The Truth Behind Zanuka
#14 of Leisure Writing
So I've taken a good amount of time for myself to recover from my most recent...issue. Thankfully, this hasn't affected my normal writing schedule at all, so for those who are worried about the progress of Further Evolutions, there is no need to be concerned. It's still a long ways away though, so I wouldn't think about it to much. For now, I'll just be adding stuff occasionally to this folder.
Recently, I've picked up a game called "Warframe," which turned out to be a lot more fun than I anticipated. Now, this story deals with an incredibly interesting Frame in particular, and her backstory which involves one of the games bosses. (OBLIGATORY SPOILER WARNING GOES HERE). While she doesn't make an appearance here (technically speaking), I felt compelled to write about her after discovering her origins, which involves this boss. For those of you who already know who I'm talking about, I just wanna point out how SUPER KAMEN RIDERY she is. I mean...OG Kamen Rider... Like, similar stories, being cybernetic experiments and all that, just in the Frame's case she doesn't get a happy ending...
Anyways, I didn't write this as a full fledged story, more just a second half, skipping over the set up stuff. As with any story involving pre-existing games, you most likely will not be able to fully enjoy it if you are not already familiar with it. There'll be terms I use that go unexplained, and concepts that have to be rolled with. I should also note that I'll be using dialogue that was used for this particular boss. (No intentions of copyright and all that jazz). I mainly used them and shuffled them in an order that felt natural to me, so take that for what you will.
Ok, gonna shut up now. I hope y'all enjoy the story. ^^ Feedback is always appreciated.
Context: Excalibur has just infiltrated a Corpus base where Alad V is housed. He has engaged in a skirmish between him and his "pet," Zanuka.
The Truth Behind Zanuka
"Play nice, Tenno," taunted Alad V, "Zanuka is one of you." Excalibur froze upon hearing this. What had he just said? The Corpus chuckled before continuing, saying, "Actually, come to think of it, Zanuka is many of you."
Suddenly, Excalibur was knocked off of his feet as he was pounced upon by Zanuka. The mechanical beast clawed at him relentlessly, screeching at him like a Corpus Walker.
"Tenno," came Lotus' urgent voice, "What's wrong? You're faltering."
Excalibur struggled against Zanuka, trying to keep its claws from tearing his Frame apart. This is a Frame, he thought, his mind racing, It's like me, yet...not... He shook his head and jammed his barrel against Zanuka's torso. It screeched and rolled off of him, allowing him to scramble to his feet and make a break for the door.
"Tenno," came Lotus again, this time with much more urgency, "what are you doing? You're leaving the target."
Zanuka is like me, he thought again as he ran, and I'm supposed to exterminate it... He pushed himself harder as he caught on to the sounds of Zanuka's racing feet. He barreled past Corpus after Corpus, trying to gain as much distance as he could.
"Tenno," said Lotus, "I do not understand your course of action." Excalibur turned for a brief moment to pelt the pursuing machine with bullets. They had no effect on it, and it continued to sprint after him. Excalibur turned back around and ran harder, pushing his Frame to its limits. "Tenno, you cannot outrun Zanuka, and extraction is not ready. You MUST turn back and exterminate it before it exterminates you." Excalibur kept running. There had to be a way to escape Zanuka's pursuit. He looked up and saw a damaged air vent. That was it; it would do. Excalibur swapped his rifle out for his blade and thrust it into the air, causing a blinding light to flash out from it. Once he heard Zanuka's screech, he knew he was in the clear. He leapt forward and flung himself against a wall, running up it until he reached the vent. He slashed it open with his sword and rolled inside. After stalking his way through several turns, he lowered himself down and took the time to even out his breathing.
"...Tenno," said Lotus, "it's about what Alad V said about Zanuka, isn't it?" Excalibur rested the back of his head against the wall, deepening his breaths. "I'll admit," Lotus went on, "it was unfair of me to uphold the information I had on this target. You've fought so hard for us, Tenno, and you've proven yourself to be a reliable and honorable ally..." Silence hung in the air for a moment. Excalibur heard her sigh, which was an incredibly rare occurrence for her. "Alright, you have the right to know, Tenno. I will tell you what we know." Excalibur righted himself so that he sat on his knees, his hands resting atop them as he listened attentively. "Alad V's newest prototype is a monstrosity forged from the bodies of our fallen Tenno. Alad V sees the power of the Tenno and thinks he can take it for himself... That power is sacred. This blasphemy must end now. We cannot allow Zanuka to go into full production. If Alad V is victorious today, he will dissect your Warframe and use the pieces to build more of his pets." She spat the last word like a curse. "You must not let this happen. If he is allowed to carry out his plans, no Tenno will be safe... Zanuka has all the power of a Warframe with the full complement of Mods. It's as if you are fighting one of your own."
Excalibur thought hard about what this all meant. Zanuka was one of them...because it was made of them. It was a zombified collection of parts remolded to become nothing but another Corpus machine. It was disgusting. It was sickening. It had to be stopped. He stood up and took hold of his rifle.
"Are you looking for your friends, Tenno?" came Alad V's voice through the building's speakers, "Or are you here to just steal my property?" Excalibur reloaded his gun before darting through the ventilation system, using his map to guide him back towards the room. "You have loyalty issues, Tenno," Alad V went on, "My Zanuka-proto will fix that for you!" Once Excalibur reached the end of the vent, he slashed it open and jumped out of it, soaring through the air and shooting down Corpus Walkers as he flew. As soon as he hit the ground rolling, he caught on to the sounds of Zanuka's approach. Excalibur whirled around and unloaded his bullets onto the mechanical monstrosity. It hurdled through them like it was nothing and began to fire back with its mounted turrets. Excalibur got back to running and turned tail, doing his best to avoid Zanuka's bullets.
