Act 1, Chapter 9: Mine for the Taking
THE COLONEL'S OFFICE,
OMEN KEEP.
"Congratulations on another successful mission, Captain. All things considered, your team's recovery rate of survivors is still well above expectations. However, with your next and final rescue mission, we can expect a much higher recovery since you will be tasked with recovering all New Ephyrans that have been sent to and forced to work at a now unguarded mine outside of Sadera"
"Now unguarded?"
"Courtesy of Piña. Following the success of your last two missions and the subsequent security concerns it has raised for the Imperials, her Imperial highness saw an opportunity to help us and seized it. The Emperor himself has approved a request Piña made to him of having her and her order of knights to watch over the mine instead of the typical Imperial guards as 'improved security'. Of course, in reality, she and all her subordinates will let you and your team simply walk in there and extract all the civilians. No mess, no hassle, no fuss. It doesn't get any easier than this"
"Too easy by the sounds it"
"I thought so as well, so I did consider the possibility of this arrangement ultimately being a ruse to lure your team into a trap, but considering everything Piña has done for us and the significant risk she has undertaken in doing so, I'll give her the benefit of the doubt and let this mission proceed. However, better safe than sorry, so I'm authorizing your team to have a Fabricator and some DeeBees with you for the mission. At least if you and your team are caught in a trap, you'll have the firepower to break out of it and with a Fabricator, your team's medic will have access to much better medical equipment and supplies to treat any New Ephyrans suffering from untreated injuries on the spot. Any questions before I dismiss you, Captain?"
"No, Sir"
"Outstanding", Landry said before handing the Captain mission-related documents.
"You are dismissed", the Colonel said before standing up from his seat to salute the Captain, with JD promptly returning the gesture before exiting his office.
SPECIAL OPERATIONS BRIEFING ROOM,
OMEN KEEP.
"That's it? We just stroll in, get the civvies loaded up onto the trucks and then we all just go home?", Mac asked.
"Yeah, pretty much", JD casually confirmed.
"Huh…and here I thought it couldn't get any easier than the last mission", Del commented.
"If this mission wasn't a cake walk already, Landry's letting us also take a Fabricator and a detachment of DeeBees with us"
"Hey Captain, would it be too much to ask to let me use some of those DeeBees and the Fabricator to speed up giving whatever first aid the civvies might need?", Dillon asked.
"That's actually one of the reasons Landry's letting us bring them in the first place, and as insurance if we end up walking straight into a trap", JD explained.
"Trap? What, Landry still doesn't trust Piña?", Del asked.
"He does, it's just he'd rather not take any chances"
"Is the Fabricator we're bringing preprogrammed to make standard issue supplies or just medical supplies?", Tai asked.
"Both, which reminds me, we'll be bringing standard loadouts for this mission. Unlike the last two ops, we won't be needing stealth for this one"
"Who'll be driving the two extra evac trucks we'll be bringing with us?", Sam asked, noticing earlier that there were two additional trucks alongside her and Mac's in the motor pool.
"Lizzie and Clayton"
"The Sarge? Isn't he back home, being a substitute heavy weapons instructor?", Dillon asked.
"He was. Command got a new permanent heavy weapons instructor a lot sooner than expected, so Clayton got reassigned here with us. As for Lizzie, she was overseeing vehicle maintenance at Austere Point, right across the Gate, but she got reassigned to us as well. Unlike the Sarge though, she's only going to be with us for this mission only. She'll be reassigned back to vehicle maintenance at Austere Point after the mission"
"Hey Fenix, hope we aren't too late", Lizzie asked as she and Clayton entered the room.
"Speaking of whom, here they are", Del stated.
"No, you two got here just in time. I just started the briefing early since everyone else got here early. I'll get both of you up to speed now before we go"
A FEW HOURS LATER,
MAIN IMPERIAL IRON MINE,
FAR OUTSIDE OF SADERA.
"Princess, It feels…wrong…to be cooperating with what is technically the enemy", Panache stated in concern.
"You and many others in the Order were with me during the failed conquest of the COG capital. You've seen what the COG are capable of. This is the only way things can go, lest we and the Empire blindly run headlong into utter annihilation"
"The Kaug, are they only here for their people? Have they no interest in extracting the contents of the mine for themselves?", Beefeater asked.
"The COG are only here to retrieve their people, nothing more, nothing less. They apparently have no interest in harvesting this mine", Piña responded.
