Chapter 17: Rescue Mission
Persica was sitting in her office chair, legs tucked under her, scrolling through the files the AR team had sent her, cup of coffee in hand. Her ear twitched as an alert dinged from somewhere beneath a pile of discarded papers.
She ignored it and kept reading, taking a sip of her coffee as she continued to scroll. Her other ear twitched as the alert dinged again. Another sip of coffee, another flick of the finger as she continued to scroll.
The alert dinged a third time.
Persica huffed as she sat her tablet and cup down. She knocked stacks of papers and empty coffee cups to the floor until she found the offending tablet. She held it up to her face to allow the facial scan to do its job.
Once the tablet unlocked she could finally see what the alert was.
*Project Phoenix Alert*
*Priority: DELTA*
*Subject Beta Vitals Critical*
*Recommended action to follow.*
Persica tapped her foot impatiently as she waited for the old tablet to update.
Recommended Action: Activate onboard emergency medical program
Persica let out another irritated huff, "Can you stop trying to get yourself killed for five minutes?" She muttered as she scrolled through the options.
Activate onboard medical program?
YES / NO
She tapped Yes.
Verify Activation
YES / NO
She rolled her eyes and tapped Yes.
*WARNING! MEDICAL PROGRAM WILL RELEASE UNTESTED TECHNOLOGY!*
Possible chance of catastrophic failure, do you wish to proceed?
YES / NO
Persica let out a frustrated growl, "Outdated government funded garbage!"
She mashed Yes repeatedly.
Onboard medical program will begin to administer treatment.
Nanites released.
Subject stabilizing.
Note: This is not a replacement for proper medical treatment. Send Subject to nearest Medical Battalion at earliest convenience.
Persica waited for the activation code to flash before she tossed the old tablet on a desk behind her, picked up her coffee, and resumed going through the files.
"Can't go more than a day without getting shot," she murmured, "typical Americans."
- Sector 12 -
- Owen's Location -
Owen drifted in and out of consciousness. He felt woozy. He could hear gunfire, dolls shouting, and someone whispering to him. He strained to hear what the voice was saying but couldn't make it out. The voice sounded familiar. Maddeningly so.
Then another voice, a deep one. "What the hell?"
Another one, female, heavy accent, "His arm is… repairing itself?"
"Bones not the right direction for that." The male voice said.
"You're right, we'll have to rebreak it." Female voice.
Wait, wait no he wanted to say.
Pain shot through his arm as he heard a sick crunching sound.
His head began to swim, and as he lost consciousness he heard the voice that was whispering to him.
"Don't worry, I'll take care of you."
It was Freya.
He blacked out.
- Sector 12 -
- Temporary Griffin Base -
- Outside City Walls -
A group of dolls under Jakoby's command stood huddled around an old AN/PRC radio someone had smuggled into the dolls mess tent and were listening to the convoy's progress as it neared the evacuation area.
"Grigori, this is convoy lead," Makarov's voice came through the radio, "I have eyes on multiple Sangvis units, we are engaging."
"Understood, all vehicles be advised, lead elements are in contact with the enemy."
"All units," a different voice now, "be advised, I've got eyes on multiple heavy units headed towards the middle of the convoy. Looks like they want to separate us."
Silence filled the tent as they waited for the next report. None of the dolls dared to breathe in case they missed something.
The radio crackled to life and the voices came through panicked and overlapping.
"Heavy contact to the front!"
"Main route is blocked, we need to go around!"
"There's a bus blocking this way too!"
"Why aren't we moving!? We're almost to the evac site!"
"We're sitting ducks in the open like this! We're going to fucking die out here!"
Makarov's voice broke through, a calm and almost bored sounding island in a sea of panic, "Grigori, this route is blocked as well, we need to backtrack and find a better way to the evacuation site."
"Agreed, all units, be advised, we're switching routes again." Grigori growled in frustration.
DSR-50 sat at the back of the tent as she listened to the officers and Griffin dolls struggle through the city.
"This isn't right," She muttered to herself, "We should be helping them."
"Need a medic!" a voice rang out from the radio, "My gunner's hit in the neck, losing a lot of blood-"
DSR-50 stood and left the tent. She took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the sudden change of light before she started walking towards the pilot from Outpost 18, who was pacing near her helicopter while she complained about not being able to fly. M2 nodded mindlessly as she loaded a belt of ammo into her weapon, slapped the cover down, and yanked the charging handle twice.
As M2 looked down the weapon's sight, she noticed DSR-50 walking towards them and got Colette's attention.
