Back at the base. The Hunter Drones were blasting and stomping away. And the Resistance was doing all they could to hold them off.
"McMallard!' Canard barked. 'Order the blasters to fall back, and the launchers to move forward!"
"Yes, Sir!" Marcel shouted.
Canard looked around. 'Where is she?!' "And keep an eye out for Angelwing!"
"Yes, Sir!"
Marcel ran forward to communicate directions, pulling certain ducks back out of the thick of the robots. Simultaneously, ducks with large bazookas ran forward, bending low before shooting off their rockets. The small missiles sailed through the cavities of multiple Hunter Drones before exploding into the center of the mass, beyond the Resistance's reach. The shock wave was small, but the damage was impressive: nearly fifty Hunter Drones had been decimated by the mini bombs.
Canard blasted away at the robots within range. They were holding out, but some of the soldiers were in serious need of medical assistance. "We could really use a medic right now." One of them said, painfully. Wally and Greybeak moved in to help him. Not taking his eyes off his target, Wally asked. "Where's Angelwing? Is she still inside?"
"No, can't find her."The captain responded, neutrally.
Greybeak however, was more mad at his captain than he is about fighting in the middle of the night. It's a very bad idea to argue with someone during a fight, but at this point, he didn't care. "Maybe she just didn't want you to find her."
"Not now, Sergeant." Canard sneered.
Greybeak turned his head to face him. That was a big mistake. "You're the one who-'
*PEW!*
'Augh!" Greybeak was shot in the shoulder and flown back!
"Greybeak!" Canard yelled, argument forgotten as he rushed over to cover the downed duck before the Hunter Drones could reach him. "Can you get up?!"
"ARGH!" Greybeak yelled out, trying to sit up only using his one good arm. "Yeah, yeah," he insisted, cradling his injured arm. "Just, give me a minute..."
The McMallards closed in, providing further protection to the two ducks on the ground. Canard glanced worriedly over his colleague and saw the amount of blood soaking his shirt. If they didn't tourniquet that wound and fast, Greybeak was going to be unconscious in minutes.
"Where's Vanderquack?!" Canard shouted.
"She's busy, helping the civilians!" Marcel responded.
"Then someone get me Waddlemeyer!"
"There isn't time!"
Canard was worried for his friend. Just where was Danielle? Did she really leave? But she was a medic. And...there was a lot he had to tell her.
Then Wally shouted. "Captain! Look!" And there was a certain giant grey duck, slamming away all the Hunter Drones in his path! The captain was shocked stiff for few seconds at the new drake's size and strength. But shook it off, remembering his task. Then he decided to get this guy with the group.
"Hey you!" Canard called out, waving the big duck over. "We need help!"
Grin heard him and made his way over to the captain, knocking out about a dozen Hunter Drones in the process. He barely arrived when Canard stood up, supporting his wounded comrade.
"I need you to carry Greybeak to the Medical bay! Wally, go with him!"
"Wait!"
Both Canard and Grin turned towards the source of the new voice. Danielle stepped around the giant duck, then, instantly coming to Greybeak's side. The injured duck seemed to be out of it at this point, however, and he didn't even have a one-liner to offer at her sudden appearance.
"Danielle!" Canard whispered, very relieved to see her.
"Set him down." Danielle said, pulling out her First Aid Kit. Canard did as she told him.
Very carefully, Danielle removed Greybeak's shirt to inspect the wound. There was one in the front and one in the back. As she gently applied some cloth to stop the bleeding, Danielle kept repeating "You're going to be okay, Greybeak." Once the bandaging was on, Danielle turned to Canard.
"Captain, how many more are injured?"
"Three."
"On it!"
Canard had been watching her, making sure she could work uninterrupted. Grin and the McMallard brothers continued to protect the front lines, which left the drake to his thoughts. Where had she been? Was she okay? Were they okay? Snapping out of his reverie, Canard cleared his throat. "We need you to get with the others. They're evacuating north. This base has been breached, and is no longer safe to remain at."
Danielle nodded curtly, but didn't respond.
Canard turned around and saw Grin. "Let's get Greybeak to the rest."
The big duck nodded, coming up to Greybeak and lifting him into his arms.
"FALL BACK!" Canard hollered, pushing Danielle to follow Grin closely. He and Marc brought up the rear, while Thom ran ahead to lead the pack of ducks back to the north. As they moved, commands to fall back were shouted, and other ducks joined them in the slow retreat, some protecting the flanks while others carried their own injured with them.
Danielle had her backpack open as they retreated, and during lulls of laser fire she would try and tend to those with bleeding wounds. Canard made sure to stay behind her always, worried about the stray shots still coming from Hunter Drones. Eventually, the group found their way into an old building, quickly making their way through the basement of it. Packs of Hunter Drones were still following, but in lesser numbers now.
Within the basement was an open pathway through the concrete, leading to the sewers. Canard stayed to the side with the McMallards, firing at the Hunter Drones to keep them back, while everyone else filed through. As soon as it was clear, the captain then pulled on a dangling wire next to the open wall, Thom and Marc covering him, and lit it with a lighter. It soon sparked to life, burning down its length, Canard ushered the brothers through the open path. They made their way through, Canard taking up the rear, and quickly ran to get away from the set trap.
BOOM!
The shockwave was small and, looking back, their entrance had been caved in, blocking the rest of the Hunter Drones from following them. The trap had been set a long time ago, as a part of evacuation measures, and Canard let out a sigh, realizing they would be unable to return to their base, now that its location had been found out.
The three drakes caught up with the rest of the group, who had flashlights to light their way. Danielle was still running around, tending to the wounds she could do something about, and only once did their eyes meet, Danielle quickly and shyly looking away. Neither said a word to each other.
"Keep moving," Canard commanded, getting to the front of the group. "We have a long way before we get to the north holding." The other ducks did as they were told, while Canard held back to think for a moment.
Just why was Danielle out there? And why did she leave a note saying she was sorry? Wait. Was she...running away? At first Canard was angry at the thought of her leaving them, then he remembered what was going on between them lately. Did she run away because of him?
Well...he was...kind of a jerk to her.