We're more than carbon and chemicals

[lucetimods]

Who: All Draftees
What: Fighting Third Party
When: 26th, 27th, 28th, 1st, and 2nd
Where: The Southern Farmlands
Summary: See here for overall details.
Rating: Probably gonna be gorey in places :|a

DOESN'T NEED A CUT. People should know how this works, if not, just follow other people's lead. I'm gonna set up some strategist threads at the top, for the four strategists to use if they want to, otherwise people should start their own threads.

((Mod Note: Since this has been asked a few times, just fyi, the livestock do not talk. Happy hunting!))

Comments

[all7seas]

Jack tried to stand up a little straighter. When the Elite soldier had brought a heavy boot down on the side of the pirate's knee, there had been an explosion of pain and a great deal of tissue, ligament, and joint damage. The healers had done the best they could to get it back to normal, but they had warned him it might take a couple of weeks to feel fully restored. The last thing he wanted was another round of being stabbed in the neck.

Injury? What injury?

"Don't want one of your hypowhatsits right now, McCoy!"

[hippocraticly.livejournal.com]

"You're a walking liability right now and you're not even doing that right." McCoy responded evenly, not letting the other man rile his temper any more than he had done so far. "You shouldn't even be out here, damn it. Just go back to the hotel room and let those droids take care of you."

[all7seas]

"Not while you're out here by your lonesome, Bonesy. 'Lonesome Bones,' now that there would be your pirate name if you were a man of the sea."

But now Jack was backing away, trying to illustrate that yes, his leg was fine, and no, he still did not want a hypospray stuck in his neck. He wasn't paying attention at first to the very furtive sounds coming from just outside the barn.

[hippocraticly.livejournal.com]

"Well, it's a good thing for me that I'm not a man of the sea and never will be." The self-confessed farm boy replied gleefully and fitted the phaser back into the holster around his waist as he approached the opposite end of the barn. He felt uncomfortable wearing it, but it was regulation for away teams back home and Scotty would probably have his head if he didn't at least pander to it.

"It can't be that long now."

[all7seas]

"And that's----

...

Did you hear that, doc?"

[hippocraticly.livejournal.com]

"Hear what? The annoying sound of you jabbering away at me? Because yeah, I can hear you loud and clear, Sparrow." He turned on his foot mid-strut and offered the pirate a mock salute.

[all7seas]

The pirate was just about to tell McCoy what he thought of that salute and how maybe he should start calling him "Captain" now when the door beyond the doctor suddenly burst open, and soldiers---angry, armed, Third Party soldiers--burst in.

Jack recoiled, eyes wide in shock. Then he snapped back to reality. "MCCOY! RUN!"

[hippocraticly.livejournal.com]

Even if he heard the pirate shouting orders, he wouldn't comply with them. He couldn't run away anymore and he whirled round to meet the Third Party members who had done such a good job of surprising him and winced as he was showered with wooden shards from the sheer force they had used in order to break in.

"Shit--" Was McCoy's choked and somewhat fearful exclamation as the nearest soldier wasted no time in lunging for the doctor wordlessly, his sword raised and McCoy fired off a shot that did little to slow the winged man down as it whizzed across his soldier and struck a support beam in the rafters and sprayed the inhabitants of the barn with dust.

[all7seas]

It was not second nature for Jack to charge to his friend's side. It took at least five seconds of conscious self-convincing before the pirate plunged into the fray. His swordsmanship was a bit off; it was difficult to pivot on the knee and perform the proper footwork, which affected his ability to strike true. Still, even with the knee compromised, Jack Sparrow was fast. It had always been one of his primary talents, even as a young boy. He slashed down a soldier who had gotten dust in his eyes and cut the legs out from under another that was trying to get to the doctor.

Sparrow tried not to think about the fact that there were many, many more swords visible through the broken-down door. You could only fight one man at a time, in the end. Even if you fought fast.

[hippocraticly.livejournal.com]

With the pirate handling close-combat, the doctor manoeuvred himself away and aimed for one of the soldiers, swallowing his reservations as the barrel switched from blue to red; stun to kill. As his finger squeezed the trigger, the soldier's eyes began to glow and, once again, the doctor was left ineffectual as his weapon -- the only means of defending himself -- stalled on him.

[all7seas]

Glowing. Glowing eyes. Jack shut his own eyes tight as he stabbed his sword through the throat of a Third Party soldier, then pushed forward to shishkebab another on the bit of the blade sticking through the back of the dead man's neck.

He tried to picture in his mind her beautiful green eyes, but they were angry. Jilly's bewitching blue ones helped, though.

"Aaaarr!" Shoving both bodies off his sword, Jack climbed up on the bed of a broken-down hay wagon, trying to take advantage of higher ground.

"DOC! WHAT THE DEVIL IS WRONG? SHOOT THEM! MAKE 'EM VANISH! LIKE THE CHICKEN!"

[hippocraticly.livejournal.com]

"It's not working." McCoy called to him over the fray, feeling oddly calm despite the situation as his phaser had essentially died in his hands and he pulled the trigger fruitlessly, but he might as well been aiming a water pistol at the advancing soldier. "I thought that it--"

Whatever he was going to say dies on his lips as the soldier slashes horizontally at the doctor and, almost belatedly, McCoy falls back and raises his arm to defend himself and his eyes widens as he feels the blade slice deeply through his skin and the flush of hot blood erupting from the laceration. Terror grips his heart as his breath becomes caught in his throat; oh, God.

