The Ashlanders - Chapter 6: The Blind Man's Last Gambit (Closed, Started)

[Fappy]

"Hell, you're a foot in the grave!"

Gorgon ignored his partner's observation and continued hobbling down the alley, muttering something unintelligible under his breath.

"We ain't gonna bring 'em in like this, Gorgon. We gotta get our men together, back the fuck up and tend to our wounds. Then we can go after 'em again."

Gorgon's remaining eye widened, a wild fire burning within as he turned to Landon and grabbed hold of his shoulder, "YOU'RE DAMN FUCKN' RIGHT WE'RE GOIN' AFTER THEM AGAIN! AN' WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON THAT WHORE I'M GONNA SPLIT 'ER ASS IN TWO. I AIN'T GONNA KILL 'ER, NOT RIGHT AWAY! BUT, SHE'S GONNA WISH SHE WAS DEAD AFTER I'M DONE MAKIN' EVERY HOLD IN' 'ER BODY BLEED!" After a few moments, Gorgon broke eye contact and shoved Landon aside. "Come on... I need a fuckn' doctor."

****************************************************************************************************************************************************

"Once we've returned to the dome, what will our next move be?"

Pixie furrowed her brow. She'd upset Amy.

"So soon after the robbery, taking him to a hospital is a big risk."

She too looked at Florian, "Carlos can take care'a 'im. I reckon he'll be fine recoverin' 'is strength at the safe house. As fer what ar' next move is..." Pixie sighed. "I've gotta call ta' make before I initiate 'ar emergency protocol. We won' be stayin' at that dome fer long, so try not ta' get too comfortable. There's a lot of work ahead of us."

Dirty work, at that.

Why does it have ta' be children?

Pixie had been forced to kill child soldier before, but never an army of them. Was the Maiden worth what little humanity she had remaining? Her thoughts found their way to the men she'd left to guard the ship... and Florian.

Of course it was worth it.

She'd damn herself to hell a thousand times for her Maidens.

**********************************************************************************************************************************************************

"I'm afraid I have no music to pass the time."

"What a shame." Carlos mused.

"So, rather than just sit here in silence, perhaps you'd like to tell me what this history of yours with Meredith is?"

Carlos shrugged, "I s'pose that's a fair question. As you know, I was a bandito back in the day and Meredith... well, she was on our shit-list. She ripped us off a few times, but eventually, after one job in particular... I, well, I switched sides." Carlos shifted uncomfortably. It almost looked like he'd regretted saying that. "From then on we worked together on scores. Made a lot of money and pissed a lot of people off." He laughed. "Eventually we ran into Cranston and... well, I didn't want in on the whole 'bandit' thing, so we parted ways."

Carlos stared at Pixie from several meters away as their crawler caught up. He rubbed his fingers against his stubble, under his mask and sighed, "You want to know more than that... I'll let Meredith explain it."

 

[Evrant-Knight]

The fight between Viola and the mercenaries was slowly drawing to a close, as the three that she'd been fighting were sustaining injuries to their arms and shoulders, which meant more of their shots were going wide. Eventually though, Viola managed to get a shot that nailed one of the mercenaries right in the middle of their forehead, his revolver dropping to the floor instantly.

She was about to take a second, when looking through the scope, Viola saw the two remaining mercenaries being ordered to fall back by an unseen accomplice; they decided to run back and pick up the body of their fallen comrade, leaving the gun behind.

"Well I'll be damned. Would you look at that Hannibal, they're actually backing off. Old Gorgon must have got one hell of a beating from someone if a full retreat is in order."

 

[ProtoChimp]

Viola had attempted to comfort Hannibal, though she seemed a bit more focused on making him feel better rather than the gun fight, which in itself was the total opposite of comforting.

Then she put an arm around him. And his body shut down. He was perfectly still as his eyes buried deep into the dirt beneath him, avoiding eye contact like the plague.

"Listen, Hannibal, you've got a good man inside of you, just hasn't been given the chance to shine; but I guess life has dealt you a crap hand so far. How about we change that after this hmm?" Finally she had removed her arm.

"Hannibal, could you do me a favor, watch my back in case anyone tries firing on us from behind."

He leaned his back against the wall, pushing so deep that the brick was scratching his back through his raggedy clothing. He pushed his knees up to his chin held his gun tight with both hands, aiming nowhere. He just held his gun out, his eyes wide, and his skin began to crawl and shiver and it felt like it was running away from him; desperately wanting to escape his bones and escape into a sewer, wanting to allow his organs to fall our of his body, for his skeleton to collapse and his body to fall to pieces. He did. Not. Like. To be touched.
===============================
Suddenly it appeared that Randy and Rodrigo had exploded into flame like the demons they were. Aesop, feeling a surge of energy like never before had hopped to his feet. Rodrigo against a wall and his gun on the floor. With mad eyes Aesop stared the gun down. Rodrigo had dived forward for the weapon, Aesop allowed him to get lower to the floor as he ran forwards and knee'd the man as hard as he possibly could right on top of his head, in the dead centre of his skull. The Bandito King was sent careening against the wall, the gun still on the floor as Aesop mounted him, ramming his knee repeatedly and viciously into his reproductive organs and biting his ear.

