Bubblegum Crisis Fan Fiction ❯ Bubblegum Avatar #1 -- "Tin-Sell City" ❯ Chapter 17 - "Aqua City Battleground - Part 3" ( Chapter 17 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Trboturtle 
The battle at Aqua City concludes
Anime/Manga: Bubblegum Crisis Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Sci-fi / Cyberpunk / Action | Type: Self Insertion | Uploaded On: 12.24.2005 | Pages: 4 | Words: 3.7K | Visits: 950 | Status: Work In Progress
The battle at Aqua City concludes
Anime/Manga: Bubblegum Crisis Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Sci-fi / Cyberpunk / Action | Type: Self Insertion | Uploaded On: 12.24.2005 | Pages: 4 | Words: 3.7K | Visits: 950 | Status: Work In Progress
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Chapter 17 - "Aqua City Battleground - Part 3"
**************
Rowley was standing the cockpit of the lead KVS-5 transport helicopter, leaning down to look at the upcoming island. The island was a foreboding place, even this early in the morning, but Rowley put that thought aside for now. No use in letting her imagination run wild unnecessarily.
"How long?" she asked over the radio.
"ETA is ten minutes," the pilot replied.
The captain nodded. "Inform me when we're five minutes out."
"Right."
Rowley turned and went back into the main cargo area of the craft. Besides the ten security troopers, both Schildt and Sanchez were there, determined to stay within call of her. She glanced out the side windows, making sure the other two KVS-5s were still keeping formation with her helicopter.
"Captain," said the Pilot. "We're picking up another craft on the radar."
"Who?"
"We don't know. It's coming in from the opposite direction, at a lower altitude. It's also five minutes closer to the target then we are."
"Get on the horn with CT Air control," said Rowley. "I want to know who that is, and I want to know now!"
"They may not tell us."
"I don't give a damn. If you have to, threaten them, but I want to know who's trying to get there ahead of us!"
"Yes, Ma'am!"
"What do you think, Ma'am?" asked Schildt over their private channel. He leaned forward and looked at Rowley. Sanchez watched silently.
"I think the people behind the theft of Project Hikigane are on that aircraft," Rowley replied.
"You think the Sabers found the meeting place?"
"Makes sense."
"So, how are we going to stop them?" asked Sanchez. "These birds aren't armed."
"We'll think of something. How are we if we have to face boomers?"
"We can handle any of the civilian models," replied Schildt. "I can't speak the same way if we run into any of the combat models."
"Hopefully the Sabers will have whittled down the odds some before we get there, assuming they haven't retrieve Hikigane by then."
"What about our orders from the General regarding the Sabers?"
Rowley shrugged. "We'll play it by ear when we get there, Sargent. I won't be a party to cold-blooded murder, but I want Cynthia back, no matter what the cost."
"Understood." Schildt leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes.
Rowley switched channels to the command frequency. "Strike Command Six to all team leaders. Here's the plan. Strike Black, I want your team to secure the Aqua City end of the causeway. No one in or out without my say-so."
"Roger, Command Six." Replied Strike Black's leader.
"Strike Red with land North of the target area, while Strike Green will land south of the target area. We'll work in from there. Make sure of any targets before you fire. I want location updates every two minutes. You all know what target we're looking for. If you find the target, and that target is being accompanied, give them one chance to surrender. If they don't, take them down. Any questions?"
No one had any. Rowley nodded to herself. "Stand by to execute the plan on my command."
**************
Frederick stood in the middle of the chamber, waiting.
The sounds of battle had died rather quickly, and he had no doubt that both his team and Kerbasi's had been eliminated. No matter. If his primary mission had failed, maybe the completion of his secondary mission would take some of the anger out of Mr. Mason's tirade.
So, he waited. Waited to kill the Knight Sabers.
A body fell out of the night sky and struck the ground with a large 'clang!' Frederick walked over to the body and looked down at it. It was a headless boomer, still leaking fluid from its neck.
A figure landed not far away Frederick looked up and saw himself staring at a white hardsuit.
"The Knight Sabers, I believe?"
**********
Above the confrontation, three other Sabers waited in the shadows.
