Baterilla Under Attack! [Mission]

[Victoria Locke]

So far things were going relatively well. Victoria’s squad was still alive and functional. They had successfully retaken the area around den den mushi tower and captured three terrorists for interrogation. The strange den den mushi was still giving some trouble, but now it was only a matter of time until they could regain communications. Victoria walked around, keeping a close eye on how things were progressing. Overall, she was proud that she had managed to keep things under control without accidentally shooting her comrades. Considering her unfortunate records, it was some sort of achievement really. Perhaps she could have a future as a squad leader like her father after all.

And speaking of leaders...

A sudden round of mutters and new set of footsteps marked the return of the Agent. Victoria turned around to greet her superior, smiling a little at how well things were turning out. Unfortunately, that pleasant feeling was shattered in an instant. Even with the adrenaline from her Gunslinger’s Flow still lingering, the pure shock made her heart stop for a moment. Her superior, the inhumanly powerful Agent of Government, had been badly injured by the unknown enemy. How was this even possible? She had survived an explosion without even flinching. What kind of monster were they dealing with? The uncertainty was quickly driving the Petty Officer to the edge of panic.

Instead of dwelling on the questions further, Victoria tried to clear her head and make sense of the new piece of information. Confusion and disbelief mixed on her features. Haki? The term did sound bit familiar. She had heard rumors about people who could use their inner power to fight, but... Those were supposed to be just stories told at bars to pass time. In other words, she had no credible knowledge about it. The uncertainty irked her, but she didn’t question her superior. If the Agent said their enemy used Haki, whatever that was, then they had to be prepared for it. The Marine simply nodded in response, deciding to keep her eyes open for anything suspicious.

It now became apparent that situation wasn’t as rosy as Victoria had thought. The last command got every Marine present silent. In such atmosphere, before such brutal honesty, paralyzing doubts spread quickly and overwhelmed weaker soldiers. However, Victoria stepped forward and spoke up with unwavering confidence. "Ma’am, we will fight by your side even if it kills all of us." Her temporary squad joined her, grabbing their rifles and taking formation behind her. While they shared their confidence, none of them knew just how far Victoria was willing to go for that promise. For a moment, her hand hovered over the pocked holding her trump card before she decided to grab her shotgun instead.

But perhaps her superior deserved to know what she had in mind...

The adrenaline rush passed and pain returned to Victoria’s hip. To fight her now visible nervousness, she stepped closer to her superior. "What is our plan, ma’am?" No doubt they were going to need a strategy against an opponent of this caliber. Glancing down, she slipped her hand into her pocket and revealed a black detonator. "Ma’am... If there’s a need for desperate measures..." She hesitated for a moment. So far, he superiors had never approved this mindset. Suddenly, she lifted her gaze and returned the detonator to her pocket. "Throw me at the enemy. I can handle it." There was no fear or hesitation, only the determination to survive.

Days of agony or even the risk of death had no hold over her.

[Emma T. Baskerville]

She had not expected the soldiers to become so demoralized by her words. Either she was not thinking as clearly as she ought to, or her own abilities of imagination and oratory were deserting her along with her physical strength. Regardless, she needed them here. If not as soldiers, then at least as people.

Like usual, Victoria walked forward, confidently ushering in a dozen or so of firefight-hardened marines.

The agent's brow furrowed at the sight of the detonator. A suicide attack?

No. They were not quite so far gone, not yet. Baskerville shook her head slightly, a single negation that put an end to any such plans. She appreciated the gesture though, it was rare to find soldiers that understood what exactly a desperate measure meant and fewer still that realized that what greased the wheels of Justice was not Glory but Blood.

Still, she'd have to call for a more in-depth psych evaluation for the promising Petty Officer. Such a disregard for personal safety would explain why she had not been promoted any further: there were few commanders that wanted suicide-prone soldiers in charge of other soldiers. They tended not to last very long, and neither did their charges.

Now if it was a simple issue of war arithmetic, the balancing of life against a gain made counter the enemy, that was to a move to be lauded.

If it was a defect of personality, the result of a childhood trauma, or a lack of will to live, well, that was not so easy to work with.

But Baskerville understood, with a sort of intuitive grace, that Petty Officer Locke wouldn't kill herself for the hell of it. It was not depression that animated her each and every move, melancholy such as that was a paralytic. Devotion to a cause greater than oneself, that was the sort of thing that created martyrs. She just had to be prodded into seeing her continued survival as being equally important as the goal.

"Organize your men into two teams, have them lay down a layer of covering fire as I engage the enemy. He'll be coming out through this exit, here any moment now - haki is only as powerful as the man that uses it. Make every bullet count. Do not worry about me, I have my own means of dealing with bullets."

But just in case... as she strode by locke, she whispered: "Where are the bombs?"

[/justify]

[Victoria Locke]

It didn’t really surprise Victoria that the Agent turned down her plan. As usual, she didn’t argue with the decision and only nodded in understanding. She had seen that disapproving look countless times from different people. They couldn’t understand what she hoped to achieve with such a dangerous weapon. Many of her comrades had tried to change her mind about the bombs, but she was a stubborn woman when it came to certain things. Of course, she was glad that people cared about her, but she was also convinced that this was how she, a lone Marine, could make a difference one day. No sacrifice was too great if it was for her superiors, for fellow Marines, for the Government.

