Chapter 12: "I Need You"
[Elsewhere.]
[Grizzly] ...We're kinda stuck. There's this one bastard giving us a pretty hard time!
"Damn it...!" Grizzly exited the channel, and focused on her immediate surroundings.
The scourge of gunfire took a toll on their battleground's appearance: every pillar in the roomー every wall and every decorationー wrought with bullet holes. Furniture to scrap, banners to rags. Stechkin took cover next to the pillar adjacent to her.
What's more, they were fighting in near darkness. Against a human. Despite their technological advantages, they'd already been kept at bay for what felt like eons.
Grizzly slid in a new magazine, and released the slide stop.
[Grizzly] ...You know, just in case we somehow lose, I don't really think you're a cartoon character.
[Stechkin] Real flattered, but now's not the time!
A pitter-patter of footsteps echoed far across the room.
"Gotcha!" Grizzly jerked as she squeezed the trigger. Thanks to her vision, she was able to tell that she… Hit nothing.
[Stechkin] Would you quit shouting? He's been gauging our position like that!
Grizzly nodded, and rolled to a new spot. As soon as she did, a bullet grazed her neck. For just a moment, the enemy stepped out of cover.
A grenade bounced and skidded toward the brunette doll. With little time to react, Grizzly slid behind a pillar.
BOOM!
"Arrgghー!" Grizzly growled, grasping her ankle. A stray piece of shrapnel embedded deep into her foreleg. She decided to leave it.
The soldier then advanced toward her, but he was mistaken.
"Die!" Stechkin fired her Dragunov from a corner, shooting him right in the shoulder. Before she could encroach upon his position, she jerked her entire body to the right, evading a bullet. The maneuver came at a cost, however: she slipped onto the ground, now in the open. Yet, she still proved faster in drawing her pistol.
Fresh blood backspattered from the impact of the 9×19mm bullet. His body dropped to the ground, akin to a sack of bricks. He trembled on the hard floor, groaning in agony.
"Dー Don't move..!" Grizzly staggered toward the soldier, then pointed her muzzle at him. Despite her assertion, he dragged himself toward a pillar, and leaned against it. "Hey! I said…"
The soldier slowly removed their mask, from which a mane of long blonde hair spilled out. An exhale escaped their trembling lips, as they clutched their reddened abdomen. Maroon blood seeped across the floorー coalescing at the sole of Grizzly's boot.
"You're a..?" Her words ebbed away, as she lowered her handgun.
…It was not simply the identity of the soldier that captured Grizzly's attention, nor her azure irides. Rather, her expression. Her mouth had curled into a sincere smile, with her relaxed eyes signaling a tranquil state. She seemed to have reached an inner peace.
Grizzly glanced back at Stechkin, who marched up to the scene.
Stechkin wagged her handgun toward the guard, as if to signal a 'well?'
After a brief exhale, Grizzly nodded. Before she pulled the trigger, she took note of the soldier's eyes, now shut.
Bang. Bang.
The large caliber rounds left two red, trickling holes in the soldier's head, one going right into her eye. Blood dotted and clashed with the white pillar behind her.
[Stechkin] Seems like that's all of 'em on this floor. You aren't too shabby, honestly.
[Grizzly] ...Yeah… Thanks.
Stechkin eyed Grizzly and her uncertain posture. "...It was either you or her. She had it coming, just like the rest of 'em. Remember that, okay?" She smirked.
Grizzly nodded.
"Let's try to regroup. Keep your eyes peeled for more hostiles. C'mon." Stechkin patted grizzly on the back, and jogged out of the room.
"Right..!"
…
Two, four, six, eight.
Ten, twelve, fourteen, sixteen.
Eighteen, twenty… Twenty-one.
21 hostiles, one doll. This was the number MP7 recorded in her head, right before execution. It was less a question of if she could do it, but more for how long?
[Welrod] I... I trust you. Please, live on. Otherwise, we'll all…
But, it wasn't like there was no way to find out…
7's lips formed the faintest smile.
[MP7] No worries. Time to see what my training's gotten me.
[MP7] ...Ready? One. Two. Three...!
Tap!
MP7 leapt up, and somersaulted off the nearest balcony. Flashlights flickered and danced across the room and ceiling as soldiers struggled to readjust their aim. As she twirled in mid-air, her gunfire was joined by the sound of each enemy mistakenly firing upon themselves.
Four dead.
7 stuck the landing on the opposite railing, and immediately dove away from a hail of bullets. Panicked screams and cries wailed out as each of her shots struck another soldier.
The frenzied movements of their flashlights and lasers practically confused her, but not quite. She couldn't stop moving. She flipped onto the balcony floor, and flung a corpse toward the stunned soldiers.
