New Dawn(Sanctuary Sequel)

V didn't care for the man's tone and she had a hold of her carbine, now. She didn't mind handing over the disc to the proper authorities but obviously these were the wrong people.

"Don't talk to us that way," she snarled, thumbing the safety off and raising the carbine, "stick your ugly head in here so I can blow it off."

 

Humans. They were human. Well, the They obviously weren’t, but the ‘they’ that had been shooting at them were human. Joshua had never shot at people before, but oddly enough the vision of fighting something that wasn’t five feet tall and had fangs and claws of steel actually relaxed him.

Joshua had read enough books to know that even if they surrendered, they wouldn’t make it out alive. He dropped the gun case to the ground, clicked it open and retrieved his father’s rifle. He briefly brushed the two small black folders, but quickly closed the case again. Those folders were his future, and something he jealously guarded.

V was taunting them now, and Joshua's eyes twitched. “Should we even talk to them?” he whispered, shouldering his own rifle.

 

"No," V snarled back to Josh, "I don't trust anyone who starts with that sort of ultimatum."

She kept the carbine trained on the cave entrance.

 

"Why can't you get some other medical expert to do this? There are a thousand lives here who need help," Landa said, "None of the others are qualified the way I am, we'll have more dead citizens on our hands..and what makes you think they are still alive, what if someone is playing you to get into the city, then what...I'm tired of this little prank, why did you really send us here?"
Landa was aware none of his words sounded as serious as he wanted them to. He really just sounded like an angry girlfriend finding her boyfriend cheating. Landa glared at the Lord for a second. Landa didn't like being played around with. He wanted the people of this place to be just as healthy as those survivors. Why was this Magnus thing so important? What made those survivors more important then a colony of people?
What made Landa's skills so important? Did those survivors truly need an expert like him?

 

Ark glared at Landa and bit his tongue waiting for North to put in his word before he bit his head off for the way he was acting. The Lord had put a fair case forward and given his reasons although he did find himself wondering whether it would be possible to replace the group with someone less whiney. He asked about an elite team and that was obivously what was being constructed at short notice. What were a couple of lives if you could turn the tide of the war?

The man had an arrogance he didn't like even though it was probably a mirror of him merely in a different posistion. Expert like him? God this guy was up himself surely someone else could do his job in place of him.

 

Lin laughed at the voice from outside. Just hand over the disc, right? What comic book did this goon jump out of?

"God? Is that you?"

He laughed some more, keeping his AK pointed at the cave's entrance. He took a quick glance to see just about everybody was near the back of the cave. Lin then took some soft steps backwards, heading that way himself.

"God? Still there?"

Lin smiled as he backed up to a corner and went around it. He peeked back at the entrance, watching for the intruders to make a move for them.

 

Sarafena grinned at the pinched expression on Arch’s face as Landa spoke. Now that North had explained himself she was happy to listen to his words. His reason made sense and she was more then understanding of the situation at hand. She listened quietly.

 

Lord North stood and looked Landa directly in the eye. The man didn't look like much and he had an attitude that made North want to teach him his place in the scheme of things, but Oliver had assured him that each of the people were the most qualified individuals in the city. They deserved to know everything and ask a few questions if they had any.

"I want you to listen to something. Hopefully it will change your mind." North reached under his desk and produced a small disc which he slid into the player nearby. There was the faint sound of it reading the information before at last playing it back for everyone in the room to hear.

"Oh thank god. It's working...if anyone can here this...this is Lieutenant Ryan Harris of the 7th Battalion, Sanctuary Military. We are under heavy attack right now. Thousands of Dragoons. All attempts to evac civilians have failed. Electronics are down. Automated defenses are down. We've lost most of the city. So far casualty estimates are in the hundred thousands. I don't know how long we can hold out here...wait a minute. Dear God what the hell is that-'

The message cut out after that and gave everything a minute to sink in. "Landa, imagine if our automated defense matrix went down. Even with all the soldiers we have, we could not hold them off longer than a few days. These survivors obviously know how the enemy operates. They could be useful...and the Magnus Disc. With it, we can ensure the end to living in fear. We can finally begin to hope for a brighter future."

 

Captain Warren signaled his men to move up to the entrance behind the row of seats the people had obviously been using as some sort of a windbreak. He wondered briefly why people always had to do it the hard way. "I'll give you all one last chance. Surrender or Die.

 

Vishka had been maneuvering through the shadows for the entirety of the confrontation so far. His dark armor had made it so that the attackers were unable to spot him just yet. If he could just get a little closer he could cause just enough chaos to give the group a chance of escape.

 

"How does this asshole know we have the disc?"

His voice was quiet. He was only speaking to his group. His fellow freedom fighters. There was no way in Hell that disc was getting into the voice's hands without a fight.

His second ultimatum was just as comical as the previous one. Lin laughed again. Looking out, he still saw no one just yet, but he'd make sure to stay his sweet self.

"So I was thinking about it... and I'm gonna have to throw you a no. Can we still be friends, god... please?"

 

Landa looked away from North just for a few seconds. He had listened to everything.
"And what makes you think this stupid Disc thing will work? What makes you think it's the hope for humanity? Our lives? How can you risk this place for those lives and then we find out that that stupid disc thing doesn't work?" Landa paused, "I'll go only if you ensure me one of my patients life, if I leave this patient they'll be alive when I come back...he is a twelve year old boy by the name of Thomas, he is suffering from some internal wounds and a lot of it has to do with heavy gunpowder inhalation, he also was crushed by one of the buildings that had collapsed and has internal bleeding.....ensure me this boy will be alive when I come back and I'll save these stupid people with their stupid Magnus Disc."

