LadyAmber

Formula: Anti-Gravity (An F1 Drive to Survive inspired, Slice of Life, Cyberpunkish/Solarpunkish RP)

Howdy Boss,

I am interested in this. Keep me in the loop on developments.

Character ideas so far:
Crew Chief
Team Owner
Pilot

Raven Squad: Second Storm (Military/Spy-Fi RP)

Part Six: The Planet Saver

10 Nautical Miles west of La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain

Chuck Simmons AKA Boomer

Fireteam Poseidon

0700 Local Time

Chuck hated leaving Duke behind but this was one mission that he was not suited for. In a way it was a relief knowing that Duke was far away from today's mission. He wouldn’t want Duke to accidentally run into any of this damn toxin. It felt weird to be on a mission without his dog. He needed to get his head in the game. He listened to the conversations going on around him as he pondered what this mission meant to the world.

He thought about the weight of this mission and what they were trying to stop. He thought about his family back in the states who were clueless about the danger they were in just like most of the people in the world. Most people in the world had no idea about how often the world around them was put in danger and mortal peril for that danger to be stopped by cops, soldiers, mercenaries, first responders, and others who fought to protect those around them. Chuck was a fairly simple man. His father and grandfather had both served their country in the military. He had grown up with duty and protection as his creed and way of life. He did what he did so that the innocents in his life would never know the evils in the world that he fought to stop. He fought so that his nieces and nephews would have a better future. Chuck felt his resolve hardening. He would accomplish this mission. Raven Squad had no choice or the world was going to end taking everyone he cared about with it.

Chuck felt the VTOL slowing and descending. He glanced across the aircraft at his teammates. Chuck’s eyes landed on Freya. The Battle Goddess was smiling and in her element. Chuck had never seen a more beautiful woman. There was a possibility that one or both of them might not come back from this mission. That was true of any mission they were on but this was more important and more dangerous than most. That thought saddened Chuck because he still wanted that date.

His blue eyes lit with mischief as he stood and grabbed a hand strap as the VTOL began its descent. His helmet was under his arm as his eyes met Freya’s.

“Can this soldier get a kiss for luck from the Battle Goddess? I think it might help my chances to have the blessing of a goddess.” Chuck’s eyes danced with amusement and desire as he leaned towards Freya. Yeah he had it bad. But if this was his last chance to get that kiss, he was going to at least try. He paused there to see what her reaction was. He wouldn’t dare steal the kiss outright. He knew Freya could go toe to toe with him. He didn’t want her mad at him.

---

Just a few minutes later, Adam was giving the orders to begin the mission.
"Alright, rebreathers on everyone. The SDV sinks, we sink faster. Get after it, hold on, and then we power on to the platform."

Evidently Ebrima had been tapped to play driver for their SDV. Chuck put his helmet on and locked it into place. He hooked up the oxygen tanks as his HUD powered up. He had the onboard AI check the suits seals. Satisfied when he saw green lights across the board that his armor was ready and sealed for the underwater environment. Chuck’s last underwater insertion mission had been done in a wetsuit with a dive tank and fins. His team had jumped out of a helicopter and swam to shore. This will be different. He was bringing heavier firepower with him.

Chuck joined Freya as they pushed the SDV out of the aircraft’s ramp as it splashed into the turbulent cold dark waters of the ocean. The craft floated rocking as it hit the surface of the ocean. Chuck’s armor had a ring of flotation devices around the perimeter of the suit to help with buoyancy and weight dispersion so that it would be easier for the SDV to drag all his weight along. Chuck, his suit, and all his gear probably easily weighed at least 1,000 pounds. That was a lot of weight to ask a SDV to tug along and he was not the only heavy on this mission. Chuck jumped off the ramp and triggered the button that would inflate all the small inflation ballast bags on his suit. They puffed up in a few seconds. He reached out and grabbed the handles on the SDV.

“Boomer is onboard and ready to ride.”

Chuck laughed as Adam teased Ebrima that it worked just like a Volkswagen and to follow the user manual. Ebrima had settled into the cockpit of the SDV and it dove as he activated the craft's motors to help pull them below the waves and away from the turbulence at the sea’s surface. The world below the waves was calm and very dark. Chuck hesitated to turn the light on his helmet on but then Ebrima had turned on the headlights of the SDV to steer so he went ahead and turned on the small high powered lights on the ear sections of his helmet. The murky underwater world lit up for a short space around them revealing fish and the silt and other debris churned up by their passing.

Chuck held his position as the craft came to a stop. He waited for Adam’s orders to disembark and surface.

Raven Squad: Second Storm (Military/Spy-Fi RP)

Part Six: Skybound!

Somewhere 30,000 feet above Newfoundland, Canada

Fireteam Icarus: Samantha Dalton AKA Chaos

0630 Local Time

Samantha was unable to contain her excitement and fidgeted. She resisted the urge to ask the pilot “Are we there yet!” after the A400 had dropped off Tahlia’s team. She had wished the Viking team luck before they had left. She had chuckled at the byplay between Javi and Tahlia. She snickered and thought about how the two argued with one another. At times they had sibling energy and at other times they fought like an old married couple. She had seen signs that Javi was smitten but it was not reciprocated.

As the A400 climbed in elevation, she felt her suit compensating for the lower oxygen levels and temperature. Samantha’s armor was perfect for this mission. She was grateful to the techs who had managed to repair it for her. Her helmet was closed and the oxygen tubes connected to the intakes built into the collar of her suit. Her head cam up but she kept her visor clear at the moment so her team could see her face. She caught Sky’s thumb up and grinned as she returned it.

She turned her attention to last minute checks. She checked that everything was in its place and secured it so it wouldn’t fall off while they made the drop.

“Bob system check.” She instructed the AI to run its onboard system check. She was happy a few moments later when Bob replied, “Systems active and waiting for commands.”

She nodded as she began checking over Athena’s suit for her. She in turn felt Athena turning her and tugging on straps that held equipment before patting her on the head. Samantha growled softly as Athena grinned, unable to resist picking on Samantha’s height. Samantha was the shortest team member. She might be the second shortest now that Enri had joined the team. Samantha laughed at Athena’s antics and twisted from side to side to double check how the carbon wing felt. She jumped up and down a little and was satisfied that there was very little movement in the wing.

Samantha was about to ask Skye if it was time yet when she head some music being pumped through the background of the teams coms. Samantha just grinned and shook her head with laughter as Purna realized it was Skye playing the music.

Skye’s shit making grin as she began to give orders filled Samantha with glee. It was good to have her friend back.

"Thought I'd get you in the mood! Remember, pick up the HUD, follow markers, and we'll make our way onto target."

Samantha looked out a the amazing view of clouds below them trimmed in the rose gold of sunlight with some darker storm clouds that swirled with wind in the distance. Samantha knew their target lay below the clouds and landing on it was going to take some skill and luck. Their target landing zone could move on its own after all. Samantha took a deep breath and let the peace of this moment fill her. She knew they might not live to face another day. They were here to literally save the world. The stakes couldn’t be higher.

She looked around and smiled though. She was working with the best and they had become friends and people she trusted. This blimp didn’t know what was about to hit it. She grinned and nodded at Athena in acknowledgement. They were sure to pull some amazing shenanigans together. She traded a fist bump with the giantess as they seemed to come to an unspoken agreement to unleash hell.

Skye’s instructions continued. "Once we get there, find a latch point at the bottom of the blimp. We'll work bottom to top, floor by floor, clearing whoever we find. Best case, Athena steals the thing, worst case, we get out, same way we came in." Skye barked out through comms, over the soundtrack, before giving a wry chuckle, seeing green flicker on inside the plane.

"Alright then, on me!" Skye yelled with a triumphant roar as she dove out of the back of the plane.

Samantha laughed as she was quickly followed by Purna who just silently and efficiently leapt out as he does everything followed by Athena who yelled out "Fuck yeah!" that reverberated through the team comms.

