Disclaimer: I don't own RvB.
Episode 36: Heeee~re's Meta!
OR
Enter Meta, Stage Right
Dex and Rick arrived at the power plant and were surprised to see Marley, Eagle, and two new helmets. "Well now, who might these two be?" Dex asked, subtly aiming his BR at the purple accented one while Rick palmed a knife while staring at the tan one.
"Phantoms Lock and Clear," Marley said, "but you can call them Ed and Jack. Dex, you'd know Ed better as York." Dex quickly shouldered his rifle, prompting Rick to sheath his knife.
"Good to see you up on your feet, Ed. How's D?" Dex asked, holding out a hand to the tan accented soldier.
"Likewise. D's well," Ed said, grasping Dex's forearm.
"Good to hear. I collected Gary from Wyoming, after I beat him unconscious for what he did to you. Unfortunately, he got away to terrorize Blood Gulch and is now MIA along with Flowdie and Tex," Dex relied.
"Wait wait... who's Flowdie? And who are you?" Jack asked.
"Flowdie is former agent Florida," Rick said. "And we're Agents Maroon and Orange. You can call me Rick."
"Okay... wait. Florida's alive?" Jack said, ignoring Rick's proffered hand for the more startling news. Rick jerked his hand up in an 'eh, fine, whatever' kind of motion before letting it fall back to his side.
"Possibly. There was a crash reported at Valhalla, Outpost 17-B. It could be the ship Flowdie took Tex and Wyoming on, along with O'Malley. I'm hoping Flowdie got out alive but... there is no guarantee," Marley said.
"Right. Anyway, you're the guys Burgundy's been muttering about?" Jack asked, turning back to the two Red Agents who had just arrived.
"Well, I don't know about that, but he's our sniper. Our Eagle Eyes in the Sky," Dex said.
"Dex is the team's weapons expert, as well as the one I owe my life to," Ed told his friend.
"Ah. Right. So... what now?" Jack said, bouncing slightly on his toes. Marley shifted, looking mildly uncomfortable.
"I uh... I might have forgotten that Wash would be taking the Blues to Valhalla and have to fight The Meta before they come here, following The Meta," she said. Dex growled, and that was when Red pulled up.
"Do you have any idea how long it takes to get from Blood Gulch to here?" he growled.
"We're leaving," Dex said, turning sharply toward The Ghost. "No way am I letting Kai anywhere near this Meta creature."
"The former Agent Maine," Marley said. Dex sped up and Rick chased after him, Red not far behind. "Shoulda seen that one comin'," Marley sighed.
"Ya think?" Ed said, jogging after the Reds.
"Whose Kai?" Jack asked.
"Dex's little sister," Marley said, pushing him toward The Ghost.
"Then yeah, you should have expected this," Jack said, running under his own power. Marley shook her head again.
"I'd actually be more worried for Kai if Maine was still in control. So many little voices in your head makes decisions hard to make. Especially if one or more is compromised by a specialty virus," she said, only to have five helmets turn to her at once. "What?"
"What do you mean 'little voices'? And what 'specialty virus'?" Rick asked.
"Well, Meta's collecting A.I. and armor enhancements. I gave Flowdie a virus I've been working on for years, that one I had you look over for me in your spare time Rick. If he did what I think he did, Tex's invisibility enhancement is compromised, and likely Beta as well. Not too sure about O'Malley, but there's a chance. Now, Wyoming's..." Marley said, then got cut off by Dex pulling the time unit out of... she wasn't too sure where, but he pulled it out and showed it to her.
"No need to worry about The Meta time skipping. I've got Gary and the time unit. Spent quite a while at my command figuring out how to work them effectively. Gary and I have... come to an understanding," the weapons expert told her. Marley chuckled.
"You ever use the time unit to fight yourself?" she asked. Dex shrugged.
"Maybe. It's all wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey stuff to me," he said. Marley placed her palms together, finger pointed upwards, and bowed slightly toward the orange agent.
"The Doctor would be proud," she told him. Dex scoffed.
"Nah, I don't think he would. I don't use the time unit like a TARDIS after all. It's much less elegant as well," he said, and Marley was fairly sure he was grinning.
"Are we going to be flying or just stand here yappin'?" Red asked, just as the ship lurched, taking off.
"Answer your question, Red?" Marley asked, easily sitting down. The others weren't quite as lucky and fell over.
"Sorry," Theta's shy, childlike, voice echoed over the ship's PA system.
