|
Post by Basil on Feb 3, 2011 19:58:24 GMT -5
Some time had gone by since Freedom's last expedition North, and the winter snows had fallen. Freedom's numbers had been so brutally diminished by the epidemic, followed by the fiasco up North, that they had been lying low. Maginot was doing his best to keep tensions with Duty as low as possible as well as keeping Freedom out of any conflicts. The Anarchist faction simply could not afford to do anything as daring as it had in the past few months.
Adder, since her terrible encounter with Balalaika up in Jupiter, had taken some time to recover from the trauma. Despite having mostly recovered from the shock, the Commandant seldom left the warehouses any more, preferring to entrust night patrols and the like to a young woman named Ludmila, who was one of the oldest members of Penumbra.
A cold wind was blowing over the hilly area around Freedom's base, and snow covered the ground. The guards stationed at the entrance of the warehouses were wearing heavy coats and were gathered around a fire that was burning away in an old metal barrel. A few patrols went out every now and then, but the weather did not favour that kind of work. Adder was standing outside, swathed in cold weather gear, including a white balaclava that covered her face and hid the fatigue her face showed. She had spent many bad nights since her last encounter with Balalaika, as she was often tormented by nightmares where she relived the horrible torture session.
"Fucking, stupid, horrible weather", she grumbled as another gust of cold wind blew between the ramshackle buildings of the old military base. The windows of the HQ building, which were devoid of glass panes, had been temporarily boarded up with wood and metal to keep the warmth in the building. A couple of Freedomers were huddled near the corner of the warehouse opposite Adder, warming their hands around a barrel. Freedom had definitely come upon some hard times.
Suddenly she heard the crunching of boots on snow next to her, but as she turned around two gloved hands gently took hold of her face and drew the bottom half of her balaclava up.
"Mffmmmfmfmf", said Adder as Maginot planted a kiss on her cracked and cold lips.
"-Hello Adder", said Maginot with a smile as he drew away from her. "Enjoying the weather?"
"-No. It's cold and horrible. Can't wait for spring to come. So, any important news?"
Maginot nodded. He'd grown a beard over the last few weeks in order to keep the cold winds at bay, and also looked very strained and tired. Running Freedom now was like trying to keep a one-legged mule going straight.
"-I have news, yes. But you won't like it."
"-Oh really? How come?", asked Adder, bracing for whatever the French stalker had to say.
"-Well, it will involve you taking a few of your boys and girls and going out into the Red Forest to get something for us", said Maginot. Adder grimaced beneath her balaclava.
"-Mag...", said Adder with a sigh. "What is it with you and errands? You know Freedom can't afford to get in any clashes with anyone save for the smallest, most poorly-equipped band of thugs, and you want to send me out into the Zone to get something. This always involves a dangerous and complicated situation, and me getting shot at, and let me tell you that I'm rather tired of this stuff now..."
"-It won't be a dangerous mission", said Maginot in a firm but comforting voice. "It involves you and your Penumbrans going into the forest to check out some weird activity one of our patrols reported."
Adder sighed. "What did they witness, then?"
"-Voices, weird distortions in the air...strange shit", said Maginot.
"-Sounds dangerous to me."
"-It won't be. Duty and Co won't be involved, it'll just be Freedom and whatever that thing is. I'm sure it's a new kind of artefact, and imagine if we can grab that thing and sell it to the eggheads in Yantar, or even put it to use for ourselves. It would give Svoboda a much needed boost in morale and money."
"-Why don't you go yourself, then", retorted Adder.
"-I can't. I have to stay here and keep everything up and running...and God knows things are barely still running here. Look at us. We're so few...and we need an experienced leader. You're our best bet, Adder."
The woman sighed again and rubbed her eyes with her gloved hand. She could just say no, turn the damn mission down or get Maginot to pick someone else, but she felt obligated to accept. After all, Maginot had risked his life and travelled miles on foot to get her out of the mess she'd gotten herself into in Jupiter.
"-Okay then...I'll get a team together, and we'll set out."
"-Thanks, Adder. And good luck."
