Board Thread:Role Plays/@comment-25857155-20150822020432/@comment-25857155-20150922080857

'"Uh...'' Ash scrambled to collect himself; the plan was falling through.  The was Aurum's thing, not his!  His breathing was rapid, his pulse fluttered.  When he realized it, he forced himself to calm down, taking a single deep breath and steadying his heart rate with ease of training.  "Shit."

After only a moment, he muttered an answer to Vert's question. "Ah, yes - I think her masks are related to her fighting style. That switch was incredibly fast, so I suspect that if you shattered one, she'd just switch to another.  Still, that may be the only option - but we must not engage her directly, she's got them rigged with explosives." This time, he keyed up on their channel, pulling a suppressor out of his jacket and screwing it into place with practiced ease. "Do not attack the target, I say again, do not attack the target. She has got our teammates in the freezer wired with explosives."

He spotted an enemy on the rooftop of the café and inhaled, letting it out partway before putting pressure on the trigger. A muffled pop sounded out, dropping a target that otherwise would have interfered with Pieter's stealthy approach. Ash lined up another shot, altering his aim to pick out a new target. He dropped that one as well, out of the way of his comrades. Maybe I should move soon.

When the gunfight started indoors, Ash shook his head and forgot about moving, staying sighted in instead and trying to reach his team. "Aurum, can you hear me?"

====

Light, then pain and darkness. Now, more light, and less pain.

With a groan, Aurum tried to sit up, but was stopped by Celeste's hand on his chest, still glowing with the telltale color of her Aura. "Stay down a little longer," she said, "you were hit by more'n most of us."

"Ugh... Sorry, I shouldn't 'ave turned - "

"No," the otter Faunus insisted, "it wasn't your fault. They've got us in the freezer, it looks like - and the doo's rigged with some kind of explosives.  Stay down f'r a minute while I heal anyone else who needs it."

Aurum ignored Celeste's warning and sat upright, holding his head while urging his headache to subside. "..Explosives. Ash should be able to turn them off, if he can get in here." Shaking his head to clear the last bit of pain, he stood up, quickly regaining his balance and checking for his earpiece. "...They took my earpiece. I didn't think they'd find it."

"I thought I told you not to - " Celeste began with a frown from where she was helping one of the others to their feet, but she cut off, almost dropping them. "Ash!"

"Celeste? Where's Aurum?"

"They've got his earpiece?"

"Shit, ok. Tell him not to do anything rash; they have - "

"Explosives, we know," she cut him off, returning to Aurum's side and checking him over again. "We'll be careful. Anyone else hurt?"

"Be careful what you broadcast - they'll be listening to this channel."

Aurum brushed his childhood companion off with his normal grin. "I'm fine now, thanks to you." He looked around, his expression turning quickly into worry that bordered on panic. "Wait. Where's Cerise?"

====

Ash scanned the entrances with his rifle, looking for more targets. He could no longer see what was going on inside; someone had closed the shutters. His earpiece sounded off urgently with Celeste's voice. "Ash, have you spotted Cerise?"

The sniper frowned sharply. "No, they closed the shutters. I may have to - "  He cut off, remembering his own words from moments earlier, and turned to Vert. "We may have to go closer."

====

It was dark where Cerise was, and she could not see out, but she knew she would not be spotted. Somehow, she had managed to evade the stun attack, maybe by accident, and was now hidden safely. He earpiece had fallen out and been crushed in the attack - Ash would be upset, she thought with a small frown, then wondered if the others were alright. She could hear everything though, so she waited.