Ch. 14: Battlecase
1359, September 25, 2554 (Coalition Military Calendar) / apx. 400 kilometers up-spin of Echo Halo Control Room, Echo Halo, Linksis Dawn System
X
The small blue vixen's vision blurred in and out. She only remembered pieces to what had happened.
"Let's go!" it was obviously a yell but the words sounded so far away and were muffled, "Come on!"
She tried to open her eyes. When she finally did, the world was black and white. She was staring through the broken and cracked windshield of the M12 Warthog. Except something was wrong, it was all sideways, with an echo of a loud mechanics and hydraulics. Everything functioned in slow motion and not quite black and white, but most of the color was taken away from the scene.
The vixen looked to her left, toward the driver side of the Warthog, which was now pointed up. She could see each end of the Halo stretch up and meat in the middle. The vixen could also tell there were gunshots, but they sounded like low thumps and squeaks as they ricochet.
"We gotta get out of here!" the words came again, "Are you listening to me!?!"
Krystal noticed Fox he was above her. Fox was already out of his seat and outside, standing on the side panels of the tipped Hog. Krystal could see his paw reaching for hers. Before grabbing it, she looked to her right. Half of her view was ground, and other half of the view was nothing but jagged rocks and water, a long ways down.
"What are you waiting for!?! There's no time for that!" Fox was speaking loud and serious. But his voice sounded a longs ways off. He latched his paw onto hers. Krystal quickly undid the seatbelt with her other. She let Fox pull her up and out of the vehicle.
Fox put his arm around Krystal's shoulder and began to run. Plasma fire found the Warthog and riddled the bottom of the LRV. The superheated bolts soon found their way to the fuel tank.
The Warthog exploded in a blaze of yellow, orange, and shrapnel. The burnt fuselage flew off the edge of the cliff.
Fox and Krystal took cover behind a rock. It was just smaller then one of the M12s. The radio channel was in complete disarray.
"Medic!"
"Ambush! Lay down some fire!"
Fox had already calmed. Krystal was wide-eyed and frightened, "Stay down. I'll keep them busy," he pulled the receiver of the S2 AM Sniper back, loading a shell into the chamber. He rested the bipod on a lower part of the rock.
The rifle was nearly as tall as he was but just a little shorter. Krystal could hear him breathe in and take his shot at the Scarab. She still wasn't fully aware of her surroundings and immediate danger. The world was still slow and colorless to her. The crash had really shaken her up.
Then it all came back at once. Time returned to normal, her vision returned to normal, and so did the sound. The thunderclap from the Sniper Rifle made her jump.
The powerful 14.5mm round of the sniper found its target. An Elite on the ledge of the mobile base. The shell ripped through the shield of the alien. A blue, purple blood splattered on the back wall. A few Grunts freaked out and ran around randomly.
A Jackal spun and directed its fire toward Fox. It steadied the Beam Rifle and looked through the scope. The sharp eye of the alien put the crosshairs on the head of the fox. The last thing the Jackal saw was the vulpine looking back at it, the Sniper Rifle kicking his shoulder and the muzzle flash from the weapon. The armor piercing shell ripped the Jackals head in half.
"Target down," Fox said calmly.
"Gotta take this thing out!" broadcasted Master Sergeant Johnson, "Chief!"
"I'm already on it."
Fox peeked around the rock. There were two lone Warthogs fighting the Scarab, the others had retread to a safer position. Fox didn't know where the Spartan was.
"I can see troops on the top floor of the vehicle. Leave them to me," Fox once again steadied his shot. He fired it two more times before he had to change the magazine. Krystal was still in a daze from the accident. She was just watching Fox fire the sniper and reload it every now and then. Both of her weapons were missing. Fox handed her one of his, "Use it."
Krystal nodded, "Ok," she fumbled with the rifle for a moment and checked its status. Then she slipped the receiver back and the rifle was ready. The ammo counter read a crisp thirty-six.
Then there was a charging sound. The front of the Scarab began to glow. Energy collected and massed. Then it fired. Fox could feel the heat radiate off the massive weapon. The beam that it shot directed to one of the two Warthogs. It exploded in a blaze of fire and shrapnel.
"Man down!"
"Medics! We need medics!"
"No until we can get that thing taken out! You'll all be sitting ducks!"
Fox watched one of his comrades burning from the blaze. He was being toasted alive. The vulpine put the powerful scope of the sniper rifle onto the head of the wolverine. He didn't want him to suffer, "I'm sorry," he whispered it so lightly he could barely hear it. He closed his eye, and pulled the trigger. He didn't dare look back.
