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Post by skybright on Aug 5, 2006 23:03:22 GMT -5
Daws nodded and gestured commandingly at several resistance members. "Tanya, David, Sev, Marri -- you guys're with Sid! Take the front -- nobody gets out!"
She gave the older man's shoulder a brief squeeze. "Don't you forget what I said -- be careful."
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Post by Jordanna on Aug 5, 2006 23:21:43 GMT -5
With a single quick nod, Sid pelted off toward the front and sole entrance of the lab, followed by the mutants Daws had named--along with Miriam and Alex.
Just as they reached the door, it swung open, and a man stood framed in the doorway. He gaped in astonishment at the group of armed strangers coming toward him, and his surprise evidently delayed his reaction just long enough for Sid to reach him.
Sid flattened him with a fist to his jaw, then caught him before he even had a chance to drop, and dragged him inside the doorway.
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Post by skybright on Aug 5, 2006 23:31:08 GMT -5
Daws waited just long enough to make sure Sid and the others were okay, then bolted for the back of the warehouse. She pulled the revolver from her shoulder holster as she ran.
She rounded the corner to find a large, ragged hole blown in the back wall of the building, and vaulted through it -- following the sounds of skirmishing from within.
As she did so, she narrowly missed connecting with the hurtling fist of a huge, bald, and very irate guard. She ducked under the punch and sidestepped to the left, driving her fist hard into the big guy's middle and bringing the butt of her pistol down hard on the back of his neck. The guard let out a stunned, angry bellow, wavered slightly, and then crumpled.
Well, one down . . .
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Post by Jordanna on Aug 5, 2006 23:45:51 GMT -5
As soon as he had dumped the scientist (the lab coat was a dead giveaway) well beyond the door, Sid looked around swiftly. No one else was coming at them. He moved to advance further into the building, but Alex caught his arm.
"Daws said take the door and don't let anybody out," he reminded his friend.
With a slight growl of frustration, Sid pulled his arm away from Alex and slumped against the wall beside the door--but then he nodded. "Yeah, Foxy. I know."
He checked his gun and waited, listening to the distant sounds of open combat from the opposite side of the building.
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Post by skybright on Aug 6, 2006 0:01:11 GMT -5
Daws returned the gun to its holster and took stock of the situation: counting the guy she'd just walloped, two of the guards were down for the count. The others were holding out valiantly enough against the resistance -- but they were outnumbered, and apparently losing ground.
Daws spotted Ana Cordova swapping bolts of energy with one of the guards -- apparently also an electrokene. What Ana apparently didn't notice, however, was the second guard advancing on her flank.
"Ana, watch your back!" She shouted.
The white-haired woman turned long enough to lob a ball of crackling blue energy at the sneak-attacker, flashed Daws a grateful grin, and turned her attention back to her original opponent as the sneak was momentarily stunned.
Daws shook her head, grateful for the close call. What she failed to notice was that she herself was being snuck up on -- that big guy had regained consciousness, and now he was even more irate . . .
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Post by Jordanna on Aug 6, 2006 0:10:21 GMT -5
A small kinetic grenade, cushioned within a telekinetic bubble, suddenly impacted between the shoulder blades of the guard who was closing in on Daws. Its explosive force confined, the detonation merely acted as a blunt impact, hurling the guard to the floor.
Jerod Vance was suddenly beside him, lifting him up by the shirt front. He smashed a fist across the guard's face, then left him in an insensate heap, and looked up at Daws with an insolent smile.
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Post by skybright on Aug 6, 2006 0:14:43 GMT -5
At the muffled noise of the grenade's impact, Daws whirled and realized just how close she'd come to serious injury -- and cursed both the ski mask that was muffling her hearing and her own foolishness in letting down her guard.
She grinned back at Vance and gestured to the insensate guard. "That's one I owe ya, Grenadier."
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Post by Jordanna on Aug 6, 2006 0:25:08 GMT -5
Vance gave a mock salute. "Don't mention it."
Almost casually, he turned to observe Handy, who was wrestling with a burly green-skinned guard. With a shrug Vance pitched a boomer at the floor behind the guard, producing a crater that tipped the big mutant off-balance. He went down, and Handy was all over him in an instant.
"Nice party," Vance remarked languidly, folding his arms as he watched the chaos taking place around him.
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Post by skybright on Aug 6, 2006 0:34:46 GMT -5
"If you like this sort of thing." Daws added dryly. She watched with satisfaction as Georgi Petrov brought one of his fists (and all of his super-strength with it) down on the guard who'd been swapping lightning bolts with Ana.
"Looks like our folks have the guards about handled." She grinned cheekily at Vance. "What say, Major -- shall we move on to subduing some scientists?"
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Post by Jordanna on Aug 6, 2006 0:46:50 GMT -5
"Let's shall," Vance replied with a predatory smile, and strode forward, collaring Handy along the way. "C'mon, now we get to the real work."
Doctor Cordova, the clawed-and-fanged acrobat Cole had described to them, was the first scientist they encountered. He dropped down on them from somewhere above, and only Daws' hearing him and pushing Handy out of the way saved the little man from being savagely clawed. Cordova had not expected his targets to dodge, and in the instant between his landing and his relocating them, Vance was able to move in and deliver a hard chop to the back of his neck.
"Thanks, Miz Dawson," Handy murmured to Daws.
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Post by skybright on Aug 6, 2006 0:58:05 GMT -5
"Anytime, Handy." Daws grinned lopsidedly and turned her attention back to the task at hand, scanning the room for any sign of other scientists. The three of them had advanced only a short way into the central Gray Lab; the room they stood in now seemed to be some sort of lounge -- possibly for off-duty guards or the scientists themselves.
