A/N: Why do I have a feeling that school is always swallowing me up? Well, I do have this problem almost all the time. Of course I have loads of free time at home but I can't seem to get a clear idea for the chapters/fics/stories or whatever in this site. I just don't have the urge to write them all. Writer's block, perhaps?

Ah, crap. I dun wanna have it. Anyway, here's the next chapter featuring Romeo (bait) and the rest of the squad (fishermen). After this chapter, I believe I'll be posting some of the Team Fortress oneshots soon. Maybe on Thursday, Friday? Somewhere around those days. Hopefully I'll finish two oneshots within this week. I'm dying to publish some fiction because this week is my holiday week. I hope you all can stay tune because I don't know what to write even!

Enjoy~

Digital Replayer With No Music

"Just hang on a bit longer; we're almost near to the station." Buck's voice failed to calm the sniper down. Romeo had only heard his cold breath and pounding heart ramming in his helmet, creating a brutal melody in his mind.

The four ODSTs walked cautiously in the neon night, a city showered in darkness and illuminating street lights. Bodies of the Covenant and Humans laid peacefully on the floor beside the blood patches they shed before the squad arrived. The streets were enshrouded in a thin fog of cold. It wrapped the ODSTs in a thick blanket, surrounding them like a whirlpool. They were only a few buildings away - perhaps four, five? - and Romeo was already feeling as though he wanted to die. The pain in his chest was still quite unbearable but the encouragement from his friends helped to lighten his mood up. As for Buck, however, he was feeling the same as the wounded arms were already aching from helping Romeo. He would rather drop him and stretch all his worn out muscles. Dutch and Mickey didn't allow it though.

Romeo exhaled deeply, "A-are we there yet...? i don't think I c-could hold much longer here, Gunny." He raised his head slowly, his neck craning for a view as it cracked with a stretch. The sniper's eyes could see the clouds forming in the black sky, the deserted buildings which were heavily damaged in the firefight and litters of weapons, shattered glass and such. The cold gust of wind breathed gently at his wound, and Romeo shuddered. He really wanted to fall dead that moment.

Buck frowned helplessly, "Sorry, Romeo. I can't put you down yet; we don't know if there's more Covenant on our tracks." He saw how Romeo's hopes fell but he couldn't do anything. Only Mickey and Dutch could handle incoming enemies. He could only help and be Romeo's protection. It felt strange, wrong. Nevertheless, Buck would do anything to keep his team member and faithful friend alive.

Crack.

"Drones. Coming from the East. Keep low," Dutch warned, upon noticing fady transparent wings and the sound of their flapping in the echoes of the dead area. Their greenish skin hinted their presence and he wasn't the only one who had figured they were here. The corporal looked at Buck who nodded firmly in response. Carrying Romeo with the remainings of his strength, he quickly and carefully made his way to shelter. Romeo had to resist the pain and the difficulty he had to face. As the two ODSTs hurried away, the sound of drones could be heard more clearer and louder. Dutch then said to Mickey, "Romeo and Gunny are hiding in the West so keep them in the East as long as possible."

"Got it, Dutch," Mickey replied with a swap from him M41 to his MA5C. The shotgun he got earlier had its shells gone and he had to take an MA5C from a dead marine on the way. The eerie and screechy sound of the buggers filled the city's monotone with a sudden burst of alarm. It felt like as though a dinosaur had just came out of a movie in a cinema. However, this was much worse. The last thing Mickey wanted to deal with first is slimy greenish blood staining his armor.

Meanwhile, the other two ODSTs were scampering towards a damaged door leading to the insides of an apartment building. Buck tried to pry one of the doors open with an arm, causing them to slide and crash onto the floor. Several fragments of glass littered the floor but that didn't matter. He dragged Romeo in until they were in a safe unmarked spot before he could set the blue ODST down.

Romeo slumped onto the floor, his visor depolarizing to show his weary face. He lamented with difficulty as he desperately gulped in balls of air to talk, "I n-need some bio-foam.."

