Disclaimer: Numerous Cameos © Sega/Archie Comics
Mia the Cat and others © Blank the Snivy
Chapter Thirty Six
Sideshow: Lost and the Damned
*Oh god what will be on the other side of that door?*
Mia's fingers danced across the computer's keyboard like an ensemble of crazy tap dancers as she tried to break through the security system and open the blast door leading to the holding cells. A small bead of sweat dripped down her ivory furred forehead as she scanned the data presented to her and pushed through. A part of her was a bit nervous since she knew that behind that door were highly dangerous criminals while the other half was focused on the obstacles ahead. None of it mattered though since she knew there'd be no more room for error now.
The feline quickly wiped the few drops of sweat off her brow before she stopped typing. She only had to hit the 'Enter' key to open the doors a bit so she could sneak in and the mere thought of entering a potential war zone scared her a bit. Even though she was an assassin she had never been presented with a literal warzone environment because most of the time she just had to sneak around and kill in the dead of night. Never in her life had her body been wracked with the tremors of war or mass conflict and the mere thought actually scared her a bit.
She screwed her eyes shut and clenched her fists as she tried to steel her nerves for the upcoming challenge. Deep inside she knew it was all for Fang and in her eyes that was the only reason she needed to do something so incredibly stupid.
*Let's go!*
With a single, forceful movement, Mia hit the Enter key with her prosthetic index finger before turning around and heading towards the doors. A hydraulic hiss then filled the air along with the loud metal clunking of locks being disengaged as the thick reinforced door began to unlock. Loud metal pistons could then be heard humming to life as the doors parted horizontally in front of her, the crack getting bigger and bigger before stopping. The crack was nearly a fourth the size of the gate in itself but that was all Mia needed to slip through.
Once through the crack the sound of yelling and gunfire could be heard in the distance. Mia found herself in front of a large advanced metal detector like from the airport inside of a spacious room littered with telltale signs of a large struggle. There were papers scattered across the floor, pools of blood and bullet holes all through the walls along with an abundance of dead bodies both guards in riot gear or prisoners in jumpsuits. Also on the ground were silver metal collars that had been thrown down from the necks' of the inmates.
*Neuro Cortex Power Suppressors, keeps the prisoners' powers at bay if they have any.*
Mia slowly walked through the carnage without a problem and she quickly concluded that the rest of the guards had managed to push the prisoners back to some sort of chokepoint ahead. The feline brought her pistol out as she heard the sound of more conflict up ahead before slowly progressing through the battle torn hallway. The sound of gunfire continued to get louder and Mia's heart rate got faster before lowering her body to the ground so she wouldn't get spotted.
As she reached the source of the commotion, she found that it was behind a pair of big metal double doors with a few less complicated locks that were already disengaged and slightly open. The feline took a peek through the door and the sight of what was on the other side made her jaw drop.
Soldiers in full riot gear carrying assault rifles were taking cover behind a large metal barrier that seemed to have come out of the ground around the double doors. The barrier only seemed to come up to waist level to allow some decent cover while a large crate of munitions was stationed behind them for ease of access. In front of the guards were a few prisoners taking shelter behind piles of dead bodies or riot shields they had taken. Surprisingly enough there wasn't as many prisoners running amok and Mia quickly found that not all of the cells had been opened so only a few maniacs managed to escape.
The remaining prisoners still stuck in their cells howled and jeered the guards on as they threw whatever they could through the bars that held them back. Mia gulped as the soldiers lay down a heavy wall of suppressive fire on the remaining prisoners before finally coming up with a plan. She brought her prosthetic up and started to type on it a bit as she tried to make her way through the prison system's firewalls. A few seconds later a loud claxon alarm filled the air before a few more of the prison cells slid open unleashing a new wave of madness.
