“Just a little furthur,” I shouted at the woman running in front of me. She glanced back and I saw the fear on her dirt and tear stained face. “Keep going!” I yelled at her again. Behind me I could hear the heavy, metalic steps of our adversaries. I glanced back, aimed my rifle in the general direction of the robots and fired, the auto-fire spewing out brass like a frat boy the morning after a night before. Missiles, grenades, bullets; whatever rained down around us in response, throwing up dirt and concrete. The chopper was so close I could hear the shouting of my troops and the thrum of the rota blades. I fired behind me again, trying to give the enemy pause and allowing us to gain some ground.

There was a scream. I turned back to see her, the woman scientist I’d been sent to rescue, being plowed into by a mechanis. She dropped the case she was carrying, and it split open, spilling papers everywhere.
“Noooo!” I yelled, aiming at the thing, but it just turned it’s metalic back on me, and my bullets bounced off, bearly scratching it’s painwork. With the woman in one hydrolic hand, it reached out and began to scale a nearby building. I ran after, bullets taking of chunks of brick. Just as I reached the spilled papers, it opened a pair of wings and took to the sky.
“Dammit!” I yelled as I fired.
“Comander!” Came a staticy voice through my comm unit. I glanced behind. The other war units were fast approching me. I grabbed at the papers, managing to lift a couple of manilla files before taking to my heels again. As I ran I stuffed them down my top, and slung my weapon crosswise over my torso, freeing up my hands. But I didn’t bother trying to shoot behind me anymore. I dove into a full out sprint, trusing my men to cover me. I could see the chopper starting to lift off.
“Commander!” On of my men shouted. I dregdged up more speed and ran full pelt to the helio, reaching just as it acsended to head hight. I jumped, caught the bottom of the landing strut, held on for dear life as someone inside shouted “She’s on. Go, go, go!”
The chopper began to gain in hight, and I reached for the edge of the door. Just then an explosion shook the helio. I yelled out as I lost my grip. But my fall was arrested. I glanced up.
“I got ya Fre,” said Apollo, grinning down at me. I remembered to breath again and grinned back. There was a sliding sensation on my chest. I looked down, suddenly recalling the papers. The folder was starting to slip out of my jacket.
“Shit,” I muttered. I couldn’t loose those as well as the Prof. Apollo was starting to haul me up and I gripped the bottom of the door with one hand, while the other I let go of Apollo and pulled out the folders. I slapped them down on the floor of the helio.
“Put these someplace safe,” I ordered. Apollo nodded and passed them to Hermies. I didn’t see what he did with them – I was trying to get my feet under me and into the chopper properly. I did so, and pushed up just as Apollo grabbed my flack vest and dragged me into the helio, sliding the door shut behind me.

I lay there a second or two, getting my wind back, before the pilot glanced back at me.
“What now sir?” He asked.
“What d’you think?” I growled, sitting up. “Get after that flying monstrosity and let’s get our girl back.”

☮&♥