(sorry!! I went on a trip and didn't realize I would be cut off from wifi, I would have warned you)
(also highkey in love with your writing here, you're capturing so much more than I could've holy hell)
Tessa didn't even have time to react before her stomach exploded in pain, the current travelling through her in an instant, her muscles twitching and contracting. She didn't even hear the gun go off through the pain.
Charlotte, who realized what was about to happen, ducked just fast enough to avoid being hit in the chest, and instead felt the bullet rip into her shoulder. Her vision blurred around the edges but she remained upright, catching Tessa with her good arm. Tears started to flow freely as she dragged Tessa towards the only shelter they had, towards the room Axel had come out of.
She kicked the door closed behind them and collapsed against it, her throat closing up in fear, her brain desperately whirring into action despite the blood flowing freely.
One thing remained clear in her head– staying alive. Legs shaking, she slowly stood, turned to fumble with the lock, and fell next to Tessa who was blinking dazedly at the ceiling. Her hand was still clenched around the gun, and Charlotte heaved a relieved sigh.
On the floor below, the gunshot echoed just loud enough for Jessie to hear it and react.
"Something happened upstairs. Something's wrong. I think–" She turned to Slash. "Did you hear anything?" she said in a choked whisper.
(No worries, hope you had a good trip! And thanks lol, I'm glad you approve! It's a lot of fun >w<)
Mere moments after Charlotte locked the door, the guards slammed against it, rattling the handle and trying to force their way in. For the moment, however, the door held firm, and their sharp voices carried through it.
"What the hell's going on?" one guard asked. "What's Tessa doing?"
"I don't know," Atayo snapped. "Not important right now. We can't let them get to Will. Oswald, run around and find the back way into that room, before they slip out. If we can keep them here until Axel gets Will to safety, we've won."
The back way Atayo referred to was across the room (the room which, it seemed, was some sort of private gym). The door sat next to a cabinet of training gear and was half-blocked by a crash pad leaning against the wall, as if it was rarely used. Other than that, there were no exits, not even windows.
Slash heard the gunshot clearly and tensed, nodding when Jessie spoke. "I heard it too. A bang, and shouting." His ears twitched. "People are running around up there. But I can't hear Charlotte or Tessa." He shifted uncertainly "What do we do?"
Rick was listening carefully to their conversation as well. "Well we shouldn't act too quick. If we run to help, we risk losin' our escape route. But, the girls might really need us right now." He glanced at Jessie. "Do you have any idea what Charlotte would want us to do?" If she didn't, he was fine with taking command and was already working on a new plan, but he figured he'd ask anyway.
Charlotte jerked her head towards the far wall- she had heard them through the door. There did seem to be an exit, hidden behind odd furniture. She examined the rest of the room, though understood quickly that there was no other way out. Gritting her teeth, she wrapped her shaking hand around the wound in her shoulder, grasping it tightly to apply as much pressure as she could bear without passing out.
Tessa was sitting up slowly, and Charlotte kicked her lightly in the leg, hoping to gain her attention quietly. Tessa yelped loudly and gave Charlotte a watery glare, but the latter just nodded towards the door on the far wall. Tessa followed her indication.
Both women hobbled towards the wall and together carefully and quickly cleared the furniture, taking it in turns to aggravate their already throbbing injuries. Eventually the doorway was clear and Tessa, holding her stomach as if it would collapse without her support, shouldered it open. It didn't budge. She tried again, to no avail. Charlotte sighed loudly and, closing her eyes against the rush of agony she knew was coming, leaned back and kicked the door, hard.
A wave of pain travelled up her calf, leg, all the way to her arm and shoulder, triggering a fresh gush of blood that Charlotte, despite her nausea and shortened breath, tried to ignore. The door however, swung open with an impossibly loud creak.
Tessa and Charlotte wasted no time and as fast as they could ran out of the room, into an open hallway and down the corridor towards a staircase Tessa remembered.
Jessie didn't hesitate. "Whatever happens, Charlotte will want Will and Tessa out of here." She bit down on her lip, heart pounding. "Maybe they know where Will is? But if there's commotion then something went wrong, Axel knows what's happening, and he's probably trying to secure Will." She looked desperately up at Rick, her youth more obvious than ever. She was terrified. She had no idea what to do.
The guards hadn't reached the back door yet, thankfully, but footsteps and shouting could be heard throughout the upper floor. Somewhere in the distance, a tinny alarm sounded, signaling that more enemies were on their way. But for now, no one else had arrived by the staircase.
Rick read Jessie's face and felt confidence fall on his shoulders strong enough to outmatch the weight of responsibility. He'd done this many times before, and the routine of a shifting battlefield was second nature by now. Taking one last look around, he made his decision.
