Chapter 10…
Cozbi was long gone before Ashley had woken up…
The dark haired woman wasn't sure how she felt about that… assuming that personal feelings were something even applicable to the situation that had transpired the night before. She and Cozbi had both agreed beforehand that the sex had been casual and mean't nothing in the grand scheme of things, but a morning hello would have been nice.
Would it have been nice though? Ashley wasn't sure of that either… but a morning hello might have served to stem the awkwardness that had since cropped up between them.
Or maybe Ashley was the only one feeling a little bit awkward right now?
Questions… so many questions and no real answers.
Still, Ashley had plenty of time to organize her thoughts about the night prior and the mission ahead. She was currently in the bay of a small Goblin dropship, floating high above the facility they were going to raid. There were three other pilots waiting with her, all of them preparing for the eventual green light. Templeton was standing beside her and Cozbi was at her back, Ashley had never properly met the third pilot.
'Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale…'
Ashley's diaphragm gently expanded and contracted as she breathed, shifting around the light armor plating that adorned her chest.
The dark haired woman had followed up on her question to Blisk and had painted her armor black and yellow, with the former colour being predominant. Ashley had also gone ahead and dug around for a classic IMC jumpsuit to wear as a base layer; her new jumpsuit was coloured in dark blues and trimmed with white, the colours not clashing with her armor like a red and white jumpsuit would have.
So she stood out like a sore thumb... so what? She would be harder to see…
Ashley turned her helmeted gaze away from the window of the dropship to ensure that her gear was still ready for use. Her attention was immediately drawn to the custom gauntlet on her left arm, which contained her newly acquired grappling hook.
'This piece of equipment has not entered mass production until recently,' Cain's grating voice sounded in Ashley's head, a reminder from their training session that morning. 'This new model presented a ninety-two percent decrease in the likelihood of a sudden amputation…'
The words hadn't filled her with confidence… but the dry run she had undergone in the neuro pod had proved the device's usefulness.
Other than her brand new grappling hook, Ashley was armed to the teeth. The dark haired woman had acquired a pistol for each hip, one of which would serve as a backup in case the first was lost. On her right hip sat a RE-45 auto pistol, a weapon that was incredibly effective at close ranges; on her other hip rested a Hammond P2016, a semi-automatic backup. Across Ashley's shoulder blades was slung a Hemlock rifle, which was a weapon she was already familiar with. While Ashley preferred smaller, more maneuverable weapons, the likelihood of there being long sightlines on the battlefield demanded a more accurate long rifle. The last weapon in her small arsenal was a mag launcher, the anti-titan weapon was secured to the back of her hips.
The only weapon Ashley was missing was Cain… but lugging around a several tonne mech would be bad for her back…
"Ashley," a grating voice suddenly sounded in the woman's head.
Speak of the devil…
'Cain?' Ashley thought back, not wanting to alert the other pilot's around her. 'Problem?'
'Negative,' Cain quickly responded. 'I am ready for deployment on your mark…'
'Blisk mentioned that only designated pilots would be using their titans,' Ashley thought back.
'Affirmative, this is merely a precaution in case heavier firepower is required, I wanted to notify you.'
'Got it…'
'Affirmative…'
And just like that, the scratchy voice was gone from her head. The brief but informative interaction didn't fill Ashley with confidence. Sudden changes in a plan moments before an attack usually meant trouble… even if they were just cautionary changes.
'Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale…'
She couldn't allow herself to overthink this…
Ashley turned her attention back to the window, admiring the sea of dark clouds that were just barely illuminated by the planet's two moons.
The dark haired woman was pulled out of her stupor when a gloved hand patted her shoulder. She spun around and found the thin, crescent shaped visor of a barely familiar pilot.
Cozbi's helmet was very angular in design, which gave it a complicated but menacing appearance. She was adorned in the red, white and black colours of the Apex predators and across the faceplate of the helmet a large "X" had been scratched into the paint.
"How you feeling, Ish?" Cozbi asked, her voice somewhat garbled due to her helmet. "Nervous?"
"Never…" Ashley flatly responded, quietly swallowing to dispel the nervous bubbles in her throat. "Pretty sure Ish isn't my callsign…"
"Do you prefer what Blisk gave you… Tigress?" Cozbi asked, her helmet tilting to the left.
"Just call me Ish…" Ashley muttered, shaking her helmeted head and looking away.