"Sorry, cupcake. I ran out. I think Dutch has some but he's out so you have to wait." Buck's disappointed face was shown crystal clear in his depolarized visor. Romeo was feeling the same and oblivious at the same time. He needed a medkit but since there was none at the moment, he had to resist the temptation to rip his hair off his head. Romeo tried to cool his impatience by asking, "Why won't you go out there and fight, Gunny? You know I could stay here."

Buck shrugged his shoulders off. "Nah, you're not old enough yet. Besides, if I get out there, who's going to keep you company and make sure no grunts bite your kneecaps off?" He questioned, pointing a finger in Romeo's face. Romeo considered the question as an unanswerable one because Buck didn't expect him to answer it. Of course.

"If you say so, Gunny. You sound like you're my babysitter," Romeo said honestly. Buck cringed, "God, it sucks to be one. Especially being one who babysits my number one sniper! Now then, if you'll excuse me."

He went to a rusty cabinet and threw the locked doors open with all his might. Dust popped out, and Buck had to shield his eyes so that they won't catch the dust. M6C SOCOMs greeted him with full ammunition, magazines punched in and all nice and clean - apart from the dust that still clinged onto them. Buck took two of them, and shook them to clean off the dust. Romeo watched the Gunnery Sergeant as he withstood the pain in his torso. The cold made it feel numb so he couldn't feel a thing at all. For now, that is.

Moving stealthily to near the window, Buck checked through the opening made from the shards of glass which was smashed earlier during the day. He heard nothing but the soft, crunch of leaves and splashes of water made by Mickey's and Dutch's boots and the buzzing noises of the drones closing in around the area. He knew those drones would come in swarms; they were like a whole beehive, without a queen. . Upon seeing his private and corporal preparing themselves, he turned back to look at Romeo. "You still okay?" He asked.

"K-kind of. What's going on out there?" Romeo painfully spoke with a little voice.

Buck grimly smiled, "Hard to say, but just stay here, will you? Oh, and try to play dead." Romeo gave him a dirty look, but sighed. He placed his hand at his wound, tilted his head slightly - with his visor still depolarized - and closed his eyes. He looked like a sleeping fellow. Irritated, he asked, "Is this good enough?"

The Gunnery Sergeant pulled a smug look. "Hmm. Just stick out your tongue; it's better that way."

Raising an eyebrow in suspicion, Romeo stuck out his tongue - at Buck as a disrespectful response. It didn't take long for him to cough and shove his tongue back into his mouth. He wheezed, and shook with a grimace. Buck couldn't stifle his chuckle. He moaned, "Damn dust went on my tongue! Bleagh."

"That's what you get, not me," Buck said simply. He turned his back on Romeo, and leaned to get a view of the outside.

Dutch reloaded his MA5C with a fast, swift movement of a hand. He steadied himself, making sure he had all the power he needed to take these beasts down. Nodding at Mickey, Dutch crept over to a water fountain and crouched low. Up above he saw the buggers flying in their direction, completely unaware that he and Mickey were here. They knew they heard some humans lurking in the avenue. Mickey hid behind a tree, waiting for Dutch to blow his cover. In a few seconds both would be calling the pest extermination squad. Run out, open fire and evade incoming shots. The ordinary plan Dutch and Mickey had always carried out.

Mickey leaned a little to his left, raising his assault rifle to get a shot of a drone aimlessly flying around. A cocky smirk formed at his lips, and he took a moment to wipe off sweat from his fingers on his pants. Finally having the finger on the trigger, he paused. Dutch took the signal and immediately jumped out of his position at the fountain. The jump startled the aliens at first and before they could respond, a crackle of MA5C ammo bursted out, piercing them through their not-so bulletproof skin. Dutch ran in random directions - running backwards and sideways - while he locked his attention on every drone until they were down. Rifles snapped, and more ammunition was wasted. Tens, twenties he wiped out those drones. More were coming, however, and he had to save his ammo.

This time, Dutch lunged for a hiding space. Mickey jumped into action by being the next to blow his cover. He opened up his fire, bullets shooting out of the smoky barrel as they reached the injured and dazed drones' cores. Cries of drones were heard before the thuds were sounded. Bodies fell, blood seeping out, some splattered on Mickey's armor. Just as he expected, ugh. Throwing out an empty clip, he quickly shoved in a full fresh magazine just in time before the revengeful drones could attack.

