runmakitarun | Into the storm

Entry tags:

oom,
war in bahamut

Into the storm

As the last of the team files through the door Makita closes it firmly behind herself and leads the way over to the window. Down in the square below twelve people move purposefully through the snow.

The six women are mostly unremarkable. One stands out as being exceptionally tall, one is short enough to almost look like a child, and hair of various colors and lenghts and styles can be seen escaping from their warm hats. The six men, however, stand out. The smallest is six and a half feet tall and looks to weigh at least 270 pounds. All twelve of them move with the smooth grace of practiced killers.

Makita doesn't bother whispering as she points them out, "See how they move in pairs? Each sorceress has her Guardsman a few paces behind her. You can see that even in a group they're thinking in twos. When we hit them, I want us to concentrate on splitting as many pairs as we can. They operate much less efficiently when their teams are broken up."

"There's another square like this a few blocks down. If they're headed of our HQ, then they'll have to go through it. If we move fast we can get there first and set up." She shoulders her rifle and looks at her team again, "Let's keep it fast and quiet."

So saying, Makita leads the way out the door, heading toward the rear fire escape for the building.

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Goldy responds first, as her role dictates the most obvious positional choice.

"I will take a balcony." She shrugs noncommittally. "Or a rooftop, if there are any still intact."

Mel, following 'Kita closely, glances over at the others before she pulls out her skaterug from her back pocket and turns back, brandishing it like a rolled up newspaper.

"Guess who brought transport?"

Miho hasn't even contemplated the option of not being on the ground. She's not a sniper. Besides, this is the sort of terrain she works best with.

She gives Makita a look, then makes an expansive gesture with her left arm, before slipping silently off the edge of the fire escape, and scaling down the wall.

She'll circle around and hit them from the other side. Just, keep out of her way.

All right. Krauser's going to stick with the group, for now, find out what everyone else has in mind.

He does volunteer, "I can take a roof."

He likes heights.

"Much as I like the whole 'death from above' mentality, I think I'm going to keep my feet on the ground for this one," Mary Anne says.

She tightens the rifle strap over her shoulder, then climbs down the fire escape. She follows Miho's lead initially, but splits off from her at the crumbled wall.

Makita simply tosses herself over the railing and drops to catch the metal bars of the landing below her, then drops again to land on the ground at the bottom of the stairs. It's a practiced sort of motion.

Then she leads the way across the thick snow, following a course parallel to the one the Reds were following. Eventually she pulls up short. "About three blocks ahead there's a major intersection. You'll know it's the right one because it's got a shattered fountain in the center. We'll catch the Reds as they come through there." She nods at Goldy, "The entire intersection is surrounded by good sniping spots. Take your pick, and your first shot will be the signal for everyone to move in."

"Everyone else? You're here because you know how to handle yourselves. I'm guessing we've got maybe ten minutes before the Reds arrive. You've got that long to set up whatever you're setting up. Remember to wait for Goldy's shot. Once we hit them try to stay in touch by comm."

"It's possible we won't get them all at first, and they may scatter. Don't lose contact with them. In this snow they'll be hard to find again. If we get separated, meet up back at the plaza where we're headed now."

"Let's go then." She turns and starts moving.

Mel shakes out her skaterug and leaps on it agiley. After spending a couple of seconds trying it against the winds, she smirks, crouches down and then shoots vertically up into the snow, disappearing entirely from view.

She'll find her friends later.

Miho nods, and takes off smoothly, her usual urban lope - as much off the ground as on it, and rarely in view for long enough for her shape to be identified as more than just another shadow. She gains the crumbled top of a wall - probably the external wall of a ruined building, but it's hard to tell in this snow - and trots lightly along it, silhouetted for a moment against the sky. Then, she drops off behind the wall, and is lost from view. She's making her way around the group of Reds, and she'll pick her moment to strike - not quite yet.

Bringing up the rear, Goldy descends the fire escape in a more traditional and sedate manner. She's not as agile as some of the others, and she's encumbered by a gun that is at least as bulky as a B.A.R. Once at ground level, she acknowledges Makita's further instructions with a thumbs up, then, as they move out, she tugs her scarf up over her mouth and puts on a pair of ski goggles.

The blizzard is even more unforgiving now that they are in the open. The wind bites at exposed skin with icy fangs and never lets go. Snow squalls around fiercely, as much being whipped up from the ground as is falling from the dark gray skies above. It's not quite a white-out in terms of visibility, but it's close.

While three of the group splinter off, Goldy continues to travel with Makita and Krauser, squinting around and ahead, keeping a feel for the immediate surroundings in case they are compromised before they reach their destination.

