Chapter 35: Tears
Sun was setting down over the Brazilian train yard. The huge leaves of palm trees swung lazily in the wind, oblivious to the plasma bomb charging up below them. The fierce sounds of battle filled the air as Earth's finest struggled to defuse the device in the middle of the populous city of Fortaleza.
Drake let out a sharp curse as the scatter laser kicked against her shoulder, sending the barrage of high-energy bursting past the seeker. Her right shoulder was smoldering under the Kevlar bomb-vest she was wearing, courtesy of the now-deceased thin man. Pumping her weapon, Drake watched the seeker loosen its grip on Zim as the combined lasers from Stoli and Morgan sizzled at its carapace, leaving deep burn marks on the creature.
Taking off into the sky, the seeker didn't make it far. Zim collapsed on her back, an incoherent gurgle of a curse leaving her mouth as she hosed a spray of lasers into the sky. With the seeker's inner systems deep fried, the mechanical alien spun off and away from the squad, like a kid's remote controlled helicopter losing control.
With a grimace, Drake turned back into the fight. Several more slender figures dashed between the railcars up ahead and Instinct was alone in the vanguard, supported only by Vherid. A hand on her arm stopped her. "You can't fight like that. Let me help."
Turning around, Drake saw Hunterhr behind the cargo boxes next to her, first aid kit on hand. Nodding her approval, Drake pushed up against the crates and turned her right shoulder to the medic. Grinning in pain as the man examined the burn on her shoulder, Drake turned her head to look back into the fight.
Stoli dashed up along the train tracks, headed for one of the large alien pods scattered around the train yard. The thin men pushed up into cover in one of the railcars right in front of the squad, ready to strike. With a loud cheer, Stoli sent the high explosive grenade spinning through the air. The explosion caught the aliens off guard, the walls of their precious railcar going up in a storm of splinters and fire.
As Hunterhr sprayed anti-burn foam into her wound, Drake watched on with a satisfied grin as her squad converted the advantage. Lasers fired down on the exposed enemy, shredding the bodies of the three thin men into fine acidic mist in the darkening air. Even one seeker had been caught in the explosion, its sneaky cloaking device not so useful against the raw explosive power of Stoli's grenade.
"NO!" the shout left Drake's lips as she realized the squad's right flank was compromised. A solitary thin man took aim on Stoli, and Drake was away. She pushed her thighs as hard as she could, her boots sending up gravel and dust from the train yard's ground. The thin man fired his plasma carbine and a scream of horror from Stoli echoed across the battlefield. At least she shouted. She's not dead.
Seeing the alien pull back behind the tanker railcar it was using for cover, Drake closed the last few meters to the target. Sliding past the corner, she fired her scatter laser at the alien. From point-blank range, the rays of energy tore the thin man's body apart, spewing acid everywhere. As the cloud engulfed her, Drake coughed wildly as the substance got into her throat. Through stinging eyes, she saw more enemies behind the next railcars.
Instinct rushed past her as she stepped back behind the tanker, the man taking cover behind some crates next to a railcar across from her. The Nigerian assault yelled a warning as a seeker he fired at pushed right through the scattering rays of laser and towards Drake. Dreading the backlash of the acid, Drake brought her scatter laser up on target, all too late.
The muzzle of the flier flashed green and a barrage of plasma struck her in the stomach. The jolt of the impact through her bomb vest shook her body, the acid burrowing deep into her nerves. With darkening eyes, Drake let out a whimper as she fell to her knees, shaking her head in denial.
A barrage of lasers blasted past her head, laying the seeker down. Through slanted eyes, Drake saw Instinct rush towards the remaining thin man and sectoid, headed for a bomb node further ahead. Putting out an arm, Drake steadied herself against the tanker car next to her. A sizzling pain shot up her arm and into her brain as a stream of plasma ploughed its way along her outstretched limb. With a whimper, Drake fell backwards and onto the train tracks below her.
