Matthew Drastly

My War

Hey guys I realised that many people left after the first chapter so I decided to add to it to make it more interesting.

So if you have already read the first chapter, read it again! Tell me what you think, if it is an improvement or not!

Cheers

SpartanHoplite

The soft sun kissed my face as I looked over the gloomy city of Hernly on Levosia. I was leaving my home for the first time. The only girl had loved had died yesterday. An innie bombing the soldiers at the recruitment booth had told me. My brothers had come home after the bombing chatting about it and how well they had planned it. I made my decision then, I was joining the UNSC. Now here I was one day later about to board a pelican and head to some god-forsaken planet for training. Then again any god-forsaken planet was better than this one.

"Cadet!" Yelled the pilot of the pelican.

I turned around from the city and didn't look back. I was going to start another life and find a new planet to call home. I walked towards the pelican, I was the only recruit, and this was because of the war with the Covenant. While everyone else from other planets were joining the UNSC, the young men and women from Levosia were joining the innies because they thought they would have a better chance of surviving. I boarded the pelican and sat down in the closest seat to the bay door. I didn't look back as the bay door rose and sealed the ship shut.

"Get up cadet!" Screamed the Staff Sergeant. "Did I say you could start having babies with the mud yet?"

Staff Sergeant Kiligan was hard and mean. He had served a couple of years against the innies before retiring. When the Covenant invaded he was requested to train the new recruits. Now here he was in my face yelling at me for slipping.

"Sorry Staff Sarg!" I yelled back before getting back up and running through the obstacle course.

The army obstacle course was a hellhole. Some wouldn't even consider it an obstacle course. It was covered in mud and only had a few logs to jump over. Yet there was always something worse. There the standard crawl under barbed-wire drill, but ours was different. If we didn't make it through the barbed wire in a certain amount of time we were shot with Tactical Training Rounds (TTY) and they hurt like a fucking bitch when aren't wearing armour.

"Faster god damnit! I'm going to look forward to shooting you today cadet!" Staff Sergeant Kiligan yelled at me.

"Yes Staff Sarg!"

I had been dragged out of bed early than usual today due to stealing one of the Staff Sergeants Sweet Williams Cigars. It was worth it though, the Cigar was great and I told myself afterwards that I would buy of box of the expensive Cigars after training. Well that was until Staff Sarg found the used Cigar outside my training block and looked over surveillance videos to find it was me.

"Are you going to steal another Cigar soldier?" He yelled at me.

"Yes sir!" I yelled back to piss him off.

I had just finished climbing over several logs when the Staff Sargent shot me in the leg with a TTY. I yelped in pain and dropped onto my knee. The red paint had splattered all over the leg of my training overalls. The sedative in the bullet slowly kicked in and I couldn't feel my leg anymore.

"Now complete the goddamn course in 15 minutes or I'm shooting you in the other leg!"

This time I complied and stood up dragging my numb leg behind me. Under normal circumstances, if you want to call getting yelled at and shot at normal, I would have been able to complete the course in just under 10 minutes, but when you are actually shot with a TTY round in the leg it took me 14 minutes to complete the course.

"That was fucking terrible!" The Staff Sargent yelled. "Now go clean yourself off and then join back with the rest of your unit for the usual day's training.

It took me 5 minutes to drag myself back to my unit's block and shower. I began to start feeling my leg a bit again. The rest of my unit looked at me disappointedly as I came out of the shower. They were all inner colony boys trying to make a name for themselves and there families in the army. Most of them were just taking basic training before going off to Officer Training Colleges. I only had one friend in my unit, James. He had come from some planet out of the extreme border of UNSC controlled space. The UNSC hadn't even had time to name the planet before James joined the army. He was tall and broad, dark hair and dark eyes, the perfect soldier. As for me well I was taller and broader but I had blonde hair and blue eyes, which wasn't ideal when you wanted to sneak up on an enemy.

"Sarg catch you with his Cigars again?" James chuckled.

I chuckled as well while nodding. It hadn't been the first time that I had stolen a Cigar, but it was the first time I had been caught.

I placed my training overalls in the sink to let them soak. It was 5 in the morning and we had 2 hours before training actually started. I could run outside in my PJs and then eat breakfast; by that time my overall would be clean. I very smart aren't I.

"So I guess you're running in your PJs and then eating breakfast? Come back here and then your gear is ready, yea?" James asked me.

My smiled disappeared and I turned away to get my PJs. James started laughing as he knew I was thinking the exact same thing and felt smart. My PJs were warm, but they were warm for the inside. They weren't meant for outside use and the Army made sure of that.

