Carthage dived back inside the apartment building, taking a DMR hit. The bus exploded in a huge fireball that swept the spawn, setting everything ablaze. Kjartan was propelled into the air on a shockwave of superheated air. Saddam briefly ducked down when the rest of the window panes in his room shattered, then got back up and resumed suppressing Athena and Vreta as best he could. 

Kjartan landed on his head and immediately struggled to his feet, using his hammer as a crutch. His vision was blurry and the sounds and movements around him were flourishing at a languid, sluggish pace. He saw Carthage emerge from the apartment building in slow motion, smoke curling around her armour from the corridor. She tore the heavy metal fire door off its hinges and advanced with it held in front of her. She chucked a lethal grenade over the top, followed by a smoke grenade.

“The Blue Team have picked up the Red Team flag.” An androgynous announcer confirmed over comms. The baseline of team comms on the Blue Team erupted into excited, stressed chattering. Half a dozen voices began shouting at once, one of which was Knossos. “I can’t contain him, RTB.” Just then, Thebes completed his armlock and simulated breaking Knossos’ neck. The shield wrapped around the veteran soldier prevented any damage, but acknowledged him as KIA.

Thebes got up and glanced urgently between both ends of the arena. At one end, the bulk of his team were engaged in bitter close quarters battle around their spawn, shrouded in smoke. At the opposite end, they were close to taking the objective. It didn’t take long to make his decision - Thebes stuck to the plan and ran toward the Blue Team end, weaving through cover and shooting with calm precision.