Chapter 36: Exit Strategy
They heard and felt the action outside. The gunshots came fast and hard. None hit the building, a testament to the skill of the pilot and copilot/gunner of the Apache helicopter that was currently laying down fire to clear the path for the trapped group of demon hunters inside. Xander idly wondered what the 30mm cannon was doing do the bastards outside. Probably wouldn't be that long till he saw.
The gunfire tapered off, but the vibrations of the chopper's struggle against gravity could still be felt and heard. Xander looked at Robin and the rest of his crew. He nodded, and signaled Robin to the door to be ready to move. Xander picked Jesse up and passed him to Leah. Carrying the only firearm, he was their best shot at taking out anything still alive. And Leah, the only superpowered one in the group was the best shot at keeping Jesse under control.
Xander made sure Leah had the prisoner secure while he made his way to the door. He held his gun at the ready and waited for the call.
"Clear." A voice came over the radio link. "Make your move."
"Confirmed." Xander acknowledged. He looked at Robin. "Open the door. Slow."
Xander moved to the side, gun up as Robin opened the door carefully. Xander saw dead bodies in light of the moon and the few streetlights. They still looked human. Just dead civilians lying out on the street. Mothers. Fathers. Brothers. Sisters. Collateral damage. A massacre. He knew better though.
"Let's go." Xander said. He noticed as the chopper broke off and gained altitude to provide a better of view of the action on the ground. He looked at his people. "They're not going to be held back because of that for long. And Buzzard's not going to be able to provide cover if we have to mix it up."
He took the point, jogging up the street at a brisk pace. He made sure to sweep the area, not wanting to get surprised. He hoped that anybody innocent would know enough to stay inside and out of the way after the attack helicopter had just shot up a chunk of the town's populace. He figured that anybody not innocent would be coming to get them, hopefully with enough care to give them enough time to get to their vehicle and get out of town. He'd have to send in people later to clear it though. That'd have to wait.
Leah, pushing Jesse in front, followed. She had a knife in her hand; slayers tended to try to stay armed. Fighter through and through. Andrew came next, whitefaced. He was scared, but he was still following. That was enough for now. Robin took up the rearguard. He had armed himself with a dagger from the car when they had went into the diner, but that wouldn't account to much if they faced even a relatively small number of attackers. Even normal ones in sufficient number would take them. Bodies thrown out at them would tire them out, even a slayer couldn't stand against wave after wave. And all they needed was to get lucky once. The few blocks or so was going to be one long walk.
The small two story buildings that lined the street didn't help matters. Not highrises, but they still held windows for easy lines of fire. The storefronts and the apartments above. This portion was getting into the seedy part of town, relatively speaking. Not exactly something Xander wanted to deal with, unfortunately Sniper Alley was the only clear way through. There was nobody on the street, but that didn't really mean anything. He only hoped that his own support would be able to help deal with matters if they became complicated. Or that their attackers weren't intelligent to be packing any ranged weapons. Course, things worked differently in the real world. Sunnydale, in many ways, had been a picnic to the things that were out here now. Out here, the demons that served as the street level soldiers were sometimes trained as them. Different weaponry, different techniques, but a lot better than the average wageslave turned vampire. Or local thug hired for cheap.
Xander hadn't made it halfway before he saw a few curtains move. It could have been nothing. Curious people wondering what the hell had happened in town. He wasn't so sure. He motioned his followers to take cover. He knelt beside a van parked along the street. He just hoped that nobody up there was armed with automatic rifles. Or grenades. This wasn't Africa after all. That would definitely not make for a nice night.
Xander held his com link closer to his mouth. He spoke softly. "Blazer, I have movement on the second floor windows along the path. Am I clear?"
"Undetermined." Came the quiet reply. Xander wasn't sure exactly where Blazer was, but he knew that he would be close. He heard a rustle of cloth. "Wait. I see a gun and a demon. Hostiles. More are closing in from behind. You're going to have to make a run for it. Hellions will cover the rear, we'll take the ones in front. Ten seconds till we're ready."