The door busted open and in-came the Staff Sergeant. "Good morning ladies! How do you feel about a bit of combat training today" No one replied. "Splendid! We're doing beach training today! So make sure you have your overalls all ready because today is going to be very cold!" The Staff Sargent looked at me and winked. He had a wicked smile on his face.

The whole unit turned around and looked at me. I just stood there wearing my PJs. "Well fuck" I muttered under my breath.

The small boat that we were using chugged along towards the coastline. Everyone looked nice and warm in his or her overalls while I was freezing my but off in my PJs. James patted my shoulder and pointed out the marker on the beach. A small smile appeared on my face, it was whipped away by the wind as I shivered.

"Drop in 30 seconds!" Yelled the driver who was also one of the instructors at the training camp.

I looked towards the coastline and I knew it was about a minute away, which meant we were going to do some swimming. The other members of my unit sat on the other side of the small rubber boat and chuckled a bit while looking at me.

"I still perform better than all you little privileged shits any day!" I yelled over the sound of the wind and engine.

They understood the threat and went back to bickering amongst themselves.

"Drop now!" The driver yelled.

I looked over the side of the boat and saw the dark, cold water staring back at me. "Fuck it!" I yelled before jumping in.

My weapon held tight onto my back as the unrelenting sea thrashed me around. I looked back at the boat. The inner colony boys and girls were unsure about the water but the instructor came from behind and shoved them in. James was already swimming towards shore. I began to follow him forcing my cold numbing muscles to push on.

We reached the shore and came under simulated fire. We ourselves were given live ammunition during the exercise. It took us a minute to reach the beach and we waded quickly out of the water towards a rise in the ground that we could use for cover.

The other units had been dropped on other area along the beach. I saw some of their unconscious bodies lying in the sand while others were firing back at the simulated targets.

"I got a jam!" I heard a soldier yell.

A second later I saw red paint splatter all over his helmet. He immediately dropped and rolled down from the rise in the ground into the sand. I didn't look for long as now the fire was switched to me. I ducked down and waited for the automated guns to acquire a new target.

"Now Matthew!" I heard James yell.

I lifted from my position and placed my rifle on top of the ground. My rifle was an old SRS99 that had defiantly seen much better days. The but of the gun was missing and the parts inside the gun were old and looked like they would fall apart any second. The previous owner of this rifle obviously didn't take of it. I took aim at one of the targets and fired. The bullet flew true and straight hitting the target straight in the bulls' eye. I didn't take the time to celebrate as I switched targets and aimed at a barely visible target that was hiding behind a mound of sand. I fired and the bullet connected as sweetly as the other.

"Look out!" I heard a cadet yell.

I looked up to see TTR grenades being lobbed high into the air. I rolled over and covered my head. I prepared to get knocked out when I heard a grenade hit the sand next to me. I waited 5 seconds before I got curious. I looked up and saw the grenade sitting in the sand like it belonged there. It didn't explode. I quickly picked it up and tossed it over the rise in the ground only to hear it explode a couple of seconds later. I rolled over and went full spread eagle on the sand and puff out air. That was close I told myself. I started to laugh a bit while lying in the dirt before James who was still firing punched me in the shoulder.

"Alight fine. Take your tampon out goddamnit." I said.

I rolled back over and crawled back up to my position. My gun was still in the same place I had left it in. I place my hands on it again and looked down the scope. I shifted a bit to get into a more comfortable position before spotting a target in a makeshift bunker slightly to the right of my position.

"Fire for fuck sake Matthew!" James screamed at me who was taking fire from that bunker.

I took a deep breath and exhaled. I finished exhaling and my scope rested on its target. I pulled the trigger and heard a slight ting coming from the metal target as my bullet passed through it. I saw a glint from the sun reflecting of binoculars, it came from the direction of the instructors' bunker. They were watching me. I now focused more on the battle and looked for another target. I spotted one that was wide-open on top of a mound of sand. I pulled the trigger without thinking. I heard a click as the bullet jammed.

"Shit! I got a jam! Cover me!" I shouted at James.

With James nodding in agreement I turned around with my rifle and began disassembling it. I saw that the entire mechanism was clogged with sand. I blew into the parts separately ridding the sand from them. I the quickly put the gun back together. I loaded the clip back in and took aim once again. I found the same target and fired quickly.

"Aghhhh shit!" I screamed as the bullet backfired and shot straight through my shoulder.

I dropped my gun and clutched my shoulder. Blood was coming out fast and I had no idea what to do. We hadn't started medical training yet. My pain was quickly ended as I heard another cry as grenades were once again fired at us. The grenade that landed near me this time worked properly and exploded. I fell unconscious.