"It's okay, Theta. You did wonderfully," Marley told the little A.I., who returned to Jack.
"Yeah, though a little warning would be good," Jack told Theta as he pulled himself back up.
"Aw, don't sweat it," Dex said, sounding rather amused, "I bet Marley put him up to it. She's always doing stuff like this." Jack shook his head, but sat down and buckled himself in. "And if it's not Theta, it'll be D or Gary," Dex added. Jack sent him a glare while Rick smacked the back of his head. Ed was laughing, the traitor.
"We'll be arriving at Valhalla in half an hour. That should be plenty of time for the others to arrive. Once they do, we follow and observe. If and when The Meta shows up, we only interfere if needed, understand?" Marley barked. Dex grumbled, but nodded, the others nodding easily. The rest of the trip passed in uneasy silence, the sound of Rick sharpening his vast collection of knives and Dex checking all his many, many guns lulling the former Freelancers into the all too familiar mission mindset.
/*/
Kai watched intently as Wash talked with the Private guarding the wreaked ship. They seemed to be arguing, but without being able to hear, it was a little difficult to tell. Wash shook his head, walking back toward them. She tapped Church. "Cop's coming!" she warned. Church quickly turned to face the returned Wash.
"We have a problem," the Freelancer said with a sigh.
"I hope it isn't a math problem," Caboose said solemnly.
"They've got the crash site locked down," Wash told them with equal solemnity. Kai scoffed.
"What good is traveling with a cop if they can't get you in?" she asked.
"Yeah, and why's we have to walk here? Couldn't we have found out on the radio?" Church groused.
"They said we could use the base if we want," Wash said, though he seemed to know it wouldn't appease the Blues. Kinda sounded like he wasn't appeased either.
"Wow, the empty concrete base? Is it our birthday?" Church asked, heavy on the sarcasm.
"I want cake," Caboose declared seriously.
"Can't we find somewhere nicer to hang out? Hey, maybe there's like a cool nightclub nearby that you can't get us into either. That would be awesome," Church went on as though Caboose hadn't spoken at all. Wash let out an irritated breath, glancing back toward the crash site before he nodded slightly and turned back.
"You three stay here. I'll go draw off the guards. When I give you the signal, use the grav-lift," the Freelancer said, already hefting his weapon once again.
"The what? How do we use it?" Church asked, looking toward the base, confused.
"Just step on it, it'll do the rest. Meet me at the ship," Wash said.
"Okay, what's the signal?" Church asked, turning back around. Kai snickered while her leader stared for a moment. "Gosh darnit, I hate when they do that," Church remarked.
"When they do wha..." Caboose asked, finally turning to look where Wash had been, "hey! Where's Agent Washington?"
"Off distracting the guards," Kai said, already headed inside the base.
"You're very helpful," Church growled, stomping around to follow.
"What do you think he'll do for a distraction?" Caboose asked, meeting the other two at the roof, where the grav-lift was.
"Who knows. Probably like, you know, make a noise, or throw a rock. That's what I would do," Church answered, watching the crash site. A moment later, a distant vehicle got blown up, appearing for a moment in the sky, before falling back to the ground to the sound of a siren. "Or... he could do that," Church said, head drooping slightly.
"I think he is better at distractions than you are," Caboose remarked.
"Yeah," Church said, sounding mildly bitter.
"Okay, come on out. But come quietly," Wash's voice said over their radio. Kai was already moving when Church gave the order to move out.
"Um, yes, I don't want to. Uh, you see, I am scared of the thing that I don't know what it does," Caboose said.
"Aw how bad could it beeeeeeee! Whooooo!" Kai said, accidentally stepping into the grav-lift and being shot through the air. Though, credit where credit was due, she managed to control her flight. Slightly.
"Right. I see your point," Church said, then shook his head and stepped carefully onto the grav-lift. He still ended up being thrown ungracefully through the air, screaming and flailing. He landed, bounced, skidded, hydroplaned off the river, and rolled painfully along the ground until he slammed into a Warthog behind a pair of soldiers near Blue Base all the while making involuntarily 'oof' noises. It definitely wasn't his favorite method of travel, that was for sure. "That was fudging crazy!" he said, a little louder than he should have.
"Did you just say somethin'?" one soldier asked. Church held his breath, even though he was a robot and didn't have breath.
"... Whuh?" the other solider asked, sounding rather unintelligent. Church relaxed slightly and was soon joined by Wash, Kai, and Caboose.
