Armored Core: Full Circle

by aserothbw

This story was formerly named Missing Links. Set roughly a century after the Vertex/Alliance showdown, the story brings together elements of all the story lines from the AC games up to Last Raven as humanity continues it's struggle for survival.

21. Chapter 17

Chapter 17 - Urban Warfare

Watching as Swiftwind gets loaded into the transport truck, Valkyrie sighs nervously. Less then a full day after arriving in Old Gal, the group is already preparing for combat. Valkyrie herself is dressed in combat fatigues of dark browns and blacks, made to match the urban environment she will be fighting in, or so she was told when they were delivered. "You ready?" Sumika asks as she approaches, dressed in her flight suit. "Not really." She replies. "But that's not the point. We are not loosing Deakon." Sumika nods in agreement. "I wish we could have sent someone else in with you, but we're going to need everyone else in their ACs. Watch your back in there. Once you get Deakon, get to his AC, then get the hell out of there. Don't wait for Aldo's people. They'll be covered."

Valkyrie nods. "Who did we finally hire for this one?" Sumika shrugs. "AC StormHawk. The pilot's call sign is Highrise. Jouster knows him apparently. You'll have to get the details from him. I got to go run a final check on Desperado. Jouster and the kid are in the main office." Valkyrie nods, turning to head towards the office as Sumika heads for her own AC. "Just in time." Jouster greets her as she enters. Inside, Valkyrie sees Jouster and Greenhorn, both of them in their flight suits. "Who's this Highrise guy?" She asks.

"He's a Raven that usually works out of the central regions." Jouster explains. "He got stranded here after the Baylore fight, but hasn't gone back yet cause there's been a lot of jobs floating around. I've worked with him on an off over the years."

"What's he piloting?" She asks. "Medium reverse-joint." Jouster replies. "Mostly solid rounds and missiles. Like the name says, he likes to fly. He'll be watching our backs during the mission. You ready to go?"

"As I'm going to be." She sighs. "I hate urban warfare outside of an AC."

"Don't we all." Jouster chuckles. "I was just confirming the battle plan. Your ride's outside waiting for you. They said they'd give you a rifle and anything else you might need, but-"

"Don't worry." Valkyrie assures him. "I'm already packing." Jouster nods. "I don't know if this Aldo guy's as bad as Sumika says he is. Could just be the bad blood talking for all we know. Either way, watch yourself out there. We'll be heading out in ten, Highrise will meet us at the combat zone." Jouster takes a few seconds to think. "Did we forget anything?" He asks. "Sumika said we might get some unexpected trouble during the mission." Greenhorn reminds them. "Right." Jouster nods. "Keep an eye out for that. You got the co-ordinates for your AC?" Valkyrie nods. "Then your good to go." Jouster declares.

"Watch yourselves out there." She tells them before leaving the office. Making her way to the garage's street entrance, Valkyrie makes a quick check of her gear: A large calibre handgun with three clips of ammo, a second, smaller hide-away piece tucked away behind her at the small of her back. Two combat knives, one at her hip, the other in her boot, and four smaller throwing knives hidden around her body. Thinking about the last one, Valkyrie is thankful that Bob had gone through all the trouble to teach her how to throw the archaic weapons back when she was a little girl. Hope I won't need to use them, she thinks to herself.

Stepping outside, she sees the front of the APC sticking out of a nearby alley. Not wanting to waste anymore time, she quickly walks to the alleyway, then goes around to the back. "Get a move on." A man dressed in fatigues growls at her. "Keep your shirt on." Valkyrie growls back as she climbs in. As soon as she is safely in, the APC's engine roar to life, and the truck starts moving. Stumbling at the sudden action, Valkyrie quickly catches herself and takes a seat. No sooner does her butt touch the hard metal of the seat, when another of the men, a dozen in all, toss an assault rifle at her. "You know how to shoot one of these?" He asks her pointedly. "About as well as you can shoot your mouth off." Valkyrie replies while checking the clip. Hearing her, several of the others chuckle at her retort.

