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Date Posted: 21:33:44 02/20/04 Fri
Author: J.T.
Subject: Chapter 65: "Highest Calling"

When we arrived at the airport, a C-5 Galaxy transport was waiting. A soldier in grey jump-pants, OD-tee, black flack vest, and grey webgear wearing a green beret stood guard and saluted as Ironhide came to a stop and Athena, Blaze, and I got out.

"Major."

I returned the salute, "Trooper..." I paused, taking a closer look, "Do I know you?"

"In a way, sir. It's actually Agent Conrad Falcone. We met a few weeks ago, during a firefight."

Then it clicked, "Washington."

"Yes, sir."

Athena stepped up to my side and placed her hand on my shoulder, a gesture I doubt was lost on anyone, "What's a Secret Service Agent doing in military uniform guarding a military transport?"

"Former Airborne, ma'am." Falcone reached into one of his jump-pants' oversized pockets and pulled out a packet of papers, handing them to me, "President assigned me to you, sir. Also sent me down as escort for your new ordinance."

I glanced over the papers... Transfer of Agent Conrad Falcone, chosen codename: "Dropzone", from Secret Service to Reality Preservation Task Force, assignment of prototypes of fast attack jeep "Roadbuster" and Assault Armored Personnel Carrier "Armadillo" to RPTF, Temporary assignment of C-5 Galaxy transport plane for personnel and ordinance, permission from British government for American military forces to be present in Ireland, everything checked out.

"What rank were you, Falcone?" I asked, storing the papers in a subspace pocket, an act that the new recruit didn't even blink at. Adaptible, a point in his favor.

"Oh-two, sir."

"First off, Lieutenant, officer or not, everyone in this unit works for a living. There ain't no 'sirs' here. Secondly, my name is not Sir, it is not Mister, it is only Major around other officers, my name on duty is Turbo, off-duty, it's J.T., understood?"

"Yes... Turbo."

Blaze spoke up, "Blaze, or Kay. The metal cat's Ravage."

"Jessica. Or Athena on-duty."

"Now that we're all one big happy unit, board the damn plane..."

Dropzone looked over at Blaze, "Is he always this bad?"

"Nope, most of the time he's worse."

**==

The others talked on the trans-continental flight, I familarized myself with the new vehicles. The Roadbuster was basically a Vehicle: Attack/Multi-Purpose, a VAMP. Forty millimeter machine guns on the back instead of twenty, but still a VAMP in it's basic design. The Armadillo, however, was an eight-wheeled battlestation. Two seperate compartments in the cab, one driver, one gunner for the twin gatlings and bunker-buster missile launchers. A deck between cab and compartment for observation and as a shooting position. And at the rear was an armored four-person transport compartment.

They'd help. Ironhide wasn't an off-road vehicle, they were.

**==

As we stepped off the transport at Mildenhall Airbase, one of America's two largest in Ireland, Athena took a deep breath, "The Irish air smells the same here..."

"I like it... Like home on those good days when it's dark enough that you don't need anything to sheild your eyes, warm enough for short sleeves, but not muggy..." I trailed off, then finished with my own version of Flint's lop-sided grin, "Ok, let's unload the vehicles and tear up some ground, I call Roadbuster!" I dashed back into the plane to get it off before Blaze could try Squatter's Rights.

"Boys with their new toys..." I heard Athena say, then the sound of her running up the ramp, "I call shotgun!"

With a smirk I walked over to the jeep's passenger side and raised the gullwing door as she reached the Roadbuster, "Ladies first."

"Johnnie, you of all people should know..." She put on her best thick Southern accent, "'I ain't no lady.'" Then she climbed into the jeep and yanked the door out of my hand in closing it.

"'What a woman,'" I muttered, patting the jeep on the hood as I went around.

"It's your fault."

