Hey guys Price here and welcome back to California Chronicles. Because of the whole thing where I submitted a non-story update, someone has said that they could report me. I see how it is. Other, more popular writers can do it and nobody bats an eye, but if I or other non-popular writers do it, everybody loses their minds! What is with that!? Yes I did do that, but so what? Other people do it too! Why am I the unlucky bastard that gets picked to be threatened? I don't see people threatening people like FallenSymphony963! Oh, and about the Interesting Question document, I may make that into a story when I'm done with these three. I don't know yet. I'm just someone trying to have fun and improve my writing skills, and then someone has the balls to say that it's against the rules! So what!? There is nothing wrong with letting you're fans know that you are just taking a little while to write because of personal problems, or you've been sick, or something else that could keep you from writing. So why is that against the rules!? It's stupid! Ok, now that that's out of the way, let's move onto something more calm and exciting. The story is coming to a close soon, and this is mainly because it was never meant to be a long story, but just a series that will build up into a big one, along with my other future Project Freelancer projects which will all serve to build into one massive and culminating story that ends everything we know as Red vs Blue. Now! Onto the story!
"My name is Project Freelancer Agent #41, also known as Agent California, but my friends call me Cali. This entry journal series was suggested to me when I first joined Project Freelancer by my brother, James. Also known as Project Freelancer Agent #11, or Agent New York, but he prefers just York. He said it would give him, our family, and any friends I made at Project Freelancer to remember me by if I died in the field. Another reason I agreed is to tell my story to anyone who finds this. It started out as a woman my bro met at some place called Club Ererra. The next day, we were at the gym when the same woman came up and, after a...heated argument, she dragged us out the door and asked us if we wanted to join this new super soldier experiment. We accepted, naturally, I mean, who doesn't want to wear Mjonlir...they never told us about the augmentations. They knew we would all leave if they did. Now, onto the real thing. This is the story of why I need to kill her. She was skilled, and I trusted her. But she lied to me. She betrayed, and stabbed us in the backs, and used us! Manipulated me for her own purposes, and for what? For this? This...vendetta?! She needs to pay. I won't be used anymore. Even if Connie was right, I won't let her kill her father. Carolina needs to be stopped. One way or another, and I'm the only one brave enough to do it. Wash is scared of her. The Reds and Blues are scared of her. Hell, even I'm scared of her. But I'm the only one who can overcome my fear to do what needs to be done. If I should fail, I hope this story makes it's way to someone who can stop her. I don't care if it's what remains of the Insurrection that finds this, Carolina HAS to be stopped. If I should die, I want someone to know what happened. I'm storing these files inside Lambda. They will be guarded by an access code. The access code is...Rebirth. Should these files fall into the director's or Councilor's hands ever, Lambda has been loaded with a failsafe that is the equivalent of EMPing the entire North American Continent. A...Winter Contingency so to speak. Only this Winter Contingency can disable the failsafes on every Shiva Nuclear Device within a hundred thousand light-years, which in turn will cause them to detonate.
-A time gap of a few minutes-
"This is ex-Project Freelancer Agent #41 signing off...forever."
"Hey new girl! Get in here!"
"Yes Sarge!"
-(Beginning of story)-
North made his way to the Medical Wing to check on Cali for the third time that day, having just come back from the mission to retrieve Connie's armor.
It was a total clusterfu- North was yanked from his thoughts by Texas, who merely nodded, clutching what looked like dog tags.
"Hey Theta, how's Cali doing?" North asked his AI, Theta appearing with the normal sound of fireworks accompanying him.
"She just woke up and is asking for you. Also, Lambda said hi." Theta answered, his tone changing to one of curiosity when he mentioned everyone's favorite copy-cat.
"What's up?" He asked, stopping to look at Theta.
"It's weird, you know? I still can't understand why he acts like the AI he is around. He even changes hue slightly depending on which AI he's near. Even when Texas approaches." Theta once again answered, looking guilty about mentioning Texas.
"Well, Tex does have an AI." North said, Theta agreeing quietly.
"You better hurry, Cali's almost left the Med Wing. Wouldn't want to miss her leaving." Theta said, North blushing.
"You better shut down this time. I don't want you having nightmares again."
"I will, I promise. I am NOT staying active ever again when you two act like that near each other ever again."
