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

[Fappy]

Lucia couldn't help but notice Nikolai was avoiding her question. Before she could press him, however, the girl spoke up.

"So you guys aren't from around here, huh?"

"You could say that," She chuckled nervously. "We're from way up north. Cold enough to freeze your tits off up there. Much better down here." Thankfully the conversation deviated before Lucia was made to concoct an elaborate lie. She couldn't just tell them they'd escaped a super prison, could she?

"It will share the load. We could also use someone to show us the way around."

Lucia nodded in agreement, "Yeah, we have no clue where anything is around here. You scratch our backs we'll scratch yours." She winked at the little girl.

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

"Sorry, I don't mean it to be so philosophical. Its just with the way things are, its getting harder and harder to see something clearly."

Neil shrugged, "You can see it clear as day so long as you accept one hard truth: there is no justice in this world. Countless people have been born and died down here. Babies, Lewis. What have they done to deserve a lifelong prison sentence? Any Warden who thinks they're doing something 'just' by serving in this place is either delusional or a complete idiot. The Pit is a revenue stream and the folks down here are nothing more than capital. They're not people. What happens to them is completely irrelevant to the rest of the world."

Neil bowed his head. He really was a buzzkill when he wasn't high, "We deserve what's happening to us. Don't you ever forget that. Lee knew a reckoning was coming." He met Lewis' gaze. "It's the end of days, kid."

 

[Rufio's Ghost]

"We could also use someone to show us the way around."

"Yeah, we have no clue where anything is around here. You scratch our backs we'll scratch yours."

'HAhaha, thanks *****! I couldn't have set this up better if I'd wanted to!'

In trying to drive these folk away, Manyara only succeeded at drawing them into their little group. Judah spoke quickly, with a delighted eagerness, "Anything we can do to help- I mean, you guys looked after me and everything, so it's only fair that I help you out." A huge grin spread across her face,"Subria knows this place like the back of her hand and-" She interrupted herself, adopting a gentle, pleading smile, "Well, that is... if you're okay with them coming along, Umdala."

Judah put her hand over Subria's, letting her large round eyes draw the old woman in. Realizing that she had "accidently" put old fool in an awkward position, the girl gave Subria an apologetic look. Another farce. She didn't care whether or not she over stepped her boundaries... but she still had to pretend like she did. The girl would cross any line so long as it got her what she wanted... and she could cross any line as long as she acted like she didn't know it was there.

 

[EnigmaticSevens]

"Beyond ensuring you are aware of the risks, however, I will not tell you how to do your job. I would not have selected you if I doubted your chances of success for even a moment. You know that."

"Hmmm... a game of hearts, then? And here I thought I'd left the old dalliances of the Vaterland behind...," Dietrich leaned back in his chair and steepled his hands, tapping his fingers against his chin, blanched blue eyes unblinking even as the Talon's gaze drilled ever deeper. No flinching, flinching implied resistance, and here there was no thought of resistance, only an odd sincerity, something that might have been sweet and welcomed if it didn't come dripping off of a fang," Of course, dear Brother Wolf and Sister Lioness are not the simpering, overfed, underfucked noblesse of Germania, these are two hardened, predatory individuals with a fondness for rutting with one another, and I'm to disrupt this, without lasting damage to either? Tsk, tsk, meine Dame, you ask your humble servant for absolutes when when I can offer only general possibilities, though I suspect these possibilities will suffice."

"I will put this thing between Riley and Nahla to the test. If it breaks, both will look to you for succor," Something momentarily bright flickered beneath the placid surface of Dietrich's listless stare, something sharp and nearly inorganic, a series of calculations that cared little for the instinctive biochemistry that warmed the typical mammalian heart," And if this thing proves resilient, both will know that it can only exist in the world you seek to create, and they will cleave to you all the more tightly. And thus we play a game, meine Dame, with only one possible outcome, one that suits you."

The simper at the corners of Dietrich's mouth melted into a gentle chuckling as the odd man rose almost abruptly, he offered his mistress a polite little curtsy before turning towards the door. He didn't take the step, wouldn't take the step, until he he heard an order for dismissal, but he could offer suggestions... a nudge here, a prodding there, all the slinking, passive aggressive tools of any good grand vizer, bound up in almost alien flesh with almost alien motivations,"If there is nothing else, might I take my leave? Linger too long together in private, and even here among the Most Faithful, they'll think we're up to something beastly.... No need to sour the wine when morale is already so... fragile, no?"