"And I still don't regret it," as I got in beside her and began studying the dashboard closer... "C'mon, Dubya, you're a southerner too, you wouldn't make a fellow southerner ride in a vehicle without one... Um-HM! Found it."

"Found what?"

"CD player, what did you expect, nitrous-injection switch? I already knew where that was." Reaching into my subspace pocket I drew out a book of CDs and began flipping through it. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Blaze climb into the Armadillo's driver seat and Dropzone into the gunner's. Ravage's mouth glowed with the blue of something being removed from subspace before he stuck his head through the window and dropped a GPS-looking device in Athena's lap.

"Dragonfire tracker," Ravage informed us, short and quietly as always, then he turned and climbed onto the Armadillo's platform before we could say anything.

"Find what you were looking for, yet?"

"Oh, yeah... Toby Keith, 'Shock'n Y'all'." I told her, sliding the disc out of it's pocket and into the CD player. As I put the CD folder back into subspace, I clicked through the tracks until I found the one I wanted, 'Whiskey Girl'.

As the lead-in played I cranked and revved the engine before backing down the ramp and turning to the side. Pulling the mic from it's holder, I brought the Armadillo up on a comm-channel, "Armadillo, Roadbuster, you boys coming or what?"

Athena clicked off the radio before they could respond, "Drive."

"Hold on to something..."

Shifting into All-wheel drive, I headed for the gate, singing along to the song. After passing through the airbase's gate I saw the Armadillo finally come up behind us. Athena's foot came down on mine and the Roadbuster headed in the direction the tracker showed, rapidly gaining speed.

**==

A few hours later, we came to where the tracker and Ravage said the Dragonfire energy source was: A deserted cemetary, roughly dating back to the Arthurian era in England.

"Dropzone, you stay here."

"Turbo?"

"Long story, no time this time. Ravage, take point."

Both of them nodded acceptance of their assignments, and the four of us going in began making our way through the tombstones and graves, taking care to avoid mudholes that could be sinkholes. Just as hard was keeping track of each other in the thick Irish fog that pervaded around us, making the going even more treacherous. Ravage had the easiest time, with four paws spread out keeping him stable, Athena was doing almost as well, her less bulky frame allowing her to move from safe spot to safe spot with ease. The problems belonged to Blaze and I with our larger frames reducing our manuverability.

"Enough of this bullshit... Float!" Blaze rose into the air, gliding over the plots after Ravage.

I nodded, a good idea, "Ba-co RAVEN!" The shockwave tossed me into the air and after the other three.

Eventually we reached our destination, a crypt in the center of the cemetary...

The family name on the crypt was Magnus.

We tried for several minutes to gain enterance before Blaze grunted in frustration and slammed his fist against a nearby headstone.

"This is ridiculous! It's like something out of Star Wars, we've made it all the way to the end of the Trench Run and now Darth Vader's come out of nowhere and is picking us off one by bloody one!"

"Say that again..."

"What, 'this is ridiculous'?"

"No, about Star Wars."

"Vader's kicking our asses..."

"Vader... Anakin... I wonder..."

"What?"

"Bro, have you ever read Junior Jedi Knights number five, 'Vader's Fortress?'"

"I haven't."

"Neither have I, Turbo."

"No."

"There's this one scene where Anakin Solo is in Vader's Fortress and is trying to gain entrance to his grandfather's private chambers. Finally he comes to a realization and tells the voice recognizion device, 'I am Anakin, let me in.' The key was he and his grandfather shared a name."

"I think I see where your coming from."

I stepped forward, followed by Blaze, and both of us put our hands to the door of the crypt, speaking in unison, "I am Magnus, let me in."

The stone door opened with a groan.

"You know, there's actually no way that should have worked," I informed the others.

Blaze started down the crypt's stairs into the darkness and I followed, but turned around after a couple of steps to see that Ravage and Athena hadn't moved.

"Come on, you two."

Ravage shook his head, then looked at the door, "Magnus."

Athena nodded in agreement, "This is for you, not us."