"I'll make a few places inhospitable." Krauser looks up at the rooftops, gauging visibility. "I can take a position opposite yours, fire after people start taking cover from you."

Crossfire? Fun, when you're not the one in it.

"Two shots, maybe three, and then I'll be busy herding with everyone else below." It means she'll be the only target up there, but at least he'll have helped divert counter fire first.

"Snns gnd..." is the Fable's first muffled reply to Krauser.

Reluctantly, she then removes the scarf from her mouth and tries again.

"Sounds good," she puffs.

The conditions are harsh. The snow-covered rubble-strewn streets are not the easiest to negotiate. And the pace is quick, somewhere between a forced march and a jog-trot. As a result, Goldy is laboring a bit.

Mary Anne's not used to fighting in the cold, but her gear (courtesy of Bar) is good and the movement keeps her warm. She keeps along the bottom of the wall, using debris as cover.

Between more debris and piled snow, she keeps out of sight fairly well until she gets to the square. Taking a quick assessment of the ground, she circles around to the left. A hunk of broken statuary--once atop the building behind her, now lying in front of it heaped with snow--provides a good spot to hunker down and wait. She checks her guns and gear, then settles in to wait.

Everyone one Makita has brought with her is someone she considers competent enough to handle themselves. She doesn't bother checking up on the locations they choose for the ambush, she just finds her own.

The only rifle she's got with her is her RKG, and it's just not going to cut it against what they're up against. If she's going to be forced to pistols, she'll need to be close. Her eyes flicker around the snow-covered square trying to find the piece of cover near enough to engage from.

Ah, there. A burned out krawl sits in the roadway. It wasn't here last time she was in the area, but it makes a great place to hide. Makita climbs up the side and pulls herself into the hole where the hatch should be. The krawl has been open long enough to have plenty of snow in it, but Makita can deal with that.

Mel thought this place was cold on the ground.

Her world, right now is white, damp and freezing as she speeds through the snow, occasionally dropping a few feet to make sure she's heading in the right direction. Being the only one no on foot, she makes the spot first, and hovers in place away from all of them, turning circles to keep warm, her hands tucked under her arms, one holding a grenade tightly.

Miho, likewise, chooses her spot with care. She'll be fighting hand-to-hand, so she doesn't choose a good vantage point, opting instead to melt into an almost-black shadow at the base of a crumbling building. She stands lightly on the balls of her feet, bouncing a little to stay warm, hands tucked for now deep into fur-lined pockets. She'll be not good to anyone if her fingers are so cold she can't hold a sword.

Upon their arrival at the ambush plaza, Goldy surveys the scene and quickly picks out the balconied building Makita had spoken of. It looks adequate—not structurally sound per se, but less artillery-ravaged and derelict than some of the other buildings around—so she heads for it, bent almost double now in her fight against the cruel elements.

"By my reckoning we've still got a few minutes," she tells Krauser before they split up. "Get a few mines down. Ideally, covering the entrances to the side streets. Eliminate some of their escape routes. I'll let them get well into the square before I fire, so the other girls can cut off their retreat."

And with that, she disappears through a twisted door frame into the half-darkness of her assigned building.

By way of a surviving stairwell, she ascends to the fourth floor and starts setting up shop. Down goes her bag of equipment. Out comes the bi-pod near the muzzle of the rifle. And soon enough she's lying diagonally across the snow-blanketed balcony, locked, loaded and sighting in through one of the gaps between the concrete balusters.

If he weren't already in working mode, he'd smile at being given orders; but right now, getting set up and in position by the time anyone's here is more important.

Time's an investment. He moves through the snow like no human can, jumping into sheltered areas and climbing along them to a better point to leap again. He makes a few pieces of cover into rather more unwelcoming places than they look, then moves to rig the nearest ways out.

Once that's done, he goes around and up, climbing and jumping until he's on the rooftop opposite Goldy. He stays low and out of sight getting into position.

It's not the most stable rooftop he's ever been on, but he's confident it won't be in danger of falling until it's been hit a few times. . . and by then, he'll be down in the street anyway.

Mary Anne makes a mental note of the others' rough location. She hunkers a little deeper behind her cover, staying as still as she can. Now and again, she moves just enough to keep the blood flowing in her limbs.

Snow gathers in a thin layer over her hat and coat. She waits.

For long minutes the the howling wind is the only sound that can be heard. Snow flurries across the frozen ground shifting the lay of the terrain as piles of snow slowly drift down the street.