Colette crossed her arms and put on her best scowl as Jakoby's adjutant approached them, "What do you want?"
DSR-50 looked from Colette to M2, "Be ready to go in ten minutes."
Surprise shown on Colette's face, "You got the go order?"
DSR-50 shook her head, "Not yet," she smiled, "but I will."
With that, DSR-50 made her way to the command tent and let herself inside, where she found Jakoby on his Commander's tablet, typing out an email.
"Is it time already?" Jakoby asked in a hungry voice once he noticed DSR's presence.
DSR-50 smiled seductively at him, grabbed his hand, and led him to his cot.
"I have to say," he began, "this job has some very excellent perks."
"I'm glad you think so." DSR-50 purred just before she grabbed his head and slammed it into the frame of the cot as hard as she could.
Jakoby fell to the ground unconscious and DSR-50 quickly stripped him of his boots and used the boot laces to his hand and feet. She then shoved one of his socks into his mouth, gently picked him up, and laid him on the cot on his side. DSR-50 looked down at the unconscious commander, then left the tent.
She had work to do.
- Makarov's Vehicle -
- Rescue Convoy -
Makarov scanned the roads on her side of the lead vehicle as she slid a magazine into place. She marked multiple targets for the rifle dolls and called out targets to hit for her human comrades. A group of Vespids that had tried to catch her vehicle in an ambush was cut down in a hail of gunfire.
"We're being herded." Makarov remarked as her eyes danced across windows and rooftops, the driver, a Berkut officer, shot her a glare out of the corner of his eye.
Makarov stared at him coolly, "Tell me I'm wrong."
The driver grumbled a curse, but didn't argue. Makarov resumed her watch as the convoy sped past roadblock after roadblock. It wasn't the roadblocks themselves that bothered Makarov, it was the fact that they were still forcing the convoy to go towards the evac site, but not in the direction Grigori, Makarov, or G3 wanted.
"These are things outside of our control," Grigori had told Makarov over the radio the last time the convoy was forced to a halt, "We must remain flexible with our planning."
Makarov snorted as she thought back on the conversation. She didn't agree with Grigori's fast and reckless tactics against Sangvis, they weren't easily surprised like human forces, but she wasn't consulted on such matters and kept her mouth shut.
Makarov's internal musings were cut short as the driver turned a corner and then stood on the brake pedal, the Humvee lumbered to a stop. She looked out the front windscreen and saw the reason for the unexpected halt. A semi truck and trailer had jackknifed in the road and blocked it from sidewalk to sidewalk.
A plasma round impacted the front of the Humvee and was followed by silence.
"The fu-" The driver began before a hail of incoming fire rained down around them.
The convoy immediately returned fire and chaos reigned as the defenders fought off the ambush.
"I got units rushing from the right!" Someone yelled over the open net.
"Contacts on the rooftops!"
"I see more coming out of the alleyways!"
"Fire! Fuck! Fire!"
Outbound fire picked up in intensity as the defenders beat back the ambush. The sound of AKs and energy weapons echoed off the buildings around them and mixed with the yelled orders and screams of pain of the Berkut. The convoy's heavy weapons, three DShK's mounted on Kozaks, thundered to life and added the symphony of the battle.
"Makarov," Grigori's voice growled in her ear, "Why have we stopped?"
"Large roadblock, we are unable to go around," she explained, "we will have to backtrack again."
Grigori was silent for a moment, "Send two runners to my vehicle."
"On it." Makarov opened up a connection to her team, "M3, Spectre, dismount your vehicle and make your way to the command vehicle as fast as you can, try not to get shot."
"On it." Spectre replied.
"Makarov," G3 hailed her on the Zener network, "We are receiving heavy fire from the rear of the convoy, it would appear they are trying to flank."
A series of explosions sounded from behind Makarov and G3 came back over the comm, "Ah, wunderbar, it would appear that Artem was prepared for such an event. The rear of the convoy is clear, but be careful, Sangvis is using armored military units."
Makarov saw movement out of the corner of her eye and turned to see three Aegis units that had lumbered out of an alleyway, towards her vehicle, she aimed for the exposed joints and fired. Two of the armored units dropped to their knees as rounds tore through their weak points. The third stopped moving as it tried to recalibrate its ocular device, not yet realizing that Makarov had blinded it.
SVT-38, who was standing in the turret ring of their vehicle, finished them off with ease and moved on to other targets.
"Da," Makarov stated as she reloaded, "I have noticed that, are you having any trouble?"
"Nein," G3 responded, "As I stated before, Artem brought along a special item from his 'private stock' and put it to good use."