With that, Maginot kissed her softly on the side of her head before going back inside. Adder rolled her eyes and walked over to the back of the HQ building. She'd probably pick Ferret for this mission, since he was one of the only experienced members they had left.
|
|
|
Post by blackpapermoon on Feb 4, 2011 2:23:14 GMT -5
Ferret wandered around the Freedom base aimlessly, he had just gotten done shoveling snow to form walkable paths between the various buildings. The Military Warehouses where gloomy, and depressing, before the "Captain Trips" and the failed northward expedition the HQ was full of life and bustling with activity but now it's inhabitance had become just like the overcast sky that seemed to always loom over the area. The ex bandit did his best to keep his comrades' spirits up, but it was to no avail. Everyone knew that Freedom had fallen on hard times, and the only reason that Duty had not come to wipe them out was because they had their hands full with some kind of giant armored Bear mutant in the south.
He spent most nights helping to defend the barrier, and when on as many patrols as Penumbra had available. Ferret had even lead a small group of three other Penumbras in clearing out a small Monolith encampment that was a Kilometer or two away from one of the Red Forest outposts. They had become small time heroes with the northern outposts and the barrier but caught hell from Ludmila whom temporary dismissed the lot of them from Penumbra. Ferret felt like he was about to go Stir crazy if he stayed here any longer, although he was momentarily kicked out of the sub faction that did not stop him from using any excuse to leave base. He didn't care if it was false alarms or any thing else so long as it got him away from this sorry site for a little bit.
During that last two months he had allowed his hair to grow long and it now ended at his shoulders. It helped to keep the cold night wind off his neck when he was out and out. He considered himself fortunate to be given permission to sleep in the HQ building, that was by far the best insolated and warmest building that Freedom had within it's territory despite having no windows. He had all so been actively using his gift as Mag had coined it to help Freedom keep an eye on some of the faction’s borders that the other members could not cover.
Yawning he mad his was to the headquarters building, he had been up for over twenty-four hours and now needed to rest. But just before entering the building he noticed Adder and felt that he should see how she was doing.
“Hey Adder,” he said staving off another yawn, “ how are you feeling today…your boys and girls in Penumbra miss you.”
|
|
|
Post by Basil on Feb 4, 2011 6:58:20 GMT -5
Adder turned round and looked at Ferret without enthusiasm. Then again, she often found it hard to display any enthusiasm for anything nowadays.
"Ah, Ferret. I was going to look for you. Mag has given me a new task. I have to go check out some strange activity out in the Red Forest. Apparently one of our patrols heard weird voices and stuff, and it's not because they're going nuts."
Adder shrugged slightly in her coat. She still didn't want to go out there, but she had to.
"So yeah. Grab your stuff and get ready, because we'll be setting out soon", she said in a morose voice. "And I want to get this thing over and done with as quickly as possible."
Adder then turned away from Ferret and went over to the other side of the HQ building. Three Freedomers were there, gathered around a large and jolly fire, and Adder recognised one of these Freedomers as Ludmila. Ludmila was a thin, blonde woman who had been one of the first and most enthusiastic members of Penumbra, back when said organisation was just a small group of nutcakes who insisted on following the Commandant around on night missions. Now Penumbra had evolved far beyond a simple "fan club" and were a highly organised and disciplined little commando that Maginot humorously referred to as "Svoboda's hard core".
"Ludmila", said Adder, smiling slightly as the young woman leaped to her feet and stood to attention.
"-Commandant, nice to see you today", said Ludmila.
"-Get two other people from Penumbra up and ready for a raid into the Red Forest", said Adder. "We're going to check out some strange activity there."
"-Good to hear that, Commandant. You haven't left the compound in days..."
Adder was amused at how happy Ludmila seemed to be. Again, she was surprised at how devoted Penumbra was, and this was a good thing for Freedom's survival. With a small vanguard of devoted fighters such as these, Freedom would endure. Still smiling, Adder went back to the HQ building to get a Guardian of Freedom suit, grenades and ammunition for her Vintorez.
----------------------------------------------------
Finally, the boss was coming out of her lair. Wasp was happy about that. After all, who knew? Maybe Adder would return to her full position and start leading them out into the Zone again, like in the good old days. The young woman hastily grabbed her SIG 550, which lay propped up against the jeep she was sitting next to, and hurried off to find other members of Penumbra. She found two of them in the building-free area of the warehouses, practising their shooting on some empty tins they'd line up on a block of concrete.