"Reloads." The man grunts, tossing a waist pouch to her feet. "Once we hit the ground, you stay in the middle. You follow my orders, or you get shot, understood Raven?"

"Loud and clear." Valkyrie replies, already disliking the man. "Five minutes captain." One of the men near the cab calls out. "Alright, listen up." The captain shouts. "Our objective is to go in, and neutralize the communications, automated defence systems, and any of the shitbags we come across. There will be some guerrillas in the area, so watch your sixes. We're also looking for a hostage, a Raven. Try not to get him killed until he gets to his AC. What does this guy look like?" Realizing the question is directed at her, Valkyrie quickly gives them a description of Deakon. "Why the hell are we babysitting Ravens?" Another of them asks. "Cause that's what we were told to do." The captain snaps back. "Cut the chatter! We're almost there."

Putting the pouch on her belt, Valkyrie leans back, and closes her eyes, taking a deep breath. I hate foot assaults, she thinks to herself. No radar, no boosters, no armor, no weapons . . . Pushing the thoughts aside, Valkyrie gives her head a shake, focusing on the upcoming fight. The sooner I find Deakon, the sooner I can get back to Swiftwind, she reminds herself. Suddenly, the truck comes to a screeching halt. "What the hell?" The captain shouts. "Road's blocked." One of the men near the front reports. "We're three blocks out."

"God damn punks." The captain mutters. "Alright, everyone out! Remember the game plan!" Nodding, Valkyrie quickly jumps out of the back of the APC, getting out of the way as the rest of the men follow her out. Once they are all on the ground, they quickly form a line, Valkyrie inserting herself into the middle of it when one of the soldiers points her into place. "Stay low and quiet!" The captain hisses. I hate foot assaults, Valkyrie thinks to herself as they start to move.

Sitting in Desperado's cockpit, Sumika watches the radar for any sign of AC activity within the area. Now in position, Sumika, Jouster, Greenhorn, and the Raven they hired, Highrise, wait in normal mode for the attack to begin. At least Aldo's serious about the attack, she thinks to herself as she absently listens to some of the chatter coming from the ground forces. "Sumika." Greenhorn quietly calls out over the radio. "What?" She asks. "You sure everything's okay?"

"No." She replies, shaking her head. "You really think there's someone else who's going to butt in on our action?" Highrise asks, the AC currently sitting with Jouster at the other side of the sector. "I don't know." Sumika admits. And that is what is irking her the most. Since arriving in Old Gal, everything she's seen and heard points to something else going on beneath the surface, something big. But no matter how hard she tried to pierce the veil, she hasn't been able to find out what exactly it is. But something else is going on besides just the Alliance being in the city, she knows it. Granted, she hasn't had enough time to do a full investigation, but the fact that she hasn't found anything at all bothers her. Usually, when the trail is this cold, it can mean only one thing . . .

"I know something else is going on in Old Gal. What it is, I don't know, and it might not come after us, but my gut tells me we're going to see a lot more trouble then just a couple of punks and some Alliance assets tonight."

"Just tell me where to shoot." Highrise says. "Don't worry." Jouster chuckles. "If the lady says there's going to be trouble, then there's going to be trouble." I just hope I'm wrong about what kind of trouble it is, she thinks to herself. Checking Desperado's readouts, she notices a flashing item on her HUD. "Ground forces have made their move." She reports. "Doesn't look like they've, wait. Alarms just went off. Damn, that was sooner then it should have been. Jouster, any sign of those Alliance ACs yet?"

"Negative." Jouster replies. "I got visual on their garage." Highrise says. "They're scrambling, but it doesn't look like the pilots have reached the ACs yet."

"Can you take them out before they become active?" Sumika asks. "Probably." Highrise replies. "Do it." She orders him. "Jouster, move in. Watch out for MTs. Just disabled them. All we want to do is keep them out of the fight."

"Roger." Jouster replies. "I got some mounted cannons to the west coming online." Greenhorn reports. "Take them out." Going into combat mode, Sumika checks her radar, and sees no targets within striking distance. "One AC down." Highrise reports. "Damn! The other AC just busted out of its bay. Watch your ten Jouster!"

