Chapter 6
July 13th, 2041
Disclaimer: yeah yeah, we get it
I sat on the edge of the GDI helicopter staring out on farmland. As weird as it may sound, it was a beautiful sight. The sky was a lush blue with just a few clouds sprinkled about. Long, green crops painted as far as the eye could see and a few farm houses and red barns scattered out over the landscape. Horses and cows stood feeding on the grass and some farmers were in their tractors or out doing manual labor. It was a warm day out in the middle of spring, the season of new life. I felt at peace with myself the few minutes that this lasted but soon the helicopter began a soft left, away from the pastures, one of the few places that hadn't been physically hit by the war. Just the sound of the rotation blades from our helicopter, no one was talking, we were all doing what we always did at this time, checking out ammo or cleaning out equipment. I turned and swung my legs back into the helicopter and the person across from me was reading, if I remember correctly it was Stephen King's "The Dark Half". I looked down at my hands, one holding my combat helmet, the other supporting my automatic rifle.
"Drop, 30 seconds" We heard the pilot yell back at us, we all gave our weapons one last ammo check and put on our combat helmets, covering out face. As we did the helicopter was engulfed in black smog reducing the visibility to zero. It was the smoke from fire, and other musk's of war. The helicopter came to a slow stop, ropes were thrown over the edge of the helicopter and we began repelling down them. My turn soon arrived; I grasped the rope and slid to the ground below. We were immediately hit by enemy fire, visibility was back to normal on the ground but the city had a dark theme. The wind from the blades of our drop helicopter was strong, pushing us to the side, I decided to go with the wind and ran up to the wall of a house. I couldn't see any NOD troops so I just looked for muzzle flashes and fired towards them. Short bursts of flying led sang from the muzzle of my weapon. I began walking backwards towards the corner of the house, as I approached the corner I heard a GDI roar "Rocket launcher troop!" as these words soared through the air, so did a rocked from a gray building across the street from me, in the second story. The rocket left a smoggy gray smoke trail behind it, as it crashed into the front end out our drop-copter, causing a fiery end to our pilots. The helicopter began spinning towards he ground, a black flame of smoke flew from the impact point, into the already musk flooded sky. The copter went nose first into the concrete road and burst into a hellish flame. Turned my back to the sight and raced around the corner, I kept running until I came up to the next corner. I stopped there and peered out around the edge. A Soviet machine gun nest was set up in a window on the first story. "I guess there are Soviets here." I whispered to myself. Orange flashes went off at the end of the gun's barrel. I went to prone position and crawled around the corner. I slowly made my way, inch by inch. The house was across the street from were I lay. Once I though I was close enough I reached for a grenade and got up to my knees. I pulled the pin and threw it as hard as I could. The pineapple flew through the air and landed just outside of the nest. Dirt and debris flew from the ground as the explosion went off. I fired a clip towards the machine gun nest, hopping to hit something threw the smoke. After a few seconds, my clip ran dry, and I quickly replaced it and began running towards the soviet occupied house. I crossed the street and burst through the smoke from the grenade blast. The machine gunner was dead – very dead. I approached the house and pressed myself againced the black, greased wall. I peered into the shattered window and saw nothing. I was standing between a broken out window and the edge of the house; I turned to my other side and peered around the corner. I saw a figure in a GDI uniform walking away from me; I stepped out behind the house.
To the right side of me was a ditch with corpses and other fragments war leaves behind. The GDI troop was at the other edge of the corner; he had stopped and tilted himself slightly to look around the edge. His head snapped backwards and his body collapsed backwards to the ground. A NOD infantry soldier walked around the from behind the wall, standing over the floored GDI with his rifle pointed at his head. I quickly raised my rifle and squeezed the trigger – nothing. I looked at my gun, it didn't look damaged, I raised my head back to the NOD troop, who by this time had spotted me. He raised his rifle; I quickly dove off into the ditch to the right of me. I landed on a brutally murdered GDI corps; I jumped backwards from the fright of the condition he was in. I raised my head again, back to the NOD troop; I rose to my knees and pointed my rifle. The NOD soldier had his weapon pointed at GDI's head once more. I squeezed the trigger again, still nothing, I released and pulled it back again, and the same happened. I glanced up at the sight once more, just in time to hear a gun shot pierce through my ears, I heard this over everything else that was going on, all the explosions and screams of the dieing. A short surge of blood gushed from the leaded bullet's impact.
The NOD troop then turned his attention towards me; I knew I was plainly visible over the rim of the ditch. I fell backwards and pulled the mangled corps over me just as the NOD fired a short burst towards me. I felt the violent jolts as the bullets crashed into corps shield. I slowly reached for my .45 caliber pistol; I rolled over from under my dead comrade and blindly fired in NOD's direction. I managed to get off about three or four shots before the NOD troop fired his weapon, sending a pulsating twinge through my arm, then into a bitter numbness. I fell onto my back and the NOD troop, who by this time was already in the ditch with me. He raised his weapon to bring it down on my skull. I closed my eyes, waiting for the fatal shot at any second. My teeth gritted together so hard my jaw began to hurt.
A deafening crack pierced my ear drums, followed by a "Are you okay?" I opened my eyes and there were a GDI troop and an Allied medic standing over me with the NOD warrior at their feet. The medic knelt down and began looking at my arm; the other took off his helmet revealing his identity.
"Tryson." I whispered with a grin, he took a glance at my arm.
"See a little action?" He joked, I grinned at the statement, but then changed the subject.
"Who's left?" I asked nervously
"The two of us, Havoc and Doc." He replied as he looked over the border of the ditch. He appeared to have seen something. He stepped forward and walked towards the fallen GDI troop. I turned to look over my shoulder as he approached the corner of the house. He knelt down and snapped the dog tags from the lifeless corps and slowly began his way back to our position staring at the dog tag the whole way. He jumped back in the ditch. And seemed a little shook up.
" I guess it's just the two of us, and Havoc, now." He said looking at both me and the Allied Medic, who basically ignored the statement altogether.
"Where's Havoc?" I sobbed out. Tryson took a deep breath and told me that he had secured an office building up the road with 3rd platoon of the Allied force.
I really didn't know what to say, or think. Gunner, Patch, Hotwire, Teddy, everyone – dead, gone. I tried to hold back the tears that so desperately wanted to come out. I looked at the Medic who was wrapping a white cloth around my arm. I knew I had to finish the mission, there no way Lock is pulling us out until we are either dead, or have the city under control. I just needed to push these emotions aside until were out of this hellish place.