Battle Lines

Chapter 7: The "ex" in Exfiltration

High Security - Azkaban Prison

02:35:00 to deadline

Ron was going through the pile of now wet gear on the platform. He located Nat's wand.

'Wingardium Leviosa'

The wand flew up toward Nat, who swerved aside as the wand sped past and hit the back wall of the cell.

'You want to send our maghooks up as well?' called down Phannan, 'While we've got some type of protection.'

Ron gave him the finger and obligingly sent Nat's maghook up as well, having the foresight to set it to magnetic first. The black launcher flew up and slammed in to the bars sticking fast. Nat hit the "M" button, pulling the head away form the bars, and then retrieved her wand. Ron was now sending other people's stuff up to them. The occasional shout could be heard as he misjudged.

Hermione's voice rang out. 'Ron! Flitwick taught us this at school, weren't you paying attention!?'

Nat giggled to herself, then set about opening their cell door.

'Alohomora.'

Nothing, the door stayed steadfastly closed.

Damn

Nat pulled her wand back from the door.

'Seviatum.'

The characteristic electric blue shaft of the spell sprang from her wand. Nat crouched down near the door and began to cut through the lock.

It took thirty minutes to get everyone out of cells and back on the platform. The water was now up to the top of their knees. Nat already had her armor and webbing on as the last of them touched down on the maghook lines. Cho was among them, looking the worse for wear. There were blood stains on her clothes, one eye was swollen shut, the flesh around it pulped. There were numerous pressure wounds on her face and crusted vomit ran down her chin.

'So,' said Harry. 'How do we get out? Ron, any ideas?'

Ron shook his head. 'We can't get out the way Fred and I got in. I guess you could call it blocked.'

'Main door then.'

Fred looked downcast. 'I just welded it shut.'

'It can be opened again,' said Aaron reassuringly.

'But it was a really nice job!'

It ended up that Phannan, Ron and Nat, three that were ready to go, would get ready to open the door, while Fred helped the others get their gear on.

Nat checked her MP-5, Katie's old one, and Berretta, in case the enemy chose an inopportune moment to come through the door from the other side, and followed the other two up.

It took them another ten minutes to cut all the welded joints, a process morbidly watched by Fred.

Finally they were ready. Nat and Ron took up flanking positions on either side of the door, while Fred and Harry took up covering positions on the stairs, muzzles of their subs just visible over the top step. The rest of the crew retreated to the bottom of the stairs.

'Everyone ready,' said Harry. 'On my mark. Three, two, one, MARK!'

Fred leveled his wand at the door. 'ALOHOMORA!'

The door flew open, throwing the two Death Eaters that had been waiting flat on their faces. The two further up the passage already had their wands out, and opened up. Magical energy cut through the air, howling as the air around it turned to plasma.

Harry opened up with his sub, causing their new friends to duck for cover. Nat saw the window of opportunity, lobbing her final frag grenade out into the passage.

One one-thousand, two one-thousand, three... BOOM!

The frag exploded, ripping the enemy to shreds. Shards of metal flew into the room, over Harry and Fred's heads. Nat and Ron charged out into the corridor, guns up, sweeping the smoky area for survivors. None were found. After a blast like that in a confined space they wouldn't even be able to take dental records. Harry and Fred followed close behind with the rest in tow.

'Ok,' said Harry. 'Two and Demolitions take point. Seven and Eight, BG's for Lead...'

'YES SIR!'

'... Nine and Braniac cover our rears, head for the surface people. Braniac, have we got a ride out?'

Hermione shook her head. 'I tried to raise them before, we're to far underground.'

'Right, let's move!'

Nat ran up the spiral, sub to her shoulder. Their first sign of a contact was the wall next to her head exploding in a blast of magical energy. She hit the deck and squeezed off a burst in the direction the shot had come form. The Death Eater in the doorway collapsed in a mist of blood.

The stair well.