"Confirmed. Give me the word." Xander said quickly and equally quietly. Things weren't turning out to well for them now. The look of the rest of the way didn't help. There was a bend in the road ahead and he couldn't see their destination. It was mostly straight, just enough to throw his line of sight. It wasn't in the maps before. It must have been a recent change, some kinks the wacky psychic town was putting in their way. He just hoped that the rather newly improved soldiers were up to the task. The slayers behind could take care of themselves. But, with only two other guns up front, they were still facing a lot of problems.
Xander rose to a crouch and made his way behind cover to wear the others had holed up. "We're going to have to make a run for it. There's going to gunfire coming up on us, and there'll be attackers behind. We need to stay behind cover and make our way to the car about two and half blocks up. It might be more from the look of things. White van."
Robin nodded. He didn't want to die, and arguing at this point would just about guarantee it. He did wonder exactly how much Xander was hiding. A mercenary bringing in an attack helicopter to take out a target spoke of more than just rich men with vengeance in their hearts. He wondered exactly what connections Xander had with the military. Riley Finn may conceivably do a sideline in weapons, but this was something else. "Alright. We'll do this your way. For now."
"Get ready." Xander said. He waited for the signal to start the end run. He didn't have to wait long.
"Go." Blazer stated. Still in a quiet voice. The scout must be placed near the enemy. Though he was one of those guys that did talk softly. And tended to carry a large stick.
"Roger." Xander replied. He looked at the people around him. "Let's go."
He started running up the street as fast as he could while still behind cover. He didn't spare a glance behind. He trusted that Robin and the rest wouldn't be stupid enough to not listen to him now. And he trusted that his own people would take care of their backsides.
He heard the pings of bullet ricochets as they hit the cars that were in front of them. Small arms from the sounds of it. A few rifles too. Civilian arms. Good thing too. Xander didn't think too highly of their chances if they came across anything of a higher caliber. He heard gunshots in response. Semi-automatic. That probably meant that it was from an M25 sniper rifle.
It was his own sniper firing as fast as he could. Accurately too. From the time between hits and the sound, Xander figured Nailer must have been at least 800 yards out. Those super soldier mods had down wonders for Bill Naslund's accuracy. And his time between shots too. The man was the hammer of God now. He heard the death gurgle of a man hit in the throat and saw the dead body fall out the window, hitting the ground with a thud. It was dark, but he could see the heavily armored form. Reptilian scale or something similar glinted the ambient light. The body was rather large, but still humanoid. Good choice if one wanted to use human weaponry. The lack of disguise meant that they were playing for keeps. The demons were probably stronger in their natural form. Xander didn't recognize the species, but made a note to have one of the experts run a Triple D search to see if they could identify it. Certain types of villains tended to use the certain types of minions. Vampires using lesser vampires. The First had its bringers. Whoever She was, may have a preference that could help them identify who She was.
That thought only took a second as he turned his attention on the street ahead of him. He could see the white van that was their destination. It was a lot farther than the two blocks or less he should have had left. He also saw the gathered group of demons that had taken cover behind parked cars between them and their way out. Xander slowed and stopped. He motioned for the others to get to him and stay down.
"Driver. There is a large group between us and the exit. Do you have a shot?" Xander called in to Naslund's spotter.
"Negative. No line of sight from our current location. Do you want us to move positions?" Driver called back. He had noticed the change soon after his partner had started firing. The maps and their previous recon hadn't revealed the blind spot, it had just suddenly appeared. He'd been on the group channel. He had heard the explanation, even if he hadn't fully understood it.
