"Cryopod deactivating."

The frozen glass opened up as the being stored inside fell to the floor, scaly coils collapsing over it. The being laid like that for a few moments, motionless as if dead. It then put two hands beside it, its 4 digits struggling to lift its upper body off the floor. It raised itself, hands departing from the ground before flopping down again, face planting against the floor.

It apparently had not gotten the hang of stability yet...

Trying again, it finally succeeded, rising to full height and staying like so after carefully balancing itself, lower coils supporting from below. For the first time, it began to notice its surroundings, much like a newborn child. A few meters ahead laid a gigantic blast door, a gigantic crushed handprint to signify that it had been forced open.

Two other platforms were inside the gigantic room, two closed containers atop them. Unlike its own, however, was the fact that they were shattered, as if whatever was contained had broken out. In addition, two holographic projections depicting a respective being, with one showing off a hulking armored figure of muscled flesh, and the other showing off a lithe aerodynamic creature, sporting an array of ornaments on its body.

It blinked, turning to its own platform and realizing that there was one such hologram for itself, peering down back at its physical version as if judging. It noticed its scaly hood, spikes protruding from it, and it was only until it looked at itself that it noticed these spikes were black... and that the color of its own scales was a pale white. It studied further, twisting its upper body with unmatched flexibility and noticing the blue and black lines that ran down its back, ending at the tip of its tail.

And then it began to think...

"What am I?"

It spotted a small terminal by the hologram, slithering up to it to peer at the screen. A few words were listed, the being realizing that it could read these words...

Subject : Gamma

Gender : Male

Species : Viper

Status : Alive

He leaned back from the terminal, now blessed with a tiny bit of clarity, though admittedly he had no idea what a Viper was, at least he knew he had a name, seeing how likely that 'subject' referred to him.

Gamma.

Gamma looked around, slithering to check out the other terminals.

Subject : Beta

Gender : Female

Species : Muton (Berserker)

Status : Deceased

He looked up at the shattered container, realizing that although the occupant escaped... it apparently had not survived.

The last pod was the same story.

Subject : Alpha

Gender : Male

Species : Archon

Status : Deceased

He turned away from the last container, noticing the outside world from the open blast door.

And as if taken by an unnatural wanderlust, he ventured forth, slithering into the light.

A few insects chirped as he traversed the forest, dry leaves giving way to his pale coils.

He absentmindedly took in his surroundings, forked tongue tasting the air. By this point, he was running on what felt right, letting instinct guide him through the forest. It wasn't until he slithered over a giant log that he saw the first sign of life.

Or rather, a former sign of life.

It was a dead quadruped, with fur and antlers atop its head. Its stomach was ripped open and devoured, yet most astonishing was the fact a strange orange substance seemed to be growing from the body, almost like a gestating cacoon...

Gamma stared at the carcass, the air around it tasting sour, his senses giving off a warning. He decided to slither clear of the quadruped continuing on his way. He slithered on for a few minutes more.

And then he heard a rustling within a nearby bush.

He turned his hood to the source, staring at the foliage before something burst out. It was an insectile creature, with razor-like spines and skin. It walked on four legs, yet its upper body carried two sharp claws. It noticed him with its beady orange eyes before letting out a screech and rushing toward him. Gamma's slitted eyes widened, raising his arm in defense as the creature crashed into him, it snarled, spittle flying everywhere from its mandibles as it reared its front legs to stab him. Gamma gritted his fangs, swinging his lower coils and slamming his tail against its body, knocking the creature on its side.

It got back up, ready to charge again before a shot rang out, its insectoid head exploding into orange goop. Its headless body walked a few paces toward Gamma before falling to the ground, legs twitching. Gamma stared at the sight in shock before hearing something. He turned to see a furry quadruped looking up at him, its body a intermingling of dusty brown and white. It barked at him, baring its teeth as a voice called out.

"Heel, Ace! Heel!"

The creature, Ace, obeyed the voice, a figure exiting the foliage. It was a bipedal being, wearing some form of a camouflaged jacket and hat. Its pinkish face was gaunt, with a long greying beard on its chin. It stared at Gamma with calculating eyes... as well as distrust, pointing his weapon at the Viper.

"Identify yourself! Who the hell are you?! Where did you come from?"

Gamma tilted his head ever so slightly, realizing that he could perfectly understand the elderly being. What came as a bigger surprise, both to Gamma and the being, was that the Viper responded. "I...-" The Viper took a moment, his voice raspy. "I am unsure..."

"Wha-? You're a dude?!" The being exclaimed in shock, eyes wide.

The Viper tilted his head at that, unsure what a 'dude' was.

