#scrollwallwriting

[trinitynox]

ArchAngels Chronicles: Chapter 2 - Carol I

Soft steps accompanied the rustling trees and cricket chirps. In the moonless night, seven hooded figures trudged through to the edge of the woods. The side of a modest mansion greeted them from across a small clearing.

Amongst them stood Carol. Lifting her white hood, her jet black hair fell out on her shoulders. “Lu, if you would.”

“Of course.” Lu started to tap her fingers in the air as if to play a piano. Yellow glyphs appeared where her fingers stopped and disappeared when lifted. Her eyes closed, Lu seemed to dream while her fingers danced. “Oh my.”

“What is it?”

“They have magic dampeners installed around the building and anti-magia weapons. Nothing we can’t handle.” Lu stopped her motions and opened her eyes.

Carol nodded and spoke into her comm-set. “Agent Apollo to Command, Delta-Note is in position and completed site risk assessment. Threat level upgraded from green to blue. Is mission a go?”

“Stand-by.” Carol was used to the moment of silence after the immediate reply, as was her team. “Mission is go.”

“Roger that.” Carol turned to her team. “Mel, shroud. Dan, shield. Ki, lock. Lu, you stay here and provide surveillance.”

Melanie began to dance her fingers in the air like Lu did before, yet her song was different and glyphs glowed violet. Beside her, Mivodan blew into his oboe. A soft melody filled the air around Delta-Note. The seven’s bodies shimmered blue and purple for a moment and the light extinguished itself.

Lu’s fingers resumed their movements, yellow lights disappearing and reappearing like they did before. Airaki pulled her bow across the strings of her violin. Runes on her instrument shined a pale blue as she played the song. Moments later, Lu gave a thumbs up to Carol and Airaki, and continued to tap her fingers in nothingness.

“Ladies and gentlemen, shall we begin?” Without waiting for a reply, the leader sprinted towards the side-door of the mansion. Her five teammates followed suit, each wearing a black body suit and a different coloured jacket. Bolero for the ladies and full jacket for the men. They stacked up on the door with Carol alone on the hinged side and the rest closer to the knob.

“You have fifteen seconds,” Lu transmitted over the comm-set.

Carol raised two fingers and counted down. When her fingers formed a fist, she opened the door and Delta-Note spilled into the mansion. They ran through the short corridor and entered the first room on their right. It was filled with a myriad of supplies from household cleaners to stationaries.

“I see you. Patrol just passed. The targets are in the dining hall on the second floor. Ki, I’ll guide you up. Mel’s shroud and Dan’s shield may be strong enough against their equipment but let’s not take any chances.”

“Agreed. The rest of us will proceed with the secondary once Ki is ready,” Carol added.

Her violin in hand, Airaki left the room once given the all clear by Lu. Carol could hear Lu’s directions and warnings to her Anatolian teammate over the comm-set. The five remaining agents waited as their comrade moved into her position.

“Two guards at the door.”

“I have visual,” Airaki replied followed by two minutes of silence. “They’re down. I’m ready.”

Carol motioned for the rest to move out. They poured into the corridor and Carol fired two stray rounds towards the ceiling from her assault rifle.

“Who’s there?” A yell came from the corner. Patrol guards streamed into the hallway Delta-Note occupied.

“Go.” One word from Carol and Delta-Note sprang into action. Melanie’s fingers tapped away mid-air, violet glyphs hovered around her.  Carol trained her rifle sights in the same direction. Beside her, Fyr, an auburn haired girl followed suit. A red glyph spun in front of their muzzles. Purple bolts and red tracers screamed down the passage.

Explosions after explosions erupted, shaking the mansion and shattering the windows. The flames burned orange and purple. Debris shot at them but bounced off a barrier. Screams of agony resounded throughout. And then, silence.

“Boom!” Fyr giggled.

“Dan, you’re with Fyr and Mel. Jorden, you’re with me. Continue with the mission,” Carol ordered. The five split into their groups and moved deeper into the mansion. “Ki, sitrep.”

“Mission complete.” Airaki replied.

“Roger. We’re en route to your position.” Carol and Jorden sped towards their lone teammate, guided by Lu. When they arrived outside the dining hall, several bodies laid by the open door. Their faces were pale and blue, eyes wide and bulged. There were no signs of violence, but a foul stench assaulted their noses while a concerto serenaded their ears. Entering the room, they were greeted by a platinum blonde performing a solo.

“They couldn’t do a thing,” Airaki said. At her feet laid dozens of crumpled bullets. Behind her, Carol saw multiple lifeless bodies. Some had their faces planted in their dinner, some slumped in their chairs while others laid on the floor accompanied by pistols, their pale faces frozen with the last emotions that ran through their minds. Fear. Anger. Confusion. Carol walked to the far end of the long table. A pudgy, balding man slouched over his plate of steak and mash. Her hand reached out to grab the body.

“Burn them.”

Carol paused. Jorden and Airaki were at the door standing guard.

“Burn it all!”

“No! Don't!”

She stopped again and stared at her teammates. No change in their posture. Carol shook off the voices.

She leaned the body back and confirmed the target’s identity. Mughi Len. President of Illian. Carol stepped away from the deceased leader and gathered with her teammates outside the dining hall. She stood at the door and trained her sights into the room. The same red glyph appeared at her rifle and she fired once at the dining table, consuming the mahogany and the dead around it in a pyre. She let loose a few more shots into random spots in the room, turning the grand and decorated dining hall into a sea of inferno.

