Dorrak charged at them, roaring the whole way. Calsu and Hoi let out war cries of their own, and Troy tried to steady his shaking SMG. Dorrak swung his Gravity Hammer at Calsu as she and Hoi attacked from different sides simultaneously. Calsu tried to dodge, but got clipped by a centimetre of the weapon, which got her flung through the air until she slammed into a rock, depleting what little energy her shields had left and breaking a few minor bones. She collapsed to the ground, out for the count. Seconds after he had batted Calsu aside, Dorrak didn't even bother turning his Hammer around to point the 'dangerous end' at Hoi, instead just slamming the handle into him, using Brute Strength alone (now that's a pun) to crack his ribs and knock him away. Dorrak turned to his last opponent. Troy emptied his clip into the beast, but the two that actually overcame the violent shaking and found their target just bounced off his shield harmlessly. Dorrak laughed again.
"Is that the best you've got human?" he taunted. Troy fumbled with the clip release for a second before dropping the gun and ammunition to the ground, drawing his SOCOM instead. He hadn't felt this afraid or alone in a long time. If Sally were here, he knew he would have no trouble hammering this Brute with his guns until it stopped moving, but Sally was not there and he was having a nervous breakdown. Dorrak advanced on him.
Calsu groaned. Her HUD was flashing red wildly, beeping insistently. She couldn't feel her left leg and her spine stung so badly she couldn't move. She coughed, body wracked with pain, but glad to see she hadn't coughed up blood. That was something to be thankful for. She stared over to Hoi's slumped body, then to Troy, who was trembling like a leaf in a tornado. He was holding his pathetic little pistol, and couldn't even hold it properly. In other words; if he didn't get help, he was dead. She tried to call out to him, but could only manage an almost inaudible croak. She tried again.
"Troy!" she gasped, loud enough for him to hear her. He half-turned to her, but kept his eye on the Brute storming towards him. "Remember what his kind did to you. Remember! Pay him back!" she urged, but Troy just fell to his knees, looking as though he was about to puke. Oh, she needed to make him avoid thinking about his past. "Troy!" she retried. "Remember... remember what you told me! Be brave! Do not... do not let him win!" Dorrak raised his Hammer high above his head. "Do not die!" she pleaded. "That day!" she was panting now from the effort of talking. "Was the only day anyone has ever been kind to me!" Troy had his eyes closed, waiting for the inevitable end. "You made me see the good in the universe! Let me do the same!" she added desperately. Dorrak let the Hammer fall casually, not even applying any pressure behind its descent. He was in no hurry. Suddenly, Troy's hand shot up and caught the Hammer, and before Dorrak's eyes had time to widen, his weapon was ripped from his loose and cocky hands. Troy threw the weapon away, as it was too heavy for him to wield. He jumped up and kicked off the Brute's face, managing to do a somersault and land on the ground a few metres from the stumbling Brute. Troy snatched up his SMG and slammed the clip into it, then ran at Dorrak again. Dorrak shook his head, growling at the human who let loose a barrage of bullets from his gun, bringing his shields down to low before it clicked empty. Dorrak was about to laugh when Troy whipped out his SOCOM and drained the rest of his shields with that before that too was spent. As Troy brushed past Hoi's body, he slipped his Sergeant's Combat Knife from its sheath on Hoi's chest plate. Dorrak swiped to grab Troy as the human leaped at him, but narrowly missed. He roared in pain as the knife went through his throat and into his brain, the cold embrace of death claiming him in exactly five frenzied seconds. Troy landed atop the body, chest heaving with the effort. He pulled out his radio as he checked Hoi. He then proceeded to check Calsu, relieved to find they were both fine. He took off his helmet and clicked the talk button on the radio.
"This is Corporal Troy Collins; I have injured and need an Evac Bird at my co-ordinates, ASAP!" He felt someone touch his arm. He looked down at Calsu, who shook her head slowly.
"Corporal Collins, this is Hangar Bravo. There is a Pelican en route to your location right now. ETA: five minutes. Please stand by."
"Negative Hangar Bravo. Tell the Pelican to stand on station two clicks North of my location."
"Say again Corporal?"
"We have an enemy AA Gun still operational. Tell the Evac Bird to steer clear until I deactivate it."
"Roger that Corporal. Godspeed." Troy tossed the radio to Calsu.
"I'll fire a flare from the gunner seat when it's clear. Radio in as soon as you see my signal," Troy ordered. Calsu nodded and he jammed his helmet back on before sprinting off towards the structure.
Troy had picked up a Shotgun, Spartan Laser and two SOCOMS from the ODWC on his way, and was now ready for his enemies. As soon as he entered the structure he was faced with a few Grunts that had been hiding there. He quickly got rid of these and moved on to the Brutes guarding the stairs. Metre by metre, he hastily made it to the MAC cannon and blasted the gunner's head off. He fired the flare out instantly. The bright blue fireball arced through the air, softly illuminating the small box that served as the MAC cannon's control room. He started to make his way down the stairs before noticing a fleet of Phantoms and Banshees coming in. He fingered his helmet's comm.
"Calsu, patch me through to Hangar Bravo." He soon heard the buzzing voice of Hangar Bravo in his ear.
"Corporal, Calsu has given the order. Your Pelican is on its way."
"Belay that order, I repeat, do NOT send that Pelican in."
"Corporal! We need to get those injured soldiers out of there!"
"Wait until I've cleared up the airspace a bit." Troy hopped into the small seat and wrestled with the controls. He held down the trigger after he had lined up the aimer with a Phantom. There was a loud noise before the Magnetic Accelerator Cannon fired, vaporising his target. Troy grinned triumphantly and set about destroying as many ships as he could. He soon realised there was little point; they just kept coming. Suddenly, all the ships just stopped. They hung in the air as if waiting for something. Almost as if they were... afraid? That's when the Super Carrier broke through the clouds. It was flaming purple fire as it hurtled towards the surface of the planet. "Airspace is clear! Airspace is clear! Send in that Pelican!" Nothing happened. Troy searched the skies for the aircraft frantically. Heavy footsteps sounded behind him. He whirled around and readied his Shotgun, but it was an Elite that emerged from the doorway.
"I am one of the medical staff of Pelican Echo 097. We were shot down by enemy forces a minute ago while travelling here to pick you up," he explained hurriedly. Troy swore. They hadn't waited for him. He pushed past the Sangheili.
"Hangar Bravo! Hangar Bravo, can you hear me?" Static. The falling ship was creating too much interference. There would be no second Evac Bird. They ran back down to the ground floor, emerging into the sunlight. There were three additional Sangheili along with two marines and the pilot waiting for them with Calsu and Hoi just outside the doorway.
"What are we going to do sir?" one of the marines wailed. "There's no way we'll be able to call for Evac! And that ship's gonna kill us all when it hits us!" Troy picked up one of the mini stretchers that had obviously been used to carry the wounded soldiers and shoved it into the marine's hands.
"No it's not," he growled. "Because we're getting our own Evac Bird." The soldiers around him looked confused. Troy pointed to a Phantom hovering ten metres away from them. All of its troops had been killed in the firefight, leaving it free for the taking. Troy pointed to two of the Elites. "You two, I assume you know how to fly a Phantom?" Nods. "Good. Get in the pilot and co-pilot seats and prepare for launch. The rest of you, carry the wounded onto the ship. Go, we don't have much time!" Everyone scrambled to do his bidding, and in two minutes they were speeding away from their deaths in the stolen Phantom. One thing was for certain: It was going to be one hell of a debriefing.