"Vasya! Polecat!", she said. "Get your shit together, we're going out with the Boss again!"
The two men blinked at Wasp before the one she'd referred to as Polecat spoke:
"-Wait, you mean Adder's going out again?"
"-Yeah."
"-Best news I've heard in a while. Penumbra needs its Commandant."
Ludmila felt a slight pang of jealousy as she heard that. She admired Adder greatly, but she'd also enjoyed the thrill of handling operations in the commandant's place. Now that Adder seemed to be on her way back, she'd probably take charge of everything again, and Ludmila would have to step back into the ranks. Ah well. It had been fun while it lasted.
"-So what's the job?", asked Vasya as the trio walked back to the HQ building.
"-We have to go check out some strange phenomenon up in the North. Red Forest to be precise", said Wasp. "Could be a new artefact."
"-Or a new and deadly anomaly", said Polecat wryly.
"-Nah", said Wasp, always optimistic. "If it's really weird we'll just take a look at it from afar and then get the fuck out and report to base. Besides, Adder's with us. What could go wrong?"
"-Everything!", snorted Polecat. "See, our boss got it pretty badly up North. It's as if everything and everyone wants to kill her, especially that little psycho bitch Balalaika."
"-Don't mention her or the Northern Expedition to Adder", hissed Wasp. "You don't want her to lose her cool."
"-Yeah..."
The trio arrived in front of the HQ building before entering it. Adder was not there, probably going around the base, so they went into the armoury to pick up ammunition. With a devilish grin, Wasp picked up her shotgun, a Protecta, which was lying snugly in a metal locker with other weapons belonging to other freedomers. This crate was known as "la consigne", an odd French word Maginot had introduced. This box enabled Freedomers to keep their best weapons safe and avoid losing them.
The trio then exited the building and waited for Adder. Wasp leaned against the wall and fed gauge shells into her shotgun, and once that was done, she started fiddling with the Colt Anaconda she carried everywhere. She had been trying to do a complicated hand trick she'd seen Clint Eastwood do in a movie when she was a child. She snatched the revolver out of its holster and proceeded to spin it around her index before throwing it in the air. However, as she tried to catch it, she missed it and only barely caught it before it hit the ground.
"For fuck's sake, Wasp", said Polecat. "Stop playing around with that thing. You'll end up shooting somebody in the nuts."
"-Nah. First chamber's not loaded", answered the young woman, showing the cylinder to Polecat. The stalker seemed only slightly reassured by that.
"-Just don't do your Clint Eastwood bullshit next to me", he said. "I care about my balls."
"-Too bad they probably only shoot blanks now", said Wasp, earning a grimace from Polecat. "I mean, all that radiation..."
The trio fell silent and waited for Adder to return, Wasp opening the cylinder of her revolver, spinning it, and then snapping it shut again.
|
|
|
Post by Zeno, Lord Camelith on Feb 4, 2011 23:50:16 GMT -5
Two figures clad in Wind of Freedom suits lay prone atop a hill overlooking the Red Forest. One was armed with an old Enfield rifle, the other with a pair of binoculars.
"There's a Monolithian moving about just past those boulders." The one with binoculars said to his partner.
"War is Hell." The other one said out of nowhere.
"What?"
"William Tecumseh Sherman said that. American general in the civil war."
"Oh."
"I don't agree with him."
"That's nice." The one with binoculars said, "Three hundred forty-two yards."
Sighting in his scope for the distance, the rifleman said "No really. Hell's eternal isn't it?"
"I suppose so."
Pulling the trigger, the rifleman watched as the heavy .303 caliber bullet arced gracefully towards its target, splitting his chest open. "Well wars end don't they?" He asked, working the bolt on his rifle and loading a fresh round into the chamber.
"I guess it depends on the war." Diogenes said, taking a sip from his flask "Knowing humans, most of them would drag a war on forever if they get the chance." Returning his flask to its pocket in his vest and pushing himself up to a kneeling position he said, "Come on, our watch is up. Let's head back to base."
"What do you mean by you 'suppose' hell's eternal? I though you were the budding clergyman." Aristotle said jokingly.