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

"Linger too long together in private, and even here among the Most Faithful, they'll think we're up to something beastly.... No need to sour the wine when morale is already so... fragile, no?"

"Why?" The Talon toyed with him. "Do your thoughts linger on 'beastly' things, when we're together?" She looked him up and down briefly, smiled, and shook her head. "Of course not. You may go; and don't worry, the rest will have plenty to distract them soon enough, which should make your work that much easier."

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"So, what was it you wanted to talk about?"

Selena fixed her eyes of Abigail, her expression strange. On the one hand, she wore the most wicked grin. On the other, there was a sharpness behind her eyes, that spoke of something deadly serious. It was clear then, to the woman sitting just a few feet across from her, that Selena was nowhere near as drunk as she had been pretending to be.

"My powers of intuition are telling me that The Commander is nursing a soft spot for you, Abi." Selena giggled. "How do you feel about that?"

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

"Find me something." The Commander barked, as the men fanned out across the workshop floor. He stared at the bodies on the floor. Militia, recruited from The Pit. No Songbird casualties. This was likely not a targeted strike. These men probably just chose the wrong fight to pick, or perhaps they stumbled onto something they shouldn't have done.

"Find me witnesses, a trail, anything in the area that might be a target to someone. Make it fast, whoever did this can't have gone far."

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

"This is it." Chen announced. "Ten guards. I'll take the Newbie up the centre. Clem, you flank them from the right, but don't start shooting until we do. Wait until they're committed. Aggie: This is our fall back point. Keep the way clear for us. I want this done fast, and I want no mistakes. Understood?"

 

[Evrant-Knight]

"My powers of intuition are telling me that The Commander is nursing a soft spot for you, Abi." Selena giggled.

"Well that was new." Abigail thought, having never heard Selina laugh like that before in the short time that she had been here.

"How do you feel about that?"

"Really?" Remarked Abigail with a small smirk. "I hadn't noticed all that much. I just thought he was being rather kind. Then again, we did go on a little walk together just over a week ago. It was nice enough, albeit brief, and before you ask, no, it wasn't a date. We just talked mostly, swapped stories and the like. I'll admit it was nice to get out of here for a bit." It was at that moment that Zach came over to the table carrying a tray which had a large pot of coffee, a couple of mugs, along with some milk and sugar. Abigail poured herself a cup, then put in a spoonful of sugar and a bit of milk, and then took a sip.

"Good coffee this is, nothing fancy mind you, but it gets the job done." Then came a slight grin on Abigail's face after taking another sip.

"So what about you then? I've been hearing rumours around here, that you've been getting friendly with General Hammond. Care to comment?"

 

[ProtoChimp]

"Got it." Clementina answered as she swung around to flank while Felix stayed with the man in charge.

"What's your plan?" Felix asked in a gentle tone, far too gentle for someone living in the Pit. "Close quarters I presume?"
================================================
Travis set out among the other militia after seeing the bodies left from an obvious fight. There weren't as many bullet holes in the walls and floor as he expected. Looked like a good old fashioned fist fight, with some gory results. Travis didn't spend long looking at the bodies as he set out looking for a trail of some sort. The Dragon was good at tracking people when he wanted them dead, however most of those people were scared, alone, possibly grieving for friends he had already murdered. He wasn't sure how good he'd be at tracking whoever it was he was supposed to be tracking since they managed to take out those militia men what appeared to be rather easily, guessing from the lack of carnage left.

================================================
'Oh, oh dear Judah, oh dear.'

On the one hand Subira certainly owed Judah after having abandoned her, yet these were outsiders, despite being grateful they had helped her (which yet she hadn't thanked or even acknowledged them since accusing the tank of a man) she didn't trust anyone outside their cloister. However, there was an easy way out of this.

"Manyara, what do you think?" There, done, dusted, and not her priority anymore.

 

[Mr.Ivebeenframed]

"Roger that." Aggie breathed as she watched the others go off. Rear-watch duty was the least of her concerns but still she stayed in cover and watched the rear approached to make sure that they wouldn't be surprised. She was sure that they're little mess was found by the guards and no doubt they would be trying to search for them but Aggie was also sure that a shotgun in the right place could make all the difference in the world.

