No Gods, Nor Masters

On Even Footing

Doctor Halsey held onto the roll cage of the Transport Hog she was travelling via. Lieutenant Richard and his Platoon had agreed to provide the transport for the meeting with the Bunny Warriors after their representative, a girl by the name of Delilah, had come to tell them of the presence of the rogue tribe in the area and that they had, in fact, been the ones to kidnap Hsu and their other two men. For what reasons, Halsey was going to find out now, seeing as queen Tyuule had promised an audience with the leader of the tribe.

Richard was driving the 'Hog they were riding in. Beside him was his rifle, loaded and with nothing but the safety being set to on separating them from a possible shootout. The Lieutenant hummed, then seemed to go wide-eyed. He looked to Doctor Halsey, then asked, "Uh... Doc? Couldn't we... Y'know... Have used the IFF Transponders our boys and girls have to track Hsu, Stechkin and Paulescu?"

Halsey hummed, looked to him with slight confusion, then narrowed her lips. She sighed, planting a palm on her face, then said, "I forgot... Thank you, Lieutenant, we'll see to tracking them and sending a retrieval team, provided queen Tyuule can't help us negotiate with the leader of the tribe for their release. Still, I would rather we show a mutual respect, so..."

"I'll keep my men's mouths shut, don't worry," The man remarked. The rest of the squad rode in the same 'Hogs they'd travelled with last evening. He added, "Though I'm still not quite so comfy with you being the one having a chat, doc. We could've gotten one of the ONI SEC1 diplomats for a chat. Fuck, if this is an ambush, things may get real bloody, real fast and I don't want a civvie in the LOF, especially if she's my superior. I'm gonna be the asshat who has to write the SITREP to HIGH-COM if you wind up getting nabbed or biting the dust."

"I admire your concern, Lieutenant, but there are two things you need to consider," She noted. Patting the pistol on her own bulletproof vest, she said, "It is unfounded, for one. I can protect myself well enough. As for the second matter?" She looked over to him and spoke firmly, "Tyuule, the leader of the Warriors, has agreed to speak to us face-to-face. It'd be an insult as bad as spitting in her face, I believe, to send a diplomat or ONI Spook to do the job I, as acting commander and head representative of the UNSC's interests on this world, have to undertake. Going myself may give me and the UNSC as a whole more leeway in talking to her."

Rich smirked, then gazed at the road, "Fair enough."

To the left of the road, the trees appeared once more, shrouding the peaks of the mountains on the horizon. The Lieutenant cued his mic and ordered, "Slow down a bit. Delilah mentioned she and a group of fellow warriors will be here to guide us and I'd rather not run'em over..." before he shifted the Warthog's gears. The Gun 'Hog ahead followed suit, with the entire convoy gently easing itself to thirty kilometers per hour instead of the almost ninety they were rolling with just now.

And, indeed, as stated, on the side of the road further ahead were Delilah, the ginger-haired elite of Tyuule's forces, as well as a bunch of other girls. Their weapons were sheathed, but they seemed tense nonetheless. Understandably, seeing as the Lieutenant and his own force all grew tense. Still, he ordered, "Don't point our guns at'em. We're not here to spook, we're here to talk..." before he gently stopped the vehicle.

Grabbing his rifle off the dash and sliding it onto his back via the strap, he exited the driver's seat and marched up to help the doctor climb out. With a nod of appreciation, Halsey took the young man's hand and descended from her seat. She approached the women and they began to speak, while the gunner of the Hog in front eyed the rest of the forest suspiciously.

"We're good, Matkovic. We're good..." The Lieutenant voiced. He saw the women chatting, with Delilah tilting her head toward a beaten path that could only be travelled on foot. The man frowned, then approached the doctor and whispered, "Sorry to interrupt, doc, but if we can't take our vehicles, I think that's a no-go. I'd like to have the extra firepower in case shit hits the fan."