Anky Aside 1 – Morale Boosts are really just Defensive Boosts

Kukali lets out this little huff of air that I’ve learned means she’s swallowing a hiss at that shout. She doesn’t seem all that surprised, an’ that means I need to assess what’s going down.

The announcer talking about economic changes is less important than taking in how she’s doing. I’ve never traveled with Kali before so I don’t have a single damn thing to base my assumptions of her reactions on.

…Well, that ain’t entirely true. Hema is a big cat like Kali is…

I glance around quick. Sara’s snoring. Worth keeping an ear out on so I know when she’ll need to get updated on the situation, but unless things go south real fast I’m not keen on waking her up just yet. Hema’s got this intensely sharp stare localized on the radio. I know that stare. It’s their ‘This situation is very far outta my control an’ in order to keep from freaking out, I’m going to focus on exactly one stable thing’ stare. So they’ll be… well, not fine, but not a problem.

An’ that tactic won’t work for Kali, I suspect. She’s livewire tense despite being so ice aligned. So tense an’ still that I’ve gotta squint to make sure she’s still breathing.

Maz has gotten like that before. All tense an’ quiet an’ deceptive. There’s an explosion building in that stillness. I figure the similarity has to do with their shared past but I’ve never figured out how the hell to calm him down when he got like this. So my initial read was right – I’ve got nothing for trying to help Kali.

Roscoe hasn’t turned off or down the news. I can tell from here that every scrap of his attention is locked on those hostiles outside. I can’t get a good look at them. They’re small an’ fast an’ my eyes have always crossed with that combo. Why I have to rely on Sara or Hema to handle stuff like that. But neither one of ’em is an option right now. I shake my head sharply, blink a few times, clear off the slight nagging headache from having stared at the hostiles for a hair too long.

I know without a doubt that Kali already knows if the hostiles are unmanned or have pilots, an’ I also already know that I don’t have anything that can help take them out. That doesn’t mean I’ve got nothing…

The news is easy enough to ignore. If any of it means something to our mission then either Kali or our client will know. That ain’t my job. My own instincts have started chattering about being in a flying transport with at least two freaked out carnis, but that ain’t my focus either. I know Hema, much as my instincts are shivering, an’ I think I’d know if Kali was the sort that I should be worried about.

So with a sharp snort to clear my mind again, I reach out to feel the side of the plane. It’s made of metal an’ that means I can be an ass to the hostiles.

“What are you doing?” Roscoe shouts back without taking his eyes off of the instruments up in front with him. One of ’em has to tell him when magic affects the transport, or he has a way of knowing.

“Helping.” I say. In the only damn way I can think of how to. I don’t say that last bit aloud though.

Focus. Focus on getting a good feel of the side of the plane. My magic is already weaving through it, slowly getting a look of the whole transport. Anything offense related is up to the weapons on this thing an’ maybe Kali or Hema – if Hema settles at all while I’m doing this. But defense? Ankys like me are good at defense.

Bolster the defenses of the transport. I might know this bird as well as Roscoe does but I know what sorts of places get targeted most often an’ my magic helps me find them. If things go super sour, we might wind up losing our duffels or some of the stuff inside ’em – the spot they’re in isn’t close to anything vital an’ I can patch up a hole if it happens, sure, but active protections need to be focused elsewhere.

An’ …well, this attack has me wondering if Kali was right. Was all that quiet on the part of whoever wants us dead just a lead up to something nasty. Something like say… a mid-air attack? This is one of the places we’re most vulnerable – an’ more folks than just those what have access to the LAGOON can hire a hit squad like this…

I feel the missile that impacts the side of the plane an’ wince. The pain is offset by the way nobody else feels it, an’ the plane doesn’t even wobble. Roscoe casts me this shocked look over his shoulder, mouth hanging partially open. I grin at him. “I said I was helping.” A deep breath, an’ I shake my head. “I got us on defense. An’ don’t you worry none, your bird will lose her spikes soon as I let the channeling go. No permanent changes.” But for now, the extra metal and spikes are invaluable. A cluster of them sends one of the missiles jolting downward, at the ground.

Caution keeps me from warning that I might need a bit to get moving once we’ve landed. Roscoe is probably good people, but I’ve read enough books about mysteries that I know to keep my weaknesses on the quiet side of things. An’ the fact that each impact rocks my body an’ makes me tense up an’ brace against nausea is a weakness. I figure I’ll explain it all to Kali later so she knows what I can do an’ what mediums I can do it with.

Kali’s attention has snapped to me an’ she bares her teeth in the direction of the radio. It’s this deliberate motion, like she’s trying to clue me in to something. Something fucky. An’ that definitely means I’m keeping my mouth shut on weaknesses.

