Gamble Plains
Conquista
Duchy of Andurien
Free Worlds League
18 June, 3152
She landed just behind the cover of a slight hill interposed between her position and the enemy base. "Hold"
At her command, the pair of J Edgar hovertanks came to a stop beside her. She wanted to be sure before making the final run. She crouched her Protomech to ensure she was not visible, and blinked herself into the gun camera of Max's Hierofalcon. Her neural enhanced imaging implants allowed her to pop into selected Battlemechs and vehicles that the House had upgraded with the help of some newly won Sea Fox technicians. It wasn't quite the same as operating in her Protomech point, but at least she did not feel blind. She realized it gave her an incredible awareness advantage over the average MechWarrior or vehicle pilot.
She watched as Max's Mech traded fire with an enemy Trebuchet. "Maxwell, do you believe you have them fully distracted?"
"I should hope so. This medium lance is looking a bit heavy, but we can handle it. We should have pulled out any forces guarding the facility. I would recommend that you start your approach now."
"Aff. Understood!"
With the blink of an eye, she brought her perspective back to her own Protomech, feeling at home with the machine once more. The forces were waiting her command.
"Let us do this. Go, go, go!"
The J Edgars spun up to speed and bolted out from cover. She crested the ridge and zoomed her view in on the main gate of the facility. She watched as the guards raised their rifles and began shooting at the approaching hovertanks. The J Edgars replied with a hail of laser pulses from their X-pulse laser turrets, tearing into several of the guards and sending the rest diving for cover
Nyxie triggered her jets and glided up and over the gate as the hovertanks crashed through it. "Get to the main entrance point. I will cover you from out here."
The hovertanks sped away to a side door of the main facility, and when they were close, the Gladiator suits that were clinging to them leapt free. Making short work of the door with their vibroswords, in and instant they had breached the building and disappeared inside.
The J Edgars were incredibly vulnerable, and so did not remain stationary for long once the troopers had dismounted. They sped off in a circle, spiraling around the facility at high speed to make themselves difficult targets.
Nyxie scanned the area visually. Several people had scurried for cover, but none seemed foolish enough to want to tangle with her winged Protomech. That was fine with her. She listened over the comms as the Battlesuits reported their progress, fanning out throughout the facility looking for Sao-shao Li. They reported engaging light security elements, but nothing that threatened their armor seriously.
She was about to urge them to go faster, when a soldier appeared from behind a stack of crates and leveled a short range missile at her. The rocket fired, and she was just quick enough to elude it as the warhead spiraled past her and struck a side building, exploding and tearing a hole it the wall.
She fired her hip-mounted machine gun, sending a hail of bullets towards the soldier who had fired at her. He tried to dive for cover, but her aim was faster and she cut him down to the pavement in a fusillade of heavy slugs.
"Any progress, breacher teams? It is getting a little hot out here."
######
Sheena had actually been asleep when the sound of an alarm woke her. At first it was calm, but then she could sense an escalation in the panic level of the guards around her. She felt more than she heard the pop of concussion grenades going off. Someone was attacking them!
It did not immediately dawn on her that she was being rescued. She had not held out hope that anyone would come. The mission orders had been quite clear that they were to evacuate as soon as the initial raid was over, and her subordinate would likely carry out those orders to the letter. She had resigned herself to her fate as prisoner, but now that was all changing. Suddenly she realized that someone was coming for her.
She would have to chastise Tam for launching such an operation, but she was more surprised than anything else. She was sure that Tam was anxious for her job, and leaving her here would likely mean advancement for him, even in the failure of the raid, if he could spin it properly.
But apparently he was coming to her rescue. "You might want to see to that. It sounds like something is going wrong." she taunted the two guards who were left watching her.
"Quiet you! This is none of your concern!" one of them yelled at her.
She laughed openly. "Don't you see? They are coming for me. You might as well let me go. If you do, I will let you live."
"Stop talking!" The one guard was now visibly anxious. He came over to the cell door and opened it, walking inside. She wasn't sure what he was actually doing. Was he going to let her go? These Anduriens were more cowardly than she had thought, perhaps. But then she realized her error as the man raised his auto-rifle towards her.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you."
He was now visibly shaking. "One more word out of you and I'll shoot! I don't care if you're the Colonels pet prisoner or not!"
Her mind was racing a mile a minute as to what to do. She had to act, this was her only chance. But she didn't know what she could do. The distance between them was too great, he would be able to cut her down if she made a move towards him.
Just then, the door burst off it's hinges. She heard the clatter of something on the floor, and instinctively covered her ears. With a loud bang, the concussion grenade went of, sending a ringing through her ears. As smoke began to fill the room, she took her opportunity and lunged at the guard in front of her. The man was stunned from the grenade. She struck him square on the jaw, sending him reeling. At the same time, she drew his sidearm. As he stumbled to the ground, she pulled the trigger, sending several slugs into him. He dropped his rifle and writhed on the ground in pain and agony.
She looked toward the other guard in time to see a Gladiator Battlearmored trooper burst through the opening where the door had been. With a quick and silent stroke, he cut down the other guard with his vibrosword.
"Sao-shao, are you injured?" the voice was metallic through the suit's external mic.
"I am fine trooper. But who are you?" She was suddenly aware that her unit possessed no Gladiator Battlearmor.
"Master Po sends his regards, Sao-shao."
"Po Ding?!" She was dumbstruck.
"The House Master is otherwise occupied at the moment, but sent us to rescue you while he fights the Anduriens. We must move quickly. Can you move with us?"
She nodded. "Give me a moment." She was currently clad only in her Mechwarrior shorts and tank top, and was barefoot. That would not do. She quickly made her way to the corpse of one of the fallen guards and stripped him of his boots, donning them as quickly as she could. They were a bit large, but they would do better than trying to exfiltrate in her bare feet. She also grabbed his autorifle, and turned to the armored trooper. "Lead the way!"
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