Once out of their cells the prisoners ripped their collars off before charging the wall of surprised soldiers. All of the guards increased their rate of fire as the new wave of prisoners came forth and Mia finally had her chance to move. As the new wave of inmates assailed the guards Mia stealthily made her way passed the conflict. The feline quickly ducked into open cells, behind overturned tables and large pieces of fallen rubble for cover but before she could get too far the sound of screaming could be heard behind her at the gate. Mia looked over her shoulder briefly to find out what was happening and saw that another Spartan had made its way down to the cells in order to aid the guards in their fight.
Instead of carrying an assault rifle the Spartan instead carried a pistol and a riot stick as he ran beat the crowd of prisoners while gracefully firing. The opposing forces were now locked in conflict as the prisoners continued to press on and the guards pushed back. With the aid of the Spartan though Mia surmised that maybe the tide might turn in the guards' favor and even on that notion she didn't know whether to be happy or not.
*I really hope that the guy I'm looking for isn't some crazy bastard.*
Mia didn't dare look back as she progressed deeper into the prison and as she got further and further away from the gates the sounds thankfully got quieter. Once she had gotten farther away from the battle the feline threw stealth to the wind as she tried to find the right prison cell, but in doing so she did receive some wolf whistles and jeers for her to let her out.
"Hey what's a cute thing like you doing here?"
"Oi bitch! Get me out of here!"
"Helloooooo~ beautiful."
*Bunch of idiots*
As she progressed deeper and deeper into the prison aisles she finally reached the E section before making her way through the numbers. She read each cell number tentatively, hoping that her cargo would be well-mannered to some degree instead of some raving psychopath. A few minutes afterwards she finally made it to her desired cell E-66 before she approached the cell doors and gulped.
"Ummmm hello?" croaked Mia nervously as she waited on the other side of the bars wanting to make sure she had the right one.
The sound of old bed springs straining and a disgruntled groaning then came from the cell. "A woman?" asked a rugged voice with an accent Mia couldn't pin. "I thought guards had enough women already." laughed the voice from behind the bars and Mia could easily tell that English wasn't his first language. The feline could only see pitch black in the cell and wondered when the inmate would present himself.
"Uhhhh Bark sent me, we're here to rescue you." she stated, hoping to get a positive response.
"Bark?" asked the voice in a surprised tone and Mia finally figured out that the man had a distinct Russian accent. "Finally! I've been waiting too long!" said the voice before the sound of straining springs filled her ears once again as the figure got out of bed and approached the bars. Mia then saw that the person was a large brown bear with a short tuft of brown headfur and dark green eyes. The bear was as big as Bark surprisingly and wore a standard inmates' jumpsuit along with the collar. "Woman, get me out of cell now, I am sober and angry." he growled, a bit agitated at the 'sober' part.
"Guess I found the right one." muttered Mia to herself as she brought her prosthetic arm and typed on it. A few seconds later the bars slid open and the brown bear lumbered out of it as the collar unlocked as well.
"So, Bark sends woman to do job, what happened? He lose balls caring for his Mother?" asked the brown bear with a chuckle in his deep Russian accent before taking the collar off.
"No, he's busy upstairs fighting a pair of heavily armored guards." explained Mia flatly, not really warming up to the bear's lack in grammar. "My name's Mia Plotsot and you are?" she then asked curiously.
"Ivan Greezoretzki, I am Bark's cousin, from Russia!" answered the bear heartily with a laugh before cracking his knuckles. "No time for talk, find vodka, then get out of here." he then stated seriously as he looked down at the feline.
"The vodka can come la-"
"No! Vodka always comes first!" growled the brown bear before looking ahead. "Now let's go find now or else I will be very unhappy." he said before quickly walking forward like nothing was wrong with the situation at all, Mia following after him.
*What's up with this guy and vodka?*
Mia followed Ivan along obediently as they approached the gates but before they got close enough to be spotted the brown bear stopped.
"Wait, we need more people, open rest of cells." ordered the brown bear seriously as he looked around at the yelling inmates.