A small but penetrating ball of plasma whizzed through the air, barely missing Mickey if he hadn't took a big step to his side. He replied with much annoyance by killing them with another clip despite most of his ammunition being used up. In no time, a three-quarter of drones were gone and the rest was up for Dutch to entertain them. Mickey suddenly noticed something and a swear escaped with a thin voice.

"Ah, hell: brutes..." He muttered. Dutch shook his head in a disapproved glance. Honestly, that was uncalled for. Nonetheless, this was Mombasa City. When abandoned, nothing makes sense. Mickey told Dutch, "I'm going for the gorillas. If I'm dead, don't go to my funeral."

"Affirmative. I'll just send the flowers by mail," Dutch grinned. He watched Mickey who ran quietly, trying to be unseen so that he could plan an ambush on those brutes. Dutch, in the meantime continued his outbreak of deadly rounds. Several bullets indeed hit the jackpot but some missed unfortunately. The drones were almost wiped out, each falling to the ground like dead flies. One by one Dutch began to feel quite encouraged. After a few more kills he would be able to help Mickey with handling those brutes.

An unshot drone landed on a platform, trying to get a good angle to shoot Dutch. Much to its startlement, Dutch had zipped towards it. He grabbed its deformed head and forced it to the floor, breaking the soft skull and splattering blood all over his visor. The blood eventually dripped down his helmet and a windshield helped to wipe off for him. Dutch cringed in disgust but he didn't hesitate to waste any precious second.

Whipping his MA5C at the drones, he quickly aimed at them and locked his finger - pulled at the trigger.

Mickey crept near the corner, and saw some brutes noticing Dutch killing off their allies. One of them roared with anger, and brandished out its spiker. Mickey slowly slid through the small gap made by a brute's back and a sharp edge of a wall. He made a clean view of the brutes' backs, and took out his combat knife. Hit them in the neck, then a whack with the rocket launcher. It was just as simple as that, so he shouldn't have much of a problem killing one. However, he had to take care of the other brutes when they found out he was killing their bloody friend.

Averting his eyes from the brutes and focusing his attention on only one, he held a firmer grip of his knife. There was the clean spot; the spot that was exposed, unprotected. He bent down, like a hunter, coming for its pray. Then, Mickey lunged at the brute, forcing the knife into its neck and pulling out his M41. The brute was finally alert and pulled up quite a struggle. He tried to cover its mouth at the same time as he whacked the brute's head with the M41, driving the knife in. The brute gave out no sound after the knife pierced through its blood vessels. Purplish blood only gushed out and a painful moan.

When the brute had finally been killed, Mickey grabbed the body and gently lowered it on the floor so as to make no sound. He pulled out the knife and shook off the blood. The other brutes weren't there to witness the assassination; that was good enough. Each brute were in different positions: near a tree, in a corner, guarding the doors up to the apartments but not near Buck and Romeo's position. Some were heading to Dutch's position. Mickey had to cover him as long as possible. Taking out his MA5C, the only option he had was to melee them and knock them out with the rocket launcher. Then he would be able to finish them off with a burst of rounds to the brain.

He scampered towards a brute, which noticed Mickey charging at it. It prepared to fire when only a single spike ran out of its barrel. Mickey shoved the assault rifle into its chest. Blood coughed out of the brute's mouth. Mickey then used his M41 to knock the brute on the head, breaking its nose. The brute fell to the ground, enabling Mickey to take out his assault rifle and kill it with a burst of three bullets.

The line of brutes clumsily came to a halt. Mickey threw a plasma grenade at the huddled group and turned around to rejoin with Dutch. Dutch was just finishing his last kill which appeared to be a helpless, bastard drone. He looked up from the dead alien to find his friend running toward him, tired as can be. "Is that all of them?" He cried out tiredly.

