Chapter 1 – Practical Applications
"Aye take a look!"
"Was ist das?"
"Thaht's a woman Doc, ain't seen a woman before?"
"Schweinehund…"
There was a haze of voices, familiar, yet unknown. Frau's thoughts were slightly muddied as she fought to make sense of just what was going on. It must be daylight, she could feel sunlight on her face and…dust…and how did she get outside?
Her eyes popped open, startled and wary, but not scared. She was in a sitting position, her back up against something soft, yet unyielding. It took two seconds to realize it was Froggy she was leaning against and one to realize that she was staring up into the face of a one-eyed Scotsman.
As she heard Froggy, and what she presumed to be either Streak or Buddy, stirring behind her the Scotsman rocked back on his feet and stood up. Frau pushed herself slowly to her feet, taking a protective stance over the rest of her team. It was then she realized how she was dressed and what she was wearing. A long bluish tinted jacket that seemed to taper at the waist, with darker blue pants, black knee high boots, and blue gloves. The gloves were a lot slimmer than she might have imagined, a bit more skin tight. A brown leather belt was slung low below her hips, accentuating her long waist and dancer's legs.
It was close, so close to the outfit the RED Medic, who was standing behind and to the BLU Demo's right, was wearing. She could also feel the weight of the medi-pack on her back, the nozzle seemed hooked to the side and the heaviness of a crossbow weighing down her belt on the right side, slightly toward her back. The stiffness of something digging into the small of her back, made her think she also possessed a bone saw of some kind tucked into the back of her belt. But what drew most of her attention was that, though Medic had a crossbow in his hand there was no Medi-pack on his back.
Demo looked amused, as she made the obvious comparisons to the Medic behind him. Said Medic seemed interested in the similarities, while at the same time seeming aloof. She saw a BLU Pyro standing just behind Demo, his head tilted slightly in what she took to mean curiosity. RED Sniper, to Demo's left and the one next closest to them, looked indifferent, even irritated. She also noted a flicker of what looked like a heat shimmer, what Frau assumed was the shifting of a cloaked Spy, color unknown, behind and between Pyro and Sniper. It was Demo who spoke up, ignoring her teammates to focus solely on her.
"So what you playin at young lass?" His Scotsman accent somehow both thick and wavering at the same time.
Frau raised an eyebrow, not entirely sure how to answer the question. She had been playing at a game in her office/recording room, now she (and her teammates) appeared to living it. She started to open her mouth, still not quite sure what would come out, when someone from behind her let out a screech and started yelling.
""What the hell?!"
She immediately recognized the voice as Buddy and could clearly read the panic. Directly behind her, Froggy slowly stood up, brushing against her back as he turned toward the yell.
"Buddy, calm down, it's…"
"Calm down…calm down…CALM DOWN?!" Buddy screamed, making Frau wince. "No…no…no…this is not happening!"
Frau staggered, but righted herself quickly, as Buddy pushed her aside. He was wide-eyed and almost hyperventilating. Frau threw her right arm out, grabbing a handful of Buddy's blue shirt…a scout's blue shirt. He stopped short, tripping over his own feet and almost toppling into the dirt. She held on to him, pulling him back to his feet, while she tried to steer him back behind her. Buddy seemed oblivious to her efforts and instead opted to continue yelling his stupidity to everyone within earshot.
"What is going on…this is a game right?!"
Frau heard a sharp intake of breath and the crunch of gravel to their right. She didn't snap her head up, opting instead to flick her eyes toward Spy and Sniper. The heat ripple was still in the same spot, but Sniper had shifted forward.
"It's a game, a stupid game…" Buddy mumbled and Frau could tell he was actually starting to cry now. "It doesn't mean anything it's not real!"
What Frau realizes, that Buddy seems blissfully unaware of, is that the Sniper has shifted from his position and is now fast stepping toward them, his right hand drawing back. Frau catches the movement out of the corner of her eye and instinctively jerks Buddy's shirt to the right and behind her. She feels him slide away from her, forcefully, and assumes either Froggy or Streak has pulled him backwards out of harm's way.
She keeps her right arm swung back to ward off either Froggy or Streak and throws her left arm out, in hope of slowing the sniper or showing him she is not a threat. But the sniper is already swinging for where Buddy was. Frau hears a couple shouts, a muffled yell from Pyro's direction, and the strong German accent of the Medic yelling at Sniper to stop. But, he's already got momentum and Frau has put herself right in his path.
Frau wasn't a natural fighter, not in the physical sense at any rate. Though tall, about 5'9", she would have been aptly described as slim and wiry. She had the build of a dancer or gymnast, and thanks to her artistic mother, the skills to match. She could take a fall or roll with little to no damage, a later interest in parkour had seen to that. But, taking a hit wasn't exactly her forte. She knew it was a similar concept, roll with the punch so to speak, but she was off balance. Slinging Buddy behind her had pushed her left side closer to Sniper, closing the distance…so at this point the best she could do was not to stiffen too much and hoped he missed…
Sniper's fist connected squarely with Frau's cheekbone. Despite him seeing what was about to happen and pulling the punch at the last minute, the hit snapped her head back and to the right. Her glasses when flying, landing a couple feet away. She stumbled and felt her right knee, already shifted wrong and off balance, give. She grabbed blindly with her left hand and found purchase on a fistful of stiff leather, guessing it to be Sniper's vest. As she tried to right herself, her head spinning and her eyesight specked with black spots, she felt a strong hand grab her under the right arm. She was pulled up to her feet and forward, her head rolling into Sniper's shoulder as she tried to blink away the spots.