"I was a bit too busy burying my nose in more secular works to pay any attention to the Priests."
As the two continued talking and walked down the road to the warehouses, the corpse of the Monolithian twitched slightly and a lone blind dog cautiously gnawed at its arm.
|
|
|
Post by Basil on Feb 5, 2011 16:17:56 GMT -5
As Wasp snapped her revolver shut again, Adder arrived followed by two other members of Penumbra. They saluted each other, giving each other firm handshakes. Penumbra was a tightly knit organisation, with each member knowing the others well. Their demeanour was also a lot different, as they seemed more disciplined and militaristic than early Penumbra. Adder smiled to herself as she observed her little group. They had changed a lot, from the poorly disciplined "fan club" whose members got picked off one by one like ants to a much more professional and skilled group of well trained and equipped individuals.
She also knew that none of them did drugs and that they kept their drinking down to a minimum, following the instructions she had given them a few weeks back. Penumbra had shaken the weaker elements out and retained only the strong ones.
"All right, kids", said Adder, pulling her balaclava up to expose her face. "We are about to go on a very important mission. Up towards the North of our territory, and a few miles beyond the Red Forest's borders lies an area that has been affected by strange new phenomena. One of our patrols came into contact with that area and reported strange distortions in the air, disembodied voices and a general feeling of surreality and unease. Evidently, this could be blamed on the consumption of drugs or alcohol, but our patrols are not allowed to consume these things before going out.
"So, two possibilities remain: a new artefact or a new anomalous area. The latter is unlikely since our patrol did not see any signs of anomalous activity in the area's immediate surroundings. So we're going to check it out. The absence of anomalies does not mean an absence of danger. Who knows what this thing, artefact or not, can do? Remain on your guard and keep an eye out for anything strange. If any hostiles are present at the objective, eliminate them. So, everyone geared up?"
"-Yes boss!", said Wasp, holstering her revolver. She had grabbed several grenades from the armoury earlier on. Polecat was equipped with a Guardian of Freedom suit, an FN Minimi and a Colt 1911. The others also had Guardian suits, complemented with SIG 550 assault rifles and grenades, although Vasya had an SVD Dragunov. They were well armed and armoured, ready to face anything, and Adder felt more confident as she observed them.
"-Now to wait for Ferret to get his arse back here...", she said, before being interrupted by the familiar voice of Maginot.
"-Adder!"
The commandant looked beyond the group standing before her and saw Freedom's leader leave the HQ building. He walked up to her, and Adder noticed he was carrying a second gun next to his customary SIG.
"Adder. I want you to have this", said Maginot before handing her his second weapon. Adder took the rifle and examined it. Her eyes widened as she recognised the weapon.
"-Mag...that's Seth's gun!"
"-Yes. Take it with you, it's a good gun and I never use it."
"-Mag...I...thanks", said Adder. She saw Wasp and Polecat smile slyly to each other, and she couldn't stop herself from blushing. Maginot, oblivious to the others, looked into Adder's eyes and squeezed her hand before going back into the HQ building. Adder stood for a while, staring after him, a soft smile on her lips before she snapped back into her stance of firm authority. She glared at Wasp and Polecat, who were still smirking.
"-You have a problem with my relation with our leader?", she asked. Wasp and Polecat shook their heads.
"-Not at all", said Wasp, still smirking. "Au contraire, au contraire. You're a lucky gal really, hooking yourself a good-looking French man and all..."
"-Silence, young lady", said Adder. "Or I'll kick your arse blue."
This shut Wasp up, even though she kept on smiling cheekily. Adder rolled her eyes and looked around for any sign of Ferret. Seeing none, she cleared her lungs and shouted:
"FERRET! GET YOUR SCRAWNY SELF BACK HERE!"
|
|
|
Post by blackpapermoon on Feb 5, 2011 18:14:05 GMT -5
It took his sleep-deprived mind a few seconds to make any sense out of what Adder had said. But when the meaning finally became clear, he quickly gathered his equipment. It was good to see that Adder was returning to her old self, that should help lighten the dark mood that had set on Freedom's troops. He took his SIG 550, some ammo and a few med kits. He didn't pack anything else seeing that they were not going anywhere to far and most of the Red Forest's mutant fauna was deep in hibernation save for the packs of blind dogs that roamed the irradiated woods.
