Boom. Fuel Rod Cannons caused dirt to fly and dust to obscure his vision as he sprinted, firing randomly yet still being guaranteed to hit something. He ducked under a streak of plasma that would have taken his head off and kept running. He threw the IFFCTD over to Private Rob.
"Thanks Troy," the British ODST said sarcastically. He strapped the case to his back and made a beeline for where he needed to use it. Troy rolled behind a road barrier and covered his back. Rob dropped the case behind a large concrete wall and returned to the battle.
"We still have about five minutes!" Troy yelled.
The four Sangheili arrived by Hoi and Calsu at the top of the hill as they waited for Troy, Austin and Caleb to arrive.
"How we doing for time?" Hoi shouted.
"Four and a half minutes!"
"Aaargh!" Troy stared at Caleb as he was torn to pieces by Spikers.
"We're still about a half a click away!" Troy cried in dismay. "We need transport!"
"Roger that, transport inbound," Flint replied over the comms. Soon there was a Pelican overhead, slowly descending. A Spike Grenade embedded itself in the wall next to Troy. He cried out and ducked out of the way, pushing Austin with him. The grenade exploded and took part of the wall with it. Troy was lying flat on his back, knocked over by the explosion. He could see the Pelican, slowly floating towards the ground. Austin pulled him back to his feet.
"Let's go!" he ordered. Troy nodded and followed him to the next adjacent wall. The Pelican dropped a Warthog on the ground a few feet in front of them. Troy leaped into the Driver seat and Austin slid the case into the back and got in the passenger side. Troy stepped on the pedal and the Warthog's tyres squealed as it sped off. A Spiker round smashed right through the windscreen and embedded itself in Austin's stomach. He screamed in pain, but braced himself against the blood-splattered windscreen.
"We've got wounded!" Troy told Linda, who was trained as a medic, over the comms. He stomped on the brakes and the Warthog jerked to a halt. Troy ran around and hauled Austin out of the vehicle, then dragged him over to the bunker entrance where Linda was waiting. She and two of the Sangheili were defending the doorway so their teammates could retreat to it once the job was done. "Can you do your job?" Troy demanded. Linda nodded.
"Go!" she assured him. She pulled off Austin's helmet and studied his injury. Troy rushed over to the Warthog and grabbed the IFFCTD out of the back. He threw it down at the base of yet another concrete barrier with Covenant forces pounding the other side. Another Spike Grenade thunked into the wall next to him, so Troy pulled it out and tossed it back. He managed to take out a couple of Brutes with it, allowing himself a grin for that.
"One minute!" Hoi warned him as the Sergeant hopped up into the Warthog turret. He started gunning down any alien that got too close as Troy counted down. A Brute charged at him, making him abandon the IFFCTD for his life. He sprayed the Brute in the back with his SMG, taking it down. "Thirty seconds!" There was a pink blast and Hoi was thrown off the turret like a rag doll.
"Sarge!" Troy screamed.
"Zero Seconds!" Linda called out, then she grunted, as she pulled the Spike out of Austin, who shouted in agony. Troy slid over to the IFFCTD and flipped the case open. He removed the large object from the box and rested it on his shoulder, looking through the telescopic sights.
"Target... acquired," he growled as the comet that was the Master Chief flashed green and a set of co-ordinates flashed up on the screen.
"Co-ordinates received!" the Shadow of Intent informed them. "Rescue team on the way. Fall back, I repeat, fall back!" Troy ran back to the bunker where the one surviving Sangheili, Calsu, Linda and Austin were waiting. He felt guilty as he passed Hoi's lifeless body, and just managed to snatch up his dog tags before continuing to the bunker. There was a Brute Chieftain following him, swinging its Gravity Hammer wildly as it charged. Troy ducked inside the UNSC building. Linda held a hand above the door control, but knew the Brute could easily smash it in with its weapon, so she waited for Troy to emerge from within the bunker carrying a Rocket Launcher. He kneeled for better accuracy and took his aim. He fired and the missile slammed into the Chieftain, putting an end to him in a mini mushroom cloud. Troy ducked back inside and Linda closed the door.
"Job well done Fireteam Cobalt," Linda congratulated them.
Three hours later...
Troy, Austin, Linda, Calsu and Nasu arrived back at the UNSC Stand in Solitude. Troy practically fell onto his bed as soon as he got to his barracks. After a few minutes, there was a gentle knock.
"Come in," Troy mumbled. Calsu trotted inside. "Oh! Hi Calsu." Troy sat up and crossed his legs.
"Troy..." she started. She sounded a bit nervous. She sounded like she had a question.
"Yes?" Troy asked.
"Er... You did an excellent job on our last mission. I mean to say, you must have quite an appetite... I um, would be happy if you would want to join me in the cafeteria?" Troy highly doubted she knew what dinner with someone implied in human culture, but the way she said it reminded him of a schoolgirl trying to ask a boy out on her first date. He smiled at the thought, unaware of the relief that expression gave Calsu.
"Sure. I guess I am kinda hungry." Calsu and Troy walked together to the cafeteria, chatting the whole way. By the end of the hour, they knew heaps more about each other, and were the best friends either of them had ever had.