585 Words

Chapter Thirteen, Transfer 2: Feeling the Heat

"NO! Becker!" screamed Jess.

Becker reacted with shock, rolling away at the last second. The scorpion got a face full of sand. Becker scampered to his feet. The other soldiers swarmed around the scorpion shooting it without mercy. It thudded against the sand, unconscious.

"Oh, God! Becker!"

"Jess?"

"Yes, it's me. Are you alright?"

Becker sighed, looking at a camera pointed right at him. "I am. Thanks to you."

"I…Oh, Becker," she said, breaking into tears.

"I'm alright, Jess. I need to concentrate on the incursion, though."

"Of course. Accessing cameras now."

"Good to have you onboard, Miss Parker," said Abid. "I do not like coordinating."

Jess chuckled. She composed herself quickly as her monitors filled with pictures of Zabid. "That's a lot of scorpions."

"How many left?" asked Becker, panting.

"Hang on. That one's down. Down. Down. I can't see any awake and moving. Can you, Cherry?"

"No. You're right that's a lot."

"Hold it. There's one moving. Oh, it's fighting the EMD fire. Down it goes. Becker, they're all down."

He chuckled. "Good. Sorry you missed the fun, Jess."

Jess dried her eyes. "I'm not. I didn't like the surprise."

"Sorry," said Becker. "You saved my life, if that helps."

Jess chuckled. "Helps? Yeah, a bit. Sorry I got so emotional."

Becker laughed. "I kind of liked it."

Jess giggled as Cherry laughed, shaking he head. "You guys…you're…"

"What?" asked Jess, slightly annoyed.

"Hopeless!" cried Cherry with a giggle.

"Captain, we have four dead," broke in Abid's troubled voice. "Many more are injured."

"Civilian casualties?"

"Not so far," said Abid. "Unbelievable."

"It is."

"Not really, Captain," said Jess. "You're just really good."

Becker chuckled. "Thanks, but still…four dead."

"I know, Becker," she said sadly.

"Captain, we…can't find Sergeant Djhami."

"Oh, God. No," Becker whispered.

"Miss Parker? You have better access to the cameras. Can you find him?" asked Abid.

"You bet, hold on." Cherry and she both combed though the camera angles.

"Jess, I don't see anyone injured who isn't being helped. Do you?"

"No, Cherry, I don't see…Wait. What is that?" She hit buttons, manipulating the camera software. "It's him! Becker, he's in the last street, against the North side of the village."

"Copy," said Becker, running with his men. As they charged through the debris and over the scorpion bodies, other soldiers ran with them. They converged on the North side.

"Careful," said Jess. "He's half covered by sand and a scorpion is nearly on top of him. It almost looks like it was trying to drag him beneath the sand."

"Yeah, they can do that."

"That's disturbing," said Cherry.

"The fourth house Becker, against the corner, sandwiched against the next house. See the scorpion?"

"Yeah, it's hard to miss."

"Djhami,'s easy to miss, Becker," Jess cautioned. "He's so covered with dust that he's blending into the sand."

"That's not good," said Abid.

Jess said in a sobering straight voice, "Look for the blood.

The soldiers scampered over the scorpion.

"I still don't see him," said Becker. He climbed down and swore. "I almost trampled him!"

"I know. It's camouflage," said Jess.

The sight was simply amazing. The dust seemed to take on the shape of a torso. Becker carefully brushed off the dust. Djhami's head was revealed. "Something's off," said Becker. "He's kind of blue."

"Blue?" asked Jess.

Becker yelled to the soldiers, Abid translating. "Help me pull him out! Maybe his circulation is cut off!"

They pulled him free.

"Becker, is he…" whispered Jess.

He looked dead.

End of Chapter Thirteen