Rodrigo screamed out in pain as he felt his testicals being crushed by Aesop's knee. Aesop felt his teeth touch each other through the man's ear and tasted the blood pour into his own mouth. Rodrigo began pounding repeatedly into Aesop's ribs, sending him careening back.

He took the bastard's ear with him though.

Santiago screamed out in horror as he grabbed what was left of his ear. Aesop snatched the gun off the floor but before he had time to fire Rodrigo had kicked his forearm, sending it across the room. Aesop turned back as Rodrigo was about to punch him in the face, but the Maiden spat the man's ear at his own face, making the man pause for a second. A second long enough to punch the man's sensitive area once again, following up with a sweep to his legs.

Aesop scrambled to his feet and ran for the gun. But Santiago was fast, even in the pain he felt and charged his own body against Aesop's. The maiden coughed up blood, his own blood, as his midsection felt crushed. His arm tensed however as adrenaline surged through him and he fired three shots into the ground.

One missed. One hit Rodrigo's foot. The last pierced his shin.

Aesop knocked him back onto the floor and shot twice into the man's chest, tearing through his lungs. Aesop laughed and span the gun around his finger, blowing away the smoke.

"I ain't done."

Like an animal, Aesop mounted the quickly dying man, taking out his knife and driving it into the Bandito's chest. "You're brothers died easy. You won't."

Taking out the knife Aesop slashed over and over the man's face, cutting across his eyes and nose and tearing apart his cheeks. The eyes of the maiden flashed with rage as he dug the knife in and out of the all powerful Rodrigo Santiago's chest. Slobbering like a mad man as with both hands he dug the knife like a shovel into his chest cavity. Blood painted the room as if a million men had died in there. Yet it was only two. The first was an important Maiden. The second was THE Bandito master.

Finally Aesop was done. Spitting on his corpse he left the room, gun in one hand and knife in the other.

 

[Ruedyn]

Vergil

"WHERE THE FUCK DO YA' THINK YER GOIN'!?"

"AWAY, you crazy, cock ravenous rat!" Vergil yelled back, ducking into a door as a bullet whizzed by. This man was very intent on murdering a poor English kid, but the kid was sure he didn't want to do the inverse. He was needed alive, he remembered, for whatever reason. Probably public execution. Barbaric, but Vergil was hardly one to call them out on it, at least before an attempt to talk to their leader.

He hid behind a door, a very simply trick. Randy didn't seem to know it, he burst through the room, aiming his gun at every corner before checking Vergil's. He saw the kid crouching down, right before a straight jab below the belt, out of panic more than anything. Randy sunk to the floor, on his knees before getting tackled to the ground, Vergil quickly taking his weapon. He got up dashing to the door and closing it behind them, he didn't want anyone to get in too quickly.

Randy had worked his way to his feet, yelling some vague profanity in the hillbilly idiot speech that seemed to be the norm around here. How anyone could tolerate that for more than a second would baffle him till the end of his life. Randy, intent on making it that day, leapt forward, Vergil capering to the left with a yelp. Randy crashed into the wall with a loud noise, his arse sticking up into the air. Vergil scrambled behind him, giving a swift kick to the groin.

"GAH, FUCK, AGAIN?!" Vergil shrugged, smiling weakly. He pulled out a pair of zip tie handcuffs, tying them firmly around Randy's ankles, another pair going on his wrists. Hogtied, not going anywhere, lovely. Perfect prisoner for now. He remembered something about radio silence for now, so he remained quiet, beginning to move towards the window. After a second, he turned around, stuffing Randy's mouth with some burlap.

"There. Bloody perfect."
________________________________________________________________________________________________
Warren

"Sure thing, we do... I've always wanted to do this!"

There was a terrifying blankness in Warren's eyes, as his legs propelled him, keeping stride with Ruffles easily. Climbing the wall was pretty easy, too, a small part of him was surprised Ruffles could. Perhaps Engineers were stronger than they looked. That part of his brain became quieter as they entered the house, Ruffles providing covering fire as he ducked into the Dining Room.

Warren chose a different way, going head on and spraying his lead into he room. He heard the dying gasp of at least one man, before ducking into cover and reloading, quick and practiced as ever. He blindfired, propping his rifle on the edge of his cover and spinning it a few times. You could almost hear him giggling with pure joy as he heard someone shout, shot it sounded like. Not dead. Yet.
________________________________________________________________________________________________
Aquila & Tobin

"GET BACK HERE YOU FUCKIN' BRATS!"

"Dickwagon!" Tobin yelped back, thoroughly ignored by the merc. Bigger quarry and all that, no pun intended. He sighed after correcting his balance, moving his hands out to stay on his feet. He even managed to keep his revolver in hand, he kept running on. He's not sure why- a bullet ripped through the air next to him. That was why. He sped up his pace, taking a turn into an alley opposite the Market.

An alley Aquila liked to haunt, she had noticed the gunfire and had taken a position to see if she could see anything. Seemed like the city was livelier than she was ever led to believe... the Dwarf ran into her alley, dragging two wary hunters behind him. Not good, she hid further in, using the shadows to cloak herself as best she could. Was best to see how this went, honestly. Maybe see if the bodies had anything good on them, she did need to make more carbon before returning soon.