They had found a place where they could overlook the chamber and stay in the shadows. Frederick was still there, now and then looking up into the darkness. After giving the rest of her team that was present, Sylia had tossed Linna's former opponent into the chamber and followed it in, the trio moved to the overhanging catwalk. Sylia's orders had been brief, but clear: They were to stay here, keep an eye out for the boomers that were still out there and to ready to help Sylia if the confrontation got out of hand.
Craig was busy switching magazines on his cannon, slotting his last full magazine into place. "Anything on those boomers?" he asked.
"No," replied Nene in frustration. "The combat boomers use a more sophisticated communications system and they're harder to crack."
"Hey guys!' called out a familiar voice on the radio. "I'm on my way!"
"About time, Priss," Craig muttered. "Is the kid boomer safe?"
"She's with Mackie. Where are you guys?"
"Same place we were when you left. Sylia making like gunslinger facing off against Frederick. I hope you bought extra firepower."
"No problem. See you in a couple!"
"Listen!" Linna hissed, pointing at the drama below.
Frederick stepped over the body of the headless boomer. "Not bad," he said, looking at Sylia. "I'd sayyou're superior to the military's K-12 armored trooper."
"You've lost," said Sylia flatly. "We have the satellite trigger and your friends are no more."
"You really did a number on my friends," Frederick conceded. "What do you hope to accomplish?"
"To defend Peace and Justice and rid the world of evil."
"Oh, God," Craig muttered, "She's gone Sailor Moon on us...." That earned him a couple of stares from the others.
Frederick shrugged. "A worthy objective. But will it hold true for me, I wonder?"
He started to rip open his shirt when Craig "yelled, "Fire in the Hole!" and fired his cannon. The first shot torn into Frederick's left leg, ripping off both limbs and sending shattered pieces of tentacles in every direction. The surprised boomer, still in transforming stage, crashed to the ground, a surprised look on his face.
Craig lined up his second shot. "Not this time, you bastard," he muttered.
Then the other combat boomers showed up.
Nene shouted, "Incoming! Two marks, Two o'clock!" The night sky lit up with cannon fire of their own.
The three Sabers separated just as the firestorm struck. Linna and Nene dropped into the chamber, while Craig leapt off the catwalk and landed near a waist-high wall, which he ducked behind. "That's it!" he yelled. "When I find that son of a bitch Mason, I'm going to cut his heart out with a spoon!"
"Shut up and start fighting!" Linna replied
The pair of BU-12Bs flashed out of the night sky, firing both cannon and machine guns as they came in. They hovered in the air like a couple of death angels, spitting fire and destruction. By unspoken agreement, they split their fire, one concentrating on Craig's position, the other boomer trying to strafe the Sabers inside the chamber.
Craig crawled away from the barrage that was striking the wall he was hiding behind. He waited until the fire slackened against his hiding place before he reared up and quickly targeted the boomer. The boomer spotted him a fraction too late, but its reflexes were quicker, the result being that both fired almost at the same instance.
Craig's cannon round slammed into the BU-12's abdomen, the HEAT round nearly cutting the boomer in two. The combat cyberdroid's return fire slammed into the wall in front of the black hardsuit and exploded, sending Craig flying into a wall several meters away. He struck the wall three meters above the ground, then gravity reasserted it's rule and he hit the ground.
Craig's world was nothing but a sea of pain. The severe headache he'd had early was nothing compared to how he felt now, and he was dimly aware of something running from his nose, tasting blood as some of it slipped inside his mouth. Part of him wanted to call it a night right there, but the self-survival part of him kicked in. Slowly, his whole body protesting, he got to his knees, then his feet. Using the wall for support, he got his bearings.
The boomer he had nailed was lying near the low wall that surrounded the chamber, the impact finishing the job Craig's shot had started. The BU-12's top half was struggling weakly in its death throws, while the lower half of the boomer, several meters away was still. The area between the two halves was awash in the sickly-looking boomer fluid. Craig tried not to throw up at the sight.
To distract himself, he ran a quick diagnostic on his hardsuit and frowned at the results. The jump jets were off-line, and one of his lasers was damaged. Half the suit's sensor and communications systems were not functioning. The armor was cracked in half a dozen places, and the finish was severely scarred. The cannon was still operating, but the targeting system was not.
He ran a medical diagnostic on himself and was cheered slightly. He was bruised and battered, but he didn't have any broken bones. The system did evaluate a possible concussion, but Craig ignored that for now.
