Chapter 6

The never ending noise.

I jumped as the silence was broken by a Marine screaming bloody murder. "FUCKING CHEM SHIELDS! RETREAT! PULL BACK BEHIND THE WALL!" I yelled over the radio closing off the air intake on my helmet and slamming my armor into emergency mode. "Cortana, prep a small area tactical nuke. Mark my coordinates as the drop zone." I radioed up to the Autumn. "Thomas? That's suicide." I nodded don't worry about me. We have to at least attempt to contain this threat." Another scream, and another, soon it seemed like nothing else had ever existed as the sound of roaring engines and running boots kicked up heading back towards the wall.

My radio chimed with an incoming transmission from Admiral Keyes, "Marine! You tell me right now why my ship just went on automated lock down prepping for a nuke launch!" He sounded pissed. I panted as my oxygen levels had begun dropping as I ran inside my sealed armor. "Keyes." Pant. "The fucking." Pant, everything started fogging over. "FLOOD!" I ran through the burning sensations in my lungs and the fog beginning to cover my eyes, not wanting to open my air for fear of infection. Keyes didn't even end the transmission before turning away. "Burn the surface!" He yelled to the control room of the Autumn.

I heard the clouds part as the massive steal ordinance came streaking through the sky. Thinking was beginning to get difficult as I ran to catch up to a scorpion that was streaking back towards camp, it's exhaust vents glowing red hot from burning fuel at a far faster rate than recommended. "Cortana, no air, till, wall." I muttered as I jumped on the rear of the vehicle before passing out from oxygen deprivation.

I came to in a field hospital behind the wall, my armor had been stripped off and I was now wearing an oxygen mask, surrounded by med techs clad in bio-haz mat suits. I sat up and removed the mask from my face. "Doc, gimme a cigarette." He looked at me crazy but handed me a pack from a shelf by his instruments. I lit it and took a long deep breath. "Get me out of this depressing ass room." I said standing up and heading for the door. I walked outside and found the first Officer I saw. "Sit Rep, Soldier."

He looked at me confused due to the scrubs that had replaced my presumably contaminated armor. "You haven't heard, sir?" He asked. "Anyone that wasn't behind the wall is now a mutated pile of dead." He shook his head and walked away. I took another long drag of the terrible vice burning between my lips.

'Only easy day was yesterday.'