"I-I mean, you're a male, right?"

Gamma nodded, the elderly being slowly lowering its weapon. "Holy shit... figured it was odd your chest didn't have-" The being then shook his head, "Nevermind that. Do you have a name or anything?"

"... Gamma..." He simply answered.

Gamma quickly learned that the aged being's name was Declan Dewitt, a Human.

And the hostile insectoid that had attacked him was called a Chryssalid.

And as for 'Ace', the quadruped that followed Declan, he was a dog, or more specifically, a subspecies of dog labeled as an 'American Akita'. Gamma quickly picked up and learned this information, understand with an unnatural perception.

"I have questions." Gamma asked.

"Shoot."

Gamma tilted his hood, Declan shaking his head.

"I mean, ask."

The Viper looked around, nodding to the forest. "What is this place?"

"You're in Sector 31." Declan answered, "Outskirts of City 31."

Although Gamma was didn't know what was meant by 'sector', he at least knew the name of his location. "What was so significant that I was a male?"

"Well...-" Declan shrugged, "I'm no expert, but last I checked, Vipers didn't have any males. Just females."

The Viper blinked at that, unsure of what to think about that before Ace seemed to smell something, his fur upright as he growled. Gamma stared at the dog, Declan readying his magnetic rifle.

"Head's up! Ace picked up a scent!" The Human then turned his head to Gamma, "You wouldn't happen to have seen a cacoon while you were wandering around, would you?"

Gamma blinked his lids, recalling the carcass from before. "There was a dead creature, with a strange orange substance growing from it. Is that what you are referring to?"

Declan grimaced, "Yeah... Chryssalids reproduce like flies. One kills something, and another grows from that something." Declan then sighed, "You should have destroyed it."

"..." The Viper felt oddly remorseful, for having done a disservice to his savior. "I am sorry..."

"Ah, too late now." He then raised his weapon, the bush ahead stirring. "Here it comes!"

Sure enough, a Chryssalid rushed out from the foliage, insectoid legs making a mad dash to the group. Gamma watched as Ace charged the beast head-on, the Viper's eyes widening as the Chryssalid reared one of its forelegs to strike. He expected to see the dog get skewered by the Chryssalid's sharp limb, but was surprised to see Ace avoid it, rushing around and biting into its hind leg, pulling and unbalancing the Chryssalid as it briefly struggled. Declan capitalized, firing a precise burst at the Chryssalid's chest, blowing holes through its thick carapace as it let out a screech before falling to the floor, dead. Ace returned to his master as Gamma simply watched, a sense of awe on his reptilian features.

"Ha!" Declan laughed, yelling in exhilaration as he petted Ace's head, the Akita wagging his tail. "Goodboy Ace!" He then turned to Declan, a smile on his face. "What did you think of that?"

Gamma nodded, "That was-"

He then tasted something wrong with the air. His eyes immediately scanning the treeline before spotting an orangish tint. It leaped, revealing a newly hatched Chryssalid, it's exoskeleton still not fully developed.

"This one must be from the cacoon!"

Without even sparing a moment, Gamma pushed Declan to the side, the Human falling to the floor as The Viper faced the lunging Chryssalid. Declan was out of harm's way... but at what cost? What was he going to do to protect himself!?

Gamma blinked.

And then instinct took over.

He drew back his fangs and spat.

From his mouth, he projected a cloud of pure nitrogen as it engulfed the shrieking Chryssalid. The air turned cold, as if winter had come early, Gamma slithering to the side as the now frozen Chryssalid to smashed into the ground where he had been, shattering into thousands of frozen pieces. Declan stared at a piece of iced flesh, Ace sniffing it before the two of them looked up at Gamma, the Viper holding himself in an almost regal fashion.

That... had felt right.

"Holy shit... You can spit ice?!" Declan exclaimed, slowly standing back up on his feet. "I-I mean, thanks for that. You saved my life." He then stared at the frozen remains of the Chryssalid, "How'd you know there was one in the trees?"

"I sensed something was amiss." Gamma explained, hissing as if to emphasize.

"Oh..." Declan then smiled, chuckling to himself. "Huh, kinda like a... Spidey Sense you got going."

Gamma tilted his hood at that, curious as to what the Human meant. "Spidey Sense?"

"Uh, nevermind. It's from a comic book." Gamma tilted his hood even further, Declan awkwardly studdering. "Human reference! It's a Human refer-"

They both heard a growl, pausing a few moments to realize that it wasn't Ace doing so... or a hidden Chryssalid. Gamma looked down, clutching his underbelly. "What is this sensation?"

