'The Pit: Hell Frozen Over' - Arc 3, Chapter 3: 'The One Truth' (Closed, Started)

[Fappy]

Conrad continued to watch the cliff-side when he heard the metal gate of the courtyard swing open down below. Gunfire erupted almost immediately. Conrad's radio cracked to life, "Two of them just breached the gates!"

Conrad barked into the radio in response, "Trident squad engage, but don't enter the courtyard! I repeat, don't enter the courtyard! If they take one wrong step in there it'll turn into a goddamn oven down there."

"Roger."

Suddenly two groups of three men appeared out of seemingly nowhere at the front and back entrances of the courtyard. The way it had been described to Conrad is that the old Catholic movement was actually just a cover for heroine distribution. Apparently some old gang, allegedly mafia, used to manufacture it in secret and stored it under the church. While a majority of the tunnels under the church had long since been covered up, some still remained. Trident's objective was Sticks' brainchild, so Conrad didn't know all that much other than he knew they'd appear out of the granite walls surrounding the courtyard. A decent flanking maneuver, but they'd be vulnerable to shooters setup on the ridge across from the chapel.

Conrad figured his job was to cover them, but then...

He couldn't tell what was happening directly below, as he had to keep his eyes on the ridge... though no traps had been set off yet. And then he heard Sticks, "It's time to say hello to our little French friend."

"Cornelius? Sir, what are you---?"

"Re-position Sergeant. I need you to see this."

Conrad wasn't about to argue a direct order in the middle of a firefight. He slung his rifle over his shoulder and climbed up the clock tower ladder. His heart was pounding and his bruised ribs were aching. If he wasn't careful the enemy sniper could pick him off while he was getting into position. Once in position he had a clear line of sight on the enemy sniper and her spotter, but... they were facing the wall behind them, "I have a shot. I'm going to take it."

"NO! Wait, watch!"

Conrad bit his lip. What the fuck was Sticks thinking? The spotter had gotten up against the rock wall as if he were about to breach a door. The sniper was crouched down, scoped up on the same spot. What was going on?

"What are you up to... sir?" Conrad kept his rifle trained on the sniper and noticed a device next to her... it looked like some kind of tracker.

Oh shit...

"SIR THEY KNOW YOU'RE---"

Suddenly the rock wall opened up to reveal what looked to Conrad like an elevator shaft and a man standing inside. The sniper and her spotter ripped the man to pieces with their bullets in an instant. Did Sticks just die? "SIR! CORNELIUS ARE---"

"Calm the fuck down Sergeant. Our old friend Pedro was a good soldier, but he served his purpose."

Conrad focused his scope on the corpse in the elevator shaft. The spotter had begun checking the body. It was Pedro's body.

Conrad muttered under a sigh, "Jesus... Pedro..."

Conrad spaced out as Sticks went on about the wardens thinking they could inoculate him with a tracking bug, "... This is what they get for their arrogance!"

"Blam-o."

Conrad was snapped out of his daze when the elevator shaft suddenly turned into a fireball. The spotter checking the body was vaporized instantaneously. Though she was a safe distance from being incinerated, the force of the blast knocked the sniper off the edge of the cliff. By some miracle she was able to catch herself halfway down on a rock jutting out of the wall.

Conrad understood now... "trident" made perfect sense. Sticks had just neglected to mention the third prong of the attack in his briefing.

In a horrifyingly insidious tone Sticks remarked, "I want her alive."

Conrad grunted as a sign of displeasure. Though, no one was there to hear it. Conrad took aim and fired at the rock she had clung to sending her tumbling to the ground below shattering her shins on impact.

Before he could turn his attention back to the firefight below the entire building shook violently and he started hearing screams coming from the courtyard. One of the traps had gone off. What the fuck happened?

 

[Fappy]

Harris didn't register anything said to him. He knelt down in front of Azrael's corpse... dumbfounded.

Lets look around, find the cunts who did this. There's gotta be more wolves we can waste."

"FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK! [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSAKHLbCUGk]"

Harris stood up and began relentlessly stomping on Azrael's face until his skull was dust and his boot was caked in a thick layer of blood. His battle hardened men stood there staring... speechless.

After a moment of heavy, angry breathing Harris turned to his men, "I want you to find every last wolf in this shithold and fuck their eyes out of their skulls! YOU HEAR ME!?"

