Xcom: Coiled with Torque

"I wouldn't give him that much credit. He most likely forgot to do his job and didn't check it," Torque answered. Any contact with Whisper was already too much for her, so hearing him talk so often must have been driving her nuts.

With that, the APC continued making its way through the city to the mysterious establishment.

<><><>

"I am so going to kill him when I get back," The Viper said, Safeguard trying to hold in a laugh as they arrived and got out the APC.

As it had turned out, their mission was to take place in a very classy place - a strip club, with a neon logo containing a rather immodest Viper in a suggestive position around a pole. The building was rather big and from the outside appeared to be closed. One wouldn't expect that something big was happening inside.

"H-Hah, oh God, no wonder he didn't want to mention this bit! So, Torque-" Before he could finish, she turned to face him with a glare that could very much kill. The joke David has didn't seem so worth it at that moment. Maybe it was good that her anger was now aimed at someone else, it gave him room to breathe, "...yeah, we should get on the mission, mhm, no comments from me," he followed her and got into the position for the breach.

Cherub eagerly stepped to the door, ready to take the lead position, followed by Torque, Verge, and lastly him. The club had no windows, leaving them with the main entrance. It was locked, of course, so kicking in the door with guns blazing was the only way to proceed. Not that Cherub seemed to mind.

"Everyone ready?" The team nodded at him, his smile clear to see, "Let's give them a warm welcome," Cherub said, and then destroyed the door with a strong kick, following it by throwing in a flash grenade. "Breaching!" He yelled out after the explosion went off, entering the strip club and leading the charge.

The grenade made it possible for the breach to be on the offensive. Any targets that were close to the entrance were surprised to see a flash grenade rolling in under their feet, only to be stunned at the sudden flash and loud boom.

The info about the deal taking place was correct if the number of armored Mutons was anything to go by. The confusion from a sudden attack didn't last long, as they started flipping over tables and going for a cover. Among the chaos, some other aliens could be spotted like a Sectoid or a Viper, providing psionic and poison support.

All of the agents used their surprise to the full extent, focusing their fire on two closest Mutons that weren't quick enough to react and get behind a cover. Their armor stood no chance against that many rounds and got shredded in seconds. While the breach was a success, there were many more ready to fight back and avenge their fallen comrades.

A heavily armored Praetorian Muton roared and hit his chest, "Take them all down! Teach them what happens to traitors!" He shouted out and fell back, putting up his shield for cover as he went upstairs far back in the room.

The conflict began, gunfire flashing on both sides as each tried to control the situation. As a place designed for pleasure, every stray shot hit loose paper or bottles, sending glass shrapnel and debris flying left and right.

Safeguard noticed a single Sectoid in the back of the club, wearing light armor. Leaving those alive for long was a bad idea with the powers at their disposal.

"Cherub! Can you put a shield on me so I can take a shot?" Safeguard shouted out, watching as the Sectoid established a mind-link with a Muton, a visible psi aura around him.

"That's my job! Shield's up!" the hybrid called back, as he hit the ground with the shield, a surge of power heading right at Safeguard.

With a chance not to be blasted to bits when aiming from behind cover, the ex-Reaper aimed the unexpecting Sectoid and fired a round right through the alien's head. The Muton that was merged with a dead mind wailed in pain, feeling everything the Sectoid did in his last moments in great intensity. The alien then began to shake, falling to the ground, convulsing in his last moments.

"Two targets down," David said and ducked back to cover, seeing some of the bullets hit his temporary shield.

"Your... experience shows," Verge said, watching the scene happen right before him. With the only other psionic in the field down, it gave him room to combat the Grey Phoenix fully. The method used there was effective, no denying that, but he couldn't help but feel empathy. The Sectoid's death was short, but he couldn't imagine what the Muton went through in his final moments.

Verge focused his mind on two Mutons that were close to each other, putting one to a temporary sleep and increasing the anger in the other one. With Mutons, putting them in a berserk rage came at ease. Deploying a Paladin was a way to counter that, but that wasn't a problem no longer thanks to Safeguard.

