Fireteam Glory
Fri Aug 20, 2021 10:11 pm
Was the shooting in the arm like shooting davis in the leg in planet qutari?
Sun Aug 29, 2021 12:16 am
Fireteam Glory Part 144
Lawrence slid down into a shallow trench in the ground, boots splashing in a small stream of water at the bottom. He had walked across the jungle in silence, only stopping once to eat and do his business. He had heard the Covenant’s camp before he had seen it, the roars of Brutes eerily echoing across the forest. He hadn’t seen any of the beasts, but he had stumbled upon one of their messes. It wasn’t a pretty sight, but Lawrence filed the location away in his mind as a landmark. The sun was beginning to set now and it was becoming dark in the jungle. The landscape had shifted downhill slowly, with trees getting fewer and fewer in number. He lowered himself into the undergrowth as he reached a clearing. It was a road, paved and marked. It looked terrible, torn up by craters and burned by weapons fire. Suddenly, he could hear the rumble of an engine. It almost sounded like a tractor, but with a strange droning hum backing it up. He tucked himself deeper into the bushes, keeping his sight on the road. A large vehicle shot by, a machine with one singular large wheel in the front and a jet on the back. It roared fiercely as it rolled by Lawrence’s position. He caught a glimpse of the driver, a Brute clad in blue armor. The wheel was covered in large blades that occasionally ripped into the road’s surface and there were two weapon barrels that he couldn’t identify on the sides. It rumbled down the road, eventually leaving his field of view. After making sure there weren’t any following that one, he crept out onto the road and examined the area. The first thing to catch his attention was a sign that had been knocked over. Reading it, he learned that there was a town identified as Arusha thirty miles away. There was a part of him that wanted to check it out, but he opted to scout the base first and verify if there were any prisoners being kept there. He turned around and went back into the jungle, heading in the same direction as the Brute vehicle he had seen. The sun continued its descent towards the horizon as he slunk along the forest floor. Looking out at the road, he saw the burned out husks of civilian vehicles. A spike of fear shot through him, imagining the streets of Seattle, his home, covered in them. His father’s truck was among them. He stopped for a moment to snap himself out of his sudden fear.
“This is not the time to worry about them, they’re safe for now.” he muttered angrily. “Focus on the current mission. Scout the enemy, confirm POWs, then link up with UNSC troops.”
He repeated that to himself a few times as he continued on his path, weaving his way through the trees. He could see a pale glow in the distance, a large wall of energy it looked like. As he got closer, he could see that it was a long wall spanning the length of an entire valley. He could still see the road, and that it was the only gap he could see in the entire fortification. Two towers flanked either side of it, but the trees were too thick for him to see their tops. He travelled parallel to the wall until he reached a spot where he could see no towers for a good distance in either direction. Then, he ran for the wall. It moved in slow motion, his mind racing as he hoped that he would not be spotted. When he reached the imposing blue-white barrier, he hid next to one of the huge pylons he assumed were powering it. His arm was starting to itch, but he ignored the irritation. He peeked through the wavy distortions, scanning the Covenant base he now saw before him. It was a collection of simple prefabricated structures. Up towards the north of the valley there was a vehicle depot full of Ghosts, Wraiths, troop transports, and more of those one-wheeled vehicles. Along with that, there was a spot for several Banshees and Phantoms to land. He could see plenty of Covenant troops walking down there. Brutes, Grunts, and Jackals patrolled the area. He even saw two Hunters near the depot.
“No Elites, though.” he said to himself. “They’re usually in the thick of it barking orders to everyone else, so where are they?”
His focus changed quickly as he saw three circular energy pens near the center of the encampment. His helmet’s telescopic vision still worked, so he zoomed in on the pens to examine them. The first one was filled with only five people, all huddled in groups or laying in the mud.
“So there are prisoners here…” he whispered grimly. “Poor souls.”
The second one was similar to the first, eight people grouped together as they looked around nervously. As he shifted his view to the final pen and looked at the people within, he saw them. He almost had to stop himself from yelling in joy as he saw Teresa’s face. Most of the others were angled in ways that made it hard to see their faces, but from body shapes and hair colors he determined that they were all there. Booth, Santos, Parvisal, and Cass were all there. Kip was lying next to Teresa, using a shirt as a pillow. The only person he didn’t see was Donovan. His mind raced. Quickly, he brought out his assault rifle and checked the flashlight. The bright beam, with some quick adjustment, would be his method to send a message to the groups down there. It was risky, but he didn’t know what else to do. None of them had helmets, so the radio was no good even if the jammers he saw close to the pens were down. After a few deep breaths, he began to turn the light on and off in intervals.
