Missions of the Retrieval Team - A Kilt By Any Other Name

[davedove]

Scene 58

X Marks Mountain

I quickly jumped into the driver’s seat and started the van. Throwing it into gear, I hit the gas and the van jumped across the courtyard.

I headed for the road, but there was a problem. Three men were blocking the road and were aiming their pistols at the van.

The men began firing at the van and I could hear the bullets striking the vehicle. A couple of shots hit the windshield and small spider webs of cracks formed around the holes.

I ducked as low as I could and pushed the van faster. As the van neared the road, the men quit firing and dove to the side out of my path.

All but one, that is; I could see John still standing directly in the path of the van, firing directly at me. I lowered myself as much as I could to avoid his shots, some of them coming very close to me.

I kept heading for the road, silently hoping that John would get out of the way. A shot penetrated the windshield and passed only an inch from my head, striking the roof of the van. I ducked to avoid it, temporarily losing sight of the road.

A loud thump and a slight jarring of the van told me that John had not moved, standing and firing to the last in his attempt to stop me.

I raised my head and found that I had left the courtyard and was now on the road heading down the mountain.

I looked down and found the van’s radio. I quickly dialed the frequency to the one we had used for this mission and picked up the mike.

“Home Roost, this is Dove, over,” I said into the mike.

“This is Home Roost,” came the reply.

I glanced down at my watch; it was almost five-thirty. “Get my flock out to the gateway. I’ll be coming in hot.”

“Roger, get the flock to the gateway.”

“I have bad news as well. We’ve lost Julie.”

There was a pause before they answered. “Roger, Julie is lost,” the voice said sadly.

“Dove, out.”

Now I had to throw off any pursuers.

[Clockwork John]

Dave, you really nailed my character here(no pun intended). I'm definitely the type that would fight till the end and be the last one standing... for better or for worse.

[Wompet]

Let's see, who should I kill off next?

It can't be me, or you won't be able to use "No animals were harmed in the writing of this thread" in the end credits.

[davedove]

Scene 59

X Marks Mountain

I didn’t see anyone behind me, but I knew they had to be back there. I needed to give them a distraction.

As I crossed the stream that led to the secret entrance, I began looking for a likely spot. There ahead of me, I saw an outcrop of rocks that would serve for my plan.

I looked around for something to brace against the accelerator and my eyes settled on Anna’s interrogation bag.

I aimed the van for the rocks and opened my door. I shoved the bag down on the accelerator pedal, jamming it to the floor. As the motor raced and the van shot forward, I jumped from the van.

I got up and watched the van slam into the rocks, crunching the front end. The damage to the front damaged the engine enough that it died. I walked and pulled out the pistol that Anna had given me. I aimed it at the back of the van and fired, puncturing the gas tank.

Gasoline poured out of the tank forming a puddle on the ground. I put away the pistol and pulled out a book of matches. I tore out a match and struck it. When it burst into flame, I used it to light the rest of the book. When it was burning brightly, I tossed it into the puddle of gasoline.

The gas immediately caught fire. The flames traveled up the stream pouring from the tank and into the van. In less than a second, the fuel still inside the tank ignited and exploded, causing the van to catch fire.

The burning van would attract attention, but hopefully it would delay any pursuers for a bit.

I hurried to the rock formation near where the portal would appear and waited for my associates.

A small noise behind me made me turn around. A small rock skittered across the mountainside.

I smiled. Rocks don’t normally fall sideways.

“It’s clear Ms. Raven,” I called out.

From behind a group of rocks above me, my associates emerged. Ms. Hawk was helping David walk. Apparently, it would take some time before he recovered from his treatment in prison.

Also with them were Mike, Michael, and this world’s David.

“What are you doing here?” I asked David. “The FBI still has people all over the mountain.”

“I know,” he answered, “but I just couldn’t miss seeing the portal. And these two wouldn’t let me come out alone.” He gestured towards the two Mikes.

“I’m sorry about Julie,” I told him.

David nodded. “I know, your associates told me what she did.”

I looked at my watch. “It’s only a few minutes until six. It should be opening shortly.”

Just then we heard more vehicles approaching. Turning towards the sound, we saw two black cars speeding down the road towards us.

“We can’t leave now,” said Ms. Hawk. “It’s almost time.”