Aggie stayed silent as a ghost and ready to pounce on anybody unlucky enough to fall into her trap.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

"It's the end of days, kid."

Lewis saw it. Lewis saw all the suffering and the pain that the Pitt had to offer in Neil's eyes. They were as plain as day and shone through the dank atmosphere. It was as if it was glowing it with emotion. Lewis had to look away. He couldn't stand it. How did Lee get this man?

"Not with Aggie." Lewis admitted. "I signed up to be a warden to get Aggie out of here. I didn't sign up because I thought any of this was right but because I want to redeem something and someone. I wanted to see if I could do it or at least try and beat it. Hope is a crazy thing."

 

[Terratina.]

"Manyara, what do you think?"

Judah being difficult was pretty much a given, Subira on one hand, could be pretty sly for an old woman but was mostly harmless though that was because the woman loved playing the part of the kind elder. However, the passing of the baton (or burden in this case) wasn't welcome at all. The outsiders were all too eager to help and Judah was all too keen to humour them, but would Manyara humour the little brat? There was the simple pleasure of denying Judah's wishes and there was the prospect of recruiting new members into the fold, if Manyara could in fact stand living with a monstrous giant and his mouthy lackey. In any case, refusal would just lead to a continued impasse and the shopping trip was taking too long as it was...

"Hmm... Why not?" Manyara beamed and then turned to the outsider trio, "We don't have to show you all of Madagascar, right?"

 

[Dogmatic99]

"Find me witnesses, a trail, anything in the area that might be a target to someone. Make it fast, whoever did this can't have gone far."

A bloke could only hope couldn't he?

It was alright work Barrows had to suppose, they'd gotten the job done whatever they'd started it for. He'd seen gorier, mind, cleaner too. Ah but who was he to judge? In a place like this you worked with what you got. And besides, he'd just had his arse handed to him by a blitzed business suit.

'Great. Now I'm gunna 'ave to rape a bum a sod in the showers or they'll all call me mean names.' That was how yanks worked their prison logic... with their weird bender criminals.

The rest of the squad could play at sniffer dogs for now. Though Barrows did keep half an eye open for clues to follow he was wasn't holding his breath, this didn't strike him like some brawl gone wrong. For now he'd be keeping his eyes peeled on Travis and watching as to how Mr Dragonpants handled things.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

The Commander's attention had been drawn by the workstation, which the bodies of the thugs were littered around. It had been in use, very recently. That was unusual...

"Commander."

Two of the soldiers under his command approached from behind him.

"Sanchez, Lin. Report?"

"No witnesses in the area Commander." Sanchez replied. "We've got a shell casing that doesn't match any of the weapons carried by the casualties, and two distinct pairs of footprints in blood, heading off to the West."

The Commander frowned. It was about as much as he was expecting under the circumstances, but it still wasn't a lot to go on.

"Any clear target in that direction?"

"There are about a dozen sites of tactical importance in the western quarter of the Mid-Levels." Lin spoke up "The nearest is a resupply depot, mostly food and medical, around two clicks from here."

"We also got a runner up from the Lower-Levels." Sanchez added. "Apparently an ammo dump down there was hit within the last fifteen minutes, two casualties. There was no sign of resistance, the other guards patrolling nearby didn't even find the bodies until the culprit or culprits were long gone. Whoever was responsible knew what they were doing.

The Commander's frown became more pronounced. They'd been on the scene here too quickly for the same people to now be making trouble on the Lower Levels. All the same, two professional strikes occurring far apart, yet almost simultaneously. This was definitely cause for concern.

"Alright!" he announced. "Tell that runner to make the rounds of supply stations in the Western Quarter. Warn them that they may be about to get hit, and that they should terminate any unauthorised approach with extreme prejudice. Sanchez, Lin, Barrows, you're coming with me to this closest site. If it's the target, then we may be able to cut off any escape. You..." The Commander pointed a finger at Travis. "You're coming too. The rest of you, stay here and keep this area locked down tight."

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"We don't have to show you all of Madagascar, right?"

Nikolai managed the closest thing his face could to a friendly smile.

"Just where we can eat, and a safe place to stay until we move on. Thank you."

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

"Close quarters I presume?"

Ducking into the darkness of an empty cell at the far end of the corridor, Chen studied the path before him.

