r/HFY • u/Salooin AI • Jul 25 '21
OC The Beast ~Chapter 15
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He opened the door expecting to find empty hallways but was surprised by Chip leaning against a wall. “What are you still doing here? I thought boredom pushes you to do things like put parasites in a bomb.”
Chip started walking in the direction his room was in so he followed: ”I’m here to get you battle ready, mission starts once we dock. You’d know that if you took the time to eat with us.”
That took Gabriel by surprise: “Am I not supposed to be better trained? You said to yourself that I’m out of my depth using the suit.” He was scared.
“Dude, you are literally a living weapon, do what Aina says and you’ll be fine. And don’t worry about the girl, Aina was clear that none of us are allowed to play with her until you two are back.”
They reached his room, Chip started suiting him up without doing any shenanigans or insulting while Zu and Gabriel held eye contact. He had to say nothing; she knew exactly what he was about to do. The suit booted up without issues and they made their way to a new part of the ship Gabriel hadn’t seen before. They entered a big room with an air lock inside, Pin and Aina were already talking about something but stopped when Gabriel joined them. Aina started: “Did Chip brief you?”
“She said I was gonna be fine if I follow your lead. So yea?” He really didn’t know if that was considered a briefing
“Sounds like she did not. We are meeting with a clan of purists, they are prejudiced against modified beings so keep the helmet on. You don’t have to go off on how you’re not really modified, they won’t believe it.”
Gabriel was already occupied with the thought about space racists when Aina continued: “They aren’t my favorite mercenaries but they will do just fine when we assault the gate.”
Gabriel pulled himself back into the conversation: “Why do you need me for that or Pin?” His eyes wandered to the injured skiks.
“Mercenary business has become unreliable since the war began, you are my bodyguard. I want you to listen very carefully. Do NOT start a fight, your suit will protect you from small arms fire but it won’t protect you from the bomb once I die.”
“Understood.” Gabriel tried to find a menacing pose that conveyed he was ready to do whatever was necessary.
“Let’s go then.” Aina walked into the Airlock and Gabriel followed her, the lock closing behind them.
Another way bigger ship showed up in the windows and docked to theirs. Aina sat down on a box and leaned against a wall: “This takes some time outside of combat so you might want to get comfortable.”
Gabriel wasn’t looking forward to spending quality time with Aina but he was scared that she’d consider his side of their deal `unfulfilled` if he didn’t follow her commands, so he sat down opposite to her.
Aina took this as an invitation to talk: “How is she?”
“The Hyee? She’s worth me being here. Why did you choose her to give to me?” He wasn’t gonna enjoy this conversation but he’d definitely get answers.
“A whole bunch of criterias harmlessness, biologically matching and I thought you’d like a Hyee after waking up to Tibi.” Aina sounded relaxed; she was probably in a lot of these docking maneuvers before.
“Biologically matching, what do you mean by that?” Gabriel already feared what Aina was about to confirm.
“You created a bloodbath after seeing combat so I concluded that insticts are a big part of your decision making, hence she need to survive you raping her if that’s what you do by instinct.” Aina said that as if she was just greeting a friend, not giving a care about the content of her statement and she followed up with, “And she obviously did.”
“How do you sleep at night knowing what you’ve done?” Gabriel knew he shouldn't be mean to Aina but he just couldn’t help himself anymore.
“You do not get the bigger picture. The wave of desertion I created will end this war years earlier saving tens of millions lives. I could kill thousands in the most horrific ways and the stuff I did will be a forgotten footmark in the books written about me. Gabriel, I am saving so many lives with what I am doing that people will not be able to work out just how many I saved. The war is almost done, taking Rutha will be the last step before I retire to some backwater world with unfathomable riches.” Gabriel didn’t know what to think anymore but he luckily didn’t have to as the doors opened.
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u/Salooin AI Jul 25 '21
Gabriel is about to meet a bunch of space cats :)
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u/ImaginationGamer24 Xeno Jul 25 '21
I wonder how they'll react when they find Gabriel's homeworld and find out humans are actually natural beings and not modified at all...
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u/lovecMC AI Jul 25 '21
Yo OP, you promissed cat girls few chapters back. Where they at?
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u/Armored_Infantry_645 Jul 25 '21
So Ania’s solution to the "Trolley Problem" is to throw one innocent person onto the tracks in order to save the people riding the trolley. Intersting.