"Why do they care so much about the common rabble? People who are so far beneath them in status and in power?", Bozes asked.
"They see the common folk as the future, as successors to many roles within their society, given that they undergo the necessary training and tutelage beforehand", Piña explained.
"Preposterous! How could any self-respecting member of nobility allow lowly peasants to eventually rob them of their bloodline's rightful future?", Bozes exclaimed rhetorically.
"They don't see themselves as nobles or anything else transcending the lower classes. They 'serve' them, in a manner of speaking", Piña further explained.
"How their backwards society has become so prosperous and powerful as they are, is beyond me…", Bozes stated.
"Whatever they've been doing, it's been working out for them, so far at least", Grey Co Aldo added.
"Sir Grey!? Are you suggesting that we resort to being backward savages like them!?", Bozes asked in outrage.
"I never said that…" Grey responded.
"Bozes, calm yourself", Piña ordered.
The blonde knight hesitated for a moment before choosing to remain silent, still visibly unamused by the very thought of the enemy society's inner workings.
"Princess, do you hear that?", Beefeater asked.
"It's them", Piña calmly stated, knowing it was the sound of the approaching COG's vehicles.
Very soon, a convoy comprised of horseless metal carriages could be seen cresting the top of a distant hill and steadily closing in on the entrance to the mining site, kicking up small dust trails as they travelled quickly over the worn dirt road.
The Rose Order Knights never took their eyes off the strange vehicles as they got closer and closer to their position. Some were in awe and wonder, some were in dread and others like Piña, remained stoic, calm but on alert.
Once the vehicles abruptly stopped just outside the entrance to the mining site, men of flesh and steel promptly disembarked, with a distinctly helmetless one of the former visibly issuing orders before making his way to where the Rose Order Knights stood, being accompanied by two others on either of his flanks, one donning a helmet and the other without one but both tattooed, physically imposing and exuding auras of nigh-insurmountability.
"Sir Jaydee", Piña greeted, as she curtsied respectfully.
"Princess", JD greeted with a smile.
"Your people have been assembled and ready for you to collect", the Princess stated, gesturing to a group a large group of ragged but otherwise relieved looking individuals huddled together just outside one of several dug-out mine entrances.
"From me and on behalf of the COG, Thank you"
"I'm simply doing what I can to ensure good relations, for both our sakes"
"Speaking of maintaining good relations, I never got to apologize for having some of my subordinates knock you out to capture you when you first came to my world, so…sorry about that", the Captain said as he kept cool under an awkward atmosphere.
"No need for an apology. I would have done the same to you if given the opportunity", the Princess stated before giving a sheepish smile.
"Nonetheless, I greatly appreciate the concern and thought so worry not", Piña responded reassuringly.
"Makes sense but for what it's worth, I'm sorry for the loss of whatever friends or family you may have lost back then as well. It'd be ignorant of me to only acknowledge the losses on my side", JD added.
"They were knights. They knew what dangers their oaths and expected duties would subject them to. It was simply a matter of their time coming sooner than expected. I would not be speaking the truth if I did say I did not feel anger and outrage of having lost fellow brothers and sister-in-arms when I did not need to, but such is war and the inevitable suffering it brings. While I nor you can forgive each other so readily nor can we change the past, we can prevent future occurrences and hopefully coexist in peace officially someday"
"There's not a single word in that statement I don't agree with. Well said, Princess"
"You!", a blonde knight angrily addressed the COG Captain as she approached, drew her blade, held it up and threateningly pointed it at him.
"You owe me, Lady Bozes Co Palesti of the esteemed Royal House of Palesti, an apology this instant! You gravely injured me and her Royal Highness without any regard for our status and noble lineage!"
In response, Tai and Clayton raised and readied their weapons, with all the Gears and DeeBees just outside the mining site doing the same and the Rose Order Knights responding similarly with drawn swords.
"Bozes! You will stand down now! that is a direct order!", Piña ordered.
"No, no, it's only fair that she gets an apology too. She didn't exactly get captured pain-free neither"
"Very well, now get on your knees and beg for forgiveness, and I'll consider accepting your apology", Bozes stated as she sheathed her sword.
"No, I don't think I'll be going that far", JD said before giving a very unamused look.
"How dare you!"
Before Bozes could even reach her sword's hilt to draw it, Piña, with lightning-quick reflexes, drew and held her blade to the blonde knight's throat with alarmingly significant pressure, stopping Bozes dead in her tracks.