Before the cold can truly set in, a huge man in full combat gear ghosts into the courtyard. He's over six and a half feet tall and weighs closer to three hundred pounds than two hundred. He's wearing heavy combat armor and the hailer hooked to his arm swings back and forth as his eyes scan the street from beneath his helmet.

Not far behind him, a rather unprepossessing woman steps out of the obscuring snow. Her hair, where it escapes her fur hat, is dark, and her eyes glow a luminescent white visible from across the plaza. She appears unarmed, but she has a way of moving that belies her harmless appearance. Her steps are precise as she steps up behind the tall man and places a hand on his arm. He shifts his weight slightly, but doesn't stop scanning for threats.

Five more pairs of very large men and variously sized women join the first two at the edge of the courtyard. They recognize it as good ambush ground, and even though they know they should be alone they're careful. Eventually, though, the group seems satisfied that all is clear and they spread out and begin moving again, heading across the center of the plaza.

Visibility is still atrocious, but with the help of the hi-tech scope, Goldy sights the enemy group as they cross towards the ruined fountain. Digital read-outs show an erratically gusting crosswind effect. They also confirm the expected Protokol shielding each of the sorceresses have in place. This is not going to be easy.

That's the way Goldy likes it. By now, a quick-release two milligram Diazepam tablet has gotten her shivering under control, and well-disciplined willpower is keeping her breathing slow and steady. She deliberates over the six sorceresses—which witch is which?—searching for the one with the highest rank. Unfortunately, the uniforms don't seem to carry any discernible insignia, so she randomly picks the tall woman positioned on the left flank.

They draw closer and split around the once beautiful centerpeice, now more rubble than ornamentation. Goldy lets them come, lets them get clear of the potential cover. Then, once they're exposed again, she prepares to expend the first of her six Protokol Piercing Rounds.

Within the pale red imaging of the scope view, three concentric circles align themselves on the target's head.

Goldy exhales slowly ...and squeezes the trigger.

The Dragunov fires a big round, and the distinctive crack of a large caliber rifle can be heard even over the howling of the wind.

The shield protokol surrounding the targeted sorceress acts as designed and a spinning wall of glowing red springs to life around her as the bullet gets within one meter. But the red flickers and then shatters as the bullet flares with energy.

Every guardsman is already in motion, diving to cover their charges, but no one could be fast enough in this situation. Her head snaps back in a spray of red just as the big man nearby grabs her arm to jerk her down. The other five pairs scatter immediately to locations which provide cover from Goldy's position.

The sixth man grabs his motionless charge and slings her over one shoulder while he moves for cover of his own. One of the guardsmen leans over to converse briefly with his sorceress and then turns his hailer in the general direction of the building Goldy's perched in. A hail of bullets stitch their way across the entire building, not enough to hit anything specifically, but enough to keep heads down.

The rest of the Reds are keeping half an eye out for the sniper and half an eye for other threats. They're on guard, but distracted.

Makita pops her head up to find that one of the Red pairs have taken cover behind the krawl she's hiding in. With a savage grin she pulls herself silently up, draws one of her pistols, and empties a clip into the guardsman as she slides back off the krawl before the sorceress can turn on her.

She drops the empty magazine down the front of her shirt and reloads on the run. Heading for the nearest piece of cover: a large concrete bench. She's counting on the others to cause enough chaos for her to find better cover before the witch recovers enough to counter-attack.

Mel switches into a dive the second she hears the shot, and comes rocketing down out of the blizzard, diving like a falcon with the world's most tasteless plumage.

She's from a completely different direction than Goldy, so at least one of the pairs have managed to present their backs to her.

She pulls the pin of her grenade and hurls it at the nearest guard, jerking out of the dive at the same time. Moving fast and erratically, she presents a very obvious moving target, and hopefully a distraction from the snipers.

Miho starts moving as soon as she hears Goldy's shot, taking advantage of the confusion. There's a pair of witch and guard heading almost straight for her, so she returns the compliment. She won't have the benefit of surprise anyway, if they get a few feet closer to her hiding-spot.

As she moves smoothly towards them, she is preceded by several shuriken. She's after the guard, really - she's not sure if her metal will penetrate the witch's shield - but the first spinning star is aimed for the woman's throat. Just in case. The next two are for the guard.

The first volley of Hailer fire rips into the building around Goldy's position. This isn't just some rat-a-tat machine gun—its huge rounds shatter the brickwork and blast straight through some of the weaker sections of wall. Goldy is forced to drag her eye away from the scope and shield her head from the falling masonry.

"I NEED MORE COVERING FIRE!" she yells into her now active comm-link.

She sincerely hopes that the others have switched theirs on too.

Into the storm

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