 

[The Funslinger]

'Beaumont! What's your status?'

'I... injured sir. Gibbs... AGH!' There was a pause. Then, 'Gibbs is dead...'

'Wickers, you okay?' Wickers had stepped on a mine, and just barely thrown himself backwards in time. They had crept back to the entrance they'd come through, taking cover in the doorway.

From where they he was crouched, Wickers turned to him. He was covered in scratches, and there was a nasty gash under his right eye. 'I'm alright, sir. Kevlar stopped most of the shrapnel. Bit dizzy, though...'

'Well, now we know what they meant by traps. I have an idea.' He commed Lisa again. 'What's your injury.'

'Broken shins. I'm out of the nest, too.'

'Administer morphine from your first aid kit if you can. Only a little, though. I need you at least half awake, because we can't protect you.'

'Sir.'

He turned to Wickers. 'Any bright ideas?'

'I think so, sir. Now we know what we're up against. I--' he was interrupted by Lisa on the com.

'Sir. Sticks' tracker.'

'What about it?'

'It's gone.'

'What?' He paused. 'We'll figure this out soon, just dope yourself. We need to confirm it and take out the hostiles.' He took his thumb off. 'Wickers. Hit me.'

'Well, sir. First, let's get back a bit.'

Keeping to cover, they got several yards back as quickly as they could in a crouch.

'Grenades, sir. As far over that wall as possible.'

Suddenly, there was Hayes' voice in his ear. 'Sir, hostiles inbound. I can see a couple, but we reckon there are more. Got two on your six and one on your three. We're looking for more.'

'Make it quick, then.' They each threw a frag, arcing almost in perfect time over the wall. Seconds passed. Two twin explosions, followed by the roaring whoosh of flame, then explosions in a chain that sounded like a giant machine gun.

Luka could hear footsteps in the cavernous area this place inhabited now, and they sprinted back through the gate, sticking to the black burn marks to avoid any traps their explosives might have missed.

The two men came bursting through the door, preceding themselves with a stunner. Korovitch kicked it as soon as it rolled to them and it arced back over. It caught one of their assailants on the chest and went off, sending him flying backwards. He triggered another mine and was promptly splattered across the courtyard.

Wickers was trading rifle fire with the second, and though he took a hit to the Kevlar, he drove their assailant back through the doorway. Korovitch could hear the sound of a fresh mag being slotted in. He took his opportunity, drawing out the huge, curved blade at his hip and sprinted forwards. It was the last thing the soldier expected and he caught him crouching. The man tried to stand, but Luka booted him in the chest, sending him backpedaling. He stepped forward and in one fluid motion brought the Kukri around. To his credit, in this time, the man had managed to draw a sykes knife from his hip, but a moment too late. His head was severed from the body.

Korovitch wiped the blade, sheathed it and made his way back to Wickers.

'Nice job, sir.'

'Thanks, Sergeant.' He thumbed his com. 'Assist us at your leisure, by the way.'

'Will do, sir,' came Hayes' reply. 'Almost got a bead on the three o'clock man, and Akua's spotted a couple more moving into the main building. We also saw some guys moving in the chapel windows. Go in mowing, sir.'

Keeping to the burned flagstones, and watching for tripwires, they made their way to the chapel's side entrance. 'I noticed a trident stitched on the shoulder of that man,' Korovitch said. 'Does that mean anything to you?'

'Not a bob, sir. I'd guess it means they're on a better pay grade than average Wardens, though.'

Korovitch nodded. 'Alright. Standard breaching procedure.'

'May I take point, sir?'

'By all means.'

Korovitch let his rifle hang by its strap and drew his Makarov. Standing behind Wickers, he placed a hand on his shoulder. Slowly, Wickers took a grip on the door handle. He prepared his rifle to spray in full automatic, then flung the door open. They moved forward, and began firing at the men inside. They split off, as three dead wardens fell. Wickers headed to the pews, and Korovitch kicked over a table near a side door leading to the bell tower, and got behind it, holstering his pistol and taking up his rifle. A second later, he heard footsteps in the bell tower, and quickly grabbed a toppled wooden chair. Shutting the tower door, be braced the chair under the handle, wedging it shut, then started returning fire on the Wardens. Shadows flitted past the windows as the men Hayes had mentioned were making their way in. Further off, he heard shots. Whether it was Hayes or Akua's position, he didn't know.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

Slowly, and with great effort, Nikolai got to his feet, stumbling a little. He shook his head rapidly from side to side, to clear his hearing and vision. When everything was sharp again, he called out.