Gunshots came from the car and we dove behind the rocks to avoid the bullets. Ms. Hawk and Michael quickly swung their rifles up and began returning fire.

“We can’t stay here,” David yelled about the noise. “They’ll pin us down and surround us.”

“Go!” I said. “We’ll stay and escape through the portal, but you three need to get out of here.”

He nodded. “Good luck. We’ll try to draw them away if we can.” He started to rise.

“Wait,” I said and reached into my pocket. I pulled out the flash drive I had worked on earlier and handed it to David. “Take this.”

“What is it?” he asked in confusion.

“A tool for your world; now go!” I said and pushed him away.

He quickly put the drive in his sporran and got up. Mike took off first, followed quickly by David. Michael followed in the rear, laying down covering fire for their escape.

[davedove]

Scene 60

X Marks Mountain

We watched as the three men disappeared up the mountain amidst the gunfire.

“Okay,” I told my associates, “as soon as the portal appears, get David through it and I’ll follow you.”

The minutes passed slowly as gunfire continued to rain on our position. As we waited, another vehicle joined the other two and even more agents were firing at us.

From behind we all heard the hum as the portal flashed into existence.

“Go!” I yelled to my associates.

They quickly helped David to his feet and moved towards the portal. I rose to follow them, and moved backwards, covering our escape.

We had only moved a few feet when Ms. Raven gave a cry and fell to the ground. I glanced her way and saw that she had taken a shot to her thigh. Blood was pumping from the wound.

“Keep going!” I yelled to Ms. Hawk. “Get David through!”

I knelt at Ms. Raven’s side to help her.

“You too,” she told me. “I’ll cover your escape.”

“No,” I told her. “I’m not leaving you behind.”

I clamped my hand over her wound to apply pressure and stop the bleeding. If I didn’t, she would soon bleed to death. We lay as close to the ground as we could to avoid the incoming gunfire.

As we lay there, the agents began to move closer, sensing that we couldn’t put up much of a fight. I quickly tied off Ms. Raven’s wound.

The agents had enough men that they were able to keep us pinned down. They continued to advance on our position.

Then shots came from behind us and struck several agents. Ms. Hawk dove to join us.

“What are you doing here?” I demanded. “I ordered you to get David through the gate!”

“I followed those orders!” she shot back. “And now I’ve come back to help you.”

“Well, now you’re in the same predicament we are, but thanks. You could have been home safe, now you’re stuck with us.”

“It’s not over, the portal is still open,” she told me.

Ms. Raven and I looked back in surprise. Ms. Hawk was right; the portal was still open after all this time, glowing with a blue light. How was that possible?

But how could we get through the hail of gunfire when one of us was wounded.

The answer came when bursts of gunfire came from the side of the mountain, causing the agents to take cover. Looking up, I saw that Mike and Michael had returned to help us.

“Get out of here!” Mike yelled to us.

“Take Raven and go!” I said to Ms. Hawk. “I’ll cover you and follow right behind.”

Ms. Hawk helped Ms. Raven to her feet and they headed towards the portal. I began firing behind me and followed them.

As we moved, a stray bullet struck my shoe. I was uninjured but it knocked me to the ground.

I looked up to see my two associates pass through the portal. But then, the portal began to flicker, as if something was wrong.

The agents also saw my associates pass through the portal. “They’re escaping! Follow them!” Several of them made for the portal.

I couldn’t let them pass through the portal. “We’ve got to stop them!” I yelled to the two Mikes.

They nodded and increased their firing towards the agents. The agents returned fire on them, but at least they weren’t headed for the portal any longer.

As I watched, both men of the KLF were hit. Michael lay motionless on the ground, but Mike staggered back to his feet. He was bleeding from several wounds.

He saw me looking and smiled. I could tell what he had in mind.

“Go home!” he yelled and began running towards the agents, firing as he went. Several more rounds peppered his chest and he shook in mid-air before falling to the ground.

I knew he was drawing their fire away from me and I couldn’t waste his final act. I pushed myself up from the ground and dove for the flickering portal.

[davedove]

Commercial Break

A Scottish Apparel Store

A tall bearded man walks up to a counter and pulls out a white dress sporran. The fur of the sporran shimmers with an iridescent glow.

“Isn’t this a beautiful sporran?” the man asks. “It’s made from the fur of the Greater Acrylibeast. It’s very rare and very expensive. To get the fur, one must journey far into the Arctic and face great dangers.”