“Roscoe, can your equipment see the cloaked drone at our five o clock?” she asks, tail practically vibrating behind in that way felines tend to when they don’t wanna let them lash.

“Cloaked… what?!” Roscoe leans, flicks a few toggles, an’ swears. “Nothing’s showing on any of my equipment!” an’ that’s what I’m sure is real panic in his tone.

“I’ll handle them then.” Kali says, all easy an’ simple. An’ that’s all the warning any of us get before the temperature inside the transport plummets. Sara shivers, teeth clattering in her sleep. Hema hisses under their breath.

Icicles – big enough to put most spears to shame – are solidifying rapidly outside of the plane where Kali is staring. They hover for a moment before lancing through the air an’ leaving explosions an’ bits of abruptly visible drones in their wake. Her gaze darts this way an’ that, clearly scanning for more an’ handling them much the same. She’s gotta stare where she needs the ice to form, but… damn.

I’m impressed.

Roscoe… sounds harried, so maybe I’m wrong on what that panic meant. “How can you see them?” he asks, an’ I wish I had an eye or something like Kali so I could access the feed unseen. I fish out my phone one handed an’ leave myself a note. Roscoe… seems more frustrated than impressed to me, an’ I want to talk to Kali and Hema about it later. See if they felt the same.

“My infrared beats their anti-infrared.” Kali says, which is… remarkably close lipped. She’s not sharing details either. Her tone is even the one that so much of the LAGOON calls cold an’ frigid. I know better since I’ve spent time with her – it’s either concealed emotions or she’s multitasking so hard that there’s no space for ’em.

But… I pull up the feed we’ve routed through the Lodestar. It’s a trial an’ a half getting there with one hand an’ all the jarring from further missile impacts, but I get it all pulled up.

pettyinpink: more sensitive than their designs against it, I wager?
pettyinpink: …doesn’t using infrared that sensitive for too long cause problems?

“We’ll be fine.” Kali says aloud, gaze briefly landing on me while another stealth drone explodes in a cloud of sparks around an icicle as thick around as both my wrists together. “Roscoe, does the client have an alternate drop point? I don’t want you catching shrapnel because of us.”

Those words punch alarm through my ribcage. I have a momentary sensation of breathless freefalling as they sink in. Some part of the plane has fallen away too, but that’s lower on the scale of importance compared to… Kali is a creature of habit an’ routine an’ strict plans. If she wants to change this up in the middle of everything, then I get the feeling we’re in for it. What it is in this case, I don’t know. I don’t know that I want to know.

Hell.

“Yes. I’ll let the client know that we’ve encountered issues on the way.” There’s so many toggles an’ dials an’ the like in front of Roscoe that I’ve got no idea if he’s doing what he claims. No way to check either.

After that, we all focus on our respective tasks. I’m not feeling the strain from the missiles and my magic yet, an’ Kali is a puma on a mission with taking out those drones. An’ Roscoe is – to his credit – actually putting in the flying skills to try an’ minimize how much damage we take.

I’m not sure how much time has passed when Roscoe speaks up again.

“The client says they’ll reroute to meet you there. We’ll have to either shake these guys first or I’ll have to drop you a ways away from the new rendezvous point.” Roscoe reports an’ throws his whole weight into pulling as sharp a turn as this bird can make. “If you two can focus on making sure there’s enough of us to land, I can focus on trying to lose these guys.”

“Can do!” I chirp the words as brightly as I can manage. We need the extra cheer right now, an’ victory is mine when Kali’s lips quirk an’ Roscoe chuckles.

“Affirmative.” Kali says. It’ll never make sense to me how she can make her voice sound so emotionless while letting me see how amused she really is. I wonder absently if it’s some kind of spell.

Hema has shifted from staring at the radio to doing something on their phone. Their fur is still all bristly an’ their teeth are grit so hard I suspect they’ll have a headache later, but they look like they’ll keep on handling. Sara’s still sleeping. The combination of those two facts means I can focus on keeping the defenses up an’ not worry too much. Soothes the fears that built up while I was focused an’ not really thinking.

The amount of hostiles climbs rapidly an’ I lose track of time once more. I’m focused on making sure the bird doesn’t lose any more pieces, an’ adjusting the bulk of the defenses on the fly as Kali handles offense. While she clears out hostiles on the east, I’m focusing on defending the west an’ vice versa. It’s a tense dance an’ time just dances on by past us while it goes on.