Moving as fast as he could, he moved to the wall surrounding the chamber and looked down. The battle was still in progress, and had developed into a stalemate of sorts. Both Sylia and Linna were dueling the remaining BU-12, while Nene was standing back, doing her job of supplying battlefield support. The boomer, geared more towards combat then the BU-55s, was managing to keep the Sabers from overwhelming it for the time being, but Craig knew that wouldn't last for long.
He looked at where Frederick was lying and snarled a curse as he saw the fusion boomer was pulling himself towards the headless boomer. "Look out for Frederick!" he shouted, but none of the Sabers responded.
"Shit!" he growled, pointing his cannon at Frederick and firing. The round slammed into the floor two meters from the fusion boomer, releasing a small fireball into the air, but not stopping it.
It did have the effect of alerting the others to the danger. Sylia took a quick look at what had caused the explosion, saw Frederick and sent out orders to the others. Linna back flipped away from the BU-12 and started for Frederick. Nene leapt into the air and landed near Craig.
Craig tapped his helmet and shook his head slowly. Nene nodded, and a thin wire slipped out of an opening in her arm armor. She pulled it out and plugged it into a small socket located behind the earpiece of Craig's helmet. "Can you hear me?" she asked, the voice tinny and soft.
"Yea, barely," Craig replied.
"Are you all right?"
"I'll live, but I'm going to need bed rest."
"Can you move?" asked Sylia, coming through Nene's radio and through the cable.
"I'd better be. I'm not hanging around here any longer then I have to!"
"How's the suit?" asked Nene.
"In worse shape then I am. I can still fight, but my mobility and a good chunk of my electronics are shot. I - Oh hell!"
Linna had charged at Frederick, intent on finishing him off. It was then that the fusion boomer started doing what it was designed to do - it started fusing with the steel deck. The floor of the chamber rippled, knocking Linna off her feet. She cartwheeled away, but that allowed Frederick to continued absorbing the surrounding area. He was now the pinnacle of a rapidly growing mountain of steel and boomer parts.
Craig fired the last two rounds in the current magazine. Both rounds smashed into the growing pillar, tearing away chunks in impressive explosions, only to have the rents close up quickly. Cursing, Craig changed magazine. "I've got two shots left!" he yelled to Nene. "Get clear, and I'll see if I can attract his attention!"
"You can't!"
"No!" Linna shouted.
Craig yanked the plug and pushed Nene away. He pointed his cannon at the fusion boomer again, this time trying for a head shot. Out of the corner of his visor, Craig saw Sylia finish off the last combat boomer before leaping clear of a metallic tentacle aimed at her.
Something hard and fast slammed into Craig's left side, sending him flying. Another wall stopped him and his vision went blurry. "This is getting old," he hissed, trying to get on his feet. A wave of pain surged though his left ribs, and stopped trying.
Something else latched onto his hand and he struggle to try and break free. The pain shot through his side again, and tried to blink he vision clear. A familiar form came into his sight - Nene. She attached the cable again. "It's me!" she shouted. "Stop struggling."
"Nene," he said, surprised by how slurred the word sounded. "What happened?"
"You got hit by...that thing's tentacle! Don't move!"
"I have to move...can't stay here."
"How is he?" Sylia asked.
"I'm still here and ready to fight," Craig replied.
"Your hardsuit had a large dent above your left ribs" Nene said quickly. "You probably have several cracked ribs, maybe even some broken ones. You could puncture a lung if you move the wrong way!"
"Team needs me...needs cannon...."
"We need you alive!" said Sylia forcefully.
"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Craig said, his voice slightly stronger.
Nene glanced back in the direction of the fight. "Where's Priss?"
"Maybe she got lost in traffic."
She whirled back to him. "That's not funny!"
"Help me up. I need to do something, have to stay alert."
"You're insane!"
Craig took several shallow breaths. "No comment," he said, trying to sound stronger then he felt. "Help me up."
"Nene," Sylia directed, "Stay with him. We need to try and coordinate our attack on this thing."
Making a frustrated sound, Nene carefully guided Craig to his feet. A fresh wave of pain struck his side and he stifled a scream. He looked up and know things were getting worse.
Frederick was now taller then the chamber, and still gaining height. He could see either Linna or Sylia, and he hoped they were all right. "Step away," he told Nene gruffly. "I expect I'm going to attract his attention the hard way."
