Planet Reach, August 29th, 2552 16:00
The light blinded Kelly for a few seconds. When her eyes finally cleared she looked up and saw more covenant dropships heading to their position and spotted a Covenant supercarrier coming down on the city. " Hold your positions!" Stacker Yelled. He kept the pressure on Makoa's wound which was causing a huge burning sensation. " Manny pass me a medkit". Manny then reached into his pouch and pulled out a medkit " Here!" He yelled then he tossed it to Marcus. He caught it and started working on Makoa's wound.
The situation was getting very bad; they were outgunned, outnumbered, and had very little ammo left. But to their luck, A huge explosion was heard. Kelly looked up and saw that a Nuke went off above Reach's atmosphere causing an EMP reaction. The explosion caused the Covenant drop ships to crash down. The covenant troops started panicking and started to fall back. " Holy shit what the hell is going on!" Manny screamed. Kelly looked up and saw that the Covenant supercarrier started going down as well. " We need to get out of here, let's go!" Stacker screamed. Makoa quickly got up as well.
Kelly then grabbed some debris blocking her exit and tried to move it to no avail. Chips saw her struggle and quickly went by her and lifted the debris blocking her way, giving her an exit. The group of marines started running across the street. "Don't stop moving, keep going!" Stacker screamed, " What the hell is going on!" Ash screamed.
" What is happening!!" Another Yelled.
"It is a goddamn EMP!" Dubbo shouted as the group sprinted across the street dodging the falling debris and ships " Go, go, go!!." the sergeant screamed.
" This isn't good man!" Makoa yelled. A drop ship then Crashed in front of them blocking their exit Makoa staggered to the ground. " Shit!' He screamed. Kelly grabbed his hand and pulled him up to his feet. Stacker then spotted a nearby shelter "Quick get in the building!" He ordered. Everyone quickly ran in. Manny dolphin dived almost getting hit by a Phantom. " Keep your heads down!" Stacker ordered once more. Kelly took cover behind a wall alongside Makoa and Chips. More ships and debris fell from the sky then it just went silent.
Kelly looked out the window and only saw debris but nothing else. Manny decided to break the silence. " What the hell we are going to do now man Covenant got us outnumbered, Shit is falling out of the sky game over man we're screwed we are totally–"
" Shut up, get a grip, Chavez, our weapons still work which means we can still kick some alien ass." Marcus interrupted. More debris then fell behind them causing everyone to stumble.
After that, there was an awkward silence. Stacker scanned the area a bit, then reached out and opened the door. " Stay here" he ordered.
" You are going out there, are you nuts," Manny said. Marcus looked around for a bit, it was safe.
" It's over, come on we still have a planet to save". Everyone then exited out of the building onto the street. The squad kept pushing forward. " What the hell happened here?" A marine asked
" Oh man, it is quiet. Hey, man, is your eyepiece working? Mine is down." Manny asked Ash.
" Mine is down too, this is weird bro" She answered. Manny just responded with a hooah. Suddenly heavy rain started to pour on them much to Makoa's pleasure as it cooled down and eased his wound on his arm. The squad then came upon huge wreckage " Check this place out" Manny said.
" Looks like eyepieces are down optics, and comms too. There is not even a street light upon these blocks." Marcus said checking a marine for vitals, He shook his head "damn it" He said, he is dead.
" All right, We need to regroup with whoever is left out there, Private Kelly take point."
"Got it," she responded.
5 minutes later:
They kept on moving through the abandoned streets of New Alexandria until Kelly spotted someone, " I got a contact right in front" She said.
" Who is it, is it a friendly?". Makoa asked.
" I do not know I can get a good look, too dark" She responded.
" Williams, you got a flare?" Marcus asked. Ash then looked into her pack and found one " Yes sir I have one right here"
Marcus opened his hand out " Pass it here" He ordered. Ashley then handed the flare to Marcus who tossed it to the unknown contact. The flare lit up the area and revealed a woman who looked to be in her mid-30s with brown hair. She had a gash on her head alongside abrasions and cuts and her arms and legs. " Stand down, it's a civvie," Marcus said.
"Jesus Christ is that child in her arms?," Ash noticed.
" Ah, bloody hell, I think you are right" Chips grimaced. Kelly had no words Ash had seen dead Civvies before.
The site before them was nothing new. 25 years of war would do that to you, but the troops never really got used to it. Makoa put his hand over his mouth. " Everyone set up a perimeter, Makoa try to provide some aid" Marcus ordered. "Got it."
" Be gentle, she seems to be in shock," Kelly said.
" Don't worry about me just watch out for Covvies" Makoa responded. He holstered his rifle and approached her slowly. " Hey miss you okay," He asks her. The woman looked up at him with red eyes and looked back down at her dead kid. " Uh miss you ok, you seem to be injured here let me help you." He then pulled out a medkit from his pouch, slowly went up to her, and knelt beside her. " May I see your wound miss?" Makoa asked. The stench of the dead body hit is nose, but Makoa did his best to ignore it. The woman was just staring blankly at the sky. "Uh, miss may I see your wounds." Makoa asks once more.
Manny then snickered " For god's sake Makoa she is gone we need to keep moving, you are wasting your time. Makoa then held his hand up.
" Can it Manny and let me do my job."
Manny rolled his eyes" Your job is supposed to kill aliens, not do charity work."
"I said shut it!" he screamed, startling the woman.
" Sarge we are wasting our time here, we need to keep moving, we are sitting ducks out here." Manny suggested.
Marcus then started pondering considering Manny's idea.
" Sarge, you said I should help her, just give me a few minutes and let me do my job," Makoa asked, making Manny more frustrated as he saw this was a waste of time " Makoa there is nothing there to help, you are wasting your time," He said again.
" If you can help her Shefte do what you need to." Marcus finally said. As much as the sergeant wanted to stay and help his main priority was to regroup with any other UNSC forces that survived
" Thank you, sir," Makoa responded. He then turned his attention back to the injured woman, He tapped her on the shoulder making her look up at him. " Listen, miss, let me see your wound so I can help you," He asked again.
Miraculously the woman finally listened to him and allowed him to see her wound on her arm. She then dropped her child on the ground. Makoa then examined the wound, it seemed to have been caused by some shrapnel that cut her right abdomen and arm. " Nasty cuts, don't worry about it though I will fix you up in no time" Makoa said. He then started bandaging up the lady's cut and applied some disinfectant on it as well.
" They're good as new Also I did not catch your name miss," He asked her.
The lady looked up at him, " Rebecca ." She responded quietly. Manny then started clapping "Congratulations you made a new friend can we get going now."
" Hold up bro wait a sec," Makoa responded.
" No." Manny childishly, Makoa just flipped him off in response.
Makoa then turned back to her. " Well Rebecca, you want to come with us?, we can get you off-planet," Makoa asked her. She then looked down at her dead child and didn't respond, "You see she wants to stay with her kid, let's get going," Manny said sarcastically.
" Hey Manny, watch it," Makoa responded. Manny put his hands up. " I am just saying"
" She just lost her kid, show some respect, " Kelly said, stepping up for Makoa.
" She is not the only one," Manny responded. Causing Kelly to glare at him.
" Stand down both of you," Stacker ordered, stepping between the two. Makoa turned around and whispered a thank you to her. She just gave him a thumbs-up.
" Listen, I hate saying this your son is gone and we need to get you out of here," he told her. Makoa's words seemed to cause her to start crying as she leaned in and hugged the marine and started sobbing on his left shoulder Makoa shook his head in dismay and could not find the right words to comfort the poor woman. All he did was hold onto her and gently rubbed her head and cooed her. " It is all going to be ok, it is not your fault, don't blame yourself for this." Makoa comforted her. Covenant are a bunch of Alien basterds
Stacker let the woman cry on Makoa not wanting to interrupt the heartbreaking moment. All the other Marines looked on in sorrow at the young woman's loss.
