Part 4: Cranky hATEr, nO POINT redONE
-CHEVRON, WAKULLA COUNTY; 23:35, FOUR DAYS TO ELECTION-
The gas station was an absolute fiery mess. The renegade sought to hide here, but he underestimated Tabane's tracking abilities, as well as the local populace's vigilance. Tabane followed him all the way out of Tallahassee, where she at last confronted him at the gas station.
Five minutes before some Spec Ops pilot blew it up in classic action film fashion.
Sokoto lifted himself out of a window opening in the rubble, using his shield as protection and a guide. He hoisted Tabane to safety before clawing himself into fresh air.
"Ugh, my everything hurts..." he groaned, "How many superhero comics did I rip off?..."
"Eight...I think..." Tabane muttered, shocked that he tried to take the rocket head on instead of leaving her to her own devices, "Why did you do that..."
"I dunno...Couldn't resist the calling of the explosions, I guess..." he lost it, "Heheheheh, we went booooooom..."
"The hell?...Yep, you're going back to the lab," Tabane recovered and hoisted him on her shoulder, already planning for the battle with the pilots.
"Oh, good! We can bring Dee-Dee to test some of that techno-pagan shit you keep hiding away!" Sokoto rambled and sang like a drunken bum.
"All the antics in the world don't compare to this," Tabane said as she moved a fallen support beam out of her way to meet with the four pilots who were out for both of their brains.
"Tabane Shinonono?" A pilot asked.
"Who wants to know?"
"The whole world. We've given you every opportunity to come out of hiding and share your knowledge with the world."
"Look, lady. I have enough fame in the world, and all that money you speak of can be melted and or recycled into something more useful. Ain't nothing you can offer me that I can't make by myself!"
"Then, you'll both be coming with us," the pilot commanded, "Bring them in!"
"Knowledge, my ass," Tabane smirked. When two pilots flew in, she materialized a pair of rocket launchers that fired right at their faces. The other two circled towards the back and fired at her back, but she easily leaped over the blasts. She flung herself right at one of the grounded pilots, delivering a triple-kick to the back of the neck taking out that pilot's wings. Two other pilots tried to engage her, but she was able to deactivate an IS, and plow the other into the ground.
Tabane did a triple flip before sticking a flashy pose. "Hah, child's play!" She taunting before realizing that the renegade literally slipped out of her grasp, "Buh! Where did he-"
"IN DEXTER'S LAAAAAAAAAAAAAB!" In all the thirty seconds of chaotic action, Sokoto was literally thrown up in the air. No one knew he was up there until he smashed his shield into a pilot's face. That broke his fall, but he still stumbled down, "Oof! That'll teach you to mess with mansplainers!" He sensed Tabane and a pilot gunning for him. He knew he couldn't dodge Tabane's strikes, so he flung his shield right when Tabane yanked him away.
That shield ran into two wings, disabling their pilots' flight systems and careening them towards Tabane. Tabane kicked them away, but she threw Sokoto behind her to take the brunt of their counterattacks. He recalled his shield in time to throw it at another pilot, who misfired her rocket right at Tabane. She had to let go of Sokoto to throw the rocket back at her, but the pilot whose IS Tabane deactivated was able to jump back into action.
From there, it was an absolute dogfight. Sokoto fled into the surrounding forest to throw the pilots off, though Tabane wasn't too far behind. They both had to maneuver around the trees, while fighting each other. Tabane knew he'd be a challenge, but she didn't know he'd be an outright nuisance. She did everything she could to trip him up, but he either dodged them outright, or purposefully slip up to position himself to counter an incoming pilot. This was the first time she's seen his movement style in person. Just looking at him drove her nuts for some reason, as if to point out the one itty-bitty, teeny-tiny, not noticeable, littler-than-little miniscule waste of a thing...that he's better than her at. She definitely didn't want to take that lightly. So, she maneuvered across the forest in an effort to tire them all out at once, pelting them all with the littlest of love taps to get the pilots aggravated. It worked too well. The pilots stopped caring about formation and went straight to guerilla tactics, which caused Sokoto to expend even more energy just to stay alive.
"WHERE ARE THEY?!" One of them shouted, "I'LL WRANGLE THEM IN AND NEVER LET THEM OUT!"
"Tisk, tisk, obsessions!" Tabane taunted.
"Let's just blast them!" Another pilot suggested, readying her gatling gun. And suddenly all four pilots were ready to pelt the forest.