The order made Mia's jaw drop in shock. "Are you serious? These people will rip us to shreds!" she exclaimed, trying to avoid as much conflict as possible.
"No, they will not hurt us," stated Ivan with a confident nod. "They know what happens when I am touched." he then growled a bit before clenching his fist. "Do it now! I need vodka fast!" he yelled, agitated about his sobriety.
His yell made Mia jump a bit before she sighed and got to it. She hoped that Ivan was right because seconds later a claxon sounded again before all of the jail cells slid open. Hell was then unleashed as every single inmate ran out of their cells like an angry mob before heading straight towards the gates. Mia looked around, amazed that no one came at her or Ivan before she looked up to see that the bear was moving along with them.
*How powerful is this guy?*
"You stay behind me, wouldn't want little girl to be hurt." he stated blandly in his poor English as he made his way forward.
Hearing this annoyed Mia before she raced over and caught up to him before keeping pace at his side. There was an angry look on her face as she glared at the brown bear and even though he didn't say it directly, Mia didn't like to be considered weak or useless, even if she was in comparison to a big brown brute.
"Hey! I can fight you know! I'm an ex-G.U.N. assassin!" she yelled at him over the commotion of the inmates.
"Assassin, soldier, tank, robot, insane dog, doesn't matter," shrugged Ivan carelessly as the sound of battle became louder and louder by the second. "A beautiful woman like you should stay safe and ermmm pretty!" he laughed as he walked on.
*Is he trying to hit on me?*
"I told you I will not-!"
"Move!" yelled Ivan before shoving Mia out of the way. Prisoner's in front of the bear flew up out of the way as something shoved them aside and as it got closer Ivan brought his arm up just in time to catch a thick metal baton before it could smash into his head. Mia landed on her ass before looking up to see that Ivan had caught the Spartan's baton during mid-swing and the bear was now looking right at the guard's face.
"Inmate #637 Ivan Greezoretzki the Bear, high priority inmate and must be neutralized." said the soldier in an almost robotic tone through his mask. "Orders received, use of deadly force granted." He then said.
"Ooooh, robo-soldier, should be fun!" said Ivan with a gleeful smile before the Spartan began to raise his gun to the bear's face. Ivan brought his other hand down and stopped the Spartan before bringing his right foot up and kicking the soldier forward. "Like Americans' say! Bring it on!" said Ivan in a malicious tone before getting serious and charging the soldier in a full on tackle that plowed him through the rest of the inmates with ease.
Mia watched in awe as Bark's cousin simply assailed the armored soldier as if he was a common street thug before she jumped to her feet and decided to join the fight. The feline ran after Ivan to find that he had disarmed the Spartan of his pistol and that the two were now going at it with pure strength alone. The Spartan quickly launched a single punch at Ivan's stomach but the brown bear managed to sidestep the attack before rushing in to grab the soldier.
Ivan's burly arms then wrapped around the Spartan's body before the brown bear lifted him off his feet and attempted to squeeze the life out of him. A strained groan escaped the soldier's lips as he fought against the pressure around him before a strong electrical current surged through his armor that made Ivan let go of him.
"Ow! That stings!" yelled the bear as he backed off in surprise.
As the bear backed up the Spartan landed on his feet before leaping towards Ivan and delivering a powerful punch right into the inmate's face. A dull thud sounded as the punch landed and Ivan was sent flying backwards through the raging crowd of inmates. Seconds later the Spartan landed on his feet gracefully before ducking below a punch that came from behind and quickly countering with a low sweep that caught the other inmate.
The Spartan then got up to see that the inmates had gathered around him to take him out since the armored soldier was the highest priority if they wanted to escape with their lives. Two prisoners armed with lead pipes rushed the soldier from both sides before swinging at him. The Spartan caught both of the incoming pipes with his hands before pulling the two criminals towards him and tripping them like some sort of immature school bully. Once they hit the ground both of the attackers looked up at the armored soldier fearfully before he twirled both pipes around in his hand and quickly threw both pipes down at the prisoners.
