Hello good friends! So we finally get Locus and Felix! Credit for Locus' partner goes to SilverDragonGirl15, although their original idea was for Felix to have the raven, so I hope this is still okay! Credit for Felix's partner goes to RockingReezy. The idea behind the jackals is based on a song they pointed out to me from the Lion Guard, basically about how jackals are very deceptive creatures. Sorry for asking questions all the time, but this one isn't plot based at least. It's come to my attention that at least some readers don't like the slow updates. I just started college and I usually can only fit in writing time one or two days a week, depending on my marching band schedule. My personal preference is for long chapters, even if they take a while to come out, but I know that isn't for everyone. So, what would you guys prefer? Something shorter and quicker, more like this chapter, less than 3,000 words, or what it has been with chapters often past 5,000 words, but after several weeks? Let me know and I'll do what I can! Thank you so much!
Wash dove behind a boulder, watching the others even as he moved. Fira pressed herself against his side, snarling. Not far from him, Tucker was behind another boulder, with Caboose behind him. Freckles, surprisingly, had yet to react to the shooting, aside from his main cannons heating. The two birds were airborne, but remaining close to their partners. Finally, Simmons and Ava had taken cover inside the base. Everyone was accounted for…at least on Blue side. Wash could only hope that the Reds weren't facing a similar threat. At least the four hostiles didn't have animal partners. Wash always felt better with Fira close to him when things got dicey, even though he knew it frustrated her.
"Who the fuck are these guys?" Tucker demanded.
"Why are we shooting fireworks? Is it someone's birthday?" Wash's eyes widened as he spotted Caboose wandering aimlessly in the open.
"Freckles, cover Caboose!" He ordered quickly as the dimwit began singing happy birthday to himself. Luckily, the mantis took up position in front of Caboose before he was hit.
"Stop shooting!" Wash looked back to see Simmons standing at the opening of the base. "We're friendly!" Ava howled at his side, but was cut short by a hail of bullets landing near them. "That's the opposite of what I said!" Simmons and Ava were quick to hide once more.
"Fuck this." Tucker stood abruptly, firing a single shot. His bullet hit one of the soldiers in the head, taking him out. Lovebird screeched triumphantly.
"Wait! We don't know who they are!" Wash shouted desperately.
Tucker looked at him. "They're the guys who are going to kill us if we don't kill them first!"
*He's right.* Fira nudged him. *They aren't going to listen to any talk.*
Wash sighed. He didn't like this, but it seemed that he had no choice. "Freckles, take them out!"
"Engaging targets." The huge mantis fired its cannons, killing the hostiles in one salvo. "Primary threat eliminated."
Wash straightened, about to start spouting orders when he was cut off by the arrival of the Reds. "What in Sam Hell is going on here?"
"Who are those guys?" Grif asked, Adama a wiggling whirlwind on his armor.
"We don't know." Wash answered as he, Fira, Tucker, Lovebird, Simmons, and Ava ran up to meet the Reds.
"They just showed up and started shooting." Tucker added.
The new robot said something, still in Spanish. Sarge glanced over at him. "Shut up, Lopez. This isn't the time for jokes." The robot answered him, but he was ignored.
Lovebird flapped his wings anxiously. *Should we check to see if there are more of them?*
Wash hesitated and Fira took over. *Not yet. Let's take stock of what we know, and stick together.*
"Let's move inside." Wash decided. "We need to take cover in case there's more of them hiding-"
"Run!" Another soldier dressed in grey and orange darted in front of them, a blue shield in front of him, deflecting a bullet that would have hit Wash. Surrounding him was a pack of…something.
Simmons raised his weapon, Ava growling at his side. "Look out, its another one!"
Another shot rang through the air and the soldier fell to his knees with a cry. "Son of a bitch!"
Simmons lowered his gun. "No, wait. I'm confused."
The other growled. "What are you doing? I said run!" The canines at his side yipped at them, snapping their teeth.
