[Kontact]

Southside Chicago.  October 9th, 2072.  5:24:06pm - 87th floor.

The bug which had just dodged his flame flew straight at Machete, but struck the mana wall hard.  It didn't move though.  It simply pressed itself against the invisible barrier and stared straight at him.  Above, as Devoted floated upward toward one of the openings in the ceiling, the injured Soldier manifested right behind him.

Southside Chicago.  October 9th, 2072.  5:24:06pm - 60th floor.

Gardener and Jack blasted slug after slug after fragmenting round straight into the scurrying pile of rat-like creatures, throwing powdered plascrete into the air in a cloud, from out of which the remaining living rats burst in attack.  Gardener easily swatted them to the ground with his massive hands, while Jack took bites to both his legs.  Fortunately for him, his shin guards kept their teeth from drawing any blood.

[Kontact]

Code was on to the bug's disappearing act, and knew from the last time that Devoted's magic was like a magnet pulling these things towards him.  So, when the bug appeared behind Devo, Code was ready.  He fired up at it, putting it on the defensive, and keeping it off Devo's back.  Meanwhile, Digger lined up a shot at the bug in front of Machete and tore it down the same as the last.  Machete continued to work his flame thrower, spitting another fountain of fuel at the soldier inside the barrier, but he only managed to hit the prop wall.  In fact, the set was burning quite nicely.  Devoted, still suspended in the air, was clued in to the bug's presence behind him by the fire from the bot below.  Taking a moment to be thankful for the machine's expert targeting systems for not hitting him, he turned and loosed another Manabolt on the struggling terror.  This time, it couldn't hope to stave off the young lad's fury.  It's form swelled and popped.

Not quite through, Machete quickly twisted the nozzle of his flamethrower to his favorite setting, atomize.  This time, instead of producing a jet of burning liquid fuel, it sprayed a cloud of it, roasting everything in the air.  Many of the smaller bugs were ignited along with the soldier which had just desperately tried to flood his mind with terrible sensations.  Machete wasn't having any of it.  He kept the flame sweeping across the bug even as the drone above fired down on it.  The combined onslaught was far too much for the trapped creature, and it died screeching.

Above all this, Devoted still floated upward into what seemed to be a control room of some sort.  There was a large panel against one of the walls with digital readouts still lit up.  It seemed pretty sophisticated for a physical interface.

[Sentinemodo]

Ruckus fired remaining bullets into the frying wisps and returned to CodeMonkey body.
Just as he came back rigger's eyes opened. Poor doggy. An authentic worry was painted on his face as he scrutinized the damage done by the evil spirits. They were much beyond simple repairs. but he done what he could trying to stop the flow of the liquids and removing the dented armor unblocking the rear wheel. Then he reloaded the clip.

Only after the drone was tended Code turned toward Holland, to check if he lives.

[inca1980]

That last blast put Machete fresh out of fuel for his Shiawase Blazer.   He switches the pilot light off and holsters it on his back.  He quickly pulled up his shotgun to a ready position and pops out the last empty casing with a single pump bringing the new round into to the chamber as he sprints over to where Holland is and puts the muzzle of his Remington right in the elfs face and yells at him: "Ok maricon, we don't got time for games, tell me what the fuck you're doing with my little buddy over there!" making a nodding motion up towards the floating Devo. 

[Xzylvador]

"Wow, awesome flame Machete! Fry those bugs!" Devoted shouted down seeing the cloud of flames appearing in front of his friend.

He saw the scorched bugs fall to the floor, then lost sight of the events below as his head finally reached through the hole in the ceiling. He took had a good look around in the place Holland was sending him to, then looked down. A long way down. He swallowed.
The threat to his friends gone, Devoted could focus on getting himself to safety; he played with the ring on his necklace while whispering a prayer to Tyr and felt his prayer answered. Even though Holland's much more powerful magic was still in control of his movement, at least he wouldn't plummet to his death if, or when, the unstable elf decided to stop sustaining the spell.
"I think I'm safe," he shouted down "at least from falling to death. But I wouldn't mind being in control of my own movement, or knowing where in Tyr's name he's sending me!"
He felt a headache building up; sustaining the spell in this environment was taxing on his mind and body; he doubted he had the strength to do much else.
"There's a lot of tech stuff up here, I think you'd like this place Code!"

[Crossbow]

Digger changed clips on his Crusader, using normal ammo and his axe to finish off the last few baby buggies flapping around pitifully.  He also tried to smaother the flames destoying the set.

After hearing Devoted and figuring out Holland might not be quite as off as he looked so he decided to intervene before there was another barbecue.

"Hey Paco, sounds like pointy there had a plan when he played Up, up and away with our spellslinger, give him some room."

Walking over to where he could get a look up the hole, Digger sighted and fired his grapple.

"You heard the kid, up the rope furball."

[inca1980]

The black slits in Machete's yellow-green eyes narrow through the goggles of his gasmask as he keeps the shotgun pointed at Holland's head.  He feels the horrible crash from the his adrenal pump hormones wearing off and you hear him cough and shake a little.  With the other hand he reaches into his vest and pulls out a small stimpatch which he slaps onto the back of his neck and he instantly relaxes as the pain subsides.

"I'm gonna just keep an eye on this maricon just in case."