Tobin hid behind a dumpster, checking over his ammo. All 6 shots were ready, he pulled back the hammer. First one ran right by him, the second stopped when he caught a bullet in the side, ripping through his leg. The first one turned around, confused as the cylinder clicked into place. The goon raised his pistol, Tobin smirked. The man earned a hole in his head at the sound of the pistols BANG. Tobin whistled, not the best or brightest. In all honesty, he was probably a better fighter than the woman and her child servant whatever it was they were doing. The man whimpered in pain, crawling towards his gun. The dwarf strolled over, kicking it away.

"So, who are you two- better yet, why did you attack in such a public fucking place? Trying to start a panic, what?" The man said something between clenched teeth, but noticed something out the corner of his eye. Was someone there? Tobin put his boot on his head, quickly lifting himself to stand on it.

"Here, now it's just me on your mind, limp dick." He jumped forward, landing on his leg and ungracefully stepping off quickly onto the dirt. The man screamed bloody murder, saying something intelligible again. He hated torture, but he was told he could use it to get information off a person. He usually left it to Ogre, but he could occasionally have a sadistic mind.

"Speak up." Tobin said, cupping a hand around his ear.

"Said we're here for a bounty, should've stayed out of our way."

"... We... we do realize it's the other way around, right? I don't know if I made the HOLE IN YOUR LEG," For emphasis, he stomped on the wound, forcing another shriek, "QUITE NOTICEABLE ENOUGH. Now then." Tobin winced, but straightened himself up, strolling out in front of him again.

"What are you hunting them for. C'mooon, we know you can do it."

"I DON'T KNOW, FUCK!" Tobin sighed, he didn't want to assume they were crooks. He just had breakfast with one, for christssake. He'd have to ask them, if he saw them again. He noticed a shifting out of the corner of his eye, he drew his pistol quickly. A slender figure emerged from the shadows, hands in the air. A rifle on her back and the pistol he kicked in her hand, seemed she was diving for the weapon. Got it too, just didn't seem to use it. Mercy, not enough time? Who knew.

Aquila didn't drop the pistol. Tobin did lower his, however, her deer in the headlights look was enough to get most to do it. She must've been too young to be a real threat, or this man was arrogant. Either way. She approached slowly,

"What are you doing here?" the dwarf asked, sounding weary. He spun the cylinder, the man bled more on the ground. He seemed to have gone unconscious, good for him, honestly. She didn't have any supplies on her to help with that injury.

"Just wandering. Heard gunshots, thought I might see what was going on. See if anyone needed my services." The dwarf looked to the cross around her neck, the rifle on her back, and finally the red cross on her satchel, smiling.

"Medic? You with these hunters?" The girl shook her head slowly, shrugging. She didn't know what WAS going on, but if they were hunters then they had gear. And maybe some money. A good question; How much did the dwarf have on him? The oblivious dwarf checked his revolver again, two shots used and technically two kills. The ammo was standard, at least, estimated 20 or so carbon to get a couple of friggin bullets. He wished he had a sword... and the ability to use a sword. He put his pistol away, thinking the girl was more or less harmless. Aquila could see a sack of carbon on his belt...

"Coming with me, then? Might as well check the damage-" A bullet caught him in the temple, his hat flying off his head comically as he was tossed to the ground, blood splattering the walls around him. Dwarfs were a rare breed, he was better off now anyways. Likely. Aquila sighed, looking over the pockets of the bodies. They had gear. The dwarf had money. His guns would serve her better, however, the revolver was in wonderful condition and the sub machine gun would sell well. She stuffed it into her satchel.

Aquila counted on her fingers, to 20. 1 one thousand, 2 one thousand... She began walking towards the battle, she could still hear gunfire, but it was dying. She could either join in, or stay on the sidelines; regardless she wanted that money and ammo. She'd need to hurry up, see if she could start looting before officials got there.

 

[Terratina.]

Spoiler: First Aid Fury

The kid was still alive, at least there was that much.

However, it was clear that without treatment, he would surely die. Maria cursed herself, that bag containing the equipment she needed was still in the hotel room. Well, if no-one had stolen it while she was away. Maria needed to get herself and the kid there for proper treatment anyways. Christ, she felt so useless here. All she could do at this moment in time was stem the tide of blood, nothing more, nothing less. Red seeped into white as her hand stayed on the entry wound, pressing down as hard as could be maintained. Maria looked over at the blond girl, she was covered in blood and tears. Some of the blood her own, some of the kid's and there was some of that bastard's as well. Shooting kids... It was despicable. Nevertheless, she needed to move Axel (that was his name, right?) and she would require help to do so. Blondie over there would have to keep her grieving on hold for now.

"Hey! Hey!" She shouted, her voice filled with panic, "We need to get him outta here, and I need your help. My moped's at that brothel! Just help me carry him there. Please!"

***​

Jun listened intently to the plan. He had no objections or questions - any that came to mind was answered immediately by his mind. He took a closer look at Carthage's dossier, just because it was something to do.

 

[The Funslinger]

Landon pretended he was listening to Gorgon rave, and shook his head as he followed his leader. The guy was in one of those infuriating macho moods again. Whatever. He was right, though. They'd come back and do this right...

