Uninvited Ch. 04: The Way Home

"Roomba! What's going on?"

I heard Vi hiss, and there was a flare of green from her plasma rifle that lit up the space like the flash of a camera, the scene illuminated for a fleeting moment like some nightmare polaroid. I remembered where I had heard that screeching sound, and why it made the hairs on my arms stand on end.

Chryssalids.

One had fallen where Vi had gunned it down, its insectoid carapace melting inward like slagged metal where the bolt of super-heated gas had hit it, its body covered in wicked spines and sharp blades, its limbs like serrated knives. One of the Mutons was wrestling another on the floor of the barn, pitting his monstrous strength against the writhing insect, its six limbs a flurry of stabbing daggers. He was covered in orange blood from abrasions, but he wasn't down, and as I watched he tore one of the long legs from the alien with a guttural grunt. The flailing alien screeched as its syrupy ichor leaked from the stump, and it scrabbled with its forelimbs, trying to get at the Muton's eyes.

The rest of the pack were scattered about the barn, battling with the creatures in the darkness, unarmed and fighting only with their fists. There was a hole in the middle of the floor, the damned things had burrowed up from under the ground, it was a goddamned infestation.

I aimed my weapon and began to fire, Vi following suit as the Mutons realized that the cavalry had arrived, trying to get some distance from the monsters that were attacking them to clear our line of sight. The Chryssalids had been difficult to control at the best of times, mostly deployed as indiscriminate killing machines when ADVENT sought to take out a particularly well entrenched resistance settlement, but now they were completely feral and running on animal instinct.

The chatter of gunfire was deafening in the enclosed space, the green and yellow light from our respective muzzle flashes painting dark shadows that concealed as much as their light revealed. One of the aliens charged at me, screeching and shaking its sharp spines like the rattle of a copperhead. Vi reacted faster than I could turn my weapon on it, whipping her powerful tail like a flail and throwing the creature away from me to slam against the far wall of the barn, the wooden slats cracking under the impact. We had to take this fight outside, they would overwhelm us in such close quarters.

"Pull back! Vi, tell them to fall back!"

She barked an order at them, would they understand her, were there some common commands their languages shared? Whatever she had said, they seemed to understand our intent, and Roomba rallied them as they scurried towards the exit.

We pushed our way back out into the courtyard, trying to get some distance from the barn as the Mutons ran for cover. They seemed ok, they were all here, though one of them was limping and seemed to be nursing a deeper wound on his arm. Roomba stopped at the exit, pounding his chest and roaring, then threw his considerable weight against the doors to slam them shut. Insectoid limbs pushed through the opening, slicing at him like chitinous swords, but he weathered the blows as he struggled to keep the two wooden doors closed. He glanced back at us, and loosed a rumbling call, I didn't understand what he had said but his intent was clear.

"Firing line!"

I knelt and aimed my weapon at the door, Vi steadying herself, perched on her tail as she shouldered her smoking plasma rifle. Roomba held on for a few more second, his sausage-like fingers digging into the soft wood, splintering it as he struggled to keep the aliens contained. Their claws and sharp legs pierced the doors, stabbing at him and narrowly missing his head, and he finally threw himself aside. The doors were flung open and the Chryssalids inside spilled forth like a tide, their limbs flailing as they powered towards us, a dozen of them now illuminated by the lights from the farmhouse. We opened up, loosing a hail of glowing plasma and hot lead, cutting down those at the head of the pack. They lay limp where they fell, but those behind scrambled over the bodies of their comrades, red eyes glowing and sharp mandibles snapping in anticipation of sinking them into our flesh.

We loosed another volley, more of them falling to our gunfire, yet still they came. More were emerging from the barn behind them, were they coming from the hole? We couldn't weather this kind of assault, there could be a whole hive of the damned things.

"Back to the house! Fall back!"

I started to walk backwards as I lay down suppressing fire, but these were not sentient creatures with a sense of self-preservation, they were driven by raw instinct and could not be so easily discouraged. Vi did not seem to be able to slither backwards, and so she paused every so often to fire her weapon as she pulled back. The Mutons realized where we were going and made their way to the back door of the property, Roomba helping the injured member of his pack along.

