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Post by Oliver on May 9, 2009 3:24:02 GMT -5
"We'l wouldn't ye be nervous too?" Oliver states, not really concerning himself with the civilians as he contemplates using an assault rifle or not. They were fodder, that was clear enough and if enough survived to fight tomorrow, all well and good. Better they take the bullets, magic, or whatever else the Regent throws at them then the LPA or, heaven forbid, Reynard and the Party.
"Iole, le's go." Oliver takes Iole by the hand and hoists her inside the back of the covered truck. Already in there is the rest of the unit and beside the only space left for her to sit, is next to Sid, who is still smoking and appearing unaware of her presence beside him. Connolly climbs into the back after they are settled in, sitting by the end in a crouch.
"Alright listen up, there's three locations we need to take. The Fashion Plaza Mall - the open air one, the main street through the district, and the underground Mall. Priority towards the underground mall. We'll try to get you in close to that location. Alright, do me proud and do the Party proud." With those last parting words Connolly jumps back out of the truck, walking to the armored car that will be trailing behind the truck. It isn't more then a moment when the truck starts up and begins to rumble away.
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Post by Iole on May 9, 2009 3:49:54 GMT -5
::Iole's hand tightens around Oliver's. Feeling very aware of Sid's presence next to her, she chooses to speak to him with her thoughts instead::
Ollie... I'm scared.
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Post by Oliver on May 9, 2009 4:19:03 GMT -5
((I assume you're talking to Oliver))
Oliver squeezes her hand back in kind, acknowledging what she said to him. She can feel him tremble too, he was as scared as she was, if not more so. Everyone in the truck appears scared to varying degrees, all except Sid. He stayed static and unwavering as he finished the last drag on his cigarette, it could be that he is just better at hiding his emotions then the others.
The ride drones on, in the distance the sounds of fighting begin as other divisions begin their assault. There's blasting nearby too, mortars perhaps. Its impossible to tell which side they're coming from in the back of the truck.
Oliver moves his hand away from Iole, moving it along her backside and up her back till his fingers reach her neck, giving her a quick little massage then running his hand back down to her other side and pulling her in tight next to him.
A nearby blast causes him to squeeze her tighter as his heart jumps, it was close. The technical infront of them opens fire then, the steady pats and pops from the vehicle's gun drown out the sounds of the other soldier's breathing.
More blasting now, rockets or mortars, hard to tell. Sid's ears perk up, something wasn't right. His eyes dart around, same as his ears, tracking some sound that has been drowned out by the technical's gun. He looks to Iole and Oliver, then leaps upon them.
"GET D-!" He yells as a sharp whine comes down upon them and then everything goes black. A sense of weightlessness overcomes both Iole and Oliver, they feel each other slip from their grasps as a force beyond their control carries them away. There's heat and smoke, mixed with an unusual jitter in their bodies, like that time at the cafe. The only sound is that of a horrible whine, the swan song Sid mentioned once before, just louder this time. They can feel themselves falling now, the weightlessness leading to gravity. Followed by painful tumbling and bashing, smacking against objects, walls, and other people.
For Oliver, he tumbles along a hard surface, picking up objects into his flesh and scraping away his fur. It's bright where he lands, outside perhaps, but his eyes are so disjointed and chocked with smoke and blood, its impossible to tell.
For Iole, she bangs around in a confined space, but something keeps her from flying away, Sid or Oliver perhaps. It's dark when the tumbling stops, leaving behind the sense of burning and darkness, but she can feel that someone is there, beside her, holding her tightly.
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Post by Iole on May 9, 2009 13:45:35 GMT -5
::For awhile she can't breath or think, just push against whatever's holding her. She's too rattled to sense if it's friend or foe. Right now she just wants them off of her::
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Post by Oliver on May 9, 2009 14:02:11 GMT -5
Oliver's head is awash as his eyes focus back, dizzily and confused he leans up in pain and looks around, his ears still drowned in swan song and everything playing out before him in slow-motion. Pandemonium surrounds him, LPA are running like scattered rats. The technical fires away at the buildings the line the streets as bullets rain down from above, dancing into the street.
The truck he and the others had been in is smoldering and on its back, the cabin smashed and destroyed, rising from it is a column of smoke. Seeing this, he rolls over and tries to crawl to the truck, when a LPA medic blocks his path, he asks him something but still can't hear anything more then that droning. They pick him up and drag him by his arms to a spot on the other side of the armor car then leave him with several other wounded.
Inside the truck, Iole feels herself being restrained and then dragged by her arm though the smokey darkness and into the light of day. Sid kneels infront of her and appears to look her over. His face isn't looking too good, with his left ear broken in half and hanging by a flap of skin. He yells something to her, mouth appearing to say 'hold on', then he quickly returns back to the truck bed.
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Post by Iole on May 9, 2009 14:07:57 GMT -5
::She struggles weakly and is still trying to put together what he said even after he's gone back to help whoever else was trapped inside::
Hold on for what?
