Superlative

EPISODE SIX

{ THE CONFEDERATE | DIVISION ALPHA | COORDINATES: X-1924 Y-3723 | 6TH SUN, 12TH MOON | 1:16AM }

There is a reason it's called "skyriding" and not "indoor-riding," Core found herself grousing.

Dodging the metal pipes and wires protruding from the ceiling pissed Core off to no extent, because the constant swerving and jerking was making her nauseous. The walls felt like they were closing in on her, and it was extremely difficult to manoeuvre an airborne maze with a passenger clutching you with a death grip, all the while keeping track of a fleeing cyborg. Core was still trying to catch up to Ace and his pursuers, but she couldn't accelerate with everything in her way. Plus, Ace was either being a pain in the ass or an annoying smart ass for choosing the most winding and narrow route.

Mars hadn't spoken much from behind her, but then he seemed to find his voice, pointing out off-handedly, "Hey, you're that vigilante Nightshade."

"No shit, Sherlock," Core bit out as she swerved a sharp corner.

"Who's Sherlock?" Mars demanded.

Core would have laughed, rolled her eyes, or snapped back in reply if she wasn't so busy trying not to get knocked off the hoverboard. She was this close to catching up with the tail end of the group chasing Ace, but every single time she managed to get close enough, something would get into her way and she'd slow down. She couldn't help Ace take the guards out either because she was too busy dodging. As much as she pained to do it, she was left with just one last alternative.

"Can you shoot?" she asked Mars.

All Mars did in reply was to draw one of the guns from Core's belt, aim it with an arm extended over Core's shoulder (the gun was even tilted horizontally, that show-off), and fire. The stun gun's shot was hidden in the mix of other shots being made by the guards, but it did hit someone at the back of his knee. The guard tumbled and sagged to the floor, followed by another one, and yet another one, as Mars shot and Core manoeuvred. The group of guards looked like domino pieces falling one after the other, and Core had to hand it to Mars: the man may have been an idiot with hand-to-hand combat, but he was pretty hefty with a gun.

Ace was obviously just randomly rounding corners, and at this point in time Core wasn't even sure where they were any longer. But luck had run out and Core just rounded a corner to a dead-end, with Ace backed up against the far wall. His hands were raised in a universal surrender sign, as the remaining guards trailed their guns on him from a few feet away. The corridor had grown silent, with only haggard breaths bouncing off the walls. Ace was expressionless as he stood cornered, and for a second Core thought he really had given up.

But then his eyes flickered in their direction.

Mars was preparing to shoot, but Core stopped him by pushing the gun away. A shot wasn't the answer to this situation; not when guns were trained on Ace and a startled soldier might accidentally trigger a shot. No, Core had to divert their attention more subtly. With a foot on a switch, the stealth guard deactivated itself. Core lowered the hoverboard until she could hop off with a flourish, Mars following in her footsteps right after. The sound of their feet slapping against the concrete made the guards turn towards them, and Core cockily leant on the wall beside her, like the perfect picture of peacefulness and calm. 

"Missed me, boys?" she taunted.

"It's Nightshade!" one of the guards said. "Get him!"

As soon as the guns pointed in her direction, she pushed herself off the wall and used the momentum to jump on the hoverboard. Mars stayed on the ground, making expert use of the stun gun as shots started ringing in the air, and Ace was fighting his share of guards with a robotic-hand-turned-plasma-gun of his own. A series of footsteps and voices sounded off from around the corner, and Core immediately zoomed towards the sounds. The approaching group of soldiers hadn't expected her (no one ever expected Nightshade, really, which made it all the more fun), so she dove in with her hoverboard and knocked them all to the ground. Deciding that Mars and Ace could handle themselves, she led the back-up soldiers away from the two, switching altitudes and directions as fast she could to avoid shots being aimed at her.