A lot of them, especially Kelly, felt partially responsible for the death of her son. Only if the UNSC had better technology and was not losing planets left and right maybe just maybe her son would still be here alive. They felt like they had failed. "No," Kelly thought they did fail. The female marine and her friend Ash were filled with sadness. Marcus finally decided to break the silence " Listen Shefte, we need to–" "Boom!!" An explosion landed right next to Makoa and his squad out of nowhere.
"What the bloody hell!" Chips screamed
" Covenant! Get down!" Yelled stacker.
Everyone then rushed for cover, except Makoa who started returning fire using himself as a shield to protect the young woman. A few elites and grunts started coming out of cover.
" Ochoa, Kelly, Dubbo focus on the grunts, as for the rest of you take out that major! Stacker ordered. The squad of marines then began firing at the covenant. Kelly shot in short bursts taking out two grunts. " Makoa! get in some goddamn cover!" Yelled Manny.
" Kind of busy here at the moment" Makoa Yelled trying to grab the woman into cover.
" Jesus Christ! Just leave her!" Manny yelled again, shooting a grunt.
" Like I said before!!,'' Shut it!" Makoa responded. An Elite then shot a bolt of plasma at Makoa. The plasma grazed his helmet. Makoa cursed to himself and with one hand lifted his rifle and pumped the Elite full of lead causing it to cry out and fall onto the ground.
Another Elite roared and started firing plasma at Kells and her group. Another shouted orders to a group of Grunts and Jackals. " Grenade out" Dubbo yelled, the grenade landed near a jackal and two grunts it exploded, killing them. The Marines kept firing. Makoa was finally able to drag the screaming Rebecca into cover right next to Ash and Kelly.
" Well, look who decided to take my advice". Manny said sarcastically.
"Fuck you man!" Makoa shouted across from him.
" You two can it!!" Marcus stared daggers at the two " Ash, Kelly flank around them we will keep you covered." He ordered the pair. The two nodded and moved to the right flank using debris and cars as cover. At the same time, Marcus and the Marines kept on laying down fire. Ash and Kelly, Kept moving quietly making sure to not draw any attention. They finally stopped behind a car. Ash looked over and saw a couple of Jackals 2 Elites and a dozen grunts. " Hey, Ash, you got a grenade on you?" Kelly Asked.
" Yeah, you as well?" she questioned back.
" Yes ok, here is the plan on a count of three we will throw our grenades in the general area that has the most hostiles After that we unload everything we got into them got it" Kelly planned. Ash nodded in response. " On 3, 1, 2, 3!"
The duo threw their grenades which landed at the feet of unexpected Grunts and Jackals. One grunt noticed the grenade and panicked but it was too late. The grenades detonated killing all the Jackals and a good number of grunts
After the grenade went off Kelly and Ash Started unloading everything they got at the enemy. Their shots killed a few more grunts before they had to duck behind cover from the covenant returning fire. Ash lifted her rifle above her and started blind firing. Marcus and the group of Marines started moving up. One Elite Yelled and started charging at Kelly. Kelly and Ash combined their firepower, breaking his shields. Kelly quickly lined it up with a headshot killing it.
The Elite and remaining grunts then retreated. " They are pulling back finish them off!" Ordered Stacker. The squad moved up to kill the rest. Makoa, Kelly, and Ash combined their firepower hitting the Elite, his shields broke and Kelly lined it up with a headshot. The marines then took out the remaining grunts with little difficulty.
When the squad finished off the rest of them, they looked to Sergeant Stacker to await new orders. " What do we do now sarge?" One of the Marines asked. " We need to keep moving, let's move through one of these buildings here." He said. "What about her sarge," Makoa said motioning to Rebecca who was clinging onto him. Manny scoffed. Sergeant Marcus took a quick look at her and sighed. " Fine she can come along with us but you are babysitting" He ordered. " Thank you, sir" Makoa responded.
The group of marines then entered one of the damaged buildings and swept the room for any hostels. The marines then slowly went up the stairs. When they arrived on the second floor the marines took cover near the doorway. They heard movement in the next room. " Sarge I hear movement,'' one of the marines said."
"Open the door slowly, private, you take point stay frosty marines," he ordered. The marine opened the door slowly and entered the room with Kells, Makoa, and the others following behind. " Friendlies' ' he whispered. He then turned the corner " Friendlies'' he asked once again. He then spotted a large figure. Before he could react the marine was slammed into the wall breaking his neck. " Son of a bitch!!" Makoa yelled.
" Brutes!!" Dubbo yelled. The brute roared in the air causing Rebecca to cover her ears Makoa then fired his rifle at the 8-foot monster hitting his head and killing it. Suddenly more brutes appeared out of nowhere and started firing at the marines. They quickly went into cover and started to return fire. One brute charged at Kelly. " Kelly, look out!" Manny shouted. He grabs 12 gauge off the dead marine and shot the brute directly in the face, quickly killing it. More brutes then appeared from the back door. '' We got more incoming,'' one Marine yelled.
"Just Keep firing" Marcus ordered. Rebecca scrambled to cover near Makoa while the rest of the Marines kept on firing on the brutes. Manny then took out a grenade and threw it near a group of brutes the grenade exploded taking 4 brutes with it. Leaving just one brute left, the monster let out a roar and leaped toward Manny. " Manny, look out!" Makoa yelled.
Manny's eyes went wide " Oh shit!" He yelled.
The brute threw Manny into a wall ignoring the bullets hitting him. The enraged Jirilhanea let out another roar and raised its arms to finish Manny off. The brute then got shot in the head, blood pouring from it. The large creature fell to the ground with a heavy thud. "It's dead right!?" Chips yelled.
"Clear!!" one Marine yelled
Manny turned around to see Ashley at the end of the barrel. " A thank you would be nice," She said sarcastically, causing Makoa to Snicker. " Fuck you Makoa" Manny insulted causing Kelly to sigh as she knew another argument was coming. But thankfully before Makoa could say anything back. Marcus interrupted them. " No, you two you are not going to start, Marines keep moving" He ordered.
Makoa sighed but continued moving with his squad with Rebecca closely following behind him. While they were moving through the building Makoa spotted an ammunition and weapons crate. " Hey, guys we got ammo and weapons here!" He yelled.
The rest of the marines then made their way to Makoa and the crates. "Alright, guys gear up and check your weapons and ammo this is probably one of the last times we are going resupply," Marcus said.
Everyone started resupplying and grabbing extra grenades. Ash tossed a BR clip to Kelly who thanked her. Makoa was rummaging through grabbing some rounds for his BR. Manny was busy searching one of the weapons crates. He opened it and what he saw brought a huge smile to his face. " Oh yeah this is mine," he said, holding the weapon. Makoa stopped what he was doing and saw that Manny had found an M247 machine gun. Manny was ecstatic to find such a weapon. " You got any ammunition for it?" Makoa asked.
Manny's smile faded and looked around for any ammunition with no luck. " No" he sadly responded.
"Well here I have some," Makoa said, handing it to him. "There is no magazine so you may need to wrap the ammunition around your chest. He said.
" You don't need to tell me that Makoa, I already saw that." Manny sarcastically replies successfully wrapping one piece of ammunition around himself and grabbing another belt to do the same. Kelly then searched through another weapons crate she opened to find a rocket launcher. The site of the launcher caused Ash to whistle. " Nice launcher we got there," She said. Kelly nodded in agreement and took the weapon out of its case. " It seems we only have two shots with this thing," She observed.
" Better make it count," Ash responded. Kelly nodded.