As expected, the Agent had a plan ready. It was a simple, though only because they didn’t have to worry about friendly fire. After seeing how the Agent had dealt with the explosion, Victoria had a hunch why bullets wouldn’t be a problem. She turned around and faced the squad. "Alright men! I want three of you on the left and three to the right. Aim at the exit. When you see the enemy, don’t stop shooting until I say so. He’s a tough one." They followed the order without hesitation and got into their assigned positions. Each of them prepared their weapon took aim at the exit, ready to open fire upon spotting any movement.

When the Agent suddenly asked about the bombs, Victoria was caught off-guard. She certainly hadn’t expected this, but she didn’t complain either. Perhaps her superior had simply changed her mind. Victoria pulled her coat open and revealed a black leather vest. It looked normal enough, though quite thick. Glancing around nervously, she returned the whisper. "Right here, ma’am." To prove her words, she tapped the vest, briefly drumming her fingers on one of the hard slabs hidden beneath the leather. If the Agent touched the vest, she could’ve felt the small pieces sewn into neat rows. They were too light and brittle to provide any real protection, but together they could create a heavy blast.

While waiting for further instructions or comments, Victoria grabbed her shotgun and quickly checked that it was fully loaded. She didn’t bother closing her coat as there were far bigger things to worry about. Her eyes briefly visited the exit they were guarding and her fingers twitched. That... monster from earlier was coming. She had a feeling she would be going through a lot of lead. Luckily, they still had the Agent on their side. Without her... No, she didn’t even want to think what would’ve happened without her.

[Emma T. Baskerville]

"When and only when I give the signal, arm and throw them," the Agent instructed. Although probably not packing enough of a punch to make it through a true haki with the color of armor, there was a high likelihood that this particular malefactor had been chased clear out of the New World and retired to this most Blues to carry out some sort of pointless act of aggression. He was fearsome, competent, but probably not a true monster, not even close to the level of an admiral or a vice-admiral. He could still be beaten.

Maybe even without the help of the bombs.

"Do not worry about the speed, I will take care of it," the Agent promised.

As if he'd been waiting for those very words, the enemy stormed out of the marine base, shattering the walls and leaving behind a billowing cloud of dust that tore out of the broken dust. The alarm was raised, bullets tore through the air, as did the accompanying sound of a certain agent hitting the ground ten times before dashing off to meet her foe.

They met again. The sword didn't break as it impacted his fist, but it neither did it slice through his skin, he followed up with a breathtakingly fast counter attack that Emma was forced to take with her tekkai - and good thing too: with her back to the marines, those without the reflexes or aim to compensate had managed to shoot her.

The bullets fell away, unable to pierce her skin.

"I will kill them all," the gas mask figure snarled. And then he was a blur, snapping past her to get at her subordinates. With a growl she pursued, though he had the advantage in strength, she would be damned before she admitted the same was true of their respective speeds.

Hands outstretched as if about to give them a hug, she saw him crush an unfortunate marine's head in an enormous hand.

Giving into the demon, she made the air ripple as she burst forward, drawing on the blood already spilled, the blood she'd spilled, the blood spilled upon her, to kick him in the side, sending him hurtling towards the communication tower. He lay there, apparently insensate.

"Fire!" she roared, voice more monster than human.

[/justify]

[Victoria Locke]

When the Agent issued the order, Victoria lowered her gaze adopted a pondering expression. After a short moment, she nodded and a spark of confidence visited her eyes. "Understood, ma’am." The way her vest worked made using it as a thrown bomb very difficult, but not impossible. While she had never actually tried such tactic, she had an idea of how to make it work. She quickly slipped her jacket and the vest off in preparation. Luckily, she had a black top underneath to keep things from getting awkward. The last thing the Marines, including her, needed was more distractions. After gathering the vest into a bulky roll, she focused on the detonator for a moment.

With any luck, she could-

Unfortunately, there was no time to finish that thought. Suddenly, the sounds of a small war reminded everyone of the situation. When the Agent vanished before her eyes, Victoria tossed the vest aside and grabbed her shotgun. Before she even had time to think, her trigger finger decided the course of action. A loud shotgun blast whizzed through the air, only to hit the Agent on the back. Gritting her teeth, Victoria flipped the lever and took aim again. She would berate herself about the mistake later. The second shot was a moment too late and missed the man as he crushed her comrade’s head. Fear reared its ugly head. There was no way she could hit someone that fast...

Much to Victoria’s shock, just then, the Agent landed a bone-rattling hit, launching even such a powerful opponent away with a single kick. The inhuman roar made her shiver. What on earth was this woman? Was she the Goddess of War? Perhaps it was a flicker of courage, or simply panic, but Victoria was the first one to follow the command. This time she wasn’t going to miss. One shot after another, the man got punished with a hail of hot lead. When her shotgun was empty, she switched to her revolver without a hint hesitation. In the heat of the moment, her only goal was to put as many rounds into the fiend as possible.

After the seventh shot, the revolver only clicked, snapping Victoria back to reality. Keeping count was not her strong point, as many of her comrades knew. Another shiver crept up her spine when she realized both of her guns were empty and she didn’t even know if the enemy was alive or not. She quickly backed away to her messenger bag and started reloading her revolver while glancing at the enemy after each motion. Her comrades followed the example. At the same time, she voiced the question large majority of the Marines were probably thinking. "Did we get him?" They were all waiting for further commands from the Agent and secretly fearing that the madman would get up again.