=====================================================================

Spoiler

Ruffles leaned out the door frame and fired his shotgun. The buckshot caught one man in the shoulder, sending him spinning into a wall. The second threw himself out of the way of the next blast Ruffles unleashed, and opened fire with a machine pistol.

Had Ruffles chambered another shell, the weapon would have exploded in his hands. As it was, when the bullets ricocheted up the shotgun's barrel, he had to drop it for useless. His hand barely touched the butt of his Glock when he felt hands at his throat and the sudden weightlessness of being thrown. His pistol went spinning across the room, and the bandito that had jumped him from behind started kicking him savagely. The man whom Ruffles had failed to kill came in, and they hauled Ruffles to his feet and began working him over.

"Hey, this ****** looks like an engineer. Bet the gringo ***** in charge don't want 'im dead. Get him standing again; we got us a hostage!"

Once again, Ruffles was on his feet, this time a knife at his throat. "Where's your radio, ******?"

As a matter of fact, Ruffles' radio was still on the roof. But through his pummel induced delirium, an idea popped into life. "My bag," he replied. The second bandito ripped open the zip and began rummaging through.

"Man, you got some weird shit in here... got it. Now call off your hombres, ya stupid little fuck."

Taking the dummy radio (looking to be an odd make with two prongs where an areal would be) he pretended to thumb the button. "Bennie, it's Ruffles." He kept the handset close to his jaw, slowly moving it closer. "They got me. They're gonna kill me..."

Then he made his move, he actually did press the button now, and jabbed the man holding him in the neck with the prongs of his homemade tazer. There was a clicking, buzzing sound and the man holding him hostage jerked and spasm'd wildly before Ruffles let go of the button and the man fell to the ground twitching.

Then the second man was in his face, tackling him to the ground, knocking the tazer from his grip. The two men grappled in a flurry of punches and grabs. Suddenly the bandito had a huge skinning knife in his hand, about to plunge it down. Ruffles managed to clap away his wrist with a forearm, and the knife blade buried into the wooden floor by his head. With his other hand, he grabbed the man by the hair and headbutted him as hard as he could from where he lay. The man reared back as lights exploded in both of their heads and Ruffles felt hands at his throat again, choking him. "I'm gonna love watchin' you die you fucken ******!"

Struggling in an attempt to ward off the bandito with one arm, Ruffles was casting around with the other. Eventually it found the man he'd tazed and he felt the butt of a weapon. A snub nosed revolver. Jamming it into the bandito's gut, he pulled the hammer and fired. He squeezed the trigger again and again, firing the pistol into the man's belly.

Kicking the dying bandito off of him, Ruffles got shakily to his feet. He was dizzy, and his throat burned from where he'd been choked. He was covered in bruises all over, and he was sure his eye would blacken soon. The front of his jumpsuit was more red than grey now from the bandito bleeding on him. Throwing the empty snub nose to the ground, he picked up his glock and sat down clumsily into one of the dining room chairs. Coughing hard, he rubbed his watering eyes.

"Fucking Jesus, this is why I just fix the bastarding ship..." he grumbled. After a moment, he got roughly to his feet and went back out into the hall, pausing to retrieve his taser and bag.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

"He's alive?" Lilith muttered, gently brushing aside the boy's fringe, the rage that was in her eyes only moments previously had all but disappeared, replaced with a look of both joy and worry.

She looked up at the woman, she seemed to know what she was doing, was she a doctor? Words failed her as a myriad of emotions rose to the back of her throat. Her eyes returned to the boy's face, her bottom lip quivering slightly.

"Hey! Hey!"

Lilith jerked her head up, the woman's voice was noticeably concerned. We need to get him outta here, and I need your help. My moped's at that brothel! Just help me carry him there. Please!"

Clenching her jaw, Lilith nodded, smearing blood across her cheeks as she wiped the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand. Crying could wait. Adrenaline still pulsing through her veins, she got to her feet, "Help me lift him." They both lifted the boy's weight, Lilith falling to one knee as she hoisted him across her right shoulder. "Lift his shoulders." She grunted as she stood up, hunching over slightly. As the doctor helped to distribute his weight. "Let's go." She said, unaware of the blood pouring from the gash on her thigh.

 

[Fappy]

Silence fell upon the room as her squad considered the plan. Content with their silence, Tsubaki added, "Once we initiate the attack the extraction should be simple enough. In the chaos of battle both sides will assume treachery from the other and will go for the other's throat. While they tear each other apart we will slip out and rendezvous back here. Vasa's men will move quickly to lock the dome down, so we'll need to be burning rubber on the ashlands ASAP. Now..."

Tsubaki wandered over to a chair in the back of the room and started sorting through the duffle bag resting atop it. When she returned to the table it was with a pair of binoculars in her hand, "We still have several hours until the meeting starts. I was going to scout the location for myself if someone wants to join."

*******************************************************************************************************************************************************

"Jake, huh? Shit, I almost forgot that nerdy little numb-nuts was running with you. You tell him what ya like; it ain't my concern. Hell, I hope the little shit cries about it!"

Cranston rolled his eyes.

Children.