For the second time today Mia witnessed the two prisoners get impaled by the pipes before their bodies were pinned to the ground. Two pained screams then filled the air as the injured inmates gaped at the pipes protruding from their chests. Their crimson blood leaked down the pipe and into large pool on the ground as the Spartan walked forward past them and glared at the remaining inmates.
All of the prisoners stepped back from the Spartan, some scared of his power, while some were intimidated. Mia looked at all of the frightened inmates before finally deciding it was time to become more involved in the mission. The feline gulped down her fear and anxiety before quickly taking aim at the Spartan's head from her spot within the crowd of inmates. Mia drew the hammer of her gun back with a click and sadly that was all the Spartan needed to hear to know there was another threat. As soon as she cocked her gun the Spartan burst through the crowd of inmates and stood in front of the feline. The sudden approach shocked Mia but she did keep the barrel of her gun aimed at the soldier's head even though she was too scared to actually pull the trigger since she knew of the Spartan's immense power.
"Hmmmmmmmmm," grumbled the Spartan as he looked at Mia and calculated things through his technological helmet visor. "Mia Plotsot the Cat, presumed K.I.A. by Fang the Sniper, designation Engineer/Assassin for the Covert Assassin Regiment Delta." stated the soldier blandly in his slightly synthetic tone as he read out the data presented to him. "What do you think you're doing, soldier?" he asked her, assuming he had power over her.
*Perfect!*
Mia smirked at the Spartan. "Helping." she stated simply before pulling the trigger of her pistol.
A loud bang filled the air as the bullet was sent sailing through the air and towards the Spartan. Seconds before it even got close enough the Spartan tilted his head to the side to avoid the bullet and then quickly brought it back into position.
*Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!*
"Raaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!"
Ivan quickly burst through the crowd of inmates, sending some of them flying into the air, before he tackled into the Spartan's side and drove him forward like a pro football player. The sight of the brute taking the soldier head on seemed to spark a fire inside of the rest of the prisoners as they cheered him on and charged to go help him. Mia watched the inmates charge before her shoulders sagged and she sighed disappointedly. She wanted to help and yet her own combat experience was lacking since she normally had a better prosthetic to depend on. The feline placed her gloved flesh and bone hand against her metal prosthetic as the inmates passed her by before she squeezed the cold hard metal that was her right arm.
*I have to stop depending on this thing…..*
She looked on to find that Ivan was off fighting the Spartan one on one with the skill of pro martial artists. Despite his size Ivan managed to duck and weave under the Spartan's attacks whilst also getting in some punches. The Spartan still seemed to have the upper hand though as he gracefully dodged Ivan's fists and landed some of his own strikes on the bear. What was amazed Mia however was the fact that the armored soldier did all that while dodging the other inmates taking shots at him.
The Spartan ducked under Ivan's punch then jumped over a low sweep from an inmate to his immediate right before he easily rolled to the right to avoid an incoming overhead pipe that yet another prisoner had brought in. Mia grit her teeth as she watched the battle unfold before trying yet again to get into the fight. Even though she was an engineer she did have some advanced combat training over that of an average soldier so now she decided it was time to use it.
The brown bear brought both hands down onto the Spartan in a strong hammer-like swing before the soldier easily jumped back to avoid it. Ivan growled as the Spartan brought his foot up vertically in preparation for a devastating axe kick but before the soldier could unleash it Mia leaped over Ivan's bent over body with her blade sticking out of her prosthetic. Mia's intrusion surprised the soldier and before he could react the feline came down upon him and stuck her blade through his armor and int his gut.
A pained grunt escaped the Spartan's mask before quickly activating his Electro Defense System, sending a current of electricity throughout his armor and into Mia's metal prosthetic. The feline yelped in pain as she felt the electricity race through her prosthetic and into her body making her quickly back off. Sparks flew out from her metal arm as the wires frayed while some of her coat was burnt away. The Spartan then growled as he clutched his wound before he reached into one of his pouches and grabbed something.