Teresa watched as Kip’s chest feebly rose and sank. He hadn’t moved at all since he had fainted during the fight earlier in the day. Now the sun was setting, and he almost looked like he was dead. Nothing had happened since the fight. Now everyone was content to sit, or in Cass’s case, pace endlessly while staring out at the jungle. The Brutes were content to stand guard across the camp, or huddle around holograms of a Covenant Prophet and listen to sermons spoken in an alien tongue. People still cried in the other holding areas, some from injuries and others from an increasing hunger. The Brutes seemed to have no intentions of feeding their captives.
“Hunting down injured and starving people in the jungle? I knew the Brutes were cruel, but this is horrible.” Teresa angrily thought as she looked out into the jungle, now mostly a dark silhouette in the setting sun. “If there’s anyone out there, I hope you find us in time.”
She didn’t notice it at first, a flashing light in the corner of her vision. It was so small that she almost missed it entirely, the energy fields distorting it even further. It was coming from the west, up high in the jungle. She quickly made sure that no Covenant soldier was watching her before fully turning to examine the light. Her heart began to beat faster and faster, it was a signal! The pattern became clearer as she waited, a message in Morse code. Letters began to form from the flashes, albeit a little hard to read.
She spelled them out in her head. “…W-R-E-N-C-E-T-O…” Her pulse picked up even more as she read more letters. The flashes were a looping message. They suddenly stopped, but she had gotten all he had needed her to see.
“Lawrence to west. Help will come soon.”
Nearby, Santos and Booth were talking. “So,” Santos said, “did you mean what you said to Kip earlier, about pilots having it easy?”
Booth looked up at him and shook her head quickly. “No, not at all. It was such a stupid thing to say to him.” She took a look up at the sky. “I’ve been on enough birds that were shot down to know that pilots get the worst of it most of the time in combat. In all of the crashes we’ve had, the pilots rarely ever make it.”
“Well, I suppose you’ll have to apologize to him then. If we make it out of here.” Santos looked away. “If he lives that long.”
Booth knew things didn’t look good for them, but she wanted to believe that Teresa was right. As if the universe had heard her, Teresa suddenly sat down at their side. There was a look on her face, a grin so big it looked like it might permanently hurt her face if she kept it up.
“He’s here!” she whispered excitedly.
Booth wondered if maybe Teresa had taken a hit to the head as well, but she knew better than to assume that. “What do you mean? Who’s here?”
“Lawrence made it.” Teresa replied.
“WHAT!?” Santos shouted before Booth shushed him. “Oops, sorry. But seriously, Lawrence? Where?”
Teresa subtly gestured towards the west. “Up on the edge of the valley, behind the walls. He used a light to give us this message: Lawrence to west. Help will come soon.”
Booth smiled. “Glad to see he’s still kicking, apparently.”
“Well duh,” Santos said matter-of-factly, “if a tussle with a Chieftain couldn’t keep him down what chance does gravity have?”
“C’mon you two,” Booth said as she stood up, “we need to tell the others about this now.”
His timing was extremely sloppy due to his burnt arm, but Lawrence didn’t know how long he had before the Covenant spotted him so he didn’t want to waste any time. He signalled the last few letters with his rifle’s flashlight, looking at Teresa’s face as it had changed from somber to hopeful as she watched his message play out. He quickly crawled back into the undergrowth of the jungle, taking one last look out at the Covenant prison camp. His friends were right there, not to mention all of the other civilians and soldiers stuck with them. They were within his reach, but still so far away. A one-man assault would be the end of him, he knew that. But still, this was good. Even if he couldn't save them right now, they at least knew they weren’t alone out here.
“And I know that they’re all here,” he said to himself quietly, “all I need to do is find a way to contact other UNSC forces. Stay safe down there, guys.”