"I think so, corporal. Maybe after this we'll be able to make our way to the station," Mickey smiled in a nervous anticipation. Dutch nodded slowly, thinking that they should be able to make it. The brutes were struggling to stand up from the explosion that detonated earlier, only to fell back as their knees and limbs were cooked. Plasma burns scarred their faces and an odd combination of roars and barks filled their fury. They raised their plasma rifles, spikers, needlers or any other weapon they were carrying in their bulky hands. It seemed that they weren't happy to find Dutch and Mickey in their way. Mickey frowned, "I was expecting them to be dead."

"Your estimations might as well be incorrect, Mickey." Dutch huffed. Mickey just smiled again in embarrassment.

"What are you doing, Gunny...?" Romeo, still in the trashed apartment, questioned wearily. His whole body was so numb he couldn't feel his own hands and legs. Sitting in this position made him restless and at the same time miserable. Buck was rummaging through cabinets, cupboards and drawers. He was throwing out unused and wasted items such as broken cups, rusty scraps of metal and empty canisters of bio-foam medicine. He didn't seem to talk at all actually. His hands were doing all the talking with only incomprehensible words spoken out. Romeo couldn't figure what he was looking for and hoped that he would make it fast. The Gunnery Sergeant didn't bother to reply back and, instead, flung a half-full water bottle behind his shoulder in Romeo's direction. The bottle had hit his head, and Romeo groaned. "Do I look like a trash can to you?-"

The rest of his sentence was interrupted by a series of coughs. Buck turned his head and a smug look was written on his face. He answered, "Yes and no."

Taking out a canister, he rattled it to check if some liquid is still left inside it. There was some, and he sighed in relief. Buck strode over to Romeo and waved the canister in his hand. Romeo was almost barely happy. The sniper looked at the canister then at Buck. He asked impatiently, despite his wheezing, "Well? What are you waiting for?"

"Christmas." Buck went on his knees and studied Romeo's wound. It wasn't... that deep but he would be able to tend it. Given the sufficient amount of time and bio-foam, Romeo should be able to breathe properly again. The cut was the length of a normal person's hand and the opening was big enough for the needle to go through. Buck pressed the sprayer lightly, ensuring that it wasn't clogged or blocked. He then warned Romeo, "This is just going to hurt for a little teeny second."

Romeo sighed. "I'm prepared for whatever it takes."

Buck grinned. "Alright then. Your punctured lung should be okay after this." Without another word, he punched in the needle into Romeo's chest. Indeed was it painful - Romeo winced in intense pain until he gradually calmed down, the frothy bio-foam seeping into his wound. Then his wound felt numb and he couldn't feel much of the pain at all. Nevertheless, he knew the numbness would only last for a few hours or so.

"T-thanks, Gunny. I thought I was going to be fried alive," Romeo couldn't hide his grateful voice. Still, both had to wait until the area was clear. Until then, they should stay put and keep low out of enemy's sight. Romeo had to play dead for once; it didn't seem satisfying to be dead on the floor with other dead people.

"I considered changing my mind but... yeah you're not going to be cooked alive." Buck chuckled, ignoring Romeo's eye twitching. He peered out of the window again, checking if Dutch and Mickey had already wiped out enemy infantries and the pesky drones.

A few brutes were having a fight with the ODSTs; it wasn't that serious or anything. Buck commented on the struggle, "They pack up a whole pop-a trouble there. It's a pity we can't join them." Romeo frowned slightly, pain and boredom stirring in his mind. He had to admit: he wanted to join in the fight but the wound on his lung stopped him from doing so.

"God dammit," Romeo whispered to himself. Buck pretended not to hear that.

"Only two brutes LEFT!" Dutch growled. Two brutes: one armed with a crimson plasma rifle and another with a bright violet needler. Crackling roars blared throughout the city and they stomped their feet like boastful braggers. Blood trickled down their foreheads and some openings from their burnt armor. Mouth curved into grimaces and teeth gritting so hard they almost cracked. Their black eyes grew menacing with pure revenge engraved in each eye. Death wishes were given. Dutch and Mickey weren't the only ones who witnessed the transformation of their berserk trance; everybody gets to experience it once in a while.