Samantha ran and dove out of the back of the plane and added her own “Kowabunga!” to the mix as she grinned like an idiot. Adrenaline rushed through her as she felt the carbon wing catch the air currents and snap tight even as the jet thrusters kicked in and pushed her forward. “Woohoo!” Samantha yelled out as she did a barrel roll and moved into position with the team. “This never gets old!” Samantha showing off some skill in the air. She had done similar things and her experience showed even though this was the first time she had the opportunity to use this particular setup.

Athena wobbled a little as she got the hang of maneuvering the wingset.

She heard Skye’s voice over comms. "That got you awake!"
Athena’s childlike glee was contagious as she heard her response to Skye. "You're telling me!"

Samantha smiled to hear the joy in her teammates' voice. “I live for this kind of experience! Let’s go steal a blimp!” She giggled maniacally feeling invincible and like queen of the world as they soared through a beautiful morning sky. If only they were not here to stop the end of the world as they knew it.

---

Fireteam Icarus Collab: Queen, Athena, Viper, and Chaos

The dawn chorus was broken by the sight of the five of them roaring through the pinkish sunrise, Skye exhaling hard, taking it in, cloudbreak revealing a patchwork that couldn’t be more beautiful. There was a job to do, but for half a second, there was almost a reminder she’d not been able to see this. Nearly dying, a lot of late, made her take it in, appreciate it all. And all the friends by her side, even as a team of professionals, she had to admit, sometimes, it was them that helped her too. She appreciated that more than anything, Sam’s maniacal response eliciting a chuckle back from Skye.

“Aye, good call! Team, ten degrees left here, up and over!” Skye called, turning herself gently, rolling on angle as Athena and Purna followed suit, the Nepali in a similar sort of awe.

Purna thought Now how the hell hadn’t he got a hold of this toy earlier?

Athena thought much the same, perhaps less from an infiltrator’s point of view, the small Nepali someone she’d been surprised had stood up to her, but was no less keen to have on board.

Still, they sat there in appreciation, and with the timer ticking down, they were closing in on the target at rapid pace, like a set of hyperspeed geese in carbon.

Samantha did an easy tilt to bank in the direction she needed to go. The suit was a joy to fly. The tension and vibration of the wind and the jets rippled along her body. This was flying at its purest. You couldn’t feel sensations like these in the cockpit of a jet. Samantha was determined to enjoy it for as long as it lasted. She knew she couldn’t waste fuel though so she resisted the urge to show off acrobatically in the sky. The blimp was coming into sight now. Samantha put her game face on as she looked to see if the automated defenses had picked them up.

She grinned gleefully as she spoke to the team over comms. “It looks like the electronic camouflage worked and with the very little metal we have on our suits and carrying we are not pinging on their radar. It’s set to recognize larger things like incoming aircraft. I think we will be good till we land. Then internal defenses will pick us up until I can disable them.”

Samantha went to work to see if she could boost her rig's signal and began to hack as they approached their landing zone.

With a turn, they dived up and over a cloud, the team moving in sync, the light beginning to grow and grow, even in spite of the absolute haze and size of the cloud. It was hard to put into perspective anything at all, the massive banks of clouds like gigantic mountains and snow layered and intertwined. This wasn’t falling with style, this was flight. And with that blimp in sight, Skye chuckled, shaking her head, trying not to interfere with her flight.

“Well….that is a gigantic butt.” Skye candidly remarked, the sight of it sitting right between clouds having no other words. She’d seen this before, in pictures, in briefing, but nothing managed to put it truly into words.

The
Airlander Class 12 was something of a modification, based on a smaller variant that had been of course, upsized in every single way, making even Athena blush, because at the very least, she’d finally seen something that could actually rival a certain thing she had that she reminded Freya and the world of far, far too often on social media. Perhaps that’s why she wanted to steal it? The similarities were comedic, obvious, but well, not the worst of ideas, Purna, Skye and even Athena mused internally. With four propellers and a large cargo hold beneath, enhanced to take a significant load, it was a flying headquarters for any evil genius, or in this case, Skye’s alter ego. You had to almost be impressed with it, if it wasn’t for the fact that there was a weapons bay filled to the brim with air to air, a CIWM system, and even a small silo of air to ground missiles…..for the days where you wanted to bring an airship to an actual combined arms assault. Lunacy.

So was flying at it, and with the wingpacks, they were too small for radar, and too fast for visual call. Slowing down, Skye looked across at the team, picking them up in her flight helmet’s HUD.

“Right, slow yourselves down. We’ll latch underneath her, then pull in, penetrate the thing. Purna, Sam, take out the external weapons systems, just in case they decide to lase anything up around us. Athena, Oliver, open us a door.” Skye added, Athena chuckling, giggling.
“Athena….come on, we need to get serious.”

“Penetrating. You said PENETRATING, Skye! You gotta stop with this innuendo……or I am gonna fall out of the sky!” Athena giggled more, Skye sighing, as Purna chimed in.

“Someone’s envious.” Purna simply commented.

Skye chuckling to his simple remark, as with that, she gently pulled back on the throttle, and let the wingpack glide, the speed dropping away as she pulled the wingpack tight into her hands, the turbulent wind making it hard as hell, looking up and feeling the speed drop. The underside of the blimp was coming up, and they had to latch on using their grappling hooks on their wingpacks, then pull in. Get it wrong, and they would be paste, or falling out of the sky beneath it, with limited room to come back again.

Samantha gave an evil chuckle as she slid into Rose’s security easily. “Oh she left the front door open. She thought no one would find her mobile headquarters. The updates to Artemis’s systems to counter what I have tried before haven’t been updated here yet.”

Samantha hacked her way into the security system and sent all the outer defensive weapons into maintenance mode. The system didn’t register it as an attack or hacking because it was their own system. Samantha just pretended to be their lead engineer. Someone should give them a lesson in what the world’s most common passwords are. Really who uses “I am God!” for their password these days? Samantha couldn’t help giggling when the profile she was using showed an image for a short caucasian man with blonde hair who was only 5’6” tall and had a thin build with a bad complexion. He was obviously compensating for something. “Someone has little man syndrome.” She giggled again picturing Athena squashing him like a bug.

Samantha heard Athena’s laughter and her attention caught what she was laughing at Athena responded to Skye. She wanted to add something snarky to the conversation but was too busy laughing.

Samantha tilted her glider to turn towards the blimp. “Queen outer defenses are locked down in maintenance mode. Do you want to use the door or make one?”

Skye licked her lips, pulling her arms tight against the wingpack and swan-like, diverting up and seeing the weapons head into limp mode. Sam had a talent, that Skye had to say. Flying through the sky and hacking at the same time? Too easy. But then again, Skye had her reason to be here, a hack that transcended perhaps just the computational. With the wingpack slowing, and the underside appearing, the distance closed, and with it, Skye pulled her hand tight into a fist. With a fling, the cable-drawn grapple slammed into the underside of the blimp’s cargo compartment, finding a slot and with it, a position by one of the maintenance hatches underneath.

“We have a door. Fit us in, would you?” Skye asked, no hint on the pressure here at stake, considering how high they were, and quite literally, everything was hanging by threads.


Pulling tight, the motor did its job, as Athena joined alongside, the swinging two like mannequins for a moment in the golden-pink sky.

Purna moving further along and classily braking right next to one of the weapons systems. With it, he attached himself to the underside, and with it, switched to his specialised adhesion gloves, an infiltrator’s favourite. He hadn’t had the chance to use it much in Marrakesh, but with the fact this was all metal, it was perfect, gripping perfectly to the sleek surface easily, clambering onto the CIWM and cutting cables.

He looked across to Sam, nearby, and with it, nodded, swinging on his own grapple now, rather than the wingpack’s, finishing the job on the AA missiles, shorting the system and creating a permanent, rather than temporary override.

“All clean, Chaos. Get them in.” Purna called back, exhaling hard, aware he had the fun job today. Scale the thing and get on the flank.

Samantha paid attention to where Skye was landing. She slowed her position even more as she pulled the blimp’s schematics out of the engineering archive and flipped the floorplan to the team. Now they could see where to go in the blimp. She released the locks on the maintenance hatch that Skye had landed next to. “The hatch should respond to your commands.”

Samantha then followed the team in. She had slowed her rig and managed to stand it on its end as fired the grapple and was pulled towards the maintenance hatch ready to step through. She latched onto the blimp’s undercarriage next to Athena.

