The Great Escape (Emmi/Dart)

It was a task that oddly hadn’t been picked up by anyone else – at least to the best of HIVE’s knowledge. Since the Russians had come to Jump City, the Bay Bridge had been destroyed and all routes leading out of the city were being monitored by the Russians. Clearly, it wasn’t safe for an organization such as HIVE to simply drive out of the city. No, they had made themselves an enemy of the Russians so their safe passage out was unlikely going to be one used by general commuters. But HIVE did need a way out, in case, and it was believed that they may just have found that way - a passageway within the Jump City sewers, leading to the sewer system within a neighbouring city. It wasn’t the nicest, or the cleanliest route out of the city, but it was perhaps the safest. However, it’s not that easy. This route, this passageway was supposedly sealed up, blocking the link between the two cities.

Who was tasked with searching for this route? It wasn’t a hard choice. It was Nina and Quinn who had been asked to investigate this, and whether they liked it or not, they were the most suited to such a task. They were the smallest, the most nimble available to HIVE would could scramble their way through a passageway or vent no matter the size – that’s the trouble when you mimic creatures such as foxes and snakes.

For this, the eyes of others were not needed as this investigation must take place during the dead of night; when no-one is around, when there is no possible chance of intrusion. That is why Quinn and Nina had waited for midnight before heading out to complete their task – a wait made much better due to the hospitality of Nina. But before long they found themselves on the outskirts of town, close to a road leading out of the city. A manhole cover, the entrance to the sewers and the one nearest to the location they were headed for. The manhole cover was removed, and it was Quinn who dropped down into the murky depths of the Jump City sewer system first. She landed on her feet, crouched slightly, but stood up once she landed. Quinn would step away, turning on a flash light; finally she’d be able to see.

No problems were expected to be encountered during this task, which is why Quinn was travelling rather light. She was suited up in her usual get-up; hood and balaclava as well - but didn’t have her bow, or a gun, or a sword, just a concealed karambit combat knife, in case.  Quinn reached into the pocket of her tunic and pulled out a piece of paper. She opened it, holding it open in one hand whilst she held the flashlight towards it with the other. It was a map – schematics rather, of the sewer system layout with a big ol’ fancy X to mark where the passageway should be.

“Come on, Nina! It doesn’t smell THAT bad”. Oh, it did, it really did. “Gotta get a move on!”. There was somewhat of a trek ahead of them, short winded though. But they still needed to traverse through the mucky sewer to the location. Stood to one side, Quinn awaited her fox-like friend whilst also deciding to shine the flashlight around; gain a feel for the surroundings.

Nina decided to use the ladder since she wasn't specially trained like Quinn nor did foxes have the cat-like ability of always landing on their feet, they were better at pouncing and jumping around rather than landing perfectly from high distances.

Pulling the manhole cover back into place with a clothes peg on her nose she soon joined her companion in the sewer "Quinn I have enhanced senses, I can smell a flea infested rat from a mile off" she told her, being a little exaggerative of course.

She looked around the dank, murky area as her eyes began to adjust somewhat, foxes eyes weren't exactly enhanced like a cat's but they were still primarily nocturnal, allowing her to see somewhat through the darkness. For this stinky job she had decided to dress up in fisherman's waders with those thigh-high wellingtons, she looked like she was going to be sewer fishing along with her thick jumper to keep her warm and finally a waterproof coat over the waders with her tails stuffed down the legs of the waders, finally on her head was a flu mask and the hood of her coat and she also wore a pair of yellow rubber gloves and safety goggles. She had decided that if she was going into such a place like a sewer then she'd rather not get splashed with anything down there, let alone get it in her mouth or anything, blech. Not exactly the most stealthiest or coolest thing to be wearing but it was only a mission to locate something, the most dangerous thing she could think of that would happen would be to slip off the edge and into the poop water and get swept away with the current, which is why she wore all her equipment.

"That really can't be comfortable". Quinn would say as Nina had reached the bottom of the ladder, confined within her smell and germ negation outfit. It was certainly... something. It appeared odd, really. You would never catch Quinn in something like that, never ever. Quinn felt it best to always be comfortable, to wear clothes that don't hamper your movement. But! Different strokes for different blo- gals?