"Uh..." Declan then took off his cap, scratching the back of his grey hair. "I think you're hungry."

"I am?" Gamma asked, his stomach growling again as he winced.

"Yeah. Pretty sure you are. Here,-" The old Human then took off his backpack, unzipping it and producing a ziplock bag. He opened it, taking out what appeared to be dry blocks of reddish substance, handing Gamma a piece. "-eat this."

Gamma took it, swallowing it whole and smacking his reptilian maw, surprised at the meaty taste. "What was that?"

"Homemade Pemmican." Declan answered. "I make them for long trips. But uh, judging by your size,-" He then looked at the remaining pieces, "I don't think that's gonna be enough for you."

The Viper admittedly nodded, Declan lifting his sleeve to show a hidden PDA. The Human tapped it, a floating drone appearing from the treeline, surprising Gamma as it hovered around. "What is that?"

"A GREMLIN, or my GREMLIN specifically. I had it on standby." He then tapped the PDA again, the drone floating ahead of them. "It'll help us detect any more nasty surprises while we're walking back to my home."

"So there was a war-"

"Two wars." Declan corrected, "First time, we lost. The aliens took over and occupied earth, forming ADVENT. There was a resistance, which was the second war, and we won our planet back."

"I see." Gamma hissed, "Did you fight in these wars?"

Declan nodded, his gaunt face turning dour. "Yeah... I did. Both of them in fact."

Gamma blinked, "And yet... you do not hate my kind?"

"Well, I mean, look at me dude." The Human held his arm out, petting Ace. "I'm like 70 now. Any hate I had for you guys has pretty much gone and passed. Live and let live I guess. Besides-" He then walked forward, "We're rebuilding now, making a society where we can coexist. So that's nice I guess."

"Coexist?" Gamma asked, "So there is no more fighting?"

"Um..." Declan then perked up, realizing they had arrived at their destination. "Oh look, we're here."

Gamma stared at the rundown building, vines growing on a portion of it as an open structure laid adjacent to it. "This is where you reside?" Gamma asked.

Declan smirked, "Yep. The Mossrock gas station. Home sweet home." He then walked forward, Gamma following as he opened a broken glass door. "Come on in."

The Viper obliged, slithering into the abandoned building. The interior was dank a musty, filled with empty shelves, the only light source coming from the outside. Declan entered another doorway, the room now some sort of... mechanical assembly? With lifts and rusted vehicles inside.

"Now, remember this saying well." Declan spoke, opening a wire box on one of the lifts. "Looks can be deceiving."

Gamma tilted his head at that before Declan pressed a button, a high-tech trap door opening to a set of clean stairs from underneath the lift. Ace immediately went in, as if used to the procedure, Gamma looking on with surprise as Declan gestured.

"You first."

He nodded, slithering forth as Declan followed behind, GREMLIN still hovering over his shoulder. They walked down the corridor before finally arriving, Gamma's jaw unclasping with shock.

It was an underground bunker, it's interior spacious as if built from a cavern. A few rows of machinery could be seen, highly advanced yet dormant. At the end of the cavern appeared to be a small blast door, big enough for a vehicle to fit through.

Declan turned around, putting out his arms.

"Welcome to the Batcave!"

The old man smiled, almost as if he had turned young again.

"Come on, I'll show you around!"

"This here is the kitchen." Declan introduced as the sliding door opened.

The Viper came to understand that this 'kitchen' was likely to have been created by Declan, the devices and such seemingly out of place in the clean white interior. Gamma tasted the air, catching a scent coming from one of the heated sources. "Something tastes..."

"Delicious?" Declan finished for him, walking up to the heat source as he slipped on two gloves. "You bet. I was keeping some roast turkey warm in the oven."

"Roast... turkey?" Gamma asked, Declan bringing out a tray of the foodstuff, garnished at the bottom with vegetables.

"Yeah. It's a type of bird I sometimes hunt. I also have a greenhouse where I grow some stuff." He set it atop a table, taking off his gloves. "Alright, just sit down there."

Gamma obeyed, sitting down atop the chair albeit awkwardly due to his shifting coils as Declan came back with silver tools and circular disks. He set the objects in front of the Viper, Gamma staring at them with perplexity before sitting across the table.

Declan lifted the pronged small tool, "This is called a fork,-" He then lifted the other, a sharper blade. "-and this is a knife." He then looked at Gamma. "Here, watch how I do it." Declan stabbed the fork into the turkey, using the knife to cut away a piece of meat. He then lifted it to his mouth, eating it. "And that's how a Human eats. Now you try."