"How many dead?"

"Six of us, including Alexei." came Gregor's wheezing reply "Most of us have some burns, but we can all still fight. I think all the fighters we ran past in the main chamber are dead. I see many bodies."

Nikolai checked himself to see if he'd been burned, and found nothing worth noting. He and his Men had accepted the risks of this escape a long time ago, and now was not the time to falter. The vast majority still remained, and they had to keep moving.

"Vladimir, Dmitri, to me!" Nikolai ordered, and to of his men stepped out of the smoke.

"Vladimir and Dmitri flew as metal birds, before they were sent to this place." Nikolai explained to Kusanagi "They can use the big ones that the Surface Men use, the birds that swallowed us all and took us here in their bellies. That is how we will leave this place. Now, we must go!"

As one, the group made their way towards the upper levels.

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

So far, Fredric had held off from his assigned task. Even though he had been commanded to take out Harris, it wasn't hard to realise that Azrael was the prime target of the Colonel's operation, and it was always possible that the other agents could fail. Better then, as Harris had vowed to kill Azrael himself, that he be kept alive long enough for Fredric to ascertain that Azrael was dead, one way or another. The body had looked convincing enough, until Harris had made a mess of it in his temper.

Both the Von Strucker brothers had been bad news. The first one had been Azrael's pet, the second had been Stick's. For all his bravado, Fredric had known what Harris' game was from the start. Harris wanted revenge at any cost, and he was prepared to send the entire Aryan Brotherhood to die as a means of achieving it. Not that Fredric really cared. He'd never been truly loyal to any kind of cause in his life, least of all the Aryan's. He killed because it was what he was good at, and played whatever parts he was required to play to keep living to kill another day, and now it was Harris' turn.

Before The Pit, Fredric had been a hit-man for Capricorn International, who had always offered him frequent and lucrative work. He wasn't loyal to them either, and they showed him the same attitude. Not long after he'd completed his latest contract, Capricorn International had sold him out to Venture Horizon, who wanted him in connection to several murders of corporate officials of theirs, as part of an exchange deal to secure a partnership between the two firms. Fredric had been sent to The Pit, and ten years later he was more then ready to leave. The Colonel's price for this hit had been more than generous. Fredric would get his freedom, a new identity, and even his old career back, this time working for Venture Horizon if he desired it. In truth, Fredric would have done the work for significantly less, but he was more than willing to take the rest as a bonus.

As Harris had been throwing his little tantrum, the Monk and the other idiot who were tagging along with Harris' main assault force on his empty promises had gone on ahead, to investigate an explosion over in the direction of the gas mines. If it really had originated from there, then it must have been huge to carry this far. The Northern Quarter was a big place, and whatever they were investigating would probably be long gone by the tine they got there. Still, Fredric was glad they'd gone. He had no orders concerning those two, and he preferred to keep these things simple and to plan. Collateral always complicated things.

When Harris stormed out of Azrael's chamber, it wasn't hard to hang back as the rest of the group went passed. When the last man had rounded the corner, Fredric primed a grenade, threw it out into the confined passageway, and ducked behind the ice wall for cover. The blast was accompanied by several screams, and Fredric wasted no time in finishing the job. stepping out of the doorway, he emptied his Kalashnikov into the cramped passage, and all of Harris' Meth-Fueled Bad-Asses who hadn't already been killed by the grenade died just as quickly as any other men. Harris' himself crumpled as three rounds punched through his chest, and one through his neck.

Job done, Fredric turned and went the other direction to where Harris' two tag-along's had gone. It was time to put as much distance between him and the Northern Quarter as possible.

 

[The Funslinger]

As they drew closer to the gas mines, Acolyte heard voices, and broke into a run, not caring whether Travis followed. He came to a corner, the voices became clear.

"Vladimir and Dmitri flew as metal birds, before they were sent to this place." Nikolai explained to Kusanagi "They can use the big ones that the Surface Men use, the birds that swallowed us all and took us here in their bellies. That is how we will leave this place. Now, we must go!"