I was inside the medical facility getting my arm wrapped up when two men in black overall walked in. One of them carried a clipboard and the both were armed with stun batons. They were not MPs because of their uniforms but they were still military I just couldn't put my finger on it.

"ONI." One of the men introduced himself with hand held out.

I nodded. "Private security then I'm guessing?" I accepted the handshake with my damaged arm.

The doctor forced my arm back down with a grunt while still trying to wrap it. The other ONI man nodded in response to my question.

"What can I do for you?" I asked.

The ONI man took out a pen and clicked it.

"We just need to learn a few things about your past." He said. "After todays performance the Army and ONI were interested in your background."

"Wait my performance? You mean how well I can shoot myself in the arm?" I nodded at the hole that was being bandaged.

"No, no. We mean your sniping skills. We had already known that you had a talent in it when you and your unit started weapons training, yet after today you posses something that only one other person had possessed. That person was part of a classified project. So we were just wondering about some things."

I nodded. "Fire away."

"Your last name is Drastly yes?" He asked.

"Aye." I nodded.

"Related to Miranda Drastly?" He questioned quickly.

"Aye, she was my aunt. She died when I was 2. Innie bombing." I replied.

The man quickly wrote this down and clicked his pen again putting it away. "Thank you Cadet, that's all we needed to know."

"Wait was my aunt a sniper?" I asked.

Both men turned around and hastily left the room closing the door behind them. I sat there looking at the door. My aunt was someone important, or maybe she was related to someone important. I had seen her body though. A flash clone maybe to replace her body? The doctor slapped my shoulder hard causing me to winch. "Good as new. Now I need you to rest for 4 days before returning to your unit." The doctor told me.

I nodded. "I appreciate the rest doc."

He nodded back and left the room. I suddenly felt tired from today's early morning obstacle course and then shooting myself in the shoulder. This would be a good time to grab some nice warm shuteye on a soft bed. I put the fact about my aunt to the side of my mind.

I woke; it wasn't a nice awaking, for it was the sound of gunfire. I cursed under my breath as I dragged myself out of the hospital bed. Outside my fellow recruits were at the firing range, the guns we used were a step down from what the deployed armed forces used, but they did the job. I wasn't due out of hospital for another 2 days, I rubbed the now scar on my shoulder where a bullet passed through, the downside of second hand weapons. My rifle at the time had been missing part of its butt yet my instructor didn't mind it.

2 days ago I had been run through muddy water up onto a beach and placed under pressure while firing on targets with live ammo. The water and sand caused my gun to jam, after spending several minutes taking apart my rifle and putting it back together I took aim again. This time though when I pulled the trigger the bullet shot backwards, it was partly my fault as I had placed a few parts the wrong way around when I was putting my rifle back together.

Now to me my arm felt great. I swung it around a few times to warm up the joint and muscles. I winced a few times before stopping. I looked around the room to find no doctors or other patients. I smiled to my self and proceeded to preform fighting actions in front of a mirror. I knew it was corny at the time but I hadn't had the time in the past to admire the growth in my muscles. After a few rounds of flexing in the mirror I returned to my bed next to the window. The sun was beginning to rise. I watched it rise as the other recruits jogged off in line. Probably going to do some runs through the obstacle course. I once again returned to the mirror to admire my muscle tone.

"Damn I look good." I said to myself.

I flexed a bit more before I heard a giggle from behind me. I turned around not breaking my pose and saw a nurse standing in a doorway behind me. I blushed a bit and broke out into a little grin.

"Yes, you do look good." Giggled the nurse.

I realized I hadn't had any contact with a woman for 6 months. I felt excited and my body showed it a bit too much. The nurse giggled some more as she noticed it too. My body was growing tired of holding a flexed pose. Feeling quiet embarrassed I stood up and looked away. I took a quick glance at the nurse again she was about a 7 or 8. She walked up close to me I began feeling nervous. 6 months was a long time without physical contact with a woman. The last time was with my girlfriend, and technically I was still in a relationship but I couldn't resist. I looked up, well technically I looked down because I was a towering 6ft 4. I looked the nurse straight in the eyes she had blue eyes with green specks. I bent my neck to the side as I grabbed her waist and pulled her closer. Our lips connected, I felt her hand run down from my chest past my abs and nearly reaching into my pants. I stopped making out with her and looked her in the eyes. Her hand didn't reach into my pants, and she put on an evil smile. Her other hand had an injector in it. She stabbed me in the back of the neck with it injecting the fluid. I groaned as I stepped away from her.

"Bitch. Ah god. For fuck sake." I moaned.

"Don't worry honey, I'm just as disappointed as you are." She replied.

I sat down on a chair behind me, still rubbing the back on my neck.