"Hope you can handle a trek in that thing, Nin'. Got a ten minute walk, that way". The direction being east, which Quinn displayed through shining the torch down that way, causing a few squeals as rats ran away from the light. Quinn would take point, leading the charge into the darkness.

Nina smiled at Quinn under her mask "actually it's quite comfortable and warm" she said as she walked calmly behind Quinn "I figured that we're only looking for something so the worst thing I have to worry about is falling into the gross water" she explained as she looked around "I do hope we don't run into any sewer monsters though" she added, keeping alert while following her team mate.

Deeper into the sewers, a walkie talkie crackled into life, "We've located your beacon."

"That's good news Sir. I told you I could boost the signal of that GPS. You should be standing on the other side of this sealed section of the tunnels from me. By my estimate it should be a matter of hours before you break through. If we make the passage serviceable again we can funnel men through into the heart of Jump City. Maybe then High Command can get more of us killed faster."

"Heh. Stand by for further instruction."

"Copy that."

"Wait. What's that noise?"

"What noise?"

"Background."

"Hold on I'll turn down the radio."

"Radio?! Who authorised you to bring a radio?"

"I'm on detached service. So I guess I did. Oh come on. I went to the trouble setting up this signal amplifier. Do you know how fiddly those cables are? Took me almost an hour."

"Sound travels down here Lieutenant!"

"Yes. I know. And I set up motion sensors at a quarter mile distance from all approaches. The tunnels are pitch black. No one will know that they're there. Plenty of warning." The Lieutenant's walkie talkie was taped into the 'broadcast' position before being placed aside. Its operator had taken a seat, "And besides, how much noise did you think drilling through concrete made? I've got this section locked down, Captain. Hurry up and maybe your men can try one of these American toasties before I run out of bread."

"...And why did you bring bread?"

"For the toastie maker. I lugged a so-called portable generator down here to work the lights. You better believe I'm going to get some use out of it. I mean after the massage chair, the fan, and the deordouriser I began to wonder what else I could connect up to-"

"Sign off, Lieutenant."

"Yes Sir! Lieutenant Demidenko signing off." She ripped off the tape.

"Stop". Quinn would whisper, holding an arm outstretched to signal not to progress any further. Quinn crouched down in place, head down as she looked towards the floor. A motion sensor. Someone had got here first, and that same someone seems to not want visitors. For now they couldn't be sure who was waiting up ahead, but they could make sure that they see them first rather than the other way around. Quinn reached into one of the pockets of her tunic, and pulled out her Karambit blade. She held it with a backhand grip, and would drive the blade into the motion sensor. It cut through it with ease thanks to the force behind the strike, disabling the sensor.

"From here on in. No lights, no talking - whisper; only if necessary". Quinn would proceed to stand up tall again, turning around to glance towards her foxy teammate. Nina wished that they would not run into any sewer monsters. But that prospect became all the more likely now. The flashlight went off, and the two were left in complete darkness. No bother. Quinn could see, somewhat. Hopefully foxes can see in the dark as well. "Someone's here, probably not alone". Quinn had whispered, before moving on through the sewer. Finally. all that stealth training was starting to come in handy as Quinn put extra effort into making sure that she made as little noise as possible.

Nina made a "darn it" expression with her eyes as she followed Quinn quietly, if they did run into any soldiers down here then at least she could toss pieces of her getup at them as a distraction, hopefully it wouldn't get to that point of being fired at. She could see easily as foxes are primarily nocturnal but still had her usual limited fox eyesight. She would make as little noise as possible to the point of steadying her breathing.

The alternative to bringing all this equipment down into the sewers was several hours of crippling boredom. Lieutenant Demidenko didn't think she could survive a large amount of time stood in the dark by her lonesome. Without even a chance of an intruder. Nobody ever came down this way except for the smugglers she had gotten her schematics off of. Normally a pretty closed off bunch, but Iskra had a way with people. That way was called 'intoxication'. Once pumped with enough alcohol the gentleman cared little for discretion and more about boasting. If everything he said was to be taken at face value, then the man had single handedly explored these long forgotten catacombs and saved his boss's bacon in creating a delivery system that circumvented TIBERIUS' Enforcers.

Also he drove an Alfa Romeo that was currently in shop, and could bench 700lbs. What a creeper -sorry- a keeper.

