Sergeant Barnes: The Last Mission (COMPLETE)

Chapter 58: Raven

I didn't even have time to get to the hall. I almost wasn't able to grab my quiver and prop up the table as a shield before the glass shattered.

I set my arrows to melt. I had to hope that these cyborgs weren't vibranium like Steve. I leaned around the table and shot the first cyborg I saw in the head. It screamed for a second, before the sound faded into a dying whir. I ducked back behind the table before the others could see me, crept three steps towards the middle, and jumped the table. I flipped and mounted the shoulders of one of the nine remaining, firing arrows at the others before their reflexes kicked in.
I shot down two before they realized what was going on. As they activated their arm blasters, I leaned backwards and let go of the cyborg, landing on my feet as his buddies started to shoot at his head. I dashed between their legs, using their bodies to block the gunfire as they adjusted. I remembered how fast Steve had fought in Germany, and made a mental note to keep moving. I had to be faster than them if I wanted to survive. 

I shot the cyborgs closest to me. Two more down, four left. I jumped back behind the table, which was started to splinter from the gunfire. They all switched from guns to swords, or something of the like. I used my bow to block the strokes, then pulled out my gun and started firing. Natasha's report from D.C. said the eyes were a weak spot. If I got a straight shot...

I aimed at the closest one. I hit it right through the iris, and the cyborg fell to the ground. I hit the other three without hesitating. I'm glad I took a few minutes to practice. 

I holstered my gun and bolted for the door. My bloody suit, the stitching kit, and the laptop were still sitting outside the door, but I didn't bother to stop for those. Instead I ran down the hall, turned a corner and pulled my earpiece out of my pocket. 

"Natasha?"

No answer. 

"Bucky? Steve? Can anybody hear me? Please tell me you didn't ditch coms." I stopped running. I didn't realize how winded I sounded. I wasn't going to be able to say anything if I was breathing so hard.  

"What is it?" Natasha answered. Finally

"You know those cyborgs we never found?" I heard a thunk, multiple thunks, actually. More of them.

"What's going on, Shots?" Bucky answered this time. 

"They found us, Bucky."

"Raven, are you sure?" Apparently Director Fury was online too, but I didn't even have time to register the fact, because the next wave of cyborgs had just broke through the door. One of them threw a small object my way, and I jumped into the next room and rolled behind the doorframe just as the small object caused a large explosion. I was buried under the ruins of the wall, and I wasn't alone. 

I crawled away from the hall, careful not to shift the debris. Searchlights shone through the pieces of the metal walls, and I froze. A few seconds passed, and Natasha spoke through the coma, ever so panicky. 

"Raven?"

I didn't reply until after the cyborgs moved on, which was almost a full 30 seconds. I guess being buried comes in handy sometimes.

"Let me rephrase that," I responded quietly, as I pushed up on the pieces of the wall. "They found me!!!!

"Stay where you are, Raven," Fury said. "We're coming." 

"Staying put isn't a good idea right now," I whispered. "They're entering from the fifth floor conference room. The second wave just ran down the hall, and I think there's more coming."

Stark broke through. "Peter and I will take the ones outside. Which conference room?"

"It's on the fifth floor," I answered. "Look for the shattered windows."

I finally crawled out of the debris, but a third wave of ten filed down the hall just then. They didn't see me, thankfully, but they went the same way the second wave had. Why weren't they splitting up?

Maybe they weren't programmed to worked together. They didn't fight like a unit in the conference room. They were perfectly in sync with each other, but they all did the same thing. 

"Raven, get off the fifth floor." That was Agent Hill. "Get to the vans, before the cyborgs do!"

"Wait! They won't go for the vans! They're all going down the hallway past the conference room, to the right. I can cut them off!"

"Agent, this isn't the time to guess and check!" Fury yelled. I was tempted to turn down the volume on my earpiece. 

"They aren't fighting as units. If we can trap them, we ca-"

"Get to the vans, Raven!" Natasha grunted. She was still hurt. "That's an order!"

Well, if I had orders...

"Fury," Bucky interrupted. "Steve says she's right."

I smiled internally as I climbed into the vents. Score 1 for Raven. 

Bucky went on. "Trapping then will work, at least for a little bit. As long as they don't realize it, we can cut them off."

I spider-climbed up into the rafters above the hallways. It was the safest way to avoid the cyborgs if I went up first, and then worked down to the lobby. I might even get a glimpse of where they were going.

"Barnes and Noble can cut off the cyborgs, then," Natasha said. "We'll come from the elevator, and cut them off from behind.

Bad idea. If the cyborgs saw people come from the other direction, they would go the other direction, too. We couldn't trap them then. I didn't say anything though. I was already pushing my bounds . I simply continued to crawl towards the central shaft, which had a ladder built into it. 

"Shots, Steve says to find the cyborgs and hold them back."

"Bucky!" 

This ought to be interesting. I decided to follow Bucky until otherwise told. If Natasha won the argument (she probably would), I could still get down to ground level easily. 

"She's already in bad shape. I don't need her killed," Fury insisted. 

"I'm not bowing out of this one. Raven, get. To. The. Vans." 

Okay, Natasha's in kill mode. Better get to the vans. I dropped down the next shaft I found. Landing lightly, I crept over a few steps, to the vent cover. I didn't see anyone, so I pushed it out and replaced it silently. I had to find an elevator, and preferably one that was away from the cyborgs. 

"I'm on my way." I told Natasha, implying that I was heading out.

"Take the van with the gear in it," Agent Hill instructed. "It's got Fury's and my-"

Silence. Not good. I turned on my heel and ran towards the main elevator. I didn't care if I had orders to leave, if the others were hurt, I was going to help them. 

End of story. 

"What happened to Hill?" Mr. Stark asked. "Where is their group?"  

"Steve and I just met up with the cyborgs at the stairwell. We can't get to them. Raven, go!"

"Already on the way."