"Excellent work, soldiers." Yet another new voice spoke up. Wash looked up, as did the rest of the group, to see a man dressed in grey with green highlights about twenty feet in front of them, holding a high-powered sniper rifle. "You killed my men. I supposed that makes you the real deal." As he spoke, a large raven flew in, landing on his shoulder. Its bright yellow eyes stared intently at them. At his side, Fira's snarls grew louder.
Simmons frowned. "Ok, now I'm really confused."
"Quiet." The raven glared even as the man refocused his attention on Wash. "All of you: come with me."
Wash frowned, glancing at Fira quickly. "And why would we do that?"
"Because if you don't come now, I'll have to take you later."
"Fuck off!" The one with orange barked angrily, the pack surrounding him increasing in volume.
"You." The word was dripping with distaste. "Shut your mouth and be glad I missed your head."
"Oh my god, you are such a douchebag!"
"Yeah, what he said!" Tucker chimed in. Wash's frown deepened. Something was seriously wrong.
"This is your last chance."
"Freckles," Wash ordered. The mantis responded, firing its cannons again. The soldier and bird disappeared and the cannon fire hit the ground where they once were.
Wash blinked. He hadn't seen that technology since Freelancer…
"Holy shit, did you see that?" Grif asked, still staring.
"No!" Caboose shouted, still facing the wrong direction. "Please describe it to me. Use only small words."
"Um," Their attention was drawn back to the soldier remaining, still on his knees, and his pack of canines. "Any of you know how to patch up a leg?"
Doc jogged off. "I'll go get some orange juice."
The mystery soldier looked after him. "Wait, that's a thing?"
They waited tensely, watching Doc fix the other's leg. The animals around him had quieted down, only making sounds on occasion. Fira was still poised for a fight at Wash's side and he found that he couldn't relax either. None of the Reds or the Blues looked particularly comfortable either, but they were all quiet. Except, of course, for Caboose and Scales, who would ask about every five seconds if everyone was still there. But there were more pressing problems than Caboose's malfunctioning helmet.
"There. All done." Doc finally rose up and backed away.
"I can't feel my toes." The new soldier said questioningly.
Donut shrugged. "That's normal."
"Is it?"
Wash ignored the conversation. Instead, he and Fira moved forward, Wash's gin only an inch or two from the other's helmet, and Fira emitting quiet snarls as she stared down the canids.
"Hey," The man protested in surprise, backing up a few steps.
"You need to start talking." Wash demanded.
He didn't seem phased. "Hm, aggressive, paranoid, and a little melodramatic, not to mention the jaguar…you must be Agent Washington and Fira."
Wash blinked. He could feel Fira's surprise as well. This was…certainly unexpected.
Tucker laughed. "Melodramatic!" Lovebird pecked his helmet in rebuke, but Tucker only waved him off.
The man continued. "And that makes the rest of you the Reds and the Blues."
Caboose gasped. "How did he know that?"
"We're wearing red and blue armor." Grif said tiredly.
"But how could he tell?"
"Will somebody please fix his helmet?"
"How do you know who we are?" Wash let his voice drop lower.
The man laughed. "Seriously? Come on, man, everybody knows about you guys. You're heroes!"
"Heroes?" Sarge asked.
"Aquaman is the best!" Scales chimed in brightly. Of course.
"You're the team that brought down Project Freelancer. You're some of the galaxies greatest soldiers!"
They were quiet, except for an odd huffing noise from Diego.
*He's laughing.* Fira explained privately. *Can't blame him.*
"Well…" Simmons began. "I can see how you might think that…"
"Because it's absolutely true!" Sarge cut in proudly.
Doc frowned. "It's partially true."
"But mostly false." Leave it to Grif.
Wash glanced back at them for a moment, trusting Fira to keep an eye on the others. "Stop giving him information." He looked forward. "What's your name, and what are these?"
"Felix, and these are jackals."
"Ok, Felix. What are you and your…pack doing here?"
"Do you want the long answer, or the short answer?"
Wash moved closer, Fira snarling louder as she advanced on the jackals. "Do you want another bullet in your leg?"
None of them flinched. "Hey, that bullet's there because of you."
"He's got a point." Tucker said.