He readied the cannon, but Nene stayed close. "I'm staying right here," she said flatly. You need to stay in contact with the others."
"Your choice." Craig fired the first round, rode the slight recoil, aimed again and fired the second round.. He watched both rounds streak towards the Boomer's growing head with tired detachment.
The boomer didn't react until both rounds struck it in the head. Its scream was deafening, as both rounds punched through the armor it had built around the command core directing the fusion. As the monstrosity turned towards Craig, a stream of slugs struck the boomer in the head, most passing through the craters created by Craig's shots and biting deep into Frederick's control components.
A large red humanoid came screaming out of the sky. "Sorry I'm late!" Priss yelled and she fired another burst into the Boomer's head, expanding old holes and opening up new ones. "Traffic is murder!"
The man-made monster screamed again, and turned towards the source of its newest pain. A pair of laser flashed out of the darkness, adding more damage. The fusion boomer could use nearly any structural matter for its source of materials, but it couldn't replace the basic components of the original host body - the systems that governed the fusion operations. Craig's rounds had breeched the armor, Priss' 35mm machine gun ammunition had reached the original skull and shredded it, while Sylia's lasers were the coup de grace. Screaming like a soul lost in hell, the creature collapsed, the artificial earthquake strong enough to knock Craig and Nene off their feet.
Craig blacked out for a span of seconds. He became aware that Nene was yelling at him. "What?" he said muzzily.
"I said, 'Get off me!'" Nene yelled. "I can't push you off of me!"
He head someone chuckling. "Gee," said Priss, "Couldn't you guys wait until you got a hotel room?"
Craig's vision cleared to the point that he could see he was lying on top of Nene. "Sorry," he mumbled and rolled off of her.
"Adventurous, aren't we?" Priss continued. "Does Mackie know?"
"Priss," said Craig, slowly staring up at the dark sky. "Say another word, and I will start selling Leon pictures of you in the shower. I'm sure Mackie wouldn't mind giving me a hand with that."
"Spoilsport."
"Enough," said Sylia. "We have to get out of here. Craig, can you move?"
"Not as fast as the rest of you. My suit's pretty well banged up and I'm almost as bad."
"Linna, Nene, help him up and stay with him. Nene, for now, we'll have to use the com cable to keep Craig in the loop. I'll take point. Priss, you'll follow us."
Both Nene and Linna helped Craig to his feet. Wincing slightly, he stood and held his left arm over his abdomen. "What's the Saber's Medical plan like?" he asked.
"About what you would expect," replied Priss. "Get use to a lot of first aid."
"So pronounces the expert."
"Talk later," said Sylia.
"I've got something coming towards us," said Nene suddenly.
"More trouble," muttered Craig.
"Try and locate the source," directed Sylia. "Lets move out."
They started off slowly, jumping from point to point. Linna and Nene used their jets to carry Craig along. Priss brought up the rear, scanning for any attacks. After about a minute, Nene called out, "Hold it!"
"What do you have?" asked Sylia.
"I'm picking up approaching aircraft," said Nene. "A solo helicopter coming in from the northeast, and three helicopters coming in from the west. They all going to be over the island in less then five minutes."
"Bet you the solo is Mason," said Craig. "But I have no idea who the others are."
"USSD would be a good bet," replied Sylia. "I'm having Mackie send the motorslaves to meet us at this end of the causeway. We're going to have to pick up the pace."
"Don't worry about me," said Craig. "If I scream too much, Nene can always unplug the com cord and let me suffer in silence."
"That's not funny!" said Nene.
"We'll increase the pace," said Sylia and did so. All Craig could do was grit his teeth and let the others guide him along.
The sky was beginning to lighten, a sure sign that daybreak was approaching. As they landed, Craig said, "Sylia, remember what I said about cutting Mason's heart out with a spoon?"
"You didn't mean it?"
"On the contrary, I meant every word of it. That son of a bitch tried to kill me."
"He tried to kill all of us," Linna replied.
"I take it a little more personally then the rest of you."
"Who said we're not taking it personally?" asked Priss. "I want to castrate the weasel, assuming he has anything to cut off."
"I don't think he does," replied Craig. "I'm not even sure he has a heart I can cut out."
'That's sick!" exclaimed Nene.
"If you feel the way I feel right now, you'd want to help Priss turn Mason into a soprano."
