[All] The Rescue

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[Mazzic]

Well, something went right. Finally. Roland thought as the helicopter set down without exploding or tearing to pieces. "I can't imagine Procyon will miss us landing, with all the satellites and spy cams every where. I suggest we get as far away as we can." To show his resolve in the matter he hoped out of the side and moved a little ways away from the downed chopper.

[JonAllen]

Liam was trying to find a target with his MP-5. The figures below had begun to appear so small and those he could see were moving quickly. He couldn't hear squat, the helicopter's rotors were creating such a torment of sound that he just heard a whirlwind.

Liam looked back inside the chopper for some ear protection or a head-set. At that moment he felt a thud that threw him from his kneeling position onto his rump. More than a bruised ego he felt a sudden spike in fear and concern that something was wrong.

Suddenly around him there was a commotion. Liam found some ear protection and put it on, just in time to see others in the helicopter start to shout at each other.

Fresh memories kicked in, memories of how Liam met this group to begin with. The Procyon helicopter that he was riding in. The smiling, casual faces of that air crew on a seemingly routine science mission into the forest. The sudden call from a higher authority to alter heading towards "an ongoing incident". The sound of bullets and the chopper crashing....

...the burnt bodies...

Liam's fear grew three-fold.

Oh god please not again..

A few long tense seconds passed, and then it became clear to Liam that this time, the helicopter wasn't just going to explode and drop from the sky. They were looking for a place to land, the biologist couldn't be happier. He suddenly wanted nothing more than to get off this thing.

Orders were shouted at the guys riding in the back, Liam half heard them, but he understood the gist...keep the SWAT guys away.

Liam found a part of the chopper that didn't have a gun-toting rebel covering it and came back into a kneeling position. He raised the MP-5, flipped the safety to fire and looked for something to shoot at. Anyone or anything with a big helicopter killing weapon was his first priority, anyone that seemed to be firing at them or chasing them on foot or in a vehicle was his second.

Liam had almost no training in firing a weapon, even less firing from a moving platform like a helicopter. The biologist tried to forget about that and focus on just hitting something.

Actions: firing MP-5 at targets of opportunity.

[KnightDisciple]

Leo hopped down himself, hanging onto his rifle with one hand. He took a look around and frowned.

"Any idea where we are? Gotta admit, I'm not as familiar with the city, and being up on top of a building doesn't help much. While it'd be nice to fix our ride, Gabby said we were losing fuel. If we're out of gas..."

He shrugged, and reached up to adjust his hat a bit.

[Wallace]

What seemed inevitable didn't happen. There was no explosion. Alain opened his eyes again and took the steps to the roof. With a sound like the groaning of a dying giant, the evac chopper continued to disappear into the distance. If they made it out they'll be alright. If I chase them in the hopes of catching up I might lead the entire police force to them. I gotta find my own way home.

The frenchman knew the area a little bit. This was Chinatown. Lots of narrow streets, angled rooftops and loose roof tiles. The jumps weren't be difficult but keeping your balance was tricky at best. With a gunshot to the gut it was the best option, he wouldn't make it three blocks on the ground. And so he started running again, doing what he does best. Choosing his own path over the rooftops wherever chance would take him, as long as it wasn't here.

[CovenantSpiff]

The landing was excellent, certainly so given the circumstances, and Harlon told the flight crew as much. With only one somewhat hurt party on board, the rescue team was not in terrible shape. Now all there was to do was get the aircraft flying again.

Harlon watched the others jump out for only a second, for his mind was on the fuel problem. It was probably good that they had jumped out, both for the sake of security and to clear more of the cabin and exterior so as to find the fuel leak. Tools in hand, he looked back and forth from the cockpit to Cal, and asked, "Any ideas where to check first?"

[Bazin]

Ya'll could look next to the big letters that spell F-U-E-L.  Elray shot a look at Harlon.  Harlon couldn't tell if the man was being serious, or trying to bring some humor to the situation.

[CovenantSpiff]

Harlon raised his eyebrows in mock annoyance at Elray's answer, then responded in kind. "And that, my friend, is why we pay you the big money. Smarts!" The panels began to come off, Harlon and Cal had loosened some of the bolts in flight so that the equipment was easily accessed on the ground.

[Bazin]

You know it!  Elray retorted, matching the mocking tone.  Rear of the bird, left side.  Should be a patch kit in there somewhere.

Harlon saw the kit Elray spoke of.  It contained the necessary items to patch the hole in the fuel tank quickly.  It wasn't a permanent fix, but it was good enough to keep the liquid inside the tank.

Liam scanned the horizon.  He didn't see anyone coming towards them, but he could hear the sirens blaring.  Pinpointing the sound was difficult, but it was getting closer.

[JonAllen]

"They are coming, I hear sirens!" Liam shouted to the others.

