Chapter 16 – Ghosts of Eden
The water was cold for the summer. Bryant and USP slowly swam closer to shore, trying to evade the Sangvis patrols on the cliffs above. They found a spot that wasn't too heavily patrolled. USP went up first, carefully navigating rocks while Bryant caught up. They ran into a small patrol, but the two quickly dealt with the enemy.
They quickly got to work preparing their equipment. USP changed out of her dive-suit for her standard outfit, while Bryant changed into a spare uniform he had 'borrowed' from the resort security staff. Ballistic vests wouldn't help much him against Sangvis Ferri weaponry, but it was all he had for protection. It was better than nothing. He pulled out a shortwave radio to contact the security center while USP sorted out the rest of the equipment.
"Control, we've completed insertion. Lancet is advancing as expected. How copy?"
"Loud and clear, Lancet. Continue approach as expected. Juliet One is nearing completion. You have eighteen hours until it is operational. Over."
"Roger. Lancet Out." Bryant put the radio away and nodded to USP. She sat down on the rock and removed her jacket. Bryant took out a small surgical kit and cut a small incision on her back. He chuckled slightly. "Alright, this is gonna sting a bit." He said as he reached in and sliced a wire to her core. He held both ends and attached another piece of hardware to the wires.
"What is this, again? You said it was a 'combat module', but I don't…" She trailed off as her core hummed with new energy. Bryant sealed the cut and helped her put her jacket back on. "Commander…this is…amazing."
"I thought you'd like it. With that, you'll be able to process things quicker and more effectively. I call it a 'Precision Command' module." He put his things away and nodded. "Use that to call out enemy locations, so we can hammer them down." Once she was equipped, the two began to move. The island was filled with small shrubbery and an abandoned village. Rumor had it that Griffon had an outpost here at one point, but it just went silent one day and vanished.
USP stopped suddenly. "Commander…I'm picking up a radio frequency." She whispered. Bryant pulled out his field computer and punched in a few keys.
"I don't have it. Patch it through; one-way only." Bryant put an earpiece in. He grabbed his radio and spoke, nearly a whisper. "Lancet to Control: we've reached the village of Eden. Continuing to Juliet One. Confirm, over."
"Confirmed. Maintain radio silence until extraction. How Copy?"
"Clear. Lancet Out." Byrant turned the radio off and put it away. As the two entered the village, static came over the new signal USP found.
"Two of them…Jaeger class." A woman's voice. By the strength of the signal, it had to be a T-Doll. The two stopped and scanned the rooftops. "I need to reposition." The static stopped, and they were left in the silence again.
"Alright, slowly now." Bryant motioned and guided USP south. The sounds of nature got quieter as they approached a beat-up church. USP pointed in the opposite direction. "The signal get's stronger that way." The two moved slowly towards it, scanning the windows and alleyways for movement.
More static on the unknown signal. "Here is a good spot. Now…show your ugly heads, Sangvis." They stopped at a store. It was near where USP had mentioned the signal was coming from.
"We could check it out, Commander." USP suggested. Bryant nodded slightly.
"Let's. Stay alert, though." The two entered the building and carefully avoided some well-placed traps. Trip wires were hidden behind discarded food wrappers. Cans and broken bottles were strewn about as noise makers. It was elaborate, but not something T-Dolls would do; Griffon or Sangvis. Whoever did this was human. Human enemies frightened Bryant.
They made their way to the second floor. At the top was a small room overlooking most of the town. A WA2000 doll lay sprawled out on the floor. "Two Jaeger shots. One through the head. Never stood a chance." Bryant pulled a piece of tarp from the window to cover her with. USP reached down and turned off the sniper's radio.
"She'd been broadcasting that message for a while now. From the wear and tear, at least a year." Bryant nodded and turned. The street was calm and quiet. Overrun by nature, but quiet. A flash of light caught his eye, and he took a step back. A bullet tore through the window ledge, and into his chest. The impact knocked Bryant down, and he groaned in pain. USP rushed over and dragged him into the 'safe' corner. She tore off the vest and pulled his shirt up.