"I said quietly, what part of quite don't you understand?" Wash asked gruffly.
"What part? How 'bout the part where I got thrown eighty feet in the fudging air by the Godiva dratted throwing thing?!" Church retaliated. They sat there, staring at each other, as a tank rolled by. Nodding, they then moved toward the crash site. Kai rolled her eyes and followed, Caboose trailing faithfully behind.
/*/
Once they reached the ship, Wash looked around, hiding behind the blasted metal. "They didn't see us, okay. Stay out of sight. Do you recognize this ship?" Wash asked, nodding toward the beat up hull.
"Yeah, this looks like Tex's ship," Church said.
"Man, whatever happened, this thing took a beating," Kai said, staring. She wasn't wrong. The ship was bent, twisted, gashed, and scorched almost beyond recognition.
"You're telling me," a new voice said from behind. Wash and Church spun around, guns at the ready, to see a soldier in gray armor and sporting cyan accents. "Whoa there! Easy," the soldier said, hands up.
"Flowdie?" Church asked, recognizing the by-now-trademark gray visor of Project Red and the Phantoms.
"Flow Man!" Kai cheered, leaping at him.
"Hey there, Kai," Flowdie said, catching the young woman. "So, you're the one sent out to recover us, huh Wash?" he asked the Freelancer was was warily watching through his gun sights.
"I know you?" he asked coldly. Flowdie chuckled, shaking his head.
"Nah, you probably wouldn't say that. I was reassigned not long after Epsilon was to be implanted in you and the MoI crashed. And before that, I wasn't usually welcome in your little group," he said.
"Who are you?" Wash demanded, his weapon remaining aimed solidly at the newcomer's shoulder.
"Agent Hippie, of Project Red. But you'd know me a bit better as Florida," Flowdie said. Wash's gun came to be aimed squarely between Flowdie's hidden eyes.
"Florida's dead," the Freelancer growled. Flowdie tilted his head.
"That what they tell you about Georgia? Utah? Michigan? Louisiana?" he asked. Wash twitched slightly with each name and Flowdie chuckled. "Truth is, I'm a Phantom, attached to Project Red as a training officer for the Agents. Agent Orange won't be pleased to know you've brought his sister along," Flowdie expounded.
"See? I told you her brother was one scary dude!" Church said, a few feet away from his last position.
"Just because he was trained by Florida doesn't..." Wash began, only to be cut off by Flowdie laughing.
"Oh, I wasn't the one to train Orange, Wash. No. It was Black, formerly known as Oregon," the Phantom told the Freelancer.
"Oregon? But she was a Doc, support. She wasn't..." Wash began, but Flowdie laughed louder.
"Don't you know why she was recruited into Freelancer as an Agent and not a nameless medic?" he asked once he had Wash's attention. "Marlene White, a decorated Army Surgeon, died in a raid on the UNSC base at Drackon. A few days later, Agent Oregon showed up in Freelancer's records. Problem was, the unit she was attached to swore she was alive when they left the site. See, Oregon was Dr. Marlene White, and Dr. White was alive when the marines in her unit got out of there. And she was alive when they came back... only it was Freelancer that came in and cleaned up, taking the bloodied Dr. White with them. She cleared that whole base, Wash, she just didn't want to have to do it again. Oregon purposefully didn't preform well enough to be on the MoI or her leader board. Marley never was one to allow herself to be manipulated like a puppet on a string."
"ENOUGH! What can you tell me about the crash?" Wash shouted, turning away forcefully.
"We were escorting Wyoming, O'Malley, and a couple of Elites to the UNSC when we discovered the space station had been annihilated. We came under fire. The port side got hit, the rear stabilizer was offline, and something was wrong with the clock. If the time unit and Gary hadn't been back in Blood Gulch with Dex, I'd have said he did something hinky to it. I spotted this canyon, tried to land manually. The Elites... they opened the rear doors. I shot them, but by then it was too late. We were going down. Hard. I ran for it, jumping out a few moments before the ship hit. I don't know what happened to Wyoming, he might have been killed in the crash. I've been hiding out ever since the crash. But I did see something large come through. It decimated the Blue Base, then swept through the Red Base. I've been keeping tabs on the Freelancer Goonies, waiting for you," Flowdie relied.
"Matches up," Wash said, slightly less suspicious. Then his shoulders tensed and he brought the gun back up. "Why were you waiting for me?"