Lawrence slid down into a shallow trench in the ground, boots splashing in a small stream of water at the bottom. He had walked across the jungle in silence, only stopping once to eat and do his business. He had heard the Covenant’s camp before he had seen it, the roars of Brutes eerily echoing across the forest. He hadn’t seen any of the beasts, but he had stumbled upon one of their messes. It wasn’t a pretty sight, but Lawrence filed the location away in his mind as a landmark. The sun was beginning to set now and it was becoming dark in the jungle. The landscape had shifted downhill slowly, with trees getting fewer and fewer in number. He lowered himself into the undergrowth as he reached a clearing. It was a road, paved and marked. It looked terrible, torn up by craters and burned by weapons fire. Suddenly, he could hear the rumble of an engine. It almost sounded like a tractor, but with a strange droning hum backing it up. He tucked himself deeper into the bushes, keeping his sight on the road. A large vehicle shot by, a machine with one singular large wheel in the front and a jet on the back. It roared fiercely as it rolled by Lawrence’s position. He caught a glimpse of the driver, a Brute clad in blue armor. The wheel was covered in large blades that occasionally ripped into the road’s surface and there were two weapon barrels that he couldn’t identify on the sides. It rumbled down the road, eventually leaving his field of view. After making sure there weren’t any following that one, he crept out onto the road and examined the area. The first thing to catch his attention was a sign that had been knocked over. Reading it, he learned that there was a town identified as Arusha thirty miles away. There was a part of him that wanted to check it out, but he opted to scout the base first and verify if there were any prisoners being kept there. He turned around and went back into the jungle, heading in the same direction as the Brute vehicle he had seen. The sun continued its descent towards the horizon as he slunk along the forest floor. Looking out at the road, he saw the burned out husks of civilian vehicles. A spike of fear shot through him, imagining the streets of Seattle, his home, covered in them. His father’s truck was among them. He stopped for a moment to snap himself out of his sudden fear.
“This is not the time to worry about them, they’re safe for now.” he muttered angrily. “Focus on the current mission. Scout the enemy, confirm POWs, then link up with UNSC troops.”
He repeated that to himself a few times as he continued on his path, weaving his way through the trees. He could see a pale glow in the distance, a large wall of energy it looked like. As he got closer, he could see that it was a long wall spanning the length of an entire valley. He could still see the road, and that it was the only gap he could see in the entire fortification. Two towers flanked either side of it, but the trees were too thick for him to see their tops. He travelled parallel to the wall until he reached a spot where he could see no towers for a good distance in either direction. Then, he ran for the wall. It moved in slow motion, his mind racing as he hoped that he would not be spotted. When he reached the imposing blue-white barrier, he hid next to one of the huge pylons he assumed were powering it. His arm was starting to itch, but he ignored the irritation. He peeked through the wavy distortions, scanning the Covenant base he now saw before him. It was a collection of simple prefabricated structures. Up towards the north of the valley there was a vehicle depot full of Ghosts, Wraiths, troop transports, and more of those one-wheeled vehicles. Along with that, there was a spot for several Banshees and Phantoms to land. He could see plenty of Covenant troops walking down there. Brutes, Grunts, and Jackals patrolled the area. He even saw two Hunters near the depot.
“No Elites, though.” he said to himself. “They’re usually in the thick of it barking orders to everyone else, so where are they?”
His focus changed quickly as he saw three circular energy pens near the center of the encampment. His helmet’s telescopic vision still worked, so he zoomed in on the pens to examine them. The first one was filled with only five people, all huddled in groups or laying in the mud.
“So there are prisoners here…” he whispered grimly. “Poor souls.”
The second one was similar to the first, eight people grouped together as they looked around nervously. As he shifted his view to the final pen and looked at the people within, he saw them. He almost had to stop himself from yelling in joy as he saw Teresa’s face. Most of the others were angled in ways that made it hard to see their faces, but from body shapes and hair colors he determined that they were all there. Booth, Santos, Parvisal, and Cass were all there. Kip was lying next to Teresa, using a shirt as a pillow. The only person he didn’t see was Donovan. His mind raced. Quickly, he brought out his assault rifle and checked the flashlight. The bright beam, with some quick adjustment, would be his method to send a message to the groups down there. It was risky, but he didn’t know what else to do. None of them had helmets, so the radio was no good even if the jammers he saw close to the pens were down. After a few deep breaths, he began to turn the light on and off in intervals.