The toasties had gotten old fast. Fortunately the Lieutenant still had plenty to do. She'd once been told Americans had this laughably silly hobby of painting model figurines. So why not give it a go? Her superiors had given her decidedly too much money and she could justify the expenses, probably. The result was a half dozen microscopic pots of paint, a paintbrush that could fit through the eye of a needle, and a grey statuette of some grotesque wielding a battle axe in some inexpert way. Whilst initially tedious Iskra soon became committed to getting the damn brush to do what she told it and to stop colouring sections adjacent to where she was aiming.

She didn't know how long the sensor had been disabled by the time she realised it had stopped broadcasting.

The Lieutenant immediately picked up her walkie-talkie, "Everything is okay. Don't panic."

"...what's that suppose to-" She removed the battery. Claim faulty manufacturing later. Iskra's next move was the turn up the radio and drown out the sounds of drill-work. A symphony of Cher's classic 'I Got You Babe' echoed down the tunnels.

Finally Iskra turned on her torch and began walking in the direction of the disturbance, out of the range of her lighting system. Gorax Slayer of Worlds would have to look like a carnival reject for a little while longer yet.

Quinn would come to an abrupt stop all of a sudden as the marched through the sewers. She held an arm out, gesturing for Nina to stop as well. In the distance the sound of Cher's; 'I Got You Babe' could be heard echoing it's way towards them. Not only that, but there was the small matter of seeing a small light in the distance, heading their way. "I think someone's coming". Quinn whispered as she began to turn around to face Nina. The exact presence of the two HIVE members remained unknown to whoever was up ahead, and thus began Quinn asking herself a question she will never say out loud; what would Pix do?

Ah, of course. The ol' fake fox trick - classic! "You lure them in with a clone, then I strike". The perfect Fox & Snake plan, a movie that shall be hitting theaters January 1st. Of course, Quinn would whisper softly as not to be heard. This plan in large part did require for Nina to allow herself to get a little dirty as a fox though.

Nina nodded at Quinn's plan and created a clone who would hop into the water and who planned to jump out at Iskra to surprise her before running away to lure her. Nina then looked around and suggested a side grating not too far away to hide in, unaware of Quinn's future plans to make her rubbery getup all for naught.

It was like navigating a subterranean river complex. Her torch exposed a world of low ceiling, thick walls, and stagnation. Meanwhile an unseen slop and gurgle of water dogged her steps matching her determined stride with a persistence of its own. The sounds were indistinct and at times phantasmal, echoing off tunnel walls to appear universal, one could be forgiven for thinking that current emanated from their opposite side. Iskra was beyond such fallacies. The girl had a fifth sense solely for detecting the proximity of fluids to her person. When she closed her eyes she knew the course the sewer was running, down to its last swirl and eddy. Every droplet, puddle, and even the sweat perspiring from her body. These tunnels were a heat sink after all. For this reason she spotted the problem approximately one-hundred metres off.

Two bodies of fluid that held a sort of humanoid arrangement - the Russian military had trained her vigorously to recognise such figures. From the indistinct outline of blood coursing through their veins Iskra knew where they were and what their body posture suggested. They had paused. They were in anticipation of something. Her. Iskra kept walking.

They would wait until she came into reach and then ambush. The radio music was covering her footsteps and so she could not understand their perfect timing. Did they know she was close? How? No matter. She held every advantage. The sewer water to her side turned a light brown and began to flow in the opposite direction. Iskra would do as she had always done. At fifty metres she could begin tainting their blood with alcohol. These trespassers would be hard pressed to mount a competent attack when they were pissed out of their heads. In many ways the battle was won before it ever started. Iskra strolled, whistling a carefree tune as she entered effective range.

At forty metres she stopped, speaking out loud in English with no hint of a Russian accent, "Argh. Forgot my gun. What am I like?" The soldier turned. And that's when she struck. A sudden geyser erupted from the sewer channel adjacent to Quinn and Nina. It piled inside the side grating they had taken shelter within with the strength of a water cannon. The attack ceased as quickly as it had begun.