"Bozes! That is enough! You will stand down or I will make you! Do NOT test me!"
Bozes was about to speak out until Piña applied even more pressure with the cutting edge of her blade against her jugular, just a hair's width from breaking skin.
Taking the hint, Bozes sheathed her sword, with Piña doing so as well soon after. Without a word, Bozes turned and briskly walked away from the Princess and the COG Captain, shedding an unseen tear. Immediately following this, both the COG and Rose Order stood down but otherwise remained alert.
"Please forgive her, Sir Jaydee. Among my company of knights, she is notorious for her short-temper and and her poor anger management", the Princess explained before exhaling a deep sigh.
"Yeah, no kidding…", The COG Captain responded as he rubbed the back of his neck and took note of how Bozes was glaring daggers at him from a distance.
"I'm not proud of what I just did…", Piña said regretfully, feeling extremely shameful for drawing her blade on someone she practically considered as a sister.
"You should be; it's not easy stopping things from escalating without actually hurting anyone. Trust me"
"I suppose…"
"Anyway, before we can take our people home, we're gonna need some time to deal with any not-fully treated injuries our people might have"
"My knights and I have done what we can with our limited knowledge of treating injuries while ensuring no further harm is brought to them. None of my knights are well-versed in medical matters but we have performed simple but tried and true treatments, such as washing and wrapping wounds with clean enough rags"
"Not bad, Princess, not bad", Dillon said with approval as he approached to speak with his Captain.
"Private"
"Yes, Sir?"
"You can begin with medical assessments and treatments. Like I said before, you got the Fabricator and the DeeBees here to help, so feel free to use them"
"Wilco", Dillon complied before leaving to carry out his duties as a medic.
"Sir Jaydee, does your subordinate require assistance from my knights with administering medical treatment?"
"Thanks but that won't be necessary. I'll speak to you again as soon as my people get the treatment they need now and let you know where things will go from there"
"Very well", Piña said in acknowledgement before JD returned to his men and bots to issue further orders, manage and oversee the running of the mission, leaving the Rose Knights to mostly just watch the COG at work.
"Truly, they are barbarians…", Bozes commented as she continued to glare at the subject of her ire.
"From the way he was speaking to you, I'm inclined to think not", Grey stated.
"Sir Grey! Who's side are you on?!"
"Bozes-"
"And you, Princess! I thought we were sisters-in-arms!"
"Bozes! Listen to me, you need to accept the fact that we are in no position to threaten, demand from or in anyway be hostile towards them. The very survival of the Empire is at stake here! So, swallow your pride, because unlike angering the COG, it won't kill you"
"I need to go for a short walk…", Bozes stated in defeat as she walked away.
"Don't worry, Princess, she'll come to her senses", Grey stated with stoic reassurance.
"I don't doubt it but the real question is for how long? We may be extremely close friends but she is my subordinate first and foremost, one who must prioritize reason over ego, especially considering the current state of affairs. As Captain of the Order, I need to do a better job at instilling that in her. We are warriors who fight to preserve our lives after all, not politicians who fight to preserve their egos"
"Ma'am, please hold out your arm", Dillon asked.
The injured New Ephyran woman he was treating promptly held out her rag bandaged arm out for the medic. Dillon carefully unraveled the Knight's rag bandages to assess the extent of the damage done to the arm.
"Hmmm….not pretty but it could've be worse", Dillon stated as he examined the wounds on the woman's arm.
"Kinda like what just went down a few minutes ago", JD commented before sighing in slight frustration as he leaned against an Armadillo with his arms crossed and eyes to the sky.
"Good thing Piña stepped in when she did, huh?", Dillon stated rhetorically as he proceeded to wash the wounded arm with saline solution, causing the woman to jerk slightly.
"It's okay ma'am, I'm just disinfecting your arm", the medic stated reassuringly.
Dillon, with expert speed and care, applied cut-to-size sections of gauze onto the woman's arm wounds before wrapping it all securely with sterile bandages.
"There, that should do for the time being", the medic stated before gesturing for the now-treated woman to go and join up with the treated group and afterwards, gesturing for the next untreated person to come forward.
"Judging by the lack of urgency, I take it none of the civvies need an immediate med-evac to the Keep Hospital?", JD asked.