"I hope you keep that enthusiasm for the next few minutes," Cozbi joked. "You and I are working together after all… Templeton and Smith are just keeping the lobby clear…"
"I remember the plan," Ashley replied, watching as Templeton turned his helmeted head to shoot a brief nod in their direction. His faceplate bore incredible resemblance to the face of an arachnid; instead of a single visor there were five glowing visual sensors. "High altitude drop into the compound… the four of us reach the lobby while our associates wreak havoc in their titans… we get what we came for and then bug out..."
"Classic blitz play," Templeton joked from the other side of the small cargo bay.
"Classic blitz play…" Cozbi repeated, giving Ashley a quick pat on the shoulder before turning away.
Cozbi lifted her gloved fingers to her helmet mounted radio. "Cockpit… any news on the green light?"
"One minute…" Crackled the intercom in the dropship. "All Pilots on board please prepare for a sudden altitude drop…"
Ashley and all the other pilots bent their knees slightly and flared their jump kits in preparation.
"Forty-five seconds till green light…"
This wasn't the first time Ashley had been involved in an operation like this. The manner in which they began the attack was actually quite clever…
"Thirty seconds…"
The attack would commence with two sudden explosions, which would leave the Militia completely off-guard.
"Twenty Seconds…"
After the explosion, the dropship would fall to an appropriate altitude and the Pilot's on board would jump out into a freefall. They would reach the ground while the Militia was disorganized and a seperate force of titans would keep the attention off of them.
"Beginning altitude drop… hold onto your asses…"
Ashley's stomach jumped into her throat when the engines on the Goblin dropship dropped to low power. She could feel her armored shoes lifting off the ground as the entire ship entered free fall. Without the assistance of her jump-kit she would have been pressed against the ceiling…
"Ten seconds… till green light!" Came the pilot's strangled yelp over the intercom.
All at once the ship's engines roared back to life. Ashley and all the other pilots in the cargo bay of the small dropship slammed their feet back into the ground as gravity took over again.
The moment the four pilots had righted themselves the cargo door of the Goblin dropship opened up, revealing the dark landscape below.
"All right! The light is green! Go for it!"
Ashley broke into a sprint, hearing the shuffling noise of armor as the pilots around her did the same. With a slight grunt and a colossal leap she heaved herself out of the dropship, feeling her stomach once again jump up into her throat. She tucked in her knees and pivoted forwards so that she was falling head first and then straightened her body out to fall faster. Her red visor would protect her eyes from the cold wind and the rebreather built into her helmet would prevent any complications in her breathing from arising.
A few hundred feet below her the lights of the scientific research facility they would be raiding glittered. It was a neatly laid out complex, with uniform roads and buildings of utilitarian design.
Two massive explosions suddenly rocked the facility below, the detonation sights marked by orange mushroom clouds that curled in the air. The first bomb was placed in the on site barracks, which would leave the Militia troops in heavy disarray; the second was placed near the titan bays, which would slow the Militia's response time.
It was a perfect blitz play… hit them hard and suddenly… get in then get out.
The Militia had been the ones to first use tactics like this… it was only logical that the IMC snagged their formula and modified it. There were benefits to having a large attack force, but a small team had the advantage of being able to move unseen.
The sound of an alarm klaxon began to roar over the whistle of the wind. Far below Ashley and the rest of the pilots, the facility began to enter high alert.
Ashley pulled her body in again and rolled backwards so that her feet were pointed down at the ground again. The dark haired woman activated her jump kit, hearing and feeling the jetpack flare as it slowed her descent; the stabilizers built into her armored shoes were designed to mitigate the damage caused by long falls, but even they had their limits.
'Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale…'
Once she was within twenty feet of the ground Ashley deactivated her jump kit; she could feel the wind rushing past her neck as she once again picked up speed. Ashley's feet found the ground not long after…
The dark haired woman got up from her crouched position and took a moment to check over her gear, making sure that none of her guns had fallen off her person. She could hear the other pilots touching down around her, their presence indicated by the crunching sound of their boots against the asphalt below.
"Christ, Tigress," Templeton chuckled as he walked up next to her. Ashley turned her helmeted head to find the five glowing red sensors on his faceplate. "Did you have to leave us in the dust like that?"
"Should've been faster," Ashley cracked her neck and pulled her Hemlock off her back, moving her thumb down to flick off the safety.
"Cut the chatter," Cozbi warned, walking ahead of Ashley and Templeton and keeping the barrel of her R-201 high. "Let's go…"