"I see it!" Jouster replies. "AC Identified. Aw shit, it's Choirriot!" Sumika frowns at the name. "Say again?" Sumika asks. "Long story." Jouster replies. "We got contacts coming from the south, can you handle them? This one's going to be a pain."

"Moving to intercept." Sumika replies. "Greenhorn, clear the north side and hold position. If anyone hears from Valkyrie, report it." Moving onto the road, Sumika does a weapons check, and sees that her WA01-LEO arms, CR-WB69CG chaingun, CR-WB87GLL grenade launcher, and the I03RN-CORAL napalm rocket launcher are all primed and ready. Activating her SUIGETSU anti-missile laser, Sumika nods slightly to herself in satisfaction. "Let's get this party started." She says to herself, hitting her boosters.

Coming around the corner, Valkyrie sees another of the Guerilla gang members and opens fire, putting five rounds into the man. "Good shot." One of the three soldiers accompanying her tells her. "Where are we?" She asks, looking around. After making it to the combat zone, the unit had waited until the armor started rolling into the sector before moving into the warehouse where the Rustbacks have set up their base. Once inside, things had started to go smoothly, until one of the lead soldiers set off an infrared trip wire, setting off alarms. Since then, it's been a macabre game of hide and shoot as the team makes their way through the warehouse.

Reaching the communications room, part of the time split off to deal with it, while Valkyrie and three soldiers split off to go look for Deakon. Now, five minutes and a dozen or so gang members later, they are still looking, and running out of time. "Where the hell is he?" She mutters. "They must have moved him." The soldier behind her mutters. "Hold on." Stopping, he reaches for his comm. unit. "Control, do we have an ID on the hostage location?"

"Confirmed." The reply comes several seconds later. "Hostage was moved to the warehouse building 3-C for interrogation by Alliance personnel."

"What about the AC?" She asks. Nodding, the soldier repeats the question into his comm. "Unknown, but we think it might be in the same warehouse."

"Understood." The soldier replies. "Alright people! We're going to 3-C! In the middle Raven!" Nodding, Valkyrie falls into step with the men as they start to hustle. Seconds later, the group makes it out of the warehouse through a backdoor into a massive yard where Jouster and Highrise are battling it out with a lightweight two-legged AC. Seeing this, Valkyrie switches over to the frequency the ACs are using for this mission. "What's going on up there?" She asks as they carefully make their way across the yard to warehouse 3-C. Fortunately, the battle has kept clear of the building so far. "What does it look like?" Jouster shouts. "Damn this kid's good!"

"Not that good though!" Highrise whoops when he scores several hits from his AST rifle. "What AC is that?" Valkyrie asks. "AC Choirriot." Jouster replies. "It's that Alliance kid Kain punched out back at the arena." Valkyrie curses. "What about the other one?" She asks. "We took it down before the pilot could-"

"Contact coming from the north!" Greenhorn suddenly shouts. "It isn't transmitting any form of IFF!"

"Damn!" Valkyrie curses. "What?" One of the soldiers asks as they reach a door. "We got an unidentified target incoming." Valkyrie replies. "We have got to get Deakon out now!" Nodding, the soldiers quickly prepare for the breach. "You stay out here and cover the door until the all clear is given." He tells her. Nodding, Valkyrie moves back and drops into a crouch. "What's the status on that newcomer Greenhorn?" She asks. "It's big!" He shouts back, a hint of panic in his voice. "Tank AC, twice the size of mine!"

"What?" Sumika shouts in surprise. "What kind of weapon load are we looking at?" There is a pause before Greenhorn starts to answer, but before he can form the words, a massive explosion erupts to the north. "What was that?" Valkyrie calls out. "Greenhorn, report!"

"It, it got me!" Greenhorn shouts frantically. "A massive plasma weapon built into the chest! AP more then half gone! I need back-up!"

