Hillman Compound
[COLOR=Red]Located in the industrial district, along the waterfront were 2 miles of nothing but warehouses. Some of the larger warehouses were fifty thousand square feet of storage and some were filled to capacity. On the south end, standing pristine and new, was Hillman compound, known formerly as Hillman, Inc. This is where the multi-millionaire stored his luxury items, docked his yachts and kept his precious things hidden away.
The warehouse itself was made of concrete and boasted security guards around its surrounding electrical fence. No one could come within 500 feet of Hillman, Inc without being thoroughly accosted by a gruff looking security guard with bad breath.
State of the art security and fifty cameras surveyed the premises. There were four check points and one main entrance. The surrounding warehouses have been bought and cleared out by Hillman, Inc and not a soul interrupted whatever went on down on the south end of the docks.[/COLOR]
She wanted to indulge in speculation regarding what was heard over the earpiece, from the sound of it couldn't be good. However, she shut off that part of her brain when ordered to move in.
Good.
No hesitation she made her way in. She wasn't particularly worried about being shot, it would hurt but she'd manage. Not able to blend, but keeping to what ever shadow she could find Val neatly picked off guards and advanced on the building intent on setting the explosives she'd been given.
She moved with speed and efficiency toward the door on her side and went in. 'Ok this is too easy.' She set her charge in the room and moved on. There was four other charges to set on this portion of the compound before moving to the elevator.
Ginnie pried open the door of the first shaft, leaned over the side and set her charge. As she stood, she felt the air rush from her body as a foot was planted squarely in her back.
"Son of a bitch!" She pushed herself up and spun around in the same movement and nearly fell back over laughing. It was a tiny little female guard. What the fuck was Hillman thinking. Then again that kick hurt like a bitch. Ginnie knew the woman had power, but still this might actually be fun. Though she really just needed to kill the woman and be on her way.
"Yeah, I really don't have time to play games right now, so..." Almost before the woman could blink Ginnie had pulled her Brownings and was firing. The little blondes body jerked backward with each shot and by the time the clips were half empty she was sliding down the wall a bloody mess.
"This is Ginnie. No worries, I'm alright. Guard nearly got the better of me, but I don't think we need to worry about her anymore."
She rolled her shoulders, feeling the already healing bruise on the middle of her back. 'That really was a low blow, the bitch.' She pried open the second door, looked up and down the hall, and leaned over the edge to plant her charge.
"If it's possible, warn me next time, huh?"
She finished up the other elevators, climbed over the edge of the last one and using a hand clamp, slid down the lines to the next floor. She pried open that door and set out to plant the rest of her charges. She knew there wasn't much time left and she wanted to get back above ground before setting this shit off.
Mathias brought the rifle up and triggered a 3 round burst. A guard spun around and down. He noted the recoil and made his adjustments. The next burst caught a guard in the head. Less chance of kevlar there. Move. Fire. Adjust. It wasn't a blur,but combat to Mathias had become a well rehearsed dance.
One which he knew the all the steps.
They all stopped and a quiet hush fell over the control room. Only an occasional beep and whir could be heard. Carol's expression changed, from shock to confusion.
'What...' was all she could muster, it was Merc #2 that finished her thought.
'...the fuck happened to Ellis?'
What they saw on the screen was beyond words. It was Ellis, at least, they thought it was Ellis. It looked...like her, somewhat.
Merc #1 stammered, 'That power drain registered at about a bajillion volts. That can't be her.'
Carol whispered, 'I know.'
'There's no way.'
Carol replied, 'I know.' She pointed at the screen. 'Simon, Ellis is uh...alive. We think.'
Finishing setting the charge in the last of the mechanical control rooms, Alec paused. "We think? What the hell does that mean?"
I am in position above elevator shaft three. All mechanical and electrical charges are set. Um...requesting clarification on Ellis' status. Is she in need of backup? I have the most direct route.
