Chapter 17 – The Support Echelon

Bryant and USP made their way deeper towards the heart of the island. Between the jungle and the SF patrols, they hadn't made much progress. The two could hear distant firefights between the Ghosts of Eden and Sangvis forces. SF had the numbers and power, but they were not as well versed in guerilla warfare. Avoiding the fighting and patrols eventually pushed the duo towards a section of jungle that was eerily noisy.

Unlike the other sections of the island, the insects and wildlife were the most prominent noises here. The distant gunfire was nothing more than an echo, and everything seemed almost calm. The two slowed their pace to take in the brief moment of peace. They held it in as long as they could before they had to continue the painful march.

USP spotted a small hill ahead. She gently rested Bryant against a large rock and ran up the hill to get lay of the land. The hill over locked a small clearing, and a small bunker sat in the center. Even though it had been abandoned for years, USP could make out the faint insignia of a Griffon Outpost. It was an underground base. The design was intentional: it made it harder for SF troops to infiltrate, and it kept the base cooler during the Mediterranean summers. If the old intel on the base was correct, there were still a store of supplies and weapons inside. Perhaps, if they had even a pinch of luck, there might also be reserve T-Dolls.

USP ran back to give Bryant the news. The two slowly made their way around the hill and down to the bunker. The door was rusted shut. With a little effort, the door opened. The two went inside and switched on the emergency lighting. The backup generator whined, but eventually started. Bryant leaned up against a console for support as he typed.

"Solar power is at…. twenty per-cent. We should be good for a few hours or so. Maybe more if we can turn off some of the auxiliary systems below ground." Bryant took a sharp breath and turned to the stairs. He sighed and began his slow decent. USP went a bit ahead of him and placed glowsticks every few steps. At the bottom, she waited for Bryant and helped him rest against a wall.

"USP…go find the storeroom. I'm going to…wander over to the command center and try to get a SitRep.

"Are you sure?"

"No…but, I'm gonna slow you down if we don't split up." Bryant said with a pained smile. "I'll be fine. Go on." USP nodded and slowly walked deeper into the compound. The emergency lights were brighter here, so she was able to navigate a bit easier. Still, she couldn't help but notice the stains on the walls and the collapsed corpses of dolls and humans alike. Some were fresher than others, implying some things that USP did not want to think about.

USP rounded the corner and paused. There was a light on in the repair bay. She crept closer, keeping her gun at chest level. She braced herself against the wall and peaked around the corner. A lone T-Doll sat at the station putting a half-rotten mechanical arm back in place. USP got closer and made her presence known. The doll jumped up and reached for her weapon, losing her arm in the process. Both of them paused when they made eye contact. "You…you're not…. a human." The two dolls looked at each other curiously. The other one spoke quietly.

"This…you…how?"

"I'm here with Commander Bryant. We were sent to deal with Sangvis….and now, by default, the surviving humans." The injured Doll perked up.

"You brought a human here?! The others are set to kill on sight."

"What others? The other dolls?" USP turned to the corridor and rushed off. The injured doll picked up her arm and followed. The two hurried over to the command room, where the sounds of a fight were already breaking out.

Bryant was pinned against the wall by a P38 model doll. A PPK stood nearby, cleaning her weapon with a piece of Bryant's jacket. He was breathing sharply. He looked like he was in pain. USP called out and raised her gun. Everyone turned to look at her, which gave Bryant an opportunity to shoot P38's elbow. She let go, and Bryant crumpled to the ground. As all the dolls reached for their weapons, Bryant groaned out an order.

"Drop your weapons!" He sputtered out. P38, PPK, and the injured doll all responded immediately. USP seemed to lag for a minute, before slowly returning her weapon to its holster. He held out a hand, and USP gently helped him to his feet. He took a sharp breath and leaned back against the wall. He took a few more shallow breaths before nodding. "Damn fine work, ladies." He coughed again, causing him to double over. The T-Dolls, now set to 'friendly' mode, rushed over to help Bryant. They carried him over to one of the beds in the repair bay. Bryant lay still while USP tended to the other dolls.

Bryant's field computer beeped. It had finally connected to the base interface. Bryant slowly tapped away on it, getting a feel for the resources on hand. He sighed softly, trying not to agitate his wound anymore. He put the tablet down and motioned for the dolls to come closer. "There are enough emergency supplies here for one mission." He smiled. "That means, we need to make this count."

The dolls looked at him. "What do you mean?" USP said. Bryant pointed to the wall monitor, that was displaying a map of the island.

"We are close to the middle of the island." He pushed a button, and a grid structure overlaid the existing map. "We are less than an hour away from the cannon fortification. While we don't have information on the enemy force just yet, Helian should patch that information through as soon as the secure comms can be set up." He looked at the dolls. "That means the four of you are going to need to take on SF, the surviving humans, and whatever other dangers wait for you."

Almost as in response to his words, and emergency communication came from Helian. "Commander; we have an emergency!" Bryant shifted slowly to face the monitor.

"I'm here, Helian. What's wrong?"

"A Jupiter Cannon is online!" Everyone sat up and watched in horror as Helian passed along the satellite images. A fourth cannon, expertly hidden in the forest, toppled trees and buildings as it turned to face the resort. "Commander, we are out of time."

"Not yet." Bryant managed. He reached for his bag and pulled out some strong painkillers. He took several and took a dep breath before slowly struggling to his feet. "Helian: send us information about the enemy by the active cannon." He took a few steps before waving for USP and PPK to help him. He pointed to P38. "Get to the repair bay. Help her and any other Doll that's active." P38 saluted.

"Y-yes, commander!" Bryant made his way to the Command room, helped by the two dolls.

"Commander; what are your orders?" Bryant smiled with an insane light in his eyes.

"Blitz." USP and PPK stopped and looked at each other.

"C-commander?" He nodded and repeated himself.

"We are going to blitz the Cannons. There isn't enough time to capture them and disable them. Hopefully, they won't be too heavily guarded." The dolls grew silent.

"But…if we fall…that's –" USP said, briefly reliving her last brush with death.

"Not this time." Bryant said and pointed to the room he was leading the girls to. "We're going to try something crazy. It's about time I set up your Dummy Protocol, anyway." Bryant turned on the lights. Slowly, the large warehouse lit up. Each light revealed a store of disabled T-Doll shells: each waiting to be assigned a core and a leader unit.

The dolls put Bryant down near the console. He smiled and began working. "PPK, go check on the others. USP, pick out some dummy units." Enthusiasm drowned out the pain in his voice. PPK nodded and ran off towards the repair bay while USP lay down to get her software update. The machines hummed and several dummy units were taken down and taken to processing. "Alright then…let's even the odds a little."