The angered Muton went outside from his cover and began blindly shooting at anything that moved. Thankfully, most of that fire was focused on his allies, and him being reckless about his safety allowed Torque to land a direct hit on his head, plasma burning his flesh as the target went down.

With Cherub keeping a low profile behind cover and using a shield, an Adder hissed and spit a poison cloud at him, the deadly air exploding all around the agent. He held his breath and changed his cover, no longer able to grab enemies' attention in the middle of the combat.

"Oh, ew! Some almost got in my mouth!" the hybrid said and quickly took out a medkit he had on himself, applying the medicine to fight the poison's effect.

Noticing another imminent threat on the battlefield, Safeguard changed his cover and hid behind the bar. With other agents closer to the enemies, he was left relatively undisturbed as he aimed his weapon in the direction of the Viper, looking for a chance to fire. If he learned anything during the war, it was that some Vipers were very sloppy with their tails. The moment he saw it flash outside the cover, he fired a single round. The Adder hissed in pain, temporarily out in the open. It was enough for Cherub, who overloaded his pistol with the charge from his shield and fired, taking down the alien.

During missions, Safeguard stayed back most of the time, using range to his advantage. It was the case in that fight as well, and usually, it allowed him to pick off danger before it posed a threat to the team. He did not expect a Muton coming through the main entrance to the club, back from a patrol after hearing gunshots. David had only a moment to turn around, seeing the plasma weapon charging up. The Muton had a perfect flank, even as Safeguard swung his rifle around, the alien fired. The shot struck Safeguard right in the gut, eating through the armor, and hitting flesh.

The sound of fire from behind grabbed Torque's attention, a shocked expression on her face as she saw one of her teammates fall to the ground.

"Cover me!" The two uninjured agents took up defensive positions, trusting Torque as they suppressed the enemy. Without hesitation, she hissed and retreated to Safeguard, firing into the unfortunate Muton. He didn't stand a chance against a pissed off Viper, cover or not. The rapid-fire quickly ate through her reserves but dropped him dead on the ground all the same. Seeing a chance to fall back, the two remaining Mutons retreated to the stairs and climbed them to regroup with their leader.

The Viper then rushed to David, checking on his wound.

"Darn it, this looks bad. How are you feeling?" She asked as she took out the medkit she had on her.

The man groaned in response first, moving up so he was leaning against a wall. "I've been shot, how do you think I feel? And what's with the face? I'd figured if anyone would be happy to see me shot it would be you," the moment he finished saying that, she gave him yet another death glare he was slowly getting used to.

"You're an idiot, you know that? Here, let me try to stop the bleeding. Just stay calm, alright?" Torque applied the medkit, getting more and more worried as she went over the damage caused by plasma. Meanwhile, Verge and Cherub checked the area around for any more hostiles.

"I did what I could, but you'll need professional help, and soon. Just stay awake, okay?" Torque said after stabilizing her teammate and checking the rest of his body. The armor did its job, taking on most of the shot, but it stood no chance at that distance.

"How is he?" Verge asked, reloading his rifle just in case as he was carefully looking around the strip club.

"I can stabilize him for now, but we need to head back," she responded with worry in her voice.

The Sectoid nodded, "I will contact the medivac and then we shall secure this location with the help of 31PD."

David's wound needed pressure to be kept from getting worse and to stop the bleeding, so Torque did what she learned during her training. She moved him from the ground so he was sitting up, and gently put her tail around him, coiling it from his legs up to his chest.

"Entry team to Whisper, we have a man down," Verge continued to scan the area as Cherub watched the door the Mutons had fled to. They didn't seem to be coming back, most likely fleeing the scene when they ran out of men.

Safeguard was confused at first when he felt Torque moving against him and feeling her tail wrapping around his legs. When he felt pressure on his wound though, he understood what she was doing and felt relieved.

He looked at her with a huge grin, not thinking quite right due to some blood loss and all the pain, "You know, normally I'd have to pay for something like this here," David laughed after that, only to groan in pain when he moved too much.

