Hello, everyone. This prompt was suggested by Roscava Sliena Natasha. ENjoy.
Omega was injured and unconscious. She had been with Hunter scooting the road ahead when she stepped on a trap and took a blaster bolt to the gut. She was bleeding heavily and the batch scrambled to care for her. It wasn't long before they were back on ABydoa and she was rushed into surgery.
Hunter stood completely still in shock. It had been his fault and he knew it. It was always his fault.
"Is everything alright, Hunter?" Echo wondered.
"I'm fine. Just worried." HUnter mumbled.
"She'll be alright. SHe always is."
"Yeah."
Sure enough, Omega was alright, but she was very lucky. When she recovered, they went back out on missions and it seemed like something was going wrong with each mission. After a particularly rough mission, Tech had ended up with a severe concussion and was barely conscious when they arrived on ABydoa. Hunter watched as Tech was taken back to be treated.
'This is my fault. Every injury is my fault. Every failed mission… I was trained better than this. If I can't protect my squad properly, then I shouldn't be in charge. But I can't let them down. We're a family and I still can't lead or protect them right. I have to protect them.' Hunter thought.
"Something's wrong with Hunter," Omega said. "He's been distant lately."
"It's nothing new, kid. Hunter's been under a lot of stress lately. Besides, Hunter does take these things hard. Lately, things haven't been going so well. We've been messing up more than usual. The sergeant in Hunter is concerned." Echo explained.
"But he doesn't feel guilty, does he? None of this was his fault."
"I'm sure he knows that."
When Tech was better, they all went home and took a few days to rest. Hunter barely slept and his mind was often focusing on his failures. Depression started sinking in and so did the anxiety.
One morning, Echo was in the kitchen with Omega making breakfast. Crosshair, Tech, and Wrecker sat around the table waiting for their breakfast and talking. Hunter sat in his room just trying to gain the will to face his family.
'I can't do anything right. I keep failing everyone. I'll never be able to protect my family. We can't go on another mission. We'll fail again. Someone will get hurt again.' Hunter thought. He could feel his chest tighten and he tried to relax, but it barely helped. He took a deep breath and tried to stand, but he couldn't even move. Hunter heard a knock at the door and realized that his throat was dry.
"Come in," Hunter mumbled. Crosshair walked in and looked at Hunter.
"Are you coming down?" Crosshair asked. "We have to look over our choices of assignments."
"I'll be down in a minute."
Crosshair nodded and left the room. Hunter stood up carefully and walked downstairs. He heard the others in the dining room and he walked in.
"Hunter, you look tired." Echo noted.
"I didn't sleep very well," Hunter answered.
"Well, maybe some breakfast will help."
"I'm not hungry right now."
Hunter sat down and looked down at the floor. He saw Echo walk over with a plate of food and set it down in front of Hunter. HUnter looked at the plate and then around the table and saw his brothers looking at him in concern. After breakfast, Hunter packed his gear for their next assignment. Wrecker walked in and looked at Hunter in concern.
"Hey, sarge, you alright?" Wrecker wondered.
"I'm fine. Why?" Hunter replied.
"You didn't eat much and Cross says you're not sleeping too good."
"I'll be alright. It's just one of those months."
"You sure you'll be alright?"
"Yeah, I'm sure, Wrecker."
"You'll tell me if you're not. I… I don't want you to think you're alone. I know I'm not the brightest, but…"
Before Wrecker could finish, Hunter placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled softly.
"You're brighter than most, Wrecker. You don't need to be good at math or science to be smart. You can disarm and build bombs. You know the equipment and you know people. That's more than most." Hunter assured.
"Thanks, sarge." Wrecker chuckled.
"And I will tell you if something's not right."
"Ok."
Wrecker left the room and HUnter let his walls crumble. He fell to his knees and laid his head on his bed. He never felt so tired and so lost. He looked at his bed and at his pack. He knew what he was supposed to be doing, but at the same time, he had no idea what he was supposed to be doing.
When they landed on the moon for their next assignment, everyone waited for Hunter to grab his helmet and lead them out.
"Let's get going," Hunter stated as he grabbed his helmet. He looked at the door and felt like he couldn't breathe.
"Hunter, what's wrong?" Echo questioned. Hunter snapped out of his fear and looked at his family.
"I'm fine. Let's…"
Hunter watched the door open and he looked outside. Something wasn't right, but he couldn't tell.
"I… I can't…" Hunter gasped. There was an explosion and Crosshair looked out.
"That was meant for us. We've been spotted. We can't complete the mission. Let's get out of here." Crosshair stated. Tech closed the door and started the ship. Crosshair looked at HUnter who seemed to be in shock.
'Look what you've done. You hesitated and now they'll all die. And it's all because of you.' HUnter thought. He felt a hand on his shoulder and he looked to see Echo and Crosshair.
"Hunter, we're safe. We're going home." Crosshair stated. HUnter nodded and felt his legs give out. His brothers caught him and he was eased to the ground.
"Hunter, what's wrong?" Echo wondered.
"I'm fine. Just a little tired, I guess." Hunter lied.
"Admit it, HUnter. What happened to Omega a while back affected you. You're blaming yourself again." Crosshair huffed.
"Omega getting hurt was my fault."
"It was my fault for not checking where she was stepping! It was Omega's fault for not watching where she was going. You knew something was up. You're the reason why she's still alive. You managed to pull her out of the way."