Ivan saw the motion and quickly raced towards Mia. "Down!" he yelled before grabbing her and pulling her to the ground as the Spartan activated and threw an odd looking grenade at the two.
As the grenade went off the oxygen in the nearby area was quickly consumed by a raging plume of fire and shrapnel, killing some of the unprotected prisoners around Ivan. Thankfully the brown bear was considerate enough to shield Mia from the blast but still she felt some of her fur get singed. That was the least of her worries though since she could feel Ivan's intense weight on top of her body and she hoped he was alright.
"Fucking burns!" yelled Ivan in a pained, almost frightened tone before he quickly got to his feet and rolled onto his back to put the flames out.
Somehow the bear had managed get through the explosion with just a burnt back and little to no injuries. Mia quickly got to her feet and helped the bear up to see him let out a relieved sigh as the flames went out. The Spartan then charged the two as they recuperated before he brought his fist back and shot it towards the defenseless feline's face. The ivory cat turned towards the incoming attack before quickly bringing her prosthetic in front of her in order to block the attack.
A loud thud then filled the air as the punch landed on her mechanical arm, denting it, and sending her flying backwards through the air before crashing into the wall with such force that she lost her breath. Three inmates including Ivan then swooped in to take on the soldier before one of them threw a punch forward only for it to get caught. With perfect ease the Spartan caught the fist and broke the prisoner's elbow with a snap before the next one dove in with a kick. The Spartan then dodged the kick by stepping backwards but before he could launch a counterattack the other inmate came forth from behind with a prison shiv and stabbed the soldier between the steel plates of his armor.
The Spartan emitted another pained groan before he turned around to face the prisoner only to receive Ivan's fist to the face. With a dull thud the Spartan flew backwards a few feet and as the rest of the inmates saw the downed soldier, they knew there was an opening. Like a pack of rats assaulting dropped food the prisoners swarmed the downed Spartan and proceeded to beat him with makeshift weapons. Mia watched the slaughter as she gripped her malfunctioning prosthetic, knowing that the Spartan wouldn't be able to get up from a swarm of angry prisoners.
*They were built to stand their ground against any attack, I guess falling flat on their asses wasn't part of the plan.*
Even though the battle was won Mia still felt disappointed in herself. Yet against she was on the sidelines giving help on the little things rather than taking part in the fight and the mere thought infuriated her. This was the part of her life that she would change and yet it felt like there was no progress. The only thing left to hope for was that accomplishing the mission alongside Bark would earn some trust amongst the group, but until then everything was left in the abysmal unknown.
*I thought I could come in here, guns blazing, kicking ass and finally becoming a fighter like some sort of weird cliché action story chick. Guess not everything so fairytale.*
Once the mob of inmates was finished killing the Spartan they swarmed off to the gates to give their fellow inmates some much needed help. Mia turned towards the Spartan to find a beaten bloody pulp of torn armor and she cringed at the sight before Ivan seemed to walk up to the body and search it for some reason.
"What the hell are you doing?" asked Mia in a disgusted tone before Ivan brought out a small flask.
"Knew I smelled something!" said the Russian bear before unscrewing the cap and taking a long swig. "Now let's go, there's probable more where this came from upstairs!" he said before walking towards the gate.
Mia sighed once more before typing a bit on her arm again, hoping to get a connection. A few seconds later he managed to turn the messaging system on.
"Hey I've got him, heading to the rendezvous point now." said Mia as she followed after Ivan towards the gates, the sound of gunfire and conflict getting louder and louder. She knew that by the time they got there though that the prisoners would have already taken over. The feline looked forward to see Ivan taking another swig from the flask. "One helluva package you've got here though I must say." she said, managing a small giggle despite how serious the moment was.