"What did he use?" Makarov asked as she marked a cluster of Brutes closing fast on her vehicle before opening fire herself.
"He called it a- ah, einen moment bitte, SIG, on your left!." Gunfire came over the internal link, followed by explosions.
Makarov saw two Brutes had slipped through the collective fire of her team and were sprinting towards her.
She brought her pistol up, fired twice, and watched as the two Sangvis units dropped from shots placed into their cores.
"Otlichnyy vystrel!" AK-47 called out from the turret ring of the second vehicle in the line, but Makarov ignored her.
"Apologies," G3 said as she came back over the internal link, "it appears to be an M32 grenade launcher loaded with a mix of high explosive and incendiary grenades," more gunfire, "On a side note, is there any chance we could get a move order soon?"
"Working on it." Makarov opened up a communication link with Grigori, "Grigori, this is Makarov."
"Go ahead Makarov."
"I don't wish to imply that your observational skills are lacking," Makarov said politely, "But I am sure you noticed that the longer we sit here, the more units the enemy is throwing at us."
As if to prove her point, the round from a Jaeger glanced off the already shot up hood of the Humvee. AK-47 called out where she saw the shot lead, and SVT-38 fired.
"She's down!" AK-47 called happily.
"Have the runners not returned yet?" Grigori asked.
"Negative," Makarov informed him.
"Standby." Grigori ordered.
Vespids and Guards poured out from every door and alleyway around the convoy. SVT-38 and Makarov were firing as fast as they could and Sangvis units were starting to stack up around the Humvee.
"On your left SVT." Makarov stated calmly.
"Copy," She fired, "Reloading, cover me."
"Da." Makarov leaned over the driver and fired out of his window.
"Anytime you wish to help, feel free, you don't need me to order you around as well, do you?" Makarov snarked as SVT-38 fired again.
"W-well I just…" the driver started to defend himself but couldn't think of a rebuttal.
"Be nice Makarov," SVT-38 said cheerily, "you're scaring the poor kid."
Makarov shook her head, "You sound like AK."
Behind them, a DShK went cyclic, AK-47's namesake chattered, and the Berkut officers' rifles fired nonstop. Men barked orders, others screamed in agony, and occasionally AK-47 would hurl insults.
Makarov heaved a sigh, "This is getting exciting." She deadpanned.
"Could be worse," SVT-38 told her, "You could be on the Commander's team in the middle of the city, I bet it's a lot worse there."
A plasma round struck Makarov's door, she snorted in amusement, "I doubt it."
M3 and Spectre appeared at Makarov's window, hands covered in blood, panting, and holding explosives.
"S-sorry we were d-delayed," M3 panted, "there was a w-wounded soldier we tried to help."
Makarov looked the doll up and down, "Did you help?"
M3 and Spectre shared a look, "W-well no," M3 said with a frown, "he died."
"I see," Makarov pointed to the explosives the two dolls carried, "Am I to assume this is what Grigori wanted us to use to clear the roadblock?"
"Sure is," Spectre said happily, "there's enough explosive here to put a new crater on the moon!"
"Do not put a crater in the road we are trying to drive on." Makarov said.
"I'll try," Spectre said with an evil grin, "no promises though, c'mon M3."
"P-please cover us!" M3 stammered out as they ran off.
Makarov opened the door, "SVT-38, stay here and make sure the kid doesn't die."
"Hey!" The kid yelled indignantly.
She ignored him and ran after the two explosive laden dolls. As she did, AK-47 caught up to her.
"What are we doing?" AK-47 as merrily as she gunned a Jaeger that had appeared in a window.
"I don't remember asking for your help."
"You didn't!" came the reply, "but you got it!"
Makarov pointed in front of them to where M3 and Spectre were already planting their explosives, "Make sure they don't die."
"Da, easy!"
With that, the two dolls ran to the jackknifed truck and began their work. M3 let out a panicked yelp as a plasma bolt got too close. Makarov looked around and found a Vespid that was aiming at M3 and fired. AK-47 fired at another target that she couldn't see.
"Annnd, we're done!" Spectre yelled as she and M3 ran back to the convoy as fast as they could.
"At least warn us next time!" AK-47 called after them as she and Makarov chased after the two dolls.
They barely had time to make it to the Humvee before Spectre was working the clacker, a wild grin on her face. Makarov felt the shockwave from the explosion in her chest followed by the wave of heat that rolled over them. She turned to see the trailer of the semi had been blown apart, leaving an opening large enough for the convoy to drive through.
