelancers will likely be enough motivation for him. And the plating across his body suggests he will be harder to take down than The Meta was. Perhaps you should bring him on a mission soon or send him on a smaller one with a few soldiers." Locus looked away, seemingly deep in thought.

Felix, however, wasn't interested in the response, continuing, "'Sharkface,' 'Locus,' I mean—whatever the fuck happened to normal names? Am I crazy or something?"

"Well—"

"Don't psychoanalyze me," Felix threatened, pointing at the counselor. Aiden gave a smug smirk.

Before he could say anything else, the temple shook with a loud whir. When it calmed, the beam of light from the temple's center vanished briefly. The group stood in a silent darkness for a moment. When it came back on, the counselor was the first to ask, "What was that?"

One of their men answered on the radio as though he heard Aiden's question. "Locus. Felix. We have a problem."

"Report," Locus grew irritated that these men were complaining about the existence of a problem rather than just saying the problem itself.

"Our teleporters malfunctioned. They just detonated."

"How many?"

"Well... um..." he hesitated to answer, "All of them."

"How is that even possible?" Felix wondered out loud.

"I have no clue," Locus responded. He activated the microphone in his helmet and ordered, "Figure out what else went off. We'll find out the problem," he ordered. He then turned to the counselor. "Any ideas, Price?"

The counselor looked between the two men and cleared his throat. "Well, in my time with Project Freelancer, we discovered the existence of many alien artifacts. If all the teleportation grenades exploded, its cause is likely of alien origin. The temple we're standing in is one such artifact. As I've been made aware, there are other temples around the world. Are there not?"

"There are."

"Each alien temple is dedicated to something. Whether it's to activate a halo ring, a gravity manipulation temple like this, or a simple storage unit, each is unique in some capacity. I wouldn't be surprised if someone activating another temple caused this."

The mercenaries faced each other. "Tucker," Felix clenched his fist. "Those assholes really know how to make life difficult for us. Something tells me Tucker's the cause of all this."

"You're only saying that because you hate him the most. He's the one who foiled our plans."

"Locus. It looks like all our alien weaponry fried," the same soldier called. "Awaiting your orders, sir."

"Continue your patrol. I have nothing special for you, soldier," Locus answered.

Felix knew his partner had memorized every protocol Hargrove had given them. He asked, "What now, genius? What's the protocol for this?"

"We don't have one. I'll ra—" A quiet beep sounded from nearby, cutting him off. The duo looked around and saw a hologram on the far wall. Walking up to it, they found a map of Chorus. They'd already memorized the world's layout long ago, and a beacon blinked close to the center.

"The jungle temple," Felix observed.

"Right, the temple with a similar energy beam," Locus agreed.

"You've been out there?" asked the counselor.

Locus shook his head. "No, never had a need to. We just know what exists where."

"We're here," Felix pointed to the map, a third of the way between the beacon and the north-most landmass. "It looks like we're gonna have to go there and see what this thing wants."

"We remain here until advised," Locus ordered.

"Fuck that!" Felix shouted. "If the Reds and Blues are why our alien tech stopped working, there's a chance this place might give them the edge over us. We need to see what that temple's for. Even if it's just to make sure it's not a threat to us. We'll grab a few of our scientists and head out. We can contact Hargrove on the way."

Locus thought momentarily. He couldn't deny Felix had a point. If their actions caused a map to appear at Charon's temple, it was safe to assume the same map appeared on their end. They would obviously travel there, especially if told to by an alien system.

Another space pirate walked into the room. "We've had the scientists check everything. Binary rifles. Suppressors. They're all dead. Even the ones on the Tartarus."

"Then send them up here. We have another job for them," Locus said with a nod.

"You got it, boss." The space pirate walked out.

Felix turned to his partner. "So you agree with me, then?" he crossed his arms.

"Yes. We need to get there as soon as possible. Once we're back, we'll send Sharkface and a few men to monitor the temple for the Reds and Blues."

Another soldier called over the radio. "Sirs, we just received a communications request from Control. What should I tell them?"

Locus met Felix's eyes through their helmets. "Every second we waste here is another second the planet's inhabitants have to gain an edge over us. We need to go. Now."

Felix smiled. They were finally on the same page. "Great." He activated his radio. "Tell him we'll call right back."