Raid

[a_tin_soldier]

The coordinates will take them right outside of a fairly nondescript building - people tend to not want to think about these places, after all.

Unfortunately, this puts them in full view. Though with any luck they'll be done here long before that really matters.

Comments

[anotherblues]

Blues, Metal, and Quick teleport in, looking around the area warily. It's not quite what they'd been expecting, but then again, their world doesn't really have an equivalent.

[stealandsurvive]

Marino wastes no time in darting forward to attack the locks on the door. This, of course, sets off alarms - but since they're going for speed more than stealth it doesn't matter. She'll kick the door in and they can be on their way.

Zero wonders why she didn't try the knob first, but no way is he going to say something about that within earshot of her.

[anotherblues]

Blues smirks and gestures for the other two from his universe to follow. Seeing as the natives don't want subtlety, there's no point in looking around.

[itsybitsyrebel]

There's not all that much to see. It's a big open lab area. A lot of the work seems to be left to drones, there are a handful of humans supervising. They tried to make Reploids do the work, but the last ones here, ironically, ran off to join Repliforce at the beginning of the mess.

Deactivated 'bots from reploids down to common drones are roughly sorted at one side of the room. These are moved almost assembly - or in this case disassembly line style across the room. Reusable parts are stripped out and finally the rest is destroyed.

"All right, folks. We're just here to pick up some friends. You tell those drones to quit working and stay up against the wall and out of our way and no one here will have to get hurt."

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

Quick smirks. "Remember, at least some of us have no reservations about killing you humans. You really don't want to give us reason. Do you?"

Blues just sighs, exasperated at his younger brother.

[stealandsurvive]

As Quick speaks, Marino's already on the move again. She slices the head off of one of the working drones and kicks its body to the ground.

One of the human workers orders the drones to stop and they obediently huddle against the far wall, terrified.

"Remember, Quick," Colonel says. "No humans are to be harmed unless they give us no other option. This is a rescue mission, not an assault."

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

Quick chuckles. "Aw. You're spoiling my fun. They didn't need to know that. And they might have cooperated better without knowing you don't intend to harm them at all."

Blues smacks Quick over the head. "Behave." He looks over at where the work was being done. "Any signs of any of them?"

[itsybitsyrebel]

"It is still not the message we want to send, Quick," Colonel says. "This was never - and will never be - about war on the humans. Only about securing our own freedom."

"Yeah, I know some of them," Spider says, sticking a teleporter on Spiral Pegasus and watching as the damaged Reploid vanishes.

Marino's reason for attacking the drone is because she recognized the reploid it was starting to disassemble. The purple hair might remind some of Forte-chan, but that's where the resemblance ends. Layer's a lot taller, and there's one guess given as to the original function of a female reploid with a figure like that...

"I vote for getting everything that's not a drone out of here," Zero says. "Even if some of them weren't with us before, I'm sure they don't deserve this."

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

Quick shrugs. "Suit yourselves then. I'm not native to this place. So it doesn't matter what I want."

Metal grumbles. "I swear. We need a leash for him."

Blues nods at Zero's suggestion. "Definitely. No one deserves to get this kind of treatment. I'll let you guys judge who needs the rescue though."

[vengeancechild]

Zero, Colonel, Marino, and Spider fan out through the room, placing sticky teleporters on any deactivated 'bots that aren't drones - as well as a few they're not sure about, what with how strange some designs can be.

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

Blues and the two Wilybots keep a close eye on the humans, watching for any wrong moves or potential problems.

((Get on IM. :) ))

[a_tin_soldier]

It looks like this is going to be a fairly quiet raid. The others have already sent about a third of the deactivated 'bots to the Nexus, and the humans show no signs of wanting to interfere.

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

Quick relaxes at this point, figuring that there's nothing else likely to go wrong.

Metal and Blues, however, are on guard. The calm just seems way too convenient.

[itsybitsyrebel]

Maybe they're just lucky and the Maverick Hunters aren't repaired enough to fight yet. Or maybe they're still scrambling to answer the alarm.