"Because... well. Hum. Seems I've backed myself into a corner. Okay. I'll admit it. I knew you were the Recovery Agent assigned to this case. Me and Marley are still in contact with 479er. Poor girl, stuck on a desk job," Flowdie revealed, shaking his head sadly at the fate of the mysterious 479er.
"Right. Well, if you were waiting for me, then I assume you're willing to help me?" Wash said. Flowdie shrugged.
"Don't have anything better to do," he remarked. Wash sighed, shaking his head.
"Okay, so after the ship crashed here, the Blues got here first and unloaded the bodies and equipment. Then they started to get infected."
"But... I deleted O'Malley. Put a virus in... oh no. They messed with Tex's armor, didn't they? Idiots!" Flowdie said furiously, kicking the destroyed Pelican.
"Makes sense. O'Malley could move from suit to suit. For some reason he liked Agent Texas best," Wash said. Flowdie shook his head.
"I don't see what O'Malley has to do with the situation here, Washing Boy. I infected Tex's suit with a virus to delete any A.I. inhabiting the suit as well as muck up the systems of anyone who tried to ransack her body," he said testily, crossing his arms. Wash was fairly certain the usually laid back man was glaring death at him.
"I think I liked you better when you were a silent rules follower," Wash declared gruffly.
"So... am I the only one lost right now?" Church asked, looking from one Agent to the other. Kai chuckled and threw an arm around the robotic soldier's shoulders.
"Nah man, we're all lost," she said, far too cheerfully.
"Back to the matter at hand?" Wash asked. "You said Gamma was back in Blood Gulch with Dex. How did Dex manage that?"
"He was called to go on a mission with Tex, before her demise. Going after Wyoming, as a matter of fact," Flowdie said. "When Wyoming hit York, Dex went a little... Tex on him."
"Again, told you he was scary!" Church said, looking at Kai.
"Again, he's an over protective teddy bear!" the girl maintained, crossing her arms stubbornly.
"Right. So. Washington, where's your A.I?" Church asked, likely hoping to change the subject to something he could actually talk about.
"I don't have one. Any more. It's a long story..." Wash began, only for Flowdie to take over.
"When the A.I. fragment Epsilon was implanted... it was revealed to be unstable and lost control inside Wash's head. It messed him up pretty badly, and put him off A.I., rather understandably if you ask me," he said.
"Hum. We have a lot in common, Agent Washington," Caboose said seriously, though it was a little hard to tell from the way he spoke.
"No, we don't. And don't ever say that again," Wash contradicted.
"Actually, Caboose has had three other intelligence units inside his head. Two of them took issue with the third and opened fire at him. O'Malley fled, possessing the medic who was stranded in the canyon," Flowdie informed him quietly. Wash shot him a look.
"You're sure?" he asked, just as quietly.
"Oh yeah. I'm sure. Poor kid's just as messed up as you were. I think he's still trying to pick up the pieces, as it were," Flowdie confirmed.
"Aw man," Wash said, then turned away as Command contacted him. "I have you Command, level zero. Go ahead." Flowdie looked around, idly wondering if Marley had arrived or not. "I'm receiving here too. Standing by." Flowdie looked toward him sharply while Church asked,
"What was that?"
"The was my recovery beacon. It means an A.I. somewhere is in jeopardy and I have to find it before... something... else, does," Wash replied, a little shifty about what, exactly, he was 'rescuing' the A.I. from. "Receiving coordinates for recovery target. Do we have an ID?" Flowdie watched in slight trepidation as Wash's fist clenched, presumably in anger, before he bit out, "Agent South. Yes. Yes, she is." Flowdie sighed.
"Revenge missions are ill suited to you, Wash," he said. Washington, in true Freelancer fashion, ignored him. "And now we're off to 'take care of' South. Isn't that just brill?" the Phantom Agent remarked dully as Washington marched past him. Only Caboose didn't agree with the dry sarcasm in the man's voice.
/*/
Kai wasn't too sure what to make of the current situation. She was sitting behind a cop on a Mongoose driving straight at a huge, hulking, knife-rifle wielding guy who was shooting grenades at some other person inside a bubble. "There they are!" Wash shouted, making Kai wince from the volume.
"New targets encountered," a soft, calm voice said from the direction of the grenade proof bubble.