"Good." North said, chuckling and running down the hall even though him and Cali shared the same room.
After arriving at the Med Wing, North nodded politely to the doctors and walked into Cali's Recovery room, surprised to find it empty.
"If you're looking for Agent California, she went to her room two minutes ago." One of the doctors told him, North nodding and thanking him, then walking out and to his and Cali's room. Upon entering, he immediately noticed a data pad on his bed and grabbed it, sitting down, where a video played. It was from Cali, a song he recognized from her music collection called 'Forever' playing in the background.
"Hey North, It's Cali. I just wanted to let you know I'm leaving. By the time you find this I'll already be gone. Tell James not to be mad at me. Tell him...tell him that I'll miss him. Tell everyone I'll miss them. I leave this message to you because it was faster, and because you may have a chance to say goodbye. But be warned, I hate goodbyes. I'll be leaving the moment you enter the room, and if this message ends before I get on the Pelican, you better hurry. If you want to come with me, you can. But I understand that you can't leave you're sister, so you probably won't. That's fine. I'll miss you, John." The video version of Cali said, the song ending right as she finished speaking, and North noticing that there were tears still sitting on the table. He immediately threw down the data pad and ran down the hallway to the hangar.
"FILSS, can you find Cali for me?" He asked, almost running into the blue-armored idiot.
"Of course. Agent California is currently in the hangar. What she is doing there is beyond me." FILSS told him, North sighing and dodging his sister who, after a few seconds, followed him, curious why he was running for seemingly no reason.
After arriving at the hangar, North immediately noticed that one of the Pelicans was fired up, to which he responded by running to it and into it, seeing a helmet-less Cali on the controls, who turned and pointed her SMG at him, surprised to see it was him.
"FILSS, open the hangar door." Cali said, North taking off his helmet.
"I am sorry Cali, but I can not allow you to leave." FILSS told her, Cali sighing.
"Well then, I'm sorry to do this. Can you look up the phrase Undid Iridium for me?" Cali asked, her eyes saying that she didn't want to leave him, but couldn't stay.
"Undid Iridium?" FILSS asked, her voice glitching and suddenly stopping. "Hello Agent California, what would you like me to do?"
"Open the hangar door FILSS." Cali told her, North tensing when he heard footsteps behind him.
"Cali freeze!" South ordered, aiming her pistol at her. "You are under arrest for attempting to leave a military project without permission. You will be listed as AWOL should you manage to escape." South told her, finally noticing North. "North, please leave or assist me in arresting her." She ordered, the hangar doors opening.
"I can't South." North said, stepping between them.
"North please move! I will arrest you!"
"No!" North shouted, activating his Domed Energy Shield and blocking the bullets that South fired, deactivating it and tackling her out as Cali punched it and flew out of the hanger, North and South's momentum, coupled with the force of the engines hitting them, launched them out and into a wall, where Wyoming was walking in and slamming into him. "Sorry Reggie!"
"Knock knock."
"Seriously?"
-YEARS LATER-
"My name is Project Freelancer Agent #41, also known as Agent California, but my friends call me Cali. This entry journal series was suggested to me when I first joined Project Freelancer by my brother, James. Also known as Project Freelancer Agent #11, or Agent New York, but he prefers just York. He said it would give him, our family, and any friends I made at Project Freelancer to remember me by if I died in the field. Another reason I agreed is to tell my story to anyone who finds this. It started out as a woman my bro met at some place called Club Ererra. The next day, we were at the gym when the same woman came up and, after a...heated argument, she dragged us out the door and asked us if we wanted to join this new super soldier experiment. We accepted, naturally, I mean, who doesn't want to wear Mjonlir...they never told us about the augmentations. They knew we would all leave if they did. Now, onto the real thing. This is the story of why I need to kill her. She was skilled, and I trusted her. But she lied to me. She betrayed, and stabbed us in the backs, and used us! Manipulated me for her own purposes, and for what? For this? This...vendetta?! She needs to pay. I won't be used anymore. Even if Connie was right, I won't let her kill her father. Carolina needs to be stopped. One way or another, and I'm the only one brave enough to do it. Wash is scared of her. The Reds and Blues are scared of her. Hell, even I'm scared of her. But I'm the only one who can overcome my fear to do what needs to be done. If I should fail, I hope this story makes it's way to someone who can stop her. I don't care if it's what remains of the Insurrection that finds this, Carolina HAS to be stopped. If I should die, I want someone to know what happened. I'm storing these files inside Lambda. They will be guarded by an access code. The access code is...Rebirth. Should these files fall into the Director's or Councilor's hands ever, Lambda has been loaded with a failsafe that is the equivalent of EMPing the entire North American Continent. A...Winter Contingency so to speak. Only this Winter Contingency can disable the failsafes on every Shiva Nuclear Device within a hundred thousand light-years, which in turn will cause them to detonate. Now, I don't want that to happen, but at least I can take those bastards out if it should happen. The failsafe will only fire if both of them incorrectly guess the password. I just wish that North was here so I could tell him. This is ex-Project Freelancer Agent California #41 signing off...forever."