" Oi Kells make sure not to blow us up, yeah," Chips said Jokingly loading his rifle.
" I will make sure to not do that Dubbo, but no promises for Makoa," Kelly said causing the Aussie Marine to chuckle.
" What the hell Kells" Makoa exclaimed. Kelly just responded by sticking her tongue out. Makoa rolled his eyes and she said he was immature.
Manny then finished wrapping the Ammunition around him. The leftover ammunition that he was not able to fit he gave back to Makoa who did the same. He finished wrapping the final belt on him turned to Manny and stared at him for a bit and chuckled. " What?" Manny asked.
" Oh nothing it is just that you look like Poncho Villa" he responded. Manny in turn gave him a death stare. " What is that supposed to mean huh? Just because I am Mexican." He said.
" Jesus Christ can you two go for at least five minutes without trying to start an argument," Chips groaned.
" Bro I am just sayi—" Makoa then quickly shut up after receiving a quick glare from Stacker.
"All right everyone good on ammunition?" Stacker asked. Everyone responded with a yes sir or orah " All Right good let's head out" The sergeant ordered. The group of Marines exited out of a hole from the side of the building. Makoa carried Rebecca Bridal style and jumped down. He then gently set her back to her feet, she then quickly grabbed Makoa's arm scared out of her mind. The heavy rain once again hit Kelly's face. She would rather stay inside than deal with the rain but they had little time to get off this rock. The squad of Marines kept on moving through the streets of New Alexandria until they stumbled on a downed wraith.
Two Elites seem to be trying to get the wraith working again but with no luck. " Ok on the count of three, we take these Elites out got it?" Sergeant Marcus asked.
Everyone nodded. Marcus started counting Once he reached three the Marines made short work of the two Elites. The squad then continued on their journey through the city.
" Damn I can't see anything in this monsoon" Makoa commented.
" I hear you mate" Chips responded to him. "Quiet down you guys hear that," Kelly said. The Marines took cover and heard some unknown nose. A bright thunder covered the city lighting it up for a brief while. " Sarge, what is that?" Ashley asked looking at the unknown figures. " I don't know I will go check it out" Marcus Said. He then moved up out of cover. " UNSC!?" He yelled.
"Friendlies!?" he yelled once more.
" Please respond damn it" Makoa whispered.
Stacker then grabbed a flare off the ground and threw it at the unknown contacts. To the Marines' horror, the flare revealed a covenant squad.
" Covenant!" a marine yelled opening fire, Everyone else then soon joined him. Manny opened up with his lmg ripping through the Elites' shield. Once they were finished off Makoa breathed a sigh of relief " I am so glad that we found that." He commented.
" I agree Makoa, but I do not remember asking." Manny sarcastically remarked.
Makoa turned angrily, but Marcus got between the two. " You two don't even start and get your asses moving." He ordered.
The two just responded with a yes sir and continued down the street with the rest of their squad.
While walking down the street Ashley went beside Kelly. " Well, this is some mess we got ourselves into Kells." She said. Kelly scanned the horizon with the launcher clanking on her armor with each step, she then turned to Ashley
Kelly nodded " We knew what we were getting into when we signed up back on Earth," She said nonchalantly
" Yeah but I really don't want to die on this rock" She responded.
Kelly smirked at Ash's remark. " Don't worry I will make sure you will make it out alive"
Ash was reassured by her friends' willingness.
" Well just in case we don't make it I want to let you know that I have no regrets and I am proud to be here with you," Ash said touching the stubborn Marine's heart.
" I really appreciate that Ash" She responded. Makoa then turned around and spoke " What about me Kells? you going to make sure I am alive by the end of this," he asked sarcastically. Kelly rolled her eyes " No Makoa I going to make sure that the Elites eat you alive and twist out your intestines." She responded with the same amount of sarcasm causing Manny, Ash, Dubbo, and Carlos the whole squad, and even Marcus to laugh, and from the corner of her eye, Kelly could see Rebecca smiling.
" Damn, harsh much." Makoa said.
" Of course, I will you fool somebody needs to keep your dumbass alive." She said.
" I have to agree with that". Manny responded.
Makoa then turned back to Manny " Shut up Poncho Villa no one asked you" he responded.
" Oi Kells you make sure I make it out of here as well right," Chips asked.
" Of course, I will Dubbo" She responded.
"What about your favorite Mexican Marine?" Carlos asked.
" And of course you too as well I am just having second thoughts about Makoa," She said.
" Hey!" Makoa yelled causing everyone to laugh again. The squad of marines kept on moving through the destroyed city their comms and tech gear still not working. While they were moving through the streets they heard gunfire.
" That is small arms fire sir," Chips said.
" I can see that, Williams is our coms back up?!" Stacker asked.
"No sir it is still down," Ash said
" Ah damn it!!" He screamed.
" What are we going to do sarge," Dubbo asked.
Stacker pondered for a bit then had an idea pop in his head" This is what we are going to do we are going to move in and help out whoever is in trouble" He answered.
" Yeah and get us killed in the process," Manny remarked.
" Can it Chavez!, The rest of you get a move on!"
The squad started running in the direction of the gunfire.
3 minutes later.
Once the marines reached the firefight they saw a rag-tag group of militiamen fighting off a brute pack with civilians running for cover. One brute punched one breaking his neck instantly. The Marines quickly engaged the Covenant forces. A sigh of relief came upon the civilians upon seeing them. The Marines started quickly fighting alongside the militia killing a few brutes before moving in cover Kelly tossed a grenade killing two behind it. Manny set up his lmg behind some cover and started laying down suppressing fire.
Makoa then took Rebecca behind some cover alongside the other civvies. " Stay here along with the rest of them ok I will be right back" Makoa tried to leave but Rebecca grabbed his arm, begging him not to go. " Calm down Rebs, I will be right back before you know it," Makoa said lightly, pushing her back into cover. Rebecca tried to get out of cover again only to be pulled back. Rebecca looked at the person who grabbed her. She was wearing a lab coat and had blonde hair
With Rebecca safe, Makoa went to join his fellow Marines in the firefight; he jumped into cover and started laying down fire on the brutes. He shot one in the head and proceeded to kill another one. Rebecca stayed in cover in fear alongside the other civvies. The marines kept on fighting off the brutes killing nearly half. Kelly threw a grenade near a pack of brutes. The explosion obliterated the rest of the brutes leaving only one left.
The last brute of the pack let out a huge roar causing the civs to cover their ears. The brute then charged at the closest Marine, Through bad luck, Manny was the nearest. Manny started mag-dumping the charging brute. His lmg had little to no effect as the enraged alien leaped at him, ' Oh shit!, not again'' He yelled getting thrown to the ground. "Shit!" Makoa said to himself and then pointed his rifle at the brute. He pulled the trigger but no gunfire, instead it was replaced with only a clicking sound.
Shit, it was out of ammo. Before the Marines could take out the brute, a green beam landed and exploded near them causing a few of them to stagger. Makoa turned and saw two hunters appeared out of nowhere and started advancing toward them. " Uh sarge, we got big problems!" Makoa yelled.
Marcus turned to see the two lumbering giants charging at them aiming their weapons. " Everyone take cover!" He yelled.
Makoa's eyes widened. " Oh yeah, we have big problems!!" The hunter then shot their beam rodes " Big fucking problems" Makoa yelled barely dodging the beam. Makoa got up and scrambled to cover. Manny punched the brute in the face, only angering the space gorilla, even more, Manny grabbed his magnum from his side only for it to be hit out of his hand, The brute then swung at him, and Manny quickly ducked under dodging the attack.
With no other option left, he then pulled out his combat knife from its sheath. He got into a combat stance. He looked around to see if anyone was going to come to his aide, but unfortunately for him, everyone was too busy fighting off two hunters leaving him on his own. The brute let out another roar hurting his ears.