The Viper looked at his own set before mimicking what the Human had done, bringing a piece of meat to his mouth and swallowing it. Gamma's eyes widened, the taste of the roasted meat being 'delicious' as Declan would say.

"Wow, you learn quick." Declan let out a small chuckle, "But you don't need to cut yourself such a tiny piece like me. Feel free to take as much as you-"

"Very well then." Gamma said quickly before stabbing his fork into it, lifting the entirety of the turkey as juices dripped from it and onto the table. His mouth then instinctively enlarged, allowing him to stuff the entire turkey down his throat before consuming it, with barely a faint hint of issue or discomfort.

Declan simply stared, blinking. "Uh... I guess we're gonna have to work on your table manners in the future."

"This is the bedroom."

The bedroom was clean, lined with a few comfy looking beds, probably bought in by Declan.

"Pretty standard stuff." Declan said as they both went in. "But we need to get you some clothes... Um-" The Human opened a compartment, digging through it as Gamma watched. "I think I have a shirt that's the right size for you... just gimme a lil' second... Ah!" He took out a large black shirt, the words, Sandiego Comic-con on the front of it. "Got this back in 2014, but they messed up my order, so it came in extra large. Bad luck for me at the time, but good news for you."

He handed Gamma the shirt, the pale Viper holding it up.

"Just slip your head into it and pop your arms out the two side openings." Gamma obeyed, doing as Declan instructed as he squeezed his hood through the top of the shirt. He then looked down, the clothing now covering his torso. "Great! How does it feel?"

"... Comfy." The Viper answered truthfully.

They then continued, the door closing behind them as they moved through the corridor, GREMLIN still following. Gamma finally felt the need to ask some questions.

"What is this place? Who built it?"

Declan shrugged, "Not sure in all honesty. I found it on my own after the second war ended. It must have been some sort of... secret ADVENT workshop I guess." The old man then chuckled, "But now it's pretty much my squat after I got some of it back into working order."

"Some of it?" Gamma asked.

"You noticed some of the machines before right?" Gamma nodded, Declan continuing. "Well, I've been trying to activate those for a while, but they're kept deactivated through some really tough encryption. And every time I try to crack it, it changes... Almost as if it's... alive..." He then shrugged, "Probably me just being paranoid but-"

Declan then coughed.

"-paranoid but-"

He then coughed again, this time hacking loudly as he rose his elbow to cover his mouth. Gamma silently hissed, watching the old Human recover as he let out a sigh, drawing down his elbow.

Gamma saw blood on the sleeves.

The Viper felt something, a feeling of concern for the Human next to him. "... Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah, yeah. Don't worry, I'm fine. I-It's a Human thing, it's natural." Declan brushed away. Gamma stared at him for a few moments, somehow able to tell that something was amiss before the two of them arriving at a set of sliding metal doors. Declan turned to the Viper. "Now, get ready. This is where all the magic happens."

Gamma tilted his hood. "What's magic?"

"Not important." The doors then opened, Declan splaying his arms in showman fashion. "Behold!"

It was a big room, filled to the brim with Human objects and furniture. Ace was in the room, resting atop a small cloth pad as he lifted his head. A gigantic screen was at the end of the room, dozens of holographic monitors surrounding it. The walls were lined with shelves, and on those shelves held what appeared to be paper articles depicting Humans in weird suits fighting?

"This is my living room." Declan declared, "I spend most of my time in here when I'm not hunting, trying to restore both digital and physical comic books."

"Comicbooks?" Gamma asked in confusion, taking note that the word 'Comic' was also on the shirt he now wore.

"Oh, right." The Human walked up to one of the shelves, grabbing one of the articles. "This is what's called a comic book, or graphic novel. It's uh... a form of entertainment I guess." Declan then put it back. "When ADVENT occupied earth, a lot of things created by Human culture was declared redundant and promptly purged. Ancient artifacts, religious symbols, etc... so it came as no surprise that ADVENT destroyed a lot of comic books too." He pointed to a table with a lamp on it, a few ruined pages atop it. "I've been working to restore and preserve the ones I find."

Gamma paused, "What of my kind?"

"Well... um..." Declan admitted, "I have no idea. You guys have been under ADVENT control for so long that...-"

Gamma nodded his hood in understanding, hissing a sigh. "I see..."

"But hey, I guess this means you have the chance to create a culture of your own. Start from scratch so to speak." Declan looked at the monitor, "Uh, how about you read a comic from the collection. I'm just gonna go check something." Declan grabbed one of the comic books, handing it to the perplexed Viper before sitting down in front of the large computer. The cover depicted two Humans, swinging from what appeared to be wires, the smaller one wearing an outfit of red and green, and the other much taller Human, wearing a suit of grey, with a bluish cape, gloves, and shoes.

