"I don't think we can empty this one out, Sarge." Mason whispered. Corr was inclined to agree. The settlement was overrun. The Stronius PDF had set up a substantial outpost in the settlement, and been so good as to man it quite heavily. Troops were busy setting up tents, sealing up the old buildings and pumping clean air into the few that were already in stable condition. A hastily built guard tower stood near the center of town and a small team of scouts peered out over the landscape with a poorly trained eye.
"I count at least ninety…" Corr muttered.
"Getting about the same count here." Briggs voxed.
"Love to know what the plan is now, Sarge." Stakely hissed.
"It's the same plan. We rest here, move on at day break." Corr said, rolling his eyes.
"Uhh… seems a bit crowded, don't ya think?" Callahan voxed.
"Maybe we should've made reservations at a nice inn instead?" Mason snorted, barely able to finish his own joke.
"Mason… I hate you…" Briggs said.
"Cut the chatter and regroup. I have a plan." Corr cut in.
"He's got a plan. I'm just… filled with renewed optimism…" Stakely said.
Trooper Abec Carn was sweating. It was hot. The swamps always were. But this was something different. This was the first time, to his knowledge, that the Strontius PDF had been mustered for anything other than a simple parade. But the Governor had called them up to defend their home against an enemy massing at the fringe of their continent. Carn had seen the vids. They looked like barely leashed hounds, and it wasn't too far of a stretch for Carn to imagine them frothing at the mouth. It made him nervous. He looked out at the swampland, doing his best not to think about the mindless beasts that were landing on his planet.
"Carn!"
Carn jumped up from where he was sitting, his train of thought broken by a shout. He looked around until his eyes found Beck. He took a deep breath and willed his heart rate to drop back to normal.
"S-sorry. I was… thinking." He muttered. Beck shrugged and adjusted his breather.
"I'm going to make my patrol. Hold down the fort. Wake the other's if you need anything." Beck said as he plucked up his lasgun.
"Y-yeah. No problem." Carn said with a wave as he watched Beck disappear into the night. Carn turned his attention back to the swamps that surrounded them. He could see the Lantern Flies as they fluttered lazily in the night air. He could hear the croak of the Tox-Frogs that wallowed in the mud hunting the Lantern Flies. He shut his eyes and took a deep breath. His home was eerily beautiful at times. He heard the hab-tent rustle as someone opened the flap and stepped out into the night air. He twisted slightly and looked the man up and down as whoever it was adjusted their uniform.
"Quite a night, ain't it?" the man said as he stepped over to Carn.
Carn sighed and smiled beneath his rebreather, returning his gaze to the landscape.
"Sure is."
"Ya know this place well?"
Carn shrugged.
"Not really, I'm from a farm town up near the capital."
"Farm boy huh? You lie. Yer too scrawny."
"It's the truth!" Carn said, suddenly feeling like his honor had been insulted. "My family has been farming Malta Nuts for three generations. I know Strontius plants like the back of my hand."
"Oh yeah? Prove it." The man said. He looked side to side and then pointed out to Carn's left. "What's that one over there?" Carn turned his head a bit and peered into the inky blackness.
"Which one?" he asked as the man loomed over him.
Jorin Beck was aching for a smoke. He needed his lho fix, but he wasn't too keen on peeling off his mask for a few puffs of his narcotic of choice when the air would kill him faster. Maybe he could sneak one when he got back to the tent. Carn wouldn't mind, and the others should be asleep.
He looked up, seeing the slender form of Carn still sitting where he'd left him a minute ago. Beck sighed and set his lasgun against a gnarled stump and arched backward.
"I'm back. Did I miss anything?"
Carn turned slowly and shook his head.
"Nah, nothin'." He said before turning back towards the swamp.
"Figured. Cover for me, I'm gonna duck inside and have a smoke."
Carn raised a hand and nodded his head without word. Beck ducked inside the small airlock and shut the tent door behind him as he waited for the airlock to cycle. A small light flashed green and he peeled off his breather and stuck a lho-stick between his lips as he opened the inner door.
Three heads turned towards him from where they were gathered in the middle of the tent and Beck stopped.
"Oh, you're all up. D'ya mind if I smoke?" he asked. It took him several seconds to realize everyone was in their breathers.
"What's… what's going on?" Beck asked
"I think we've been made, Sarge." One of them said.
"You think?" replied another.
Beck's eyes widened. He dropped his lho-stick and reached for his lasgun only to find that it was still resting outside. Two arms wrapped around him from behind, one arm around his chest, the other tightly around his neck. He gasped and craned his neck to look over his shoulder.
"Carn!? What are you-" he managed to choke out.
"Carn's sleeping. Just relax and soon all will be well. Promise." Beck's struggles weakened as his airway was constricted little by little until his world went black.