"Slash, try to follow their scent and take us to 'em. If they ran into trouble, they might not be able to come back towards us. 'Sides, I'm bettin' our cover's blown anyway, so we'll be sitting ducks too if we stay put." It might be a bad call, but Rick knew well enough that acting quickly was more important than being 100% right. Listening for movement, he waved Slash forward. "Let's go, and try not to get seen."
Slash glanced at Jessie, then nodded and slunk ahead with his nose to the ground. "This way."
(sorry im in the middle of an internship, strangely time consuming :')
The more they walked the steadier Tessa walked, and eventually she grabbed Charlotte around the waist to support her; despite the hand clutching her injured shoulder, she was losing a fair amount of blood. They took the staircase carefully as fast as they could manage, ending up in another hall.
Tessa looked around wildly, stumbling slightly under Charlotte's weight.
"We can't be far from where we left them. Maybe a couple corners." Charlotte nodded silently.
Jessie followed them, her hands shaking. Scared as she was of Axel and his soldiers, making sure everyone was safe was enough of an incentive.
She followed Slash carefully, each step a thoughtful quiet one.
(All good! This is my only active rp at the moment so you don't have much competition lol)
Slash caught the scent of blood just as he picked up the trail in earnest, and broke into a trot. Around a corner, down another hall, through a set of swinging doors—and there they were.
"I found them!" Slash bounded forward, his ears pulled back in concern as he saw the state they were in. "Charlotte's hurt!"
Rick was there instantly and got on Charlotte's other side, supporting her to the nearest door and kicking it open. Slash went in to check for danger without needing to be told, but found nothing, only dusty boxes and shelves of preserved food. He made sure everyone was inside before shutting the door and sitting against it so they wouldn't be disturbed.
Setting Charlotte by an empty wall, Rick pulled out a penlight and hooked it to his vest, briskly unpacking his small medical kit. "Everybody take a rest. Treat your wounds." Carefully, he cut away the cloth around Charlotte's shoulder and winced slightly at the sight. "Well, Green Mother Mary. You're lucky you jus' got grazed here. Hold still, I'll stitch 'er up and get you some painkiller right quick." He guessed that if Charlotte was still able to continue the mission after this, she wouldn't want to loiter around for long. "Now can you tell me what happened?"
Tessa leaned against the wall next to the door, grateful for a real opportunity to catch her breath, but aware of the urgency outside this shelter.
"No time. There are guards on our trail and Axel knows we're here. Probably securing Will as we speak. We need to search the building, find Will, and get out of here, without being hurt."
Charlotte grabbed Rick by the arm. "Stop, she's right. We have to get going. Just wrap it tight and I can be on my feet. We need to find Will." She said this slowly, mostly out of weakness but also out of fear. If they failed this, who knew what was going to follow? She searched Rick's face desperately, begging him to understand and let her continue.
Rick gave Charlotte a searching look in return, trying to decide whether she could truly keep going. Whatever he saw, it either met his requirements or overrode them, because he let out a breath and did as she asked. "All right. Y'all check your weapons and get ready to run. Tessa, you help Slash figure out Will's scent so he can track him down. I jus' need one minute to get Charlotte on her feet."
When plans went sideways, it was important to pick a leader and respect their commands. In this case Rick fully accepted Charlotte's leadership, and was determined to throw everything he had into this fight of hers. He hadn't realized it before, but their current mission was much more noble than any mercenary job, and that felt good. The last thing he wanted now was to walk away empty-handed.
(okay damn I don't remember how old I had will be it's fine)
Tessa nodded and beckoned to the boy. Charlotte pushed herself further up against the wall and offered Rick her shoulder. Jessie hovered and instant before going to kneel near Charlotte and waiting near her, using the familiarity of someone she loved to slow her heart rate and stop her hands shaking.
"Well," Tessa began. "He's a fourteen year old boy, so whatever that smells like. I would easily bet he smells like sweat, and strongly of soap and other care products. I think he smells like someone who tries to smell good. He probably smells… anxious? And of uniforms." She paused, frowning. "I don't know. What do you look for in smells?"
(lol I feel that)
Slash was already sorting through the currents of stale air with great concentration. So far, there were too many aromas that matched Tessa's description. "Well, he's human right? Is he related to any of you? What's his mood usually? Uh….how strong is he? I mean, how high is his rank around here, and is he confident or nah? Does he push others around or get pushed around? I guess that's all."
Tessa frowned. "Okay. Um, let's see. Not blood-related, but he and Jessie spent all their time together as kids. He's very sullen and quiet these days, and right now probably terrified and missing me. He's not strong, more fast. Good reflexes. Not confident, but makes a good front of it. He generally commands respect really well and is one official rank below me. He doesn't push around, but he definitely gives orders and they get obeyed." Moisture threatened to seep from her eyes, but she frowned harder and dispelled her anxious thoughts.
