Episode 706: A For Alliance, Part Two
Part 1, 2, Special Features
Wednesday, 22 Sep 2523
Outside St. Lucy's Hospital
Kore, Persephone
We eventually come up with a plan. It's fairly simple. We'll just fly out to the hospital in our shuttle after dark, land about half a klik away and walk the rest of the way in. One of the crew will get through the locks and let both doctors in while the rest of us stand lookout. It shouldn't take too long to get enough needle biopsies for a good sample cross section. Once we've got them, we'll just melt away into the night with no one the wiser.
Right?
Kinda.
We do get our shuttle within half a klik of the hospital and we do walk in under cover of darkness. No one stops us. The trouble starts when we get to the actual back lot of the hospital when we trip a floodlight sensor.
We duck for cover like roaches scattering in the kitchen and wait for signs we've been discovered. When nothing happens, we dodge the sensor and make our way to the back of the containment units. They look like repurposed shipping containers with the doors positioned at the rear, facing away from the hospital proper. Nothing but a field is at our backs and Arden gets busy with the locks on the first container.
It takes him 25 minutes to get past them. The door pops open. A bad odor wafts out. Girding themselves, Kiera and Arden go inside where the bodies are and start inspecting them for likely biopsy candidates. There's no point in taking samples from someone who died because a truck hit them. Nope, they're looking for people with those weird cancerous growths and the growths won't be visible from the outside. They're going to have to cut into the bodies to see if the corpse has been affected by the vector we're looking for …. or not. And that will take some time. Meanwhile, Nika, Joshua, and Rina stand guard.
Thirty minutes after Arden and Kiera go inside the container, Joshua starts getting that feeling he gets when he's in the presence of the BTs—nausea, disorientation, that creepy feeling. The BTs are definitely on their way and our timetable has just gotten drastically shorter.
He tells the rest of us and Rina spots a light low on the horizon that seems to be moving our way. Training her night-vision binoculars on it, she sees it's a longish, metal vehicle shaped sort of like a cigar. There's no visible motor or other method of propulsion or airfoil to it. But it's coming at speed our way. We spread out and ready ourselves for confrontation—cuz we really doubt they'll just let us waltz in here and take what we want and leave, right?
The vehicle Rina spied through her binoculars is a fancy hovercar with very little in the way of discernable features. It sets off the floodlights as it lands and against the glare we dimly see shadowy figures moving out of it. We hear an odd chuckling giggle, like a hyena's laugh and we see eyes glowing read as they approach. Then they fall into the light thrown by the floodlights and we get to see them clearly. They're gruesome looking things, rather like the bare-skinned horrors Potemkin had set against us on the Gift. While they aren't the same dogs, they are akin enough to them that killing them won't be easy. They advance on our position at the containers in a spaced row of four abreast. Behind them two BTs—mostly likely their handlers, or perhaps just back-up—maintain their distance. Joshua's nausea gets worse.
Luckily for us, they send the dogs out after us first.
The rightmost dog snarls and Rina shoots it with her pistol. It's a solid hit and she doesn't wait to acknowledge it but shoots again as soon as her gun chambers a round. The second round sinks into the dog and kills it as Rina snaps off a third round, which augers into the ground beyond it.
Nika shoots the one on the center right and wounds it but doesn't get off a second shot. The dog to the center left pauses while the dog on the far left charges Joshua with a leap and a roar. Joshua is adept at Aikido and uses its momentum to pick it up and throw it with force into the container wall behind him.
WHAM!
The dog barely yelps before it crumples to the ground, completely unconscious. Joshua closes with Nika because the two on her are still up and one is even more dangerous because it's wounded. Nika shoots at the dog in front of her. It leaps at her, enraged, and she dodges it. It misses her and the other dog lunges for her. Nika has lighting fast reflexes however and dodges again. To Nika's right, Rina takes aim on the dogs but Nika gets in her way, spoiling her shot.
The two dogs rally and attack again, going for Nika. Joshua kicks one off of her and Nika kicks the other. Both dogs are thrown clear and Nika manages to get another kick in on hers, rendering it unconscious. She turns and tries shooting the dog Joshua kicked, but it leaps up and bites down on her gun arm before she can shoot. It sinks its teeth in through leather and cloth into her arm beneath, shaking its head to tear and rend. It stays in place just long enough for Rina to shoot it dead, but the engineer is unable to spare her Captain injury. They pry the dog's jaws off her arm and blood drips freely off Nika's fingers.
Nika: (hissing) Aww … shiiiii….
Joshua: (low) Listen, I'll kill the hyenas. You kill the bad guys. Cuz, I don't like them. I'm still getting that creepy guy feeling.
Kiera of course hears the noise of the battle and comes out of the container and rounds the corner just in time to see us pry the dog off Nika's arm. Bones grate inside. Her forearm is broken.