"I will go tighter if you don't stop. You wouldn't want a few broken ribs on top of that wound, now would you?" the Viper responded and flickered her tongue once just before his face, finally having him safely locked in one spot.

Safeguard didn't want to push her and find out if that was only a threat, so he relaxed with a big grin still on his face, his mind filled with jokes he could make but wouldn't to keep his body un-squeezed. He normally would be way more concerned with the situation, especially with having Torque this close and her tail around... everywhere, but the morphine and blood loss made it hard to focus on a single thought.

"That Muton really did a number on me, huh? If you ever get a chance of being shot, don't go for it. It's not fun," the man continued, blinking a few times to keep his focus. The medkit started to kick in, the pain fading away, but his body felt so tired.

"...You should have been more careful," her tone changed for a brief moment, "The help is on the way, so all you have to do now is just stay here. "

"Yeeeeeah..." His head did a little spin, before it went to the side, eyes closed and laying against her tail.

"Safeguard? Hey, you there?" She tried to wake him up but to no avail, "...darn it."

Torque made sure his unconscious body was in a comfortable spot, and that there was still pressure on his wound. She put her fingers to his neck, checking his pulse, a wave of relief washing over her when she felt a steady but weak beat. All she could do is wait for the medical help to arrive, unsure why she worried so much.

<><><>

Torque watched as a pair of medics placed Safeguard on a stretcher, a quick word of praise for taking good care of him until their arrival. With the wounded agent taken care of, she was free to go and so were the other agents. 31PD had arrived, and with the help of Verge and Cherub, secured the place, bodies, and apprehended the subdued criminals. There was no trace of the remaining Mutons that escaped, as they took a back exit and made a run for it.

The ride back was quiet with one of the seats empty, and Torque was thankful for that. She didn't feel like talking to anyone at the moment, taking her time to simply think and reflect, something she didn't do that often. Focusing on the battle, training in-between for another adrenaline rush was what she was used to. What she was trained to do. If she hadn't met Kelly, it most likely would have stayed that way. Thinking about her friend reminded Torque of their recent talk. About fitting in with the others and the trouble with doing just that. She felt out of place often.

Not just because she was an alien, no, that wasn't the issue. Torque simply never had a chance to learn how to... interact with others. Serving ADVENT from a very young age only taught her how to kill and how to be a soldier. Nothing more, nothing less. Then, the X-Com capture and prison. Certainly, nothing was learned there. Well, maybe just how boring it could get when she had nothing to do. Then helping out with training rookies against ADVENT tactics, eventually joining the Chimera Squad with Kelly's help.

Torque was good at combat, she knew that. She was proud of it even. Proving others wrong that didn't think she could be an agent was her result. But when it came to a moment of peace between missions she often found herself alone. If it wasn't for Kelly reaching out to her and trying to break her shell... she wasn't sure what might have happened.

And then a new agent joined in, making way more progress than her in... just a week. Kelly told her it was a good example of how it could be done, and that the Viper should simply observe and learn. Maybe even ask if she was brave enough. However, all that did was to frustrate her even more. She was pushing people away, without really thinking about it, and now? Now she found herself worrying about the life of a human she teased regularly.

Her eyes lingered on the empty seat, the only sound in the background being the soft hum of the APC's engine running, only leaving it when her radio crackled with static as Whisper's voice broke the silence. "Preliminary tests on Safeguard have been handed to me. The Doctors say his armor did its job well and the field medicine practiced by Torque mitigated some issues that might have been present if not treated sooner. The damage isn't serious enough to be life-threatening, but he'll need to be out of action for some time," with that he cut the connection, getting around the intel they gathered from the mission.

Torque could feel everyone's mood improving after hearing the news, even hers. She was still perplexed about this new... feeling. Sure, she wasn't happy when another agent ever got hurt. But she couldn't say she cared either. In this case, it was different. Maybe the talks with Kelly did help. She thought about how she ought to call her once back to the office, and with her mind a little clearer she tried to think about something more pleasant.