Batman

He opened the pages, quietly reading.

And was quickly intrigued.

Unbeknownst to the reading Viper, Declan had frozen up while reading the monitor, a frown on his gaunt face. He was going to contact Xcom or some form of a local government agency but...

Crime rising in the midst of the voting act, City 31 in fragile stability.

Declan closed the news page, letting out a quiet sigh as he came to a realization. He slowly turned to Gamma, the Viper now reading the comic intently, his slitted dark eyes scanning page after page. He then turned back around, facing the monitor.

Not only was Gamma not ready for the world... but was the rest of the world truly ready for him?

A gigantic gloved hand picked up a small piece of scrap.

It was then bought to face level... or rather, glass level, the hand belonging to a blue and orange enviro battlesuit, the insides filled with a murky acid as the bare hint of a figure could be seen within.

The Andromedon adjusted the metal for a bit before a synthetic voice called out. "Hubble. Where are you?"

"Huh?" The Andromedon, now confirmed to be Hubble, stood to full height. "I am over here, Levine."

Another Andromedon lumbered into the room, his suit consisting of a black and red as he carried a worn-out acid cannon. "What are you doing here? They declared the components of this room to be useless."

"I was... just checking to make sure." Hubble answered.

"Very well then." Levine then patted his fellow Andromedon on the shoulder. "See? What did I tell you? It is much better to be working under the Sacred Coil then that wretched Human junkyard." Levine then chuckled, voice synthesized through the envirosuit. "Now this, this is what serving under ADVENT was like."

"Yes... of course." Hubble responded.

"Alright. Get yourself prepared. We're moving on to The Fringe."

The Andromedon nodded within the confines of his enviro suit, Levine leaving. A few seconds passed before Hubble let out a saddened sigh, looking down into his hands. Sure enough, the piece of scrap metal had been bent and transformed into a small, crudely sculpted stick figure, the Andromedon holding it up. The lights of Renova Heights filled the night sky in the distance as it shined off his tiny creation.

Hubble would have smiled if his kind had a mouth.

Agent Torque fired her SMG, the Lost slumping to the ground as she lowered the weapon, letting out a hiss. The Lost made it too easy for her... almost boring.

"That's another down..."

"Nice shot, Torque." Terminal complimented, GREMLIN floating by her shoulder. "Good thing these guys aren't like... actual zombies that you need to shoot in the head and stuff."

Blueblood shook his head, reloading his pistol. "Yeah... but at the same time, you have to feel bad for a lot of these people. Xcom was too late to save them. At least now we can reclaim this sector and put them out of their misery..."

"Whatever." Torque said with a shrug, "They're feral. They don't think, not anymore." She slithered forward to distance herself as Terminal and Blueblood watched. It was a weakness to get too attached...

On other matters, she had asked Colonel Kelly, one of the few Humans she trusted, what the plan was, now that Chimera Squad had been formed. But frustrating enough, Kelly always gave her the same answer.

"The plan's in motion. Give it some time."

If the Viper had a guess, she assumed that Xcom was preparing to utilize the squad, maybe even form an even bigger team. For what or where? Kelly did not say.

So like a soldier waiting for war, Torque bided her time.

"Maybe they'll let me shoot something new for a change." Torque thought, turning to the rest of the squad. Terminal was sitting next to a broken car, talking to Blueblood as Godmother lowered her hand, indicating that she had finished talking to the higher-ups.

A pang of uncertainty rose up within her.

"And not socialize..."

And there we have it. The beginning of a pretty interesting project. When I first saw the trailers for Chimera Squad, I was hooked in the setting and worldbuilding, and I've been playing through it now that the game is out. It's fun, but my biggest gripe right now is trying to find out more about the lore and such. Since the game just came out, there's barely any videos regarding Agent banter, cutscenes, etc... and it's kind of getting me to tear my hair out.

So I want to just call out and say that if ANYBODY can PM me or put in the comments any important tidbit of lore or worldbuilding that I might miss, then please, go ahead.

I also wanted to talk a bit about the three main characters in motion. We have Subject Gamma aka The Viper King from Alien Hunters dlc who might as well be our easily impressionable protagonist. Next fan-favorite Agent Torque, which I'm sure won't get attached to anybody... right? And of course, we have Hubble, the OC Andromedon who has a big heart within that enviro suit, yet he's rolling with a rather 'bad' crowd as of now, which is all the better to watch him rise and become something greater...

Next chapter is the obligatory training montage for Gamma, as well as more insight into the lives of Torque and Hubble. Stay tuned.