::And another thing that keeps her thoughts jumbled and foggy is the realization that she's not in worse shape because Sid had saved her::
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Post by Oliver on May 9, 2009 14:16:55 GMT -5
Sid returns with another wounded soldier, the kid that was sitting across from Iole. He's lost one arm and is bleed profusely as Sid props him up beside Iole, his blood pooling up and running up against her. Sid calls out, screaming at the top of his lungs then returns back to the truckbed.
Moment later a squad of medics and several LPA come to assist, the LPA take up covering positions as the medics check Iole and the injured kid. They look into her eyes and a quick once over then get to work on the more injured kid. A tourniquet is quickly made around the stub and a healing spell is cast to stabilize him.
Sid brings out another injured soldier and with the assistance the medics, Sid assists Iole, carrying her away from the truck. The medics take the other two injured while the soldiers beside them provide covering fire.
They are placed beside the armor car with the rest of the wounded, Sid sitting Iole down against the vehicle's back tire. All around them, the first thing they can begin to hear again, is the bullets ricochet off the thick metal frame of the car and returning gun-fire.
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Post by Iole on May 9, 2009 14:23:06 GMT -5
::Iole's senses are starting to come back, but when she turns to Sid her words still come out in panicked questions::
Sid, where's Ollie?! What the hell happened?! Did the truck hit a landmine?!
::But he seems too preoccupied with returning fire. She notices that he can't quite get a good enough vantage point::
Sid, I can make myself bullet-proof. When I stand up, take cover behind me and fire from over my shoulder.
::Without waiting for him, she stands up, hardening her skin into dragon scales, taking a place in front of him::
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Post by Oliver on May 9, 2009 14:33:26 GMT -5
Without even a word of acknowledgment, Sid gets behind Iole and uses her as a body-shield. The crack of his rifle rings loudly in her ear, then feels his hand move her, pushing her into another position, then another crack from the rifle.
An LPA soldier sees this and decides to take cover behind her as well, however gunfire from the immediate left strafes him and he collapses with a scream right behind her. Sid pushes Iole to the left and takes another shot at the roof from where the gunshots had come from. He then pushes her, making her walk quickly towards the bullet ridden technical where he ducks down behind it, dragging Iole down with him.
"Get back to the vounded and Connolly, protect them while I get this moving. Ve're pulling back."
From this vantage point, Iole can see that the armored car was hit hard as well, the side facing the her is black and the tires are shredded, having been hit by some sort of explosive. Strangely, the technical is the only thing still in decent shape but the drive has been shot dead.
Sid opens the technical's door, dragging the dead soldier out of it then slides in, laying across the truck seat as he attempt to start it up.
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Post by Iole on May 9, 2009 15:07:30 GMT -5
::She turns her attention back to the battle as enemy soldiers start pushing their ranks forward through the gunfire. She takes a deep breath, filling her chest with air and heating it, then releasing it in a wave of fire between the LPA ranks and the Regent's. Then she dashes towards where Sid directed her, having to shout to be heard over the gunfire::
Captain! Where's Ollie?!
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Post by Oliver on May 9, 2009 15:19:12 GMT -5
Connolly is preoccupied returning fire, standing behind the engine block of the armored car with his pistol drawn and firing. "I don't know!" He exclaims. "I've lost three officers and half my unit, my only concern is getting the survivors out of here!"
Situated behind the armored car is the rest of the wounded, some appearing dead already except for their occasional moan or the rise and fall of their chest. The street that splits the two sides is a twisted chaos of craters, bodies and burning cars and buildings.
Medics are trying to resuscitate one soldier, hovering over him, pumping his chest. One of the medics look up and around, then drops as a bullet passes through his head, the other medic curses and scoots back against the car.
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Post by Iole on May 9, 2009 15:34:39 GMT -5
::Iole moves immediately to where the wounded are being treated, throwing up both her wings in an attempt to shield them from the hail of bullets. With her arms free, she strips off her already tattered coat and starts shredding it with her teeth into makeshift bandages for the poor kid in front of her. Focusing on helping the wounded is the best thing she can do right now to keep her mind off whatever may have befallen Oliver::
We shouldn't have come here. We weren't prepared for this. They knew we were coming. This is wrong. This is all wrong.
::That rhetoric repeats itself over and over in her head as she ties tourniquets around the wounds of the bleeding soldiers in front of her::
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Post by Oliver on May 9, 2009 15:48:47 GMT -5
Sid finally gets the technical running, kicking it into reverse, he blows through the street, knocking the overturned truck away as he speeds back till it rolls beside the armored car. Sid jumps from the technical, and begins firing from behind the open door, using it as a shield.
"Load em up!" Connolly commands and several of the still fighting soldiers begin to assist the remaining medic to load the wounded onto the back of the technical, around the mounted gun.
Iole spies one particular wounded Dragoon, dazed and drifting in and out of consciousness being hoisted up onto the truck bed by two fellow soldiers, its Oliver, looking badly ruffed up but in one piece. There's a nasty gash on his head and is probably suffering from a concussion.
