"Well done, you!" Poppy said, pushing aside some of the final pieces of rubble. The case came free, its surface scratched and worn but relatively unharmed.
"That would be terribly impolite," Poppy said, nodding. At that moment, there was a large boom, and the perimeter above them rippled.
Poppy's wristwatch beeped. "Incoming call." Poppy tapped the watch, a frown crossing her face. "Hello?" "Pops?" Evan's voice spilled into the air around them. "We're almost there. Do you have the briefcase?" "Yeah," she replied, shifting her weight onto her other foot. "We got it." "Great. We're attacking the perimeter from the west side. We need you to get over here as soon as possible, okay? We can't hold it open for too long." Poppy nodded, and then realized that he couldn't see her. "Okay. We'll be there soon." "Good. I'll see you when you get here. Be safe, okay?" "We'll be careful." The watch clicked off as another ripple shook the perimeter. Poppy frowned and swung the briefcase into her pack. "Ready?"
He gave a hasty nod, pulling up his sleeves. "Let's hurry and get this done with. I'm sure it's only drawing attention so we should try to be quick."
"Right. Let's go." Another ripple shook the perimeter as they began running towards the western side. They were quickly crossing an open field when the impact area came into sight. Five or so scouts ran across the field, not heading towards Poppy or Francis, but trying to figure out what was going on.
Francis pulled the gun around, cocking it. "Keep going! I'll catch up with you," he managed to say, stopping right after and getting in his knees to aim down the sights. He took out 3 of the scouts one right after the other, him movements precise and practiced. He grazed the fourth, then realized he would have to go. He began running again, a bit behind. Luckily, he was quick with weapons so putting down the scouts only took about 15 seconds.
Poppy did as he asked, a bit alarmed by the sudden action. Another ripple shook the perimeter, and a small opening could be seen in the false horizon. A nearby scout reached for Poppy in the confusion, but she kicked him away, the heel of her boot finding his gut. The scout gasped and fell back as Poppy ran towards the barrier. Another shot expanded the opening in the perimeter and when she was close enough, she turned to look back at Francis.
He was close behind, managing to catch up. His face was a look of focus, but his nose was bleeding again.
She gave him a look and pulled him through the gap in the perimeter, her hand strong and insistent. "You had to use the gun," she muttered. Outside the perimeter, a large aircraft was waiting, its propellers spinning, preparing for take off. Various agents were working around the plane, getting pilots into their places and ushering in stray engineers. "You two!" one said, pointing at them. "Get in there!" (Is that okay? I can change it if you want.)
"It helped with our problem." He wiped the blood away, mostly smearing it, but it quickly came back. Turning to the agent, he slightly raised his weapon. "Where are we going?" (This is perfectly fine!)
"We have a secondary base set up in the Reaye colonies," the agent said, nudging them inside the aircraft. "We need to get you two out of here. We can't afford to wait."
Francis put the weapon down, getting into the vehicle on his own. Once he sat down, he tried to wipe the blood away again.
Poppy followed him into the aircraft and sat down, and the final agents entered after them. The propellers began turning faster, and they left the ground, the perimeter, and the forest behind them. She reached into her bag and pulled out a tissue. "Here," she said, handing it to him, a concerned look crossing her face. "You alright?"
He took it and held it to his nose. "I believe so. I don't know why it started bleeding, though, I didn't hit my face."
"Probably flesh-eating bacteria," she teased, although her face was worried. "We should get you examined on the way over. I'm sure they have an infirmary somewhere."
"Hopefully. Maybe there's a reason I've been getting headaches and muscle pains and nose bleeds," he said, a bit lost in thought.
She frowned at him, troubled at his symptoms. "We'll run a FBS," she said. "That should let us know what's going on." At that moment, several people approached Poppy and Francis. There was a girl with long hair and a sweet smile, a man with glasses and shaggy hair, a girl with a shaved head and a permanent frown, and an elderly man who peered at them over his glasses. "You two must be Poppy Abernathy and Francis Craw," said the elderly man, grinning at them. "I'm Dr. Ectenburg. We owe you a debt of gratitude for retrieving that case for us." Poppy stood, pulling her pack on. "Not a problem," she responded. "But is there any way I could possibly request an FBS for my friend here? He's been having strange symptoms for a while now, and I'm a little worried." The man nodded emphatically. "Of course! Right this way." The group began to lead the two of them to the infirmary when a man rounded the corner. He was handsome, there was no doubt about it. His green eyes were warm, and his smile was easy. He had dirty blonde hair that was lightly tousled and he had a light stubble growing on his chin. He made eye contact with Poppy and sighed with relief. "Thank God you made it. How long have you been on here?" (Oooooohhhhh. Anyways, I'm thinking that an FBS stands for 'Full Body Scan' which is exactly what it sounds? It scans your body and offers diagnosis'? Also, an image of Evan! Spoiler: Evan! Gasp! )
(Francis is experiencing symptoms from the electric shock, which will most likely get worse in the future. I always have to do research when injury is involved, haha.) Francis had just finished cleaning away the blood. He politely extended his free hand. "Ah, you must be Evan. Pleased to meet you."