"Hold on!" Sumika shouts. "I'm coming! Use the buildings as cover!" Hearing gunshots coming from inside, Valkyrie takes a quick look around, rifle at her shoulder ready to fire. Suddenly, a blast of hot hair hits her, driving her into the warehouse wall. "Choirriot is disengaging!" Jouster shouts. "Looks like she's heading north."

"This area's secure!" Valkyrie calls out. "Go after them!"

"Roger." Jouster replies. "Understood." Highrise adds as they take off after the Alliance AC. Switching back to the ground forces frequency, Valkyrie hears some shouting, but nothing connected to the soldiers that were with her. "We're clear!" The soldier radios her. "We found him. Get in here now Raven!" Getting to her feet, Valkryie sprints to the doorway. "Deakon!" She shouts. "Stand down!" Coming around a stack of crates, Valkyrie finds Deakon faced off with the three soldiers, in his flight suit holding a pistol. "Deakon!" Valkyrie calls out in relief. "Val?" Deakon calls out in surprise. "What, what are you doing here?"

"No time!" Valkyrie says. "We've got an un-identified AC attacking from the north. Can you pilot?" Deakon nods, lowering his pistol. Seeing this, the other soldiers lower their own weapons. "Yes. After the Rustbacks caught me on the outskirts of Old Gal, they made quick work of repairing Judgement. Where's your AC?"

"Not too far from here." She replies. "I'm going to need a ride." Deakon nods. "What about Kain and the others?" Valkyrie shakes her head sadly. "Kain didn't make it out of Baylore. Stinger got him." Deakon nods slowly, surprised at the news. "I, I see. We will deal with him later. Right now, we got to go help the others." Valkyrie nods. "You men head back. We'll be fine from here."

"Give'em hell Raven." The lead soldier tells her before they hustle back towards the exit. "How are you?" Deakon asks as they start hustling in the opposite direction. "I'll feel better when that monster is dead." Valkyrie replies. Reaching the other end of the warehouse, the two come to the repair bay where Judgement is currently docked. "I'll pick you up once I'm active." Deakon tells her. "Alright." Valkyrie replies. Nodding, Deakon heads for the lift. Looking over at Judgement, Valkyrie is surprised at the changes to the AC.

Besides the new gold paint job, Judgement is supporting new arms and legs, as well as a pair of bazookas, a CR-WR81B2, and a CR-WL95B. Mounted on the shoulders is a large CR-WB78GL grenade launcher, and a CR-WB85RPX rocket launcher. He must have gotten those before the attack, Valkyrie thinks to herself, though she is a little surprised at how much of a change Judgement has gone through since she had last seen it. "Switch to the other channel!" Deakon shouts from the cockpit, surprising her. Nodding, Valkyrie switches over and into chaos. "What the hell is this thing doing here?" Sumika shouts. "It's charging!" Jouster hollers. "Evade!" Sumika shouts. "It'll go right through the building! Jouster!"

"What's going on?" Valkyrie shouts. "It's not an AC!" Sumika shouts. "It's a pulverizer!"

"A what?" Valkyrie asks in surprise. "A pulverizer." Sumika replies. "It's a highly advanced unmanned MT that was deployed over a century ago." Sumika explains."I thought these things were all destroyed during the Vertex incident?" Highrise asks. "Figure it out later!" Sumika snaps. "We got to take it down before it can reach the populated areas!"

"This is Deakon." Deakon suddenly calls over the radio calmly. "AC Judgement is online."

"Good to hear it!" Jouster cheers. "Now get your ass out here!" Steeping out of the repair bay, Judgement kneels down, lowering it's left arm. Running around to the left side, Valkyrie climbs onto the arm, and holds on for dear life as Deakon gets back up. "You okay?" Deakon asks. "Just don't boost." She replies. "Understood." Keeping her head low, Valkyrie watches as Deakon gets Judgement into a run. "Co-ordinates uploaded Deakon." Sumika tells him. "Drop off Val then get the hell over here."

"Anyone have a damn clue where the hell this thing came from?" Jouster asks. "Negative." Sumika replies. "I think it might, look out!" Another massive explosion rips through the area north of them, this one much closer then the last. "Get me to Swiftwind Deakon!" Valkyrie shouts frantically, fearing the worst.