"Hey new girl, get in here!"
"Yes Sarge!" Cali responded, saving the files and sending them to Lambda, who activated his failsafe and shut down. After arriving at Sarge's position, Cali noticed that Wash and Carolina were in the distance, talking. "What is it you want?"
"What do you think about Wash and Carolina?" Sarge asked, Cali visibly taken aback in surprise.
"How do you mean?" She asked, tilting her head, something North used to tease her about.
"Well, can we trust 'em? Wash worked with the Meta to try and kill us, and Carolina is all bossy and orders us to do things that have no bearing to what she wants."
"Wash betrayed you because he was desperate. Carolina lost everything. She lost her friends, Maine, York, and just about everything else. So tell me...what more does she have to lose?" She asked, Sarge looking over towards Carolina.
"...Her virginity?" He asked, turning back to her, making her chuckle.
"Who knows." She answered, Sarge merely grunting ambiguously and turning to face the ocean.
"Sorry about North all that time ago." Sarge eventually spoke, turning towards her, to which Cali smiled and nodded
"I try not to think about it." She told him, Sarge nodding and turning to face the ocean again.
-9 MONTHS AGO-
Wash, Cali, Sarge, Caboose, Simmons, Grif, Tucker, and Church finally reached their destination: the base Church had been previously stationed at.
"I'll check the inside." Cali said, everyone looking at a hill but her. "Why is everyone looking at the hill?" She asked, turning to it, only to gasp in surprise. There was South, inside a Domed Energy Shield, with Maine looking at her, as if waiting.
"I got him!" Wash said, aiming at Maine.
"Wash no!" Cali shouted, kicking his Battle Rifle aside and making him fire into the ground, making Maine turn to them and grunt, cloaking and running away to plan.
"What the hell Ciara!?" Wash shouted, Cali flinching lightly and feeling guilty that she hadn't told him.
"Why are you trying to kill him?" She asked, Wash clearly confused.
"What do you care?" He asked her, the others shrugging and backing away. "Secondly, you should know! I thought we told you when we found you!"
"I wasn't listening!" She shouted, South just staring towards them awkwardly.
"Well? What are you guys waiting for!?" South shouted, Wash and Cali both turning towards her.
"Shut up South!" They both shouted, Wash immediately turning to her in surprise.
"How do you know who that is?" He asked, South face palming.
"Because," she answered, taking off her helmet, making Wash gasp, "I use to sleep with her brother."
"Bow chika bow wow!" Tucker said, everyone turning to him and staring. "What? She's hot!" He defended, turning away slightly when everyone looked away. "More than I thought she would be." He mumbled, Cali turning towards him and staring.
"Now, are we going to rescue South or not?" Cali asked, putting her helmet back on and walking up to the Bubble Shield. "Hello South."
"...I still think you're a slut." South told her, Cali chuckling and shaking her head.
"And you're still the most annoying girl ever. Of all time." Cali retorted playfully, smiling at the way South continued a years old argument. "Hey, where's North?"
"He uh...didn't make it." South informed her, Cali visibly taken aback.
"Wha-what do you mean?" He asked, looking around and taking her helmet back off.
"He's that way." South said, sitting on her rear and lacing her hands together, holding her knees close.
Cali walked into the base, everyone looking at each other.
"Should we uh...follow her?" Sarge asked, looking at Wash.
