[Fanfic] Sousuke's last stand - ch 16 (PG-13)

[Avlor]

Chapter 16 - Things Are Not All They Appear
(Tunnels under the Saharan complex…)

Hagen dodged back to the safety of the other side of the corner when he saw the blue glow. Thinking to himself, “He has a lambda driver too. He’s got a chance.” Feeling relieved, he headed to the communications building. He’d get the FWS and a radio and return to wait as he had been told – he would do what he could to help.

…

Melissa’s attention darted to the moment on the floor. A trap door was opening…”Oh, jeez, now what?” She shielded Kurz with her AS’s free hand.

A sandy brown haired, green-eyed boy’s head appeared and smiled in Melissa and Kurz’s direction. “Never mind me – I’ve just come to get this. I may need it and I don’t want it left behind,” the Swiss accent thick as ever. The stringy boy quickly ran over and swept up his targets.

Kurz scrambled away faster than Melissa could let him down. He tackled his prey before it could reach the trapdoor again. “Not so fast there mister. You won’t be going anywhere with that.”

Hagen squirmed but it was no use, he’d have to try to talk his way out. “But, please – I may need this to help URZU-7 take out my brother and this can never fall into anyone else’s hands.”

Kurz eyed the boy distrustingly, not about to be duped. “How do you know about URZU-7?” He held his Walther WA2000 to the boy’s chest.

Hagen looked in the direction of Kurz’s M9. “I met him… It looks like one of the bugs got to your AS. I could take it out for you…” Hagen offered and let go of his items – hoping this would help show his position.

“Let’s see if he will, URZU-6,” Mao indicated.

Hagen walked over to the M9 and looked up. Simply snapping his fingers brought the bug racing to him. He picked up the robot and held it for Kurz and the machine to get a good look at each other. Hagen enlightened his new comrades, “They act on the last order given them or can be controlled in the Whispered State. My brother added the lethal weapons to my pets, and had the audacity to call them his creations. I don’t think he ever had a creative bone in his body. He just uses people. We got kicked out of Switzerland because of him. He tested my pets on people.” The sadness showed in his voice and he fought back the emotion. Switching audiences, he talked to the bug and shook his finger at it, “These are my friends. No more of this.” The bug folded up into a black palm-sized disk and Hagen put it in his pocket. Turning back to his first audience, “I developed an override in the last batch I made. My brother doesn’t know about the snap. He’ll be so mad if he ever finds out.” He winked.

His look turned serious, “Now, there is one more AS in the complex. URZU-7 will likely defeat my brother. You two need to get that AS, before Anton’s troops come for it. Anton became the leader of A21 after Seina was gone. He’s more of a puppet leader for them, because he doesn’t have the brains to pull it off….I’m gonna go meet URZU-7 where I was supposed to wait for him. See you later.” He scooped up the gear and headed down the trap door.

“Well, lets get to it, Sis,” Kurz nudged Mao’s M9. She picked him up and he quipped, “This is so wrong. It’s supposed to be the guy carrying the girl. It might just be better if I got in there with you. You could sit on my la…”

“Quiet baka, or you’re walking,” she cut him off. Having the last word felt good – especially when it came to Kurz. They still had a mission to complete.

…

(Whispered Facility…)

Kaname had sweet-talked the male nurse into getting her a manual containing Morse code, claiming she needed some reading material in the waiting time and early codes were her thing. In reality, she wanted to contact Sousuke to say she was fine, but she knew they’d make her wait until his mission was over. She dared only send the message twice – fearing she’d distract him too much. Carefully, she unclasped the bracelet…

…

(Complex tunnels…)

Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep! The screaming monitor, caught Sousuke off guard. He looked around trying to figure out what that sound was. Then it dawned on him. “No! Kaname! Did you take off that bracelet or did someone else?” His heart stopped for a moment and then beat wildly. He was about to grab the monitor from the chain on his neck when it started going off in small bursts…

Beep beeeeeeeeep.
Beep beeeeeeeeep beeeeeeeeep.
Beep beeeeeeeeep.
Beeeeeeeeep beep beeeeeeeeep.
Beep.
Beep beeeeeeeeep Beep beeeeeeeeep Beep beeeeeeeeep.

The message had almost completed before Sousuke recognized the pattern – Morse Code!
“Come on! Repeat!” the unspoken howl had him clenching Al’s arm controls. He was ready to kick the control panel when it started again.

