Chapter 10

The Walls of Jericho

Daze walked along the old, dusty hallways and broken down doors that made up the House of Sovereigns.

"Where are we heading Rojas?"

"We're going to the tombs." Rojas didn't look back.

"Are you okay?"

"Not really."

"I know what you mean." Daze tried his best to sound comforting. If only one of the girls were here… "You just can't think about it."

"We all know that already kid," Baird said in a somewhat grievous tone. "We've had to deal with it a lot more than you."

"Well then, how about we stop talking about it," Rojas moved on through the intricate, stone arches and doorways, "by the way Daze, where did you get that rifle?"

"Holly gave it to me when we met. She had a lancer so she wanted me to use this." Daze jerked a thumb towards the rifle. "That reminds me, I wanted to ask her what type of rifle it is. I've never seen it before."

"I can tell you what kind it is," Rojas said, "its an E-29 carbine, though I've never seen one with a wooden stock. I've known a few soldiers who've owned one and I've even shot it a few times. That is one sweet-shooting rifle."

"So I've noticed," Daze pulled out a magazine and reloaded it with his extra revolver bullets, "I'm just not sure where I'm going to find enough ammo for it. I'm carrying all I can right now but I doubt it will last too long."

"Just make sure your shots count and you shouldn't have any problems." Rojas reassured Daze.

"Baird, you and the others move back. I don't want all of us caught if the locust decide to try and trap us," Rojas said as he checked a corner before moving, "Daze and I will scout ahead."

"You got it." Baird slowed and made sure the others knew what was going on.

"How are you doing Daze?" Rojas asked as they moved along together, checking corners and climbing over debris.

"What do you mean?"

"I just want to know how this is effecting you. Many men can't take the loss as well as you have."

"I guess it might be because I've had prior experience," Daze looked around somberly, "I never loved any of them like I loved my dad…but it was still extremely hard to deal with, especially losing Teresa."

"It is hard for me to really empathize with you, I had run away from my tribe when I was young and became a loner. When the locust hit, I was able to survive only because I didn't have any ties to hold me back," Rojas looked regretful as he said this, "I've been blessed though. I met a girl at the fortress a little while after I first started with the COG. She was pretty and young, and so was I for a matter of fact."

"Pretty? You?" Daze quipped.

"I know, hard to believe isn't it," Rojas ran a finger along his scarred face, "But we got married and now I have a son. We celebrated his third birthday just last week."

Daze walked in silence as he thought about what to say. He wanted to reassure him somehow but words didn't do it justice.

"What's her name?"

"Fran."

"Fran?"

"Its short for Sufferance, and don't even ask," Rojas chuckled to himself, "Enough people tease me as it is and I don't need some kid holding it over me."

"Some kid?" Daze acted shocked.

"Yeah, yeah." Rojas checked a hallway and began moving down it.

"Hey Rojas?"

"What's up?"

"How did you know my dad, I mean I know you guys fought together, but how did it all happen?"

"The Cog High Command was just starting to realize that they were going to need more troops. They wanted to mesh old veterans with squads of largely untested recruits."

"Who were in your sqaud?"

"Well, high command chose your dad to lead one of the officers sqaud, that is, the ones who had been chosen for commanding positions based on leadrship skills and also fighting skill. It was me, your dad, Mihn Young Kim, and Nick Hastings."

"Oh," Daze heard a twinge of sadness as Rojas spoke the last words, "What was your squad name?"

"They were named based on the CO's last name, so in our case…"

"Jericho?"

"You got it, and we were lucky too. Our name sounded cool, and we didn't end up like one of the three Smith squads out there."

"So how did you guys do?" Daze asked.

"You know about all those awards your dad won, right?"

Daze nodded.

"Well I'm not going to brag, but if he hadn't had some of the best fighters old Sera herself ever produced than I'll be supprised."

Veritas Jericho looked out over the smoking, charred grounds that used to be Aspho fields. He felt the boom from a nearby Centaur tank's main cannon, and watched as the H-E round tore into a Corpser and detonated in a crimson shower. Veritas was charged with closing any emergence holes that tried to flank the Cog forces. His squad was positioned in the woods to the side of the mortar Derricks. These huge, armored trucks were modified to hold large, mortar cannons instead of the drilling apparatus they usually housed.

"Ahh," He took a deep breath, letting the morning air fill his nostrils and seep into his lungs, "Status report! Rojas, how we doing?"

"The locust are still deadlocked at the trenches," Rojas shouted down from his perch high in the trees," But we're losing men and they cant keep closing holes forever."

Jericho watched as the line of fifty-cals and miniguns mowed down the horde of locust. Right now, the only fight was to close emergence holes before any locust got out. So far the plan was working, untold numbers of locust were piled in heaps before the trenches and more scurried over the body of their fallen comrades.

"Kim? Hastings? Status!" Veritas moved from gun emplacement one, or GE one, to GE two, checking the loads and making sure they were ready incase the locust got through the left flank.

"We got another two holes closed and are stuffing a third as we speak." Kim fired his lancer into the hole and splattered the grubs internal organs onto the wall of the hole.

"Just drop a grenade in the damn thing."

"But that's no fun!" Hastings protested.

"We'll have enough "fun" by the time this days over," Veritas ordered sternly, "now get your ass in gear son."

"Yes sir!"

Hastings ran to the extra case of grenades and grabbed a few from it. He tossed one into the hole and gave a couple to Kim.

