ME: War is now coming to Two. A/N: Interlude.
TIME: Flashback
"Lieutenant Domitius," Major Flavius addressed her via earpiece.
"Yes, sir?" She replied.
"Your platoon's on QRF duty, Command's getting worried about recent Rebel gains and wants an ace in hole."
"Acknowledged, Major," Enobaria answered. "My troops will be ready soon."
"Understood, Lieutenant. Flavius out."
The platoon soon marched to a hangar bay, where a group of hovercraft pilots joined them.
Their uniforms were white, as were standard since the Dark Days (albeit slightly grayer then the old version). The helmet hid their faces behind an opaque visor, which was done for psychological reasons-it would present a unified fighting front and intimidate rioters, thus reducing collateral damage. In addition, the helmet had an integrated gas mask, providing CBRN protection. The gloves were gray, while the boots were now white instead of black and they had kneepads for added protection. The vest also was ribbed and covered more.
Enobaria took off her helmet but kept her earpiece in as she laid down. Some of her subordinates decided to talk, but she had learned to become a light sleeper in boot camp and soon dozed off.
Approximately two minutes passed before alarms began to blare, waking her and the others up.
"Safeguard, Safeguard, Safeguard!" Remus Thread's voice boomed. "Attention all personnel, report to combat stations immediately! Repeat, all personnel to combat stations!"
Her earpiece buzzed. "Major Flavius to Lieutenant Domitius, how copy? Over."
She replied instantly, "Copy, sir, go ahead."
"I want your platoon on standby, we could need to scramble a QRF immediately! Flavius out."
With that Enobaria removed her earpiece and put her helmet on, charging into one of the hovercrafts when the Head Peacekeeper of District Two himself addressed her.
"Lieutenant Domitius, this is Head Peacekeeper Thread. Radio check, over," said the older man.
"Sir, I'm reading you five-by-five," she replied. "Go ahead, over."
"My brother's leading the remnants of District Eleven's Garrison plus his own troops in a fighting retreat. You are to take your platoon and reinforce them, others will soon follow. Am I clear?"
"Sir, yes, sir!" She barked as though Enobaria was a fresh recruit.
"Good luck, Lieutenant. Out."
The hovercrafts took off after. The squad soon proceeded to engage in banter; the Sergeant, an experienced veteran who had put down the First Uprising of District Eight, had low expectations of the rebels and planned to "send the cave-dwellers back to their basement where they belong." A cocky young Corporal planned to march through each of the rebellious Districts and "instruct every willing eighteen-year old girl on what it's like to sleep with a winner." His more irritated counterpart vocally complained about her not getting enough sleep.
Enobaria glanced at the self-declared ladies man. "Paying them doesn't count."
They all chuckled at the Corporal's expense until they landed.
A Peacekeeper Captain ran up to them. "Good to see you've made it!" He shouted. "We need immediate reinforcements!"
Enobaria casually cocked her rifle while keeping the safety on. "Lead the way, sir."
The platoon marched into position, where they encountered a unit led by Romulus Thread himself. The Head Peacekeeper was haggard and thin; the war had taken it's toll on him.
"Peacekeepers!" He announced. "We are to defend this position until further notice, or else the rebel hordes shall be allowed to pollute the blessed homeland! Long live the Boys and Girls in W-."
Thread did not finish, for then there was the distinctive crack of a sniper rifle and Thread was subject to an impromptu brain surgery.
"Sniper fire!" Enobaria announced somewhat redundantly, throwing herself to the ground and narrowly avoiding a second shot. A third shot narrowly missed Laura, then a fourth shot-this one from a Peacekeeper sharpshooter-ended the rebel's life.
"Lieutenant Domitius to Command, come in!" She said. "Command, respond!"
"This is Head Peacekeeper Thread," came the reply. "What is it, Lieutenant? Over."
Enobaria swallowed audibly. "Sir, your brother is down. I repeat, Head Peacekeeper Romulus Thread is KIA, sniper got him. Do you copy, over?"
There was a pregnant pause. "Copy, Domitius. Be advised: Help is imminent, acknowledge."
"Understood, sir," she replied, "but we'll need immediate air support at this rate. I say again, requesting bombing run!"
"Denied, Lieutenant," Remus replied. "Too many rebel fighter hovercraft in the skies, you'll have to wait. Thread out."
"Damn it!" Enobaria cursed.
"Incoming rebels!" A female Peacekeeper with a District One accent shouted.
Sure enough, a horde of them soon charged at the Peacekeepers. They were continental rebels, and thus dressed in a ragtag fashion unlike District Thirteen's gray-uniformed army, and wore no body armor whatsoever. Easy targets.
"For the Rebellion! For the Mockin-!"
Enobaria cut off one of them with a burst of rifle fire to the neck. "Death to the traitors! Death to the Mockingjay!"
The Lieutenant was distinctly unimpressed. Eventually District Thirteen infantry came in, and she was shocked to see what looked like an officer gunning down three retreating continentals.
"Die, you coward traitors!"
Incoherently screaming in rage, Enobaria threw a frag grenade and smiled at the explosion. "Come and get some!"
"WHAT THE FUCK ARE THOSE THINGS?!" Laura screamed.
Enobaria glanced over in her direction, and noticed some improvised fighting vehicles. The first of those was a pickup truck with a machine gun mounted on the back.
The gunner mowed down four Peacekeepers, but Enobaria aimed and fired two shots at him. The first one narrowly missed, while the second one slammed into his forehead. A grenade then rolled under the truck and detonated.
"Crazy fuckers with knives!" A Peacekeeper shouted.
Sure enough, straight ahead two rebels charged ahead with only knives. Gut-wrenchingly the one on the left looked ten at most.
Enobaria gunned down the child soldier (cursing the Rebellion for condoning the practice), but her rifle's magazine ran dry. Rather then reload, she tried her CQC skills.
Drawing her Gladius, she narrowly avoided the second rebel's knife and with one swing loped his hand off. As the knifeman screamed in pain, she then decapitated him mercifully with another swing. A pair of tanks (undoubtedly from Thirteen) rolled in along with rebel reinforcements on foot.
Was this how she would die? Gunned down by soldiers pledging allegiance to the traitorous Mockingjay?
Suddenly a pair of missiles flew in, taking out the tanks. Two attack hovercraft then strafed the rebels, forcing a retreat.
Enobaria walked over to Romulus Thread's corpse and grabbed his dog tags as transport hovercrafts landed nearby. Major Flavius disembarked, his helmet off and smiling.
"Good work, Lieutenant!" He remarked. "The enemy has bitten off more than they can chew, and you've shown them! Good work!"
Enobaria nodded as she noticed Laura take two surrendering female rebels in gray uniforms prisoner. One could've been Katniss Everdeen herself if not for her paler complexion and black crew cut, while the other could've easily passed herself off as Peeta Mellark's cousin or even sister.
ME: War has come to District Two, readers. How did I do?