<><><>

Torque looked at the tablet she had in her hand, her finger hovering over Kelly's name. For the first time in a long time, she had something that was really bothering her, and that thought alone made her hesitate in letting her finger fall to the screen. She shook her head slightly, and pushed down, watching as the director's name lit up and flashed as the tablet attempted to connect the call.

It didn't take long for Kelly's voice to go through it, "Hey Torque. I was wondering when you'd call me," the director's voice was calm.

"Am I that predictable?"

"I've read the report from that mission. If you didn't call me, I would contact you, so yes. Talk to me," the woman continued.

"Yeah... I'm just not used to... this. Worrying about others. I know that he's safe now and that will come out of this without an issue and I still worry for some reason. And what will happen when one day an Agent might not make it? I don't... I'm scared of that. I don't want to lose more people close to me," even if it was just a video call, Torque still avoided looking at Jane after having said that.

"I'm not going to pretend and tell you that's not a possibility. But that's not a reason to simply push everyone away. During the war, the times were even more uncertain. I could lose everyone I cared about in a single mission just because of a mistake. I know it's not easy, and that might think that pushing everyone away is the right choice. But it's not healthy, Torque. You'll find yourself alone and in even more pain," Kelly said, knowing how Torque felt more than the Viper realized.

"...did you lose many soldiers during the war?"

"Yes. And I am proud I got to know every single one of them. It was an honor to serve with them, and if I could, I'd do it all over again," Kelly's voice sounded very confident with that statement, and it made Torque rethink her previous approach.

"...thank you, Jane. I'll... try, at the very least. Your judgment helped me get so far, don't see why I shouldn't trust you with this too," she felt a sense of relief after she told all that was on her mind as of late.

"How about a more pleasant topic? Like the fact you've made a new friend."

"I did? Who?" She didn't like the tone Jane made at the end there.

"Safeguard, unless there's someone I don't know about?"

"No, no, it's just... Are we friends? All we do is argue for the most part," she wasn't sure what she was to other agents. She didn't mind some of them, liked even less, and bickering with Safeguard was pretty fun at times. Not like she'd admit to it, of course.

"And yet you went out of your way to protect him, and help him with his wounds when it came down to it," Torque gave a small glare at Kelly when she saw a smirk appear on her face. She didn't say anything, knowing that Jane was right.

<><><>

"Agent Safeguard is going to be released from the hospital soon. He should be able to walk to the station without any difficulty, although standard rehabilitation will be required as per regulation. Further information has been sent to Director Kelly," the text on Torque's phone said, sent by one of the nurses

Torque read the message one last time as she closed her locker, already changed into her regular civilian clothing. A dark tank top, meant more for modesty, as humans had a hard time watching a barely clothed Viper move down the sidewalk. Over top, she had almost decided to wear a heavier cloth jacket but instead opted for a sleek leather one. "Ugh, why do I care so much..." Torque shook her head before placing the phone to her pocket

She slithered out to the main room, seeing Whisper looking over the tactical map while scanning some documents. She approached as he typed in the possible locations of criminal activity, little blinking spots appearing on the map. He was oblivious until she tossed a piece of paper onto the map, making the hologram flicker.

"I am heading out, figured I should let you know," Torque looked annoyed as he finished typing in an address, taking his sweet time.

"You know, if this is about getting take-out, we have some in the fridge. Don't know if there are any rats left though," Whisper said after taking out his earbuds, no doubt connected to a police scanner.

"At least there are uses for rats. Unlike you, Whisper. I'm heading out to pick something up," With that said, she began to slither away to the direction of the exit.

Whisper's phone lit up, a message reading that Safeguard had just been released from the Hospital. He looked up just in time to catch a glimpse of her leaving the door, noticing the effort she had put into clothing choice.

"Hm... or maybe someone," He shrugged, marking Torque off the roster for any urgent missions that might come up in the time. Unlikely, and there were free agents if that happened, but one can never know.

<><><>

Getting to the hospital didn't take long on foot, or a tail, thanks to their new location of the agency. It was a good thing too, as sometimes agents had to make longer or shorter visits there. Torque made her way into the lobby and saw David talking to a Viper nurse near the desk, taking care of some papers.