The Combat Drop - A Rynelle Davenport Story

I hear the intercom in her helmet, "We are coming down very hot. Deploying weapons. It's Maelstrom and some other boosters I don't recognize. Our patients are in the middle of the fight."
Roberto Hernandez, the team leader, God I hate that man, looks at the team; Jeff Ryan, Tactical, he loves shotguns, Lucy Hayes, Tactical, beautiful, but she is terrifying, Tom Jacobs, the other medic, he seems nice, but he takes a bit too much fun in ripping out cyber. Oh, and me, Rynelle, fifteen drops to my name, but this is the first one like this.
"Alrighty, this is the shit, and it has hit the fan. TT is on the way. We have two patients, TT's and our own. Ours is Vivian Matsuka, exec for a Matsuka Cosmetics, she is priority. TT patient is Simon Wells, celebrity chef, he is second priority." He grabs my webbing and pulls me in front of his face, his eyes, Kiroshis. But his next words are almost a growl, "Wells is yours, Davenport. Do. Not. Fuck. This. Up. You know the goddamned drill, get him, quick stable, and get him inside. You do not fucking care about anything else you see; I do not fucking care if it's a kid begging you. Do the fucking job you were fucking hired to do." He shoves me towards door that would be opening any second, I'm not gonna be fucking first am I?
Jeff stops my movement, by grabbing my chest armor. He grabs an Arasaka Assault off the rack and shoved it in my arms. "Just be chill, do what you need. Oh, and we are all shooting, you have the training, remember it, oh don't hit me or Hernandez, neh?" He smiled, but it was thin.
I am so scared, I don't dare to open my mouth, so I nod and smile. This is my first hot LZ rescue, sure, I have seen the Tacticals have to shoot people, but this time, I have a gun. I am gonna have to kill someone. I don't know... "Shit." The lights turn red.
"Touchdown, 3, 2, 1" said the pilot in my ear.
With a whoosh, I am suddenly facing a warzone. I look around, Maelstrom, some guys in armorjacks, no colors, and not as many.
Hernandez steps out, and his gun makes a sound I have never heard, this ripping cascade of bullets hit a Maelstromer, who is bisected. Guns can do that?!
He's followed by Jeff, his favorite weapon, autoshotgun, the loudest gun I have ever heard, sounds like thunder.
Lucy is with him, her rifle firing short, controlled bursts, every single burst hitting a target.
Jacobs runs past me. I am supposed to be doing something. Lucy grabs me, growls something, and pushes me towards the bodies. Ok, not in shock anymore.
Turning on the tracker in my agent, moving the direction of the patient, Steve? Sanchez, frag it didn't matter, I have his image. As I move towards him, I see a gangster, leaning over the bodies, Jesus he is way over cybered to be, but he is in my way, I know what to do.
Blank my thoughts, remember my training: Raise gun, shoulder it, aim, fire. Damn this hurts! But I hit him!
Oh shit, why is he standing, why is he laughing? Ok, you read the holo about Maelstrom, probably borderline psychosis.
Jesus, that face. Fuck that's terrifying.
Shit, Rynelle, focus before he kills you.
Oh shit, that is a big fucking gun.
Raise gun, shoulder it, aim, fire. Oh. My. God, I hit him, but damn, I guess Ryan is right, shotguns are awesome. His head is just gone.
Jesus, I just killed someone. Fuck.
There is the guy.
Hernandez was screaming something. Fuck him, I'm fucking working.
Kneeling down, I put the shotgun next to me and open my kit. Check patient's info, oh that's right, Simon Wells. Well Simon, your lucky day, I'm here. Ok, give him the shot to stabilize, fill the bullet wounds, and he'll live.
Oh shit, this woman just moved, Japanese female, God she's not that old. Looking at her, I see the similarity of clothes, oh shit his date. Well, that's a nice gaping hole in her stomach, looks like a shotgun or big round. Leave her. Leave her. Not my patient. Not even TT.
Oh, fuck this, I am a medic, and she won't survive with out something. That something is me. Fine.
I said into my comms, "Target is ready to transport. Girlfriend is here as well, treating now."
Yeah, fucking Hernandez will scream at me, been through that before, but I am a medic, this is my job.
I pull my bandages out, spread the antibiotic paste on the wound, Shoot her with a pain killer. Just as I have done over and over, and give her a small stabilization dose, for measure, and slip a card with my information into her purse, take her picture, I gotta know who she is...
I feel a hand on my rig, and am yanked into the air, and then thrown down on my back. Looking up, its Lucy. How. The. Fuck.. she's not that much bigger than me, how much cyber does the slitch have?!
Lucy's Kiroshis must have a battle mode, as she glares at me with red eyes, "Get the fuck into the AV, TT is less than a minute out. You'll be fucking lucky if the boss doesn't throw you out on the way back to base."
Lucy easily grabs the Saka shotgun and my medkit, and pushes me into the ramp, hard.
Ryan and Jacobs help me in. Jacobs has that sneer he sometimes gets, and Ryan's eyes speak volumes, I am in trouble. Been there before. He pushes me into my seat, hard. Oh shit, I can't even work on a patient. This is bad. I glance at Hernandez, he won't even look at me, but I can tell he is pissed.
I strap in, thinking about the past 10 minutes. Shit, I killed a man. I should be breaking down, proper mental reaction to taking a life. No one talks to me on the way back.
The AV slows, "Touchdown, 3, 2, 1."