It feels like I blink an’ suddenly there’s nothing in the air but us. I don’t let up on the defenses even though I’m gasping from the magic strain an’ the aches an’ pains from so many hits. Out of the corner of my gaze I can see Kali an’ while she’s looking a bit frostbitten around the tips of her fingers… she’s breathing normally.

A reminder that she an’ Maz are in a whole different class from the likes of me. The chill inside the transport levels out an’ recedes an’ Kali still looks like she only barely exerted herself.

Meanwhile I’m exhausted an’ worse for the wear an’ I damnwell know it. Smart thing to do would be to let up on the defenses now, but I’ve also noticed Kali’s gaze flicking this way an’ that. So I’m not gonna let up until Kali gives me an all clear signal.

Or until the plane lands. That works out too.

Roscoe is scowling at his dashboard. Console – whatever it’s called for planes. They’re not my focused transport okay, I dunno all the names for things. “We have to land here.” he says. “This isn’t the rendezvous point, but you’re not looking too good.” the man has the gall to nod at me as he speaks. I know I probably look as bad as I feel right now but does he have to say it?? “And we’ve shaken the hostiles at least for now. It’s better to jump into that clear air while you can.”

“I can take more.” I argue. Strictly speaking I can, even if it’s a bad idea. I want to keep up with Kali an’ Maz one day, so pushing myself is probably ideal for working up to that anyway.

Kali gazes at me wordlessly for a long moment before she exhales a cloud of frost. “Getting out of the hot zone while we still have magic reserves is our best play.” she says, an’ then looks to Roscoe. “Do you have coordinates for where the client plans to meet us?”

Her voice lifts at the end, close to that tone she used on Bradley back in the infirmary. That softer an’ lighter an’ cloying tone that makes me straighten up in my seat, distracted from unhooking myself by the urge to hide.

“Yeah. I do.” Roscoe nods. “I can’t abandon this transport here.” he adds, frowning. “But I can’t consider this a delivery to the client either – you’ve not met them yet.”

“Extenuating circumstances happen.” Kali shakes her head. “Your duty is to the transport over us. We’ll be fine.”

I can read between those lines bright an’ clear. Kali wants us away from the transport an’ away from Roscoe. I can’t get a clear read on him an’ I’m suspicious of him myself so I’m entirely on board with this plan. I go back to getting myself unhooked from inside the transport.

“Safer.” Rehema says. Their tone is raspier than normal an’ they’re helping a groggy Sara out of her seat. Sara’s blinking all slow an’ baffled but she’s trying to help.

“I can keep the drones off of you guys if I take off without you..” Roscoe brightens up as the thought occurs to him. “That would make it all much safer, thank you!”

Kali shakes her head at me when I open my mouth to discourage that line of thought so I just leave it. Okay, sure. That’s entirely what Hema meant.

(It isn’t.)

Now that I’m getting out of the transport I can see what fell away – part of the tail end, near the landing gear. The hole is still smoking. Our duffels look fine. Tossed around but fine. We unload quickly an’ I get to see the wide eyes Roscoe gives the additional armor on the transport – as well as the whistle when I stop touching it an’ retract my magic.

An’ all that armor an’ spikes vanish in a blink.

“No wonder nothing vital got hit.” Roscoe whistles again. “Thanks for that ma’am.” he salutes me an’ climbs back inside before I can respond.

Kali starts walking an’ we all follow. Not a one of us starts talking until the transport has taken off once more, motor thudding loudly in the quiet. Even then it’s- oh it’s sweet.

“I’m sorry you didn’t get to sleep the whole way.” Kali says, dipping her head at Sara. “Will you be alright? If we need to find someplace you can get more sleep, let us know.”

Sara blushes an’ ducks her head. “I’ll be okay.” she says, all quiet. “Thank you for checking.” an’ that bit is all one word, breathed out in a flash.

I can see the way Kali’s shoulders relax at knowing that Sara’s fine.

“Path?”

“We’re not taking the one Roscoe laid out for us.” Kali exhales more frost as she speaks, the tip of her tail flicking. “He gave us coords and a path. I’ll chart us a different path to get to the coords. Maybe he’s in on it, maybe he isn’t. I’m not taking chances.”

Hema signs a purr at Kali for that one, an’ after a second I do the same. She’s got all of our safety in mind an’ despite the hostiles an’ not really knowing where we are – this might be the safest I’ve felt in… well, longer than the past week. I shake myself an’ try an’ see if I can get a bead on where we’re at.

We’re in a forest of… some sort or another. I’ve never been all that good at telling species of trees apart despite being herbi in nature. I know ’em by taste an’ sometimes the shape of the leaves. Names? Don’t know those.

