GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra

Chapter Forty

Shipwreck grunted with exertion as he carried the unconscious Cobra soldier up the stairs, the man's limp body hanging over his shoulder. Scarlett followed him to the top of the stairs, where Clutch was waiting for them, watching the doorway nervously with his M-16 pressed against his shoulder.

“That's the last one?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Shipwreck groaned, setting the body down as gently as possible next to the other two men on the floor. He looked up and down the abandoned hallway in the old school, picking up his rifle. “Things still safe up here?”

“I haven't seen anything,” Clutch said. “I think most of these Cobra guys have cleared out. But Duke and the others will be here in just a little bit. Did you find Snake Eyes?”

“No,” Scarlett said, shaking her head. “We have to go back down for him. Stay here and wait for the others.”

“You got it.”

Scarlett and Shipwreck went back down the stairs to the underground complex and retraced their steps to the large room where Scarlett had found the unconscious men. As soon as they entered the room, they jumped when a loud siren went off and red lights began to flash on the walls.

Shipwreck swung his gun around, as if expecting an attack. “Now what in the heck is that?”

The red lights flashed threateningly and Scarlett got a sinking feeling in her stomach. “I don't know, but it can't be good. We have to find Snake Eyes and get out of here.”

“Come on,” Shipwreck said, “he had to have gone this way.”

They ran down the hallway, not bothering to be quiet about it. Their boots banged loudly on the metal floor, the red lights reflecting all around them, bathing them in red light. Shipwreck aimed his gun down another hallway, but it was empty like the others.

“We'll never find him like this,” he said, shaking his head.

“And we might get lost ourselves,” Scarlett added.

She walked to the middle of the intersection and cupped her hands around her mouth. “Snake Eyes!” she shouted. “Snake Eyes! Where are you?” Her voice echoed rapidly down the corridor, and she waited hopefully for some kind of sign.

“Will he call for help if he needs it?” Shipwreck asked. “Maybe he's hurt or trapped somewhere. I know he doesn't talk, but can he yell?”

“I hope so,” Scarlett said. “Let's go this way.”

They went down another long hallway that curved to the right in a gradual semicircle. There were large metal crates along the inner edge of the hall, and several other hallways branching off to the left, but Scarlett and Shipwreck continued forward.

“Snake Eyes!” Scarlett called out. If they didn't find him soon, they would have to leave the underground complex without him, as much as Scarlett hated to even think about it. The sirens and lights could only mean one thing: they had to get out of here, and in a hurry.

“Snake Eyes!” she called out again, beginning to feel desperate.

She suddenly heard footsteps ahead of them and she felt a faint flicker of hope, but it was dashed when it wasn't Snake Eyes ahead of them, but three armed soldiers running in the opposite direction. Scarlett and Shipwreck stopped in their tracks and the Cobra soldiers did the same, staring at each other in surprise, and Scarlett realized they they hadn't heard her shouting, they were just trying to get out of the complex as well.

Shipwreck and Scarlett dove out of the way as the Cobra soldiers opened fire, diving behind the large metal crates. Bullets dented and clanged off the metal sides, and Scarlett covered her head with her hands. She glanced back to see that Shipwreck was behind her, hiding behind another crate. She raised her Colt 9mm SMG and fired a few shots into the ceiling to try to suppress their fire. But almost as soon as she pulled the trigger, a wave of bullets rattled the wall over her head.

The Cobra soldiers took up positions a bit farther down the hall, one of them standing up across from an intersecting hallway, and the others kneeling behind more metal crates stacked against the wall.

Shipwreck stuck his gun upward and opened fire blindly. The Cobra soldier standing up fired back and Shipwreck pulled his gun away. Scarlett poked her body out and fired, hitting the Cobra trooper in the chest. He staggered backward, reflexively squeezing the trigger, spraying bullets into the wall as he fell over.

Scarlett's gun clicked empty and she panicked, realizing she didn't have any spare clips left. She looked back and saw Shipwreck peering at her over the top of the metal crate, and quickly shook her head to let him know she was out of ammo.

Shipwreck understood, and quickly stood up, blasting bullets down the hall, making the other Cobra troops duck for cover. As Shipwreck provided covering fire, Scarlett jumped up and ran for it. She took two fast steps back toward Shipwreck as he covered her, long red hair whipping behind her.

One of the Cobra soldiers popped up suddenly and opened fire at her with his submachine gun as she ran, firing a three-round burst. The first bullet zipped over her shoulder, the second bullet grazed her upper arm.

The third bullet struck her right in her back, knocking the breath from her lungs. Her head jerked back with the impact and she lost her footing, tumbling down to the floor. She hit the ground face first and sprawled out, motionless.

The Cobra soldier kept shooting, and Shipwreck fell over backward as bullets tore across the wall, striking him in the arm and knocking his gun out of his hands. He shouted in pain and grimaced, cradling his wounded arm, falling backward. He rolled onto his side and stared in horror at Scarlett lying a few feet away, unmoving.

“I got them!” the Cobra trooper cried victoriously. He ran out into the hallway and laughed nervously. “Look! I got them!”

He came forward, standing over Scarlett, and aimed his gun down at Shipwreck, his crazed eyes visible over his face mask. He seemed to tremble with frantic energy, and shouted, “That's what you get for messing with Cobra!”

There was the sound of rapid footsteps, and then a blur shot from the adjacent hallway, flashing in front of the Cobra soldier. Shipwreck flinched in shock as the soldier's arm, holding the machine gun, went flipping into the air, spraying blood. He shouted and it turned into a high-pitched scream, grabbing onto the severed stump with his other hand.