Mickey held his MA5C tighter, and braced himself. To kill these two again, both him and Dutch had to lure them into a state of confusion. That would buy him a few seconds to plan his responding attack. Mickey, in his armor, was already sweating like hell. The work he had to do was too much for him but this was for Romeo's sake. Dutch felt the same too and he didn't give up just yet. First, they had to deal with the obstacles they came across.

Dutch opened up his MA5C, fire rattling and bullets flying. He charged towards the brute, elbowing its shield and stuck the assault rifle at its chin. He squeezed the trigger, not seeing the rounds tearing through the brute's muscles and the blood coming out. Some blood splashes onto his helmet and forearms.

The monstrous creature screeched, and Dutch pushed it down to the floor with his lower arm, leaving the brute to die a slow pain of blood loss.

As if on cue, Mickey took his M41 and rammed into the last alien, crushing the rocket launcher into its stomach. Seeing the brute's grip loosen on its needler, he took it in his other hand and aimed it at the brute's neck. He punctured in numerous sparkling needles into the big fat ring and hurriedly fled. The needles turned bright purple and detonated, followed by a fantastic purple explosion. The brute was vaporized and it instantly fell to the ground, never to move again.

Mickey looked at the dead brute's burnt corpse, and sighed. Dutch suggested, "We should inform Gunny that the area is now clear; the Kikowani Station is close and we should hurry."

"Alright, Dutch." Mickey waved the corporal away. He walked to the apartment building with Dutch behind him.

They entered the room. Romeo was sitting quite miserably on the floor with Buck standing at the doorway with a broad smile. At first, they thought Romeo was dead or probably sleeping. After Buck told them that he was playing dead, Dutch rolled his eyes. He then said, "We should move now. The station's four blocks away."

Buck replied, "That's okay. I just gave Romeo some foam. We'll make a move now." He gestured to Romeo, who failed to stand up. Buck, not surprised, and walked over to the sniper. He let out his hand for Romeo to take, and picked him up while ignoring his winces. The Gunnery Sergeant wrapped Romeo's arm around his shoulder.

The group exited the building and made their way through the deserted buildings. It was again quiet: gentle wind and more corpses. The Superintendent watched the ODSTs venture deeper into the city, heading towards the destination they craved to go to. Romeo lowered his head and began to feel the dizziness stirring in his mind. The effect of the bio-foam was beginning to subside and he suddenly felt heavy once again. The pain returned but not as intense as he remembered it to be. The difficulty once again stopped Romeo from breathing normally. Buck hid his face of concern and Dutch and Mickey moved faster.

Through the first two buildings, nobody talked. Silence lingered around them and it began to feel strangely eerie. Mickey couldn't handle the quietude between the members and asked Dutch in a fast whisper, "Do you have a medkit?"

"Yeah. Why?" Dutch replied with another question. Mickey told him that Romeo would need another canister of bio-foam once the effects the sniper had would lose effect when they reach the Kikowani Station. Judging by Buck's slur on the word 'some', Mickey considered it to be temporary for perhaps a few minutes. Mickey explained, "To me it seems that you have to use up your canister for Romeo's sake. I used mine for that sergeant in Fourth Battalion this afternoon."

Dutch shrugged. "Fine. If you say so," He agreed.

Twenty minutes later, Buck finally saw the station coming into view. The walls were rusted but at least they reached the station. Romeo needed to be set down. Buck seemed to walk faster, going nearer to the shelter. The more he neared, the more Romeo's pain increased. The Gunnery Sergeant reassured again, "Don't worry; we're almost there."

Buck already his foot in the station when Romeo finally begged, "P-put me down, put me down- for a sec." He set the sniper down, and rose to look at Dutch. He commanded, "Dutch! Medkit."

The Gunnery Sergeant bent down again, letting out a hand at Dutch to receive the canister of bio-foam. Dutch frowned at Romeo's slight disability. He didn't know much about Romeo's wound but he wanted to ask again. Crouching down, he allowed Buck to open up his backpack and take a filled canister from it. As Buck rummaged through, Dutch asked, "What's wrong with him?"

