Zooming the binoculars, he looked. It sat on reverse-joint legs, with a streamlined torso for the main body. On the front was one glowing red eye, with the X.A.N.A. marking coming off of it. On its underside sat two heavy laser cannons, but the mech's nastiest surprise was the rocket launcher locked on its sides.
"Crap, there's guys down there, we gotta help!" Echion shouted. Strapping on their AK-47's they rushed out. As they turned a street corner their eyes met hell. Three men were hiding behind various debris and rubble, taking occasional shots. Sprinting forward, Echion looked for cover.
Before he could find any though, a rocket slammed into a wall behind him and he was thrown into a ditch. A high-pitched whining filled his ears and everything blurred.
Steel. The mech's leg was coming down on him, and everything snapped into focus. Rolling sideways, he sat up.
Without thought Echion latched onto the thing that had nearly killed him and tried to struggle his way up. Each lurching step jarred his aching body, so much pain, but he had to…
Farther up still more. Weakly, he wrested a grenade from his belt. Almost… Echion clamped down on the pin and pulled it out, then just barely pushed into the rocket launcher tube. His hands released their death-grip.
With a thump he hit asphalt, and broken fiberglass bit into him. His body hurt all over, he was exhausted. Echion gazed upwards. Past the stumbling mech in its death throes, he saw the sky. It was a light blue, and a single bird cruised over, vanishing behind a cloud.
Even as rivulets of blood fell down his body, he formed a weak smile. This was what he was fighting for, the sky, the clouds, the Earth, freedom. This single thought consumed his mind.