The Dog. Peering round the corner, he saw her. Lucia, and a jittery young man he didn't recognise, but the resemblance told him all he needed. Chambering a round into his Enfield, he burst around the corner, aiming steadily at the largest man in the group, the man who'd killed Orphan.

'Stop!'

The group, on their way to the upper levels, halted, and turned. There wasn't a chance in hell he'd win an outright firefight, but he could hopefully get back around his corner quickly if they pulled guns.

'The girl. Let her go.'

 

[Fappy]

Kusanagi's eyes widened, "A plane? We're stealing a plane?"

Dmitri nave a simple nod in response. This was good. Kusanagi had given little thought to how exactly they would escape, and it appeared this was likely their best bet.

"You hear that Tristan? We have a plan. We have a way out of here," She said as she grabbed his hand and squeezed.

We can do this...

"...Now, we must go!"

"I'm right behind you."

'Stop! The girl. Let her go.'

The group stopped dead in their tracks.

Acolyte?!

Kusanagi looked over to see Acolyte pointing a gun at them. Oh shit, "Acolyte! It's okay, h-he can be trusted."

This wasn't good.

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

Perfect. Conrad had been too late getting down from atop the bell tower and now he was locked inside. After a few firm kicks it was clear it wasn't going to give. He began running back up the stairs when his radio cracked to life, "Zzzt--Sir, this is Trident 2. We're pinned down out here. They have another shooter poaching us from zztt---f-from a hole in the wall. We're sitting--zzztt Gwahhh!"

The radio went silent.

Conrad sprinted back up the stairs and looked over the railing to see another one of Trident squad getting shot through the chest outside the courtyard.

Judging by the way his body moved...

Conrad's eyes darted around the cavern as he calculated the origin of the shot.

Another blood curdling scream echoed through the cavern as a third man was shot.

There.

It took a trained eye to find what he was looking for. There was a strange abnormality on the rock wall directly across from where the third man died. Conrad had no line of sight, but he'd figure something out.

 

[ProtoChimp]

Travis followed Acolyte as he rushed through the gas mines on his own. Harris was too busy defiling Azreal and looking for other dogs, he should have been smarter and looked down here-as that was exactly what he would find.

'Stop! The girl. Let her go.'

"Acolyte! It's okay, h-he can be trusted."

Travis turned the corner to find Acolyte face to face with Dog and some of his allies... and the girl. He aimed directly at Dog. "Look the gang's all here. Mother Fucker who killed this *****'s owner... Oh fuck me!" The Dragon burst into laughter. "You killed Azreal didn't you! There's no one else here," his tone then lowered as he stopped laughing and got angry, "so it MUST HAVE BEEN YOU! Listen to me Dog- I'M gonna be running the Pit from now on. I ain't ready to let you take the throne from Azreal, not after the shit that happened to me in the past few days. My whole gang dead and a bunch of cunts wanting my ass, but now the wolves are MINE!" He turned to Acolyte. "Grab your ***** and lets go!"

 

[Fappy]

Conrad vaulted over the tower banister and slid down the shingled rooftop, stopping himself on the very edge of the roof. Another of his men went down before he could get into position. Conrad laid down on the edge of the roof. He could see him now... just barely anyway. The enemy had been hold up in some small cove dug into the side of the cliff. Most of his body was covered by granite, but he was reloading his rifle... it was now or never. Conrad inhaled sharply and slowly exhaled as his finger squeezed the trigger.

Pink mist.

The man's body went limp and flopped out of the cove to the ground below. Conrad shot him in the face so he wouldn't have recognized him anyway, but... he couldn't help but feel he just killed someone he used to call a comrade. In fact, that's what he had been doing this entire time. The sound of battle snapped him out of his trance once more. He had to banish his doubt... there was no room for it on the field of battle.

No doubt the bulk of the fighting had moved into the chapel itself. Conrad belly crawled across the slanted roof to the front of the building. The artificial door in the rock wall had remained opened and he saw a warden coming out of it? Reinforcements? He noticed the sniper he'd sent tumbling to the ground earlier was attempting to turn and face him. Was she still able to fight after all that?

She threw what was likely a syringe aside and went for her side arm, but her assailant was too fast. He shot her in the hand forcing her to drop her gun and then hit her in the face with the butt of his rifle before proceeding to drag her back into the shaft with him.

Conrad spat into the radio, "Hold up! I'm coming with you!"