Two-thirds of the damaged 'bots have now been sent to the Nexus. Spider, Marino, Colonel, and Zero are trying to work through the lot as quickly as possible. The shorter time they're here, the less likely there is to be any trouble.

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

Quick starts fidgeting a bit out of boredom.

The other two remain on guard. Better to be ready for nothing than getting surprised by a bunch of maverick hunters.

[what_virus]

Quick won't be bored much longer. There's a voice from outside, using amplification equipment to be sure he's heard. "The building is surrounded. Let the hostages go and surrender yourselves."

Spider just snerks. After all, something like this - especially if they've teleport-shielded the building to prevent escape - is why they brought the Nexus PINPoints. And the sticky teleporters work through most shielding, though they burn out in the process. Blues designed them that way.

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

Blues rolls his eyes, not that it can be seen with the visor. "Surrender? Why would we surrender? All it'd mean is we get the same treatment as the ones here were getting. Idiots."

Metal and Quick move to the door. Metal nods. "You guys finish getting people out. We'll guard the door while you do it."

[what_virus]

Storm Eagle seems surprised to see Wilybots. He's also holding off a direct attack as long as they have hostages in the building. He can't risk harm to the humans.

"We're almost done in here," Spider says. There are just a few more to get out of harm's way.

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

Metal and Quick are both sizing up the strange reploid. It's not the chameleon Metal remembers, or any others he's seen before.

Blues nods, then looks at the humans. "It'll be over soon. And since you haven't done anything outright stupid, you'll all get to walk away. Just remember that. Not all of us are monsters."

[what_virus]

Storm Eagle actually seems a little unsure of what to do without someone here to give him orders. He doesn't move to attack, just watching them.

"That's the last of them," says Spider. "Time for us to get out of here."

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

Quick nods. "Definitely. I don't want to try taking on that guy."

Metal chuckles, then waves at Storm.

Blues walks over and whacks Metal upside the head, getting ready to use the teleporter he received earlier.

[what_virus]

Colonel thought he'd recognized the voice earlier, and is just curious enough to have a look at the door before they leave. "Storm Eagle."

For the Hunter's part, Storm Eagle looks surprised and almost hopeful at the wave and when he sees Colonel - only to immediately afterwards look briefly terrified, as if hoping his reaction wasn't noticed. He still hasn't made any move to attack, even with targets clearly visible and no humans in the way.

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

Blues pauses at Colonel addressing the other by name. "You know him?" He frowns at behavior from the eagle. "Odd. He could attack us now. Yet he doesn't. And that reaction..."

Metal glares at the eagle warily. "Blues, don't bother trying to talk to him. If he's anything like the chameleon I met..."

[a_tin_soldier]

Colonel nods, speaking quietly. "I attempted to convince him to join us. He felt none of us would survive, and was too afraid of the other Hunters."

The glare from Metal makes Storm Eagle realize how long he's stood here and done nothing. It would look very suspicious and could even get him in bad trouble. He moves back to the amplifier. "Please release the hostages." After a moments hesitation, he adds, "Colonel... It's not like you to endanger humans. The building is teleport shielded. You have no way to escape. Let them go."

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

Blues nods. "In other words, he's trapped with them because of what he was made as. And now he knows there are options... I tried to get the one Metal found to see that things aren't in black and white. He didn't listen."

Metal eyes the Eagle. "Is he an idiot? Does he really think we'd come in here like this with only the hostages as a way of getting out? Besides, we would not have endangered the humans if they weren't going to destroy the ones brought here."

[a_tin_soldier]

"What other way would he know of?" Colonel says quietly. "The PINPoints are Nexus technology, and existence of the place was kept in a need to know basis. I suspect his teammates and superiors did not think he needed to know."

Storm Eagle's behavior is bothering him. It seems unlike the Hunter to be quite that on edge. "It's possible we're being watched," Colonel adds. And since he couldn't see any other Maverick Hunters nearby, that mean Sting Chameleon.

Storm Eagle considers offering to trade himself for at least one of the hostages, but he dismisses it quickly enough. As a hostage, he'd be valueless. His teammates, he knew by now, would not hesitate to kill him if it was necessary to get to Mavericks they were assigned to destroy.