"Medic!" Snipper snapped over his shoulder. "Little help."
"Yea..." She mumbled against his chest. "…coming…"
"Ja!"
She was blinking furiously, trying to focus on anything that might make her head stop spinning, when a pair of blue eyes framed by round steel spectacles, came into view over Sniper's shoulder. Behind her, there was a sharp snap and some soft crying.
"Lay her down, idiot!" Medic snapped. "You're going to give her vhiplash!"
"Get the medi-pack off her first Doc." Sniper snapped back. "You'll have her humped up like a turtle."
Medic narrowed his eyes, glaring for a moment, but finally helped Sniper remove the medi-pack from Frau's back. She was still trying to focus, but immediately noticed the weight difference and gave her head another stiff shake. Some of the spots were clearing and she could finally make out the shimmer of Spy over Sniper's shoulder. Sniper had shifted himself in order to try to lay her down, but she wasn't cooperating. She was staring past the heat shimmer toward a glare of light several yards away and above them in an open window.
A glint of light…
Suddenly, the fuzziness from the punch fell aside, boosted by a large dose of adrenaline and instinct. Frau was pushing at the sniper with her left hand and shoved him hard, knocking him off balance and into Medic. They both hit the ground in a puff as dust as Frau pulled up her crossbow and fired a single arcing shot. There was a snap of metal on metal then a shower of sparks as the metallic Sniper toppled from the window and fell to the ground in a crumpled heap.
"Froggy, Streak…" Frau snapped, her eyes scanning the area. "What you playing?"
"mnhmnh." Streak mumbled.
"Main." Froggy, answered calmly, as if this was a normal question.
"What about Buddy?"
"Scout." Froggy said gruffly. "But I would say he's worthless at this point."
Frau nodded, holding out her left hand toward Medic and Sniper, but keeping her eyes fixed on the horizon. She felt someone grip her wrist and she flicked her eyes down, seeing Medic. She smiled weakly as she helped pull him to his feet, the Medi-pack still in his hands. Sniper had already rolled to his feet and retrieved her glasses. He held them out to her looking a bit sheepish.
"Danke…" she mumbled, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose. "Bigrock…but bigger?"
"Seems so, plan?" Froggy asked shouldering his rocket launcher.
"Doctor…is this all of you?" Frau asked, hoping the answer was no.
"…ja."
"Respawn?"
"Not anymore." Sniper replied gruffly.
She knew about where they were in the map and which way they needed to head to get back to the defending point, but she didn't know what was coming toward them, for that she needed a scout. She muttered a quick snatch of German under her breath, wishing she had decided to main as any other class during their last game, anything but a Medic at this point would be of more help. She felt something in her chest shift and pull, like how you feel when you overexert yourself lifting something, and her eyesight doubled momentarily. For a second she thought that the punch from Sniper had caused a concussion, until she heard Froggy hitch a breath from behind her, then cough nervously.
"Frau, you uh…you going Scout now?"
She glanced down at herself, seeing a blue scout uniform. No hat though, to cover her black hair, which was trimmed short at the sides and back but long on top and swept to the left. She also kept her black metal framed glasses, which were perched at the bridge of her nose. She noticed the heft of a scattergun in her right hand, replacing the Medic's crossbow. She looked at Medic and Sniper, who looked as confused as she felt. It was Demo who broke the silence though.
"Aye, Lassie is full of surprises it seems." He laughed. "But we should get a'goin."
"So I am." She mumbled, then turned her attention to Medic and Sniper. "I'm not trying to be the boss here, but I do have a suggestion of a course of action, considering I have just added three to your number. The blubbering Scout is not part of this equation. Since I am not familiar with all the ins and outs of…wherever it is we are, I will base my assumptions on the…knowledge I have at my disposal…"
"Help is help." Sniper said. "Take the help we can get, what's yoah plan?"
"Medic has my medi-pack, I suggest he would be better apt at using than I, given my limited knowledge base to work with. I know how it functions where I'm from but here, is a different story. If Pyro and my…" She tilted her head first toward the Pyro in front of her, then to Streak behind. "…Pyro bring up both the forward and rear positions that covers scouts and spys. Demo and my Soldier can flank. This puts Medic in the middle, with plenty of protection."
She glanced at Medic, who seemed slightly irritated, but made no comment as he shrugged into her Medi-pack and took up the medi-gun. She took note that the heat shimmer had disappeared and assumed Spy had gone to do what Spys do and so she turned her attention back to Sniper.
"I assume you are perfectly capable of using your skills without my direction."
"Always a professional." He smirked, as he unslung his rifle. "While I'm walking rooves and balconies, you will be…?"
She smiled sweetly, pulling what had been the bone saw but was now a bat from behind her back.
"Oh, I'll be around…"
