Hang Man's Noose

Piper was pleased to see Viv as one of the first in her troop to show up at the dock. Even though she'd fought hard for the newbie to be added to her team, she wasn't sure how well she'd do under pressure. First missions were a sledgehammer, and every graduate a stone- only smashing her would reveal what she was really made of, be it crystal or dust.

"So," she began, holding up the key fob that command had granted her, "you're on time. Help me load this thing up, gear's in the bin with our name on it."

Viv nodded and turned to head into the locker room adjacent to the docks. Piper clicked the button on the fob to unlock the back door and slid it up to grant everyone access. The cab wasn't too unlike one of the old world's delivery trucks, with an interior that could seat up to ten Mercs, hold their gear, and store whatever it was they were transporting underneath. Unlike the old world trucks, however, these cabs ran solely on electricity, with the batteries kept under the floor of the holding compartment to give the whole thing more distributed weight and less vulnerability. Even heavily armored, the cab might get flipped if a Spook was strong enough, so it helped to center the weight as low as possible.

The front was also built more like an old 'humvee' than a delivery truck- enclosed, with small windows and a thick frame. The whole cab was painted white, a request that Piper had made to help them stand out less in the snow that she knew was blanketing the outside world right now.

Viv returned with two bins, which confused Piper for a brief moment until she noticed Uno trailing behind her. "Ah, I take it the extra bin has our ammo in it?"

"Yes ma'am. Six canisters of pressurized liquid nitrogen, and all they asked was that we brought back something equally useful. Apparently it's good for welding and keeping our food frozen."

"Welding?" Piper reached for one of the canisters and tested its weight in her hand. It wasn't too heavy, which was good- they would need to be as quick on their feet as possible.

"I didn't ask. They also produce their own pressure if left for too long, since the liquid inside is constantly boiling into gas. Best if we use these quickly, since they might blow up on us."

"Noted. Since you're here, you can help the greenhorn load up the cab."

"Actually, I had a question about the gear." Viv pulled out a full body wetsuit, letting the legs unfold to the floor. "We're not going swimming, as far as I know, so why...?"

"Those wetsuits might help you from being torn limb from limb, especially the hood. They're not exactly stretchy. I thought it would be better than nothing if someone gets swallowed up by that Spook." Piper grabbed a sleeve and demonstrated with a hard tug. "I'm not the strongest one on base, but I know I make the top five list. I've never been able to tear one of these by myself, and that's gotta count for something."

Viv nodded thoughtfully and started to refold the suit. Piper put a hand on her shoulder to stop her. "Hey, since it's already unrolled, you might as well change into it. I want everyone suited up before we get going. Those things need some time to get used to moving around in."

"Where's our helmets, cap?" Uno asked suddenly, peering into the gear bin.

Piper pointed at the cab in answer. "I've got them hooked up to the charging station inside. The ones the techies gave me were nearly dead, damn bastards."

"No kidding." Uno scowled at the news before rooting around in the bin for his own suit and other gear. Among the items he pulled were a utility belt, thermal clothes, and white outer pants and jacket. Viv went back to the locker room to grab their boots, which were also all white and heavily insulated, with spiked treads.

"No snowshoes?" Uno seemed disappointed by the offering. Piper stifled a laugh as she loaded up the nitrogen canisters into the cab.

"If the snow is that deep, we won't be getting out anyway. We'll have to head back to base or end up stuck in a cab that can't move."

"Fair enough. I take it our guns are already in the cab?"

"Again with the stupid questions, Uno." Piper climbed out just long enough to fish out her own suit from the bin. Viv replaced her in the cab, probably looking for the weapons in question. "I cleaned them myself. One rifle and two pistols for each of us, plus two combat knives for your boot and belt."

Uno smiled at that, but before he could say anything else the rest of the team crashed through the dock doors. Roger and Russo seemed to be racing each other, with Tavvie not far behind. Seppie managed to slide through the doors behind them before they could fully close, carrying a bag of their own gear.

Piper was delighted to see them, but had to grab Russo before he could careen off the raised walkway they were on and faceplant on the concrete five feet below. Roger had long since slowed to a stop, as had Tavvie. All of them were barely breathing hard.

"Russo, you jackass," Piper lurched him backwards onto his ass, away from the ledge, "your depth perception is gonna be shit no matter now reckless you are, so stop testing it."

"Racing wasn't my idea, cap. I'm just an accessory to it." The half-blind man protested weakly. "Tavvie too, she raced us here-"

"I wasn't racing you. I was making sure you didn't hit anyone on your way down here. Why do you think I was yelling 'dumbasses, coming through'?"

"Accurate and helpful, thanks Tav." Piper nodded. "They are, in fact, dumbasses. So they'll be the first ones to hit ground once we find our target."

"Cap-"

"You're late. I said what I said. Now suit up and climb aboard. Uno, you're copilot, help me do my systems check."

"Yes ma'am." Uno gave the two other men a withering stare that faded quickly under a chuckle once Piper was out of earshot. "You two really think you can impress her so easily? After three years of the same shit?"

"We can't say we're quitters." Roger replied casually, grabbing his own clothes from the bin. "Wait, why are there wetsuits in here?"

"Cap's idea. And you're definitely still losers." Uno retorted, before following after Piper.

Soon, everyone was suited up, uncomfortable as it was, and filing into the cab one by one. Viv already had her helmet from the charging shelf above the benches and was busy formatting it to her preferences when Piper and Uno came back around to the back door.

"Are y'all ready to head out?" Piper asked, clearly not caring about the answer. "It'll be about a two hour drive to our destination, so you dipshits better get comfortable in those suits in the meantime. And someone pat own Roger to make sure he didn't bring those damn dice again, or I'll break his damn nose myself."

With that, the door was shut. Piper and Uno climbed into the front, switched on the engine, and they were off, rolling up the tunnel and stopping only to let the entrance gate lift to let them exit.