The man on the other side of the alley proceeded to empty his clip knowing full well he didn't have a hope of hitting Cranston from his current position. Was he retreating? Perhaps it was that gunshot from earlier? Peering around the corner he failed to see any movement from inside the cafe. Checking his corners carefully, he made his way back across the alley through the backdoor of the cafe. The only person that remained was the frightened women hiding behind the register. Proceeding to where he'd sat earlier, he reached down and hefted the strap of a large, black duffle bag over his shoulder.

After giving the woman a swift nodded, he left down the alley towards the brothel. As he rounded the corner he spotted Lilith and another woman hauling... "Oh no..."

Running up to them now would only distract them. It was best he keep his distance and fend off any unwanted guests. Cranston would stay on their trail from the shadows. Hopefully that would be enough.

I'm sorry, Meredith...

*****************************************************************************************************************************************************

Spoiler: Bennie Times!

Moving to the back of the garage, Bennie blasted the hinges off the inside door with his shotgun and kicked the door out of its frame. One bandito had been sprinting past a connecting hallway when he noticed the door clattering to the ground at his feet. Before he could bring his pistol to bare, however, Bennie sent him flopping over onto his back with a shot to the chest. Cocking his weapon, he threw himself against a wall at the end of the hall and peered around the corner. It appeared Ruffles and Warren had created a rather large disturbance as a swarm of banditos flew down the stairs towards the front of the manor.

Dropping his shotgun and letting it hang by the shoulder strap, Bennie grabbed hold of the submachine gun that had hung beside it. Bracing it at the hip, Bennie jumped around the corner and sprayed the staircase as the unsuspecting men lept off the landing. Six men dropped dead, riddled with holes as their corpses tumbled down the staircase. After checking to make sure there weren't anymore coming from above, Bennie sprinted across the room. Checking the corner before proceeding down the connecting hall, he spotted Ruffles struggling with some banditos, "Yo, Jake! You o---" Bennie's words died in his throat as he heard the sound of a heavy footfall behind him.

Bennie swiftly spun around to gun down his opponent before he closed the gap, but was too late. The hulking, bald bandito, Jorge, had come at him with a knife and swung in wide arc across Bennie's chest. Dropping low, Bennie had fortunately survived the attack, but found himself disarmed shortly after. The knife had caught his shoulder straps, slicing straight through them like butter. His shotgun was sent spinning across the tile floor while his submachine gun was ripped from his grasp and sent flying over the man's head. Disoriented but for a moment, Bennie braced himself for the followup attack. The bandito reeled back and thrust the dagger forward with incredible force.

SHIT!

Bennie reached forward just on time to grab the man's forearm and redirect his blow. The blade sliced across his ribs and pinned his shirt against the wall, "FUCK, MY SHIRT!" Bennie roared as he swung down hard on the bandito's wrist. Too slow to relinquish his grip on his blade, the bandito's wrist snapped under the force of Bennie's elbow. Staggering back and holding his wrist in pain, Bennie reached over and removed the dagger, freeing himself from the hold. Bennie held the knife out towards the bandito as he produced another one from his boot. Something about him looked familiar. "Have we met?"

The man banished the pain in his wrist and returned Bennie's gaze. Unlike many of his ilk, this man had little to no emotion on his face, "You and your woman have fought my brothers before."

Bennie grinned, "Ah, so you're one of the Santiago brothers? I hear Pixie killed one just the other day."

Jorge nodded solemnly, "Yes," He looked at Bennie's blade and dropped into a low-stance. "They fought with their blades. Like true warriors. Will you do me that honor?"

Bennie's grin faded as he looked down at Jorge's knife and then looked down at his own, "No." Before the word had left his lips he'd already drawn his revolver and fired. Jorge began to tremble and dropped to his knees as the bullet pierced his heart, the knife slipping through his grasp as he lost control of his body. Collapsing onto his stomach, Bennie walked over to him.

Looking up at his adversary, Jorge spat, "Y-you f-fight without h-honor..."

Bennie's face remained cold and expressionless as he stood over the dying man and leveled his weapon. Without a word, he finished the job. Staring down at Jorge's corpse, he muttered, "Pixie never had honor either, Santiago. She just loves knife fights." He glanced down at the bandito's blade in his hand before tossing it aside. "Stupid way to fight, if you ask me."

 

[The Funslinger]

Following the sound of a familiar voice, Ruffles headed down the hallway.

"Stupid way to fight, if you ask me."

Grunting at the ache of ribs he was fairly certain were cracked, Ruffles called out, "hey Bennie. I kinda got my ass handed to me." He gave a wry grin. "So, we gonna go find out buddies, or what?"

==========================================================

"We still have several hours until the meeting starts. I was going to scout the location for myself if someone wants to join."

Bryan shrugged nonchalantly. "I'll take that action. Itching to stretch me legs, I am." Finishing the last of his coffee, he swept his feet off of the table, stood up and shrugged his swords across his back.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

A thousand thoughts raced through Lilith's head as they hurried back to the brothel. Thankfully, the immediate area was empty of civilians, all of them had likely fled from the sound of the neighbouring gunfight.

