These Lights That Bind Us

[Jonathon Orwell]

(Morand and I will transfer back to 'Community, Identity, Stability' but the rest of you can stay here as this is where the Viper attack will take place.)

[Rachel Mahoney]

*I follow Angie back up to the room in silence. I don't know what's going on with me, I just can't seem to keep certain things off my mind, no matter how many pills I take*

[thevipers]

*Scouting Party A stands on a cliff, just out of sight, observing the city. Many of the soldiers haven't seen Battery City before, nonetheless any city at all. It really is a shining monument to technology, and the advancement of humanity.* Completely unaware of what's about to happen to them. Their symbol of progress will burn just like everything else we've laid our hands on.

*Basilisk walks out, sporting a new coat of pure white. Mockingly in BLI fashion* Once me and my group are inside, we'll give the signal. After we do so, you start the artillery. That's when Party A charges, followed by B, eh... most of you know the alphabet... *four more Vipers dressed all in white walk up behind Basilisk. They all put on Drac masks and have stolen IDs from a recently hijacked supply van.* Now... we must maintain a sense of realism to this story... so... *Basilisk pulls from his coat an old revolver type firearm and shoots three of the Viper-Dracs. One falls dead and the other two now have bullet holes in their shoulders.* Pick up the dead one. It'll make our story more convincing. *Basilisk puts on a bloody Drac mask and begins to feign a limp* To the tower, we go.

[Jonathon Orwell]

(Back from Community, Identity, Stability'.)

*After a quick weapons check I radio my unit including Pacis and Mahoney to meet me on sector 4 of the city wall.*Alright team, this may just be a false alarm but it is always good to run a drill. I want you all to treat this seriously. *I pause and smirk.* And do not get too cocky.
*I divide them up into groups, keeping Max, Morand, Pacis, and Mahoney with me. Each division is sent to monitor different sectors of the wall and alert the tower if anything unusual is cited. I stand on the wall edge and look out in the distance with a pair of binoculars, surveying for discrepancies.*

[Jonathon Orwell]

*I turn and look. He is right. A white van makes its way across the desert floor and stirs up a small cloud of dust behind it. I scowl and mutter:* Dammit. Lets go. *We climb down and go to the nearest toll, pushing the Draculoids on the job off to the side.* When they pull up but on guard. These idiots- *I point to the toll dracs.* -never check to see if the face on the badge matches the face under the mask.

[thevipers]

*The Viper-Dracs drive up slowly and sporadically, As they approach the tolls, they all check to make sure the IDs match their faces, which they do, almost flawlessly, Basilisk radios the toll booth up ahead* We... we have wounded... and a man down... It was... so many of them.... They called themselves Vipers... Allow us to pass through, please, we need a medic.

[Rachel Mahoney]

*i stick next to Orwell and the rest of my group. The jitteryness is coming back and try to force it out of my head. I have to stay focused for this*

[Volume Virus]

*I feel jumpy. I wasn't sure, but I would have sworn before a judge that all the patrols were back last night.... I pop another pill and look into the van, attempting to gauge the behavior of my coworkers.*

[Jonathon Orwell]

*I turn to Morand and smirk.* Of course we are. *I keep the toll gate down and watch as they draw nearer. I usher for them to stop and roll down their window. I walk up and speak to the drac in the passenger seat.* I'm going to need to see all of you ID's and search the van. For... Precautionary measures of course.

[thevipers]

*The Viper-Drac sitting next to Basilisk hands everyone's IDs over to the guard* We've got a dead unit in back, and two wounded. We really need to get through.

*Basilisk turns his head to look at the BLI agents* There's... so many of them... They're coming... lots of them...

[Jonathon Orwell]

*I raise my eyebrows, suddenly annoyed. Normal dracs are so idiotic. I take their ID's and look through them while ushering for my team to open the back and begin searching. I glance behind the passenger seat and see the body on the ground.* please take your masks off so I can see your faces. Even the body.

[Rachel Mahoney]

*I go around to the back of the van and open the doors to start searching. I can smell blood before I even open the door, and the first thing I see is the dead body. As always, my gun is at the ready in one hand in case I need it*

[Volume Virus]

*I open the back of the van and glance over it. There are a few crates covered in a large piece of yellowed cloth. I remove the cloth and open the lid of one of the crates and uncover a large stash of pistols, both laser and normal. Opening the other crates, I discover a number of rifles, more pistols, and other miscellaneous weapons.* Um...Mr. Orwell, sir? You might want to look at this.

[thevipers]

*Basilisk coughs and instructs everyone to take off their masks. They do so and Basilisk smiles* We were able to confiscate some weapons during the attack. Get an idea what we're dealing with. Is there a problem?

[Rachel Mahoney]

*I dont like the sudden change in the man's voice, somethings definitely feels wrong, and I grip my gun tighter*