He was anxious, wondering how they were going to get out of this. He couldn't pinpoint the source of the sound, which didn't help his rising anxiety and flourishing paranoia. He was visually inspecting each nearby street, alley and building. He expected a dozen uniformed men to appear anytime.

He was also worried about Alan. Liam had seen what had happened, but had no real idea why it was happening. Why hadn't they pulled Alan up, where was he going?

Liam wasn't sure what he should do. Stay on the helicopter or get out and form a perimeter around the bird? He shifted the MP-5 in his hands in frustration as his mind whirled through their situation. He wasn't just going to jump out himself, but if that was the plan he would.

He popped the question as a suggestion, "If this is going to take a while maybe we should get out, draw fire away from the bird. They could be here any minute."

Liam was no military man or tactician, but he understood the basic concept that if the helicopter was disabled because the cops showed up and shot at it, they were all trapped and in trouble. That was the nightmare scenario in his mind. He was searching for ways to keep that from happening.

[Mazzic]

Roland moved a bit back towards the downed bird and took up sentry duty. If they could fix the damn thing, then fine. If they couldn't, he'd try to keep them from all getting shot up if possible. More moving and firing people, the better our odds are. He personally had no interest in dying out here.

[CovenantSpiff]

With tools at hand, Harlon was ready to tear into the guts of the helicopter. Still, he was just the aid to Cal's surgery; he wasn't sure how long it would take and decided he wanted an idea.

"Cal, how long will this take?"

While waiting for an answer he hollered out to Liam, "Go for it-a diversion would be excellent. Just don't make us wait for you, plan 1 out 2 back on minutes of travel for whatever Cal says for time. Slow them down. Knock a tree out or two, get creative, whatever. Make sure you're back early!"

[JonAllen]

"Roger," With a nod, Liam climbed out of the helicopter and looked for a decent place to fight from.

He spotted Roland doing something similar and tried to take up a position opposite of the helicopter from where Roland was. Liam had no idea which direction trouble would come from. He wasn't even entirely sure where the burning building was from here, or what the streets between here and there look like and which way they tracked through the urban landscape. So realistically, trouble could come from any of the 360 degrees around them and even above them.

Liam didn't wander too far. He wanted to be able to make it back to the helicopter in a fast sprint. He was keen on cover though, and actively looked for something appropriate. Anything he could get behind that might stop a bullet.

Even then, Liam knew he was bait. His job was to make anyone headed for the helicopter stop and reconsider. There was no fall-back, no place to run to. If this tiny perimeter failed and the helicopter took more damage, then they would all be arrested or killed. This little perimeter had to hold and draw fire away from the helicopter long enough for the repairs to be completed.

Liam was no action hero, no warrior, but the idea of life in prison or an execution scared him more than dying here today. He had already been clipped by a bullet once in the leg. He had run through firefights, exploding liquors and raced through a burning building. The adrenaline hadn't worn off. Everything around him seemed more crisp, the colors seemed brighter and more vibrant.

He just felt so....alive. More alive than he had ever felt in his entire life.

It was strange that it took the feeling of being so alive to realize one was ready to die if he had to.

Liam's mind was ready to transition into his biological knowledge of the human body to dissect what he was feeling, but he snapped away those thoughts with a blink of his eyes and forced himself to concentrate on his surroundings. He looked and listened. He had to be careful not to shoot some unarmed kid who just wanted to come see the helicopter.

Quietly, Liam checked the magazine on his MP-5, and replaced it if it was below half-full. Then he started scanning the landscape...

Actions: firing 1 burst at police or SWAT if they appear, but only after identifying targets as such, take cover

[Lewis]

Cal laid down his gun and groped around on the interior of the hull in the shadows of equipment below the F - U - E - L sign that Elray had pointed at, trying to see or feel where the bullet might have punctured the tank.  It was also possible that the bullet had entered but not exited the tank, and had only punctured the outer wall of the tank.  If the fuel tank itself wasn't punctured, it was probably the fuel line, cut God only knows where in the hull of the craft.

I don't know, Harlon.  It depends on what kind of wound we find.  A patch kit is great but it won't work if the breach is bad enough.  Let's hope the fuel line isn't cut somewhere we can't reach.  Tell them to give us...eh...five minutes.  At the most.  We'll know something by then anyway.  Any longer than that and I figure we're safer risking the urban canyon on foot.  Cal worried that he'd said too big a number.

Action: Search for the hole in the fuel system.

[KnightDisciple]

Leo didn't like the thought of straying too far from the bird.

"Think I'll stick pretty close, go for an eagle-eye view."

Indeed, the man who could be a cowboy walked to the edge of the roof they were on and held his rifle to his shoulder. He then tilted his head to look through the scope, working to scan back and forth, covering any approach on that side. When a minute had passed, he moved to his right, settling into the same pattern for that side of the building. His path would take him in a circuit around the roof.

