sliceitwithwind

"Alright good. I apologize, it should have been a priority for us." But Halsey out alive kind of superseded any other priority.

"We'll be alright. How large is the blast radius?" Aya offered, leaning through the iris to snipe something casually. "And can it be triggered remotely if necessary?" In case they didn't get out.

Braig quoted a sizeable hole-to-be, "Yes, it can. It will be, the AI will make sure of that."

Dilan nodded grimly, "She knows what's at stake."

Nevada gave a soft whistle and tapped Aya's shoulder so he could lean out and view the incoming forces. "Good. They've been hunting AIs. And advanced tech. Probably why they're here." The spartan home world for all intents and purposes. Take the heart out of the Spartans and a war was in their favor.

In theory.

"We need to get across and up that hall. I'll get behind them."

"And I'll come in the front. Braig, Dilan? We drop those Jackals you pick those shields up."

"Affirmative." the scientists agreed, without hesitation. "None of the things they want are in any shape to be rescued, even if they get in. I blew the important things when I was done getting suited up."

"They are in," Aya noted almost cheerfully before flicking on her camp and leaving again.

"They're just not getting out." Nevada agreed wolfishly. "What are you getting on the battlenet? Anything useful?" Because of course they spoke Covenant. All the spartans had had training in most the dialects when the possibility of war arose.

"Not really." Dilan said, shaking his head, "They seem to be having as much trouble with radio as the two of you were."

"Aya dropped the damper you pulled out in the helmet of one of the scouts. It's set to broadcast on an open channel." Nevada grinned and held up his hand in a slow countdown. Yep, swinging out now to start mowing into a group so they wouldn't notice Aya moving in behind them.

"Did you want it back by the way?" Aya offered quietly across their own radio channel.

"No, that's fine." Dilan said, shaking his head a bit and once again resettling Halsey, "I can rebuild it if I need to."

"His memory is perfect." Braig explained.

"Good to know. The helmets blend together after a while." Except Elite helmets. Those were about as distinct as Spartan helmets.

"Wort wort," Nevada offered genially under the sound of gunfire.

"Don't tease my kill. You'll make him feel bad. Sirs? You can move now. Still stay low, we'll push them back another corridor past the one we need."

"We're not military." Braig said mildly, although he did remain as low as possible...which was much lower than Dilan could manage, although he was crouched as low as he could and dragging Halsey. Can't get lower than dragged.

"Sirs is better than yelling scientists." Aya shot back easily.

"Don't forget those shields," Nevada added, ducking a round of plasma fire before spraying the hallway again."

"SPLIT!" Aya yelled suddenly as the ceiling bugled lower and a white hot lance of energy burned a hole from above.

"Fair enough." Braig had to admit, rolling for the shields and passing one back to Dilan. It was awkward, at best, to carry the cats, the shield, and the scientist...but he managed.

At least the shields were designed to ride on a wrist instead of staying in a hand? It was just to help against splash damage anyway! The whole hallway paused in shock as the laser from space crawled along the floor for a few feet, then a voice farther down the hall was heard, obviously yelling into a radio.

The laser cut off and Nevada promptly filled the hallway with bullets again.

The scientists kept themselves low, and out of the way. Braig had his shield angled to protect the embryos more than himself. He was much more expendable than they were.

"Alright, time to move." Aya noted, wiping her knife before sliding back into her armor. "Side tunnel is clear for now as well. "Should we drop a wall behind us to keep them off our tail?"

"It'd make me more comfortable but dropping a wall when half the facility is melting could bury us all." Nevada admitted.

"Right, we just move as fast as we can. Bad news is the stairs are slagged. We'll have to climb a lift shaft after this tunnel." Hangars were closer to ground level.

Dilan, quietly, said, "Someone else will have to carry Halsey and the cats down. I should also go either first, or last."

"He is at risk to lose his grip and fall." Braig agreed, "I can take multiple trips to get Halsey and the cats, as well as my part of the stretcher."

"I'll go first, then Braig. We'll get weighted coils to drop back down so we can haul Halsey, the cats, and the stretcher. Dilan? you're after that, we get ropes on you just in case." Nevada opined.

"Sounds good. The cables for the lift melted through. Far as I can tell the platform is in the basement of this place so it shouldn't be a problem. We just need to find some decent rope or wire. Sirs? This is your playground, where would that be stored?"

"Good plan." Dilan agreed, nodding.

Braig frowned for a moment, then gave her detailed directions.

"We need enough for two ropes and three stories of drop." Nevada pointed out to her before she darted off. "She'll meet us there. Time to march boys. Dilan, is your manual dexterity good enough to set some mines behind us?" The dials were small, he had to ask.

"No." Dilan said, shaking his head, "I haven't practised that, and with things that small I need practise to be able to pull it off. They're as likely to not set at all as to blow us up entirely."

"That's fine, we'll just fill the elevator shaft with grenades after everyone's up instead of you setting mines on the way up." Either way worked out really. They just didn't want anything following them up! "Have either of you seen records of the bugs we've started finding?" The bugs were an issue and he really hoped not to run into any.

Luckily they didn't seem to be with every covenant ship.

"Seen the records." Dilan agreed, "Memorized them. What do you need to know?"

"I need to know if anyone spots traces of them. In a collapsing building like this they'd be a problem." Nevada admitted. "We got pinned down for hours when we ran into them before." Ah, elevator shaft. He set his end of the stretcher down so he could wedge the doors open further.

Oh. Wow. Long dark drop that way. "Just how deep does this lab go?"

"Understood." Dilan said, nodding, "Will do."

"Ten more floors." Braig said grimly.

"Of course it does." Wonderful. Nevada rolled his shoulders and checked the mag locks on his boots while he waited for Aya to arrive with the cable they'd need. "Braig, you're up the moment I drop a line to you." That said he shouldered the wire and swung out into the shaft, one hand anchoring him to the wall while he got his feet wedged in the girders running upward.

Fun times.

"Are the embryos secure enough that tipping the stretcher won't hurt them or do we need to make sure it stays steady as it goes up?" Aya asked the boys while scanning the hall behind them.

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