Xander looked behind him. He could see fallen bodies of the demons that had tried to come up behind him. He saw the quick movements of a fireteam operating to take out a large contingent of demons behind him. It was the Hellions. Vi and Colleen acted as riflemen. Or rather riflewomen. Monet carried a SAW, while Abby was the team leader. They had moved in quick and quietly behind them, their gunfire masked by the gunfire of their enemies and of the sniper. He saw Vi, identified by her short red hair, as she spun to the side and snapped off a few quick shots at the demons that tried to flank them. The rear was covered at the very least. Xander turned back around. He noticed that none of the group he was with had seen any of it. They were more focused on the army in the front of them.
"No. There's no time." Xander said. He could see that demons, of the same snaky nature as the one that had been shot in the throat were getting antsy. They were getting ready to take a chance and rush them. Given what they had seen of the counter sniper that Xander had employed, it didn't give many of them good odds of surviving the night. Still, it wasn't completely suicide since their fifty or so in number would be too many for even the upgraded human. At least it would have been if the sniper had a line of fire. Of course, he didn't. They didn't know that part. Yet.
"Blazer. How close are you?" Xander said, after a moment's thought. Trying to come up with the best way to utilize his additional assets. They were starting to justify the risks. Three of the early subjects had died. Five were permanently crippled. Another two had cancer, though they were getting treatment for it. Experimental gene therapy and experimental magic was just that. And experimental meant mistakes and sacrifice. The volunteers had sacrificed for their country. It was the least he could do to try to make up for that now.
"Close enough." Isaiah replied quietly. He was currently on top of one of the buildings nearly on top of the gathered force that was bent on stopping Xander from leaving. His speed and stealth abilities had allowed him to get there undetected. He had a submachine gun with him, but given the rather limited supplies he was carrying, he wouldn't be all that useful if he just started shooting. "What do you need?"
"A distraction. I need you to take out as many as you can, and then lead as many away as possible." Xander said. He looked at the force he was facing again. They were even more agitated. He fired off a few shots from his handgun to make them keep their heads down. The lack of sniper fire would surely become noticeable to them soon.
"Roger that." Isaiah crept closer to the edge of the two story building he was on. He peeked over the side. He saw that the force was split, taking cover on the sidewalks lining the two lane street. He pulled out two handguns from holsters on his hips. Normally, one was taught never to fire in tandem. Wanked out crap from movies that too many thought was an accurate depiction of warfare. Tactics that never worked in real life. Of course, that common wisdom didn't take into account how his body had been altered. It had taken some effort to work out exactly what those new abilities were, but one of the things he had discovered was that an improvement to his spatial awareness allowed him dual wield firearms as if he was one of Chow-Yun Fat's numerous characters. Though Cleric John Preston was apparently a better comparison, according to Xander at least. He didn't get it himself.
Isaiah set the guns on the ground next to him. He plucked two grenades from his vest. He pulled the pins and tossed them into the two groups of enemies. Before they landed he had his guns in his hands. Set to make his move. "Get ready for it."
They struck the ground and exploded as Isaiah, designated Blazer for the current operation, leapt off of the building and into the nearest group of demons. The density shifts in his musculature and skeletal structure meant that he didn't break or sprain anything. The grenades had exploded in the midst of both groups, throwing them into chaos. They never noticed the human that had just dropped in on them.
They did when he started firing. Isaiah's arms were nearly a blur as he aimed and fire. Or rather, he just pointed at his targets and pulled the targets. It happened in seconds. Arms crossing back and forth, moving and flashing. Dodging and spinning to avoid desperate counterattacks and to stay mixed within the group to prevent anyone from taking a shot at him.
Death at every spot of light from his guns. Thirty corpses lay on the ground. Small holes blown into their foreheads. Isaiah had counted his shots and started running as soon as the last shot had been fired. He ran back, dropping the guns in his hand and pulling the submachine from a quick release harness from his back. He ran down the street extremely quickly past Xander's group firing behind him taking out what he could, making the others follow him as well. Most of the remaining demons ran after him. He cut right at the first block, leading his enemies down it.
