ARES:Gods of War

The Ark

The Outpost

The Chief looked forward as the up-armored Chinook transport they were aboard hovered above the settlement. Sprawling and spread across a multitude of artificial supporting structures layered with dirt, armor and technology that seemed to protect it, 'The Outpost', as it had been referred to by the Commander and his soldiers, was a complex more resembling a small amusement park or town than a military FOB, with the central building, the Command Center, resembling a bowtie from up above. It was a building that almost look like something one would see within a modern UEG city, in fact. Modern.

As the transport aircraft touched down, the Commander, his soldiers and the Chief disembarked, with Cortana stating, "I'm picking up a lot of active power sources similar to the other Nikkes present. Guessing this is an actual combat operations Headquarters of some kind," just as Chief looked over the edge to see various women, presumably more Nikkes, patrolling the base.

The Commander waved the Chief over and said, "This way, Chief. We're headed for the rail-yard..." before entering a massive elevator. The SPARTAN followed calmly, all while Cortana was working to access the local Battle-Net, figure out everything, see what made the place tick in essence. More air assets, including unmanned drones, flew above, seemingly operated by the Nikkes, just as the Chief entered the elevator.

Anis looked up at the guy and whistled, before stating, "He's seven feet tall."

"Definitely not the average height of any human," Alyosha stated, leaning against the wall of the elevator. Chief felt a tingling in his stomach as the elevator began its descent down about sixteen levels. Reaching the lobby, the man and his group were met by the sight of a squad of Nikkes as they were about to board the elevator. Seemingly Mass-Produced Models clad in futuristic armor themselves, the girls stepped aside to allow the SPARTAN, Commander and the Counters to exit.

Nodding in thanks, the Commander marched toward the exit. He only stopped to turn toward Rapi, Anis and Neon and state, "You girls and the Products should stay here. Andersen said he wanted to see just me and the Chief. Something about a 'private meeting' with the new Ally by Circumstance."

"Aw, c'mon, it's boring he-" Anis started, but Rapi covered her mouth with her hand, garnering a growl.

Rapi, meanwhile, replied, "We understand, Commander. Have a safe trip back to the Ark." before grabbing Anis and Neon and dragging them back. Chief looked to the Commander, who shrugged with an awkward smile and showed him to follow along. The man then lead him and, unbeknownst to him, Cortana, who was riding 'shotgun' in Chief's head forward and out into the wider Outpost.

Despite some overgrowth here and there, the artificial land seemed well-maintained overall. And the other Nikke units patrolling the area didn't really seem to mind the fact that the Commander was, in fact, wading into the place with a new soldier behind him. Some did stop to look, including a pair of gals carrying rocket launchers on their back. The waved to the Chief, smiling, to which Cortana said, "Just wave back, John..." with a hidden smile. He sighed and did as asked while they walked, crossing a bridge and reaching the seemingly 'industrial' sector of the place.

They waded past a Police station, a generator and what looked like an Armory to reach a train station that went underground. Entering it, they were greeted by a young woman, presumably another Nikke, with chin-length, straight white hair and clad in a sleeveless shirt, a garrison cap bearing a train insignia, a tattoo on her left shoulder and a specialized holographic tablet of some kind. She turned, hummed and said, "Good afternoon, Commander. Looking to make a trip to the Ark?"

"Hey, Brid. Yeah. Emergency trip, requested by the Deputy Chief of the Central Government in order to introduce the new asset we found on the surface," The Commander explained, straightforward, though the smile never left his face. She nodded, stood up from her stool, slid her holo-tablet under her arm and showed them to follow. The two men were led to one of the train cars and allowed to board it while Brid went forward. As the Commander sat himself down in one of the chairs. He spoke, "So, Chief..."