Nat raced up the stairs, taking them two at a time. She came to the top and went crashing out through the door. The corridor was dark. She flicked her NVG's down over her face and scanned up and down, nothing. A crack of light appeared at the far end of the passage, she couldn't see a thing beyond it. Stroking the trigger of her MP-5 she let off a quick burst in the direction of the light, about the height a door handle would have been. There was a scream and a bang. Nat flicked up her NVG's and switched on her sub's tactical field light and laser sight.

'Kids, this is about to get interesting!'

Then all hell broke loose. A two Death Eaters entered the corridor, followed by two more. A blast of energy earthed itself at Nat's feet. She flung herself sideways, hit the floor, rolled and came up firing. Ron's 12-guage boomed. The stomach of the nearest Death Eater disappeared in a bloodied mass.

'THE OTHER WAY! RUN THE OTHER WAY!' he yelled.

Nat and Ron began to retreat backwards, from doorway to doorway as the others scooted off in the other direction. Harry and Hermione were now providing cover fire for them. They performed a sort of leap frog maneuver, one pair providing cover for the other two as they retreated. Nat's clip went dry. She hit the release and slotted another into place. Second last clip, time to conserve ammo. She flicked the fire selector over to "three round burst" and began her run backwards. The Death Eaters up the corridor had gotten reinforcements. Magical energy poured down around the four rear guards. They had reached a T-junction. Nat and Ron ran back and took up covering positions in the new passage. Seconds later Harry and Hermione started their run. A Death Eater appeared out of the gloom.

BLA-A-AM!

The sound of three rounds being expelled from her weapon sounded like one. Nat's burst took the enemy in the leg and he went down screaming. Another leveled a wand at where she was. Nat ducked back as a blast of magic took a chunk out of the wall the size of her head.

'Shit!'

Harry was now beside her, Hermione with Ron. Another blast earthed itself next to Nat, spraying her with red hot shrapnel.

'SHIT!'

Hermione's burst took the enemy down, then her clip ran out.

'I'm dry! This is my last clip!' yelled the Lieutenant, as she swatted the offending mag away.

'Which way!'

Nat looked up the corridor as two Death Eaters charged along it. Another blast almost took her head off. The enemy were using the same tactic the marines had used just moments before, one group covering the others. But they were using it to advance.

'We gotta move soon,' yelled Harry, 'or we're gonna get pinned down!'

Phannan's voice came over the radio. 'Take the right passage, then the first door on your left, it's a staircase to the roof, we'll cover you.'

'You heard the man. Braniac, Demolitions, cover fire in three, two, one!'

Nat and Harry erupted out of their position and pelted across to the right side of the passage. As they did Hermione and Ron opened up causing their assailants to duck for cover. There was a scream as another Death Eater caught a round. Harry and Nat didn't stop as they passed Ron and Hermione, they kept running to the stairway, taking up covering positions inside.

'Demolitions, Braniac, you're clear.'

The sound of firing stopped, out of the gloom, Ron and Hermione appeared, pelting down the hallway toward them.

SNAP! HISS!

A massive bolt of energy earthed itself on wall in front of the two escaping marines. Shrapnel exploded from the wall. Blood exploded from Ron's chest and he went crashing to the floor.

'SHIT! Demolitions is down! I repeat Demolitions is down!'

Harry ripped off another burst then dashed out to get Ron, as Nat covered them from the doorway. Harry and Hermione dragged the screaming Ron into the door.

'We can't stay here,' said Harry. 'This is Seeker to Seven, Demolitions is down, you'll need to cover our run out.'

A double click answered him, signifying that someone had heard. Another blast of energy hammered the doorway. Harry and Hermione began to drag Ron up the stairs. Nat, MP-5 in one hand Berretta in the other, covered their escape, backing slowly up the stairs. A Death Eater head appeared in the opening below.

BLA-A-AM!

The three rounds from Nat's sub sent him crashing to the ground. They were on the roof now, under the cover of the rest of the squad. Nat holstered her M9 and slung the MP-5 over her shoulder. She spun round, grabbed Ron's feet and the three of them, carrying Ron ran for the back of the island. A blast from the enemy landed near them. An answering volley erupted from in front of them. Hard stone changed to rock and dirt as they ran off the roof of Azkaban and on to the back of the island. They lay Ron down behind a large bush.