Wash sighed and lowered his gun, mentally calling Fira back and giving them space. "Just…explain what's going on."
"Uh, yeah, like who were those guys that were trying to kill us?" Grif asked.
"And why haven't we been rescued yet?" Simmons added.
*Where did all the animals go?* Ava stepped forward.
"Wait." Felix frowned. "Where do you think you are?"
"What do you mean?" Tucker shot back.
"I mean, do you understand where you've crashed?" He sounded almost…apologetic.
"Well, we've been taken bets. I have wagers currently on the Bermuda Triangle. After that, we've got Gilligan's Island, and Purgatory." Sarge answered.
*I'm not part of this.* Diego licked his paws.
"So stupid." Grif agreed.
"No, just think about it. It makes perfect sense!" Donut argued.
"The reason no one's come to help you is the same reason no one's come to help them." Felix gestured to the dead soldiers.
"Them?" Simmons asked.
"The people on this planet." Felix clarified.
Wash frowned. They weren't getting any answers. "What planet?"
"Chorus."
Tucker shrugged. "Never heard of it."
Felix's words were bitter. "Well, I wouldn't have expected you to. It's on the very edge of colonized space and after the war between the humans and the aliens, it was more or less forgotten by Earth and the UNSC."
"We've crashed in the middle of nowhere on a planet in the middle of nowhere. Fucking beautiful, everybody." Grif cast a look over the others.
*It is possible to be farther out.* Adama corrected.
Grif rolled his eyes with an exaggerated head motion, but didn't say anything.
"But how did we end up so far from home?" Simmons asked forlornly. "It should have been a short flight."
"Um, one mystery at a time there, Simmons." Sarge said awkwardly.
Felix continued. "Now, being a small planet, completely free of UNSC jurisdiction, the nice people of Chorus decided to run things on their own. Problem is, they didn't do a particularly good job."
"Ugh, history is the worst. Just get to the point." Grif cut in rudely.
The jackals began huffing air, as though about to make noise, but Felix quieted them. "The point is," he glared at Grif, "you crash landed in the middle of a civil war. I'm on the side that's trying to keep you alive."
"And which side is that?" Wash asked while Fira bared her teeth at the jackals.
"The New Republic. Essentially, a bunch of people got fed up with the way things were going on Chorus, so they put together a rebel army and decided to fight for their freedom. It's all very patriotic." He sounded almost patronizing.
"So who are those guys," Tucker looked at the dead soldiers. "The evil empire or something?"
Felix shrugged. "Yeah, you could say that."
"Oh. Well, fuck."
"But why the attack, why try to kidnap us?" Wash asked directly.
"Like I said, you're the greatest soldiers in the galaxy. And that makes you a pretty hot commodity. I'd be lying if I said my shitty attempt at a rescue mission didn't come with a few strings attached." Felix answered.
"What kind of strings we talkin' here?" Sarge asked.
"String to chase?" Scales asked.
*Ignore him.* Ava cut in.
Felix sighed and looked away. "The Rebels need your help. They heard that you were on Chorus so they sent me out with a small team to find you and bring you back. They're hoping you might be the key to winning this war."
Wash could feel the Reds' and Blues' eyes on him. He knew they didn't want to do it. Hell, he didn't either.
"Hm, no." Grif said.
Felix looked taken aback. "No?"
He looked ready to argue, so Wash cut him off. "How about we take this inside. I don't like standing out in the open like this, if what you say is true."
Felix looked at him for a long moment, then nodded. "Dolo, take the others and do a perimeter check. Be careful."
One of the jackals nodded and howled, bounding away. The pack followed him.
Fira looked back at Lovebird and Scales. *Do an aerial search and report back to me.*
The two birds took off as well, flying the opposite direction of the jackals.
Wash nodded. "This way." He led the group into Blue Base, ordering Freckles to stand guard outside.
"So, Dolo?" Tucker asked as they walked.
Felix shrugged. "He came with the name."
Simmons chimed in. "Are they all your partners?"
Felix laughed. "No, no. Just Dolo, but he leads the others."
