Disclaimer: this story will be multilingual, as I have decided to not have everyone speaking english right off the bat. If you don't like that decision, you don't have to read this story.
"Prepare to drop, Helljumpers!" My CO called out. "Get in your pods and get your shit together, we're dropping in one minute!" There was a scramble to get to our drop pods before they were ejected. Sliding in, I made sure my DMR and SMG were tightly locked into place, and closed the pod, sealing me inside.
"Dropping in T minus ten." Lieutenant Drumms said over the secure channel. "Remember to secure the Scorpion as soon as you get out of your pods." He added, a few seconds before I felt the pod eject.
"What the hell is tha—" Corporal Fudd was cut off as a blinding light was able to pierce through my darkened visor, blinding all of us.
"Plasma torpe—" I tried getting out, but was cut off as everything faded away.
"... Up..." A voice fainly called out in the darkness. I groaned, trying to ignore it. "Get up!" The voice came in much clearer this time, snapping me awake. Standing in front of my drop pod was Lt. Drumms, glaring at me through his untinted visor. "That's an order!"
"Hooah, sir!" I said as loud as I could, but it still came out as a croak. Unbuckling myself, I was able to push myself out of the pod and nearly fell into the dir—
Wait, dirt? We're supposed to be in New Mombosa! I thought, catching myself on the side and keeping steady.
"Any idea where we are, Sergeant?" The Lt questioned, snapping me from my thoughts. I looked around the area, hiding a frown behind my helmet.
"No sir, it doesn't look like Earth." I answered. "If we were, there'd at least be a few visible structures. Nothing in sight except natural formations. And a lot of dirt." Hell, there'd be more grass than dirt with the way the continent was at this point.
"I was afraid of that..." He sighed. "C'mon, grab your kit and help me get the others out, if they survived the hit." I nodded and reached back into the pod, prying my DMR and SMG free of their clasps. After attaching the SMG to my thigh, I went around the makeshift drop zone and started prying off pod doors, mentally ticking off who was alive and who wasn't.
It was gruelling work as a Sergeant, but somebody had to do it.
"What's the group's condition?" The Lt. questioned me as I walked up behind him. I watched him sweep the area with binoculars for a moment, before answering.
"Sanderson and Williams are DOI, Allan has a broken leg and a concussion, which Zed is taking care of, and Frank, Chatner, and Calvin are covering the left, right, and rear flanks as we speak. Corporal Fudd is MIA, as his drop pod never hit the ground." I answered, clasping my hands behind my back. I didn't see it, but I knew that Drumms grimanced behind his visor; becoming a Dead On Impact was every ODST's nightmare, right on up next to having your pod bury itself into the ground, to the point where you had to get construction equipment or a SPARTAN to drag it out. Usually, they die of axplysation before that can happen. "The Scorpion survived completely intact, so we have our MBT ready on your command."
"Take them out of their pods and give 'em a proper burial." He said quietly. "They've finished the fight." I nodded and turned around, heading over to Allan and Zed to check on them.
"How're you doing?" I questioned Allan, crouching down in front of him. He chuckled weakly, having depolarized his visor.
"I've had worse injuries in boot, Sar'nt." He answered. "I'll make it." Zed finished with Allan's leg, got up and walked with me over to the tombs of the rest of the squad.
"He's lucky that a broken leg was all he recieved." Zed said in a low voice. "Had his pod landed a degree to the left or right, we'd be looking at a shattered spine, at best." I nodded silently and reopened Sanderson's pod.
"Could you go and get Williams out?" I asked the medic. "The Lt wants them buried before we leave."
"I'll go and borrow Frank's shovel." Zed nodded and jogged off towards the right perimeter, while I gently eased Sanderson's body out. For some very odd reason, I felt inclined to sing an old PT cadance.
"Helljumper, Helljumper, where you been?
Feet first to hell and back again.
When I die, please bury me deep.
Fix an MA5 down by my feet.