"No, nothing that bad, so far at least. Some of the wounds I've seen are pretty rough but none of them have been 'gangrene or necrotizing fasciitis' bad. Honestly, it's a miracle none of them have started developing any signs of those or anything else equally as bad or worse, since these poor people had zero access to any modern medical supplies until now"
"Well, don't hesitate to let me know if any these people need a med-evac back to the Keep"
"Wilco"
With this, JD left to issue further orders to and to check in with the other Gears and DeeBees.
"Bozes?"
"What do you want, Panache?"
"I just want to talk"
"Leave me be"
"Please, Bozes-"
"I said to leave me be! Her highness has already humiliated me and I don't intend to be humiliated further!", Bozes exclaimed as she drew her sword and pointed it at Panache.
Raising her hands to placate the agitated blonde knight, Panache calmly approached Bozes.
"I understand you're upset and I don't blame you. However, you must know that what her highness did was to ultimately stop things from escalating. She would never willingly harm anyone in the Order, especially you, her closest and dearest friend, her trusted Second-in-Command, her sister. She was only doing what was necessary to protect us, to protect you"
To this, Bozes slowly lowered her blade and sheathed it before kneeling to the ground and letting her held-back tears flow.
Panache immediately got next to Bozes, knelt down and embraced her, doing her best to comfort her fellow sister-in arms.
"It's okay, Bozes. It's okay"
Some time had passed before Bozes stood up out of Panache's embrace.
"I'm…alright now", Bozes stated as she collected herself.
"Then we should get going, Her Highness can't be without her most valued sister-in-arms now can she?", Panache rhetorically stated with a smile as she stood back up, before gesturing for Bozes to follow her back to the mine
"Alright, that's everyone who needs to be at the Keep ASAP, right?", JD asked.
"Yeah, that's all of them", Dillon confirmed after checking his list of priority-ranked patients.
"Lizzie, all top-priority patients are accounted for and loaded onto your truck. You're good to go to get those people back to the Keep. The rest of the trucks will follow shortly", JD ordered via Tac-Com.
"Wilco. See you guys at the Keep"
With this, Lizzie slowly and carefully got her truck out of the mining site as not to subject her wounded passengers to a painfully bumpy ride.
"Huh?", JD uttered in confusion as he heard the sound of many small rocks falling some distance away to his ten o' clock.
Turning to look at the foot of a high and steep cliff from where the rocks had fallen to, he didn't see anything out of the ordinary. It was only when he looked up to the top of the cliff, where more small rocks and small clouds of dust began dropping from, that he saw the source of the environmental disturbance.
"Flame Dragon! Flame Dragon! Top of the cliff!", JD announced in extreme urgency via Tac-Com before quickly retrieved his Lancer from his magnetic back holster and immediately began firing upon the beast.
In almost the next instant, COG Personnel scrambled to take action. Despite the ensuing chaos, The Gears and DeeBees managing the civilians just barely managed to get all of their charges to the safety of cover, whether it be behind large boulders or nearby parked Armadillos. The remaining readily armed COG Personnel and Rose Order Knights drew their ranged weapons and began engaging the looming flame-breathed reptile to no effect.
Shifting its gaze from the humans fruitlessly trying to harm it from below, it turned its attention further ahead, on the horizon. It leaped forward and took to the sky, soaring its way directly to Lizzie's Truck, which had only just pulled out of the general mining site entrance and was just about to pick up speed.
"Lizzie! It's after you and the civilians!", JD desperately warned on Tac-Com.
Almost as quickly as it took flight, it violently knocked over Lizzie's speeding truck with a swift and brutal swipe of its claws as it swooped down with unrelenting speed.
"Lizzie! No!", Clayton yelled out in soul crushing despair, right before he let his primal urge to exact revenge take over and direct him to the Fabricator.
The COG's bullets and Rose Order's arrows continued to futilely ward off the beast as it now stood between the attacking humans and Lizzie's Truck, assessing the situation while holding its arms up to block the incoming projectiles with the same attitude of an adult fending off hits from a sleep-deprived toddler.
"You hurt my niece, so now I'm gonna have to put you the fuck down!", Clayton yelled out as he brought up his Fabricator-made Mulcher and began to lay down rapid stream of lead at the scaled behemoth.
The Flame Dragon continued to half-heartedly cover its general neck and upper torso region with its arms to ward off the already ineffective projectiles as it reared its head, opened its maw and began to inhale deeply as the back of the inside of its throat began to glow.
"Incoming fire! Incoming fire!", Del announced in panic.
"Take cover!", JD yelled out.