But it’s a forest so – greenery, trees as far as the eye can see, a babbling brook not far from where we’re standing. Bird calls. Other animal calls. Which is good – the animal calls that is. Means there’s nothing suspect going on.

Well, nothing more suspect than the four of us tramping through the forest without talking all that much.

Sara’s reading on her phone an’ I can make a damn good guess as to what. Hema has a habit of sending her messages to make sure she knows what’s going on when she wakes up – which tracks with me seeing Hema typing on their phone. Hema themself is on alert, pale green gaze going this way and that as they take in absolutely everything they can about the path we’re taking.

The urge to chatter in order to lift the silence and also everyone’s mood is… high. I’m not even sure what the hell I’d chatter about but everyone’s so quiet an’ focused an’ recovering from that stint in the air. A morale boost couldn’t go amiss.

But what… oh!

“So we’re trotting on into the land of horses, eh?” I ask, grinning already at my own joke. It gets a snort from Hema and a choked laugh out of Sara so I win. Kali’s reaction is much more subtle – it’s in the flick of her tail an’ the shaking of her head. But it means I got her too! “Maybe we shouldn’t be surprised that we’ve gotta hoof it.”

Sara actually laughs this time, an’ Hema makes a strangled noise that I know is them trying to swallow a laugh. Kali huffs – it’s one of those fond sounding ones too.

“There’s a big racing festival going on too.” Sara adds, beaming. “Maybe that’s why we couldn’t have a stable flight, since they won’t be in theirs!”

It takes a second for that to process and then I’m choking on air. I miss how the others react but the mood is already a good deal lighter than it was.

“Oh maybe we’ll get the chance to see a race?” Sara muses out loud once everyone can breathe again.

It’s a nice thought but I doubt it. Not that I’m gonna go saying that now – not with Sara sounding so excited about the idea. If I can make it happen, I will, but from what I heard on the radio… the most likely next step for us will be sabotaging it.

“It’s always fun to watch horses run, they look like they’re having fun too.” Sara continues. “I got to see a race once when I was little. The horses were kinda scared of me but then I gave them oats and they were all so friendly after!” there’s a moment in there where her tone wobbles, where her self consciousness sneaks in. I’m about to say something when Kali speaks.

“The way to friendship with a lot of creatures is through their stomachs.” she says dryly. “Maybe we should have brought some snacks for our client…”

I bark out a laugh. Kali doesn’t joke often but that was delightful. An’ I can take a wager that it really is a joke based on the quirk to her lips. An’ I have a comment ready to go to keep our lightheartedness going. “I mean, it worked with a puma, so…”

Sara damn near drops her phone as she laughs at that one, an’ Hema lets out an actual laugh of their own. Kali’s huff is all amused too – I’m winning so much right now, an’ the game is getting all of our spirits up.

“True.” Kali acknowledges with a tilt of her head. “By the way – client says this new meeting point is easier to get to.”

…I don’t like that. She says it all casually, like she really doesn’t want it to disrupt how we’re feeling and talking, but gods I don’t like that. I don’t even have an explanation for why I just immediately hate it.

We fall silent again for a while but it’s a better silence. Companionable. Mostly comfortable.

Kali calls for a break after twenty or so minutes. I can’t rightly figure out why – I’ve been good an’ stealthy about my gasping for breath. I really overdid it back on the transport an’ I’m paying for it now, but nobody’s said a word about my stealth gasping so I figure nobody’s noticed.

Once we’ve all picked someplace to sit down – an’ I realize that there’s… actual benches here. Old, rickety, an’ poorly taken care of. But benches. Like park benches. I sit on one gingerly an’ find that it’s sturdier than it looks. But Kali is talking.

“I want to know what all of you are thinking about what’s happened.” she says. “Should we call it and head to Mao’s LAGOON without meeting the client?” those grey eyes dart from face to face so keenly that I almost mistake the whir of her bionic for something within the forest. Oh! That must be why she’s called for a rest now. We’re a good distance away from where Roscoe dropped us off an’ this would be a good time to recover some from how much thermal vision she was using.

As for the question, I hum as I think. There are so many options… “Do we know if they were specifically looking for us or just opportunistic? The drones, I mean.” I ask, because if any one of us has that kind of information… Kali or Hema are the best bets. “I know sometimes a deployment gets ambushed by grounder folk that hate us, so that could be what’s gone down.” …and that hate is a sentiment I’m beginning to understand more. How many grounders knew it was McCrae but couldn’t do anything…?

Kali shakes her head. “I have no way of knowing.” she admits, an’ my regard for her grows even more. That casual admittance of not knowing is rare.