'Get this blasted thing off me!' yelled Hermione, motioning to the ULF transmitter on her back. 'Does anyone here, apart form me, know how to use this thing?'

Aaron raised a hand.

'Right, get the Wasp, and get our extraction here now.'

Nat looked down at Ron. There was a hole about two inches across in his Kevlar breastplate, blood was pouring out.

'Get the armor off'f him,' said Herm, going into medic mode.

'Can't you use magic?'

'Not for this and not in the field. To delicate. I'm not a healer.'

Nat didn't waste any time, taking her Bowie knife she cut the straps on Ron's breastplate and peeled it away. The wound was messy, ragged and bloody, with splinters of rock and Kevlar around and in it. Hermione tore his shirt open and felt under his back.

'No exit wound, it's still in there. Get some pressure on the wound.'

Phannan obligingly put the heel of his palm over the wound and pressed down hard. Hermione reached down and felt his neck.

'He's still alive, but the pulse is fast and irregular. Watch his breathing Phannan. Boone, make sure his airway is clear, keep his tongue out of it.'

'How?'

Hermione reached into her webbing and extracted a large safety pin, then handed it to Natalie.

You've got to be joking.

Nat moved around to Ron's head. She couldn't believe what she was about to do. The pin was unsterilized, but infection was the least of their worries now. She pulled Ron's tongue out, then rammed the pin through it and his lower lip, holding the two together. Ron didn't even so much as flinch, he was completely out of it. Hermione had already gotten a collapsible stretcher out of her webbing and had set it up.

'Boone you take his head, I'll take his feet, Phannan, keep pressure on that wound. Three, two, one.'

They lifted Ron off the ground and heaved him onto the stretcher. Aaron moved over.

'Extraction is on the way, ETA three minutes.'

Nat felt Ron's neck again, the pulse was still there, but fast, his heart desperately trying to cycle what was left of his blood around his system.

'Get some fluid in him.'

Hermione was one step ahead of her.

'Where's his IV packs?' said Hermione, searching around Ron's neck.

'They used them up on Katie.'

'FUCK!'

It was standard practice to carry one's IV packs around the neck, that way everyone knew where they were. If someone went down, you used their IVs, you might need your own later. However, in their extended stay in the store room Ron and Fred had had to use their packs on Katie.

Hermione swore again, tore off her flack jacket and the first few buttons of her own shirt and extracted the two IV's around her neck. Ron's breath was now coming short and sharp.

'GET YOUR HAND OFF THE WOUND!' yelled Hermione, grabbing Phannan's hand and tearing it away.

A gout of blood and hot air erupted from the hole, splattering Phannan's face.

When a lung is punctured the air entering the lung can escape into the chest cavity, causing a build up of pressure that eventually constricts the heart and stops its beating. Hence why Hermione had told Phannan to watch Ron's breathing. The first sign of constriction in a short, shallow breathing.

'Hey,' said Aaron. 'Has anyone noticed anything weird?'

'Like?'

'We haven't been shot at in a while.'

'Oh, shit.'

The doors and hatches on Azkaban prison exploded outwards. At least twenty dark wizards charged out. Hermione abandoned her attempts on Ron, grabbed her MP-5 and Phannan's and opened up. It would me no good to Ron if they all got killed.

'WE ARE SO SCREWED!'

Harry started talking fast, the evac. chopper should be in range of their helmet mikes by now.

'This is Captain Potter, Marine Recon Seven to evac. We are under heavy fire, large enemy force, request immediate extraction. We have a hot LZ. I repeat we have a HOT LZ.'

No sooner were the words out of his mouth then there was a roaring form above. Two Marine AV-8b Harrier II's roared over his head. Close behind it came another larger craft.

'YE HA! Here come the cavalry!'