The man had dropped her limp body inside the doorway and gave him the thumbs up. Conrad jumped down from the roof onto the outside of the fence, careful not to set off any of the traps. A sharp pain shot through his ribs when he landed, but he shrugged it off and ran for the hole in the wall.

Once inside the other man pulled a lever and the door closed, "Why take her alive?"

The man picked the French soldier up and carried her on his shoulder, "Sticks wants a bargaining chip."

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

Nikolai's motion to put himself in between Kuasanagi and Acolyte was subtle, but deliberate. The Free-Men still numbered at over forty, all heavily armed and bristling with rage. Acolyte's move was one of desperation, and whatever he wanted with Kusanagi, he wouldn't be able to have it if he was dead, so the rifle pointed directly at Nikolai may as well have been invisible.

"Kusanagi has a mane for you. A-co-lyte." he said, brushing the muzzle of the rifle aside, completely unfazed. "I do not know this name. Does this mean you are friend..."

That was when Travis made his appearance. While Nikolai had never met him personally, after spending as long in The Pit as he had, and after seeing as much evil as he had, Nikolai could judge his character in an instant.

"... or foe?" he continued. "You ask me to give you Kusanagi, and what then? You think Squeal Pig here..." he pointed at Travis "...won't get hungry? Kusanagi, I think your friend has been a very silly Man, and silly Men should not make demands of Nikolai."

The corners of his mouth twitching, he turned his attention towards Travis.

"Nikolai, that is my name, not Dog. I see no Wolves here, Squeal Pig. We are Free-Men, and our fight is not yours. Leave now, and you live. Stay, and you die."

 

[ProtoChimp]

Travis's face flashed red with rage. "Squeal Pig! I am a Dragon Mother Fucker! And even if all your but fucking friends here kill me- I still get to waste your puppy ass!" Travis paced back a few steps just to get some distance. "Don't even think of trying to take this gun from me you punk *****! Cos I'm pretty sure I can squeeze a trigger quicker than you can run at me and take it out of my hands. Acol- whatever your fucking name is. Grab. The. *****. And. Lets. GO!"

 

[Fappy]

Kusanagi glared at the Dragon as he screamed, "I'm not going anywhere with you. Now get the fuck out of my face before I rip your throat out," She spoke to Nikolai, her eyes still burning into Travis'. "Nikolai... Acolyte is a friend... this isn't what it looks like."

She looked from the flustered Dragon to Acolyte, "Come with us. We're getting out of this hellhole for good."

 

[The Funslinger]

'Sir. Akua is down, and Lisa isn't answering her com.'

Korovitch swore under his breath. Around them, the eight men in the chapel lay dead. 'Wickers, let's get back out there. Hayes, meet up with us outside the chapel.'

'One moment, sir.' There was the faint sound of a gunshot outside. 'I'll be along in a second.

Korovitch and Wickers paced around the chapel. 'The wee lass should have been around here somewhere...' he paused. Then, 'look, sir. The morphine syringe.'

It lay broken on the ground. A couple of feet away was a pock mark in the stone, with a splatter of blood. Droplets of it trailed off towards a wall, and were suddenly cut off. How odd.

'What's the plan, sir?' It was Hayes. He carried a rifle, similar to the one Akua had been armed with. Slung over his back was a black holdall.

'It would seem our sniper has disappeared.' Korovitch was examining the wall where the blood trail stopped. Peeling off his gloves, he ran his hands across the stone. After a few seconds, he found the faint groove. 'Hayes, the plastic explosive from your bag. We need this to be quiet.'

A few seconds later, the hinge was filled with grey putty, from which stuck a stubby fuse. They all stood well back and Hayes lit the fuse, jumping back. A second later, there was a soft, hissing blast. The door was partially knocked out, and between them, they hauled the slab the rest of the way.

'Tunnels. Interesting. Let's go.'

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

Travis had stepped in front of Acolyte in his ire, and he, himself lowered the rifle.

Acol- whatever your fucking name is. Grab. The. *****. And. Lets. GO!"

'She's not a *****.'

Before Travis could reply, he lunged forward and clapped Travis' temple and neck on opposite sides in a blindingly swift motion. Travis jerked, and fell limp, unconscious.

'I've wanted to do that for a while.'