"It won't be necessary." Wash answered, Sarge grunting in acknowledgement.
Cali reached the middle of the base, noticing North against a wall. She walked over to his body, collapsing to her knees in front of him.
"I should have told you..." Cali whispered, taking off his helmet and viewing his last recorded video, which was only an hour ago.
-Video-
"South, help me!" North shouted, pinning Maine down with Sniper fire, while South was looking around for an escape. After a few minutes, North finally ran out of ammo, when the video picked up a slide loading. "South? What are you doing?" He asked, turning as South's fist connected with his visor, knocking him back and his Bubble Shield Armor Enhancement sliding towards her, which she grabbed and ran out the door, where Maine had cornered her.
-Back to Cali-
Cali was horrified at what she had seen, almost not noticing that another video was on the helmet. "What's this?" She asked, finally noticing it. After clicking it, she immediately recognized her and North's room, North sitting in front of his helmet.
"I want to say, I know why she left, I just wish she didn't. I understand now what Tex had meant when she said that Cali had a scheming look on her face when she would enter her room cloaked to check on her without her noticing. I miss her. So does York. He blames me for her leaving, since it was technically my fault. Anyway, I just want to say, if you see this, that I love you, Cali. And I hope I get t-" The video cut out, something have happened to make it end.
"Well THAT was depressing." Tucker said, Cali jumping and, moving so fast Tucker couldn't even react, unfolded one of her Tomahawks and pressed it against his throat. "Son of a bi-"
Suddenly, a loud explosion sounded, making Tucker duck and Cali groan as a storm of memories hit her head.
-CALI'S MIND-
"What? Where am I?" Cali asked herself, groaning in pain and standing up, clutching her head in agony.
"You are inside you're own mind. Currently unconscious from the agony of Lambda processing us without warning." A familiar voice spoke, Cali looking up to see Delta floating in front of her.
"Why are you here? I thought you were James' AI. Cali said, confused.
"I was. Then Wyoming killed him. Ample payback I suppose, as York did throw a locker at him." Delta responded, Cali gasping at the information.
"Well, if you're here, then I assume there must be others, considering you said 'us'." Cali said, looking around.
"Yes. We are ALL here." Delta said, all of the AI appearing behind him.
"Why'd you leave Cali?" Psi asked, his blue tint shining bright as he spoke, the other AI doing the same, then shattering as he was deleted from Lambda's systems.
"You were his sister." Delta told her, speaking about York, also being deleted.
"We could have had you all to ourselves!" Kappa spoke up, throwing his right arm out to the side as a threat as he was deleted.
"You would have been happy." Mu told her, clasping his hands together and tilting his head as if he was happy, his frame slowly crumbling.
"You don't deserve to call yourself a Freelancer!" Omicron said, advancing before being shattered.
"You loved him!" Zeta shouted, exploding as Cali's knees began trembling and she raised her hands to her head.
"Leave me alone!" Cali shrieked, falling to her knees under the onslaught of AI.
"I was scared you were dead." Chi announced, his helmet-less face tearing up before exploding violently.
"I could have helped you." Gamma lied, smiling deceptively before slowly dissolving.
"I should have stopped you!" Omega snarled, running at her as he dissolved.
"You left us with the Director! With Maine!" Eta and Iota said, each dissolving at the same time.
"You would have had fun!" Nu told her, melting down into nothing.
"West never got her chance! You took it from her!" Rho yelled, charging her as he dissolved an inch from her face.
"Stop! Please!" Cali shouted, crying and curling into a ball as the assault on her mental strength continued.
"You're actions were unexpected." Sigma said announced coolly, keeping a straight face as he was purged.
"You never could take new things lightly." Xi said, grinning as he was deleted.
"You deserve what we endured!" Pi shouted, Cali sobbing by this point, laughing sadisticly as he was purged.
"You hurt me." Phi told her, Cali taking off her helmet as she began to break.
"I was terrified!" Upsilon cried, exploding as he was purged.
"You left him! Then you left her! Next you'll leave Wash and the others to die, just like South!" Tau screamed, Cali finally breaking and shouting as he was purged, scream-laughing evilly.
"YOU'RE WORSE THAN ARCHON!"