Beep beeeeeeeeep. – A
W
A
K
E
.

Sousuke slouched and sighed in relief. His heart started to slow to the normal battle speed. “Girl, WHAT am I going to do with you? You about gave me a heart attack!” he thought out loud.

“URZU-7 could you repeat that message? Unsure of what you meant,” Mao asked conspiratorially.

“Err…It’s nothing. I’ll explain later…” Sousuke momentarily dodged the question.

“Well soldier, stop daydreaming and get the other Whispered!” Mao hissed, trying to make it sound like an order rather than laughing at him.

“Understood.”

Sousuke rounded the corner, to find that Anton had fled. He hadn’t expected another Lambda driver. He’d been almost all talk. Sousuke commanded, “Al, locate the M6A3 that WAS just around the corner.”

“Directly above us.”

Sousuke took one step to the right and put the AS’s hand up toward the ceiling – just behind where Anton should be. As soon as they were finished, he could go back to Kaname. He wanted to so badly. Blue glow surrounded the hand and thunderously discharged toward the ceiling, vaporizing an AS sized hole. Sousuke fired another shot knocking Anton’s AS to its knees. Then, Sousuke revved the thrusters, prepped a shield and leaped from the hole.

Frightened like a wounded animal, Anton fired a shot as he saw Sousuke coming toward him. The shot blew back at Anton faster than he could put up a shield. It knocked him completely backwards. Anton managed a shield before Sousuke could draw his anti tank dagger. Sousuke closed his eyes and imagined the dagger penetrating the shield and AS hull to the lambda driver. He took a deep breath and plunged the knife. It slowed as it hit the shield – but the barrier wasn’t strong enough to hold back Sousuke’s strong will. Sousuke had one focus now. The knife ripped into the hull, split the lambda driver’s in twain, and the shield evaporated.

Anton exited his AS faster than he’d ever moved in his life. He was better built than his brother. But, his muscles didn’t make up for his cowardice. He’d never seen anyone else master use of the Lambda driver, let alone tear into a shield and take out another driver. He crab-crawled scurrying and called to the soldiers and remaining AI bugs.

Hagen was waiting around the corner with earplugs in his ears. He snapped his fingers and the remaining AI bugs scrambled to his feet and neatly folded themselves into disks. Two ASes had the soldiers prone on the ground with their hands on their heads. Sousuke was panting in the Arbalest after releasing so much energy and emotion. Anton held the FWS under his arm and a radio in hand. He spoke with disdain on his face, “I see you met my new friends,” he said with a merciless grin, “After all you put me through – we will see how you like this tool used on you for a change.”

Anton covered his ears trying to drown out the signal. His body slumped and fell forward with a thud. The signal terminated and Anton howled in mental agony.

Hagen chucked the radio and FWS to the ground and kicked them in. “Never again,” was all he uttered.

…

Three ASes herded the captured soldiers and made them carry Anton back to the C-17 several miles away. One M9 moved rather like an arthritic old man, Anton was having a great time controlling it. One M6A3 jerkily towed Kurz’s broken M9. Inside the cockpit Kurz whined as he tried to drive, “But this is backwards! I’m not supposed to be sitting on YOUR lap!” Melissa jabbed his ribs and he jumped shouting, “Hey!”

“This is as close as you get, Sergeant. You could have shared space with one of the other two guys. So, stop your whining.” She was thoroughly enjoying torturing him. She had also enjoyed setting off the charges at the complex – it was most invigorating.

The Arbalest walked tall with its scattershot gun in its hands. Sousuke radioed command, “I need to have a message sent to Miss Chidori, in Morse code – not decoded, please.”

“Did you know she was awake? She’s been waiting to contact you. And why Morse code?” the radio operator asked.

“I knew. She will understand,” Sousuke smirked as he gave only the minimum answer to the inquisitive radio operator.

---------------------

Hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as I did writing it. I tweaked several original details – so I hope it flows well. (In the home stretch now…) Please R&R (cause no one did on the last ch! :p).

[Kelek]

Hey, this was funny...

[Sgt. Sagara Sousuke]

I need some references on the M6A3... I've heard of M6A2 but M6A3?
Other than that, this is turning out good...

[Avlor]

M6A3 - Dark Bushnell (US version) from FMP the Anime Mission (borrowed it from a good friend of mine)

I never did explain how they got one... hmm. That will probably remain a mystery...