The Dragon unleashed a nigh-unstoppable tsunami of fire from its now agape maw with a bellowing and thunderous roar, incinerating any Gear or Rose Knight not fast enough to find something heat-resistant to hide behind. Despite being inherently sturdier, DeeBees who also could not find adequate cover in time had their metal frames severely melted and warped, with their internals being literally fried.
"Shit! What now?", JD asked.
"We still got the Fabricator", Del suggested, as he looked to the charred but still functional Fabricator.
"Yeah, good luck making something from it without getting grilled"
"Not unless it's distracted"
"No way, it's too fast"
"Disoriented?"
"I think I just got an idea"
"Go for the eyes!", JD ordered loudly.
When the opportunity presented itself, Knights and Gears alike swiftly left the safety of cover to concentrate the flow of their projectiles to the Dragon's yellow orbs from which it perceived its prey items, vexing the beast enough to force it to put more effort into shielding its face with its arms, although by doing this it sacrificed the clear line of sight it had on its prey items.
Seeing this as his chance, JD rushed for the Fabricator and with speed that his life and the lives others literally depended on, he opened the large metal cover, accessed the holographic menu and made his selection.
"Fenix, whatever it is you're gonna do, you better do it quick!", Clayton stated as his Mulcher was getting close to running out of ammo.
"Alright, got it!", JD uttered in relief as he retrieved the One-Shot he requested from the Fabricator.
The COG Captain wasted no time preparing to fire as he closed the Fabricator and used it as a makeshift mounting point for the heavy weapon and loaded a monstrously large shell into its exposed breech before closing it and working the cocking lever. He took aim and with the aid of the targeting laser, centered the scope reticle on where the dragon's head should be past the arms that were shielding it.
"Alright, what now!?", Del asked.
"I'll give the order for everyone to cease fire and as soon as that happens, the dragon should drop its guard and give me a clear shot!" JD explained as quickly as he could while remaining coherent, all while he began applying slight pressure on the One-Shot's trigger.
"Okay...NOW! CEASE FIRE! CEASE FIRE!"
With the order issued, the nigh-unending flow of bullets and arrows that forced the dragon to guard itself stopped almost immediately and everyone rushed back to cover, except for JD, as he remained in position, ready to fire.
Quickly realizing it no longer needed to shield its face, the Flame Dragon rapidly lunged forward, intending to maul as many prey items as it could in a single swipe, moving its arms away and finally leaving nothing to protect its face.
BOOM!
The thunderous and echoing rapport of the One-Shot was immediately followed by the Dragon's body, and especially its head, recoiling suddenly and violently. The scaled behemoth used both of its clawed hands to cover its left eye for a few moments before it raised its head to the sky and let out an almost deafening roar as it cried out in excruciating pain, all while blood and vitreous humor leaked profusely from its ruptured eye socket. Refusing to allow itself to risk anymore injuries of such magnitude, the Flame Dragon took to the sky through a series of powerful flaps with its hole-ridden membranous wings and retreated.
"Yeah, you like that eye candy? Cause' that's just the appetizer...Oh...hmmm...That sounded a lot better in my head...Damn it...", JD stated in exhaustion as he let the now empty and muzzle-smoking One-Shot go, making it drop to the scorched earth with a thud as he sat down.
"JD, you okay?", Del as as he approached the tired-looking Captain.
"Yeah, more or less, wait…Oh shit! Lizzie!", JD uttered in panic as he remembered before immediately getting to his feet and begin sprinting his way towards her overturned truck. Clayton soon followed.
"Lizzie!", JD called out as he closed in on the truck.
Reaching the upside down driver seat window, he and Clayton looked inside.
"Lizzie!? Lizzie!?", Clayton called out.
"Still alive, uncle!", Lizzie responded as she hung upside down from her seat-belted position and gave a weary thumbs up.
"Oh, thank the Allfathers", Clayton said in relief.
"Sarge, I'll get her outta the truck. Can you go check on the passengers?"
"Yeah, will do", Clayton said as he jogged to the rear of the upturned truck.
"Shit…"
"Sarge?"
"They're all dead, Fenix"
"Nothing we can do for em' now…", JD responded.
"Captain, we don't have enough hands to manage the civilians. Same goes for all the badly burnt Gears and Knights, the ones that survived anyway", Tai stated over Tac-Com.
"Solid copy, Tai. I'll call for some help from the Keep"
"Carmine, get back to Tai and the others. I'll get Lizzie outta here", JD ordered.
Clayton nodded in compliance before turning to leave and run back to the mining site.
