[center][u][h1]Kaitiaki Homestead, Raven HQ[/h1][/u][/center]
[center][h2]Chaos rains from the sky[/h2][/center]

[color=00aeef]Javi’s adrenaline was pumping. It had been years since he had been in the shit. He was out of practice for this kind of excitement. It was a wonder he hit anything with the way his hands were shaking from the adrenaline. He had gotten comfortable with Raven Squad and felt secure. He hadn’t realized how much it had impacted him until he was thrown back in the deep end. Watching the place that had been his home being invaded and blown up left him angry. He knew the kind of work Raven Squad did. He never regretted joining their ranks. He used that energy to stay in the fight. He had been firing the heavy machine guns at targets of opportunity down the hill. He felt a deep gratification when he saw enemy troops going down.[/color] 

[color=8dc73f]Chuck let out a roar of frustration. He was not able to stem the tide of enemy troops. For every one he took out, three more seemed to make it to the beach. He quickly slid the underbarrel grenade launcher into position and took off running down the hill. He would make a difference here. He needed to make sure the support staff could pull out. He sprinted down the hill. The polymer and hydraulic assists built into his suit allowed him to move faster than he could on his own even in heavy armor. He hit the enemy line like a fully loaded freight train. He didn’t stop and just crushed anyone in his way knocking them aside like bowling pins. He was firing grenades into clumps of soldiers targeting the officers in exos giving them orders. He grinned and pulled Lucille off his back, while dropping his gun to hang on his tactile sling. He gripped up on the handle of his long metal club that looked like a solid metal baseball bat with spikes. He began to spin the club and swing it large arcs taking out two to four men at a time. He grinned as this was working faster. He targeted an exo officer who managed to dodge and avoid getting hit the first time. He didn’t miss with the backswing though. The side of the exo crumpled and pinned the man as he screamed in pain as the crushed metal cut into his body. Chuck just kept going. The soldiers were attempting to get away from him now. Those who had seen what he had done to the exo were trying to get out of the line of fire. He had them routed now. The constant stream of soldiers that had been unloading on the beach had slowed.[/color] 

[color=f7941d]Tahlia was standing in the backseat with her body braced on the roll bar. She used the solid support to brace her body and keep her steady. The vibrations from the heavy machine gun Javi was firing was throwing off her aim a little and was distracting as he worked next to her. She inhaled and put her eye to the scope and began to scan the area they were working to cover. She began to fire at targets of opportunity when she saw Chuck pass her scope in a mad dash towards the docks. She stopped shooting long enough to search the area. She whistled appreciatively at the destruction he was leaving in his wake. Sure enough Chuck was in the thick of it bogged down by the sheer numbers surrounding him. She saw a new squad trying to flank him by offloading directly on the beach behind him. She aimed at the exo wearing commander and aimed for his head. She took a deep breath and pushed out all the distractions and fired on the exhale. She was rewarded with a spray of red indicating she had hit her target. She began to pump bullets into the group of soldiers behind Chuck as fast as she could since she didn’t have to worry about hitting him.[/color] 

[color=8dc73f]Duke remained curled into the ball where Chuck had ordered him to stay. His fur was standing on end bushed out. His body was rigid with tension and stress. He was panting heavily.[/color] 

[color=ec008c]Samantha had a better view of what they were facing as she piloted the drone and pulled her focus into her HUD. She piloted the drone to support Chuck at the beach. She had already strafed the beach to take out some of the soldiers there. She came back around and targeted the docks so they could not unload troops as easily. She hit it with high caliber rounds shredding the wooden dock. She saw Chuck was doing a good job slowing down the tide of incoming troops and those that had already made it ashore. She took the drone up high to get a better view of what was incoming. She took in a sharp breath at what she saw. It looked like New Zealand was being invaded when you looked at the number of assets being leveraged against the base. It looked like the beginning of World War III. She began to target the incoming helicopters and took down two gunships. The drone had been clipped but was still in the air.[/color] 

[color=ec008c]She came around for another pass and noticed that the submarine was still launching missiles and farther out to sea were support ships holding off at a good distance. They needed to get out of there. Artemis was throwing everything they had at them and the kitchen sink. They had not committed all the assets they had brought to the party which begs the question of how many assets they can really bring to bear. That thought was terrifying. She had no sooner had that thought when Skye came over coms ordering the retreat. Samantha had taken over official command from Skye according to Oracle protocols which was something she understood but didn’t agree with. Samantha needed to send it out over coms as well to be sure everyone was notified. She wasn’t sure if Skye was still linked into everyone’s comms as leader[/color].

