The Dawn II

 

"…guys, I have a question," Chris muses.

"Don’t say a thing," Neo shuts him down. "Every time you speak, I lose braincells."

"How do you lose what you don't have?" Krim asks, feigning interest.

"If you hold soup in your hands, are your hands a bowl?" Chris says.

I swear to god, I need to make myself earplugs.

"What? No," Neo says.

Then he looks furious with himself for getting involved. He can never help himself and I know it.

"Isn't holding soup in your hand just holding soup in your hand?" Leon asks.

"No, but what if I like, cup my hands together?"

"Then you're a guy holding soup," Tentee says, looking like he's actually thinking really hard about this. "But how would you even keep it in your hands?"

"I will touch you all," Neo mumbles. "Inappropriately."

"What was that?"

"Nothing."

"What even is this discussion?" I ask.

For fuck's sake, I can never not get involved.

"Don't trouble your narrow mind over it," Nyx mutters dismissively. "Not much room for anything else except cutting things anyway."

Ah I see. So that's how it is, huh?

"…I have a plan," I say. "And, Nyx, it involves you."

"What, a revenge plan for saying you have a small brain?" she asks.

"No. Just a plan, you'll see."

003 Elemental, 006 Krim, 007 Chris, 010 Leon, 016 Neo, 017 Framed, 024 Nyx, 031 Kremi, 038 Rain, 039 Tentee and 042 Dread. I don't know if what I'm supposed to do with this squad of crazy people, but… sure, I guess. We'll see what I can do.

 

POV Elemental

"001 will be fine, right?" Leon said, sorting through magazines.

Elemental paused from checking his rifle. The team was waiting quietly on the fringe of the forest overlooking the target, checking their weapons. Batter was parked off in the trees, its cloaking device activated. The hot Erisen sun beat down on them from between the leaves high above them.

"Of course," he replied. "He said he has a plan."

"003," Krim said, sliding down the rocks from where he had been posted as a sentry. "Shouldn't we have brought in a couple more in?"

"024 and 001 will be enough," Elemental said.

 

They had parked the truck five hundred meters away from Outpost Elison, which was located in a forest in the hills. Kremi and Rain stayed behind at the truck, whilst the others waited silently in the foliage. Elison was a simple fortress, with four watchtowers on the corners, and then electric and nerve-destroying fence lining the top of the reinforced walls. Inside, there were three rows of barracks, and a central research building, aside from a few more large tents for eating, relieving oneself, and more. An effective fortress that provided a bulwark of defence against the criminal empire that had once inhabited the west. Effectiveness that would collapse under an unstoppable assault led by two of Pharo Force's strongest members. There was a huge gate at the front. And 001 and 024's roles was to render it useless.

"I just hope they don't mess around," Elemental muttered.

Little did he know.

 

 

POV Sword

"Here's the plan," I tell her.

"Are we going to mess around?"

"No," I lie. "Well, you are. Not me?"

"…huh?"

She looks at me suspiciously, searching for something in my face. Obviously she doesn't find anything.

"It's needed to get into the place," I tell her, "and it all depends on you."

At that moment, the giant gate slides open. The only time besides when troops are transferred or mobilized that the gate opens - when the guy in the white lab coat comes out to dump the toxic and radioactive waste produced by whatever experiments are going on in there. He's wheeling a trolley in front of him, heading towards the dump site outside the outpost.

"What, you want to take him down and steal his ID to get the gate open?"

"You're a genius," I say.

I move silently through the trees, come up behind him, and snap is neck in one fluid movement. After I pull his white coat over my uniform, I glance over at Nyx, who's standing nearby.

"What about me?" she asks.

"There's only one uniform," I say.

"Yeah, and?"

I look at the trolley he was wheeling, still stained slightly green from the waste that had filled it to its brim a couple seconds ago. A look of horror, disgust, and fear crosses 024 face.

"You don't mean-"

I look at her. Then I look at the trolley.

"Awful lots of space," I muse.

She starts backing away from me.

"No, 001, no."

I walk forwards.

"Please."

Reach out, and grab ahold of her shoulder.

"My bad," she says weakly and a little sheepishly. "But you know, we forgive and forget, right?"

"I agree," I say. "So forgive me?"

 

***

 

The plans works amazingly! They don't suspect anything, other than the six machine gun turrets pointing in my face, and the angry voices demanding "who the fuck" I am.

"I'm the waste disposal guy," I say, trying to make myself heard above the shouting.

"I don't think it's working," Nyx's melancholy voice sounds from the depths of the garbage trolley.

"Damn," I mumble. "I really couldn't tell."

You know what, fuck this.

I draw my sword and slash all six turrets to ribbons in one movement, slice the doors apart into two huge chunks of metal, the edges glowing red-hot. I did make a couple upgrades to Toothpick, and they were definitely worthwhile - thanks to Tentee's help, that is. Imperial soldiers scream and yell and bullets tear through the air towards me. I shove the trolley to the side, behind the wall beside the gate, and I myself dive to the other side.

"Gate's open," I tell the kids. "Just remember these aren't stupid criminals, but disciplined, trained soldi-"

"Yeah, yeah," Chris says, as they bundle out of the trees. "We got it, kill them all. Thanks."

He and Framed loop round the side of the outpost, heading towards the rear, while 006 and 010 join me and Nyx. Tentee is still waiting in the trees - it's not his part yet.

"042," I say. "We're relying on you."

 

The Imperial soldiers are forming ranks behind barriers on the other side of the destroyed gate, readying heavy weaponry, powerful searchlights and more. Hasn't even been a minute and their response is already here - but that's not stopping us. There's a roar in the undergrowth, and then Batter, Dread at the controls, ploughs through the treeline and flames straight for the entrance, bullets pinging off its reinforced plates.