"Control?"
"Yes, Captain?", Mia asked on Tac-Com.
"We've just suffered an unexpected attack from the Flame Dragon and have sustained heavy casualties. The Dragon has been repelled but we need reinforcements in case it comes back and additional paramedics to scale up and speed up ongoing med-evac efforts, ASAP"
"Solid copy, Captain. Dispatching reinforcements and paramedics along with additional medical personnel to your position at the mining site now"
With the extra help on its way, the COG Captain now focused on getting Lizzie out of the truck.
"Stupid thing won't budge…", JD said to himself as he tried to pry the deeply clawed metal door open.
"While your doing that, I'll see if I can find a way out from in here", Lizzie stated.
"Alright, I'll see what I can do from out here"
Giving up on simply prying the bent-in door open, JD took a moment to think.
"Breaking the windows aren't an option, they're bulletproof…"
He then considered what tools he had on hand and remembered he had his Lancer.
"If I can't pry the door open, how about cutting it open?", JD thought to himself before he unholstered his Lancer, revved up his chainsaw and took the tungsten carbide tipped teeth to the metal door, although it did nothing but create a copious amount of sparks.
"Shit…door's too tough…"
Suddenly hearing the growing sound of fire crackling he looked to the ground to his immediate right to see a trail of leaked fuel with a rapidly moving flame on it, snaking its way from next to his feet and quickly into the truck's ruptured fuel tank.
Before JD could fully comprehend the fatal mistake he had made, he was instantly thrown violently backwards in a brief and intense hot, bright and ear-splitting flash before everything went dark.
"Huh?", Del uttered as he turned to look at the source of the explosion off in the distance.
"JD! Lizzie!"
Without hesitation, Recon Team Delta's Second-in-Command sprinted his way to where the now destroyed truck was.
Dillon grabbed his med-kit and ran to catch up with Del at the explosion site.
"No, no, no, no…."
Del approached the now unconscious Captain and assessed his condition. He had bleeding scars running down vertically on the right side of his face, above and below his right eye, and more much more worryingly, his right arm was severely burnt, from his finger tips to just above his elbow.
"Lieutenant! Stand aside!", Dillon demanded as he knelt down next to the Captain and checked for a pulse.
Del gave the medic space as he looked from the gravely injured Captain to the burning truck. With Lizzie nowhere to be seen, Del concluded with a heavy heart that the explosion consumed her.
"He's still got a pulse! But he won't make it unless he gets treatment NOW!", Dillon stated as he rummaged through his med-kit.
"Okay this should do for the time being", Dillon stated as he began administering Stim to JD via his severely injured arm.
"Will that be enough?", Del asked in concern.
"Yeah, at least until help from the Keep get here"
"Dillon! Tell me Lizzie got outta there!", Clayton demanded on Tac-Com.
Del shook his head in sorrow, with Dillon immediately understanding what he was conveying.
"She didn't make it, Sarge…", Dillon responded.
"DAMN IT!"
"What about the Captain?", Tai asked on Tac-Com.
"He's alive, but barely. Reinforcements and an evac convoy are on their way from the Keep. As soon as they get here, we'll need to get the Captain to the Keep Hospital's ICU ASAP"
"Solid copy, Tai out"
"Okay, let's get JD back to the others", Del ordered.
Del and Dillon worked together to carefully lift up the gravely injured Captain.
"What about Lizzie?", Dillon asked.
"After we get JD back with the others, we can get some extinguishers, put out that burning truck and get her body and tags", Del responded.
OVER AN HOUR LATER.
"Delta, we're closing in on your position"
"Solid copy, we're standing by", Sam responded on Tac-Com.
"How's the Captain holding up?", Mac asked.
"Well enough, all things considered", Dillon answered.
"He won't need to get his arm…amputated…will he?", Del asked in dread-filled concern.
"No, Stim promotes an extremely accelerated rate of cell regeneration, for a little while anyway, enough in this case at least to prevent the onset of necrosis, which would lead to gangrene, in which case amputation would be necessary", Dillon explained.
"Wait a second, can't you just give him more of the stuff to fully heal him right here, right now?", Mac asked.
"Overdosing on Stim, especially when its concentrated, runs the risk of causing cancer"
"Delta, help me get the Captain loaded onto here and we'll take him back to the Keep", a Paramedic ordered as he and another paramedic prepped a field gurney they brought with them.