Waiting for a response, Alec popped down along the main support beam adjacent to shaft three, setting charges while he awaited a response.
The scientist looked up from his crumbled position in the corner by the door. 'We have to get out of here.' Slowly he stood, looking down at his feet when suddenly an ear piercing scream came from the next room.
A cold sweat broke out over Kyle as his eyes widened at the noise. Both he and the scientist jumped at the blood curdling noise. The scientist lunged for the door.
'WE HAVE TO GET OUT OF HERE. OPEN! OPEN!!!!'
CRACK.
Kyle threw his arms up as the steel door was kicked in with such force, it knocked the scientist back against the wall in the corner, smashing his head open. The blood spatter caught Kyle on the face in an angry diagonal spray. What walked in the door made Kyle's blood run cold. No more wanting to throw up, instead his knees buckled and he fell back onto the floor, looking up at the creature walking in.
Whatever it was, it was human once and female. Blood dripped from lips of the once woman and patches of new skin were mixed in with burnt, black crisps of flesh.
'Fuck...me,' groaned Kyle as he pulled himself backwards on the ground, away from the door. The burnt woman came in and with twinkling green eyes, gave Kyle a wink and a grin.
'No, finish planting the charges. You'll have more to deal with doing that then going for Ellis. Whatever happened to her, she must be alive. Give me the location of her level, Carol.'
Simon reloaded the gun in his right hand and shoved the clip home on his opposite palm. His hope that Hillman would finish Ellis was now dashed. No one could reach Ellis before he could. Although he wasn't sure what he would do when he did.
The compound was eerily familiar to the Domicile that the hallways all led to main elevators. He made it to the main elevator on the main floor, not without taking several direct hits in his chest and shoulders. The thin layer of experimental kevlar in his tunic helped him resist piercing. The less blood he lost, the better.
Simon stood at the elevator and was not happy about the key entry. 'Carol, open the main floor elevators. Uh...' there were several on the level and they were not marked. 'Open them all.'
Carol found Simon on the elevator camera and forced the elevator's program to take him to Ellis' level. About 15 seconds into the process, the elevator retook control. 'Oh no you fucking DIDN'T.'
Merc #1 turned to Carol, 'They're trying to override our control.'
'Yeah, caught that.' They struggled with the program and in the corner of her eye could see more guards coming down the hallways where Simon was stuck in between. For now he was safe, until they decided to jump down and visit him.
It was almost as if the override program knew what they were using to counteract it. Then it hit Carol, like a jackhammer between the eyes. 'Simon,' she started. She had forgotten when the Merc had noticed, but it was falling into place now. Of course they knew what program they were using. They knew where to try and trap them with the traitor clan members and more importantly, they knew where to find the beast.
'The only way they'd know even half the things they do, is if someone...someone high up...told them.'
Yes sir.
Climbing down the slick surface, he heard one of the great hydraulic systems kicking in. Looking down, an elevator was coming up toward him quickly. Timing it, he stepped onto the top of the elevator and then off onto the central support cables between elevators. Waiting a moment, he stepped off, and resumed his way down the shaft, placing charges along the way. Complete with this primary support, he stepped onto another upward bound elevator.
Wait. Upward bound elevator...
Folks, there are elevators headed upward. Hostiles incoming. Main elevator support charges are all set. Starting the spiral on floor three. Shoot some bad guys in the face for me, y'all.
Hopping from one support beam to another, Alec made his way to the Floor Three ventilation system, only to discover that it wasn't quite up to code, and he wouldn't be able to fit. Grumbling, he headed to the elevator door. Opening it, he headed silently for his first charge point on three - a secondary support beam. He doubted that it would be a clear run...so far things weren't working out at all according to plan. "Here's to hoping..."
With methodical precision Mathias began clearing his way towards the entrance. He felt the tug as bullets found their mark on him. He wasn't walking into the storm of bullets,but his focus was more on forward movement than dodging attacks.