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Post by Iole on May 9, 2009 15:53:11 GMT -5
::She fights the urge to abandon her post, despite every muscle in her body screaming at her to go to him. Oliver's already being taken care of. She has to wait until the others are safe. Once the wounded are safely aboard the vehicle however, she wastes no time folding her wings back in and jumping in to find Oliver, forcing her way through the medics until she can reach his hand. She has very little experience in this, but she tries to remember what Adrian had said to her those years ago when it had been her lying on the ground bleeding::
Come on Ollie, stay with us. We're almost out. We're going back to the Crest, it's okay, just focus on my voice. You'll be alright, you're doing good. Just stay with me.
(OOC: Sorry, off to work).
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Post by Oliver on May 9, 2009 16:15:36 GMT -5
"Change places!" Commands Connolly, running around to the drivers side of the technical. Sid lowers his rifle and jumps into the cab, scooting to the passenger side. He begins firing from the door as Connolly enters and slams the door. One of the remaining soldiers jumps into the truck-bed, stepping over the wounded and taking control of the mounted gun.
The truck squeals as it kicks into reverse, spins around and takes off the down the street it had drove up from. Behind it, the LPA soldiers able to run, do so in the retreat.
As they drive away from the battlefield, with gunfire all around them. Blood, screams, and smoke, Iole feels Oliver's hand squeeze tightly around hers.
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Post by Iole on May 9, 2009 22:51:03 GMT -5
::She wrenches her eyes shut and lifts Oliver's hand to her face, trying to push every thought out of her head, the screams of the wounded, the bitter metallic stench of blood, all of it she tries to shake from her mind except Oliver. He was her reason for being here. He was why she had decided to join this fight that up until a few short weeks ago, she had thought to be pointless. He was suffering right now, and she had to do everything in her power to help him through it::
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Post by Oliver on May 9, 2009 23:25:32 GMT -5
The technical continues to come under the rain of fire and another two wounded die beside Iole in the truck, the subjects of stray bullets.
After some very long minutes, they zip out of the Fashion District and arrive in a plaza and street-circus. A tiny cafe is there stop, having been already evacuated and left open, it is easy to occupy and sits facing where the enemy would advance from. Connolly and Sid exit first, Connolly barking orders to the LPA runners that trailed beside the truck. Only four remain now and they take up a defensive position on the street, throwing over tables and anything to make a barricade. Sid assists with moving the wounded.
"Iole, give me a hand here!" He commands as he picks up a wounded rebel. He points at his feet. "Lift there."
The other medic takes Oliver under the arm and drags him out of the truck and into the cafe, propping him up against the bar-counter.
In a blur, the technical is emptied, the dead dragged into the back and the injured placed on the counter, tables, or floor, depending on the extent of their injuries. Tensions are extremely high and even Connolly can't escape the anxiety as he paces back and forth by the entrance, he's so caught up that he fails to notice he's bleeding and leaving trail of blood on the tile floor he paces over.
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Post by Iole on May 9, 2009 23:54:33 GMT -5
::Iole helps set wounded soldier down. She sets about cleaning and bandaging his wounds as best she can. She doesn't have any magic healing abilities, but all the basics Eva taught her seem effective. From the corner of her eye, she catches the blood from Connolly's trail::
Captain, you're bleeding.
::He doesn't respond::
Sid, do you think you can handle this one?
::She moves around the table and takes Connolly by the sleeve, trying to pull him back to reality::
Take off your shirt Captain, I need to see the wound.
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Post by Oliver on May 10, 2009 0:05:33 GMT -5
Connolly swipes her hands away. "Don't touch me!" He growls, blaring his teeth. He feels where the wound is. "It's fine, bullet passed through. Take care of the others first, not like this isn't the first time I've been shot." He turns his back to her, looking out towards the street. He takes his beret from atop his head and wrings it in his hands.
"Hov is he?" Sid asks of the medic who has returned to checking on Oliver, now shining a tiny flashlight into Oliver's eyes.
"Concussion. Doesn't appear to be hemorrhaging in the brain, other then that, bruises and cuts. Make sure he doesn't fall asleep and he'll be fine." The medic stands and walks over to another causality lain across a dining table.
Sid kneels down, using his rifle for support then slaps Oliver lightly on the cheek a few times. "Hey, you got lucky, now stay avake."
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Post by Iole on May 10, 2009 1:35:25 GMT -5
::Iole glowers, but says nothing. She turns to leave, but before she does, she pulls a salve of some kind from her pocket and stuffs it defiantly into Connolly's hand. The anger in her eyes isn't what he expected. She's not angry that he snapped at her, she's angry out of genuine concern. And her words do not sound like the immature spouting of the hot-headed girl he had seen only a few hours ago. She sounds like a woman far wiser than she appears::
Your men look up to you for more than just orders. A leader needs to know when to accept support, or he is a fool.
::Then starts setting to work at the other tables, bandaging wounds and following instructions from medics. It's very quiet in the cafe now. The moans of the wounded either subsiding as they're tended to, or fading forever, leaving loved ones behind to grieve::
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