"Hmmm, your lasting longer than you should've." She mentioned.

Her accent was defiantly inner colony. She had the skin tone for it as well. She looked about 19. She was probably trying to prove something to her rich family or something with joining the UNSC. Then her statement hit me.

"Wait. Are you trying to knock me out?" I asked.

At this point she was becoming worried. What she didn't realize is that I grew up on Levosia. It may be a pro-insurrectionist planet but I hated it. Mainly because growing up there had forced me into the drug business to keep alive. Those drugs, which I had taken regularly, now had a lasting effect on me of high tolerance.

"Who wanted me drugged?" I grunted as I stood up straight.

Two men entered the room wearing ONI spook overalls. The looked startled to see me standing.

"You were supposed to drug him!" shouted one of the men, obviously directed at the nurse.

"I did. I gave him more than a full dosage. He hasn't seemed to effect him!" The nurse said in her defense.

I looked around for a weapon, just like I had been taught about a week ago. All I saw were a pair of bandage scissors which couldn't harm a fly. Meanwhile one of the ONI spooks revealed a shock baton. I stood there helpless. I had been in a situation like this back on Levosia during a drug run gone bad but even then I had a knife with me. The ONI spook obviously was scared of attacking me; I used this to my advantage.

"Recruit! I order you to stand down!" The spook yelled.

I took a step forward, the spook to a step backwards. The other spook was at a loss of what to do. The spook with the baton lunged at me, it was a clumsy lunge which ended up with me side stepping and knocking him to the floor. The shock baton rolled across the floor before I picked it up. The nurse had long since run out of the room, most probably to get help. Well help for the spooks, not me.

I was still shirtless when I opened the door to a winter's day on Reach. My first breath of fresh air for 3 days happened to be one when I was on the run. Outside the medical complex was a convoy of ONI trucks. Guards who had been resting or having a smoke now stood dumbstruck. A man got out of the lead truck looked at me.

"That's him you idiots! After him!" The man yelled.

That was my cue to start running and so I did. I started towards my barracks, which was 2 kilometers on the other side of camp. I went full sprint as guards pulled out their shock batons while yelling at each other. The guards were in a mess as I ran in-between two of them. The large green grass field in front of me was used for practice marches. Right now it had a very thin layer of pure white snow. I bound across it barefoot with ONI guards in pursuit. I never knew I could sprint at this speed; I must have been doing 20 kph. The feeling of running without the heavy burden of armour was great and I found myself more agile.

"Hey! Kid! Stop! We just want to talk!" shouted the man who was obviously in control of the guards.

I looked over my shoulder to see that some of the guards had been smart enough to get into the trucks and drive after me. I slid to a stop and turned around. The guards then proceeded to make a semi-circle round me. They were all armed with batons. I turned on the shock baton that I had in my hand before taking a combat stance.

"You want me! All you had to do was ask nicely!" I yelled in the direction of the man who was hanging on the side of one of the trucks.

"Now I guess I don't like you. I'm not going without a fight!" I then yelled towards all of the guards.

At this current moment in time, the other recruits came jogging around the corner. The first rows didn't notice the stand off but before long the recruits were shouting my name. The Staff Sargent attempted to gain control over his recruits but without success.

Two guards began making their way towards me, their batons raised. They closed in on me. I took a step back before lunging at one. I missed completely and got a shock to my back, I attempted to rise to defend myself but I was shocked again and again and again. I could feel the electricity run though my veins. The guard enhanced the pain my shocking different places on my back leaving burn marks. This time I cursed my resistance I acquired to shock batons, courtesy of the lovey Levosia police.

"You fuckers! I'll fucking rip your balls off!" I screamed.

The guards lifted me with my hands behind my back. One of the guards leaned close to my ear.

"ONI is going to rip your balls off kid." He whispered before chuckling.

I smacked the back of my head into his face breaking his nose. The guard cried out and released his hold on me. I took a step back so I was behind the guard clutching his nose on the floor. I took a shock baton from his belt and shocked him in the neck for longer than would be healthy. The guard screamed before passing out. My fellow recruits cheered as this happened. Out of the corner of my eye I think I even saw the Staff Sergeant grin at the sign of private security being knocked out by a UNSC army recruit. Maybe he was even proud of me. I saw one of the junior trainers have his holopad out videoing the event. I dropped the shock baton and raised my hands. Turning to the group of recruits I shouted:

"UNSC Army recruit, whoops private security ass!" Imitating a news anchor.

The recruits cheered and I think the Staff Sergeant laughed a bit. Soon my world went dark as multiple shock batons struck me.

If I didn't mention before, my name is Matthew Drastly.