A/N
Okay, it's Thursday, but one day late is better than no chapter at all. I'll try to get the next one out on next Wednesday although once again, the key word is "try".
Today's chapter is a tad bit shorter than the previous few chapters, but considering that it's only been one week instead of the regular two, I'll let it slide. I did actually have to cut out quite a bit because this chapter was beginning to feel bloated. Dialogue is best for dialogue chapters and action for action, in my opinion, at least.
Also, just because I really want to vent, Google docs keeps insisting on auto-correcting the term "hostiles" to "hostels".
Ashley is fighting enemy soldiers, not hotels...
So annoying…
Chapter 69…
Ashley looked up in horror as the explosive charge shook the walls of the cavern. Long trickles of dust fell in sheets from the unseen ceiling, washing over Ashley's already filthy clothes and further clogging up her helmet filters.
Worse than the initial explosion was the aftershock which followed it. Ashley could feel the ground beneath her feet rumbling as the millions of pounds of rock and soil around her began to shake. The seismic tremor made a deep, throaty noise that was indescribably loud…
What had those IMC grunts been thinking when they set up those charges? Ashley sincerely doubted that she would have the courage to do what these mercenaries had done. The ultimate irony was that all of them were dead now, their lives swiftly ended by deadly SMART rounds…
… and the only person left to be buried alive was her.
'Not like this…'
Stumbling around, her vision obscured by dust, Ashley violently slapped the side of her helmet to refocus the scrambled exterior cameras.
'Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale…'
Now was the time for action, not for panic. Ashley hadn't been buried in debris yet, and until she was she needed to do everything in her power to spare herself from such a gruesome demise.
Squinting through her helmet's grainy night vision mode, Ashley stumbled forwards into a clumsy run. That single explosion could only have been the first of many - one clearly hadn't been enough to level the cavern.
'If I was going to use explosives to collapse a cave… how would I do it…?' Ashley thought to herself.
A cave was a supported structure - reliant on the strength of its walls and ceiling. Enough explosives placed just about anywhere would do the trick, but a smart demolitionist would maximise their effectiveness through proper placement…
'.-. . .-. .. - . - . .-.'
The maddening buzzing sensation continued in Ashley's head as she ran. Sliding past machinery and leaping over bodies, Ashley activated her jumpkit on low burn as she made for the outer perimeter of the cavern's walls. The dark haired woman was no demolitions expert, but common sense dictated that the walls of the cavern would be the ideal target for explosive charges.
'.-. . .-. .. - . - . .-.'
Ashley grit her teeth in frustration as she scrambled on top of and over the conveyor belt, the jets of her jumpkit leaving a glowing trail in her wake. The muscles in her legs painfully burned after a day's worth of hard exertion, but it would be a long time before Ashley would get the chance to properly rest.
Reaching the perimeter wall, Ashley began to run along it's length as she scanned for explosives. For once luck was actually on her side, as only after ten seconds of running did Ashley spy the first of probably many satchel charges. Drilled to the side of the plastic explosive was a small digital timer which depicted a countdown.
'00.00.25'
Hissing in fear, Ashley crudely tore out the electrical wires necessary for detonation. She ripped the satchel charge off of the wall for good measure, tossing the lump of plastic explosive to the ground as if it was just a regular clay brick.
'That can't be it…' Ashley thought to herself, her thoughts nearly drowned out by the buzzing in her head.
One of the satchel charges had already gone off, but the one Ashley had just ripped off of the wall still had twenty-five seconds left on its timer. If the IMC forces had wanted the cavern gone in an instant then they would have set all of the charges off at the same time…
But… assuming that they wanted to give themselves time to escape…
'Staggered detonations…' Ashley thought to herself.
It was the only logical outcome, a series of detonations which would cause a domino effect and level the cave system.
But how many satchel charges were there?
How much time did Ashley have left before the next detonation?
'.-. ..- -.'
'Fuck my life…' Ashley thought to herself as squeezed her eyes shut in frustration.
'.-. ..- -. .-. ..- -. .-. ..- -.'
Ignoring the phantom buzzing sensation in her head, Ashley groped the wall where the satchel charge had been located. In only a few moments she succeeded in finding what she was looking for.
A long thin wire which stretched off into the darkness, running along the side of the cavern wall…
'A daisy chain…?'
At least Ashley knew where to start looking…
Hooking her fingers underneath the wire, Ashley gave a harsh tug and tore it free from the cavern wall. Quickly wrapping the wire around the circumference of her palm, Ashley broke into a run along the length of the wall. As she ran, the wire continued to tear away from the wall - forming a long trail which dragged along behind the dark haired woman.
'Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale…'
Ashley did her best to keep her breathing under control. Her jumpkit, despite it running on fumes, was continuously pushing her forwards; but just one slip-up in her breathing pattern would leave the dark haired woman an exhausted mess…
'.- .-. .-. .-. - .- -.-. ... .. -. -.'
Narrowing her eyes through her helmet's grainy night vision, Ashley spotted something rectangular bolted to the wall up ahead. Her suspicions were confirmed when she got closer - it was another satchel charge.
Cutting off her jumpkit and sliding to a stop in front of the charge, Ashley felt sweat dripping off her brow as she observed the timer.
'00.00.32'
Ashley tore the satchel charge off of the wall before the timer could hit thirty seconds. She ripped the electrical wires out from the lump of plastic explosive and threw the now deactivated projectile like a frisbee - watching as it spun off into the darkness.
There was another wire leading to the next explosive and Ashley moved to follow its length, ripping more of the wire off of the wall as she ran.
'The first one I found had twenty-five seconds on the timer…' Ashley thought to herself, her internal voice fighting to be heard through the buzzing in the back of her skull. 'This one had thirty-two… but I never counted after the first detonation…'
Ashley could feel more sweat dotting her brow…
A daisy-chain of explosives with one minute between detonations. Ashley's chances didn't look good… as even one explosive set off in the right place would be enough to bury her alive…
But if Ashley had anything going for her it was good physical and a jumpkit…
… and that was all she needed at the moment to postpone her inevitable appointment with death.
Pushing herself lower to the ground to increase her speed, Ashley carefully scanned the walls for more explosive charges. In addition to her breathing techniques, Ashley fought through the buzzing sensation in her head and visualised a countdown…
'Forty-three seconds…'
Spying digging equipment blocking her path, Ashley released the long spool of wire clenched in her hand. Increasing her jumpkit's power output, Ashley vaulted over the equipment and landed in a stumble.
'Thirty-one.'
Pressing herself forwards again, Ashley grit her teeth and ran as fast as her legs could carry her.
'Twenty-two.'
There! Ashley had located another satchel charge!
Not pausing or slowing down, Ashley violently tore the charge off of the wall and kept running. She manipulated the explosive device in her hands, tearing out the electrical wires before taking a brief second to stare down the timer.
'00.00.15'
'That can't be right…' Ashley thought to herself as she hurled the explosive device away.
Was Ashley's count off? She could swear that she had at least twenty seconds left. But the timer didn't lie, she only had fifteen…
A new wave of terror coursed through Ashley's body…
'Inhale… exhale… inhale, exhale… … inhale, exhale… inhale, exhale…'
"Fuck!" Ashley hissed into her rebreather.
It became startlingly clear to Ashley that her count was off by a few seconds. She had overestimated the time by five seconds - and in her current situation a single millisecond could be the decider for whether she lived or died.
'Forty-six seconds now!?' Ashley desperately tried to reorient her sense of time.
'..-. - .-. - -.-'
Reaching out towards the wall again, Ashley found the electrical wire which connected the explosives and tore it loose. She let the wire be her guide, bringing her closer to the next explosive charge.
Sliding underneath the jagged scoop of a digging machine, Ashley increased her jumpkit's speed. The personal booster was emitting so much force that Ashley's sore legs could barely keep up…
She was going to have bruises after this, she was sure of it…
'Twenty…' Ashley hurriedly thought to herself. 'There!'
Ashley spied another charge and ripped it off of the wall. Tearing out the wires, Ashley repeated the motion of checking the timer before discarding the explosive.
'00.00.09'
Nine seconds left before detonation… Ashley's sense of time had been thrown out of the window. Her dirty rebreather, coupled with her general exhaustion, had starved her brain of the oxygen needed for her to think…
'Fuck it…'
Ashley cranked up her jumpkit until it was at its maximum power output. The older device rattled, hissed, and shook as the jet boosters ravenously consumed whatever drops of fuel were still sitting at the bottom of the fuel tank.
Ashley could feel a wet sensation between her toes. It could have been mud and water from the thorough soaking that Ashley had undergone earlier; either that, or it was blood from the blisters forming and tearing apart on her feet.
The dark haired woman wished that she had the time to check…
At her current speed, Ashley was rapidly approaching the mouth of the elevator shaft. She could spy the crumpled remains of the elevator platform through her helmet's night vision mode.
