RED vs. BLUE
REVIVE
CHAPTER 7: NO CALM BEFORE THE STORMS
The team stood in Kimball's office; armored up with their weapons in hand. Kimball was staring out at the city through her wide-pane window.
"This isn't good." Kimball stated as she turned around to see the heroes. "I've put a lot of thought into it, but I think it's best we put you all into hiding."
"Whoa, what the fuck? Why?" Tucker snapped.
"Because! Those three will obviously try to hunt you all down!" Kimball explained.
"No offense, but I think we can take care of ourselves." Tucker stated as he snapped his wrist; causing the alien sword to light up. Kimball sighed.
"I know you all can. You have proven yourselves time and time again to be very capable of defending yourselves, but this could get ugly." Kimball said, trying to hide back her fear.
"No offense, Ms. Kimball, but a soldier never runs away from a fight." Sarge stated. "And if it's a fight they want, then they got one."
Kimball sighed and looked to Wash and Carolina, in hopes that they'd jump in to support her side of things, but everyone was surprised when the building began to tremble violently.
"What the-?!" The team reached out, grabbing the nearest comrades in hopes to steady themselves from falling. Kimball nearly fell over her desk.
An alarm blared overhead and echoed through the building as the violent shaking stopped abruptly. A guard ran into Kimball's office.
"Ms. Kimball! We need to evacuate!" The guard announced.
"What was that?" She asked as she steadied herself.
"A bomb!" The guard announced. "Ms. Kimball. Please, follow me!" The alarm continued to blare as everyone surrounded Kimball. They walked in unison as they all began to descend the building to its lower quarters.
They heard the sound of heavy footsteps as guards and military ran in unison to put out the blaze that was growing on one of the building. Smoke filtered its way up the halls. Paper and glass laid strewn along the once cleaned floors.
Everyone made it outside and watched as military personnel ran up to the building with several water hoses and began to dose the flame that had rose out of the windows.
Paramedics screeched to a halt as they arrived and ran to attend to the clearly wounded bodies that laid across the ground.
"This is awful." Carolina muttered.
"Can we do anything?!" Tucker asked one of the soldiers as he began to run by.
"Um, of course sir. We need help carrying some wounded out of the building." The soldier stated and then continued to run. Tucker matched his pace and followed beside him into the building.
"Let's go, men!" Sarge barked and charged after them. Grif and Simmons went with no hesitation and began to go through the debris and rubble to find any and all wounded. Caboose and Donut helped lift a piece of rubble off of a vehicle and extracted a soldier that was almost crushed by the weight.
Wash eyed Carolina, as she seemed hesitant to leave Kimball's side.
"Carolina, go ahead. Virginia, Kaikaina and I will stay by Kimball's side." He nudged at her. Carolina nodded, feeling safe to leave the two Freelancers (and Grif's sister) by her side and ran out to help in the commotion.
A paramedic rushed to Kimball, and she motioned them to leave.
"I'm fine. I'm not hurt. Please, go on and help the others." She ushered. The paramedic nodded and took off. Kimball looked at Wash and Virginia, who were looking over at the devastation that laid before them. Kaikaina went nearby to assist a paramedic with getting someone on a stretcher.
"You know what I'm thinking…," Wash thought out lout. Virginia nodded.
"This was them." Virginia stated.
"How can you be so sure?" Kimball asked as she stood between them.
"Just… a gut feeling." Wash said in a monotone voice.
Dylan Andrews arrived at the scene of the devastation, just as the military began roping off the area. Carolina noticed the reporter and ran up to her.
"How you doing? Everyone okay?" asked Dylan.
"Several dead. Several wounded. Nobody on the Reds and Blues; we were up in Kimball's office when it happened." Dylan felt relieved that none of them were hurt, but she felt saddened by her relief. There were still so many casualties.
"You're not going to believe this, Carolina." Dylan said softly. Carolina looked at Dylan with concern.
"What?"
"This…" Dylan began to say. Wash and Virginia rushed over, and Dylan nodded her head to the two. "Who is your new friend?" She asked, looking over the silver armor on the female soldier.
"This is Agent Virginia – the Freelancer that reached out to us, thanks to seeing your story expose about us." Carolina explained.
"Pleased to meet you." Dylan said. Virginia nodded.
"Same. I guess I should be thanking you. I'd still be in that underground bunker if you didn't show that my colleagues were still alive." Virginia said.
"Let's not get distracted. What were you going to tell me?" Carolina leaned in closer to Dylan. Dylan sighed and held out a piece of paper to her. Carolina, confused, took the letter and opened it.
"This was sent to my office, addressed to me on the envelope. I had a feeling once I heard the news of their break-out, that I'd be receiving some form of 'fan mail'." Dylan explained as she watched Carolina's reaction. She paused, fearing how she would react.
She'll either hit someone or kill someone, thought Dylan.
"Those bastards!" screamed Carolina.