 

[Fappy]

Conrad came running into the war room followed by a warden carrying the French sniper. Sticks was sitting at the end of a table in an old corduroy chair. Ten men stood around the room, checking their weapons and equipment. This was all that remained of their forces, "We heard them breaching the entrance behind us. We should evacuate and---"

"Not so fast Sergeant," Sticks got to his feet and walked over to the unconscious woman who had set down in a chair. "We have leverage now. We have a hostage," He looked over to one of the younger wardens. "I need you to go on ahead and deliver our demands to our friend Luka."

The man snapped to attention, "Yes, sir!"

Sticks laughed, "No need to be so formal. Tell them we have the French woman and that she will not be killed so long as they give themselves up."

Conrad cocked an eyebrow, "You really think they'd go for that?"

"If he values the life of his squad he will for a few reasons. A: If he doesn't listen we'll kill her. B: The brave soldier here will lie and say that the tunnel is rigged with dynamite and if they decline the offer they will die in a cave-in."

"If that were true couldn't you just do that anyway?"

"Our friend here will explain that I'd rather there not be any further bloodshed. Killing his squad would not ensure my survival, I simply need to disarm them so I can make my escape. Tell him... I don't want any more blood on my hands than I already have and that I will quietly leave the Pit for good if he plays along."

The man nodded and started down the tunnel. Conrad watched in discomfort as Sticks started manhandling the unconscious woman's face. He looked to one of his subordinates, "Bring her to the makeshift bedroom."

Without thinking, Conrad stepped forward, "You said we wouldn't hurt her."

"Kill her Sergeant," He grinned as he started for the bed room.

Conrad stood there watching in utter disbelief.

 

[ProtoChimp]

The girl spoke with disgust as she stared a hole right through Travis. "I'm not going anywhere with you. Now get the fuck out of my face before I rip your throat out, Nikolai... Acolyte is a friend... this isn't what it looks like."

Travis was about to roar at her and give her a good lesson in manners, before Acolyte stepped in.

'She's not a *****.'

Travis was about to turn and give the man with the stupid name a lesson in women's roles- but a seering pain shot through his skull. Then silence. Then darkness.

 

[The Funslinger]

Consciousness returned to Lisa painfully. Her vision started as a blur, and then sharpened to reveal Lieutenant Cornelius. The man she'd been sent to kill.

The morphine was wearing off, and the pain in her legs and right hand was almost unbearable. She groaned in dull pain as Sticks loomed over her.

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

Several minutes after Lisa regained consciousness in Sticks' clutches, Korovitch's men turned a corner, and almost collided with a man in a Warden's uniform. They raised their weapons and he cried out, 'wait! I'm here to negotiate!'

'Negotiate?' In the sharp glare of the torchlight, Korovitch could see the fear in the young man's eyes. A greenhorn if ever he'd seen one.

'Lieutenant Cornelius has your French squad member. She is not to be killed so long as you surrender your arms and turn back. If you refuse to cooperate, she will be executed, and the Lieutenant will detonate dynamite charges placed along this stretch of tunnel, burying you alive.'

Korovitch squinted at the soldier, who seemed a moment away from wetting himself under the Russian's grizzly gaze. 'How much further does this tunnel go on for?'

'You're about seven eighths through now, sir,' the boy replied, unable to stop himself.

'Wickers. Opinion.'

'Sounds fishy to me, sir. Anything they detonate at this range has a not too negligible chance of burying them along with us.'

'I see. But Cornelius is just that mad, I suppose. Anyway...' he stepped forward and slapped the rifle from the young man's hands, and slugged him hard in the gut. 'Take him. Cornelius isn't the only one who can take hostages, though I wouldn't trust him as far as I could throw him to give a shit about this kid.' To the "kid", he said, 'you thumb your mic, I'll cut off the thumb that did it. Maintain radio silence.'

They were about to continue on their way when Hayes set the holdall on the ground again, unzipping it and gestured to their new prisoner. 'Sir, I have an idea.'

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

Nikolai stood over Travis' unconscious body. 'The Dragon' as he called himself, had hardly lived up to his name, nevertheless...

"Not good enough." he said to no-one in particular, though his remark was meant for Acolyte. "We should kill him. When he wakes up, he will only kill, rape and maim more. When a Beast is mad, you put it down."

Nikolai aimed his shotgun square at Travis' head.

"Here, it is easy. Let me show you."