"You're not going after him," replied Sylia cooly, "and I'm sure as hell not going to sanction any independent action you might take against Mason."
Craig sighed. "I know. I won't go running off into the night after him, I promise. Since I can't kill the slime ball, can I step up the psych war against him again? I can't kill him, but I can really, REALLY piss him off."
Sylia was silent for a moment. "I think we can allow that."
"Good, because Mason is about to learn what it's like to piss me off."
Chapter 17 - "Aqua City Battleground - Part 3"
**************
Rowley was standing the cockpit of the lead KVS-5 transport helicopter, leaning down to look at the upcoming island. The island was a foreboding place, even this early in the morning, but Rowley put that thought aside for now. No use in letting her imagination run wild unnecessarily.
"How long?" she asked over the radio.
"ETA is ten minutes," the pilot replied.
The captain nodded. "Inform me when we're five minutes out."
"Right."
Rowley turned and went back into the main cargo area of the craft. Besides the ten security troopers, both Schildt and Sanchez were there, determined to stay within call of her. She glanced out the side windows, making sure the other two KVS-5s were still keeping formation with her helicopter.
"Captain," said the Pilot. "We're picking up another craft on the radar."
"Who?"
"We don't know. It's coming in from the opposite direction, at a lower altitude. It's also five minutes closer to the target then we are."
"Get on the horn with CT Air control," said Rowley. "I want to know who that is, and I want to know now!"
"They may not tell us."
"I don't give a damn. If you have to, threaten them, but I want to know who's trying to get there ahead of us!"
"Yes, Ma'am!"
"What do you think, Ma'am?" asked Schildt over their private channel. He leaned forward and looked at Rowley. Sanchez watched silently.
"I think the people behind the theft of Project Hikigane are on that aircraft," Rowley replied.
"You think the Sabers found the meeting place?"
"Makes sense."
"So, how are we going to stop them?" asked Sanchez. "These birds aren't armed."
"We'll think of something. How are we if we have to face boomers?"
"We can handle any of the civilian models," replied Schildt. "I can't speak the same way if we run into any of the combat models."
"Hopefully the Sabers will have whittled down the odds some before we get there, assuming they haven't retrieve Hikigane by then."
"What about our orders from the General regarding the Sabers?"
Rowley shrugged. "We'll play it by ear when we get there, Sargent. I won't be a party to cold-blooded murder, but I want Cynthia back, no matter what the cost."
"Understood." Schildt leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes.
Rowley switched channels to the command frequency. "Strike Command Six to all team leaders. Here's the plan. Strike Black, I want your team to secure the Aqua City end of the causeway. No one in or out without my say-so."
"Roger, Command Six." Replied Strike Black's leader.
"Strike Red with land North of the target area, while Strike Green will land south of the target area. We'll work in from there. Make sure of any targets before you fire. I want location updates every two minutes. You all know what target we're looking for. If you find the target, and that target is being accompanied, give them one chance to surrender. If they don't, take them down. Any questions?"
No one had any. Rowley nodded to herself. "Stand by to execute the plan on my command."
**************
Frederick stood in the middle of the chamber, waiting.
The sounds of battle had died rather quickly, and he had no doubt that both his team and Kerbasi's had been eliminated. No matter. If his primary mission had failed, maybe the completion of his secondary mission would take some of the anger out of Mr. Mason's tirade.
So, he waited. Waited to kill the Knight Sabers.
A body fell out of the night sky and struck the ground with a large 'clang!' Frederick walked over to the body and looked down at it. It was a headless boomer, still leaking fluid from its neck.
A figure landed not far away Frederick looked up and saw himself staring at a white hardsuit.
"The Knight Sabers, I believe?"
**********
Above the confrontation, three other Sabers waited in the shadows.
They had found a place where they could overlook the chamber and stay in the shadows. Frederick was still there, now and then looking up into the darkness. After giving the rest of her team that was present, Sylia had tossed Linna's former opponent into the chamber and followed it in, the trio moved to the overhanging catwalk. Sylia's orders had been brief, but clear: They were to stay here, keep an eye out for the boomers that were still out there and to ready to help Sylia if the confrontation got out of hand.
Craig was busy switching magazines on his cannon, slotting his last full magazine into place. "Anything on those boomers?" he asked.
"No," replied Nene in frustration. "The combat boomers use a more sophisticated communications system and they're harder to crack."
