Part the fourteenth
Bonky can hear over the ‘com that the others are regrouping and are wondering where he’s got to, so he only has a moment or two in which to act. He snaps off one of the thing’s legs and places it in the holster for his 603, leaving the gun on the floor of the sewer. The he takes the device and grinds it deliberately beneath one massive armoured foot. If anything inside had survived to fight another day it has now been safely neutralised. Terminated, as Blake might say, with extreme prejudice. Then Bonky puts the crumpled up remains of the robot into the carcass of one of the more or less whole pigs, carefully inserting it into a gaping cavity so that as little of it as possible is visible to a cursory examination. Then he heads back towards Mel, making a show along the way of looking for both of his ‘dropped’ weapons. As luck would have it he does actually find his Chainaxe, a relief as the weapon has sentimental as well as financial value.
The squad have regrouped just around the corner from where he and Mel had made their stand, Steve supported on the shoulders of both Jacinta and Sleet who look as if they are about to buckle under the weight of Steve’s armour. Bonky cannot see his face, but his slumped aspect and obviously dead weight do not bode well.
“He… he lost consciousness about f-five minutes ago. I think we should get.. get topside ASAP.” Jacinta’s voice sounds as if something is about to snap, Bonky thinks. Perhaps it is one of her arms.
“Here, let me take him,” he offers. To his surprise, it is Sleet who hands over his burden, leaving Bonky sharing the burden of Steve’s inert body with Jacinta. Bonky shifts himself so he is carrying most of the weight. Jacinta’s slight sigh of relief can be heard over the ‘com, if you listened closely enough. Sleet rounds the corner and a couple of moments later his all clear is sounded. Bonky notices as they walk back the way they came that there are no more live pigs and several more carcasses. Sleet gives him a brief thumbs up before slinking off ahead to secure their exit route from the sewer system.
As they walk, Mel is concentrating hard on Steve’s body, and a momentary convulsion racks his body. Bonky and Jacinta stop suddenly, shocked by the sudden movement. As they watch, a thin beam of golden light plays around Mel’s gauntleted hand and links her to Steve, who twitches once then relaxes. As the light fades, Mel seems to relax as well, then shrink slightly from tiredness.
“I think that should stabilise him, anyway”, she says, whilst looking in Jacinta’s direction. Her only reply is a nod: Bonky sees Jacinta’s ‘mute’ icon is active: she doesn’t want to be heard at the moment. This seems like an odd tactical choice for a squad leader to make, however Bonky does not wish to question her now, in fact he would much rather be at home and quite possibly asleep. Rather than dwell on this desire, though, he and Jacinta gently reshoulder Steve and carry on back towards the entryway. Sleet transmits to say that they are ten minutes from the surface, and Mel responds,
“Well, at least the coms are clear now. Must have been some localised interference in that section. I’m putting in a call to Station Analysis, we should have a med-evac team waiting for us by the time we get to the entrance to this shit bath.”
Bonky thinks he has a much better idea of what was causing all the interference on the ‘com channel they were using, but he says nothing as he has a strong suspicion that Mel would start asking her clever questions were he to do so: questions whose answers, for now at least, he has no desire to learn.
It is a quiet, sombre squad who reconvene at the site of the sewer access ladder. The problem of getting Steve up the shaft is solved by sending Bonky up first and using his brute force to winch the body up using high tensile Roop! From the medics. They strip Steve’s armour off and put him on a stretcher when he comes to the top of the sewer. Jacinta hurriedly says goodbye to the others and gets into the ambulance beside him: Bonky thinks he can see her take Steve’s hand before the doors are shut and the sirens begin their semi-random wail-whitenoise-wail cycle. He thinks that Jacinta is a very dedicated squad leader, although frankly he is dubious whether he would get exactly the same treatment. She didn’t even stop to wipe off the shit, he thinks, which for style-conscious Jacinta is akin to Bonky asking for a manicure before going into combat.
There’s no other way to describe it: Bonky now feels a little bit sad. He can’t pin down exactly why, but things don’t feel quite right, and it is as if the end of the BPN has heralded the end of something else as well, although he couldn’t say exactly what. Mel says something to Sleet off the ‘com, who nods once, gives Bonky a thumbs up, then sets off down the alley at a lazy trot. Bonky turns to ask Mel where the Wraith went, to find his friend sat underneath a support pillar for one of the buildings that backs onto the alley. Her helmet is off now and she gives Bonky a tired smile as he lumbers his way over to her, his armour suddenly heavy despite all the powered assistance. At this exact moment Bonky would like nothing more than to never have to wear it again, a feeling that leaves him feeling funny inside.
“Is Steve going to be OK, Mel?”
“I… I think so Bonky. I did what could and, well, his Karma account was in good order I think. The medics said he should pull through.”
“Oh. Good.”
There is a small silence, punctuated only by a slight snicking noise as Mel idly spins the cylinder of her Blitzer and catches it each time with the hammer in the chamber where the one spent cartridge had been.
“Is Jacinta going to be OK, Mel?”
Mel just smiles and says, “Well you know what they say, Bonky. Love is all you need.”
Bonky wasn’t aware that anyone said this but it seems like a nice sentiment and starts to make sense of a lot of what had been confusing him slightly over the past couple of months. He wonders idly just what will happen about Blake now, as he surely won’t be pleased that his girlfriend is in love with someone else. Maybe Steve will get a chance to save Blake’s life, showing everyone just how much a common employer and shared aims can help smooth over interpersonal strife. At least, that’s what generally happens in the vids that Bonky has seen. Things usually turn out for the best, after all. The snicking has not stopped. He looks at Mel. Mel looks at him.
“Is Mel going to be OK, Mel?”
Mel stops her Blitzer game and sighs slightly. She looks tired, Bonky thinks, and there is a smudge of something on her nose. He goes to wipe it off but his armoured gauntlets are too clumsy and she dodges out of the way just in time to avoid a broken nose or a fractured skull. She smiles again slightly, crinkles her nose, says
“Yeah, Mel’s going to be OK, B. Mel’s going to be fine. How are you doing?”
Bonky thinks for a moment.
“I’m tired, Mel. And I would like for someone to scratch my nose.”
Mel obliges, then crinkles her nose again and pulls a face. “Man, we stink. I think we could both do with a shower and some prime time afternoon TV, no?”
Bonky agrees that this sounds like an admirable plan, and the pair walk through the downpour around them, hoping that enough of the muck will be washed off before they reach a taxi rank so that they can get a ride home.
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