His hope had been destroyed along with the transport that had carried several lives aboard. He knew some people on there. He had friends on that ship that was diving straight for the ground, leaving a trail of smoke in its wake. But the most important person on that ship was his wife. As it finally collided with the ground and exploded, Skyler felt his heart tear apart. The extreme sorrow and depression was soon filled with blinding rage. He hated those alien bastards. He vowed revenge for his wife.
Staff Sergeant Skyler Jones woke groggily. He was lying on his back in the middle of a street staring straight at the sky. His right leg hurt. A lot. He felt heat to his left side. He turned his head to see what it was. It was a burning Warthog. Sklyer sat up and winced at the pain that covered his body. He looked around, surveying his surroundings. Debris from the Warthog was spread here and there. Two Marines lay dead. Tall white buildings lined the streets. Skyler tried to remember what had happened.
Sklyer and his squad were evacuating civilians from the city of New Alexandria on Reach. His Warthog was escorting two transport 'hogs carrying civilians. The transport Warthogs were in the front and Skyler's in back. Then two Banshees intercepted them. Sklyler was the gunner for his Warthog and shot down one of the Banshees but the other launched a torpedo right into the front of the Warthog, killing the driver and passenger instantly and sending the Staff Sergeant flying through the air and he was rendered unconscious.
Skyler stood and looked around, pain shooting through his right leg. He didn't see any wreckage from the transport 'hogs. No other Marine or civie casualties either. Hopefully they got away. But after all Skyler's been through, hope didn't have much meaning to him. Skyler picked up a Battle Rifle. Now what? Skyler thought. He started to make his way down the street when he heard a familiar humming sound drawing closer. Phantom. He ran for the nearest open building as the humming became louder. Skyler waited and the humming drifted away.
He turned to examine the building he was in. It was a convience store. All the lights had gone out, leaving it dark. The pain in his leg was throbbing. Skyler decided to search the store for any type of painkillers. The shelves were completely empty but he continued his search. Suddenly, he heard a low rumble, almost like a growl. He turned around, raising his Battle Rifle. Nothing was there. Skyler turned back around and came face to face with a very hungry Brute.