Skye looked across to Athena, the significantly taller figure reaching across and gently pulling the hatch open with a grunt, nodding back and looking over at Sam.

“Nicely done. We’re going backdoor.” Athena giggled.

Skye sighing audibly, groaning even louder over the comms, as she swung on the cable and pulled on the ledge, clambering up, releasing the cable and with it, reaching a hand to Sam.

“Right. Into the belly of the beast.” Skye commented, knowing Athena and Oliver would follow.

Samantha giggled at Athena’s remark that they were taking the backdoor. Which Skye added into the belly of the beast. “Well Athena, we will have to be sure to give the beast some indigestion while we are here. That is unless you plan to tame it. You know Skye…. Maybe Athena’s idea of stealing the blimp isn’t so bad. We could just toss all their crew overboard.”

She thought about it and wondered how many staff they really had on hand to deal with intruders. She had been surprised that so many of their defenses had been automated so far. The technology they were using to hide from radar would not have worked against the Mark 1 human eyeball. So far there had eerily been no alarms heard or noticed and they had yet to see any humans at all. Although the fact that she had found a maintenance personnel did suggest they had crew on board. Samantha took Skye’s hand and was pulled towards the maintenance hatch. Samantha noted that the hatch was about the size of a standard submarine door. Athena and Oliver would fit but it would be a tight squeeze. Samantha waited till they had all come into the blimp and the hatch closed before pulling off the wingsuit. It would be hard to maneuver with the rigid wingsuit on their back as they fought their way through the blimp. She tucked the wingsuit behind some crates where the team seemed to be storing their gear. They could use it to get off the blimp if they could make their way back later. Or they could find other ways off the blimp. Their team was very resourceful.

Athena chuckled as she followed, barely fitting in the tight thing, given the….dimensions she had. Skye chuckled, looking to Sam, the wingpack so bulky in here that it made no sense to keep, Skye gently unstrapping it from her chest, and clambering out of it from her leg straps, now bringing in her silenced pistol, and leaving her new toy of an electromagnetic rifle on her back. With a gentle crawl, Skye waited until Oliver shut the vent, and with it, the cold and the howling wind stopped, as if by instant. The pressure felt like it restored, the next vent left shut and sealed on cue. After all, this high up, everything was pressurized. It made sense to keep the oxygen on at least, for now.

Moving forwards, Skye kept her pistol raised as she pulled on the vent, the claustrophobia and darkness inside the bowels of this part of the blimp clear to see, and voices could be heard, muffled and in the distance. With a push, Skye emerged out, bringing the wingpack to brace, and hiding it by a set of crates, checking their six as Athena did the same, twin MAC-10s with silencers on them looking just outright ridiculous. Was she gonna have good aim if she shot them both at the same time? No. Was she going to mess up someone’s day if she pointed it vaguely at them? Yes.

And as the team moved out, voices began to be clear. Techs, wondering why a hatch had opened, and it looked like weapons had been put in maintenance mode. Of course, they weren't climbing out there, and among the crates, of the messy bit of the blimp, they were just looking for any signs of any maintenance needed. Armed, of course, just as paranoia always went, but when they were protecting an asset like this, they had to be. Skye kept a low profile, hiding down, hand to ear.

“Okay. Viper, we are in, we have hostiles aboard. You got any visuals on anything else?” Skye calmly whispered into the comms, looking back to Sam, Athena and Oliver.

“Negative. There’s a large window, I’m making my way up. Looks like a lot of servers, and a lot….woah. This is a lair. She’s got an entire penthouse up here.” Purna commented, Skye looking back, as bemused as Athena was.

“Right. Then it must be her little hideaway between operations. The server network must be deeper in. The one we want.” Skye replied, checking the FNX once more, ready to keep it quiet for a teeny bit longer.

“Okay. Looks like we may have to go hot. Once we start, priorities are to find the server, find the toxin, and most of all, clean house. They are going to put up a fight. That North Korean hacker is capable, so watch yourselves.”

Raven Squad: Second Storm (Military/Spy-Fi RP)

Samantha AKA Chaos: Fireteam Icarus

Briefing Room

Skye gave them their assignments for the upcoming battle: "Don't underestimate what we're up against. Me, Athena and Oliver will keep on the push, Sam, clean up traps and keep us rolling past any locks or doors, Purna, you have the exterior to provide a flank with your grapple and....well, you do you."

Samantha listened as Skye answered their questions and passed out assignments. She breathed a sigh of relief to know that they had found a neutralizing agent for the neurotoxin and the science boffins had managed to recreate it.

She gave Skye a nod. “Understood boss, open the doors and eliminate your obstacles. Got it.” She gave Skye a very mischievous grin.

Samantha nodded as her part of the operation was not going to be easy. Artemis and Rose’s operations had gotten harder to hack as their operations met with her skill set. They were getting better at countering her skills. She would be packing some new tools that she hoped would make a difference. She planned to bring her toolkit and go low tech if she had too. She had replaced her handheld mini laser cutter. She would of course have her hacking rig with her. She would be running, gunning, and hacking all at the same time. It was a good thing she was good at multitasking. It was part of her charm. She was looking forward to the insertion part of their mission. She had an excited grin on her face.

She looked at Purna’s gleeful reaction and smiled. She had been paired with him in the last op and he made a great partner. “Some people get to have all the fun.” She teased Purna just a little.

Armory

Samantha was quiet as she checked her gear and weapons. She put on her armor and plugged her laptop into the hardened case for it. She made sure it was connected properly and working. She put all her throwing knives in the sheath for them that was built into her armor around her abdomen area. She filled all the little pouches at her waist with a variety of gear. The pouches held her lockpicking tools both digital and analog, screwdrivers, wire cutters, electrical tape, some small batteries, button cameras, small electrical discharge buttons, one mini drone with a camera, two collapsible asps, a first aid kit, and anything else she found useful. She put her P365 Sig Sauer pistol in its hip holster. She carried 8 extra magazines in the holders built into the hips of her armor, 4 on each hip. She made sure she had a variety of ammo. She had learned she never knew what would come in handy.

Samantha patted her gear and jumped in place to make sure it would stay put where she needed it. She looked over to see Freya and her siblings sharing a moment. She smiled sadly as her thoughts turned to family. She still had her adopted grandmother but all her blood family was dead. She was the last of her family. It was a sobering thought as she was gearing up to either save the world or be there to witness its end. She sighed and bowed her head and closed her eyes for a moment. She took a few breaths in and out and felt calmer.

@Jamesyco

She looked up and began to look around the armory. She noted Oliver digging through his gear bag and pulling out older stuff. She frowned and went to talk to one of the armor techs. They were supposed to rig him with light armor based on her designs. The technician looked surprised when she approached him and discussed the temporary armor they were supposed to have for Oliver. The technician looked embarrassed and went to fetch it from the workroom. He returned and passed it over to her. She took it and carried it over to Oliver.

“Hey Oliver. I know this is not the armor you are accustomed to. I gave the technicians the design for my lighter armor. They managed to pull something together for you for this op. The armor is lightweight and layered with a ballistic gel. The gel will allow you climate control so you don’t have to worry about thermals. It will allow you to move more freely without the bulk. There is heavier armor over the chest area and upper thigh, shin, and upper arm. There are armored gauntlets with gloves that go up over the forearm. There are also armored boots. The suit will stop light to mid weight caliber bullets but is more flexible and lighter than kevlar. I hope this will work for you for this op. I won’t say if we survive this op, I will say when we get back… I will work with you to redesign your armor and build you a new set from scratch.”

Samantha tried to hand the armor over. “What do you think? Will this work? You are of course free to use what you have.” She bit her lip hoping she had not offended the man.

Chuck AKA Boomer: Fireteam Poseidon

Briefing Room

Chuck had asked Adam if Raven had any more detailed intel about the platform and where the toxin might be stored and how the neutralizing agent worked for it. He wanted to be sure the job got done. Adam revealed that Raven believed the Sol Hestia was being stored in a location in the center of the platform which made sense. It had more protection from attack and accidental release. That also meant that they would have to exercise fire safety to ensure they didn’t puncture the tanks in that part of the platform.