"Sid took out one a'these guys by the front door," Daws muttered, nudging the unconscious Cordova with her toe, "But I think the rest've 'em are holed up in the lab proper." She unsheathed her claws -- she'd cut the fingertips out of her gloves for good reason -- and glanced at the two men. "The acid-thrower, Amberson -- she's probably in there, unless she bolted without us seein' her. Cole said she was the real dangerous one of this bunch."
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Post by Jordanna on Aug 6, 2006 1:10:50 GMT -5
"In this instance, I think you might wanna retract your objections to fighting fire with fire," Vance said deviously, holding out a hand with his palm turned forward. "Neither of you have got the reach I do."
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Post by skybright on Aug 6, 2006 1:13:10 GMT -5
Daws nodded and fell into step just behind Vance. "Just do me a favor, Major -- and try not to blow us all sky high, yeah?"
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Post by Jordanna on Aug 6, 2006 1:45:23 GMT -5
"You wound me, detective. I'm a precision instrument," Vance retorted, grinning at Daws over his shoulder.
Suddenly he fell flat on his face, as Handy lunged forward and bowled him over--causing him to be narrowly missed by a stream of yellow-green liquid that burned a hole in the opposite wall.
"Careful of the schnozzle next time," Vance chided his partner, lithely bouncing to his feet with both hands raised for attack. He dodged another jet of acid that shot through a doorway, then sprang forward and lobbed a larger specimen of his cushioned boomers. The percussive blast was followed instantly by a short shriek from within the room, and then silence.
Vance was now beginning to feel the exertion of his kinetic grenades. He hoped Daws wouldn't notice as, in the act of stepping forward to survey his handiwork, he briefly put a hand on Handy's shoulder to steady himself.
Cautiously he peered into the room. The dazed acid-thrower was on the floor, just beginning to push herself to her feet--an action Vance quickly curtailed by stepping in and giving her a tap on the skull with the butt of his pistol.
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Post by skybright on Aug 6, 2006 1:55:07 GMT -5
"Precision indeed." Daws sidestepped neatly around the unconscious scientist, grinning at Vance. "I revoke any statements that might've questioned it."
She frowned thoughtfully and advanced cautiously to the door of the next room. "Lessee, Cordova and Amberson're out -- plus one more. A guy I think, which means he was either the gray guy or . . ."
The sharp smell of burning ozone hit her nostrils, and she threw herself sideways just in time to avoid a jet of orange flame.
"Or the firestarter." She finished. Another jet shot through the doorway -- but this one was conspicuously smaller and weaker than the first. Daws waited a moment, then pulled her gun and dropped into a crouch. As a third burst of flame cut through the air at shoulder height, she launched herself through the doorway in a flying tackle -- catching the pyrokene squarely in the knees and knocking him backwards. She caught him upside the head with her pistol and rolled to her feet, somewhat winded from the impact.
"Why don't we ever run into any nice, quiet scientific types, anyhow?"
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Post by Jordanna on Aug 6, 2006 15:43:52 GMT -5
"Like your pal Ollivard?" Vance retorted with a grin, and moved toward the door again. "Four down, so that leaves two--those sisters."
As they stepped out of the room, they were met by the figure of Vance's agent Bender, moving cautiously down the hallway toward them.
Handy grinned and sidled forward. "Hey, Bender! How're things comin' along back--"
He got no further. Vance suddenly launched himself forward, landing a powerful punch on Bender's chin. Bender went down with a grunt--and even before he hit the floor, his body rippled and shifted, changing to that of a red-haired woman.
Vance grinned at the startled expressions of Daws and Handy, and tapped the side of his head.
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Post by skybright on Aug 7, 2006 1:23:42 GMT -5
Daws grinned. "Well, aren't you useful?"
She turned her head slightly from side to side, once again cursing her muffled hearing. "So we oughtta be in for a teleporter any minute now, I'd guess."
As if on cue, another red-haired woman suddenly materialized just behind the detective and shoved her hard between the shoulder blades, then disappeared and rematerialized in front of her. The punch that the scientist threw wasn't a very expert one -- but it caught Daws off-guard, striking her on the side of her face and causing her to see stars. She took a swipe at her attacker with her claws -- but by then the red-haired woman was already gone.
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Post by Jordanna on Aug 7, 2006 1:37:43 GMT -5
The teleporter's next--and last--move was to make the mistake of appearing behind Handy and trying to seize his primary hands. She apparently hadn't noticed his secondary hands, and with these he reflexively reached up and back, wrapping his fingers around the back of her neck. He shifted his weight and pitched her forward over his shoulder, slamming her down hard on her back.
Vance moved in to deal the stunned teleporter a blow across the temple, then smiled at Handy--who looked more surprised than anyone by his own moves. "Good boy."
Then the Major turned to Daws, putting a hand on her shoulder. "You alright?"
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Post by skybright on Aug 7, 2006 1:51:12 GMT -5
"Yeah, I'll make it." Daws replied, resting her hands briefly on her knees. She shook her head slightly to clear it, then let out a frustrated growl and spit blood onto the floor. "Only thing I hate about havin' pointed teeth -- anytime someone hits me my lip gets shredded."
She straightened and glanced at the now-unconscious pair of scientists, and grinned. "Well, I guess that takes care of that."
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Post by Jordanna on Aug 7, 2006 2:05:01 GMT -5
"Looks like." Vance turned to Handy. "Go find some of our boys, and bring 'em along to start hauling the prisoners outta here."
With a nod Handy trotted out of the room, and Vance looked at Daws. "If you feel like walking, you might wanna find the Doc and have her start collecting your presents for Ollivard. I'll stay here and watch these two 'til Handy gets back."
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