Close Quarters
"She is with me!" Mark called as all of the X-Com troops took aim at the stunned Muton. Colonel Kelly had her blade in hand and it shimmered with blue energy. "Riloa? How many enemy in the facility?" He demanded, more to keep X-Com from firing than for actual information.
"Twenty-three armed soldiers." The Muton said slowly in heavily accented English as she rose to her full height and held up empty hands. None of the X-Com troops relaxed. "The heavy weapons are fakes with energy emitters to seem dangerous. Most of the troops have rifles and sidearms. One that I saw carried a sniper type weapon, another a launcher of some kind. A few are carrying grenades. They have one medic. Two have things I do not know. They looked like tech, not weapons."
"That doesn't make them safe. They used gas, so they likely have more of that too." Mark said flatly. "Can you..." He held out his hands and then swallowed hard as Colonel Kelly's blade flashed. He stared at the burnt remnants of his binders. His skin wasn't even singed by the heat of the blade, she had cut so smoothly. He shook his head. "That works." He bent at the waist and held his legs straight up. She did the same again. Valere held out her hands and the Colonel sliced her bonds off as Mark shook his head. "Damn, you are handy."
"Could say the same about you." The X-Com team lead said with a grin. "That was a hell of a ride, but worth it to have a sneaky way in."
More than one of her team shook their heads at their leader's odd sense of humor.
"Yeah, but it was a one shot. The tech will have burnt out carrying so many at once." Mark shrugged to ease sore muscles. "Worth it if we can save the civilians though. We tested it with one pair at a time, but we never actually used it. It was sort of a 'hail Mary' type of backup plan. We never had backup before, so..." He trailed off and shrugged again. "Might as well use it for what it was meant for."
"Such as walking into a trap, knowing it was a trap?" Colonel Kelly sheathed her sword and held out a hand. Mark took it to pull himself to his feet. "And they call me crazy."
"You are crazy, Colonel Kelly." Mark said as he straightened. "But so am I." He paused as three clicks came over his sub-vocal com. He replied the same way and then spoke aloud. "My team is up. Status?" He inquired softly.
"All humans are awake and free." Cable's voice came over his internal com. "They separated our companions and we have no idea where they are."
"Where are the Vipers?" Mark asked Riloa who stared at him in awe or shock, maybe both. "Riloa!" He snarled at her. "Snap out of it."
"You are as scary as I had heard. Small wonder Oshina wanted you in his clan." She gave herself a shake. "The Vipers have been sedated and secured for transport." Riloa said weakly. "The doctor wanted all of you alive." Mark made a face and she nodded. "It cannot be for anything good."
"Where is our gear?" Mark checked himself and he wore his armor, but most of this tools and tricks were gone. Not all, but most. He pulled a backup weapon out of an ammo pouch and checked the blade as the X-Com troops moved towards the door. "And where are the hostages?"
"Your gear is in a room three doors down on the left. Last I saw it was guarded by two soldiers." Riloa said softly, her eyes never leaving Mark. "The hostages have been gathered in a central location to be guarded. Your Viper companions have been moved to a room near there. They were carefully sedated."
"Yeah." Mark shook his head. "Angry Vipers in a group are bad news as the Elders' lackeys found out."
"We found that out the hard way too." Colonel Kelly said dryly.
"This is going to be a mess, Colonel." Mark warned. "Your people and theirs will look the same. You are going to have friendly fire." He shook his head. "What if… What if I got loose somehow?" He asked Riloa whose eyes bulged. "What would they do?"
"Before or after losing control of their bodily functions?" The Muton asked snidely enough that more than one of the X-Com troops snickered. Colonel Kelly looked decidedly amused as Mark shook his head. "You lot are terrifying. They are ordered to bring you and all of your nest to the doctor. Preferably undamaged, but if need be, she will settle for cadavers." She warned.
"She has got to catch us first. The trap doesn't count since that was to get us all inside." Mark started for the door, only to pause as Colonel Kelly shook her head. "Colonel, I can get most of them chasing me, maybe shooting at shadows. Leave you an opening. My team are going to be moving as quietly as they can, they will stay out of your way."