Chuck nodded and looked thoughtful as he replied. “We will need to exercise extreme fire discipline when attacking the platform. We don’t want any kind of frangibles or shrapnel that could pierce those tanks before the toxin is neutralized. Do we have assigned objectives for this mission? Who will be in charge of getting the neutralization agent into the tanks? Will anyone be tasked with retrieving the data from the rig on the release mechanisms and the like?”

Armory

Chuck had rethought his loadout after the mission briefing. He carefully reloaded the arm flechette launchers in his armor. He made sure to load them with the taser rounds developed by Samantha. He packed extra rounds of the armor piercing flechettes that he could switch too after the toxin was neutralized. He could do massive damage with Lucille when it came to troops. He made sure his combat knife was tucked into its sheath that was built into the side of his thigh armor.

@BigPapaBelial

Chuck looked up as he felt like someone was watching him and met Freya’s eyes watching him with a smile. He gave her a warm smile in return and a chin nod. Yeah he was smitten. He really wanted that first date. Hopefully after this op, he would finally find time to convince her to go out with him. He winked at her before returning back to getting ready.

He packed his close quarters custom built Raider Edition rifle with an underbarrel grenade launcher based on the M4A1 Carbine Rifle. The rifle is scaled up to fit his hands with a larger magazine. He made sure it was loaded with taser rounds and packed extra magazines of high caliber armor piercing rounds. He made sure to pack extra grenades into his combat harness for change out after they could start using stuff with more boom and destructive power. He debated bringing his sniper rifle but decided that he would be more useful on the ground and loud and proud rather than perched up high. Ebrima had done an admirable job on overwatch in Marrakech,

He decided to bring his custom Mk 48 FUN Gun (also known as the Fuck Up Knockout Gun). The weapon has an adaptable mounting system so he can attach it to his armor when needed and has its own ammo case that feeds into the gun. Chuck attached the modified heavy machine gun to the bracket that was designed to hold it. It was on a hydraulic gimbal and would swing up behind him and lay along his back within easy reach. The modifications to the gun allowed him to carry and shoot the gun into combat. The gun would normally be a stationary weapon mounted on a tripod. Chuck’s size and strength coupled with Samantha’s brilliance allowed him to take this monster gun into the battle. He would be able pull it down and round to the side by his hip and could guide it where he wanted it to go with his right hand. The machine was belt fed from a storage compartment built into the rear of his armor. He couldn’t pack extra ammo for this gun but it would be enough to lay some serious hurt on those opposing them. He could use the high caliber fast gun to take out vehicles from a distance. He would run out bullets for the gun before he got close to the center of the rig. He felt it would help with the first wave as they attacked.

@Starlance

Chuck made sure the small trauma pack first aid kit was in its compartment. He made sure his canteen was full of water. He tucked as much ammo and as many grenades of various types that he could fit into his weapons harness. He was double checking his load out and was adjusting everything so that it rode comfortably and was secure when Ebrima approached him.

Ebrima was tapping his iconic Kukri blade when he asked him, ”Should I not return, will you please see to it that this gets back to Purna?”

Chuck’s eyes narrowed as he regarded Ebrima with a slight frown. He tilted his head to one side as regarded the shorter man. He was searching to see if Ebrima was going into the battle thinking he would die. He had seen soldiers who had a fatalistic viewpoint not come back from the battle because they expected to die and made it a self-fulfilling prophecy. Chuck didn’t think that was the case and smiled and nodded at the albino. “It would be my honor, however, I plan to fight alongside you and bring your albino ass back to base with me. So it won’t be necessary. Is that understood?” He raised an eyebrow at him. He had a smile but his tone was dead serious.

Raven Squad: Second Storm (Military/Spy-Fi RP)

Briefing Room

0230 Local Time

The Planet Saver: Setup

Fireteam Poseidon

Chuck Callsign Boomer

Chuck woke up quickly as the buzzing sounded in his room. He quickly confirmed he was on his way. He dressed quickly and headed to the briefing room. He grabbed a cup of black coffee and took a seat. He nodded amiably to the other team members as they entered the room. He waited quietly for Adam to begin the briefing.

He paid attention to the information as Adam shared detailed scans of their target. It was a massive facility. That was a lot of real estate to cover looking for small tanks of Sol Hestia. Those damn things could be anywhere! It was going to be hard to spot among all those pipes and conduits. He frowned as Adam detailed the danger the facility posed and the predicted prevailing winds. This was going to be a hard fight. He stayed focused until Adam had completed what he had to say.

Chuck was amused as Adam finished with: "We cannot fuck up. If anyone has any problems, quarrels, issues with anyone, put some boxing gloves on and take five. Then come back and let's save a world."

Chuck raised his hand to ask a question and waited till Adam acknowledged him. “Do we know where on the platform the Sol Hestia is being stored? Do we have a way to detect the Sol Hestia if we don’t? If we are carrying a neutralizing agent with us, how does it work and how much is needed?”

---

Armoury

0300 Local Time

Another Night Out

Poseidon:

Chuck had Duke with him and was spending time with him as he prepared for the operation. He didn’t want to leave Duke behind. Duke was trained on water insertion from a boat not underwater. His canine companion would have to sit this one out. Chuck checked over his armor and noted it had been repaired and recharged. He inspected and checked over his weapons as well. Duke whined and kept going over to where his armor was stored. Chuck knew that Duke was reminding him that he needed his armor if he was going with him.

Chuck sighed and took a seat on the bench in front of his armor. Duke came and sat in front of him wagging his tail slightly. Chuck smiled and scratched him behind the ears.

“I know pal. I would rather have you with me as I go into battle too. You can’t come this time though. You are going to have to stay here at the base. I will be back.”

It was like Duke understood as his tail stopped wagging and he laid his head on Chuck’s knee. He whined pathetically and gave Chuck sad puppy dog eyes. Chuck sighed and shook his head at his dog’s dramatics. He took Duke and left him with Tahlia’s father. He knew Duke had spent time with him when they went hunting. He would rather leave Duke with someone the dog was somewhat familiar with. Duke had whined at him when he left but Chuck didn’t look back as he left.

Chuck went back to the armory and got ready for the mission. He put his armor on and began to load his gear and weapons. He put a spare rebreather into an outside pouch. He had a pouch that carried the flotation gear to offset the weight of his armor. His armor was rigged for underwater use but not for moving on a vehicle underwater. The flotation devices would allow him to balance the weight so the SDV could carry his weight and remain underwater. He looked around and the tension and pressure in the room was thick.

Raven Squad: Second Storm (Military/Spy-Fi RP)

Chaos Shares Some Toys

Armory

Samantha

Samantha had approached Adam with her ideas. Samantha knew that Raven had more support personnel than her. While she preferred to work on her own gear, she knew she wouldn’t be able to this time. In the end, she did what she needed to do to help the team out. She wanted them in the best they could give them in the short amount of time they had to prepare. It sounded like in a few hours they would be deploying. If Samantha had more time, she could build them something amazing. Right now her body was telling her to recover. As much as she didn’t like to share her toys and trust people she didn’t really know well, she would have too.

Adam surprised her with his response. She had the impression that he would rather lock her in the brig than have her on his team.

"We have plenty. If you think it will work, do it. You have the resources of the free world. Enough to get her back here too apparently...."

Samantha was not sure how to take that comment. She looked puzzled as she looked at her current team leader. Skye was back and would be joining the team but Samantha had missed the who is in charge debate. She had been in the infirmary being treated. Samantha didn’t think it was a secret where Skye had gotten the missing data from. Samantha was unsure what Skye had told Raven. Was she back on Adam’s shit radar again?

Adam continued, "There will likely be some specifics to follow. But, prepare us for what's to come. I am sure we will have one hell of a fight on our hands."

Samantha gave him a serious look and a tired nod. “I will do my best sir.” She had left him to retrieve a tablet and the data and plans she needed before heading to the armory.