They reached the door before we did and struggled through the human-sized opening one by one, causing a holdup as me and Vi tried to cover them. The Chryssalids were closing in, a dozen bodies now lay between the barn and the house, but they flowed over them like water as they came at us. They were relentless, savage, but they were predictable as they made a beeline for us.

Vi ducked under the doorframe, then I felt her long tail wrap around my waist and pluck me off the ground, snapping me inside the house as Roomba slammed the door behind me. He heaved a nearby cupboard in front of it, scraping it across the hardwood floor and leaning it against the door. Not a moment later a forest of knife-like legs broke through the wood, scrabbling furiously as the aliens tried to gain entry. They threw themselves against the door but it wouldn't budge, and Roomba began to stack more pieces of furniture to reinforce the makeshift barricade. Damn it, the other doors, the windows, we had to block all of them or we would be overrun in the cramped interior of the house.

"Vi! The other doors, the windows!"

She spun around, her eyes wide and her hood flared, and nodded. She called to the Mutons, pointing and gesturing, commanding them as I had seen ADVENT Vipers do on the battlefield. They obeyed, lumbering off into the house to complete their tasks. Could she speak their language after all? No, these must be common ADVENT commands, had to be. In a moment we had all regressed, the combat situation forcing us into our old roles.

I returned to the cupboard, rummaging through my old XCOM rucksack for more magazines and reloaded my rifle, stuffing spares into my pockets. If only the Mutons were armed, these Chryssalids would have a much harder time. Wait, there was at least one other gun, did the old shotgun my father used to keep over the mantle still work? Did we have shells for it?

I rushed into the living room, darting past one of the Mutons who was upending our couch and leaning it against a window. I pulled the shotgun down from where it was hooked above the fireplace, and checked that the barrels were clear. Good, it looked like it would probably fire if I could find some damned shells for it. I heard a smashing of glass and turned around to see the Muton struggling against the window, sharp claws piercing the couch an inch from his face. I slung the shotgun over my back and ran to his side, pushing the barrel of my rifle between the couch and the window, firing on full auto into the aliens who were trying to force their way in through the opening. There was a blood-chilling screech, then the claws that were embedded in the fabric of the couch withdrew, the Chryssalids outside scurrying around the side of the house to find another entry point.

I left the Muton to his task and ran deeper into the house, wracking my brain, trying to think of where my grandfather might have kept shotgun shells during his time here. The kitchen drawers? No. The pantry? Maybe. I was startled by the sound of gunfire coming from the other side of the house, Vi must have caught them trying to breach, she could handle it.

I burst into the pantry, knocking over cans of food as I searched for a box of shells. I cleaned the shelves, there was nothing but tins of beans and spam, fuck. Where else might they be? The attic? The garage? Double fuck, was the garage door closed? Probably not. Adrenaline coursing through my veins as I made my way to the garage at a sprint, accessible via a door to the farmhouse, or from outside. I flung the door open, seeing the truck parked inside, and the garage door raised. As if on cue two Chryssalids rounded the corner of the house and saw the opening, chirping and beginning to scurry towards me. I steeled myself and banished the urge to retreat back into the house, charging forward and slamming my fist down on the door control. There was a mechanical creaking as the automatic door began to lower, but the aliens were too close, they would enter before it closed. Cursing, I kneeled and fired off a burst, cutting the legs out from under one of the aliens. It fell on its face and lay motionless, but the second continued forward.

Too late I realized I had emptied my mag, and as I fumbled in the pocket of my jacket for a fresh one, the second Chryssalid slid under the garage door as it sealed behind the alien. It barreled across the room and slammed into the back of the truck, setting off the theft alarm, the truck's lights flashing and the siren filling my ears as the alien rose and steadied itself.

My hands were shaking, I released the catch on the empty magazine and it clattered to the floor, but I couldn't get the fresh one into the receiver. The Chryssalid flared its orange spines and came for me, my blood freezing as it extended its arms, reaching for me with its razor-sharp claws.