[color=lightblue]She heard Skye say: "Chaos, last batch of the support team are going to make a beeline through tunnel. Recommend we get the hell out. Frigga, Tiny Nord, cover each other and retreat, I'm going to try and lay down fire and cover you, just make a move and run. Do not get bogged down in fighting, clear who you have to, they pincer you and you'll be toast. There's a thin forest track we can use to get to the RV. Chaos, take your group and get to the RV with the Land Rover, disengage and get back. I've one last thing to sort." [/color]

[color=ec008c]Samantha frowned as she spoke into team comms “Boomer get back to the Land Rover. We need to pull out. Taniwah cover his retreat. Javi get ready to get us out of here. Raven Squad is ordered to retreat. We are pulling out. Repeat. Raven Squad is ordered to retreat. We are pulling out.” She switched over to individual comms so she could send a private message to Skye. “Well get it sorted Queen and get your ass to the boat. You had better be on the boat or I am coming back for you.” Samantha was worried about Queen, who had suffered a serious shock. It would be like her to feel responsible for everyone and do something stupid. She wouldn’t stop Queen from doing what she felt she needed to do but she would step in if sees her needlessly throwing her life away. [i]There would be no suicide by Artemis on her watch.[/i] [/color]

[color=8dc73f]Chuck was in the middle of clearing a mob on the beach. The stream of enemy troops landing had slowed to a trickle after Samantha took out their pier with the drone. Lucille was quickly becoming his favorite weapon. It just worked so great up close and personal to rain destruction in a short amount of time. The weapon was only able to be wielded due to his size and strength which added to its destructive kinetic power. He kept swinging as he began to make his way back towards the hill. “Boomer acknowledges Raven is bugging out.” He began to fire his remaining grenades in a barrage to cover his retreat. The explosions cleared a path for him as he began to sprint back up the hill towards the Land Rover. He could hear gunfire and explosions behind him. [/color]

[color=f26522]Tahlia was moving smoothly from target to target. She had a target rich environment but she still made sure every shot counted. She heard Samantha order the retreat. She just kept firing. She noticed when Javi stopped firing the heavy machine guns. [i]Maybe he had run out of ammo.[/i] She was startled when she felt his arm going around her waist. She growled at him “Oi what do you think your doing?”[/color] 

[color=00aeef]Javi looked up at her startled a little as he was working on steadying with an arm around her waist. “I am rigging you up with a harness to help support you. So you can continue to fire if I have to move the Land Rover.” [/color]

[color=f26522]Tahlia blushed and nodded, working him as he rigged a makeshift harness to hold her tight to the roll bar in a standing position. She continued to take shots as those chasing Chuck. It was awkward and uncomfortable but she was grateful he had thought about it. [/color]

[color=00aeef]Javi worked with gear that was already in the Land Rover. He had taken a rappelling harness and used his leather belt and loading straps to secure it and her to the roll bar.[/color] 

[color=f26522]Tahlia blushed a little as she looked at the surly mechanic “Thank you Javi.”[/color] 

[color=00aeef]He just nodded before looking out over the battlefield. His eyes widened at the destruction that Chuck had left behind him. Artemis soldiers were falling behind him as he moved faster towards them. He saw a group of four exos take off from the regular troops in pursuit. “Chuck is coming in hot with exos on his tail.” [/color]

[color=ec008c]Samantha assessed the battlefield. She had managed to take out a few troop carriers before the gap left behind by the gunships had been filled with more. She got unlucky as one of the new gunships managed to damage the drone’s engine before she managed to put some high caliber rounds into the rotor taking the helicopter out of the air. The drone was not responding as well and had lost maneuverability. The drone was going down and there was nothing she could do about it. She grinned at the thought that she could guide it down. She knew just the target as she saw the sub launch another missile towards some of the outbuildings on the base. Samantha fought to keep the drone in the air helping it glide in a downward descent. She aimed for the sub. She  managed to keep the drone on target as the large unmanned craft hit the tower of the submarine in a massive explosion of fire and crunching metal. Smoke poured out of the damaged submarine as it began to take on water and sink. Samantha switched back over to cameras in her suit. She got a good grasp of what their immediate situation was. She grabbed her sniper rifle and climbed over the seat to stand next to Tahlia. She began to help her cover Chuck’s retreat. Between the two of them, they managed to take down the exos. Samantha told Javi. “Get ready to get us moving as soon as Chuck is in the vehicle.”