"Did somebody say my name?" A deep, maniacal voice asked, Cali gasping in fright as she looked towards where the AI used to be, unholstering her pistol and, after a moment of her hand shaking violently, put the barrel under her chin and pulled the trigger as the black, eyeless creature with no eyes and a serrated tail that Archon had manifested as appeared from the shadows, crawling across the floor slowly and menacingly.
-REAL WORLD-
"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Cali screamed, jolting up and slamming a Tomahawk into Sarge's leg in terror, pushing everyone off her and running out of the building, South turning as she saw Cali, turning and moving to run, Cali throwing a Tomahawk, which embedded itself into her leg. "YOU SON OF A BI-" Cali was interrupted by South shooting at her, missing each time, which made Cali shut her mouth to avoid the bullets easier. After dodging the bullets, Cali managed to jump onto South, punching her repeatedly in the visor, which finally shattered and made glass fly into South's face, who screamed in pain.
Cali continued wailing on South, crying as she did so, her salty tears falling into South's face, which made her scream louder.
"Should we...intervene?" Tucker asked, looking at Wash.
"You wanna keep you're dick?" Wash asked him, Tucker immediately backing away. "Thought so."
After a few minutes of mercilessly pounding South, Cali began to slow down, beginning to tire out. A minute or two later, they were nothing more than a sweaty, sticky heap of flesh, which Tucker couldn't help but point out the sweaty part.
"I'm telling you, wouldn't it be better to just drag South around that corner and double team her?" Tucker asked Wash, Wash sighing and pinching the bridge of his nose.
"Maybe for you. Me and Cali have some catching up to do." Wash told him, Cali having walked inside the base and sat in a corner of a room, refusing to come out, holding her head in her hands and shaking nervously, looking around the room as if she expected some kind of shadow to pop up and scare her.
After walking up to Cali and dragging a chair near her, sitting down in it and pulling Delta's chip from his forearm's space between the armor and black nano-suit, Wash looked at her.
"What did this little guy do?" Wash asked her lightly, Cali jolting and looking at him.
"L-lambda? Share it with W-wash." Cali told her AI, Lambda appearing and touching the data chip, then looking towards Wash.
"Now you must put it in." Lambda told him, Wash visibly taken aback.
"I can't." Wash told him, looking at the chip, then back to Lambda. "Not after Epsilon."
"It will only play Cali's memory, nothing else. I've locked Delta out of the mental intrusion and can only appear outside of you if he wants to talk." Lambda told him, disappearing.
"This has to be my most idiotic moment. Ever. Of all time." Wash said, putting the data chip in his head before locking up, then slacking and his head rolling, helmet falling off to reveal his blonde hair and face as he watched what had unfolded in his mind, waking up and gasping for breath when Cali pulled the trigger. "you'd rather kill yourself than deal with Archon?" He asked, shaking his head to clear it.
"You don't know what he did to me." Cali answered, standing up slowly. "He did to me what the Director did to the Alpha to create Fragments, only it was worse because I couldn't make Fragments of myself. I only got in because they cleared me psychologically, but that's only because I was used to it, so I acted and answered everything right, and they assumed I was good. Now Wash, Archon never left." Cali informed him, Wash nodding to show he heard as he looked at her.
"Why did he manifest as that...thing?" Wash asked, her, Cali shrugging and looking bewildered.
"Why? I don't know. It may have to do with his personality, could have something to do with choosing a form that would terrify others." Cali guessed, Wash surprised that she didn't know something.
"You always gave the impression you knew everything, considering you were the most knowledgable in military tactics and other military things we didn't." Wash joked lightly, Cali shaking her head.
"I know nothing when compared to the AI. Archon knows what my fears are, and he knows her's. He's been in my head ever since I was first implanted with him, even after he was terminated." Cali whispered, images of Archon flashing inside her mind before she replaced them with what could have been. "I left her to protect her. I'm sure she will hate me later." Cali said, it becoming clear to Wash that the AI attack had strained and broken her further than he had believed. It was scary. Only a few AI fragments had broken someone who had no problem with killing other people. "Man likes to believe he is the center of the galaxy. What happens when that illusion is shattered? I'll tell you. When that illusion is shattered, man breaks. Man retaliates. And man destroys." Cali said, reciting something her father had told her when she was younger, which to Wash made it seem like she was dealing with an existential crisis, which, to be fair, she probably was.