" Great," he thought, " This is not going to be fun".
Stacker and his men fired at the oncoming hunters but their bullets had little effect on them. " Shit!" Makoa cursed reloading another mag. He looked over to Kelly. " Hey, Kells!" He yelled. She turned to him. " I think it will be a great time to use that launcher now!" He told her. " Oi Kells! Shoot these bastards already" Chips added, shooting his rifle. Kelly then grabbed the launcher from her back. She aimed it at one of the hunters she looked through her scope, she had the 12-foot giant directly in her sights. " Wait!" Ash then came right next to her " Don't shoot yet wait for it to expose its back" She advised. Kelly nodded and waited for the right moment.
The hunter finally turned around exposing its weak spot Kelly quickly fired. The rocket hit the hunter's exposed back causing it to let out a scream. Its brother, not so pleased, let out a huge roar and started charging to the closest marine.
Kelly then aimed her weapon at the other hunter. However, the hunter shot first at her position. Ash quickly tackled Kelly to the ground causing a misfire and the rocket hitting a building. Kelly grumbled in annoyance " Look what you did, you made me miss" She said angrily. " A you're welcome What of been nice" She responded putting her hand out. Kelly gladly took it, and Ashley pulled her up. She then tapped Kelly's Shoulder " Let's go help them out yeah"
"Let's," Kelly responded.
Manny breathed heavily, his entire body ached, he was barely holding his own against the brute, thankfully he was able to get a few lucky hits on it. The brute itself was not doing so well and was bleeding. It was upset that he was still alive. How is it that this mere human can go toe to toe with him? The brute growled in frustration. Manny kept his eye on his opponent making sure to not let it get an angle on him. He then heard a whimper behind him and saw the group of civilians watching in terror. " Shit," he thought to himself if the brute killed him it would no doubt kill the civilians as well. Manny desperately looked around to see if anyone could come to his aide.
Nobody and with comms down he could not call for help he was on his own.
The brute then charged at him letting out another roar, Manny dodged it and slashed the side of his lower abdomen. The gorilla howled in pain holding its wound. The brute then turned back to Manny and snarled at him.
Manny smirked, " You want lunch bitch, come and get it!!" He taunted. The brute then leaped at him. Manny once again dodges and slashes its right cheek. The brute responded with a fury of punches which Manny did its best to dodge, however, the alien managed to get a lucky hit on Manny's chest shattering his armor and knocking him to the ground. The civilian onlookers gasped with worry as they saw the Marine fall. Manny got the wind kicked out of him and to make matters worse, he looked up and saw the brute slowly approaching him.
The brute then started maniacally laughing seeing as his prey was beaten. The creature then grabbed Manny by the Neck. " I am going to have a good meal, it has been a long time since I had human flesh" the brute licked its lips. Manny then quickly reached and stabbed the alien in the right eye, causing it to drop him and yell out in pain and making the Marine's ears bleed. The brute then took the blade out of his eye socket and threw it onto the ground. The enraged alien raised up its fist to strike Manny.
He then closed his eyes expecting to die. " Ashley, and Kelly I am sorry watch over that dumbass Makoa". He thought to himself shedding a single tear. The brute raised its fist but a loud gunshot rang out. The brute got hit in the chest and staggered back. Manny turned around to see a girl with a gray headband, gray eyes, and black hair wielding a shotgun. The brute walked toward her only for her to shoot again. The shot caused it to stagger however it kept moving forward. She then shot, again, and again, until the brute slowly fell down onto the floor. The woman sighed in relief. Manny was still on the floor in pain " Hey can I get some help over here" he said in a weak voice. The woman quickly dashed over to him. The marine had a few cuts and bruises on his face alongside his arms.
She then looked down at his chest plate. His entire armor was shattered and broken. She lightly touched it causing him to groan in pain. " Doctor!" She yelled out. " Huh interesting accent Hungarian I think," Manny thought. A woman in a white lab coat came out of cover and ran to them. She leaned down and looked at his injuries with worry in her eyes. " Wow this woman is hot as fuck, She has beautiful blue eyes, alongside blonde hair," He thought. Shit he was turn into Makoa. He also noticed she had huge assets as well. Manny smiled to himself even if he was going to die, at least the two last things he saw were a pair of hot women. " Ut myn god, ze Alien did a number on you," She said with a heavy German accent. " You noticed, '' Manny jokingly said causing him to cough some blood.
The doctor put a finger on his mouth. " Hush yourz, going to hurt yourzelf by talking." She gently said. She then reached into her pocket and grabbed a piece of painkillers. " Here swallow this it would ease the pain" She instructed. Manny then took the pills. The doctor then reached into her bag again and pulled out some bandages. She then started taking care of his wounds with the black-haired standing guard, and Rebecca and the rest of the group just watched.
Kelly emptied an entire clip into the hunter's back, finally killing it. Everyone circled around the now-deceased hunter panting heavily. " It is dead right?" Makoa asked
"Mate it is here lying on the ground motionless Of course it is dead!" Chips shouted.
" Hey, I am just asking," Makoa responded. Ashley looked around for a little " Hey where is Manny?" She asked. Makoa and Chip's eyes widened, shit they entirely forgot about him since they were too busy fighting the hunters. The squad quickly ran back hoping to find their squadmate in one piece.
When they reached him and breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that he was still alive. Makoa then walked up right next to him. " The brute was too tough for you huh" He mocked looking down at him
" Fuck you guys left me to fight it on his own 'cough'" He responded spitting out some blood.
" I told you not to talk" the doctor scolded bandaging his left arm.
Ashley, the closest thing they got to a corpsman leaned down right next to him to check his condition. " What do we got Williams," Stacker asked
" He is pretty fucked up Sarge, his armor is shattered, and most likely is suffering some broken ribs," She said.
" Yep, I definitely broke something," Manny commented.
The doctor narrowed her eyes at him angrily " I thought I told you not to talk" She scolded once again.
" Can you do anything for him?" Stacker looked at her.
Ashley shook her head, " Not much I can do for him, we could only give him some painkillers and get him into an MTF" She said to Stacker.
The doctor then Chimed in " Already done that." She said,
Stacker went at pondered at the Unknown woman. " And you are?"
The blonde perked her head up " Oh the name's Doctor Amelia Watson" She said taking her hand out, Stacker shook her hand " A pleasure to meet you Doctor" He said.
"The pleasure is all mine" She responded.
" And you miss," He said looking at the girl with the gray headband.
" Sara Sorvand" She responded.
" If you guys are done flirting I would remind you that I am dying here." Manny groaned in pain. Amelia's eyes widened " Mien gourd, I am so sorry," She said frantically. She then gently pulled him up to his feet. Manny started coughing and almost fell over only to be caught by Ashley.
" Sir we need to get him in an ER or something he ain't doing so well," Ashley said. Stacker cursed to himself. " Here I got him." the doctor said putting Manny's arm behind her head. Manny grunted in pain. Stacker turned to Chips " Please tell me we got coms up?" He asked the Aussie. Chips sadly shook his head. " Damn it, " Stacker said to himself. Kelly crossed her arms under her bust and wondered what they were going to do next. Stacker thought for a bit about what they should do. Then an idea popped into his head. " Alright, this is what we are going to do, we are going to keep moving through this city and hopefully regroup with any remaining UNSC." He finally said.
Everyone had doubts they would run into anyone else let alone UNSC but these are all the ideas they got. " Well 'cough cough' that is a great plan, sarge maybe we will meet Santa while we are at it," He said sarcastically. Makoa turned to him to comment. " Well Manny I do not see you coming up with a plan that is better, oh wait I forgot you are kind of crippled right now so that is going to be difficult." He shot back. " Fuck you 'Cough' Makoa" He spit blood again. " I am just saying jacka- Oi!" Makoa was interrupted by Kelly knocking him on his head. " Shut up smartass your brother is literally dying and here you are laughing at him," She said.