"We have no room to manoeuvre. If we could get in behind them, we might be able to take them out stealthily, but not this time. We get as close as we can before their suspicions are aroused, kill them quickly, grab what we can carry, and then fall back to Aggie and disappear into the ducts." He looked at Felix, stern mistrust in his eyes. "I need you to be relentless. Shoot first, shoot to kill, and don't stop shooting until they're all dead, you understand?"

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

"All quiet here." Yu asked, as he and the two from Iron Squad squeezed back into their foxhole with Lewis and Neil. He didn't bother asking about the others. The fact that they weren't back yet was a cause for concern. However, Chen could look after himself, and hopefully the others as well.

Assuming nothing had gone seriously amiss, their actions today would have stirred up enough trouble to be noticed on the surface. Yu would wait an hour, and then they would need to relocate Neil, he thought grimly, with or without his brother."

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

"I've been hearing rumours around here, that you've been getting friendly with General Hammond. Care to comment?"

Selena smiled.

"Well, I've always been a social climber, and Hammond's the new man-about-town in these parts. What's a girl like me to do?"

Selena leaned in closer, gripping Abigail's hand in her own across the table.

"If you want my advice, you'll go on a second date with the Commander," she whispered. "and a third. Between you and me, none of these people are planning on leaving this place alive. They've spared us, for now, but when push comes to shove, anybody'll be fair game. If you don't give him what he wants, then if you're lucky he'll just take it from you anyway. If not, then he'll let his men take it from you too, and the prisoners they've conscripted, before they tear you to pieces. Or, you can scratch his back, and if you do a good job on him, you'll have a friend in hand for when things turn ugly.

Selena's hand withdrew, leaving behind a tightly folded note under Abigail's palm, before she drained her coffee and stood up.

"I've got to go. Think about what I said." Then, Selena turned and left the Gates of Pandemonium without another word.

Spoiler: The note reads:

To the Rear Guard...

Meet me by the Back Door at quarter to midnight tonight. Tell no-one, trust no-one. Destroy this.

 

[ProtoChimp]

"I need you to be relentless. Shoot first, shoot to kill, and don't stop shooting until they're all dead, you understand?"

Felix looked uncomfortable, but nodded and answered, "Shoot to kill." He had already killed a dozen men in his time in this prison, despite hating the act, he was willing to kill if it was needed. But this fellow soldier couldn't stop Felix from apologising at the very least, as long as he did it quietly so his enemies wouldn't hear him.
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"You. You're coming too. The rest of you, stay here and keep this area locked down tight."

"Yes sir." Travis said, hiding his disgust at calling another man sir. Hopefully he would be able to kill a man today. If he couldn't wet his dick he'd at least wet his blade.
========================================
Ah it felt good to pass on responsibility to a younger woman. Subira was tired of making decisions, and she deserved a long rest, longer than the one she had been given for fifty years so far. She deserved more.

"Just where we can eat, and a safe place to stay until we move on. Thank you."

"Ah, well surely I can help with that. Come along now little ones." Subira chuckled. "That includes you littlest one." She pinched Judah's button nose and held her hand tightly as she began leading them through the streets. "There is a hostel I can show you to before you move on." God knows she wouldn't allow these people into the fold so easily without consorting her people.

 

[The Funslinger]

"Just where we can eat, and a safe place to stay until we move on. Thank you."

"Of course if you feel like giving us a tour of the sights, we won't refuse," said Acolyte, flashing Manyara a grin.

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

"All quiet here."

While Korovitch awaited the answer to this question, he set about unpacking some of the ammunition and slotting bullets into various clips. It was good to have a dependable source of ammunition again. Even better that his assault rifle was no longer dead weight. On top of that, he and Fiona had recovered the rifles from the guards they had killed. Their ammo pool now was strictly 9mm and 5.56. The others would need those weapons.

 

[Evrant-Knight]

"Well, I've always been a social climber, and Hammond's the new man-about-town in these parts. What's a girl like me to do?" Selina asked with a smile on her face, though Abigail assumed that the question was a rhetorical one. The mood suddenly shifted when the ex-executive leaned forward and gripped Abigail's hand with her own.