Kiera: Need some help?
Joshua: Go back inside.
Nika belays that order. There are still enemies out there and we're now down a shooter with Nika's arm injury. She gives Kiera her pistol, tells her the bullets left in her gun, and hands over her extra clip. Checking out what the two foreward BTs have in their hands, it looks like they've got some kind of pistol—which doesn't help us much in gauging their firing range. Nika starts edging around the container for the rear, hoping to get some cover. Joshua kills the one remaining dog, the one he'd slammed against the container. He snaps its neck. He takes no joy in it, rather it's a mercy killing.
Joshua, Kiera, and Rina stand their ground and face off with the two BTs. A third BT exits the car, pulling a shorter human figure after it. The shorter figure is frail, almost childlike, and is clad in something very like a hospital gown. The two appear to be consulting about something. Joshua's curiosity overcomes his caution and he moves forward, closer to the BTs, in order to find out more. Nika hisses at him from the container wall.
Nika: I hope you know what you're doing …
Nika continues down the container side, intending to get Arden and enlist his help. Rina takes aim on the BT advancing on the right. Kiera can't believe Joshua's moving toward the enemy—and not so coincidentally the direction she and Rina will be firing—and she takes aim on the BT on the left. Both women have to be extra careful not to shoot Joshua by mistake.
Rina fires first and hits. Her shot delivers damage but the BT is still up. It's not that easy to kill the augmented humans, since their modifications make them tougher to kill. Kiera's shot sinks into the BT on the left, but like his counterpart, he soaks the damage and both of them keep on walking. They're not unprotected—from the way the impact hits them, the crew knows they're also wearing mesh. The BTs smile and advance one step at a time, clearly intending to draw the battle out to savor it. Their smiles tell us they expect to win and take their own sweet time killing us slowly.
The hell with that.
Rina shoots again and her bullet deals yet more damage, but the BT is still up. The BT on Kiera's side veers, clearly going for Nika who is now halfway down the container. Kiera shifts to follow him with her gun, deliberates for a second on a head shot and decides to go for it. The BTs aren't wearing helmets.
BAM!
Kiera drills him right through his head. He goes down … and there's a second's pause before he disappears in a thunderous red explosion.
BOOM!
There's no time to duck or even flinch. The explosion expands in a flash, the shock wave hits, sending debris and body parts flying, and the women of our crew all take some damage. Kiera and Nika are a little further away but Rina's closest to the BT and she takes on more damage. Being of sturdy Russian stock, however, she manages to shake off some of the stun and stays on her feet. The remaining BT grins wolfishly, throws down his pistol, and pulls out a wicked looking knife. Oh yes, he's going to enjoy carving up the tough little woman in front of him.
Not that she's going to give him that satisfaction, hell no. Rina keeps her weapon firmly in hand and shoots him again. Again, he soaks the shot and apparently shakes off the damage. If anything, it adds to his enjoyment. He continues to advance in a slow stalking step.
v
Nika calls out to Arden for an assist. Arden, however, is up to his elbows in one of the bodies. It's going to delay getting him out here.
The pain in Joshua's head gets worse, a punishing feedback loop. The pain is killing him but his sharp eye sees blood trickling from the small person's nose. Whatever is going on is not without cost to the opposition either and oddly enough, that only strengthens Joshua's resolve to find out who the small mystery person is. Is this person a Reader like him? A prisoner of Blue Sun as he had been? Joshua steels himself against the pain and closes the distance to the hover car, raises his hands, calling out to the remaining BT that he surrenders. The BT raises her pistol and takes careful aim at the crew. Does she expect the small person beside her to take care of Joshua without help from her? Since she's got a gun aimed at the crew, she's the more immediate threat. Joshua moves in, hoping to disarm her before the pain in his head renders him unconscious. She steps back and points her gun at him.
BT: Hello.
Meanwhile, Rina aims and shoots the BT in front of her again. She misses. Kiera takes one look at her friend and knows Rina's going to kill this guy—she's too pissed off and hurting to let him live. But killing the BTs trigger plasma grenades and that's a whole other world of hurt she does not want to visit. She yells to Rina to run, knowing it useless, and starts moving for the container's side for cover. Joshua catches this in the corner of his eye and has to make a choice—get to his fiancée before she kills her opponent, stay in range of the BT's Reader and go unconscious … or some third option he hasn't thought of yet. Nika, meanwhile has made it to the door of the container, cradling her broken arm, and sticks her head in.
Nika: (fierce) Arden, you need to get out here.
Arden: I'm working as fast as I can.
Nika: Stop. You've got to get out here. We need an extra gun hand and oh dear God, I'm not sure we're not—(wilts)—Oh my god….
