Red vs. Blue: Northern Wind

Ash

It had been a few days since her and North's escape from the Mother of Invention. Somehow, they'd managed to lay low without being discovered. But Ash couldn't shake the feeling that their luck wouldn't be long-lasting. She'd been trying to intercept calls from Command to see who was assigned to them, and so far, she had only heard about Washington.

Poor Wash... the last few months had been terrible to him, and he was already deemed fit for duty again. Ash couldn't believe the Director would do that to him, but she wasn't too surprised. But she could worry about Wash later. Right now, the mission was the priority. Her and North. Not Wash, not the Director.

Ash had also heard about something killing off the Freelancers while they carried out their assignments. Who exactly was it, and what was their endgame?

North was with Ash in the cockpit. He was making sure Theta was alright while she worked on the calls. But if there was ever a perfect time to warn North, it was now.

"North, I've managed to intercept some calls between Command and other Freelancers. It sounds like something is hunting them down."

"Hunting them down? Who could be doing that?" North asked.

"I don't know... but I think we should be extra careful now. We have no way of knowing where  this hunter is, and the Director is sending agents to get Theta," Ash suggested.

"Texas."

The pilot cocked her head to the side. North had come up with some random ideas to escape situations, but this was the most random.

"What?"

"Texas knew something we didn't. York did as well, that's why he was helping her."

Ash realized what he was saying.

"You think Theta is a part of that, and that's why the Director wants all of the AIs. He wants to destroy the evidence of what he did."

Then she remembered the units that had already been accounted for. Psi, Omicron, Zeta... all gone. Deleted. All to cover up whatever secret the Director was trying to hide. He needed to pay.

"Ash, we need to move. Now."

"What? Why?"

"South is good at tracking. Too good. And I know she's going to want to kill us the most. I know it's our only ride, but we need to land somewhere and ditch the Pelican," North told her.

Ash gripped the controls. "Okay... okay. Where to?"

"Wherever's closest."

Closest, where was the closest planet? Ash pulled up a holographic map of the nearby area, then panned around to find something that fit the current criteria. The planet's surface was tan and green, like Earth but without as many bodies of water. However, it also happened to be the location of everyone's least favorite professional jokester.

"Ah, shit. You are not going to believe this."

"What is it? South?"

"Worse. It's Wyoming, the nearest planet is where he's currently stationed," Ash reported.

"We can take Wyoming. He'll stick out like a sore thumb on this planet's environment."

"So will we."

"He doesn't have an AI and a shield like we do. Theta, you can still put up a shield, right?" North asked.

Theta materialized. "Yes, I can. The last time messed with me a bit, though."

North sighed. "Let's hope it's nothing too bad."

Ash started up the engines again and the Pelican propelled itself forward, right towards the tan-and-green surface of the planet. Stars sped past and the engine roared as the orb grew closer and closer. Within a few minutes, the pilot could feel some heat. A blanket of orange covered the Pelican as it thrusted itself into the planet's atmosphere. Trees and lakes could be seen, interrupting the uniformity of the tan, rocky landscape.