It was knocked clear off its feet, thrown against the far wall by a fist the size of my head. Roomba lumbered forward to stand between me and the alien as it struggled to its feet, his bleeding knuckles white. He raised his fists, taking a defensive stance as the Chryssalid spat and chirped at him, beginning to circle on its pointed legs. I jammed the magazine into my gun and chambered a round, raising it, but Roomba was in my line of fire. Before I could shout for him to move out of the way, the Chryssalid lunged at him with its talons, cutting a deep welt into his tattooed forearm. He weathered the blow, responding with a crippling punch to the creature's head that sent it crumpling to the floor. He waved his hand, trying to dispel the pain as orange blood dripped from the abrasions in his skin, the alien's chitinous armor having cut his fingers.

I stepped around him and put a couple of shots into its brain to be sure, and turned to give him a thumbs up. He didn't understand the gesture, but he thumped his chest with his good hand, grunting his triumph.

I checked that the door was sealed, it looked solid, they wouldn't be able to get through here. I remembered why I had come, and ran over to the shelves at the back of the garage, trying to ignore the irritating noise of the truck's alarm. I scoured the shelves, tool boxes, motor oil, rags, miscellaneous car parts, come on it had to be here. Yes! There, three boxes of shotgun shells. I snatched them up in my hands, pulling the shotgun from my back loading both barrels.

I called Roomba over and thrust the weapon into his massive hands, showing him where the triggers were. He nodded his understanding, and I handed a box of shells to him, shoving the rest into my pockets. He would figure it out, he was a soldier after all.

We returned to the house and Roomba left my side to help his Mutons secure the windows, judging by the rooms that I could see into it looked as they had blocked off all of the windows on the ground floor with furniture.

"Vi, second floor, let's go!"

She slithered into view, darting past me and up the stairs, rallying the aliens behind her. I feared the old staircase would break, but it held as they piled up onto the second level, fanning out to find more windows to block. I had seen Chryssalids scale buildings, when they figured out that they couldn't gain entry to the lower floor they would climb the walls. My fears were confirmed as the small window at the end of the hall was smashed, insect limbs poking through as broken glass showered the old carpet. I opened up with my rifle, sending the creature crashing to the ground below. A Muton tore the iron bathtub from the plumbing and smashed it through a dividing wall to block the opening, my heart sinking as I realized how long it would take me to fix all of this damage.

I heard Vi firing her weapon, it sounded like it was coming from our bedroom window. There was a distinctive crack from a shotgun too, deafening in the tight space, sounded like Roomba had figured out how to use the weapon. There were fewer entry points on the second floor, and it didn't take long to secure them. The house was mostly made from stone, thus there was no way the Chryssalids might break through the sheer walls. Could they burrow under the foundation and come up from underneath the ground floor? Unlikely, the foundation was probably poured concrete.

I entered the bedroom, seeing Vi thrusting a dresser against the solitary window.

"We good, Vi?"

She nodded, the barrel of her plasma rifle glowing orange from the heat of the discharge. Well the immediate problem was solved, but we had created a new one, what were going to do now as the Chyrssalids surrounded us? Roomba lumbered into the bedroom, his shotgun smoking as he slotted a fresh shell into the barrel, his pack hovering behind him as they waited for instructions. I realized that they were all looking to me, Vi as well, did they expect me to take the initiative?

Maybe none of them were used to acting on their own, the Mutons had received psychic instructions every step of the way under ADVENT rule, even Vi had only been freed fairly recently and was accustomed to receiving orders from Central. It didn't look like I had a choice in the matter.

"Ok, here's what we're gonna do," I started, assuming that Vi would be able to convey what I was saying to the Mutons. "They've surrounded the house, and we can't hold out forever, eventually they're going to find a way past the barricades. We have three guns, so we're going to each pick a side of the house. One of the Mutons will pull aside the barricade for a moment so that me, Vi or Roomba can loose a few shots and kill one of them. We rotate around the house, changing windows each time so that they don't know where we're going to hit them from. There's no way they have more Chryssalids than we have bullets."

Vi seemed to approve, and she relayed the information to the Mutons as best she could, Roomba barking orders to his pack as he checked his weapon. While they were organizing I made my way over to the Muton who had been injured by the Chryssalid in the barn, sitting alone on the carpeted floor. He was cradling his arm, orange fluid leaking between his fingers. I gestured for him to remove his hand and he did so, looking miserable as he showed me a deep cut, fat and muscle parted down to white bone by one of the Chryssalid's many bladed limbs. I wasn't sure what kind of blood loss qualified as dangerous for Mutons, but it didn't look good. I headed off to the bathroom, ducking under the demolished wall that one of the other aliens had smashed my bathtub through. I rummaged in the medicine cabinet for bandages and whatever else might prove useful, then returned to where my alien patient was waiting.