Kiera: (over the ear comms) Arden, they blow up when you kill them.
Nika: Meet her out there and I don't know what this guy did, but he just tac-nuked his own body.
Arden doesn't argue. There are several bags of samples he and Kiera have managed to cull. He shakes the gore off his hands, wipes the excess crap off however he can, and takes the pistol Nika hands him. Together they exit the container and make their way back to the crew.
Outside, the BT on Rina darts in and she dodges, his blade missing her. However, she's injured and the BT is still relatively fresh and his blade slashes again, catching her across her thigh. Blood spurts. A bad sign. The knife has nicked her artery. Rina falls back, jams her thumb into the wound to half the flow, and puts her back to a container wall, sliding to the ground. It is not an unpainful process and she gives voice accordingly. The BT advances on Rina, clearly anticipating the pleasure of carving her up. Kiera sees the slash and the damage on her friend and shoots the BT in an all-out attack. She scores three hits in rapid succession, making him soak the damage and forcing him back. Arden rounds the corner, takes it all in, and moves even with Kiera. The BT recovers and continues for Rina.
Arden and Kiera both shoot at the BT, looking to wound and not to kill, shooting for his legs. None of the shots find their target. Meanwhile, Rina has her hands full with her knife wound. With both our doctors tied up in combat, any first aid will have to be done on her own. She's losing blood badly and she's got no med supplies. Direct pressure on the wound helps. She's got duct tape and using her free hand and her teeth, she manages to stop her bleeding with it. It's jerry-rigging at best, but it's better than bleeding out and dying.
Joshua is spiked by pain—from Rina—and he turns to see his wife fall back, blood flying from the slash to her leg. Quick as a flash, he turns right around despite the BTs gun on him, and runs back to the container and the BT menacing Rina. He rushes up, both hands clasped in a combined fist, and raises them for a punishing blow.
Joshua: Leave my wife alone, you wángbā dàn!
Joshua slams the BT in the back of the head, hideously hard, and the BT faceplants on the pavement. Bloodied but unbeaten, the BT looks up and smiles a creepy little smile at Joshua. Nothing doing, Joshua viciously kicks him while he's down. The BT nevertheless stands and moves to attack. Joshua's senses are jacked into high gear by now and he senses it's a feint, a prelude to a suicide action to trigger the plasma grenade. Joshua tries to disarm the BT but the man moves inhumanly fast—Joshua fails and the BT slits his own throat from ear to ear.
Blood goes everywhere. Warm and wet, it hits Joshua full on.
Unable to stop the horror, Arden and Kiera know what's coming and hustle around the corner of the container. Joshua doesn't linger but does the same and Rina kicks and pushes herself around the container at her back. The BT crumples like a rag doll, going out in a rain of blood and …
BOOM!
There's a red blast, a searing light, and fire engulfs the spot where the BT stood. The shock wave hits the containers and shoves them back several yards with a violent lurch. In fact, the front-most third of the containers is blown right away, sending bits of metal flying. Nika, Kiera, and Arden get hit by the containers and take some stun. Joshua manages to avoid getting hit and as the others pick themselves up from the pavement, Nika sees her XO stalking through the smoke and the flames toward the enemy.
Nika: (via earcomm) Would you like to tell me what the hell you're doing?
Joshua: Clearing our path.
Nika: Oh God …
Joshua steps out of the smoke and the flames on the far side to find the remaining BT aiming her pistol right at him. Maybe it's the blood covering him or perhaps something in his expression makes her falter, for her shot misses him and augers into the ground. Joshua charges the BT and plows into her in a linebacker tackle. The force of his body slamming into hers sends her back several feet and she goes down.
Wham!
They scramble up in a tangle of limbs and desperation and Joshua manages to get the drop on her. He grabs her by the ankles and slams her into the small Reader beside the hovercar.
Wham, again!
The Reader is bludgeoned unconscious and the mental pain eases up. The BT is still conscious, of course, but cannot get away. She and Joshua are both stunned and Joshua still has her by the ankles. Which she turns right around in a wrestling move that has her legs around him. The grapple is in earnest now, and both opponents pull out all the tricks they know to gain the upper hand.
Meanwhile, Nika has gathered Kiera and made it to Rina's side. The engineer has managed to gain cover, if only just, and her duct-tape bandage is still holding. Even so, she's rocky. Nika takes Rina's gun, slippery from her blood, and drags Rina further around the container. Arden lags behind, keeping the container wall at his side for cover.
Nika peers around the corner, expecting to get her head shot off, and sees the fight at the hover car just in time to see the BT get a headlock on Joshua. Nika runs forward, gun in hand, and brings it to bear on the BT. The BT has dragged herself and Joshua to standing upright, holding him good and tight, and she smiles as Nika runs up.
BT: Do I break his neck?