[Kontact]

The flaming wasps dematerialized only to be replaced by more in what seemed like a never-ending cycle of the little things.  There were more and more of them In Machete's view.  They were throwing themselves specifically at him now that he was so close.  Trying to keep a bead on Holland was problematic with the crush of the things.  "You'll probably want to step back.  They're very territorial.  If Melissa didn't hide me from them they'd probably forget not to kill me.  They can't seem to remember that my death is their death.  They're that stupid." Holland coughed from the smoke and flung some of the slimy goop from his clothes to splatter against the wall.     
"You wanted to go up?  He's up.  I don't care where you go as long as he's not here to tempt her anymore.  You've made your call; Someone knows I'm here now.  That was the only thing I ever wanted from you and, thus, your only bargaining chip.  You can't un-ring that bell, chum."  Holland shimmered for a second and the slime was gone from his face and clothes.  Another wave of magic rippled outward and the napalm and soot were swept away to the edge of the set where the hive material ends.  Finally he walked over to the charred and shot up sofa, rested his hands on it and pushed magic through it, reweaving and repairing it to a perfect condition.

[Sentinemodo]

Since our only bargaining chip is gone, is there any reason for me to not tell Ares Firewatch about mad mage infested with entire hive of bugs and that they should nuke the entire district before the fool gets away?

[Kontact]

"So, what you're saying is that, I am a fool for fighting to save your lives twice now, since your continued existence is a threat to me?  You make a compelling argument, robot.  I was going to mend you like I mended my sofa here, but your logic has swayed me.  You can go fuck yourself."  The satellite dish whipped out of the balcony railing and shot under the sofa in the blink of an eye.  Holland stepped forward toward Machete who was menacing him with a shotgun.  "I have out-maneuvered hell itself since before half of you could pop a boner.  Go ahead and threaten me you fucking cockroaches.  Get angry and try something.  Try anything you pathetic little piss-ant.  All I have to do is stop thinking about it and you're dead.  You know that, right asshole?  These things will fuck you to death with their stingers just like they did to your friend.  How the hell can you not remember that?  It seems pretty fucking obvious to me, but since you're as stupid as a fucking bug, maybe you belong together.  Who am I to keep you apart?"  He was standing right at the boundary of the bubble now, bugs whipping around him angrily.  More bugs.  "You don't get it at all, do you rain man?  These things, they can't even understand language.  That surprise you, asshole?  They only read emotion, and I just can't seem to fake amusement at your shitty little selves anymore.  What do you think about that, maricon?  That bitch can't understand a single word we're speaking, but I figure, as long as we continue to antagonize each other, she doesn't know we're conspiring against her.  What do you think about that, shit-for-brains?  Aaaaaanht.  Don't care what you think.  Now get the fuck out of here before I let these things kill your pathetic asses.  You really are just begging for it.  You step in a pile of shit and then stand around sniffing it like idiots.  Maybe, if I let hem kill you, the next bunch of dog-fucking scavengers will have the sense to not hang around a hive of insect spirits like they don't have a fucking care in the world."

[Crossbow]

Digger again moves in between the members of his team from certain death, his many years of keeping hot-blooded Italian tough-guys from saying something stupid to the bosses coming in handy, yet again.

"Machete, get up the rope.  We need as many eyes as we can up there to figger out what the kid found, I got things covered down here."

To the mage, Digger tries to speak calmly.

"He is good in a pinch boss, he has just had a rough time of it today, but we got this."

[Sentinemodo]

Code flinched at the whip of the words. He was on the verge of shouting back. Hey! I've saved you life too. I shot that nymph remember? And that bug banging you too. That bacteria floating around would eat you too during you sleep or that bugs would eat you. You haven't spent last twenty years keeping to the straw to stay alive to be shot down by some punk codeslinger like the mearest ganger. So stop bullying here your majesty. I am not a pawn to 'you-may-go-now' around. Show some gratitude for saving your life, and letting the world know that you're alive. Shut up Code! He snapped on himself and flinched even more. You're doing this job because you couldn't haggle yourself a decent raise, you're not good at talking. Back off! Now! ...

Code hunched a bit. His tail twitched a bit. He managed to say aloud only. I am sorry. Please excuse me.

He gathered the few remaining pieces of Ruckus and started to climb upward slowly looking sadly after his satellite dish.

[inca1980]

Machete lowers his shotgun keepig his eyes on Holland.  "You sure talk a good game for someone who just a moment ago was screaming for his life against something we just tore to shreds.  You stay here  while we do scoping."

With that he tightens the strap on his shotgun bringing it taught and pulling the gun against his back as he jogs over to the rope and starts climbing.

[Kontact]

"Oh god damn it!  Don't apologize to me!  You still don't get it!  Melissa is watching you!  You've proven yourselves capable threat, so you're in real danger now!  You need to leave immediately, but you need to leave angry!  How thick are you!?  You could already be surrounded, you simpletons!  You need to go where she can't see you!  You kill four of her soldiers and her caretaker stooge, Ms. Busybee, and you think this is over!?  Could you really be that dumb?"

[Crossbow]

"Oh, don't you worry yourself about that, Mr Weed-Eater!!  The guys that went up in that hole are either scared to death of you, pissed at you, or BOTH!"  Digger screams at the elf.

"Me?  I am DEFINITELY the last one, but I gotta go up on that balcony and make sure that Mike's guys coming up are able to link up with us!!"

Digger then scurries upstairs and tries to raise Jack and Gardner on the comm.