Samantha was drop dead tired and she hurt. The drugs Sophie had given her to speed up healing and help with the pain were meant to help her rest. She was pretty sure Sophie had dosed her with medical nanites to speed up the healing. She would need to be at Skye’s side when she called. She needed to be able to function when she did. She couldn’t rest knowing that the team needed to deploy in hours to save the world and many members needed gear. She wanted to make sure all her teammates made it home after they saved the world.

Adam had been surprisingly helpful. Samantha gathered the armor technicians together in the armory and gave them the plans and list of what needed to happen. She left Javi to help them. He would need to help get vehicles ready anyway. She would have to lean on other support members of the team this time. Her body was not going to give her a choice if she was going to be on this mission. She would have to get some sleep.

Chuck’s armor was still in pretty good shape and only needed some minor repairs. They needed to remove the dent in his chest piece and check it for weaknesses after. Duke’s armor was easy to repair but he would not be going on this next operation and would be staying at the base. Chuck saw to his guns himself. The only other thing he needed was to reload his missile launcher. Chuck’s suit was checked for sealing and air tight integrity. His suit had limited use in underwater environments but as long as he didn’t need to be underwater for a long period of time, he would be able to use his suit on the mission.

Samantha’s own armor needed major repairs. Ingwe had compromised the integrity of her armor and split some of the seams. She left her armor to have some of the gel replaced, the seams repaired and her torso armor plates replaced where they had been crushed. The layered design of the suit meant it was easy to repair with the right materials.

Samantha had given the technicians the designs to her armor. They had the materials on hand to create the armor for the team. The hardest part would be fitting the armor to the individual team member. The armor was meant to be customized for each person which might be a challenge without full body scans and measurements. She was confident that the technicians would at least be able to get basic armor to stop bullets for the team that was better than kevlar. Her armor was more flexible and allowed for greater movement and speed than kevlar. The gel layer helped disperse the kinetic energy from bullet strikes and reduce bruising and fractures. There were lightweight heavy armor plates on the surface of the suit to add heavier protection in key areas. The plates rode on top of the flexible under layer allowing for ease of movement and speed. She hoped that they had enough time to get everything done.

Samantha had plans to update Oliver and Freya’s heavy armor but she wouldn’t have time to implement those changes before this battle. Samantha’s sense of duty struggled with her body’s need to rest and recuperate. She knew that she would have to rely on others to fix and make the gear this time. It wasn’t easy for her though.

She passed out assignments and detailed plans and schematics to the team waiting to help pull off this miracle. She answered questions and hung around till everyone had started their projects and had the initial work started. Then she dragged her weary body to bed after a shower. She fell into the bed and was asleep about 5 minutes after her head hit the pillow.

---

0215 Local Time

Skybound :The Setup

Fireteam Icarus

Sam

Samantha struggled her way to consciousness. She frowned as an insistent buzzing echoed through her room pulling her from a deep sleep. Her eyes were still closed and she was not awake yet.

She spoke to the air, “The world had better be on fire or I am going to end you.” She sounded grumpy and probably made a comical sight as she threatened a box on the wall.

A voice came through the intercom and sounded quite amused as they told her, “Mission briefing in 15 minutes in the conference room. The teams are being activated for a mission.”

Samantha heard a chuckle as she responded with a very unlady like “Fuck! The bad guys couldn’t wait another 24 hours to try to end the world?”

Samantha pulled her weary body from bed and made her way to the bathroom. She brushed her teeth and ran a washcloth over her face. The cold water helped her wake up. Samantha had dark circles under her eyes. She looked as tired as she felt. She stretched and was pleased to note that while she still had some twinges of pain when she moved, she was able to move more freely. The pain was much better and the bruising was less. She pulled on some clothes and shoes. She would get in her armor after the briefing. She headed towards the briefing room. She grumbled to herself, “There had better be coffee in the conference room. If there is not, someone may die today.”

Samantha entered the briefing room and headed straight for a counter along the back wall. There was coffee and some pastries laid out along the table. It was nothing fancy but she didn’t care. She poured herself a cup of coffee and fixed it the way she liked it. She took a sip as the nectar of the gods helped kick her brain into gear. She took a seat and waited for the others to trickle in and the briefing to start.

Skye started the briefing. Samantha snorted and dissolved into laughter as Skye told them where they had to go. She couldn’t help but wonder what dildo based sport made the town famous. She would have to look that up later. Football played with a Dildo shaped football? Hockey with dildos for pucks? She wondered if the high school mascot for the school was a giant fuzzy dildo. She knew it was ridiculous but hey she had ADHD. This was what her brain did when it was not suitably distracted. She took another sip of her coffee. It might be that she just wasn’t awake yet. She forced her attention back to the briefing.

She frowned as she tried to process the information that Skye was giving them about their mission. Hey eyes lit up with excitement when Skye unveiled the Corvid Wingpacks.

“Ohhh those look like fun. Sign me up Boss!”

She grinned from ear to ear. She had always wanted to try one of those. Now she will get her chance. Samantha noted the oxygen helmet and she wouldn’t need that. She could just attach her regular helmet. It was set up for oxygen attachments for when she was using her armor as a high altitude flight suit.

Samantha listened to the plan and frowned. She wasn’t worried about manually severing the server’s uplink. That was easy peasy. They would have to fight through any resistance they encountered. It was dangerous and tedious but they were all skilled operators. She wasn’t worried about that part either. She waited till Skye had finished the briefing before she asked the question she felt would be the biggest hiccup in the plan.

Skye finished the major part of the briefing, "Any questions? It's a bit more than our usual."

Samantha waited her turn as Skye called on Athena first. She couldn’t help smiling and then laughing out right as Athena shared her thoughts about the blimp and Dildo, Newfoundland. At least her thoughts had good company! She had not been the only one.

Skye let Athena get it out of her system. She could tell Skye was just kind of done over the whole Dildo and Blimp thing. She couldn’t help the smile that still lingering on her lips as she turned the briefing to a more serious topic.

“I am not worried about the fighting or the servers. That is within our skill set. How do we neutralize the Sol Hestia safely? We had to make do with what was on hand in Marrakech. Is there a plan for that?”

Raven Squad: Second Storm (Military/Spy-Fi RP)

Raven's Rock, Camp Hannula, Pöyrisjärvi National Park, Finland

The Finnish Home Improvements Centre (or the Armoury)

Samantha, Chuck, and Duke

Samantha frowned as she looked over the scene before her. After her experiences with Rose she was not as quick to assume that the woman she was looking at was Skye Lyons. She could understand the tension she saw from some of the team members. Her eyes flicked from person to person assessing their reactions and trying to follow the scene as it unfolded. She left herself some distance from the woman and watched even as she crept closer to the group.

One point in the Skye look alike’s favor was Duke’s reaction to the woman. Chuck didn’t call him off and was smiling which meant that he didn’t think she was a danger to his dog. More reassuring to Samantha was how Skye had greeted Duke. She remembered Rose’s cold and cruel way of interacting with others. She certainly would not have been friendly towards Duke.

Chuck smiled at Skye and looked amused as Duke greeted her with his own personal brand of charm. Skye greeted him and thanked him for the assist while Duke was licking her face and excitedly announcing to the whole base his friend was back.

Chuck shrugged as he grinned at Skye as he responded. “All in a day’s work. I got to blow up more stuff. What’s not to like?”

He waited till Duke seemed satisfied and Skye had returned the greeting before calling the canine back to his side. He patted Duke reassuringly on the head even as his tongue was hanging out of his mouth which gave him a lopsided grin look. Chuck chuckled and listened in with curiosity as he learned more about the current situation as Adam and Skye spoke.

Samantha listened intently as Adam broke into the conversation addressing Skye. Adam seemed to have insider information confirming Skye’s identity. Samantha began to relax as Skye filled Adam in on what had been going on. Samantha laughed outright as Athena asked Adam and Skye which one of them was in charge. The ultimate answer was that Oracle was in charge. Samantha was smiling and relief surged through her as she accepted that this was her Skye Lyons and friend.

She perked up as Skye began introductions. “Hacker?” She looked curiously at Enri. They would have to get together and talk shop. Hackers were always excited to learn from one another. There was always something new to learn.

