Disclaimer: I do not own G.I. Joe or any character affiliated with it....only Persephone

Section 7

"Awwww, did Breakers little wimpy Orc get his bum handed to him?"

"You cheated!" The owner of the now dead Orc scowled at the other hacker across the room.

"You're just mad cause I keep kicking your ass....do you know what the funny part about it is?" Persephone gave a little smirk. "I'm at a lower level than you."

"They're at it again." Ripcord chuckled as he watched the pair in the control room as they played their game.

"Again?.....At least they're playing the game instead of doing this over the breakfast table." Scarlett stood beside the pilot laughing along with him.

"Shut up!"

"What.....it's the truth; you might as well come to terms with the fact that I'm better than you."

"How long do you think this will go on for?"

"Knowing Persephone....forever." Ripcord was highly amused by the two gamers.

"Well, we do need the entertainment."

"Muwahahahahahahaha!!"

"Come on Persephone! You're killin me!" From the sound of Breakers tone and the evil laugh that had come from Persephone; it sounded like the Orc was pushing up daises....again.

"Poor Breaker, the man just can't catch a break can he."

"No I can't; and I would appreciate it if you didn't rub it in my face Ripcord."

"Don't worry man; I'm on your side....just no more screaming about the game."

"Alright people, listen up. We have another mission." General Hawk entered the control room, making everyone freeze. Heavy Duty and Duke had followed him in. "We need to retrieve data from a weapons compound that went out of business but failed to take some vital information with them. If that information ends up in the wrong hands....well I don't think I need to elaborate on that."

"Doesn't sound too hard, get in, get the data and get out." Heavy Duty didn't sound all that thrilled as it wasn't the usual high risk mission.

"It might be easy getting in and out; getting the data however is another story. That is why I'm sending Persephone here to break into the system." Breaker looked a little put out by the fact that he wouldn't be able to play.

"Me sir? Are you sure?" Persephone couldn't believe it; never had she gone on a mission. Usually it was Breaker who went since he had more experience with different systems.

"Yes I'm sure; time for you to show us your stuff."

"Hurry it up Persephone! These guys aren't going down easily and back up is 10minutes out!" Heavy Duty's voiced over the radio as the little hacker worked her way through the compounds weapon's system.

"I'm working on it! It's not my fault that a group intent on world domination was going to show up!" Snake Eyes placed a hand on Persephone's shoulder in an attempt to calm her down as he kept an eye on the door. It was just the three of them on this mission since it was supposed to be easy. Everything had been going smoothly till some strangely dressed men showed up and started shooting the place up. To top everything off the compound just happened to be built over a lava tube from a nearby volcano; thus forcing the company to move.

"Breaker, get ready to receive some of the files; my jump drive isn't big enough." As Breaker linked to the now open system; Persephone proceeded to transfer files. The sounds of the battle were getting closer now and Snake had left her side; ready to fight if they made it through the door.

"Snake, you two are going to have to find another way out of there!"

"Ok, I'm done. Let's get out of here!" Persephone took her jump drive and ran to the dark ninja's side.

Looking around the room; Snake Eyes spotted a ventilation shaft. Taking Persephone by the hand he guided her over to the covered hole. "Let me guess....we're going to take the scenic route out of here."

-It's the only way. Did you take care of the system?- Snake signed before pulling the grill off.

"Yeah, there's a virus in there eating everything." With a boost from the silent man; Persephone began to crawl through the shaft. "Ok Heavy Duty, we are out of the room; you should be able to pull back now."

"Will do. The rest of the Scooby gang should be here soon."

With a chuckle, Persephone continued on her way through the ventilation shaft. The faint sounds of people moving around could be heard as the uninvited guests went from room to room. However this wasn't what the hacker was concerned about; it was the central air shaft where all the vents converged. The shaft just happened to be directly over the lava tube and from the video feed she had seem; the tube had a few breaks in it. The chemicals released from the breaks had been eating away at the metal for the last few months. Feeling the sudden warmth from the metal they had reached the central air shaft.

"Snake, we are going to have to be careful here; the fumes have been eating away at the exposed vents, making them unstable." Just as Persephone finished saying this; the space she occupied collapsed and the only thing that saved her was the actions taken by the ninja. And so the small woman found herself dangling a few hundred feet above the lave tube. The fumes were making her dizzy as she tried hard not to breathe them in. Snake had her by the right hand as her left arm hung useless at her side due to a large gash she received from the metal when she fell.

"So.....are we having fun now?" Persephone laughed at her predicament. She tried to see if there was anything to grab a hold of; but steam from the breaks in the lava tube was making things quite difficult. Her attention was brought back to the man who had her hand as the broken ventilation shaft shifted again. *This is soooo not good; Duke is gonna kill me.* There was no room for Snake to manoeuvre to get her back up. "Snake....I know you don't want to hear this, but ummmm....as much as I like my life, ya know torturing Breaker and Rip, having tea with you....it's either one of us or both of us."

Snake Eyes shook his head vigorously in disagreement with what Persephone was saying. *I will not let her fall, if she does I will never forgive myself.* He had become very attached to the colourful little hacker and there is no way he was going to let anything happen to her. Just as this thought passed through his mind a strong shift in the vent caused the ninja to almost lose his balance. He didn't go over, but Persephone's grip suddenly vanished. Anguish tore through him as he searched for her; but there was no time to mourn. The ventilation shaft was falling apart and he needed to get out. Snake finally made it out of the compound and met up with Heavy Duty.

"Hey, where's Persephone?"

The question caused the ninja to answer with a slow shake of his head as he looked at the ground. "Oh." Heavy Duty couldn't say anything more; he was busy trying to figure out how he was going to tell Duke that his baby sister was gone. The sound of a truck engine drew his attention as Duke and the others showed up. *Awwww shit, I am so not ready for this.*

"Hey guys....looks like we missed out on all the fun; I'm sure Persephone had a ball playing break and enter." Duke had a happy smile on his face until he saw the frown on Heavy Duty's face. There was also the fact that Snake Eyes wouldn't quit looking at the ground. "H, what's going on; and where's Persephone? I'm surprised she's not here to boast about her victory." Duke was trying to fight that sinking feeling that was forming in his gut.

"well, ummmm. I don't know how to say this but, something happened." Heavy Duty couldn't find words to continue.

-Persephone and I had to escape out through the ventilation shaft. A section broke in the central area and she fell through. I tried to hold onto her but when the vent shifted; I lost my grip and she fell.-

"WHAT!!?"

Sorry this chapter is so late...writers block. But now it is up for you my little gum drops ^_^

Cheers