Her battle fury had started to wane, and with it came pain and weariness. Refusing to let her fatigue slow her down, she pressed on, a look of hardened determination on her face, albeit a sickly and bloodstained face.

"Hang in their Axel, just hang in there a little longer, don't let some cheap shot beat you." She muttered, the burning look in her eyes returning briefly as she thought back to the hunter that got away. "I'll be waiting for him, he can count on it." Her last words weren't for the boy, no, those were a promise to herself.

As they drew closer, Lilith winced as she began to feel an ache in her leg and a wetness in her boot. Glancing down she saw a huge gash in her inner thigh, blood gently seeping through her jeans, trickling down the inside of her leg. No wonder she was beginning to feel light headed. 'It will have to wait.'

As they finally made it to the street where the brothel was housed, Lilith turned her head slightly. She wanted to thank the woman who seemed to come from nowhere and save her friend, but she didn't think she could so without bursting into tears. 'Thanks can wait.'

 

[ProtoChimp]

Walking through the top hallway of the manor Aesop couldn't control himself. He slammed on every door he passed by yelling "RANDY!!! I'M GONNA CASTRATE YOU YOU FUCKING BACKSTABBER!!" Bloody knife in one hand and sidearm in the other, there wasn't a single speck of Aesop's front that wasn't covered in blood. From his forehead to his feet his clothes were dyed a sickening crimson, his beard stinking of the dead. He stood at the top of the stairs, laughing manically as he saw dead bodies gunned down, tears streaming down his face in pure sadistic laughter mixed with the emotion of being rescued.

'After everything I do they still come for me... maybe its just to silence me or, whatever they came for me. But I still squealed. I'll tell them, they can kill me after we're done, maybe I can kill some more fuckbags on the way out of here.'

His exterior the opposite of his inner thoughts, creepy confidence shot out though Aesop's body. "Be there Maidens in this house or just more Santiago's to die?!"

 

[Daystar Clarion]

"...we cut our losses using any means necessary."

Asad nodded his head slightly. He knew that there would be no rescue if any of them were captured.

"We still have several hours until the meeting starts. I was going to scout the location for myself if someone wants to join."

Asad was about to raise a hand, when Bryan chimed in first.

"I'll take that action. Itching to stretch me legs, I am."

"Stretch your legs?" Asad smirked, "Is that what they call it nowadays?" Turning his attention back to the commander. "Me and Moon will hold the fort 'till you get back." He shivered slightly. "Too goddamn cold out there anyway, I'll have a some food made for us by the time you get back, anything in particular?" He asked, knowing full well that Tsubaki didn't care for such inane questions.

 

[Fappy]

As they made their approach towards the dome, Elizabeth's heart sunk into her stomach. Given the events of the day... was she really prepared to confront Josephine's family? What words could she offer them? Would they hate her for bringing their daughter back like this?

The twin suns had crossed over the horizon by the time they made it to the dome's main entrance. Before entering the city, Elizabeth pulled in Josephine close and whispered to Eddie, "I-I don't know if I can do this..."

*********************************************************************************************************************************************************

"Hey Bennie. I kinda got my ass handed to me."

Bennie smirked, "No shit."

"So, we gonna go find out buddies, or what?"

After walking across the room to retrieve his weapon he turned towards Ruffles and nodded, "Yeah, we should---"

"Be there Maidens in this house or just more Santiago's to die?!"

Bennie spun around, pointing his shotgun at the top of the stairs.

The fuck?

Recognizing him as one of their own, Bennie lowered his weapon and looked to Ruffles, "Has Pixie been hitting up nut houses, again?"

******************************************************************************************************************************************************

Tsubaki shook her head disapprovingly as her two subordinates exchanged quips, "Just keep your inane jokes to yourself while we're out there. That clear, O'Laffery?"

"Me and Moon will hold the fort 'till you get back."

"Good."

"Too goddamn cold out there anyway, I'll have a some food made for us by the time you get back, anything in particular?"

Tsubaki shrugged, "How about something that makes me forget about this shithole. Something warm, preferably." Looking to Bryan, she nodded towards the door. "Let's move, O'Laffery."

 

[The Funslinger]

"I-I don't know if I can do this..."

Eddie felt a sympathetic twinge at this. "You don't have to do anything. I'll do all the talking. Hell, you can stay in the Crawler if you like."

====================================

"Has Pixie been hitting up nut houses, again?"

Ruffles shook his head uncertainly. "Hey, Aesop? You alright up there, buddy?"

====================================

"Just keep your inane jokes to yourself while we're out there. That clear, O'Laffery?"

"Clear as vodka, ma'am," he replied, flashing her a dazzling smile.

"Too goddamn cold out there anyway, I'll have a some food made for us by the time you get back, anything in particular?"

"Be a darling and get me some beef or something, would ya?"

With that, he turned and followed Tsubaki out the door.

 

[ProtoChimp]

"Hey, Aesop? You alright up there, buddy?"

Aesop grinned as his eyes wandered over to meet Jake's. "Oh yeah, I'm doing good. Remind me later to kill myself but other than that I'm doing gooooooood. Anybody seen Randy? He ran out and I dunno where he's gone, and some kid in a hood. Helped me kill King Dickhead." Aesop chuckled and pointed his knife to the room he had came from where Rodrigo lay dead, the door closed to hide his massacred body, his chest dug into like if a crater hit the earth. Even his ribs were visible. "Don't open that door if your squeamish!" Aesop said giggling.