*It's like he has six or seven partners.* Wash said privately to Fira.
*Yeah but they're small.* Fira tossed her head and came to a stop once they were sufficiently far in the base- but not too far to be caught off guard if something happened. Although neither of them said it, Wash knew that both were assessing what would happen if they had to fight Felix and his pack.
They gathered, the Reds and Blues in a semi-circle facing Felix. They were quiet for a brief pause before Simmons broke it. "Yeah, no."
"Yeah, that's not going to work for me." Caboose agreed.
Wash sighed, "Look, Felix, I hate to break it to you, but we're in no condition to be fighting a war." They had to at least give him a viable reason. And it was true. They had been on rationed diets since arriving and no one was well rested or content, especially considering all the stress Freckles caused. They had been on the verge of in-fighting, for god's sake!
"We just want a trip off of this shitty planet." Tucker explained in his own way. "No offense."
Felix just shrugged. "It's not my shitty planet."
"Aren't you one of the Rebels?" Doc asked, confused.
"No, I'm a freelancer." Felix answered. Immediately, they all flipped the safeties off and aimed at Felix. The animals growled and snarled, preparing themselves for a fight.
"No, no! I-I mean I'm a mercenary. You know, a gun-for-hire?" Felix protested quickly.
"Oh, thank God." Grif articulated what they were all feeling as they relaxed.
Wash wasn't satisfied. "They paid you to come find us?"
Felix chuckled. "They pay me to do lots of stuff, but yeah, you're my current paycheck."
Wash raised an eyebrow. "So you want us to go fight someone else's war so you can make some extra cash?"
There was an awkward pause. "Uh, it's for a good cause?"
"Right." Wash looked at his teammates. "We'll just take that ride out of here, if that's all right." Not that they would give him a choice.
Tucker laughed. "Yeah, that's what I'm talking about. Mediocrity!"
Grif cheered. "Woohoo, here's to not going that extra mile!"
Felix blew out a hard breath of air. "You know, I wasn't alone when I came out here to find you. There were three of us. Just think about that." He turned and walked away.
"Whatever. It's not like we asked them to save us." Grif's voice shook slightly.
"Yeah," Simmons agreed sardonically. "We definitely didn't build a giant radio tower and send out a distress signal or anything."
"Shut up."
Felix stepped away from them, but they could still easily hear his conversation. "Headquarters, this is Felix. I've made contact with the Reds and Blues… Not good. We ran into some Feds. I need an evac team…Yeah, I know, okay, but you send as many men as you can, as fast as you can. Locus has our position."
"Who's Locus?" Wash could hear Tucker's frown, but he didn't answer.
"Now I want to do this quiet, and I want to do it right. But just to be safe, bring a shitload of guns…Roger. Felix out." The transmission ended, presumably, and Felix turned back to face them.
"So what now?" Grif asked him.
"Now we work on making this canyon the most defendable hole the universe has ever seen." Felix answered.
"Why?" Wash pursed his lips.
"Because we are about to get hit. Hard. I need a detailed list of the supplies you've got on hand, all the possible choke points, and places for a potential ambush." He walked to the edge of the base, looking out with an air of confidence. Clearly, he was experienced.
"Woah, woah, woah, slow down." Wash took a few steps forward. "We're not telling you anything, we still don't even know if we can believe you."
Felix turned back around, staring him dead in the eyes. "Well, believe this. If don't prepare for a fight, we might as well be waiting for a massacre."
Wash closed his eyes in thought for a moment. "Tucker, see if you can fix Caboose's helmet."
"Yes!" Caboose cheered. "Who said that?"
Wash didn't respond. "Sarge, you and the Reds build up an arsenal. If we can use it as a weapon, let's get it prepped."
"Well, I can think of a few things." Sarge hummed.
*I expect reports every ten minutes.* Fira added to the animals, who nodded in response.
Wash frowned at Felix. "Felix, you and I aren't done talking."
"Well all right then," Felix sounded almost amused. "Let's see if you guys are as good as they say."
Diego huffed out a breath.
"Prepare to be sorely disappointed." Grif agreed.