Staring up into the sky, she saw the palm trees sway gently in the crimson light. The acid burned in her wounds as she helplessly waited for her squad to save her. Is this how Foogle felt? There was no one to save her.
The face of Hunterhr appeared in her vision, replacing the palm trees. The medic was calm as ever with a serious look in his eyes. Spreading his first aid kit next to her on the ground, the man got to work. The anti-acid foam from his sprayer neutralized the acid in her wounds and the man lifted her head up, pouring cleansing liquid down her throat. Drake gagged as she swallowed the horrific liquid down with a grimace. Taking up her arm the man furrowed his brow before spraying anti-burn foam into the long gash.
Drake gasped for air as the pain from the wound rushed her senses. Hunterhr muttered soothingly as he worked, grabbing a syringe of powerful anesthetic and injecting the substance into her arm. It was designed to remove the pain while leaving a soldier's extremities still functional. Taking in a trembling breath, Drake whispered, "How bad is it?"
Hunterhr tossed the empty syringe away, grabbing onto the assault's outstretched healthy right arm. Pulling her up, the man spoke encouragingly, "It'll be fine, Drake. Don't worry about it."
Drake forced the ominous feeling away from her mind, swallowing the lump that was starting to form at the back of her throat. Pushing towards the plasma bomb, she ordered her people into position around the explosive device. The area wasn't secure yet. The disturbing screams of thin men echoed around the train yard as more enemies closed in on them.
The plasma bomb was standing next to an open railcar at the edge of the train yard. The design of the bomb was the same they had faced before in London, and every soldier in the outfit was trained to defuse them. Powering the alien device down, Drake could hear the shrill screams get louder.
A shadowy figure dashed past the open railcar and Drake wheeled around, bringing her scatter laser up. The thin man let out its last screech as a laser from behind Drake burned a gaping hole into the alien's neat suit. "Here they come, get ready!" Drake hollered, pulling her laser pistol as she saw movement from the corner of her eye.
From the end of their line of railcars, a thin man came running out into the open. Morgan nailed the creature with her laser rifle, and the loud oooohhh yyyeeaaaahhh from Stoli signaled a grenade on its way. Through incredible agility or sheer luck, the thin man bent and wiggled its way past the explosion of fragments, unscathed. Taking aim, Drake pulled the trigger and the thin man's head melted away in a gush of acid.
The sounds of firing lasers from the railcar lines towards the middle of the yard spoke of a battle between Morgan, Zim and the enemy. A yell from Instinct alerted Drake to enemies approaching from where the XCOM squad had assaulted the bomb from. Both assaults grabbing their flashbangs, they tossed the grenades over the railcars as Instinct dashed towards the enemy.
A disoriented thin man poked its head over the open railcar and Drake cursed as she struggled to bring her scatter laser back up. The alien fired across the yard, drawing a cry of dismay from Hunterhr as his flank was left wide open, the barrage barely missing his head. Before Drake got to pull the trigger, a sizzling laser beam from Vherid's strike rifle put an end to the creature's flanking shenanigans.
A yell from Instinct down the line and the quieting of laser fire from Zim's and Morgan's position signaled the end of the short yet brutal battle. Drake brought a hand to her earpiece and reported to her headset before slumping against the railcar, the receding adrenaline rush leaving her body aching numbly all over.
Kilroy arrived at the medbay, coming to a halt from her run. Her brow was furrowed in concern and the sight inside made her draw a sharp breath. A medicinal cart was lying across the floor of the medbay, its contents spilled all over the floor. A drip's rack was propped up against the back wall and the drip itself and its tube were tossed into the corridor, the medicinal fluids from inside spilling all over. A shocked Squint was looking at her from her bed and Kamikaze was pacing around the medbay restlessly. A nurse was crouched on the floor, collecting the various medicine bottles and medical implements with a dark frown on her face.