" But he started it," Makoa muttered under his breath, causing Manny to stick his tongue out at him, Kelly hitting him once again causing Chips and the rest of the Marines to laugh. Only to stop once they received a look from Kelly's death stare. " And you," she pointed to Manny.
" You need to keep your mouth shut, you are going to hurt yourself if you keep doing so," She said. Manny went to speak but quickly shut up after receiving a death glare from Kelly.
" If you kids are done arguing, Makoa can you please go pick up m247 please, Ash take Manny's ammunition." He ordered. Ashley then started undoing the ammunition on his chest. " Uh, Sarge?" Makoa called him.
Stacker sighed " What is it Shefte?"
Makoa pointed to the civilians " They are coming with us right?" He asked.
Stacker rolled his eyes in annoyance " Yes, the civvies are coming with us, now go and grab the damn Lmg!" He ordered. Makoa frantically ran to grab the machine gun off the ground. The whole situation confused the doctor and Sara. These were the marines that were fighting the covenant, are all the marines like this? No wonder humanity was losing this war. The doctor thought. She then turned to Ashley " Are all marines like this?" She asked. Ashley smirked. " Only the good ones." She responded by tossing the ammunition to Makoa who wrapped it around his chest.
" All right everybody enough loli-gagging let's move out Kelly you take point." He ordered. And Rebecca then rushed to the side of Makoa and tapped him on his shoulder. " And you" He pointed to Sara. The girl stopped in her tracks.
" You are going to need this," he said handing her a vest he looted off one of the dead militia men. Sara looked at the vest in disgust as it was a little bloody. She was not too keen on wearing that. " Listen miss this is the best you got and it would be advantageous for you to wear it." He said.
Reluctantly she finally took the chest piece despite the smell. She finally strapped it on. Satisfied Stacker went into the front of the group.
Just like that everybody was on the move again. " What an interesting group," Amelia thought to herself.
Amelia Pov:
While walking the streets of New Alexandria Sara and I learned more about the marines. Both of us learned that the ones called Makoa and Manny are brothers even though they barely resemble each other. We also learned a bit more about Kelly who interestingly enough has a Heterochromia condition her left purple with her right blue. Her friend Ashley as she told us how all of them met and how they decided to join the Marine Corps. " So that is how Makoa ended up in the infirmary for a few weeks," Ashley said, finishing up a story. Causing me and Sara to chuckle.
"You did not tell them that the bastard kind of deserved it," Makoa said.
" The guy you picked a fight with was a high-ranking officer Koa," Ashley responded using his nickname. I swear this group of marines are like nothing I have seen before. At least compared to other groups I have met. Usually, when I think of them, I picture disciplined soldiers that have no emotion whatsoever. But after seeing this group it stunned me a bit. They act more like family than a unit with their sergeant acting more like a father to them than a superior officer. Of course, they still salute him, but there is a family type of relationship between them all.
Makoa then Scoffed " What did you want me to do? The guy slapped Kelly's ass, I was not going to let it slide."
Ashley rolled her eyes " You also failed to take into account that 5 of his buddies were with him and it was only you and Manny at the time." Manny then smiled and put a thumbs up coughing a bit causing me to lightly tap his back.
" We won the fight, didn't we" He responded.
" Not after breaking your hand on someone's face and almost losing your career." She sighed. " Not to also mention you were lucky that cameras caught the whole event or you would have been in a world of shit" She finally responded.
" I also remember telling you to let it go and not do anything," A voice said.
We all turned around to see Kelly staring daggers at Makoa. He held his hands up.
" He slapped your ass Kells, you are like a sister to me." He defended himself.
Kelly rolled her eyes " Makoa it was really sweet of you to go ahead and do that but since it was caught on camera you didn't have to punch the guy in the face." She said
" Hey he had it coming." He said
Kelly furrowed her brow. " That does not matter, The point is you shouldn't have done that and you went and got yourself hurt over something so trivial." She finally said.
Makoa decided not to respond knowing that at the end of the day, he acted a bit irrationally. He got saddened a bit.
Third-person POV
Sensing that Makoa was upset. She asked Sergeant Marcus for someone else to take point and go to the rear, also Sensing Makoa's sadness he obliged. " Sure Kelly go ahead, Dubbo take point," Stacker said. Kelly fist-pumped Chips and went to the back where Makoa and Ash were. She went beside Makoa and tapped him on the shoulder and the saddened Marine lifted his head.
" Don't take it too heart Koa," She said, comforting him. She then wrapped her arm around his shoulder.
" As annoyed as I was that you were being a dumbass–"
"Word" Manny chuckled causing him to cough and to once get scolded by the blonde doctor again.
" As I was saying," Kelly continued. " As annoyed as I was that you were being a dumbass and you are not innocent as well Manny" She glared at him. Manny thought about replying but decided against it and just smirked, as he did not want to get scolded again. " But besides that, it was really sweet of you to do that, even though you were being dumbass." She said, Kelly's words struck Makoa as he was heart-warmed that she appreciated him.
" What about me 'Cough'?" Manny interrupted. Way for him to ruin the moment Makoa thought. The blonde rolled her eyes at this point it is his funeral.
Kelly Sighed " Of course Manny, now shut the fuck up" She told him. Manny gave her a thumbs up.
The group of Marines had been moving through the city for over half an hour by now with nobody in sight Ashley kept on checking for comms but there was still nothing, Chips then went right next to Stacker "Sir the group of civvies are starting to get tired and need to rest soon." Chips told him.
Marcus looked back and saw that he was right. A lot of them could barely walk and some of the marines had to go ahead and just help them stand. Marcus shook his head. "We can't stop, we need to get the hell out of this city, and then this planet." He said. Dubbo snorted " Whatever happened to saving the planet sarge?" He asked. Stacker shook his head and pointed to the surrounding city. " Look around private this city is lost not to mention the planet. The entire covenant navy is here the best thing we can do is get off this rock." He told him.
Before Chipps could respond a red flare popped up into the sky. " Oh bloody hell" "Shit that is an SOS sir," Ashley said.
" I think that bloody remains obvious," Chips responded.
Stacker then turned into his squad " All right everybody double-times it we need to go help to whoever sent out that flare, except you Makoa you are going to stay here alongside the gun-ho civvie."
" The name's Sara soldier boy" The woman retorted.
" Whatever" He responded.
Stacker was about to leave until Makoa called out to him " Question sir why do I have to stay behind with the civs?" He asked.
" Because you were the one that decided to play Jesus" Stacker responded.
The squad of Marines then started sprinting towards the location where the flare was shot from. Marcus and his squad were running through the desolate streets. The sound of gunfire became louder by the minute. They then arrived at a scene of army troopers defending a military outpost alongside armed civilians fighting a pack of brutes.
Marcus took out his binoculars to better assess the situation. Looking through his scopes he saw two Pelicans that the troopers were trying to defend, and the Covenant have breached into the base. He counted at least 15 brutes. " Your orders Sarge?" Dubbo asked.
Stacker put his binoculars away. " Alright we are going to split up into two teams, Williams, Kelly, Carlos and Dubbo you guys flank them from behind, don't engage until I tell you two. " He planned. The three of them nodded "The rest of you we are going to go and support the troopers and join their defense, looks like the Marines got to save the army once again" He remarked causing everyone to chuckle. " All right everybody got the plane oorah." He asked for the final time. "Oorah," They all said. The marines then started scattering to their positions. " Well, it seems that we can't go one minute without getting into a gunfight. '' Dubbo joked.