He pulls out another sporran that appears identical to the first. “This one is beautiful too, isn’t it? What if I told you that this one cost less than one one-hundreth the cost of the first one? How, you might ask.”

“Simple, this sporran is an Acrylifaux Sporran, made of synthetic fur developed by Freelander Industries. It shines just like the real fur, but you don’t have to risk your life to get it. Only a trained fur expert can tell the difference.”

“So, go ahead and get an Acrylifaux Sporran and impress your friends.”

He winks at the audience.

“Only you need to know it’s not the real thing.”

[Standard]

Hadn't the time to read the storyline the past week. WOW what a week it's been. I'm sitting on the edge of my seat.

[davedove]

Scene 61

David’s Laboratory, Great Hall of X Marks the Scot

My passage through the portal was different this time. A burning sensation traveled over my skin as I passed through. Then I felt the impact of the floor as I hit.

“He’s through!” a woman yelled.

“He’s on fire!” yelled another.

I then found myself covered with a heavy blanket as someone covered me to smother the flames.

The man had me wrapped tightly in the blanket so I couldn’t move.

“That’s good, thanks,” I told him.

“Are you sure?” Arlen asked, letting me up.

“Yeah, I’m good, just a little scorched; thanks again.”

Arlen helped me up and I looked around. Jerry and Ms. Starling were at the control console, working with fire extinguishers to put out the fire there.

Jamie and Ms. Stork were tending to David, who they had seated nearby. Ms. Hawk and Todd were helping Ms. Raven. Mike was yelling into the intercom for a medical team.

“Here,” said Dee, walking up to me. “You might need this.” He handed me a large t-shirt.

“Thanks, Dee.”

“And welcome back.”

I quickly stripped off my scorched shirt and pulled on the t-shirt. I saw that they finally had the fire on the control console extinguished.

I quickly went to Ms. Raven and Ms. Hawk. “Is everyone okay?”

“She’ll be fine,” said Ms. Hawk. “Your bandage stopped the bleeding.”

“Thanks for staying with me,” said Ms. Raven.

I took her hand. “Don’t mention it; we’re a team,” I said, smiling at her.

“The medical team is on the way,” said Todd. He looked at me. “You did well.”

I went over to where they were tending to David. He looked up when I approached.

“Thank you,” he said.

“Anytime,” I answered.

Jamie turned to me and extended his hand. “Welcome home,” he said.

“Thanks,” I said, shaking his hand.

I nodded to David. “He’s been drugged. I suspect with some of the same drugs that Ivana used.”

“I’ll tell the medical team,” Jamie said.

I looked around. We had gone through the portal, retrieved David, and returned with the team intact.

Mission accomplished.

[Arlen]

Ahhhhh... what an ending!

[davedove]

Scene 62

Media Room, Great Hall of X Marks the Scot

I had told Hank and the Moderators all that had happened on the alternate Earth and the conditions I had found.

“What’s the condition of the portal generator?” Hank asked.

“It’s completely burned out,” Jerry answered.

“Can it be repaired?”

“We can repair the machinery, but I don’t know if we can duplicate the effect.”

“Why not, wouldn’t the same machinery do the same thing?”

“You would think, but we have no idea why it worked in the first place.”

“What about the last time?” I asked. “Why did the portal stay open so long?”

“Again, we don’t know,” said Jerry. “We opened the portal and watched as Ms. Hawk guided David through. We thought it would close down then, like it always had. Instead, there was a sudden surge of energy and the portal just stayed open.”

“Where did the energy surge come from?”

“Again, no idea, it just appeared. This may sound crazy, but it’s almost like something didn’t want the portal to close until you had all come through, like someone was holding the door open for you. Then, as soon as you came through, there was an even greater surge and the console was fried.”

“So what you’re telling us,” said Jamie, “is that we won’t be able to go back again. We won’t be able to help out that other world.”

“I’m afraid so,” said Jerry.

“What about the injuries?” Hank asked.

“David is responding well to the treatment,” Todd answered. “Ms. Raven’s wound was serious, but she’ll heal up fine.”

“Good,” said Hank. “Then I guess the mission was a big success. Our missing Moderator was returned and we didn’t lose anyone. Well done, Mr. Dove.”