"If you want my advice, you'll go on a second date with the Commander," she whispered. "and a third. Between you and me, none of these people are planning on leaving this place alive. They've spared us, for now, but when push comes to shove, anybody'll be fair game... Or, you can scratch his back, and if you do a good job on him, you'll have a friend in hand for when things turn ugly." Selina then left a note in Abigail's hand before finishing off her coffee in one fell swoop and then stood up. The thought of having any of those men do whatever they pleased to her sent a shiver down Abigail's spine, a shiver colder than one she felt in a long time.

"I've got to go. Think about what I said." Selina then left with no final words, leaving Abigail alone in the bar for the moment. She quickly read the note.

"So, she knows about that huh. I best be on my guard in case this is some sort of trap, can't be too careful, especially in situations like this."

Abigail then finished her coffee, a sigh escaping her lips as the last drop hit home before picking the tray and two mugs, bringing them up to the counter. At that moment, Zach came back down.

"Hey uh Abby, what happened to Miss Hernandez?" He asked, noticing the distinct lack of her.

"She had to go, something important came up. Say, you don't happen to have your lighter on you?" She asked nonchalantly with her hand out.

"Uh sure, it's in my pocket." Zach then patted himself down and pulled the item out from his trousers, placing it in the waiting hand.

"Why do you want it?"

"Cause I don't want to leave a trail for others to follow." Abigail then lit the note on fire, intently watching the ashes descend into a nearby waste paper bin.

 

[Fappy]

I wanted to see if I could do it or at least try and beat it. Hope is a crazy thing."

Neil shrugged, "In my experience hope's more dangerous than anything else. Most people who cling to hope down here get torn to pieces. That's just the way it goes."

Moments later Yu and Iron Squad reappeared. Wasting no time, Neil got to his feet and fell in beside Korovitch to sort through the ammunition, "I don't require too much. Ration whatever can be spared." Looking to Yu, he clenched his jaw. "How'd it go? Where are the others?"

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

"Of course if you feel like giving us a tour of the sights, we won't refuse,"

"Well," Lucia shrugged, "I have some food and drink in me, so I am up for just about anything. So long as we have a safe place to sleep for the night, I won't complain." She took a cursory glance around the street and laughed. "Not that this place is much to worry about. Most of the criminals here look like nothing more than two-bit pirates and con-men." She flexed her now visible bicep. "I bet I could take 'em." She winked at Acolyte.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

"How'd it go? Where are the others?"

"We got what we needed." Yu replied, curtly. "The others know how to take care of themselves. We'll stay put for a little while longer, but only a little. After that, they'll have to find us later."

'Hurry, brother.'

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

"Shoot to kill."

Chen clapped Felix on the shoulder, as a sign of acknowledgement and support, before before breaking from cover. He moved quickly, but calmly, his feet barely making a sound against the rough concrete floor. He looked for all the world as if there was nothing strange about him being here, and so the two guards who were waiting at the end of there approach took little notice of him until he got closer.

"What's your business here?" One of them asked when Chen was about twenty yards away. They assumed he was just some stray coming to plead for scraps. When there was no reply, merely the faint scuffing of footsteps as he drew closer, the guard subtly eased the safety off his weapon.

"Don't think I've seen your face before, who are y-"

Chen seemed to switch from one pace to another instantaneously. There was no prolonged acceleration. One moment, he was walking at regular speed, and the next he was sprinting full pelt, blisteringly fast. As he moved, Chen's two pistols came up from the back of his waistband with a snap, the two gunshot only making one sound as they were fired simultaneously. Chen was past the guards before they had even fallen, blood blossoming from the backs of their skulls. He dropped to one knee and slid, swinging his arms out to his sides and firing again, dropping two more guards, before bringing them back to the centre, where another pair levelled their weapons ahead of him, an fired a double-tap from each gun, killing them both with precise shots to the chest.

He still hadn't stopped moving.

 

[The Funslinger]

"I bet I could take 'em."

"Oh, definitely," Acolyte replied, grinning. "But try lasting a little longer without getting put on your ass in our sparring bouts before you go out of your way to try it, eh?"

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

"I don't require too much. Ration whatever can be spared."

Korovitch nodded. "We got a lot, so take what you need."

He didn't think their present situation was going to last much longer. And when things changed, they would either live to get more ammunition, or they would die. Either way.

When he was finished reloading his weapons and the others he'd acquired, Fiona tapped him on the shoulder, beckoning him as far from the others as they could physically go. Putting their heads together, she whispered, so quietly he almost didn't catch it even with his ear next to her mouth, "I heard someone."