"Hey guys!' called out a familiar voice on the radio. "I'm on my way!"
"About time, Priss," Craig muttered. "Is the kid boomer safe?"
"She's with Mackie. Where are you guys?"
"Same place we were when you left. Sylia making like gunslinger facing off against Frederick. I hope you bought extra firepower."
"No problem. See you in a couple!"
"Listen!" Linna hissed, pointing at the drama below.
Frederick stepped over the body of the headless boomer. "Not bad," he said, looking at Sylia. "I'd sayyou're superior to the military's K-12 armored trooper."
"You've lost," said Sylia flatly. "We have the satellite trigger and your friends are no more."
"You really did a number on my friends," Frederick conceded. "What do you hope to accomplish?"
"To defend Peace and Justice and rid the world of evil."
"Oh, God," Craig muttered, "She's gone Sailor Moon on us...." That earned him a couple of stares from the others.
Frederick shrugged. "A worthy objective. But will it hold true for me, I wonder?"
He started to rip open his shirt when Craig "yelled, "Fire in the Hole!" and fired his cannon. The first shot torn into Frederick's left leg, ripping off both limbs and sending shattered pieces of tentacles in every direction. The surprised boomer, still in transforming stage, crashed to the ground, a surprised look on his face.
Craig lined up his second shot. "Not this time, you bastard," he muttered.
Then the other combat boomers showed up.
Nene shouted, "Incoming! Two marks, Two o'clock!" The night sky lit up with cannon fire of their own.
The three Sabers separated just as the firestorm struck. Linna and Nene dropped into the chamber, while Craig leapt off the catwalk and landed near a waist-high wall, which he ducked behind. "That's it!" he yelled. "When I find that son of a bitch Mason, I'm going to cut his heart out with a spoon!"
"Shut up and start fighting!" Linna replied
The pair of BU-12Bs flashed out of the night sky, firing both cannon and machine guns as they came in. They hovered in the air like a couple of death angels, spitting fire and destruction. By unspoken agreement, they split their fire, one concentrating on Craig's position, the other boomer trying to strafe the Sabers inside the chamber.
Craig crawled away from the barrage that was striking the wall he was hiding behind. He waited until the fire slackened against his hiding place before he reared up and quickly targeted the boomer. The boomer spotted him a fraction too late, but its reflexes were quicker, the result being that both fired almost at the same instance.
Craig's cannon round slammed into the BU-12's abdomen, the HEAT round nearly cutting the boomer in two. The combat cyberdroid's return fire slammed into the wall in front of the black hardsuit and exploded, sending Craig flying into a wall several meters away. He struck the wall three meters above the ground, then gravity reasserted it's rule and he hit the ground.
Craig's world was nothing but a sea of pain. The severe headache he'd had early was nothing compared to how he felt now, and he was dimly aware of something running from his nose, tasting blood as some of it slipped inside his mouth. Part of him wanted to call it a night right there, but the self-survival part of him kicked in. Slowly, his whole body protesting, he got to his knees, then his feet. Using the wall for support, he got his bearings.
The boomer he had nailed was lying near the low wall that surrounded the chamber, the impact finishing the job Craig's shot had started. The BU-12's top half was struggling weakly in its death throws, while the lower half of the boomer, several meters away was still. The area between the two halves was awash in the sickly-looking boomer fluid. Craig tried not to throw up at the sight.
To distract himself, he ran a quick diagnostic on his hardsuit and frowned at the results. The jump jets were off-line, and one of his lasers was damaged. Half the suit's sensor and communications systems were not functioning. The armor was cracked in half a dozen places, and the finish was severely scarred. The cannon was still operating, but the targeting system was not.
He ran a medical diagnostic on himself and was cheered slightly. He was bruised and battered, but he didn't have any broken bones. The system did evaluate a possible concussion, but Craig ignored that for now.
Moving as fast as he could, he moved to the wall surrounding the chamber and looked down. The battle was still in progress, and had developed into a stalemate of sorts. Both Sylia and Linna were dueling the remaining BU-12, while Nene was standing back, doing her job of supplying battlefield support. The boomer, geared more towards combat then the BU-55s, was managing to keep the Sabers from overwhelming it for the time being, but Craig knew that wouldn't last for long.
