Augment

[Dorizzit]

Sparrowhawk sticks his thumb over his shoulder at "it". "This. It causes bleeding. And it sings. And I can honestly say I doubt I have ever said that before or ever will say that again."

[Guancyto]

Of course. Never so easy as that.

"How can you tell?" Blue Jay mutters darkly, before speaking up. "Doesn't really seem the type for a music box full of knives, so we figure it's a pop idol from a higher plane of existence. It's not bad, either. Can you hear it?"

[Voshkod]

"Yes, I can hear it. Every day, every night, every time my heart rotates, I hear it." She's been more heavily modified then you, you realize, as you notice one blue eye is looking at the thing, but the other is focused clearly on you.

"I want to hear her again," she says, coming closer. The tension is clear in her hands as they grip the guns. "I want to go back into the crystal forge, I want to hear the source sing to me, I want . . . . I want to feel the love of her knives again."

"Stall her," you hear in your minds. Control sounds very nervous. Snowbird gets closer. The C-5 has come around, the ramp is dropping people are coming out.

"It's so lonely here," Snowbird says in the voice of a little girl. "So lonely where it doesn't hurt anymore."

[Baerdog7]

Starling

Starling takes a step towards Snowbird. He begins releasing calming pheromones and the single step is all that he needs to change his posture from guarded suspicion to warm reassurance.

Come here, Snowbird. Let's go talk about it, he says smoothly.

[Voshkod]

Her gun snaps up, level at Starling's face. "You know, Starling, you third generation types aren't kitted out that well. I don't have a sense of smell anymore. I had them put in a chemical chromatograph instead. So I know what you're doing. And I'm not going to let you."

Soldiers are rushing across the snow, a tall man with them.

[Baerdog7]

Starling

Bummer. I forgot about that.

Starling feints left before ducking and rolling to the right, popping up to his feet and unleashing a burst of fire on Snowbird.

[Dorizzit]

Sparrowhawk jumps left, circling around snowbird so as to put himself directly opposite Starling. He then releases a tight burst of fire at her legs and feet, attempting to wound, immobilize, or distract her.

[Guancyto]

It's almost an idea, but... no, way too risky, far too unpredictable. Before the plan gets any further than that in Blue Jay's head, a lot of gunfire starts to erupt. Beautiful.

Whipping out his pistol and using the object for a bit of cover, he aims a burst across and slightly to the left of Snowbird. Crazy reflexes are well and good, but since they're just keeping her busy...

One could almost swear he mouths the words "I'm sorry" before it's all flechette fire.

[Voshkod]

The rounds thunder into Snowbird's legs, and she seems to flash with light and heat. She's laughing, a crazy humorless thing, and fires a round at Sparrowhawk. It catches him on the thigh, sending him flipping crazily across the ice as his internal dampeners try to catch up. Steam's rising around her as the flechettes crash into her, and she's almost to the thing. She's singing, suddenly, and the thing is singing with her, in chorus with the snow and wind and the ice groaning beneath you all.

[Guancyto]

No good. Well, if Blue's going to commit a vast breach of security, it might as well be on a mission he doesn't even slightly mind having erased from his memory.

What was the phrase? It was a bizarre thing, which was probably good for keeping it out of casual conversation. "Tricksy baseball, Snowbird." Yeah, that was it. Bless his hyper-enhanced recall ability. "Drop your guns, get on that plane and don't come back here." He thrusts a finger to the landed transport, idly wondering if it'll work or not. At least it probably won't make things worse.

[Baerdog7]

Starling

No time to talk. She can't reach the thing.

Starling sprints to the object. He's closer to the object than Snowbird, maybe he can kick it away from her to buy some time. When he's close enough, Starling attempts a flying kick to propel the object away from Snowbird.

[Voshkod]

Starling leaps toward the thing, smashing into it with both feet. A few moments before, it seemed so light. Now, smacked with kinetic energy, it is a hovering stone, and he falls.

Snowbird pauses, shakes her head like a cat, at Blue Jay's words. In that pause, the tall man has closed the distance. "Snowbird," he roars, and you recognize the voice of Majestic, that commanding presence from your heads. She turns, raising guns, but he's still shouting, "Delta Fall!" There's a light paff and Snowbird falls, gracelessly, into the snow, blood pouring from her ears and nose, a crimson fan on the snow before her.

[Baerdog7]

Starling

Sweet dancing Jehovah that hurt!

Starling curses as he rises painfully to his feet, falling silent as soon as he sees Majestic.

[Guancyto]

Blue Jay grimaces, moving out from behind the object. "Starling," his voice is a deathly hush, barely audible over the wind, "can you check Sparrowhawk? That shot looked like it could knock out a battleship."

Having seen a little too much in the past five minutes to entirely trust to the principle "no one can survive an explosion inside their skull," Jay kneels down and checks the fallen Snowbird for a pulse. "Objective is secured, sir. Thanks for the save."

[Baerdog7]

Starling

Huh? Yeah, sure. Starling grunts, limping over to Sparrowhawk. When he gets to Sparrowhawk, he lays him out and attempts to perform any first aid he can.

Alright you big lug, tell me where it hurts.

[Dorizzit]

Sparrowhawk grins mirthlessly. "My leg. I got shot there." He stands with some effort. "I'll be fine. I've had worse."

[Voshkod]

Blue Jay kneels down next to Snowbird, feeling for a pulse, but getting instead a rumbling woosh beneath her skin, like touching the outer housing of a generator.

Majestic walks across the ice, a tall black man with military bearing and a soldier's body, going soft around the edges from long years behind a desk. You can't shake the feeling there's a number there, not just a man, but you also love this man, will defend him, protect him like he was your mother . . .