 

[Evrant-Knight]

Seeing that the fight was now over, Viola took a quick peek down the street to see if anyone else was around before standing up and dusting herself down; helping Hannibal up afterwards. He seemed a bit apprehensive at first, but given his behavior for most of the day so far, it wasn't a concern yet, though she would possibly have a word with him later.

"Well then Hannibal, we best get moving, with those mercenaries gone, it's likely that my/our leads are going to be one the move soon."

Viola then reloaded her rifle before slinging back on the holster which was on her back. After giving her arms a stretch they carried on down the side alley they been taking cover in, arriving at another street. Looking down the street on the right hand side, she could make out a trio of people; all of whom looked a lot worse for wear, with one of the people being carried by the others.

Something about the three looked familiar, Viola saw a trail of blood leading from one of them, and the silhouettes were rather distinct; it was at that point that the realization hit her.

Oh fuck!

"I think we found them, not going to approach them at the moment given the state they are in; besides last time I didn't receive such a warm reception. Think it best if we keep our distance for now, but still follow them." Viola said quietly to Hannibal as they continued to walk, albeit more slowly now.

 

[Fappy]

"You don't have to do anything. I'll do all the talking. Hell, you can stay in the Crawler if you like."

As they crossed into the city, Elizabeth remained silent. All she wanted was to run away and hide. She couldn't face them! There was no way! Eddie should handle it. She could just stay in the crawler.

"No," Elizabeth muttered. "I-I... I have to do this. She was my friend." She clutched Josephine's limp arm and bowed her head. Living a life of carefree luxury did little to prepare someone for this. She wasn't ready, but then there was nothing to be done to change that. She'd just have to suck it up and get it done.

Josephine deserved as much.

***********************************************************************************************************************************************************

"Oh yeah, I'm doing good. Remind me later to kill myself but other than that I'm doing gooooooood. Anybody seen Randy? He ran out and I dunno where he's gone, and some kid in a hood. Helped me kill King Dickhead."

Ooooookay......

Bennie nodded to Ruffles and the pair started up the stairs. Though his shotgun was lowered, Bennie was ready for anything. As they got closer to Aesop he could make out little bits of flesh hanging from his beard, "So Randy faked his death then? Figures." Bennie checked his corners before turning down the upstairs hall. "You say you killed Rodrigo?"

"Don't open that door if your squeamish!"

Bennie did little more than cock an eyebrow before shuffling down the hall and opening the door, "Christ..." He muttered as he reeled back, a hand over his mouth. He swiftly closed the door before Ruffles could look in. "Trust me, Jake... you don't want to see." Shooting Aesop a cold look, Bennie's tone sank. "Keep an eye on this one. I'm going to find Randy."

And with that, Bennie left down the hall, his shotgun at his side. Hiding around the corner at the end of the hall, he fingered his radio, "Hey, kid. Do you read me? This is Carmine. What's your position? Over."

********************************************************************************************************************************************************

The two soldiers took to the frigid streets of Frostfall; Bryan leading the way. Though he'd likely spent the bulk of his time here inebriated, Tsubaki was impressed by his knowledge of the city. Their weapons concealed, the two of them looked to be little more than your average commoners, albeit with a few more layers. The locals had become far more accustomed to the bitter cold, it seemed.

As they passed by the abbey Tsubaki had pointed out in the briefing, Bryan sported a sly grin. Grumbling, Tsubaki covered her forehead with a gloved hand, "Please, no. Don't tell me this is that abbey. My luck can't be this poor, can it?"

 

[The Funslinger]

"I-I... I have to do this. She was my friend."

"Alright then," Eddie replied with a trace of approval in his tone. Maybe there was some steel in her after all. "Up to you. Still, I'll carry the body." He didn't slow the crawler down as the people they passed gave them odd looks, and whispers about the body reached their ears. Soon, they were passing through the gate, though the guards had doubtlessly radioed ahead about the body. This was going to take some quick explaining.

===============================================

Ruffles blinked. He wasn't sure what to say. This wasn't the Aesop he'd last seen. It was more than a little unnerving.

Eventually he said, "hey, we'll be able to get ya back to the ship in no time. You can get cleaned up, get some rest. You'll be back to your old self in no time, right buddy?" There was a faint trace of hopefulness to the tone. Vain hope, but still present. This was fucked...

===============================================

Everything was going well as they meandered through the city. Bryan led the way, and for once, Tsubaki wasn't biting his head off. She was even being pleasant. Turning a corner, they headed past Frostfall's abbey. The recently retold story surfaced in Bryan's mind and he grinned in spite of himself.

"Please, no. Don't tell me this is that abbey. My luck can't be this poor, can it?"

Bryan blinked, glancing back at Tsubaki, and an uncharacteristic twinge of shame shot through him. "Yeah, I uh... sorry..." was all he could say.

 

[Terratina.]