" Welcome to the Marine Corps," Ashley said.
" We got brutes coming on the left flank!." A trooper shouted.
"Somebody take them out!" Sergeant Singh yelled. An explosion landed near them injuring two troopers.
" We got wounded," another trooper shouted.
" Drag them to the back of the pelicans there, they would be safe!!." He ordered.
The brutes were advancing on them and to make matters worse they were starting to run low on ammunition. They kept on firing on the incoming brutes. This was not good. Suddenly one appeared behind Singh. " Sir look out!" One of the troopers yelled. Singh turned around to see the behemoth about to strike. But a trooper luckily shot the beast in the head killing it and causing its blood to splatter on the lieutenant's face. " You all right sir?" the trooper asked.
" I am fine, Keep up your fire, do not allow them to get close!" He ordered.
One trooper on the Warthog turret kept on laying suppressing fire,
A needler shot then struck him in the neck, His body fell on the turret. " Sir!! David is hit!!."
Shit, this situation is getting worse by the minute. " Ramirez get on the turret!" He ordered. The trooper then sprinted to the turret and got on it. " We need some bloody fucking reinforcements, Somebody please tell me are commes are back up!" He asks. " They are still down sir." a trooper responded
" Leave it up to the Spartans to get them in this situation." The Lieutenant thought to himself.
All of a sudden more Brutes started to emerge out of nowhere, fuck they are screwed. "We got more brutes, sir! What do we do!?"
" Just keep shooting!" He yelled if he was going to die today he was going to take down as many of these Alien basterds as much as possible.
"COME ON PENCHODS THAT IS ALL YOU GOT!" he cursed.
Suddenly a group of explosions occurred killing half of the brute pack and the reinforcements. " What?" Singh thought to himself confused. One of the chieftains got shot in the head. He then turned around and saw a group of Marines emerge from behind them and another group emerged from the destroyed buildings making short work of the Brutes.
When it was finally all over a sigh of relief overcame the troopers. Another group of civilians including a few children then appeared. Lieutenant Singh went out to meet Sergeant Stacker. " Which one of you is in command? " Well, that would be him, sir," One of the Marines said as he pointed to Stacker. Singh went up and shook his hand " I would like to thank you sir if you have not arrived who knows what would have happened to us." He thanked him.
"No problem Lieutenant... sorry I did not catch your name sir," Stacker said.
"Singh," He said.
"Sat Sri Akaal" a voice said.
Singh looked over and saw another fellow Indian greeting him and joined by another.
"Sat Sri Akaal" The lieutenant responded.
"How are you doing today my brothers." He asked.
"Other than dealing with genocidal aliens, pretty good sir" He responded.
" What about you brother?" the Lieutenant asked.
" Ok, I guess." the other Indian responded.
One marine then came up to him and started tapping him on the side.
Raj Sighed" What is it now Dylan" Jazz asked annoyed
" Look who is coming down the ridge" He pointed. Jazz looked up and saw a group of civilians with two marines coming down the ridge and heading towards them. " Ok, what am I supposed to be looking at?" He asked. Dylan then pointed to one marine. " Holy shit," Raj thought. He recognizes that ugly-ass Asian face anywhere it was Makoa. " Yo that is Makoa!" Pards noticed.
" No shit let's go say hi," He said.
" Sir if you would excuse us" Raj saluted.
Singh dismissed them to continue talking with Stacker.
Makoa was helping move with some of the wounded
Raj snuck up right behind him.
" Sup BITCH!!" Raj screamed into his ear. Makoa jumped in fear and turned around.
" WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK BRO!!" He screamed. Makoa then turned in anger only for it to fade. " Raj?" he asked, confused. " Sup motherfucker!" He yelled once again.
Dylan then tackled Makoa to the ground " SUP YOU LITTLE BITCH!!" he yelled locking Makoa into a chokehold.
" Ok Jesus, I'm happy to see you guys too but can you please let me go," Makoa choked out. Dylan kept on laughing and let him go. Makoa got up. " Ok for once in our life can we greet each other like normal human beings," Makoa Said brushing himself off. The two of them laughed while Pards just smirked. " Bro we are nothing but normal especially you Koa" Raj chuckled.
" Whatever man, come and give me a hug," Makoa said, opening his arms.
" Okay, you gay ass" Raj responded engulfing Makoa.
Makoa then noticed Pards. " Hey isn't it the superior Indian"
The compliment caused him to smirk " Why thank you Makoa" Pards poshed up. Raj facepalmed " Makoa you do realize you are about to start a wholeass argument right "
" Oh I know I just like to see you suffer" he responded.
" Fucking Jackass" He responded shaking his head. Causing Makoa to laugh. Kelly and Ash then walked over to the group of marines.
"Yo!! Sup Kelly, sup Ash!" Raj said, greeting them.
"Hey, Raj." She fist-pumped him, " Pards, Dylan" She greeted.
"Sup," they both said.
" Yo Makoa!!"
Raj looked around for a bit and noticed that Manny was missing. " Yo, where is Manny?" Kelly turned to him. Before she could speak Makoa jumped right in front of her. " The dumbass got into a fistfight with a Brute and literally got the air kicked out of him," Makoa said, pointing to an injured Manny. Raj then returned a questioning look.
" Where were you guys when Manny was busy getting fucked by a grilaa?" The question made Makoa chuckle.
" Well, we were busy getting shot at by a pair of hunters. Makoa Simply responded, rubbing his neck. " Ah I see, Well I am going to go Say hi to Manny, I will catch up with you guys later"
" I will go with you," Dylan said, joining Raj to see the injured Marine.
The duo then disappeared behind the Pelican no doubt to make fun of Manny. " Anyways, how is it going with you guys?" Pards awkwardly asked, trying to start a conversation " Oh you know besides trying to avoid genocidal Aliens and getting eaten by brutes pretty well." Makoa Said Sarcastically.
" It has been a rough couple of days. This battle seems like it is all but lost," Kelly interjected. " We also lost nearly half our platoon and we are scattered," Ash added.
Pards was saddened a bit upon hearing the losses that Kelly's Squad has taken. He shook his head " Yeah I am sorry to hear that we are not having that much luck either." He said. He started tearing up " We were moving through the city and saw a terrible sight.
Pards Pov:
30 minutes ago:
Pards and his squad were walking through the city, the heavy ran hitting his helmet. They kept moving forward and saw a horrible sight. At least 200 bodies of civilians with a few soldiers alongside them all together. The marines looked on in despair disgusted at the sight. Pards then looked more closely and saw a sight he would never forget. As long the bodies was a family looked to be a father, mother, and their child, all holding hands. " Grab the tags of the bodies" Jazz ordered.
" What about the dead civvies" Frankie asked.
Raj sighed. " Leave them nothing we can do for them now."
Pards still stared at the dead family, had a feeling of hopelessness, and felt that he had failed. What is the point of all this they were losing they have definitely lost the planet at this point and when that happens so does the war. All the other marines then move forward, but not Pards he keeps looking at the family. Suddenly he started to cry, he couldn't take this anymore he felt like giving up at this point. He then felt a hand on his shoulder. " Come on bro, nothing we can do for them." Raj told him. Pards took another look at the dead family. " Come on lets go" Raj continued. The two then left, Pard took one final look at the family he teared up, but the two brave marines continued forward. The rain was heavy that night on Reach, thankfully that family could finally rest in peace
He wiped his tears as he finished the story. Makoa went and rubbed the marine's shoulder in an attempt to comfort him but did very little. " She could be no more than 8 years old" He continued crying. Kelly and Ash did not know what to say to comfort him, While Watson had Sympathy for the Marine she didn't know what to say she was a medical doctor not a psychologist. She continued bandaging Manny's bruised eye.