Chuck paid particular attention to the time factor given for leads on their next operation.
Skye: "We have leads coming close and we expect to deploy within eight hours? And the fact that the central server for Rose is currently looking like it's nonsensical to find? Didn't need sleep anyway. World's going to fucking end, so hey. No pressure."

Chuck was surprised when Tahlia leapt at Skye and was hanging on for all she was worth. The usually stoic warrior woman’s emotions were on full display. Chuck had not noticed Tahlia’s new legs until Skye brought attention to them. Chuck had simply accepted that prosthetics were a part of the female veteran. He had gone out of his way to talk with her and encourage her. He hated that wounded veterans seemed to be discarded due to injuries. They needed to know that they still had much to contribute and could still serve. They were not lesser than they were before, they just needed to accomplish things a little differently. They might need a different set of tools but they were still very capable warriors when given the right tools and support.

Samantha was surprised that Purna seemed to have worked with Skye in the past. She shouldn’t be surprised yet she was.

Chuck looked amused as Skye asked Purna if he and Ebrima had been playing fair with each other. Skye obviously knew that the Gurkha might have an issue with the kukri that Ebrima had taken off a fallen opponent. Chuck respected Skye even more for understanding the diverse culture of the team and identifying things that might be an issue.

Samantha had hung back at the edge of the group as Skye answered and greeted everyone. Samantha found herself suddenly facing Skye as she pulled her into a hug. Samantha felt like a heavy weight had lifted off her shoulders as she received that hug. She had been feeling the pressure of the responsibility that Skye had placed on her. Then that responsibility was taken away here in Poland and given to others. She had still felt the weight of responsibility for the team from Kaitaki. She had not wanted to let her friend down.

Skye’s words were a balm for her shattered confidence and psyche.

Skye: "You did good. Really good. Glad you held your end of the bargain too! And....for what it's worth, not an easy thing at all considering what we're going through. Kameko by the way...I can see where you get it from."

Samantha hugged her back and nodded. “We will catch up later. I am happy to see you in one piece.” She reluctantly released Skye but let her go as she moved to talk to other members of the team.

Chuck gave an approving nod as he watched Skye greet every member of the team, especially the ones from Kaitaki. He had not had much time to get to know Skye as the team leader before he was evacuating from Kaitaki with the team. He was reassured that he was seeing good traits with her leadership even after everything she had personally been through. Chuck had seen action break many wonderful field team leaders. He gave her a nod of respect even as she gave the team direct orders.

Skye: "Alright, team. Get yourselves rested, and our locations should come through in a few hours.”

Skye: "Anyway. Things to upgrade, repair, yourselves to fix, and a job to do. We have a lot of people to save and no time for paperwork."

Chuck nodded respectfully at the orders. He was weary but he needed to make sure his equipment was ready to deploy at a moment’s notice. He would need to go clean his and Duke’s armor and send the armor tech’s a list of things to repair on them. He would need to reload all his ammo and clean his guns. Chuck whistled to Duke and led the way back to their section of the armory. He would let Duke eat and rest while he got the prep work done that was needed. He would then go get what sleep he could. He sent the armor techs the note about the large dent in the chest armor that would need to be repaired if possible. He cleaned up Duke’s armor and noted that there were a few bullet impacts on the sides that would need to be checked over for durability and weakness. He and Duke then took off to his room for sleep. He would find out more when they got their location briefing.

Samantha sighed as she heard the orders. They needed to be ready to deploy as soon as possible. She was going to need some help. She hoped that they had some competent armor technicians around. She was pretty sure they had some after all Blue Sword helped develop and market that kind of technology. She needed to help save the world from an evil clone. She did not give a shit about patents and proprietary knowledge rights on her designs. Some of the team needed all new armor after the damage they had sustained in the last fight. Her own armor had taken significant damage. Samantha knew that this time she simply would have to trust the work of others.

Samantha sighed and moved over to Adam. She nodded respectfully to him as she waited for his acknowledgement before beginning.

“Sir, many of the team need armor repairs or complete overhauls after the fighting in Marrakech. Do you have some armor techs that would be available to assist me? I have designs for my armor which can be made fairly quickly which would protect the group from standard weapons fire. They wouldn’t be able to take armor piercing rounds or high caliber rounds. It would stop a sniper’s bullet, and machine gun fire. My design provides more flexibility and speed while spreading the kinetic energy from a bullet strike over a greater area. This results in fewer broken bones from the impact and weaker bruising. The ballistics gel can also provide environmental control for the suit to help with environments. So cooling or heating as needed. With enough help the armor could be ready to go for the whole team in a few hours. It is pretty easy to assemble and make with the plans. I am willing to give the plans to Raven. I will need the materials and standard equipment that you should have on site for vehicles and armor repair. The suit can also be used as a layered armor by being worn under heavier plate armor. That is how Chuck’s suit was modified when I first got ahold of it. Javi has helped me with some of the materials and repairs on Kaitaki. He could organize the others here and answer questions as well.”

Raven Squad: Second Storm (Military/Spy-Fi RP)

Camp Hannula, Pöyrisjärvi National Park, Finland

2000 Local Time

Samantha: The gang’s all here!

On the tarmac

Samantha had passed out in the evacuation truck as her body crashed from the Raven Cocktail that her AI injected her with stimulants, painkillers, and adrenaline. Once she had made it to the safety of the vehicle her combination of injuries and the chemical crash knocked her out. She woke up on the plane ride several hours later. Someone had hauled her unconscious self onto the plane and seatbelted her into place. She woke up as the plane was being jostled by air currents as it descended for landing. The plane bumped as it settled onto the tarmac and came to a stop.

Samantha still felt groggy and like her brain was operating at about 15% efficiency. Her hands shook and it took her a few tries before she managed to get the seatbelt undone. She pushed to her feet and held onto the seat for a moment as it felt like the plane was tipping to one side. She knew logically they had landed and come to a complete stop and that the plane was not listing to one side. Her body swayed back and forth for a moment before her sense of equilibrium kicked in. She carefully began to follow the others as they made their way off the plane.

Samantha was focused on putting one foot in front of the other and staying upright. It hurt to breathe as her ribs moved painfully. Her breaths came in short sharp gasps. The painkillers she had taken in the field had worn off. Her nerves still felt raw. Her movements were jerky and she was walking a little hunched over hugging her ribs because it felt better. She walked down the ramp of the plane oblivious to the large group on the tarmac next to the plane. Her mind focused on finding Sophie or the medics.

Samantha blinked at Freya with a confused look as she spoke to her.

Freya: "Hey girl. How you doing? Everything okay?"

Samantha looks puzzled as she looks at Freya.

Samantha: “Freya? What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be in the infirmary?”

She nods her head to herself as if agreeing with herself.

“I need to go visit you in the infirmary.”

Samantha's voice was a little slurred and it was obvious she was struggling. Samantha automatically smiles back at Freya as she smiles at her.

Freya: "I'm glad you're all coming home okay. You especially. Just take care of yourself. And if you need any help with anything you let me know alright?"

Samantha looks puzzled again and then nods as she replies to Freya.

Samantha: “Yes we all came home. I want to take care of myself. I need to go see Sophie. She is here right?”

Samantha looks at Freya hopefully as she waits for her to respond. Freya begins to rub Samantha’s back. She begins to wobble back and forth with the motion of Freya’s hand. Samantha is obviously still impaired from injuries she sustained on the battlefield.

---

Later that day

Samantha had been led from the plane to the infirmary where Sophie had checked over Samantha. Samantha’s ribs were only bruised from Ingwe trying to squeeze her like his favorite plush toy. Sophie had wrapped her ribs to offer some support and minimize the movement in her torso while the bruises healed. That helped her breathe better and deeper. Sophie had given her a cocktail of pain meds and put her to sleep. After spending a few hours sleeping in the infirmary so Sophie could monitor her. The painkillers that Sophie had given her worked on the residual pain she was feeling from the electric shock and her ribs. Her brain felt clearer as well. When she woke up this time, she felt more like herself. She was moving a little stiffly and with some pain but she felt tons better. She began to make her way towards the armory. She wanted to see how bad the damage was to her armor.