"W-What's the matter? What's it say?!" Wash asked. Carolina slammed the letter into Wash's chest.
"It was them! Temple, Cronut and Bucky! They did this!" Carolina said as she waved a hand over the chaos that was going on around them. Wash nodded to himself, knowing he was right.
"Did I hear that correctly?" Kimball was mere feet away when she heard the news. She stepped closer to them. "Those monsters." She hissed.
Wash looked at the letter and read over it.
Surprise.
To our dear friends of the Red and Blues, along with Agents Wash and Carolina, we regret to inform you that your lives are now in total jeopardy.
But not just your lives, the lives of everyone you know and saved.
Starting with Kimball.
UNSC soldiers will BURN.
Also, did we hear correct that a new Freelancer has joined your party?
You'd be awfully surprise on how we know that.
Chorus will burn. The Reds will burn. The Blues will burn.
Revenge is, as I've said, a dish best served cold.
But we think it's time to turn up the heat.
T.
Wash felt a lump in his throat as he gripped the letter into his fist.
"Dylan, any leads on who broke them out?" Carolina asked. Dylan shook her head.
"None. There was no trace of D.N.A. left behind at the scene… but there was something concerning."
"What was concerning?"
"The guards that were killed… were stabbed. There were able to determine the wounds were made from a katana." Dylan explained. Virginia's body tensed.
"A katana…?" Virginia repeated; her voice lightly trembling.
"Does that ring a bell?" Dylan asked. Virginia nodded. Carolina and Wash stared at Virginia, waiting for her response.
"West… he used…" Virginia's voice began to break.
"Holy shit." Wash suddenly had the realization. "West used a katana."
"But, he died!" Carolina exclaimed.
"But they stripped him of his armor and his weapons!" Virginia cried out. "They took his katana!"
"So whoever the person was that killed West, could he have…?" Wash's head began to throb with the beginning stages of a migraine.
"Who's West?" Dylan asked.
"A Freelancer that was murdered." Carolina explained softly.
"He was decapitated." Virginia choked out.
"So this murderer has Freelancer equipment and weaponry, and broke out the bad guys?" Dylan asked as she began to put the puzzle pieces together in her head.
"They mentioned Virginia in the letter." Wash looked down at the letter that was crumbled in his fist. He hadn't unclenched it. "Son of a—"
Everyone was grouped together into the elevator, along with Kimball and two bodyguards. The elevator dinged as the doors slid shut and they began to descend.
"This is the President's hidden bunker. Nobody knows of this location, unless of high importance – the 'need to know' basis." Kimball explained. "The UNSC will patrol the area above ground."
"How long are we staying here?" Donut asked.
"Until we think of a plan." Wash replied.
"There's plenty of food down here, individual rooms, showers, a training facility, armory… I think you'll all have what you need." Kimball stated as the elevator came to a halt. The doors slid open and the ground looked out to see a massive room.
Each wall was lined with several doors. Off to the corner, they could see a fully functional kitchen. The center of the room had a teleprompter that hung down from the ceiling, and a line of couches that faced it for best viewing angles.
"The showers are to the right. You can't miss it." Kimball said as she pointed a hand in the direction. "These rooms over here are for all of you." Kimball pointed to the opposite wall, then her finger went to the hallway that was near the kitchen. "The armory and training room is down that hall. Please pick whichever rooms you want to sleep in. Help yourself to the fridge. My guards go shopping daily to restock."
"Can they pick me up some beer?" Grif asked. Sarge glared at him and mumbled angrily, when Kimball responded.
"There's already some in there. What? You don't think I like to have the occasional drink?" Kimball chuckled. "There's also some wine."
Kimball then pointed straight. "That door is my room." A golden array of statuesque flowers lined the border of the door. "Feel free to come to me if you need anything." Kimball nodded to the heroes and went to her room. The guards stood on the opposite sides of the door with their weapons ready.
"Oooh! I want the first room!" Caboose rushed to the door and swung it open. A nice, comfy full-sized bed was against the wall. A night stand was next to it, with a single light. A desk was in the corner with a computer set up, and there was a full standing wardrobe beside it. "It needs some color. And kitty pictures." Caboose stated as he heaved his duffle bag inside.
"Oh I'm totally gonna use the computer. Don't come knocking if there's a sock on the door!" Tucker stated before he stepped in the next room and shut the door with a hurry.
Everyone claimed a bedroom and unpacked their duffle bag.
Grif was at the fridge, setting up a tray of crackers and cheese. His stomach growled loudly with hunger as he hummed with joy.
"Not surprised to find you here." Kaikaina stated as he grabbed a bottle of wine.
"Great minds, think alike!" Donut said as he entered the kitchen. He was out of his armor, wrapped in a towel.
"Dude, Donut. What the hell are you doing?" groaned Grif as he shut the fridge door with his heel.
"Wine and cheese time!" Donut explained. "Kai, care to join me?"