Samantha kept taking shots of opportunity. It was easier to act than to think right now. She would stay hyper-focused until they were out of here. She would just switch what she was focusing on.[/color] 

[color=8dc73f]Chuck had to slow his momentum or he would damage the vehicle. He managed to climb in delicately without adding any destruction to his movements. He hit the top of the vehicle to let Javi know he was in. “Let's roll!” 
[/color]

[color=00aeef]Javi punched it and they all held on as the vehicle lurched into motion and speeded off towards the hidden airstrip. [/color]

They had managed to slow down the flood of troops coming in at the docks and beach to give their people a fighting chance to get out. There were random troops here and there, but the numbers flooding onto the island had slowed down. The ones already on the island had been met with Raven’s Squad defiance and had their numbers quickly whittled down. The break in troop movements allowed personnel the time they needed to make it to the hidden landing strip and hidden boat. 

[color=ec008c]Samantha heard over the command line she thought the voice was Rafael “Chaos, support personnel are loaded and ready to go. Confirm waiting for Raven Squad.” Samantha breathed deeper knowing they had managed to give their people the time to reach the escape boat. “Chaos confirms. Raven Squad is moving to join you know. Prep the boat for departure. We will be coming in hot.” [/color]

[color=8dc73f]Tahlia was grateful for the bracing. She would never had been able to keep her balance well enough to fire while Javi drove over the rough terrain without out it. She was always so self conscious about her legs and limitations. She had to admit that Samantha was struggling next to her and she had two good legs. They continued to support the Land Rovers retreat by taking out troops that spotted them on their way to the hidden airfield.[/color] 

[color=ec008c]Shortly after, the Land Rover was pulling into the hidden airfield. They had taken out the few pockets of troops between them and the airfield easily. Samantha got out of the vehicle. She turned to the others. “Javi and Tahlia head to the boat. Make sure they are prepared for departure as soon as the rest of the team gets here. Chuck, you and Duke get to the boat and take charge of defending it. Give cover fire to the incoming members of Raven Squad.  Protect them and get them out.” They looked at her in confusion and started to protest. Samantha turned to the hidden airfield and the experimental bird she saw there. “I am going to get that bird in the sky and provide air cover.” She looked at them all and told them “Get moving!” They seemed to break them out of whatever protests they were going to make.[/color]

[color=ec008c]Samantha put them out of her mind. She ran to the modified F35 jet and climbed up into the cockpit. “Bob, interface with the aircraft systems.” Bob’s mechanical voice told her “Initializing.” She strapped herself in and quickly began a preflight check as she began to turn the aircraft on. The jet engines rumbled to life vibrations pouring adrenaline into her system. Bob’s voice came back “Start up sequence completed. HUD updating now.” Samantha blinked as her HUD display changed to her preferred set up for flying. She hooked up her helmet to the onboard oxygen system. She tugged her harness straps to make sure they were snug. She was pleased to note the aircraft had a full tank of fuel and the weapon systems were fully loaded and ready. 

“Oracle be advised Chaos is launching the hidden bird.” She switched back to team comms “Chaos is going airborne. Raven Squad, get to the ship NOW! I am going to cover your retreat. I want you out of here as soon as possible.” She heard Oracle acknowledge her notification. 

She let out a squeal of delight as she let all her emotions and worries fall away as the speed and jolt of launching the jet pushed her back into the seat. The familiar feeling of gravity being defied always made her feel free as the sleek jet streaked up into the sky. She circled the island and began to lay down some cover fire for Freya and Nord to retreat. She then turned her attention to the incoming gun ships. Now that submarine was out of the fight, enemy aircraft were the closest and most serious threat to her team. The modified F-35 handled like a dream. Samantha was in her element. She buzzed past a gunship grinning knowing he was trying to stabilize the craft from her jetwash. She swung around behind him. They tried evasive maneuvers but she had fired and was pulling up and over him as the craft exploded as her missile hit. She cleared the debris zone and swung around and began to hunt Artemis’ air assets systematically destroying them one after another. Her dominance in the sky was unchecked until Artemis sent in their own jets. She hoped her team was evacuating as ordered. [/color]