As soon as Makarov had reported this to Grigori, the order to move was given, and the convoy was rolling again.
The convoy had only moved ahead a few meters before Makarov's driver slammed the brakes and the Humvee squealed to a stop. Makarov turned to her driver who was staring wide eyed at the road ahead of them.
She swore when she saw the problem.
Two Nemuem units were lumbering side by side towards the convoy, surrounded by Aegis, Guard, and Striker units.
"We may have a problem." Makarov informed Grigori on the radio.
"I can see them from back here," Grigori said, "I suggest we find a different route, yes?"
The two large units began to settle into the road as their cannons charged up.
"We should back up." Makarov told the driver as she watched the guns on the Nemeums start making adjustments. Already, the battle net was going insane and Makarov could hear panicked voices reporting that the road was blocked, again.
"Uh," the driver swallowed hard, "yeah, we should, uh, we should do that."
SVT-38 fired as fast as she could and Makarov could see her rounds impacting near the targeting sensor of one Nemeum, then the other. Makarov couldn't tell if any actually hit.
The Nemuem units fired, one shot went high and streaked above the vehicles. The second round went wide and to the left, blowing out the side of a nearby building.
A yelp of pain was heard as someone fell to the deck of the vehicle. Makarov turned to see SVT-38 clutching the left side of her face, her right side full of anger. She pulled her hand down to grab another magazine and revealed the damage.
Half of her skin had been burnt away, along with her hair. Her right eye had melted down the exposed skeleton and gave the appearance of a long white tear.
"Why is it always my face?" She snarled before she reloaded, stood, and continued firing.
AK-47 lit a molotov, stepped out of the Humvee and hurled it as hard as she could. Fire erupted in the midst of the smaller Sangvis units, causing smoke to fill the road creating an impromptu smoke screen.
AK-47 jumped back in and slammed the door shut. Once she was in she slapped the driver on the back, "Time to go!"
The driver grabbed the shifter, wrenched it backwards, and slammed the gas pedal as hard as he could. The Humvee's engine roared as the vehicle lurched backwards and slammed into the Kozak behind them.
AK-47 cursed and slapped the driver on the back of the head before she got back out of the Humvee to survey the damage.
Makarov turned to the driver and simply raised an eyebrow. The driver's eyes were glued on the Nemeums that were charging for a second salvo.
The driver kept trying to back the Humvee up, but his panic induced actions only succeeded in doing more damage to the two lead vehicles.
"Perestan' dvigat'sya, ty dolbanyy pridurok!" AK-47 yelled from behind them.
The driver picked up the handset in the Humvee and began yelling hysterically into it, "Back up, back up, I can-"
Makarov punched the man on his jaw. The driver's head bounced against the side of the vehicle and he slumped in his seat unconscious and the handset fell from his grasp.
"Chyort." Makarov swore as she turned to see that the Nemeums were now braced to fire and both barrels were pointed at her.
"Get out!" SVT-38 yelled as she leapt out of the turret ring.
Makarov flung her door open and bailed out as the Nemeums fired. She was flung from the Humvee and soared through the air before she slammed into something hard, and fell to the ground. She groaned and hauled herself shakily back to her feet.
The team leader dusted her uniform off and glared at the Nemuem units before she took in her surroundings. The force of the twin Nemeum shots had blown the Humvee up and back onto the Kozak behind it, the Humvee's undercarriage now pointed into the air. AK-47 had hauled SVT-38 into an alley where they were alternating fire on the armored behemoths. Both dolls were hurling death threats faster than bullets.
Makarov started to move towards them when a Vespid fired on her from a rooftop. Makarov dove to the side, brought her weapon up and fired three quick shots. Two rounds missed, but the third hit home and the Vespid stumbled and fell from the edge of the building. Makarov watched the body smack the sidewalk, bounce, and roll beside AK-47 and SVT-38. AK-47 paused to look down at the dead Vespid in confusion, before she looked over at Makarov and gave a thumbs up.
Makarov looked back at the rooftop and saw several more Vespids moving into firing positions above them. She quit counting after twenty and sighed.
It was going to be a long day.
- Sector 12 -
- Temporary Griffin Base -
- Outside City Walls -
DSR-50 double checked each doll to make sure they were ready to fight. She knew she didn't need to worry, but it was her first time actually taking command like this, and she wanted to make sure everyone had what they needed.
Truth be told, the dolls of Sector 12 had been chomping at the bit to go after Sangvis proper since the first reports of the attack, but were told to "take a defensive stance only" by Commander Jakoby.