" So Manny Wanny we heard that you got into a fight with a brute how did it go?"
Manny turned around annoyed at the Indians' sarcasm " That should be self-explanatory by just looking at me Jack-" Manny started coughing once again earning him a scolding from the doctor. She then turned around angrily at the two marines They both shuddered at her glare until Jazz finally spoke up " Uhm, is there a problem miss?" Raj asked.
The doctor placed a hand under her hip annoyed "I would appreciate it if you guys wouldn't antagonize him" She demanded giving them a death glare causing the two to back away. " All right, okay," Raj said sarcastically holding his hands up. He and Dylan then left the two alone. " Schiese, fucking marines" the doctor cursed.
Kells and Ash were busy consoling Pards as he was breaking down as he couldn't take it anymore. " What the Fuck are we doing here!!," He yelled.
"What is the fucking point when Reach is lost it's only a matter of time before the Covenant finishes us off!!" He continued his rant. Pard's mental breakdown gained the attention of everybody including the civilians who were already frightened and Pard's rant is not helping " Shit" Kelly thought this is the last thing they needed right now. Quickly she grabbed Pards to one of the two Pelicans so no one else could witness his episode. Amelia looked on in pity. She set Pards down on one of the seats and he started bawling at her. Kelly just hugged him as the marine kept crying on her shoulder. The female marine did not know what to say Pards was right Reach was vital and the battle has been lost and after that what is going to happen now? She decided not to think about it and focused her attention on Pards. This continued for a few more minutes until Ash arrived. " Hey Kells" She waved.
Kelly nodded back acknowledging her presence. " How are you doing Pards?"
" Oh, just swell can you tell, " He said with obvious sarcasm. Ash scoffed " Hey listen I am only trying to help no need to be an asshole ok?"
" Whatever." He responded.
"Anyways Carlos and Makoa want to see you".
Makoa what could he possibly want can't he see that she is a bit busy? " What does Makoa want me for, can't he see I am a bit preoccupied "she responded.
"That's why he sent me over, I will take it from here," She said. Kelly looked over to Pards to see if he was okay with this. He nodded signaling her that she could leave.
" All right he is all yours," she said.
"Don't worry I will take care of him" Ashley responded sitting right next to Pards.
Kelly sighed and exited the pelican. She saw Rigo, Carlos, Frankie, and Jesus laughing and making fun of Makoa much to his detriment.
She walked over to them and the group took notice of her.
" Long time no see Kelly" Carlos greeted being as charming as ever.
" Nice to see you too Carlos," She said hugging him. She then went and greeted everyone else this is the first time that they have seen each other in a few months. Kelly wouldn't admit it out loud but she was very worried about her friends so she is relieved that they were still alive. " So I heard Manny got into a fistfight with a brute," Carlos asked.
"Yeah man it was crazy we were pinned by two hunters and couldn't get to him" Makoa Said
" Damn that is crazy" Frankie added
Rigo then looked over and noticed a certain blonde treating Manny.
" Who is the cute blonde?" He asked Makoa.
Makoa looked over at who he was pointing at. " Oh her, she was with the group of civvies that we rescued earlier, I think Manny has a crush on her" He whispered to him.
" Can't blame him her breasts are fucking huge" Rigo commented. " You right" Frankie and Carlos nodded their heads in agreement making Ash, and Kelly roll their eyes. "Men," They thought, cringing inside.
" All right everybody in my squad gather up on me" Sgt. Stacker yelled. Ash and Pards then exited out of the Pelican as well hugging each other before departing.
"Well, duty calls," Makoa said.
" We will continue this discussion later," Frankie said. The group of marines then went to their respective squads. Once everybody gathered up he started. " All right here is the situation here we got engineers working on the two pelicans" He pointed. "The first Pelican will transport the Civvies out of here to a Paris class that is still in orbit." He said. " The Civvies are taking the first one What about us" One marine commented. " Shut it, man, this is what we signed up for." Another retorted.
" Both Pelicans should approximately take 10 to 15 minutes to be done." 15 minutes that isn't so bad Kelly thought. " We will be taking the second one to the Pillar of Autumn once it is finished being repaired." He continued
"But here is the catch one of our lookouts spotted a covenant squadron heading down to our position, so we are going to have to set up a defensive perimeter around here got it" Kelly and her squad acknowledged the new information. It has been barely 10 minutes and they are already getting into another gunfight.
" Any questions?" He asked.
" I got one?" Makoa raised his hand.
" No Makoa you can't have a lunch break" Ashley Jabbed at him causing everybody to laugh even making Kelly crack a smile.
" All right, all right, everybody calm down" Stacker ordered. The laughter then finally quieted down. " Continue with your question Shefte."
Makoa breathed a sigh of relief. " Sarge, why can't we just take both pelicans to the frigate why are we staying on this rock?" Makoa finally asked. The marine did have a point would it make more sense for them to take both Pelicans to the frigate instead? If the Frigate was presumably still there. Kelly shuddered at the thought of it being destroyed.
" Well for one the frigate is trying to evacuate civilians, and two we have orders from command to regroup at the Pillar of Autumn" Stacker finished.
" Well we are in some deep shi–" (Boom!)
" What the Fuck!" A marine shouted.
"Shit!!, we got covenant!!" Another shouted. A huge group of enemies appeared out of nowhere mixed with some Brutes, Grunts, and Jackals.
" Defensive positions!!" Marcus yelled. All the Marines and Troopers scattered for cover.
"Somebody get on the turret!" The Lieutenant yelled. Makoa and Kelly started laying down some fire. Putting the Lmg to good use he started suppressing the enemy. The civilians cowered in fear while Amelia was trying her best to work on the injured Manny.
The Marines and troopers were making short work of the covenant squad. A chieftain charged their position only to be sniped by Carlos.
The remaining enemies were quickly killed afterward. However, luck would not be on their side when another group of enemies appeared this time with Elites.
" Shit we got more coming!" Screamed Dubbo.
" Everybody hold your positions!!." Yelled Stacker. Everybody continued firing at the approaching covenant. Carlos sniped one of the Majors causing Major panic in the ranks. " Grenade out!" Ashley yelled. She tossed a nade killing a few grunts. " Nice nade Ash" Makoa complimented.
"Less talking more shooting" Raj yelled.
10 minutes later
All the marines and troopers were tired and breathing heavily. Surrounded by dead bodies of Covenant. " That's all of them right?" Rigo asked.
"I honestly doubt it" Frankie responded.
Makoa then took off his helmet to wipe the sweat off his brow. " Shit that was tough," he said.
" You are telling me" Ash responded drinking from her canteen. Unknown to them a group of scavengers was lurking in the shadows. One of them was armed with a needler rifle. It aimed at one of the troopers on the turret. Once the crosshair was on him the creature shot hitting the trooper directly in the heart killing him. The scavengers then ambushed them.
To make matters worse two hunters alongside a few elites appeared. " Shit, this is getting worst by the minute!" Makoa yelled opening fire.
" How much longer do we have on the pelicans!?" Stacker yelled.
" We need to give the engineering team at least five more minutes!" The Lieutenant shouted back.
" Ramirez get on the turret" He ordered. The troopers and marines did their best to fend off the attackers. Carlos sniped one of the hunters in the neck killing it enraging its brother.
"Shit we got a Hunter charging straight at us!"
Makoa and the rest of them scattered to avoid the hunters' wrath. Everybody then started to focus their fire on it. With the combined firepower it was quickly killed. However, more enemies started to appear with one grunt with a plasma launcher aiming at one of the Pelicans. " Carlos take that grunt out at 12:00 o'clock!" Makoa Screamed. " I got him," Carlos said sniping the grunt.
"Jesus Christ there is so many of them!!" Frankie yelled.