 

[The Funslinger]

Acolyte shoved the muzzle away from Travis. 'The killing is done for now. We're leaving now, so whether he lives or dies is of no consequence to us. Besides, he's got enough people after his blood that he'll probably get himself killed within the week. It'd have been just as easy for me to stop his heart or put him into a lethal seizure as it was to knock him out, but I chose to incapacitate him. Respect my choice.'

He met Nikolai's steely gaze evenly. Then, another thought occurred. 'These are the gas mines, right? Correct me if I'm wrong, but surely it's best not to let off any shots in here.'

 

[Fappy]

Kusanagi bit her lip as Nikolai positioned himself for Travis' execution, "S-stop!" Everyone's eyes were now on Kusanagi. She banished her doubt and spoke confidently. "Haven't you killed enough men today Nikolai? You are free now to do with what you will. Any life you take from here on out is no longer someone else's will. It's your own."

Kusanagi's voice trembled a bit as she continued, "It's already hard enough for me to not think of you as a monster. As an animal. Would killing this man really bring you peace... or would is satiate your bloodlust?!"

She hadn't noticed it before she had stopped talking, but she found she'd bee gripping his wrist. She awkwardly let go and took a step back.

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

Her screams echoed throughout the underground passage. Conrad tried his best to block it out, but it was just... too much. Some of Sticks' remaining men were standing guard by the tunnel entrance while a few others were playing cards at a table in the center of the room. It would be simple enough to just disappear...

And so he did.

Conrad moved the old podium back in place after climbing out of the trapdoor in the chapel and started for the tunnel entrance he'd previously taken.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

Nikolai met Kusanagi's gaze, and his eyes stayed fixed on her for a long moment, his expression unchanging. In the end, he lowered his weapon and slung it back across his shoulder, before rounding on Acolyte.

"No gas left. It all burned away." he said, before his voice took on a fierce growl, and he grabbed Acolyte by the collar of his vest, lifting him off his feet. "I respect no choices of yours, not yet. You fight beside Squeal Pig here, and think he is a worthy ally for a rescue. Together, you would have hurt Free-Men. He would have tried to hurt Kusanagi. How many have the two of you killed today, to get to me? But when the time comes, you will not kill Kusanagi's true enemies, even though she says you are a friend. This makes me not trust you, Sneaky Man."

He shoved Acoltye away from him, where he fell against the wall.

"You come with us, or you go, I do not care. But you are not one of us. Free-Men are family. If I think you will try and hurt us, I will kill you. Understand?"

 

[The Funslinger]

Sticks seemed content to let Lisa thrash as he did what he did. Her throat was hoarse with screaming. The bed rocked and tears prickled at her eyes. Her left hand slipped free of his grip, and he ignored her, content to jam his thumbs into her wounds as he thrust.

Her hand traveled up her own back as she grasped at the fine bladed knife held there under her bra strap, which Sticks had not yet touched. In one fluid movement, she brought her good hand up, and with such closeness, despite his sudden realization at the glint of steel, he could not stop her jamming it deep into his eye. He reared back, blood spurting from his head as he fell from the bed.

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

They arrived at the entrance to the bunker underneath the chapel. The door was open, and they marched straight on.

The hostage was sandwiched firmly between Korovitch and Wickers, who held him roughly by the shoulders. His torso was covered in thickly applied duct tape, strapping a number of grenades to his body. Two frags and three stun grenades from the holdall.

As they came to the door, the Wardens looked up at them. Some lazily stood guard, and others played cards. They had heard the feminine screams from some feet away, but as they came to the door, they heard a decidedly masculine yelling. As they were noticed, several Wardens dove for weapons. With all their strength, Wickers and Korovitch hurled their suicide bomber hostage forwards. running through the pins was a knotted cord, that trailed backwards to the hands of Sergeant Hayes. The man was pitched forwards and Hayes yanked hard as he and the others leaped back.

The explosion, primarily magnesium, but still containing fragmentation, seemed enormous in the confined space. Immediately, they were through the breach, and dust hung thickly in the air. Most of the men were unconscious or heavily wounded. Some had weapons, though, and were scrambling to find cover. Korovitch ignored them and barreled towards the bedroom beyond, bursting through the door. Behind him, a fierce firefight was erupting between his men and Sticks'. He pushed through the door.

There was blood everywhere, with more coming out and still a lot of yelling.