"Punctured lung; huge jeopardy. Not deep though," Buck answered, finally grabbing a canister of bio-foam. He pushed the bulky, thick needle out. Romeo reached for the canister but Buck decided to inject the foam in himself. He carefully put it at Romeo's wound, and at the right spot and time, he squeezed his finger at the button, oozing in thick, frothy bio-foam into the crack-cut in the sniper's armor. Romeo let out a loud inhale, and exhaled slowly. The pain relieved and he was able to talk again. It was a good thing the foam would last for a few hours. If it hadn't for Dutch, Romeo would be dead. Buck questioned, "Better?"

Romeo's visor depolarized and his exhale strained before he asked, "Now what?"

"Trains ran underground up to the old city," Buck turned his head sideways, as though pointing to the direction of where the tunnels were supposed to be. Continuing, he explained, "We're gonna find one of the tunnels; walk on after here." Wasn't the simple plan Buck had in mind, but it was his first. Considerations would be made later.

Pulling the canister from his side, Romeo held it and made another question. "So you're gonna carry me all the way, sweetheart?"

Buck shrugged. "Was planning but... now did you feel better-" He was interrupted the sound of Phantom engines echoed outside. Buck straightened up, looking through the window where the Covenant vehicle soared through the air, its flashlight scanning for any signs of life on the streets. Dutch raised his weapon, preparing in case infantries were coming down again.

"Get the door!" Buck ordered. Dutch immediately jumped for the controls in a ticket booth, leaning out and pressing a few buttons with his fingers. The security shutters slowly closed, but soon came to a stop just a few centimeters from ground. Probably due to malfunction but it would work fine. It was a good thing that the Covenant didn't see the ODSTs.

Inside, Buck waited for Romeo to give him the canister. Romeo stared at him for a while and understood. He handed Buck the empty canister and tried to stand up on his feet. Unfortunately, he only stood with a slight limp but better standing than nothing. Buck took one last look at the canister and threw it through the gap from the doors, leaving it to roll outside.

The Gunnery Sergeant held his MA5C, smiled at Romeo and left. Romeo was expecting to be given a weapon. He looked at Dutch.

Dutch just raised his shoulders and left.

Postcards on the Jackass Mobile

"Gunny... I think you need to see this," Mickey called through his comm, his eyes fixated on something and jaw open with an awe. The tunnels were flooded; there was no way they could make it. Down the stairs went Dutch, Buck and Romeo. Romeo was limping behind, and he stopped behind Mickey to find the last thing he wanted. Buck still walked until he stopped in his tracks, looking around in the tunnel. It was a mess; hard to say. They couldn't get out of this place on foot. They had to find some sort of way by air. The options Buck had in mind were instantly eliminated. Mickey frowned, "This means we're screwed, right?"

There were two trains - one unused and one apparently damaged. A few groups of Covenant guarded the area. Buck heard himself curse and looked up at the sky. A phantom they saw earlier flew to a Landing Zone, to drop off some troops. Oddly, Buck smirked. He even dared to differ, "Not yet."

He looked at Romeo and Dutch and commanded, "Wait here. We're gonna steal that ride." He pointed to the Phantom, and cried out, "It's landing, now's our chance! Mickey! You're with me!"

Mickey was shocked, but he shrugged. He still said, "Gunny, I can fly a Pelican, but a Phantom? It's been years since I've ran a simulation!"

"Well, then let's see what you remember trooper, move!" Buck couldn't waste anymore time standing around for nothing. He locked and loaded, and moved down the stairs, not listening to Mickey's words. His eyes followed the Phantom as it dropped off a few Huragoks, also known as the Engineers. Several brutes and grunts surrounded the LZ, and three grunts were standing in Buck's way. They noticed him, and yelped with a squeal of surprise.

Buck fired up a burst of bullets, killing the three in less than a minute. When he found some beam rifles sitting comfortably in a Covenant weapon stock. He pulled one out from the locks and threw his wasted M6C away. He raised the 100% charged weapon, and used the scope to zoom in on incoming brutes. Most of them were heading to their position, unaware of Mickey and Buck's presence. He pulled the hard, thick trigger.