Krystal was over watching with her sixth sense, "You did the right thing Fox."
Fox flipped open his communicator. He felt his fur lift as the electrified plasma rounds flew over the cover and land on the ground, "ROB! We need a tank now!" he waited for a while but nothing came in return, "ROB come on!"
"What's wrong?" Krystal asked.
"ROB isn't responding."
"What do we do?"
Fox retook his poison, "We fight," he breathed in and fired the S2. The butt kicked his shoulder again, "How do we destroy it?"
The Master Sergeant was well away from the Scarab. He could still see it but he was safe as compared to Fox, Krystal and some of the others. He called back the carrier Warthogs, since they didn't have a large turret on the rear. Even then, they stood little chance.
Johnson tapped on the controls of one of the Warthogs, "Sergeant Johnson to the Frost. Things s'is a little messy down here. Think we could get some help?"
"Roger that Sergeant," replied Captain Mitchell, "What is your sit-rep?"
"Sir, we got a Scarab. We don't have the weapons to take it. We're down to one Warthogs, all the rest of them are carriers. The area is clear for anti-air guns. Requesting some backup."
"We'll give you better then that Master Sergeant. Please relay coordinates of the Scarab. You'll get your help."
He checked the compass and other instruments, "Bearing, kilo-23, 45.4 by 102.31 degrees."
"Acknowledged ground team, standby for MAC."
Johnson had herd of using the MAC guns on ground targets, but he never knew if it was actually proven true and effective. But he had heard of a ship using this technique a very long time ago, when the war had first started. It was called the Spirit of Fire. It had worked for them, "Roger that! Everyone back away! She's going up!"
"Oh and one more thing Johnson."
"Yes Sir?"
"You'll get your air support."
"Roger that. Thank you Sir! We could use some more Warthogs down here, or a tank. We will be standing by for Pelicans!"
"That's not exactly what I had in mind Sergeant."
Fox had no where to go that wasn't covered by fire. The ground seemed to be alive with bullets and bolts. All he could do was take cover, "Get down!"
Krystal made herself as small as she could behind the rock. It was all the protection that they had. Fox on the other hand didn't exactly think this way. He aimed the Sniper and spent the last of the clip. Only two of the four shells hit their marks. Of the four shells he fired, he was returned with hundreds of bolts and different types of munitions. They all splashed across the ground and what little cover Fox had.
Krystal pulled his arm so he sat right beside her, "Please Fox get down. We don't know what's going to happen."
Krystal was right to do that. Fox wouldn't have been dead, but her sure would have felt it a lot worst then. The force of the blast was amazing, even though he didn't get to see it.
It happened so fast. It was like a quick slitting sound through the atmosphere, then a whistle of that lasted mere nanoseconds, a fraction of a second after the whistle was a defining slam sound. The ground shook viciously. From behind the rock it looked like someone had just turned on rows upon rows of flood lights in the middle of the night. It was midday but the blast made it look like it was midnight everywhere else except for the place of the explosion.
The ground shook and cracked. Everything was about to fall off the edge of the cliff. A massive part of the ground cracked and began to tip toward the edge. A whole section was coming undone and Fox and Krystal were on it.
Fox was almost def, "Come on! Come on!"
Krystal and Fox started to run as the ground shook and tipped. Fox fell behind to make sure Krystal made it up. Krystal did make it. Fox however was a step too far behind. The ground cracked and broke under his footing. The Krystal moved farther and farther away from him. Fox was falling with the ground. He spun around and looked the other way, at the ever approaching ocean. His stomach filled with butterflies.
Krystal gained her footing and looked back. She was relived. She had made it. Krystal turned around, "We did it Fox! We…" Fox wasn't there. Krystal leaped to the edge just in time to see the rocks splash into the water. She never saw Fox. She just saw the waves and tide change as the rocks hit the ocean, "No! Fox!"
He could still be alive. Fox was tough. He could survive that. She looked down but all she could see was the moving of the waves and water. She searched it desperately looking for a body. Just one thing that symbolized Fox's life, she thought to herself, "Please. Just one thing. Anything. Show me that he is alive."
Butterflies burned at her stomach. There was nothing she could do. She stepped back from the edge in deep disappointment. The blue fox began to run. She had to find someone that could help. But then she thought, "Who can help? What can be done?"
