"Dark Legion" - Ch. 5
Posted: Tue Mar 20, 2001 6:31 pm
Here it is. Hehe.<br><br>------------------------------------------------------------<br><br>CHAPTER 5:<br><br><br>        Jon’s eyes locked on the shimmering in the rear of the audience. <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--><i> That shimmering wouldn’t occur unless someone with a cloaking field was moving back there. How many people have those damn things?</i><!--EZCODE ITALIC END-->, thought Jon. Jon moved as he thought about the shimmering. He was a sitting duck out on the speaking platform, the nearest cover nearly ten meters away. There was no time to find cover, and get to the spy in the back of the room.<br>        Jon began to speak.<br>        “Hello, students. I have been asked to give a lecture. I’ve decided that the lecture topic will be titled, ‘The Art of Surprise’. Most of you may know what surprise is, and how to use it in its most basic form, but using Surprise is an art form. The artist knows surprise and its basics, on a scientific level, but extends those ideas to generate an art. A very deadly art, when used correctly.”, Jon kept his eyes on the shimmering in the back of the room. Doing this kept his mind focused, and his body prepared for action if it was needed.<br>        “I think that all of you know how long it took me to take Raamsteiden.”, Jon said. “I also think that if we did not have the element of surprise, then we would have lost. What you read in the histories is that ‘Impactus led his soldiers over a rise to take the base.’ What the histories do not tell is that it was my lightning-quick attack with light infantry that brought the base down. I stayed back with those I chose for Blood Guard, to direct the battle. The light infantry did a lot of the work, and a lot of the dying. Several did not make it out of the generator room when it was destroyed.”<br>        Jon knew he had a solemn look on his face. It fit his mood and what he was about to do. The room was dead quiet, except for the slight hum of ventilation fans. All eyes were on him, those that were seen, and those that weren’t.<br>        “That day, I used the art of surprise. It helped me and my soldiers to win that battle.”, said Jon. “Odds are, most of you will learn the art of surprise while in the field. You won’t realize its true potential until you are faced with overwhelming odds against you. Some few of you will employ the basics of the science and stumble onto an epiphany about the art of surprise. And there is maybe one or two of you right now, that know exactly what I am talking about.”<br>        Jon waited a moment before proceeding. He made the effort to look as though he was deep in thought. He knew who he was going to pick on before he looked, but he made as if to think hard. He folded his hands in front of him, making sure to set his PDA to record the next few minutes. He wanted an idea of who was silently watching him.<br>        “What is the one way to counter a surprise attack? How about you?”, Jon asked as he pointed to a familiar male face.<br>        “Sir, student Kristoble, Sir! I would make sure to not go into a situation where surprise could be used on me, Sir!”, said the young male.<br>        Jon laughed.<br>        “Sir? Why do you laugh?”, asked young Kristoble.<br>        “Why do I laugh? In battle rarely, if ever, does the fighting go according to plan. On occasion you will find yourself fighting on the terms of your enemy. There is no sure way to beat someone who uses surprise against you.”, said Jon with a smile.<br>        “Then why even fight if you know it is a losing battle, Sir?”, asked Joline.<br>        “Well, there is always a chance that you will win. The way to take maximum advantage of that chance is if you are prepared. Remember the saying: ‘Prepare for the worst, and hope for the best.’ The saying rings true thousands of years after it was first spoken.”, replied Jon. “Now the circle is complete. There is no way that I can make you understand the art of surprise, it is learned. The one thing that I can tell you is to be prepared, and hope for the best.”<br>        Jon stepped down to the front of the class as he said that last. He looked to the rear of the room, seeing the shimmering still there. It was still in the outline of a man.<br>        Jon made as if he was going to walk in front of the ranks of students, when he whipped out his blaster and fired several rounds at the cloaked figure. There was a bright flash and a scream as the room was suddenly bright white. His round had hit true.<br>        It took several moments for Jon’s eyes to return to normal. Fortunately his helmet’s visor had built in optics to protect his eyes. Jon’s eyesight was the first to return to normal. He spotted his target moving towards one of the entrances, the shimmer was still not completely gone, parts of the person were still covered with a sputtering, splotchy shimmer. Jon raced ahead of the person to the exit he was moving to.<br>        “I see you, you can not run, and it appears that you can not hide.”, Jon said smiling. “Release your cloaking pack, and drop your weapons. I will fire to kill if you decide to do anything stupid.”<br>        “But you need me to interrogate.”, the man replied with a rasping voice. “I can tell you who I work for.”<br>        The man was smiling. Several students turned towards the conversation. Jon looked at them and saw that they were ready to jump onto his half-hidden foe, if Jon let them. They were not concerned with the man wearing powered armor.<br>        Jon kept his blaster trained on the man as he detached his cloaking pack. Jon’s other weapons would do more harm to the people surrounding him than he wanted.<br>        <!--EZCODE ITALIC START--><i> I hope that this guy was the only one.</i><!--EZCODE ITALIC END-->, was Jon’s only thought.<br>        Just as he wondered at his thought, the Dean came up behind him.<br>        “Jon! What the hell are you doing in my lecture hall?”, the dean said, furious.<br>        “I was holding this man, after he was spying on us.”, Jon said as he gestured with his blaster. “I was attacked by someone wearing a cloaking pack, so I thought there was a connection between him and the other.”<br>        The words seemed to have no effect on the dean. “Jon. Lower your weapon, now. I will not tolerate this inside my lecture hall.”<br>The students around them reflected Jon’s look of bafflement as the dean said this. “I don’t want him to escape.”, said Jon. “Obviously he got in here to keep a watch on someone. I am thinking that it was me.”<br>“Don’t be stupid. Let him go. Now.”, the dean said. His look was stone, yet furious.<br>        Jon let his blaster down, and holstered the weapon. Then he took the cloaking pack and the man’s weapons for his own. “I’m not giving him the luxury of a tactical advantage. If you have a problem with that, so be it. I will not relinquish on this.”<br>        Jon knew he was wearing a mask of murderous intent on his face. Apparently the dean saw this too.<br>        “Students! Dismissed!”, shouted the dean. It seemed to let out some of his steam. “Now, Jon, we are going to let this person be escorted by the SchoolGuard to a prison cell.”<br>        The dean’s tone made it difficult for Jon to reply with anything but acknowledgement.<br><br><br>------------------------------------------------------------<br><br>I welcome criticism and comments. Thanks!<br> <p><br><center><img src=http://www.xmenclan.org/avatars/ashaman2.jpg><br><a href=http://www.newfenecia.com>Citizen of New Fenecia</a><br><a href=http://www.dragontalonmercs.com>Dragon Talon Mercenary</a><br><a href=http://www.wheres.com/tribes/xmen/xmen_base.html>Member of the XMEN</a><br>Have a Nice Day!<center></p><i></i>