"Now?"

"When I was bringing up the rear on our way back."

"We've been followed?" Korovitch asked, keeping his voice near silence. He didn't think Fiona would try to keep something like that from the others. There was no reason to. But it was a concern.

"No, just... in passing. Really quiet, a little far off, back the way we'd come."

"And? We're not exactly alone down here."

"Yeah, but it sounded... Glaswegian. And I guess the voice answering back sounded familiar too."

Korovitch leaned back on his haunches, brushing a knuckle across his lips in thought. If what she was getting at was true... but they had no way of finding out. Only time and chance would tell.

 

[ProtoChimp]

Clementina paced her shots from the weapon she had acquired earlier, dropping two men almost the second after Chen's first gunshots. Two more came running, she could see Felix about to aim at them, but a hail of gunfire brought them down. She liked this new weapon but it was too chaotic. Single shot pistols and rifles were much better, hell even assault rifles were better than a Mac 10.
================================
This fellow certainly out shined Felix when it came to firearms. He was worried he would be nothing more than an assist during this bout. Six men were already down and four remained. Perhaps he could show his prowess as two approached from the soldier's flank, only to suddenly fall apart at the seams before him. Just like that all the guards were dead. Oh well, at least it was done quickly, now they could focus at the real objective at hand.
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"But try lasting a little longer without getting put on your ass in our sparring bouts before you go out of your way to try it, eh?"

Subira tightened her grip on Judah's hand and gave Manyara a knowing look. Yes, these felt like trouble makers. She would show them a safe place to stay, to eat, to sleep, but they would make haste back home. These people may have helped Judah but they were naught but a distraction.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

It was done, quickly, and relatively clean. Chen looked around as he got to his feet, weapons still raised ready to put down anybody who might not be entirely dead yet. After a second, he lowered his arms with a small but satisfied nod of his head. If they could keep on working as a unit this well, then perhaps their mismatched little crew stood more of a chance down here than he'd given them credit for at first.

"Clear." he said, in his bear-robotic, special forces operator voice. "Clem, get down here, and we can start shifting this stuff."

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

The gunfire confirmed that they were on the right path, and how quickly it ceased confirmed that they had to move quickly if they wanted to catch the culprits.

"Barrows, Travis, you two take the right." The Commander ordered, sternly. "We'll take the left. Sanchez, you're on point. Double time, let's go!

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They'd made it to the fall back point, and were busy sorting out their haul with Aggie. Between them, they had enough rations and medical supplies to last the whole crew a fortnight at least.

Chen couldn't be certain exactly what is was that raised his hackles. Perhaps it was a stray scuff of combat boots on concrete, or maybe the tell tale sound of a safety being taken off just a little too fast. The detail was less important than the feeling itself. Having been trained by an elite force that specialised in dropping him into combat zones behind enemy lines, surrounded and with no reliable support, Chen senses had been trained to a subconscious level, making him almost impossible to ambush, the accuracy of which had only been improved by The Pit. He didn't need to know exactly what, or why. In that split-second, all that mattered to Chen was the certainty that they were suddenly in very serious danger.

"GET DOWN!" he bellowed, and just in time. A second later, their little intersection in the geometric maze of cell blocks that made up the extremities of the Mid-Levels, exploded into a shower of plaster dust and chunks of wall, as a hail of assault rifle fire came in from two directions. Instinctively, Chen crawled into a blind spot between the two paths, practically dragging Felix with him. Taking a moment to check that his new comrade was unhurt, Chen took as much time as he dared to peek around one corner, then the other.

"ENEMY CONTACTS!" he yelled above the gunfire, drawing his pistols. "MEDIUM RANGE! TWO ON THE RIGHT, THREE ON THE LEFT! YOU TWO..." he pointed across at Clem and Aggie, when they'd taken cover. "GET THE GOODS OUT OF HERE AND BACK TO THE OTHERS! WE'LL KEEP THEM BUSY AND CATCH UP WITH YOU LATER!"

He peeked around to the left again, before immediately pulling his head back as another burst of gunfire peppered the corner where his face had been a moment before, dust stinging his eyes. The point man of the group on the left was less than twenty yards away, crouched against the far wall of the corridor, thoroughly pinning down Chen.