Once satisfied that everyone was ready, she gave the order to load up. Dolls ran across the ramp and boarded their vehicles. Armored transports rumbled to life and Black Hawk turbines started spooling up.
DSR-50 found the command helicopter and found the former adjutant, PTRD, standing next to it, and had already loaded it down with ammo cans, "Did you finally deal with that sleazy izvrashchenets?" PTRD asked.
DSR-50 shook her head, "Not permanently, no." she gave PTRD a knowing smile, "But we'll burn that bridge when we get to it."
PTRD let out a humorless chuckle, then pointed towards Colette's Huey, whose blades were slowly starting to turn "I want to ride in the forward helicopter, if it's ok with you."
DSR-50 shook her head in confusion, "Of course, but why?"
PTRD grinned, a mischievous glint in her eye, "I spoke with the pilot, she seems like the daredevil type."
"Ah," DSR-50 understood the other rifle doll's motives, PTRD always had a nose for where the most action was going to be, "Be safe, okay?"
"Da, da." PTRD waved a gloved hand dismissively as she walked towards the Huey.
DSR-50 smiled to herself as she climbed into her own helicopter. She took her seat and listened to the chatter over the Zener network.
"All units, this is DSR-50."
She waited for the chatter to die down and informed everyone of the situation.
"Our friends from Outpost 18, along with the local law enforcement are having trouble reaching their objective." She began, "We are going to help them punch through the enemy line."
She looked down at the convoy that was driving with reckless abandon below them.
"Speed is key ladies, we will hit them hard and fast to disrupt them long enough for us to get the rescue convoy moving with us to the evac site."
DSR-50 drew up a quick map with multiple colored lines on it and sent it out over the Zener Network, "Radio transmissions put the convoy on the red line, I want the convoy to move to the roads adjacent to them and provide fire support anyway you can. Expect heavy resistance, including the armored military units that our Sangvis friends now have, so make sure you have armor piercing rounds loaded."
"Ladies, I-" She paused, she didn't know what to say, what could she say? She had spent the past few months doing everything she could just to keep their new commander away from the other dolls on the base. She wasn't ready to lead these girls in battle, much less inspire them to fight. A part of her mind couldn't help but chuckle at the irony of the fact that she was just now getting cold feet over her impromptu coup.
DSR-50 shook her head, "I know things have been difficult for everyone these past few months, but now is not the time to think about it. We've always been proud of the fact that no matter the odds we always come out on top. This time is no different, we will accomplish our mission, and we will make Sangvis pay for every human and doll that was killed here today."
She waited for the cheers to die down before she spoke again, "All units, begin operations."
DSR-50 was probably going to be cored after this operation was over, if she was lucky. As her helicopter lifted off the ground, she caught a glimpse of the convoy speeding into the city. She then looked outside the helicopter and saw the others lift off at the same time.
DSR-50 smiled, getting cored would be worth it.
- Makarov -
- Rescue Convoy -
"Makarov, Gott verdammt, answer me!" G3 was screaming in Makarov's neural cloud over the private link.
"Da, G3?" Makarov answered as she looked for cover, "Is something the matter?"
"Schließlich dachte ich, du wärst gestorben, du absoluter der Dummkopf. Erschrecke mich nicht noch einmal so." Came the reply.
"Calm down before you overload your core, I'm fine." Makarov told G3 as she sprinted across the street to where she saw AK-47 and SVT-38 firing on the Nemuens from cover, a hint of a smile in her voice.
"Für Sie leicht zu sagen, ich habe Ihr Fahrzeug in die Luft fliegen sehen und musste mit dem Schlimmsten rechnen! Niemand aus deinem Team wusste, wo du warst und du hast nicht auf deine Kommunikation geantwortet, ich nehme an, weil du zu sehr damit beschäftigt warst, so zu tun, als wärst du distanziert und kümmerte dich nicht darum, was um dich herum passiert, aber ich kümmere mich um dich, Dummkopf und…" G3 was screaming rapid fire over the comm link, Makarov couldn't keep up, and if she didn't say something G3 would continue to berate her until both of their cores ran out of power.
"Russian or English, spasibo." She interrupted the clearly upset German doll.
A pause, followed by, "What is your situation?" G3 asked calmly.
Makarov took a quick look around and targeted some weak spots on the Nemuens for AK-47 and SVT-38 to exploit. She then tried to call out as many Sangvis units she could find that were firing from windows and rooftops. She watched as the next Kozak in line tried to pull to the front of the convoy. As the third vehicle tried to maneuver past the wreckage, the Nemeums fired.