Teresa watched as Kip’s chest feebly rose and sank. He hadn’t moved at all since he had fainted during the fight earlier in the day. Now the sun was setting, and he almost looked like he was dead. Nothing had happened since the fight. Now everyone was content to sit, or in Cass’s case, pace endlessly while staring out at the jungle. The Brutes were content to stand guard across the camp, or huddle around holograms of a Covenant Prophet and listen to sermons spoken in an alien tongue. People still cried in the other holding areas, some from injuries and others from an increasing hunger. The Brutes seemed to have no intentions of feeding their captives.
“Hunting down injured and starving people in the jungle? I knew the Brutes were cruel, but this is horrible.” Teresa angrily thought as she looked out into the jungle, now mostly a dark silhouette in the setting sun. “If there’s anyone out there, I hope you find us in time.”
She didn’t notice it at first, a flashing light in the corner of her vision. It was so small that she almost missed it entirely, the energy fields distorting it even further. It was coming from the west, up high in the jungle. She quickly made sure that no Covenant soldier was watching her before fully turning to examine the light. Her heart began to beat faster and faster, it was a signal! The pattern became clearer as she waited, a message in Morse code. Letters began to form from the flashes, albeit a little hard to read.
She spelled them out in her head. “…W-R-E-N-C-E-T-O…” Her pulse picked up even more as she read more letters. The flashes were a looping message. They suddenly stopped, but she had gotten all he had needed her to see.
“Lawrence to west. Help will come soon.”
Nearby, Santos and Booth were talking. “So,” Santos said, “did you mean what you said to Kip earlier, about pilots having it easy?”
Booth looked up at him and shook her head quickly. “No, not at all. It was such a stupid thing to say to him.” She took a look up at the sky. “I’ve been on enough birds that were shot down to know that pilots get the worst of it most of the time in combat. In all of the crashes we’ve had, the pilots rarely ever make it.”
“Well, I suppose you’ll have to apologize to him then. If we make it out of here.” Santos looked away. “If he lives that long.”
Booth knew things didn’t look good for them, but she wanted to believe that Teresa was right. As if the universe had heard her, Teresa suddenly sat down at their side. There was a look on her face, a grin so big it looked like it might permanently hurt her face if she kept it up.
“He’s here!” she whispered excitedly.
Booth wondered if maybe Teresa had taken a hit to the head as well, but she knew better than to assume that. “What do you mean? Who’s here?”
“Lawrence made it.” Teresa replied.
“WHAT!?” Santos shouted before Booth shushed him. “Oops, sorry. But seriously, Lawrence? Where?”
Teresa subtly gestured towards the west. “Up on the edge of the valley, behind the walls. He used a light to give us this message: Lawrence to west. Help will come soon.”
Booth smiled. “Glad to see he’s still kicking, apparently.”
“Well duh,” Santos said matter-of-factly, “if a tussle with a Chieftain couldn’t keep him down what chance does gravity have?”
“C’mon you two,” Booth said as she stood up, “we need to tell the others about this now.”
His timing was extremely sloppy due to his burnt arm, but Lawrence didn’t know how long he had before the Covenant spotted him so he didn’t want to waste any time. He signalled the last few letters with his rifle’s flashlight, looking at Teresa’s face as it had changed from somber to hopeful as she watched his message play out. He quickly crawled back into the undergrowth of the jungle, taking one last look out at the Covenant prison camp. His friends were right there, not to mention all of the other civilians and soldiers stuck with them. They were within his reach, but still so far away. A one-man assault would be the end of him, he knew that. But still, this was good. Even if he couldn't save them right now, they at least knew they weren’t alone out here.
“And I know that they’re all here,” he said to himself quietly, “all I need to do is find a way to contact other UNSC forces. Stay safe down there, guys.”
Mon Aug 30, 2021 12:05 am
Fireteam Glory Part 145
“You cannot be serious.” Jarvis growled, stepping back from the conversation.
Teresa looked to Cass with concern, to which Cass shrugged and rolled her eyes. They had decided as a group to include Jarvis and Calvin in the discussion, so that they might be convinced that Teresa’s plan was their best choice with Lawrence now confirmed to be alive. That decision was seeming dumber with every second that passed.
Jarvis continued. “You want us to put our faith in one marine who fell from a Pelican into the jungle below it? A marine who may have not even sent a message and was made up by a coward looking to make their idiotic plan look good?” He stared at Teresa, poison dripping from his gaze.