Chen steadied his breathing, waiting for a gap in the noise. At most, he'd have time for one shot.

For all his skill, Chen sometimes just had to marvel at his blind luck. Seizing on the moment he'd picked, Chen flung out his left arm, and squeezed off a round, which hit the point man square in the throat, dropping him... and spilling the grenade that he'd primed just a moment before. Ducking back in just before the other two men in the hallways could get a bead on him, Chen waited for the explosion, which was causing the other two to back off. When he looked again, he saw that the surface of the walls around where the grenade had come to rest had been ripped apart, exposing and rupturing a gas pipe that had been embedded inside. Raising his weapon again, Chen first felt the stab of pain. Blood welled from a deep gash up a length of his bicep, where a bullet (presumably from when he'd fired at the point man) had grazed him.

It didn't matter. Before the other two men had a chance to aim at him again, he raised his gun toward the pipe and fired once, twice, three times...

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

The Commander cursed as he and Lu were forced to dive backwards, out of reach of the surge of fire, the swelled to fill the breadth of the hallway. Even after the swell had receded, the pipe still belched a steady stream of flame, blocking their line of sight with cloying black smoke. If Sanchez hadn't been gone already, he was now, and there was no way they were getting through this way. Instinctively, The Commander reached up to his ear, where his radio piece would have been, before he remembered that such technology had been rendered useless to them here, and cursed again.

"We're going to get back-up!" he told Lu. "Barrow and Travis will have to handle those two for now."

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Having blocked off the left approach, Chen took a brief moment to reload and check his new injury. It stung like a *****, but it didn't seem too bad. He'd been hit worse a dozen times, at least.

"How's it looking on the right?" he shouted over at Felix.

 

[ProtoChimp]

"Barrows, Travis, you two take the right." Barked the short tempered bastard. "We'll take the left. Sanchez, you're on point. Double time, let's go!"

Travis rushed to cover and began filling the corridor with gunfire. Thank fuck he was gonna kill something today, he was beginning to get withdrawal symptoms. He exchanged a few shots with someone even worse of a shot than he was, yet still didn't hit his mark. The Dragon ducked back into cover as the hallway suddenly exploded, and his allies were now gone, now he was stuck with the prickless prick.
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"GET DOWN!"

Clementina lacked Chen's reaction time and would have otherwise been caught dead if not for the warning. She and Aggie leapt into cover as Clem drew her Mac 10, ready for a fight.

YOU TWO. GET THE GOODS OUT OF HERE AND BACK TO THE OTHERS! WE'LL KEEP THEM BUSY AND CATCH UP WITH YOU LATER!"

"YES SIR!" Clem instantly changed her mind as she and Aggie grabbed everything that they could before retreating to their fallback point, the chaos Chen had caused certainly keeping them distracted from Clem and Aggie's escape.
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Well, it didn't stay quiet for long. Felix was beginning to wonder how his expertise could be of any use within the pit. For a prison, everyone used guns. All the time, and now he had to as well. Chen had taken a hit but had taken care of the left side single handedly.

"How's it looking on the right?"

"I see two on this side!" He yelled back as he fired at the two men, missing each shot and cursing his own lack of firearms training.

 

[Mr.Ivebeenframed]

Chen, new guy and Clem came back with the goods and by the looks of it, the loot was well worth the risk. Aggie was about to comment but luckily for her, the concrete and plaster around her began explode around from gunfire. She took cover behind a chest-high wall and dragged the supplies with her.

"YOU TWO! GET THE GOODS OUT OF HERE AND BACK TO THE OTHERS! WE'LL KEEP THEM BUSY AND CATCH UP WITH YOU LATER!" Chen ordered.

Without a doubt in her mind, Aggie picked up the supplies and began to book it alongside Clem. Her shotgun swayed and dangled from its sling as she made a run for it. Aggie didn't look back knowing that Chen could handle them and if he couldn't then she was a bit better off.

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"That's just the way it goes."

Lewis took in those words but before he could say what was on his mind, Yu and Iron squad arrived back with ammunition. He followed Neil to it and began to fill a magazine for his MP5. As he loaded the bullets, he noticed Fiona whisper to Korovitch about something. He guessed there was something wrong so he kept on his guard and began to scan the area.

"Something wrong?" Lewis asked the pair.