One round missed and impacted a nearby building, the front wall collapsed, showering the defenders on the street with rubble and glass. The second round impacted just in front of the vehicle and sent rock and asphalt flying through the air, causing more damage.
Makarov could see the windscreen of the vehicle was shattered and heard someone inside screaming. The heat from the blast caused the front tires to melt and smoke started rolling from the engine compartment.
The Berkut officers inside bailed out, one man tried to rescue the screaming driver, but a third round from the Nemeum caused the vehicle to explode killing both men.
Makarov decided to reply on the open comms for all to hear, "Three vehicles down, heavy casualties, and the road is blocked. The Nemeum systems have us dialed in. It would be nice if someone took care of them."
"We're on it!" Spectre's voice called out over the comms.
Makarov turned to see M3 and Spectre sneaking behind the group of Sangvis, each doll had their weapons slung behind their back and what looked like a large brick in each hand.
"How much of that did he give you?" Makarov shook her head, " Nevermind, SVT, AK, run a distraction, keep the enemies attention on us!" she ordered.
The three dolls shifted their fire to the smaller units that surrounded the heavies, dropping several before the incoming fire became so intense that the Griffin dolls could only blind fire behind cover. Makarov began to worry that they wouldn't be able to hold the enemies attention long enough, when two fireteams in Berkut uniforms, lead by Grigori moved forward, firing at targets as they went.
The Berkut officers spread out and took cover behind the burning vehicles and got to work. Vespids on the rooftops started to drop, taking pressure off of Makarov's team, allowing them to actually pick targets before firing. The sheer volume of the combined fire from Makarov and Grigori's team managed to briefly overwhelm the Sangvis units, but not before the Nemeum units could fire again.
Both shots soared over their heads, and two more vehicles erupted in fireballs. Makarov counted three functioning vehicles left.
"Keep firing!" Grigori roared as he let loose a burst from a worn PKM, the rounds tore through a Aegis unit, causing it to fall in heap.
Makarov dumped her magazine on a Guard that had noticed M3 scrambling up one of the Nemuems, but the range was too far and shots bounced harmlessly off of its shield. She marked the target as she reloaded and SVT-38 took its head off. M3 placed a pack near one of the Nemeum's legs and tossed the other down the barrel. She hopped down, unslung her weapon, and fired multiple bursts point blank as she sprinted away from the Sangvis units. Spectre did the same, sprinting the opposite direction.
The Nemeums continued charging their cannons for another salvo, their barrels started glowing a bright blue when the charge packs detonated. The twin explosions lit up the street like two blue suns and completely enveloped the units that were defending the Nemeums. Pieces of Sangvis started raining down all around them.
AK-47 let out a pained curse after a chunk of Nemuem fell on her head. She swore and kicked the chunk, sending it soaring across the street at Makarov who was forced to dodge out of the way. As the dust started to clear, Makarov saw M3 and Spectre sprinting towards them grinning like mad dolls.
"D-did you see that f-fireball?" M3 was shouting in glee as they ran.
"HA!" Grigori crowed, "Now it is a party!"
The Nemeum threat dealt with, the combined team focused its fire solely on the Vespids and Jaegers that had surrounded them on the rooftops and began pouring into the streets from the buildings and alleyways.
"All units, push forward!" Grigori yelled into his radio.
The new lead vehicle navigated around the other wreckage of the earlier attack. The gunner swore as a Jaeger beam barely missed his head. AK-47, SVT-38, and the DShK gunner fired on the Jaeger unit at the same time and Makarov watched the poor Sangvis sniper cease to be.
"That's fuckin right!" the gunner yelled, "I'll kill every single one of you!"
A large bolt of energy struck the gunner, blowing him apart. A long burst of bolts turned the vehicle into a heap of molten slag.
"Kakogo Certa!" SVT-38 and AK-47 cried out in unison.
Makarov saw that what was left of the occupants of the lead vehicle had fused to their seats. She looked around and saw a Manticore was moving towards them.
"Fall back!" Grigori yelled, "Fall back now, vehicle gunners, focus fire!"
The Manticore fired again, and a group of soldiers were ripped apart by the powerful plasma bolts. Makarov tried to mark weak spots like she did with the Nemeums, but the Manticore's cannon rotated towards her and she had just enough time to dive into the asphalt before she felt the bolts soar over her. She leapt up and ran for any cover she could find.
"Makarov, what the hell is happening up there!" G3 yelled in her ear.
"Manticore!" Was all Makarov had time to say before she was fired upon again.