"Just keep firing!" Rigo screamed Killing an Elite.
An elite then appeared behind Makoa cloaked it unsheathed its plasma sword but before he could impale him Sara pumped the Elite full of lead. Makoa turned around and saw the brunette standing before him. Noticing the dead alien on the ground, He nodded a thank you to his savior and she nodded back.
" Almost got it, Done!! The pelicans are ready!! we are getting off this rock the Engineer yelled. All of the civilians then started rushing to the pelican desperate to finally get off the planet. " Cover the Civilians!" The Lieutenant ordered. One by one the civilians were getting on board. "You three and Ramirez! Board the Pelican keep the civvies safe!"
" But sir what abo–"
" I gave you an order! I will man the gun" He interrupted, He then mounted on the turret taking Ramirez's place " Come on Panchods I am RIGHT HERE!!" He screamed. The four troopers then made their way to the ship one manning the gun.
" Sara, Doc get on the Pelican we will cover you" Kelly yelled kicking a grunt in the face.
" Got it!! Good luck Manny stay safe alright" Watson said to receive a painful grunt from him. The two ran and boarded the Pelican which started to lift off. " Is this everybody!?" One trooper yelled.
"Wait don't go just yet my child she is not with us!! She is not here!" A mother frantically cried out " We are also missing another". " Son of a bitch!! Always something!" Ramirez slammed his fist into the wall. " Somebody find the kid!" Marcus ordered.
" I got it! Kelly with me" Makoa replied.
Another grunt then appeared with a plasma cannon. " Shit look out!!" One Marine yelled. Carlos quickly sniped the grunt. However, the grunt was still able to shoot. The explosive plasma barely missed the due to the pilot's quick reaction and crashed into a nearby building. However, the sudden movement caused Sara and Amelia to lose balance and fall out of the pelican. One of the troopers try to grab them but was too late. Everything went into slow motion for Watson She closed her eyes preparing herself for her death as the fall would no doubt kill her.
What was expected to be a hard fall she felt a pair of hands grab hold of her. She opened her eyes to see that Makoa has caught her as Kelly did the same for Sara. " You alright doc!?" Makoa said setting her down.
Before she could reply a faint cry could be heard. Both of them turned to see a child quivering in fear due to the ensuing chaos alongside Rebecca. Makoa quickly ran forward and grabbed the child. " I found the kid lower down the Pelican so we could get her onboard!!" He yelled signaling them.
" He found the kid and set her down!" One of the troopers yelled. The Pelican then descended back. However another bolt of plasma then barely grazed the ship causing the pilot to take evasive action. " I can't set her down too risky!" the pilot yelled.
Makoa then lifted Rebecca alongside girl, one of the troopers tried to reach for her but could barely get her. Another bolt of plasma then came their way causing the pelican to evade once again. " It is now or never!!" The pilot yelled.
Carlos quickly spotted the grunt on top of a destroyed building" Got you, you fucker" He said. He sniped the grunt hitting it's head.
Trying again Makoa lifted the two girls and by mere luck, the trooper was able to get a hold of them and lifted the two into the pelican, and returned the child ran to her mother who engulfed her. The trooper scanned the area and spotted the Doctor and Sara still there " Set us down we still got civvies down there!" The trooper yelled. Once again the Pelican tried to set down only to be shot at again. The plasma rode narrowly missing it. " Fuck it! Get out of here!! get the hell out of here!!" Makoa screamed off the top of his lungs Rebecca Cried and screamed as she did not want to leave him behind. The pilot then ascended and flew the pelican up in the air heading to the frigate.
Relieved Makoa then started firing his weapon again. " Everybody get on the Pelican now!" Marcus ordered. All of the Marines then started dashing to their only escape out of the city. While running Jesus was shot in the shoulder and fell to the ground " I am hit!!" He yelled in pain. Frankie rushed to his side and then picked him up with one arm and started firing his sidearm with his free hand. Carlos and a few Marines set up a perimeter around the dropship and were laying down covering fire as best they could. "Lieutenant! Get your ass in here now."
" No just go!!" He yelled getting hit in the abdomen " I will hold them off!!" he continued firing. He then ripped off his dog tags and threw them to Marcus who caught them with his left hand. Shocked with pleading eyes he looked once more at Singh. "Lieutenant!"
" Just go!" He screamed again.
" Sarge we need to go!" Kelly yelled.
Reluctantly Marcus ran towards the Pelican. When he got inside the pelican started to lift off
" Everybody is on board let's get out of here!!" Carlos screamed sniping an Elite.
The pelican then took off.
Singh turned around one final time and smiled to himself. " Good luck, brothers you live to fight another day," He said to himself. He then continued firing until the turret finally ran out of ammo. He then switched to his rifle and started laying down fire killing a few more aliens. He then got shot in the leg causing him to fall down. " He quickly returned the favor and shot the Grunt in the head. He kept on firing until he finally ran out of ammo and switched to his sidearm
A cloaked Elite then snuck up right behind him and pulled out its energy word. It slowly snuck up once it got close enough it stabbed him through his chest and let out a victorious roar. Singh coughed out blood he slowly reached into his pouch and pulled out a grenade. He pluled the pin and smiled "Dēvatē karanagē" he muttered. The explosion killed him alongside the Elite.
The explosion was seen by everybody in the Pelican. Everybody stood in silence admiring the man's bravery.
2 hours later
" Homie went down with a fight" Makoa whispered. Kelly just sat down in silence including Ash as well. Watson laid her head onto Sara's shoulder and started to cry. While Frankie and the rest of them stayed silent.
Then a faint sound could be heard from all their radios. It couldn't be. Ashley checked again and was ecstatic. " Sarge, our commes are back up again!" She yelled happily the mood suddenly shifting.
" This is Hunter-31 anyone out there," Ash radioed.
After a few brief moments, someone responded.
" This is Captain Jackson of the Paris frigate Massachusetts over."
Ash was beaming with Happiness their commes were finally back up.
" This is Hunter-31 it is good to hear your voice, how are the refugees doing?" She asked.
" The refugees have just arrived a few moments ago according to them if it wasn't for you they wouldn't have made it out alive, and for that they are thankful," He said.
" Tell them no problem and it is just part of the job." She then covered the radio hear that everybody!! The civvies made it!!" She yelled causing everybody to cheer except Stacker who was still holding the dog tags.
" We do have one problem though," The captain said causing Ash to frown.
" And what would the problem be?" She asked.
" Some lady over here is screaming about some guy named. What was it oh Makoa, yeah, she has just been screaming about that name ever since she got here. " He answered.
"Oh I see, can you put her on the radio?" She asked.
" I mean yeah, but may I ask why?" the captain questioned.
" Just do it, it would spare you the headache." She answered. A bit confused the captain relented and went to go grab Rebecca.
" Hey Koa, someone for you on the Radio"
" For me?" Makoa was confused. Ashley simply nodded.
" Damn, Makoa got himself a girlfriend" Carlos whistled to be joined by Frankie and everyone else. Makoa just flipped them off and took the Radio. While everyone else was busy making fun of Makoa, Stacker could not take any more of it. " Can all of you shut up!!" He screamed making everybody go immediately silent. Everybody turned to him to see the sergeant fuming in anger. " In case you haven't noticed we lost a lot of good people today!!" He yelled.
He rubbed his temple in frustration " While all of you are goofing off may I remind you we just lost the city and to put icing on the cake lost Reach!!" He continued.
To hell with it!!" Stacker finished beyond frustrated. No one else dared to say a word nonetheless crack a joke, because the drill sergeant was right Reach was the most important planet second to Earth, with its fall humanity was certainly doomed, all they had left now was Earth. The mood was solemn as the Marines awaited their arrival at the Pillar of Autumn.