A humming and whining filled the air behind her. The blue vixen first looked over her shoulder. She saw nothing. It hissed again even louder. She turned her head over her shoulder once more. Before Krystal's eyes appeared an airborne craft of some kind. It was in the shape of a "T" with two small turbines on each end of the wings.
She stepped back in fear. Her heart was pounding like a drum and her head stung. She took one more step backwards and tripped over her own heals. She lie on the ground flat on her back, scared. The little fox fumbled with the BR55, flipped the safety off and moved her eye to the scope of the rifle. The craft loomed above her.
Two figures sat on the outside of the craft, while dangling from one of the figures on the outside was the image of a familiar red fox.
The UNSC man on Krystal's right was leaned over while holding tightly onto Fox's paw, "Lose some weight!"
Fox laughed, "If you can anchor me, then you mush weight quite the pound too then!" he had to speak over the hissing of the craft.
"We haven't reached the ground yet fox! We're still over the water! Wouldn't want me to slip, would you?"
"Nah, nah, I take it back!"
The small craft hovered for a moment and then the turbines on each wing spun. The UNSC soldier wore thick sunglasses and the standard helmet. He let go of the fox and he fell to the ground. It wasn't exactly a graceful four meter fall. Fox tumbled in the air and landed flat on his face.
The craft spun and took off into the air. The soldier with the thick sunglasses laughed at the vulpine's expense, "Nice and graceful fox!"
Fox took a knee and spat the dirt out of his mouth, "yuck."
Krystal lifted him and hugged him tight. She sounded like a young kit, "Stop doing that."
Fox held his arms out by his sides for a moment as the little vixen had wrapped herself around his chest. He then reached down and returned the favor, "It's cool. I'm fine."
"I know. I was just so frightened."
Whatever was left of the team came over to where Fox and Krystal had just survived their fall.
A raccoon got out of the back of one of the Warthogs, "So, when you guys are ready, we have some work to do."
Fox patted Krystal on the back. She held tight. Ha patted her again. She still held tight. He tried once more, but it didn't work. Krystal was clung tight to him.
The raccoon chuckled, "What's wrong?"
Fox had a look of confusion upon his face, "I-I don't know. I gave her the 'pat on the back, hug is over' gesture."
It was like Krystal wasn't even listening. She had been saved by Fox, again. Every time it happened, it just made her more thankful that he had been there for her. That he is there for her, and hopefully, would forever be there for her. She knew she wanted to be there for him.
"Sir! Sergeant Ryle! Hornet Squadron one-eighty-five! Reporting for duty Sir!"
At least a dozen more of the UNSC Hornets emerged from under the cliff. Each engine whined and hissed as the moved about. Three of the stronger and faster Pelicans assisted them. The sky was now filled with friendly troops for once instead of the blue-purple Banshees and Phantoms.
"So that's what Mitchell meant huh? Hornets," replied Johnson, "Chance we can get a ride?"
"Yes Sir! Zephyr-one and Hellcat-three and four are on standby. We figured that you guys. Could use a lift, we're setting up a temporary command post near the control, room. Well be going in stealth and low. There still might some AA Guns in the area. We aren't sure yet. Once we get there, we'll be sending ground teams to naturalize suspected AA positions!"
The Pelicans spun and set down. The landing gears flipped out of its belly.
"Latch up them Warthogs," commanded Johnson. There were still five hogs so they decided to leave two behind. They took the LRV with the Machinegun and the two of the passenger hogs, "Everyone, climb in."
Fox was the last on to board the Pelican that he was taking. The crafts, though quite bulky had a majestic beauty to them. The insides were comfortably fitted with seats and weapon racks. Fox took a seat at the very back of the dropship, near the dangling Warthog.
When the craft took off, Fox half expected the LRV to fall, but it didn't. It held tight to the fuselage of the Pelican. When the ship thrust forward he put his head back into his seat. Fox was so tired. The crash had shaken him. He looked over at Krystal, "You ok?"
It wasn't as easy on her, "I'm fine physically, but my head is killing me."
The vulpine snatched the canteen off his belt, "Try some water. I don't know if it will help but it's worth a try."
For the first time, Fox noticed that there was a large Machinegun mounted to the troop bay of the Warthog. A UNSC woman had manned it. The Spartan must have been in one of the other two dropships.
This was also the first time that Fox had ever flown in one of the human dropships. It was fairly comfortable, lost of space, not too loud. The Pelican was flying very close to the ground. You must have had to be a very skilled pilot to fly a ship this big at such a low altitude and high speed. Fox figured he could do it.
The red vulpine leaned back into his seat once again, and fell asleep almost instantly.