the other
side and headed down another stairwell. A bit of clear running later and they
were back into the undercity and fighting through a scattering of unorganized
resistance that barely slowed their run…with the others getting far enough
ahead of Rio and the other commando carrying a man that they didn’t even see
the fighting, only the bodies as they ran past them.
Eventually they came to their LZ area, another
building with a small pad on the roof. They hit the stairs and clawed their way
up some 42 flights with Rio ignoring his dead muscles and focusing on the way
out. It was so close ahead that he could literally taste it.
Just then, he rounded another turn in the stairwell
and saw a group of some six Hobbits in the hallway adjacent to the stairwell
take aim at him. Not knowing what to do he just kept climbing stairs and
mentally flinched, expecting a shower of pain. Several plasma blasts hit him in
the chest and even his faceplate, then a flash of silver entered his vision and
only a few more white orbs came at him.
One burnt through and he felt his left lung deflate,
nearly toppling him over as he stepped out of view of the enemy. He caught
himself on his upright knee, then forced himself up
the next step with the other commando still on his back…and the next, and the
next. He had a small window, for they could be coming right up after him, and
he had to make use of it.
He climbed, willing all other thoughts aside, and
somehow made it up the three more flights to the roof. When he came out he saw
a dropship waiting with its rear hatch open and he dragged his legs across the
short tarmac and up into the craft, dumping his fellow commando onto the floor
as he collapsed himself. Knowing there was still danger he twisted himself
around and held up his pistol, ready to shoot out the entrance if anything came
into view but the only things that did were his fellow commandos popping out of
the stairwell and running across to the dropship.
He counted, seeing that all of them had made it, then
as the last of them came up and hit the ramp retract button he let himself fall
down and curl up into a pain ridden ball that could barely breathe.
The commando that hit the button stared back out the
gap to make sure no one got a cheap shot in on them as they closed up, but then
the ramp locked into place only a foot off the ground. Frowning, the commando
hit the button again, getting it to rise another six inches or so before it
stopped again, this time with the pilot coming through on his comm.
“Hold up, there’s one more coming.”
“We’re all in,” he said, checking his battlemap and
seeing no other signals.
“I’m told there is and we’re giving him another 30
seconds.”
“Copy that,” the commando said, looking around and up
into the sky. He could see distant enemy fighters, hoping that they could get
away without getting shot down again. A skeet flew
past at a closer distance, meaning they had some air cover left which was a
small comfort, but they weren’t out of the woods yet.
After 23 seconds he finally saw an image appear in the
stairwell, staggering out and momentarily dropping to a knee before clawing its
way back up onto its feet.
“Damn…” he said, running and jumping off the ramp
towards Iden . He wasn’t showing up on the battlemap
and the damage to his armor clearly showed why. He was a mess of melted and
charred bits, with so many wounds to his body that he should have been dead…and
looked close to it, barely able to stagger his way across to the dropship.
A Hobbit came up the stairwell behind him and the
commando shot it dead before it could get a cheap shot off. He put himself in
between the Archon and the opening, covering him with his own body as more came
up. He shot them all down quickly, not giving them a
chance to group up, but still took a couple of hits, the first of which his
shields caught. The last one hit him in the leg on a portion of intact armor,
keeping him
side and headed down another stairwell. A bit of clear running later and they
were back into the undercity and fighting through a scattering of unorganized
resistance that barely slowed their run…with the others getting far enough
ahead of Rio and the other commando carrying a man that they didn’t even see
the fighting, only the bodies as they ran past them.
Eventually they came to their LZ area, another
building with a small pad on the roof. They hit the stairs and clawed their way
up some 42 flights with Rio ignoring his dead muscles and focusing on the way
out. It was so close ahead that he could literally taste it.
Just then, he rounded another turn in the stairwell
and saw a group of some six Hobbits in the hallway adjacent to the stairwell
take aim at him. Not knowing what to do he just kept climbing stairs and
mentally flinched, expecting a shower of pain. Several plasma blasts hit him in
the chest and even his faceplate, then a flash of silver entered his vision and
only a few more white orbs came at him.
One burnt through and he felt his left lung deflate,
nearly toppling him over as he stepped out of view of the enemy. He caught
himself on his upright knee, then forced himself up
the next step with the other commando still on his back…and the next, and the
next. He had a small window, for they could be coming right up after him, and
he had to make use of it.
He climbed, willing all other thoughts aside, and
somehow made it up the three more flights to the roof. When he came out he saw
a dropship waiting with its rear hatch open and he dragged his legs across the
short tarmac and up into the craft, dumping his fellow commando onto the floor
as he collapsed himself. Knowing there was still danger he twisted himself
around and held up his pistol, ready to shoot out the entrance if anything came
into view but the only things that did were his fellow commandos popping out of
the stairwell and running across to the dropship.
He counted, seeing that all of them had made it, then
as the last of them came up and hit the ramp retract button he let himself fall
down and curl up into a pain ridden ball that could barely breathe.
The commando that hit the button stared back out the
gap to make sure no one got a cheap shot in on them as they closed up, but then
the ramp locked into place only a foot off the ground. Frowning, the commando
hit the button again, getting it to rise another six inches or so before it
stopped again, this time with the pilot coming through on his comm.
“Hold up, there’s one more coming.”
“We’re all in,” he said, checking his battlemap and
seeing no other signals.
“I’m told there is and we’re giving him another 30
seconds.”
“Copy that,” the commando said, looking around and up
into the sky. He could see distant enemy fighters, hoping that they could get
away without getting shot down again. A skeet flew
past at a closer distance, meaning they had some air cover left which was a
small comfort, but they weren’t out of the woods yet.
After 23 seconds he finally saw an image appear in the
stairwell, staggering out and momentarily dropping to a knee before clawing its
way back up onto its feet.
“Damn…” he said, running and jumping off the ramp
towards Iden . He wasn’t showing up on the battlemap
and the damage to his armor clearly showed why. He was a mess of melted and
charred bits, with so many wounds to his body that he should have been dead…and
looked close to it, barely able to stagger his way across to the dropship.
A Hobbit came up the stairwell behind him and the
commando shot it dead before it could get a cheap shot off. He put himself in
between the Archon and the opening, covering him with his own body as more came
up. He shot them all down quickly, not giving them a
chance to group up, but still took a couple of hits, the first of which his
shields caught. The last one hit him in the leg on a portion of intact armor,
keeping him
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