Evening fell as they reached the end of the trail they had followed. A small stream was crossing their path. It wasn't more than a shallow brook that had expanded over its small banks because of all the rain. It flooded the ground around it, turning it into a thick mud.
"Great", James muttered with a sigh, taking a precarious step, balancing on the slippery rocks. At least the rain kept the mozzies away, he thought in an attempt to cheer himself up as he tried to avoid the water and the mud. The doses of medi-gel had rid his body of the poison and the burning pain had subsided to a dull ache. James was knackered, but no more than the others, and probably less than Shepard. It was stubbornness alone that kept her on her feet. He extended his towards her, steadying her as she made her way across the brook, balancing on the stones.
Shepard had rolled up the black sweatpants and her legs and feet were streaked with mud and dirt, but now the rain and the water washed them clean, revealing the many scratches and bruises again. He held her hand, lending her what strength he could as they made their to higher ground. Her fever had gone up again and she looked completely exhausted.
James gave her hand an encouraging squeeze before he quickened his pace so he came up along side Kaidan. "We better find somewhere to set camp." He had to raise his voice to make himself heard over the eternal tap tap tap of the rain.
The Alliance Major nodded. "I know." He stopped, turned around and waited as Garrus traversed the brook with his usual economical elegance. Even through the rain and the gathering darkness he could see the tension in the turian's eyes, in the way he kept glancing at Shepard.
"What's going on?" Garrus asked, crossing his arms in front of his chest. Water was pouring down, giving his armour a shiny, slick appearance in the half-light.
"We need to find somewhere to lay up for the night", Kaidan said. He pulled up a holo map over the area on his omni-tool. It wasn't very detailed. Not even EDI's advanced scanners could penetrate the super-growth covering Pragia's surface. "It looks like there's a cliff formation to the east of us. If we're lucky it should give us some shelter from the rain."
"Sounds good." Garrus updated his nav-point. "It will be about an hour's walk if we keep up the pace." He turned to Shepard. His heart ached at the state she was in but he kept his voice neutral. "It will get pitch black soon. We don't have an extra pair of night vision goggles so one of us will have to lead you."
She glanced at him but avoided to meet his gaze. "All right", she mumbled. She was shivering, too cold and at the same time she felt like she was burning up.
They started walking again and James fell in beside her. "How are you holding up, Lola?"
"I'll make it", she mumbled.
He gave her a look, hesitated a moment or two, but then he said. "Garrus didn't mean to... I mean, he's just trying to help the best he can."
"Yeah..." She said slowly. "I know."
"You want me to talk to him?"
The look she gave him made him put his hands up in a pacifying gesture but he didn't give up. "All right, it's none of my business, I get it. But you don't have to deal with this alone. I'm here for you, Lola. What ever you need."
Before Shepard could respond Kaidan, who was walking a few steps in front of them, suddenly stopped, signalling to them to do the same. He made his way back to them, moving slowly, careful not to make any noise. They sank down in a huddle.
Shepard was grateful to get a moments respite. An oversized broad leaved Hosta gave some shelter from the rain. She took the opportunity to refill the water canteen from the rainwater that had gathered in one of the unfurled leaves. She drank a mouthful and passed the canteen on.
"There's a long strip that's been clear-cut directly in front of us", Kaidan said, accepting the canteen, taking a gulp before continuing. "There is no way we can walk around it and hope to reach the cliff formation tonight."
"Did you see any movements?" Garrus asked. He had been keeping back but now he joined them, wiping rainwater from his face as he crouched next to James.
The Major shook his head. "I didn't see anything. Even with the night vision goggles visibility is low because of the rain. There's nothing on the radar, though I'm not sure if we can trust it", he continued. "It might be effected by whatever it is that's blocking our comms." He looked around, meeting their tired eyes. "Should we take the risk and cross the clearing or do we find an alternative camp site?"
Garrus assessed the team. James seemed to be in pretty good condition despite his close encounter with the spiderlike creatures in the clearing. Kaidan had dark circles under his eyes and was rubbing his forehead in a way that Garrus knew meant he was having one of his headaches.
They were low on thermal clips and even though Kaidan hadn't said anything, Garrus suspected that he was worried about running out of medi-gel. He shifted his gaze to Shepard. It was obvious that she was exhausted and sick. They needed to get her out of the rain. Garrus realised that they didn't have much of a choice. They would have to trust their experience and skill, and their luck, and cross the clear cut area.