Cursing, Sumika works frantically at the controls to try and recover from the Pulverizer's last attack. "Doesn't this thing run out of ammo?" She growls. Checking the HUD, she sees that one of the legs took a hit, but the system has already managed to compensate for the damage, this time. "Are we scratching this thing?" Greenhorn asks. "Barely." Jouster replies. "Watch the pulse cannons!" Cursing, Sumika ducks behind the remains of a warehouse as the Pulverizer unleashes another barrage from the dual pulse cannons mounted on its shoulders.

As greenhorn had said, the massive tank Pulverizer is twice the size of a normal AC, the heavy treads so far crushing everything they roll over. It's arms ending in long blades of glowing blue, and appears to be armed with only the pulse cannons on it's shoulders, until it's chest plates open up, revealing the massive plasma cannon built into it. So far, Sumika has managed to get several shots into the array before it fires, but it hasn't appeared to make a difference. "Where'd Choirriot go?" Sumika asks, checking her radar. "She bugged out after she took a few hits." Highrise replies. "It's charging!" Coming out of hiding, Sumika sees that the Pulverizer is facing away from her, and at Highrise in the air above.

Cursing, she tries to angle for a better shot, when five new blips appear on her screen. "BATs!" Sumika shouts when she identifies the new contacts. "Lookout Highrise!" Cursing, the Raven tries to avoid both the BATs and the Pulverizer as it fires, but is unsuccessful. Shouting out warning again, Sumika is surprised when the Pulverizer takes fire from behind, staggering the massive MT and throwing it's aim off enough to miss the airborne Raven. "Was that a rocket?" Sumika shouts. "Yes." Deakon replies as he appears on her radar. "I'll deal with the Pulverizer. We have more MTs coming in from the south."

"Jouster, go!" Sumika orders. "Roger." He replies. "Deal with the BATS Highrise, we'll keep the big guy off you. How you doing Greenhorn?"

"I'm almost out!" He replies. "Out of what? Details!"

"Everything!" Sumika grimaces at his words. "This is Valkyrie. I'm moving to intercept MT re-enforcements. I've confirmed unidentified high-frequency transmissions coming from the MTs and the Pulverizer."

"Great." Sumika mutters. "Mind telling me what that has to do with anything?"

"They're the same kind of transmissions the AI forces used during the Baylore attack." Valkyrie replies. Hearing this, Sumika curses, kicking herself for not having thought of that sooner. "What does that mean?" Highrise asks. "It means Stinger's nearby." Sumika says. "Oh hell no!" Highrise exclaims. "Relax." Sumika tells him. "Your job's to cover our six, not take him out."

"Stinger's mine." Valkyrie says grimly. Switching her weapon arms to heavy shots, Sumika strafes past the front of the Pulverizer and fires. Luck is on her side this time, the chest plates opening just as the shots connect, bypassing the massive MT's armor altogether. At the same time, Deakon fires from behind, taking out the head with a well-placed rocket. "It's going down!" Jouster shouts. "Hit it a few more times!" Sumika orders them. The others comply, and the Pulverizor goes down. "It's going to blow! Get back!" Greenhorn's warning comes just as the first explosion starts to rip the Pulverizor apart. Boosting back, Sumika watches with grim satisfaction as it explodes, taking out the warehouse that the Rustbacks had called home.

"I hope none of the ground forces were in there." She mutters. "Valkyrie, you got a line open with the ground forces still?"

"They made it out alright." Valkyrie replies after a few seconds. "But we got another problem."

"Now what?" Sumika asks. "UEG forces are stationed at the outskirts of Old Gal." Valkyrie replies. "I'm getting a flash message over the general frequency."

"I hear it." Jouster says. "Give me the short version." Sumika asks as she starts activating her special sensors. "UEG's come to clean house as expected." Jouster says. "But there's a hitch; they've put the whole city under lockdown." Seeing nothing coming up on her sensors, Sumika sighs, and de-activates them in order to prevent any further drain of the condenser. "Why are they doing that? Any reason?"