"Don't let it get near her!" Wash ordered, pulling his battle rifle from his back and firing, one handed, at the large grenade launcher wielding dude. In true Blue fashion, the team managed to crash all their vehicles, though the freakin' grenade gun being fired at them might have had something to do with it. Kai found herself crouched behind a rock with Flowdie, keeping her head down and trying not to get hit, while the male tried to shoot the big guy.
"And don't let her get away!" she heard Wash order. Church's voice came over her radio.
"Her? Isn't she a Freelancer like you?" he asked, a certain amount of venom in his voice.
"Yeah, just don't let her leave!" Wash replied, still shooting and still being ineffective.
"Okay! Caboose!" Church barked at the simple soldier.
"Hello."
"Hey, see that purple one? She's on our team. You should help her," Church said, presumably pointing out the person they'd come to 'take care of,' as Flowdie had called it.
"Okay!" Caboose said cheerfully. Kai heard a gunshot and a feminine cry of,
"Ah, my stomach!" followed by the cool, clam voice from before stating that there was friendly fire.
"Um, she got in the way when I was trying to help her," Caboose said.
"Okay, we're good!" Church called to Washington.
"Drat. It's gone invisible," the cop said. "Keep an eye on your motion tracker, and watch your perimeters, look for a shimmer."
"If he took Tex's active camouflage, then we might not be in as much of a bind as you think," Flowdie said, though Kai wasn't taking any chances. She may have been stupid, but she was still a Grif, and if there was one thing Grifs had, it was self preservation instincts. Sure they may not have been working properly when she first met Tex, but they were working at the moment!
"Cover me!" Church shouted, jumping over his wall and rushing the last spot they'd seen the big guy.
"Church! Drat. Caboose! Cover him!" Wash ordered. "Grab some of those spike grenades."
"What?! No! Don't let Caboose help me!" Church panicked, making him a perfect target for the monster. Stupid Church. The monster decloaked and fired at Church. "There it is! Hey, how 'bout a little help here?!" Church asked, somehow dodging the round.
"On it! Caboose, toss that grenade!" Wash responded. Kai just sat back and watched, seeing as the main threat was focused elsewhere. She saw Caboose throw the grenade... and it stick to the wall. Over the radio, she heard Washington dryly remark, "That was the worst throw ever. Of all time." Flowdie chuckled.
"Still have that verbal tick huh? Good ol' Washington, that little rascal," he remarked, sounding like that strange uncle who would give you pink daises on your birthday and call you 'sweetcakes.'
"And you wonder why Black calls you 'Hippie'," Church remarked dryly. Flowdie growled quietly and cuffed the back of his head.
"Where did it go?" they heard Washington ask, capturing their attention. "What happened?"
"You don't remember? You threw a grenade that landed between us. But don't worry, I saved you," Caboose said, twisting the facts to make him sound better.
"It suddenly had a spasm and ran off making a rather pitiful keening sound. What's wrong with you? Why didn't you tell us it could use equipment?" Church said, ignoring Caboose.
"I tried! You didn't listen!" Wash argued.
"And why didn't someone give me something to yell about?!" Caboose yelled, just for the heck of it. The prone figure started to groan, causing everyone to congregate at her position.
"Delta, are you here?" Wash asked.
"Right behind you, Agent Washington," the calm voice said, though there seemed to be more emotion in it. Everyone turned suddenly to see six figures on the ridge line.
"Long time no see, partner," one of them said. Wash made an odd noise, and if Kai didn't know better, she'd have said he was gaping. The six came closer, and then one of them bopped Kai on the head.
"Ow! What was that for?" she asked.
"I really need to make myself an identifying mark," the figure muttered darkly before he looked back toward her. "And it was for running off with a gosh darn Freelancer!" he added angrily. Kai heard Flowdie, Church, and Caboose shift backwards away from her.
"D~ex~!" she whined, rubbing a hand over the top of her helmet.
"Oh don't you 'D~ex' me missy!" Dex scolded, ignoring the others.
"But... !" the younger Grif tried, only to be cut off by the infamous Agent Black.
"A-HEM," Marley cleared her throat, causing Dex to twitch. "Code Freelancer here. Really appreciate it if you could blow up at your sister after we get this all settled." Dex sighed heavily, but turned to the rest of the group.
"Fine. But let's wrap this up quickly. Kai and I need to have a talk," he snarled, shooting her a look she was fairly sure was nasty.
"Wonderful! Now, South, any particular reason you're the one with my Dummy!Delta?" Marley asked the slowly standing South.