Sokoto saw then rise above the trees and aim their guns at him. "Oh, does that mean I won't be sold anymore?"
Once the pilots fired, Sokoto tried to shield himself, but a giant metal carrot boat landed in front of him. "HOLY monkey..." He froze and looked up at the carrot boat slowly tilting over and enclosing him in a loud thud, and black space. All of a sudden, he was overcome with fear, "Uh...hello, pink?...It's black, but why's it feel pink?...Why's red mixing with pink?..."
Then he felt a combination of fur, pillows, and sweat.
"Now, it's just us..."
"COOTIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIES!" Sokoto bellowed right when the giant dome was collapsing under the pressure of the pilots' combined rush assault. "GET'EM OFFA ME!" He broke free of her bear hug, and would've landed his very first double kick on Tabane, but then the exhaustion set in. He missed Tabane entirely, and only managed to down a pilot. Tabane returned the favor by plowing his head into the ground, only to get hit by a pilot's legs. She was about to collide with another pilot's sword, but she mustered enough stamina at the last second to deactivate that IS before skidding on the ground, succumbing to her own exhaustion.
"Ugh...damned little..." and her own frustration, "ENOUGH OF THIS CRAP!" She teleported SEVEN rocket launchers to her side.
"Uh...UFR-077 to control!" A pilot radioed and emergency transmission, "She's gonna blow up the entire area!"
"Reach for the sky!" Tabane shouted as all the rockets went off at once, homing in on both remaining pilots. Several rockets exploded into each other, kicking up a lot of dust and blinding everyone on the field.
"Dammit, run!" The pilots fled the battle site to hoping to minimize the damage done to the surrounding area. They were able to blow back the rockets and explode them in midair, but they couldn't slip over that one rocket that caught their backs and shunted them to the ground.
"Phew...wow, that was unnecessarily taxing!" Tabane stood up and stretched her back, satisfied with the message she sent to the pilots, "but, at least that little headache will be able to-I lost him again, didn't I..." She did one swift twirl, "Yes, I did," and then sat down to inspect the spot where Sokoto's shield got stuck. She rubbed some dirt on her hand and sniffed it, "Anti-IS defensive shield, solid plasma...special order for high-security...I suspect a traitor in the midst."
Meanwhile, Sokoto was being carried away at a high enough speed to prevent Tabane from pursuing them. The soft bumps between each step were enough to slowly wake him up. His eyes dazed around a bit before he could get a read on the person's aura. Once the person set hin down on a patch of grass, he could open his eyes, "Nnn...Daryl?..."
The person stopped. She pulled down her mask and scratched her head, "Uh...yeah..."
Sokoto chuckled, "Oh, god...I'm in the shit..."
"What? No, no no no no no no no, it's nothing like that!" Daryl tried explaining herself, "I was drugged, see, Forte injected some weird thing in my..."
Sokoto fell back into unconsciousness, "Charlotte..."
"Char...who?" Daryl recognized that name.
"Claire...rescue..." And then Sokoto went to sleep.
There she was, all alone with the object of her dreams. She held her composure while he was awake, but now that no one, not even Sokoto, could do anything to impede her progress...
"Goddammit, what am I doing?..." She snapped herself out of it, forcing the reason for her saving him back into her mind. Tatenashi had sent her to make sure he gets to his goal, without Forte trying any revenge schemes on him. She knew the consequences of holding him off and delaying the promised time, and yet she couldn't resist the temptation. She slowly ran her fingers across his hair, his child-like face, and his unusually hard body. Each trace over his muscles sent raised her heartbeat rate, until she decided to check her phone.
"Yeah, I still have two more days," she muttered, then looked around for any peering eyes, "and no worried about blue hair..." Then, she took him into a nearby church to recuperate.
-EARLIER-
Meanwhile, Sean and his crew were having problems of their own. In addition to the vague instructions Silvia left behind before disappearing, they had to abandon their old van and equipment just to temporarily throw their pursuers off their trail. They're stuck without a means to communicate with their home base. With no contact, no encrypted navigation, and no way of obtaining information without getting caught by someone, they were on their own, having to rely on each other just to survive their trip to the Keys. They were able to drive all the way to the Gainesville area without getting caught, but only because they had nothing on them worth tracking. The instructions Silvia left behind translated to outfitting whatever vehicle they chose to drive with state-of-the-art equipment that can transmit a live newscast without being interrupted whatsoever.