Slash listened closely, then nodded and checked again. It took him a moment, but eventually he perked up and moved closer to the door. "Okay, found him. He's getting farther away though."
"I'm just cleanin' up here," Rick promised, tightening Charlotte's bandages and quickly packing away his medkit. "Let's see you stand up, Charlotte. How's it feel? Think you can handle the stairs?"
She stood up quickly, too quickly, and swayed a moment. "Yes," she said weakly, cleared her throat. "All good. Let's go."
Jessie didn't dare look at her but nodded. Tessa thanked Slash and squared her shoulders. Let's go.
She went for the door, paused, pulled it open carefully. "Sounds like the coast is clear. Everybody ready?"
(sorry I'm late and for the short reply ^^; )
Rick gave Tessa a thumbs up. "I'll be right behind y'all."
Slash inhaled one last time to fix the scent in his mind, then slipped into the hall as quietly as possible. Pausing to make sure everyone followed, he set off back the way Charlotte and Tessa had come from, his ears flicking nervously at every distant shout or slamming door.
(sorry I'm at a super intense camp right now give me a couple days)
(All good, take your time! ^^)
(alrighty!!)
Charlotte followed, hobbling slightly, keeping her footsteps even and silent as possible. Jessie followed behind her, a hand stretched out to catch Charlotte if she were to fall. Tessa, in front of both them, worried at her lip, every sense heightened, focused on Slash's figure in front of her.
Her heart hammered in her ribcage, seeming to reach desperately for Will, wherever he was.
Slash felt good. Waiting and hiding were two of his least favorite things, and not knowing what to do came in at a close third. Now that he was on the move, boldly navigating enemy territory with a simple yet crucial mission clear in his mind, all his unease and unhappiness left him. He threw all his focus into following the scent trail, and would have broke into a run had he not needed to stay with his companions. The trail led him through the deceptively large building, around corners and up some stairs, until he suddenly skidded to a halt in front of a square window cut out of the wall. Through it came a blast of fresh air, and Slash realized with a jolt that his target was somewhere outside. The draft from the window had lured him up instead of out.
"Uh….he's out there somewhere," he said, putting his front paws on the sill to scan the terrain. In the reddish morning light, he saw a walled-in compound with a training yard, a large storehouse across the way, a row of spartan barracks, and a small collection of parked vehicles. People were running around the courtyard and gathering against the wall, seemingly preparing to defend the exits. Slash's sharp eyes spotted a pale man shouting orders—was this Axel? He'd never seen the man himself—and gripping the arm of a young boy tightly. They were slowly but steadily fighting their way towards the vehicles.
Rick saw what Slash saw and bit back a curse. Entering that crowded yard would be stupidly dangerous, but Axel was about to escape. They had barely any time.
"Charlotte," he said. "We're fixing to lose our own way outta here if we let 'em surround us. I'm thinkin' we need a diversion. Am I clear to make that happen?" He had a vague plan, but wanted to double-check that Charlotte didn't have a better one first.
Charlotte took in the scene, her stomach dropping to the floor. This wasn't good.
Without knowing what he was planning to do Charlotte waved her assent to Rick, eyes fixed on Axel desperately forcing himself and Will out of the crowd.
"Make it loud," Charlotte told Rick. Jessie was held back from running straight for her brother only by the hard quality of Charlotte's voice. If that told her anything, is was that they weren't leaving here without Will, no matter what it took.
Tessa on the other hand, was processing Rick and Charlotte seeming to have a plan with the dire situation before them. There were only so many solutions– halting the barricading process, getting Will, finding a way out. A diversion did seem like their best option. Chaos meant extra time.
(long reply again ^^; )
As soon as Charlotte nodded, Rick turned to Slash. "You feel up to a scuffle, son?"
Slash straightened. "With those guys? Yeah."
"You know how to make a storm?"
"Sure."
Rick took him by the shoulders. "Make a big one. Go out there and get as many of them lookin' at you as you can. We need 'em to forget about the rest of us so's we can follow Axel. But don't get y'self hurt, hear? You gotta come after us before you get swamped, 'cause we'll be too busy to bail you out. Understand?"
Slash saw the older man was serious and ducked his head in assent. "Okay."
Stepping back to the window, he shifted into the huge pine marten, crouching on the sill as spiny green fins sprouted from his jaw, his shoulders, his back. His fur bristled and his green eyes shimmered. His form filled the window, and he let out a powerful roar, which rang across the compound like cannon fire. The soldiers down below all froze, looking up with cries of alarm.
Slash concentrated. Previously, all he'd tried to do was summon mist, or cold, or maybe some light rain. But this time he threw all his energy into the sky, reaching out and grabbing it, twisting and pulling it back down as hard as he could.
