Sam and Tom had been travelling for several hours without a hitch when they ran into their first obstacle. There was a camp not 300 metres ahead of them and they had no idea whether or not it was friendly.
As they had travelled the landscape steadily became rockier until there were visible mounds of rock and sand to hide behind. They were now awkwardly crouched behind a boulder peeking out at the camp ever now and then, desperately searching for some indicator that they were British soldiers and not more rebels.
"What do we do now?" Tom asked, wincing as the pain in his shoulder returned once more.
"Well we can't go back, that's for sure. They'll see us, if they haven't already." Sam replied, looking out over the camp.
"If they see us wouldn't we already be dead?" Tom asked, looking at her poised form with curiosity.
"Not necessarily. They could be scoping us out too, trying to figure out if we're friend or foe." Sam replied, still crouched behind a boulder recon-style.
"What do you think we should do next?" Tom asked, still watching her with interest.
"Stay put. If we move we'll be targets, if we stay here at least we're covered from any fire. If worse comes to worse then we can find the whitest thing we have and wave it at them in surrender and then pray to the skies they accept." Sam replied.
"You seem to know what you're doing." Tom commented.
"I know. Honestly this is starting to feel like déjà-vu. I think I may have been in a situation like this before." Sam replied, taking a seat beside him for a moment, "How's your arm?"
"Sore." Tom replied with a grimace, "Can you remember how the last time you were caught in a situation like this ended."
"Nope. But clearly I survived it and that's always a plus." Sam replied with a small smile as she gently removed the makeshift sling from his arm.
"Argh!" Tom yelled as soon as Sam removed the dressing she had placed over the wound.
Sam froze. Tom's scream echoed around the barren landscape, and there could be no doubt it reached the camp. Suddenly the sound of gunshots broke the momentary silence. The people in the camp knew they were there.
"Sorry…" Tom whispered, afraid the slightest sound would provoke more gunshots.
"Your wound's infected. I'm not surprised you yelled seeing as your shoulder is swelling up." Sam replied quietly.
"What do we do now?"
"We let them know we're friendly." Sam replied as she began searching around for something white, "and pray they have some antibiotics."
…
Archer was the first one to notice the two people hobbling along the deserted landscape, and was quick to raise the alarm. If these two were part of the rebel gang which had killed of his entire platoon, they would soon meet their end at the end of his gun.
It had taken him nearly three hours for him to persuade his superiors to allow him to assist the British army's attempted reclamation of the base, and considering all that he had been through to get out of that place he was not surprised. Part of him had justified his return to the field so soon after being held captive as revenge, the other a tiny amount of hope that Tom had found his friend Sam and survived. If not he felt the need to find their bodies and give them the burial they deserved.
But right now he was gripped with a more pressing matter, that being were the two people slowing meandering along the landscape friend or foe?
"Who are those two?" One of the soldiers murmured to Archer as they both found cover in case the two people had a gun.
"No idea." Archer replied, "But here's hoping they're friendly. I've seen enough fire fights to last me a lifetime."
"You said everyone in your platoon apart from Aston was killed right? So they're probably not friendly." The solider replied as he readied his rifle.
"Yeah but... what if that's Tom and Sam?" Archer said, chancing a look over the top of the sandbags he and this other solider were hiding behind.
"Mate I'm sorry but they were both in the middle of the desert with no supplies. What's the chance they survived?"
"There's still hope." Archer said forcefully.
"I know but…"
"Men! Listen up!" Barked the commanding officer over their walkie talkies, "I'm sending five men out there to scope out the situation, and they know who they are. Get moving! Over."
"Permission to join the men, sir." Archer said almost immediately.
If this was Sam and Tom he was going to be there.
"Permission withheld, Miller. You're not supposed to be here!"
"Sir with all due respect I know more about the men who took over the base we are trying to rescue than you do. I can tell you if they are enemies or not."
There was a sigh over the line that sounded like a rush of static.
"…Very well. Move out, Soldier!"
Just as Archer made his move he noticed something sticking out from the boulder the two people were hiding behind. A small piece of white fabric was being waved at them.
They were friendly.
…