He might have been very tired but he only needed to be on his feet for a few more hours, just to get out there, find whatever was causing the abnormality and get back to base. Grabbing an energy drink he slowly began to make his way back to the HQ when suddenly.
"Hey wait where are you going, "said a small teen with a chunky face. It was Footfall, Penumbra's fanboy, he was only around 16 and he followed any of the members around like a home sick puppy. He did not have the skills or the experience needed to join the elite sub faction but could not take the hint.
"No where," said Ferret trying to think of someway of getting out of playing baby sitter, " just going to pick up an old stash."
"-Cool…can I come… I won't get in the way I promise."
"-I'd rather you didn't.."
"-Please let me come with you… I'll carry your bag …hold your weapon for you …I'll…"
The ex-bandit rubbed his temples, Footfall's persistent pleading was giving him a migraine, he had to find some kind of meaningless task or job fast before he snapped and shot the kid.
"-Well if you really want to help me out, you can go see Cap," said Ferret dully with displeasure laced into his voice, "I think he needed me to do something for him."
"-Um…ok…" said the young Freedomer with a look of disappointment as he went off to do the Penumbra ask of him
Ferret quickly made his escape; he was about to turn the bend when he heard Adder screeching scream calling for him. It Seemed that he could not get a brake today.
" You don’t need to yell I'm right here," he said as he joined the rest of the group, " Footfall's at it again, couldn't get him off my back…just get me up to speed on the way.”
|
|
|
Post by Basil on Feb 5, 2011 18:54:07 GMT -5
" You don’t need to yell I'm right here, Footfall's at it again, couldn't get him off my back…just get me up to speed on the way", came Ferret's voice. Adder turned to look at him and raised an eyebrow.
"-Footfall? The kid? Weird. He never bothers me."
What Adder did not know when she said that was that Footfall was too scared of her to engage her in conversation. Adder shook her head slightly and pulled off her balaclava before putting on her tactical helmet. Once everyone was ready, Adder gave the signal to move, and the small group set off towards the entrance of the compound.
"So Ferret, since you weren't here for the briefing I'll tell you everything", said Adder, her voice muffled by her helmet. "A patrol of ours witnessed some strange activity up North, just beyond the borders of the Red Forest. They reported hearing voices and such. Mag thinks it's an artefact, but the point is that we have no idea what it could possibly be, so we'll be playing safe. That means I don't want you rushing out into the unknown to play hero. We go there, have a look around and if we see an artefact, we try to grab it. If we meet any hostiles there, we eliminate them."
"-Damn right, boss", said Wasp, illustrating Adder's words by mimicking a pistol and "firing" it at nothing. The young woman was very excited, as this was their first proper mission in months, not to mention they had Penumbra's leader with them. Morale was high, and the small group quickly made its way out of the military warehouses and down the road that lead to the Barrier and the Red Forest.
Adder's thoughts wandered slightly as they drew close to where the road veered off towards the Barrier. She had heard some people call Penumbra a "sub-faction", but that wasn't true. The correct term for Penumbra would be "elite troops", since they did not display any of the characteristics of a faction, and were entirely dependent on Maginot and Svoboda for weaponry, materiel, shelter and general direction, although the latter was mostly overseen by Adder.
Adder turned to Wasp and spoke quietly with her.
"-Tell me, Wasp, what is your general impression on how Freedom perceives us? I have a feeling some people don't like us..."
Wasp gave her leader's words some thought. It was true that as of late some of the older members of Freedom had been criticising Penumbra, although she had never seen any signs of true distrust. She shrugged and answered in her usual, honest voice:
"-Well, I have heard some mutterings from the older members, but nothing too bad. They're probably just worried about our faction staying egalitarian and not turning into another version of Duty."
"-Hmm...I'd be sad to see our own people turn against us", said Adder. Despite what Wasp had said, she also suspected that Penumbra was suffering from the fact their leader was a mutant. Freedomers were a lot more understanding than Duty, but still couldn't help but feel cautious around someone displaying actual signs of mutation. A thought suddenly popped into Adder's mind, and she again spoke to Wasp.