Don't cry for me, don't shed no tear.
Just pack my box with PT gear."
I was whispering the entire thing so I wouldn't disturb the others, getting Sanderson out and gently lying him on the ground.
"Cuz earlier one morning 'bout zero five.
The ground will rumble, there'll be lightning in the sky.
Don't you worry, don't come undone.
It's just my ghost on a PT run." With a small frown, I slowly collected the munitions from the pod and made a neat pile by his feet. Looking over, I saw that Zed was almost done as well.
"Helljumpers, fall in!" The Lt's voice suddenly barked out over the dry air. Almost instantly, we were standing in a line facing him, except for Zed, who was supporting Allan. "Alright, we're moving out on the Scorpion at 1800 hours, so get your shit squared away. Before you do anything else, finish burying Williams and Sanderson. That'll be all, Helljumpers." We all gave him a salute and returned to our tasks.
With Williams and Sanderson in their graves, Zed, Frank, Chatner and I started piling dirt into the holes.
"I can't believe they're gone, man." Chatner muttered.
"It's what comes with the job, sadly." I spoke up. "Some of us never get to really fight their last, so it's what we do before we're offed that really matters."
"I know..." He sighed. "It's just... I know that both of them would rather go down fighting than in their pods."
"Don't we all?" I grunted and looked around. "Honestly, I'm surprised that nothing's happened yet. Screw it being a jinx, where the hell are the local populations? The air is certainly breathable, here at least."
"Maybe they live underground?" Frank shrugged. "Don't think about it too much, sir." I looked down at the graves for a moment, before tapping my shovel twice against the lip of Sanderson's grave.
"You three finish packing up, I want you to be ready to move when I'm done." I told them. "I'll finish up here." They nodded and went to their pods to collect their gear, while I resumed my task.
"Who's driving?" Allan questioned as Zed helped him onto one of the tracks.
"Corporal Frank." Lt. Drumms answered. Frank gave him a salute, before hopping onto the Scorpion and popping open the canopy.
"Don't let me get hit by a rocket, will ya?" He said, sliding down into the seat and pushing his assault rifle into a clasp.
"We'll try our best." Chatner chuckled. "No promises, though." Frank shot Chatner the one-finger salute before closing the canopy over his head, while the rest of us hopped onto the treads and settled in for a long ride.
"Head west, Corporal." Lt. Drumms commanded. After a moment, the Scorpion lurched forward, before slowly turning to point west.
Another lurch later and we were off.
"Why did I get picked to do this assignment?" Soarin questioned the pegasus mare flying next to him. Fleetfoot didn't answer, merely stared down at the dusty ground, which was almost four thousand feet below the pair of Wonderbolts. "I mean, if this is about that incident with the loofah last month, I had already apologized fifteen times for it!"
"Its not that." Fleetfoot quietly said. "Spitfire picked us for the scouting mission because we're some of the best scouts she has." Soarin silently sighed.
"I know, Fleets." He said, looking at her. "I just think that we need more cadets in our Academy, you know? The last graduating class only had eight pegasi in it!" He exclaimed, throwing his hooves out to the sides. Fleetfoot nodded to acknowledge that she was listening, not taking her eyes off of the landscape below. Spotting something out of place, she narrowed her eyes and peered closer.
"Wait." She suddenly said, throwing out a hoof and nearly hit Soarin across the throat. "Do you see that?"
"See what?" He blinked and looked down at the ground. "What's that?"
"Don't know." She looked at him. "You want to go back and report, or stay and watch it for a while?"
"Let's stay." Soarin said after a moment. "We don't know if its dangerous or not and we'll need more information on it." Fleetfoot nodded and looked around for a pair of clouds for them to hide on. She could only spot one, but the two pegasi were trained to not be uncomfortable with having to share clouds together for reconnaissance missions.
"Let's hope it doesn't notice us..." Fleetfoot muttered, shifting a bit as she lay down next to Soarin.