One of the rounds hit near her and she felt herself go flying. Her cry of surprise alerted AK-47 and SVT-38 to her predicament.
"M3, Spectre, get Makarov to safety, we'll cover you!" SVT-38 yelled, "AK what are you doing?!"
AK-47 was slowly walking towards the Manticore, firing and screaming profanities as she did. SVT-38 swore and tried to cover her. She tried to aim at the Manticore's sensor and fired as fast as she could. None of the rounds hit their mark. The Manticore's cannon adjusted it's aim from Makarov and her rescuers, to AK-47.
"That's right mudak," AK-47 screamed as she reloaded her weapon, "I'm who you want, right here!" She raised her weapon and mag dumped.
SVT-38 heard a boom from overhead, and the Manticore's main weapon sensor erupted in a shower of sparks, and SVT-38 saw the gun jerk erratically and send a burst over AK-47's head.
"Oh suka!" AK-47 yelled as she dove for cover.
SVT-38 heard the steady whump whump whump of helicopter blades and looked up to see Colette's Huey hovering above them. A woman with a large rifle worked the bolt on her weapon as M2 aimed at the Manticore and fired. The heavy .50 cal rounds struck the Manticore, and the woman's rifle boomed again.
SVT-38 sprinted out into the middle of the street to where AK-47 was getting to her feet. SVT-38 grabbed AK-47 by the ear and led her to cover.
"Owowowowowowowowowow!" AK-47 complained as SVT-38 released her grip.
"What were you thinking, you could have been killed!" SVT yelled.
AK-47 gave a sheepish shrug, "But Makarov would have survived."
SVT-38 reared her hand back and slapped AK-47 as hard as she could, then pulled her into a hug, unable to hold back her sobs, "Razveh the, chert vozmi, nay pugaesh menia thuck snova, sestra!"
AK-47 let out a chuckle and patted SVT on the back, "Prosty menia, sestra."
AK-47 turned back to the Manticore in time to see another burst from M2 rip through its armor, at the end of the burst another round struck from the rifle and caused the mech to collapse in a heap.
Cheers erupted all around.
"Now's your chance!" Colette yelled over the comms, "Punch through!"
"You heard the lady," Grigori roared, "Move your asses!"
The last block was a blur as the dolls and Berkut officers sprinted to the evac site. The last Sangvis attack fell apart after the bulk of its forces were destroyed. AK-47 and SVT-38 whooped with joy as they carried the wounded Makarov.
Their joy was cut short when they realized that they were the only ones at the evac site making any noise. The convoy formed a loose cluster and Berkut officers ran around looking for anyone to actually evacuate. It soon became clear that everyone at the evac site was dead. Grigori was called to the building's interior, Artem and G3 went with him. As they walked the halls, G3 saw what was left of a brutal fight.
The defenders were clearly trying to fall back and fighting as they went. They found a large open room that held the most bodies. Men and women died clutching everything from firearms to pipes and bricks. More than one Sangvis unit was beaten to death.
G3 saw an old man wearing a faded green coat with the back half of his head missing, lying atop a Ripper unit, the old AK-47 bayonet in his hand still shoved through the Ripper's eye. Behind him was a younger woman's body still covering several young. Grigori walked over to the old man, and gave an appreciative grunt before he bent down and pulled the knife from the Ripper. He patted the man down before coming away with its scabbard.
"A soldier to the end," Grigori muttered before he stood, "Rest well."
He turned and offered the knife to G3, "For your friend, it is a fine weapon that does not deserve to sit around and rust, it is a soldier's weapon."
"How do you know he was a soldier?" G3 asked as she accepted the bayonet.
Grigori gave a grim smile, but said nothing.
Before G3 had a chance to respond, SKS came bursting through the door, "G3, we managed to contact Owen's group!"
G3 turned to face the panting rifle doll, "Ja, and?"
"Owen's wounded, possibly dead, and the team is almost completely wiped out, Colette is going insane, I managed to keep her here long enough for you to give the word to go help." SKS said, on the verge of hysterics.
"Gottverdammt, that crazy yankee would fly into an AA battery for that man." G3 swore before she turned to Grigori.
"Go," he said, cutting her off before she could even speak, "We can handle things here, we'll start off to assist as soon as we can."
G3 nodded her thanks before sprinting back outside with SKS in tow. Colette's Huey was hovering just above the convoy's remaining vehicles, much to the displeasure of everyone on the ground.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" G3 yelled at Colette over the comms.
"I'm going after Owen, come with if you want, stay if you don't, I don't give a fuck, I'm leaving."