"Tell me, Wasp, I've noticed that the newer and younger members of Penumbra have been getting some kind of tattoo as of late, to prove their allegiance to Penumbra and me or something...I hope you haven't indulged in that kind of silliness."
Wasp blushed visibly, and Adder sighed.
"All right. Where did you get it done", she asked in a weary voice.
"-On my shoulder", answered Wasp. Adder rolled her eyes.
"-Ah well. So long as you don't get hepatitis or some other shit."
The small group soon reached the Barrier, and Adder went to talk to the sentries, asking them about their situation, if there'd been any signs of Monolith activity in the area, and, most importantly, if they'd noticed any strange phenomena. Wasp drew her Anaconda out of its holster and eyed it lovingly before putting it back. She then turned to Ferret and spoke to him:
"-Hmm, Ferret, just wanted to apologise for shouting at you about the whole Barrier business. Adder had given me the order to keep an eye on our patrols, and it got to my head. I got a bit over-zealous with the whole deal..."
|
|
|
Post by blackpapermoon on Feb 6, 2011 16:04:33 GMT -5
"There's no need," he said biting back his ego in truth he had been jealous of the fact Adder had entrusted Wasp to look after Penumbra and not him. Yet however deep in his heart of hearts he knew that the commandant had made the right call, if he had been in charge of the patrols he would had sent them on costly missions that would not only cost lives but would have ignited a "new" war with Duty.
"The boss made the right call, putting you in charge of that," Ferret continued, " I went against orders… Adder would have done the same thing if I had pulled that kind of thing under her command."
He watched as Adder went up to talk to one of the guards, it had always been a habit of hers and he had to admit seeing her fall back into her old routine was very comforting. The mission might be an easy one but it was a good sign that Penumbra and Freedom where slowly beginning to pull themselves back on to their feet. This winter was going to be a hard one but he truly felt that when it was over Freedom would come back even stronger then before. After all what does not kill you only makes you stronger.
"Hmm…It's good to see the commandant back on her feet," he commented after a few moments, "after you know what, I didn't know when she would pull out of it."
It had been come customary at the base not to talk about the failed expedition and or the mad woman Balalaika. The wound was still too fresh in the minds of Svoboda, especially for the only two survivors of the expedition. Mag had also come along at the end but still his experience was nothing compared to Adder's and Ferret's own. In fact this was the first time he had brought the topic up since his return from up north, and even now it still felt wrong.
|
|
|
Post by Basil on Feb 7, 2011 20:07:13 GMT -5
"Yeah, it is good to have our Boss back", said Wasp with a grin. "Penumbra needs old Snake Eyes to keep morale up, especially in these dark times."
Most of Svoboda's strength had been mobilised at the Barrier to prevent any Monolith attacks from breaking through. This meant that Penumbra was also present on the Barrier alongside normal Freedomers. Wasp waved to the closest defenders, who seemed tired and strained. Due to Freedom's low numbers, the time spent at the Barrier for its defenders had been almost doubled, as regular relief could not be organised.
The alarm came without warning.
"Monolith! Monolith!", cried the sniper up in the wooden watchtower that overlooked the Barrier. Almost immediately the Barrier was ablaze with frenzied activity. Freedomers took cover behind sand bags, weapons were loaded and magazines were checked. Wasp and Adder dashed towards a low wall of sandbags that sat on the side of the small depression in which the Barrier was located.
As Wasp and Adder got behind cover, a bullet whizzed over the latter's head. Swearing, Adder brought her Vintorez to bear and looked through the cope. About twenty Monolith fanatics were out there, using rocks as cover and giving the Barrier's defenders a powerful dose of gunfire. There was a loud blast as one of said defenders shot a grenade at the attackers with an underbarrel grenade launcher. Adder took aim at one Monolithian who was shooting at the sniper tower. Only his leg and arm were exposed, but that was enough for her. She pulled the trigger and sent a bullet into his arm, causing him to fall over sideways, grabbing his ruined member in agony. A burst of gunfire from Polecat finished him off, the Minimi's bullet's ripping his head and chest to shreds.
Wasp on the other hand took a Monolithian down as her emerged from cover, shooting him squarely in the chest with her SIG 550. Adder shot another one of the attackers down, putting a bullet in his shoulder. The fanatic dropped out of sight behind a tree, but the poisoned bullet would finish him off. Another explosion shook the Barrier as another grenade was fired, and finally the attackers fell silent.