A bright beam of purple cut through the air, entering and exiting a brute chieftain's head. The brute moaned in misery, and another beam pierced through its head. The brute fell, followed by the brutes chasing for Buck. Buck had no problem taking out those brutes, each taking two beam shots. He had to run from his position and let his overcharged beam rifle cool down.

He aimed once again, firing at the brutes who failed to evade his shots. Lasers tore through their bodies, and in approximately thirty seconds, all were on the ground bleeding to death.

"Mickey!" Buck called out when the brutes were done.

Mickey responded with a quick sprint to the Phantom. However, he stopped when he saw the Engineers floating away from the Phantom and lingering around. Illuminating blobs of blue, purple and pink winked under their silver armor. His anxiety caused him to say, "Gunny! More of these floating squids. Should we smoke 'em?"

"Well, they're between us and that Phantom," Buck said calm through the comm. He then said with a smug, "What do you think?"

Buck grabbed another beam rifle and jumped over the railing to the lower platforms. He didn't bother to run down the stairs. One of the engineers found the Gunnery Sergeant and before it could attack, Buck shot it with a piercing violet beam. Bits of skin and blueish blood splattered on the floor. The other Engineers immediately fled but only some were shot down by Mickey's MA5C.

The private spotted more grunts, and threw a grenade at them. The fragmentation bomb detonated and it sent the grunts flying, along with a paint splatter of blue left on the ground. Soon, the infantries were wiped out. Buck waved at Mickey, signaling the both of them to advance towards the Phantom.

Looking at the gravity lift, Buck told Mickey, "Go, Mickey. Up the lift, kill the pilots."

Mickey nodded. "Here goes nothing!" He dash to the gravity lift which picked him up into the vehicle. In the Phantom there was a brute and four grunts guarding the control panel. Mickey whipped out his SMG and opened fire, blindly at the grunts and in concentration at the brute. Blood and bones littered the floor, and he quickly ran to the window shutters. He opened them with a button on a booth beside the windows, and threw the bodies down with a simple kick. They fell with a hard thud.

"Ugh, cabin secure. Flight controls read green across the board... Well, purple, but she's good to go... I think," Mickey said through the comm., scratching his helmet as his eyes uncertainly scanned through the foreign controls. Surely riding this baby wouldn't be hard, right? If only he could remember what he had learnt on that test simulation a few years back. Mickey could only hope his memory was still intact.

"Ok, I'll grab a banshee, you go get Dutch and Romeo," Buck replied, not hearing Mickey's tense through the private's voice. He looked around and found a huddle of banshees left alone on the platforms.

Meanwhile, Dutch was still waiting when Romeo pointed at the incoming Phantom, "There's our ride! And I thought it was the Jackass Mobile we had in training facilities two years ago!"

Dutch sighed, "You remember too much Romeo. I bet we can take a picture of this and send it to the ONI division; they'll publish it as a postcard in our daily paper." He walked down the stairs, looking up at the giant Phantom as the gravity lift slowly took time to reach the ground. Romeo, who was motivated by the escape, stood up and tried to ignore the numb pain in his chest. He jogged to the gravity lift. Dutch took a step into the lift, and slowly ascended until he reached the inside of the Phantom.

Romeo did the same and Buck looked back at the Covenant vehicle. For some reason, he thought he saw Romeo doing a 'peace-out' sign as he was on the lift in mid-air. Perhaps it was his imagination. He looked back at the banshees, ready to pick one.

All of them were damaged.

I decided to post a 6000 word entry. Every chapter I do is more by 1000 words! I wonder why... Anyway, please tell me what you think in a review! I'm still waiting for the Reach to come out so yeah I'd like to hear what Bungie said about the multiplayer maps. I bet it's going to be awesome. It's a shame the Spartans had to be -executed- .

Okay, I'm done with this chapter! Took me two days. Dang. I was too damn lazy. I'll do one next week so be sure to be on the look-out! Sometimes I publish, sometimes I don't. Usually it takes me time to figure that I forgot to write. Only my mother reminds me. ...

See you guys on the NEXT CHAPTER!:

...Daylight Dancer is Nightlight Cancer...