Dillon, Del, Mac and Sam all worked together to carefully load the unconscious Captain onto the gurney that the two paramedics deployed and set on the ground. Once loaded onto the gurney, the paramedics wasted no time lifting the Captain away and rushing him to be taken back to the Keep.
"Get well soon, JD…", Del said as he watched the paramedics' modified Armadillo carry his best friend away.
"Dillon, the surviving civvies need looking after before they get their ride back home. Sam and Mac, you two help Dillon with whatever he needs. Tai, go get body bags, we'll need to take account of all the dead and zip them up", Clayton ordered.
"Gears, remain on high alert and readiness and get any surviving Knights to do the same, the Dragon could come back!", Clayton ordered the rest of the surviving Gears and the Keep reinforcements.
Everyone complied promptly and left to go where they needed to be, except Del.
"Is there something you need, Lieutenant?"
Del responded by silently handing over Lizzie's COG tags.
Clayton gripped the tags tightly in his hand.
"We Carmines can never catch a break, can we?...", Clayton stated in repressed frustration.
"T-They're dead. The F-Flame Dragon killed them. It killed s-so many of our friends…", Bozes said as she let tears freely flow as she cradled one of her sister-in-arm's corpse laying on the ground, which was now nothing more than a nigh-unrecognizable husk of ash and carbon.
"We couldn't have done much to save them, only the COG could be relied on to stop the beast at the end of the day", Grey stated with stoic sorrow.
"But why didn't they!? I thought they were supposed to be all-powerful and unstoppable!"
"They fended it off at the very least. It could have been so much worse. All members of the Order here today could've lost their lives"
Bozes simply continued to weep over and cradle her friend's charred corpse.
"Grey…", Piña addressed the veteran knight quietly.
Grey turned to look at the Imperial Princess, seeing she had an expression that urged him to leave the blonde knight to her grieving.
Taking the hint, Grey left Bozes to grieve as he and Piña went off to collect, take account of and organize their fallen Order members, as well as tend to the surviving Order members.
"Princess, how are we going to transport all of our dead? Most of our horses perished in the attack", Panache asked.
"I'll negotiate with the COG and agree on something with regards to that"
"How are we going to help the surviving Order members? They've all been badly burnt and their chances of survival are slim. Perhaps we can ask the Kaug for assistance with regards to that as well?", Beefeater asked.
"I'll ask them about that too. Should they agree to take our injured away to help them recover, no one outside the Order or the COG are to know where and how they are truly recovering. The last thing I need is to be questioned on why our 'enemy' are taking care of injured Order members, especially by my father. Speaking of which, I'll also need to, yet again, provide another convincing enough lie to him to explain this whole mess, first of all to explain to explain our 'missing' and dead Order members without getting any of us here charged with committing high treason, and secondly to allow our dead to be given burials with full Imperial honors without controversy to taint their legacies, for a while anyway. I haven't and won't dismiss the possibility that the truth of this and everything else regarding our collaboration with the COG to one day be made public. I just hope if it that were to be, it'd be during a time of well-established peace, long after this 'war' is put to rest"
"Princess, the Kaug have strongly recommended that we should be on high alert and readiness in case the Flame Dragon returns, though I don't see how exactly we can contribute to fending off the beast again, let alone kill it", Norma informed Piña.
"They just want us to keep our eyes and ears open for any sign of its return. Issue orders for all other Order Members that are not tending to our dead or injured to be on sentry duty until I say otherwise. Any indication to suggest that the Flame Dragon could return, no matter how insignificant, is to be reported to me immediately and I'll issue orders accordingly and notify the COG. The faster we can react, the better chance we have at not losing anyone else prematurely"
"I'll relay your orders, Princess", Norma stated before leaving to relay Piña's orders.
MEANWHILE,
FIRST MINISTER'S OFFICE,
GOVERNMENT HOUSE,
NEW EPHYRA.
"Anya, forget it, I'm not gonna get myself transferred to James' squad in the Special Region. The Swarm are the real threat. The Gears need me here. Besides, I've already agreed to help Hoffman and the rest of High Command to draw up new plans for dealing with the Grubs, starting later today", Marcus argued.
"What about James? He-"
"Can take care of himself, especially against the Imperials. Trust me"
The First Minister's administrative computer suddenly issued a distinct beep.
"Ah, that should be an update from Dillon on how James' civilian evac mission is going", Anya stated before seating herself at her desk and opening the digital document to read it.
Within a minute of reading the document, she let out a gasp of horror before she shot up out of her seat and proceeded to leave the office.