[all7seas]

"BONES!"

Not a fighter, Jack. Not like you. A good man. He helps people.

The pirate stayed calm, unbelievably. There was a rope and pulley near the hay wagon, probably once used to lift hay bales up to the loft above them. If he could get them both up there...if they can hold the high ground long enough, they have a chance.

Maybe. A good enough chance, at least.

Sparrow dealt one more stab with his sword and didn't wait to see whether it killed his opponent or not. He grabbed hold of that rope and swung toward the doctor, kicking hard at the enemy who just sliced him and knocking the man aside before he could deal another blow.

"Bonesy, mate---we've got to get high. Up there."

[hippocraticly.livejournal.com]

His phaser slipped from his fingers and landed heavily onto the hay and blood strewn ground as he gripped at his wrist instead and pursed his lips together in a thin, white line as he blinked rapidly. Shock(!) his mind screamed at him and he couldn't stop his damn arm from trembling as he felt his sleeve become laden with blood. His blood.

"Can't." He murmured through gritted teeth and shook his head. Suddenly, he barked out a laugh as he looked up towards the rafters and shook his head again, more fervently as yet more soldiers advanced. "He-Heights!"

[all7seas]

There appeared to be some confusion at the back door; the soldiers were regrouping, conferring. Laughing. Jack didn't like the sound of that at all.

In a moment he had the bandanna off of his head and was using it to bind up McCoy's wound. It was a slipshod job at binding but his attention was divided every way to Sunday.

"Look, Bonesy--" The pirate secured the rope to the loft around the other man's waist, a smile on his lips if not in his eyes. Lighthearted. "I'll haul you up and then you can really hold yourself over me, savvy? Dream come true for you, mate."

[hippocraticly.livejournal.com]

"Don't you dare." Animatedly, he pulled at the binds Jack had fastened around his waist and his eyes scoured the floor for his phaser. If they were gone, then surely that damn special ability of theirs had worn off and he could fight again, although doubt clouded his entire resolve.

[all7seas]

"Leonard---I always dare." The pirate removed his hat and plunked it on McCoy's head, then sent the pulley mechanism spinning with a kick. With a whizzing sound the rope flew upwards, yanking the good height-fearing doctor with it to the loft above.

[hippocraticly.livejournal.com]

Fingers clawing ineffectively at the knot around his waist, he lifted his head and opened his mouth to reply to the pirate when the hat placed on his head stopped him short and he was launched up towards the loft with a strangled gasp of surprise.

[all7seas]

There. That was one less division for his brain to deal with. McCoy safe(er) in the loft meant that Jack could address a new problem: more footsoldiers had swarmed in, yes--but they were accompanied by another Shifter.

And an Elite who stood taller than the rest and was chuckling in a very alarming way as he strode toward Sparrow.

"...............Oh. Can't we talk about this, lads? Over a bottle of something?"

[hippocraticly.livejournal.com]

Panic enveloped the doctor as he hung from the rafters and he tried to calm himself down with short, shuddering breaths. Don't look down, Leonard, he repeated this mantra to himself grimly as he squeezed his eyes shut and tried to swallow down the nausea rising in the pit of his stomach. Remember the seminar. What good is a Starfleet officer who's afraid of everything?. His mouth was dry and he attempted to inhale deeply -- a technique to calm him down -- but ended up coughing he felt the dust scratch down the back of his throat.

He could hear Jack below, but he couldn't make out what he was saying. McCoy never hated the pirate as much as he did now and his anger propelled him to attempt a precarious swing to the nearest rafter in order to stop hanging there like damn fish bait on a hook.

[all7seas]

"That's a nice sword, mate. Two-handed, is it? Three-handed? Lovely. Bit macabre, actually, but that's in this season." The pirate was slowly backing toward the wall. His mind was racing; he could see spikes set in the wall to hang equipment. If he could get his knee to behave and enough of a jump, he could probably scale the wall a ways--possibly even reach one of the rafters that hung so invitingly above.

He spared a glance for McCoy. To Sparrow's eyes, the man was doing admirably.

[hippocraticly.livejournal.com]

He managed to land on one of the rafters and ignored the searing pain in his arm. What he'd give for one of those healing artes right now as he works at the rope again and removes it. It coils between his fingers as he looks down at Jack and their eyes meet and he throws down the rope for the pirate.

[all7seas]

Jack actually had time to bow to the menacing Third Party Elite and chirp a quick "Cheers!" at him before taking hold of that rope and launching out of that circle of death in a maneuver that would put Jack the Monkey to shame. Soon he found himself standing in the hay loft, a bit wobbly from his old injury but no worse for wear.

"Good man, Bonesy!"

[hippocraticly.livejournal.com]

Even with the makeshift bandage, McCoy was beginning to feel light-headed as he looked over at the pirate who joined him in his worst nightmare. Of course, he probably didn't view it that way, but he could convince himself differently.

"I oughta ring your neck for doing that."

[all7seas]

"Ring my neck for..."

That was about all Sparrow could get out. The Elite soldier had soon barked orders at the rank and file, who were swarming up the ladder at the end of the loft. The Elite himself reached them in two giant leaps, the flap of his wings stirring up dust and straw.

".....Oh."