G3 swore and looked around, "SVT, stay with Makarov, make sure she is taken care of."
SVT-38 nodded.
"My team, on the helicopter, let's go."
G3 waited until everyone was onboard and got the thumbs up from SIG-550 before she boarded the Huey as well. As they began to lift away, she noticed PTRD inspecting her bolt, while M2 ran a fresh belt into her weapon.
"What happened to the Kommandant?" She asked Colette.
"Not sure," came the clipped reply, "MP-40s transmission was cut off part way through, but I heard her say Lilith was involved."
Everyone went quiet.
"Who's Lilith?" PTRD asked as she closed the bolt on her rifle.
- Misfits Third Team -
Nines waited until she heard Lillith's feet hit the ground behind her before she spun and let loose with a burst from her rifle. Lillith cackled with glee as the rounds tore through her abdomen.
"You have no idea how shitty it was being chained to fucking Agent of all people. Following her around, not getting any play time," Lilith's eyes danced wildly, "At least Alchemist knew how to show me a good time."
Nines dove out of the way as Lilith fired the stolen M500 at her. Nines came out of her roll sprinting and firing. She dodged another blast from the shotgun and dove straight at Lilith. The move caught the ringleader off balance briefly and gave Nines enough time to pull her knife and begin slashing at her target.
Lilith grunted as one of the slashes caught her just below the neck. She grabbed Nines' wrist, and twisted until the knife clattered to the floor. Nines broke free of the arm twist and delivered a kick to Lilith's stomach where she had been shot. Lilith jumped back, one hand still clutching the shotgun, the other holding her wounded stomach.
"You're awfully quick for a Griffin doll," Lilith remarked, panting, "Not quick enough though."
Lilith threw the shotgun up in the air as hard as she could, then leapt at Nines. Nines struggled to block as the blows rained down from every direction. She was being forced slowly backwards until Lilith delivered a haymaker that sent her sprawling to the ground. Lilith lifted an arm, caught the shotgun as it fell, and worked the action.
"Well, this was fun, but I got a schedule to keep." In an instant, Nines was staring at the barrel of the M500.
She closed her eyes.
"Sorry Owen."
Lilith fired.
Once she realized she wasn't dead or full of holes, she opened her eyes to see Owen standing in front her. His right hand gripped around the barrel of the shotgun and pointed it to the sky. She looked at his left arm, skin hung off where it should be broken. Nines could see exposed muscles flexing and blood oozing out as Owen had Lilith's neck in a death grip.
"I am-" Owen growled as he yanked the shotgun out of Lilith's grip, "-tired of dealing with your shit."
Before Lilith could reply, he reared back and smashed the butt of the weapon into her face. Owen watched as she stumbled back, and set her feet. She looked him up and down, licked her lips and grinned.
"There's only one shot left, what are you going to do with that?" She asked.
Owen flipped the gun around, caught it by the grip, chambered the last shell and aimed at Liliith's head, "I am going to use it to fucking kill you."
Lilith's eyes glowed in pure bliss as Owen pulled the trigger.
Excerpt Griffin and Kryuger's Field Manual for Tactical Dolls regarding combat situations:
Section 3, Article 2: In the event that during an active combat situation, a Griffin Commander should be incapacitated, said Commander's Adjutant may take tactical command of all assets under the Commander's jurisdiction until another Griffin and Kryuger Commander can relieve the adjutant of his/her duties.
NOTE: ONLY A G&K COMMANDER CAN EFFECTIVELY RELIEVE AN ADJUTANT UNLESS A THIRD PARTY HAS EXPRESS PERMISSION FROM GRIFFIN HQ.
(An updated list of previously approved parties can be found on the Zener Network under the "Combat Protocols" section. Unauthorized additions to this list will result in dismissal.)
A/N: In terms of goals met for this chapter, I met exactly zero. But I believe in setting the bar so low, you need an excavation team to find it.
In all seriousness this chapter represents the worst writer's block I have ever had to struggle through. In the end, I'm just glad I finally made it through with something that vaguely makes sense.
As always, thanks to my editor, who is the very definition of patience and has in no way whatsoever threatened me to finish this chapter, not even once. (What? Nooooooo, I would never…-ish - Beta Reader)
Special thanks to Johnny Wycliffe for helping me get through this particular hurdle.
PS: No harems. Owen will only sleep with random strippers who pretend to love him. He's a gentleman that way.
Until next time, Whiskey out.
PSPS: I will no longer provide any semblance of realism to this story. It's full send, all the time. Buckle up kids, it's gonna get weird.