"My people are disciplined, I cannot say how well Vahlen's are trained." The X-Com soldier seemed to be wrestling with herself and then she nodded. "Hold a moment." Mark stared as she hit controls on her wrist. Then she nodded. "Done. You and your people will show on our HUDs as friendly."
Mark stared at her, dumbfounded. She has just basically given Mark a free pass if he wanted to shoot any of her people in the back!
"Colonel…." Mark said softly. "We can't do that. Our ocular implants are hardwired. We cannot change the settings in the field."
"I know." Colonel Kelly said quietly. "I am trusting your discipline." Mark stared at her and she shook her head. "You could take advantage of that. Ambush us. But what would you gain?"
"What would I gain? Pain! Oshina would kick my ass into next month." Mark said fervently. Riloa nodded. Then he updated his team. The stunned surprise of everyone came through loud and clear in their acknowledgments. He spoke aloud both for X-Com and his team. "Weapons tight, team. I say again, weapons tight. X-Com troops are not, repeat not valid targets. We will not be able to tell friendlies from enemies."
"If they point a weapon at a hostage, take them out." Colonel Kelly corrected him grimly. Mark looked at her and she shook her head. "None of mine will do that."
"They better not. Let me see..." Mark said as he sent the change via his tactical net. When he closed his eyes, he saw a wireframe of the building. Alina had managed to hack the security systems before going down. Then he saw something that made him freeze. "Damn! I have access to building security. Someone is coming down the hall this way!"
"Walls!" Colonel Kelly snapped and then troops flattened against the walls, her closest to the door, her sword back in hand.
"Riloa, protect Valere or answer to me and Oshina." Mark set himself as the icon on his HUD approached the door. He would only get one chance to make it count, he had to get it right the first time. Luckily, he had been trained for this by the best. He reversed his knife, holding it ready.
"You are not going to do what I think you are going to do, are you?" Kelly asked very quietly.
"Diversion in five… four… three..." Mark was moving towards the door as it opened. It wasn't Jackson. The soldier was female and she was carrying a tech kit of some kind. Her rifle was slung and it didn't matter. She was an enemy. He did what he did to enemies in enemy territory with no way to take prisoners. She was taken completely by surprise and had no chance even to cry out, let alone resist. He was on her in moments and the fight was over moments after that.
Valere gagged behind him as he pulled the dead woman into the room and pulled his knife from her throat. He threw her to the side and sheathed his knife before grabbing her rifle. Then he grabbed her ear com and it buzzed in his hands. As he had hoped, his specialized implants could fool it into thinking he was the authorized user. For a while anyway. He put it to his ear and smiled evilly as a chorus of stunned voices reacted to what he had just done.
"Medic down! How the hell is he loose?" Jackson's voice was loudest in the cacophony. "The alien is not responding, but it is alive. He must have knocked it out somehow. Squad two, reorient to cover that door. He will go for his gear or the prisoners! Squad one, report!"
There was no response. Those were probably the soldiers guarding Mark's people. They would likely never respond again to anything. If Mark knew his people, the soldiers were still appearing as alive on the enemy tactical net, but were never going to be dangerous again. Mark decided to throw some oil in the fire before Jackson could get his act together.
"Hello Jackson." Mark said into the com and there was sudden silence on it. He worked hard to keep his tone level, almost conversational. "You know, I was really hoping to meet you again. This time, I am not bound and helpless. I will be a much harder target. Let's see how well you idiots do against someone who can fight back. You didn't do so well against me even shaken by a flash-bang last time." He moved towards the door and no one barred his way. One of the X-Com troops actually crossed herself at the sheer evil he was putting into his words.
"You are dead, alien lover!" Jackson snarled, but it was tinged with fear. Good.
"Well, you are a moron, human." Mark put his best chilling laugh into play and more than one of the X-Com troops in the room shuddered. He heard Valere whimper behind him and then Riloa comforting her softly. He continued, his voice soft and silky like one of those old vampire bad guys from human TV. "We tried your game. It wasn't very good. Shall we play mine? I was always fond of hide and seek. I think we should make this interesting though. Muton rules. You hide. I find? You die." The last was a cruel whisper as he cut the com.
