<P>He activated the flare and hurled it off to the left. It gave off enough light for the soldiers to see each other, which only intensified the fighting. Tiberius was reminded of moths helplessly flying into a porch light as he drew his pistol. Upon reaching the manhole, he noticed immediately that he was being watched. A thug was loading a fresh clip into his pistol and getting ready to take out the newcomer. Tiberius had his gun ready first and fired two rounds into his opponent.
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<P>A gang member with one of the assault rifles saw the duel and sent a volley at Tiberius. He ducked and dodged, feeling the wind of the bullets as they flew past him. Lining up his aim as best as he could he fired three times at the goon, hitting him at least once and taking him down. After doing a quick sweep, he gestured for the translator to proceed. With a bit of effort, the cover lifted off, revealing an entrance to the sewer below.
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<P>A shotgun blast went off near the translator, who quickly ducked his head and climbed down into the sewer. Tiberius kept his pistol at the ready and moved towards the entrance. He paused for a moment to make sure he knew where he was going, and a pistol round struck his shoulder. He found his hand covered in blood and his arm stinging from pain as he clutched the wound and dropped to a crouch.
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<P>Wearily, he made his way onto the ladder leading under the street. When he was low enough, he simply dropped off of it and sat on the stone walkway, holding his bleeding shoulder and wincing from the pain it caused. The translator quickly climbed up and pulled the cover over the entrance. He then went over to Tiberius and pulled out the medical kit.
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<P>"You'll have to move your hand so I can get a look at the wound." Tiberius complied and nodded with clenched teeth. After examining it carefully, the translator again spoke in a grave tone. "Fortunately, there is no serious damage. I will need to stop the bleeding and this may hurt quite a bit. The bullet is inside and I do not want to remove it for risk of more serious bleeding. The shoulder will have to be touched up for now, but once we leave you will need to have the wound treated in a hospital."
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<P>"Won't that be difficult with the power out all over the world?" Tiberius rasped.