He ran faster as he reached the next block and turned right again. He took off at his top speed to lose them. At nearly thirty five miles an hour, he could really move when he needed to. It wasn't as fast as a slayer, and he couldn't keep it up as long as they could, but it was certainly surprising for the group chasing after him. He was leading them out and into another ambush. Plans within plans. Contingencies within contingencies for nearly any eventuality.
After Xander had made sure that all of the demons that would follow Blazer had down so, he made his way forward shooting at the still surprised demons. There were only a couple left and he was able to take them all down quickly. He made sure the way was clear, and then motioned the group forward. "C'mon. It's time to get out of here."
A large black scaled demon broke through a window in the building next to their car. It landed in a crouch right in front of the group. It stood nearly seven feet tall. It wore steel armor in plates upon its thick chest. Reaching, back the demon armed itself with two large swords. The streetlights glinted of the razor sharp edges.
Xander aimed and fired as fast as he could. Three shots. Two of them hit it in the head. It didn't drop. Instead, the demon just seemed to get angry. Xander eye widened. "Aw crap."
It let off a large roar and ran quickly at Xander. It hit him hard driving the hunter to the ground. A kick sent him skidding to the curb clutching his ribs. It leaped over to him, leaning down. The demon grinned widely.
"You shouldn't have taken the crystal." The demon growled, smiling. "And you shouldn't have killed my citizens."
Xander coughed trying to back up, hitting the curb. He thought about going for the knife strapped to his leg, but he knew he couldn't get to it without dying. He recognized that disturbing smile. He spoke, trying to buy time. "Mayor Klein. Tell me, you really know Bill Clinton? Or was that as fake as this town."
The demon grin widened. Its teeth were wickedly sharp. The smile did nothing to make it seem friendlier. "Old Yalies. We go way back."
Xander smirked, trying to think of a way out. He heard movement off to his left. He hoped it was the others, or rather Leah, attempting a rescue. "I guess the Liberals really are trying to destroy America then."
"More than you know." The mayor said. Its right arm pulled back, ready for an attack that would end the annoying little one-eyed man in front of him. It wouldn't bring back the crystal, but it would be a start.
Leah shoved her prisoner to Robin and ran towards the demon before it could strike. The demonic mayor heard it, turned and whipped out its swords before the slayer could attack. She ducked under its slashes. She returned the favor with a cut from her knife, but it did nothing more than glance off thick scale and steel. The demon took a step back then drove itself forward at the slayer. It hit her hard and she dropped her knife. She fell to the ground and rolled back trying to gain space. She was still a bit stunned.
The demon roared again and moved forward. Its previous prey was now forgotten for the rather impetuous women that had tried to cut it with such a puny weapon. It approached the slayer that had tried to sneak attack and was about to drive its swords down upon the fallen slayer when its head snapped back hard. It fell to its knees then and then onto its back.
The gunshot echoed down the alley. The only ones left alive in that section turned to see who had fired the shot. About three or four long blocks away they saw a redhead lower an assault rifle. It was Vi. They all watched as the four slayers, three of which shouldn't have been there according to the Council, moved back into position, still covering their area. Guarding the rear.
Xander coughed again as he regained his feet. He triggered his com link. "Frost, we're clear. Get to the extraction point. We'll get out on our own."
"On our way." Abby said into her own radio. The team moved off.
He looked at his own group, making sure that Jesse was still there. It would be a lot of wasted effort if their prisoner had gotten away. Even if they had gotten the crystal out safely. Sometimes information could be more useful.
He looked at the body of the fallen mayor. It looked different than the others. Bigger and more heavily built than the others. A leader of some sort most likely. A bulge appeared in its stomach, pressing against its plate armor. A long tentacle broke through with great strength, breaking through steel with a loud ripping noise and widened and flattened into a rough disc. It covered the body with a layer of pulsating red organic matter. And then it started to glow.