"Not that I'm telling you," the Freelancer responded. The dark figure twitched then stood at attention.
"Dummy! Report!" Marley barked.
"Before Agent Washington arrived, South attempted to turn me over to the Meta, to save herself," the hologram by South's shoulder reported.
"Really," Wash asked, not sounding surprised in the least. One of the figures who'd come with Marley flinched a little, but otherwise didn't react.
"Much like she wounded you to escape in our previous encounter with it, Agent Washington. And as I have learned in our travels, her brother North suffered a similar fate," the hologram went on.
"What a team player," Wash remarked sarcastically, fingering his magnum. Kai was starting to feel a little uneasy around him, to be honest. He seemed a little... trigger happy.
"It is highly probable that she will turn on us again soon, and in her current condition, she will only slow us down," Dummy continued.
"That's enough, Dummy. Load into Ed's armor and sync," Marley ordered, one of the men who came with her holding out a hand. The hologram vanished and a copy appeared by the man's shoulder.
"Dummy was an apt name, Marley. I am surprised that he was even able to run her domed shield," the new hologram said, sounding vaguely insulted. The man chuckled.
"Easy, D. Keep that tone and I might mistake you for the Disgust fragment rather than Logic," he said.
"York?" Wash asked, sounding a little strangled.
"Ed. Easy enough mistake I suppose. So! What's been up with you Wash?" the man replied.
"You're dead! I recovered your body myself!" Wash exclaimed, pointing dramatically at the man.
"Heh, yeah, see, Orange here wasn't about to let that happen. Black agreed. They faked my death, with a little help from D," Ed said, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head. Wash looked toward Dex.
"You saved York's life?" he asked. Dex shrugged.
"He was one of the decent Freelancers, Washington. He was suited to the Logic A.I. Don't tell me you'd let him die, had our roles been reversed?" he responded.
"Ugh, so you mean I still haven't had an A.I.?" South grumbled.
"Sad to say... yeah. You've never had an A.I. And Meta has a Dummy!Theta as well," Marley answered.
"So. What now?" Flowdie asked. Marley glanced at him, then turned to South.
"Now, we decide what to do with her," she said. Wash looked at Ed.
"Delta? Any suggestions?"
"Dex isn't the only one who needs to have a talk with his sister, Wash," the man who'd flinched when it was revealed that South had shot Wash in the back said, staring at South. It was then decided that Rick would make sure the Dakota Twins didn't kill each other, Eagle and Red would ensure the same of the Grif Siblings, and Wash would catch up with Ed. Marley and Flowdie also had a reunion, but theirs involved crashes, bangs, and girly screams with an undercurrent of maniacal laughter. No-one wanted to get in the middle of that. They rather wanted to keep what little sanity they had left, thank you very much.
/*/
Nearly an hour later, it was revealed that Flowdie had survived Marley's worry fueled wrath, Wash saw York as a cool older brother, Kai just really didn't want to be alone, Dex had a sister complex, Eagle could annoy Red without speaking, Ed saw Wash as the annoying little brother he'd never had, Rick was annoyed, Jack was mildly depressed, and Caboose had shot South while she was attempting to steal Theta. The little A.I. was mildly traumatized by the whole experience. "Well... that could have gone better," Marley remarked once the whole story had been told.
"Ya think?" Jack remarked sullenly. Marley gave him what amounted to a flat stare.
"Come now, Jack. You and I both knew she was not only a flight risk, but a health risk. Her psyche was... damaged. Possibly more so than Wash's after the Epsilon Incident. She was driven mad by the competitive environment the Director set up. She shot you in the back! She shot Wash in the back! She nearly gave Meta Delta! Granted it wasn't the real Delta and wouldn't have been able to run the healing unit Meta took off a downed Wash, but still! And she was going to dump her dome shield along with Delta! Think about it, Jack. Active camo, an energy shield, a healing unit, and a localized E.M.P, all loaded into one monster suit of armor, with A.I. capable of running it all. That's what she nearly unleashed on us, Jack! And if I weren't around, that's exactly what Meta'd get, along with Gamma and Wyoming's time unit," she told the soldier, who looked away, presumably chastised. "Now, Delta, you saw the battle, do you think Meta's systems might be damaged?"
"Affirmative. The power-plant we came from is likely where he went," the green A.I. answered. Marley nodded and herded the living members toward her ship, before Wash said,
"Excuse me, I need to go blow up that dead body," and put actions to words, shooting South several more times with his battle rifle, blowing her up with a plasma grenade, then some crates, and finally some power core looking things.