Samantha froze as she walked into what felt like a tense situation. Many people had their hands on their weapons. They were gathered around a woman that looked like Skye. There was a Japanese looking woman with some facial scarring standing behind Skye. Sophie was dragging a Japanese looking man away in her medical dictator way. Duke was standing on his hind legs with his front paws on Skye’s shoulders and was licking her chin, his tail wagging. Chuck was smiling. Ebrima’s body language looked tense; she couldn’t read his face, which was a blank mask. Athena, Jamie, Purna, Adam and Tahlia were also present. Samantha only had eyes for Skye. Her eyes narrowed as she moved stiffly towards Skye. Was this really Skye or another Rose clone?

Raven Squad: Second Storm (Military/Spy-Fi RP)

Camp Hannula, Pöyrisjärvi National Park, Finland

2000 Local Time

Boomer and Duke: Post Mission

On the tarmac

Chuck had come through the fight in Marrakech in one piece. His armor had some dents and could use some TLC from Samantha. He was almost out of ammo and would need to restock before the next mission. He would need to tear apart his guns and clean them. He had a bruise on his chest where he took a high caliber round. His armor had done a good job of displacing the kinetic force to reduce the injury he had taken. His armor had prevented penetration and he had avoided broken bones.The bruise would fade away in a few days. His movement would be stiff for a day or two but he would recover quickly. He was calling that a win.

He had checked over Duke on the way back to base. He made sure to give him some water to rehydrate him after action in such a hot area. Duke needed a good bath and a meal. He gave Duke a few high protein jerky treats that he carried for missions to help him recover the energy he had expended. Otherwise Duke looked fine. He didn’t find any obvious signs of injury on his canine companion. Duke’s armor needed to be cleaned up as well. It was clear that Duke had joined in the fight from the amount of blood around his muzzle and splattered across his armor. He had used some special wet wipes to clean the worst of the gore off to make him more comfortable. He would have to wait till they got to base to get it all off. Duke had curled up near Chuck and slept on the plane ride home.

Chuck was tired and ready for a hot shower and a meal. He climbed wearily to his feet and followed the rest of the team as they left the plane. He smiled as he saw the Battle Goddess greeting her siblings as they left the plane. He didn’t want to intrude on a family moment and simply smiled and nodded at Freya in greeting as their eyes met. He walked on by the group. He needed to take care of his dog. Duke had bounded over to rub along Freya’s leg in greeting, his tail wagging excitedly. Chuck whistled for Duke and he reluctantly returned to Chuck’s side after greeting Freya. Duke whined softly but followed Chuck’s command as the two left the tarmac.

---

Later in the armory

Chuck had gone straight to the armory where he began to pull off his armor. He had pulled his helmet off and set it on the bench. He opened the back and stepped out. He struggled and winced as he worked to pull off the neoprene ballistic gel under suit off. The motion pulled against the bruising along his torso. The suit took a bit of strength to pull off and some bending. The suit fit snugly and stretched a little. His armor hung on a hydraulic lift stand waiting for repairs and cleaning. He had already put his weapons away where they went. He turned his attention to Duke.

Once he was out of the suit he called Duke over to him. He sat down on the bench while he worked to take off Duke’s armor. He would check it over later for damage as he cleaned it. Right now he wanted to be sure Duke was okay. He ran his hands gently along Duke’s side and checked each of his paws. Duke yipped softly as he ran his hands down his sides. Duke had no broken skin but probably had some bruises where his armor had stopped a bullet. He frowned. He would have the vet check him for any fractures. He could tell from previous experience that his upgraded armor had done a better job than what he had been given for Duke in the Marines. He saw a few scratches along Duke’s legs. They were minor and from shrapnel on the battlefield. None of them required more than cleaning.

He whistled and had Duke follow him into the shower. He used the flexible shower head attachment and a special shampoo on Duke to help him get all the blood and gore off his muzzle and chest area. Once Duke was clean he quickly got himself clean. He turned off the shower and quickly toweled off and put on some clean sweatpants, t-shirt, and sneakers. He then carefully cleaned and inspected all the little cuts on Duke. Once he was satisfied Duke was dry and healthy. Chuck put down some food and water for him.

Chuck was puzzled when Duke didn’t immediately move towards the food and water. Duke’s posture went rigid and his head tilted to one side and then the other as he looked towards the door of the armory. Duke gave a happy bark and took off running towards the door. Chuck followed Duke and smiled as he saw what had drawn his attention. Duke slipped around everyone’s legs and rubbed along Skye’s leg barking demanding attention from her. His deep bark booming and echoing in the large space. He then stands on his hind legs and begins trying to lick her face. He is tall enough that way to reach her chin. Skye is being greeted by almost one hundred pounds of excited muscular dog with a rough tongue.

Chuck just laughs and nods at Skye. “Hello Bosslady.” Chuck is more inclined to trust Duke’s instincts over any code phrase to verify Skye’s identity. He knows Duke’s capabilities and trusts his partner.

Raven Squad: Second Storm (Military/Spy-Fi RP)

Skye Rosalind Lyons

Los Angeles, United States of America

1200 Local Time

A Trip to Grandma’s

Collab between Skye Lyons and Kameko Takahashi (Samantha's Adopted Grandmother)

Kameko was in her apartment above the dojo having tea. She still taught classes but had to hire someone to teach the classes that her husband had taught. She was enjoying a nice custom blend of tea that Samantha had sent her. The girl had signed her up for a tea of the month club. Her thoughts drifted to her wayward adopted granddaughter. She missed her but understood the forces that were driving her to investigate her father’s death. Kameko feared where this would take her. She worried about her but knew that her only course of action was to support her. She only prayed that Samantha’s soul would one day make peace with what happened.

She sighed even as the sounds of the kendo class came through her open window. Her ear listened as the young man she had hired to teach the classes put a beginner’s class through their paces. He was more progressive in his methods and less traditional than Ryuji had been but she couldn’t fault that he was popular with the students. His class was made up of professionals in the area that were using the class for exercise. They at least always paid their bills on time.

She missed her husband Ryuji since she he had been killed in a terrorist attack. Her life was comfortable though. She didn’t really need anything. She could have sold the studio but her life and memories were wrapped up in her home. It felt like leaving him behind if she moved on. She wasn’t ready to do that. She wanted Samantha to have something to come back to. She worried that she was so hurt and damaged by life events that she would never know peace. Her mind pondered these things as she sipped her tea looking out over the street.

The address hadn’t been quite what Skye was expecting, and after the flight over from Tokyo, stopping in Kahului Airport, the shining lights of LAX had then followed, and after that, a significant amount of dodging security, other cameras and a bunch of other resources. Ban’s fixers had run out, and now it was just them. A stolen car, her hair slightly regrown, a pair of aviators and a leather jacket did the job to turn Skye Rosalind Lyons into someone slightly different to who she had been.

And outside, the old Buick sat there, as Skye sighed, engine turned off, and then climbing out and heading towards the door, knowing this would be it. She hoped Sam was right, on this one at least. In any ordinary team, Sam would have been disciplined within an inch of her life, but quite ironically, in the way that Skye had ended up with a dysfunctional team, they’d ended up saving the world. Strange, that. But then again, Skye was a little bit of a rebel herself. Perhaps it just came with the territory. Get on board a bunch of rebels, outlaws, strangers and you end up with people who end up fixing the world this way. And they wouldn’t think too much about Sam, they’d go for Skye, considering the events that had recently happened. Which made this even more handy.

With a knock on the door, Skye awaited a response, and hoped for something to come back.

Kameko was surprised to hear a knock on her apartment door. She wondered if a student had taken a wrong turn. It didn’t happen often as the dojo was on the bottom floor of the building. The upper two floors were the apartment that had been her home for over 40 years. The building had a lovely manicured backyard that was a peaceful oasis in the middle of a very large urban city. She set her teacup down and went to the door.

She remembered what Samantha had told her the last time they had talked. It had been a hurried phone call and she had no clue where the girl had been. The connection had been poor. It was also obvious that she had not been able to talk freely. Their conversation had been in code. Kameko was aware of what Samantha did for a living. She knew that the girl had secrets that she was safer not knowing. She had let her know that she might get a visitor but that visitor would know the code to give her. She had also warned her to be careful. Kameko was an older woman but she was still graceful and strong thanks to the martial arts she practiced. She was not an easy target for anyone. Caution made her pause and check through the peephole to see who was standing at her door.