 

Lord North gave Landa a long hard look before giving a quick nod at a his request. "Very well. I shall have him moved to the Parliament Building and the Queen's personal doctors will look after him. Is that all? I have some mission details to tell you."

 

"If it's not classified sir do you have any idea what he meant when he said 'oh dear god what is that'?"

He'd never heard of a true invasion force like that. Sure they'd taken cities but the majority of fights he fought in they had been able to show some level of success or at least retreat with minumum loss of life where possible there had been other complete failures but obviously he was still alive and hadn't been involved in them.

He remembered his last conflict with two Freshers. It had taken out a quarter of his tank regiment before they had even been able to scratch the dam things. He'd often dreamt of what might happen if they ever encountered more and he had little illusions of standing a chance.

 

“I went out and told them,” Joshua said in a dry voice. “After that, I went to the nearest coffeehouse and bought a large black coffee. We were in here with you, how the hell do we know?” He wasn’t sure whether it was Lin’s dialogue with the man outside or the fact he was holding his gun again that was ticking him of, but he was getting increasingly restless. He shuffled uncomfortable, trying to shift in a more comfortable position.

After Lin had declined ‘God’s’ offer more kindly then Joshua would have, he spoke up, trying to keep his voice as low as he possibly could. “Where the hell did Vishka go?”

 

Zefie held her rifle tight, training it on the entrance to the cave though she could see nothing but swirling white outside. The idea that there were humans after them now as well as Them was disheartening to say the least, and the harsh voice ordering them to surrender or die was making her skin crawl.

Bastards ... if they could survive the fall of Sanctuary, get out from under the noses of a full-strength force of Them, then what made these pathetic, snivelling idiots think they would break now?

"Where the hell did Vishka go?"

Josh's low, worried voice distracted her. She glanced round at him, and realised he was right. Their pet Dragoon was missing ... she looked around, and saw the large, familiar hulking shadow slowly creeping towards the outside. Unless anyone had been looking for the Dragoon, they wouldn't even have noticed the movement.

Zefie grinned, and indicated Vishka to Josh with a small nod of her head.

Maybe they could get out alive after all. Vishka was almost like a secret weapon; the men outside certainly couldn't be expecting him.

 

John was very, very nevous to find himself standing infront of Lord North. He thought why Lord North thought he was a good person for this job. He was really stiff. He was very afraid to speak. He mustered some courage and spoke, "S..Si..Sir...I..I...mean...You..Your Higness....I...don..tt...uunnddeertand...why...I...am...chosen."

 

Lin watched as Joshua squirmed. His attempt at sarcasm fell far shorter than anything he would usually have to offer. He shook his head at Joshua.

The panic in his voice was ridiculous. He was asking about the reptile. Lin had been used to the man being frightened, but now it was starting to hurt his dry wit. And that couldn't go on.

"What the Hell is wrong with you? I know you have better material than that."

Then Zefie pointed Vishka out to Josh, hopefully calming the spazzer down. Lin grew bored, but knew that any sudden movements could be costly.

 

Joshua stared at Lin for a moment, wondering if he could get away with shooting the man. Then he simply shrugged; he wasn’t thinking clear. “What’s wrong? It’s been over a week, I’m freezing and I almost got a bullet in the head.” He looked around, not sure what he was searching for. “Any brilliant plans?”

 

Where did this guy come from? If there was a brilliant plan, would they be tucked in the back of a cave? None of that really mattered now. Josh needed to take a break from this scary business, Lin could tell that other people were getting annoyed by him. He shook his head as Josh was talking. Lin understood his malfunction, but the timing for his mini-breakdown was all wrong.

"We're all cold, Josh. You're not the only one freezing in this cave."

He winced as he tried to shift the weight off his right leg. He touched the wound and winced. Great, the shoulders then the leg, this was not looking good. Lin was starting to have visions of his death. Still, he had to keep the positivity up. He noticed Josh staring at him, and wondered what was in his mind at the moment.

"And while you almost got a bullet, I did get one. And it wasn't meant for me."

He looked at V and smirked. He placed his back against the cave and slid down. Now he was sitting on his rump, taking the weight off his leg. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, and adjusted his own temporarily negative attitude.

 

Zefie quietly ground her teeth together as Josh and Lin whispered back and forth across the cave, competeing for the title of Who Had It Worst. They both deserved the title of Biggest Idiot. Nervously she tightened her grip on the rifle, waiting for someone or something to break the stand-off with whoever was outside.

Her eyes kept flickering to Vishka, hoping he was that something. He'd saved them before in Sanctuary, and if anyone could save them now it was him.

God, that was ironic. She'd never thought the day would come when she was hoping a Dragoon would save her from a human.

"And while you almost got a bullet, I did get one. And it wasn't meant for me."

Suppressing a growl, Zefie whipped round and glared at the two men. "Will you two shut it and stop bein' such girls? Really."

She turned back to the entrance, and wondered if it was her imagination or if a shadow really had just flitted across the snow.

 

Lin laughed at Zefie calling him a girl. He shot her a glance after regaining his positive vibe. He was tired of her too, she was far too uptight. But with Lin being who he is and the rest of the group being all over each other, his good points would go unheard or denied.

No matter what he did, they had the same thought of him.He wouldn't have minded if he was always a jerk. He felt he should be treated according to the way he acted. And for the most part, he was encouraging the group. The good that he heard from Zefie was that she included Josh's whining in her complaint.

He shook his head at Zefie and turned away smiling. He had decided to not even try with her anymore. She in particular seems to have something against Lin. Maybe he reminded her of an ex-boyfriend that did her wrong.

Then she had a look on her face as she turned back to the entrance. It was a look of curiosity, and made Lin curious as well.

"What are you looking at?"

He tried to turn, but he was too far around the corner to get a good look.