[b]'Alright, just hold still 'lil buddy...'[/b] Far removed from the surreal gender confusion that had overtaken the others, Kein stood over one of the wounded in their adhoc sick bay. The unconscious Freya had taken a pretty serious hit the night before, breaking both of her precious arms. Flesh could be stitched up and blood replaced, but broken bone required a more... holistic approach. His paramagic drive began to whirr insistently as Kein delved deep into himself, communing with his taciturn Guardian Force. Sachiel was less... social than other GFs, in so far as any GF was social, barely making her presence known to her host unless called upon and even then she outright refused to be help in battle. Instead she only manifested at times like these, to share her healing light. After a few long moments of concentration, he gave up control and Sachiel's power began to flow though him like a conduit. A pair of ephemeral wings unfurled themselves from his back, wrapping around to embrace the mangled girl and bathe her in light. It was all over in a few seconds and only a scattered handful of feathers marked the Archangel's passing. After shaking the last of his fugue off (summoning her always left him exhausted), Kein absent-mindedly poked his patient's freshly healed arms. She would still have to take some time off to convalesce, but Freya was passed the worst of it now.

But that was more than he could say for his other wards... The Faction contact was in bad shape; without a GF to serve as an intermediary, his body had difficulty accepting the regular doses of healing magic Kein had applied. Tyler needed hospital care and quite urgently. Suppressing a weary sigh with difficulty, Kein headed over to the other occupied bed. Syrus was a weird one for sure. Since being brought back, his body temperature had spiked dramatically and almost to the point that Kein thought he was having an attack of some sort. And yet the SeeD's wounds had rapidly healed over without needing care; either Syrus had prepared some kind of slow-release Regen magic, or his GF was working its magical ass off to rebuilt his body. Even then, it would take weeks for him to- [i]Crack.[/i]

Whatever hit him, it had come completely out of left field, impacting bang in the face as Kein leant down to check Syrus's pulse. Before he could start guessing, a confused voice cut in. [b]'W-what the fu..? Is that you, man?'[/b] Biting down a sudden headache, Kein pulled himself to his feet to stare in dumbfounded confusion at Syrus' miraculous revival. [b]'Jesus man, I thought you'd be out for the count...'[/b] As much as he was taken by surprise, Kein suspected that Syrus was the more confused of the two; after all, likely the last thing he remembered was Wigg's fist flying toward him... [b]'Alright bud, just take it easy. The mission was a success, we took down the Major. The Instructor's done his thing with him and now they're planning the next stage of the mission.'[/b] For his part Kein knew nothing of Xerox's gender-bending rampage, having spent much of the night spirited away by an oddly extra-clingy Yoko. [b]'You ain't the only one that got hit; Freya's in a coma, same as that contact, the guy? We uh... lost two from the support team too.'[/b] He put on a pained smile, unsure if Syrus knew any of the other SeeDs assigned as support. [b]'... But hey, it ain't all doom and gloom. Eika turned up, God knows how. Helped finish Wiggs, then helped herself to be a bit of Duncan pie, if you know what I mean.'[/b]

[hr]

Duncan bristled at being called 'miss', but in the circumstances he could forgive the confusion. [b]'Foxy fucking Bingo... Right, should have known.'[/b] He shot a weary glare at Jericho, thought in his current form it came out more of a pout. He had worked with Hector a few times and knew his proclivities well; the two of them shared an appreciation for efficiency and a streamlined work ethic. Others might call it laziness, but Duncan knew otherwise. He keyed the radio again. [b]'Alright Hector, welcome aboard.'[/b] He didn't bother correcting Hector's mistake. [b]'We're just about to exfil from Timber anyway, so you picked a good time. Get on the 1545 to DC and wait in Car C, we'll find you. There are a ton of guards around and we don't have any spare tickets, so you may need to acquire some. Just... don't mug any old ladies, alright? Alpha team out.'[/b] He replaced the handset and after a moment of thought, turned the radio off. Foxy was an experienced SeeD and wouldn't need their help getting on the train, so instead of trading witticisms with the Bantersaurus Rex, Duncan had to focus on getting his team out of the city. He turned to the others, watching in silence for a long moment. [b]'... Well, what are you waiting for? Go pack.'[/b]

As the adhoc briefing broke up, Duncan waved Yoko and the SeeD in charge of evaccing the wounded over. [b]'You guys are squared away, right? Know where your going?'[/b] The question was aimed at the support SeeD, a grizzled old veteran. [b]'Down the sewers, through the waypoints and out to LZ Three. Sure boss, I remember.'[/b] Duncan gave him a grateful tap on the arm and sent him off to organise his team with a flick of the head. [b]'Mr Lerwick... I know what I'm meant to do, but... Are you sure I have the manpower?'[/b] Yoko was considerably less confident and with good reason. Her team would be working off the grid in Timber for the duration of the mission, gathering data and sabotaging Galbadian supply lines; it was a pretty rough assignment for a first time commander. But Duncan could see the hidden motive in her words. [b]'... You want Kein, huh?'[/b] She blanched, but held her ground. [b]'Under any other circumstances I'd let you have him, but we need a qualified medic and no-one else has the right GF for it. Don't worry, you'll have him back before long.'[/b] He placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder but Yoko's feelings on the matter could be clearly seen in her expression. Unfortunately he didn't have the time to allay her concerns and sent her off with another flick of the head. As the last of the team emptied from the room, Duncan checked his watch. Roughly three hours til the train left.

[hr]

In hindsight, Xerox's antics had been a blessing in disguise. The various checkpoints throughout the city had some CCTV recordings of last night's attack, including shots of some of their faces. Consequently the guards were looking for people fitting certain profiles. In Duncan's case, he was able to breeze through with the right words and the odd cheeky grin; no-one was after a somewhat flirtatious girl from Balamb, even if she was carrying a duffle bag. He sniggered inwardly as an officer shooed him away from the last barricade before the station; even on high alert, these guys were grossly incompetent. The others would be arriving around the same time as he, having split up to avoid suspicion. Before long he stood in the entrance area to Car C, smoking out the trackside window. Whether or nor Hector would recognise him was irrelevant; Foxy ought to remember the smell of his very special and [i]completely legal[/i] tobacco.