"Finished?" Marley asked blandly as he came jogging back.
"Yep. Now lets move," Wash answered, far too evenly, hopping into The Phantom. Marley shook her head.
"Epsilon really did a number on you," she muttered, closing the hatch.
"You don't say," Wash snarked, strapping himself in. Marley sighed heavily.
"Dex, why don't you and Flowdie take the controls. There are a few things I want to go over with our new arrivals," she said. Dex nodded and left for the cockpit, already engaged in a fierce rock-paper-scissors battle with Flowdie over who got primary control over the ship. "Right, now that that's... more or less settled," Marley said, shaking her head at the childishly feuding Agents and turning back to the rest of the passengers, "I'd like to talk teams."
"I ain't teaming with no dirty Blue!" Red immediately declared, pumping a round into the chamber of his shotgun.
"Duly noted, Red. But that's not what I meant," Marley said, pulling out a tablet and laying it on the floor. An expanded holograph projected upward and she turned to Rick. "Really gotta thank you for working this out buddy," she said, causing Rick to shrug unselfconsciously, before turning to the list of names hanging in the air. "Blue Team currently has four members in total; Caboose, Church, Kai and Tucker. Red Team officially has five members: Red, Dex, Rick, Eagle, and Lopez. Unofficially, me and Flowdie are attached to Red Team as mentors. That leaves Wash, Ed, and Jack. I consider it a foregone conclusion that Wash shall join Blue Team as a mentor, thus bringing them up to five. That leaves three Phantoms without an official Team and five Blues to six Reds. Ed, Jack, either of you willing to join Blue Team?" she said, turning to the remaining ex-Freelancers.
"Wait wait wait, why is it a foregone conclusion that I'd join those losers?" Wash asked, jerking a thumb at Church and Caboose.
"Because it is? Because I saw it? Because you know they need help? Because you know what it's like being the lowest of the low? Because I said so? Because if you don't Caboose will be sad? Because you're a big softie? Because Dex is still mad at you for taking Kai?" Marley remarked. Jack noticed the sniper rifle in Church's hands.
"Hey, Church, can you actually fire that?" he asked. Church shuffled and Marley, along with Rick and Eagle, chuckled evilly.
"Barely," they chimed together. Jack nodded.
"I'll join Blue Team and try to teach Church how to use his rifle," he said. Eagle pulled out a notebook and handed it to him.
"My notes, from when I tried to teach him. I find whacking him helps the lessons stick. Slightly," the burgundy sniper explained, motioning toward the book. Jack sighed, wondering what he'd just gotten himself into.
"I'd like to join Red Team," Ed said, causing everyone to look at him in surprise. "What?"
"Why?" Marley asked, though secretly she was dancing in glee. She had a teacher for Rick! He was shaping up to be a decent infiltration specialist.
"I remembered what Dex had told me about his skill set. I want to see if I can help him learn how to pick locks. And possibly extend his range," Ed said.
"Wonderful! But that means that we need to call in other Phantoms to join Blue Team to even things back out," Marley responded. "Wash, Jack, I'd like you to pick a Blue to mentor, though team training is greatly encouraged. Kai's my personal student, by request of her brother. Any questions, complaints, or requests?" she told them, looking around curiously. How she managed that kind of emotion with a full face helmet, the others weren't too sure, but they had begun to notice that all the Reds and Blues had the ability. It was rather impressive to be honest.
"Yeah, what made you think I..." Wash began before Marley cut him off with a gesture.
"Right right right, the Meta. His armor is infected with a virus, curtsey of Flowdie and Tex, who voluntarily uploaded it herself. Sorry Church, that version of her is gone, but on the upside, she's not trapped in the Meta's head with Sigma. Ugh, not a place I'd like to be. Anyway, we'll capture him at the power-plant and then turn him over to the UNSC, along with the A.I. units he's gathered. A bit of fast talking ought to get Wash off the hook, and if it doesn't, we can fake his death while busting him out of prison. Dex gets Meta's Brute Shot by the way. No way am I cheating him of that piece of beautifully brutal weaponry," she said. Wash shook his head at her, but allowed her plan to go through, still not knowing that Church was the Alpha A.I. It was best he didn't. Not until the time was right.
/?/
A/N: Yeah. Just... yeah. So! Which former Freelancers do you want brought in? Drop a review with your choice!