The temperature dropped like a stone. A sudden breeze sprang up, going first north and then south with violent inconsistency. Condensation gathered on the walls and the tips of Slash's whiskers. He smelled the lightning before it flashed from suddenly boiling clouds, which appeared directly overhead and reached for the ground in ragged streaks. The thunder was loud enough to make his bones buzz.
Slash roared once more, thrilled by his own success. Then he leaped out of the window, lunging straight for the soldiers. The wind and rain followed him with equal fierceness, and soon the compound was in total pandemonium.
Rick was already moving, pulling a coil of rope from his pack. "Okay, I'll lower everybody out the window. Tessa first, then Charlotte. Let's get a move on while they're busy."
Tessa watched slack-jawed as Slash single-handedly drowned the courtyard in noise, rain, and confusion. Jessie was even momentarily distracted from her rage to admire the power that was suddenly pulsing from him, and wondered how she ever could have missed it.
Charlotte pushed them both forward and Tessa rushed to get herself up onto the windowsill.
Charlotte watched as the rope was secured around Tessa, positively shaking with adrenaline despite exhaustion steadily working its way through her veins.
Rick opened a door in the wall across from the window, ripped out the doorknob with his bare hands, and threaded the free end of the rope through the hole left behind. Then he helped Tessa through the window, told her to stand guard once she hit the ground, and lowered her down as if she weighed nothing. Once the she was free of the rope, he pulled it back up and handed it to Charlotte. "Your turn. Don't get the dizzies and fall, now." Part of him worried she was already in no state to climb, let alone give chase after a madman in a jeep. But they couldn't slow down now. At the very least they had to escape the fortress in one piece.
(sorry!!! Someone else was fronting the entire day today I couldn't do much)
Tessa leapt down and landed softly. The people barricading the doors had already scattered slightly to one side in an attempt to keep safe, but the chaos of a moving crowd had pushed Axel and Will even further back into the courtyard, though at least further from the vehicles.
Charlotte let her gaze linger on Rick for an instant before following Tessa out. The latter reached out to stabilise her landing and didn't let go until Charlotte seemed steady on her feet. As soon as she was able Charlotte followed the wall carefully; she reached a crowded spot and threw herself forward, fighting through the shouting bodies to find a way forward.
Rick saw them charge off and quickened his pace, lowering Jessie down as quickly as he could without dropping her. Then he wrapped his end of the rope around his hand, grabbed it where it came back through the hole in the door, and rappelled himself down the outside wall by carefully loosening his grip on the longer part of the rope bit by bit. He was glad he had a strong upper body and was wearing gloves, because it was a hasty, dangerous stunt that would have had his father yelling at him for a week. As it was, by the time he was hanging from both ends of the rope, he was still a few feet from the ground, and had to let go with one hand and fall the rest of the way.
As soon as he had landed, he pulled the rope after him and coiled it around one arm as he dashed to catch up with the girls. Stealing a glance at Slash, he was satisfied to see that the young Deorn was still the center of a cyclone—both one made of rain and wind, and one of leaping soldiers and flashing weapons. The storm was so focused on this small spot that its intensity was blinding. Rick did his best to use that to his advantage and knock down as many enemies as he could on his way.
On the other side of the chaos, Axel was still dragging Will towards the storage buildings with grim determination. There were more vehicles in there. It would be fine. He just needed a tiny head start, and they could get away through the unguarded back gate. But when he glanced over his shoulder, he saw Charlotte and her friends still following him, somehow. The sight filled him with fury and desperation in equal measure. He squeezed Will's shoulder, trying to cut some of the wildness from his voice. "It's all right, just keep moving. I won't let them get you."
Tessa sent Jessie in front of her and brought up the rear; Tessa fought off the soldiers coming up to them from behind, and even Jessie held her ground against the men that came for her.
Up at the front, you couldn't even tell Charlotte was injured. She fought with such fervor that a few soldiers even backed away to watch her send their comrades to the floor. She kicked up a real commotion around her, and Will dared a glance backwards to see what was going on. He first saw Charlotte, bleeding and filthy but fighting harder than he'd ever seen, than he could remember. He saw Tessa, and longed to call for her, Axel's iron grip on his arm throbbing with every time he was yanked forward. And he saw a soldier fall next to Tessa, and finally Jessie was there. Will couldn't contain the cry of surprise that escaped him. His sisters were right there, so near.
Then Axel's voice reached him, assuring him that everything would be alright if he just kept moving.
Tessa looked up at the sound of Will's voice, his cry. Had he been hurt? For the first time her hands shook, her voice broke. "Will!" she screamed over the heads of soldiers and allies. "Will, please!"
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