Sigma/Star

Chapter 120: Irina

The descent was into nothing but organization. Soldiers held positions, maintaining order and standing firm. Their weapons swung around against any who approached. They were ready. Porter had been half-hoping that the loss of the generals would demoralize the guards within the base, or would at least cause panic, but it seemed like these men and women had a different taskmaster in here, one they respected far more than Artemis.

The refined strength of the soldiers only served to highlight the weaknesses of the group. Nami could barely hold her gun, let alone fire it, even though her face was set in grim determination. There was a streak of dirty grease across her cheek, clashing with her childish looks to give her a strange maturity, but it didn't make her any more proficient with her pistol. Riya wasn't much better, and had yet to even pull the trigger, fingers trembling around the handle of the weapon.

Most of their success had to be attributed to Raul, who was dispatching of foes through stealth, for the most part, utilizing his personal training. His history at Saint Maurius as a ruffian and former dropout helped as well, something none of the others could attest to. He grappled with enemies hand-to-hand, throwing them down and knocking them out. Others, he was forced to kill, leaving a smear of blood that rattled the rest of the group.

Certainly, they had all seen blood before. Killing the Bahari had been a chaotic mess. Even some earlier scraps against more human enemies yielded blood. But it was never in such an intimate way. To see blood come out of a Goliath, a little speck on a battlesuit's massive body, dulled the impact of seeing someone die. To watch it happen in front of you, just between two people, was sickening, entirely different from anything previously experienced, but something that had to happen.

They all watched in horror as Raul's elbow flew upwards, cracking into the man's chin, snapping his head back. A foot followed, kicking the soldier in the chest and sending him flying. He was unconscious before he hit the ground, blood flying from his lips. It was the third time Raul had done that, and the youth was panting. He placed his hands on his knees, pausing a moment to catch his breath. The fight with Reaver had taken a lot from him, and constantly dispatching soldiers wasn't helping.

"Sigma's maps indicate we don't have much further to go,"Porter said, trying to encourage the rest of the them. "We're looking for a stairwell into the basement."As he finished, a barrage of bullets sailed towards them, and they all scattered back as fast as they could, taking cover around a corner. It seemed they were under attack once more.

Porter didn't hesitate in poking out from around the corner, snapping off a pair of shots. They didn't connect with anything, as to be expected from a rushed, inexperienced shooter, but he didn't care. Raul was struggling, and he needed to lead by example, displaying courage that he did not have. This was part of his duty now, as a leader, and he gained a bit more respect for Ardwen when he had had to lead the Crisis Rescue Unit through so many almost-defeats.

A bullet pinged off the corner of the wall. It grazed the metal, leaving a slight mark, but the real impression had been on Porter, whose ear had been only a centimetre away. He had heard that shot up close, like nothing he had experienced before, and a wave of shock washed over his body. He had to shake it out though, had to return to combat as quickly as possible.

Ardwen leaned around the corner next, surprising everyone with his sudden valorous act. His eyes were focused behind his glasses, one of the lenses covered in grime, but he didn't seem to care. Ardwen, who usually was so obsessed with cleaning his glasses, was ready to be the hero.

His bullets connected with somebody. The yelp echoed down the hallway, something stemming from pain, not a dying gurgle, so it was probably an appendage that had been caught. Ardwen ducked back once more, returning to his position behind the wall. As soon as he pressed his back to the metal, he slid down it until he was sitting, his eyes wide with surprise. It seemed the gravity of the moment was catching up to him.