Of course Bryan was the first to offer to go with the Commander, and of course Asad made another comment about the goddamn weather. Jun really wasn't in a talkative mood - every sentence was a word too long, every minute, a second too long. He wanted to start the mission already. He was already in the mission mindset. All in all, he ended up going through a little procedure. Dumping the dossier on a table, the sniper got his gun out and began to assemble it, starting from the skeleton of the butt assembly, barrel, and other parts, using a screwdriver and so on when needed. Honestly, Asad was the one with experience of gunsmithing and the like, but didn't he have some food to prepare?

***​

Spoiler: More Medical Music

"C'mon, c'mon, c'mon, c'mon, c'mon, c'mon." Maria muttered to herself.

She just wanted to go faster, things seemed to go way too slowly. If there was a magic button that would speed both her and Lilith up a little, then Maria would press it in an instant. One, two, three, four - each step was a step closer to the brothel. Nevertheless, Maria couldn't shake off the resemblance to other similar events, some of which had ended... poorly. She bit her lip, and tried to push those thoughts away with the mild twinge of pain. However, the sight of the brothel's entrance was more than enough to usher hope into her mind. They would make it!

Why was she even thinking such things anyway? 'You're a doctor - a professional - not some frightened little girl.' Maria told herself. Maybe it was just that the kid was so endearing; maybe it was because if she failed, the blondie beside her would be crushed. Regardless, the two managed to find a moderately clean table for Axel. With a final heave, they lifted him onto the table. It wasn't ideal, but it was a start. Hell, nothing in this situation could be called ideal.

Maria looked Lilith in the eye, "Sorry, but I gotta go grab some stuff - stuff he needs right now. Just... Just... keep the bleeding under control, alright?"

She ran. The small twinge of pain was replaced by a small twinge of guilt. If only she hadn't left that bag in the hotel room! And taking off like this - what sort of doctor was she!? But that was necessary, that was the real kicker. Maria jumped onto the moped and slammed the pedal down. At least this damn thing was working now, thanks to that kid. That one little act might be the kid's salvation, come to think of it. Might just save enough time - enough of his time - to be treated. With a roar of the engine, she zoomed off to the hotel, still muttering that little mantra to herself...

 

[Fappy]

"Up to you. Still, I'll carry the body."

Elizabeth nodded, but remained silent otherwise. She locked eyes with a few bystanders as they drove through the city. Many of them looked upon her in confusion. Seeing the blood, some even looked frightened. Eventually they made it into the heart of the city and stopped at the first parameter gate of Tigereye Tower. An armed guard walked to Eddie's side, weapon at the ready. He signaled for the several other guards nearby to be ready, "What is the meaning of this?!"

Before Eddie could answer, Elizabeth leaned over the side of the crawler, "My name is Elizabeth Maribel of the Maribel family. I request an audience with the Lord and Lady of this house, immediately!"

The guards gasped along with a few civilians nearby, "Lady Maribel? But what of..."

Gritting her teeth, she hesitated for a moment before removing the shawl, "Sh-she didn't make it." Elizabeth choked up as she spoke.

The guards closed in around the crawler, shocked and confused. Their Lady was dead before their eyes. Pointing their weapons willy-nilly, their commanding office ordered them to stand down, "Calm the fuck down, all of you!" Looking back to Elizabeth and the corpse in her arms, he sighed. "Those wretched bandits will pay for this injustice, I promise you that. They're clear, I want an escort for the lady. Now!" The man barked.

Tears streaming down her face, Elizabeth retreated back inside the crawler, "Th-thank you."

"You're clear to move," One guard said to Eddie, signaling for him to drive through the gate.

**********************************************************************************************************************************************************

"Yeah, I uh... sorry..."

Tsubaki's confusion was written all over her face as she took in Bryan's embarrassment. Though it had been true they rarely spent time alone, she never figured he'd drop his obnoxious demeanor for anyone.

Odd...

Choosing not to address his uncharacteristic apology, Tsubaki looked ahead and continued past the abbey, taking the lead, "We need to focus on our objective, follow me." The pair continued out into the street and walked down the sidewalk. Without stopping or pointing, Tsubaki nodded towards a building eight blocks away. "We shouldn't go much further. We're already close enough to the DMZ to warrant suspicion. In any case, that right there is the warehouse in question. And," She looked to the building across it. "That's where you and Asad will attack from."

Looking back at the abbey, Tsubaki mused, "Think anyone will recognize you if we climb the tower? I want to get a better look of the surrounding area. Maybe we can tag some of their patrols ahead of time."

**********************************************************************************************************************************************************

[sub]"... Think it best if we keep our distance for now, but still follow them."[/sub]

The two he'd been tailing moved into the alley by the brothel now. Was the boy's condition bad enough to warrant bringing him directly to their safe house? In any case, they'd have to ditch it as soon as possible. Cranston remained hidden in a parallel alley from the hunter and the boy she kept. He wasn't sure what exactly it was she wanted, but he knew he couldn't let anyone jeopardize Sprout's life. He was done playing games.

His footfalls more silent than that of a house cat, neither the gunslinger nor the boy heard Cranston until he spoke, "Turn around. Hands where I can see them." He sighed. "I know you're not with Gorgon's crew. I don't want to have to kill you." He stood an even 3 meters behind them, his silenced 9mm pistol pointed squarely at the back of Viola's head.