"Locusts in the compound, I repeat Locusts in the compound! All Gears to battle positions. ALL GEARS TO BATTLE POSITIONS!" Command's voice rang over the intercom of each soldier.

Gears started running in, coming up to the grub holes as they appeared, ducking behind cars and under windowsills of broken buildings and started to fire back, tossing grenades when they had a chance to close the emergence holes.

Marcus rubbed his eyes a bit, having been woken from his attempt at sleep. He never could seem to get enough. He looked at the new member of his team who was right beside him. "You ready for this Carmine?"

The young boy nodded. He couldn't have been much older than 16, having joined up just after his brothers had died. He was still green, but eager to learn, taking every opportunity to be close to Marcus. The third Carmine had taken Marcus and Dom as mentors, knowing they both had prestigious military careers. No longer wearing a helmet he wore a bandana similar to Marcus as a sign of his adulation.

"Guess we didn't get them with that final assault," said Dom, standing at Marcus' other side. "You think Command has an amazing plan yet?", he chuckled; it always seemed like they managed to come up with a new plan, no matter what happened.

Marcus gave no response as he looked out of cover and said, "Alright, looks like the left side of our defense is thinning, so let's go back them up. Rookie, stay close to Dom for now. Try to stay in your own cover so we don't make an appealing target; it looks like their snipers are getting into position."

Carmine nodded, looking out before jumping over the cover. He was followed closely on either side by Dom and Marcus, guns blazing as they moved, killing Locusts along the way.

Vanessa sat in the Command office. She heard the order alright and wanted to answer it; this might not have been a good idea but she still wanted to try. She ended up rubbing her face, waiting to be called into Hoffman's office. She was nervous, unsure if she was going to get transferred or sent to the breeding camps. All she knew is she was going to get in trouble again, having botched another one of her missions. Her mistake hadn't resulted in casualties, but the outcome had been sub par to what the COG was expecting. She looked across the room; she knew these meeting inside out and backwards.

Hoffman's door opened and the Colonel signaled for her to enter the room. She proceeded in and stood at attention, awaiting her scolding.

Hoffman shuffled through some papers before he said, "You have been transferred. There is a new mission that requires your skills. The team I'm putting you on has an excellent record and I'm hoping their skills can compensate for your..." he stopped for a moment before finishing, "shortcomings."

She flinched; he put it so cruelly every time, but he never threw the book at her. She did have parents who, when money mattered, funded certain military projects, so this might have let her have an easy ride. Or it could be that she was the best explosive expert in the COG, not that it counted for much, given how often setting explosives was necessary.

Hoffman was still going on about the mission, but she was only vaguely listening; she would read it in her briefing later with the new team. All she grasped was that it involved setting a series of circuit explosives to detonate in a special order without killing anyone. Something that simple was child's play for her.

"You have been assigned to Delta squad," said Hoffman, finally getting to the end of his tirade. "And I hope you can do it without killing anyone." He looked at her for a moment before smiling.

"Understood sir," she said.

"You will join them immediately. Grab a Lancer and get out in the thick of it. Talk to Anya on your way out; she'll tell you Delta's position."

"Sir," Vanessa said as she saluted, turned on her heels and left. As soon as she was in the hall she ran to change into her combat gear.

"KEEP IT UP DELTA! THEY'RE ON THE RUN!" Marcus shouted as he sawed threw another Grub with the Lancers chainsaw, pushing forwards more as they worked towards the building where the Grubs were holed up.

Vanessa had armored up and spotted Delta going towards a building. She sprinted to catch up to them, having heard Marcus screaming into his mic as he was told that she was going to be joining them. She wasn't sure if he was going to be joining or not. Anya didn't have time to repeat herself, being bogged down with paperwork and trying to coordinate the Gears counter strike. She was now close enough to join the combat. She grabbed her Gnasher shotgun off her back and took aim. She squeezed the trigger, the gun going off with a bang…

Carmine suddenly cried out and fell down, holding his rear. Marcus heard his cry and ran over to him as Dom took care of the last straggling Grubs, emptying an entire clip into their retreating forms. Marcus put pressure on Carmines' wound, looking around to see where it had come from. He found the source: a girl just a few years younger then him, probably the same age as Dom. She was holding a shotgun out of cover with a stunned look on her face, eyes wide, and fingers still on the trigger.

Dom looked surprised before yelling, "That bitch shot Carmine!"