"GRAB ON!!!!" he yells into our comms.

As it passes me, I grab onto the side and am wrenched off my feet, and I feel like every tendon in my arms are being ripped apart. Pain shoots through my body, but the truck bombs into the outpost, flattening the barricades and sending guards scattering in either direction.

"Get in!" he shouts, and for a split second the door at the back of the truck slides open.

Krim, on the other side of the truck, swings Nyx inside, and follows, I jump in, and Leon, who was on my side, follows. But just before he can, a bullet hits him in the finger and his grip is peeled away, falling behind the speeding truck. A millisecond later, I reach out, snag his wrist and wrench him inside. The door slams shut behind us and Dread crushes Batter through the guards, gunning straight for the front door of the main building. But a second before he can make it in, the ground beneath us explodes and we're all thrown across the truck like ragdolls. As usual, I grab onto a handlebar, steadying myself, and Nyx's fingers close around my neck like a vice. She definitely does that on purpose.

 

Then the truck crushes into the ground upside down, and we all fall down onto the roof, which is now beneath us. I'm up first, then Leon, and Krim, followed by Nyx. Dread scrambles out of the pilot seat, Maefn clinging to his shoulder.

"What the fuck was that?" Krim asks.

"RPG," Dread explains. "They shot it directly under the truck."

We duck down as a hail of clang against Batter's sides, and then hit the floor as more tear through the windshield smashing it.

"We can't go on like this!" Leon was yelling, and when the firing paused, he jumped up and returned fire, his repeater rifle blazing.

"You're surrounded," a voice with a megaphone screeches outside. "Surren-"

His voice cuts off and there's a thump outside.

"Rain," I mutter.

"I've got you're back," she says through comms.

Alright, guess it's time to break through.

"Don't die," I tell the group.

Then I jump out the shattered windshield and all hell breaks loose.

 

 

POV Elemental

Neo hot on his heels, Elemental dashed around the outer perimeter of Elison, weaving in out of the trees and foliage, keeping out of sight under the protection of the shadows.

"Stand back."

He planted six explosive charges against the metal wall, and took a few steps backward, disappearing back into the forest. A few seconds later, six small flashes of light coupled with miniature bangs sounded from the back wall of Elison, and a circle of metal collapsed to the grass. No sentries noticed two shadows sneak into the compound, and neither did the soldiers with mounted autocannons on the towers, because they had had their brains blown out by a certain sniper, who was now dashing silently through the jungle. The other reason was because five people were slaughtering their way through the garrison at the front of the compound.

 

Two guards who were on patrol, running towards the front of the outpost. Elemental cut them to ribbons using his chain knives. Two more on either side of the back door leading into the lab. The each took one, tearing them apart before they could even react, and pushing into the main building, going their separate ways. Elemental bounded through the corridors, bouncing of walls, the floor, and the ceiling, cutting through flesh, bone and armour like a hot knife through butter. He killed everyone he saw - guards and scientists alike, he cut through all of them mercilessly.

 

Over the radio, Neo's voice crackled to life.

"My strategy is perfect."
Kremi answered.

"Neo, your idea of a strategy is 'wing it and hope for the best'…"

Elemental hurled one of his knives down a whole corridor and felt it sink into a fleeing scientist. There was an awkward pause over the radio,

"And yours is 'sit behind this screen in truck and pretend I'm useful'"."

"Hold up," Sword's voice wafted over, between gunfire and explosions. "Siding with Neo on this one. Last time you tried strategy in Nexus we ended up fighting for our lives while you troubleshooted a firewall."

"HEY!! I brough down the inner controls and saved the missions."
"You saved an error message," Chris snorted. "The mission saved itself."
"Didn't 001 and 003 do that?" Nyx asked, ducking down behind barricades as bullets pinged around her.
"Remind what YOU did, Chris?" 031 said.

031 Kremi and 038 Tentee were still far behind the treeline, near to Rain.

"To be fair, Kremi's hacking skills are like Neo's jokes - painful but occasionally effective," Leon blurted, before being sent sprawling by a grenade from one of the soldiers.

"Yeah, and Leon's survival skills are like Kremi's hacking skills too - barely functioning when we need them the most."

"OHHH, my bad!!" Leon snapped, shooting two enemies in their heads after recovering. "I didn't know we were ranking uselessness - because congrats, Neo, you're the undisputed champion!"

At that moment Tentee decided to get involved too.

"The crown still goes to 031 in my opinion. If we ever need to confuse the enemy, just let Kremi strategize them into oblivion," he said, grinning at him.

"I hate all of you," Kremi's voice came, as he glared at Tentee, mouthing at him to shut up.

"You hate us because we're right," Neo scoffed.

"And his 'strategy' STILL ISN’T WORKING!!" Chris yelled.

"I swear to Chrona I'm deserting!!" Kremi shouted.

"Good!" Chris snickered. "Maybe the enemy will hire you instead. Make sure they suffer like we did."

 

"Are we serious right now?" Sword snarled over comms, nearly making 031 jump out of his skin.

"Oh no," Rain said, enjoying the show. "This is gonna be good."
"Kremi - you act like a genius, but half the time we're just waiting for you to 'finish updating your software', and Chris, your half-baked recycled insults are just 'you're stupid' with extra attitude - like some trash can villain from a filler arc, Leon, your survival rate is directly tied to how much plot armour Pharolen is willing to lend you, and Neo, you think you’re funny but we only laugh because we don’t know how to react!"

He paused as he vaulted over a barricade and let fly a chrona slash that decapitated five more enemies. Then Rain said,

"Damn. Well, I enjoyed it."

"001, that wasn't needed," 031 said in a strangled voice.

"No," Elemental perked up as he raged through the inner corridors of Elison's main building, leaving behind trails of slashed apart corpses and body parts. "It definitely was."