Cass moved to defend Teresa. “Now just wait a minute-”
Teresa held up her hand, silencing Cass. “No. I can stick up for myself, but thanks.” Her suddenly cold stare snapped to Jarvis, who seemed to recoil the smallest bit from the sudden shift in mood. “Listen to me, trooper,” she hissed, “I know what I saw, I know that Lance Corporal Richards is still out there and he is looking for a way to help us.” She took a step forward, then another. The distance between her and Jarvis shrank more and more. “While I don’t expect you to believe me, I will not tolerate being called a coward any longer.”
Booth and Santos looked at each other, eyebrows raised.
“Well that’s tough, doc.” Jarvis sneered. “Because the way I see it, you are a c- urk!”
Teresa grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, pulling him closer. “I will not be berated by someone who is willing to ignore the obvious facts laid before them and side with someone not fit to make decisions, condemning innocent civilians to die in the smallest hope of shooting their way out of this place. I cannot in good faith, as a healer and someone who has watched worlds burn, put those souls on the line. And if they are endangered I will do everything in my power to buy them time, even if it means laying down my life! Am I understood?”
Jarvis seemed shaken by the timid medic’s newfound aggression, unable to form anything resembling a sentence for at least a minute. When he did find his words once more, he stumbled over them. “I, uh, yes ma’am. Yes ma’am, I understand.”
Teresa let go of his shirt, watching as he quickly retreated to where Calvin was sitting.
“Seesh,” Santos said, breaking the silence, “remind me never to make you that angry!”
Cass grinned a little. “That was fun to watch, I think you might’ve been a drill sergeant in a past life. Only time I’ve ever seen someone wet their pants like that was during ODST training!”
Teresa didn’t exactly share their enthusiasm. “I don’t know what came over me, I was just so tired of all the hostility and infighting. It just all came out like a flood!”
Booth put her hands on Teresa’s shoulders. “Good, sometimes you need to let that frustration out. That shouting probably cleared your mind a little. Now, we need to continue discussing this plan.”
“That’s correct,” Cass said, kneeling on the ground. “Lawrence said he would be in the west, so he will likely try to give us status updates whenever he can. My guess would be that he will return to the spot he gave his last message at, so we know where to keep an eye out.”
“He also probably saw the size of the Covenant force guarding this area, so I’d say he’ll attempt to get a signal out to the UNSC for help.” Booth added.
Santos nodded, picking up a small rock and tossing it back and forth in his hands. “Knowing his luck, he’ll have us out of here by tomorrow’s sunset! But seriously, if anyone can do it, he can.”
Parvisal walked over, rubbing her sleepy eyes. “What was all the commotion about? Was there another fight?”
“No fight,” Cass said, pointing at Teresa, “but the good doctor gave Jarvis a verbal whooping for his idiotic plan. I don’t think he’ll forget it for a while.”
Crinkling her face in disgust, Parvisal groaned. “I knew he reminded me of Donovan a little. What a dimwit. But who were you just talking about?”
“Lawrence, our lance corporal, is alive.” Teresa said. “He’s out there in the jungle trying to help us.”
“He managed to survive falling from that Pelican!?” Parvisal said in disbelief. “Talk about durability! That dude is gonna end up in the ODSTs within the month.”
They all laughed a little, with Cass adding to Parvisal’s quip. “With his spirit, he’ll make the trainers look like wide-eyed recruits!”
Their spirits had all risen with the good news and they laughed some more, joking quietly so as to not disturb anyone. Teresa quickly refocused them, however.
“Not that I mind the reprieve from our situation right now,” she said, getting everyone’s attention, “but we should remain professional about this. We are walking a thin line between life and death now. Tomorrow the Brutes will likely want to hunt again, we have to be ready for that.”
“And I agreed that I would be the first of us to go out there.” Cass said somberly. “Well, if they don’t pick our pen we’ll have to draw their attention to me.”
“For now, we should all try to rest as best we can.” Teresa said. “We’ll all need our strength in the days to come. I’ll take the first watch.”
As everyone left the group to find a spot in the mud to rest, Teresa took her spot next to Kip. He was still breathing and the vitals she could measure seemed stable. “Please,” she thought, “try not to be too long, okay Lawrence?”