"Where did she go? I came as fast as I could", the assault asked from the people in the room, earning a helpless shrug from Squint and a poisonous stare from the nurse. The woman returned to her work, not bothering to answer Kilroy.
From the other side of the room, Burncycle spoke up from his bed. "I saw her turn right", the Japanese scout instructed, pointing the way. Kilroy muttered a thank you and took off in a jog, hoping to find her friend before the base security would. Goddamn it Drake. What the hell are you doing?
She looked for any signs in the corridor as to where her friend could have gone. Coming to an intersection, she pondered for a moment. Trusting her instincts, she started down the path leading to the sports section of the base. As she approached the various courts, sure enough, she spotted a drop of blood on the side of the pathway. Now positive she knew where Drake had gone, Kilroy headed straight for the squash court. As she drew closer to her destination, she noted with some worry that the drops of blood were appearing more frequently now. Arriving at the court Kilroy took a deep breath, pushing the door open gently and slipping inside, closing the door behind her.
The room was completely dark. Reaching for the light switch on the side of the door, Kilroy stopped her hand. "Drake?" she spoke gently into the dark room. No answer. Turning the lights on to the entrance of the court, the fluorescent lights blinded her for a moment. Glancing towards the rest of the room, she saw a figure hunched against the wall at the very back of the room. The lights barely reached there, and the figure was draped in deep shadows.
Making her way over, Kilroy noticed the trail of blood leading across the squash court. It wasn't the heavy bleeding of an artery, but it still made Kilroy feel uneasy. Drawing closer to her friend, Kilroy's heart lurched at the sight.
Drake was sitting against the wall with her knees up to her chest. The woman was resting her forehead on her knees and she had her arms around her legs. The whole length of her left arm was bandaged, but the gauze was coming loose and the bandages were stained red. The right side of her gown was red with blood, the bandaging on her shoulder only halfway done.
Kilroy sat down next to her friend. She didn't say anything, and the two women just sat in silence for a few minutes. Finally Drake stirred, and with a quiet sniffle, she turned her head to peek at Kilroy. Her eyes were red and her dark hair was hanging messily over her face, hiding most of her features. Kilroy looked at her with sorrowful eyes as she felt something choke at her throat. She hadn't planned for anything, but seeing her friend like this was too much. Tears flooded her eyes as a low whimper left her throat.
Leaning over to the injured assault, Kilroy draped her arms around her sister. Letting out a pitiful sob, she buried her face in Drake's hair. "Drake…I'm so sorry…" she managed to whisper with a shaky voice, choking on the words. Drake trembled in her arms, quietly at first. But as the floodgates of pain and frustration finally opened up, the trembling turned into shaking and the shaking into convulsions.
With a heartbreaking wail, Drake buried her face in Kilroy's chest, finally letting go. Holding onto her tightly, Kilroy couldn't make her own tears stop. And so the two assaults wept together, the squash court filled with their sobs and the inconsolable whimpers of Drake.
Eventually the tears died down, and Kilroy consoled her sister with warm and gentle caresses. There was no need for words. Kilroy had spent enough time in the medbay and with Drake to understand. Giving her hair a soft kiss, Kilroy muttered softly, "Are you ready to go back?"
Drake looked up at her, caramel face streaked with tears, eyes red and sorrowful. Snot ran down from her nose and over her lips. Kilroy reached over and wiped away the blobs, earning a small giggle from Drake. Pulling the sleeve of her gown over her face, Drake wiped away the rest of the tears. Laying her head down against Kilroy's shoulder, she whispered, "Just a little longer."
And so they sat in embrace for a few more minutes, in silence. When it was finally time to go back, Kilroy pushed aside the base security and medical staff who demanded answers, making them back down with sharp stares and threats of violence. She led Drake all the way to her bed and fetched screens around her, getting a single nurse to tend to her wounds. Holding her little sister's hand, Kilroy watched her finally drift off to a peaceful slumber.
Standing ever vigilant, she didn't leave Drake's side for the remainder of the night.