. . . kissing you on the cheek and giving you that same wan, brittle smile she gave every night as she tucked you in. When you were younger, a comforting smile, but as you grew, you realized how fragile it was, like a mask she wore, and wondered as you settled down in your bed whether Mom and Dad were going to fight again tonight . . . .

Starling seems lost for a moment in some memory as Majestic speaks, a voice you remember from one of the monitors. "Good work, gentlemen. Let's get this thing loaded." His wish is your command.

Behind you all, the C-5A suddenly vanishes in a fireball. Perhaps it was the wind, perhaps the fight, but whatever it was, the Russians took advantage of it. Missiles lofted from a trio of attack helicopters crash down all across the lake, shattering the ice, filling the air with a groan like a dying dinosaur as the ice you're standing on begins to canter dangerously over the frigid water. The helicopters start rolling in, armored dragonflies, while a heavy lift heli-crane follows at a distance.

[Dorizzit]

Sparrowhawk gives a succinct summation of the group's opinion on the subject of the attack helicopters: "F***." He begins firing on the aircraft, steadying his gun on his arm.

[Guancyto]

Blue is less succinct. "Damn it, Murphy, what did I ever do to you?!"

Three things to secure. Two are critical. Two can't come in contact with each other. One is autonomous and more important than all the rest combined, but very, very squishy. It's like that puzzle with the dog and duck and river, but with attack helicopters.

He grabs one of Snowbird's guns plus whatever she carried it on, and tosses the other to Starling. Lifting the ambiguously dead augment, he gets an idea. Maybe a an astoundingly stupid one, maybe a good one. He might as well ask which. "Sir! How good is she for a shield in this state?" If the answer is positive and if he can comfortably handle it, he'll foist her off on Majestic. The Man probably isn't designed to take a stray missile, but unless he's far missed his guess, Snow very, very much is.

[Baerdog7]

Starling

Starling takes the gun from Blue Jay.

Thanks bud.

He aims the hand cannon at one of the helicopters and unleashes a hail of fire.

[Voshkod]

"She'll make a fine shield," Majestic shouts over the wind, "but what we need to do is get a way out of here. Our backup aircraft is back in Nevada. We need that chopper!" He points at the helicrane.

In Sparrowhawk's hands, Snowbird's gun does nothing, somewhat disappointing. "It's keyed to her DNA! No one else can use it," Majestic says. Blue Jay's flechette rounds ping off the armored front of the attack choppers.

The ice on the lake is now adrift, shattered by the missiles.

[Guancyto]

Blue Jay stops himself from a sigh. He'd give a lot for guns that work when you pull the trigger and intelligence reports that aren't bending over backwards to keep anything helpful a secret, but those wouldn't involve singularity-powered miniguns or energy beings, either. So very torn.

"If we fall back, would they have to land to secure that thing, sir? Starling could get inside if they're on the ground!" he shouts back.

Of course, it would risk losing the objective, wouldn't it...?

[Voshkod]

"Listen up!," Majestic commands. "You are ordered to secure three things safely. That object, Snowbird, and me, in that priority. If you need to sacrifice lower priority items to save higher priority items, you're authorized. Under no circumstances will you allow Snowbird or me to be take alive and whole. But I'd prefer it if we all got out of here." He pulls a pistol out from under his coat and takes cover behind the object, dragging Snowbird with him.

[Baerdog7]

Starling

Starling throws away Snowbird's useless hand cannon in disgust.

Sir, I'm sorry to steal your cover but we've got to get this thing off the ice. Blue Jay, give me a hand here and let's get this into the trees. Sparrowhawk, see what you can do about those gunships.

He begins pushing the object towards the forest as quickly as he can.

[Dorizzit]

"My pleasure."

Sparrowhawk carefully lines up his shot. His eyes focus unnaturally as his visual stabilizers take effect. He breathes in, ceasing his breath so as to create a stable firing platform as he lays his gun across his arm. Finally, he fires, the singularity powered rounds blast outward towards one of the gunships, ripping through its armored hull and shattering the machinery and men inside. A sensitive spot is hit, and the whole thing goes down in flames, a pyre for those lost inside.

[Guancyto]

"Snow's... what, energy shield? Should work. Thank God for MPD technology, I guess..." Blue Jay scoops up the fallen gun and holsters it, too, before digging his heels into the ice and helping Starling push.

[Voshkod]

Starling and Blue Jay begin to push the object across the ice. Majestic drags Snowbird, keeping the thing between him and the helicopters.

Sparrowhawk takes careful aim and round of superheated plasma slices through a chopper's armor like a laser through butter. The fuel ignites and spills down to the ice, raising a billow of steam as the burning wreckage smashes through. The ice shivers again, and parts in several places.

The other two attack choppers open fire with chainguns. Rounds ping off the object, which begins to moan under the impacts. Several round smash into Sparrowhawk, dull thuds against his armor.

The helicrane begins to lower a large net and all three remaining choppers push in. It looks like they're going to try to snatch up the object without stopping.

[Dorizzit]

Sparrowhawk chuckles as the gun rounds ping off of him. He fires wildly at one of the two remaining choppers, his attack ineffectively punching a few holes in the craft, with the majority of the shots going wide. He dashes as he does this, putting himself between the lowering net and the primary objective, holding his position and keeping the heat on the one helicopter.

[Baerdog7]

Starling

Sparrowhawk, get the helicrane!

Starling keeps pushing the object, hunching down to try and avoid the bullets.

[Dorizzit]

"We need it!" Sparrowhawk exclaims. he addresses his next statement to both: "You guys cover Majestic and try to deal with those choppers. I'll worry about the Helicrane. I've got a plan."