Lawrence stepped over another root in the ground, checking again to make sure he could still see the road. He heard the hum of another Banshee in the sky above. It was far away for now, but it sounded like it was moving in the same direction he was. Moving slowly, he crept across the dark forest floor. As soon as he had left the Covenant camp, he had decided to travel to Arusha. 30 miles hadn’t seemed too far, but he was now beginning to see that he was wrong. An hour had passed already according to the clock on his HUD which now said that it was twenty-two hundred hours, or ten at night. He was weary from his trek across the jungle, but he knew that he couldn’t afford to waste time. He needed to see what he could find in Arusha, if there was anything left to find.
“Given its proximity to their camp, I wouldn’t be surprised to encounter Covenant patrols out there.” Lawrence thought. “Better be careful when I get there.”
He realized that the Banshee was gone now, its humming no longer anywhere nearby. His radar scans came back clean too. He decided that it was safe enough to run now, abandoning his slow, stealthy pace for a faster sprint on the very edge of the jungle. Eyes and ears monitoring for any indication of Covenant recon, he enjoyed the cool breeze he was creating with his speed. The sweat on his brow, his leg muscles aching from constant strain, it was all starting to remind him of his time on Reach before the invasion. Ivanoff had taken Lima Company on plenty of three-mile runs, always pushing everyone to the limit and building them up. It was hard to believe that it was all gone now, the trails they had once run on now just molten glass, the forests burned away by plasma. He feared the same fate awaited Earth, but he knew that he wouldn’t let it happen without a fight. Leaping over the hood of a wrecked car, Lawrence continued to run closer and closer to Arusha, to his best chance at finding help.
“You cannot be serious.” Jarvis growled, stepping back from the conversation.
Teresa looked to Cass with concern, to which Cass shrugged and rolled her eyes. They had decided as a group to include Jarvis and Calvin in the discussion, so that they might be convinced that Teresa’s plan was their best choice with Lawrence now confirmed to be alive. That decision was seeming dumber with every second that passed.
Jarvis continued. “You want us to put our faith in one marine who fell from a Pelican into the jungle below it? A marine who may have not even sent a message and was made up by a coward looking to make their idiotic plan look good?” He stared at Teresa, poison dripping from his gaze.
Cass moved to defend Teresa. “Now just wait a minute-”
Teresa held up her hand, silencing Cass. “No. I can stick up for myself, but thanks.” Her suddenly cold stare snapped to Jarvis, who seemed to recoil the smallest bit from the sudden shift in mood. “Listen to me, trooper,” she hissed, “I know what I saw, I know that Lance Corporal Richards is still out there and he is looking for a way to help us.” She took a step forward, then another. The distance between her and Jarvis shrank more and more. “While I don’t expect you to believe me, I will not tolerate being called a coward any longer.”
Booth and Santos looked at each other, eyebrows raised.
“Well that’s tough, doc.” Jarvis sneered. “Because the way I see it, you are a c- urk!”
Teresa grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, pulling him closer. “I will not be berated by someone who is willing to ignore the obvious facts laid before them and side with someone not fit to make decisions, condemning innocent civilians to die in the smallest hope of shooting their way out of this place. I cannot in good faith, as a healer and someone who has watched worlds burn, put those souls on the line. And if they are endangered I will do everything in my power to buy them time, even if it means laying down my life! Am I understood?”
Jarvis seemed shaken by the timid medic’s newfound aggression, unable to form anything resembling a sentence for at least a minute. When he did find his words once more, he stumbled over them. “I, uh, yes ma’am. Yes ma’am, I understand.”
Teresa let go of his shirt, watching as he quickly retreated to where Calvin was sitting.
“Seesh,” Santos said, breaking the silence, “remind me never to make you that angry!”
Cass grinned a little. “That was fun to watch, I think you might’ve been a drill sergeant in a past life. Only time I’ve ever seen someone wet their pants like that was during ODST training!”
Teresa didn’t exactly share their enthusiasm. “I don’t know what came over me, I was just so tired of all the hostility and infighting. It just all came out like a flood!”
Booth put her hands on Teresa’s shoulders. “Good, sometimes you need to let that frustration out. That shouting probably cleared your mind a little. Now, we need to continue discussing this plan.”
“That’s correct,” Cass said, kneeling on the ground. “Lawrence said he would be in the west, so he will likely try to give us status updates whenever he can. My guess would be that he will return to the spot he gave his last message at, so we know where to keep an eye out.”