"Oops," Hastings gave a funny smile then fired a burst down the hole. He leaped back as the explosion of shrapnel closed it into itself, "forgot to pull the pin."

"Why do you even wear that helmet," Jericho gave a low chuckle, "your heads hard enough as it is!"

"My bad sir!"

Veritas moved to the tree Rojas was sniping form.

"Right flank may be faltering a bit," Rojas sniped at the pilot of a Reaver that was harassing the troops, "I see two Armadillos heading over there and they are sending in Clay squad with a Derrick."

"If anyone can fix that, it'll be Mortis. Crazy son of gun has got more than his share of scars to prove it."

"I've noticed."

"What else is going on?" Veritas looked out over the field and saw a Brumak charge at the trenches. The Cog had set up many defensive stations over the long field, most of these were shallow trenches to defend against bullets.

"I see more and more pouring out of the fissure. They just keep coming!" Rojas fired again, this time hitting the locust pilot and sending him plummeting to the ground.

"It never ends." Veritas muttered bitterly.

"Hopefully it will pick up a little, I would rather kill some locust than have them attack everybody else!"

"We'll get our turn, you can hold me to it." Veritas drew his revolver and gave the chamber a spin. He stopped it suddenly and then holstered it. "So you got a girl I hear! What's she like?"

Rojas looked down in surprise. "Uh…isn't there a better time for this?"

"I don't see any. Besides, what are you doing right now."

"Looking for a locust to kill."

"You can look while we talk. So where did you meet her?" Veritas scanned the grass outside of the woods.

"I met her in the mess hall while I was on break one day. She had come in to get her rations and came right over and sat down next to me."

"I'm guessing she wears the pants then? Is she a gear?"

"No. She told me she wanted a family. Its really confusing how "traditional" she is about it."

"She seems bold."

"She is." Rojas looked out towards where the Brumak had finally been killed. "Sir? Why do you ask about my personal life?"

"I'm curious, that's all. I like to know what's going on." Jericho checked his shotgun then traded it for his Lancer as he watched the locust break through the weakened left flank, "Now sack up boys, they're coming fast!"

Veritas racked the slide of the minigun and unloaded at the wave of grubs, wretches and boomers that were rushing the woods they defended.

"Kim! Hop on GE two and give me a hand here!" Veritas shouted over the continuous roar of the minigun.

Kim hustled up and hopped into the trench. He manned the gun and began sweeping the locust charge with high-caliber rounds.

Although untold numbers were cut down, more kept up the charge.

"Rojas! What in the hell is going on?" Veritas roared.

"The locust are sweeping through the trenches, command has ordered a retreat to the second line."

"What about us?" Veritas shouted up at him.

"We and Clay squad are covering the troops till they fall back far enough."

"When is that going to be…" Veritas was cut short by a shout from Nick Hastings.

"So that is how you want to play, you no good, sons of btches?" Hastings yelled as he threw a grenade into a new emergence hole.

He ran over to another and curb-stomped the head of an emerging locust. "Yeah!! Ha ha ha ha haha! Eat it!" he screamed as he emptied his lancer into the horde.

"Grenade!" Veritas shouted at him.

Nick pulled the pin and dropped it into the hole as the rumblings came from another part of the trees.

"I got it under control!"

"Kim! You relieve him in another five minutes, I'll take the shift after that. All we need to do is keep them from getting behind us and we can blow them away with these guns."

"Got it." Kim watched as the locust paused in their suicidal rush. They regrouped in the newly conquered trenches.

"Settle in men, we got a long fight ahead of us." Veritas Jericho stared grimly a moment as the locust charged.

Then he pulled the trigger.

"We fought for twelve straight hours that day." Rojas stared off into the distance, "I got more than a few scars before it was over."

"Did you win?" Daze asked as they walked into a large, open roofed courtyard.

"We didn't all die so I guess you could say that. Hell, I don't know how many locust we killed, either way it wasn't enough."

Daze watched the others as they walked into the courtyard.

"Some time I'll tell you about the Brumak old Veritas killed with no more than that knife and the revolver."

"I'm looking forward to it." Daze turned and walked back to the others. He stood and talked with them as Baird and Cole brought up the rear.

"Come in command? This is Rojas, we have lost men and are moving to the tombs, requesting evac, over." Rojas paused and waited for a reply.

"I don't like it man," Cole looked around as he stepped into the sunlight, "place smells like sht."

"It's the seeders," Rojas told them, "they're screwing with the radios, I can't get through to Hoffman or Anya."

"Oh well," Cole took the resonator off his back and set it down, "your turn princess."

"Aww Fck it! Your turns are always so short!" Baird took the resonator from Cole and rested it on the ground, "Lets just get moving again!"

"Yeah, I think that's a good idea." Rojas started walking down a hallway as the others began following."

Baird hefted the resonator on his back and moved into the hallway after them. "Hey Cole, lets go! I need someone to switch out with me next time we stop!"

They heard a dull boom and then a whistling sound.

"Not fcking again!" Baird shouted as he ducked into a doorway. The round impacted on the ceiling and collapsed it into the hallway, blocking it.

"Get go'n man" Cole shouted as he fired up at the locust grubs who were shooting out of the second story windows.

"Aww sht!" Baird shouted, "catch up later okay?"

"Don't worry baby!" Cole laughed as he reloaded his lancer, "Mama said I can't die!"