She could also spot what appeared to be the last of the charges…
'Come on, Ishikara… home stretch!'
'- . -.'
Coming within eight feet of the explosive charge, Ashley directed every last bit of her waning strength into a desperate forward lunge. Her jumpkit continued to roar behind her, a bright blue streak of flame erupting from the jet nozzles. Wrapping her fingers around the satchel charge, Ashley tore it from the wall with such force that the electrical wires necessary for detonation snapped in two.
Reactively tucking the lump of plastic explosive against her armoured chest, Ashley landed in a painful heap. It took her a long moment to realise that she had yet to turn her jumpkit off, the booster continuing to violently push her forwards.
'Fuck!'
Ashley was too tired to grit her teeth and remain silent. The dark haired woman howled in pain as her body carved a deep groove into the flattened dirt of the cave.
With her vision an indecipherable blur, Ashley did the only thing that she could think to do. Shooting up one hand to the side of her helmet, Ashley violently ripped out the wire which connected her helmet to her jumpkit. The safety mechanisms built into the rocket booster kicked in - abruptly sealing off the remaining fuel source from the rest of the device's mechanisms.
Although Ashley had succeeded in deactivating her jumpkit, she was still moving at a high velocity. The woman was pulled along in a painful tumble until gravity and friction brought her to a skidding stop - her shoulder painfully slamming into the metal remains of the elevator.
Now, Ashley was no stranger to physical pain…
She had been shot, stabbed, and beaten… she had stumbled around in a drug-fueled haze on Antheia for days…
But none of that compared to the pain she felt in the present moment. Every inch of Ashley's body ached, a repeating pulse of pain flowing through Ashley's nervous system.
With the last of her strength, Ashley lifted the satchel charge she had pressed against her chest. Although her vision swam with exhaustion, Ashley managed to make out the series of digits on the timer…
'00.00.01."
Ashley chuckled to herself and dropped the satchel charge. Perhaps there were other explosives in the cave - Ashley had no way of knowing for sure. But at least a minute had passed since Ashley slammed to a stop and there were no more detonations…
Above Ashley's head, the millions of pounds of rock and soil audibly creaked and groaned… but made no move to fall on her head…
That was enough to put a grim smile on Ashley's face… and although she knew better than to let her guard down, she promptly collapsed onto the floor.
'Inhale… … … exhale… … inhale… … exhale…'
Every breath felt as hot as fire in Ashley's lungs. The tired muscles of her legs and abdomen had been pushed to a limit that Ashley had not thought possible. A run like the one she had just completed would not have been out of the ordinary for a veteran pilot such as herself. But a run like that after hours of exertion, including fighting a titan on foot?
Ashley had actually managed to impress herself; the first time she had felt impressed about anything or anyone for a long time…
With her helmeted head resting on the ground, Ashley's ears just barely picked up the noise of a jumpkit firing. Weakly lifting her head - an act which at this point took considerable effort - Ashley silently watched as her team leader slowly descended the elevator shaft. Valentina cut off her jumpkit once she was a few feet away from the ground and landed in a crouch. She had her R-101 drawn, the barrel pointed into the dark abyss to scan for any remaining hostiles.
"Ishikara?" Valentina asked, her glowing visor pointed in Ashley's direction. "Are you alive?"
"Unfortunately, yes…" Ashley groaned as she fought her way into a prone position. "About time that you showed up… where the fuck were you…?"
"Making sure that nobody followed you down…" Valentina huffed as she leapt off the remains of the elevator. She landed in a graceful crouch and slid her R-101 across the magnetic plates of her vest. "What the hell happened down here? I could feel the ground shaking… did you find those charges?"
"I found plenty…" Ashley weakly gestured to the satchel charge she had carried along with her. "All disarmed… I think…"
"You think?" Valentina retorted.
Reaching towards her utility belt, Valentina retrieved a small cylindrical object. She twisted her hand against the top of the cylinder and the local area was suddenly bathed in white light. The woman gently placed the glow stick on the ground in front of Ashley.
"You heard me…" Ashley gave in and collapsed back to the ground, the muscles in her arms burning in agony.
"Fuck… just hold on…"
Crouching down, Ashley's team leader began grabbing at the back of the dark haired woman's vest. Ashley's feeble attempts to refuse help were silently answered by Valentina's iron grip - as the woman hoisted the dark haired woman up into a seated position.
Ashley grunted as her back was gently braced against the remains of the elevator.