Xander made his way forward, picking up his dropped weapon. Leah picked up her knife as well. He reloaded his weapon and fired a few shots into the glow. The bullets had no effect, as if swallowed by the glow. The circle of organic matter seemed to expand slightly.
"Snake Eye. This is Zebra." A female voice came over the radio. Cindy. "I'm picking up a high energy source that just formed. A portal."
Xander looked at the malevolently glowing circle. It appeared to grow about half an inch in diameter. "Yeah. I think I see it. I'm thinking this isn't a good thing."
"No. With the energy it's putting off, it's linked to somewhere far away. Can you close it?" Zebra responded. A portal forming after the battle couldn't be a good thing. It could have been some type of deadman's switch to send in reinforcements if the first wave had been stopped.
"Leah. Throw your knife at it. As hard as you can." Xander looked at the slayer. She returned the look. After a moment she threw the knife as hard as she could straight into center of the pit. It just flared and disappeared. Nothing else happened. He wasn't exactly sure what he was expecting, but had hoped that the thrown knife might have somehow gotten through. He had noticed that it had some engravings on it, likely slightly enchanted. Evidently not that useful. Xander activated his com again. "Nothing seems to work."
"I'm picking up another energy field." Zebra said, a grimace clearly audible in her voice. "And another. I think they're trying to bring something through to come after us."
"Damn it." Xander swore under his breath. This was not turning out well at all. "I think we're going to have to burn it out. Get it prepped."
"X…Snake Eye. Are you sure?" Came the response.
Xander clenched his jaw. It was no time to be getting sentimental. "Get everyone out and back. Echo One, call Wild Fire. I need setup for a Baker Delta Zulu out to a quarter mile outside the city limits. Keep a close watch and make sure the border isn't crossed. Others might try to get out of here."
"Confirm Baker Delta Zulu, Snake Eye." Echo One said, wanting to be sure.
"Confirmed. Get it done." Xander stated unemotionally.
"Roger that." Echo One said, unemotionally.
Xander moved towards the car, still checking the area. It was clear and they were unmolested the rest of the way towards the vehicle.
"What was that?" Leah asked as they got to the vehicle they were looking for. Robin got into the driver's seat, while Andrew got into the passenger seat. Leah pushed Jesse into the back, Xander followed them reloading his weapon. "Why was Vi here? And that guy? He moved as fast as we could."
Xander pushed Jesse onto his stomach as soon as they all got in. "Later. We got to get out of here now. Robin, let's go. Just keep following the road up. It dead ends into the desert. Just keep going. It'll lead out. I hope. Extraction point's about a mile down."
Robin started the car and pulled out quickly. He stomped on the gas, trying to put as much distance as he could between them and the town.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Author's Note: Some quick notes. It'll be more in depth on the profile. Or you can use the forum for anything general.
Bolo: There is some similarity to Jasmine. However, I think there are some key differences. For one thing, she had to basically mind control people into thinking she's offering them paradise. For the Big Bad set up here, she doesn't have to do that. Her followers genuinely believe that they're doing the right thing. And not all of them are demons. It's not explicitly said even, that it wasn't necessarily true either.
Euphemism: I get what you're saying, and yeah Xander is pretty Xander-stu. Though to be honest, I think that skill sets were developed extremely poorly in the show. I mean, if you look at The Zeppo and then the Initiative, watch how Xander fights. As the series progressed his fighting abilities should progress, not regress. That is two isolated incidents, but it points to drama/comedy sometimes overriding reality in the series. The Zeppo is "his" episode, so he's portrayed as a decent fighter and able to think on his feet using his environment to aid in his battles. In the Initiative, the fight is played for humor, so he comes off fairly pitiful. And if you look at Dirty Girls, Xander suddenly is a fairly accomplished archer and able to hit a forearm, it may even have been moving at the time, from a fair bit away. Does he even use a bow prior to that? To try that as opposed to a body shot or a headshot makes me think he's pretty secure in his archery. But, I don't recall that being established prior.
Thanks for the reviews.