The 99th Platoon – WWW's Dream: Uniting the Tediz

(A/N This is how far the first one got. So I'm outdoing myself technically. Then there's the re-reading to get the final draft…uggg. I wish things were simpler. Anyway.)

Chapter 14: Trapped like rats…

Neck high in water and starting to tread Sarge called out.
"Is everybody alright?" One by one they answered
"Yeah. Fine. Thanks for asking..." The brown buoy that was the "sponged up" WWW floated in between the Platoon. Many started to chuckle under the breath.
"Sorry about leaving back there...Don't know what got over me."

"I hate water!!!" Ricy whined. The water stuck to his feathers like glue. "Look sorry to spoil the moment but," he pointed towards the ceiling that was coming steadier closer and closer, "We are in deep bat guano!!!"
"I hope you guys can hold your breath..." started Sarge.
"What?!? I didn't mean that we shou-" Ricy practically chirped. Sarge took a deep breath then dove under water. The lights dimmed to a ghostly blue as the power failed.

"The water must have reached the generator...hey someone is gonna have to pull me down. I'm kinda buoyant..." stated WWW. Flatfeet tied himself to the Tediz with a piece of dead electrical cord.
"We're not actually doing this are we?!!?!?" Ricy yelled on deaf ears. Deja and Squeaky smiled identical grins. Ricy moaned. They dove. Chael dove under too, followed by CoolGuy and RedStorm. Soon only Ricy, Mon and Pyst remained.

"Well...this is it...See you at the other side guys..." said Mon smiling.
"Come on...guys! There has to be another way! Maybe if we stick together…" Ricy searched for an excuse but found none.
"If we stay any longer we're dead dog-meat...Look! I can touch the ceiling! I'm outta here!"

*puh-loosh*

"We only got one life to live any way..." mumbled Pyst. Ricy floated alone.
"Guys?"

*guys...-uys...-ys...-s...*

"Oh man..." With a pained look on his face he dived under too, following Pyst.

-Else where-
"WhErE hAvE tHeY gOnE?" hissed a deep menacing voice.
"We don't know sir," replied one of the two Technicians, "The water knocked out our beacon. We can just barely follow #987's signal."
"So ThEy WaNt To SwIm Eh? SeNd OuT GnAsHeR."
"Gnasher? The shar-" began the second Technician. The Voice growled.
"Sir yes sir!" The Technicians chimed in unity.

-Back with the Platoon-

Everyone was swimming in the flooded hall. Sarge looked up and pointed to an air pocket at the top. Everyone soon was gasping for air in the small ceiling space. Deja felt something continuously bump along her legs. She looked over at the closest squirrel, Mon.
"You trying to be fresh with me?"
"What no I- Wazzat?"
"Whot's whot?," inquired ILZ.
Mon did some further looking around.
"Hey Deja, did you just...Deja? Hey guys, any of you seen Deja?"

She was in fact not there.
Neither was her cousin.
"Wait now where in the blue moon is Sarge?" He turned around. Bubbles were the only things visible.
"G-guys? Guuuys?"
Something violently grabbed his ankle and Mon was swept underneath.

"Dive, dive, dive, dive, dive! Let's get outta here!," Oreos, the second in command, yelled. They were soon underwater again, looking for the three missing - or so they hoped - Squirrels. They saw a piece of Sarge's uniform. A small, green, piece of army fatigues. They swam towards a bend. As they turned the corner…

"BLEJA!!!" Air escaped from Pyst's mouth making him incomprehensible, but the meaning was clear. He swam to the unconscious Squirrel. He lifted her up to the tiny air pocket in the corner. Behind them Pyst saw Chael surfacing with Mon, who's leg was bleeding terribly. The rest of the team surfaced. Mon coughed up water and snapped his eyes open. He began to scream uncontrollably.

"GET OFF!! GET OFF!!! GET OFF!!!"
"Relax Mon...it's us..." cooed Chael. Mon swam to the corner and shivered uncontrollably. Pyst looked stricken at the still knocked out Deja.

"She...She's not waking up guys..."
"You did the best you could do," Dark swallowed emotion he couldn't show. He had to keep up his part.
"No! Help me out here! Somebody! Hold her head..." pleaded Pyst. Twisted swam next to Deja as RedStrom supported her body. Pyst moved close to her head. He drew a shaky breath.