"-Going to check if there's any left!", said Wasp, grabbing her Protecta shotgun and jumping out from behind the sandbags. Adder followed soon after with her Vintorez, but was more cautious than the younger woman ahead of her. Wasp checked behind boulders, bushes and trees for any surviving fanatics, and found one hiding behind a large rock, clutching a wound in his side. His eyes widened beneath his gas mask, and he raised his pistol, a Colt 1911. Wasp was quicker however, and two loud detonations shook the air around the Barrier.
Turning away from the now dead fanatic (his head was now nothing but a bloody mess and the rock behind it was coated with gore and blood), Wasp looked at Adder.
"We fucked 'em up, didn't we", she said cockily. Adder smiled slightly.
"-I suppose we did", she said softly. "All right, snipers! Cover us while we check those corpses for any loot."
|
|
|
Post by Zeno, Lord Camelith on Feb 8, 2011 2:39:11 GMT -5
"I'm out of smokes." Diogenes muttered, searching his pockets for a pack of cigarettes.
"Don't you know those things are bad for you?"
"Well I feel fine. I never trusted those studies anyway. Captain over at the barrier owes me a few anyway. Lets head over there."
"Fine."
Turning back around the pair walked back up the road towards the barrier.
"What if that monolithain wasn't alone?" Aristotle asked.
"Did you see his gear? He was obviously a scout. It's not like those brainwashed bastards to run in blind."
Just as Diogenes finished talking, gunshots and explosions rang out form the north.
"What was that about being alone?"
"Fuck you."
Aristotle and Diogenes broke into a run, the sounds of gunfire growing louder. Then, almost as soon as it had begun, the shots ceased. As the two men pounded up to the barrier, they could see Freedomers emerging form their cover and examining corpses. Two more loud gunshots echoed out, then the men saw the commandant walk back in past the barrier.
"What happened?" Diogenes asked, jogging up to Adder, "We plugged a scout a ways out to the west, do you think they had more men snooping around? It's not like Monolithians to attack blindly."
|
|
|
Post by blackpapermoon on Feb 8, 2011 9:18:07 GMT -5
The call was given, Ferret jumped into action, taking up a firing position behind one of the large boulders and waited for Adder to take the first shot. He took aim at one of the on coming Monolithians and pulled the trigger. The man fell to the ground, a neat line of bullet holes starting from his lower abetment and ending in the upper part of his chest. The Ex- Bandit managed to kill another two, one in a similar manner and the other with a headshot before needing to reload. He helped to cover the rest of his team, until the Monolithians had been dealt with. After the short firefight he joined the rest of the team in looting, as he went through one of the pockets of one of the dead fanatics he noticed the weapon he had been carrying, it was a G36. He had seen some of the more senior members of Freedom with the weapon, and he had thought about trading his current weapon in for the scoped assault rifle but did not have the money at this time to get it. Holstering his own gun he picked the new gun and examined it, the weapon seemed like it was in good condition. Looking through the scope he found that it was not cracked, the weapon felt like a perfect fit in his arms. He took his prize and returned to the other just in time to hear what one of the new comer said.
"What happened? We plugged a scout a ways out to the west, do you think they had more men snooping around? It's not like Monolithians to attack blindly."
Ferret’s hear jumped, was this attack retribution for the camp he helped wiped out not all that long ago or was it just a random assault? Or something more, the Penumbra pushed the notion out of his head, Monolithians where crazy so it was pointless to try to understand the their motives for the attack.
Ferret gains: G36
CHECK
|
|
|
Post by Basil on Feb 8, 2011 9:57:24 GMT -5
Adder went through the pockets of one of the men she'd killed during the battle. His armament was pretty standard: an AK-74, a knife and a few grenades. Her attention was caught by an odd-looking pistol that lay nestled in its holster. She pulled it out and examined it. The pistol had large magazine as well as a small, folding handle. Adder also saw a small switch on the side of it, obviously a firing mode selector. The commandant raised the gun and pulled the trigger, and was taken aback when the pistol let out a savage burst of gunfire.