"Your attacks are ineffective," said Lotus, "You will need to take a different approach." Excalibur began to think back. He remembered Alad V putting on a large collar of some sort that Zanuka seemed to respond to. Though it wasn't much to go off of, it was a start. It wasn't long before he found himself back in the large room of Alad V. The mad scientist smiled at the sight of him and rubbed his hands together.
His first mistake.
Excalibur took that opportunity to fire a round of bullets into Alad V's collar. The Corpus man squealed pathetically as the bullets punctured and ricochet off of him. This was short lived, however, as Zanuka's turrets pelted Excalibur's back. He cut off his assault and bolted towards the side of the room. As long as that collar was on, he wouldn't do anything about this Corpus puppet.
"Tenno, be careful!" shouted Alad V, "I don't want to damage those parts of yours!" Excalibur did his best to focus on the task at hand, rather than the ramblings of this madman. He slid across the platform he was on before running up the stairs. As soon as he turned, Alad V was once again in his sights, He fired at him again, and Alad V squeaked. However, he wasn't intent on being a bullet sponge this time around. He crouched down in a fetal position and produced a clear plasma shield in front of him, causing all of Excalibur's bullets to cascade off of it. By the time Excalibur stopped firing, Zanuka was upon him again. He was knocked down this time, Zanuka having decided on a full on tackle this time. He bounced off of a wall and fell to the ground, dazed by the assault.
He shook his head to try and clear up his senses, but it did little to help. He felt the bullets of Zanuka's turrets pelt him and wear down his shields. He hastened himself and got back to running. "Mmm, such valuable merchandise..." said Alad V, watching Excalibur like a hungry predator. Excalibur looked up and saw that the scientist was within range. However, this sight only lasted for a couple of seconds, as Alad V suddenly fired something that caused his cameras to malfunction and blind him. Excalibur grunted and tripped, getting himself to a roll to keep his momentum.
So that's what that feels like... he thought as his cameras recovered. Zanuka's turrets quickly reminded him of why he was running, and he proceeded to do so. Well then, I guess that means it's my turn again. He grabbed his blade and thrust it into the air, blinding the other occupants of the room with a bright flash. This proved to be effective at fending Zanuka off, as he heard it slam into a pillar. Now was his chance. He bolted towards Alad V and emptied another clip into his collar. Again, his shields went up, but that was his second mistake. Excalibur drew his sword again and rushed for the cowering man. His Frame then responded to the sudden burst, causing him to practically glide across the ground. He dashed right through Alad V's shield and swung hard. With a loud snap, Alad V's collar broke and flew off of his neck. The Corpus madman squealed in terror as he realized what had happened.
Excalibur whirled around, scanning the area for Zanuka. Already, he could see the effects of his handiwork. No longer did it prowl and stalk like it did before, for its fine-tuned movements had been abolished in exchange for sluggish, sloppy movements. Now was the time to strike. He rushed forward again and unloaded his bullets into the mechanical monstrosity. Once he heard it shriek, he knew his plan had worked.
"No!" Alad V shouted desperately, "Leave her alone!" Excalibur had no intentions of stopping. This thing was a mockery of the Frames, and to make things worse, this madman had dignified it with a gender. No, he would not leave it alone, not until justice had been properly served. He dashed again, using the same technique he had just used on Alad V not too long ago, Excalibur's blade tore through Zanuka's armor and exposed its inner workings. He still felt he was doing wrong, it still felt like he was harming one of his own. But no, this _used_to be one of his own before it was molded into a monstrosity. With a final, mighty swing, Excalibur drove his blade through Zanuka's body and destroyed it, leaving behind its mangled up parts.
Behind him, he heard the pathetic wails of Alad V, who had since collapsed to his knees. Excalibur looked back and saw not the proud, ignorant man he had first seen him as, but a defeated man, crying over his loss like a child that had broken his toy. There would be no use in killing him, Excalibur quickly concluded, for his death would serve no real purpose. Even if it prevented him from creating more of those...atrocities, he was sure that there would be others that would follow in his twisted footsteps.
No, he needed to learn. Alad V needed to know that the Tenno were not his playthings. He needed to know that. EVERYONE needed to know that. And as he looked over to Alad V's restraint wall, Excalibur knew just how he would send the message. Grabbing Alad V by the shoulder, he dragged him along as he approached the raised wall in the middle of the room. They reached it, and Excalibur threw the Corpus scientist against it, dazing him and shoving him into the crevices that had been shaped for his countless unfortunate Tenno victims. Excalibur then grabbed the broken remains of Alad V's collar and jammed them over his wrists, trapping him in his own prison. He squirmed helplessly, continuing to wail like a child.
He wasn't done.
He knew that once Alad V was found the way he was, the ones who found him would want to know what had happened, and who was responsible. Whilst the former was relatively easy to conclude, the latter would be far more difficult to figure out.
Unless he left a token.
He wanted them to know who was responsible. He wanted them to know without a doubt_in their minds just _who they had challenged. So he drew his sword and stabbed it into the ground, leaving it just in front of Alad V's "prison."
"Nice work, Tenno," came Lotus' voice, "You took care of the assassination target. Let's go home. Extraction is ready for you." Excalibur took several steps back from his handiwork before rushing away. Now he knew that the Corpus (or any other faction for that matter) would know the message that he wanted to send. They would know what it meant to toy with the wrong people. They would know who would answer to injustice and wrong doing. But most of all, above all else...they would know...
Don't mess with the Warframes.