That mean shelling out big time. The crew drove around for hours trying to find a store that coud get them what they needed. Every store they went, however, rejected them on the very obvious basis of either being wanted, or being men.
-RECYCLING CENTER, ALACHUA COUNTY; 14:30, FOUR DAYS TO ELECTION-
Finally, the last stop before they have to leave the metroplex had one more "store" they could try. And thankfully, it was balanced out in men and women workers. Everyone got out and stretched. Sean took a moment to survey the area around them.
"Man, this takes me back," Sean muttered, remembering his days as a building contractor, "Sometimes, I miss the good sweat of a hard day's work."
"Isn't this kinda the same thing?" One of his writers joked.
"Hell, no," Sean groaned as he walked in, bracing himself for the enhanced interrogation he was sure to received from the center's supervisors. It seemed like a normal center so far, though. Men and women working and helping each other, albeit with little verbal communication. Once, he stepped into the lobby, he looked through the two open doors on either side. Everything was still as he would expect, not a lot of men in the office.
"Ahem," the secretary interrupted his observation, "Can I help you?"
"Uh, yeah, can I talk to the general manager please?"
"What for?"
"I need to make a purchase."
"I'll let her know," the secretary handed him a clipboard, "Just fill that slip out and she'll be right with you."
"Ok, thanks," Sean grimaced. Her. She. Two words that spelled trouble. He filled out the form, gave it back to the secretary, and waited for the inevitable encounter. Five agonizing minutes went by. He thought about how to bail everyone out should they be found, but then he heard the sound of heels coming from a nearby hallway. He looked on until the woman finally revealed herself.
"Mr. Hannity?" she asked, in a polite tone.
"Yes, I am him."
"My name is Malory Williams. I am the general manager for this center." She extended her hand.
"Pleasure to meet you," Sean shook hands with her.
"If you could follow me to the office, please?" Malory walked towards the back.
Sean followed behind, taking in everything happening in the recycle center. This wasn't like anything else in the state. This was the one bright spot in the entire county that was trying to forced one side into complete submission. Everyone was cooperating.
"You seem to take a liking to this place," Malory noted.
"No," Sean said, "Just wondering how everyone can work together. This isn't like any other place I've been at."
"Well, with the rapidly advancing technology, people have been dumping more and more old electronics out of their abodes," Malory responded, "A gigantic daily workload we can barely keep up with? If people start fighting, we'd get nothing done, and it'll keep piling on and on. Everyone here realized that and just settled within the workflow."
"Huh...just like my building contractor days. Everyone was sweating together, building together...but now I can't even breathe without hearing someone lose their mind about politics."
"That's true. Lucky, we don't have any TVs in our lunchroom, I'll say. Ok, this way, and we'll get you set up."
"Right," Sean remained cautiously optimistic. He had suspicionsm seeing as how news of his trip with the renegade broke earlier this afternoon and word should have spread throughout Florida, given the speed and virality of stories like this. Either he was being led into a trap, or... He called one of his cameramen to make sure, "Hey, is everyone still outside?"
Answer, "Still waiting. This isn't gonna be long, is it?"
"It might. Keep that car running."
After a stair climb, he was inside her office. He remained standing while she typed away on her computer. "So, what do you need?"
"Ah, just some equipment," he chose his words carefully, "Planning a huge live video, and the phone I have doesn't-"
"No, seriously. What do you need?"
"Hm?" Sean looked around him. No one was near the ofice, or even remotely close. He turned back to Malory, "What do you mean?"
"Because you're in league with the renegade, right?"
Sean peeked at the windows again. No one was even taking notice of his face clearly looking down on them. Was she going to blackmail him? He didn't want to think of an answer. He was about to reach his phone, when-
"Relax," Malory eased his tensions, "I'm the only person that knows."
"Really?" Sean questioned her, "How does no one else in the center know?"
"Trust me, no one on the floor has cellphones."
"Ok...so, what's your deal?"
Malory turned around and stared at a photo on the wall, "My daughter was among the rescued. That day in Canada. The renegade brought to light one of the worst prostitution rings in the world."
Sean was taken back. He knew the renegade has some antics in Canada, but that rescue...this was something that directly impacted the entire continent. It wasn't just Canada at all. Sean momentarily thought thought the renegade was out to destroy the world before reeling his thoughts back into this moment. "So...you owe him, too?"