"They know Stinger's in the city." Valkyrie replies. "Apparently, they don't want to run the risk of him escaping."

"That's going to be a problem." Sumika sighs. "Ground forces are pulling out." Valkyrie then reports. "We're not in the best shape for a fight right now. I say we head back to the garage."

"Yeah." Sumika agrees. "We'll need to try and grab some transport out of Old Gal too. But how did they find out Stinger was here?"

"Guess you'll need to figure that out when we get back." Jouster tells her. "Don't remind me." Sumika grumbles. "Highrise, mission accomplished. Thanks for your help out there."

"Just another day on the job." Highrise replies. "Look me up if you need anymore help."

"Will do." Sumika replies. Switching her AC to normal mode, Sumika sighs tiredly. UEG and Stinger both in Old Gal. Talk about a recipe for disaster. "Later." She tells herself, pushing the thought aside.

Stepping into the office, Valkyrie wastes no time going over to Deakon and embracing him tightly. "I'm so glad you made it out." She tells him, trying to hold back the tears. "I'm sorry." He tells her, putting his arms around her lightly. "I'm sorry I could not be there to help Kain. We may not have been on the best of terms, but he was still one of us." Valkyrie nods, stepping back from Deakon to wipe a tear from her eye. "We'll get the bastard." Valkyrie swears. "Yes, we will." Deakon agrees, sounding fully confident.

Looking around the room, Valkyrie sees Greenhorn and Jouster off to the side. "How you doing kid?" Valkyrie asks. "Okay." Greenhorn replies, his voice a little shaky. "The Pulverizer surprised me, but it was pretty predictable."

"Damn thing surprised us all." Jouster mutters. "Where the hell did it come from? I thought the Pulverizers were all destroyed a century ago by Vertex?"

"They were." Sumika says as she enters the room. "Find anything out?" Valkyrie asks. "UEG has the city cut off from one side, and there's a smaller Alliance force on the other side."

"When did they get here?" Valkyrie asks, surprised. "My guess is that they were always here." Sumika replies. "They were just hiding in the hills while the group that came into the city did the talking."

"Maybe they were planning to ambush the UEG when they came to town?" Greenhorn suggests. "Who knows?" Sumika shrugs. "Either way, they're totting the same line as the UEG: to bring order to the city, and take down Stinger."

"How the hell did they know he was even here?" Sumika growls. "I can answer that." Deakon replies. "After leaving Baylore, I made my way to Old Gal hoping to find transport, or at least a way to communicate with Mars base. Unfortunately, I ran into some raiders along the way in, and took more damage. By the time I reached Old Gal, I was an easy target for the Rustback salvagers who found me."

"So they captured you?" Valkyrie asks. "I put up what fight I could, but by then, there wasn't much left to fight with. Once they captured me, they brought me to the building, and once I had recovered, forced me to work for them."

"Forced how?" Jouster asks. "After they captured me." Deakon continues. "But before I had recovered, they had received a message from Stinger. Apparently, he was offering a reward of some sort for any Ravens that had come from Baylore. There was more then that going on, but they were keeping it very quiet. I think it might have had to do with the Pulverizer we fought. It was then they told me to either work for them, or get handed over to Stinger. Unfortunately, the Rustbacks had managed to acquire some of Alliance's technical expertise, or got it from them themselves, and used it to put area locks on Judgement's system."

"So that if you left the combat area, Judgement would shutdown." Valkyrie finishes. "Correct." Deakon agrees. "Fortunately, they were sloppy, so I was in the process of circumventing them. I planned to make my escape during the next sortie, but you arrived first."

"So that's where you've been all this time." Jouster mutters. "Nice to know you didn't change sides on us." Deakon gives the other pilot a cold, angry look. "What he means." Valkyrie quickly picks up. "Is that we didn't know what had happened to you. Backlash had to consider the possibility."

"Of course." Deakon says, turning his attention to her. "He would have been a fool to do otherwise."

"So, now that the happy re-union is done." Sumika interrupts. "How the hell are we getting out of here?"