I stand up and start moving towards the patients to take them into the med facility, and Hernandez pushes me back in the chair, "Do. Not. Move."
Shit. I sit, back straight, legs crossed. I did the right thing, I did the right thing.
Once the team and patients are out, Hernandez walks over to me. I didn't even see it coming as my head is rocked to the left. Fuck that hurt. He pulls me up and throws me out of the AV onto the tarmac. "Get up."
I get up, pulling my combat knife, I am not going to go down without a fight. "Fucker, don't you know, hitting someone triggers the adrenal system, I will bury this in your fucking neck."
Hernandez looks at the knife, looks at me, and laughs. "Ok Davenport. Try it."
Just like Aikiko taught me, I dash forward, tanken stance, and slash, fast and hard.
My hand stops moving, hell I can't even feel it, as Hernandez, faster than I could think, grabs my wrist, twists, and I faceplant on the ground.
"Davenport. I am a combat veteran of more wars than your corporate ass even knows about. Get the fuck up. Now. We are going inside. I'm not going to kill you, you're not worth the effort."
I got up. Not worth the effort, I am actually offended, but I keep my mouth shut and follow him in.
We go into the Shift Commander's office. He waves us silent, as he speaks quickly to a manager. Not sure what language, I don't know it, so it doesn't matter. Hernandez sits, and I move to, and he shakes his head. Ok, what the fuck is going on. They can't fire me, I am corporate, Biotechnica, they wouldn't dare.
The Shift Commander shuts down his holo, and looks at us. "Davenport, this is the 6th fucking time you have been in here, for the same fucking thing. We do not administer aid to non-contracted personnel. Period. You have been warned multiple times."
I interrupted him, "Sir, we are paramedics. We are trained to help those that need it. It is a sacred duty, a time-honored duty, one that was even protected in the time of war. I overlook so much unethical shit here, but I will not cease doing my job. Period."
"Fine. You want to help people. I am going to assign you to combat zone duty. You will be assigned to a team, you either learn fast, or you will die. I don't care what happens."
"Combat zone, sir? I don't have the ranking, the skills, or even the combat time to be in the Zone. You would be sending me to my death." I walk up to his desk, and jab my finger into the table to punctuate my words. "I. Am. A. Biotechnica. Citizen."
His laugh was almost evil, "Davenport, when you started working here, you gave up ties to Biotechnica, they won't do shit. Now, get the fuck out of my office."
"Sir!" He's ignoring me. Well, fine, I am not gonna get killed. I took off my rigging, threw it on the desk, took off the armor and the uniform, threw it at him. Standing in my underwear, I scream, "Fine! I fucking quit! I cannot work for a company like this. Fine, you want me out, I quit, and Trauma will hire me!"
As he looks at me, I see a look between fury and satisfaction. Oh Shit. This is what he wanted.
"No, Trauma will not hire you. They would never hire someone who worked here. But I sent a contact your record. Insubordination, illegal cybertheft, attacking a senior officer. No, they won't touch you, and as that information goes out, no corp will. You may have been a daughter of Biotechnica, but now, you little bitch, you are street trash. Hernandez, take her to the lockers, have Hayes make make sure she gets her private things. Oh, Davenport, your company car, your company apartment, your account. Gone. You are fucking lucky the cyber you have you had when you got here, or I would have Jacobs pull it out. Enjoy the streets."
"Listen bastard," I growl, "I have friends. One call, they will bury you."
"Oh, Ms. Fukihara? Are you joking? She has a good position at Kiroshi. Helping someone like you will cost her that. She probably won't speak to you again. But, yeah, I'll send her your record as well. Hernandez?"
"Let's go bitch." Hernandez is smiling, a terrifying visage. I follow him out. In my underwear. I am so glad I don't embarrass easily.
When we get to the locker room door, Lucy Looks at me. "Take the rest off, its company property."
I will not beg. I just reach up take off my bra, and then my boyshorts. I do a little spin, "You like?" I try and sound cheeky, but I am pretty sure it doesn't work. I had no idea I had such an audience. Bitch.
"Well, you will probably make a decent paycheck as a joygirl. Let's go." She takes me to my locker, it's open, and already gone through. "Get dressed, all company property has already been taken."
I get dressed and follow Hernandez to Human Resources. I watch as they note that I am unhireable due to a whole host of reasons. And then I sign my life away. "Now what Hernandez?"
"Ryan will be here in a few minutes with all your personal stuff from the apartment, and then you walk out. Once a corporate princess, now street trash. You will probably be either working a track, or dead, within a week."
Once I got my stuff from Ryan, he walks me outside. "Rynelle, you are too good for Night City. I can't help you much, but I put an old shotgun in the bag, and I called a friend that may help you, but he will expect things in return, and I can't guarantee you will like it. But whatever it is, it's better than living on the street, and he will not pimp you out. If you really need help, contact me, my number is in your agent, but understand, I will not jeopardize my job for you. You really should have listened. Eventually, you may have gotten a new team. Good Luck."
Jesus, I'm crying. I am scared. It is all hitting as the adrenaline fades, I killed a man, I just quit my job, I am a non-person. I have nothing. Living on the streets? I can't do that, I don't even know where to start! For the first time, I really think that I was seriously stupid.
Well, first thing, find a place to sleep. Make some friends. I open the bag, and am surprised to see a few expired medical supplies, but hey. I have an idea how to survive. I wanna help people. So. Help them. Once I get settled, I'll try and reach Akiko, and hope she will talk to me.