Cyberpunk: Spartan Walker

Chapter 197 Reach Interlude ([-])
Considering what is most at stake right now, 5 minutes is probably too long.

"Understood." Fred replied, "Isaac, you stay behind. Winn, follow Kelly. Daisy, cover our flank. I'll take care of Dr. Halsey."

Fred carefully slung the doctor over his shoulders.She weighed no more than 50 kilograms - she was scrawny.

"My motion detectors have lost their target," Winn whispered over the comm channel. "They're getting very close."

"Kelly, search for elite soldiers wearing stealth suits."

"Yes," she replied, scanning the room.She walked over to a cabinet and picked up a tin labeled "talc."

"Move!" Fred ordered. "Kalmiya, turn off the base lights. Signals only—no radio contact."

Four blue status lights light up.

The dim light that filtered through the corridor disappeared.Kelly quietly entered the hallway and disappeared into the darkness.Winn followed, then Fred and Isaac.Will was last, walking more slowly to avoid making any noise from the equipment he was carrying.

Dr. Halsey tapped the tablet, and a map was uploaded to Fred's head-up display. The indicated path passed through the corridors, and the beacon landed on an elevator.That's their goal.

The Spartans' status lights illuminated, acknowledging receipt of the route map.

They tiptoed forward, smoothly and quietly—like water on oil—until Kelly stopped ten meters away from an intersection.This intersection connects five roads.

The Spartans stopped where they were.Kelly knelt down, placed the jar of soapstone on the floor, and stood on her knees.

After a moment, she shook her head from left to right - their agreed upon code to indicate trouble ahead.

Winn moved to flank Fred, opposite Daisy.Fred put Dr. Halsey down and stood in front of her.Will crouched next to the Doctor so he could cover her with his body if necessary.

Isaac stayed behind them.

Kelly suddenly stood up and kicked the tin can with a bang. It rolled and flew into the air.Just as it was about to fly into the intersection, Kelly fired a bullet.The muzzle flash illuminated the corridor just long enough for them to see the tin can explode, sending a cloud of white dust quickly down the corridors.

Their motion detectors immediately flashed red dots and four targets appeared on their monitors.The enhanced image showed the swaying silhouettes of four elite Covenant warriors, their cloaking suits revealed by the talcum powder covering them.

Kelly's two guns fired simultaneously and roared.The nearest elite warrior was knocked over on the spot. Three bullets penetrated its shield, and one bullet hit its long forehead. Purple blood spattered on the wall.

The few remaining elite warriors immediately counterattacked, and Kelly rushed forward, the plasma energy beam grazing the edge of her shield, emitting a dazzling flash.She turned around and hid in the corridor next to her.

As soon as Kelly was out of the firing line, Fred put the rifle against his shoulder and pulled the trigger.Three bullets fired angrily hit the second elite warrior, and its shield weakened after sparks appeared.

Winn fired two bullets, but they were blocked by the Elite's shield.Then Daisy and Fred fired three more shots at the same time, and the elite warrior screamed loudly and huddled up and fell to the floor.

The last elite warrior is missing.It didn't fight back.There was no trace of it on the detector either.

The Spartans remained in formation and regrouped after a while.Each team member reported with hand signals that no enemy was found.Fred noticed a few lines of footprints scattered among the white dust on the floor.The elite warrior slipped away, most likely to gather reinforcements.

That's not how elite warriors usually behave.Their pride drives them to fight to the end and die if necessary.They will fight without hesitation, no matter how great the odds of winning, even if they are killed by an opponent a hundred times their size.They never run away.Nothing about this engagement seemed "normal."

Fred glanced at Will and Dr. Halsey.Will gave him a thumbs-up, indicating that the Doctor had not been injured in the crossfire.

After this firefight, there is no use keeping it secret anymore. "One of them got away," Fred told them. "It's time for us to go. We don't have to keep silent anymore."

The Spartans ran down the corridor when another explosion sounded above them.

Kelly stopped in front of the locked elevator door.She grabbed one half of the door, Fred and Winn grabbed the other half, and the Spartans pushed the door open with all their strength, as if five centimeters of steel alloy were no stronger than an orange peel. .

Kelly held the elevator cable and slid down, followed by Winn and Daisy, and then Fred jumped into the darkness and slid down more than 500 meters.The four people worked together to open the door at the bottom of the elevator.

Will let Dr. Halsey slide down with her arms around his neck, Isaac following behind.

"There should be a vent." Dr. Halsey whispered, "There." Kelly tore open the cover of the vent and looked inside carefully.

It leads to the tunnels of the old mines," Dr. Halsey told them, "and elsewhere—I hope. "

"Let's go," Fred ordered.

Kelly jumped in first.Everyone waited for ten seconds before her status light flashed.

Fred slid into the air duct second.He turned several turns and finally slipped into a deep tunnel.The tunnel is made of rough-hewn granite. The top is ten meters high, and judging from the three-meter-wide tire tracks in the dirt, heavy equipment can pass through here without any problem.

First Daisy, then Will, they slid out of the tube, Dr. Halsey straddling him out.Winn and Isaac followed them.

Suddenly, Winn raised his rifle and pointed it at the exit of the pipe, and everyone's guns quickly followed suit.

"Don't shoot, it's me." Jun's voice echoed in the pipe.

Their guns were pointed at the ground again.

Jun then emerged from the pipe, "They didn't catch up with me, I got the chip, keep going."

Fred looked at Halsey, "Doctor, what's the next step?"

"This place is complicated," Dr. Halsey told them, standing up and dusting off his lab coat. "This is just the beginning. We must—"

A thunderous explosion interrupted her words.The entire mountain was detonated, and the MI base was reduced to rubble above their heads.

(End of this chapter)