Standing there was an athletic looking red-headed woman. She kept the chain on the door and stepped to the side so that the door couldn’t hit her if it was kicked in. She opened the door to the length of the chain before answering the door.

“Can I help you? The dojo is downstairs.” Her Japanese accent was slight and her English was clear.

Skye picked up the voice, and immediately could catch that tell. Kameko.

“I’m not here for the dojo. Listen, I know Samantha….and she left this.”

Skye added, passing a tiny slit of paper through, a small code with the number on it, handwritten, catching the watching eye on the other side.

“Her, and the team are in a lot of trouble. And I’m just trying to help. I’m a friend.”

Kameko’s eyes narrowed as she accepted the slip of paper from Skye. She looked down and read the message on the paper. The code was correct but she was still suspicious. She wanted to be sure that the woman was from Samantha and not just taken the code from one of her trusted people.

“What is Samantha’s prized possession?”

“The Shelby that’s parked inside. She wouldn’t ever shut up about it.”

Skye replied with a funny reply, chuckling, her Scots accent carrying back again. Skye would have guessed the suspicion came from a good place, and knew Kameko would not have Sam watching over right now, considering the team were likely back out again, or isolated out again.

Kameko gave Skye a soft smile and a nod before removing the chain on the door. She opened the door and gestured inviting Skye inside.

“Welcome to my home. Please join me for some tea and you can tell me why you are here.”

She waited for Skye to enter before closing and locking the door behind her. She led the way through her living room to the window that overlooked the backyard where she had been sitting and having her tea. It was a small conversation area with a small table between two wingback chairs. She gave Skye a half bow as she excused herself and went to the kitchen to fetch another cup. She returned shortly and poured some fragrant tea in a Japanese style cup and handed it to Skye.

“There is sugar and cream if you would like it.”

She indicated the typical serving sides on the tray with what appears to be an antique Japanese tea set.

Skye smiled back, the hospitality that Sam had clearly reflected in her childhood guardian, Skye bowing with a certain respect, a distinct one considering how gracious a host Kameko was being right now. Sunglasses off, the tired, jetlagged face of Skye could be seen, and her jacket was not doing a good job of covering up her wear from losing a lot of blood, and her wound tightly still bandaged in her side beneath it.

“Thank you.” Skye replied, gently sipping down, before putting the cup back, not taking sugar or cream.

“I apologize for visiting, as I’m sure Sam hoped a stranger would never come. I am not sure what Sam told you about her work, but as you can imagine, she is quite extraordinary.”

Skye started, gently taking another wick, before putting it down, smiling back at Kameko.

“That tea is good. Lovely. So, I guess I should introduce myself. My name is Skye Lyons, former head of an elite, multi-national taskforce that hunted down extremist terrorist groups considered a threat to global stability. And as of three days ago, we were attacked. If it wasn’t for the actions of Sam, things could have ended a lot worse. Especially for me.”

Skye started, fumbling her words a little towards the end, hinting at what had happened.

“But there is something she did. Something I didn’t even expect. She kept some data here. A small box-like compartment that contains our data. Kameko, this may be critical to saving the world. It contains information on a group that could be undertaking something so deadly, it may spiral. There are a lot of lives that could be saved. Tens, if not hundreds of millions in the balance.”

Skye knew this would be a big deal, perhaps a little strange, so she sipped down a little more, and took the older Japanese lady in again, this time more in an English-speaking context.

“I understand you probably don’t trust me, and I understand you may be hesitant to trust my identity, who I am, or what I’m doing. But believe me, this thing she did was beyond important. I nearly died for it twice. Sam was willing to risk the same. If you have it, I’d really appreciate it. I can return it to the team, and we can find out what this group is doing. And put it to an end, at last. The last thing I did was to leave Sam to direct them to safety. And I know she will..”

Skye replied, knowing this was not an easy thing to do, but well, it had to be asked- as direct as possible.

Kameko gracefully sipped at her tea as she watched and listened to the woman explain who she was. Her face remained serene even as her head tilted slightly to the side in a listening posture. She smiled as she heard Samantha described as extraordinary. That was something that Kameko knew better than most having known Samantha for most of her life.Kameko set her almost empty tea cup back on the tray as Skye began to explain who she was and what she needed.

Kameko could tell that Skye was just as guarded as Samantha. She reached over and took one of Skye’s hands and gave it a gentle squeeze as she shook her head with a soft laugh.

“You remind me of Samantha. I know that what she does is top secret and dangerous. I also know that you would never have been able to answer my question if Samantha did not trust you Skye. Samantha does not share details of her life with many. Where did she tell you that you would find the box?”

Skye had a think, but it came back fast enough, even in spite of the injury that had happened.

“The saddle bag on her motorbike. That was what Sam said.”

Skye simply replied, chuckling, hearing Kameko’s reply.

“She is one hell of a person. Perhaps excitable, but keeps her humanity well.”

Kameko smiled and nodded. She rose gracefully to her feet.

“Follow me. I will take you to it.”

She led the way back to the apartment door. She waited for Skye to exit before keying in the code on the electronic lock and waiting to hear the motor engage the deadbolt. She led the way down the stairs and took a turn through a short hallway that led to a back door. She keyed in another code to open the door to the backyard. She led Skye through a small but beautiful manicured yard over to a free-standing garage to one side of the yard. She once more keyed in a code that let her into the side door of the garage. Inside the garage the lights came on and the private high tech yet homey garage that was Samantha’s personal joyful space was visible. There was a car under a cover in one of the bays of the garage. A deep purple and silver custom street bike was in the other. The bike had some saddlebags on it and had a storage compartment under the seat. Kameko waved a hand towards the bike.

“Please look for yourself. Samantha was always here tinkering on something.”

Kameko stayed by the door as waved Skye into the interior of the garage.

Skye whistled, looking around, impressed by it.

“Quite the life she built here. Must have been working on lots before I called.”

Skye added, looking around and impressed by the sight of it. Walking up to the bike, she pulled on the leather saddlebag, and with it, pulled out the SSD-sized device, bringing it to bear and checking it through, before snuggling it into her coat pocket.

“She had a hell of a life I guess. Always talked about it. Doing stuff with it. I suppose she had a family with us, yet….well, there’s always projects to finish.”

Skye spoke to herself softly, before looking back to Kameko, a smile back on Skye’s face.

“Thank you. I owe it to her to bring her. And the others, too.”

Skye added back to Kameko, the crack of a smile even forming on Skye’s replying face, considering what she’d seen. In spite of all the pain, suffering and agony of the last few days, this was the rare moment that it felt like humanity could be seen. Not someone with a capacity for boundless violence, but someone who was genuinely, truly, innocent. Worth protecting, and as much as Skye hated the idea of going out at all, making this move was important for what she had planned next.

Kameko had a sad wistful smile on her face as she looked around the garage. Memories of Samantha working on a project came to mind. Her chasing the girl out of the garage for a meal or forcing her to rest when she got too wrapped up in a project. She remembered Ryuji trying to learn from Samantha and brought another sad smile to her face. Kameko came back to the present as Skye began to speak. She had obviously found whatever it was that Samantha had sent her to retrieve. She gave Skye a slight bow of acknowledgement.

“You owe me nothing. You are out there fighting alongside my granddaughter. You are welcome in my home anytime Skye Lyons. Is there anything else I can do to help you?”

Kameko’s head was tilted to one side in query. Unsure if Skye would allow her to help her more than she had.

Skye smiled, with a nod, as if to confirm that only this little had been more than a world of enough.

“One day I hope Sam is able to tell you all of what is going on. Believe me, it will make quite a story. This is all I need. Thank you, Kameko.”

Kameko nodded and led Skye back to her car, locking everything back up as she went. She thought about Samantha as she cleaned up the remnants of the tea setting her kitchen back to impeccably clean. Her thoughts on Samantha and the danger she was in. She would say extra prayers to the ancestors to watch over her and bring her home safely once more.