He looked at where Frederick was lying and snarled a curse as he saw the fusion boomer was pulling himself towards the headless boomer. "Look out for Frederick!" he shouted, but none of the Sabers responded.
"Shit!" he growled, pointing his cannon at Frederick and firing. The round slammed into the floor two meters from the fusion boomer, releasing a small fireball into the air, but not stopping it.
It did have the effect of alerting the others to the danger. Sylia took a quick look at what had caused the explosion, saw Frederick and sent out orders to the others. Linna back flipped away from the BU-12 and started for Frederick. Nene leapt into the air and landed near Craig.
Craig tapped his helmet and shook his head slowly. Nene nodded, and a thin wire slipped out of an opening in her arm armor. She pulled it out and plugged it into a small socket located behind the earpiece of Craig's helmet. "Can you hear me?" she asked, the voice tinny and soft.
"Yea, barely," Craig replied.
"Are you all right?"
"I'll live, but I'm going to need bed rest."
"Can you move?" asked Sylia, coming through Nene's radio and through the cable.
"I'd better be. I'm not hanging around here any longer then I have to!"
"How's the suit?" asked Nene.
"In worse shape then I am. I can still fight, but my mobility and a good chunk of my electronics are shot. I - Oh hell!"
Linna had charged at Frederick, intent on finishing him off. It was then that the fusion boomer started doing what it was designed to do - it started fusing with the steel deck. The floor of the chamber rippled, knocking Linna off her feet. She cartwheeled away, but that allowed Frederick to continued absorbing the surrounding area. He was now the pinnacle of a rapidly growing mountain of steel and boomer parts.
Craig fired the last two rounds in the current magazine. Both rounds smashed into the growing pillar, tearing away chunks in impressive explosions, only to have the rents close up quickly. Cursing, Craig changed magazine. "I've got two shots left!" he yelled to Nene. "Get clear, and I'll see if I can attract his attention!"
"You can't!"
"No!" Linna shouted.
Craig yanked the plug and pushed Nene away. He pointed his cannon at the fusion boomer again, this time trying for a head shot. Out of the corner of his visor, Craig saw Sylia finish off the last combat boomer before leaping clear of a metallic tentacle aimed at her.
Something hard and fast slammed into Craig's left side, sending him flying. Another wall stopped him and his vision went blurry. "This is getting old," he hissed, trying to get on his feet. A wave of pain surged though his left ribs, and stopped trying.
Something else latched onto his hand and he struggle to try and break free. The pain shot through his side again, and tried to blink he vision clear. A familiar form came into his sight - Nene. She attached the cable again. "It's me!" she shouted. "Stop struggling."
"Nene," he said, surprised by how slurred the word sounded. "What happened?"
"You got hit by...that thing's tentacle! Don't move!"
"I have to move...can't stay here."
"How is he?" Sylia asked.
"I'm still here and ready to fight," Craig replied.
"Your hardsuit had a large dent above your left ribs" Nene said quickly. "You probably have several cracked ribs, maybe even some broken ones. You could puncture a lung if you move the wrong way!"
"Team needs me...needs cannon...."
"We need you alive!" said Sylia forcefully.
"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Craig said, his voice slightly stronger.
Nene glanced back in the direction of the fight. "Where's Priss?"
"Maybe she got lost in traffic."
She whirled back to him. "That's not funny!"
"Help me up. I need to do something, have to stay alert."
"You're insane!"
Craig took several shallow breaths. "No comment," he said, trying to sound stronger then he felt. "Help me up."
"Nene," Sylia directed, "Stay with him. We need to try and coordinate our attack on this thing."
Making a frustrated sound, Nene carefully guided Craig to his feet. A fresh wave of pain struck his side and he stifled a scream. He looked up and know things were getting worse.
Frederick was now taller then the chamber, and still gaining height. He could see either Linna or Sylia, and he hoped they were all right. "Step away," he told Nene gruffly. "I expect I'm going to attract his attention the hard way."
He readied the cannon, but Nene stayed close. "I'm staying right here," she said flatly. You need to stay in contact with the others."
"Your choice." Craig fired the first round, rode the slight recoil, aimed again and fired the second round.. He watched both rounds streak towards the Boomer's growing head with tired detachment.
The boomer didn't react until both rounds struck it in the head. Its scream was deafening, as both rounds punched through the armor it had built around the command core directing the fusion. As the monstrosity turned towards Craig, a stream of slugs struck the boomer in the head, most passing through the craters created by Craig's shots and biting deep into Frederick's control components.