"Take your helmet off…"
"I'll pass…"
"Don't make me order you to do it," Valentina huffed as she groped at the sides of Ashley's helmet. "Look at how dirty your filters are… how are you even breathing in that thing?"
Gritting her teeth together, Ashley weakly reached up and undid the seals on her helmet. Removing her headgear and placing it on the ground, Ashley allowed the heavy helmet to roll away from her.
"Bruising, several cuts along the cheek…" Valentina muttered as she grabbed Ashley by the chin, gently turning her head to get a view of her injuries. "What did you do? Some of these cuts will need stitches…"
"The first explosive went off… I needed to make sure that none of the others did…" Ashley explained.
"Did you know where any of them were?"
"Not a clue…"
"Huh…" Valentina sat back and stared at Ashley, her face hidden by her glowing visor. "I'm impressed…"
"I don't care…" Ashley coughed.
The dark haired woman's cough started off as a small, but ceased to end and progressed into a hacking fit. Ashley felt her stomach churning and her throat itching - telltale signs that a wave of bile was working its way up her esophagus.
"Are you okay-"
Ashley wordlessly answered her team leader by retching for one last time. The dark haired woman could taste bile in her mouth - with the acidic contents of her stomach splashing onto the dirt below.
Thankfully, her exertion-motivated vomit was not followed by a second wave…
Supporting herself on right arm, Ashley raised her left and crudely wiped her mouth. She hacked up and spat out a wad of bile, scraping the inside of her mouth with her tongue to clear out the rest from her teeth.
The dark haired woman's self-cleaning was interrupted by the open neck of a metal flask…
"Drink…" Valentina muttered, her voice muffled by her helmet. The woman gently wiggled the flask in front of Ashley's face, the attached lid making a hollow tapping noise as it repeatedly struck against the metal of the bulbous container.
"I'm fine…" Ashley muttered back, making a feeble attempt to push away the flask.
"Drink the water and I'll forgive you for throwing up on my boots…"
Ashley squinted her bloodshot eyes to confirm for herself what her team leader had just claimed. True to Valentina's word some of Ashley's bile had indeed splattered onto the tips of her boots…
"Fine…" Ashley grunted.
The dark haired woman accepted the flask and drank greedily. She coughed for a moment when the lukewarm water tickled her throat, but the liquid cleared away the bad taste in her mouth and reinvigorated Ashley's senses.
"I'll be honest with you…" Valentina muttered as she took back her flask. "You look and sound like shit right now. Can you even stand?"
"If I try-"
"Don't, just sit there…" Valentina pushed Ashley back into a seating position. "Get your bearings… and take this…"
Ashley's team leader reached towards her utility belt and retrieved her spare fuel tank. Valentina handed the tank to Ashley, who accepted what was offered to her.
"Thanks…?" Ashley licked her dry lips as she began to screw the spare tank of fuel onto her jumpkit. "We're not going for a run… are we?"
"You? No," Valentina shook her helmeted head. "I'm going to sweep the area to make sure that you didn't miss anything. You are going to sit right here and catch your breath. After that I'll grab Barker and make sure that you're properly tended to…"
Ashley opened her mouth to complain but her team leader was faster…
"You're about to say 'no' and I don't want to hear it…" Valentina wagged her finger. "Don't give me that shit, you can barely stand. So accept help when it's offered to you."
Ashley moved to open her mouth again.
"Now you're going to say 'whatever'..." Valentina huffed as she slid her R-101 back into her hands. "Save your breath - I'll be back in a few minutes…"
Valentina briefly reached down to pick up the glow stick and place it closer to Ashley. The woman then wordlessly turned to stalk off into the darkness. Ashley watched as her team leader retreated from sight, her silhouette highlighted only by the gentle blue glow of her visor.
"I was going to say 'fuck off'..." Ashley muttered to no-one in particular, the moment having passed her by.
Sighing to herself, the dark haired woman rolled the back of her head against the metal of the elevator. She could feel a lingering heat from the metal plating - courtesy of the bullets which had sheared through it some time beforehand.
Reaching up on hand, Ashley gently rubbed the back of her head as the buzzing sensation continued…
'.- ... ... .-.. . -.-'
The dark haired woman closed her eyes in frustration. She had never had a headache like this one before…
'-.. —'
… not even concussions were as irritating…
'-.- - ..-'
…or sounded with such a strange pattern…
'..- -. -.. . .-. ... - .- -. -..'
…as the one she had at the present moment.
'- .'
But there was also something familiar about the sensation… although Ashley couldn't put her finger on why…
