"So what's with this whole hunting down new kills?"

"Different reasons. For the ones down below, it's just to amass an army. They've never liked us."

"And for us, it's because we feel that their suffering should end in death."

"Very much so. And the Lost-."

"Are simply lost, Ghost. They were taken by phantoms and now they are trapped in their misshapen forms."

"You seem to know a lot about them, Shepard."

"Simple observations."

"Ghost?" Roach asked. "How much farther until we- SHIIIIIIIIII-!" Before anyone could tell, Roach had walked himself over the cliffside. Soap stared wide eyed before scrambling to the edge and looking down at the long drop and no sign of the younger.

"ROACH?" He called with no answer. "ROACH!"

"Quiet! You'll wake them!" Ghost hissed. "And Roach will be fine."

Soap wiped around and glared. "He just strolled right off the edge of a cliff! How can he be fine?"

"Hey guys!" Soap turned around fast as he saw Roach had flown back up, white wings beating in long strokes to keep him aloft. For a moment he felt his ears grow hot with embarrassment as the former Sergeant landed on the edge and tucked his wings into his back. "What'd I miss?"

"Only MacTavish's heart attack." Shepard answered in monotone. When Soap glared over his shoulder, he only looked back at him with a bored expression. "So what do we do about the cliff?"

Ghost was impossible to read, as always. He appeared to be studying the cliff before he turned back tot eh group and annouced, "I've got a plan, but play along."

"What kind of plan?" Roach asked. And Ghost pulled him to the side and whispered something to him, by the glances that shyed away when met, Soap had a bad feeling that this plan of Ghost's wasn't a good one. When the two returned, Roach looked almost unsure.

"Ghost what are you-?" There wasn't a chance to finish.

"NOW!"

Next thing he knew, Ghsot had landed himself at Soap, wings snapping out and beating as the two flew over the side. The once Captain squeezed his eyes shut and held a tight grip, unwilling to see himself falling towards the unseeable bottom. Even though wind roared in his ears, he could still hear Ghost's laugh.

"How you holding up, bug?"

Roach's voice, strained, complained, "He's heavy!"

With that, Soap dared to open an eye, seeing now how high up he actually was. It was terrifying, and he latched onto Ghost even tighter in fear of plumitting into some unknown fate. But he was well aware that he and Ghost were still well aloft, kept in the air with rising pockets of warm air and the very strength that seemed to be possessed in the mass of feathers on the man's back. If Ghost could continue to glide on the air without any trouble, he should be fine.

Nearby, Roach was gripping Shepard under his upper arms, showing much more strain than his friend. Shepard, though appearing nervous, didn't squirm about. He only stared down at the large bottomless pit below.

Unlike Shepard, Soap wasn't so calm. In his panick, he had rung his arms around Ghost's neck and wrapped his legs over the man's waist, tucking his head in as close to his shoulder as possible. The man barely seemed to mind. His only focus was on maintaining his altitude.

Then he felt a pat on his back. "You okay?" Ghost asked. "You're shaking like a leaf."

Was he really? As it turned out, he had been. Worried that his voice wouldn't hold if he spoke, he poked up his head and nodded.

"Maybe he's just not used to this." Roach guessed, passing Ghost and Soap a smile; he had managed to find some strength and wrapped his arms around Shepard's chest, locked his fingers in front to better hold the older. "Flying and all."

Soap frowned and tucked his head back in close, earning another couple pats from Ghost. "It won't be long, okay? We're almost to the other side."

Suddenly a shriek! Like a scratchy woman's voice, it was near deathening. Before he could tell, he and Ghost were smashed into, sending him to fall downwards, with Ghost dropping like a rock not far. Through his screaming and tumbling about in his decent, he caught a glimse at the long streak of red glow from a wound in his friend's abdomine.

"GHOST!" He heard Roach cry from above, the shape of the once Sergeant was shrinking fast. This was it! This was definately the end. The point of no return. No nothing after this. He was done for!