A large red humanoid came screaming out of the sky. "Sorry I'm late!" Priss yelled and she fired another burst into the Boomer's head, expanding old holes and opening up new ones. "Traffic is murder!"
The man-made monster screamed again, and turned towards the source of its newest pain. A pair of laser flashed out of the darkness, adding more damage. The fusion boomer could use nearly any structural matter for its source of materials, but it couldn't replace the basic components of the original host body - the systems that governed the fusion operations. Craig's rounds had breeched the armor, Priss' 35mm machine gun ammunition had reached the original skull and shredded it, while Sylia's lasers were the coup de grace. Screaming like a soul lost in hell, the creature collapsed, the artificial earthquake strong enough to knock Craig and Nene off their feet.
Craig blacked out for a span of seconds. He became aware that Nene was yelling at him. "What?" he said muzzily.
"I said, 'Get off me!'" Nene yelled. "I can't push you off of me!"
He head someone chuckling. "Gee," said Priss, "Couldn't you guys wait until you got a hotel room?"
Craig's vision cleared to the point that he could see he was lying on top of Nene. "Sorry," he mumbled and rolled off of her.
"Adventurous, aren't we?" Priss continued. "Does Mackie know?"
"Priss," said Craig, slowly staring up at the dark sky. "Say another word, and I will start selling Leon pictures of you in the shower. I'm sure Mackie wouldn't mind giving me a hand with that."
"Spoilsport."
"Enough," said Sylia. "We have to get out of here. Craig, can you move?"
"Not as fast as the rest of you. My suit's pretty well banged up and I'm almost as bad."
"Linna, Nene, help him up and stay with him. Nene, for now, we'll have to use the com cable to keep Craig in the loop. I'll take point. Priss, you'll follow us."
Both Nene and Linna helped Craig to his feet. Wincing slightly, he stood and held his left arm over his abdomen. "What's the Saber's Medical plan like?" he asked.
"About what you would expect," replied Priss. "Get use to a lot of first aid."
"So pronounces the expert."
"Talk later," said Sylia.
"I've got something coming towards us," said Nene suddenly.
"More trouble," muttered Craig.
"Try and locate the source," directed Sylia. "Lets move out."
They started off slowly, jumping from point to point. Linna and Nene used their jets to carry Craig along. Priss brought up the rear, scanning for any attacks. After about a minute, Nene called out, "Hold it!"
"What do you have?" asked Sylia.
"I'm picking up approaching aircraft," said Nene. "A solo helicopter coming in from the northeast, and three helicopters coming in from the west. They all going to be over the island in less then five minutes."
"Bet you the solo is Mason," said Craig. "But I have no idea who the others are."
"USSD would be a good bet," replied Sylia. "I'm having Mackie send the motorslaves to meet us at this end of the causeway. We're going to have to pick up the pace."
"Don't worry about me," said Craig. "If I scream too much, Nene can always unplug the com cord and let me suffer in silence."
"That's not funny!" said Nene.
"We'll increase the pace," said Sylia and did so. All Craig could do was grit his teeth and let the others guide him along.
The sky was beginning to lighten, a sure sign that daybreak was approaching. As they landed, Craig said, "Sylia, remember what I said about cutting Mason's heart out with a spoon?"
"You didn't mean it?"
"On the contrary, I meant every word of it. That son of a bitch tried to kill me."
"He tried to kill all of us," Linna replied.
"I take it a little more personally then the rest of you."
"Who said we're not taking it personally?" asked Priss. "I want to castrate the weasel, assuming he has anything to cut off."
"I don't think he does," replied Craig. "I'm not even sure he has a heart I can cut out."
'That's sick!" exclaimed Nene.
"If you feel the way I feel right now, you'd want to help Priss turn Mason into a soprano."
"You're not going after him," replied Sylia cooly, "and I'm sure as hell not going to sanction any independent action you might take against Mason."
Craig sighed. "I know. I won't go running off into the night after him, I promise. Since I can't kill the slime ball, can I step up the psych war against him again? I can't kill him, but I can really, REALLY piss him off."
Sylia was silent for a moment. "I think we can allow that."
"Good, because Mason is about to learn what it's like to piss me off."