"Huh?" Malory was surprised, "Aren't you with him, though?"
"Not voluntarily. He threatened to blow up my family if I didn't cooperate."
"What about now, though? You split, right?"
"Yeah, but...*SIGH*...but then there were two rockets that were fixing to blow me and my friends up. He took the hit instead. Plus, I'm sure you saw me every night since then begging people to take a deep breath and look at the facts, if they even matter anymore."
"I see..." Malory seemed a little relieved, "So, you owe him, too?"
"Pretty much, yeah."
"So, what do you need?" She went back to her computer.
"Honestly, a friggin' overhaul. I think the original news van has been sacked, and I gotta do a live show this Monday."
"Shouldn't be a problem," Malory finished sending the email, "unless the renegade decides to escape the panhandle."
"Doubt it..." Sean muttered.
Over an hour later, his crew was still waiting outside. They wondered whether or not Sean has fallen victim to the claws of womanhood. But when he emerged from the front door lobby, he didn't look any different than when he walked in.
A cameraman stood up and asked, "So...how'd it go?"
Sean shrugged, "It went. We're gonna get another van."
The crew cheered before a writer said, "A van full of junk? How do we know this is even going to function properly?"
"About that..." Sean looked back and shrugged, "The manager knows we're in on this quest, so she's offered Election Eve and Day off to anyone willing to put it together for us."
"HAH?" The crew screamed in disbelief.
-18:44-
After four hours of relic hunting, circuit testing, join-the-party-begging, and vehicle hunting, they finally got a makeshift communication van up and running.
"Oh my god..." a writer collapsed on the ground, "So many piles of junk...and not even a TV..."
"Heheheh..." Sean laughed, "That's what happens when you stick your eyes on a monitor for 8 hours straight..."
"Oh, can it, will you?..." the writer was barely keeping himself alive with all the searching and lifting they did.
"Testing for something...connect that over here..." the rest of the crew were testing the signal of the elctronics to see if it would hold up against heavy interference.
"Say, how much is all this gonna run me?" Sean asked Malory.
"Oh, all this?" Malory quipped, "We would barely make a couple grand on it, at best."
"Sounds like a steal," Sean said.
"No, this is on the house. Lord knows what kind of damage the renegade will cause this thing."
Sean was about to give a her funny look, when all of a sudden, the van roared its engines and squeaked a couple beeps. All of the workers cheered, and the crew gave a hearty shout.
"HAHAHAAAAA, IT'S ALIIIIIIVE!" A crew person exclaimed.
"Well, I guess that's my time to go," Sean shook her hand one more time, "It's been a pleasure doing business with you."
"Likewise with you," Malory returned the favor, "I hope you'll be able to find whatever it is you're looking for."
"Come on, Sean!" the writer took the wheel and slowly guided the van out, "We're losing daylight!"
"Alright, alright! I'm coming!" Sean literally chased after the van, and was only able to get on through rear door when his crewmates grabbed his hands and hauled him on.
"And this is where I say, you need to ease up!" A crewman joked.
"Oh, shut up!" Sean panted as he looked back at the recycling center, its people, and its manager, all waving back as they slowly disappeared out of his sight. He wondered if there was anything he could do to return the massive favor, aside from risking unwanted attention for them. But that was a call to make another day, as they had another task to accomplish.
-PADDOCK MALL, MARION COUNTY; 20:15-Like finding a signal amplifier and stabilizer. In a shopping mall.
"We're closed!" A female cashier shouted.
"But the sign said 9-"
"CLOSED!" The cashier had none of it and slammed the cameraman out. Then, she had a conversation of...sorts, "Those Fox News assholes are here."
"What the-those fucking twats?!"
"She's a fan," Sean quipped.
"How's the job market since the Democrats took over?!" The cameraman engaged in a political shout fight with the shoppers while Sean just walked off to find a quiet place.
The writer, however, had other concerns that were in the range of "FML" and "FEEL". He had no luck in keeping his mind together, and he felt like he needed a week to drink. He was about to leave everyone behind when a middle-aged woman sat in front of him.
"Mind if I sit here?"
"Uh...no, no..."
The woman caught onto his distress, "You seem like you're in a rough spot."
"Oh! Oh, no no, just...thinking..."
"About the whole renegade business?"
"Well..." the writer bent the truth to avoid suspicion, "I gotta write a script because I received a tip-off to his next location. And I have to be right at the location."
"Oh, that is scary..."
