Hours later at day break (Three days till Serenity's down fall)
Ben, Neil, Hawk and Sam were gathered in the ruins of the workshop slowly removing Warlord from the rubble piece by piece. They'd had to endure yet more shelling after they'd cleared the main building of soldiers and they'd downed the chopper.
The soldiers were still out in the woods and they occasionally fired the odd shell in sporadically. However most people were hiding in the summer morning sun after the storm, so no one was injured.
Ben moved a piece of rubble away from the turret with a grunt then sat down on it.
"This is taking forever," He groaned.
"Well the sooner we get it out the better." Sam ushered.
Neil glanced down at Ben and saw that he was rubbing his stomach; he was obviously in pain from all the stress he was now under.
"Go and get some painkillers from Angel" Neil suggested to Ben.
Ben glanced up and smiled at his friend.
"I'll do that, be right back." He jumped off the tank and began walking in the direction of the infirmary.
There was a silence as the three continued to work.
X
Ben walked into the infirmary it was complete chaos the nurses were rushing from beds to beds as the wounded crowded into the space. Angel was near the back of the room and dashed between person and person.
Ben glanced at all the different beds.
"Preacher…" A voice croaked from near him. It was a young man named Karl. Ben had met him several times but had never really struck up and amazing friendship with the man.
The man looked as though he'd been exercising for a solid day and there were bloodstains all over his uniform. There were various entry and exit wounds over his chest. The poor man didn't look like he was going to last much longer.
"Yes? What is it?" Ben asked moving closer to the man having to stand over a man lying on the floor.
"Can you put in a good word for to God?" He said laughing slightly but it turned into a cough.
"Sure thing" Ben smiled. "I'll do it in a few years though when you actually die though okay?"
Karl laughed and spluttered again. "Sure thing Preacher" he then closed his eyes.
He then drew his terminal breath and died.
Ben closed his eyes and sighed, he then stood up and walked over to Angel.
"I could really use some more painkillers." He said walking over to her even though he knew that she was busy with her patient.
"Can you get them yourself drawer over there, I'm busy" she said hurriedly.
Ben went and grabbed the medication.
X
Sam, Neil and Hawk were talking a quick five minutes break from dislodging the tank from the rubble they all sat around on the tank and Neil opened a tin of fruit salad, which they now passed around each other.
"So any idea who's tipping these guys off?" Sam asked in the silence.
"No idea, this bastard's always a step ahead of us." Hawk said placing a bit of fruit into his mouth and chewing it down.
"I can assure you if I catch him though he's going to wish he'd died in the mortar shelling." Neil said taking the tin off Hawk.
Sam nodded.
You'll have to catch me first prickHe thought behind his smile.
"Perhaps the person has been killed, in the shelling" Sam said.
"Nah that tricky bastard has probably wormed his way into a snug hiding hole, knowing him he's probably watching us now." Hawk added.
They all then sat in silence and they watched as Ben emerged from the infirmary and headed in their direction.
Then in the silence they heard a distant thud then the familiar whistling sound.
"COVER" Hawk yelled, to Ben and anyone else in the complex who should be under cover.
It was too late for Ben to try and find cover though. The shell exploded into the ground in front of him.
He disappeared behind the explosion from Hawk, Neil and Sam's view.
"BEN!" Hawk shouted as he leapt of the tank sprinting in the direction where Ben was, Neil and Sam were close behind him.
When they stumbled into the smoke left behind, they heard coughing and Hawk stumbled across Ben who was lying on the floor.
"That's the second time in the past few hours" he groaned.
Hawk just laughed