“He also probably saw the size of the Covenant force guarding this area, so I’d say he’ll attempt to get a signal out to the UNSC for help.” Booth added.
Santos nodded, picking up a small rock and tossing it back and forth in his hands. “Knowing his luck, he’ll have us out of here by tomorrow’s sunset! But seriously, if anyone can do it, he can.”
Parvisal walked over, rubbing her sleepy eyes. “What was all the commotion about? Was there another fight?”
“No fight,” Cass said, pointing at Teresa, “but the good doctor gave Jarvis a verbal whooping for his idiotic plan. I don’t think he’ll forget it for a while.”
Crinkling her face in disgust, Parvisal groaned. “I knew he reminded me of Donovan a little. What a dimwit. But who were you just talking about?”
“Lawrence, our lance corporal, is alive.” Teresa said. “He’s out there in the jungle trying to help us.”
“He managed to survive falling from that Pelican!?” Parvisal said in disbelief. “Talk about durability! That dude is gonna end up in the ODSTs within the month.”
They all laughed a little, with Cass adding to Parvisal’s quip. “With his spirit, he’ll make the trainers look like wide-eyed recruits!”
Their spirits had all risen with the good news and they laughed some more, joking quietly so as to not disturb anyone. Teresa quickly refocused them, however.
“Not that I mind the reprieve from our situation right now,” she said, getting everyone’s attention, “but we should remain professional about this. We are walking a thin line between life and death now. Tomorrow the Brutes will likely want to hunt again, we have to be ready for that.”
“And I agreed that I would be the first of us to go out there.” Cass said somberly. “Well, if they don’t pick our pen we’ll have to draw their attention to me.”
“For now, we should all try to rest as best we can.” Teresa said. “We’ll all need our strength in the days to come. I’ll take the first watch.”
As everyone left the group to find a spot in the mud to rest, Teresa took her spot next to Kip. He was still breathing and the vitals she could measure seemed stable. “Please,” she thought, “try not to be too long, okay Lawrence?”
Lawrence stepped over another root in the ground, checking again to make sure he could still see the road. He heard the hum of another Banshee in the sky above. It was far away for now, but it sounded like it was moving in the same direction he was. Moving slowly, he crept across the dark forest floor. As soon as he had left the Covenant camp, he had decided to travel to Arusha. 30 miles hadn’t seemed too far, but he was now beginning to see that he was wrong. An hour had passed already according to the clock on his HUD which now said that it was twenty-two hundred hours, or ten at night. He was weary from his trek across the jungle, but he knew that he couldn’t afford to waste time. He needed to see what he could find in Arusha, if there was anything left to find.
“Given its proximity to their camp, I wouldn’t be surprised to encounter Covenant patrols out there.” Lawrence thought. “Better be careful when I get there.”
He realized that the Banshee was gone now, its humming no longer anywhere nearby. His radar scans came back clean too. He decided that it was safe enough to run now, abandoning his slow, stealthy pace for a faster sprint on the very edge of the jungle. Eyes and ears monitoring for any indication of Covenant recon, he enjoyed the cool breeze he was creating with his speed. The sweat on his brow, his leg muscles aching from constant strain, it was all starting to remind him of his time on Reach before the invasion. Ivanoff had taken Lima Company on plenty of three-mile runs, always pushing everyone to the limit and building them up. It was hard to believe that it was all gone now, the trails they had once run on now just molten glass, the forests burned away by plasma. He feared the same fate awaited Earth, but he knew that he wouldn’t let it happen without a fight. Leaping over the hood of a wrecked car, Lawrence continued to run closer and closer to Arusha, to his best chance at finding help.
Tue Aug 31, 2021 10:30 am
This is great!
Ever since they got to the brute camp, I’ve been hoping for a Most Dangerous Game-esque scene. Maybe we will get that, Brutes versus Cass.
Ever since they got to the brute camp, I’ve been hoping for a Most Dangerous Game-esque scene. Maybe we will get that, Brutes versus Cass.
Sat Apr 09, 2022 8:01 pm
It would be a shame if this was all lost.
For projects like these, I implore you to archive the forums, not delete them.
For projects like these, I implore you to archive the forums, not delete them.
Tue Apr 26, 2022 11:18 pm
Huh, been a while hasn't it? Completely forgot I used to do this stuff!
Return to “Roleplay & Fanfiction”