"Abso-freakin-lutely!" Kaikaina chimed and they went off to partake in their drinking and cheese. Grif rolled his eyes and returned to his room, shoving a cracker and cheese combo into his mouth before he entered.
Simmons returned to his room after having a shower. He moved quickly so nobody could see him out of his armor. He dropped the towel from around his hips and began getting into his comfortable pair of basketballs shorts and a maroon tank top. A mirror faced him on the wall above the computer, and he glanced at it. He could still see the patchy skin fused with cybernetic parts that Sarge had composed all those years ago. It ran along one of his arms, and he could see the wires go into his armpit. The metallic shine disappeared underneath his tank top.
He collapsed into his bed and laid on his back; staring at the ceiling. He thought about the events that unfolded earlier in the day when a light knock distributed his thinking.
"Come in."
The door creaked open and he saw Virginia poke her head in. She was out of her armor with her hair hanging down. He didn't realize her hair that was long.
"May I come in?" She asked, shyly. Simmons sat up, his heart starting to race.
"Um, yeah. Sure. Okay. Yeah, yeah. Come in!" He began to fumble of his words as he motioned for her to enter. She gave a small smile and stepped in, then leaned back against the door to shut it behind her. Simmons noticed in her hand was a bottle of wine.
"Care to partake?" She asked as she stepped closer. "I didn't want to drink alone." She admitted as she sat next to him on the bed. Simmons couldn't help but look her over. She was wearing a pair of blue short shorts and an oversized T-shirt that hung off of one of her shoulders. Her hair was partially wet, and assumed she must have just showered. She smelt like mint, soap and clean.
"Yeah, sure. Why not?" He took the bottle by the neck, twisted off the cap and brought to his lips. He put his head back and swigged, then swallowed. "That doesn't taste too bad."
"Blackberry." Virginia explained and took the bottle back from him, then took a sip for herself. Simmons gave a slight nod, feeling his palms get sweaty. He wondered if Virginia could see his pulse through his neck, and began to get more nervous.
"I didn't know you had cyborg parts." Virginia said as she put a hand over his bicep, where the metal-rod and wires glistened in the light.
"Oh, yeah. Sarge had me donate some body parts to Grif after he was shot with a tank and… yeah." Simmons looked down at his lap. "I feel like Frankenstein."
"You mean Frankenstein's monster." Virginia corrected. Simmons blinked in surprise and looked over at her.
"Yeah, you're right. How…?" He was baffled.
"One of my favorite books growing up." She admitted as she took another sip and passed the bottle back to Simmons. "And you don't look like a monster to me."
Simmons felt his cheeks grow red as he took a sip from the bottle.
"T-Thank you. You mean that?" He finally got the courage to look at her face, and stared at her blue eyes.
"Absolutely." She smiled, then reached over him to take the bottle back. As she leaned over him, he could smell more of her conditioner. He felt his heart pounding against his ribs.
"What else you like to read?"
"Hmm… stuff about psychology and philosophy. Aaand… don't tell anyone this, or I'll kill you." She paused as she glared at him. He put his hands up to surrender.
"I won't. I promise."
"I like… sci-fi." She smiled and took a big chug of the bottle. Simmons eyes widened.
"Me too! I have this book—," Simmons dove to his duffle bag and fished through the contents to pull out a book. "It's about a man who time travels—," He held the book up proudly so she could see the cover.
"I read that!" Virginia exclaimed.
"You have?" Simmons voice rose with excitement.
"It's so good! But the ending is sad. I won't spoil it!" She drew her fingers over her lips to make a zipping motion.
"This is great! I never have anyone to talk about this stuff with." Simmons said as he bounced back onto the bed. He put the book on the nightstand and looked back at her. She rubbed her eyes, tiredly.
"Alcohol getting to you?" He asked.
"No." She said dryly. Simmons smirked and took the bottle from her hand, then placed it on the night stand.
"I think so. You've had enough." Virginia swatted at his hand, but let him take the bottle reluctantly.
"Pffft. Party pooper." She said playfully. There was an awkward pause that lingered in the air and Simmons found his heart racing again. "Simmons?"
"Yeah?" He looked at her tired, sad eyes. The bags beneath the blue orbs were noticeable, and he thought that maybe she was having trouble sleeping. He began to remember about Dr. Grey stating she had night terrors…
Virginia suddenly laid down in his bed and put her head on his pillow. "Can I sleep next to you?" Her hand ran along his robotic arm slowly. "Please?"
Simmons heart jumped into his throat, then he laid back into the bed, resting his head on the pillow. He couldn't help but hear sadness in her voice – as if she were pleading.
"Of course you can." He whispered. A smile came to her lips and her eyes instantly shut. He reached up with his human hand and tucked a string of hair behind her ear. Her breathing was calm and it seemed like she instantly passed out. Simmons reached down and put the blanket over them. He closed his eyes; not bothering to turn off the desk lamp that was next to the bed.
The bed was still, and he felt his nerves begin to calm.
Maybe the wine helped, he thought.
