Atlas Universe: 51 Vol. #2 [Complete]

Chapter 6: "Integer No Longer"

21/Kryo/2467 R.S. 01:11:10

Central Highway District 4, Centralia.

*Fifteen Minutes After Detonation.*

The sound of gunshots and explosions wake 51 up, the dark street corners of Central Highway District 4 have turned into a contested warzone with UMCA forces closing in from the western Districts and from Kalderag while Millitant Soldiers hunker down in Central Highway Districts three through four. The nearby traffic lights faintly illuminate the Highway's crumbled underpass, a large, faint figure can be seen on the ground surrounded by rubble. Closing in on the silhouette, a dim orange light blinks on and off, it is Michael.
Crushed against the floor he remains immobilized as the suit runs its reboot sequence for the thirty-first time, he regains consciousness. From inside the helmet the User Interface gives off a scrambled image of its elements.

The thirty-first attempt of the suit to reboot both, its critical systems and Michael to functional standards is successful, an adrenaline injection is administered to get him back on his feet, he gasps for air, finally aware of his surroundings he tries to crawl out of the hole he had created when crashing into the concrete.
//BARRIER ONLINE//
51: "Vera, can you read me?... Vera?!"

A garbled voice replies, the helmet attempts to clean up the transmission, repeating it on every new "chunk" cleaned.
It repeats: "I h *KZZT* u! *KZZT* are you *KZZT*?"
After the whole cleaning process has finished, Vera's message says the following:
"I hear you! Michael, where are you located?"

He groans as he stands up, reaching into his waist straps for a metallic cylinder. "Setting up a beacon now." He says. Pushing the cylinder into the ground, it locks in place and opens up, turning into a small radar dish. This is a mechanism that allows Troopers to set up a "Beacon" that appears on the visor of any surrounding squadmates, in this particular case, 51 sets up a Beacon for 20 to see. Allowing her to track him to his current location.
She replies, but the same process of cleaning up the garbled transmission begins, after three cleanups the message is clear.
20: "Got it, on my way!"

As she finishes her SatCom transmission the Beacon appears on Vera's visor, providing her Michael's current location. "Understood, so, I guess this is war now huh?" Michael asks while checking his wounded right shoulder.
20: "With the conflicts in Caloris, the proxy war in Katanaska and now this, I'm sure it is time for Dovyo to put his foot down, although long-range comms are down so there's no telling what's happening at Central."

Michael reaches for his knife, only to feel nothing, it had stayed impaled on the hood of Sagras' Sedan. He retracts his hand and holds on to his right shoulder, "Where are my weapons?..." He thinks to himself while looking around in search of his rifle.
51: "I still cannot believe what just happened."
20: "I'm just glad to know you're not dead, had me worried as hell."
51: "Yeah, me too..."
20: "Hold on. I've got eyes on a damaged broadcast antenna, wanna meet half way?"
51: "Sure."