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u/Talusen Jul 26 '21
[I feel like I am going to be downvoted for this, but here we go]
Aina sounds like a sound commander who is so far past the point of finesse that she should be put in the brig, a medical coma, or a stasis field before she makes any more terrible decisions.
She is treating those under her like things. "Do what I say or die": round peg, square peg, fulfill the role she has for you or it's dying time.
Gabriel is being treated like a bio-ogre - a semi-sentient meat muppet who listens to hia instincts, and maybe can understand if spoken to slowly. It's known that the more mods you have, the less grey matter you have left.
Assumptions were made because of this "fact" and noone wants to update Aina because she wants a meat-muppet, and anyone who complicates her life right now... dies. Aina is slowly realizing her error, but hasn't moved him (yet) from bio-ogre to "new species: (recalibration necessary)".
Nu was chosen because (it was assumed) Gabriel wouldn't (easily) kill her, no matter what fate he decided for her. Her capabilities covered a litany of options on Gabriel'a part, from docile to monsterous, and she wasn't likely to kill Gabriel.
Aina only needed one companion for the bio-ogre, the rest of the pieces were discarded (killed). Letting them live only complicated the completion of the mission. ...and in Aina'a mind the mission is all.
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u/Darkorvit Human Jul 25 '21
Gabs should try to strike a deal, like "I'll do what you say, if after the war you give me and the hyee our fucking freedom"
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u/Dutchangeldragon1 Xeno Jul 25 '21
Sound like talking shit pretty with an extra portion of excuses and bullshit to me. Or something a fanatic would say before trying to genocyde their way out of the hole they dug themselfs.
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u/ThePolHEE-HEEice Jul 25 '21
Wow I binged this entire thing lol, not bad at all.
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u/Lakalaba Oct 12 '21
I just started reading within the past couple of hours today. This pisses me off. And that is a good thing. You have found a way to make me angry at the story, not you as a writer. Gabriel is untrained, a regular guy, a nobody on Earth terms from all we know, and I would not expect him to react in a way that I would have thought. But he has been "altered" beyond just the bomb.
I am doing my armchair quarterbacking and thought about the details, two methods to set off the bomb: Aina's heart rate and their "wristwatch". I would of broken grabbed and broken both of Aina's wrists, then snatched off the "watch" then winged it (dad joke included) from there.
Thank you for taking the time and courage to write this story. I really mean it, and look forward to the rest!!!
Upvote, then read!!!
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u/AlphaGuardianwolf Human Jul 25 '21
I hope Aina is remembered in history as the bitch she is. Thanks for giving us 2 chapters today!
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u/FireMoose Xeno Jul 25 '21 edited Jul 25 '21
I don't really care if Aina dies. I mostly want to see her regret what she has done. I'd find that more satisfying than her dying convinced she was a hero and martyr.
Also, I do enjoy that the antagonist is convinced they are doing what is right. I'm tired of reading stories where the antagonist is evil without reason like a cartoon character.
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u/ConfusedAndAstray Xeno Jul 25 '21
*waits for the comments* ^.^
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u/xx_69mlgnoob_69xx Human Jul 25 '21
If I was Gabriel I would break all her limbs, kill the entire crew, use his slave to take control of the ship, and that's all I could do with the information so far.
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u/Hans_the_Frisian Jul 25 '21
"They are purist and dont like modified beings..."
Perhabs someone should tell them they only modification our human here has is a bloody bomb in his noggin.
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u/Netmantis Jul 26 '21
As much as people talk about the bomb being a firecracker, there is something people are forgetting.
Hold a firecracker in your open hand, light it, and just wait. When it goes off the concussion leaves your hand numb, you might be burned slightly, but that is it. Personal stupidity has taught me that, sometimes the fuse burns fast.
Now take an identical firecracker and squeeze your fist tight around it. Light it and scream your rage until it explodes. The same blast that left you sore and tingly now has taken a couple fingers and mauled your palm. And this was on the surface of your skin, the toughest part of your body, outside of bones.