"You're not freaked out because I'm a man?"
"No. I was a witness to the pre-Infinite-Stratos era. Actually, I contributed to the first generation of IS units. And look what happened today."
"No kidding. It's only been fifteen years!"
"I know! And already they call me old!"
"How old are you?"
"48."
"Uh...well..."
"You're younger than me. Don't you dare."
And they continued their conversation for five minutes before she decided to lend a hand. At the very shop where the cameraman was still arguing with the shop attendants.
"Excuse me?" The woman tried to speak.
"They can't hear you," the writer commented.
"Just testing out the volumes," the woman said before she got right in their faces and- "HEEEEEEEEEEY!"
Everyone froze.
"There!" The woman said, "I need a signal amp-stable combo."
"Um...ok!" The shop attendant happily obliged. Not only that, they gave her a discount on the highest quality combination product they had.
Outside the shop, the writer told the crew what had transpired.
"She just told you like that?!" Sean didn't believe him, "She told you she worked on the first generation?!"
"Yeah! Discoveries, models made, and everything!" The writer exclaimed.
"Why you, though?" The cameraman questioned, "They wouldn't give two rat's asses about me!"
"Because I got my weekend vacation upended by the world's most powerful dumbass, probably..." the writer made it clear he was irritated, and everyone backed off.
Except the woman, who was able to secure the component they needed, "Here you are. This should help you in your top story."
"Whoa...the latest model?!" The cameraman was in shock, "Uh...I don't know what to say..."
"It's nothing," she responded, "Now Fox doesn't have to worry about another shake up for a little while longer."
"That probably won't matter after my next monologue," Sean joked. Everyone chuckled before he saw the cashier storm towards they group, "Uh, did you forget something?"
The group turned eyes to the cashier before she could take back the item they got.
"Yes, I did," she growled, "Give it back."
The woman was confused, "You want me to give you the thing I bought one mi-"
"You did not buy it! They stole it!" The cashier snapped, "I want it back!"
"On what grounds?" The woman stood in her way.
"Do you have any idea who these people are?!"
"Yeah. Men. Woman. They're Republicans. I'm a Democrat. So?"
The cashier froze. Clearly, she hadn't been open to the idea of associating with anyone who might make her fuss about a disagreement. But the one thing that sent her over the edge...
...were the woman's next words, "Hold on. Democrats are supposed to be more open and more accepting. You're telling me that you're going to...discriminate? Against different views?"
"FINE! FINE!" The cashier had it, "Just get that thing out of my sight!"
"Right," The woman waved goodbye and left. The crew just walked out of the mall.
"What the hell just happened?..." the cameraman asked still stunned about the last five minutes.
"I think she showed us how to make a mind grenade," Sean whispered.
"I seriously need some beer..." the writer mumbled.
"No, you need some sleep..." a crewman corrected.
-HILLTOP MOTEL; 23:44-
And that's exactly what they got. A place to rest their weary minds and cleanse the dirt off their bodies. It didn't take long for everyone to fall asleep. Except Sean, who stayed up witnessing the aftermath of battle of the century:
"Casualties were two Special Ops pilots and several civilians caught in the crossfire. The renegade was able to escape once again, but after Tabane Shinonono somehow fired several rockets at the pursuit team-"
"The creator?!" Sean exclaimed, "What the hell was she doing there?!" He racked every possible reason in his head to figure out why Tabane chose now to come out of hiding. The renegade had to have stolen something to warrant her- "Wait a minute..." then he remembered a couple of reports he read online: one about the fabrication of the White Knight Missile Crisis, and the other about the renegade's blood composition. Suddenly, those two started to piece together everything he witnessed about the renegade.
"Ugh, the creator versus the destroyer...I'm definitely an accomplice..."
The renegade was trying to destroy the IS. The machine, the people, and the twisted system it helped create. Everything that's happened leads to that conclusion. The raids, the random battles, the way that Phantom Task moved about...they wanted to create an escape from the dark side of the IS.
At the same time the revelation came to him, the words from a mental script began to form into a message of mercy and reformation. He has seen both the bad and the good the IS did, but the renegade seemed to be focused only on the bad. Whatever put him on the path of destruction, this was Sean's chance to get him off. He has a commercial-free, special edition in two days, after all.
"Oh, I definitely need help..." he muttered as he turned off all the lights and went to say a prayer.
Not noticing his phone and charger giving off yellow holographic sparks.