Ch 16
"How long was I out?" Wash asked, waking up, seeing North, South, and Six looking over him.
"Only a few days this time." North said.
"This time?" Wash asked.
"Yeah. After they removed it." North said.
"Removed it?" Wash asked, reaching to the back of his head.
"It's gone. They're going to remove all of them. Started with you." North said.
"Yeah. Thanks asshole. The whole process is on hold now." South bitterly said.
"South, that was the result of a malfunctioning AI. Not Washington." Six said.
"Whatever." South said.
Out of the blue, Six threw a punch in South's direction, hitting her in the chest and sending her flying against the wall, knocking her out.
"Finally. Some peace and quiet. Carolina said she was going to see the director. Haven't seen her since." Six said.
"The director is sending her to hunt down Texas." North said.
"Why would that happen?" Six asked.
"Don't know. Heard that she went rogue and attacked Wyoming." North said.
"That doesn't sound like Tex. She wouldn't just go after a freelancer like that." Six said.
Suddenly, an alarm sounded announcing Tex's return.
"That doesn't sound good." Six said, as he and North left the room.
As he headed to grab weapons, Tex spoke to him on a secure line.
"Six, if you can hear me, listen carefully. I know the director is doing highly illegal practices. Both with the agents, and with the AIs. I need to break inside and get the Alpha AI." Tex said.
"Never heard of it." Six said.
"Okay. Are you for or against the director?" Tex asked.
"Right now, I'm against what the director is doing. He should have known the AI wash received was defective. God knows what else he's been doing." Six said.
"That's not even close to what I know. You can either stay out of the fighting, or fight with me." Tex said.
"I've had enough fighting. I'll stay neutral and let the dust settle." Six said.
"Good. If we crash on a planet, run. Just run as far and as fast as you can." Tex said.
Six heeded her advice and settled in an empty room. He closed the door, aimed a shotgun at the bottleneck, and waited. He opened the comms and listened to the chatter.
Gunfire echoed across the ship, as the freelancers fought it out against one another. A loud noise and shuddering was heard. The lights flickered, and the gravity went off in some parts of the ship. Including the area he was in.
"Well, there goes my cover." He muttered.
Six opened the door, and sailed thru the gravity less corridors, using this suits EVA thrusters to avoid any debris and dead bodies. He also killed anyone who was dumb enough to take a potshot at him.
Making his way to the bridge, he heard as Carolina and Tex fought.
"Give it up, Carolina." Tex said.
"Never. I can beat you." Carolina said.
"No. You can't." Tex growled, as she kicks a door towards Carolina, who barely misses it. Both freelancers fell towards the observatory glass, as the Mother of Invention headed towards the nearby planet.
Six enters the bridge, and watches as the heat builds up from entering he atmo.
"Guys, we're about to land hard!" Six shouts, as he prepares himself for a hard landing.
The side of the ship hits a mountain, causing them to fly off-course, where they crash onto the snow. Everyone is knocked off their feet. Six stands up and heads outside the ship. He notes Agent Texas land next to him. The two look ahead, and see Agent Main approach Carolina.
The bigger freelancer grabbed Carolina by the throat and ripped her two AI out, accompanied by her screams. Maine then threw Carolina off the ledge.
"No!" Tex shouted, as she and Six ran towards Maine. Unslinging his brute shot, he menacingly turned towards the two freelancers.
Tex ran away, while Six ran towards the ledge and jumped after Carolina. His Spartan time saw that Carolina pulled out her grappler and fired upward. The cable caught onto the ice and she slowed her descent. Six reached out and grabbed the ice, slowing his descent.
"You okay?" Six yelled to Carolina.
Carolina didn't speak, in shock of what happened.
"We need to get out of here! Or we're dead!" Six stated.
Carolina nodded her head and continued to rappel down the high mountain.