"Moving in, I need eyes"
Mathias moved to one of the hallway corners,pulling back as he was greeted with a hail of gunfire. There was a group of 5 guards further down,who had set up an ambush position. Risking another peek he tried to get a 'feel' for the group. They seemed to be a standard group,although one of them appeared to be in charge,or at least was taking that role. Mathias triggered a 3 round burst at him,only to be rewarded with his rifle jamming. Dammit, I thought the British were good at gunmaking he cursed,slinging the rifle and pulling one of his pistols.
"I have 5 hostiles,hallway 3 - throwing flash bang"
Grabbing one of his grenades,Mathias popped the pin off and threw it in one move,his unnatural agility guiding it exactly between the group of guards. Ducking back,he saw the reflection of the flash and heard a loud *BANG* as it went off,followed by the screams of the now blind and deaf guards.
"Moving in"
Putting a bullet in each struggling guard,Mathias made his way towards the elevator. *bam* 1 *bam* 2 *bam* 3 *bam* 4
Wait...was fi
The air rushed from his lungs as Mathias was violently slammed against the wall by the fifth guard - the one Mathias saw directing the others. He pulled off his tinted goggles and Mathias could see some sort of ear protection. Clever mortal he thought , twisting and throwing a punch at the guard's head...
..which was caught unnaturally quick - Mathias blow was stopped and again he was flung violently against a wall.
Ok...this could be a problem
He knew he should finish this bloodsucker quick,that others were likely following,but he wanted him to suffer and feel defeat. Johnson threw the man against the wall again,listening for a satisfying crunch.
"How's it feel to be on the other side of the equation now,huh??"
She set her last charge on the support beam of her least assigned floor and made her way to the elevators. They were, for now, the only viable escape route. She slid around the corner and found herself face to face with six very big men in black.
"Fuck."
Both pistols were out and firing when the drew as one. She had managed to take out three and began to dive around the corner when the first shots rang out. Pain like nothing she had ever felt before seared up her leg as she landed. Ginnie looked down at her right thigh and found a growing stain on her jeans. The bastards had actually shot her. 'God damn it.'
"I'm hit. Trying to make my way out."
She pulled her legs underneath her and stood, wincing as her injured leg took weight. She peeked around the corner and drew back as gun shots flew through the air. She took a deep breath, cocked her own guns and stepped out from behind the wall firing. Shortly the only shots ringing were her's and she lowered her weapons. Panting she released her clips and pulled new ones from a pocket. She snapped them home and moved to an elevator. She pried open the doors, attached a hand clamps to the wires and began to ascend the shaft.
Her leg throbbed as she felt blood run down and begin to drip off of her boot. The bullet or perhaps bullets had gone clear through. She could feel the ripped muscle and ligaments and the leg seemed to weigh more as she struggled up the lines. Gun shots did not heal as quickly as other wounds and she began to feel light headed as her life force dripped slowly down her leg.
The elevator beneath her began to ascend and she stopped moving to wait on it. She dropped to the roof and listened for voices inside. Hearing none she popped open the maintainance panel and peek inside trough a small crack. The car was empty.
She pulled open the hatch and dropped heavily inside. She leaned gratefully against a the door wall, hiding herself, knowing that where ever this thing stopped it would be letting on guards. The car slowed and, she was happy to see, stopped at the ground level. The tiny ding sounded and she started firing as the door opened. She had no idea if the guns shooting back at her were friendly or not and she didn't feel like taking a bullet to find out.
A searing pain rent through her shoulder and she very nearly dropped her gun. She let out a scream of pain laid down a shower of fire and bolted for the front door.
"Asshole. He fucking shot me the back."
She made it into the van and motioned to the Merc serving as sentry. She gave him a weak smile and asked for his hand. Then spoke formally.
"This is Ginnie. I have multiple gunshot wounds. I have planted all my charges. Awaiting orders to detonate. Ginnie out."