Actions:
Walk to roof edge. Scan that direction with scope, for better view. Goal is to do that in all 4 directions, then repeat until we either fly away, or walk away.

[Bazin]

Cal exited the helicopter, looking for the leak.  There were a few holes, but one was obviously the cause of the issue.  The panel easily was removed to reveal the fuel line that was hit.  Cal knew this could have been much worse - had the shot gone through the main tank, he might not have been able to patch the interior hole if the bullet went through.  A fuel line was perhaps the best possible situation.

Sirens continued to close.  Leo looked for targets, Liam covered Cal and Harlon.

Repairs took a minute.  The panel was replaced and the bird was ready to start again.

Harlon gave Elray the all clear.  The engine was restarted, the blades slowing returning to speed.  It would be another minute before the bird could fly again.  Everyone was on high alert, looking for any sign of being spotted.

No one saw any signs.

[Mazzic]

Feeling and hearing the blades starting to spin Roland slow backed towards the chopper. If someone did show up, it'd be nice to not be left behind. Unlike Alain, he didn't have a death wish.

[KnightDisciple]

Leo was silently thankful there seemed to be no immediate pursuit.

Noticing the chopper starting up, he ceased his vigilance, double-timing it across the roof to the chopper, keeping his head low to avoid the blades.

[JonAllen]

Liam looked back as the helicopter began to restart. The rotors were beginning to spin, cutting through the air.

The biologist looked around and saw the others that had stepped out were beginning to double-back to the helicopter.

Liam took the cue. He kept his MP-5 tucked into his shoulder and his finger near the trigger. He wanted to be ready for anything. As he got closer to the helicopter, he turned around to survey the rooftop once more before climbing back into the aircraft.

Actions: firing 1 burst at any hostile target that appears

[CovenantSpiff]

With the leak fixed, Harlon began to secure the tools. He took a rag to wipe off his hands. He was much better at making a mess than he was fixing an aircraft. "Good work! Let's get out of here, I don't mind leaving this area behind one bit. We'll send out scouts for Alain if he needs help later."

The day was improving; in fact, the entirety of their well-being was contained in the condition of the helicopter. As it went, so did the lot of them. Now all it needed to do was hold together long enough to get home.

[Lewis]

Cal was enormously relieved to have found the leak easily fixed.  Escaping on foot would have been quite complicated indeed, and a looong hike back to the base.  He looked at the patch one last time with the engine running, was satisfied that it seemed to be holding, and replaced the panel.  He then got back in the helicopter and ventured to ask the stranger, apparently Alain's friend, whether he would like to have his injuries at least looked at now.  A moving aircraft wasn't anywhere to do surgery, but it might help to begin assessing the damage, and he looked to be the worst off among the rescued.  There was no telling what wounds Alain was enduring through his extravagantly self-sacrificial play on the rooftops, nor what he'd done to himself during the raid.  All Cal could do was tend to those he could reach and hope for the best with Alain.

Action: Offer first-aid to the stranger.

[Bazin]

Cal approached Artemis, who had sat with his eyes closed for most of the trip thus far.  Cal tapped the man on the shoulder.  His eyes snapped open.  I appreciate your concern, but it is not necessary.  He opened his coat and gestured to some of the cuts in his shirt.  The skin was unbroken.

To the north, focus on the north.

As Artemis finished his words, the chopper lifted off the pad it was resting on.  The pilot pushed the chopper to fly towards the West.  Liam, who was on high alert, saw a glint of something in the distance, to the north.

[Lewis]

Wha- ?  North?  What do you mean?  Who are you?

[JonAllen]

Liam was looking around at the night's sky around the helicopter. He felt a slight push as though a hand was on his head as the helicopter climbed into the sky and turned to it's intended heading.

As he surveyed the sky, Liam thought he saw something. Perhaps he should have tried to identify what he was seeing before shouting, but in his heightened state he didn't think twice of yelling.

"What's that!?!" he shouted at the others. He threw an arm up and pointed. "To our right...umm...3 o'clock. I see something."

[Bazin]

Artemis looked up and locked eyes with Cal.  He sees it.  I'd get everyone to tie themselves down.

The object in the distance rose over the horizon.  Liam's eyes adjusted to the distance and finally made out what he was seeing.  The silhouette was of an attack helicopter.  Harlon, Leo and Roland had all looked towards the area Liam was shouting about and saw it too.

[JonAllen]

"Uh...guys!" Liam shouted back. "They've got a helicopter too!"

It looked like a nasty vicious military one at that, Liam slung the MP-5 and started to strap in somewhere. He figured one way or another, this was about to get interesting. Liam began to swear almost silently to himself. He was starting to hate helicopters.