"Yeah, yeah I know," grunted the bear in a displeased tone, making Mia wonder how he was able to even reply after a fight with two Spartans. "Just keep him in line and I'll meet you there, is everything alright back there though? I can always come down there and help you out if you want." suggested Bark as if shrugging on the other end of the line.
"We're fine, just meet us there, but sorry to say this but ummmmmm,"trailed off Mia before she approached the gates just in time to see the inmates race pass the pile of dead guard bodies and through the door. "every lunatic down here should be making their way up there by now. But they're really more focused on escaping rather than fighting, so you should be okay."she said with a gulp as she followed Ivan passed the elevator. She looked up at Ivan as Bark said something through the communicator before waving him over. "Hey! Ivan! Not through there! We need to use the emergency elevator! I can get it open!" she yelled to him over the ruckus before he stopped and nodded to her.
Mia then led the way through the aisles of cells to the Emergency Elevator before she managed to hack in and use it. Ivan insisted they stop by the cafeteria and guards' rooms to check for some alcohol and Mia sadly agreed since she knew there'd be no way to convince him to come otherwise. After at least half an hour of quick check finally found a bottle of Vodka was happy through the rest of the trip. Once outside Mia led the way to the rendezvous point where a helicopter waited for them and they both got in. The feline waited near the entrance of the chopper as she went over the day's events.
*Well, I helped Bark get in, helped Ivan get out, caused numerous highly dangerous criminals to break free at the cost of the lives of soldiers, wonderful.* She sighed as she sat at the loading dock, staring out at the snowy white field that the helicopter had landed on. *I guess becoming some amped up battle Valkyrie takes some time, but I really hope that's soon.* Her eyes and ears drooped sadly before tugging the torn remnants of her jacket tighter around her, the thought of Nack coming into her mind. *He works in a deadly business, so I need to be strong, for his sake and for mine.*
Her mind then drifted onto an old sort of assassin terminology that was taught to her by another C.A.R.D. member. *Every assassin has a reason for doing what he/she does, before I did it for my family, to keep them safe, but now….* Her mind went back to Nack's smiling face again which in turn made herself smile as well. *I guess I do it for him.*
An hour and a half later Bark's silhouette could be seen coming out from the tree line and Mia smiled. As he approached the two said their hellos, traded some friendly jeers and were on their way. Once they were buckled Mia sat across from the ivory bear and sighed.
"Hey Bark?" she asked the bloodstained bear as she looked at the floor of the chopper. "You think I'm weak?" she then asked him, looking up to see his reaction.
Bark stared back at her, a serious expression plastered all over his bloodstained face. He then managed a small, kind smile as he leaned back in his seat and crossed his arms. "No, you've got courage, walking into a maximum security military prison takes some balls and the fact you survived is pretty amazing in itself." He admitted as he closed his eyes and relaxed in his seat. His words made Mia's eyes brighten up a bit. "Look Mia, I don't know what happened down there to make you question yourself, but you're strong and now, you have my respect." said the polar bear seriously.
"But what about the o-"
"And don't worry about the others, when we get back, I'll put in a good word for you." sighed Bark as he continued to relax in his seat.
Mia smiled at this and laughed a bit under her breath. "Thanks Bark." She then managed to say.
Bark half opened one eye and snickered before saying. "No problem, good to have friends isn't it?"
Woohoo yet another chapter! Yes a bit of a wait but whatever, I still have school to tend to, you should just be happy I'm continuing this hahah! So we finally come to an end of Mia's little journey and she's gotten Bark's respect will the others be the same! Cross your fingers! Next chapter we head straight back to the main story! Who's Fang's next target! And what kind of weird shit is he in for now?
P.S. The results for my poll are pretty interesting. A lot of them were widespread and I was quite shocked someone voted for Jolt the Roadrunner. In the end though Metal Sonic and Scourge the Hedgehog tied for the top, hmmmm interesting *Wink*. Now I've got a new poll open! This time for a preferred Crossover so please vote! The more votes the better please so get to it everyone!