"Alaska," West said angrily, "get Ohio ready. We need to move before the guy that got Kansas and Tennessee gets us."
"What about Hawaii? Any signs of him?"
He shook his head. "None."
Alaska brought her hand up to his shoulder, squeezing it slightly. He slumped his side against the rough mountain wall, his head drooping for a second. Then he suddenly stood up straight with a newly rested aura around him.
"I'll go get Ohio," he said. "Look for anything that might help us, or see if you can spot Kansas, Tenn, Hawaii, or more information on our friends."
Alaska nodded and he came over, nudging her and said, "Y'know; the protocol."
She grinned and gave him a small slug in the arm and started making her way up to a suitable ridge. "Might take a while to revive him -he seemed pretty tired," she called behind her.
Alaska concealed herself in a close-growing thicket and set her sniper rifle in front of her. She peered through the scope from her flattened position down at the camplike fort below them, focusing more on the soldiers than the actual base. She zoomed in as much as she could and squinted her opened eye tightly to see better.
Getting a well look, she saw that these soldiers looked different from Insurrectionist after all; their was dark, steely gray, but didn't have the same rubine trim Insurrectionists' did. Their visors, like Insurrectionists', were an opaque light-gray, though the helmets, Alaska realized, the helmets she had never seen Insurrectionists wear.
A thought struck her, something that hadn't before. The cloaked soldiers on the ridge - the science geeks that worked in the labs had recently developed something like that. Were they somehow stealing technology from them?
Alaska lowered her rifle. "West," she called.
She waited, but there was no reply.
"West," she called louder.
Still nothing. Was he still trying to revive Ohio?
"West!" Alaska yelled. Nothing came, and a sick feeling swooped in her stomach.
She scramled to her feet, and jumped down from the small ledge she'd been hiding at. Her hand gripped the barrel and trigger of her weapon so tightly she was making the protective black gloves make a quiet sound that reminded her of leather getting stretched.
She crept towards the corner where Ohio and West were - or at least, where they should be.
Alaska sidestepped around the corner, raising her rifle.
The scout-helmeted soldier was gone, along with West. Ohio was still propped against the wall, the healing unit running beside him. She ran over to him, fear darting around her mind.
"Ohio!" She practically yelled. She placed her hands on either one of his shoulders and shook him. His head raised, but when it did, he didn't stare at her; his face was directed above her.
Alaska didn't waste any time with turning around; instead, she made a darting motion to her left, raising her sniper rifle as she did so.
Another soldier was dissolving into view; he also must've had a cloaking unit. He wearing a helmet with no visor to be seen and was standing in front of her, arm holding up the other that had attacked them.
A deep, cold, slightly filtered-sounding scoff escaped from his helmet.
"I can't believe you let yourself be beaten," he said to his ally he was supporting.
He turned around, aware that Alaska was watching him. "And as for you, soldiers, I suggest all of you get lost before we show you out ourselves."
"Where's our other guy?" Alaska said harshly.
A humorless laugh rumbled from his helmet. It intimidated Alaska, hearing something so calm after that question, like the unconscious soldier's knife-wielding skill.
"I'm afraid I can't tell you," he replied coldly.
"What, too against protocol for you?" Gasped his partner sardonically.
"Yes," he snapped. "Yes, actually, it is."
"Goddamnit," Alaska shouted, positioning her rifle so that it was directed where the deeper voiced soldier's forehead would be. "Tell me!"
The one being supported chuckled. "Sure. We'll even invite you into our base, let you meet everyone."
"Shut it," the other told him dangerously.
The sounds of scuffling reached Alaska's ears from a lower level of the maze of rocky ledges.
"That's him, isn't it?" She said, relief trickling over some of her fear.
"It appears we're meeting some resistance," the strange-helmeted one said.
"Tell you what," he said, looking to Alaska and Ohio. "I'll let the both of you live for a while longer while I go remedy your friend. If you attempt to resist in any way, we will kill all of the "agents" you've sent out here, including you two."
Alaska knew she couldn't fight off both of them, but that didn't stop her from feeling the urge to fight. She turned to stare at Ohio, who had gotten up from the wall and walked beside her while the two steel-and-green soldiers had been talking to her.
Ohio stared back for a few moments, then shook his head.
"We agree to the terms," Ohio said defeatedly before Alaska could say anything. She lowered her head beside him, silently fuming even though she knew it was slightly selfish of her for wanting to fight when others' lives were on her shoulders. She slowly put the rifle back into its holster.
"Good," the deep-voiced soldier said. Then he went off as quickly as he could while still half- supporting his ally.
Alaska let her knees give way, and stayed sitting on her feet. She clutched her head with one of her hands, her other one resting her leg loosely.
Ohio stared at the ground in what seemed to be shame and sat with his arms around his legs. Then he lifted his head up to the sky that was poking out from the thick mountain crags.
"Y'know," he said strangely. "I think it might be time for a bit of help."
Alaska stared at him, her grimace of surprise lightening slightly. She got up to her feet, a new feeling of determination flaring in her chest.
"I think you just might be right about that," she said.