Iskra didn't turn back around, "Why hide? I can smell you both from all the way down here! Pee-yew! I think somebody mistook their toilet for their shower!" The water had been transformed into alcohol, but that didn't mean its effluence or waste chemicals had disappeared. It was still as rancid and disgusting as ever. Iskra was the Master of Swirlies. A second water spout flared into life in much the same fashion as the first. Just in case her assailants had caught their breathe back, "If you don't answer my questions I'm going to make you drink it. Why don't we begin with your names?"

That did not look fun at all, revolting is perhaps the better word. Nina seemed to already be quite irked at the fact that they were in a sewer, and after seeing that dirtied-water attack hit her, well… she must be pissed. Fortunately for Quinn’s sake, she was not in the side grating. She was nearby however, as the plan had been to lure whoever close enough for her to strike. Quinn had scaled the sewer walls, lurking up high in the darkness of the sewer.

Whoever it was that had engaged them seemed to be at least a smarter cookie than the usual types they run into. Though it appeared she wasn’t as clued in as she thought. She only struck one of them, Nina, and Quinn remained under the impression that perhaps she was unaware of exactly she was. But this wouldn’t last long, this was one of those times when you need to seize the moment, act before the window of opportunity closes.

From atop the wall, Quinn pushed off with force to leap through the air towards Iskra to attack. Quinn was unaware however, of the second ‘alcohol cannon’ attack that Iskra had in waiting. The alcoholic water spewed up to blast Quinn in mid-air as she leapt, knocking the assassin backwards against the wall. Quinn hit the wall with force, falling down it, but managing to land on her feet – albeit stumbling, a tad groggy after that hit.

“That’s a real dirty habit, y’know”

Nina looked very unamused after the attack, a sour look on her face as water dripped from her. She then turned into her fox form, she figured if they needed to run at least she would be lighter on her feet in this form "why? You're only going to kill us..." she spoke as she backed up deeper into the grate, having nowhere else to go which wasn't in the obvious line of sight of Iskara, just because this Russian had an actually useful splash attack, didn't mean she didn't also have lots of guns and bullets too, Nina didn't like that thought one bit.

Two enemies. Both within Iskra's sphere of influence. By now thoroughly drunk but definitely not without talent. The acrobatics performed by the second intruder was clearly intended as an attack. They had come here with hostile intentions but were evidently not the government. Else TIBERIUS would have sent his Enforces - or the Titans. No these were novices already rendered ineffective by their blood-alcohol level no doubt. Whatever fighting skill they may have had would be useless without the necessary coordination. They were effectively at Iskra's mercy. Maybe she would get them to carry her back - if they could stand up straight. Add a footstool and palm frond waver onto the list of luxuries Iskra had taken with her down into the sewers.

"Well I need something to carve on your tombstones! Besides 'Rest In Pee'." Heh. Rest in pee. Linguistic joke. Iskra's confidence took a sharp drop, however, when she sensed the blood in one of her enemies take on strange dimensions. It was no longer humanoid in shape. But she had clearly just spoken! It was impossible. Unless... metahumans? Just her luck. Iskra couldn't mess around now.

A sudden wave surge leapt out of the sewer channel with the intention to engulf Quinn. If she could be sucked backwards with the tide then Iskra could drown her and be left with only one foe to dominate. She had no way of sensing the Nina clone which had originally been sent to ambush her.

Nina would need to get over the dreaded thought of guns entering the equation soon enough. This was only one Russian, it was only right to assume there would be more. It was best for the HIVE gals to utilize their numerical advantage while they could, to make quick work of Iskra and then disappear, fading into the darkness of the sewer yet again.

“You’re a bit late on that one”. Quinn added, though Iskra was welcome to go visit it. Courtesy of the Guild and Tiberius, Quinn was officially dead apart from those who knew otherwise. There was a fake funeral and everything, somehow Quunn doubted whether  or not Iskra had the motivation to go the full stretch and cough up the cash for a full funeral service.

As Quinn spotted the start of the surging wave, she would quickly add to avoid being caught up in it. Quinn leapt to one side, a handspring as she flipped over to land several yards away from where she once was, down on one knee. Here Quinn would withdraw her two Karambit blades that she held in her right hand. It shined with a metallic gleam, telling of its sharpness. Quinn pushed up to stand on both feet and would leap towards Iskra, twirling in the air as she attempted to slice at the Russian.