"The bullet didn't get through the vest. Small arms, handgun maybe?" She put gentle pressure on his chest. Bryant hissed and tensed up. "Broken rib…no punctures; you're breathing alright." She gently propped him up. "I'm going to go see who that was." USP got up and ran down the steps before Bryant could argue.
She rounded the corner and jumped down the steps. Her internal hydraulics whined loudly from the sudden movement. She rolled, reducing the impact. Something moved to her left, and she turned with her gun raised. A blunt object - a wood board, probably – knocked the weapon from her hands and cut a small gash on her arm. USP used the momentum from the attack to throw a wicked roundhouse kick. It shattered through the board, and into the attacker's arm. The arm buckled from the inhuman kick, staggering the enemy.
He clutched his arm tightly before drawing a knife. USP took a sharp breath and got into a fighting stance. She wasn't helpless in these situations, but her forte was not brawling. And, her attacker had a knife. Rather unfair, she thought as her attacker lunged caught his arm and twisted. A series of unique and sickening pops sounded as she caused his elbow to bend the wrong way. After his other arm was broken, she tossed him over her shoulder and stomped on his chest. The man gasped for air and clawed at his chest. She looked at him and reached down to take his weapon.
He didn't have a gun. Which meant he wasn't alone. USP quickly activated her new piece of hardware. The system kicked in, overclocking her sensory arrays. A faint noise, a soft yet familiar click. She rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding a shot from a handgun. USP ran towards her new attacker, careful to watch his movements. As he squeezed the trigger, USP dropped into a slide-tackle, breaking the man's shin.
She jumped up and delivered a rising knee blow to his jaw as the man came down. The impact knocked him out cold. USP paused for a moment, breathing deeply. The second attacker was still breathing. After a shot like that, he's lucky to be alive. USP took his weapon and dragged them up the stairs to where Bryant was waiting.
He was breathing slowly. "Well done." He muttered. The pain was apparent in his voice. USP tied the two men up and grabbed some electrical tape from their bag.
"It's not the best, but we should bandage the injury." USP said as she began wrapping his chest as she could. She wasn't a medical doll, so it was clumsy and shoddy. But, as Bryant put it, it was better than a punctured lung. At least she hadn't made the injury worse. "Oh, I found this on them." USP handed Bryant a portable radio. "It's old, and I'm not sure how strong the signal will be."
Bryant nodded and pushed the button. "This is Commander Bryant with Griffon and Kryuger. Two of your men tried to kill me just now." He winced as USP helped him put on his shirt. "We are here to eliminate the Sangvis Forces." There was no response for a few moments.
"So…a new player joins the deathmatch." A tired voice responded. "Not that it matters, really." Bryant heard movement in the background. "Sangvis or Griffon; Human or Doll… none of that matters now. We are the Ghosts of Eden; a reminder of failure. Failure of SF to eliminate us. Failure of Griffon to protect us. And Failure of humankind for letting this happen." Bryant rolled his eyes.
"Listen. I don't want to fight. Let's join forces. I'm here to remove the SF fortification here and –"
"Denied." Bryant tried to get in another word, but he was cut off. "To all of the Ghosts of Eden: the time has come. Drive them all out. Kill them all. We were left here alone, and we will return to the mainland alone. Happy hunting." The communication terminated, and he refused to speak to Bryant. The commander sighed and threw the radio on the ground. He motioned for USP to help him.
"This just got a lot more interesting." Bryant muttered through his teeth. USP nodded and supported her commander as best she could. "We need to find some place to set up camp. I'm sorry, USP. It's up to you from here on out." USP nodded softly.
"I won't let you down, Commander." Bryant nodded and gave her a small smile. The two walked slowly out of the town, and into the jungle.