"BUt she still got hit from the bomb."
"Yeah, but it was a scrape compared to what would have happened if you didn't listen to your gut."
"What about Tech? I should have made sure he was behind me. I should have been watching him." Hunter stated.
"That di'kut was too busy looking at his datapad to see or even hear the troopers coming. He ended up with a concussion because he tripped over a stupid pipe and fell down the stairs. And don't even start on the mission where I broke my arm and both legs. That wasn't your fault either. No one could have seen that they were going to fire on the cliff. No one could have known that I was spotted." Crosshair exclaimed.
"You don't understand! I failed. I'm the sergeant and the older brother. It's my job to keep you safe and I failed."
"You just saved our skins from being blown to bits. You hesitated and saved our lives."
Hunter shook his head as the voices in his head grew louder.
'You nearly got them all killed. You choose the assignment. This is all your fault. They all blame you, but they'd never say it. You could have gotten them all killed. If you really cared, you'd never set foot out of your room and you won't let them out of your sight.' Hunter thought.
When they arrived home, Hunter shut himself in his room. The shame, guilt, and anger he felt were growing every day and the others worried.
"Hunter, it's time to prepare for our next mission," Tech said.
"I… I don't feel good. I'd just hold you back." Hunter replied.
"May I come in?"
"Not right now."
"Will you at least eat your breakfast?"
"I'm not hungry."
"Hunter, you haven't left your room in days. I can have Wrecker knock the door down if it is needed to get you out of your room."
"Tech, please. Leave me alone. I'm tired."
"That's because you're dehydrated, malnourished, and lacking in the fresh air and everything else vital for survival."
Hunter didn't answer. He sat on his bed looking at the door. He heard Tech walk downstairs and he tried to catch his breath.
Tech looked at his family and shook his head.
"He won't leave. We might have to take drastic measures. Wrecker, go knock down the door." Tech said.
"DO you think we should?" Echo wondered.
"We don't have a choice. He's done this before when we were boys. We let him hide and it got to where he tried to take his own life." Crosshair sighed.
"He won't do that, will he?" Omega wondered.
"Not if we can help it."
Wrecker walked upstairs and knocked on the door.
"Hunter, I don't want to knock down this door, but I will if you don't come out." Wrecker warned. Hunter didn't answer so Wrecker knocked down the door and looked to see the others. Wrecker walked in and saw Hunter looking at him. "Hunter, let's get you outside. You look like you could use some fresh air and sun."
"No," Hunter answered. Crosshair grabbed some clean clothes and threw them at HUnter.
"AT least go take a shower." He stated.
"I'm fine. Just leave me alone."
"What? Are you going to hide out in here for the rest of your life? How is hiding in here helping? You blame yourself for things you can't control! What makes you think it'll be any different sulking in here? What happens if the house burns down and we're all inside? Or what if we die from frostbite during the winter or heat stroke during the summer? Will you blame yourself for that too? Get your head out of your butt before I kick it. Wrecker, carry him."
Wrecker picked Hunter up and Hunter tried to fight.
"No, let me go." Hunter panicked. He tried all he could to fight, but he couldn't. "Please, just let me go. I can't… I can't."
"You can't what?" Echo asked as Wrecker set Hunter down on the floor in the hallway.
"I can't fight it. The voices. It's too much."
Hunter grabbed his head and tears ran down his cheeks. Omega walked over and wrapped her arms around HUnter and he gasped and wrapped his arms around her as though he'd never been hugged before.
"You were right, Wrecker," Hunter murmured. "I'm not alright. I… I need help."
"We're here, sarge. We'll help ya. What's wrong?" Wrecker answered.
"I can't stop blaming myself. I can't protect you. I'm the sergeant and the eldest. I'm supposed to protect you. I've failed and you all hate me."
"We could never hate you, Hunter. We're a family." Omega answered.
"You can't protect us forever, Hunter. Eventually, we have to learn to protect ourselves." Echo replied. "We're not on Kamino anymore. You won't be punished for failing. You won't be punished every time someone gets hurts. You haven't failed, Hunter. We're just growing and learning. The best way to do that is to fall. Yes, we've had some very serious injuries, but they taught us how to be better soldiers and family. They changed each of us for the better. It's not easy to look at it that way, but you can learn to, Hunter. We'll help you., but we can't keep these feelings locked up inside. They can make you crazy. I ought o know. Remember how I was after Skako Minor?"
"You blamed yourself for every man that died," Hunter answered. "But it wasn't your fault. You were being used."
"We all were used, Hunter. And now, we're paying the price. But it wasn't our fault. It's not your fault. We shouldn't bear the blame."
"You're right, Echo."
"Now, go take a shower and then eat some breakfast. You need it."
Hunter nodded and did as he was told. When he was done with his breakfast, he looked outside.
"Come on, Hunter. We'll be alright. Trust us." Wrecker encouraged. Hunter nodded and followed Wrecker outside.
It took a long time for Hunter to learn to trust his family and turn to them for help. They had other failed missions and injuries and they all learned to trust each other and turn to each other when thoughts started creeping in.
THE END
Sorry for the delay. I wasn't sure how to write this one. There are 12 more days to the month of May. Send in all of your prompts and I will get them written. I love the prompts I'm getting.