"What does our intel say about the drop off point?"
Sprout kneeled down beside her and, using his finger, assisted in her diagram, "The garden's pretty big. Despite what them dome workers might say it ain't actually too hard ta' get in. There are four entrances, North, South, East n' West. All 'a them'll likely be monitored by someone 'r another. There're quite a few abandoned guard posts scattered about, relics from when they used 'ta grow fruit here an' needed ta' keep thieves out. I reckon we may have some hostiles campn' out in them, so keep yer eyes peeled."
At this point he'd drawn the relative shape of the garden, placing X's where the four main entrances were and circles for the guard towers. He scratched his scruff for a second as he contemplated the plan, "Chromey mentioned there was some kinda ol' sewer system that ran under the south n' eastern sides a' the dome. If we wanna get in without an'a'one seein' us we may wanna access the garden via the sewers. There's at least one sprinkler drain I know of that we can use ta' access the garden from there."
Using his finger, he traced their theoretical movement, "So how's this sound? We drug the noble an' haul his fatass through the sewers, climb through the sprinkler drain, you find'a nice place ta' watch my back from the dense brush near the drain an' I take Bart ta' the meeting location in the center'a the garden. Whether it all works out 'r not, we leave through the sewers. Same way we came. How's that sound?"
*********************************************************************************************************************************************************
Silo held his ribs in pain as the crawler suddenly shifted, jostling him around in his seat. He wasn't sure if Ruffles had done it on purpose, but it was clear he wasn't happy about the way he'd been treating Aesop. Fine then, he'll back off for now.
After helping Cameron open and close the hatch they made their way down the dark access tunnel. They would be arriving soon. Silo turned back to face his squad, "Be alert people. Assume we're stepping into a hot zone. The banditos know we're coming and will be waiting for us."
Barrot nodded with a smirk, "Fuckers'll wish they'd never left the safety of their mama's pussy!"
"Yeah, well, let's hope that's the case."
Silo was never very good at boosting morale.
********************************************************************************************************************************************************
"Shall we?"
"Of course, Sir." Pixie said sarcastically, taking his arm as they started for the hangar. She noticed Florian pop his head out into the hall to see what the commotion was about and called out to him. "Y'all can use some shore-leave, can'cha, Padre? Come 'ere!" She reached out with her other hand and dragged him out into the hall as they passed by his room. He no longer had a say in the matter.
Ricky had already been in the hangar when they arrived, probably tinkering with some explosive device, and let down the boarding ramp for them. The three of them put on their breathing masks and stepped out into ashlands, the ship hovering on the outskirts of a dinky bus stop of sorts. Proto Dome, the dome it belonged to, could be seen in the distance, but the Maiden rarely ever docked at the actual dome cities themselves, too risky. The building the Gentleman's friend was waiting in was oxygen-friendly, thankfully. They would want to get in and out as soon as they could. It looked like an ashstorm was going to be coming through any minute.
The trio made their way through the vacuum-sealed threshold, and into the building. Inside, a lone man sat behind a ticket counter, bored out of his mind. Only a handful of people sat in the lobby, likely waiting for a public transport to take them to the city. Among those waiting was a beautiful blonde who stuck out like a sore thumb among these downtrodden commoners.
Their arms still locked, Pixie gave the Gentleman a sharp nudge in his side, "That 'er?"