"One..." Pyst tilted her head back and pinching her nose, he breathed air back into her soggy lungs. He pumped his hands on her chest.
"Two, three, four. One," he breathed air back into her mouth. "Two three four."
"You is dead mon...Serge is gonna cut your…well ya know whatta mean…" ILZ commentated. Suddenly Deja's chest heaved and gurgling noises were heard.
"Wha??? WHAT?!?!" She slapped Pyst silly, "DON'T!! YOU!!! EVER!!! DO!!! THAT!!! AGAIN!! YOU!! HEAR!!!"

Chael, WWW and Ricy sniggered to themselves.
"You got something to contribute gentlemen?" She drew back a fist, "I sure as hell wanna hear it!"
"Nothing ma'am," they barked.
"That's better. Now, where's Rico?"

For the first time in a long time Mon spoke.

"It...It was horrible. He was there swimming towards Deja as she floated away when this...this thing. It looked like it was made from living steel. It just came up in front of him and...and..." He vomited and the chunks floated around him, "Sorry about that..."

Oreos went and rubbed his back in a supportive way.

"Then it turned. Oh God...those eyes...those little beady black eyes...It's the devil you know. As he turned he chomped down on my leg. Pain...unimaginable, unspeakable pain. As I was dying for breath I reached to my neck and then like a miracle, I found my cross there," he held it up. A dark black liquid dripped off the edges, "And by pure luck, or not so much luck, I got it in the eye...But Sarge...I don't think he made it...I...I tried guys...honestly I did..."

-Cut to The Voice's room-
"HaS GnAsHeR cAuGhT aNyOnE yEt?"
"Yes," answered the Technician, "The big one. He's being held in the steel rib cage."
"GoOd. ThAt WaS aN iNgEnIoUs InVeNtIoN. A mEtAlLiC, sWiMmInG, pRiSoN. VeRy WeLl DeSiGnEd"
"Thank you sir."
"ReCaLl GnAsHeR. We'Ll UsE hIm As BaIt."
"It will be done my liege."

"Dammit. First we came here to stop Tediz, then it was to get WWW and turn him back to normal, now Sarge is missing!" complained Oreos.
"Don't forget this. Stupid water...Good thing I'm not wearing a white shirt," murmured Deja. Bubbles appeared in front of FlatFeet. A disgusting smell filled the air.

"FlatFeet! You just had to let one go!" Oreos gagged.
"Well sorry. I had beans this morning," FlatFeet answered.
"I don't think any Squirrel or Tediz could produce a smell like that, I think you should see a doctor," Mon said as he reeled.
"I'm talking to one right now."
"Ugh. Well, we'll start with the probing once we get back."
"Ouch...well, let's go find Sarge. How'd he disappear?" Oreos asked.
"I told you I saw something grab onto him then pull him under," said Mon.
"The same thing got me too. Something's watching us..." Deja looked at the eerie blue water.
"Come on, let's go. We're not getting anything done by floating around here, there's enough airspace here to dogpaddle it out," said Pyst.

Soon after they had moved on bubbles appeared in front of FlatFeet again.
"FlatFeet! Not again!"
"Hey! It wasn't me!"
"Then what--" started Oreos. Then in a large splash Special Agent 00-Oreos was gone.
Frantically he punched and kicked blindly in the murky water when he hit something soft.

"Shit! what the hell got Oreos?" Snickers wailed. Blood filled the water.
"Oh sick!"
"Damn! What the fuck happened to Oreos?!" A dead Tediz floated to the surface, lying with its face in the water.
"Riiiiiiiiiiiiiii-ght…" said Squeaky. Pyst flipped the Tediz over and took the goggles. He swam down.

At the bottom, Oreos was breathing into the Tediz oxygen tank. Pyst motioned to Oreos to swim up. Oreos pointed at his speared leg. Harpoon and all. Pyst carried him to the surface

"That Tediz bastard got me in the leg! Scuba Tediz. This mission gets weirder every time. I can't swim like this!"
"Quick, take the harpoon out of your leg!"

Gritting his teeth Oreos yanked the harpoon out.
"Well, at least it wasn't WWW...hey, where is that guy?" asked RedStorm. Triple W was gone.

"Ready?" asked Stealth, "...on 3. 1...2...3!"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

"Oreos, you scream like girl," mocked CoolGuy.
"Shut up...hey...look!"
"I don't believe it"
"We just do not get a break do we?"
"Not fair!"
*groan*