Her speed and omnipresence proved illusory in magnitudeー as though reality bent to her will. Only the vision of another machine could hope to track her movements.
In just moments, the entire room was became laden with bullet holes and gunpowder. "Take this!" She took advantage of their confusion, and flipped her SMG to full auto. Before any of them could react, she had already opened fire on them all. Every corner of her neural cloud, and every corner of her body was dedicated to evading every bullet that escaped their rifles. Focus… Pay attention!
Twelve down.
This side of the upper room cleared, she fell behind a wide pillar. She hadn't realized it, but her coat became riddled with grazes and tears, as well as being soaked with blood… In the midst of the disorienting noise, her breathing became raggedー her mechanical body fatigued. She took note of the angles of their flashlights, and where they might be.
All nine on the other side.
At least this way, she didn't feel like she was about to explode. Though, it'd hardly been a few moments… No matter.
She glanced at the bloodied remains beside her, then opened fire on the other side of the room. Thirteen. Fourteen. Fifteen. Nothing but a job.
Rumble.
Those who remained alive screamed in fear and retreat, scattering throughout the building. MP7 ripped off her coat and tossed it aside, revealing the khaki tactical vest beneath. Failing to catch up to any of them, she tripped on the carpeted floor. She slammed the ground with a fist through her severe coughs.
[MP7] Damn it… Stechkin! Grizzly! There'll be more enemies on the fourth and fifth floors. Find them..!
[Stechkin] You don't sound too hot, candy girl. I've got you, though.
MP7 stumbled off of the floor, and slung on her SMG.
"Seven!" Welrod called out from the floor below, with Thunder in her wake. "Are you alright!?"
MP7 dropped down from the balconies above, barely landing straight. Welrod gasped at her blood-stained teammate, and her shallow breathing.
MP7 sat on the red carpet and waved a hand. She raised a finger, as if she was going to say something. She then held her forehead, moaning in pain.
"Iー I'm fine..!" Her slurred words dribbled out of her mouth. "I did more to myself than them…"
"What do you mean?"
"My… This body can only handle so much physical stress." She wheezed.
Welrod knelt down, and felt her burning thigh. "You're hot…"
"Mー My hardware was pushed past its limits… Someone's neural cloud normally wouldn't be able to do that, but... This was all I could think of."
"You can do that? But… How?"
Thunder sidled over to the two. Seeing as MP7 was now too preoccupied to respond, she spoke out. "It's… Because of the modifications our engineer made." Welrod turned her head, and cocked an eyebrow. Thunder continued, "...In essence. She could've gone until her body, neural cloud, or both destroyed themselves."
Her explanation left the trio in a silence. "...Why do that?" Welrod murmured, feeling MP7's forehead.
Thunder shrugged.
"Hah, look where it got us… Still in one piece." MP7 whispered. Her grin went flat, and she gripped Welrod's sleeve. She gazed deep into the Griffin doll's eyes, a disregard for her comfortability.
"Listen… We can't sit here forever. I need you and Thunder to continue the mission, alright? Get to the ninth floor. I'll catch up, if there's time. For now, I could use a breather." She coughed.
"Me..?" Welrod's pupils dilated. "With… Out..?"
Rumble.
Welrod clenched her skirt.
No… She didn't want for MP7 not to be there. She… Needed her to be there. Without her leader, her own legs failed to move… That was the reality of things. Even after all this time.
She gazed at MP7's respiring chest, and listened to her pained groans. "Ms. Seven… Can't you keep going? We… We need everyone we can get..!" Welrod stammered. Thunder squinted at the quivering doll, but kept quiet.
MP7 ran her fingers through her own hair, exhaling in exhaustion. She wasn't wrong. In the most important phase of their mission, she couldn't afford to bow out… Fatigue be damned.
Welrod flinched at MP7's exasperated groan. Nonetheless, the pink doll staggered to her feet. The tightness in her throat no longer mattered… She had her way. And she felt safe.
[MP7] ...Let's roll.
Balaclava paced around the mayor's office, more hurriedly than before. The office stood as one of the few rooms with a light source. Judging by the commotion resonating from within the building, something was getting closer. "Damn it… The hell's Arthur at when you need him..?" He grumbled under his breath.
Incumbent Visoven's slumber was interrupted by Balaclava patting his face. "Wake up, asshole. You ain't outta the woods, yet." Balaclava muttered. The elderly man jerked awake. Momentarily, he seemed to forget just where he was.
Besides Balaclava, most UACT members in the room were completely dry of ammunition. One such member rocked to and fro in a corner, whispering to themself the impending annihilation of everyone inside.