He checked the rifle automatically. A laser weapon with stunner underneath but not like any of the others he had seen before. One clip and he had no idea how to reload it. He threw the com down and stepped on it hard. It cracked and sparked under his heel.
"And you said you didn't use terror as a weapon." The X-Com psi from before said slowly.
"Never did before. Never had to." Mark shrugged and then he grinned widely. "You know? Feels good to scare these creeps." Valere whimpered again and Mark shook his head. "Riloa, stay here. Protect Valere." He commanded.
"Yes, sir!" Riloa snarled, apparently all but automatically since she said it in Muton. She repeated it in English.
"Once was enough." Mark said mildly and turned to the Colonel. "Did you get their frequency?"
"We did." The Colonel was smiling grimly. "And we traced when they switched. We have their coms locked in. Which is why you kept talking." Mark grinned at her. "Damn. Remind me never to fight you guys. You cheat."
"If you are not cheating, you are not trying hard enough. Speaking of..." Mark pulled a flash-bang grenade from the dead soldier's belt and moved to flank the door. Everyone moved away from it as he flicked it open and tossed the grenade through. He closed it and waited. A muffled screams sounded but he was through the door even as the 'crump' was heard.
As he passed the door, he heard Valere speak. "What is he?"
If anyone responded, he didn't hear. He was busy being what he was. A superbly trained, perfectly honed killing machine. The two soldiers who had been in the hallway were backpedaling, obviously blinded by the flash. If they had been disciplined troops with proper headgear, he would have been in trouble, since they would have been protected from the bang and could have heard the door open. Even blind fire could have hit or killed him as he threw himself forward. They were not and did not fire. His rapid but aimed shots took each center mass. The laser went right through their armor. Both were cooling masses of meat before they hit the floor.
He ran towards the room where Riloa said his gear was and yes, two soldiers were hustling out of it. They saw him running toward them and raised their weapons. Even at a full run, Mark's accuracy was barely inhibited at all. His shot from the under-barrel weapon hit the one on the left and that enemy went down in a heap. The one on the right got off a laser shot, but Mark had moved to the side at the right moment and it missed. Mark fired again, this time with the main weapon and the soldier screamed as the left side of her chest crisped. Probably a lethal wound, but not an instant kill. His weapon buzzed, empty. He threw it at the woman as she tried to correct her aim. The thrown weapon couldn't possibly hurt her in her armor, but the human psyche was hard wired to react to large objects in motion coming at the body. Only the best trained people wouldn't flinch when such happened. She wasn't that well trained. She flinched.
Mark didn't.
He rose from her body, leaving his knife in her and moved to finish off the other. That man spun on the floor, a old style pistol coming up and Mark dodged, just a hair too late. He heard the crack and felt a hammer blow to his gut, but fought through it to slam into his enemy. The man's scream cut off abruptly as Mark's hands found his head and gave a yank. He wasn't as strong as a Muton, but with leverage, one didn't need strength. He grabbed the man's rifle and moved towards the door as his HUD flashed, showing an organ in his belly lined with red. He ignored it.
"Team, status?" Mark asked sub-vocal as he entered the room carefully, weapon muzzle leading him in. Riloa hadn't lied. There were no other guards and their gear was here. He checked it carefully, but there no traps. He grabbed his harness and slid it on.
"The ducts are small and cramped." Cable said softly. "But we are managing. You scared the hell out of them, Lead. They are moving scared but are not shooting at shadows. Yet."
"We don't want that with so many civvies in the line of fire." Mark said as he dropped the purloined weapon and grabbed his own. "Gear is here." He marked the spot on the map that the team shared. "I am going to try and lead these fools a merry chase. Whittle them down."
"Negative, Lead." Karina's voice sounded. "I am above a false ceiling of a large room. I have eyes on the civvies. I see ten enemies in the room with the civilians. They seem to be forting up. They have a sniper and a… ah shit. That looks like a blaster launcher."