"We'll move fast and we do it now", he said. "Kaidan, you and Shepard go first. James and I will provide back up fire if needed." By separating them into two groups and keeping a distance between them they would reduce the risk of all of them walking into an ambush.
Kaidan nodded. It was a good plan under the circumstances. "All right", he said, donning the Night Vision goggles. The world turned from black shadows to hues of bright greens. "Let's move out."
They made their way to the edge of the jungle. Although they knew it couldn't have been more then days since the area had been cleared it was already being re-populated. Grass and creeping vines covered the ground and here and there saplings had taken root.
Shepard stared at the open expanse, squinting against the downpour. The rain was even heavier without the trees' protection. But that was not why she hesitated. They would be completely exposed once they left the tree-line. The fear was like a bitter taste in her mouth. She hated feeling so vulnerable and weak. She swallowed the anxiety when Kaidan turned to her. "Ready?"
She nodded. "Let's do this."
They left the trees. The Night Vision goggles made Kaidan look almost alien. They moved in a half-crouch to make themselves as small a targets as possible. Shepard kept close to him. The rain beat down on them. The wind had subsides but it was still colder than it had been amongst the trees.
Shepard shivered. She knew it wasn't just the cold that made her tremble but the fever combined with fear that effected her. She held the Viper at a ready and kept close to Kaidan so not to lose him in the dark and the rain. It was impossible to see more than a few feet. Thunder rolled overhead drowning out even the sound of the rain. Shepard kept glancing at the radar Garrus had reactivated for her sometime during the last night when he had kept watch over her. It revealed nothing, but like Kaidan she didn't trust it. A quick test of the comm-implant had confirmed their suspicions. They were still blocked by the scrambling signal that cut them off from contacting Corteze or the Normandy.
Garrus and James watched as Kaidan and Shepard left the safety of the trees. They gave them a couple of metres head start before following. They were keeping their distance so they could provide back up if Kaidan and Shepard walked into any trouble.
Shepard and Kaidan were almost half-way across when a bright light suddenly flared above the tree-line on the other side of the clearing. Then the distinct sound of an engine was heard over the drumming rain. It came closer and closer at an alarming speed.
"It's a gunship!" Kaidan shouted. He and Shepard threw themselves on the ground as the sleek dolphin-like silhouette of an A-61 Mantis came flying towards them on low altitude.
The gunship's single headlight cut through the darkness and the rain. Kaidan cursed and tore the NV-goggles off. He was blinking, trying to clear his vision after the sudden light had blinded him.
"Do you think it's looking for us?" James asked quietly. He watched with a worried frown as the Mantis moved too and fro as if searching for something, or someone.
"I don't know", Garrus mumbled, not taking his eyes of the sleek aircraft. They had been lucky enough to find shelter behind a large tree stump and the turian had drawn his Black Widow and had the gunship in his scope. If visibility had been better he would have been able to force the Mantis to pull back with a couple of shots aimed at the gunship's vulnerable points. But the darkness and the rain that hid them from its view also worked against him. He couldn't get a clear line of sight. They were going to have to take it down by sheer brutal force rather then rely on marksmanship.
Shepard lay flat against the ground, breathing in the smell of wet soil and grass. The sound of the gunship was deafening. It was almost upon them. She held her breath, hoping against hope that it hadn't spotted them. Then a round from the belly-mounted M350 mass-accelerator machine guns ripped through the night.
Instinctively Kaidan activated and increased his biotic barrier to envelope Shepard as bullets smacked into the ground around them.
"Concentrate the fire to the cockpit!" Garrus shouted.
"Affirmative", James replied automatically. He took careful aim at the hovering gunship and pulled the trigger. Like Garrus he knew they would have to make every bullet count.
The Mantis reacted immediately. It moved forward in search of the new threat. Kaidan and Shepard took the opportunity to dive into cover behind one of the fast growing shrubs that had already started to fill up the open area.
Then all hell broke loose as a twelve man unit of Blue Sun mercs burst out of the jungle behind the gunship.
As always, thank you Cyan B for your help with the spelling. And a special thanks to Myst who gave me the idea about the gunship. Cheers!