I climbed back up the stair and, ignoring Ravage, placed my hands on her shoulders, "Kella, you're as much a Magnus as Kay or I... maybe not yet in name, but in heart... soul... mind..." I paused before finishing, "...Body. It says Magnus... Enter with me, Mrs. Magnus..."

"Johnnie..."

"HEY!" Blaze's voice echoed up to us, "You lovebirds coming or not?"

Athena looked into my eyes, "Yeah, we're coming!"

Hand in hand, the two of us decended down to where Blaze was waiting in front of three weapons hilt first in the ground: one sword that looked exactly like the Buster Sword, one that resembled one of Auron's katanas, and a naginata with a blade similar to the Buster Sword. I reached out a hand to touch the Buster Sword look-alike, but Blaze grabbed my hand to stop me.

"Don't. There's some kind of protective barrier."

I twisted my hand out of his grasp and brushed it against the barrier, feeling it give slightly.

"Did it give when you tried it?"

"No... It did just then?"

"Yeah..."

Athena walked around to the halbard and pressed her hand against the barrier, "It gave again... Nothing with one in the room and trying, it gives with three in the room and one trying..."

Blaze nodded and circled around to the katana, "Let's try three for three."

The three of us put our hands out and as one reached through the barrier and pulled out the weapons. The moment they lost contact with the ground, the room began to shake.

"Evacuate the area!"

"Close up for Teleport spell!" I thrust my free hand into the air and the three of us turned into blue energy, then rematerilized on the surface around Ravage as the crypt collapsed in on itself.

"What?"

"There was a cave-in, Rav'. We found the energy source... sources and aquired them, then the whole place tried to come down on our hea-AAAGGGHH!" I collapsed, clutching my head, when a beam of energy... Dragonfire energy shot out from the crater.

When I came to, I saw the others, even Dropzone, standing over me. I didn't say a word or answer anything, but making my way to my feet and towards the Dragonfire column, I drew the Buster Sword from my subspace pocket and brought the Dragonfire Buster Sword up beside it as I ran the blades of both into the column, absorbing the power and knowledge from the Dragonfire energy. As the column's light dimmed and faded, it revealed a single Buster Sword, gradiated translucent black, gray, purple, and green instead of the original solid opaque gray.

"Dragonfire, the Lifestream, Angolmois, call it what you will... If Hades and his generals gain control of the planet's life energy, we lose, no matter how many of them we beat..." I turned to face the others, stowing the enhanced Buster Sword into subspace, "Understand this, Hades won't stop until the world is firmly in his grasp... or crushed by his fist. When we meet back up with the others, I'll offer them this same choice I now offer you: Risk everything for everything or choose to return to your old lives, let your power, for those who have it, be dispersed to strengthen those who will fight, and have a chance at a normal life. Because I can promise you now, from this point onward, it's all or nothing. We fight, we win if we can, we die if we must, but we must not let the enemy win..." I extended my hand, "Who stays?"

Athena placed her left hand, the ring-bearing hand, on top of mine, "I accepted this ring and promised to stand by your side... I'm not breaking that promise now, koi."

Blaze followed suit, "Magni first, last, and always."

Transforming, Ravage wordlessly added his hand to the pile.

Dropzone topped it off, "'What the hell, you've got to die of something.'"

Ravage shook his head, "Another quoter?"

"Speaking of quotes," Blaze asked, "Who wants to start it?"

"I say let the new kid."

"KID!?! I'm older than you are!"

"One, I outrank you. Two, I've been doing this longer. Three, from your files, only by half a dozen years. Four, I'm the commander, so what I say goes."

"Bastard..."

"Say it."

"Yo..."

"YO, JOE!"

Dropzone blinked, "That was actually fun."

"What now?"

"What now, Blaze? Now we link up with Morti, Alex, Amanda, REBB, and the others... Then we go Fused hunting..."

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