It is often said that War never changes, nations and faces fade but war always returns. The Golem sat in the vertibird, his fingers fiddling with the power source of his axe. Though his entire focus seemed to be on his weapon, Ozymandias' mind processed the events of the past few months and the faces around him. Surviving Eagle Claw training hadn't been difficult in the sense that Ozymandias didn't have the ability to preserver, but in that it had taken it toll on his view of the Enclave. He hadn't made many friends within the recruits, but those he did had been executed for various minor failures. Their deaths had served to remind him of the Enclave's agenda and priorities. If there was one thing that he had learned from that experience, it was to not get attached. All his life things had been taken away from him, anything he grew close to he lost either because of his own need to move on, or through the slaughter of those with greater power. 

He spent the last minutes of the flight looking at the faces of those around him. Ozymandias was flanked on on one side by Ginger. The redheaded man sat in his Coyote armor, eyes flicking all over the Vertibird, never landing on anyone for more than a few moments. Ozymandias didn’t like how jumpy the man seemed during the flight, but if training was anything to go by Ginger was a deadly force with his Gauss rifle. With the enhanced abilities that the Ginger’s power armor allowed, Ozymandias was glad they were on the same side. 

On his other side sat Archangel, in comparison to his immense size she looked almost like a doll. Something that Ozymandias would never repeat aloud for 1) He respected the small woman. He’d heard stories that she lived alone with none but robots for years on years; solitude something they held in common. 2) Ozymandias didn’t want to face her when she was angry. Something about the grenade’s that she shoves into her arm would make him fear for his life if he angered her. 

Across from her sat Deathstroke, their squad’s “leader.” Golem wasn’t going to contradict any orders especially not from their plague doctor sniper, but Ozymandias couldn’t help but wonder if the man was just here to keep a constant eye on their little band of badasses. The giant reminded himself to keep an eye on the Enclave raised sniper. 

The hunter Winter sat near deathstroke. Now this man, Ozymandias both respected and wondered about. It was said that he had a collection of flags like the one that he wore around his face, that if you touched his chocolate you were likely to lose the hand. Ozymandias didn’t plan on sneaking some of the man’s chocolate, and he was glad to have the assassin on the battlefield. 

Phoenix sat next to Archangel. The man was said to be the squad medic, but with the grenade launcher and flaming sword that the man carried with him begged to differ. Only time would tell as to the extent of the medic’s combat efficiency. 

In the entire squad, there were only two that truly worried Ozymandias. Whisper, a truly appropriate name for their little psychopath. Ozzy was pretty sure that she would kill one of them in their sleep one day. With her gas-mask and weird hair she just looked like a raider. And even then she was nothing in comparison to Bear. Bear was the only one in the squad that could possibly trade blows with him and even then with that hulking laser weapon he used it would be a challenge just to close with him, but it wasn’t The Bear’s ability to take him or the rumors that surrounded the man. No it was the briefest glimmer that entered the Bear’s eyes when he looked at anyone enclave. There was just something about that flash that chilled Ozymandias to the core. ‘He could be trouble’ was the last thing Ozzy thought before the pilot, a cute little thing with a temper and wit that burned, announced that they would be landing soon. 

Already they were under fire. Why couldn’t he just catch a break, this was supposed to be relatively easy damn it! Sighing silently, he gripped the handle in the middle and stood from his seat as it touched down. Normally he would have been the first one out the door, shield covering everyone as they exited, but these badass fools just rushed the door. Sighing again, this time audibly he unslung his shield from his back and flicked the power on and off. Satisfied that he was ready, he exited the Vertibird to the sounds of various weaponry signaling the supermutants meeting their deaths. While the others took cover behind or on various rocks, Golem stood silently an unmoving mountain. His gaze was locked onto the Space Needle standing in the distance. Despite all odds the building remained a reminder of a world once lost. Lost to time and war, an age far from many’s minds. 

“Ozymandias,” he said quietly as he looked away from the relic of the past. While the others had their war cries, the Golem’s words spoke of the constant that was the fall of humanity. All around him bullets and energy flew as the squad tore apart super and nightkin alike. The mutant’s return retorts slammed into the rocks all around him, some bouncing off armor and his shield, and yet he remained unmoving. The first mutant that got within range of his axe was met with a swift and brutal death. The foolish mutant had run at him with a large club, but it hadn’t expected such a speedy reaction from The Golem. His axe had split right into the Super’s skull, slicing through the mutant’s brain sending tendrils of electricity into the body. Raising an armored boot, he slammed it into the kicking corpse, shattering bone and giving the counter force for him to rip his axe out. Another mutant closed on him with a signpost in its grip. Giving a slight smile under his helmet, The Golem waited for the blow to fall before flicking up his shield and knocking the trajectory to the side. The mutant hadn’t been expecting it, but it wasn’t surprised for very long because as he stepped forwards Ozymandias slid his hand further up the axe and drove the blade into the mutants neck. The electricity cauterised the wound, but the damage had been done and the lifeless corpse hit the ground with a thud. Popping his neck, the Golem returned his hand hold to its original position and started advancing towards a group of super’s firing down onto the squad behind him. 

They saw him coming as he drew closer and turned their fire onto him, but it was too late. He had closed enough to rush the last few feet and slam into the group. Most human’s would go flying when they ran into a Super, but sheer force and mass knocked the group down. Before he could even engage the mutants, several bullets from who knows whose gun tore into two of the fallen freaks. The third met a quick death to his axe, but before The Golem could remove the weapon and attack the last Mutant it shoved him into a rock. Leaving his weapon for a moment, Ozymandias slammed his shield into the grinning mutant. Smiling underneath his helmet, The Golem punched the stunned mutant in the throat. Satisfied with the sound of cartilage and tendons snapping he returned to his axe, leaving the choking mutant to its death. Grinning again, he turned to engage the next closest Mutant, axe crackling with energy.