I took his arm gently and stretched it out, the Muton offering no resistance, and sprayed the wound with an antiseptic. It must have stung, but he didn't flinch. I began to unroll the bandages around his muscular forearm, trying to seal up as much of the cut as I could. Immediately his blood began to soak them, I needed some way to stem the flow. I thought for a moment, then hurried to the bedroom, retrieving one of my belts from the dresser. I knelt and wrapped it above the wound, tightening it notch by notch until it felt like it might snap, it was the best I could do for now. I would have liked to give him some painkillers, but that might be dangerous, I had no way to know how his alien physiology might have reacted to them. Oh well, it was all I could do for him for the moment, he was out of immediate danger.

"Ok, let's do this."

Me, Roomba and Vi took a remaining Muton each and headed off into the house, sticking to the second floor and picking a face. Vi slithered into the bedroom and took position beside the window that faced the barn to the South, I took the North face, where the bathtub blocked the window at the end of the hall. Roomba went to the East face of the house and vanished into the guest bedroom. I wasn't sure if I should give the order to have everyone fire at the same time, or if it would be less predictable to have everyone take shots at random. Vi made the decision for me, the sound of plasma fire coming from the bedroom.

I gestured for the Muton to move the tub, and he gripped it in his large hands, tattooed biceps bulging through his green suit as he heaved it away from the window. I darted forward, scanning for movement in the darkness below, and spied a Chryssalid wandering along the bottom of the wall. I angled my weapon down and loosed a burst, catching it in the abdomen, it screeched in pain and surprise as it tried to flee. I hit it again, and it dropped, its legs twitching like a dying spider. Half a dozen of its fellows swarmed out of the darkness towards me and began to scramble up the wall, and I jumped backwards to avoid the bladed limbs as my Muton slammed the bathtub back into place.

"Good job," I panted, "on to the next one."

I heard two shotgun blasts from the guest bedroom, sounded like Roomba had bagged one too. There were only a handful of windows on the second floor, we would have to go downstairs before long, which would open us up to more retaliatory attacks by the Chryssalids. Nothing for it though, and I waved for the Muton to follow me as I made my way down the staircase to the ground floor.

More gunfire from above, more screeching from dying insects, the plan was working. Just how smart were Chryssalids when not under the heel of ADVENT? Would they wise up and start predicting where we would attack them from, or were they simply mindless animals now, capable only of reacting? I chose a window on the East face, a book shelf crudely leaned against it, and I pushed my rifle barrel into the gap as the Muton pulled it away from the wall.

The light from the house was cast on a Chryssalid, illuminating it as it charged at the opening from the gloom, claws outstretched and hissing like a demon. I emptied my mag into it and it faltered, slamming into the wall below the window and lying still. I pulled back as more of them swarmed, the Muton returned the book shelf to its place, pointed legs splintering the thin wood as they tried to get past the obstacle. I dropped the empty magazine and checked my pockets for a fresh one, three left now, I hoped it would be enough.

There was almost continuous plasma fire from the second floor, and I heard Roomba thunder down the stairs, heading off to another corner of the house as he reloaded his shotgun. We had to be thinning their numbers now, there couldn't be too many of them left after the number we had killed, at least two dozen at this point.

We moved around the house, taking pot shots through the windows and mowing down the attacking aliens as they circled the building, trying to find their way in. They were definitely dumb animals, they had no response to our tactic other than to mindlessly swarm the windows whenever we appeared, never fast enough to catch us before the barricades were put back up. Roomba came to me for more shells, and I was down to my last mag when my Muton removed a barricade, and nothing lunged out of the darkness to attack me. I waved my weapon back and forth, assuming perhaps a surprise attack was coming, but none came. Similarly fire from other areas of the farmhouse had ceased, had we beaten them back? Had we killed them to a man, or had they retreated back into their hole beneath the barn?