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

Blues smirks. "There are ways to get around the shielding, even within our universe. But I guess that even is need to know." He adds softly, "Poor kid though. Is there anything we could do for him if he is stuck like that?"

Metal stiffens at that. "Could the chameleon be in here now?"

[stealandsurvive]

"It would not surprise me," Colonel says to Metal.

As Colonel's speaking, Marino steps around the group in the doorway. She's rigged together a makeshift bow and arrow from bits of some of the scrapped drones inside. Before Colonel's even finished speaking, she's fired.

After the rather long period of everyone just staring at each other, the sudden movement and attack takes Storm Eagle by surprise. He tries to dodge, but the PINPoint-tipped arrow gets him in the edge of a wing - and he vanishes.

"Can we go now?" says Marino.

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

Blues grins. "I really think I like the way you think. Easier to ask questions once he's out of here."

Metal eyes the area very carefully. "We should get going now if he could be here. I don't want to fight him again."

[a_tin_soldier]

Marino uses a sticky teleporter to get herself out of there, since she used her PINPoint on Storm Eagle. Spider is already gone. Colonel, it seems, intends to be the last to leave - just in case there should be trouble.

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

Blues waits, watching as his younger brothers leave using the devices. He looks to Colonel. "This went better than I'd hoped it would. And it's best we do leave now like the others have. Unless you want to deal with the Maverick hunters further."

He makes his own exit quickly at this point.

[a_tin_soldier]

Colonel wastes no time in leaving as well. There's no further reason to stay.

When they get to the Nexus, the deactivated 'bots are being triaged and some already being taken in for repairs. But no one really seems to know what to do with Storm Eagle. The shocked Hunter is backed up against a wall, being watched closely by several very suspicious 'bots.

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

Blues frowns at the reaction from the ones here. "Settle down and take it easy on him. He didn't come here of his own choice. We brought him here. You don't need to scare him that much."

Quick and metal are watching him warily still. They're hesitant to trust, but they'll follow Blues' example.

((Get on IM. :) ))

[what_virus]

Many of the others here aren't too keen on blind trust either, especially after Double. Word of that still hasn't gotten out to most people, though. But they're not going to hurt him as long as he doesn't try anything suspicious.

Storm Eagle is several levels past terrified. He's been captured. He's almost sure they'll kill him. And if he escapes and goes back now, his teammates will kill him. The only reason he hasn't bolted and flown away is that he has no idea where he is or where he could go.

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

Blues watches the behavior. "Give him some room. He's probably terrified of us. Think about what they've probably heard about us."

He moves towards Storm slowly. "Relax, kid. We didn't bring you here to kill you. Settle down. We want to help you if we can."

[what_virus]

They'll back off, and let Blues deal with this... but they're still watching.

Storm, meanwhile, is watching Blues. "Why, then? You shouldn't have brought me here. They'll be able to track me. Pallette probably already knows where I am."

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

Blues just smirks. "They can track you here all they want, Storm. It's not going to do them any good. By being brought here, you have some choices to make. And the freedom to make them. No one can make you go back if you wish to not go."

"Were you ever told of any of the quirks of the Nexus? I know one of your kind was aware of them... What do you know of it?"

[what_virus]

"What's a Nexus?"

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

"In other words, they've kept you completely and utterly ignorant of the situation at hand. The Nexus is a kind of crossing point of realities. I don't come from the version of your world that you do. I come from another one. And the Nexus is a place of complete safety if you don't consent to being harmed. And no one can drag you back there if you don't wish to go."

[what_virus]

Storm Eagle completely fails to get it, just giving Blues a blankly puzzled look.

At least it's better than panic?

[istopfornothing.livejournal.com]

"Welcome to the Nexus. Where things make no sense and you can meet alternate versions of yourself. But at least it's safe here and no one can come kill you unless you want that. It's also how we got out of a shielded place. Technology from here isn't shielded by your universe. Yet."

[what_virus]

"But... why bring me here?"

[anotherblues]

Blues smiles. "Because everyone deserves a chance at the freedom to choose what they want out of life. And you most likely deserve more of a life than being one of the government's pet robot exterminators."