"Would you quiet down, damn it?" Balaclava chided at the soldier. "You're puttin' us on edge!"
The soldier shook his head with great vehemence. "We're going to die... We're dead..! Don't you understand!? We've cornered ourselves! There's no way out!" The soldier hollered with a break in his voice. The couple of other soldiers in the room observed as his cries were interrupted with a jab from Balaclava. He collapsed to the ground with a heavy thud.
"Get it together! This isn't what we need right now. Wanna live? Then pick up that fuckin' rifle, and stay by it. When you joined... You offered up your life for what's right, didn't you?" His voice softened.
His subordinate nodded. He raised his mask, and wiped the blood from his mouth.
"Then... Don't go pussy on me now. We've got a country to save." He picked up his AKM off the desk, and observed the cityscape from the window. Embers of flames flitted through the sky, radiating from the streets below. A tumultuous scene, indeed.
More so to himself, he whispered, "And save it, we will."
[Ninth floor.]
Thunder kicked open a wood framed door, with MP7 taking the front. They traversed into a long, narrow hallway. Here was one of the few illuminated places in the entire building, despite the permeating moonlight being scarce in itself. Save for MP7's blood-red shoeprints, the area seemed relatively undisturbed.
Royal blue carpet lined the floor with iridescent golden trim where appropriate. Bright flags of the NSU and Ukraine lined each wall at equal spacing. Despite its tended appearance, still present was the stench of death. MP7 checked and cleared each office room. Nobody in sight.
[Thunder] Seven, your breathing is loud.
MP7 paid no response, but quieted down.
Just five steps later, she collapsed to the floor.
"Seven..!" Thunder knelt down, and shook her teammate. MP7 no longer moved, nor responded to her words and touches. However, she continued to respire. At the very least, she was functional.
[Thunder] ...She can't go on like this. You shouldn't have done that.
She shot a distant gaze at the blonde doll behind her.
Welrod's face became wracked with remorse, but she failed to speak. Really, she was in no position to do so. More than anything, she just wanted to see her friends again.
Thunder scooped MP7 up, and tucked her away in an office. After a bit of deliberation, she switched on a small fan nearby. This way, she might cool down faster. She removed her tactical vest, and then unbuttoned her shirt. This was enough.
Thunder waved a hand, gesturing for Welrod to follow.
Thunder's aura was inherently different from MP7's: no instructions. No words. No reassurance, no safety. Just as Welrod did, she dragged her feet toward her objectiveー whether she wanted to or not.
Thunder pulled out her gun, and opened the breech. She unzipped her jacket, and loaded a bullet.
It seemed that they'd reached the end.
[TAC-50] Thunder… Please be careful. You know what's coming, right?
...More than anyone.
[TAC-50] Thunder? ...It's the door on the far end. They'll be ready.
They always are.
[TAC-50] ...I'll need you to forward external audio to me. Good luck, the two of you.
[Thunder] I understand.
None wanted.
[In an unknown location.]
...
SVD's eyes calibrated to extremely blurred vision.
Or, to her confusion… Her eye.
The very first thing she 'saw' was SV-98's pained grimace, and the tears streaming down her face. "Huh…?" She groaned. She noticed the sound of her own voice: hoarse, and guttural.
98 could hardly speak through her broken voice. She'd already burst into involuntary cries, embracing SVD as hard as she could. A large gash streaked across the side of her forehead, but she paid it no mind.
SVD then noticed that she was unable to blink. Furthermore, she couldn't even feel her own lips. "Don't… Cry." She peered over 98's shoulder. MDR and 19-01 were fast at work, barricading a wide double door. The dim room itself appeared rather cozy, as though it could've been someone's living quarters. Her eye wandered down to the wooden floor, but eventually to her own legs.
...Or rather, the lack thereof.
She raised her naked left arm. Itー as well as the rest of herー was charred a sick black, dozens of pieces of shrapnel lodged within. Her fingers were either missing, or fused to one another. The grotesque image of her arm was nearly enough to send her into a panic, but she lacked the energy to do so. She didn't want to look at herself.
Besides, 98's passionate grip was nigh impossible to break.
Her teammate buried her wails into SVD's stained chest. Sobs of pain and relief alike. And… It didn't feel so bad. Cathartic, in a way. Using what remained of her arms, she reciprocated the embrace. Despite their predicament, and for just this moment, it felt like things would be alright. And, as she fell back out of consciousness, that was what she wanted. For her team.
TO BE CONTINUED
Author's Note
I wasn't going to leave an author's note, but due to some small brain moments from myself, there might be a few errors, or formatting inconsistencies :(
I do think I've rectified most (if not all), but if you DO see anything like what I mentioned above, feel free to let me know.