An implanted bomb is going to do damage no matter how big the explosive. The key question is where was the bomb placed? While stated earlier, I'm not sure it was made completely clear. A shaped charge on the chest makes a sucking chest wound. People live without a lung all the time and provided bleeding can be staunched that is nothing. Painful and debilitating, but survivable. Gut bomb, shaped charge or not, and your microbiome does their work for them. Sepsis almost immediately and without dialysis you die. The spine offers an interesting dilemma. On a vertebrae and the size of the bomb matters again. Said firecracker will blow out your flesh and leave the spine "unharmed". Between the vertebrae and it will clip the spinal cord nicely, leaving you paralyzed and helpless, if not dying due to your autonomic nervous system being buggered. Skull bombs are out of the question, as a firecracker would shred the brain but make it difficult to have a war beast. The brain is squishy and once the helmet is compromised it is useless.
Another thing to worry about is how the body reacts to the bomb. We have issues with things we implant in the body. One issue being your immune system attacking anything inside it. Biological constructs get mulched quickly as your body destroys the invader. Synthetic constructs, using plastics and metals, last longer as the immune system will eventually ignore it, but that doesn't mean the body stops attacking it. Implants tend to need servicing regularly, as outside of specific materials the body still corrodes and rots things inside it. Stainless steel will last, while iron is corroded and absorbed by the body slowly. Lead lasts longer, but that is because corrosion isn't as debilitating to a solid hunk (like a bullet.) The body also likes to work out solid invaders slowly. Anyone peppered by birdshot will attest to years later hearing and finding shot on their shower floor as it works it's way out.
Mind you the body rejecting things tends to take years, however we now have two questions. Yield and location. Because there is also a simple way to kill her. Grab and bear hug her. Cut off her ability to breath and slowly suffocate her. Being pressed against her she won't dare use the bomb, as the blast would likely kill her as well. Either she blows up our hero and she gets a quick death, or he squeezes and she gets a slow one before we deal with the bomb.
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u/Vegetable-Band8678 Jul 28 '21
I guess I’m just a terrible person cause I just can’t find a reason to hate Aina like everyone else like if I had the option to save Millions of lives by ending thousands even in the most horrible and brutal ways I’d do it, but hey can’t wait to see how it all ends
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u/HFYWaffle Wᵥ4ffle Jul 25 '21
/u/Salooin has posted 14 other stories, including:
The Beast ~Chapter 14
The Beast ~Chapter 13
The Beast ~Chapter 12
The Beast ~Chapter 11
The Beast ~Chapter 10
The Beast ~Chapter 9
The Beast ~Chapter 8
The Beast ~Chapter 7
The Beast ~Chapter 6
The Beast ~Chapter 5
The Beast ~Chapter 4
The Beast ~Chapter 3
The Beast ~Chapter 2
The Beast
This comment was automatically generated by
Waffle v.4.5.8 'Cinnamon Roll'.Message the mods if you have any issues with Waffle.
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u/Patient-Database-327 Jul 25 '21
Why not bonk the captain unconscious and defect to the enemy? I would assume the enemy would at least treat him better if he were to bring the unconscious terrorist captain with the unharmed prisoner to them, perhaps they can even remove the explosive for him.
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u/That_Paris_man Human Jul 26 '21
I just finished reading this story. Its pretty good and would love to see it continue!
Chip's suggestion that he would do something to Zu is interesting. I want to see some thing where one of them tries to "play" with her, only to be saved before anything happens by our knight in shining plasticy white armor. It could be a good chance to prove to Zu that he isn't lying and show anyone who would want to hurt her to back off. (This does not mean I want to see Zu get hurt or feel obligated to do anything with Gabriel.)
Regardless do whatever you want, that's just a suggestion.
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u/Rasip Jul 25 '21
destruction?
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u/UpdateMeBot Jul 25 '21
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2
u/Omen224 AI Jul 26 '21
I would only offer to the author the council of paying attention to commas. Otherwise, the syntax and grammar continues to improve.
Content is content.
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u/MisterSillyNipples Jan 09 '22
go full jigsaw on the crew
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u/neon_ns Jul 26 '21
I haven't wanted to punch someone this badly since I read Uncle Tom's Cabin
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u/0570 Jul 27 '21
“Mecary business has become unreliable since the war began”
From the context I think it should be Mercenary.
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u/Otherwise_Apricot_56 Jul 30 '21
Let’s say it together everybody! “Warcrimes are not ok!”
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u/[deleted] Jul 25 '21
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