At which point she sank her fangs deep into the wrist of the tall blond Merc. Sometimes you fed on your own just to survive.
Turning to Merc #2 she barked, 'Give me the visual on Mathias, I'll work on the elevators.'
Merc #2 whistled when he found him, 'Got him. He's fighting a human...I think.'
Carol closed her eyes, she knew one of the guards would have eternity. Mathias had age on his side so her attention went back to Simon.
'Do you understand, Simon? There are only four people in the world that have that information.' She took a breath, 'You...me...Marthinus and...god damnit, all this time, Simon. The ENTIRE time. It was never about the money or building up Tacharan.'
Her mind reeled. Her loyalties already swayed, she could not believe what she was about to say. Her three years as a human familiar in the clan had been a lifetime to her. What she had seen, been allowed to see, the things she had done for her.
'For fuck sakes, Simon. Ellis sold us out.'
Simon put his hands on the elevator door and rested his head against the cold steel. He could barely fathom how deep Ellis treachery really went. She not only betrayed the clan, but her species by not only selling out and harvesting her kind, but by partnering up with Hillman. It all made sense. It wasn't just the Mercs or a hacker, it was their leader. How deep her hatred must run for the Elders.
'Alright,' he said slowly. Looking up he jumped and pushed open the elevators cubby hole. Pulling himself up and out, he looked around. There were ten sub levels. He was in between the sixth and seventh. 'I'll take care of it. What level is Ellis on?'
'If you go on foot...they're everywhere.'
Simon took out his weapon and pointed it towards the cable above his hand. He took a deep breath and turned his face away.
SNAP.
The severed cable snapped around as the elevator started its decent. Flashing past the seventh, Simon leapt forward and grabbed onto the frame just as the box passed the eighth floor. He clung there precariously as the elevator smashed to the bottom level. Hanging onto the bottom right hand corner of the frame, he looked around for something to pull himself up on.
Turning to leave, his ears caught a hint of sound just before an individual turned and dropped his coffee tray at the carnage in the room. As the man reached for both his weapon and his gun, Alec dove into him, knocking his gun and walkie away. Despite landing on top of the geek, Alec wasn't as in control of the situation as he'd have liked, his groin painfully violated by the man's knee during the fall. Using his momentum, he latched on to the man and headbutted him in the nose and mouth, hearing the satisfying snap of teeth and breaking of cartilage. Despite the cut the teeth had given him, Alec continued his assault, driving his forehead into the man's face until his arms stopped twitching. Wiping his goggles clean on the man's cuff, Alec stood. Time to go to the next floor.
At that moment, he heard the sound that he'd been dreading, Ginnie's voice, but not happy as it usually was.
I'm hit. Trying to make my way out.
Merde. Merdemerdemerdemerdemerde. Simon had ordered him to continue, but Alec's emotions warred with his common sense. Ginnie was a big girl and had been doing things of this sort for hundreds of years before he existed. What help could he really bring her? But not helping...how could he do that? Clenching his teeth, he steeled his resolve. Finish the mission. "She CAN take care of herself...she's packing more firepower than that squad you just avoided and you just got kneed in the balls and cut on the head by one of their fucking programmers. Finish the job."
Dropping down the elevator shaft two levels, he squeezed into the ventilation and quickly crawled toward his destination, when he heard another outburst he really did not want to hear.
Asshole. He fucking shot me in the back.
Clenching his teeth, he sped up. He wasn't quite silent, but he'd finish the floor in two minutes. Hopefully he wouldn't be needed up top, but they needed to get this wrapped up and things weren't looking all sunshiny as they had before. Finally, some good news came.
This is Ginnie. I have multiple gunshot wounds. I have planted all my charges. Awaiting orders to detonate. Ginnie out.
Well, that was a relief. Now he could focus on the task at hand. Not trusting himself to say anything over the mic at this point, he stayed silent. Speeding through his crawlspaces, he set the charges for the next two floors without incident. Hopefully the final would be easy as well, but it had looked to be fairly well honeycombed, and one was a security level. That could be problematic.