"Anya! Wait! What happened!?"
"It's James! He's been badly wounded in action and he's being taken to the Keep Hospital now!", Anya explained briefly before quickly leaving the office.
"Damn it, James…what heroics did you pull off this time?…", Marcus thought to himself before he also left the office to follow Anya.
TWO HOURS AFTER THE FLAME DRAGON'S ATTACK,
MILITARY INTENSIVE CARE UNIT,
ON-SITE HOSPITAL,
OMEN KEEP.
"That explosion really did a number on him, especially his right arm…", Baird stated as he visually inspected the comatose Captain with pity.
"Baird, I know you're an expert when it comes to fixing machines and not people, but is there anything you can do to help him?", Anya asked with motherly concern.
"Well, what kind of treatment is keeping him stable since he got here?"
"The doctors had him hooked up to a Stim drip. He's been getting a constant but low concentration flow of the stuff for a while now", Marcus explained, remembering what the doctors had told him.
"Was Stim the only thing they gave him?"
"No, they had to remove pieces of shrapnel that got stuck in him first, patched him up then had him hooked up to the Stim drip"
"Is he gonna wake up anytime soon?"
"No, the doctors say he's in a coma and probably won't wake up from it for at least a month", Anya explained.
Baird took a minute to consider his options.
"Alright, I think I can make something that can help him…"
"I trust that the doctors can keep him alive and help him fully recover eventually but how soon can you finish whatever it is you're thinking of making for him?", Anya asked.
"Give me like a week or two, and no, you won't need to owe me anything. I care about the kid as much as you two"
"Thanks Baird, it really means a lot to me", Anya stated in gratitude.
"It's the first time you'll be building something for James since he was just a boy"
"Yeah, I know. Oh, how he loved all the toys I built for him all those years ago. I swear on the Allfathers, he was the happiest kid I'd ever seen back then. Not to mention he would always be over the moon to have his 'Uncle Baird' and 'Uncle Cole' come visit ", Baird reminisced fondly.
"You and Sam ever thought about having a kid?", Marcus asked.
"We've thought about it at one point. She doesn't mind but for me, it's not a matter if I would, it's if I even could"
"Are you saying you're-"
"No, Anya, I'm not taking about being infertile, which I'm not, or impotent, which I'm also most definitely not. I'm talking about pinning down an acceptable work-life balance. I want to run my company so I can help rebuild civilization but at the same time I'd want to be around my own kid long enough that he or she can grow up with a father they can get to know and connect with. I don't want my own kid growing up never really knowing who I am because I'm never home and always busy with work"
"That's a fair point. I guess I should count myself as being lucky enough to always find the time to be the mother that James needed while also being the First Minister that the newly reformed COG needed"
"Sure but you didn't need to worry about the Swarm then, but I do, we all do now"
"Speaking of which, I got to head back to New Ephyra. I got a meeting coming up soon with Hoffman and the rest of High Command"
"But James-"
"Will be fine. Anya, you need to stop worrying. I need to go now", Marcus adamantly stated before leaving the room.
"You know, Baird, you could've at least tried to stop him"
"What? And be told he'll 'take it under advisement'. He's stubborn, Anya. You of all people should know that. As for the kid, have some faith in him, I do"
The First Minister was about to respond before she stopped herself and took a few moments to consider what Baird had just said.
"Look, I don't blame you for being worried for the kid. Your his mom, it's only natural, but there's only so much you can do to protect him before it all starts getting in the way of his life. I know you don't want to hear that, especially from someone like me who doesn't even have a kid but It's got to be said because who else will?"
"No, you're right. While James was, is and will always be my baby boy, he's also a man, a Gear, a Captain leading a team of other Gears. I just need to remind myself of that from time to time…"
"Exactly, but it looks like it's about time we leave. Visiting hours are about to be over and the last thing I want is a long and boring earful from the doctors on why patients in the ICU need time by themselves", Baird stated after glancing at a clock on a wall and before leaving the room.
Now, it was only the First Minister and her comatose son present in the room. Anya approached her unconscious son's side and looked over him briefly in complete silence, with only the sounds of James' EEG monitor beeping and ventilator periodically pumping oxygen being audible in the room.
"Get well soon, James", Anya said quietly with a faint smile before giving him a kiss on the forehead and leaving the room.
(Achievement Unlocked)
(20G - Out of the Frying Pan, into the Furnace)
(Read Chapter 9)