"Those are priority!" Mark snapped. "If you get a decent shot, take them down. Quiet or not, they have to go." Either one was incredibly dangerous. The sniper was dangerous to any single being but the blaster launcher fired guided projectiles that could do immense damage in a large area. One explosion in the wrong place might kill every civilian in the room depending on the warhead. Armor wouldn't protect much against either weapon. "My intel source said twenty-three and all else she told me has been accurate. That is eighteen minus my five." Mark said softly. "How many did you get?"
"Five? Damn, my honey trap only got us four." Karina sounded put out. "We need to up our game."
Nine enemies down in less than ten minutes? Not bad at all! Fourteen left. Against six X-Com and five human nest mates. Not even close to fair odds. For the enemy!
"Clear the channel." Marina commanded. "Mark. I can hear the strain in your voice. How bad are you hit?"
"Continue the mission." Mark ignored her query. There was utter silence on the com and then Marina spoke again.
"Mark..." She sounded strained. She knew what that meant. He had time. Not a lot.
"Continue. The. Mission." Mark said flatly. "X-Com is likely going to assault the area where they are holding the civvies. Has anyone found our nest mates?" Negatives came from everyone. "Okay. Jackson seems more bully than soldier. He is likely heading there to take them hostage against our behavior. Well, mine, since he likely doesn't know you lot are loose yet." A rumble sounded in the distance and Mark fought a sigh. Typical.
"Um, they didn't know we were loose. They do now." Rachel sounded subdued. She knew what was happening to Mark too.
"Rachel..." His groan had nothing to do with physical pain. "What have we told you about demo indoors?"
"Um, don't?" Rachel replied, hint of her old snark showing even in this situation.
"Tell me that didn't crack the building, Rachel." Mark demanded. "Again!"
The last time hadn't been funny at all except in retrospect. It had taken them almost nine hours to dig out of the mess she had created when the building she had supposed to make a hole in one wall of had fallen all around them. At least it hadn't fallen on them. No one had been happy with Rachel about that. Both Mother and Oshina had punished her for that and she had been in medical care for a week after.
"It didn't." Rachel quickly reassured him. "I used two mini-claymores. No structural damage. But I read two enemies down in that area." Down and probably shredded if he knew his nest mate and her love of things that went 'boom'. Twelve left.
"Stop!" A female voice came over hidden speakers and Mark paused. He didn't know the voice but from the heavy German accent? Probably Vahlen. "You humans, stop! We are not your enemies! We want to talk, not fight. Use the intercom and we can talk this through. We do not want to fight you." He saw a speaker and a switch for 'intercom'. He walked to it, despite pain growing in his gut that he ignored. Mark hit the button.
"Could have fooled me." Mark kept his voice level with effort as pain built further. "I mean, sure. Shoot at us? No biggie. Stun us? No problem. Take a bunch of civilians hostage to draw us out? Not a good idea, you dumb bitch. Such things tend to piss us off."
"Mark, I presume." The woman said slowly.
"And you would be the grand high muckety-muck who thinks that people like Jackson are good enough for this kind of work." Mark didn't bother to hide the scorn in his voice. "I assume you are Vahlen."
"I am." the other replied. "And before you get any ideas, I am not there. This is being rerouted through several cut-outs so we can talk."
"We have nothing to talk about." Mark corrected her. "Whatever deal you had with our Mother ended when your goons tried to take the last sample of bio-agent. Your men paid the price for that betrayal."
"You really expect me to believe that was the last sample?" Vahlen demanded scornfully.
"I have no power over what you believe." Mark said as he moved to the door. The security system showed a clear hall, but he would be careful exiting anyway. "However, some of us have more brains than to play with such things. What I believe is that you and yours have proven to be our enemies. We have one way of dealing with enemies."
"So do I." Vahlen replied evenly. "As of right now, my man is aiming his weapon at the head of your companion. Alley, I believe you call the thing. You will surrender or it will die."
Mark didn't hesitate at all.
"Then tell him to shoot."