Snake Eyes spun around in a vicious circle, jamming the edge of his long sword right into the Cobra soldier's throat. His body jerked, blood splashing across the front of his blue uniform, his arms falling to his sides. His body slumped sideways and Snake Eyes turned quickly to face the other Cobra soldier, a Glock 18 in his hand. The other soldier flew backward as bullets blasted across his chest.

“Snake Eyes... ” Shipwreck gasped, baring his teeth in pain. His arm was a bloody ruin, cradled against his side. “Scarlett … they shot her ...”

Snake Eyes kicked the Cobra soldier's dead body off of his sword and stepped cautiously toward Scarlett, resheathing the sword. He kneeled down and reached out for her, but his hand stopped, as if he was afraid to touch her.

He took a deep breath and took hold of her shoulders to gently turn her over. Shipwreck managed to sit upright and painfully got to his feet, using his assault rifle as a crutch. The hallway still rang with the siren, red lights flashing an urgent warning.

Scarlett let out a slow breath and looked weakly up at Snake Eyes, her face pale and eyes blinking away tears. She lifted her hand a little, but was too weak to move.

“I'm sorry,” she whispered. “I didn't want to leave without you ...”

“We have to go,” Shipwreck urged. “We have to go!”

Snake Eyes slid one arm under Scarlett's neck and the other under her legs, and lifted her up effortlessly, cradling her against his chest. Shipwreck took Snake Eyes' Glock because he couldn't use his rifle with one arm, and together they went back down the hall. Shipwreck went in front, holding the pistol out in front of him, but the pain from his wounded arm made his whole body shake. Blood dripped onto the floor from the ends of his fingertips.

Snake Eyes could feel blood spreading across Scarlett's back, smearing across his gloved hands. Her breathing was shallow and labored, and her arms swung down uselessly. They went as fast as possible back to the exit staircase, and did not run into any more resistance. By now, all the Cobra soldiers left in the complex had surely escaped.

As soon as Shipwreck hit the steps, they could feel the thundering tremble of explosives going off nearby. The entire vertical shaft seemed to wobble and quake, dust and dirt fluttering down. There was a tremendous roar, and the whole area shook, almost knocking Shipwreck off his feet. He tossed away the pistol so he could use his free hand to grab onto the railing, and struggled up the stairs, his face contorted in pain, sweat dripping from his brow.

Scarlett lifted her head a little and looked over Snake Eyes' shoulder as he rushed up the stairs, watching a swirling wave of fire rush down the hallway, rattling the walls. Chunks of concrete and plaster tumbled down the stairway, clattering off the steps. A billowing cloud of smoke shot up the stairs, blinding them as they ran. The entire world seemed to be coming down.

“We're not going to make it!” Shipwreck cried. The stairs shook under their feet, another blast of fire erupting beneath them.

The wall broke apart and a pile of rubble cascaded down like a landslide. Shipwreck went down as a chunk of concrete struck him in the back of the head, and collapsed to the ground in the middle of a pile of rubble. Smoke clogged the air, making Snake Eyes choke, and he sagged down over Shipwreck's body.

He couldn't carry both of them. He looked up and saw streams of light above them piercing the blinding black smoke, and then he fell against the railing as the wall behind them tumbled over in a roar of stone, smashing the stairs. Tons of rubble smashed down the stairway, only a few feet from there they had just been standing.

They were only a few flights from the top, but it might as well have been miles. Snake Eyes panted for breath, coughing with the thick smoke. His fight with Storm Shadow had left him weary, and carrying Scarlett's limp body sapped much of his strength. The tremors rattled him, and more dust and bits of debris were knocked loose and rained down.

He felt Scarlett's hands feebly gripping his arm, and took a deep breath, forcing himself to stand up. Gritting his teeth and groaning with the effort, he lifted Scarlett up and shifted her body up onto his shoulder, her hair draping over his arm. Then he kneeled down and grabbed the front of Shipwreck's kevlar armor. Taking one step, his muscles straining, he stood and pulled Shipwreck free from the rubble. He forced himself up two steps, Scarlett's limp body hanging over him, trying to drag Shipwreck's unconscious body up the steps behind him.

But he wasn't strong enough. He fell forward, too tired to keep moving. The slow blood loss from his fight with Storm Shadow, combined with the choking air, finally drained every last ounce of strength from his body. He slumped over, unable to keep going.

The entire Cobra compound detonated beneath him, sending towers of flame up the shaft, making the stairs crumble and collapse. Snake Eyes, barely able to stay conscious, tilted his head up and saw vague, blurry shapes in front of him. Blackness edged his vision, and he saw the outline of a person appear through the smoke.

“Snake Eyes? Oh my God! Snake Eyes!” Clutch cried out, running down the stairs toward him. Right on his heels were Duke and Heavy Duty.

“Come on!” Duke shouted in a panic. “Clutch, take Scarlett!” He pulled her away from Snake Eyes and Clutch took her, his face distraught as he carried her to safety.

Duke grabbed Shipwreck, hefting him up and taking him away. Heavy Duty lifted Snake Eyes in his massive arms and followed the others up the stairs. “You gonna be just fine, man,” Heavy Duty said. “You gonna be fine.”

Twenty seconds later, the top of the staircase finally broke free and collapsed down in a torrent of stone and concrete, burying the stairway area in rubble. Duke and the others barely made it out of the school before it imploded inwards, caving into the ground in a huge cloud of flying debris and smoke. Towers of flame burst from the ground, and then the entire underground base was gone, buried under tons of dirt and rock.

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