“Bad timing.” Hema grunts.

I agree with that one wholeheartedly. Even with the fact that we have targets on our back for multiple reasons, this whole thing smacks of bad timing. We were early, so if they were aiming for us then they would have had to scramble quickly – an’ that’s if they found out. An’ – “If they wanted us specifically, I don’t think they’d have broken off after discovering that we’re a hard nut to crack. Airspace is always pretty open, so they had to have let us go.” Not that I’m doubting Roscoe’s skills at shaking pursuers, but the actions don’t line up right if the drones were from the same folk as what sent the brineclaws an’ the accidents.

…Unless those two have separate culprits an’ one of them is… I shake my head sharply. I am not playing ‘what if there’s a conspiracy’ inside my head. It has been a fun thought exercise on past missions, sure, but this one is too different to let myself get distracted on that.

“Point.” Kali nods at me after a moment. I can see the relief that settles into her bones an’ lightens her shoulders. She hadn’t considered that, I’m willing to bet. “When we do meet with the client, after we are told what we need to do – I plan to ask for time in private to confer with my team. I’ll want to know your impressions of both the client and the mission at that point.”

It takes me a second to realize that she’s explicitly warning us that she’s gonna ask for our opinions. It’s- I don’t have words, not really, not beyond ‘Kali is damn good at leading an’ she’s much more comfy when she feels like she’s got a heading’. But maybe that’s the only words that are needed.

I know Hema was already planning to do just that – but that’s based in my knowledge of my friends. Knowledge that Kali hasn’t had the chance to gain yet. Asking this way feels like she’s trying to cover her own potential shortfalls an’ also make us aware that she wants our thoughts too. I can feel my admiration creeping higher.

After that, though, there’s not much to it beyond Kali informing me that I’m in charge of making sure we have edibles for everyone because I already know what folks can eat, an’ her charging Sara with helping get a feel for the city itself when we finally reach it.

I wonder for a moment why she doesn’t just ask Hema for that one an’ then I realize she’s casting a wider net by asking Sara. Sara’s not a feline so she’s got a different eye for things.

And as for Hema – Kali wants Hema to see if they can get a pulse on the gossip of the city. Either on the city feeds or on the streets proper, whichever way Hema feels is best. Information that can be used so that we’re not walking into a den of traps once we hit the city. With how serious Kali is about the city, I have to assume the client told her that’s our end goal or she’s fifteen steps ahead of me an’ I haven’t caught up yet. Or both.

Either way, I’m reminded that Kali did her research on us. Hema’s good at getting the pulse of gossip.

It feels nice to have our skills recognized an’ taken into account with what we’re being put in charge of. I know it does for me an’ Sara at least – our resident bear hybrid is all but floating on her toes. Hema’s harder to read but they’re giving Kali an evaluating look that’s paired with a quirk of their lips. So they’re probably feeling that nice feeling too.

After that our break stretches for a while. I stop panting quite so much and Kali seems like she’s feeling lighter. But we have to get moving in the end. We’re back to moving in silence an’ I let my mind wander.

It’s… funny. Kali being the Ice Princess. She controls ice, sure. But where is the cold and heartless individual that the rest of the LAGOON claims exists? I swore I knew of her weeks ago.

That impression filtered away like meltwater as soon as she decided she could trust us. I’ve seen glimpses of something like it since in situations like with Roscoe. Cold and direct and a wall of ice for all that one can try to bond with her. But that was born of caution.

…I wonder if the whole Ice Princess thing is the same. Does she do it on purpose?

At this point it’s not safe for me to chatter out loud; I know I’m not the only one who has spotted movement off to the west of us, on and around the path Roscoe gave us. So all of my chattering gets to be internal.

We meet the client in a gazebo. It’s run down and clearly in need of repair but the client is almost as sweat soaked as we are so I feel a little better about the amount of hiking we had to do.

“I’m terribly sorry for having us meet in a place like this. I can wait for you all to catch your breath if you need?”

Ironed suit, straight spine paired with arched shoulders, eyes a little too wide… I’m not sure I like this client. They’re… skittish.

Impressed when Kali glances to the three of us and we all confirm that we don’t need time to catch our breath. The secret is Kali’s careful application of one and measured pace, but that’s not of the client’s business.

“I do hope the flight was alright.” the client says, wringing their hands.

“We were attacked. We handled it. What’s the mission?” Kali’s tone has edged back into the crisp coolness.

The client whines at the news. They open their mouth like they want to say something about that, but Kali’s stern gaze pins them in place. They squirm and speak – just one word in a rushed breath. “Assassination.”