"Perhaps we should remain." Deakon suggests. "And take out Stinger."

"No." Everyone looks at Valkyrie in surprise when she says the word. "No." She repeats. "We can't. As much as I want to, staying in Old Gal now will put us in a bad position. We're not allied with either the UEG or the Alliance, so theirs nothing keeping them from taking us out along with whoever else gets in their way. Plus, this place is only being rented. I doubt the old man will let us stay if we start tearing the city up."

"I don't think that'll be an issue." Sumika points out. "Even if it isn't." Valkyrie continues. "Us using this place as a base of operations for that kind of mission might put him in a bad place with the UEG, Alliance, or the locals. More importantly, we don't have an escape route." Valkyrie shakes her head. "I want to take down Stinger more then anyone, but right now is not the time." Sumika nods. "That doesn't mean I won't try if he shows up." Valkyrie then adds. "Just that trying to hunt him down now is a bad time. We need to focus on getting back to Mars base."

"So, how do we do that?" Jouster asks. "Pretty sure both sides will have the roads blocked off."

"Air travel's out of the question too." Sumika adds. "The UEG put a no fly zone around Old Gal. Anyone who tries to cross it will get shot down."

"What about Alliance?" Valkyrie asks. "They haven't said anything, but I'm guessing they're doing the same to make sure Stinger doesn't try to slip out on their side." Sumika runs a hand through her matted hair. "Air transport is what we need, but there's no safe place for a pickup in Old Gal."

"Then perhaps we need to leave Old Gal." Deakon suggests. "Arrange for transport to pick us up beyond the blockades."

"Means we're going to have to fight our way through." Jouster points out. "Conflict is inevitable at this point." Deakon counters. "At least this way, we can choose our battles rather then have them choose us."

"Guy's got a point." Sumika admits. "We stick around too long, and Aldo might try and get us in with his camp. I'm pretty sure he's going to try and use tonight's attack to spin some good PR for the UEG."

"There's also Amazon to consider too." Jouster points out. "Amazon?" Deakon asks. "The one Kain punched out during the arena matches." Valkyrie explains. "But why would she be a problem?" Deakon asks. Jouster sighs, scratching his head. "Well, Megan, that's her real name by the way, used to be like a dog with a bone when she has her mind set on something. And the last time we saw her, that bone was Kain. No doubt she knows we're from the same warlord Kain used to run with, so I'm pretty sure she's going to come around looking for answers about where he is. No telling what she'll do when she finds out he's dead. If she doesn't already know." Jouster sighs. "Honestly, I don't really know what the guy saw in her. Always seemed like a cold fish to me."

"Since she's with the Alliance, it's most likely she's going to be following their orders." Valkyrie mutters. "I just hope that keeps her busy long enough for us to get out of here." Jouster nods. "She might have been piloting a lightweight, but she sure knew how to use it. Doubt I could have beat her in a one-on-one fight." Greenhorn yawns tiredly beside the older Raven. "No point worrying about it now." Sumika says. "Right now, we should get some rest. Been a long night. I think at this point though, Deakon's idea might be the best way to get out of Old Gal. Before we try it though, we should try to get word out to your daddy too. Maybe he can talk us a way out with the UEG." Valkyrie nods. "Would be better to avoid fighting if we can."

"Then it's settled." Sumika declares. "We'll start working on it tomorrow. Right now, everyone get some sleep. Except for you Deakon. I want to ask you some questions about what you heard from the Rustbacks while you were with them. Couple of things still aren't adding up yet." Deakon nods. "Very well. I'll tell you what I can." Nodding, Sumika starts to question him as the others make their way out. "You okay?" Jouster asks Valkyrie once they are outside. "So far so good." She replies. "Why you ask?" Jouster shrugs. "Just wondering. The way you were hanging off him earlier, Tina used to do that to me when I came back from no-mans land, if you know what I mean." Valkyrie nods. "I'm fine." She assures him. "Get some sleep. We're not out of the woods yet." Jouster nods, watching as she takes her leave. "I hope so." He mutters. "I really do."