She could be asking Nika if she wants one lump of sugar or two in her tea. Nika keeps her pistol aimed at the BT's head … but refrains from pulling the trigger. It's time for some answers.
Nika: What do you want?
BT: I want to break his neck so I can fight you.
Nika: True. Are you a guard?
BT: No. We were alerted of a security breach.
Nika: It's interesting you got here so late in the game.
Joshua remains still, despite the pressure on his neck, backing his Captain's play.
BT: We had a ways to come. But more are coming.
Nika: What will make you let go of him?
BT: Lay your weapons down.
Nika: (steely) No.
BT: (smiles) I like it when they fight.
She moves to snap Joshua's neck. Nika shoots but misses. Joshua's just too damned close to the target. The rest of the crew arrives behind Nika. Kiera shoots the BT as she approaches, the bullet bounces off the BT's mesh, but the woman still has to soak the stun from it. Arden closes the distance and comes at her from the rear flank, threatening her with a gunshot to the kidney. The threat, however, is ineffective and she refuses to release Joshua. To the rear, Rina is limping forward to join the fray. Damned if she'll leave her husband to the creepy-assed bitch's mercy.
For himself, Joshua pulls a feint and manages to win free of the headlock, if not the BT's grip. Nika's still got her pistol up but she holds the shot—Joshua's still in the line of fire and if she shoots, she wants to make it count. Arden moves to pistol whip the BT across the head. He connects for a solid hit.
Whack!
The BT staggers but remains up. She and Joshua dance a little dance of combat. She lunges. He escapes. Nika finally shoots. The bullet is soaked by the mesh but the BT's hurting now. It's five crew against her one, and it's only a matter of time before she goes down. The crew doesn't hesitate but presses on, hoping to render the woman unconscious before she can suicide or die, either one of which will trigger the plasma bomb inside her. Kiera shoots the woman again, pumping more stun into her system. Arden's point blank shot goes wild and misses completely.
As his teammates close in, Joshua falls back to the rear of the vehicle, looking for a way to get inside and possibly find something they can use to overpower the BT. The entry point is locked. No joy there. Joshua peers around the vehicle to check on the fight and catches sight of Rina throwing her knife at the BT and missing.
The BT ignores everyone but Nika, closing in on her inhumanly fast. There's a crazed look on the BT's face now and she deals Nika a vicious blow. Nika staggers but remains conscious … barely. The BT spins and strikes at Kiera and hits her as well. Nika retreats for the rear of the vehicle, rocky but still up. Kiera falls back and pumps 3 shots into the BT in an all-out attack. The BT is fast but still not faster than a bullet. She takes all three hits and soaks the damage and still remains standing.
Damn. What's it take to bring this bitch down?
Kiera: (to Arden) Shoot her! Shoot her! Shoot her!
Arden shoots and misses. Nika sags and slides against the hover car as her injuries finally overcome her. Rina makes it to her side and tries to do what she can for her. Joshua leaves the cover of the car, closing the distance to the BT, his hands clasped for another hammer strike to the back of her head. He aims, strikes, and misses.
Despite Joshua's proximity, Kiera shoots the BT and scores an exceptional hit. Her armor unable to soak the damage for her, the BT goes rocky and wobbles on her feet. It slows combat down just enough to allow Arden to pull a sedative hypo out of his bag.
Rina, meanwhile, is trying to pick the lock on the hover car door and Kiera leaves off shooting to join her. Joshua sees an opening and presses another attack but the BT manages to evade. Arden is right there waiting for her, however, and jabs the hypo in her neck and pushes the plunger home.
Swwwwwp!
The drugs hit her system. Joshua gets her in a head lock. The BT's eyelids flutter and she goes down. Out like a light.
Done. Everyone wilts and stands down. And starts mopping up.
Arden quickly searches through the unknown Reader's pockets, looking for the hover car keys. He comes up empty and searches the BT next. He finds them and once the hover car is opened up, the crew hustles to board it. Arden has the samples in his med bag, no need to go back to the containers—which are still on fire. Arden decides to take the unconscious Reader with us. It's clear the Reader is sickly and in need of medical help and it goes against Arden's ethics to leave him behind. Joshua concurs—he wants to talk to the Reader and find out more about him.
One of the crew drives the hover car off St. Lucy's grounds. No one follows us. We beeline back to Exeter, stopping only long enough to pick up our shuttle, and get everyone and everything aboard. The hover car fits in our cargo hold and we shut it up out of sight. As ops go, our was a success but not without cost. A third of our crew is down with serious injuries and we have just taken aboard an individual who might bring Blue Sun down on our heads. Beglan makes our guest as comfortable as he can while our two doctors prep the Captain and the engineer for surgery. The rest of the details—and the world—will just have to wait.
Part 1, 2, Special Features
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