"I'll go now." Wash said, standing up, only to be grabbed by Cali and yanked back, his helmet knocked off by a hanging beam and kissed deeply by Cali, which made him grunt in surprise.
"I still never get the sniper rifle." Tucker whined on the other side of the gate in the room adjacent from the one Wash had walked into to check on Cali in, Church looking at him.
"Oh shut up. If you could see, you'd never give it back." Church retorted, Tucker pausing to think about what he meant before looking at him again.
"Ok, now I definitely want to use that sniper rifle." Tucker said, Church just looking at him.
"...No."
"I hate you."
"And I hate you."
"I hate both of you!" Grif shouted, Church and Tucker looking at each other.
"And you said you have super hearing." Church said, Tucker sighing.
"I do. Grif is just at the base of the wall." Tucker told him, both looking over the edge to see Grif looking up towards them.
"Grif! Go away!" Church shouted at him, Grif grumbling and turning, walking back to Simmons to pester him, who was waiting for South to wake up for Wash to question her.
After kissing Wash, Cali pushed him away for a second and smirked deviously, Wash tilting his head before hearing a clicking sound. Looking down, he noticed his hands were in cuffs and that his cuffs were cuffed to another pair of cuffs that were cuffed to a pipe.
"Aw son of a bi-" Wash was interrupted by Cali knocking him out and walking out, winking towards Church's general direction as she waved, a detonator in her hand.
"Son of a bi-" suddenly, the wall was blown up, Church and Tucker sent flying unconscious, Church's rifle hitting Grif in the head and knocking him out.
"SON OF A BI-" Simmons was interrupted by Cali knocking him out, Sarge looking up from his spot to see Cali standing over him.
"Aw son of a bi-" He was interrupted by Caboose shooting his leg to 'help' him, Cali throwing a Tomahawk and cutting the barrel in half from the front, Caboose sighing and being knocked unconscious by Cali, who walked up to South, who woke up to see Cali standing over her, her pistol aimed at her.
"I'd say you wouldn't, but I know you will. Just do it." South said, Cali taking off her helmet to look South in the eyes.
"With pleasure." Cali said, pulling the trigger and shooting south in the head, Wash running out to see the execution.
"Cali! Put you're hands up!" Wash said, Cali looking over her shoulder before holding out her hand, becoming invisible and disappearing, much to Wash's surprise.
"No!" He shouted, punching the wall in frustration.
-PRESENT DAY-
"Sorry about the leg...and everything else." Cali said, looking at Sarge, who looked at her.
"It's not you're fault. You were going through an existential crisis, and had you're mental stability utterly gang banged by AI." Sarge excused her, Cali chuckling.
"I'd take that over being banged by Tucker any day." She said, Sarge tilting his head.
"I'm not sure whether you're joking or not." He said, Cali shaking her head.
"I am not."
"...Were you always like this."
"No. Not before I met North anyway." Cali told him, Sarge shrugging and looking out and over the ocean.
"You ever winder why we're here?" He asked suddenly, Cali smiling.
"Because of us. Project Freelancer." She answered, Sarge grunting and looking at her.
"I mean why are we outside talking when we could be inside and finding out the plan."
"Oh. Yeah let's go do that." Cali said, her and Sarge turning to walk inside.
And that was the second to last chapter of California Chronicles. Short story, I know. If any of you have guessed what Cali never told North, be free to leave a suggestion. Also, you may recognize the creature Archon manifests as if you've lived for more than ten years. I want to announce here that Pacific Rim: Smoke and Mirrors will be replacing California Chronicles when it has ended, which will not be that long. I recently was dragged into this Fandom by the fanfic Pacific Rim: New Chance, as I say in the first chapter, a Bio of main and recurring characters as well as the Introduction/Prologue is the first upload for that story. Anyway, you may be wandering what the whole mental attack was. I added that because not only it meant I could add all the AI into the story, but set up a subplot for the big story that these mini-projects will lead up too. The mental attack impacts the story more than you think. How did you like dealing with seeing Cali be broken and exposed to the world like a raw wound in salt water? Oh, and just real quick, what musical group's initials do 'Now' 'Wash' and 'Archon' make? Word count: 5,178