One of her shots landed closer than she had intended. The explosion from her glyphed bullet singed a hole into the left sleeve of her white bolero when she shielded herself. Carol checked for injuries and only found her bodysuit charred. She let out an exasperated sigh.

“Fyr, status?”

“Having the time of my life!” Her second-in-command quipped. Mivodan’s oboe could be heard in the background, amid gunfire and explosions. “Mel’s almost done downloading the files. These guys just keep throwing themselves at us.”

“Do you need back up?”

“Nah, Dan’s doing a great job with his shield. I think their anti-magia rounds are knock-offs!”

“Roger. Rendezvous at Lu’s location when you’re done.”

“You got it!”

The three meandered through the corridors and passageways. As they were about to reach the exit, sparks showered from their backs. They turned to find a squad of guards peppering them with bullets. The metal pellets slammed into the shield, igniting a navy blue glyph wherever they struck, sending ripples of light across them.

“Jorden,” Carol started.

“You don’t need to tell me,” Jorden grunted, unsheathing his greatsword. The blade glowed green, intricate runes flared along the metal. He charged at the helpless guards while Carol and Airaki made their escape. Just metres away from the mansion, the ground rumbled, throwing them off their balance.

“Jorden never holds back with his quakes, eh?” Fyr laughed over the comm-set. “We’re on our way out now!”

As they closed in on the treeline, Carol spotted dancing yellow spots within the darkness of the trees. Lu had her eyes closed, her fingers tapping away. They watched the fire rage, swallowing the mansion whole. In moments, four silhouettes broke through the side door, a blue aura highlighted their outlines. Mivodan had his left hand occupied with a glyph in the form of an armillary sphere.

“Well that was a thing!” Fyr exhaled, the blue glow around her dissipated when Mivodan dismissed the magic. “Anyways, we’ve got the intel. What about you guys?”

“Targets were neutralized with ease. Carol decided to make sure they stayed that way.” Airaki answered matter-of-factly. Carol was lost in thought, staring at what was once the centre of political power in Illian.

“Sweet. Now what say we call in our ride?” Fyr nudged her commander.

“Wh- Oh, right. On it. Agent Apollo to Command. Delta-Note reporting. Primary and secondary success. Location for pick-up?”

“Negative, agent. Your team is being redeployed. Execute protocol Zulu to receive your next instruction.”

“Roger, wilco.”

“Protocol Zulu? That’s a secure private channel for each of us. What could our next mission be that they need such security?” Mivodan pondered.

“I don’t know. But we have our orders. Follow them,” Carol instructed. They each tuned their comm-set to a private frequency known only to themselves. A chime indicated a successful connection.

A recording Counsellor Metis’ familiar fatherly voice greeted Carol. “Good evening, Agent Apollo. Report to safehouse Charlie for your supplies and location of your next mission. Good luck.” The recording ended with a series of beeps. She looked up at her team to see they had also finished their instructions.

“I’m going to Charlie.” Carol told them.

“Danny and I are going to Foxtrot!” Fyr chirped. “I hope they have chocolates there.”

“Jorden and I will be reporting at Safehouse Alpha.” Airaki answered.

“We’ll be at Lima.” Lu had her arm around Melanie’s waist.

“Alright, we better get moving then. Keep your comms open, stay in contact. See you guys soon.” Carol wished them well and the team started towards their own destinations. Behind her, the burning mansion crackled with blaring sirens and the yells of men.

Exiting the woods, Carol found herself at the outskirts of a deserted slum. Huts constructed from rusted metal sheets lit by dim oil lamps stretched as far as her eyes could see. The silence of the night was occasionally broken by cricket chirps and dog barks. She strolled through hovels with her hood down, her black hair floating in the night breeze.

Carol spotted a solitary hut with lines in the form of a pair of wings graffitied on the door. The hinges groaned when she pushed the door open. Staring into the pitch black interior, her nose filled with musty, stale air. She summoned a yellow glyph and her silver eyes burned gold. Tracks in the ground led her to a lone dusty table that furnished the hut.

The table growled as she dragged it aside. Carol brushed the sand on the ground away, revealing a wooden cover. Lifting the board, a crate waited for her underneath. A symbol adorned the top of the crate: an upright stiletto dagger with three pairs of wings.

She opened the box and removed its contents: a passport; a new set of clothes; a haversack containing rations and supplies; air tickets; a wallet with different currencies and a letter.

“Location: Spire of Hope, Bei Deng, Kingdom of Anatolis Additional instructions: Leave your weapons in the crate and destroy the safe house. You will re-kit once you've arrived.”

Carol read the short letter, dropped it on the floor and sighed. She unbuckled her side-sword from its holster and unslung her assault rifle, carefully placing them into the crate as instructed. After changing into a fresh set of bodysuit and bolero, Carol left her charred ones folded in the crate. She then returned the crate below ground and replaced the cover.

A crimson glyph manifested on the ground and a pale blue glyph spun below the ceiling. Air rushed in through the crevices and holes around the hut. Carol stood outside, her hair fluttering in the gust. She snapped her fingers. The air ignited, the abandoned shelter incinerated in a flash, reducing it to a pile of molten metal and charred wood. Satisfied she could not see the cover or the crate under the rubble and ash, Carol stepped into the night.