Phannan looked up from his position near Ron. 'What the fuck is that!'

'It's the X-wing, the latest thing in VTOL aircraft, technically it doesn't exist yet,' yelled back Hermione.

The X-wing was coming back, the two big wings that had made the X shape were spinning like a chopper's rotors. It came to a halt in mid air, over the cliff edge. Magical fire from the enemy bounced off its hull. The rear loading door came down, touching the cliff edge. Two marines charged out, both carrying SAWs, short for Squad Automatic Weapons, and took up covering positions. The SAWs sprang to life, laying down a devastating pattern of fire.

'Ok Captain,' came a voice over the radio. 'Bring you men aboard.'

They didn't need telling twice. Harry grabbed one end of Ron's stretcher, Aaron the other while Phannan kept pressure on the wound. Nat and Hermione added to the fire from the SAWs, Hermione with her twin MP-5's and Nat with her sub and M9. They retreated to the ramp, firing as they went. They hit the ramp, turned and ran up it. Another magical blast hit the X-wing, near the rotor hub. Nat saw red lights illuminate the cockpit. The two covering marines were abandoning their posts, retreating backwards into the cargo bay, guns still firing. Nat didn't think they had let go of the triggers for the entire time they'd been on the ground. The two Harriers roared over again, 1000lb dumb bombs dropped from their undersides, slamming into Azkaban prison and sending the enemy flying. The X-wing lurched underneath Nat and it started its accent, ramp closing as it went. Hermione was already beside Ron. She yelled at the loadie in the bay.

'Where's the medipack! Get it here, NOW!'

The poor loadie took one look at her face. 'YES MA'AM!'

Phannan still had pressure on the wound, but was watching Ron's breathing very carefully. The loadie returned with the medipack, a large padded case. Hermione opened it and drew out a length of intravenous line, jabbing it into Ron's arm. She then took the IV pack she had extracted from her own shirt earlier, ripped it open with her teeth an attached it to the other end of the line in Ron's arm.

The pilot's voice ran over the intercom. 'ETA to Wasp is fifteen minutes, we've been hit in the rotor hub and can't lock the surfaces into flight position. There's a medical team on standby.'

Hermione swore under her breath, fifteen minutes, Ron might not have fifteen minutes. The pack attached to his arm was emptying quickly, he had lost that much blood.

Fourteen minutes later Ron was on his third IV pack. His heart rate had stabilized, but he was still critical. The X-wing lurched horribly as it hit another air pocket in the storm. Phannan lost his hold on Ron and flew upwards as the craft dropped away beneath him.

CRASH!

The X-wing found purchase on the air and he hit the floor. His shoulder popped and he screamed. Nat crawled over to him while Aaron took his place; keeping pressure on Ron's wound.

'You alright?' questioned Nat.

'I think I dislocated my shoulder! Do you think I'm alright?'

The voice of the pilot came back over the intercom. 'We're coming it to land on the Wasp, hang on.'

Natalie grabbed a piece of the strapping on the cargo bay walls, just in time. The pilot dumped the collective and the X-wing went crashing onto the deck of the Wasp. Deck hands rushed out to secure the craft with lines to the madly pitching deck. Medics were in through the side doors before the rear ramp was down. Four clustered around Ron, two taking the stretcher, one holding pressure on the wound and another holding a nearly empty IV pack aloft. Two more lifted Cho onto a stretcher, wrapping her in a space blanket to keep her warm.

No, one was shooting at them anymore; no-one in the immediate vicinity was trying to kill them. They were safe, for the time being, and with time to spare.

* * *

In the bunker below Azkaban a Dark Wizard cowered in front of Peter Pettigrew.

'Sir.' His voice quavered. 'They got away sir.'

'I know that,' said Peter coldly. 'The Dark Lord will not be pleased. However, your punishment can wait till later. Now that we don't have any prisoners the Union is likely to flatten Azkaban and everything around it. I am ordering the immediate evacuation of the island. Get in touch with our contact. We may be able to salvage this yet...'