You...me...Marthinus and...god damnit, all this time, Simon. The ENTIRE time. It was never about the money or building up Tacharan. For fuck sakes, Simon. Ellis sold us out.
Wait...Ellis had sold them out? That simply didn't make sense. Obviously, things were getting out of control everywhere. How could she have done that? Wasn't she hurt?
Stop. Stop thinking, stupid. Do the job in front of you. One more floor.
Leaning heavily against the side of the van she stripped of her jeans and looked at the mess of her leg. She had in fact sustained three gunshot wounds in her thigh, each lancing clear through leaving six holes in her leg. She cursed softly under her breath and pulled a spare pair of jeans out of a black bag between the front seats and pulled them on. When she turned around the Merc was still staring at her.
Chuckling softly she limped over to him and patted him gently on the shoulder.
"It's ok, mate. You did a right good turn for me. I owe you one."
He blinked at her and she tried hard not to laugh as he looked from her to his wrist to the bulge in his pants.
"First time since you were turned huh? It's alright. It will go away." She patted him again and fished the detonator out of her bloody pants and then planted her weary ass in the chair to look out the window, awaiting orders. She really wished Alec would report in. She sorely need to hear his voice and see his face. She glanced back at the Merc who was adjusting himself, and had to suppress another laugh.
((ooc feel free to have Ginnie blow the place to bits. I won't be posting again until after the Holidays. Good Luck all!))
The guards by the dockside entrance were dead before she had taken two steps. She spun around, looking for the shooter, and saw a blur of a figure moving through the entrance.
Christ. I don’t even have my revolver out.
Remedying that problem as she jogged past the two bodies, she ended up following a trail of corpses through the winding halls. She could hear the others speaking and was reasonably certain they were talking English but the words just weren’t registering. Something was wrong, she could tell that much, and she was supposed to be getting further in, but the corridors seemed to never end.
She hesitated for just a moment when the main hallway split off, then turned left, nearly tripping over another dead body.
Said dead body grabbed her ankle and pulled, hard.
Okay, maybe not so dead.
She swung her revolver, smacking her opponent hard in the temple as she crashed to the floor. The fighter, a man that Nova realized was, to put it mildly, fucking enormous, grunted harshly before reaching for her throat. She rolled and kicked but he reached his goal faster than she would have believed and she felt the hand that must have been the size of a god damn tennis racket close around her neck. His knee was on her shoulder and her free arm had no room to take a swing…
She realized with an odd sort of clarity one simple fact: she had a gun in her hand. A gun, not a god damn hammer, though one would have thought otherwise by the way she was swinging the fucking thing rather than shooting.
She had a gun. And he didn’t.
She fired, and how she managed to miss at that close of a range she would never know. It was pure luck that that gunshot went straight through the plastered ceiling and brought an impressive hunk of rubble down on her opponent’s head.
Nova made a mental note to reconsider her religious beliefs at some point.
She did her best to struggle out from under the massive unconscious form, though that was proving to be an adventure in and of itself. He was still alive, it seemed, though certainly dying. She wondered if she should shoot him again just to make sure, or if she maybe ought to keep moving, then decided to take it one step at a time.
That’s when the elevator doors opened and half a dozen black clad people stepped out.
Nova slumped back to the floor and closed her eyes, waiting for them to pass. She hoped none of her people were close by; she couldn’t warn them about what she was going to do lest she give away her position, and to be honest she wouldn’t have known what to tell them anyway, considering she had absolutely no idea of where she was.
She made a mental note to fix her geographically challenged brain as soon as possible, then cracked her eye open. It seemed her ‘playing dead’ act had worked fairly successfully, and she very carefully reached into her pocket for Ginnie’s super pen. Twisting it open and throwing it, she had a split second to follow its trajectory before something slammed into her skull from behind and the world exploded into light.