"Whoa, nice gun there", said Adder, taking the dead fanatic's holster and magazines full of ammunition. "I'll be taking that."
With that, the commandant returned to the Barricade and gave the all clear. A few Freedomers went forward and began to salvage all the weapons the Monolithians had dropped in order to bring them back to the military warehouses. Adder's attention was caught by a Freedomer who came jogging towards her.
"-What happened? We plugged a scout a ways out to the west, do you think they had more men snooping around? It's not like Monolithians to attack blindly", asked the Freedomer. Adder considered this information in silence for a moment before answering.
"-Well, we shouldn't exclude the possibility of the Monolith faction taking advantage of the snow to launch an all out attack on our territory. However, it would be a risky gamble for them. Snow would limit their own movements, not to mention that the defenders they're facing are well armed and entrenched. Nevertheless, I'll tell the others to be watchful."
Adder grabbed her PDA and quickly dialled a message telling the patrols and barricade defenders to keep an eye out for any suspicious activity. Once the message was sent, Adder, turned her attention towards the Freedomer and his comrade, who had just arrived.
"You're Aristotle and Diogenes, right?", she asked. "I don't really remember everyone in Freedom."
|
|
|
Post by Zeno, Lord Camelith on Mar 20, 2011 18:49:32 GMT -5
"Yes M'am." Diogenes said, "4th Recon and Patrol."
Aristotle adjusted his grip on his rifle, "I don't think that was all of them." He muttered, "There's gotta be more of them hiding out there."
Just as he finished talking, a bullet whizzed past the commandant's head, the displacement of air around it ruffling her hair slightly. Diogenes grabbed Adder by the shoulder and forced her to the ground behind a sandbag barricade
"SNIPER!" He shouted, "Left side!"
The chatter of assault rifles, and the louder report of an M240 machine gun filled the air as Diogenes propped his LR-300 against the burlap bags. A slightly muffled cry of pain could be heard over the gunfire and Diogenes shouted, "I think we got him!"
The Freedomers stopped firing, and Diogenes helped Adder to her feet, "Sorry about that." He said, "Can't have you getting killed though."
|
|
|
Post by Basil on Mar 27, 2011 21:24:42 GMT -5
"Thanks", said Adder, dusting herself off slightly. Evidently it was a futile gesture considering how dirty one got in the Zone's harsh environment. She looked at Diogenes and Aristotle again when something dawned on her: 4th Recon?
"Since when have we kept regiments?", asked Adder, mystified. Freedom did not keep such tightly categorised units, unlike Duty, preferring to rely on self-organised groups. Maybe Diogenes and his friend had made their own little thing and named it 4th Recon?
"Ah, doesn't matter", said Adder, waving her previous question away. "This is Svoboda."
The commandant then turned to the rest of her little expedition and called out: "All right everyone, get your shit together, we're moving out!"
|
|
|
Post by blackpapermoon on Mar 28, 2011 7:01:05 GMT -5
After the threat of the sniper was dealt with, it was now time to deal with the dead and dying Monolithians. Ferret was not very fond of this task but it had to be done. The dead would attract mutants and there was still a chance that the wounded could get back up and start fighting again. He shoot two men that where still gasping for air, putting them out of their misery when he herd a ragged voiced call out from behind a bolder.
“A…medkit…please…give…me …a…medkit.”
The voice did not sound like anyone under the influence of the Monolith, but when Ferret came to the voice’s owner he was greeted with the sight of an obese man clad in a Monolith suit and a fedora hat. His green eye (as an eye patch covered the other) was bugging out of his skull. However the Freedomer noticed the man’s SPAS-12 shotgun was trained on him his with the Monolithian’s chubby figures around the trigger. Without hesitating Ferret pulled the trigger of his own weapon and sent three rounds into the man’s heart. After he was dead Ferret took of the corpse’s artifact belt as his prize; he was about to walk away when an idea popped into his head. Taking the hat off the Monolithian he walked up to Adder and with a wily smile placed it on her head.
“Don Adder,” he said, “I think we mopped up the rest of them, it’s safe to proceed with the rest of the mission.”
Gad's lard alone would sustained all of Freedom the long cold winter
Ferret gains Spring, Koloboks 2x Mica
Check
|
|